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Register and go to Community and then to ThirdAge and then join the discussion group.

They say that God smiles through flowers and so the smile from you becomes precious. xoxoxoxoxo

Happy Birthday Irene!

Today was a beautiful spring day. :)

We had a cooldown for about a week...I was lovin' that for sure! But now the temps are a climbin' :( Course my veggies are loving it, so it can't be all bad :)

Importance of Second Chances

When we meet someone for the first time, we often create a defining image in our minds of who that person is. We may also determine whether or not that someone is worth getting to know. Sometimes when an initial interaction is particularly uncomfortable or challenging, we can decide to close our hearts to this new acquaintance entirely. But being too quick to judge can cause us to lose out on a potentially wonderful, enriching relationship. First impressions don’t always give the complete picture, so if you meet someone who leaves you less than impressed, consider giving them a second chance. You might be pleasantly surprised.

Everyone deserves to be given a second chance. We know from personal experience how painful it can feel to be misunderstood or judged. We have good hearts and want them to be seen. We have so much to offer and want others to welcome our gifts. When someone shuts us out before they even know who we are, it can feel frustrating, hurtful, and confusing. By giving others a second chance, we can extend the same courtesy we would ask for ourselves. In this way, we set a precedent for all our relationships: to allow everyone the freedom and safety to simply be human. Whether it is a blind date, the man sitting next to you on the airplane, or your new neighbor, everyone has a full life outside of their interaction with you. They may be preoccupied with a personal or business situation that affects the way they are presenting themselves, or maybe they had a rough day or some bad news. If you give them the room to be who they are, where they are, you will allow yourself to do the same.

When you are considering giving someone a second chance, first check in with your inner knowing. If you find that your intuition is advising you to keep your distance, it is important to honor the guidance you receive. By honoring your intuition when it has wisdom to share, you can feel confident and happy in your decision to give others a second chance.

For more information visit dailyom.com

Temporarily Out Of Balance

We are all almost always in the process of learning something new, developing an underused ability or talent, or toning down an overused one. Some of us are involved in learning how to speak up for ourselves, while others are learning how to be more considerate. In the process of becoming, we are always developing and fine tuning one or the other of our many qualities, and it is a natural part of this process that things tend to get out of balance. This may be upsetting to us, or the people around us, but we can trust that it’s a normal part of the work of self-development.

For example, we may go through a phase of needing to learn how to say no, as part of learning to set boundaries and take care of ourselves. During this time, we might say no to just about everything, as a way of practicing and exploring this ability. Like a child who learns a new word, we want to try out this new avenue of expression and empowerment as much as we can because it is new and exciting for us and we want to explore it fully. In this way, we are mastering a new skill, and eventually, as we integrate it into our overall identity, it will resume its position as one part of our balanced life.

In this process, we are overcompensating for a quality that was suppressed in our life, and the swinging of the pendulum from under-use to overuse serves to bring that quality into balance. Understanding what’s happening is a useful tool that helps us to be patient with the process. In the end, the pendulum settles comfortably in the center, restoring balance inside and out

For more information visit dailyom.com

Today in History

Edgar Allan Poe: wed his 13-year-old cousin, Virginia (1836)

Definition of OLD......

I very quietly confided to my friend that I was having an affair.
She turned to me and asked, "Are you having it catered"?

And that, my friend, is the definition of 'OLD'!!!

Unless you live in Massachusetts or Maine, you may not know that Monday is Patriots' Day--a holiday that commemorates the Battles of Lexington and Concord, the first fights of the American Revolution.

Those battles happened on April 19, 1775, but the holiday that marks them has been moved to the third Monday in April.

At least, that's when it happens in Massachusetts and Maine. Only a few other places have formal Patriots' Day observances. So we decided to observe it our own way--with a look back at the men who fought America's first revolutionary fights: the Massachusetts minutemen.

First Fighters

America's earliest militias were basically groups of paramilitary citizen-soldiers organized for the defense of the colonies. Able-bodied men, as young as 16 and as old as 60, were required to join.

As early as 1645, Massachusetts militias were supposed to designate men from each company as rapid responders, ready for action in half an hour or less. The term "minuteman" was used to refer to these rapid responders as far back as 1750. But the minutemen as a distinctive fighting force really emerged in 1774, when Massachusetts militias reorganized for the impending revolution.

Rapid Rebels

That year, authorities in Worcester County fired all their militia's officers (to eliminate British sympathizers). They also improved the militia's training regimen and declared that one-third of all militiamen should "be ready to act at a minute's warning." Five days later, the town of Concord voted to establish a similar force. Towns and counties across the colonies followed suit, and the "minutemen" became the elite irregular troops of the fledgling American nation.

Ex-minuteman Thomas Brown recalled that these elite fighters had "to hold themselves continually in readiness to turn out at a moment's warning . . . in whatever place their services might be required." Pre-Revolutionary War militias generally met only once a year--and then mainly for drinks, tall tales, and target shooting. But the new minuteman units drilled two, three, or even four times a week.

They were the most active and physically capable men available. Most were under 20 years old, though their ranks also included fathers and even grandfathers. Among the hundred or so Lexington minutemen, a dozen were father-son teams and three were men over 60.

