Evan Le', a Veitnamese piano prodigy

                                            

    Steve Harvey show, at 4 yrs. old

                            This was an introduction to Even and is about 5 min. long.  

Pretty worthwhile.

 

Children are an amazing way to perpetuate and improve civilization. Pretty creative...

 

There are some incredible, children who were born with these gifts have had music in their hearts, minds, and life since a very young age. 

 

Evan Le, a Vietnamese piano prodigy, started playing piano when he was 2.5 yrs. old. 

 

The videos are about 2-4 min. long, but no way you should watch them all. Just get a sense of the boy who began playing when he was 2.5 yrs old. 

 

 

 Evan Le' about 3 yrs. old

 

 

                                    At 7.5 yrs. old 

 

Chopin's Fantasy

Evan is 11 yr. old at  

 

             Evan at 14+ yrs. old.

                                                   Born in 2011, 15 yrs. old here

The journey of this child genius to masterful pianist as an adult...wow...! He has a steady approach to life and music.  His parents devoted their entire lives to his growth and skills. With this combo, Evan is one to watch and follow.

Keep a watch on this young man... 

Abracadabra! The word of magic

 

 

 

Brandonni the Great had been his stage name moniker, way back when he had been a youthful and innovative magician.  His Abracadabra actually did put forth something that surprised and delighted all, including himself. He was going places.

But now, here he was, all bent over with arthritis, glowering at those smiling young nurses. “How are we today, Mr. Brandon…Now, let’s drink down the prune juice, shall we?...?” It was a nuisance to be around such darn cheerful pretty women.

When the carillon chimed from the nearby church, the nurses appeared in army formation to wheel the residents to the dining hall. Please…not creamed corn again…but there it was, gray goo.

Brandon summoned all the sparks that had once been part of him, The Great Brandonni.  Abracadabra!

A shower of creamed corn fell from the ceiling, coating each nurse with the gray goo called creamed corn.  The screams and profanities were music to the residents’ ears.

 

 Still got it! Next time...ice cream?

This is a Wed. Words from 2021

The Game on Star Trek, TNG

This episode of Star Trek: Next Generation has hung on my brain for decades. Decades. 

Ok who remembers this episode of TNG lol. You got people addicted to this just like how people are on cellphone nowadays lol. You got a Frisbee going into a part of record player and what is the solution out of all this a flickering flashlight lol.

         

Only good thing was Ashley Judd Wesley romance we never see again just small part on Darmok not even DS9 or Voyager. One character was hoping to be a series regular. I mean Barclay had a ton of screen time along seen in First Contact lol paragraph was copied from somewhere, who knows where?

This episode from Star Trek: the next generation was unusual in that it didn't deal with war, space exploration, or conflicts between warring species.  It instead focused on the role of children in-the space tech world.   Wesley is the boy genius on the Enterprise, the son of the ship's doctor. 

In this episode, Captain Riker has returned from a sexual overload trip, where one of the ladies sharing his bed shares a game from her ship and Riker is happy to bring to the Enterprise. It proves to be a disaster as the entire crew is enthralled with this game. Only Wesley and the girlfriend (Ashley Judd) are not giving into this, leading to the chase to capture them and force the game on them. 

 What happens? Won't tell you, except that all ends well.  

What this episode said to me is that anything and everything can turn a situation on its head . It took over the ship and was poised to the destabilizing the security of the ship.  This game left Enterprise open for being taken over by the race who use this game to weaken the ship. 

 

Our games? The computer? the cell phones? Aren't all of these the equivalents of the game device in this Star Trek episode?

 

I realize that many bloggers do not know of Star Trek:The Next Generation or like it. Star Trek helped me escape the farming world and head out to the stars. 

 

 

 

   

Caught in the rain

 

Dashing through the downpour, Jackson could see no other shelter than a shadowy doorway.  Within the doorway lay a trembling dog, soaked to the skin.  Even with its matted fur, Jackson appreciated that this dog had some breeding. 

Source: lauralucia

 

Attached to Jackson’s key chain was a tiny LED flashlight.  “Here, boy…” Jackson rubbed the wet fur with his woolen scarf, while searching for a chain or some ID. 

The flashlight caught the glint of a tag in the shape of a four-leaf-clover, with the name “Lucky” and a phone number.  Jackson dialed it, hearing the ring, and finally an answer.  “This is the Blank residence.  How may I help you?”

After telling about finding “Lucky”, Jackson heard a boy in the background shouting with joy.   “Lucky!  Lucky has been found!...”  Moments later a car pulled up and the boy jumped out into the rain, wrapping his arms around his dog.

“You need a ride, mister?”  The boy turned to ask.  But no one remained, the doorway was empty.  Jackson had disappeared into a sheet of rain.

