HAIR

Yesterday, I was fed up with my hair.  Haven't had a haircut in - best I can guess, a year and a half.  It was really looking rough.  So I called my friend's shop, and she had an opening today (thursday) at noon.  I grabbed it. 

Ollie has been cutting my hair for 25 years or so.  (That is, when I actually get it cut).  I have rather good hair - it grows thick, has a natural wave. I don't color it, perm it, rarely curl it and rarely use a hair dryer.  I'm hair lazy, I'll admit, but usually can get away with it.  It was Ollie that first colored my hair:  I remember the day very well.  My younger daughter Lauren was maybe six weeks old.  (She's 19, now).  My parents were visiting and they babysat Sarah and Lauren while I went to Ollie's shop for a cut and color.  I recall my dad's astonished remark that I needed to color my hair "at my age!".  ( I was 33 - my mother was completely grey at 35 and I was close behind).  Ollie told me then that I was "more than 50% grey" and would need a permanent color.  I was reluctant, but I tried it.  I colored my hair for several years but grew real tired of it.  Finally, I said, "enough" and just stopped.  It looked pretty bad as it grew out - using temporary color for awhile.  Anyway, Ollie is a friend and neighbor as well as a salon shop keeper.  She's Portugese and very gregarious.  She understands my hair better than anyone,and that's why I keep going to her.  She knows me, my lifestyle and my hair. 

Well, today she got me.  I would say she removed six inches of hair.  When I say "she got me" I mean that I pretty much let her cut it how she wanted to cut it.  And she did exactly that! She does great work, it's a great cut - conforms to the natural waves my hair has - but it's shorter than I've had it in several years.  The irony, though, is that so much of the length was damaged, that I was usually pulling it back, pinning it up, etc.  Now, this cut is a length of healthy hair, and few people recognized that it's been cut! 

My friend Theresa told me that my cut looked "vibrant!"  Well!! I'll take Vibrant! 

 

 

Way station

These words have come to mind:

Reflection    Image     Focus      Mirror

Have you see n Yourself?

Is it the Inner Being

Or is it the Selfish Self?

Another Being can see

your Inner Being

And provide

A clear reflection.

If that Other Being

Has managed to ascend

To where selfish self cannot sustain.

How do you recognize the selfish being ?

Selfishness separates us

from the Universal Consciousness.

Distracts us from the One.

How do you know ?

Guard your every thought. GUARD!

We lock possessions and guard our hearts

When we must micromanage Thought

As it will be your will.

Halt each thought

Identify its motive

Its credentials are kindness, harmlessness,

sincerity and compassion -        

 and unconditional love.

 

I Love You.

 

 

It was you, wasn’t it? I could barely look at you, my heart was so electrified. I was stunned at your appearance, your presence. I was speechless. You said hello I said hello and I froze.

I knew right then it was you, but I babbled on to the attendant at the counter.

You were as I have pictured - as I had hoped and dreamed.

I was frozen. How would I should I respond?

It was You.

Are you the teacher, or the student?

Am I, the teacher or the student?

It is you and me. When will I see you again?

 

I Feel for Texas

                                     With IKE aimed at the gulf coast of Texas - a storm the size of the state of Texas - pushing enough water to create a tsunami - a wall easily 20 feet high and as wide as the coast. I went to Google Earth and had an aerial tour of the Galveston and Houston area. This is a very powerful storm and I feel for everyone and thing in its path.

                                  I will be interested in seeing how the “experts” assess the post storm conditions on a “managed beach” or an “unmanaged beach”. From what I saw, Galveston has a hardened structure (the seawall…) the length (or near length) of the island. That alone would make it a managed beach, I think. That’s a hot topic for the Town of Fort Myers Beach. There is a beach (re)nourishment project that has been on the table for over ten years. Many officials and residents are in favor, and many are against. The feds and the state and the county want to move forward, but beach residents have concerns. Anyway, didn’t mean to get into local issues, but I am interested to hear from the coastal engineers, FEMA, etc.

                                    From my Google aerial tour, Galveston has a shape and size similar to Fort Myers Beach. A discussion today with a co-worker, I mentioned that FMB is sometimes called FL’s safest beach, because of how we sit along the gulf coast, a direct hit from a major hurricane is rare.

I feel for Texas.

Only if you’re standing still

I took some moments tonight to sit in my garden . Lately, I ‘ve been working Late- and often get home after sundown. Tonight, I was home by 6:00 PM. So I watched the evening news, which, I haven’t done in a very long time, then I sat out in my garden.

The air was heavy. I made that observation leaving Town Hall on my way home. Today was the first patch of real blue sky in several days. The winds were high, the air was thick. Ike’s debris.

Two twenty-something girls rent next door to me, and we share stairs, porch and parking. They have many young friends, some who ride motorcycles.

As I sat out, a twenty-something man came out and fired up a motorcycle.

I waived hello.

He waived back and we exchanged “how are yous.

And he said, “enjoyin’ a nice night out?

And I said, Yes…

…except the No-Seeums are bad.”

And He said:

 

“Only if you’re standing still.”

You've Won!

I woke around 5:30 AM and remembered my dream: 

 I dialed a telephone number as a response to a radio announcement to call to win.   I hung up before the call connected.  Then the phone rang, I picked it up and said, “Hello”  A man asked “Is this Michelle?” And I said, “Yes” and he said, “You’ve won!”  "$10.00~!"  and then he asked, “Which sweepstakes were you entered in?” and I replied, “Publishers Clearinghouse, $5,000 a week for life”  and the man then said, “You’ve won $392.00 from our Virginia office, and you’ll be hearing from Louisiana.” 

 

Then I woke up. 

no techie here...

I'm giggling at the way these hurricane images update themselves.  I dont' have techie knowledge of how that's working.  I right clicked and copied, and pasted and there it is.  But it's great fun now to see the progression!  After the storm dissipates, what will display?  ..watching and waiting, I guess.