Cccccccolddddd….

Happy 2014.  And Welcome back. 
 

Probably half the bloggers in the USA have written about how cold it is this winter. I am using it as an excuse to start posting again.  Living in ChicagoLand, it’s been pretty interesting.  I can’t say I like temperatures below zero.  But I have enjoyed the cold a fair bit when it was less extreme – teens and twenties (farenheit).  I love to cross-country ski.  It’s my favorite winter workout.  It gets me outdoors and pushes me to the edge of breathless, a lot like a good Bulgarian Pajduško.  

Since it’s been so long since I wrote, of course a lot has happened.  Big things: Home Ownership (December 2012), loss of Leo (January 2013) and adoption of Coco (September 2013).  

I wrote about Leo in April of 2010.  I loved that boy.  He got me through some of my darkest times.  I had every reason not to expect him to live a normal Golden Retriever lifespan, but he did.  His end was fast and easy/painless.  For him, which is what counts.  My pain still exists.  But I am grateful to have had him for so long and that he didn’t suffer a long decline.  

Coco is a rescued poodle mix.  Recently I described her to facebook friends as “15 pounds of cute entitlement”.  

Photo Credit:  Margaret Loomis

She’s smart, sweet, playful, and snuggly.  She’s not Leo.  But she has her own special place in my heart, having wormed her way in overnight when I fostered her for a weekend in late September to “see if we’d suit”.  I try to maintain discipline and mostly I succeed. 

I bought a lovely house that I’m still crazy about.  The yard could be bigger, but it’s big enough to grow flowers and a small vegetable plot.  It is perfect in every other way.  I have been reunited with my piano and I have a real kitchen again (and my kitchen stuff!).  Leo got to live in it for 3 weeks before he died.  Coco is snoozing on the loveseat here in my office as I write. 

I feel pretty settled, now.  I have a small group of very dear friends here (you know who you are!) and a large group of activity buddies, conversation companions, professional colleagues, and assorted fellow audience members.   I have been thinking for a while about coming back, and I guess…I’m here.  I hope to hold forth on a new variety of topics in the same spirit in which I began this blog.  Variety is still the spice of my life.  Hope you’re getting started on a great year, too.

Happy New Year

Well, it didn't turn out to be much of a year for blogging for me.  I'd rather be living than writing stuff to an audience I can't see or hear and who I'm not sure exists.  But I'd like to say it's been a year of ups and downs, mostly ups, and I am grateful for all the things I've learned, all the people who have touched my life and let me touch theirs, and all the experiences I've had.  2011 is going to be great, I know it.  I may blog about it -- or I may not.  I AM going to live it.  I hope you do, too.

Happy New Year. 

Living

It’s been a while.  I went through a period where I found blogging a burden, another chore.  I’d rather be out there living. 

And live I have.  I went to my annual EEFC music and dance workshop, despite the expense.  In part this was due to the generosity of the EEFC Board of Directors, who asked me to be their guest this year.  Thus the expense was considerably less than it would have otherwise been.  That week refreshes my soul, both because of the music and because of the community.  The “booster shot” happens in NYC in January at the annual Golden Festival.  I have not attended in several years, but this coming year I intend to go if I can figure out how to make it happen. 

I’ve made some additional commitments, as a professional and as a volunteer.  I am actually a little more busy than I’d like to be.  But I wouldn’t give up any one of these gigs, so I stay busy. 

The singing season for Sing To Live is in full swing – I can hardly believe it, but we’re performing our first concerts this coming weekend.  I spend a lot of my time practicing.  I am at my best when the music is almost memorized, so I can relax and focus on watching Wilbert’s direction and communicating to the audience. If there's anyone out there actually reading this, you might want to consider coming to one of our concerts.  These pay tribute to the value of music in our lives; something very important. 

Several people among my friends and relatives are dealing with a serious illness.  It reminds me of just how precious each day is, and how important people are.   It is very difficult to watch their struggles from afar and to feel so helpless.  Not that I’d be much more helpful if I lived in any of the places they are.  Each is the primary combatant in the fight, and we in their communities can only stand on the sidelines and cheer, for the most part.  But I do not know whether to love or hate CaringBridge. 

I am so very fortunate to be part of several groups and communities from which I can draw solace, support, camaraderie and laughter.   I hope I contribute to each one, but I believe I receive far more than I give.  

The job search continues, and I am still single.  But I am not alone, I am healthy, and I am so very lucky in so many ways.  I try never to forget that.