Thank you for visiting my blog, Life and Random Thinking, as without you visiting I would stopped long ago – I can’t be like a tree falling in a forest with no one around.
Weather Update – The Okanagan valley has filled with smoke from forest fires. There are fires all over the province of British Columbia which has negatively effected air quality.
Rain is needed, and many people (including firefighters) will be praying and not only for British Columbia but also for the farms in Alberta and Saskatchewan. I pray the rain will come.
I am happy to share some photos with you in this post that I took with my blog friends in mind. I hope you will enjoy the photos and captions. Stay safe !
– David
If you want to know more about Elephant Island winery – here is a link for you. ♥ It’s my favourite one of all.
A closeup of some drops on a plant at the Summerland research station. I had a nice walking around the garden a few days back.
Some herbs on my deck – basil and rosemary. I love herbs.
This picture causes me to smile and take a deep breath.
These are some squirrels I was hand feeding peanuts when I was in Manning Park recently. They live underground in the park.
My phone enhanced the colour here but I think it looks awesome.
I spotted an elephant on the Naramata Road. It tell the distance to a wonderful winery named Elephant Island.
Another morning ride – on the old railway line, now a trail. The view at this spot is one I always spot to soak into.
A morning ride and the smoke is obvious but got worse when the wind direction changed.
My son rode to the little tunnel past Naramata today. It is way up high and the view of the Okanagan is amazing.
This is my 791st blog post. I am amazed that I have continued to write posts and have various categories. I know that I am still writing posts after eight years for one reason and it’s not because I am an inspired writer; the reason I am still writing is because of the kind encouragement from readers.
I sincerely appreciate your comments and that you take the time to visit and share your feedback on my posts. ♥ David
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Let’s start today with some photos I have taken recently in and around Penticton.
the gardens at the Summerland Research station are lovely and peaceful
This plant caught my eye at the gardens at the Summerland Research station. Lovely.
Standing on my deck and looking west – I have to let the Sun Go Down on me (sorry Elton John)
the cactus in the front yard is doing well, and the deer can vouch that they are succulent 🙂
a lovely walk along Skaha lake and I was blessed with this view.
My son and his 7 ‘ Sonflowers – spelling intentional. Love these sunflowers – red and yellow beauties !
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One of the reason sunflowers are appreciated is that they are such a bee-friendly plant and when the seeds arrive they also make birds quite pleased. ♥
We can always use more Be’s such as:
Be Understanding
Be Patient
Be Better
Be Careful
Be Slow to Anger
Be Positive
Be Quick to Praise
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Today in reading I came across this word “garrulous” which means : excessively talkative especially on trivial matters.
If you want a Word of the Day challenge – try using this word today ♥
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Enjoy your day, and thanks for meeting me here today. – David.
Thanks for reading and visiting #11 in this category.
My three thoughts today I hope you will relate to, and comment on.
I am living through a heat wave along with 90% of British Columbia and Alberta. We are used to heat in the summer, but not like we are having now.
There could be some readers out there that don’t know Penticton is on the edge of a desert, we have rattlesnakes and scorpions here.
Instead of the normal June weather of 30ish Celsius, today is 41 C. Since this is only June (albeit late June) there is a sense of foreboding in many people’s hearts as the hot weather is usually in July and August.
We don’t want to have forest fires or see animals suffering. Speaking of animals, four cute newborn fawns are new arrivals to the neighborhood. No photos yet, but I will keep my eyes peeled for you and hope I can get a nice photo. – David
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First Random Thought
It’s been so hot that I have been getting up at 5:30 a.m. to head out for my morning rides, hence the theme MORNING. If you click on the pictures then you can see them better. 🙂
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My second random thought
is one I just read on another post: She shared how she was encouraged to LIVE NATURAL instead of LIVE NORMAL. Here is the link to the blog that inspired this thought.
I liked that thought and though it was one worth chewing over, and thought you might also.
It makes me think about my post about the Life’s Top Five Regrets – I was surprised that I wrote that back in 2012.
I can’t stop this feeling Deep inside of me Girl, you just don’t realize What you do to me
When you hold me In your arms so tight You let me know Everything’s alright
I’m hooked on a feeling I’m high on believing That you’re in love with me
Hooked On a Feeling – Blue Swede
This song “Hooked On A Feeling” was a song hit back in 1974. I think it has been used a few times since then in some movies. The beginning is sort of unique. You can see it here from 1974 on Youtube !
I remember the 70’s music and it’s my favourite era.
Careful though if you are not familiar with 1970’s music – you can get Hooked.
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Thanks again for visiting, I really appreciate it. ♥ David
You may have thought I didn't see,
Or that I hadn't heard,
Life lessons that you taught to me,
But I got every word.
Perhaps you thought I missed it all,
And that we'd grow apart,
But Dad, I picked up everything,
It's written on my heart.
Without you Dad, I wouldn't be
The person I am today;
You built a strong foundation
No one can take away
I've grown up with your values,
And I'm very glad I did;
So here's to you, dear father,
From your forever grateful kid.
By Joanna Fuchs
Dad is the youngster in the middle
Father’s Day is this weekend. I wanted to have a simple post to acknowledge my Dad – he knows what he means to me . Thanks for visiting today. – ♥
Welcome and Thanks for visiting my blog – Life and Random Thinking. – David
My first Random Thought today is about Fruit. Outside in my backyard is my cherry tree.
The leaves fall off in the fall so it looks bare but you can see the umbrella shape of the tree as it is pruned annually to allow air in the branches and keep the tree healthy plus not too tall.
