I am a words person. I even have favorite words such as arugula and bok choy. They are fun words; speaking them into existence always feels like a party. For the most part I prefer communicating important or emotional ideas through the written word instead of the spoken word. It gives me time to think through what I want to communicate without all the emotion of body language cluttering u...

I have a quote that hangs on my office wall by racecar driver Alan Kulwicki that I read daily to keep me going… The real test of your character is what it takes to stop you. I reflect upon that quote whenever I get frustrated. I am the first to admit I can have a low frustration thrush hold. I am not a big fan of standing in line, poor or slow customer service or automated phon...

Another picture from our recent trip to Maine.I have been flat on my back for the past week with a mega cold. It was a lovely parting gift from my twin grandbabies. Two very huggable six month olds whose smiles caused me to experience a momentary lapse in judgment. Truthfully, I weighed the pros and cons for engaging with two sick babies. Over...

The weekend is ahead and wide open. Marty and I both travel for our jobs but this weekend I will be home while Marty will be away. I truly value the occasional solitary weekend, as I know Marty does too. When I was younger, the thought of being away from the man I love was torture. I would mope around counting the hours until his return, desperate for a phone call. Today I shake my head at that young girl and...

Sometimes I forget she is dead. Mainly it happens when I am driving and I involuntarily think, “I should call Mom”. Then I remember; then I feel sad. It is not an overwhelming sadness just a fleeting shadow that reminds me that I can no longer talk to her. At those times, I call my sister.Julia’s experiences are similar and she understands. We chat long enough to share our re...

I have jokingly said that life is “all about me” but in reality when you love and care for another person what happens in your life touches them too. While it was grueling for me to travel back and forth to Florida to care for my mother in response to each one of her health emergencies, it was draining for Marty to be left behind to wait and care for our home alone. When he dropped me off...

As I mentioned last Friday, I have become the family historian who is responsible for sorting and organizing my parent’s family photos. My father was extremely organized and had meticulously labeled thousands of photos. My mother on the other hand was the yin to his yang and just tossed photos into the drawers of her nightstand along with receipts and other bits of paper....

The change of season stimulates my desire to complete any outstanding projects and drives me to action. Fall, in particular, stirs up those feelings. The light changes, the days become shorter and a sense of urgency comes over me. Maybe it is primal and I am looking to organize things before hunkering down for a long winter’s sleep. But now is the time to speak into existence those i...

I love autumn. The vibrant colors, the crisp morning air and the rows and rows of pumpkins at roadside markets all signal change. It is also a wake up call. It is that gentle nudge to do those things that I have been putting off because I was lulled into believing summer would last forever. I am constantly reminding myself to just do it.  And do it now! Before Nike trade...

“Do you want this? Yes, I’ll take it.” That is how it started. My mom died this past June and in July I loaded a dozen boxes of family photos, slides, film and videos into a Budget rental a truck. I agreed to a sort through 80 plus years of images that I would organize, scan and share with my sister and brother. And they agreed I should do it. That is what I get for being the bossy and org...