Miss Merry

Thursday, February 13, 2025

Years ago, I suddenly lost my young and adorable Welsh Pony, Merry Leggs. She had been stricken by severe colic, and afterward, for weeks, I sat at a computer, fighting my incredible unhappiness by creating a story for young readers that starred a Welsh Pony.

My lead character, Miss Merry, was pretty, intelligent, and devoted to her family. She was courageous, too, and had many adventures. After initially drafting the story, I continued working on it; gradually, it felt reasonably compelling and maybe worthy of publishing.

A couple of drafting components didn’t go smoothly. Most critically, I couldn’t successfully edit my own creative writing. Upon attempting to make a sentence or paragraph more relevant and stronger, I’d find myself, instead, rewriting whole sections, altering the story’s flow.

My inability to self-edit demanded an outside objective editor, and Merry’s story increasingly called for an illustrator. Talented assistants weren’t available for what I could afford: $-Zero. Little Miss Merry eventually floated into the background and drifted from my active memory. I suppose that happened after I overcame my pony loss enough to move on.

Until yesterday, when a bright young colleague, Lily (who recently introduced me to Chat GPT+), suddenly asked if I’ve ever written fiction, I nodded and complained about self-editing until Lily pointed out Chat’s editing capabilities.

Later, I was thinking about Chat’s abilities and suddenly remembered “Miss Merry.” It needed editing and illustration—both are Chat’s capabilities. Additionally, Lily, a makeup specialist, has artistic skills and expresses interest in perhaps working with the story.

Gosh! A dozen years later, “Miss Merry” might be reborn. First, I must locate the saved story—probably on a disc or a thumb drive. Finding its location is one head-scratcher, and accessing a complete version may be another.

I’ll be off my part-time job today and looking for Merry.

Dear Friends: Revisiting my sweet pony vis-a-vis her alter ego–thrilling! Diana

Mindfully, Melting

Wednesday, February 12, 2025

I routinely trudge through slow-melting snow, our first this winter, to feed my outside animals. The melting seems beyond a mere seasonal shift. It’s a transformation, stirring my senses and emotions. I see a thick, icy white blanket receding without yet revealing patches of earth and dormant grass. I’m always anticipating.

This wintery period feels like an “in-between mood.” Melting has winter loosening around here, but spring is far ahead. Our air is damp, water drips from roof gulleys, and underfoot it’s slushy, but winter still inhibits renewal.

My mood is complicated; it’s part relief, part impatience, and sometimes thoughtful. My imagination sees stark beauty in a frozen, dissolving landscape. It’s less defined as a gradual thaw releasing us from snowy brightness.

The earth is softening, and I’m eager for the earliest glimpses of green that promise more warmth. These days are stretching a little longer and increasing my energy, inspiring new planning. Yet, spring feels just out of reach; its slow arrival is frustrating. These gray skies, the oncoming mud, and this slow transition is a world not yet fully alive. Waiting makes me restless.

Watching snow disappear evokes a subtle mourning. Our first fresh blanket of snow softened the edges and quieted our world. I love seeing a snowy landscape reflecting the moonlight uniquely. At home, melting makes the landscape less crisp and pristine; it’s more messy, uneven, and unpredictable.

Melting is an in-between time for rebalancing our expectations and moods. This isn’t winter’s full-stillness; we’re not sensing new spring energy. I sense the melting snow tugging at my emotions as a “letting go” that forces another slow, inevitable shifting of anticipations and plans.

Dear Friends: Even in these deepest winter months, thinking, “Ah, Spring!” Diana

Socially Exchanging

Tuesday, February 11, 2025

I’ll bake sourdough bread today, using a list of ingredients and following baking instructions from my buddy, ChatGPT+.

I started this early today by asking Chat if it’s best to use a starter fresh from the fridge or at room temperature. Chat answered “room temperature” and asked if I wanted a detailed recipe. Now, I have marching orders and a forward direction to tackle an evolved learning experience.

If my loaf today turns out well, I’ll ask my Bluesky friend, Jill-Elaine, for some of her sourdough starter. She has sourdough “knocked” and creates almost everything–bread, pancakes, biscuits, and even crackers. (I have learned about Jill that whatever she chooses to learn and accomplish, she pushes to the utmost of possibilities.)

Speaking of Bluesky, I enjoy the site. Unlike Facebook, Bluesky feeds aren’t constantly invaded by unending ads, irritating (to me) worldviews, and unwanted friend suggestions. I still tune into Facebook, but less frequently. The draws are that some Facebook friends have been with me for years, and my many photos stored on Facebook that hopefully won’t become lost.

