This and that an' t'other

 

From the internet

She used to sell these fabulous strawberries at Ledford's Fresh fruits and vegetables store. But it was washed away by the Swannanoa River right behind it eight months ago. So Dede set up a table by US 70 where Ledford's used to be, and sold the strawberries anyway. Mr. Ledford said he's not going to reopen his store. Love Dede's interest in the environment and these mountains where she's lived all her life.

Another blogger posted this photo of a Gold Finch. I did a double take...our Gold Finches don't have all those colors on them. But she's right, this is a European  Gold Finch. American ones are quite different.

The Madleen departing Sicily for Gaza on June 1, 2025

See article on AntiWar.Blog: 

The Next 48-140 Hours Critical in Citizens Worldwide Demand that the Israeli Genocide of Gaza Must End 

by Col. Ann Wright (ret.) | Jun 7, 2025

Gaza Flotilla Sailboat Madleen

Yet, also within 48 hours, a small sailboat named Madleen, will arrive near Gaza. (Watch on the https://t.me/FFC_official_channel, follow on Flotilla instagram and watch progress on a map here or here.)

Within 48 hours, 12 brave souls in the Madleen, Flotilla Steering Committee members Thiago Avila – Brazil and Yasemin Acar – Germany;  Rima Hassan – French-Palestinian Member of European Parliament, Dr. Baptiste Andre – France, Omar Faiad – France; Al Jazeera Mubasher correspondent, Pascal Maurieras – France, Reva Viard – France, Yanis Mhamdi – France;  Suayb Ordu – Turkiye; Sergio Toribio – Spain; Greta Thunberg – Swedish climate activist; Marco van Rennes – The Netherlands. will carry the solidarity of citizens of the world to those in Gaza and West Bank for the ending of the genocide and ethnic cleansing.

Within 48 hours, the 12 volunteers on the Madleen will most probably be stopped in international waters, arrested, taken against their wills, to a place they do not want to go, imprisoned and then deported… from Israel.

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Update:by Matthew Behrens

midnight

Israeli apartheid regime is illegally detaing the crew for trying to end the imposition of Auschwitz on Gaza

In a statement just released, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) has accused Israel of “forcibly intercepting” the Madleen and acting with “total impunity”.

It says that at 3.02am CET, the ship was “unlawfully boarded, its unarmed civilian crew abducted, and its life-saving cargo—including baby formula, food and medical supplies—confiscated.”

“Israel has no legal authority to detain international volunteers aboard the Madleen,” said Huwaida Arraf, a Freedom Flotilla organiser.

These volunteers are not subject to Israeli jurisdiction and cannot be criminalized for delivering aid or challenging an illegal blockade—their detention is arbitrary, unlawful, and must end immediately.”

Meanwhile calls are being made to send other ships to break the blockade. Francesca Albanese wites: "While #Madleen must be released immediately, every Mediterranean port should send boats with aid, solidarity, and humanity to Gaza. They shall sail together—united, they will be unstoppable.

#BreakingTheSiege is a legal duty for states, and a moral imperative for all of us."

SOURCE: Matthew Behrens

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Today's quote:

Ultimately, you are the one — the teacher who will guide you on your journey.

Traveling Three Amigas

Our new Black Mountain Glass Shop has a  glass blowing workshop available to viewers through windows at the back of the gallery. Unfortunately, only tall people like myself could look down directly to the work being done just below the window (I'm 5'5" and neither of my friends could see through the viewing window like myself.) Oops!

I forgot to post this from a month ago...Helen and Teresa and I met for a local lunch and then visited a shop that had recently opened, the Glass Shop. (It probably has another name).

I made a purchase of course. Gotta support the local artisans. Not one of the beautiful blown glass creations, but a little necklace pendant.

The store also gives a bio of each of the artists. I love the back of the fused glass, where the pendant loop (I guess there's a name for that, which I don't know.) has that cute little heart.

The traveling three amigas!

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OK, here's another topic:

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And...

When I picked up my lunch last week  I stopped for this photo of the pool. Unfortunately Memorial Day had been cool and rainy, so I dare say the kids will come this weekend to enjoy it. 

 Incidentally this was a favorite lunch catered by the Moose Cafe' in Asheville; they are known for their meat loaf but this time we had baked potatoes rather than mashed. And their famous biscuits with apple butter as well as green flat beans (do they have another name?) and pear slices. 

