­

“Old friends” can’t be replaced by new technology

A landline telephone. Paper calendars. Print versions of books and newspapers. These are items I refuse to part with, even under pressure – sometimes subtle, sometimes intense – to embrace their technological replacements. Holding on to them often feels like a losing battle, but it’s one I’ll keep fighting nonetheless. It’s a battle that’s come to the forefront, in different ways and with different results, during my recent move to Georgia. Wherever we’ve lived, I’ve always subscribed to a daily newspaper – the Chicago Tribune, [...]

By |March 31st, 2017|Columns, Travel|Comments Off on “Old friends” can’t be replaced by new technology

Old and new keep crossing paths

It’s true that change can be difficult, and that old habits die hard. Yet it’s surprising how quickly we can get used to something new, often without even realizing it. After a week and a half in our new home in Georgia, my husband and I flew back to Minnesota to retrieve our other car and the rest of our belongings, and once again make the 1200-mile road trip to Georgia. While in Minnesota, I joked about how odd it felt not to have a [...]

By |March 24th, 2017|Columns, Travel|Comments Off on Old and new keep crossing paths

My Favorite Days

One of my favorite days of the year has always been the first Monday after we move our clocks ahead in the Spring. Although Daylight Saving Time actually begins on Sunday, it seems to have a bigger impact on Monday. That may be because on Sunday I’m still dealing with the loss of an hour of sleep, but more likely it’s because weekday routines and timetables are more firmly set than they are on the weekend. On Monday afternoon, it’s much easier to suddenly recognize [...]

By |March 17th, 2017|Columns, Travel|Comments Off on My Favorite Days

Everything’s different, and yet it’s all the same

These contradictory thoughts have been popping into my head often as my husband and I completed our move from Minnesota to Georgia. His final day of work was last Friday, and by Sunday we were packed up and on the road. We spent a day in Chicago visiting family, then took two days to drive down to our new home. We’ve made the drive to Chicago several times a year during the time we’ve lived in Minnesota, so we’ve gotten used to the landmarks, the [...]

By |March 10th, 2017|Columns, Faith, Family, Toastmasters, Travel|Comments Off on Everything’s different, and yet it’s all the same

A final column bids a fond farewell

I’m not thinking of this as goodbye, just as a change of venue. Still, it’s a strange feeling to be writing my final column for the Chanhassen Villager. This weekend is when my husband and I pack up for good and leave for our new home in Georgia. I plan to continue writing even after we move, I’m just not sure what that’s going to look or feel like in the days and weeks to come. It’s been exactly 16 years since my first Villager [...]

By |March 3rd, 2017|Buried Treasure, Columns, Family, Making a Difference, Quotes and Sayings, Values, Writing|Comments Off on A final column bids a fond farewell

Changing weather can change our perspective

Like many people here in Minnesota, I spent much of last weekend enjoying – and marveling at – our unseasonably warm weather. The most common refrain from everyone was, “This is February? It feels like Spring!” It seemed almost surreal to go out wearing a sweater or light jacket instead of a heavy winter coat. I went on an outing downtown with some friends on Sunday, and they laughed when they came to pick me up and found me sitting outside in a lawn chair, [...]

By |February 24th, 2017|Columns, Values|Comments Off on Changing weather can change our perspective

It’s party time! And you’re invited.

A friend of mine, who’s also a long-time reader of my column, asked me a while ago if there were any send-off events in the works as I prepare to move out-of-state. If there weren’t, she said she’d love to help organize one. I hadn’t thought about anything like that, but I was trying to plan a book launch party to celebrate the book I recently published, which includes a number of the columns I’ve written over the years. I’ve been to several book launches, [...]

By |February 17th, 2017|Buried Treasure, Columns, Gifts and Talents, Writing|Comments Off on It’s party time! And you’re invited.

Super Bowl generates stories of life and sports

“Well, there’s always next year.” I remember saying this often, especially at the end of football and baseball seasons in Chicago. Not that I was a big sports fan, but still, the end of most seasons prompted a look ahead, with hope for the future. Even though we’ve lived in several different areas of the country, and are about to relocate to another one, my husband and I have remained staunch Chicago fans in terms of sports teams. And it’s been an interesting journey, literally [...]

By |February 10th, 2017|Columns, Family, Travel|Comments Off on Super Bowl generates stories of life and sports

Never get bored of education

I was at St. Catherine’s last Saturday, taking part in a Toastmasters Leadership Institute. I wasn’t familiar with the campus, and it took me a little while to find the correct building. I thought I was being clever by simply following the line of cars pulling into one of the parking lots, until I found out they were there for a volleyball tournament, not the Toastmasters program. It was a bit of a distance to the building I actually needed to be in, but I [...]

By |February 3rd, 2017|Columns, Family, Toastmasters|Comments Off on Never get bored of education

Forever friends are always close by

“You’ll always be my friend… You know too much.” That was the saying embroidered on the quilt I gave to a close friend of mine for Christmas a number of years ago. This lighthearted sentiment is similar in tone to another phrase that’s often given as the definition of a friend, which is that a friend is someone who knows everything about you – and likes you anyway. Both these sayings came up as part of a talk I gave last week to a women’s [...]

By |January 27th, 2017|Buried Treasure, Columns, Faith, Professional Speaking, Values|Comments Off on Forever friends are always close by