Rules for living for DAH to include addressing diet, exercise, and money. For diet, stick to three meals a day. My diet should include no snacks and no desserts, and increase green vegetables. Alcohol should be only on Friday and Saturday evenings, plus “special occasions.” Those occasions would include meals out, with guests, and tastings. Exercise should include some sort of walking every day, working up to 10,000 steps or more daily. That ought to take at least 90 minutes a day. Finally, money. First, establish a budget for everything. Second, buy nothing not included in the budget. Get out of credit card debt.
It was overcast in Ukiah yesterday. Today, we have light showers. We’re getting the long tendrils of Hurricane (now Tropical Storm) Hilary. They’re stretching up from soggy Southern California. I’m back in cool weather garb with a knit anorak. Still thinking about a trip south to Santa Rosa. Not that I need to shop there, nor that I have errands or appointments. It’s more the sense of getting out and away. The weather might be cool enough today to warrant a trip. I’ll have to check with CHance to see if she fancies an outing. Lunch out would be fun if I can find an appealing spot.
Verbicide is a noun that’s been in use since 1858. But it came to my attention in a piece by C. S. Lewis (in his Studies in Words). According to Merriam-Webster, verbicide is …
1: deliberate distortion or destruction of the sense of a word
2: one who distorts or destroys the sense of a word
Lewis wrote, “The greatest cause of verbicide is the fact that most people are obviously far more anxious to express their approval and disapproval of things than to describe them.”
Lewis died some 60 years ago, but I’d say not much has changed, particularly in public discourse.
Saturday working at the California Welcome Center. I took a walk through the Farmers Market before settling in this morning. Color film photographs with the Yashica T5. The market looked pretty good. Enough vendors, produce, and products. I chatted with the lady working at the Dancing Crow wine booth. She mentioned picnicking. Tasting and an alfresco lunch would be fun. Judy has expressed interested in tasting with us. Dancing Crow in Hopland and Pennyroyal in Boonville seem like good choices. The week ahead looks OK. I could do without having appointments for me or CHance almost every day. I don’t know what to do about that in the future.
Friday’s TheThereThere letter launched. A focus on expanding the subscriber base (target 200+?) is called for. There’s a new project for me. Today I have my first “full weekend” of hours at the California Welcome Center. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, with the hours shorter each day. I have next week’s TheThereThere almost complete. It needs the book report fleshing out. Over the weekend, I’ll begin the following week’s edition. It’s stress-reducing to have an extra “in the can.” Although I do sometimes lose track of which subjects are ready in a particular week. That’s expected if I compose and layout a week or two in advance.
Am I silly to try visual arts (drawing, painting) again? Perhaps. But I’m going to give it a shot anyway. I want to look closely and carefully at things. Working to show what I see is likely to be a challenge, since I’m without practice. Give it a go, though, and it will fit alongside my casual film photography efforts. I’ve a nice selection of new-to-me (used) point-and-shoot film cameras that ought to keep me busy. I must resist expanding this collection, already too large. And I need to organize my back garden tiny office space to accommodate drawing and painting.
I’m reading “Wonder Switch” by Harris III. This book got cracked open before two books about awe. Those awe books await my attention. But Harris suggests that wonder and awe aren’t the same. He writes that experiencing awe (like looking into the Grand Canyon) needn’t seem magic. A sense of wonder is a sense of magic in the world. Yet there’s another book distracting me. I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t have another book lurking. “At Home on an Unruly Planet: Finding Refuge on a Changed Earth,” by Madeline Ostrander. This one fits my interest in home, and how we define it. So, I’ll read both at once, then on to awe.
We drove to San Luis Obispo and Morro Bay last weekend. A couple of overnights at the Bay View Inn in Morro Bay provided us Morro Rock views and time beside the sea. Our focus was “Loves Labours Lost” performed by the Central Coast Shakespeare Festival. With Kelly and Peter (and Kelly’s sister Kim) on Saturday evening for Shakespeare. But we had an unexpected treat on Friday evening. We had supper with Kelly and Peter at Piadini in Hotel San Luis (stylish, casual). We ran into old friends from SLORep, heading for their opening of “Stones in His Pockets.” Hugs all around, even after our decade away. Very sweet. I miss the Central Coast.
