1. An internet friend, Michelle, has added a page to her blog listing all the blogs she reads. She listed this one! I’m so honored to be included. These are some excellent bloggers, who post regularly, have good stories and good humor and good wisdom and good photos. After blogging for 18 years, it is a real pleasure to make the acquaintance of others who have also stuck it out. Her website is MG Doodle Studio, and the page is simply called Blogs I Love.

2. In late July on two consecutive days right around 5:45, we heard a tree fall on the slope above our cabin. The Farmer asked if I knew why they fell, and of course I said, “because they were dead”. Nope. It was hot out, the trees sucked up a ton of water from the soil, became top-heavy and toppled. (Yes, of course I believe him!) We didn’t go scrambling around to try and find the trees to verify, but I am 99% certain they were red firs.

3. There is another website besides Thriftbooks that will buy used books, and this one accepts textbooks. Nope, I don’t have any, but maybe you or someone you know does. The site is called World of Books, web address sell.worldofbooks.com.

4. That big panel with a sequoia tree painted on it sold to someone who lives far away. It is the Silver City Store’s responsibility to ship it, thank goodness! What did I learn? To say, “Take it to the UPS store down the hill and charge the customer.” (And blessings on the customer, who wanted it that badly! —are we related??)

5. New cars are ridiculously complex: no key—just a fob and a push button; they shut off at long traffic lights; they might not have a radio but are too complicated for me to know for sure; cruise control is hidden somewhere; the parking brake is a weird little button that couldn’t possibly hold the vehicle back; the gear shift is almost completely camouflaged into the deep blackness of the interior. If my current 2004 feels a bit too fancy for me, what in the world am I going to do when it is worn out? “Don’t worry about tomorrow, for today has enough troubles of its own”, that’s what Imma do.

5. Have you ever visited the site Food.com? I learned that the site actually has a recipe for ice cubes. “How stupid”, I can hear you thinking (because I had the same thought). If you want to waste some time having fun on the interwebs, go to that page and read the comments!

6. I finally learned the population of Three Rivers. It isn’t listed on the sign at the lower end of town, which does give the elevation. However, if you approach Three Rivers from Sequoia National Park on the upper end of town, it gives the population as 2600. I don’t actually believe it; with so many vacation homes and vacation rentals in town, how can the census bureau get a real number? They can’t.

7. Christian music ahead, so skip if this offends you. Do you ever obsess on a song, wanting, no, NEEDING to hear it over and over and over? (I loved the repeat button on my old car stereo.)

A. I heard a new one, called “His Mercy is More”, and I can’t get enough. I listened to several versions, flipped out over one in particular, and learned that the 2 singers, both named Matt, are the writers of the song. Piano, guitar, 3/4 time, perfection. It sounds Celtic, although one Matt is from Texas and the other maybe from Florida.

B. Another new one (thank you, Elisabeth!) “Yet Not I But Through Christ in Me” just slays me. I listened to it over and over all the way down the Mineral King Road and then still needed to hear it more. The group City Alight, whom I have never heard of before, sings it in the link above.

8. Friendships: Have you heard of the “Five-Year Stranger Theory”? This is something I’ve thought about for years, but didn’t have a name for it. In theory, we could be in touch with everyone we’ve known our entire lives. It would be impossible to stay current with that many people. The Five-Year Stranger Theory comes from Amanda Burback, a licensed marriage and family therapist and founder of Mellow Therapy in Los Angeles. It espouses the idea that people tend to fade from our lives after about five years, unless we are in one another’s immediate circle.

9. Aging Well On a new blog that I sampled, the first entry had a list of five things that mean a person is aging well. If you are curious, this is the link: The Sandcastle-Blowing in the Wind. She includes the link to the source where she first saw the complete list of seven things. (In case you are curious, I appear to be aging well if you disregard the wrinkles and gray hairs.)

10. The Frugal Girl did a nice thing for her readers who also blog: on one post, she asked any of her blogging readers to post links to their blogs in the comments. It’s been fun reading new ones, learning about who we refer to as “The Commentariat”. Nice group of folks, and it is surprising to start counting up the ones I have connected with via email and tangible ways. (True confession: I suggested it to her after she wrote about her blogging process.)

11. A dear and extremely generous friend GAVE ME A CAMERA!! I will be learning about this for many months ahead.

A. It is “an entry level mirrorless camera”. Mirrorless means it is not SLR (Single lens reflex, in Film Camera lingo) so it weighs less and has a smaller body.

B. Camera cases appear to be a thing of the past. Now you can buy overpriced little suitcases for your camera and all its many parts. (I’ll pass on that.)

C. All manuals are online. Apparently Canon wants me to use my own ink and paper, or to carry around a phone to read the manual on. This is a no-go in Mineral King, the Land of No Electricity, Phones, or Internet. (Nope, not going to get StarLink because I can barely manage the iPhone and the new camera and the old camera and all the extra batteries and charging devices. Just STOP IT with all the electronics, upgrades, updates, immediacy and urgency!!)

12. My internet friend Elisabeth posted about her day in Bristol, England, the home of the elusive, prolific, eccentric genius artist Banksy. (The first time I heard of this guy was in Bethlehem, Israel in 2016.) Here is a place to learn a bit more about him: Banksy vs. Bristol Museum.

Is your head spinning?