On this date...

Facebook reminds me of snippets I posted on this date through the years...

2012

 I am love, love, lovin' the cooler, lighter, fresher weather today.  

Ahhh...  It is so lovely.

…

 “The three hardest tasks in the world are neither physical feats nor intellectual achievements, but moral acts: to return love for hate, to include the excluded and to say, “I was wrong.” 

       ~ Sydney J Harris

…

 Two & a half months & I've just discovered a disadvantage of living in a teeny tiny place.  There's no place to get away from the sound of a creepy movie.  Thank goodness for headphones!!!

…

 I might have figured out why that little piece of leftover caramel & chocolate candy bar tastes different.  Maybe onions had been stored in that Glad box in a former life.  Hmmm…

…

 I've been preparing to be ready to start thinking about changing…

… the lyrics to a song.

… by the Ragbirds, a Michigan band.

… one of those lines that can seem exaggerated for emphasis, but which comes really close to the truth.

 

2013

"I feel a deep connection to you based on the books I saw on your bookshelf."

Meme source: The Well Written Woman

2014

Nice night. 

Dinner with dear friends.

Then our old tradition of ice cream snack before bed with my big brother... 

2015

Just a lovely spot we found along a little one-way street. A lovely spot indeed.

(Read more about this fun day.)

2016

I attended a nearby writers' group again last night - for my second time.

On my first visit I had heard about Lois, the 103-year-old poet who often attends - so I was thrilled when she showed up this time.  What a delightful person!  However she no longer writes poetry because she can't see - so she has switched to writing stories.  I love it!

2021

 Word of the day:  tohubohu

[ toh-hoo-boh-hoo ] 

noun

chaos; disorder; confusion.

…

Oh, my; what a fun and funny word.

But not fun to have too much tohubohu.

...

Friend Diane comments: I love that word! Our pastor uses it in his sermons.

...

Me: really? I had never heard it before.

…

 "The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts.”         - Bertrand Russell

How much is enough?

Is it just me? 

Or does anybody else ever feel like you're not doing enough?

Not doing THIS enough and not doing THAT enough...?

Other people have expectations of us.

Social media sets up unrealistic standards.

It can be easy to feel like I should be doing more.

I should do this or that more often.

More frequently.

More regularly. 

More consistently.

Or I should care more.

I should be more available.

I should be better at this...

(And yes, that's a whole lot of should's but that's a subject for another time.)

What a set-up for discouragement!

What a load of guilt can get dumped on us!

...

But you know what?

We simply cannot do it all!

Certainly not all of the things that everybody wants us to do - and not even everything that we might think we ought to do.

...

One of the best things I've ever done is to stop and ask:

How much is enough?

How much should I be doing really?

What is realistic?

What is healthy?

Reasonable?

What lines up with who I am?

With the kind of person I want to be, but also with my priorities and responsibilities...

...

It's tough to be objective about whether we are doing enough - especially when other people's expectations are far different from ours.  Sometimes we have to compromise and sometimes we must experiment to see what will actually work.

One of my ongoing examples is writing.

I can easily feel like I'm not writing enough.

Oh, dear; am I writing enough?

Perhaps the more important question is:

How much is enough?

How often is appropriate?

How MUCH should I do each time?

(How many words, how many projects, how many hours...?)

How in the world

will I know if I'm doing enough

if I don't have a clue

how much I should be doing?!?

I’m happy to report that this process is helping - with my writing, with relationships, with chores, with outside commitments...

Now when I begin to feel like I'm not doing enough I can pause and think about my answers to that key question.  I can much more objectively see that "Yes, I am doing enough at this moment" or maybe admit "Oops; it is true that I need to do that one more time this week."

It was no fun to be stuck in subjectivity and always feeling like I wasn't doing enough. 

Or wasn't doing something OFTEN enough.

Or LONG enough.

Or whatever...

It feels so much more reasonable and healthy to be able to take a look at my goals and at the reality and to see whether adjustments need to be made to my schedule.  I suppose it is a type of self-accountability.

This is a tool to become a better person.

A dependable worker

A faithful friend

More consistent

More reasonable

More balanced

And definitely a healthier person

More satisfied and contented

It feels good to be consistently doing the things that are important.

I like myself a whole lot better... 

On this day...

I really do love Facebook memories. 
That "on this day" feature that pops up every day.  
It reminds me of adventures we've had and places we've been, but it also reminds me of my wonderings and some of my silliness in a typical day.  It is so fun to see the variety that pops up on a specific date through the years.  
Oh, the wonderings and the wanderings!

2010

… is excited about a week-end with her girls!!!

 we're going to a beach house at St. Joe. Too bad it's gonna' be rainy, but we'll have fun anyway!!!

