I’ve got a WEK “big easy” shirt that’s at least 20 years old, possibly 25. I’m pretty sure my mother gave it to me. Judging from the comments in the reviews, other people love it as much as me and have had theirs just as long.
It was originally a light lilac/periwinkle color. The sleeves now have a few holes. I have no idea why they have holes. It’s not made of wool (therefore the holes are not moth-made). I guess it’s just old.
I wear it on a daily basis as a sort of a house coat. It’s the perfect weight for a layer. I try not to wear it out (other than to the mailbox), but sometimes I end up wearing it to do a local errand.
#1) ME! I pay attention to my instincts and tend to value my own wisdom. I’ve got 58 years worth of life experience. Sometimes great revelations hit me late at night, frequently after smoking marijuana. Weed and writing both help me gain clarity.
I was recently honored to be nominated for my church’s Standing Committee. It’s the 6-member executive team that is responsible for all of the organization’s business affairs, including the annual budget and managing the staff. It’s validating, because it shows that other people respect my wisdom and judgment too.
#2) MY HUSBAND. He’s smart and he doesn’t panic. He’s very good at giving advice on medical concerns (i.e. it’s fine; you’ll be fine; I’ve had that; it’s nothing, etc) and occasionally gives good input on fashion (i.e. I like the red one better). It took him awhile to learn this, but he usually knows when the best advice is just to listen and not give any advice. IF I wanted advice on how to get physically stronger, I would ask him, because he knows a lot about it, but I’m way too lazy for lifting weights. He’s also a reader. In my opinion, people who read books tend to give good advice.
Some years ago, I would’ve put my parents on this list, but I don’t typically seek their advice these days.
My kids are getting better at advice-giving as they get older, especially my daughter who is basically a professional advice-giver through her astrology business.
My son is good for one-off tech tips like “try turning it off and on.”
The Standing Committee is also responsible for managing our beautiful, historic church building, erected in 1841.
Inside is an absolutely stunning, classic New England sanctuary in the Greek Revival architectural style. Services are online every Sunday at 10am (EST) here. Check us out, especially if you’re not “religious” and think traditional church is not for you. Atheists welcomed. We are a member congregation of the UUA. 🌈 ☮️ 💓 🌎 🎶
I like the build-up to Christmas. The lights, the presents, the anticipation. Also, the music, of course. I like listening to it and I love singing it.
We had a good eclipse! We headed out to the back yard about 2:15pm with some wine, weed, and snacks. We put Alexa in the window and asked her to play “eclipse songs” which she did.
We could clearly see the eclipse with our special glasses on, but we discovered that it was very difficult to get a picture of it, even with the glasses covering the camera lens, but we tried.
Failed attempt, but weirdly you can kind of see the reflection of the eclipse in that tiny green dot to the left of the sun
The temperature dropped noticeably as the sky darkened more and more. It was strange.
We could still clearly see our shadows, but the light was eerie. A sunset from above.
We decided to shut off Alexa at the point of maximum coverage (about 94%, I think). The last song she played was “Walking on the Moon” by The Police, which was perfect (a GenX classic). The animals got really quiet too. But then suddenly, a Barred Owl hooted really loudly. It startled us. And then another owl answered. It was pretty wild. I pointed my video camera towards the woods and I caughtthe sound when it happened again. Listen:
The owls really added to our eclipse experience, making it quite magical and mystical. I thought about how this is a time of transition for us.
All in all, a fun afternoon. Something different. It was also fun getting pics from the rest of the family in various locations and seeing all the posts online.
My daughter and her boyfriend managed to get this nice pic about an hour southwest of us:
About an hour after the eclipse, our woodchuck appeared for the first time this season. He’s been living under our shed for several years now. Hello friend.
I was good at saying “no” to things for many years, especially volunteer roles in my church and in the schools. I had too much going on with the kids and work. I did my part for various fundraisers and events, but I wasn’t one to get roped into running the whole thing. In fact, a woman once told me she admired my ability to say “no.” (possibly a backhanded compliment)
Now that I’m retired (there, I said it) I’m ready to say “yes” to more things, especially if it’s something fun. Kudos to my husband, who is still working, but says “yes” to quite a few of my proposals. He doesn’t agree to everything I want to do together, but I’d estimate that he says “yes” 75% of the time. For example, we went and saw ALL TEN Best Picture nominees before the Oscar broadcast. And he’s been especially good about visiting museums with me. (He likes museums too, but it’s a bit more of a sacrifice for him to make the time to go.)
On Saturday, we went to a very cool exhibit at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts about Hallyu (Korean Wave)—the surge of popular culture from South Korea that started with K-drama and cinema in the 90s and then spread across the globe with K-pop and its massive fandoms in the mid 2000s. K-beauty and fashion has also been a huge cultural export and Korean designers’ work was on display. After that, we went to a Korean restaurant to round out the K-culture experience.
A K-pop idol’s costume at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Reconstruction of a set from “Parasite,” the 2019 film directed and co-written by Bong Joon-ho. It was the first non-English language film to ever win the Academy Award for Best Picture.
If I were describing myself to someone who doesn’t know me, but had to pick me up at the airport, I’d say: I’m a tall woman with a red (or whatever color) shirt or jacket.
I’m 5 ft 8.5 in, so I’m not WNBA tall, but I’m taller than most women and some men. I usually avoid wearing heels, wedges, or stacked shoes. I don’t like towering over people.
Two places I’ve visited where I did not feel particularly tall are Chicago and Helsinki (Finland). Are they taller in the Midwest and Scandinavia? Maybe.
Me in very cold Helsinki, January 1987
Frozen harbor in Helsinki, January 1987
Women were tall and fur-clad in Finland. It wasn’t unusual to see a woman in a fox stole with the face and paws still attached. These pelts were for sale on the street in Helsinki. I didn’t buy one.
One thing that makes me feel patriotic is beautiful, sweeping American vistas. I have been known to break out singing “America, the Beautiful” in public. I think it should be our national anthem. The words are better than the “Star Spangled Banner.” And most people can sing it. It’s not as hard.
O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, For purple mountains majesties Above the fruited plain! America! America! God shed His grace on thee, And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea!
I’m also a big fan of “This Land is your Land.” I can – and will – join in singing harmony whenever I hear it.
This land is your land, and this land is my land From California to the New York island, From the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters; This land was made for you and me.
Here’s the Woody Guthrie original version from 1940.
Other countries have spectacular scenery too, but ours is so vast and varied—from sea to shining sea.
🎵 🇺🇸 🎶
Maui, Hawaii, 1993San Francisco Bay, California, 2012Palm Springs, California, 2010The incredibly blue Lake Tahoe, California, 2012Moonrise, Lake Tahoe, California, 2012Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado, 2009Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, 2009The hallowed ground of Gettysburg National Park, Pennsylvania, 2017Taughannock Falls State Park, Trumansburg, New York, 2022Lake Cayuga, Ithaca, New York, 2021Saratoga Springs, New York, 2019The Green Mountains, