Hello...is it me you're looking for ..???

 If it is..here I am ! I am looking for all of you...I need you all back, sharing your life and days with me. I do get lonely and crave the company of friends I have found throughout the years. And oh, what those years have been. And, although I am not alone, ( Mr. B is retired too )  I am lonely for the warmth of your stories, getting a peek into the day to day news for your cottages, your gardens, your farms and your city scapes, your photos and just the everyday conversations with you girls...

So, if you're here..let me know 🤓

Just another manic Monday...

 

Well, not as bad as that grandmother is having...but...

Now that we're retired, we have a tendency to stay up late at night, making "first thing in morning" a wee bit later 

So when you have an early ( for me) Dr appointment at 7:30am, you need to set an alarm, take an early shower, dress and try to be presentable, at did I mention commute time ?

I was nervous about being late so I left at 7am ( we're only like 10 minutes away ) Found the correct building in the maze of a newly remodeled hospital/Dr offices. 

New Dr that I have never seen, and of course I forgot her name when the receptionist asks "What's your Dr's name ?"  The receptionist is having trouble finding my appointment. 

She asked the usual questions... name, DOB ...still nothing. She finally looks up and says " it's for the 27th..." I interrupted her and said " it IS the 27th"  to which she finishes her sentence and says " 27th of OCTOBER... " 

" OH...hi ! I'm early ! "  

As I turn to leave she says "see you soon...like in a month.." 

OK...yeah, see you in October...

So, yeah...

 Wow...what a year & a half, am I right ? Seems like everyone wants  to get back to " normal "... but I want it better than what it was. I bet most of you do too. So, I think it's up to us, all of us, and it needs to  start in the home first.

I am not forgetting the thousands of souls lost, the  thousands of families suffering their losses. My heart hurts for them.

But I'm thinking about what I can do on a smaller scale. Be more aware of what's around me, in the neighborhood, with the neighbors, with the children passing our front window, walking home from school.

We were quite well looked after by my son and DIL, neighbors that saw us over the fence and even someone we don't know other than waving at her as she walked her dogs past that same front window each day and came to the door and asked if we were ok... ( I think we're now that " older couple down the street... lol ) 

But Randy and I can do more than we have. Believe it or not, there are even OLDER couples in the 'hood. We need to be their helpers too. 

So maybe we can't do a lot of physical activity, but we can ask a neighbor, young or old, if they need something from the store while we're there. Maybe make some cookies to share with the a neighbor while I'm making some for us. I don't know, donate more of the things I'm decluttering...give a young artist a bunch of painting supplies I no longer use...whatever. 

I want to help. May not have extra money to share and these old bones can't fix your plumbing or pull your weeds, but I do see you and I do care. Let's make normal a show of help and consideration. Let's show the children walking by my window that we're here for them if they need help. Let's make normal better. 

Have a good night 🌙

 I've always been tired. Not your average "I mowed the lawn, feed the cattle, raised the barn " tired..but even as a kid I remember right after breakfast my Mother telling me to go outside and play. Fresh air and all..

And I remember being soooo tired. I just wanted to stay in, go back to bed or at least play with my dolls inside.

So, I'd usually go out, dragging some sort of stuffed animal with me and sometimes I'd climb in the big tree in the backyard and just watch..the cars going by, the neighbors watering their lawns and sometimes I'd watch my Mother call for me and I'd just watch her looking around the yard wondering where I'd gone off to this time.  

But now I can pull back that memory and I feel the tiredness in my bones...and, as I've gotten older, the guilt for making my Mother worry while I hid from her, giggling, feeling like someone in one of my chapter books by being so clever.

I'm a couple of weeks short of my 72nd birthday now, and I was tired in my teens, tired when I became a Mom, tired when I joined the workforce, tired when I left the workforce, and I'm tired now. 

So no, it's not the pandemic, not the state of the world, not my "active" lifestyle, not my advancing age... I'm just so bloody tired...anyone else ? 

So...how do you know when oranges are good?  I think it's Sooo disappointing when you get a big ol' navel orange thinking it's going to be really sweet aaaand..nope

If I was in marketing, I would have sampling of the oranges. If I was sure I'd get a sweet one, I'd buy a bag full. But if I don't know...I'm probably not going to buy one, take it home and if it's good, go back...no. I won't. And you? What do you do??  Have I I mentioned that I loooove sweet oranges?

So much to say..so much has happened..from very good to very bad...

2015 was a pretty rough year and I couldn't be happier to say good bye it on January 1st...

We lost our beautiful daughter-in-law, Rachael,in November. Depression + pain pills + alcohol = death at a young age. She and our son Jeff had been married a little over 8 years. They found they couldn't have children which only added to her PTSD from a sexual assault a few years prior to her meeting Jeff. She had demons none of us could help her with.  I ever in the world imagined having to comfort my son in loosing his wife. We weren't entirely sure he'd made it to the other side. But, with love and support, and sheer strength we didn't know he possessed, he has and has found his "new normal"

We lost Braxton, our sweet old man of 15, after many arduous months of him loosing the use of his back legs and us trying acupuncture, doggie wheel chairs, a stroller and pain meds to no avail. We knew we had to let him go..and we miss him each and every day..Lulu is still calling all the shots around here and because she is not "other dog friendly", we have decided to let her live out the rest of her senior years alone with us all to herself. She is a sweetheart you know...

Our  great grandson, Oliver celebrated his first birthday.. MrB and I fulfilled our dream of going to Ireland,,, it was the trip I never expected but always wished for. And, it was everything we had hoped for with the exception of it being only a week and not a month!

We took a few great camping trips in Gracie, our home made trailer. I've started painting again. Got 2 knees replaced..well that was silly..I only have 2..guess I should have said BOTH knees ...

Fell into the trap of FaceBook, Instagram, Pinerest, YouTube and all sorts of time stealers.

And that in a nutshell is why I've been gone ...but I did miss blogging. So, here I am again. I look forward to catching up with all of you ..

Oh, I'll still enjoy FB, Instagram and YouTube...but I will be here, my first "social media" love
-me

I don't even know if this works anymore, but...

..I wanted to go back, reminisce, look at what was my passion for so long. Blogging. Before FaceBook....before Instagram... chat, messenger..

And I realized I miss blogging. Using more than just a few words to convey my day, my feelings, my life.

So..what have I been up to? Getting older, which is " a privilege denied to many" so that's not really so bad.  What is bad is what I can do in my head but cannot do with my body.

Like Zumba, Walking long distances. Kneeling. Being able to make a fist..or ...

Complain, complain, complain! That's another thing..I complain. Geesh..as they say, getting older is not for sissies..

Well, I'm no sissy, so, bring it on..my sciatica and I are ready for you..