It is raining here and i feel like chatting... Quite a few people have left the list this month. I wonder why? Most say they are busy, but i suspect they didn't find any topics of interest or some ideas bothered them. It doesn't matter. Everything is temporary and at this moment i'm happy to have a place to send my thoughts. I've been leveling an area to build a greenhouse and it is almost done. This has given me a lot of time to think and shovel dirt. The topics that keep popping up are tolerance, responsibility, and frugality. These can be heavy subjects. They can also have a positive and joyous side. It is the positive side that interests me today. A few days ago we visited an old friend who is the ultimate frugalist. I spent an hour poking through his small workshop. There i found an accumulation of parts that went back 60 or more years in time. After that we talked about finance and he mentioned his mother bought one share of stock once and gave it to him. He still had it. Mentally i calculated its value today and knew all this frugality was by choice, not by necessity. Anyone who lives to be over 80 and remains active and healthy has to be doing a few things right. Our genes have a big role, but it takes more than that. Today, it is popular to preach uncluttering our life by dumping unnecessary possessions, but here was an example of something else. Everything was saved and few purchases made. It was an spartan philosophy that resulted in abundance. The joy was in finding ways to utilize what was available. All these drawers of junk were part of a mental jigsaw puzzle which became art, craft, and pleasure. My old friend will not be around much longer. The memory will remain and so will the creations he gave to his friends. I have a grinder stand that was made from dress rack some fancy clothing store discarded. There is a work bench made from hardwood packing boxes. All of this is functional and nicer than anything i could buy. ---------- Jeff Owens ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) Zone 7, http://www.teleport.com/~kowens Underground house, solar energy, reduced consumption, no TV
