Monday, January 23, 2023

Yesterday’s late afternoon turned beautiful on this town’s eastside where I live. The overcast, cloudy sky gave way to sunshine, which popped. Suddenly our horizon’s snow-topped Cascade Mountains became highly visible. I was in the process of filling watering troughs and the light had me grinning. How lovely, to rediscover a bright world.

Earlier, I stayed inside and read as much as possible. My book is, Listening Still, by Anne Griffin, an Irish novelist. I was prepared to scan, and quickly, the story because its heroine “can hear the dead”. This theme isn’t my cup of tea, but it’s for a book club.

Barely into chapter one, I found myself hooked completely, slowed, and carefully followed the story. I’m about two-thirds through. Griffin is a skillful storyteller and writer. The reader shares her characters’ emotions, well expressed without falling overboard.

The lead character is Jeanie, who’s in her early thirties. Her parents surprise her by suddenly explaining their decision to retire soon from the family business. They intend to leave the small community and the family’s established mortuary business. Jeanie will run the business. She’s the only person besides her father who can hear the dead. Both have the unique gene that enables a “listening skill”.

Jeanie is upset by her parents’ decision and struggles with whether to continue the mortuary business. Her marriage of several years is good but not perfect. She has solid relationships with her family, long-time friends, and with many in the larger community.

The proposed change while forcing her to consider pros and cons, simultaneously has her mind escaping to memories and regrets. We begin learning that Jeanie has a back story. Especially, that years ago she was involved a long passionate love affair with “a man she didn’t marry”. That past and its wild emotions linger.

Griffin writes with insight and awareness without being heavy-handed. She communicates humor, tension, love, and anger. A reader easily identifies with Jeanie and experiences as she does. Griffin’s skillful writing has me anticipating an appropriate resolution.

I give this story a high “like”. Anne Griffin has two other published books and I will explore.

Dear Friends: Unless forced to read this story, I’d have dissed it to avoid its “hearing” theme. Diana

Sunday, January 22, 2023

I was moving a large storage chest from a closet to open space so the floor guy could work. On removing a too-stuffed drawer, I discovered beneath some items an unopened bottle of Azzaro 9 Parfum. A brand-new bottle, 1/4 oz., in its original packaging.

Oh, the memories! Way back, before I ever worked out at a gym, I occasionally wore perfume. Azzaro was my favorite. After entering the world of the gym, I grew increasingly sensitive to scent. Those who work out among others understand why one begins to dislike perfumes.

I stood in that closet staring at my find, and remembering. I tried to calculate how long the bottle might have been stashed. No less than forty years, if a minute, and no kidding. I can recall wearing the scent while working as a secretary at Hughes Aircraft. So, yes, possibly forty years.

Why had I never opened this bottle? Was it purchased as a gift? For whom, and why didn’t I give it?

The wondering increased my curiosity about the brand. I turned to the internet and searched for Azzaro 9 Parfum. Well, it’s still around and like the old days not cheap. Currently, a one-quarter ounce bottle in a vintage box sells for around $60.00. Originally, I might have paid $19 or maybe $27, certainly no more. That purchase would have been bold and pricy on my office salary.

I sat at the computer and thought while my curiosity grew. I wrote to Azzaro, sending my package’s registration and identification numbers and requesting a bottling date. It’s interesting, a vintage perfume’s monetary value can double over time.

I’m just saying. About perfumes who knew?

That triggered my thoughts about Peaches, my Cockatoo. This year he will turn 18 and could live well into his seventies. Someday he needs a new home with someone younger than me. If the future will double the value of an unopened French Parfum, mine might need rehoming.

Dear Friends: The powerful surprise of rediscovering past significant moments. Diana

Saturday, January 21, 2023

My flooring expert is coming today for what should be the last time. He will replace the carpeting with manufactured vinyl in the master bedroom’s closet. This closet was left undone before Christmas; today, he’ll do that and attend to some previously identified fix-up spots.

The whole process from the beginning, until now, has taken nearly a year. I faced the problem of living with dogs and over time with increasingly unattractive, dog-damaged carpeting. I learned about vinyl flooring, its pros, and cons, and became reassured of its waterproof and damage-proof characteristics. I learned that vinyl can be scratched, and so, moving heavy objects needs proper padding. Colored markers can repair minor scratches. A capable flooring person knows ways to repair larger challenges if they occur.

My flooring specialist, a friend by the way, helped me select a flooring pattern. I wanted one that mimics wood planks. We experimented with samples and selected one. He explained how he would arrange the pattern in my home, and why, and I felt satisfied.

