March makes me weary. It's a long, sloggy month with an Identity Crisis. It's Not-Winter and it's Not-Spring. My father, surprisingly chauvinistic at times, used to call it the Women's Weather Month because it's so changeable. That always irked me, but I do like the idea of Nature being Female (although the term Mother Nature, not so much).
Despite Her many vagaries, I am a great appreciator of Nature (in part, due to my father), even when She does Her level best to irritate the hell out of me with things like snow in general, wind when I'm trying to sleep, squirrels badgering my birdfeeders, and mice breaking into my garage or, worse, my house.
Let's try and Manage March with a Nature Meme:
1. What part of Nature do you like best?
Trees, especially flowering trees.
2. What natural phenomenon would you like to see?
I'd really love to see a full display of the Northern Lights.
3. Is there an animal that you find awe-inspiring?
Lots of them. I recently spotted a bald eagle completely unexpectedly; that took my breath away. When I went whale-watching, I was awed. There is something about elephants that always touches me; they seem to have such an ancient, inherent dignity.
4. Have you ever ridden on a horse or any other animal?
I've always wanted to ride a horse. I've ridden a camel!
5. Are you more of a cat person or a dog person?
I love my granddog Zydrunas wholly and completely, but I am a cat person at heart.
6. Which version of (You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman do you like best, Carole King's or Aretha Franklin's?
I'll always have a soft spot for Carole King's version. Her Tapestry album is part of the soundtrack of my life. But when I think of that song, it's Aretha I hear.
7. Are you a Natural Woman (or Man), or do you avail yourself of a little Help?
I get by with a little help from my friends Mascara and Tinted Moisturizer. I'm far too lazy (and cheap) to colour my hair since it would require endless maintenance, and I'm too scared (and cheap) to get any cosmetic surgery (hospital infection! complications! wasting money!). I've even broken up with Blush for the most part. (Do they even still call it that?)
Your turn. March forth in Comments.
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I was lucky enough to see the Northern Lights in Finland this January, and it was absolutely incredible. We were blessed with about 45 minutes of lights, during which time they kept changing. I was in complete awe the whole time, and to put things in perspective, what we saw was fairly mundane compared to those once-in-a-lifetime photos you see online. While part of me is happy that I was able to see it, I'm already thinking about future trips up to the Arctic to try again.
ReplyDeleteDespite being a city person, I am very much a nature lover. But yes, I remember what horrors March can bring in NEO, and I feel your pain.
Mikey--Thanks for sharing your sighting via your Instagram (and your travelogue email). I was envious, but in a good way, and definitely living vicariously through your adventure. It's such a treat to read and see your travels since I know you really well and know how you like to immerse yourself in the experiences.
DeleteI'll be feeling the full force of March in NEO today--we're staying in the teens today with single digit wind chills. Sigh. Not like we haven't been here before.
Oh geeze, so many of my answers are like yours!! Here goes:
ReplyDelete1. Lakes and Rivers
2. Northern Lights for sure (Fletch once saw them briefly in Boston!!)
3. So many! Birds (Hummingbirds and then Eagles and Hawks), BIG Cats, Elephants
4. I've ridden horses a number of times.
5. Definitely a cat person.
6. Like you, Tapestry was an album (remember them???) that I just about wore out. But, I think of Aretha with that song for sure.
7. No hair color in years, and no makeup the last few weeks/months thanks to a nasty rash on my face. I do use moisturizer but otherwise nothing at this point. It's kind of nice:)
Vera--Ah! No wonder we're blogfriends!
Delete3. We have, suddenly, a great many hawks around our street, and we live in a neighborhood with houses separated only by driveways and yards--very closely packed. We had a juvenile red-tail who hunted worms in our yards all last summer every time it rained. It was gorgeous.
6. Tapestry was my older sister Patti's album. She was my idol, so I listened to her music all the time: Carole King, James Taylor, Carly Simon...and I was a Beatlemaniac, too, because she was.
(And yes, I do remember albums! Ironically, my youngest, Sam, is now buying vinyl! And borrowing ours!)
Dee--Hee hee! I think all/most of us in the Modern World still feel Natural with the Basics of toothpaste, shampoo, soap, deodorant.
ReplyDeleteI, too, have briefly ridden a large dog--again, Zydrunas--but it was so abrupt that I didn't think it really counted.
Alligators are a bit too scary for me to be "awed"--especially now that I've seen two newsreports of one eating a person! Yikes!
Niagara Falls! Even though the area (especially the Canadian Side) has become so Vegas-y and commercialized, its natural beauty is still mesmerizing and awe-inspiring to me. IF, of course, you can get anywhere near it.
Thanks for answering!
