Remember Your Spirit

Jane! Stop This Crazy Thing! 7 Random Things To Tell You On A Wednesday

/ Ally Bean / 268 Comments

The Jetsons predicted the future more accurately than we ever could have imagined.

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1. I am nuts.  I woke up remembering that in my dream an arrogant man told me I was a condescending cannoli. Where the heck did that thought come from? It makes no sense, I’m not a cannoli. However I admit I am tempted to start a new blog with that title, just to see who’d show up to read what a haughty Italian pastry had to say.

2. I am delighted.  I stumbled over this website that features 25 rarely seen photos from The Sound of Music film set. If you are able to look at these photos, snapped in Austria, and not start singing “Doe, a deer, a female deer | Ray,  a drop of golden sun…” then you’re AI, not human.

3. I am laughing.  I follow a few humorous accounts on Instagram [that I believe might also be available on other social media]. I’m entertained by: Call Me Kristen Marie who gently mocks her Boomer mother; Peaches ‘n Diesel who does a brilliant send-up of the fashion industry; and Lisa Pedace whose uptight sketch comedy characters are spot on. Never say I don’t share the best with you, my bloggy friends.

4. I am encouraged.  Over the years I’ve read numerous articles and books about how to be a better writer. Usually I shrug off the advice, not because I’m so accomplished but because the advice seems dithery and vague. However this article, a simple list of 40 things, spoke to me because it got to the point and as such may help me.

5. I am flummoxed.  A friend whose opinion I respect told me that she’s noticed that I’m less snarky than I used to be, that I seem to be, of all things, nicer than I once was. Putting aside the fact that I dislike the word “nice” I’m sorry to say I fear she’s right. I don’t know how this has happened, but I feel I owe an apology to anyone who started reading this blog because I was sassy.

6. I am watching.  We started watching Death and Other Details on Hulu. It isn’t the most compelling TV mystery show I’ve ever seen [Endeavour, the prequel to the Inspector Morse series, might win that prize], but if you like brain candy and enjoy seeing lavish sets, in this case on a Mediterrean ocean liner, this could be the show for you.

7.  I am agreeing.  As we slowly make our way to the end of winter here in the northern hemisphere, my soul is tired and this idea resonates loudly with me. Nature. Magic. Truth. Yes, more of these, please.

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QUESTIONS OF THE DAY

So what do you think, have I gotten too nice here? Should I lean into being more snarky again, bring back the sass? Go full on condescending cannoli, whatever that means?

Do you like to watch movies that are musicals? Do you watch TV mystery series? If so to either question, what do you recommend we watch next?

In general do you appreciate writing advice? It’s everywhere anymore with about a zillion books/websites available on the topic, yet I still wonder if all advice is equally useful or if some of it is self-absorbed gibberish?

How’s your soul doing? Need a little pick-me-up like mine?

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The One About Celebrating 2024 New Year’s Day A Second Time Today

/ Ally Bean / 220 Comments

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Here’s what you need to know.

Regardless of the day of the year I’m not one to make resolutions, a word I’d define as an official proclamation announcing what you plan on doing henceforth.

However I do, from time to time, set general goals about what I want to accomplish in the future, but I don’t think of these general goals as hard and fast objectives. They’re more like gentle nudges in a better direction.

My nudges aren’t SMART [specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound], an approach to setting goals that I remember learning about in college. Instead my nudges are DUMB [doable, useful, memorable, and basic], an acronym I just invented in this moment.

As creative people often do.

Making it up as you go along, noticing the possibilities at hand, relying a bit on your intuition.

Being a pantser, in a word.

Anyhoo… 

Today, if I understand this correctly, is a significant day according to astrology, a belief system based on celestial bodies such as moon phases. One leans into astrology to explain what one should expect in one’s future.

[And doesn’t the use of the word ‘one’ instead of the word ‘you’ sound pretentious? I suddenly feel like Dr. Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory, speaking formally, being haughty.]

Moving along, the bottom line here is that today’s new moon will be the last new moon for 15 years that we’ll see in Capricorn [the time frame starting December 22nd, ending January 19th]. Thus it’s a big deal for astrologers.

Meanwhile according to numerology, the belief that there is a correlation between certain numbers and coinciding events, today’s date, 111, is a number that means new beginnings. And that, too, is a big deal in certain circles.

You may read more about how these two concepts dovetail together here: The New Moon In Capricorn Is Here To Start 2024 Off Right

Regardless of my ambivalence about astrology and my nonchalance regarding numerology, from the foregoing I learned that today’s message to one and all is: “It’s go time!”