...This was to celebrate my 60th and it was very wonderful to hang out with my favorite women...

2011

 Lina's here! Yay!!! And her parents, too!

2012

Courage is not the absence of fear,

but rather the judgement

that something else

is more important than fear.

The brave may not live forever,

but the cautious do not live at all.

-Genovian prince

...I like to pay attention to famous thinkers even when they are not real…

2012

"Fry bacon, add onions”

Now there's a free Kindle title that just might be worth “buying."

Yep, it's a cookbook…

2013

Earth Day. 

What can I do to take better care of this amazing planet? Sometimes I get overwhelmed by all the things that I SHOULD do, but I can pick one new habit at a time.

2013

Note to self: Read things carefully before reacting.

"Fried in deep pan" is quite different than "Friend in deep pain”

Yes, read carefully...

2013

I've been wondering what surprises I might discover at our new place this spring. I was thinking of flowers and didn't expect a pair of ducks on our lawn lake - probably because I didn't know we might have a lake. That's fun.

...This was when we lived in the old log house at the tree farm...

2014

I picked oranges today - first time ever!

...Longer version:

I found a new friend! A Spanish-speaking one. All of the other neighbors I had chatted with so far have been English-speaking. But finally I found one that will help me learn Spanish. Yay!!!

… And she invited me to come and visit.

… At least I think that's what she said!

AND she gave me some oranges and avocados. She let me help pick the oranges - my first time to do that! How fun.

...While living and working in a little county park in Southern California...

2015

“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you.  What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of a difference you want to make.”

 - Jane Goodall

2015

Today's walk around the lake has been interrupted by frozen nose and has officially been scuttled. Replaced with clam chowder. Yep.

...Our campground in Ortonville, Michigan, included a small lake.  Walking the mile-mile trail around the lake was a regular daily activity for us...

2017

Walking to the Farmers' Market to do the SuperHero Fun Run...

I am a superhero today.

The Superhero Races raise funds to help kids at risk of violence. Every child needs a hero.

...We had just moved to Flint and I did the SuperHero Fun Run with some of the grandkids.  Just call me SuperGram.  The little guys walked home with us afterward.

It is SO fun to live right here in the city where we can walk to and from all kinds of places.

And then the other kids and other grandkid arrived for their first visit to our new place.  What a wonderful fun time together...

Taking the little guys for a walk. 

Found the orange playground where the cousins introduced Riley to slides! 
Much shrieking and laughter! 

Back home another way. I told the kids there are a thousand ways to our house. My grand-daughter told me that she can't believe we got a house with a table big enough for us all to sit.

What a fun family visit!

Halfway there!

I just crossed the halfway point in my NaNoWriMo* project. This is my eighth year to participate in NaNo and the writing has been flowing pretty well. I have been sticking to my word count goal of 2000 words/day in order to make it to the 50,000 word goal for the month of November.

It is always interesting to see what direction the writing will go.  

A couple times I had a pretty defined plan or outline for the writing.

Many years I have gone into the month without much direction.

This year I had a plan - or at least I thought I did.  I wrote along that plan for the first few days and then got stuck.  As I attempted to keep cranking out the words, it seemed that I had changed directions.  I have since had to admit that I might have two very different books here.  And that’s okay. I’ll just keep typing and try to label things enough that I can separate them upon completion.

…

The original plan was to write about my new city - to share first impressions of Flint and our first few months living here.  I’m still excited about that project and moving forward with it. Working on that theme has pushed me to do research and to keep checking out more of what is around here.  I keep reading, I keep talking to people and mostly I keep listening - all of which help me to keep learning about this fascinating city.  

For example, in just the last few weeks we have checked out Applewood and Sloan Museum and taken in the first of hopefully many concerts at Flint Institute of Music.  

Flint ArtWalk takes places on the second Friday of every month and we’ve just participated for our second time - sort of.  More about that later...

The Holiday Walk over in the College Cultural Area sounds pretty cool so we will go with our students.  

On my walk yesterday I stopped at the U of M library - which has been on my list for awhile - but I had been nudged a bit by a picture one of our students posted recently.  Sure enough I found the spot where he shot it - overlooking the river and several prominent buildings that have become important to us and our life here.

Not surprisingly the library has dozens of little reading and writing nooks.  I LOVE finding spots like that and look forward to hanging out there from time to time.  They even had a sign near the door about NaNoWriMo and I learned that the guy at the information desk is a fellow Wrimo - so that was fun.

Possibly the biggest task in learning our surroundings is the food scene.  I was told that I would always be an outsider until trying a Flint Coney dog - so I have taken steps to rectify that while checking off one more restaurant from the list of places we want to try.  That list is really long and we are not making very fast progress because once we find a place we like, we want to go back there again and again.  But we will force ourselves to keep working through that list.  What a happy chore!

