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Monday, March 19, 2018

A Day --an Unresolved Day

Let's face it, we all have them --at least I hope I'm not the only one. They begin like any other day --deceptive, capricious, full of  carouselling karma, maytagging molecules-- with scenes like this:
I was answering comments to a prior post. I got done, then dressed for errands. I wanted to go to the bank --in hopes they will someday give out free samples like grocery stores-- and drop by the grocery store for free samples . I fired up the Mazda. I fired up the Mazda again. The Mazda finally got out of the driveway. I stayed home:
You can tell I troubled to dress in my Monday best. I said, "Bye Mazda, have a nice expensive vacation. See you next weekend."
I walked back up our lane, feeling low and mean, then saw the rusty '71 VW Bus with vines growing over it.  "What the heck?" I thought and climbed in. Turned the ignition key and the old thing roared into life --despite all the time I'd neglected it. 

Time. 

Time is many things at many levels of reality, but it always is a measure of entropy. Entropy is the ongoing rate of disruption in a closed system --like a car, like me. Cars are only partially conscious, but we get ringside seats.  Time turns us into things we've never been before. No wonder I had to go sit down in the bus, I was jumpy--dreading another surprise from time.

I took Bus to the corner store. Gassed her up and bought us each a bottle of Merlot --which of course she ceded back to me.
I poured one in the kitchen and checked what was coming in from Norma's Iphone. This:
Honestly, I don't know how she does it. No fancy camera, no special lenses, wild things just let her get close --in this instance, a couple inches.  She knows scenes like this get me breathing right again. Now it's late at night, and a half-glass of good Woodbridge Merlot gets me ready for bed, but it's the closing photo of a busy bee that will calm and sooth my head.

28 comments:

  1. Normaphotos and the photographer herself would make a bad day better and a good day perfect.

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    1. Falling in love with Norma 50 years ago was one of those rare times in life when my hormones agreed with my sanity. I've never regretted it.

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  2. Nature, at its best, has a way of soothing our troubles. A glass of fine wine can do the same. Uncooperative cars makes one wish for the days of horse and buggies. I hope the news from the auto repair man will not be too painful.

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    1. Dear Arleen, the news came this morning to the tune of $600. Mazda should be well by tomorrow, and Norma's figuring out how to summon Uber. We're still kind of spread out here and the service center is ten miles south. When I worked downtown, I'd hire a car from Enterprise until mechanics were done. But this is rural-suburbia and things are different.

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  3. It's our micro managed, artificial lives that go out catty wumpus now and again.....but nature....nature just keeps going on. Comforting isn't it?

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    1. It IS comforting, Delores. I firmly believe Nature is the language of the universe. We need to get no end of fluent in it.

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  4. My innards experienced a sympathetic sink. There is nothing so expensively useless as a car that will not start. The car gods can be very capricious. But the VW Bus! What a star! Here's hoping your wallet will not get too light as a result of....you know what.

    And that other star.....Norma!

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    1. Tom, I kept that bus running for 40 years with my own hands. I understand its anatomy. It is a noisy, uncomfortable beast but when needed, has always reported for duty. Since Norma no longer drives, I can't use Bus to fetch Mazda, but I'm sure glad we're not stranded while the car from this century undergoes repair.

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  5. Drink ye heartily and "bee" well. Not so the Mazda, I fear.

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    1. Got 2 calls from the Mechanic today and it looks like we'll have Mazda back tomorrow, Bruce. Mazda is full of sensors and chips that shut down everything when they don't read right. Bees and Buses are made of sturdier stuff.

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  6. Few things are more frustrating than a vehicle malfunction and subsequent repair. I agree that looking at a Normaphoto is a spectacular way to relax.

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    1. Emma, as you know, a love of nature is part of loving life --and it's contagious. The images that comfort us are proof of it.

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  7. The title of one of the bard's plays comes to mind..."Alls Well that Ends Well."
    Which unfortunately triggers a bit of word play--To be or not to be -adapted in this blog's incarnation as Two Bee or not Two Bee. The post is framed by photos of such. You, the busy bee with good intentions beginning your day and the marvelous closing photo of a kindred spirit. Sorry about the Mazda, but cheers indeed to the VW and to your caring partner who even the animal kingdom trusts.

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    1. Tom, every now and then, somebody will pull into our lane and ask if they can buy the Bus. Admittedly, I have been tempted at times, but something always stops me. I suspect I still think of it as a room of our home, a room with wheels, a magic room!

