Thoughts associated to Course blog

I was exploring the 'lack of routine' in my life, and I recognized this began early-on.

By the time I was 16, I was waitressing both morning and night shifts at a local restaurant, depending on the schedule, within the same week. Some mornings I'd be there by 6:00, other nights my shift would end at 3:00 a.m. I'd often work doubles if another waitress (say a Friday night) talked me into it. I was already 'irregular' when this added to it.

Many of my jobs have fluctuated across the clock, working weekends, grave shifts, or getting up at 3:00 a.m. to prepare for work. Between these, I had four kids in six years that I was the sole caretaker for, simply because two out of two fathers did exceptionally little.

My days and nights blurred without a regular pattern across a variety of jobs that occasionally included overnights of 12 - 14 hours while still being the primary caregiver. What routine? Add in growing up on the farm, and weather was deciding factor on the days' activities. Rain at the wrong time could shut down baling hay, and seasonal changes brought shifts of their own.

There's a reason "I'm not routine oriented." This flows into other areas of my life, and I have no set pattern established for daily activities or spiritual exploration. The days vary according to the weather and necessary priorities (survey work, for example), yet I am the one that decides the order of events and what I engage in as opportunities arise. This is unpredictable!

(It seemed much of the world is routine-oriented, as was my stepmother at age 16, and somehow I was 'wrong' due to lack of it; yet in some ways, I think I live more in tune with 'the natural order' of things... Actually, I think I'm more influenced by the natural order, since a slow, grey day can cut my energy in half and the prediction of rain may keep me working outside until midnight.)

The other awareness is not 'fear-based', simply recognition. When storm signals abound, dismissing them is poor judgment. The weather is none too stable lately in small ways; we had frost warnings last night (!Heaven forbid!) and May was the third least-rainy May on record here - since about 1870. We had rain at Christmas two years ago, yet last winter had more sub-zero temps than average. Relying solely on the Rain Gods and the Power Company to meet daily needs... rolling black-outs in some states in the past few years? There's a reason I've been insulating and seeking ways of temporary back-up if it ever becomes necessary, including a small tornado shelter that just might save a life one day (granddaughter here is one heck of a reason).

Economically, we have the same storm warnings. Thinking we're invulnerable as a country is historically foolish - how many countries have fallen due to economic distress and dis-ease? Farmer wisdom, if you see a storm approaching, you do what you can to protect yourself, whether it's rushing crop harvesting or chasing down a stray calf. If the storm misses you, all well and good, but if it slams through - you've done what you could. In the global view of this, if we don't unite to redirect our economic structure and allow the current condition to progress, it can only get worse. Established financial giants a century old are collapsing, and few people are seeing 'the roots of this problem' - usually they see the infestations and damage only of recent times but not the source of it. Until a greater wisdom develops, this man-made storm is growing on our horizon. We may not be able to do much, but awareness is the beginning point of prudent action.

And I'll now apologize for this blog being lengthy and somewhat dull. :)

In the extreme, I'll refresh your day with a parting thought: "...if the market collapsed and a food shortage occurred..." anyone hear of worm farms? Talk about a small hit of protein! But these are a strange creature, where they can be cut in a half and will regrow? At least, this is what I heard and when my sister chopped one in half, both ends were still highly active. I truthfully don't know how worms reproduce, if someone wants to inform me. But it seems to me, in a survival mode, a worm farm might provide sustenance for months if necessary (remember Winter??).

See... always thinking! Hand me a worm for my nettle salad... :)

I'm not there now, but between warnings of pandemics, sunspots, massive storms, global warming, droughts, global civil unrest and major power-grid failure... Gads, losing the 'net would suck, wouldn't it?