1. What part of Nature do you like best? Trees - especially in the mountains. And maybe the flowers we grow in our yard.
ReplyDelete2. What natural phenomenon would you like to see? I wish we'd gone to Niagara Falls while we lived in Ohio - so ridiculous that we never did! But the one thing I'd really like to see is the Redwood National Park.
3. Is there an animal that you find awe-inspiring? Penguins! Overcoming all the things to become parents - and then shared parenting. Very cool.
4. Have you ever ridden on a horse or any other animal? Yes, a horse. I did not really enjoy it, but that's probably because I was at 4-H camp & the other girls knew what they were doing so I didn't receive any instruction. Thirty minutes of trotting when you don't know what you're doing is NOT fun!
5. Are you more of a cat person or a dog person? Dogs! Cats freak me the hell out. So cute & furry & adorable, but then they jump up on your kitchen counter & you end up with random cat hair in your food. OK, I was once traumatized by a cat eating my breakfast on the kitchen table. Apparently I never got over it. Ha!
6. Which version of (You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman do you like best, Carole King's or Aretha Franklin's? I like Carole's version because it's the one I can sing along to - Aretha leaves me in the dust :)
7. Are you a Natural Woman (or Man), or do you avail yourself of a little Help? I do all the things! Recently I had to stop wearing eye makeup for a while & that was honestly very freeing. However, I started back up again because vanity. I am STRONGLY considering getting all my hair chopped off so I can let the natural color grow back in. Just to see what it looks like now. The only thing stopping me is that I get bored with my hair so easily - I don't color so much to cover my gray as I do to see something different in the mirror. We shall see!
Bug--Still waiting for that Mascara Spreadsheet! ;-)
DeleteAnd you may have surpassed me in Vanity, finally. I've really relaxed in my Dotage. Maybe it was having to give up contacts.
You know, you can still go to Niagara Falls even though you moved to NC. There is No Law Against It. It's well worth the drive, especially the Horseshoe Falls--those are really the best ones.
I was fortunate enough to see a real redwood forest when I went to stay with Mikey in San Francisco. They really are incredible, and I was completely in awe. It was like the Emily Dickinson poem "Some Keep The Sabbath...". If I were a churchgoing person, that would be my cathedral, for sure.
I'm sorry that an ill-behaved cat ruined you for All Other Cats. It is a case of a Bad Cat Owner, not a Bad Cat.
Nance, I hate to say it, but the cat was ours! It was really an outdoor cat that we let in the house sometimes so it wasn't its fault.
DeleteI gave up on the mascara spreadsheet. I tried a few other brands, but I'm still using the Cover Girl Professional (non-waterproof) because it's the least annoying. It makes it ALMOST three months without too much flaking. I've really thought about just stopping with eye makeup - I wear glasses almost 100% of the time now so who would really notice?
Bug--Oh...heehee! Well, it was a case of a Stressed And Confused Cat, then. And you were just trying to be nice!
DeleteI had to give up contacts due to dry eye, but I still wear mascara behind my specs (all seven pairs of them). If full eye makeup makes you feel pretty/polished/good, then You Do You. I use Cover Girl Clump Crusher most often, but it doesn't last three months. Might have to check out yours.
What fun: 1) I love sunshine after a rainy day. 2) I'd like to see the northern lights, too. 3)I'm in love with elephants and 4) yes, I've ridden horses. 5) I'm a dog person but I like cats but I'm allergic to them. 6) I don't like that song sung by anyone. We shouldn't need a man to make us feel like a woman. I am woman, hear me roar. 7) My only 'help' comes from shampoo and body wash not particular brands.
ReplyDeleteMoW (aka Jean)--You bring up an interesting point about the song "Natural Woman." On Saturday, I was listening to a lot of songs from the soundtrack of my early life, most notably those by Carly Simon, James Taylor, Carole King, since I grew up listening to the music of my older sister (as I mentioned above). Patti is 7 years older than I am. As I listened, I became more aware of the lyrics, and Carly Simon's especially are quite reliant upon the "male-centered romance", and echo the sentiment of "Natural Woman." As a feminist, it was a bit tough to take that a lot of my favourite music from my past--sung by women!--was so dependent upon the old trope of "the man in my life makes my life so much more wonderful" or "I'm brokenhearted without my man." That being said, the song and the way the women sing it still make it a great tune.
Delete1 - Favorite part of nature? Waterfalls
ReplyDelete2 - Natural phenomenon I want to see? Nova Scotia's Bay of Fundy with the world's highest tides
3 - Awe-inspriring animal? Monarch butterfly. Not technically an animal, but the migration process is awe-inspiring, not to mention the metamorphosis of all butterflies
4 - Ridden a horse or other animal? Yes. Horse, mule, and a cow being led to water.
5 - Dog or cat person? Definitely and assuredly a dog person.
6 - Version of "You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman?" - Carole King, because I love the "Tapestry" album and bought it with my babysitting money when it first came out. I love Aretha's version but I prefer Carole King.