Today will be hot. We’ve got a heat-wave going through Wednesday or Thursday. Thereafter, we drop back below a high temperature of 100F. The next few days look practical for reading indoors, after about 10:00 or 11:00 AM. Now, earlier in the morning, I can visit my back garden office and try a little writing and camera perusing. And a moment ago I had a camera-win, with help from YouTube. I now know how to open the back of my new (used) Rollei B35. A tricky process I couldn’t have figured out on my own. Yesterday evening I discovered several “favorite” point-and-shoot film cameras. One of which I forgot I owned.
It’s 92F outdoors at 8:00 PM this evening. My back garden office is at least 10 degrees warmer. And yet here I sit. Christine and I just watched the movie “The Lost King.” An amateur historian pursues the remains of King Richard III. This lost king was under a Leicester (England car park, unacknowledged, for some 500 years. The experts (almost all men) don’t believe the amateur. They steal her thunder and pretend the finding was all their doing. I entered the oven of my office this evening looking for the book that inspired the movie. “The King’s Grave: The Search for Richard III,” by Phillipa Langley (the amateur historian) and Michael Jones.
This is my first time writing 100 words on the road. Today, I’m in a hotel room in Morro Bay CA. I’m next to an open window. I can feel a breeze off the harbor. I can see the base of Morro Rock. Fog still obscures the top. I’m hoping for some sun today for my new film photography shots. I wonder if my cameras actually work. Seems like the Yashica T5 with its battery fresh is OK. I do not know if the selenium metering on this Olympus Trip is working or not. We’ll see. Also, I miss my dogs.
I’m already missing my dogs. Two lovely ladies of the floor: Tinker and Lucy. We won’t leave for another 90 minutes. And that’s not enough time to chill with the little hairy beasts. I like it best when they can travel with us. That doesn’t always work. What if we’re spending time in hotels, restaurants, and shops where dogs aren’t welcome? Today we’ll leave them at home with a last-minute substitute dog sitter. Who seems lovely and perfect. I’ve decided it’s a good thing that Christine’s grandson had to cancel at the last minute. And thank you, granddaughter Stephanie, for suggesting a replacement.
We’re getting ready for a road trip. Five-and-a-half hours each way. It’s a route we used to take often. And it’s likely we will again, now that we’re back in Ukiah. We’ll see our friends Kelly and Peter for Friday supper out in San Luis Obispo. Then we’ll join them on Saturday to witness Central Coast Shakespeare. It’s “Love’s Labours Lost” closing weekend. LLL was the last show I performed in for Central Coast Shakespeare, years ago. The company was still performing in Paso Robles then. Now at Filipponi Ranch at the south edge of SLO. I’m loathe to plan anything else this weekend. I’d rather like to tourist around with CHance.
We got hit with an unexpected $5,000 bill yesterday. Our share of our neighbors’ new fence. The expense isn’t unexpected, but we have no way to prepare for it. There’s a $20,000 tax bill coming due. My attention must focus on how to pay that. Money is a problem. Our credit card debt continues to grow. Each time we have unexpected large expenses, we delay paying our credit cards down. The only solution I can see is to cut back purchasing of everything. Cut it back to the bone. Focus on paying off debt. It will take years to get to zero, and I’m sad that we likely won’t be going to England anytime soon.
Unpacking is never fun. There are moving-packed boxes in my man-hut office that I’m trying to empty. Most of the boxes are heavy, because they contain chunks of antique metal. Old-school film cameras from Dad’s collection. We packed some of the boxes in 2018. Working with them has inspired me to go on a new camera buying jag. Three new film cameras ordered! All inexpensive. I’m starting with easy point-and-shoots, for now. It’s been too long since I worked with more sophisticated cameras. And I’ve run into a new obstacle. I ordered (months ago) pegboard-mounted shelves for camera display. I’ve discovered that the included brackets and shelves are of different sizes. They don’t work together. Phooey.
I’ve finished another of my gratitude books. “The Gratitude Diaries: How a Year Looking on the Bright Side Can Transform Your Life”, by Janice Kaplan. It was a New York Times best-seller. A gentle and pleasing book, it tracks a year of Kaplan’s life. New Year’s Eve to New Year’s Eve exploring how gratitude can make every aspect of life more positive. It’s a gentle read, with plenty of expert opinion and gratitude research. Kaplan shares her personal experiences trying out gratitude with family, friends, and colleagues. Now I must finish “Four Thousand Weeks” by Oliver Burkeman. I’ll finish up my gratitude reading project with Ross Gay’s “Inciting Joy” book of essays.