As it promises, the vinyl makes doggie accidents easy to clean and leaves spots residue-free. Vinyl is easier than carpeting to clean but it doesn’t absorb dust as the carpeting will. My horses create dust in their dry lot, it’s straight west and their dust invades my house. Additionally, my pet birds release feathers and dander. A wireless vacuum and a dust mop make routine cleaning quick and easy.

Today, I’ll be clearing a big closet and later will move everything back into it. Last time for all such work.

Dear Friends: Innovations springing up everywhere are altering traditional tastes and preferences. Diana

Friday, January 20, 2023

Recently, in our email exchange, an old acquaintance described an emotional part of her past as having “lasted for a minute [and then disappearing]”. That struck me, because a key learning in my life has been the concept of “lasting a moment”.

Now in my senior years and reflecting back, I recall relationships and events that while happening (and for long afterward) felt incredibly important. Each major episode consumed lots of energy, commitment, and involvement. Took up much time! My dreams, being, and goals were influenced by caring and striving. Regardless of whether an episode became a personal win or loss, each held significant learnings that helped to shape me.

In memory now, each seems to have happened in only a moment of time. Mentally, I can conjure up old calendars and identify an approximate amount of time that an important event covered. As each event ended, sometimes I thought “here, too, my life could end”, but ahead were new adventures.

I often succeeded, I often failed. Today, after cycling through a lifetime of mixed delight and trauma, I feel okay with the individual who evolved. I’ve learned we can have hopes for our futures but can’t predict what might really happen. We adapt, roll with the punches, and later reflect on everything that happened.

In retrospect, realizing that each life event seems to have occurred in one minute of the past amazes me. Moreover, finding the past is easy to summarize is calming.

Dear Friends: You couldn’t pay me enough to be at an earlier age again. Diana    

Thursday, January 19, 2023

After years of disuse, I fired up my barely used sewing machine yesterday. Restarting it needed lots of time with high focus. I’ve never been one to sew, but when new the shiny machine offered a world of electronic features that supposedly enabled easy, creative sewing.

I tried using the electronics and sewing but became overwhelmed, and afterward, the machine sat unused. Recently, while having my home’s flooring replaced, I emptied each room of furnishings. Later, while deciding whether to refurbish my “sewing area” and realizing I’d misplaced or lost its instruction book, I almost tossed the machine.

But deciding forced me to consider the problem that I’m a short person. Often, I can’t reach high enough to replace or retrieve shelved items. And always my pants’ legs are too long. Unless cuffed they drag on the ground.

Too-long pants’ legs especially are problems on cold winter days. While caring for outside animals, I wear snow pants over sweats. My snow pants are kids’ sizes, but still too long and must be cuffed. The cuffs capture loose hay and dirt, that later fall onto my house floors. Through years, I’ve had to clean dropped hay and dirt.

I decided to place the sewing machine into its old space and ordered a replacement instruction book. I checked the internet site, “Ifixit”, for steps to hem snow pants. Its demonstration was more elaborate than I needed, but reassuring.         

Yesterday, I sat before my sewing machine with three pairs of snow pants and the replaced machine instructions. I allowed plenty of time to relearn: how to thread a bobbin, thread the upper machine, and how electronically to make it self-thread the needle. By late afternoon, I had adjusted the pants’ legs to a perfect length for me.

Afterwards, it seemed almost exciting, heading to the barn and anticipating no dirty cuffs. Later, it was grand, entering the house with pants’ legs as clean as a whistle.

Dear Friends: Electronic challenges aside, I’ve become reinspired. Diana

Wednesday, January 17, 2023

I couldn’t have been more frustrated yesterday upon on discovering that Word Press wasn’t saving that morning’s blog draft. I thought it was ready to post but a blank page showed up!

Every so often something similar happens, and makes me decide to dump Word Press. Soon though I pause, blogging is easy when the platform works correctly. Kudos to good old Google!

At the end of last year, as a Google believer, I replaced my iPhone with a Pixel 7 Pro, and for service chose Google fi. I’m still unclear as to how these will work out. My iPhone experience was better than with the Pixel, but I’m hanging in. Google’s fi service has the advantage of lower costs per phone and per line. Fi has a disadvantage in being totally online. For example, fi has no brick-and-mortar stores for one to enter and find in-person information or adjustments. Instead, one negotiates during long telephone sessions. If one can dare to online chat, there’s that (those often dissatisfy me).

I also considered another advantage of going all online. It was to learn how to navigate and negotiate totally in cyberspace. All signs point to that as the future for cell phone users. I usually have found myself talking with an international support representative. All so far, have spoken in comprehensible English and have been kind and helpful. My worst experience was in having to seek assistance, because my phone completely had failed, from fi’s online chat.

