Positively - Stumped!

 by Mauverneen

I had this experience yesterday afternoon at the grocery store. I'm still shaking my head. 

So... if your bill comes to $7.32 and you give the clerk a ten dollar bill, and the change automatically comes out and rolls down into that little dish, what more do you get back in change? 

Obviously you don't have to count the change, so... what? Sounds simple enough.

The cashier must have gone on to the next screen too quickly, or she didn't trust what she saw because I kid you not, she pulled out a calculator. She proceeded to figure out what she owed me, opened the drawer and gave me my two bills.  

I'm no math wiz, but I was dumbfounded. This was not high finance. Is this really that hard? I was so tempted to ask her if she really couldn't figure that out in her head, but honestly, I was speechless. And I'm not one to enjoy embarrassing anyone in public. I just stared. Speechless.

I've been reading and hearing about how hard things are for kids these days trying to learn math - and reading. If this is the result, let me tell ya, We are in trouble folks! Maybe we should just go back to teaching things the old way. The simple way. Apparently, the new math isn't working.

As always, words and photos are my own, and require permission to reprint.

However, feel free to share the blog in it's entirety. In fact, I encourage it!

Interested in photo prints? Contact me! maureenblevins@yahoo.com

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Positively Blue

 by Mauverneen

Every morning, when I feed the birds, I put out a total of six peanuts (in the shell) for the Blue Jays. Sometimes, if the peanut has the classic "Mr. Peanut" shape, with a very small 'waist', I will break it in half. I only do that if I'm sure the nut will not fall out of the shell. The Blue Jays love the peanuts. And I like watching them crack open those shells.

I have to watch the show through the window though. If I'm outside, they swoop on down and right back up without stopping. If I turn my back, the peanuts are gone in a flash. So mostly I watch through a window. 

Sometimes they swoop on down and grab a nut on the fly. Other times they pick one up, drop it, pick up  another, and sometimes go back to the first one. I think they're weighing them. They want the best value for their effort. Some effort. Free peanuts. I have also seen them take a small one, get it way back in their throat and grab another. Greedy!

And sometimes, a Jay will come down right after the last one has been plucked from the dish. He looks a little confused.

 If he would let me I'd give him one. But then I'd probably have them all flocking me like a scene from 'The Birds'. If I was going to be scared of a bird, it would probably be a Blue Jay. They are fierce looking, with sharp beaks. But they're a smart bird. They show up every morning, waiting. When the peanuts are gone they go to the feeder like the other birds. 

As always, words and photos are my own, and require permission to reprint.

However, feel free to share the blog in it's entirety. In fact, I encourage it!

Interested in photo prints? Contact me! maureenblevins@yahoo.com

See more photos at http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/1-mauverneen-blevins.html

Positively Fresh

 by Mauverneen

We've had variety in the weather the past couple of weeks. It rained. It poured. The wind blew mightily. Cool nights. Hot days. Humid days. Very humid days.

Today, I took my first cup of coffee and stepped outside. It's glorious! I believe it must have rained a bit overnight but I slept soundly - if it did, I didn't hear a thing. But the grass is wet and the air is clear. Gloriously clear and fresh. The haze of humidity is not hanging in the air, the sky is a clear blue, not a hazy white. The birds are flying around the feeders and the garden like they are happy to be alive. 

Standing here, on my deck, coffee in hand, I too am happy to be alive. I don't know what the day will bring, but right now, this minute, it's a glorious morning. Breathe it in.

As always, words and photos are my own, and require permission to reprint.

However, feel free to share the blog in it's entirety. In fact, I encourage it!

Interested in photo prints? Contact me! maureenblevins@yahoo.com

See more photos at http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/1-mauverneen-blevins.html