WordPress Discover: Elixir

The month of April 2020, the WordPress Discover challenges have reopened. This week the Discover challenges are being handled by Krista Stevens. Her idea for today’s Discover post is the word, “Elixir.”

Elixir is a curious word, a word that means, as I understand it, potion. I suppose I have simple tastes, but my favourite elixir is tried-and-true Maxwell House coffee. When I was an adolescent, my godfather explained to me the significance of the Maxwell House slogan, “Good to the last drop.”

I don’t want to give away the story that accompanies the famed slogan, but if you know it, you understand why it can make someone brand-loyal, essentially, for life.

Later, in high school, I had a part-time job selling concession wares, and my duties included brewing coffee and cleaning the coffee maker when closing down. I surely did that routine a hundred times.

It was the early-morning shifts that got me to take the plunge and to begin drinking the odd cup of coffee. I associated it with being an elixir for grown-ups.

Placing the milk

It was like second-nature for me to the extent that, in the years I did spend working fulltime, many a lunch break was spent in line at the coffee shop waiting to get my cup of brew. I had a couple of wonderful espressos and casual discussion about that, and truth told, I was never extremely cognizant at the time, and those days passed by before I perceived what had passed.

I wasn’t really happy working full-time. I was so distracted by what I perceived as “lack” that I feel looking back I missed some of the happiness that I was experiencing, only to notice sometime later in life, when I realized there were times of fulfillment that I wasn’t growing during, amid my preoccupation.

I wasn’t the only one who experienced such a thing. I can remember talking about it discreetly from time to time.

It may have been evident from my demeanour, or perhaps that is a common subject that people bring up when they are bonding. I am not sure to this day.

I can remember people reflecting similar. If I knew more about what was happening at that time, I might have fared better at the time I was grappling with concerns of that nature.

The difference between then and now is that, while I do a lot more of what I want to do for myself now in life, rather than back then when I was doing a lot more to fit in, at this time in my life I understand that I can be happy with a cup of coffee with milk in it, and not want a lot more than what a cup of coffee like that is.

I am more grateful for what I have that is simple but welcome. I am not sure I would be as grateful if I had never made sacrifices to earn what I wanted. I gained a clearer understanding of what I needed to be happier.

Waiting for that drop to splash

I imagine that is a normal part of the years going by, but I bet it doesn’t work like that for everyone. It was only with luck that I gained that realization, I infer. Again, I am not sure if that is true or not, or it is merely how I choose to interpret the life I’ve wound up leading, but I tend to think that being lucky contributed a great deal to things turning out as positive as they have.

I wouldn’t make the same decisions a second time, but I am grateful that I didn’t fare much worse in life, as far to these days as I have lived, with the understanding I do have that I got here, you might put it, on my own two feet.

WordPress Discover: Scent

The month of April 2020, WordPress has reopened daily Discover challenges, hosted this week again by Ben Huberman.  Today’s theme is the word “scent.”  I thought of food that instantly makes me hungry:  pancakes.

For many years running, my family ate a Sunday family breakfast of pancakes, after returning from church.  It was nice.  Sometimes there would be a cassette tape of music playing, and sometimes there would be for me a cup of tea, as I didn’t drink coffee until beginning in my mid-teens, I think.

 

Later that day we would go around to my mother’s parents’ house and have a visit.  The smell of pancakes remains quite pleasing for me.

 

Last night was the last quarter of the moon, my wall calendar tells me.  I know things are hard.  My readership for the blog is small but consistent.  I have benefitted in terms of expanding its reach, from reading the daily Discover essays this month, and many days writing in response.

 

It interests me to read where the blog’s visitors say they are coming from.  In these days of social distancing, WordPress is among the best socializing I enjoy, as far as interacting with new people goes.

 

My present routine, to publish, discover, and comment, has helped me with the focus I have for writing in my blog, and for feeling better organized to be interested in it and to work at it.  While it is purely for interest’s sake, I am part of a small business that my father operates together with me.

 

We take care of a small cemetery, usually every week.  We are on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/LouthUnited

 

Although I have temporarily shelved my editorial calendar, owing to the emergency, you do have the option of visiting me on Facebook and following and commenting on this blog post.  I appreciate your time and I wish you well during this spot of bad luck.

Mermaid’s September 2018 WordPress Tea Party

Updated October 8, 2018

The Little Mermaid is an inspired blogger who has an interesting WordPress event which she organizes.  Over the last several weeks she liked occasional comments of mine.  The Little Mermaid warmed to comments I was leaving on the Beauty Beyond Bones blog.

That’s another blogger’s work, the author of an interactive journal leading with frank writing about anorexia, who is recovering and blogging.

https://beautybeyondbones.com

Consequently about a month ago I looked at what The Little Mermaid was doing in her blog, and for September 2018, and the two months before it, The Little Mermaid busily has organized tea parties.  These are exercises for bloggers, formulated by The Little Mermaid.  I try to take an interest, at least occasionally, in bloggers who express appreciation for my own blog.

The Little Mermaid has organized her third tea party.  Her theme for September 2018 is food.

https://thelittlemermaid09.wordpress.com

Although initially I thought I would feature grocery store items in my refrigerator freezer, I made the decision to shoot a photo of my mom and dad’s kitchen, where they are putting together a few grocery items for me.  I work with my dad at a not-for-profit endeavour, unrelated, but which you can find out more about here.

Food for me is an important privilege and one that’s essential.  To survive is to have grocery store items on hand, I feel,

My dad after dinner on Thanksgiving Monday in Canada

For the most part, I divide my food into eating I do at home and also two or three times a week a supper with my mom and dad.

It is considerate of my parents to include me, although of course, I’m family.  Those meals can be quite good.  While typically simple and inexpensive, it is also a meeting time for family information, which is good as otherwise, something important could have missed me.

I appreciate the opportunity to draw attention to bloggers who help me feel inspired, such as The Little Mermaid and Beauty Beyond Bones.  I like guidelines that spur on a concept, as in for example a specific theme.  That is what these WordPress tea parties are about, I think.

I enjoy making the effort.  Thank you for reading.  You’re welcome to “like,” follow, and/or comment as you please.