Sunday at the Welcome Center. And I left my lunch at home. There’s not much point making something, then leaving it behind. I have a few snacks with me, so I’ll muddle through. I expect a quiet day. Sundays haven’t been busy. There’s nothing much open downtown, so there are fewer sidewalk strollers. Heidi will be here for the Mendocino Bounty shop. I hope she has some business. I’ve also neglected to report my greatest gratitude this week. My oncologist, Dr. Kanaan, reports that my CT Scans were “good.” There’s not much more that a cancer patient can hope for.
Today I’m back at the Ukiah Conference Center. Staffing the California Welcome Center booth is my gig for today. We got off to a rugged beginning. There’s a large conference going on in the largest meeting rooms. Lots of people wandering around. Our office was open and equipment was missing. All recovered, but it made for anxious opening moments. Now I need to get back on track. I have yet to do my to-do list. The unexpected activity has chased my to-dos from my mind. Breath, DAH, breath. Set aside the distractions, DAH, and buckle down. May tomorrow (Sunday) be an easier day!
I have a lunch meeting today with Jon and Sal. They’re my partners in A Gardener’s Path. That’s the wine brand we created together a few years ago. I’m not an active partner. Not any longer. When I sold Winery GM Selections LLC in April 2022, Sal established a winery bond. That gave him more wine buying and selling flexibility. But it’s been a long time (two years?) since we’ve met in person. Today, we’ll catch up and see if there’s anything I can do to help. It’s a road trip to the City of Sonoma for lunch! I’m grateful.
I forgot to include in my recent post this from Rudy Gay’s “The Book of Delights” (page 135). “This caretaking is our default mode and it’s always a lie that convinces us to act or believe otherwise. Always.” That helped me understand Gay’s meaning of “delight.”
Still on the subject of gratitude. I’m well-into Janice Kaplan’s “The Gratitude Diaries” now. It’s a pleasant and thoughtful read. I expect I’ll finish in the next few days. Unless I get completely distracted by my simple gratitude journal. It’s scheduled to arrive today. My intention is to write every evening before bed. Hoping it helps me sleep happy!
I’m reading more and don’t know why. I always have a couple of books going. But I’m getting through them faster. Now I’m thinking about my (our) extensive library. We don’t know how many books, but it takes up lots of shelves in several rooms. It’s got to get it organized, somehow. I’m not sure how to get started, because there’s so much. One cost of not getting organized is pursuing books I already own. Another is missing out reading interesting and entertaining books. Why? Because I’ve lost them on the shelves. Similar (but more limited) problem with cameras. More on that tomorrow.
I’ve read all the “essayettes” in Ross Gay’s “The Book of Delights.” I’ve cracked into Janice Kaplan’s “The Gratitude Diaries.” Gay’s “The Book of Delights” was surprising. I had to read all 102 entries before I had a good handle on what he meant when he identified a “delight.” They didn’t all seem delightful, at least at first. And Mr. Gay is a very different person than me. Some things that would have disturbed me didn’t seem to bother him at all. That’s sort of the point of me reading these books. I’m gaining new perspectives on gratitude. And I’ve a modest daily gratitude diary arriving this week.
It’s easy to purchase inexpensive things. Computer cables, used books, toothpaste. It’s easy to purchase things I’ve already got. I think to myself, “I might already have it.” But searching and seeking isn’t my favorite household activity. I might buy the darn thing. It’s easy. Today, I took a few minutes to look for a long printer cable, colored plastic tape I use for labeling such, and a computer program. I found all three in less than five minutes. That saved me unnecessarily spending $175. There’s a lot I’d do if I knew I could make or save $25 per minute.
I’m sharing, with permission, the Three CS from David Kadavy’s 100-WORD WRITING HABIT. Visit David’s website to learn more: kadavy.net. I’m writing in 100word blocks, publishing seven days a week, here or TheThereThere. I love three. I love alliteration. I could apply the Three CS to any practice.
“Here’s how you’d work on one C at a time:
Consistency: Write consistently, don’t worry about publishing it, nor whether it’s any good.
Confidence: Once you’re writing consistently, publish consistently, without worrying about quality.
Craft: Once you’re confident enough to publish consistently, focus on making the writing good.”
I’m still getting my feet under with my Ukiah California Welcome Center job. One more regular workday during the week could help with getting a rhythm. At the same time, I’m inspired by two other projects. The first is the book I keep thinking about and outlining, to conjure Genius Loci using my “three points” planning method. I think I could write that in 100 word blocks, which would be an fun exercise. The second project is beginning a “David Hance PR” business built around writing and distributing press releases in three specific areas: Food & Drink, Arts, and Destination promotion.