up early...

... and don't know why. It is, I suppose, a combination of the change of time, when my brain has yet to catch up with that adjustment made by 'falling back' from Daylight Savings to what ever is 'normal'... and just not sleeping well. When you have to physically get the clock down off the wall, and turn it over to reset the hour hand because the government made the decision for you: it seems ridiculous. Or get the book out of the glove box and find the page that tells you how to reset the digital numbers on the dash of your vehicle so your eyes don't deceive you every time you check the clock. It is so aggravating... And then there is the part where, after all the clocks are reset, you can start griping about how it gets dark soooo early in the evening.

But you will most certainly be out of step with the rest of the nation and society in general if you don't make the shift on all your time pieces. It just takes much longer for your brain to adjust to that change. Possibly due to the reduced levels of some chemical the brain is supposed to manufacture: not having been reset for sending out messages to say 'don't get up, no reason to jump out of bed!' I expect to get up early on days I have to be at work before daylight, walking in the door ready to jump in at 5 or 6 a.m.

But on days when there is nothing demanding in my life, it would be a treat to turn over and go back to sleep, get a bit more rest before starting daily activities. I could read, and stay in that nice warm space for hours - but there is the Guilt Factor: you are not being productive when there are always chores that should be accomplished.

I've got little things on  my calendar for the rest of the week, but nothing major: doctor's appt. with spouse, lunch date with a friend, odds and ends that don't take up the whole day. Work has been so slow, I have finished with the little bit of schedule  for the week, leaving me sort of at loose ends as I was only assigned ten hours. Odd to find that labor hours have been so reduced as we barrel into the holiday season, a time of gluttony and increased sales in retail grocery business. I know it will pick up, and can expect plenty of paid employment in the upcoming days and weeks... as well as a few pounds from consuming things I should not be putting in my mouth!

living in...

... the land of the free and the home of the brave comes with obligations.If you did not exercise your rights on Nov. 6, you do not get to gripe about what choices the majority of the citizens made. I had the best intentions about getting to the polls early. Meant to take advantage of the opportunity to go to the Citizens Service Center and cast my ballot over several weeks prior to the actual official Election Day. But I dragged my feets, and though there were literally weeks of opportunity, it didn't happen.

Meaning I had to go yesterday, and stand in line. A number of people who were already there, as well as many who came in behind me commented on how smart I was to have a book handy. I did  not tell them I always have reading material on hand. I did not say: "If I was really smart,I would not be here at all." I did not say "I started to do this last Friday, but the parking lot was so full I would not go and wait in line for two hours." I did  not ask: "Do you want me to read to you while we wait?" as many were scrolling through junk on their phones, or playing games on electronics whiling away the time.

The wait was only about thirty minutes. Which was not bad, due to the fact that I have been reading on a book that is hard to put down. Then I saw someone I know working the polls, so we started a conversation. I asked him how he got the job, and he responded it takes no skill. And the  most minimal of training. All he was doing was pointing the next patron in  line to the recently abandoned voting machine. Where you go and insert your card, make your choices, remove your card and return it to the poll worker, who then gives you a peach 'Georgia voter' sticker.

I surprised myself by going through the choices on the ballot and pretty much trying to put Democrats in all the jobs that were open for change. I tend to try to get the incumbents out, thinking anyone in office has gotten too comfortable, sitting in that cushy chair, living on government pay. I did  not realize so many of the people I am supporting with my tax dollars are fat-cat Republicans. Have not heard any news this morning. In fact have not heard a sound other than cars making their way down the street accelerating towards workplace. But I sincerely hope there were enough people who think it is time for a change that there will be new people in places of responsibility and decision making next year.

I saw a sign in front of a church recently that was very thought-y: If the Elephant and the Donkey have let you down, turn to the Lamb.

263.5...

... miles from Mr. Homer's house in SC to my carport. Plus I drove up to SC early this morning, after spending the night in Decatur. So I guess I will  go to bed now...due to having to go to work in the morning.

painting again...

