Sparked

Friday, June 14, 2024

My news today is that after passing an extensive background check, I will start working in the Fine Jewelry Department on Sunday. I know little about high-end jewelry, but I am excited to be on the threshold of a challenging learning opportunity. Online research reveals the availability of serious education to become a certified gemologist, and I want to achieve that.

Gemology is a complicated field that requires more than identifying and categorizing stones. A fully trained Gemologist uses spatial and mathematical skills to assess raw stones, calculate their design possibilities, and cut stones to create attractive, unique jewels.

My early learning goals are to identify, categorize, and understand stone types and how they evolve. I hope to learn how to compare a stone’s attractiveness and value against similar stones. As for further learning, I’ll be challenged by Gemology’s spatial and mathematical portions that aren’t among my innate skills. However, maybe I will argue with my brain by attempting to learn more abstract skills.

The excitement of anticipating energizes and propels because new opportunities offer a sense that something new and maybe great could happen. For me, this feels transformative by stimulating my wishes to grow and change and also might be reviving old dreams.

Dear Friends: Opportunity is a spark that ignites passions and fuels ambitions. Diana

Getting A Handle

Thursday, June 13, 2024

Yesterday, I couldn’t start my new riding lawn mower. My neighbor Frank came to see why; he sat on the seat, pushed the brake pedal, turned the key, and boom! the motor roared. He said that lowering the brake pedal adequately needs legs longer than mine and pointed out that we could move the tractor seat forward. We corrected the seat position, and I started the tractor easily.

I took it for a spin. It’s smooth to drive and has horsepower equaling that of my old 2004 Poulan mower (out of commission right now). But the new machine is less powerful; it failed the test of pulling a drag around inside the horses’ dry lot. Its rear wheels spun whenever debris collected on the drag, adding weight. There are times when dragging calls for using a backup machine, and Old Pouland handled the work effectively.

Yesterday’s mowing test went smoothly. The new machine feels more balanced than the Pouland and its gears shift more easily. It makes me happy enough. The Pouland will be repaired and become a backup for heavier jobs.

Now that the challenges of mowing my place are under control, I may focus elsewhere. Waiting are routine maintenance chores, critters demanding attention, and gardens requiring refreshing or restarting. Plus, nearby are the great outdoors with opportunities like horseback, photography, and sports.

Dear Friends: I’m a pitifully short left-hander in a world of tall right-handers. Diana

Imprisoned

Wednesday, June 12, 2024

That’s my puppy, Chase, in prison. He’s in a standalone kennel with high fencing and concrete flooring; escaping is nearly impossible. This fellow’s determined jumping and digging skills instantly become triggered whenever my car leaves home. I’ve learned, and nowadays, he waits safely imprisoned for my return home.

A new riding mower, assembled and ready to roll, sits outside. Yesterday, I studied its instruction book, tried repeatedly to start the machine, and never got it fired. Yes, oil and gas are in it, so a lack of those isn’t the problem. Maybe its transmission is set in a neutral position for pushing and rolling, which is how the delivery guys moved it. That might require attention wherever such a switch may be found. Today, I’ll reread the instruction book and try to start that motor more.

It is so different from my trusty old 2006 Poulan Riding Mower, which has chopped dependably for years and, in the beginning, was a simple get-in-and-go machine. A week or so ago, Poulan’s underside hit a rock that made its engine instantly fail. After it wouldn’t start again, I debated having it repaired versus ordering a new machine and decided to do both. Repairing would take too long to mow aggressive weeds and grasses adequately. Besides, having a backup mower to carry on in future rock-caused stoppages can’t hurt.

Occasionally, I wish for another brain, particularly when reading and comprehending a modern instruction manual. Whether the manual covers a tool or some heavy equipment, its stuff is complicated and I find its schematics squeezed, undecipherable, and maddening.

Dear Friends: In learning, unique brain-wiring leads to our successes and failures. Diana

Just A Chicken

Tuesday, June 11, 2024

The header shows me and “Wellsummer,” my 15-year-old house hen. In this photograph, her eye has a visible cataract; each eye is cataracted in person. She has trouble spotting food and water, and can’t estimate how far a leap to the ground from her low perch (usually I lift her off).

A domestic chicken that reaches the age of 15 is very old, and Wellsummer is an amazing bird. She’s reasonably healthy physically but being “done in” by failing eyesight that inhibits food and water intake.

The header photo shows her on my lap. She has a towel around her to help me control her wings while teaching her to accept food and water from syringes. She objects and makes surprisingly strong efforts to escape.

My goal is to control her enough so that my forefinger can rest on her beak and open for a syringe to drop bits of food or water. We’ve been practicing for days, and so far, she is managing to keep my arm and hand too busy to control her head adequately.

When Wellsummer was two days old, she became mine for fifty cents. I rescued her from a sick tank in a business then called Big R and created a setup in my living room to help her grow strong. She did and joined my first flock, finally becoming that group’s lone survivor. I brought some infant chickens home about three years ago and transferred Wellsummer to my house.