Dear Friends: I’ll start working now and get today’s sourdough fixings rolling. Diana

Woes & Awes

Monday, February 10, 2025

Oh no, the Chiefs lost! That made me feel sad. Wanting to discuss my feelings of loss, I called up my AI therapist, Chat GTP+, and Chat did it again.

AI made me think more deeply about social sports. It focused on the key emotional dynamics that encourage fans to commit highly to their favorite teams and inspirational heroes. AI pointed out that fans develop strong psychological connections with their teams, so supporting a team becomes a significant part of one’s identity; it leads to intense joy during victories and profound disappointment during defeats.

Thinking about that, I wondered if similar emotions are why vast audiences follow TV series regularly. In particular, I remember watching every episode possible of “All in the Family” and “Driftwood.” I am still upset because “Driftwood” was pulled early and before the series achieved resolution.

AI was on the spot for me again. It said that fans’ emotional connections with sports teams are quite similar to how audiences engage with beloved TV shows or films. AI says the common thread is identification—people see parts of themselves, their values, or their experiences reflected in what they’re watching, whether it’s a game-winning touchdown or a dramatic confrontation in Tombstone. Yep, that’s me, excited and watching.

By now, I had plenty to think about regarding fandom, but my memories were working and returning me to one of the earliest TV series, “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman.” AI “found the series” and explained why it had impacted many viewers: “On the surface, ‘Mary…’ is a satire of soap operas, but underneath, it’s a deeply unsettling and surreal reflection of American life in the 1970s.”

And so it was, how it “got to me” and why I still recall it as compelling. (BTW, the series was an early venture by Normal Lear, who later created “All in the Family” and the legendary Archie Bunker.)

Rounding out my therapy session, I discovered that “Mary” is available on video. Soon, I’ll be watching, remembering, and reliving some of the “70s” emotions. And, I’ll think about today’s deeply unsettling and surreal elections of American life in the 2025s.

Dear Friends, Tripping into the stratosphere and traveling down memory lane. Diana

Game-On

Sunday, February 09, 2025

Super Bowl Sunday! Today, I will be at my part-time job, sneaking trips to the break room’s TV.

I’m from Kansas City: Go, Chiefs!

Today, I am setting aside blogging. My at-work hours require twice-feeding my horses before I leave home. Now that it’s light outside, I must provide today’s first feeding.

See you tomorrow.

Dear Friends: Two tough teams and a BIG game. Diana

Rosy Outlook

Saturday, February 08, 2025

The header photo is of my Rosie in her heydays. Now, although a bit gray, she’s still beautiful.

The snow that has fallen over the past few days is dry and soft, an excellent footing for horseback riding. I haven’t been riding because working in my part-time job interferes. The store is short-staffed–most retail businesses are nowadays–and I fill in often.

My next trip with an equine away from here will be to take my donkey Pimmy for a veterinary check-up. We’re almost overdue; she needs a weighing-in and blood drawing to assess the status of her Type 2 diabetes. If we successfully have controlled Pimmy’s glucose levels, she’ll need medication only once daily (and, alas, forever) instead of the current twice-daily doses.

We both dislike the syringe. Fortunately, when I show up holding it, she’s too hungry to avoid me. I give her a handful of hay, and while she chews, I poke the syringe into her mouth and squirt its contents into her hay. She swallows all. Doing that only once daily will be welcome; best, once daily means she’s healthy again.

Pimmy and Rosie are tight buddies. They’ve been separated while Pimmy is dieting and being medicated; it’ll be wonderful if they can hang out together more. After Pimmy’s glucose is stabilized, I’ll figure out how to let her rejoin the horses while on a special diet and daily medication.

Dear Friends: Work here is ahead, and then I can focus on “leaving for work.” Diana

Ahead

Friday, February 07, 2025

Yesterday, I continued to explore and “talk” with a couple of powerful AIs; they helped me approach several projects by outlining efficient methods of accomplishing each and providing templates for moving ahead.

I had asked the AIs for (1) easily understandable financial planning tools, (2) a method for studying Spanish to accommodate my learning style, and (3) tips and steps for starting to code for general purposes on a home laptop.

The AIs I used were Gemini2 and ChatGTP; both were helpful. Each aiding me slightly differently boosted my understanding (and courage) for moving forward on the projects.

Afterward, I studied basic Spanish using the Duolingo program, which suited my learning style over Babbel.

