An Alien Concept

I've made mention of my thinkythoughts from time to time here. At times they take over and I have to sit and let them have their way with me.
This has been happening with more frequency lately. Mostly they are about space, infinity, and are other worlds inhabited?
I'll tackle the last one first: of course they are.

This isn't about little green men or greys who abduct and experiment on humans, or reptiods who harvest us for their meals, or any other popular belief or convention on the subject.
It is about simple fact as I see it.

It's not like I have proof, but what I do have is my own version of logic and it is based on infinity.
If you've ever stopped a moment to consider what is beyond the known solar system, you'll know where I am going with this.
Space is infinite. It cannot end and neither can it begin as both require definite points. To help my puny human mind grasp this I've had to designate a definite point. I chose Earth.
No matter which direction we leave from we can travel forever simply because it cannot end.
Even if we got to the end of our galaxy we go into another one, and so on.
Let's say the end of the galaxies is a great big wall we can't get past.
What's the other side of it?
Nothing.
That's fine, but what is nothing and for how long does it go on?

It's overwhelming, dizzying even, to consider, so we give ourselves a galaxy or so to contend with and don't think much beyond it.
It makes sleeping at night easier.

This brings us to time. Where did it begin, how does it end? Can it?
So we have infinity: there has always been and there always will be.
Now we have Earth and all its creatures including us.
In vast unending reaches of time and space how can we be alone?
How can only one world out of endless possible worlds be the only one inhabited by intelligent life, or any life for that matter?
It may be easier to believe this, and if you do then good for you. Do as you need to live your life as you see fit.

This brings up God, for those who swing that way. It is often said that God is all powerful, is in charge of everything, and creates everything. God is purportedly unlimited.
If so, then how can we say the Earth is all there is? That limits God.
Further, we see ourselves as His best creation.
That is both arrogant and frankly, I would think from God's perspective, a little insulting.

The inhabitants of Planet Whatever may not be visiting us. It doesn't mean they don't exist, it means they don't visit.
Good for them.
If they do stop by, that's great.
If they choose to keep themselves hidden, who are we to say they are wrong?

Whatever is the case I say they exist.

A Thought

Embrace the weird that makes your heart ring.

Gratitude Monday -- Ask and Ye Shall Receive Edition or: Oh, My Hat

I decided the other day I needed a conical hat. I needed it to help me get in character and get back into the manuscript I am editing.
I finished the first draft of it last June. It went down a few different paths, one as far as chapter 14, but I eventually found the story I was to tell and it got done.
It sat for several months.  I wrote something else that is now simmering on a mental back burner as I fix this one up.
But back to the hat.
I often have a prop or two around when writing to help me focus. I bought cowboy boots for the vampire western, a fedora for the story of the man who went to the wrong side of heaven and had to do God's dirty work to get a new life, and for this story I made myself a pine staff and took up drawing.
It wasn't quite enough. I wanted the style of hat commonly associated with witches.
I said so on Facebook on Friday. There was some loose talk of a cousin maybe making me one. She'd already sent me an infinity scarf which helped me with the first draft of this story ( thanks again, Terry) so she'd already helped in a big way.
I thought I might check the dollar stores as one never knows what one may find on a shelf. Meantime, my husband offered to make me one.
As there were none on the shelves Mike did make the hat for me.  Black construction paper,  a leg from a pair of pants that my once belonged to my dad later worn by Mike, and the cheap hat I bought in Australia in the early nineties.
Mike rolled up the paper, cut it down several times, glued on the pants leg and pinned it all to the hat.
It is wonderful, and for it all I am grateful.
It has a nice weight to it, if a bit heavy, but it is a good place to store my thinky thoughts while rewriting.
Because no description can ever do it justice:

Hat with infinity scarf.

A character photo, this time with reading glasses and staff.

Please click to enlarge photos for the full glory.

Photo-Finish Friday - The Wild, Gruff Wind

The wind, blustering and slapping through the Siffleur Valley.
**

It was good to be out in the wild again. I spent Earth Day with a friend, and with the Earth.
We looked for goats and a cabin, and we spent time with the trees in the wild, gruff wind.
It slapped and ground a layer of civilization off me, one that had applied itself while I wasn't paying attention.
I felt smoother afterward.  Refreshed. Wilder.
It reminded me how I spent most of my time outdoors when I was a child. Society, civilization, being an adult and being housebroken covered the wild inside with a thick dull veneer of getting along by being a little less.
The layer is wearing away with the help of the wild, gruff wind.

To Talk About That Weird Stuff

There are plenty of places to talk about that weird stuff.
This is one of them.

Years ago when I moved to Rocky things started happening. To lead in, the day I moved in to my apartment, Wednesday Nov. 30, 1988, my mother said, "Maybe you'll put down roots here."
Prophetic?
Possibly. Or simply her desire that at age 30 I would stay in one place rather than keep moving from newspaper to newspaper.
Either way,  it is what occurred and I am pleased as all get out over it.
Now, back to the weird.

