She spat out her apology like phlegm, only to feel her unrepentant anger build to new and distasteful heights.
Writing this sentence has brought to mind how I feel about the questionable wisdom that by forgiving someone of a wrong done to us, we are freeing ourselves rather than the other person. I suppose it depends on whether or not we can believe we are truly forgiving.
The other popular adage is “forgive and forget.” Sometimes forgetting is much easier on the soul than forgiving. But does it teach us anything?
This week’s Cosmic Photo Challenge prompt is “Quest for Fire.” I decided to go with a picture I’ve posted on my blog before, except this time it’s modified. At the time I shot it, I actually shot three as I often do, so I can be reasonably sure one of them is good. The first is a modified version of the one you may have seen before. I heightened the saturation to bring out the colour of the fire.
In the second one, the camera, for whatever reason, picked up the flame’s aura above it. I’m guessing it was due to the angle of the lens. I kind of like the black and white version.
The third and final one was out of focus. I call this the drunk version:
The wonderful Helen Espinosa has, this week, declared Song-Lyric Sunday’s theme to be a song that we love from a movie. (Please join in – it’s fun!) It was a tough decision, but finally I chose a song from the movie, Babe. It’s sung by Farmer Hoggett, played by the lovely James Cromwell, during the film and by the Field Mice in the end credits.
The song has quite a history. “If I Had Words” was first recorded in 1978, sung by Scott Fitzgerald as a duet with Yvonne Keeley. It became a hit in the UK. I imagine Scott Fitzgerald gave it lyrics, but I haven’t been able to confirm it. Considering the lyrics themselves, this is strangely ironic. The music was adapted from Symphony No. 3 by Camille Saint-Saëns, written in 1886.
The lyrics are simple but deeply profound to me, as a writer. They represent everything I would give to my children, every day of their lives, if I could.
“If I Had Words”
If I had words to make a day for you,
I’d sing you a morning golden and new
I would make this day last for all time
Give you a night deep in moonshine
*****
The music moves me as much as the words, so I’ll leave you with two sources. First the version from the movie, and second, the Symphony. The latter is 36+ minutes long, but the section in question, if you want to hear just that, begins shortly after 27:20 in the Youtube video. The whole Symphony is beautiful.
Oh, and what the hell: I’ll add the Mice version too, since it’s so cute.
I’ve been battling a headache all day. It’s right behind my right eye, so I’m typing this with my eyes closed. I’m tempted to not fix any mistakes…
I think my headache is due to the barometric pressure. I’ve suffered with barometer headaches for years. I find unless I take an anti-inflammatory when I first feel it coming on, it won’t go away. Stress doesn’t help either.
I went to the mall today to find the dvd “Alice in Wonderland” – the Johnny Depp one – for Alex. Went into seven different stores and couldn’t find it. I’m blaming the new movie on the fact that everyone was sold out. I was impressed at how much of a comeback vinyl is making in the record stores. I have to wonder if the quality is the same as it used to be though. If it’s taken from a digital recording and put on an album, it isn’t going to have the same depth as it did from the master. I need to find out how they’re making vinyl recordings these days.
Anyway, I came home and found the DVD for $8 Canadian on Amazon, so I ordered it. So weird. And did you hear the news about Johnny yesterday? His new wife has a restraining order and is claiming he abused her physically. I was appalled at how many people on Twitter yesterday had already convicted him and thrown away the key without hearing a single word on his side of the story. I’m not saying he didn’t do it – he may just admit to it when he does come out and speak. What gets me though is all the armchair justice and vitriol from people who either never liked him in the first place, or are obviously jealous of his status in the world. I say that because many of the comments were “people will continue to buy his movies anyway.” What has that even got to do with it? He’s not the only person who stands to make royalties on them. Ugh, society and social media really get on my nerves sometimes.
Friday’s here, and that means it’s time for your Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt. Things are heating up here in southern Ontario – right now in Toronto it feels like 34C (93F) and tomorrow’s high is going to feel like 37C (99F). I have a feeling this summer’s gonna be a hot one. Anyway, on with the prompt:
Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “Press.” Find a word that starts with press-, ends with -press, or use “press” as a word all by itself. Have fun!
After you’ve written your Saturday post tomorrow, please link it here at this week’s prompt page and check to make sure it’s here in the comments so others can find it and see your awesome Stream of Consciousness post. Anyone can join in!
To make your post more visible, use the SoCS badge! Just paste it in your Saturday post so people browsing the reader will immediately know your post is stream of consciousness and/or pin it as a widget to your site to show you’re a participant. Wear it with pride!!
Here are the rules:
1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing, (typos can be fixed) and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.
2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.
3. There will be a prompt every week. I will post the prompt here on my blog on Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The’,” or simply a single word to get your started.
4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top.
5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read everyone’s! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later, or go to the previous week, by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find right below the “Like” button on my post.
6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!
7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.
