We were returning home from Chicago after attending a family funeral, when one of the car’s warning lights went on. A rear tire was losing air. We weren’t exactly in the middle of nowhere, but it sure felt like it. We were somewhere between Nashville and Chattanooga, Tennessee, in an area of mountains and trees and a number of miles between towns. We finally reached the next exit, and pulled into the gas station closest to the interstate. My husband put air in the tire [...]
“I hope no one minds if I use this mail list to share something,” a friend wrote. Spoiler alert: we didn’t. It was a member of our neighborhood book club, and she was using the book club email list to share her memories of 9/11. She was a teacher, living in Fairfax County at the time. At the end of first period, an announcement came over the intercom about what happened, and they immediately started the process of getting buses to the school so they [...]
She was 102, but I never thought of her as old, or even “elderly.” At a family wedding more than 10 years ago, as several of us were talking and catching up on each other’s family news, she walked by and stopped to chat for a few minutes. As she continued on, steady and sure-footed with the help of her cane, one of my brothers-in-law said, “I hope I’m in that good of shape when I’m 90.” My response was, “Heck, I hope I’m in [...]
Rarely have I ever used my column or blog for a public service announcement, especially one on a controversial topic, but I’m going to make an exception this week. If you haven’t already done so, PLEASE get vaccinated against COVID-19. If not for yourself, then for your loved ones, for your children and grandchildren, for your friends and neighbors. The people who would miss you most if you succumbed to the disease, and the people for whom your heart would break if you lost them [...]
I always sleep well after a night out. By “night out,” I don’t mean an evening of wining and dining and dancing. Those days are long gone. Instead, I’m talking about setting my alarm for the middle of the night, slipping out the back door, and sitting out on the deck, wrapped up in a blanket, and staring at the sky. It’s that time of year again, when the Perseid Meteor Shower makes its annual August appearance. This year was promised to be a grand [...]
It was a lovely visit, and a very fun weekend. One of my sisters had been here before. The other sister, and her husband, had not. Schedules finally aligned, and they all were able to be here at the same time. The weather cooperated enough for us to spend some time out on the lake and at the sandbar one day, and another afternoon splashing around in the water off our dock. We also sat out on the deck, simply enjoying the view and the [...]
“It feels so good to get together again,” I said to a friend the other day. “It feels so good to laugh again,” she responded. And that, I think, pretty much sums it up. We were part of a neighborhood group that used to get together once a month to play Bunko, a dice game that’s fairly mindless, allowing for plenty of chatting, joking, and nibbling on snacks in between taking turns rolling the dice. It requires 12 players, who switch partners after every game, [...]
NOTE: Due to a technology glitch during a design update, my blog post last week did not go out to my complete mailing list, so I am repeating it this week. Look for a brand new post next week. We’re back home, after several weeks on the road. Our first trip was to Florida, to spend some time with our daughter as she was having – and recovering from – oral surgery. Then we came home long enough to unpack, do laundry, and repack for [...]