It was my husband’s 50th high school reunion, but we made it a week filled with reunions, from high school classmates and college buddies to other friends and family members we haven’t seen in quite a while. The high school reunion was the main reason for our trip to Chicago. But our first visit when we got into town was with friends we’ve known for well over fifty years. In our younger days, we used to go camping together, often with little more than a [...]
“Neighbors Helping Neighbors.” It’s a wonderful thought, isn’t it? It’s also the name of an organization I learned about recently. I was working a volunteer shift at a Non-Profit Expo sponsored by the Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce. I was there with Georgia Writers Museum, one of about a dozen charities and non-profits at the Expo. In between the time we spent talking with visitors at our own tables, we had time to visit each other’s. I enjoyed meeting new people, as well as chatting with [...]
There was much in the news last week to spark outrage, no matter which side of the political divide you’re on. And, of course, that divide got deeper and wider as time went on. Which is all the more reason an unrelated incident in the news was so welcome and heartwarming. I’m referring to the Little League Regional Championship game in which a batter got knocked down by a wild pitch that hit him in the helmet. That, of course, wasn’t the heartwarming part. It [...]
Today, I want to wish a Happy Mother’s Day to everyone who is – or has been – important to a child… To the ones who gave birth to them and raised them – which is often, but not always, the same person. To the ones who nurtured, educated, and inspired them. To the ones who stepped in and took over when Mom needed a break, or had to go back to work. To the ones who never had kids of their own, but was [...]
I spent the weekend in Duluth – Georgia, not Minnesota – attending a Toastmasters District Conference. It was our first live conference since Spring of 2019, and it felt wonderful to be there again, live and in person. Numerous safety measures were in place, including mask and social distancing rules and recommendations, and a requirement for proof of a negative COVID test taken 24 hours before the start of the Conference. A testing station was set up near the registration table at the hotel, for [...]
When we lived in Minnesota, my sister and I used to visit the Minneapolis Farmers Market almost every spring. We have very different tastes and interests, so one of us would linger at a booth the other would barely glance at. We’d often pass each other up, and meet at the end of the aisle. While my sister spent time looking at flowers, I would be checking out herbs and veggies. She liked garden decorations and knick-knacks. I preferred kitchen gadgets and seasoning blends. I [...]
“What have you lost that you’d most like to find?” That was the question at a Toastmasters Table Topics contest I recently attended, via Zoom, at the club in Minnesota I belonged to when I first joined Toastmasters. “Table Topics” is a part of every Toastmasters meeting, and it’s designed to help members learn to think on their feet and organize their thoughts quickly by responding – for one to two minutes – to an open-ended question. In a Table Topics competition, the contestants are [...]
My last Leadership class was on Wednesday, and the focus of this class was Recreation. We visited a number of parks and recreational facilities, as well as our local Water and Sewer Authority, and Wallace Dam, which separates Lake Oconee from Lake Sinclair. Although the cold, cloudy day – and the forecast of rain – drove us indoors for part of the day, we still managed to get outside for many of our planned activities. For one of them, we were divided into two teams, [...]