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Today's quote:

This is very appropriate for me, who woke up at 4:30 yesterday, and couldn't get back to sleep. So I got up at 6 am and had a couple of cups of coffee, then breakfast with the birds.  Six is first light here so it is a normal time for me to just roll over  and take off the C-Pap for an hour. No luck that morning! I kicked off covers and said, well I can always take a nap! And by 8 pm, I was really tired, and determined to not fall asleep at least for an hour...so maybe I can sleep 9 hours and not wake at first light.

Change will come, whether we wish it to or not. To fight it is like fighting the sunrise. Better to say, ‘Ah, welcome old friend. Here you are again.’

Bruce Coville

A thrown small vase, altered. I found this as a bisqued pot last year, and it was one of my last pieces to glaze. 

It's hodge podge day!

 First, here's a photo of the gazebo work being done at Lake Tomahawk. Thanks to Elizabeth Swan photographer.

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Maybe by Bansky

And another artist at work... "Critical Race Theory"  by Jonathan Harris.

And yet another artist, Norman Rockwell.

If you've noticed a lot of confrontational pieces here, it's because that's the life we're all living today. I like how Rockwell says so much about the loss felt by these women.

"To stand with Palestine is to be human," she explained. Needless to say, it also means to be criminalized. Greta Thunberg among a group arrested today in Copenhagen. As always she is on the right side of history

San Marco, Venice by Giuseppe Marastoni

This is my Facebook Cover Photo.

I ache so bad, the pain of compassion for the innocents in Gaza, it's just a tiny drop of the incredible suffering they're enduring. Definitely Hamas must pay for it's atrocities. But Israel needs to give the normal people some consideration also. I'm a pacifist. I hate all war, but this powerful heavy handed attack against sneaky terrorists is the worst. 

What kind of future do any of them think they will have?

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OK, here's something that is beautiful (in my opinion) and uplifting.

Slow motion  bee hive...very short, you might want to mute the music.

Sharing with Eileen's Saturday Criters

Today's quote:

Life cannot be classified in terms of a simple neurological ladder, with human beings at the top; it is more accurate to talk of different forms of intelligence, each with its strengths and weaknesses. This point was well demonstrated in the minutes before last December's tsunami, when tourists grabbed their digital cameras and ran after the ebbing surf, and all the 'dumb' animals made for the hills.

 -B.R. Myers, author (b. 21 Aug 1963)

Less than six degrees of separation

 

A friend from church's daughter, they are numbers 1 and 2.

The daughter's friend, number 3, gave her information about the need for help for a family in Gaza who were related to her.

Her (daughter's friend's) uncle in the Netherlands (number 4) wrote about his family who were trapped in Gaza (not sure their relationships but at least 4-6 people) thus number 5 in our relationships.

How did I close the gap? They set up a go-fund me, which I contributed just a small amount to. But because of that I was sent details of how the funds were used.

The family in Gaza helped feed 20 other families with the funds. They had hopes of going to Egypt, and were waiting for transportation. I think the funding was helping toward this also. Just a few days ago we received word the family had arrived in Egypt. 

So I was only 5 degrees of separation from that family. Those hungry people, who have had their lives devastated by this awful war....I cannot look at the news any more. I cannot see the smiling politicians barbing at each other or smiling about the wonderful benefits they promise, which are all lies.

I've spent the last 2 years hoping the Ukraine could make a final stand and Russia would give up.

The stupid idiots in Congress who were elected by all kinds of other idiots are sitting on the money that could help Ukrainians. Lives are being lost there every day.

Refugees from other armed conflicts all over the globe are also suffering from lack of food, clean water and medical care.

I'm so grateful to live my comfortable life. Today I helped a neighbor who is in an electric wheelchair by bringing her groceries home from the store, which was not planned in advance. She had also come up short when checking out, so I loaned her enough for the toilet paper, but she was not buying the cat food or paper towels. When I loaded the trunk with her things, another bagger brought out the cat food and paper towels, which someone else in line had paid for. 

She rides her electric chair so fast it's quite dangerous. I guess it has brakes of some kind. But she goes along the street where there are no sidewalks, and heaven help a car that doesn't notice her.

So I unloaded everything into my tote cart and left it outside my door, until she got home. Since there were frozen things I didn't want to leave them in the sun in my car. She appeared about 5 minutes after me, and I took the things in her apartment, right across the courtyard from me. 

Yes, I thought, charity does begin at home.

And now I know that I'm only 5 degrees separated from a family that fled their home in Gaza to Egypt.

Today's quote:

“Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius and it's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring.”

Marilyn Monroe