7 - Are you a natural woman? Definitely yes. Never wore eye liner or shadow, very little makeup at all. Once was 'made up' for a publicity photo shoot for work. It looked lovely but what a process! Never colored my hair. Had only one professional manicure and that was when I got my engagement ring.
NCmountainwoman--Waterfalls are gorgeous and a wonder to behold. And they can be both powerful and restful somehow at the same time.
DeleteI just listened to Tapestry in its entirety on Saturday while I was knitting and marveled again at Carole King's talents. Each song revived its own memories and emotions for me.
I, too, have never coloured my hair or worn eyeliner. Eyeliner intrigues me, but it's just Not Me, and I can't draw a straight line even with a ruler.
Off to read and view more about the Bay of Fundy, which my grandparents and parents visited, but I know very little about.
Did you get a Paczki today? My Milwaukee daughter had one filled with rose-hip jam. Made my a co-worker's Polish grandmother. She said it was the best she ever had. Obviously, none here in NC. It's not even Pancake Day here.
DeleteNCmountainwoman--No, no Paczki for me. Rudy's Strudel, THE Paczki Place of Parma, had as its featured flavour this year, a specially designed Hot Chocolate Paczki inspired by a local soda fountain's creation. It is filled with their 1911 recipe's chocolate transformed into custard and topped with handmade whipped marshmallow. YUM! But I don't eat like that anymore, not even for Fat Tuesday.
DeleteI love nature when Im on my screened porch in the summertime and it is after dusk. I hear the owls calling and I hear the crickets singing. A breeze refreshes me , and the humidity is pleasant.
ReplyDeleteI also LOVE thunderstorms.
I love dogs, but I adore cats. Carole king Please. Yes I have ridden horses. These days I prefer to walk them on the lead at the barn and groom them. Fun questions Nance!
kathy b--Oh, the glory of a screened porch! Allow me to be a teensy bit envious of you. And aren't summer breezes lovely?
DeleteI, too, find thunderstorms thrilling, especially their lightning display.
Glad you had fun with the Q and A!
March here is glorious so maybe I should not participate. Still I grew up in Michigan and remember the fury of the days with some days having a hint of Spring and then zap you are at 20 below.
ReplyDeleteMeredith--So glad you are having a Glorious March, as I'm sure many are in a myriad of places. Enjoy it!
Delete1. What part of Nature do you like best?
ReplyDeleteFlowers. Especially roses and… pansies! Something about the velvety texture of rose petals… and the wonderful colours of pansies. Also… sunsets.
2. What natural phenomenon would you like to see?
I’d like to see a volcano erupt. From a very safe distance.
3. Is there an animal that you find awe-inspiring?
Dolphins. I would like to try swimming with dolphins one day.
4. Have you ever ridden on a horse or any other animal?
Rode a horse once. Fell off. End of story.
5. Are you more of a cat person or a dog person?
Dog person, hands down. (Although I like cats when they are cute little kitties. Not so much later on.)
6. Which version of (You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman do you like best, Carole King's or Aretha Franklin's?
Carole King.
7. Are you a Natural Woman (or Man), or do you avail yourself of a little Help?
I would love to be a Natural Woman if I had the physical attributes, but even when I was young, I did not precisely turn heads. As a woman of a certain age, I get lazier and lazier about the whole make-up routine: I draw in my eyebrows very carefully with eye shadow powder (I have about 5 hairs on each side, and half of those are white!). And, yes, I know what blush is and that + lipstick is pretty much all I use. (Eye shadow if I have the energy, but no eye-liner.) As for plastic surgery, I’m with you on that one. Mostly I just cover neck wrinkles (without which I would look a *lot* younger than I am, IMHO) with scarves (which only works in the winter) and try not to leave the house in what looks like jammies with a tee-shirt. Or bra straps hanging out (I hate that.) I do spend on dyeing my hair; it’s my only beauty luxury. I should give it up at my age. Just can’t face growing out the grey right now. FYI: I started going grey in my late 20’s. In my early 40’s I decided to go natural just to see how much grey there really was. About 80% back then. People who hadn’t seen me in months were astounded. But yeah… I am way too old to care that much I suppose. Maybe in retirement…
Ortizzle--Welcome Back! Pansies have a lot of character. I wish they grew on longer stems or on much more sturdy, straighter stems. And I love the old-fashioned name for them, Heart's ease. They are a lovely, velvety blossom with some truly gorgeous colour combinations.
DeleteAnd I understand the Cat Thing. They do undergo a very big transformation as they grow up. Dogs still retain some puppiness here and there, but most cats simply do not. It takes a Cat Person to accept an adult feline once the fluffball playfulness of a kitten is gone.
Trying to remember the last time I wore actual lipstick...(but, retired, you know).
Glad to see you here. I owe you an email. I know. XO