What’s one thing that would instantly improve your city?
The town I live closest to is Cameron, Texas, with between 5,000-6,000 people. It could use many things, though it’s improving over the past few years. There’s just one thing I wish we still had, a hospital.
Cameron has had one in the past. This was on Crockett Ave.
Like oh so many small towns in Texas, Cameron had a hospital not all that long ago, the replacement for the one shown above. There were questionable management practices and it failed in 2018. The other hospital in the county, which was owned by the same company, bit the dust not long afterward.
The Cameron Hospital is now where most of the county government offices are. The Rockdale one is now being renovated as an educational facility.
Renovated Cameron hospital.
All these other uses are great, but that leaves the entire county with no place to go for emergencies. It’s 45 minutes to the closest hospital in Temple, where our family spends a lot of time. I’d go to College Station and hope the extra ten minutes to get there wouldn’t kill me.
We do have two clinics, and I really like the local one I go to, where I know the people. But these aren’t for urgent care or emergency care. And there are no hospital beds in this county.
You’ve probably heard of the rural health care crisis. It’s real! Of course it’s just one piece of the healthcare problems in the US. What a mess.
But hey, I have a very pretty plant on the porch. That’s my little glimmer of the day.
I’m glad I had my tarot group tonight, because I needed to be with beloved community as I processed the loss of the brilliant beacon of goodness, Dolly Parton. I know the loss hit so many of us quite hard, even if we only knew her second hand via her music, performances, and philanthropy.
I wrote this on Facebook.
I’m going to do my best keep to this vow.
This passing hit home, because I’m of the age when all my role models are passing and I’m turning into the “wise elder” person. Just as I was thinking about this, my friend shared this moving poem she wrote. I hope you enjoy it and it brings some comfort.
When the Torch Comes to Us
by Stephanie Perdue
When I was young, there were so many running ahead of me. Grandparents. Parents. Family and friends. The voices and faces I idolized who seemed as permanent as the stars. There was always someone ahead.
But as I grow older, I watch them disappear. A grandparent. A father. A stepfather. A friend. Then another familiar name from the soundtrack of my youth is followed by two dates and a lifetime reduced to the space between them.
And each time, my heart feels the quiet slippage of time. The line ahead grows shorter. Now I see my mother there, her brother and sister beside her, carrying the torch passed to them by the generation before. I don’t want their turn to end. I don’t want to imagine a world without their voices in it. Yet time does not ask whether we are ready. One by one, those ahead of us finish their race, and suddenly we realize we have moved closer to the front.
Perhaps that is what frightens me most about growing older: not my own finish line, but watching those I love reach theirs. Knowing there may come a day when the torch passes from my mother’s hand to mine, and my generation will look ahead and realize— we are the ones carrying it now.
So while the people I love are here, I will love them. I will listen to their stories. I will remember their laughter. And I will try not to save too much for someday. And when the torch finally reaches my hands, I will hold it tightly. I will remember all the hands that carried it before mine. And I will carry their light as far as I can.
Because life is tenuous. Life is terribly short. But love— passed from hand to hand, heart to heart, generation to generation— can travel farther than any one of us ever will.
—shared with permission. Copyright (c) 2006 by Stephanie Perdue
If you could erase one trend from history, what would it be?
I’ll tell you what trend I’d like to eliminate: charismatic psychopaths taking over the leadership of powerful countries and embarking on unstoppable campaigns to satisfy their need for praise and power.
Can we make this trend go away? Not without a destructive struggle, I fear.
Blurry butterfly, Gulf Fritillary
Okay, people who came here to read the prompt response can stop reading. I’ll go on to ranch news. First, the dogs are making progress. And, hey, I discovered in the archives that we got Penney seven years ago this week, and she was my most recent acquisition. So we aren’t grabbing dogs Willy-nilly. (Kathleen rescued Goldie.)
The Snooze Brothers
Benito has started to both play with and assert himself with Harvey. I just hope they establish their boundaries quickly. It’s hard to keep B calm for his heart worm treatment when everyone wants to play and play. But they do sleep a lot.
