Drift Off to Dream - Adaptation

This is an adaptation of the Travis Tritt song. 

Imagine "not country music" though 

I sit here surrounded by people and lights

Alone in my thoughts , drifting afar

You've been here forever, so clear in my mind

I just don't know where you are

I know I'll find you but boy'til I do

This is my love song for you

Let's hold hands on the porch swing, under the moon

While the wind in the trees will play us a tune

We can lie on the trampoline, out back in the yard

And look into the past at a faraway star

You'll feel the passion as time after time

I press your sweet lips to mine

Then we'll dance to some music, right up until dawn

Until you drift off to sleep in my arms

You might be hundreds or more miles away

Or you might be just down the street

But there'll be a hunger deep in your eyes

That I'll notice as soon as we meet

It might just take hours or it might take some years

But this is the song that you'll hear

Let's hold hands on the porch swing, under the moon

While the wind in the trees will play us a tune

We can lie on the trampoline, out back in the yard

And look into the past at a faraway star

You'll feel the passion as time after time

I press your sweet lips to mine

Then we'll dance to some music, right up until  dawn

Until you drift off to sleep in my arms

Children

On Children

 Kahlil Gibran
Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might
that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.

Jimmy Rosenberg - I'll See You In My Dreams

Aquascape

A fish aquarium can seriously turn into an artwork. I'm particularly inspired by these

Beach Shag Dance

I'd skip ahead to minute 1

2016 New Years Resolutions

1. Design and help build my own kitchen table
2. Read at least one new book a month
3. Increase vocabulary (i think this will come with reading more anyhow)
4. Start a family fun night
5. Take one painting lesson
6. Take one dance lesson
7. Take one wood working lesson 
8. Learn a new song on the guitar or piano
9. Sew something for my first niece/nephew ever
10. Eat a fresh/raw vegetable at least once a day (I normally only eat them cooked or in form of juice)
11. Exercise 3-5 times per week
12. Take vitamins every day, including omega 
13. Get (and keep) everything in the house more organized
14. Do at least one side job outside of my main job (entrepreneurial work) 
15. Pay off credit card
16. Build up 3 months income in savings
17. Make a family cookbook
18. Floss every day
19. Brush before bed
20. Volunteer
21. Actively work on improving relationships with those I'm closest to
22. Stop cussing
23. Develop  habit of changing negative thoughts into positive ones
24. Drink at least one glass of water a day

Who's My Pretty Baby

I'd never heard this song before until I was looking for a sound track for the background on a short video blurb of my son walking for the first time. Just think it's such as cute and sweet little song though. Have listened to it about 100 times in a row now. I'm hooked on her now (Elizabeth Mitchell)

Inspirational Music

For me, this one is not at all to do with card games but rather life


This one's more to do with the song and less about the video


I'll admit, I'm torn. I LOVE Tommy Emmanual but I also REALLY like the original and simpler version of this song by Mason Williams.

Tulip Fields In Holland

My very kind neighbor gave us his collection of bird books before he died and in one of them was this nice quote. "For in the end, we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand, and we will understand only what we're taught" - Baba Dioum

Power of Prayer

The power of this photograph. 100,000 Buddhist monks in prayer for a better world.

Native American Legend of the Three Sisters

I'm planting this garden and writing this post for my two sweet sisters for National Sibling Appreciation day. The Native American legend of the Three Sisters vary between tribes, but this particular story is from Lois Thomas of Cornwall Island found in "Indian Legends of Eastern Canada".

Three Sisters Garden - Corn, Beans, Squash

The Three Sisters Legend

A long time ago there were three sisters who lived together in a field. These sisters were quite different from one another in their size and way of dressing. The little sister was so young that she could only crawl at first, and she was dressed in green. The second sister wore a bright yellow dress, and she had a way of running off by herself when the sun shone and the soft wind blew in her face. The third was the eldest sister, standing always very straight and tall above the other sisters and trying to protect them. She wore a pale green shawl, and she had long, yellow hair that tossed about her head in the breeze. There was one way the sisters were all alike, though. They loved each other dearly, and they always stayed together. This made them very strong. One day a stranger came to the field of the Three Sisters - a Mohawk boy. He talked to the birds and other animals - this caught the attention of the three sisters. Late that summer, the youngest and smallest sister disappeared. Her sisters were sad. Again the Mohawk boy came to the field to gather reeds at the water's edge. The two sisters who were left watched his moccasin trail, and that night the second sister - the one in the yellow dress - disappeared as well. Now the Elder Sister was the only one left. She continued to stand tall in her field. When the Mohawk boy saw that she missed her sisters, he brought them all back together and they became stronger together, again.