The list gets rearranged from time to time - as we listen and learn.  This week, I discovered that the son of one of our new friends is a chef downtown and we’ve heard rave reviews so I guess Churchill’s has just been bumped up a little higher on the list.

In fact we decided to tackle the list today - to see what we can learn about Chinese take-out.  Success - 1.5 miles from our house!  Yay! Sure enough, it’s a tough task.

…

Meanwhile National Novel Writers Month continues and I keep typing toward the goal of 50,000 words during the month of November.

I’m feeling good about being halfway there with a few days to spare.

And I’m enjoying the process - of writing AND of getting to know my city better.

...

*NaNoWriMo = National Novel Writing Month

Thousands of participants around the world commit to write at least 50,000 words during the month of November.  And then the editing process begins in December and beyond.

Otherwise

I got out of bed on two strong legs.

It might have been otherwise. 

I ate cereal, sweet milk, ripe, flawless peach. 

It might have been otherwise.

I took the dog uphill to the birch wood.

All morning I did the work I love.
At noon I lay down with my mate. 

It might have been otherwise.

We ate dinner together at a table with silver candlesticks. 

It might have been otherwise.

I slept in a bed in a room with paintings on the walls,

and planned another day just like this day.

But one day, I know, it will be otherwise.

- Jane Kenyon

Capture the moment

I’ve been feeling thankful lately - in ways that I struggle to express.

Thankful for blessings that I didn’t expect to have and that could so easily be gone.

Thankful for things that seem so normal, but are really extraordinary.

So rare. 

So precious.

Blessings to be cherished.

Celebrated.

Appreciated.

Blessings that I want to hold close while somehow still holding them loosely.

Freshly blooming flowers and other delights are so fleeting - so they must be enjoyed in the moment or the chance will be gone.

Oh, the wonder.

The astonishing sweetness.

The moment.

How do I capture it?

How do I catch every drop?

The only thing I know to do is to notice.

To linger.

To celebrate.

To breathe deeply.

Again. 

And again.

To give thanks.

To wonder.

Daily Tidbits: Week Two

Saturday, 1-16-16

• Walked along the beach at sunrise - all the way out to the point beyond the resort
• A guy on a horse, several motorcycles, a couple joggers and a few people walking
• Left at 8:04 a.m.; too hot by the time I got back. Must leave earlier.
• I mistakenly swallowed a gulp of water when brushing my teeth. Oops!
• Laundry - washed towels and a few clothes

Sunday, 1-17-16

• Walked 2.34 miles - along the beach and on around the point toward the little beach in the cove as far as I could go without trespassing on resort property.
• Fried potatoes and onions and eggs for breakfast. We need more food staples on hand. Don’t have many options. When we have to carry everything back home on foot, we don’t stock up on things - and we can't find things we wish for.
• We walked into town late in the afternoon for dinner. Checked out the menu at Bungalows on the corner where Le Taino used to be. Ended up going to C’ L Aventura and got a pizza. Not bad. Wanted to walk out to the beach for sunset, but we were too tired.

Monday, 1-18-16

• Walked 2.6 miles early in the morning - along the beach and into town
• Went to a couple stores in search of the “baby wipes” that I’m sure I saw a few days ago. Can’t find them anywhere. Where, oh where, was it that I saw them? Or am I going crazy?
• I did find bananas today - very, very green ones. Oops; maybe they are platanos
• And I did buy one box of that "New York" mac and cheese at “Numero Uno.”
• Stopped at the French bakery for pastries. They had several of the “cream” ones with the yummy yellow pudding-like dollops. But went for the “natural” ones this time thinking they would be much better to transport in my knap-sack. These are the ones sprinkled with the giant coarse sugar crystals. Tasty indeed.

Tuesday, 1-19-16

• Took the quad to Playa Rincon
• Still gorgeous out there. Still undeveloped
• Made several connections to give away all of Bob’s photos! How cool!!!
• Sunburn

Wednesday, 1-20-16

• We went into town to pay my debt at the bakery and to buy supplies
• Recovery day - lower back pain and stiffness as well as sunburn

Thursday, 1-21-16

• Rained hard during the night
• I walked to the beach and back fairly early
• Went down to the ranchito to read for awhile

Friday, 1-22-16

• It’s raining again. Downpour. Might postpone our walk into town.
• Eventually we went into town.
• To the bank. Our cards worked in the automatico this time!!! (The ATM)
• Discovered mantequilla en barras (butter in sticks) at Numero Uno. Yay!
• Found fresh ham
• Productive trip

...

An uneventful week it was, but there it is: Week Two.