And I like this message. Don’t you?

I feel empowered.

It gives me the opportunity to have what I’m thinking of as a 2024 New Year’s Day do-over, secure in the fact that this time I’ve got the planets behind me, or above me I guess, and that I’m ready to be determined to reach my 2024 goals nudges.

Once I figure out what they might be. 😉

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QUESTIONS OF THE DAY

Are you celebrating this second 2024 New Year’s Day today? If so, how?

Do you have any goals [or nudges] for 2024? If so, what are some of them?

Are you finding that this is the most uninspiring January that has ever existed in all of time? If not, which one was worse?

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Show And Tell: Where I’ve Been In My Lifetime & Where I Won’t Be This December

/ Ally Bean / 280 Comments

WHERE I’VE BEEN:

Who doesn’t like a visual representation about some aspect of their life?

To wit, in my online gadding about I came across a way to easily make a snazzy map of where you’ve travelled and/or lived in the US and territories. Thus I applied myself to the task, did as instructed, and created the above image.

As you can see I’ve been to 35 states + DC.  Based on the points tallied, I am on Level 137.  How that compares to anyone else I cannot say because I have no frame of reference, I just know that’s my level.

Go HERE to make your own personalized map of your experiences traveling &/or living in the US and territories. Please note there are a few different background colors for your map so if you’re saving yours, mess around until you find the perfect color for you.

WHERE I WON’T BE THIS DECEMBER:

I’m bugging out of blogland for the month of December.

It’s been a busy year for me here at The Spectacled Bean, writing longer than usual posts and managing, what I think of as, comment-palooza. I figure there’s no need to force myself to do something that is, for the most part, fun and is completely voluntary.

So I’m taking a break.

I will be popping into Instagram [HERE] and Threads [HERE] so I’ll be around social media a little bit, not entirely off the grid, but for the most part I’ll be laying low like the introvert I am during a hectic time of year.

You understand.

QUESTIONS OF THE DAY:

• So, my little gallivanters, how many US states and territories have you visited or lived in? If you made your own snazzy map using the link, what is your level?

• Having blogged since the days of dinosaurs, I know that it’s easy to find reasons to not keep a blog, BUT it is more difficult to find a reason to put yourself out there and keep a blog going. If you have a personal blog, what is your reason for writing it?

• What are you looking forward to doing, or not doing, in December?

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Happy Holidays, Everyone

Do Good. Have Fun. Take Joy.

See you next year!

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Out For A Walk: Honestly Just A Nice Stroll To See Where A Bridge Used To Be

/ Ally Bean / 199 Comments

PLEASE NOTE: Yesterday Elisabeth at The Optimistic Musings Of A Pessimist interviewed me for her ongoing series featuring bloggers. I was happy to participate. Go HERE to read the interview. 

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I like November.

In my part of the midwest it’s the calm before the storm, the pause before the whirlwind of the holidays. It’s a delightful time to just BE.

Grateful for cool nights and sunny days.

Peaceful and introspective, even.

Consequently while many bloggers worldwide are participating in NaBloPoMo [National Blog Post Month] or NaNoWriMo [National Novel Writing Month], I’m feeling pleasantly detached from writing, inclined to relax into each moment without wordiness.

To wit, as a few of you may recall I used to do posts on this blog in which I shared photos of where I/we went for a walk. Recently I realized that I got away from doing that during the pandemic, shifting into writing more, photographing less.

However today in light of my mellow mood and my lack of verboseness, I’ll post the following photos I took last Friday afternoon when the sun was shining brightly.

We decided to see what was going on with a state project to replace a pedestrian bridge, on a former railroad bridge, that is part of a popular bike path. We wanted to see where the bridge used to be.

And who doesn’t like a post that includes a photo of what isn’t there anymore? 🤔   

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This photo was taken while walking through Loveland OH on a beautiful autumn afternoon.

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Locally referred to as the Loveland Bike Trail, the official name of this path is the Little Miami State Park.

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On the bike trail, which is used by runners and walkers as often as cyclists, you can find this building, the Little Miami Conservancy.

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As you get closer to the closed portion of the path you now see this sign.

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And this sign, a free parking sign, that has been tossed casually onto the ground until it is needed again.

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The pedestrian bridge that you do not see here is being replaced by The Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

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This is a photo of the Little Miami River, part of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. It is the river over which the bridge that used to be was, and the river that will again have a pedestrian bridge over it once the new one is built.

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