Stream(s) of Consciousness Runneth Over; VE Day

The title of my blog post today could also read "Ways to Avoid Grumpiness, Edition 35."

Still, I think "Stream(s) of Consciousness Runneth Over" has a more visual appeal, especially since I have included a photo of one of the many, many streams that are currently RUNNING over our 20 acres this morning. 

Plus, every so often, it's just a good idea as a writer to "let 'er flow."   So, keeping in tune with our abundant and ever overfilling water masses here at the Lovestead, that's just what I'm gonna do today.  

First, an explanation to the second part of the title:  VE Day.   At this very desk in this upstairs cluttered room here on the soggy Lovestead, I am declaring May 15, 2018, as VE Day for Bonner County voters. 

The inspiration came from a letter in this morning's local paper, where candidates for local and state offices were defined in two separate camps as "establishment candidates" or "liberty freedom constitution" candidates. 

I looked at the names on both lists and decided that it was very, very nice of the letter writer to make it so easy for all the us regular, uninformed folks aka "stups---short for stupid"  to decide how to vote.  

Seems a lot of folks these days believe that "decision-making dummies" for electing people is made so much easier by lumping candidates into "good" and "bad" categories or, better yet, to demean them with insulting labels. 

While some might find this a disgrace, I am really glad to see my voting research so simplified, and since I view myself as pretty much a regular folk without a lot of brainpower operating upstairs, "establishment candidates" sounds a whole lot simpler to me than "liberty freedom constitution candidates."  

Easy for me to make a distinction when I only have to look up two words as opposed to three."  So, because the "establishment candidates" require less brainpower on my part and because they've all been thrown into the same pot as my much respected friend Shawn Keough, I'm going to VE on primary election day.  

VOTE ESTABLISHMENT on May 15.  You can't go wrong!  Oh, while we're on the subject, the Scotchman Peaks Wilderness item doesn't exactly fit in the VE category, but it sure suits my desire to protect a beautiful area that is not being snatched up by the government. 

So, I'm gonna vote YES on that, mainly for the goats cuz, as everyone knows, I like animals. 

Since this is streaming consciousness, and water is still streaming from the sky, I'll flow on to another subject. Bill and I had the best time catching up on about 50 years worth of common happenings and common interests with my friend Florine yesterday.  

Florine drove up from Coeur d' Alene and brought her "Wellies," cuz she had no idea what adventures Bill and I might have planned for her.  Well, thanks to streams of very conscious---or would it be conscientious---rain falling from the skies, we tabled some of our plans and pretty much stuck to inside visiting.  

As chore time came, however, Florine showed genuine excitement when I mentioned I'd have to go out and put the horses in the barn.  

Twas "Wellie Time" at the Lovestead.  Feeling dry in those boots and wearing one of my baseball caps with her rain jacket, Florine seemed quite content to stand in the lane watching as I led Lily, Lefty and CB to the barn, and, of course, she got to meet each horse up close and personal. 

In fact, the only beloved of our menagerie which she did not meet was Festus, the cat, who hung out in the shop.  Each dog came from the garage to the living room and greeted our guest, happily threatening to jump in her lap. 

Later, we continued our lively visit at the Farmhouse Kitchen over dinner.  It was truly a great get together, and we all agreed that there's much more that needs to be discussed on another day. 

Moving on, today we should learn how Willie's Cedar Post students fared in their national competition.  Willie and Debbie have been in San Francisco, along with Kevin Hutchens, the new Monticola adviser and a few journalism students.

Debbie informed me in one text that she actually saw blue skies when they landed in San Francisco the other day.  I told her to enjoy it while she could cuz she's gonna see a lot of mud and conscious streams when she returns home today. 

On that note, I guess it's time for me to wrap this up cuz the clock says if I don't, Helen, my editor, will be sending me a note, wondering if we have floated away or if something of Titanic proportions has happened out here at the Lovestead.  

If she does, I'll just say no icebergs, just a lot of streams and that we're in the midst of designing an ark-----one that will stay afloat a little better than the Titanic did 100 years ago today. 

Happy Sunday and remember VE Day on May 15.  VOTE Establishment!