I still go back to my childhood when I think of Easter – both the religious and non-religious aspects of it. It takes me to memories of the bright colors of Easter eggs and Easter baskets, the wonderful smells coming from Grandma’s kitchen and our own as food was prepared and cooked, as cakes – in the shape of lambs – were baked and decorated, and as visions of chocolate bunnies danced in the heads of my sisters and me. Mass was early Sunday morning, [...]
We spent two days driving, then two and a half days at our destination, and another two days coming home. Some people might question whether the time we spent there was worth the time it took to get there and back. Under other circumstances, I might agree. But not this time. We were visiting our grandkids. My husband and I got our second vaccination in mid-February, and waited the recommended amount of time to allow the vaccine to come to full strength. Then we hit [...]
Plenty of movies over the years have utilized the “fish out of water” concept, pulling the main characters out of their comfortable, familiar world and putting them – either comically or dangerously – in an environment that’s totally foreign to them. Time-travel movies like Back to the Future are good examples. So are movies that transplant characters from big, bustling cities to small, laid-back rural areas. Or vice versa. Crocodile Dundee manages to do both, between New York City and the Australian Outback. The reason [...]
Have you ever planned a special occasion event – like a once-in-a-lifetime vacation or a major anniversary party – that was originally so far in the future that it felt like it would never get here? It sometimes felt as though the planning would go on forever, and then, when the event finally took place, it felt almost surreal. And afterwards, it felt a bit strange to get back to “normal” without having the event to look forward to, or more tasks and chores to [...]
I was on the phone with Aunt Vera, an amazing lady who possesses 101 years of wisdom and a mind that’s still sharp as a tack. After we wished each other a Merry Christmas, we talked about how different Christmas was this year and how sorry we were not to be able to see her in person, as we usually do over the holidays. We talked about how excited we were at the news about COVID vaccines, and how happy we will be to visit [...]
There are many words we could use to describe the year 2020, and “surreal” is probably one of the kindest. The same can be said for how we’ll be celebrating Christmas this year. Like many people, my husband and I will be staying home for the holidays, rather than going home for the holidays to celebrate with family members who live in other parts of the country. It’s not our preference, of course, but we keep reminding ourselves that by staying safe at home this [...]
I was still in bed on Thanksgiving morning when my husband, an early riser, came in and said, “The power just went out.” I instinctively looked at the clock on my nightstand, which showed – nothing. “What time is it?” I asked. “6:45,” he said, adding, “I called the power company. They already knew about it. They said it should be back on by 8:30.” I did some quick mental calculations, based on the tasks and cooking I had planned for Thanksgiving dinner. Although it [...]
Thanksgiving is next week, and it will be different this year than ever before. Like many people, we will be staying home rather than traveling to be with family members in different parts of the country. And like them, our hearts are torn over not being able to spend the holiday with loved ones, whether they live across the street, across the country, or “over the river and through the woods,” as the old song goes. This is also a year when many people are [...]
It’s Halloween weekend. Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, which is the best day of the week for trick-or-treating, although the streets won’t be filled with nearly as many ghosts, goblins, spirits, and superheroes this year as they normally would. Still, it’s a scary time of year – more so this year than most, for a variety of reasons. This is also the best time of year for scary movies. My husband and I just finished watching The Haunting of Bly Manor, which we [...]