Harvey is playing!They have much funThey hear Penney comingI’m trying to be calm!The girl sleeps solo (as does Alfred)
We have noticed much less mounting and marking from Benito, which is really good. I’m not fond of that stuff.
As for the rest of us, we are muddling along, with no one feeling all that great. My jaw swelling has gone down, but I still hurt. I’ll let the dentist know, and I’m taking the antibiotics on schedule.
Sharing some white-mouthed day flowers, which got sprayed today. They were pretty, but it was time to trim some overgrowth.
Big thing for me: I am finally going through all my clothing from work and ranch and will be making some lucky thrift store shopper very happy. I got two boxes full of clothes today. More to come! This is one of my “issues,” having too many clothes. Comes from not having many growing up. But I go overboard. Sigh. I guess I could have worse issues (and probably do).
How have you adapted to the changes brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic?
Since I’m avoiding telling other people’s stories and not much is going on with me, I welcomed this question. It gave me a chance to evaluate what’s changed, my struggles to adapt, and the positive and negative results.
I found one sad, small wine cup today. Usually we have quite a few. Hope the prediction of rain soon is correct.
Positive: the people we were staying with and became our “pod” are still with us much of the time. We have gone through significant ups and downs, misunderstandings, illnesses, and job changes, but we now support each other and have learned to deal with each other’s idiosyncrasies. There are a lot of idiosyncrasies to go around, but the fact that we’ve made it through a series of pretty impressive challenges and remain supportive says a lot about me, Lee, Kathleen, and Chris. We’ve done a lot of growing and changing for the better.
We try.
Another positive that didn’t feel that way at the time is that I finally figured out how to lose my conception of what was happening in my life and keep living in the moment rather than dwelling on the losses. There was a period when I realized friendships and family relationships weren’t what I thought they were. That hurt. And thanks to Covid I lost my beautiful workspace I’d put so much effort into and didn’t get to fully enjoy living in Austin in my beautiful house. I had to leave by the time we were no longer masked and distant.
But I got through it all. It may not have been pretty, and my heart broke and rebroke, but I came out so much stronger and more resilient. I have a much more accurate perspective on the people around me, friends, colleagues, and society.
Lesson to remember
Covid truly taught me that attaining personal growth, gaining wisdom, and developing inner strength is a journey that does not end. I’m better prepared now, though.
A negative is that I’m still not comfortable being in large groups where people might cough all over me. It doesn’t help that the only time I actually got the disease was after flying to a vacation. I have to fly again week after next. I have come to terms with the fact that there are germs out there. I do still have to live my life (and symptoms of the virus I got when I went to that event recently are finally almost gone).
Covid has kept me and Lee even more hermit-like, though I do a few things, still! And Lee goes grocery shopping where there are many people, something I avoid these days.
My favorite positive to come out of COVID is that I don’t have to commute to work and can stay here at the Hermits’ Rest or even work from campsites. At first I really missed being with coworkers, but now I’m so happy that I can be home where it’s less distracting (other than dogs) and work with so many people around the world. Thank goodness for online meetings! And when I quit, I can go hug a turkey, pet a horse, or go for a hike.
I think my life changed for the better, even considering the downsides. I’m sure a lot less anxious (as long as I do deep breathing during the news).
Happy April! Here’s 1/3 of the year’s temperature blanket, featuring the hottest March ever.
I’ve been picking some fascinating books lately. The Great Shadow: A History of How Sickness Shapes What We Do, Think, and Buy, by Susan Wise Bauer, is most assuredly fascinating. I wish it was about twice as long, because I feel like she rushed through the past 30 years.
The book traces how humans view illness throughout recorded history. It turns out that those Ancient Greek philosophers had some notions that even today we can’t get rid of, like being in a place with bad air can make you sick (many people still think you can catch a cold by going out in bad weather).
The idea that every illness is particular to the sick person and must be cured by the doctor figuring out a specific cure for them lasted for centuries. It was a big deal when someone figured out that outside agents cause disease and that large numbers of people can have the same illness with the same cure.
I enjoyed learning how people found cures for illnesses before they knew about germs, bacteria, or viruses. Spoiler: it involved guesswork.