The jury’s still out on Pixel and fi. I remain cautiously optimistic about using google to achieve two key goals: blogging and cell phone. Meanwhile, there’s news that google and other major cyberspace providers are going to lay off massive numbers of employees. Yes, for now, the best is cautious optimism.

Dear Friends: Hoping this blog gets off correctly for a good cyberspace experience. Diana

Tuesday, January 17, 2023

No blog today. Something is wrong with the Word Press platform and my computer.

Just a quick hello.

Hope to be back on board tomorrow.

Diana

Monday, January 16, 2023

Happy Martin Luther King Day!

For a book club, I’ve begun reading this novel. I’d never heard of Anne Griffin, and after disliking the Club’s previous book, was prepared to struggle through this one. I especially wanted to resist on learning that its protagonist, who’s associated with a mortuary, “can hear the dead.”

I was unprepared to discover that Griffin is a fine writer. She writes so compelling that I returned to the story’s beginning and re-read the first chapter, more slowly to better experience it. Plus, Griffin is Irish, lives in Ireland, and I’ll allow her an Irish perspective. So, am suspending some of my resistance to the idea of hearing the dead.

Yesterday, I practiced several times writing in my Passion Planner. I was surprised by how often my thoughts returned to the topic of becoming physically stronger. I’m strong because of property work and animal caring, but do have chronic back pain. I’ve been learning about bench pressing for women, which is reported to strengthen the whole body. Working out with light weights 3X weekly will strengthen one’s core.

I paused writing in my Passion Planner and ordered a workout bench and some light weights from Amazon. That might seem impulsive but isn’t so much. Over several months, I’ve studied ways for women to correctly and regularly perform reasonably light exercises. My Planner convinced me, I want to work out, strengthen my muscles, and hopefully, reduce my lower back pain.

As a beginner, I’m unwilling to join a gym, which stretches my commitment. Besides working out, there’s the driving to and from and the parking. Besides, abundant online videos and descriptions can teach how correctly to perform bench workouts. If all goes well and I wish for more and better, I’ll join a gym.

Dear Readers: I’ll post updates to both topics as they’re progressing. Diana

Sunday, January 15, 2023

The book club meeting was interesting enough to draw me to another meeting. We had met to discuss a not-so-good mystery novel which some liked, while others including me didn’t. I attended the meeting to spot serious readers and hopefully over time connect with one or two. A key enjoyment of mine is reading and discussing books, especially ones more complex than mainstream novels.

About twenty-five women attended, and the meeting’s facilitator reasonably kept the discussion on track. The hour introduced me to a few bright readers, some of which I gathered are writers, or like me wannabe writers. After that meeting, I went to the Library and checked out two upcoming novels. If reading them is interesting enough, I’ll attend the next discussions.

This morning, I am staring at my new Passion Planner, which arrived yesterday, complete with a box of erasable pens and a set of monthly tabs. I’ve never been a journeying or planner type. I became attracted to passion planning after learning of the method from NPR. Here’s a link: https://www.npr.org/2023/01/02/1082040159/best-planner-journal

To this newbie, the Planner while beautiful feels daunting. I’ve thought about how my journeying might begin, and it needs to be with what’s on my mind, call it passions. They’re about my aspirations for book clubbing and creative writing. I can imagine myself creating a clearer path toward more often participating in thoughtful two-way, and/or group communications. My goal calls for working on my inner and outer self and suits the Passion Planner.

Dear Friends: Wishes related to a larger theme may bring journeying with passion alive. Diana

Saturday, January 14, 2023

We’re enjoying a last gasp of relatively balmy weather. I understand we’re about to be greeted with rain and maybe snow.

Today, I have a couple of social events. First, is a book club meeting with an informed facilitator, to discuss THE GUIDE, by Peter Heller. I didn’t particularly enjoy this novel as typical crime mysteries aren’t my thing. A style of mystery writing I enjoy, for example, is THE ROBBER BRIDE, by Margaret Atwood. Her story is complex, slowly unwinding, and a reader doesn’t realize it’s actually a mystery until Atwood reveals that.

As usual, I digress. Now that I don’t work outside my home, I am considering how to become more out and about. Today, I will be a relatively quiet attendee for the book discussion. I want to sense its quality of readership and evaluation. If the group’s pretty good, I’ll read the planned books and attend meetings.

Right afterward, I will go to the Old Mill District and join some former coworkers from our Costco “sample serving days.” They are taking for lunch one we used to work with. Our former coworker now has advanced memory loss and is unlikely to recognize me. I am touched that some have stayed close to her, through assisted living and now memory care. I wish to support their caring generosity.

I’ll hold off on checking whether I won the lottery. Becoming suddenly a billionaire would ruin my plans for today.

Dear Friends: Aging itself is a mystery, with possibilities seemingly unreal until they affect us. Diana