Abraham Lincoln

              “... Ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that.

                         Because what the world needs is people who are alive!!

Well we have had 4 raccoons visiting the Dome. Rascal the cat has a special door that swings open and closed. The raccoons must have watched him disappear into the wall. Then they followed. I used an alive trap to catch the one by one and moved them lower down the mountain. Sorry guys.

One of the most frustrating things in building is set-up time.

To work on the downstairs sheet rock again, I had to take apart the scaffold and take it down stairs. Then I had to re-assemble it. Then I had to move many things to give myself room to move the scaffold around the edge of the main open wall. Now I will have to lower another set of scaffolding that sits way up and put this 2nd section on to give me the height I need to work from.

All this is very frustrating for no wall goes up while the set-up takes place. But lots of work gets done.

I guess this is true for most any endeavor but it certainly takes the momentum out of the project.

Today I hope to get some sheet rock up by just building a cinderblock and board shelf on top of the 1st scaffold set-up. We will see how effective this is before I have to lower the second section.

This morning I went out to look at the snow

and found thousands of diamonds glistening in it.

It must have been the temperature and the sun light.

Small things like this make the day so special.

Throughout our lives, we are taught to value speed and getting things done quickly. We learn that doing is more valuable than merely being, and that making the most of life is a matter of forging ahead at a hurried pace. Yet as we lurch forward in search of some elusive sense of fulfillment, we find ourselves feeling increasingly harried and disconnected. More importantly, we fail to notice the simple beauty of living. When we learn to slow down, we rediscover the significance of seemingly inconsequential aspects of life. Mealtimes become meditative celebrations of nourishment. A job well-done becomes a source of profound pleasure, no matter what the nature of our labors. In essence, we give ourselves the gift of time—time to indulge our curiosity, to enjoy the moment, to appreciate worldly wonders, to sit and think, to connect with others, and to explore our inner landscapes more fully.

A life savored slowly need not be passive, inefficient, or slothful. Conducting ourselves at a slower pace enables us to be selective in how we spend our time and to fully appreciate each passing moment. Slowness can even be a boon in situations that seem to demand haste. When we pace ourselves for even a few moments as we address urgent matters, we can center ourselves before moving ahead with our plans. Embracing simplicity allows us to gradually purge from our lives those commitments and activities that do not benefit us in some way. The extra time we consequently gain can seem like vast, empty stretches of wasted potential. But as we learn to slow down, we soon realize that eliminating unnecessary rapidity from our experiences allows us to fill that time in a constructive, fulfilling, and agreeable way. We can relish our morning rituals, linger over quality time with loved ones, immerse ourselves wholeheartedly in our work, and take advantage of opportunities to nurture ! ourselves every single day.

You may find it challenging to avoid giving in to the temptation to rush, particularly if you have acclimated to a world of split-second communication, cell phones, email and overflowing agendas. Yet the sense of continuous accomplishment you lose when you slow down will quickly be replaced by feelings of magnificent contentment. Your relaxed tempo will open your mind and heart to deeper levels of awareness that help you discover the true gloriousness of being alive.