Above is a photo of a WWII museum in Kansas City. 

A friend invited me to join her on a trip to Kansas City. I immediately said, "I'd love to." First, I love a road trip and second, Kansas City is on my bucket list. The reason is very personal. I know very little about my father. He disappeared when I was young and my mother never talked about him. The fact he was raised in Kansas City is one of the few things I know about him. It's a thin connection but it is something. Wednesday, my friend and I are on our way to Rockhurst University to hear poet Pádraig Ó Tuama. He sounds like a fascinating person. My horizons are expanding. I love that.

It's been more than 21 Days since I started my 21 Day Affirmation Challenge. My excuse: I skipped a few days here and there. I should start with a disclaimer. I may not have put in the time expected. The positive affirmation video was an hour long. I only did about 10 minutes a day. That said, I have noticed some benefits. Some were subtle like an overall feeling of being happier
about my life.

Since the positive affirmations focused on health, wealth, and wisdom, I'll report on each separately:

Health: Definite improvement in semi-frozen shoulder department. Background: I had a major rotator cuff surgery in 2000. It didn't go well and I've been plagued with discomfort since. It drives me nuts. While surfing YouTube, I discovered  a 14 Minute Shoulder Pain and Tension Relief Workout with Miranda. I've been doing the workout for about 2 weeks now. That has been making a big difference. If my shoulder starts to tense up, I know the moves to make to loosen it up. 

Wisdom: Definite progress in understanding what went wrong with my second disastrous marriage. Reading, I came across the word "mind games." I looked it up and the coin dropped. My universe shifted. My x had been playing mind games. That's why nothing made sense. On some level I knew it, but to name it and study the dynamics of the game was another thing. I feel proofed up now from ever falling for that again. 

At least I can say, "I learned from my mistake." That is no small thing.  I can let it go.

Wealth: That's a stubborn one. No big change. But I am more at peace with what I have. That's a good thing.

Conclusion: I'm happy with the result and recommend doing this kind of thing.

Cleaning the basement today, my friend, Danielray, found the garter snake that I thought had left. He was sleeping peacefully behind the furnace. He grabbed it by the tail and took it outside. Thankfully I was upstairs at the time, and didn't see the excitement first hand. Even so, I'm a little shaken.

Looking back, I am glad that I banished my kitty, Matza, from the basement all this time. It was an "abundance of caution" thing. According to my research, if Matza had found and tried to play with the garter snake and if it had bitten her, it probably would have required a trip to the vet. That is not in my budge. So she has sadly been banned from the basement. 

Sorry, Matza. Not yet, Need to make sure there aren't more somewhere. Need to wait for an all clear from Danielray. Better to be safe than sorry.

Well, it looks like the Upper Level Scientologists at the Ft. Harrison Hotel in Clearwater, Florida did it again. They saved Clearwater from the ravages of Hurricane Ian. While much of Florida lay in ruins, Clearwater just got some heavy rain. The magic of the Upper Levels lives on.