About a third of all minutemen were veterans of the French and Indian War, where they had learned guerrilla tactics. Most supplied their own firearms, and--like the rest of America's militiamen--they elected officers from their own ranks. This improved morale and ensured that officers who were not sufficiently anti-British quickly lost their jobs.

"The Shot Heard 'Round the World"

Minutemen from Lexington fought the first battle of the Revolution. On the morning of April 19, 1775, a few dozen stood their ground on Lexington Common, awaiting the approach of several hundred British soldiers. The British had been ordered to march to Concord and capture the town's weapons. Along the way, they were supposed to stop in Lexington and arrest John Hancock and Sam Adams.

According to an American who survived the fight, when the British soldiers came in sight of the minutemen blocking their path, a British officer yelled, "Lay down your arms, you damned rebels, or you are all dead men." Although they were outnumbered at least seven to one, the minutemen refused to lower their muskets.

No one knows for sure who fired first. Eight Americans were killed and ten wounded during the battle, which ended when the remaining minutemen retreated into the woods. No British soldiers were killed. Hancock and Adams had already fled, so the British marched on to Concord--and into a shootout with three or four hundred militiamen at the town's North Bridge.

The British soldiers withdrew, but as they marched back to Boston, minutemen and other local guerrillas shot them to pieces. British losses from the Battle of Lexington and Concord ultimately totaled 73 dead and 174 wounded. The American Revolution had begun.

Amm battling nerve damage in my back right now. Can't sit, stand or do much.Am leaning over tippy typing right now anmd will ehad back to bed. I think I reinjured the lumbar laminectomy I had years ago because I have been doing heavy lifting and furniture moving. Nobody elase here to do what needs to be done.

Maximillian Puffaluffagus was a good cat. Vet thinks he threw a blood clot and he was barely able to move his hind legs. Nothing can be done when that happens, but he was so doggone brave and cuddled with me as I rocked him for his long sleep.

Val

I send so many good vibes your way...so sorry for your loss...they (yr kitties)remain in our hearts forever:)

However, I saw some green things in my front garden. I think something is trying to get through, maybe.

Here is another pic

Took this on Wednesday.

The Flow of the Universe

The flow of the universe moves through everything. It is in the rocks that form, get pounded into dust, and are blown away. It is in the blossoming of a flower born from a seed planted in the spring. The growth cycle that every human being goes through is part of this natural flow, which is also the current that takes us down life’s paths. When we move with it rather than resisting it, we are riding on the universal wave that allows us to flow with life.

Many people live struggling against this current. They try to use force or resistance to will their lives into happening in the way they think it should. Others move with it like a sailor using the wind, trusting that the universe is taking them exactly where they need to be at all times. This flow is accessible to everyone because it travels through and around us. We are always riding it—it is just a matter of whether we are willing to go with it or we resist it. Choosing to go with the flow is often a matter of relinquishing the notion that we need to be in control at all times.

The flow is always transporting you where you need to go. It is merely a question of deciding whether you plan on accepting the ride or having it take you there with your feet dragging. Learning to step into it can help you feel a connection to a force that is greater than you and is always there to support you. The decision to go with the flow takes courage because you are surrendering the belief that you need to do everything by yourself. Riding the flow of the universe can be effortless, exhilarating, and unlike anything you ever expected. When you are receptive to being in it, you open yourself to possibilities that exist beyond the grasp of your control.

As a child, you were naturally swept by the flow. Tears of sadness falling down your face could just as quickly turn to tears of laughter. The mere tiniest wave carrying you forward off the shores of the ocean could transport you into peals of delight.

Our souls feel good when we go with the flow of the universe. All we have to do is make the choice to ride its currents.

(This is an excerpt from the new DailyOM Book. To order the book, click the link below.

For more information visit dailyom.com

“This is what you shall do: Love the earth and sun and the animals, despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others, hate tyrants… have patience and indulgence toward the people, take your hat to nothing known or unknown or to any man or number of men, go freely with powerful uneducated persons and with the young and with the mothers of families, read these leaves in the open air every season of every year of your life, re examine all you have been told at school or church or in any book, dismiss whatever insults your own soul, and your very flesh shall be a great poem and have the richest fluency not only in its words but in the silent lines of its lips and face and between the lashes of your eyes and in every motion and joint of your body.”

- Walt Whitman

Dan Steckenberg

Tue, 1 Apr 2008 09:25:00 -0500 Subject: Registration System Changes

Hi,

My apologies for being out of touch for a few weeks. There simply wasn't any big news to report for a while, but I do have some news for you now.

Because the new site will be based on a completely different programming language than the current site, we need to update our registration system. Now, I know that all of you have usernames that you use in the Discussion area, and which you may have used for Chat and Homepages as well. We want to make sure that you'll still be able to use those usernames even as we overhaul the back end of what we call the user management system.

If you go to http://www2.thirdage.com/user, you'll be able to reserve your current username for the new system. Simply type in your current information in the username/e-mail and password fields and follow the on-screen instructions. When it tells you that you're logged in, you should be all set for the new system. When we move over to the new site, this username and password will get you into all the new member areas, including, of course, the discussions area. Unfortunately, if you currently have multiple usernames for your e-mail address, you will have to choose just one username per e-mail address.

In the meantime, you should still be able to post on the current discussion boards with no problems. Let me know if you experience any difficulties.

Dan