What surprised me was how many epidemics there have been that killed huge numbers of people. The plague was really bad, y’all (and there are three kinds!). These incurable diseases kept the population under control all by themselves! And international trade made diseases spread wider and faster. I’m relieved at least some of us lived.
Once we discovered bacteria and antibiotics it got interesting, because so many products were developed to keep our homes and businesses clean. Did you know Listerine was invented by a guy named Lister? You’ll learn the origins of many everyday objects like toilet paper, Kleenex, and sanitary napkins (Kotex).
Yep, if you can stomach the graphic descriptions of symptoms, you’ll be enthralled by The Great Shadow. My copy has already been passed along to my favorite medical editor, Anita, who’s recovering nicely.
We got more plants for the porch today, so I’ll really enjoy reading my next book out there!
I recently finished this fascinating book about beavers, which opened my eyes to a lot of possibilities for healing the earth thanks to these helpful animals. Leila Philip is a New Englander who became interested in beavers when they were in the pond behind her house, so she spent a couple of years researching Beaverland: How one weird rodent made America (2022).
I like that Philip researched so many aspects of beavers’ presence in North America. The historical background was fascinating/horrifying. Fur trapping completely eliminated beavers in the eastern US and Canada but when reintroduced, numbers came back very quickly. That’s good.
Philip spent a long time learning about modern-day trappers and I commend her open-mindedness as she not only talked to trappers but went out with one as he checked his traps. This guy had incredible knowledge of the wildlife and terrain and a deep knowledge of beaver behavior and habits. I was fascinated, and came to accept that a reasonable amount of harvesting keeps numbers at a good level and provides hides that are used for hats, etc.
What boggled my mind, though, was finding out how beavers (and the prolonged lack of beavers) affect our waterways, water quality, and health of the surrounding countryside. Rivers didn’t look like they do now before trappers arrived. No straight lines and eroded banks. When there are beaver dams, water moves much more slowly toward the ocean and is cleaned of toxins. Oh there’s lots more, but I don’t want to rewrite the whole book!
Speaking of writing the book, my favorite part came at the end, where there’s a section called “The Story of the Book,” that provides context for her travels and research for the book. It’s just as interesting as the main book, and a lot more fun to read than typical endnotes, though it serves the same purpose.
My only quibbles with this wonderful book are that sometimes information is repeated almost verbatim, and Philip feels compelled to describe everyone she meets through a sort of annoying subjective lens. I’m not sure I need to know how messy someone’s hair is or the details of their clothing in every situation.
I’m in a grumpy mood, so take my criticism with a grain of salt or two. If you’re a naturalist or nature lover, you’ll treasure this book and the perspectives it provides.
Full disclosure: Robert Reich is the American I admire most. So it’s no surprise that I hoped to enjoy his new memoir, Coming Up Short: A Memoir of My America (2025).
Yes. Punning is involved. He’s short.
Wow, this is an insightful book, both from a historical and philosophical standpoint. I think that, at last, I have a grasp on what was going on in the United States during my lifetime. I think I only had a superficial understanding of who won elections and who promoted wars, improved lives, made rich people richer, etc.
Robert Reich has known so many important political and intellectual figures in his lifetime, from all parties and perspectives. His first-hand accounts of historically significant events clarify my understanding of turbulent times and remind me that ours isn’t the only time of upheaval in the US. He freely admits where he made errors, too, which makes him much more credible than someone who’d claim to have never made mistakes.
I found his detailed analysis of how we got where we are today fascinating. I can see the current US leader’s appeal to disenfranchised citizens and how those folks have been distracted from their actual enemies, which are corporate interests out only for their own profit. I think we educated elites are also being distracted into thinking the enemy is Christian nationalism rather than corporate greed. Yikes.
Reich is someone whose thoughts and commentary I read daily, even though I get pretty alarmed sometimes. He does also try to point out where people are doing good work, speaking out, and standing up to bullies. It’s good to have a little hope. In that spirit, I give you this passage on patriotism from Coming Up Short:
“White male Christian nationalism has nothing to do with patriotism. True patriots don’t fuel racist, religious, or ethnic divisions.
