July Ultimate Blog Challenge - 'x' marks the day

(Squared-rigged xebec of the 1780-1815 period - Photo courtesy of Wikipedia)

When I open my Miriam-Webster Dictionary (copyright 1963) it lists only one page of words beginning with 'x.' One of the letter definitions state this letter is used to represent an unknown quantity. So, for today's blog, I'll just cite a few of the little-known words that begin with this letter.

I'll bet you didn't know Socrates's wife was named Xanthippe. Urban Dictionary tells us a well known anecdote about Xanthippe is the one where she was so angry with her husband that she threw a bucket of washing water on him. Because of her supposedly argumentative nature, the name has been adopted (in the modern era) as a word for a scolding, ill-tempered woman. (https://www.behindthename.com/name/xanthippe)

A xebec is a three-masted Mediterranean sailing ship used mostly for trading with long overhanging bow and stern.

The final word listed on the page is xylotomy which is the art of preparing sections of wood for microscopic examination.

And that ends today's lesson about useful words that begin with the letter 'x.'

July Ultimate Blog Challenge - wonder

The word of the day is wonder. I hope I never lose my sense of wonder, being awed by this magnificent world we inhabit.

Sitting beach-side,enjoying the action of the ocean's tide washing the shoreline keeps me wondering. Scientists tell us it is the gravitational pull of the moon that controls our oceans's waters. How can that be? Those in the know may explain away the phenomenon but I can't help wondering how it works. In the meantime, I indulge my passion as often as I can.

 I go back every chance I can even though the nearest ocean is hundreds of miles from where I now live. I grew up close to the eastern coastline. To walk the sandy beach,  teased by incoming lapping waves is pure contentment. When I revisit my home-town area, there's one particular stretch I try to always visit.  I leave my car and clamber down among boulders. Protected from any breeze and warmed by the sun, I soon lose track of passing time. The constant swoosh and sighs of moving waters brings on a sense of all's-right-with-the world.

Another thing that causes me to wonder is how birds know when it's time to migrate to warmer climates and when it's time to return. As I sit on my front porch, there's a hummingbird hovering beside the nearby feeder. How is it possible for such a tiny creature to fly such distances? And...remember its way back to this same patch of East Texas every time?

I hope I never get too blasé that I take for granted, or worse yet, completely ignore the wonders of this enchanting planet we occupy.

July Ultimate Blog Challenge - variety

The word of the day is variety. It's been said variety is the spice of life. How much variety does your life contain? Are you finding yourself bogged down in the sameness of everyday life? With so much of our days locked into the sameness of routine, how does one go about injecting some variety?

As I accumulate years, I too find myself settling into those comfortable routines. Start the day with social media, cup of coffee in hand. From there, move to the desk in bedroom where I write my Morning Pages, breakfast in hand. And so it goes...every day much like the previous. I do try to add a bit of variety in my food choices to start the day...cold cereal or egg and toast or oatmeal. Some days I get ambitious and make myself a spinach omelet. But, come on. That's all so boring, right?

To tell the truth, as I started to put this blog together, my mind went blank when I tried to come up with ways in which I could add variety to my life.

Life hasn't always been this dull and predictable. There have been periods of challenging, exciting adventures along the way. My first-time flight cross-country to re-connect with my soon-to-be-husband at the innocent age of eighteen. Standing on the sidewalk with office compatriots cheering our president just minutes before his assassination. The three-week family vacation, including eighty-year-old father, spent driving across Germany, France and England. The thrill of holding a fresh copy of my first published book, 'Til Death Do Us Part (https://www.amazon.com/Til-Death-Do-Us-Part-ebook/dp/B005H7LNF2/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF80.

So, I'm challenging myself today. Taking a long look at my life and will seek out ways to add variety to my life. Will you take the challenge with me? I'd sure like to hear of your successes or failures.

July Ultimate Blog Challenge - unicorn.

     

The word of the day is unicorn. Merriam-Webster's dictionary (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unicorn) gives two definitions.

      A. a mythical, usually white animal generally depicted with the body and head of a horse with long flowing mane and tail and a single often spiraled horn in the middle of the forehead

      B : an animal mentioned in the Bible that is usually considered an aurochs, a one-horned rhinoceros, or an antelope

The Encyclopedia Britannical (https://www.britannica.com/animal/aurochs) says the aurochs is an extinct species of large wild cattle that inhabited Europe, Asia, and North Africa. But all the pictures accompanying the article show two horns on the animal. Huh? I found the above picture in Google images when I searched the word aurochs.

 Unicorns are mentioned in the Bible – in fact, they are mentioned nine times but only occur in the Authorized King James Version of the Bible. 