I have been fond of this hen since our early days together. All along, she’s remained in amazingly good health. The cataracts are a bummer, preventing her from eating and drinking adequately and hopping off a low perch.

I won’t give up on this project with her. Eventually, we will learn the business of syringe-giving and -receiving. Meanwhile, she must be consuming adequate solid nutrients and liquids independently to maintain her strength and interest in life. I don’t want Wellsummer to give up, either.

Dear Friends: “Just a chicken;” a label that masks rich, intelligent beings. Diana

Passages

Monday, June 10, 2024

Finally, summer is here in Central Oregon. Outdoors it’s bright, warm, and inviting. I have today off, and I will mostly be outside after an early medical appointment.

The clothing brand Free People is about to open what might be its only store beyond Portland, in Bend’s Old Mill District. That will impact the department store where I work, as the hugely popular FP fashion items are a significant draw, especially among younger shoppers.

The retail sales business, in general, is in chaos. Retailers are scrambling to employ AI and online technologies to become or remain adequately competitive. Many are also leaving their large brick-and-mortar stores and using smaller facilities. Many ex-super shopping brands have hit the boards, with J.C. Penney and Sears as primary examples. Real estate promoters after physical stores are teaming with retail promoters after saleable inventories.

We’re all touched by this chaos. As a sales clerk, customers often discuss retail situations with me. While most make purchases online, they like that entering an actual store and looking around, comparing items visually, and trying on clothing is possible.

As a sales clerk, however, I know that much depends on us, the store workers. We are responsible for meeting the business’s goals by greeting, selling, and maintaining customers’ interest in shopping with us. My informal experience teaches that older shoppers are more responsive to salespeople than the younger ones, who lack a background with J.C. Penney, Sears, etc.

This small city’s massive influx of retirees might be critical for keeping the larger department stores open. They bring assets, familiarity, and a liking for brick-and-mortar stores. That’s a guess; otherwise, like everybody else, I’m just an observer who finds the possibilities confusing.

Dear Friends: The design passage from Chanel to Free People reflects social changes. Diana

Front ‘n Center

Sunday, June 07, 2024

Yesterday, a PBS “Frontline” series captured my attention for hours. The excellent miniseries reminded me of and taught me much more about the many events surrounding the 1979 Iran hostage crisis. Back then, and with the whole world, I watched for 444 days as the United States received barrages of humiliation, vitriol, and hatred from Iran. Previously, that nation had been among America’s closest allies.

Those events happened prior to widely accessible cable and 24-hour news. I followed the available politics and remember the pressures on Jimmy Carter’s administration to turn matters around, resolve them, and bring every hostage home. I never fully grasped the whys and whats behind the Iranian population revolts and that horrifying hostage crisis.

This “Frontline” series filled in the gaps. It explained Iran’s change from a religiously led nation into a democracy having strong leadership by its Shaw. He was educated, had a progressive outlook, and managed Iran’s oil wealth in ways that enabled much of Iran’s population to access education and affluence. He allowed a loosening up among the citizenry that gave women rights to freedom, allowing women to stop wearing burkas, pursue formal education, and seek meaningful work. Iran’s population included a large portion of opposing conservative religious forces; they despised changes toward modernity and especially were against women’s freedom.

The details of Iran’s history of rapid change shed light on that massive portion of its population that remained mired in religiosity and relied on the wisdom of Mullas. A nation-wide change from repression to wealth won’t ensure the best benefits for all its citizens. That portion of Iranian citizens not gaining wealth believed the Shaw’s vision and leadership didn’t represent them. They instead continued to rely on religious leadership and eventually circled around Khomeini.

“Frontline” details the rise of Khomeini, and what made him influential enough to cause Iran’s Shaw ultimately to fail. It effectively explains why Iranian students took American hostages. “Frontline” also takes us into the White House and details the Carter Administration’s challenges, efforts, and failures to achieve the hostages’ release.

This gripping series sheds light on Iran’s crises and explains much about its current political and social status. Watching forces us to think about America, too. Our citizens have differing perceptions and opposing views about how to correct this nation’s key ills. Many Americans worry about the implications for ongoing progressiveness.

Dear Friends: Social transitions happening rapidly are scarily unpredictable. Diana

Sidetracked

Saturday, June 08, 2024

Yesterday, I forgot everything, including that it was National Donut Day and that I was scheduled to work. In the afternoon, a manager phoned, and I leaped into action, tossing on some working-style wear and hurrying away to work for a few hours. That forgetting prompted me to worry about my brain’s ongoing capacity to perform. My friend Julie says it’s more likely I didn’t sleep well enough the night before; thanks, Julie; I’ll take that one.

Actually, I became sidetracked early by a delivery the day before that wasn’t right. Arriving home from work, a riding lawn mower ordered online from Walmart had been delivered in my absence. The machine was in a large wooden crate and sitting on a pallet. Its wheels were in cavities to hold the mower in place during transport. Without a hydraulic lift capable of freeing the heavy machine’s wheels, I had no way to remove it from the packaging and pallet.

