Looking Glass

 I have enjoyed my lovely view of the water and surrounding trees since I moved here in October. I have grown accustomed to the sound of the water foul on the inlet, landing and splashing there, sometimes not so gracefully, or smoothly floating on the water leaving small ripples of their beings behind them. I have grown used to the peace and quiet of this neighborhood and acclimated to the stillness.  I and my friend KP, who lives above me, see less of each other now than in the past. But, trust me, we have had our times of gathering and wine, talking non stop, of laughs, of seriousness and the sharing of information that should be bestowed upon the world. She is a serial entrepreneur and I have tried listening, guiding and allowing her to cope as she steps into her future of retirement, of finding out, "where will I land?"  She is a favorite person in my "cast of characters," (good analogy kden), and I see her remaining in my heart far beyond my vision and curtai...

 Well, I did it. I survived the preparation, perspiration and presentation of addressing a larger audience than planned. 126 people attended the Leaders Institute in Tacoma for District 32-Toastmasters. My counterpart did a great job of being organized and creating a brief power point that coincided with my speech. I was told I did a good job by several people. When I saw the room packed with more than 80 people, I did get a few butterflies in my stomach, but they flew away after a few opening sentences.  I certainly have a good experience under my belt. As a whole, the organizers did a nice job planning the event and it was successful.Whew...it's over. (I tried to upload a picture or two here, but that function isn't working at this time.)  

 I may or may not have commented on my beliefs of New Year's Resolutions and the clout they hold. Of course, it is a fine endeavor to create resolutions and do your best to follow through with them. Many gain or learn from them, and any positive connotation for your life is a good one. (Our dear friend kden had weight loss as hers some time ago...and was successful at it.) I also feel it is not a life or death matter to set them, no matter what society's push to have them is. I feel goal achievement should be attempted at any time of year and not rehearsed for others at this new time. Maybe my sourpuss attitude is a long history of failed attempts by myself, or observation of friends' failed attempts which end up hindering their mood and mentality. So, in retrospect, I can't really decide if they are worth making or not. I am undecided.  Long before New Year's was knocking at my door, I had the mind set to go to local libraries and check out audio books or tapes to...

 I feel as though I have a lot of small projects in need of my attention. Many are those on line tasks and others are finalizing my move...those pesky things like tearing down boxes, finding a needed box of belongings I must have accidentally socked away in storage, hanging a couple of pictures, and so on. I am trying to learn my new position with the Toastmasters District...oh yea...my mentor is moving to San Diego, so the District Gov asked me to step into his place as a Public Relations Officer (PRO). Go figure...ha.  Work is the same, stressful, not very fulfilling and taking my turns with the on call duties. I figured I spend 10 hours per week=40 hours per month=480 hours per year=20 days per year, driving back and forth. I spend about $180 per month=$2160 per year on fueling my Honda. I am adding 66 miles per day=1,320 miles per month=15,840 miles per year onto my Honda. All for a bare $35k with no benefits. Take my income and subtract that fuel cost=$32840k annual inco...

                                           The view from my basement apartment.  I moved in mid October to the basement apartment of my dear friend, KP. It may be small and a bit outdated, but I don't have to share the space with anyone else. I have my own kitchen again, my own cupboards...no other's possessions hoarding most of the space, as my last two locations with Linda and Jill showed. But that is OK, I am grateful I had a place to move to and they found it in their heart to share with me. (Corny, but true.) I made new connections and friends and shared a space for the first time in 52 years as an adult, with someone other than my kids or husbands. We keep on learning, don't we?  Of course, this picture was snapped shortly after my move in date, before the weather darkened and grew soggy. It is peaceful and I am glad KP offered it to me for rent. I cannot w...

  After I arrived at the office, calmed down after a disturbing "page" from on call, I settled into completing other tasks when  I heard my cell phone bleep.  It was tucked into my purse, sitting under my desk. Normally, I don't answer my phone or do personal pc tasks at work, but for some reason, I wanted to see what this bleep was about. Something pulled me to it. Below are the answers to the bleeps. My daughter sent me pictures of her dress shopping time. This is not the first time she has sent me pictures during her ventures for the perfect dress. This has been happening for at least 6-7 months. I love her for including me as best she can.    She asked for my opinion and I quickly texted her my answers and comments. No matter which she chooses, she'll be gorgeous. I was envious of the fact that her mother in law, to be, was able to participate with these outings. I was grateful, as well. She is marrying into a good family, and "mom to be" is maki...

 This is the on line, Merriam's Dictionary meaning for inkling: a slight indication or suggestion : hint , clue , a slight knowledge or vague notion. I am wagering a guess that my blogger friends knew what this word meant before I posted it. I bet you even used the word during some conversations. Inklings...I am having me some of those today. Not a coffee pot full, not a glassful, just a cupful. Why would I have such inklings of one nature or another today? I can pinpoint this quite well, actually.  This morning, instead of heading straight to work, I was asked to go back to my friend's house to feed her two Pugs their breakfast. Ms. Doctor never made it home last night, and had driven another one of our friends to a distant town, where THAT friend's son was in the ER, unexpectedly, of course. She would not be back until much later this afternoon, so, of course I obliged and drove the 22 miles to her house to feed the dogs. On my drive there, at 7:09 AM, I was paged by ...