Waiting, Wondering, And Philosophizing

I think it is possible that the crows have brought us a little acknowledgment of the mealworms. I found these two bits of what look possibly like peppers from the garden in the center of one of the stumps where I feed them everyday. At first I thought they might be parts of the beautiful magnolia seeds that pop from the cones they make and that would have made sense, seeing as how a branch of the magnolia tree is right above the stump but that is definitely not what this is. The seeds of the magnolia are hard and waxy. And then I thought maybe it was something that had been in the poop of a bird, possibly a crow, but there was no poop. Just those bits of what I truly think are peppers with little pepper-looking seeds in them. 
Maybe. Maybe not. Either way it is curious. How would a pepper have gotten from the garden to that stump? 

I spent the day staying right here at home, waiting for the delivery of my new iPhone. We had been told it would arrive either today or tomorrow and I was almost certain it wouldn't show up until tomorrow or...who knows? 
But by golly, it's here and I think I've almost transferred all my data from the iPhone Air to this one. Well, a lot of it anyway. I swear to you- if this is true, it is far easier to transfer the data off one iPhone to another than it is to clean out a closet and a hell of a lot less effort. Here are the directions on how to set up the new device which came with the phone:

Turn it on and follow the on-screen steps.

I remember when I got my first Apple product, which was a desktop computer, it came with no directions whatsoever. I had no clue about anything having to do with a computer. None. And this was a very long time ago. I bought a copy of "Macs For Dummies" and that is how I learned. And learn I did. I will never entirely forget the thrill of getting that first admittedly-not-Apple's-finest-moment-in-computers (the Performa model- anyone remember those?) and learning how to get online with the telephone connection, all the beeps and brrrs and whirrs. Sometimes it took forever and of course if you were online, no one could call your house. 

Gather 'round children and let old MerMer tell you about the olden days. 

So I stayed here, waiting for this delivery because it had to be signed for. I worked in the bed beside the house for about an hour, pulling chenille plant, border grass, and crocosmia and that was all I could manage of that but I am making progress. I put all the CD's that I'd bagged up and put in the trunk of my car and then taken out of the trunk of my car when y'all convinced me not to get rid of all that music, back into the drawers from which they had come. This is one of those things that took almost no time whatsoever but which I had been putting off for weeks. I melted the glacier which had formed in the ice maker in the refrigerator door which has needed doing for weeks. It is now working fine. A hair dryer, a screwdriver, a knife, and a stepladder were all involved. I did a few online things that I've also been putting off. And I ironed some while I watched another episode of The Bear. I love the way different characters get their own episodes. That makes for a truly deeper understanding of them and it feels respectful to them and to the story. There is, I suppose, a main character but the entire series is not entirely based on him. 

Last night's scallops were so damn good I think I might repeat that menu again tomorrow. Why not? It was so simple, and so very perfect. The main thing about cooking scallops is to not overcook them or they will become chewy and dry. Somehow I managed to get them just right. 
Tonight I've got a pot of beef, bean, and sweet potato chili going. Not really a hot-weather food and if we didn't have air-conditioning I would definitely not be making it nor would we be eating it. 

I really wish I had something more interesting to talk about this evening but I don't. I had hoped that the transfer of data would be complete by now so that I could hopefully take a few pictures and post them here this evening. I'm just a little child who wants to play with the toys she got for her birthday. 

It is so bizarre to think of how much these devices have changed my life. All of our lives, really, and yours too if you're here reading this. There are many things about the technology which are disturbing and dangerously addictive and the rapid proliferation of AI scares me to death. Used in some contexts, it is amazing and helpful and I think will lead us to finding cures for many diseases which have baffled us forever. In other contexts, it is blurring the line between reality and not-reality and that is what scares me. Trump has already almost completely done away with the borders of truth and lies and so many people believe not only what they hear but what they see, quite plainly, right there in front of their eyes on their phones, on their tablets, on their laptops and it's getting harder and harder to tell the difference between what is truly a recording of an event and what has been AI generated. 
Will reality cease to be of importance? Will truth become so nebulous that that it loses its meaning? 

I try to step back and take a breath. The first people to build, contain, and control a fire had no idea what that would mean to the rest of humanity in the eternal forever. Some of it so very amazingly good and yet, it came with the possibility of it being used as a completely destructive and ultimately uncontrollable power.

I'll stop now. 

Love...Ms. Moon

P.S. Boy, am I going to have fun with this.