On a recent visit to Kingston, Ontario, I was wandering up Ontario Street and decided to take a picture of what used to be a building between Earl Street and William Street. After doing extensive research and finding nothing in the history sites of Kingston, I think I’ve figured out it was either a shed, or more likely a stable that was demolished sometime around 1953. It could have been a house or maybe servant’s quarters, but it wouldn’t have had road frontage. I found a map that dates back to 1865, with a slider that morphs the map up to 2013. Now, the wall faces a parking lot behind the houses on the two above-mentioned parallel streets. Here’s the map: https://apps.cityofkingston.ca/snapshotkingston/ It’s actually really really neat. I found the streets by their names in the 1865 version of the map. Grab the map and move it right and up slightly, so you’re moving south west – the block you’re looking for is right at the letter “A” in “ONTARIO.” (Note: Ontario Street runs parallel, and closest, to the water.) You can zoom in once you find the right block (the +/- button is at the top left of the map). You can see the building there before 1953, but it disappears at about ’53 and then shortly after, the wall appears as a white line in the middle of the block, running parallel to Ontario Street. It’s the wrong colour to have been the the above-mentioned building, but on close inspection I can’t tell what else it could possibly have been.
I’ve always had an interest in ruins. They cause my imagination to go in both conceivable and inconceivable directions. Next time I’m in Kingston, I plan to visit the library or the town archives to see if there’s any information on what this might have been. In the meantime, I’ll allow my imagination to play.
Please forgive the odd angle…
…this was as close as I could get.
I’m so happy and excited to finally be participating in this prompt. Kingston is just a two hour drive from where Norm took his Thursday Doors pictures. Check out his post (by clicking on his name) for the prompt and join in!
Anyone who would like to participate, feel free to use the “One-Liner Wednesday” title in your post, and if you do,
you can ping back here to help your blog get more exposure. To execute a ping back, just copy the URL in the address bar on this post, and paste it somewhere in the body of your post. Your link will show up in the comments below. Please ensure that the One-Liner Wednesday you’re pinging back to is this week’s! Otherwise, no one will likely see it but me.
As with Stream of Consciousness Saturday (SoCS), if you see a ping back from someone else in my comment section, click and have a read. It’s bound to be short and sweet.
Unlike SoCS, this is not a prompt so there’s no need to stick to the same “theme.”
The rules that I’ve made for myself (but don’t always follow) for “One-Liner Wednesday” are:
1. Make it one sentence.
2. Try to make it either funny or inspirational.
3. Use our unique tag #1linerWeds.
4. Add our new, very cool badge to your post for extra exposure!
At 9:45 tomorrow morning I’m getting my eyes checked. That means I won’t be able to see properly for most of the rest of the day. How will I survive without the computer?! What will I do with my day tomorrow?!!
For this weeks’ Cosmic Photo Challenge we were to get up-close and personal with our subjects. This worked out well for me, since I took some pictures early last week that fit the bill.
The first I cropped and sharpened. I left the flowers in the distance in the shot, to show the contrast between near and far.
This second shot is completely unaltered. It doesn’t fit into the challenge, but I like it.
Helen’s prompt for this weeks’ Song-Lyric Sunday is “classics.” Her post here (where you can find all the rules and stuff to join in – do it!), highlights a song that tells a story. As I was going through my CD collection, looking for one of my oldest albums (I still have it on vinyl!) I came across “Hotel California.” Everyone knows the title song, and yes, it too tells a story. But the song on the album I love even more is “The Last Resort,” which also tells a story. One that is as relevant today as it has ever been.
You can listen to it here, with the lyrics:
If you can’t view the one above, try this:
“The Last Resort”
Don Henley and Glen Frey
She came from Providence,
the one in Rhode Island
Where the old world shadows hang
heavy in the air
She packed her hopes and dreams
like a refugee
Just as her father came across the sea
She heard about a place people were smilin’
They spoke about the red man’s way,
how they loved the land
And they came from everywhere
to the Great Divide
Seeking a place to stand
or a place to hide
Down in the crowded bars,
out for a good time,
Can’t wait to tell you all,
what it’s like up there
And they called it paradise
I don’t know why
Somebody laid the mountains low
while the town got high
Then the chilly winds blew down
Across the desert
through the canyons of the coast,
to the Malibu
Where the pretty people play,
hungry for power
to light their neon way
give them things to do
Some rich men came and raped the land,
Nobody caught ’em
Put up a bunch of ugly boxes,
and Jesus people bought ’em
‘nd they called it paradise
The place to be
They watched the hazy sun, sinking in the sea
You can leave it all behind and sail to Lahaina
just like the missionaries did, so many years ago
They even brought a neon sign: “Jesus is coming”
Brought the white man’s burden down
Brought the white man’s reign
Who will provide the grand design?
What is yours and what is mine?
‘Cause there is no more new frontier
We have got to make it here
We satisfy our endless needs and
justify our bloody deeds,
in the name of destiny
and in the name of God
And you can see them there,
On Sunday morning
They stand up and sing about
what it’s like up there
They call it paradise
I don’t know why
You call someplace paradise,
kiss it goodbye
lindaghill.com 