Well, hello:) Feels a little boisterous to hit you with my face right away, but it’s a nice photo and I was really having fun and I hope that’s infectious.
When you come back from a trip, do you unpack everything right away, restoring order, or do you wheel your suitcase inside, prop it against a wall, and read your mail?
I’m the second sort. Please consider this post the sound of the wheels of my roller board, clunkity, clunkity, across the floor. I’ll unpack next week.
For now, here’s a list of what I did in September. If my comments are even remotely functional, and you feel like it, I’d love to hear what you’ve been up to as well.
- Got my new tendonitis diagnosed. Hello, trigger thumb!
- Entered a pitch contest for my second novel, met with no success, resolved to get help with writing a better pitch and try again. I like the book. I hate my pitches.
- Got my bi-valent booster. Hooray!
- Accompanied my sister and niece to her university to support them in furniture acquisition for the new apartment. Twist my arm. It was unclear who was doing whom a favor, the best kind of family project.
- Completed training to become a peer grief counselor. I’ll start as a volunteer with the organization by the end of this month. Revelatory: what my culture does not know about grief.
- Worked with a group of classmates on a new website for our college class of 1978. Sis boom ah! (Aren’t college cheers goofy?)
- Started a class in conversational Spanish. I studied French and Italian in college, and was fluent in French, briefly, at 19, so I am hoping the Spanish will not be too hard. So many people around me speak Spanish; I look forward to being able to communicate better.
- Went away for the weekend, nearby, with some dear friends, and hiked the Marin headlands
- Bought some brown shoes, some brown pants, a brown faux suede jacket and an olive sweatshirt. (Above)
- Turned 66.
I have as of this very minute decided I ought to account for my time at the end of every month. The truth is, I feel like a lazy person, and the other truth is that I probably am not.
I hope you have an absolutely wonderful weekend and I am very, very glad to be talking to you once again.
21 Responses
Good to see your beautiful face. I can’t go to sleep until I’ve unpacked every single thing and started the laundry. I bought a brown cardigan and brown Blundstones. I’ve been doing a lot of pottery and also, late to the pandemic party of sourdough, but have made my own gluten free sourdough starter and have started baking GF sourdough bread for my husband. Got my bi-valent booster too, and it made me very sick for 36 hours, but glad to have it of course. Playing a lot of pickle ball. I admire you doing the grief counseling so much. So glad to have you back.
Kathy, Aw, thanks:). I can perfectly imagine you in Blundstones. The BV booster made me sick too! And yet, I’m also really glad to have it down. I imagine that grief counseling will serve me absolutely as it does anyone I can support. I’m very glad to be back here with you.
Welcome back – we’ve missed you! So glad that you had a fun and productive month away from us…
As for moi, I spent a good part of September helping a dear friend move into hospice care, and then cleaning out her very cluttered apartment. None of this was pleasant, but the ties of a long friendship are deep and strong.
Then beloved spouse and I spent the last ten days of September in Alsace (eastern France), where we drank lots of good Alsatian wine, saw lots of beautiful sights and scenery, and I, at least, spoke lots of passible French – which became pretty good French by the end of our stay!
Bonne chance avec tes etudes en Espagnol!
Victoire, thank you:). I am sorry your friend is ready for hospice, but long friendship are to be treasured and honored and I’m glad she had you there. Alor! Alsace! Hooray for traveling again! Merci beaucoup, j’espere que je travaillerai bien;).
I take waaay too long to unpack fully. Dribs and drabs. Working on that. I enjoyed your update–you’re doing lots!
Linda, but after all, we may be our own judge of how we unpack;). I like to go slowly, as though I hold on the trip for a while xoxox
Nice to have you back! I am generally the second person but in an effort to stem the general chaos am trying to be the first one. Results are mixed.
I have been boostered and flu shotted, bought outfits for the whole family for an upcoming wedding across the country (dresses from eShakti for me and my adult-sized tween daughters), gotten the kids launched into a new middle school year (at the same school again!) and am preparing to receive my mother who is currently fleeing Florida in favor of the Pacific Northwest after being smack in the path of Hurricane Ian. (Her house is a concrete bunker so she and her dogs were fine, but she never wants to have to go through that again, understandably so.)
Renee, you have made me laugh and gasp, in the space of two paragraphs. Literally. Results are mixed, LOL! And I am so sorry your mother went through the hurricane and very glad she and her dogs are OK. I hope she enjoys the PNW, where weather, of course, has become much sunnier in the past few years.
Welcome Home Lisa,
Your blog made my day. Welcome to the sixty-six club. I too add new diagnoses every year but unlike my brother I don’t collect them. My book remains at the top of the closet, and I suspect I will give it a final review before I leave the planet. Publishing is very very difficult. I study French on-line Duolingo and am able to enjoy my poor performance. I am happy to say hello!
Luci
Luci, hello! I feel that I too will enjoy my poor performance, and in addition will be unduly celebratory when I do well;). I am happy to join the 66 club if you are a member. I shall attempt to declutter myself of diagnoses as best I can.
I would love to know where/how you learned grief counseling. I feel like that would be an *excellent* thing to have in one’s toolbox and yet have zero idea where to start (and the internet is that mix of too-helpful-not-at-all-helpful, in much the same way it is with “what supplements should I try for [condition]”).
KC, go ahead and email me at skyepeale@yahoodotcom. Be happy to tell you more. Love your description of internet searches LOL.
Lazy? I don’t think so! Your new “projects” sound very fulfilling.
And you look lovely in the olive & soft brown!
Susan, thank you so much for the color work. It’s been ENORMOUSLY helpful. I do have a theory, something about the role of red in the skin, for what of course I have zero basis;)
What have I been up to? We took our very first real trip since the Pandemic and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We spent nine days in Santa Fe visiting friends and loving the New Mexico ambience. We came home with Covid. But—Paxlovid is a great drug and we were over it quickly. Thank you medical science. You are appreciated.
We are attempting to be joyful and enjoy our life–but struggling a bit to get there. We’re doing a bit of remodeling at our Dallas house (painful) and looking forward to hosting friends at our farm later in October and then spending time with family for Thanksgiving and Christmas.
I’ve even purchased a few new clothing items (Lilap –check it out). Still trying out new recipes and cleaning closets.
Susan, I am so glad you’ve found a place with clothes you like! And even happier that Paxlovid took you easily through the virus. I love New Mexico too:)
So happy to see you back, Lisa. You have had a busy September. I have to get back in the game. I’ve been lolling way too much this fall. We are off to drive country roads and find some new walking trails this rainy Thanksgiving Day. Hopefully the sun will appear just when we’re pulling on our hiking boots.
P.S. Sixty-six looks wonderful on you! xox
Sue, (sixty sixes forever:)) I cannot imagine you ever really lolling about. Happy Thanksgiving, and I hope you got that sunshine.
Hello yourself :-)
Have my booster booked for Thursday and am a bit nervous as I’m expecting a rough 24 hours.
Lisa, I’m also very interested in the peer grief counselling – is it OK if I email you at the address you shared above?
Claire, hope the booster is OK for you today and tomorrow. Yes, please, do email me. I’d be happy to talk more about the grief counseling.
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