 

The Iroquois Legend of the Three Sisters

Erney, Diana. 1996. Long live the Three Sisters. Organic Gardening. November. p. 37-40. The term “Three Sisters” emerged from the Iroquois creation myth. It was said that the earth began when “Sky Woman” who lived in the upper world peered through a hole in the sky and fell through to an endless sea. The animals saw her coming, so they took the soil from the bottom of the sea and spread it onto the back of a giant turtle to provide a safe place for her to land. This “Turtle Island” is now what we call North America. Sky woman had become pregnant before she fell. When she landed, she gave birth to a daughter. When the daughter grew into a young woman, she also became pregnant (by the West wind). She died while giving birth to twin boys. Sky Woman buried her daughter in the “new earth.” From her grave grew three sacred plants—corn, beans, and squash. These plants provided food for her sons, and later, for all of humanity. These special gifts ensured the survival of the Iroquois people. 

Three Sisters Garden

The Three Sisters Garden is a technique where corn, pole beans, and vining squash are all three grown together on a mound. The three benefit each other where the corn provides a pole for the bean to climb. The bean provides nitrogen for the other plants, and the squash shades the ground later in the season preventing other weed growth and the mound from getting too hot.

Source:
http://www.birdclan.org/threesisters.htm

Rebirth

Phoenix Rebirth

“My sun sets to rise again.” 
― Robert Browning

Quote

"To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow" - Audrey Hepburn

2013 New Years Resolutions

Since I didn't post 2012's resolutions until September, I don't feel THAT  bad that I only finished about 25% and that I'm reusing the same list (almost). With that said, here's 2013's new years resolutions with some slight modifications.

PERSONAL ENRICHMENT
1. Try out one of my business ideas (or develop a new one and try it)
2. Make a farm fruits cookbook (several for each fruit type we grow).
3. Learn to sew - sewed a baby crib fitted sheet
4. Learn a new word starting with every word of the alphabet
   • Bees Knees - urban slang for awesome. That's the bees knees.
   • Chuffed - pleased with one's self. Presidential candidates are often chuffed with themselves for having proposed a solution to a problem, but typically lack substance or details on how to go about it.
   • Effeminate - marked by an unbecoming delicacy or overrefinement, having feminine qualities untypical of a man, not manly in appearance or manner.  
   • Frenetic - frenzied or frantic. I become frenetic, at times, when talking about topics important to me.
   • Nebulous - Lacking definite form, shape, or content. The Brooklyn Free School has a nebulous curriculum
   • Prodigious - Remarkably or impressively great in extent, size, or degree. D’Souza is a prodigious author of conservative tomes.
   • Revile - to criticize in an abusive or angrily insulting manner. Overspending during the current administration was reviled at the New Orleans Investment Conference. 
   • Troubadour - 11th-13th century poets in France, Spain, and Italy who composed songs of love.  
5. Take a dance class
6. Get flexible enough to lay my head and chest on legs (and maybe even do the splits, or almost)
7. Learn a new song on guitar
8. Learn a new song on the piano
9. Read 1 new non-fiction book - Read Deep Nutrition
10. Read 1 new classic 
11. Stop watching tv more than 1 day in a row
12. Brush teeth at least twice/day
13. Floss everytime I brush
14. Don't cuss ever
    
    FAMILY
15. Help daughter learn to drive a stick shift
16. Decorate nursery
17. Create a family cookbook
18. Find family history for Dad's dad
19. Sew something for baby
20. At least once per month, call an out of town family member on the phone
21. Take more photos of family
22. Have a family fun night (when not band/football season w/ practice and competition every night of week)
23. Start walking/hiking with mom and dad at least once/ 1 week
    
    FOOD
24. Encorporate fruits or veggies into breakfast every morning trying to include protein
25. Make hot breakfast at least every other day
26. Make homemade kefir
27. Try 3 new recipes by Julia Childs and/or Jacques Pepin
28. Try 3 new recipes from Cooking
29. Hunt (or at least obtain) a decent quantity of deer meat
30. Make homemade baby food
31. Make homemade pizza dough
32. Make cheese
33. Make sauerkraut
34. Try several recipes from the cookbook Mark got me for Christmas
    
    NEED TODO
35. Organize photos on computer and make sure they're all online
36. Save up and maintain 3 months salary in bank/savings account
37. Clean out closet
38. Pay off credit card
39. Backup anything important from pc to offline hard-drive
    
