Day 2467: Dragons, dogs, and ducks

As I described last week in two blog posts (here and here), I’ve been working on reducing the power of a toxic person in my life by reimagining them as a less powerful entity — transforming them in my imagination from a dragon to a little yappy dog.

Yesterday, I discovered that it also helped to think of this person as an “odd duck” — an image that  I reinforced  by taking pictures of  the various  ducks I encountered during the day.

Using this online definition of “odd duck” ….

Noun
odd duck (plural odd ducks)

(idiomatic) An unusual person, especially an individual with an idiosyncratic personality or peculiar behavioral characteristics.
Synonyms
odd fish, strange bird, weirdo; see also Thesaurus:strange person

… do you see any evidence of odd ducks in my other photos from yesterday?

Sting (whose birthday it was yesterday) does not have a song titled “Odd Duck”,  but Björk does.

I’m wondering how many odd comments I’ll get about this “Odd Duck” post.

Duck!  Here comes an odd number of thank you’s to all who helped me create today’s odd-numbered blog post, including YOU!

Day 500: Momentous

As usual, it’s much easier for me to choose a title, than decide how I’m going to write today’s blog post.

When I thought of today’s title, I was unaware of one of its most obvious applications: today’s number.

500!!

Numbers with zeros naturally seem more momentous, don’t they?  Which might seem paradoxical, because zero  means …. nothing.*

I’m happy with the title of this post. I think it really fits, today. But, I’m not sure how I’m going to shape today’s post (just like all those previous 499 blogging days).

Today, however, there might be a little bit more pressure … because of the title.  That is, what if this post does NOT live up to its title? What if it’s not … momentous?

Now, momentous  (especially if I write it with one of my beloved hyphens — “moment-ous”) might just mean … being in the moment.  THAT I can do.

But, IMPORTANT. How important can I make this post? And “important” to whom?  When? Where? In what way?   This post’s importance depends on so many things, most of which I can’t control.

Allow me, dear reader, one more digression —  to a particularly momentous post, for me. Here’s  Day 95: A Startlingly Short Post, in its entirety:

Ready?

We are neither as unimportant or as important as we fear.

Thanks!

© 2013 Ann Koplow

Just days ago, I was trying to design a t-shirt, regarding that post.

Time out! What moment am I in, right now? Am I in Day 500, Day 95, or earlier this week?

I’m in all of them, and more.

Which  (finally!) leads me to the main event: what’s inspiring today’s post.

Yesterday, I met up with somebody who was momentously important to me, when I was in college.

And in the moments I spent with him yesterday, I had a sense of multiple visions:  Awareness of what was going on in the moment, along with echoes, overlays, and memories of moments from the past.

Right now, I’m thinking about the momentous-ness of these kinds of reunions. Over the course of human history, how many people have created stories, essays, songs, poems, paintings, etc. about encountering somebody — or something — important from the past?

A huge number. WAY more than 500, I would say … many of them quite accomplished and famous.

Marcel Proust, for one.  Dan Fogelberg, with “Same Auld Lang Syne.”

You may be thinking of different examples, instead.

How can I follow acts like those?

In my typical ways, of course.

Way #1: Composing a list.

My thoughts about yesterday’s meeting:

• I’m glad this person was in my life, exactly how he was, in college.
• When we separated, back then, it was painful.
• I learned a lot, from all the moments with him — happy, painful, all of them.
• I wouldn’t change a thing.
• I’m happy we met, yesterday.

Way #2: Sharing images.

I’m not showing photos, here, of my ex-bf (or whatever else I might call him).  However, here are some photos I took yesterday, while I was with him:

 After we parted yesterday, here are some photos I took (as usual, in order of appearance):

And, finally, one more photo from yesterday evening, with Michael:

Thanks to all my momentous connections and relationships, to Marcel Proust, Dan Fogelberg, etc., and to you — of course! — for your important visit, today.

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* Talk about deja vu: I think I may have made this same momentous point — about zeros and numbers —  in a previous post.  Which is bound to happen, people. I’ve written 500 of these friggin’ things!