... on little faces today when I have a volunteer job at a nature center on the south edge of town. The facility is run (and possibly owned) by Columbus State University, at least that is their primary funding source, though I believe it was initially developed and supported by the city/county government and possibly various environmental organizations. Designed to preserve natural habitat for study and protection of some of the native species, there are a number of animals (incarcerated) for visitors to see, observe, possibly interact with in the sense of stroking or petting reptiles that might be considered fairly inert. Amphibians such as turtles, insects like hairy spiders, reptiles that might be (harmless) snakes. None of which I will be in the proper frame of mind to handle.

My job assignment is to help' man' a booth/table representing the local Master Gardening group, sponsored by the University of Georgia School of Agriculture. There is a good likelihood there will be printed matter that provides info. about various native species, habitat, environmental preservation as well as promotional flyers to recruit for the next class of gardeners, sponsored by the county agent's office. I will go and answer a few questions, and refer others to the people who are much more active andbetter informed, with me being one of the few volunteers who is still employed rather than retired.

The purpose of this event is awareness, to invite the community to come and visit the site, learn more about the programs, entice them to return and support the facility. This day in early November has been identified in the past as "Insect-ival", but apparently the theme has been slightly altered to be more focused on Harry Potter lore. Which I know virtually nothing about, other than it involves going to Majick School. My plan is to take that same box of acrylic paints, brushes and my little poster with several design choices and offer to put spiders or bugs on faces or hands. Mostly the same choices as the attendees of the Fall Festival/Plant Sale at the Botanical Gardens had last week, with the subtraction of pumpkins and ghosts, and the addition of  a caterpillar and butterfly.

You can get a green slippery slithery snake with a red sneaky tongue, or a purple spider with brightly frightening yellow beady eyes. A bright red lady bug with dots on her back, or a wiggly multi-legged caterpillar inching along your arm. Bright orange butterfly with wiggly feelers and long tickle-y black legs or yellow " :)" on your cheek, all of which will probably be gone long before you get a soaking in the tub at bedtime.

day number eight...

... of substitute teaching, in a Kindergarten class up on the north side of town. I took the assignment on Thursday, knowing I did not have anything of importance on my calendar for today, and hoping to gradually accumulate the necessary minimum of work days to stay in the good graces of the school district. Why, I cannot say, though I know I should put some thought into that. Now I can said say I'm nearly halfway to the goal of twenty. Whoopee....

I know I should expect, as the para-professional, supporting the teacher, that I will have lunch room duty for about thirty minutes in addition to maintaining a semblance of order with the assigned class while they are eating. That equals an hour of time in a chaotic cafeteria with kids who could not possibly care about actually eating while they are temporarily reprieved from learning. They are loud, unruly, sloppy, messy, indifferent to the food choices they actually made when they entered the classroom at 8 a.m.

Did I say Loud? It was pandemonium. As soon as I got into the lunchroom with those two dozen five year olds, I remembered that particular locale as the place I once got the start of a headache it took me the rest of the day to loose. I asked another of the adults assigned to police the students if it is always that awful, she reported that one day recently it took five teachers to get the noise level under control. That's not normal, folks!

As a result of the chronic, but fairly mild, pain in my hand, I conveniently had drugs in my pocket to abate the symptoms of the impending problem. I was taking OTC meds before I ever left the room where the chaos ensued. And after that short but beneficial nap when I got home, am feeling none of the symptoms that followed me home the last time I was in that situation.

book review: "The Wolves of Winter"...

... by Tyrell Johnson. I chose it randomly, and was surprised to find it so captivating I could not put it down. I did not expect to really get into the story, but checked it out with a couple of others and thought: 'you don't have to read it if it won't get started, just take it back', but I had to go to bed early last night to finish it - and was so alert when I got past the crisis, and to a satisfactory end, I was too wide awake to go to sleep!

