Post 34/2020 Monday 26 October My October surprise last week was not really a surprise. It was a continuation of discovering wonder in the out-of-doors. For the first time we walked around Waterford Wetlands, an area maintained for community use by Waterford Mennonite Church, south of town. (Featured image: Sandhill cranes at Boot Lake Nature …
Author: John Bender
Hi, my name is John Bender, retired and loving it. I'm writing to help interested people cross bridges to and from the past. Stories from the past can shed light on life in the present and illuminate the future. We've got a lot of living to do. Let's do it!
Stay-Go-Be-Do #1
Post 33/2020 Monday 19 October Many people know that these public health measures carry solid force: Avoid crowded settings, keep social distance, do small gatherings outdoors, wash your hands for 20 seconds or use hand sanitizer, and wear a mask. (Featured image) Pumpkin tower at the main intersection in Wakarusa, not to be confused with …
Bubble and Squeak #6
Post 32/2020 Saturday 10 October It's time to refresh. Time to rename "Bubble and Squeak." Time to cook up a new headline. Time to keep a sharp heads up on the pandemic bubble. Inevitably, we see signs of pandemic fatigue surfacing in many parts of the USA and the world. People are itching to find …
Bubble and Squeak #5
Post 31/2020 Thursday 1 October "You paint a big picture of Michigan," my late friend Ray Schlegel once told me. The comment surprised me, yet on reflection I saw his point. Michigan has weighed heavily in our travels. As it has this week. We took our "home bubble" on a fall color/walking visit to west …
Bubble and Squeak #4
Post 30/2020 Tuesday 15 September Pandemic hotspots. Climate wildfires. Hurricane Sally. Midwestern floods. White House denials. A changing world stares us in the face. It's right there before our eyes. We're pushed to comprehend it all. In the middle of it all, I puzzle: How can my thoughts and actions make a dent in this …
Bubble and Squeak #3
Post 29/2020 Monday 31 August A trip to JCPenney hardly registers as a day's noteworthy activity. Nevertheless, our recent visit to the going-out-of-business retailer yielded more than the items we bought. I asked the salesclerk how long she had worked there. "Nineteen years," she said. I thanked her for all the customers she has served …
Bubble #2, and Squeak
Tuesday 4 August Post 28/2020 Bubble #1 has morphed into Bubble and Squeak #2. I'll try to use the name of that English dish to good effect as I muse on things past, present and future during this time of face coverings, handwashing, social distancing, and testing. In these occasional posts, I hope to hit …
Bubble #1: Where I write
Bubble #1 Sunday 19 July 2020. This is the first of occasional blogs I'll write during the idling phase of my weekly Cogitation. Welcome to Bubble. I've named it for the social distancing bubble that's incumbent on all during the devastating days of the coronavirus pandemic, with a special nod to those who use their …
Posting a little list
Saturday 27 June 2020 I know, I know, last week was to be my last blog for a while. Well, shucks, call it phaseal transition syndrome. An antidote to withdrawal pains. Slowly letting go. Almost there. Not quite ready to pause for the "Silent Eye" moment (the technique that improves human visual attention, applied to …
Consider the thistle
Cogitation 25 Friday 19 June 2020 / No. 255 since 30 November 2014 / last post 'till who knows when. Once upon a time I was the avowed decimator of thistles. My brothers and I were assigned to dig out thistles from the fence rows on our farm (and mustard and yellow rocket plants in …
It's About Now 