Reflecting on ‘people from away’

~ Jnana Hodson ~ Leave a comment

That is, PFAs, as we’re known among the locals.

I haven’t encountered the negative reaction some report, but feel myself among those warmly welcomed.

Part of it is, I believe, an openness to approach what’s here without wanting to totally “improve” it. I mean, if you can’t stand the smell of cow manure, you shouldn’t move into farm country. Or, for much of Maine, the stench of a paper mill.

That doesn’t mean we don’t have a lot to contribute, but we need to be respectful in acknowledging what’s attracted us as well as the dirty work that needs to be done. You know, the equivalent of washing dishes.

Or loving someone warts and all.

Along with a dirge

~ Jnana Hodson ~ Leave a comment

Touring a Roman Catholic church that’s known for its graves, the ones inside around the sanctuary and in chambers off to the side and, presumably, in the basement. The ceiling is relatively low and the dominant color a light yellow. Feels something like a Mount Auburn Cemetery and may have been surrounded by the like.

Noticing a man who’s obviously perplexed (he may have even been in clerical garb, I now sense), I approach and offer my help. He has a map that may simply have some directions, but he’s looking for such-and-such Avenue. Together we circle the inside of the building and come upon a stone wall that’s been painted black and both agree that’s where we should have found his destination. We’re both baffled.

We then join a small group in a chapel or, considering the slanted floor, lecture hall auditorium where a nun’s doing an end-of-tour kind of Q&A session. She keeps overlooking any questions hands up from either me or the man; I’m three rows back and in the center, he’s at the back about four rows behind me. Finally, I shout out my question about the black wall. “It’s the Williams family,” she answers, as if everyone should know they owned the property long before the church was erected.

We scatter to make way for some kind of ecumenical program in the sanctuary that evening.

Our Greek Orthodox priest is already there, sitting on the floor, his back to the wall, with his family.

Some useful advice for awkward social settings

~ Jnana Hodson ~ Leave a comment

To counter the effects of a boring conversation from the get-go, be the more interesting person by asking questions like:

  • What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever eaten?
  • What’s on your bucket list? (ask a follow-up question about how you can help them accomplish it).
  • What new skill are you learning?
  • What’s your personality type?
  • What’s your calling or purpose in life?

By taking the initiative and making the conversation about the other person, this selfless act of shining the spotlight on someone else first gives you the edge – making you the more interesting person in the room.

Gee, I am wondering where I copped this.

 

Dragging me out of the Stone Age

~ Jnana Hodson ~ 1 Comment

I was tempted to make that “stoned age,” but I was of a more tempered side of the hippie era.

When it comes to high tech, though, I’ve leaned more toward neo-Luddite. You know, face-to-face and keeping people employed. That’s why I go inside to a teller at the bank, rather than an ATM or drive-thru. Ditto for fast food.

One way my family has of nudging me in the other direction is in their Christmas and birthday gifts to me.

Well, my clumsiness therein is another matter.

Here are some examples.

  1. My first cell phone and then, a dozen years later, the big upgrade to my S22 Ultra, in large part for its digital camera abilities.
  2. That replaced the Olympus digital camera they’d presented a few years earlier. I have to agree it’s a huge upgrade.
  3. A coconspirator in all this offered some puzzling lenses and a lobster tripod for photography that made no sense until I learned about the S22 Ultra. I was so ignorant, but these are cool.
  4. Then there’s the LED ring lamp for Zoom meetings with its warm and cool light settings. The way it’s set up now, I use it for a regular light at my workstation.
  5. A Fire tablet. An ebook author really should have one, though I use mine mostly to stream music. Which leads to …
  6. A Bluetooth headset that works with the aforesaid cell phone and tablet plus my laptop Zoom connections. Didn’t know I couldn’t live without one.
  7. As well as my Tribit remote speaker. I love the flexibility of taking my music around the house or of having hands free during a phone conversation.
  8. My little weather station, the one that doesn’t require wires running out to the wind, temp, and rainfall gauges. Hey, living on a windy island puts the weather high on the awareness chart.
  9. The mustache trimmer. The rechargeable battery device really does the job better than a razor.
  10. Most recent is a set of wireless speakers to go with the new audio system. I started to say “stereo” but know how outdated that’s become. Still, this one  accommodates vinyl, if you know what that means.