Misplaced Priorities

Fiorella is outraged at the report that the Smithsonian is trying to raise $300,000 to repair "Dorothy's ruby slippers." In the first place, those were Judy Garland's shoes, not Dorothy's--in L. Frank Baum's book, Dorothy's slippers were silver. In the second place, "The Wizard of Oz" was an enjoyable movie, but those shoes are neither a religious not a historical relic. In the third place, and most important, $300,000 spent repairing costume shoes would be a massive misuse of resources that could otherwise be used to better peoples' lives through education, medical research, or help agencies. Let's get real here--people are more important than celluloid.

Jungle Drums

Fiorella gets a kick out of harvesting rocks in the wildwoods.  It makes her feel good because she's using the resources at hand and is thus not only self-sufficient and eco-thrifty but--well--cheap.
*
There's something exciting about owning a parcel of virgin woodland.  Husband and Fiorella have lived on their five and one-third acres of jungle for twelve years and still don't know it all.  While Fio was scouting for rocks recently, she discovered an area in the south woods where an eight-foot wide circle had been cleared at some time in the past. The remains of a fire circle sat in the middle of clearing, and to the side was a crushed beer can.  Probably not a BSA encampment.
*
Fiorella has written about the south woods a lot lately because it's a terra incognita that she has just lately been able to explore because the major yard areas have finally been tamed by a wonderful man named Fernando.  God bless him.
*