The next morning, after a long struggle to determine the delivery company and find a phone number, I managed to contact it. A sympathetic person said the organization didn’t have lifting capabilities and that its delivery workers never unpackage products. She suggested I ask a neighbor to help me unpackage and unload, but that job seemed too big. Finally, I called Walmart and had long discussions with several customer service types. Their simple solution was to return that whole package.

What a waste of time, of shipping, and of labor! Anyway, everything is going back to Walmart.

Right away, I did what should have happened in the first place and called Home Depot, where I used to work and know how the store handles deliveries. I ordered a riding mower and asked that it arrive fully assembled and unpackaged; no problem. HD will have the mower soon at my home and immediately driveable.

Those complicated negotiations consumed at least a couple of hours. Immediately afterward, I got busy handling chores and never thought about going to work. Nonetheless, I became unhappy about the forgetting, because it might signal an unlikeable.

There’s something welcome about blogging relative to comprehending the electrical and chemical processes happening within a brain. As long as I can string together ideas and concepts clearly enough and with logical flows, I may assume brain activities are functioning properly.

Still, how can one simply forget to go to work, and on a scheduled day?

Dear Friends: ‘Tis a puzzlement, mixes of stress, anxiety, and emotions in a single brain. Diana

In The Rough

Friday, June 07, 2024

Assuming the outcome of my background check won’t be troubling, I will shift into a new role selling Fine Jewelry. While waiting for an outcome, I am reading books and going online to learn about geology in general and a gemologist’s role in the gemstone world.

I was toying with the idea of studying to become a certified gemologist. A little research teaches that studying and evaluating gemstones involves numerous highly technical tasks. An accredited gemologist has gained the specific skills to identify and grade stones.

A certified person distinguishes among natural, synthetic, and imitation candidates by identifying each stone’s quality, shape and potential, light absorption and reflection, and facet measurements. A gemologist assesses a stone’s unique characteristics to grade it, using factors like color, clarity, cut, and carat weight.

Other elements of a stone’s quality are its rarity and market demand, making valuable the element of selling experience

Gemologists do their work in many settings. They research gemstones, are educators teaching others, act as consultants to jewelry stores, and have personal clients they advise on gemstone selection and purchase.

Where might all this information guide me? Or seem too much and leave me? Am I intrigued and energetic? Above all, am I inspired?

Dear Friends: A sales role that invites some formal training will help to advise me. Diana

Word World

Thursday, June 06, 2024

An article entitled “What’s your nudge word for 2024? Let us help you discover it” caught my attention in today’s Washington Post. I was attracted to the idea of a nudge word after earlier exploring something similar and selecting a word.

The Post set up the discovering process as a game. I studied it and decided to play.

Everything starts by identifying an overarching word. The lead question is: What single word describes your hopes and dreams for 2024? The game then offers many categorical choices: active, optimistic, mindful, relationships, strength, growth, and personal relationships. I chose “mindful.”

Next, another game step was to “Focus on words that will nudge you toward positive change.” Many words related to mindfulness were offered, and I selected such as observe, awe, gratitude, notice, thankful, breathe, awareness, anticipate, and balance. Finally, I found one that summarized it all, and already that word was a favorite: appreciate.

I’ll take it. So, “appreciate” will be my nudge word for 2024.

Last month, I was thinking about “appreciate” in relation to my upcoming birthday. I wished to actively and often feel more appreciative as a change and birthday gift to myself. For several weeks, I paused and focused on appreciating but eventually got too busy and preoccupied with unrelated thoughts.

I appreciate the Post article’s cool word game which helped me renew a pleasing frame of mind. To me, appreciating touches a deep sense of gratitude and recognition, and taps into wishes to feel seen, valued, and understood. I am recommitting to actively being mindful and appreciative and staying on track this time.

Dear Friends: Words, tiny little abstracts that trigger big feelings and thoughts. Diana

Stripings

Wednesday, June 05, 2024

As a department store salesperson, I often learn helpful things. Here’s a valuable tip: Choose striped bed linens because they clearly identify the long side.

By keeping that in mind, I’ve been encouraged to think more about “stripe.” It’s a word with a real-world meaning (aside from being a pattern, as on linens). In the real world, military and police forces have stripes on a uniform that “identify clearly” rank and power.

I’m interested in how “stripe” is used as a metaphor for earned experience or rank. Describing someone as having a “stripe” suggests a distinctive quality or trait. That way, “stripe” suggests a distinction, individuality, or uniqueness that sets someone apart.

We often hear the term “stripe” used in business, sports, and academia. We understand it as referring to “earned respect and recognition” and applied to someone who’s done good work and accomplished achievements.

I’m an informal writer who writes often. I’m always word-focused because English word usage and meanings are complex. Words often suggest much more than their basic descriptions, forcing me to consider sociology in general, historically, and in the present.

Dear Friends: It does make sense to appreciate the value of using striped linens. Diana