• In Numbers 23:22 and 24:8, the Bible speaks of the strength of a unicorn.
• Deuteronomy 33:17,  Psalms 22: 21 and Psalms 92:10 speak of the unicorn’s horn.
• Job 39:10 and 39:10 both speak of the unicorn not tilling the earth.
• In Psalms 29:6, the unicorn is likened to a young calf skipping, while Isaiah 34:7 mentions unicorns in the same context as bulls and bullocks.

When a group of Greek scholars translated the original Hebrew biblical text to Greek around 250 B.C., the Hebrew word re’em puzzled them. It referred to a wild ox with one horn that apparently had become extinct. So they translated it to the closest word they knew - monokeros, meaning one-horned.

Are there unicorns in the Bible? Yes, but no one knows for sure what the Biblical unicorn really looked like.

July Ultimate Blog Challenge - temperature

(Shalom - Peace. This sign greets all my visitors) 

The word of the day is temperature. Most of the US has been experiencing soaring temperatures.  recently, including my part of the country. I'm a fresh air fiend and delay closing up the house to turn on the air conditioner as long as possible. Besides, the thermostat on my air unit isn't functioning so  every-so-often I have to turn it off because the room gets too cold. Weird, huh?

But I want to talk about another temperature, the prevailing atmosphere of your surroundings. What's in the air, feelings-wise, around your place? Does it seem like life is just one crisis after another? Do you feel like you're always playing catch-up, never quite coming to a time when you can just pause, take a deep breath, and feel everything in your world is all right?

Perhaps your thought-life is a jumble of possible scenarios leading to multiple dire outcomes. Or, you find yourself continually speculating about future prospects. This inner unrest will affect how you react to outward happenings.

Living alone gives me an advantage. Other than seeing to the needs of a brother and a single-parent granddaughter who both live close by, my days are spent pretty much in solitaire. This makes peaceful surroundings a given. Being a loner gives me an advantage as far as outer surroundings, but I think what happens within often affects the outer.

If you find yourself always in a stew over what might or might not happen, it's time to retrain those brain waves. Latch onto something...a peaceful picture posted on the refrigerator...a phrase that brings a sense of calm every time it comes to mind. When those twirling thoughts begin to overwhelm, force yourself to focus on that picture or phrase. The world won't come to an end while you do. That spilled juice will still be there but you'll react differently. Instead of yelling, you'll have calm within and that's what will rule the moment.

It's not easy. It takes a deliberate choice in the beginning. Repetition eventually becomes a habit.  But, I guarantee, by doing so first, in the heat of the moment, you'll soon find yourself doing it as a natural reaction every time.

July Ultimate Blog Challenge - siesta

The word of the day is siesta and I'm embracing the concept wholeheartedly. Siestas typically occur in hot climates, allowing people to sleep though the hottest part of the day and avoid the sun’s strong midday rays. Here in Texas we've been experiencing triple-digit temperatures. That intense mid-day heat  really saps one's energy. An afternoon rest or nap taken during the hottest hours of the day sounds like a  really good idea.

Being a curious person, I had to seek out the meaning and history of the word 'siesta.' It's from the Spanish and literally means sixth hour. Huh? Then I went on to read since the hours of the day begin at dawn, the sixth hour is noon, which is when siestas often start. 

 Siestas are common in Spanish-speaking nations around the world, as well as Greece, Italy, The Philippines, and Nigeria, to name a few. Even the Romans regularly took daily naps. But even before it became common practice in these countries, the practice was recorded in Islamic Law and written about in the Koran. 

So, fair warning to anyone wanting my attention. Do not disturb between the hours of noon and two. I'll be out-of-pocket then. 

July Ultimate Blog Challenge - remembering

The word of the day is remembering. The ability to remember is such a handy skill - I wish I were more adept at it. Senior moments are an everyday occurrence for me. Some things come easy to remember, like my glasses. It's hard to forget to attach-to-face immediately upon waking since everything is a blur when I open my eyes.

But not everything is so easy to remember. I rely heavily on habit to keep things on an even roll. And notes...those scattered notepads and accompanying pens in every room really come in handy. Suppose I'm in the bathroom and notice there's only one roll of paper on the shelf? I make a beeline to the kitchen counter's on-going list to add that item.

Now it isn't only for items I need to restock I use that shopping list. It could include anything that needs to be gotten or done away from the house. The nearest city with a choice of stores is thirty miles away. I'm too far out in the country for a pizza delivery when I crave that TV snack. And I can't jump in the car for a quick run every time I need peanut butter for my lunch's sandwich. Pick up a library book? On the list. Need summer shoes? On the list.

So I keep a list going and not just one for shopping or errands. Sometimes a list gets made to help me remember the car's oil needs changing or I'm supposed to mail that card tomorrow.

I'm new to a smart phone, having given myself permission to graduate from flip-phone to smart just in the last year. I know there's a feature somewhere in that contraption for writing notes. Now...if I can just remember how to access it.