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  8. Good for your VW Bus! That's performance.

    One never knows how much a garage bill will be but one generally knows it won't be less than a certain amount. May Mazda be on the road quickly and not need to re-visit the mechanics for awhile.

    What a wonderful picture - Norma does an amazing job no matter what the subject matter is. I'm glad you are seeing bees. They've been having a hard time.

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    1. Thank you, Jenny. Service manager at Mazda called this morning and told be what repairs will cost --do-able. With luck I'll pick it up tomorrow. Bees are much in evidence lately despite a lot of rain here --or maybe because of it. We've spent most of this decade in drought.

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  9. Wild things get close to me, too. In fact, I married a couple of them. [End of story]

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    1. Norma only married one of them and has nearly tamed me --however, if left too long indoors I still chew holes in the couch.

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  10. Oh, what a lovely bee! And a good wine, and a stalwart bus :-) Shame about the Mazda, wishing you less troubles and maybe some more rain.

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    1. Mazda came home this morning. He had a dodgy "manifold air-flow sensor" --whatever that is. Bus just laughed and said, "Glad I'm not bothered by one of those." I suspect they're different genders. And yes it's rained all day.

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  11. My VW bus was laid up recently in favour of a small van. The new relationship didn't go well. I am going back to the VW. Her name is Ethel.

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    1. Dear John, I understand. Kept in tune, there is hardly anything more reliable than an old VW Bus. But, as you doubtless know, they are powered by air-cooled engines, which are noisy beasts, and they have no cabin climate control other than those two levers that vent engine heat into the cab. At my age, I wanted a car that had air-conditioning in the summer and lots of electronic brains. Now I look at the '71 Bus and ask if she'd consent to a spin. She always does. However, in defense of modern Mazdas, after they replaced some part I'd never heard of, they called and said they'd collect me --their free ride policy encompassed a radius of 32 kilometers. I was chauffeured and delivered to settle the bill and drive my Mazda home. Far cry from when I used to pull the VW's engine and rebuild her myself.

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  12. Not that I have anything to offer, but that's not been an impediment before, eh. I had a 74 VW camper, that was the ideal, absolutely the best, road trip vehicle ever. With the one caveat that it broke down the day before the trip. Cause some marital strife, etc.
    Also in 'fixing' cars. In maybe '72 we bought a new toyota land cruiser. Had a simple 6 cylinder engine, it was the chevy 235 made metric. Need tune ups every 6K or so miles, you know, plugs, points, timing, etc. I tried to do it once....we lived in Portland, was in school up at UOHSC on the hill....thing wouldn't start after I did my thing. A nephew drove the 150 miles from Bend, spent 30 minutes under the hood, got in his car and said "Uncle Mike, never, ever, lift the hood again, ok?" I nodded ruefully and he left.
    Anyway, hope your car issues are fixed.
    Mike

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    1. Dear Mike, week has resolved --I had problems with my GP not communicating Medicare-B document via fax on top of car problems. Car got fixed in 2 days but I had to go to pharmacy to get paperwork and take it to Dr. for signature --had panic attack in pharmacy! What's with these fax machines that I must do their job? Happily, a lady with a severe speech impediment sat me down and calmed me with positive noises. I am forever in her debt and amazed by her strength of character. As for '74 VW Campers, I think they still had the fuel pump under the carb instead of inside the gas tank. I stopped buying VWs when they put them in the tank. My Oklahoma cousin says 72 Toyotas came from a long line of dependable tractor engines and were a very good deal. I'm glad you learned repair and tune-up skills from the University of Oregon Health Science Center instead of auto mechanics. I owe my life to such decisions.

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  13. The electronic controls and modules in modern vehicles make things difficult for shade tree mechanics, don't they? Smarticus has several old muscle cars that he enjoys working on, but the newer ones, not so much. I'm glad you got your Mazda back... and glad your old VW was up to the task of filling in for you.

    Norma sounds to me like she's your rock... as well as an excellent photographer and an all-around good do-bee. :)

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    1. She is definitely my stabilizer --especially as I get older. I suffer jitter attacks from things that didn't used to bother me so much. Her customary calm leads me back to Norma-L.

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  14. That is a really fine photo. So much to look at in it.

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    1. Thank you, Jenny. I've relayed you compliment to the photographer who is fixing herself a snack in this kitchen. She glowed.

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