Cardinal Virtue

It’s time for another Sunday Stealing! This is another random one from in the past, being that Sunday Stealing is on vacation for the rest of the year.

1.    Have you ever written to a celebrity?  Did they respond?

I wrote to Paul Stanley once. Nope, no response. It’s weird that I wrote to him and not Ace Frehley, though. Ace was my favorite.

 2.  Do you read letters immediately, or wait until ready to reply?

I don’t get letters or personal emails. I check work email two or three times a day and respond as necessary. A lot of employers out there expect immediate responses to emails, as did a former boss, but I can’t work that way. Writing requires chunks of uninterrupted time.

 3.   My preferences when it comes to reading:

Fiction, and my favorite genres are mystery, historic, and horror.

 4.   What I’m least likely to change my mind about:

The incoming US President. He’s disgusting through and through.

 5.   The topics I would get wrong about during trivia:

Sports, architectural styles, theater, cars.

 6.   What I’m hopeful about right now:

Not a whole heck of a lot, actually. The USA is heading for dark days. I’m glad I’m not a young woman. I cannot imagine what it would be like to have to worry about an unplanned pregnancy in the current political environment.

 7.   Philosophies I’ve learned/embraced from others:

I’m self-seeking and prefer Buddhist philosophy. Stoicism is a close second. They overlap in a lot of places.

 8.   What makes home feel like home?

Color. I cannot STAND the whole “beige aesthetic.” It’s boring and lacks imagination. I will always have blue couches and sofas. I will always have at least one room with some purple (currently have three). I will always have another room with shades of red (currently my office). My tree will always have colored lights.

 9.    Talents and skills I like to cultivate:

My rapport with other living creatures. I like knowing that they trust me and will often pick me out of a group of people to approach. Maybe they sense that I won’t try to eat them, like I pass the vegetarian smell test.
 
10.   What makes my heart race:

Too much sugar and/or caffeine.

11.  What power means to me:

The ability to walk away from things that don’t serve me and people who make life harder than it has to be. Hence my swearing off dating and relationships. They sap my energy. The last 10 years weren’t always easy, but they were a lot more peaceful than any time in my life with a man was. If I didn’t have to deal with the Wicked Witch of the West for a supervisor for five and a half of the last six years, I’d have had things pretty rootin’ tootin’ easy.

12.  Some of my comfort hobbies:

Coloring. Ha, still haven’t finished that snowflake. Just haven’t had the time. Vegan baking. Binge-watching documentary series about archeology or space. Latch-hook.

13.  Last time I was pleasantly surprised:

My midyear review at work. Seems my current supervisor thinks more highly of my work than I do.

14.   How was October 2024?

Busy but good. Celebrated my birthday with people, which is something I don’t usually do barring a brunch with one of my friends. This one was special, though, as I made it for a full year after my heart attack.

15.   Those who inspire my growth:

The Buddha, Dōgen, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius.

My favorite backyard bird is the Northern Cardinal. The male’s bright red and the female’s red-tipped wings and tail lift my spirits, and I think their songs are the most beautiful of all songbirds. When I sent holiday cards they usually had Northern Cardinals on them, and I have a cute little holiday dish towel with a Northern Cardinal on it, part of a set that also has a red towel with Mourning Doves and a green towel with a Chickadee on it.

A dish towel featuring a Northern Cardinal bird on a pine branch with pine cones.

Yet oddly enough, I didn’t have any Christmas ornaments with a Northern Cardinal on it–until now. Presenting this year’s ornament:

A Christmas ornament featuring a Northern Cardinal bird and the year 2024.

The was the only one of its kind at Macy’s when I bought a bunch of ornaments, so I consider it fate. Most Northern Cardinal decor is red like the male, but I love the female’s coloring just as much, if not more. Look how pretty she is!

A female Northern Cardinal on a branch.
Image: Timothy Abraham.

Come to think of it, the image above might have to be my laptop wallpaper for January, even though DesktopNexus seems to have returned.

Before I go, have some Northern Cardinal song:

And now to put fresh sheets on the bed and wait for my clothes to dry. Envy the rich tapestry of my life, won’t you?

Heavenly Peace

Put up the tree tonight. As I was putting the lights on the middle section, there this downy little feather was, a gift from Inigo the Nanday.

A down feather on a Christmas tree branch.

His favorite song that I used to coo to him was “Silent Night.”

Oh, my heart, I miss you so, sweet boy. But I know you’re here. Nanner King forever, forever my best friend.

I was going to show you my 2024 ornament tonight, but that little feather was the most precious gift I could have gotten this Christmas, so I think I’ll just leave it at that.

Dreaming of a White-Light Christmas

Well, friends, I have bad news. The state Christmas trees are lit with green lights this year. The color completely ruins the color in the artwork on the ornaments. Here is the Bureau of Indian Education tree.

The Bureau of Indian Education Christmas Tree 2024.

The top hexagon shape in this ornament is light blue in real life—I think. But see how you can’t really tell what the colors are? So unfortunately, posting the state Christmas trees isn’t going to happen this year. Whoever decided on the green made a huge mistake. Dear Park Service: Don’t do that again, please.

Close-up of a hand-drawn Christmas ornament.

So here is an arty photo of the top of the Virginia tree with the Washington Monument in the background.

The Virginia Christmas Tree 2024 with the Washington Monument in the background.

Here is the National Christmas Tree, which looks like a giant Wolverine took a swipe out of it.

The National Christmas Tree 2024.

It came all the way from Alaska and I can only surmise that it got damaged in transit. I saw an article that said the two drivers who drove the tree from Tongass National Forest to D.C. have driven more than 10 million accident-free miles between them, but I dunno. I think something happened to this poor tree on the way to D.C. Either that or some jerky conservative in Alaska thought it would be funny for the Bidens’ last tree to look like it’s missing pieces. The trunk is crooked, too. When I saw it from another angle all I could think was “This tree has scoliosis.” Poor thing. At least they took pains to anchor it after last year’s tree blew down in a storm. They hoisted it back up with a crane but never fixed the lights, so it was a hot mess.

The National Christmas Tree, lit up at night.

As for this year’s state Christmas trees, if you want to see one ornament from each one, you can visit the National Tree website. (I like Iowa’s best. Also Missouri’s and Illinois’s.) As I won’t have time to go back in daylight to take photos, all I can do is apologize and hope that whoever makes decisions about this kind of thing sees the error of their ways and goes back to white lights next year so we can see all the fun colors the kids picked out for their artwork.

I did, however, buy the White House ornament, which I’ll post at some point after I put my tree up tomorrow evening. I figure I might as well get the last one before the fall of democracy.