“Patriots aren’t homophobic or sexist, nor are they blind to social injustices, whether ongoing or embedded in American history. They don’t ban books or prevent teaching about the sins of the nation’s past. They don’t censor truths that may make people uncomfortable, facts that are inconvenient, realities that people would rather not face.
“True patriots are not uncritically devoted to America. They are devoted instead to the ideals of America- the rule of law, equal justice, voting rights and civil rights, freedom of speech and assembly, freedom from fear, and democracy. True patriots don’t have to express patriotism in symbolic displays of loyalty like standing for the national anthem and waving the American flag. They express patriotism in taking a fair share of the burdens of keeping the nation going, sacrificing for the common good. This means paying their fair share of taxes rather than lobbying for lower taxes or seeking tax loopholes or squirreling away money abroad. It means refraining from making large political contributions that corrupt American democracy. It means blowing the whistle on abuses of power even at the risk of losing one’s job. It means volunteering time and energy to improving one’s community and country.”
P. 317
In summary, this is an important book for anyone who still cares about truth and ethical behavior. It’s also full of enjoyable anecdotes from a brilliant yet humble man. He will go down as a great American.
Today was hot, but otherwise a fine Sunday. I started the day by listening to birds, as usual. I felt like getting some exercise, so I took the long walk to the cemetery. It looked very spiffy, and the birds were happy with how nice things looked, both there and at the old school/church property.
I found out later that whoever the Walker’s Creek people are will be holding a picnic there next week! Maybe it’s people with plots in the cemetery—they do that at other cemeteries in the area. what a nice tradition.
While I was there I noticed many Black Vultures gathering in two of the grand dead oaks adjacent to the old “town center.”
That’s a big gathering.
I also heard lots of dogs barking and a familiar voice telling them to stop. Were they barking at me or the birds? I went around the corner to Vicki’s house to find out. The answer is that her dogs really don’t like those birds, or they DO and are enjoying themselves. Since I was already there, I paid a visit (so un-hermit-like) and checked out an Australian saddle she’d bought to try to use with Drew.
I also got to see a hummingbird!
And, since I was there, I got to go inside and see extremely cute Sheltie puppies. They are very fluffy and bounce around most charmingly. They are destined for great things, given their lineage.
They are very wiggly and hard to photograph.
I had so much fun being a new stimulus for them. Much tummy rubbing and fur ruffling occurred. I also got to see the brand-new puppy whose mother is a national reserve champion herding dog. There was a lot of dog beauty and skill in that house!
The little black girl was too fast to photograph There were two Merle boys. Click to enlarge!Puppy frenzy
I dragged my self back home for a shower and some rest. I don’t know why I showered, since I was soaked with sweat after working with Apache and dealing with the water trough Spice had managed to overturn. She, Drew, and Mabel seemed mighty pleased to have done that. At least Apache was good. He’s really getting used to the paths in the front field. He likes the Johnson grass and goldenrod and I like the shady areas.
No horse photos today, so here’s a tired Spicebush Swallowtail.
But, I’m out of sequence. Before horse time, Lee and I took one of our random drives, since he hadn’t been exploring all weekend like I had. We saw lots of crops, which we have in this area because we are east of Interstate 35. The soil is completely different on the west side, because the road follows a fault. Fertile farmland to the east, and alkaline karst formations to the west. Anyway, we saw feed corn being harvested, cotton in bloom, and to my surprise, a rice field. It was irrigated by the Brazos River.
We ended up in Calvert, Texas, which is fairly close to Cameron. Lee saw that some of the antique stores there were open, so we stopped by one, which is in the tallest building in the town. The building was erected by the first Black millionaire in this area as headquarters of a benevolent organization. This is probably inaccurate and no doubt a local person can set me straight.
Picture of a woman teaching a little girl to knit.
The shop had lots and lots in it. Luckily there wasn’t much of what I want, but I wished I had a space for this embroidered screen. It’s very cool. I’d love to restore it.
The screen is tall but I just took pictures of the embroidery.
I did end up getting a planter with pansies on it. I’ll show you once I get it set up. I didn’t get these. They had two similar pairs.