The Wed. Word are from  2017, didn't publish it until now.

 

 

Bored out of my mind

 

Stretched out on the bed, Nancy wondered if life could get much more boring than this.  

Anything…almost anything…would be better than this.

Every last vegetable in the garden that could be canned had been canned. In fact, the garden was a pile of pulled weeds. Yard was mowed.  Siding washed down.  Fence wire repaired. Laundry was dry, ready to be folded. Someone else can do that!

The hogs were wearing down in the heat.  Which is why Nancy was at home: to spray water over the hogs to cool them down.  

The slightest sound brought Nancy almost to the point of throwing furniture out the window or ripping down the laundry line.  

Is this what it feels to be insane, to lose my mind?

The parents were at a church committee meeting.  The older brothers had taken the truck to somewhere.  Like they always did.

That point seemed rather vague. Why did they go? Why didn't I go with them? Why didn't they ask me to go?

Lightening blew out the transformer yesterday, taking all the electricity with it.  No TV.   No one to phone.  No radio.   Nothing.

 

Nothing. Not a damn thing. 

 

 

What do you think a bored teen (boy or girl) would do in this situation??  What would you do?
 

Original post was back in 2014 Never published?  Anyway, this story means a lot to this farm girl.

 

Trust your instincts

 

A wild west town, used for movies, etc. Lake Isabella, California

Have you ever entered a place, and felt an unease? I mean, like you needed or should leave. Something about it hung heavy.

 It was a moment in our trip with our granddaughters. Hard to describe, but it was definite.

We had just gone on a winding road drive from Sequoia to a small town on Lake Isabella. It was one of those roads where one curve swung onto the next, then the next, then more and more. We laughed at first, then we made jokes, and ended the trip with robust singing, and asking "Are we almost there yet?"

One gr-daughter arranged for an AirBnb, nice quiet place. The yard was filled with New Age art sculptures. It was amazing. Lots of stain glass had been formed into a garden that one doesn't forget.

When the owner came, he showed up the house, gave us tour, listed the places to eat. He was a young guy, and this was his house. I don't know why, but there was a heaviness around.

 I was wearing a white gold crucifix on a nice chain. The latch was coming loose, so I pulled it from under my shirt, and started to re-attach it. The young man's eyes opened wide, and he took two steps back. 

I still think of that few minutes when he took two steps backward. I wonder now: What would he have done if I had taken two steps forward.

He quickly left, we thanked him, and settled in. The darkness left.

 

 

Have you ever been in a place or situation where you felt this heaviness somewhere? And then you left? 

IMF on a mission

 

The slamming cargo jolted Jim Phelps awake.  In moments, darkness enveloped him.  He rolled his eyes and thought,

 

Damn! This is so classic.  That Mission: Impossible (also known as IMF) Force have screwed me over for the last time!  Apparently the IMF had always had no patience with the slightest infractions.  (He refused to remember the shady deals he had made over the years FOR the IMF.)  

Jim caught the rays of light cutting through a rusted metal hole from the corner at the top.  Opening a crate of Speedos , Jim formed a chain of the colorful swimwear and retrieved his “Grappling hook in minutes!” from his secret spy tool belt. Having won First Prize in Grappling Hook Throw at the annual "IMF Olympics", Jim was up and over like a flash.

 

Later, Jim Phelps perused the sea of cargo crates until he at last spotted his ever-faithful blue convertible with white leather interior.’

...with white leather interior and robin egg blue exterior...

 

As he revved up the powerful engine, his white-blond hair gleamed in the sunlight.  He drove off into the sunset, a man on a mission…a mission only he and his team could appreciate.  

 

Tomorrow let’s just see if the CIA has any job openings...

This came from Wednesday Words, from 2014.  Go with the flow of the story? Who knows what  I was thinking?

Note: Mission Impossible was a risk for Desilu Productions.  It paid off.

Desilu productions took big chances in accepting two proposals.  One was Star Trek and the other Mission Impossible.  

 

I am so glad they took this chance.  I was in High school at the time and TV programs were definitely slanted toward the Soap Operas and Farm reports. Star Trek was amazing,  even n B/W.  

T vs. W: Target vs. Walmart

We have just survived another Christmas Season shopping which had a lot of meaning when I was a younger woman and easily frustrated. 

I could wrestle those carts and make know who was in charge. I cared more about those carts than was normal. Why? I was a teacher, in charge of getting things in order.

 So, being in a Target or Walmart during a holiday drives me crazy. 

 

 

                                                                                

 Dump site for carts from all stores
There were mountains of shopping carts tossed in the field.
After a month or so, these were all gone. 

 Just a further note about shopping carts, here is an idea:

 Now we can fix the .........shopping cart all by ourselves.

  

Bye from a hardware store?

