Something's Afoot in Northwest Florida: Reflexology and Armadillos

If sailing ships could sail the sea,
And sails were not required,
The term itself for sailing ships
Would have to be retired.

A trip to Tallahassee this weekend for a FSMTA sponsored reflexology workshop at Core Institute proved useful for learning in more ways than one:

1. Who knew there are more ways for treating the body through the feet than there are excuses for not drinking enough water?
2.  Did you realize you're supposed to drink an amount of water (in ounces) equal to one-half your body weight per day? If you fall short of that amount, your vital organs steal moisture from the fascia and muscle tissue in your body to keep functioning properly. Poor ol' fascia and muscle have to limp along like a car engine without enough oil for lubrication. Don't forget that the heart is made of muscle tissue. No wonder I felt dog-tired walking those hills at Lake Tallavana after attending the workshop. 
3. Vacant houses soon become home to various forms of wildlife. Nature bounces back quicker than a dehydrated massage therapist can write a simple blog post. The old brain must suffer too. This post has taken longer to finish than it takes a family of armadillos to take over an empty shed. 
4. Armadillos are capable of spreading leprosy, but no cases of armadillos passing the disease on to Floridians have yet occurred or at least been reported. If they had been, an all out war against armadillos would surely be declared. Who would want to be half the man or woman he/she used to be? If you have no idea what I'm talking about, then you're too young to have heard some version of the leprosy song (lyrics to the tune of the Beatles' song Yesterday). If only leprosy could be one of those terms that would have to be retired.

Wind in the Garden: It's All Good, Right?

"Awake, O north wind; and come, thy south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out." Song of Solomon 4:16

Thanks to Charles H. Spurgeon's writings, among other things, I'm gradually coming to grips with this transient life. If we have to move every year or so, then so be it. I will try to find something good in it. Really, I will. After 32 years of wedded bliss with the same man, I should know by now that his intentions are honorable and unselfish. He wants what's best for all of us. I have faith in him because I have faith in Him.

I honestly don't know how people make it through each day without some kind of faith in Someone greater than themselves. What carries them through the rough spots in life? The dark valleys. The storm that blows through and destroys everything in its path.

There was a storm system yesterday that cut right through the heart of this country. We had some tense moments, wondering if friends and loved ones back in the Midwest were all right. A phone call or two, and we can be at ease, knowing that they are safe and sound. How simple it is to "reach out and touch someone," eh? Apparently, it isn't for some people. They're like "a garden locked up...a spring enclosed, a sealed fountain." For reasons unclear, you're a distant cousin to them instead of a sister. A skeleton in the closet, perhaps. Phone calls and e-mails to them remain either unanswered or not reciprocated. Blood is thicker than water? If it keeps relationships at a standstill, stagnant, not flowing, who needs it?

The tree house, this temporary place we have called "home" for the last year, will be home to some other family soon. We will miss it, the view of the spring-fed lake, the long walks up and down the scenic hills and roads surrounding it. But we will miss the people we've come to know here even more. Good neighbors and friends, all of them.



Sunset, February 29, 2012, on Lake Tallavana



Long Ago and Far Away: Is Water Hyacinth Here to Stay?

Water Hyacinth, Eichhornia crassipes, on Lake Tallavana

While drinking my coffee on the deck Saturday morning, I indulged in some lake gazing. What's this thing? Overnight, a raft of purple flowers and lush vegetation has parked itself in plain view. Will it stay? In one sense, yes. According to this UF IFAS site, the Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants, water hyacinth has been making itself at home in the United States since at least 1884, when it made an appearance at an exposition in New Orleans. Originally from Brazil, it sure is pretty to look at but not so pretty in terms of what it can do to a lake or river if left to its own devices.

A raft like this one can double in size in a matter of a week or two and spreads easily either vegetatively or by sexual reproduction (seed dispersal). It may have gotten its start here on this lake by a piece of it being carried in on someone's boat propeller (an example of the vegetative method of reproduction). It could have been introduced by someone dumping a fish aquarium into the water. Or, maybe someone thought since it looked so wonderful in one of those backyard water features, it would really spruce things up out on the open water. Oh, yes. You can buy these things online and make your pet fish think they're living it up on the Amazon River.

Still in my pajamas, I fussed with the camera and fumed (blame too much coffee?) at yet another example of humans' carelessness with Mother Nature. SAM and Micah, blissfully unaware of Grandma's numinous musings, had already cast off for a morning of fishing.

Now that water hyacinth may be here to stay, what's a person to do? Fume or fish? Maybe a little of both but certainly not at the same time.