The Queen of England and her spouse as bedroom slippers. Classy.
Enough blather about my day. But I investigated many things, ranging from cute to weird!
I’ve read a few books lately. This was the first. I picked it up at the airport on my way to Hilton Head and finished it when I got home. Honestly, I’m not a huge fan of the British Royal family, nor do I dislike them, but I read so many conflicting reviews of this book by England’s Prince Harry, so I decided to read it.
Spare was a pretty interesting book, really. It showed how human and fallible Harry was, for sure, and how utterly strange the world the Royal Family exists in. I don’t know how anyone could survive in that setting without some big time PTSD and anxiety.
I mostly ended up feeling sad for these folks and blaming their blind adherence to outdated traditions for how things have ended up today.
Prince Harry came across as very honest about his own failings and his sincere desire to do something that mattered. Wow, that young man could use drugs with the best (or worst) of them. He really seemed to crave numbing and distraction. His love of flying helicopters and of ascetic African pilgrimages both seemed to be ways of keeping his brain occupied with something other than Princess Diana and all those Royal protocols.
The writing is surprisingly good and Harry’s voice is clear. I do hope that he’s able to keep helping others and gets some peace after being chased by paparazzi for so long. That has to be difficult even for people with strong boundaries and good mental health. For sensitive people like Harry, well, I can see how he got so messed up.
After reading this, I feel empathy, which I guess was the goal of the book. I’m aware, though, that there are other sides of this story. I wonder if any other aspects will clarify Harry’s story someday? At least he’s no longer needed as a “spare” anymore.
Yesterday was our last day at Hilton Head, so we did those last few things you hadn’t done yet. One was eat at Hudson’s, my favorite restaurant. Even though we tried to get in at a less-busy time, we would have had a 40-minute wait for outdoors. Indoors wasn’t as fun, but I enjoyed some oysters anyway.
Happy Snowy Egret
We found a Brown Pelican, and a Snowy Egret to take photos of, which made for a fun dessert!
Lee took these
After that we headed over to the Coastal Discovery Museum, which is a former hunting lodge that was donated to the island when the last owner passed away.
Too many gorgeous trees to get a good building photo.
They have turned the main house into a museum about the environment and history of this area. There was also an exhibit of art by local high school students, which was impressive. The exhibit I liked best was live horseshoe crabs swimming around and playing with the bubbles in their aerator. I’d never seen one alive.
Their little legs wiggled.
The best part of the visit was the outdoor exhibits. There were boardwalks leading onto the tidal marsh, which was wonderful, with many birds and rushing water.
Tidal marsh and boardwalk
There was a butterfly exhibit with many monarchs flying around and lots of lovely plants to photograph them on. We were very glad Lee had brought the good camera, because some of the images are gorgeous.
First three by Lee, others by me
There was also a carnivorous plant exhibit, and you know how much I love carnivorous plants! I also found a beautiful fly on one of the pitcher plants. I added some pictures we took of flowers, because they are so pretty.
Venus flytrap Dionaea muscipula (native to the Carolinas)Yellow pitcher plants Sarracenia flavaGreen pitcher plant Sarracenia oreophilaCondylostylus longicornis
Lee went to sit and watch birds with the camera while I explored the rest of the place. He got some good shots.
Meanwhile, I looked at the dragonfly pond, which didn’t have any dragonflies, but did have an alligator that I almost didn’t see.
A big highlight of the museum grounds was the largest red cedar tree in South Carolina. Even before I read the sign that said it probably started out in 1595, I thought to myself that I’d never seen a cedar with such an impressively gnarled trunk. What a treasure!
I saved the best for last, though. The final boardwalk went through a motte of ancient, ancient live oaks, the kind I just want to hug and sit with (which I may have done). These were some of the most beautiful old friends I ever met.
Plus there were lots of fiddler crabs to enjoy. I like how they are all slightly different.
I’m so glad I finally went in there, persuaded by Lee. I think I had the idea that it was a kids’ place. I’ll be back to walk the whole trail, which happens to abut Jarvis Creek Park, another location I want to return to next time. Oh yes, there will be a next time.
The Hermits' Rest 