In the winter, the tree is resting and that is when it is pruned. I have a wonderful expert pruner, Harry, he might have been at Woodstock and yet he is limber and climbs the tree with chainsaw in hand. I help by gathering the branches removed and carry everything to his pickup truck. We often have coffee after or before and we always have a wonderful chat.
cherry tree in blossom in my back yard
In the spring, the excitement and optimism builds as the leaves return, the daylight lengthens, and the cherry tree buds appear. Then come the white blossoms which are wonderful and the bees flitting from spot to spot. I love bees ! Sadly the blossoms depart shortly and fall to cover the ground like late spring snow.
The departing of the blossoms marks the beginning of the actual fruit. At first little green marbles, they grow and change colour. Now the tree is covered with heavy reddening cherries of different shades. The starlings peck and ruin a portion and I strain to refrain from wasted effort chasing them away. There will be lots of cherries left for my family and more besides to share.
It’s not a precise calculation but cherry picking is the first weeks of summer. It can be from late June to early July – Mother Nature won’t be pinned down.
Soon many cherry tree boughs will be heavy enough to pick from the ground or by a NBA player. Most will require my ladder. I always jury-rig a container to hang around my neck so my hands are free to hold on or pick – whichever seems the best idea at the moment.
Cherries are relatively quick to pick, even though I am not a fast picker. Everyone takes turns picking until we get as much as we want to eat and for canning. My wife cans cherries so we enjoy cherries from our tree 12 months of the year. Muchas gracias esposa ♥
Many cherries are looking ready now – it won’t be long now but you wait until they are primo ♥
Thinking about my fruit tree in relation to life- both have stages and at my age and perspective, it’s easier to see. In life and harvesting fruit there is work steps that effect, increase or decrease, the harvest.
I use this metaphor for myself – my mental and physical health takes time, commitment and planning so I can be healthy and lead a balanced life. We all enjoy the fruit, but as my one friend always says” we don’t plan to fail, we fail to plan”. In my case, I sometimes have the plan but need to make sure I am executing, and I love small steps in the right direction because easier to implement.
My suggestion has been small steps always, you can’t eat an elephant in a day – digestible chunks. 🙂 Link here
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My second thought today is Cowboy Sayings:
Inscription on John Wayne ‘s headstone:
“Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes into us at midnight very clean. It’s perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we’ve learnt something from yesterday.”
It’s going to be hard to limit myself to only five Cowboy insights;
Never approach a bull from the front, a horse from the rear, or a fool from any direction.
Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
If you find yourself in a hole, the first thing is to stop diggin’.
The biggest troublemaker you’ll probably ever have to deal with watches you shave his face in the mirror every morning.
Always drink upstream from the herd♥
safer here out of the waves – Cocoa Beach Florida
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My ThirdThought is about Lessons:
I remember the movie “To Sir With Love” – Sidney Poitier in this 1967 movie is an out of work engineer (Mark Thackeray) who takes up a job teaching in a London high school.
The opening scene in the classroom is mayhem, and disrespect at the teacher’s expense.
Patience and class wins the day. Mr Thackeray teaches them to behave with courtesy in the classroom – the young ladies as Miss, and the boys by their surname.
He teaches deportment, and answers their questions. One of his statements was “Toughness is a quality of the mind…. like bravery, honesty, and ambition.”
They asked him what will they talk about?
His answer:
“About life…. survival…love… death, sex, marriage…. rebellion, anything you want.”
I really recommend you watch the ending – Mark Thackeray tears up his letter of acceptance for work as an engineer and decides to stay at the school. – Incredibly (emotional) memorable scene. – watch HERE
I welcome your ideas, and feedback. I am very grateful for each comment and enjoy responding- David.
Thank you for visiting my blog today, I am continually surprised on what a supportive community the blogging community is.
Today I visited and was inspired by another blogger who writes ” Okanagan Valley View“. I read a few of her posts and one mentioned hand-holding and it sparked my blog post for today. I am going to talk about Holding Hands, Hugging, and the wonderful burrowing people together we call cuddling or snuggling. Who knew that something so healthy needed no prescription?
I still remember a girl in high school telling me I was a “hugger”, and I suppose I still amand so was my Mom.
Who else remembers the excitement first holding hands with someone?
I sure do, my heart beat so quickly and I probably wouldn’t have been brave enough if not for the darkness of the movie theatre.
LOL, I was not the most intrepid high school male but maybe if I had known then about the health benefits I might have been more brave. Nah, probably not.
According to one internet link there is actual science behind the health benefits of hand-holding. See here.
Hand-holding improves our quality of life.
It can stimulate feelings of love. (support, and caring)
Hand-holding decreases the stress hormone – cortisol.
It increases oxytocin which increases empathy and communication.
Now hugging is something I enjoy doing, I enjoy hugging people, family, good friends, people I appreciate and it has always felt natural. Even if I was too shy to express myself verbally, then a hug I hoped spoke how I valued that person.
This time my internet source is the Cleveland Clinic and they had a few things to say about the health benefits of hugging.
Like hand-holding, hugging releases the stress hormone cortisol,
Hugging may also decrease high blood pressure and lower your heart rate (and better for your liver than drugs ♥),
Hugging can strengthen your immune system,
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Snuggle – Cuddle For your health
Nothing beats a nice snuggle/cuddle. There are many forms of the snuggle/cuddle.
The head on the shoulder while looking outward together,
The burrowing head under the chin snuggle which can be enjoyed for feels like an eternity.
The spoon to warm up cuddle (where did those cold feet come from?)
The snuggle / hug that says you are special,
Whether you “cuddle” or “snuggle” – you are talking about the same action; the drawing close together and pressing against one another.
The health benefits are the same as hand-holding, and hugging which is that Snuggling/Cuddling causes the pituitary gland to produce oxytocin which displaces cortisol.
Life and Random Thinking 