    FARMING
40. Start and plant asparagus seed
41. Start and plant Louisiana Iris seeds
42. Start and plant pomegranate seeds
43. Plant another variety of pecan
44. Plant another variety of fig
45. Plant 2 more varieties of plum
46. Have a stand at farmers market at least once
47. Clean up 10 more fallen trees
48. Double the size of the cutting flower bed
49. Aquire a manure source (or other cheap organic fertilizer source)
50. Prune fruit trees
51. Add fresh layer of mulch around all trees
52. Build a shed
53. Plant heirloom garlic
    
    NICE THINGS FOR OTHERS:
54. Do 3 nice things for other people, 1 for hubby
55. Be more encouraging
56. Write a letter to someone. Sent out several thank you notes plus a letter to Aunt Janice
57. Send a care package to someone
    
    OTHER
58. List 10 things that make me smile
59. Go to beach
60. Take 4 seasonal pictures of the property in the same place

Resolutions

PERSONAL ENRICHMENT
1. Try out one of my business ideas (or develop a new one and try it)
2. Make a farm fruits cookbook (several for each fruit type we grow).
3. Learn to sew - sewed a baby crib fitted sheet
4. Learn a new word starting with every word of the alphabet
   • Bees Knees - urban slang for awesome. That's the bees knees.
   • Chuffed - pleased with one's self. Presidential candidates are often chuffed with themselves for having proposed a solution to a problem, but typically lack substance or details on how to go about it.
   • Effeminate - marked by an unbecoming delicacy or overrefinement, having feminine qualities untypical of a man, not manly in appearance or manner.  
   • Frenetic - frenzied or frantic. I become frenetic, at times, when talking about topics important to me.
   • Nebulous - Lacking definite form, shape, or content. The Brooklyn Free School has a nebulous curriculum
   • Prodigious - Remarkably or impressively great in extent, size, or degree. D’Souza is a prodigious author of conservative tomes.
   • Revile - to criticize in an abusive or angrily insulting manner. Overspending during the current administration was reviled at the New Orleans Investment Conference. 
   • Troubadour - 11th-13th century poets in France, Spain, and Italy who composed songs of love.  
5. Take a dance class
6. Get flexible enough to lay my head and chest on legs (and maybe even do the splits, or almost)
7. Learn a new song on guitar
8. Learn a new song on the piano
9. Read 1 new non-fiction book - Read Deep Nutrition
10. Read 1 new classic
11. Stop watching tv more than 1 day in a row
12. Brush teeth at least twice/day
13. Floss everytime I brush
    
    FAMILY
14. Help daughter learn to drive a stick shift
15. Decorate nursery
16. Create a family cookbook
17. Find family history for Dad's dad
18. Sew something for baby
19. At least once per month, call an out of town family member on the phone
20. Take more photos of family
21. Have a family fun night (when not band/football season w/ practice and competition every night of week)
22. Start walking/hiking with mom and dad at least once/ 1 week
    
    FOOD
23. Encorporate fruits or veggies into breakfast every morning trying to include protein
24. Make hot breakfast at least every other day
25. Make homemade kefir
26. Try 3 new recipes by Julia Childs and/or Jacques Pepin
27. Try 3 new recipes from Cooking
28. Hunt (or at least obtain) a decent quantity of deer meat
29. Make homemade baby food
30. Make homemade pizza dough
31. Make cheese
32. Make sauerkraut
33. Juice at least 1/week
    
    NEED TODO
34. Organize photos on computer and make sure they're all online
35. Save up and maintain 3 months salary in bank/savings account
36. Clean out closet
37. Pay off credit card
38. Backup anything important from pc to offline hard-drive
    
    FARMING
39. Start and plant asparagus seed
40. Start and plant Louisiana Iris seeds
41. Start and plant pomegranate seeds
42. Plant another variety of pecan
43. Plant another variety of fig
44. Plant 2 more varieties of plum
45. Have a stand at farmers market at least once
46. Clean up 10 more fallen trees
47. Double the size of the cutting flower bed
48. Aquire a manure source (or other cheap organic fertilizer source)
49. Prune fruit trees
50. Add fresh layer of mulch around all trees
51. Obtain a trailer for hauling
52. Plant heirloom garlic
    
    NICE THINGS FOR OTHERS:
53. Do 3 nice things for other people, 1 for hubby
54. Be more encouraging
55. Write a letter to someone
56. Send a care package to someone
    
    OTHER
57. List 10 things that make me smile
58. Go to beach
59. Take 4 seasonal pictures of the property in the same place
60. Procrastinate less (thus waiting till September to post resolutions)