I’m an early riser. In fact, I get up waaaay early. Part of that is just being a menopausal old broad, but mostly I get up early because I love the peace and quiet before the world gets going. What I mean by that, is before the teenager rocks the house with the sounds of the computer, the television, the radio, AND his electric guitar all playing at once. Teenagers are wonderful multi-taskers. He can even talk on the phone in the midst of all this. Is this Karma paying me back for the way I was as a teenager?

At any rate, I don’t like noise very much. Usually, I get my cup of coffee and sit on my back porch just as the world is waking. Sometimes Mr. Moon is still shining through the trees, but most of the time I’m out there just at the break of dawn. That’s often when I get a lot of “visitors.” Critters of all kinds come through my backyard. The rabbits, the squirrels, the lizards, and the chaparrals live there. Coyotes, foxes, and an occasional cougar roam through (yes, I said “cougar,” but that’s another story).

A few mornings ago, I saw this turtle on my deck. I think he is just passing through. How he climbed the steps is a mystery to me, but I don’t think he was happy there. Stretching out his neck looking at me, he was almost “posing.” At least, he was until I got the camera. Then, no amount of sweet talking would convince him to come out of that shell. I offered him food; I even offered him my finger. I gave up and just snapped a picture.

I crouched waiting for a long time, but he could wait longer than I chose squat. So, I moved him out in the garden and snapped one last picture.

Look at those photographs and tell me what you see that is good about them. That shouldn’t be too difficult. Please don’t comment on the paint job on my deck! I really painted it two years ago, but the Texas heat blistered the paint. It’s a good thing I like the “weathered look.” Don’t tell me about the weeds I haven’t pulled, either.

I want you to see Only The Good. This is an exercise started by my friend Marcia at Tumbled Words and carried on by her friend Nancy J. Bond. In this world filled with trouble and strife, we need to practice seeing the good in things. I promise if you do this often enough, it will come naturally to you. In fact, I’m even starting to like my weeds!

Think about it. Tell me what you see. Then maybe you will have a picture of your own to post for Only The Good. If you do, come tell me and I will link to your post.

Rosemarie at Miscellaneous Matters added an Only The Good post.

I hope your day is filled with only the good.

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Today many bloggers write for Manic Monday. The word for today was “faith.” I have it (faith, that is), but it’s not something about which I feel comfortable writing. You might find some very good articles if you follow the link. It may even inspire you to write an essay of your own.

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I decided to try Unconscious Mutterings from Luna Nina. again. Supposedly using free association helps you gain a better sense of self. I dunno. But, I’ll give it a whirl. Maybe it will help me figure out which of the voices in my head is the real me talking!

1. Uneven– Asymmetrical
2. Wonder–Amazement
3. Spider– Weaver
4. Emma– Peel
5. Swing — Big Band Music
6. Orbit — Outer Space
7. Flirt — Tease
8. Donation — Charity
9. Veil — Mantilla
10. Atmosphere — Gas

Did that tell you anything? Me neither.
I did post new update for Share A Square.
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Technorati Tags: turtle, photographs, Only The Good, Unconscious Mutterings, Share A Square

On Locust Street in Denton, TX, there is a tiny little convenience store called Zoom Zoom’s. Built back in 1929 as a gas station, it’s still a going concern (although I think just barely). The place doesn’t look very impressive if you are just driving past it, and most people just zoom on by it without looking.

But, stop and get out of the car. Go and look at the walls closely. They are made of petrified wood.

I can’t imagine where the builders found that much petrified wood, I’ve only found tiny pieces of it through the years. Unfortunately, I know no more of the establishment’s history. I love to look at this little place, because it brings to mind what Denton must have been like all those decades ago. I guess I need to stop and buy something at Zoom Zoom’s now and then, to make certain they don’t go out of business. I would hate to have developers come and tear the place down. Developer’s are sucking the beauty right out of small towns like mine.

Look at those pictures and tell me what you see that is good about them. Don’t tell me anything negative—Only The Good. This is an exercise started by my friend Marcia at Tumbled Words and carried on by her friend Nancy J. Bond. If you practice seeing the positive enough times, it will carry over into your everyday life.

Think about it. Tell me what you see. Then maybe you will have a picture of your own to post for Only The Good. If you do, come tell me and I will link to your post.

I hope your day is filled with only the good.

Technorati Tags: Denton, TX, Zoom Zoom’s, petrified wood, Only The Good

He’s all bug-eyed, isn’t he? I was out and about here in Denton, Texas putting up posters for the upcoming Share A Square Day. At the Visual Arts Center, as I walked through the shade of the trees, I glanced down at the sidewalk to see this fella looking up at me. I don’t know what kind of beetle he might be, do any of you entomologists out there have a name for him? No? Well, we can give him a name right here. I’ll let y’all work on that. You will notice that those are not his eyes, though at first glance, I thought they were.

I thought he was beautiful, and just had to have a photograph. I want you to look at this photograph and see Only The Good. Don’t just say, “Ick! A bug!” Think about him for a minute. He’s not a harmful bug. I looked up “beetles” at Wickipedia and this is part of what they had to say:

Beetles make up the most species of insects. The order Coleoptera, means “sheathed wing”, and contains more described species in it than in any other order in the animal kingdom. Forty percent of all described insect species are beetles (about 350,000 species), and new species are frequently discovered. Estimates put the total number of species, described and undescribed, at between 5 and 8 million.

Now look at him for a moment, and think of something nice to say about him. If you’ve never visited me to play this game, it’s one that was started by my friend Marcia at Tumbled Words and carried on by her friend Nancy J. Bond. I know that my friend Mo, at Inside Mo’s Mind, occasionally posts a picture, too.

It’s a simple exercise in seeing the positive. We don’t do that often enough. If you will take a moment and just think about the positive in any situation, you can find it, but we have to train ourselves to do that. So contemplate this bug-eyed beetle. Tell me what you think. Remember, only the good. And, while you are at it, give him a name! Then, you can go out into your own world and try to see only the good!

Technorati Tags: Denton, Texas, beetle, photograph, only the good