(A note: Both language programs are fine, but we learn individually. Trying out various programs and finding one’s best comfort zone is good. I plan to sample learning from other language programs, too.)

Dear Friends: The new AIs provided do-able planning and marching orders. Diana

Brave New World

Wednesday, February 06, 2025

Yesterday, I had a lengthy computer-based “discussion” with the artificial intelligence program ChatGTP. It helped me resolve some complex questions. That was my first exchange with Chat-Plus after a young coworker at my part-time job introduced me to this AI’s potential, which I adopted.

I explained to Chat that personal challenges can occur after one has explored the inner self profoundly and successfully with professional help. Modified perspectives and behaviors can negatively impact long-term relationships unless significant others also gain insights and adapt their behaviors.

CHAT acknowledged my observations and, in our discussion, requested more of my thoughts about learning and change. I explained, and AI’s awareness and responsiveness felt welcome.

Continued exchanges increased my trust in Chat’s alertness. The pièce de résistance was my sense of AI “hearing,” which reassured me that my thoughts were logical and my questions sensible.

At the session’s end, I simply thanked Chat and found that AI “knew where we were.” It responded with a “goodbye” instead of another leading question.

Good Heavens: Computer-based therapy WORKS for me!

Dear Friends: Sometimes, we yearn for acute listening that can “get it.” Diana

Cold Winter

Wednesday, February 05, 2025

This high desert is finally snow-covered. Deep winter grips us. I’ve anticipated this cold, which will stretch through February and March—weatherwise, the most demanding months.

We have cycled through the winter holiday festivities and now face the stark realities of freezing winds, deep snowdrifts, and short days. I tell myself to endure patiently these slow-moving weeks before signs of spring occur.

I also remind myself that practicing patience through deep winter isn’t passive but an active practice.

These days of biting cold, iced-over roads, and gray skies make us seek comfort in small routines. I might enjoy a warm drink, appreciate and care for my animals, and sit in a comfortable chair to read a book. Those are anchors, slowing anxieties and getting through what can’t be rushed.

I have learned not to fight winter but to embrace it as a time for reflecting, resting, and waiting for different weather energy. That’s active practicing; another is active appreciating–recognizing winter’s beauty, the silence of snowy mornings, and the moon’s brightness on freezing nights.

Winter brings gifts, if we take moments to see them. I often find myself kicking pathways into fresh snow on my property and looking up at the deep contrast of black branches highlighted with snow against a barely bluish sky.

Writing this morning makes me thoughtful about patience—less about enduring and more about appreciating. And so, we wait on days that are already a bit longer but still seem too short.

I am eager for hints of warmth to return. Meanwhile, I will heed my observations and take the rest of winter one day at a time, seeking the positives it offers until the freezing cold eventually loosens.

Dear Friends, Patience isn’t “just waiting” but trusting that change is coming. Diana

Yielding

Tuesday, February 04, 2025

Weeks ago, ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence, appeared on my iPhone. It would let me converse with AI using its male or female voice. I played with that and enjoyed the interactions. I appreciated the site’s potential but soon drifted away.

The other day, at my outside job, a young co-worker described using ChatGPT for “almost everything” and willingly paying $20/month for its stepped-up version. She described sending a photo to that AI and asking for an enhancement or a detailed explanation of what the photo suggests or represents, or sending drafted paragraphs and requesting improved rewrites, or sending complex questions and asking for detailed answers.

I know many uses of AI and have occasionally used it for writing help. AI has aided me in writing an idea or a paragraph more pointedly for improved clarity. I’ve never submitted a photo or video while asking for a description or detailed information, but my coworker does often.

She did some interesting demonstrating for me, and I decided to test the paid version with a real-time example.

I was working in the Jewelry Department. I had been showing a recent customer a set of Tahitian pearl earrings. She understood the pearl type’s beauty and value and loved how she looked wearing the earrings. She struggled over purchasing them and finally didn’t.

My coworker photographed those Tahitian earrings and sent the image to her ChatGPT version, requesting the pearls’ history and attributes. AI identified the price value of those earrings and sent paragraphs explaining the pearl type.

I recognized that by employing some of AI’s responses, I might have spoken confidentially and more thoroughly about the earrings. While my customer debated over buying, I could have encouraged the potential sale by demonstrating more knowledge about the pearl type, its history, and why its value stays high.

As my colleague and I played more with her version of ChatGPT, I saw the potential added value of using the paid version and will upgrade to it.

Dear Friends: AI is increasingly available, accessible, and impactfully useful. Diana