 

 

 

Commercials have changed gradually, neither good or bad.  It is hard to explain, but health and beauty are huge on the commercial market. Women + kept home to work or whatever + overeating + looking in the mirror is generally 

unhealthy for all. 

My gr-daughters have taken me to Ulta, a store that is a cornucopia for all sorts of make-up with all its enticement. They had a list and some $$ from Dad. I followed along, mentally tallying how much they needed when Dad's $$ ran out. Not much $$ at all, but it thrilled me. They have taken me? That Grandpa dropped us off, gave me money, and I spent.

Lipstick is marked as being an instigator of make-up history. Fruit dyes (no cost) for lips then. Now lipsticks are chemical magic, expensive magic at that. 

Who likes lipstick? Besides teen age girls at ULTA, little girls who have found Mommy's lipstick in her purse really love lipstick. 

Home Depot

If I have discovered this major cuteness by myself, think how many videos there might be of lipstick fans? Or finger nail polish?

Barbies

Just a note, I am not a make-up collector. My gr-daughters do that for me.

This is a repost of 2020,  I know many have read this post from back then. Life is a little strange these days.

Snakes on the move

 

 

Spring is the time for the annual "snake migration" in Illinois. 

In the spring, snakes go traveling, on a quest in Southern Illinois The Forest Services says that short stretch of road offers the chance to see a diverse array of not only snakes, but other reptile and amphibian species. “About 66 percent of the amphibians and 59 percent of the reptiles known to occur in Illinois are found here,” the Forest Service says of snake road during the migration.

Science is amazing, life is amazing. God, who created them all and set things in motion, is beyond amazing.

smlagrange.wordpress.com

 

Snake migrating: A yearly gathering in Southern Illinois

Common names of some of the species you might encounter on or near Snake Road include:

Spiny Softshell

Northern Red-Bellied Snake

Spotted Salamander

Chorus Frog

Slimy Salamander

Broadheaded Skink

Eastern Hognose Snake

Red Milk Snake

Midland Water Snake

Western Ribbon Snake

 

The list above is a partial listing of snakes in Illinois. It is estimated that 70% of American snakes live there. 

Notice that lizards and turtles are there as well, to snack on the baby snakes. Also, they would be lunch for snakes. 

My son is an entomologist who did his graduate work at University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. One event he arranged for undergrads was to take them to view the "Annual Snake Migration in Southern Illinois".  

I had never heard of the migration, thought it was something made-up. He described this with great enthusiasm and their one overnight campout went without any mishaps. 

He spoke of making another trip where hunters nailed dead squirrels on to  trees in this forest. This is now considered to be an urban myth, thankfully.

 

Southern Illinois is the top place for migrating snakes

to hook with its species.

 about 1+ min. long

 

 

about 2 minutes long

 

Many many sites are about the annual Snake Migration in Illinois, which quite an event.  Tourists travel to observe this! Would you?

 Any amazing % of the American snakes live in Illinois.

 

For anyone wanting to finding out about this can

go to: Snake in Illlinois 

Tim Conway's Mastery of Making People Laugh

 

Being born in 1950s, my generation were privileged to be in front of the TV, glued to the offerings at that time.

So many changes happened in those years.  Comedians became a big part of any variety TV shows like The Carole Burnett Show.   Tim Conway? Oh, my.  That man was gifted. 

What could he do? Tim Conway simply walked on the stage, with a slight limp.  That sends him off to something...and the audience goes wild.

    

                               The famous elephant story         

                                    The Koala story

 Falling down the stairs

 

Watch these if you have 2 - 4 minutes.   You'll see just how amazing Conway was.  Once he read the audience and his co-stars, he would take off on improvisation that went way off the boards.

        

Being a Hover-er

 

    It is a matter of hovering that bothers me. 

Throughout parents’ lives, we watch our babies become children, then children becoming teenager (God help us), and teenagers moving onto different stages of life.  Then they complete a circle, which is repeated for millennia.

I have been and still am a hover-er.  Children, etc., grandchildren, and my husband.  He resents my hovering, but there it is.

 

As a teacher, one can see hove-ers all over the classroom.  I can understand certain issues that need a hover-er.  But there are other issues that prevent a student from being able to grow as a student.  Oh, well.  That was in the past.

See this lilac plant, hopefully growing to be a bush?  I have hovered over him for nine months.  Planted in bad soil.  Desert heat.  Lack of water.  Replanted in good soil.  Cold winter winds.    

 And now?  He just might make it.

 

See this geranium?  When we moved here in August, this was dying, with stems drying.  Lots of hovering to bring her from the brink of death.

Now, my adult kids are hovering over us.  I hate it.  But I can understand why they are the hover-ers  Are we on the eve of destruction?

It’s a circle of life thing.

 

Lost dog?