Perhaps it was because I became comfortable here and maybe on some level I knew I'd stay, but shortly after settling in the spiritual side of life asserted itself.
When I went to bed I'd lace my hands together over my lower rib cage.
It  was comfortable. Physically it still is.
But then, as I fell closer to sleep I felt my legs rise. I was aware of them on the bed and under the covers where they belonged, and yet they lifted in the air.
As this happened my hands locked.
The bedroom light was on. In real life it was not, but I was aware of the room being fully lit and that's how I recall it.
This happened for several months. Having my hands locked together bothered me, but the rising legs were fine. In fact, I would forget about it during the day and only when I laced my hands together at night did I remember.
Eventually I did remember and looked forward to the rising with both joy and trepidation.
They got quite high. At some points there were straight up. Then I'd fall asleep.
This lasted most of the first year I lived in Rocky,
I believe now it was my guides or angels slowly introducing me to a spiritual awakening, making sure I was okay with it.
It's a good way to proceed.
For years I'd lace my hands together when resting then immediately unlace them, remembering how upsetting it is to me to have them locked.

I can do that now. I've finally gotten past it, but what I haven't gotten past is how great it felt to have my legs rise out of my body.

That I miss.

Gratitude Monday -- Why Not Vote?

So you're not voting in the May 5 provincial election. Well, aren't you a special angel?
It's your right to sit on your ass and let total strangers who go out to vote decide your government for you. And whatever happens it is not your fault, you didn't vote for the greedy bastards.

Like I said, it is your right and you have every right to exercise the right that good men and women fought and died securing for you. We can not vote here without fear. I am grateful for that.

We can fearlessly sit on our asses while others make decisions for us. I am grateful, as I said, and good on you for exercising that side of it, but don't expect me to applaud it, and don't whine to me about the government afterward.
Why not?
Because you also have the right to vote for whomever you damn well please. If you can't be bothered to do it, then shut the fuck up. Suck it up and go on, whiner. I have no time for you.
Why not vote?
Because you can.
Why not vote instead?
You can do that, too, and no matter the result you have every right to complain about the outcome.

Photo-Finish Friday -- The Old Hometown

Fort Assiniboine from the hill looking south.

A Glass of Challenge

We've all heard about the glass.
For some it is half full.
For others it is half empty.
It doesn't end there.
I've had the displeasure to know people who maintain the glass is dirty, or the glass is cracked, and some who are so resolutely negative they say,  "I've never even had a glass."

Not only are those people sad, they are a pain in the ass to be around.
Negativity serves no purpose other than being a cry for attention.
If you give it to them, then they see it works and will simply continue.

I'd tell them to go to Hell, but they are already seated uncomfortably there and complaining about the heat.

That said, I say there is no glass because I refuse to have my blessings contained, especially by anything as meagre as a glass.
They are a flowing river, infinite, bright, and refreshing.
Yours can be that way as well. It is a simple matter of announcing it is so and then looking for the good in what you perceive as bad.

I challenge you to try.

Gratitude Monday - Life As It Is

I am grateful I live a life that allows me to express my creativity in whichever way comes to mind.
I've just finished editing one of my husband's manuscripts and feel like exploring the creativity of sitting around doing nothing.
This lets my mind wander and in the wandering refreshes itself.
I am grateful for that, too.
I have two current manuscripts of my own to work on plus a third that may deserve another look.
In the last few days I  have also made my own version of chipotle-cilanto sauce, a creative work in itself.
After looking up what goes into such a thing I gathered a few ingredients that I decided would work and whirred them together. They were mixed into a mayo and homemade coconut sour cream sauce along with some lime juice.
It was exactly what I wanted. It went well with the beanizza (bean pizza) I made and is a wonderful topping on baked potatoes.
Making this is as creative as writing or drawing or anything else and I am grateful to do it.

My Erasing Hobby

I've been teaching myself to draw.
I do it for my own pleasure and harbour no fantasies about making it big in the art world. This is me expressing myself and enjoying it.
It is also a moderately compelling drive inside to express something that I have yet to target.
It started as a picture in my head last year to draw a scene from a manuscript I was writing.
Then I wanted to draw dragons,
Currently the unicorns are asserting themselves, demanding my attention.
They are welcome in my soul and I am pleased and grateful for their presence.

But back to drawing. I joke that what I am really doing is erasing.  I make mistakes, I rub them out, and I try again.
The above is one of my better attempts.

Gratitude Monday -- Cookies

I am grateful I learned to bake. Specifically, I am grateful I learned how to make peanut butter cookies.
I had a craving for them the other day. I made a batch with cacao nibs then remembered I really wanted them with oatmeal.
The next day I made another batch of peanut butter cookies this time remembering to add oatmeal.
Both batches have found good homes. Husband likes the cacao nib variety while I have used the oatmeal batch as a reward for when I take a break from editing.
Knowing they await has helped me get the work done. I am also grateful for that.

Photo-Finish Friday -- Last Evening In My Front Yard

A deer stops to take care of an annoyance before getting back to getting its dinner.