Almost Wordless Wednesday

From our dear friend, Adam Bridge, who was a great help to Steve after he was moved to Skilled Nursing at Christmastime. This was originally posted on Adam's Instagram account and when it came up on my feed, I was immediately reduced to tears. Deeply meaningful and moving.

"Remembering Steve Barbour. He loved Paris. This is my last image of Steve along with a photo of Paris by Lluis Ripoll used by permission. I like to think he is always, now, in Paris. City of Light. Hail and farewell, my friend." Adam Bridge

Art Saves Souls

"Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life." ~ Pablo Picasso. I urge you to take a few minutes and watch this video. Look at these smiling kid faces, see the love and joy that a safe space and creative expression gives them. Help them get their new Art House.

You'll feel great. Promise.



Every neighborhood should have an Art House for kids! What a different world this would be. See this: Art Saves.

RIP Mr. Mandela

There is such sweet humanity in this face.  His countenance reminds me of the Dali Lama.  His story is one of the greatest I've heard in my lifetime.  And now he has slipped the bonds of earth and we are left bereft.  I am stunned that he lived to be 95 years old -- after all he risked and all he had been through.  If I believed in super-natural forces, I'd say he had a guardian angel.  There will be many many tributes to this man in the coming days.  Bring it on.  The world needs to mourn and celebrate this great life.

TGIF

It's an exciting day for me:  I'm moving into an apartment on Monday.  So this Friday I will be securing boxes and tape and gettin' to it.  Until my date tonight.  Then, back at this packing thing on Saturday.

I've been living with my folks for 2+ years, and while it has helped all of us, it's time for me to move on.  Just down the street.  I envision dancing around my kitchen naked.  Playing The Cliks at top volume.  NOT listening to Fox Noise even from the other room.  Not having dad hover over my cooking in the kitchen.  When the crazy right wing talk starts I can go to my own home.

And I can throw my date down on the couch and ..... without my parents upstairs.  I can burn incense and chant all I want.  Yeah, well, there are neighbors upstairs, and to the right and left, so I can't go completely balls out here.

This all came about very quickly -- found it, got approved and signed a year lease, secured the movers, all in one day.  It is by far the nicest apartment I've seen in my months of looking.  In fact, I was so discouraged about what I was finding out there that I decided, two months ago, to stay where I was.  Then, a casual walk around the neighborhood and there it was:  a crazy 1960's apartment building that doesn't look too thrilling on the outside, but inside the apartment, it felt like home.  My home.

That's the report from the front lines of a middle-aged lesbian who has been living with her parents waaayyyy too long.  Wish me luck.

Gratitude

From Tiny Buddha:

5. You from five years ago had nothing on present-you. 

Every time I look back just a few years I have this smile on my face. I look at the socially awkward past-Vincent, the guy just trying to figure life out. Then I say, wow, I was a doofus!

Guess what? A few years ago when I did the same retrospection I thought the same thing to myself. Every time you look back you sort of cringe and wonder how you were so _______.

Imagine five years from now. You’re going to change so much (hopefully for the better) and you’ll realize you’ve grown a lot.

Okay, so now I'm stuck with this chesty cold/flu thing and I'm not happy one bit.  But then I read this article from Vincent Nyguen and my faith is restored.  Me, five years ago, was a struggling mess.  A job I had come to hate, a wife that was falling down the hole of addiction and alcoholism, feeling overwhelmed and drinking too much alcohol  to smooth out the rough edges.  There were a lot of rough edges.

Today, I am grateful to say, I am sober, I have jettisoned that job, my life is simpler and more serene, and I am happily single.  I guess I hit my bottom somewhere in there, though I couldn't describe the moment.  It was more like an accumulation of moments.  Crappy moments.  I am grateful to my ex-wife who supported me in my decision to retire early.  That was a life-saver.  And I'm grateful now to have a small but lovely place to live, good food to nourish my body, all the basics taken care of.

I am grateful for my therapist, who is also a Buddhist Lama, and who gently sets me straight when needs be.  I am grateful for the friends I  have surrounding me, playing with me, walking with me through this life.

There is much to be grateful for, and I am.  And to think this morning started out with me feeling a tad sorry for myself, what with my lingering cold and all.  Pish Posh.

Helen Keller and Sir Thomas

Happy National Dog Day!  A day to recognize and cherish our darling companions who make us smile and melt our hearts on a daily basis.