Several reviews on the back cover made me think it would be somewhat similar to those movies made from novels that were designed to appeal to the younger, theater-going set. Compared to survival situations and characters in the 'Hunger Games' and other adventuresome post-apocalyptic tales, this one is set in the Yukon province of Canada where the family went to try to keep safe from a deadly flu virus. The lead character is a young adult in her twenties, Gwendolynn, who has been trained by her dad in outdoor skills: bow-hunting, fishing, survival know-how. Living a primitive, subsistence life in an isolated area with extended family in hand built log shelters.

The group is finds a wandering man, takes him in, feeds him, only to find he is being hunted by others who want him as proof they have the cure for the deadly virus. Gwen is taken captive, and forced to donate blood to someone who miraculously improves, demonstrating that Gwen also has this remarkable virus-proof strain. Gwen escapes, only to be chased by the scientists and their hired hands. The baddies are without redeeming features, vastly outnumber the her family, and descend on the isolated valley where they family live, determined to recapture Gwen and find that mysterious virus-proof man.

It would make a great movie, with lots of chase scenes, blood splashed across the screen numerous times, bad guys decimated in a variety of interesting ways. Plenty of action to keep you turning the pages, with the hope the human race will survive, and the planet might recover from the troubles we brought on ourselves.

I am sitting here typing this, while the television is on, running an adv for a flu-immunization. The whole premise of the novel was the government hoped to infect a population they wished to subjugate, and accidentally killed most of the inhabitants of the planet. It makes me a little  uneasy as I consider the prospect of going to get immunized to prevent the suffering and days of misery that accompanies a case of influenza. Have not had the flu in many years, and do not relish the thought- but what is in that injection they say will prevent it?

book review: "Leaving Time"...

... written by well known author Jody Picoult. It was a long book: 12 Cds that, if listened to without a break, would take eighteen hours to finish. It took me at least a week, as it was only heard when I was driving although I was fascinated by the story. I have read other work by this author, and expected this book would be as well written and enjoyable.

The tale was related from different viewpoints, with various voices reading each character as the story was woven together. Alice is a scientist, her specialty being an interest in elephants, focusing on how they deal with grief. We first met her when she was working in a reserve in Africa.Where she met Thomas, visiting from an elephant sanctuary in Connecticut. Alice and Thomas became a couple, as they found they had much in common when Thomas was visiting where Alice worked. Alice falls for this guy, and becomes pregnant, and moves to the States, working in the preserve in New England. The baby comes, named Jenna.

Much of the story is told in retrospect, with the characters telling the events from their individual perspective: Jenna is searching for her mom, who disappears after an incident at the Elephant Preserve where a worker is killed. Jenna, now thirteen, has been reading her mother's detailed journals, records of her observations as a researcher, student of animal behavior, trying to decipher clues that would help her find her missing parent. Her dad had a breakdown and was institutionalized after the death of that worker, and cannot help with the search.

Jenna seeks the assistance of a local psychic, expecting Serenity to be able to discern if her mom is dead. Serenity gets no 'vibes' that would lead her to believe Alice is no longer living, yet they can find no trace of her. Jenna contacts law enforcement, hoping to find the detective who was involved in the case a decade ago. Virgil, Serenity and Jenna are an unlikely group, combine forces in an effort to unravel clues that begin to surface after many years. They make a trip from New England to the Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee, hoping to find the people who worked at the facility before it was disbanded after Alice vanished. There is a Very Surprising twist at the end, that I will  not reveal, other than to say Nothing Is As It Appears.

Due to personal fascination with elephants, I especially enjoyed the information included in the book when shared from the scientist/Alice viewpoint. Picoult did a tremendous amount of research, reading about elephant behavior and shared much of her knowledge in writing from the perspective of one who would spend hours sitting observing these massive animals in their daily activities. Her characters were well formed, with many details added to make each individual seem to come to life, especially as the text was read by different age appropriate voices. A list of the references used by the author was given at the end of the twelve discs, sharing the sources, books she used to help create the fascinating world of elephants and their caretakers.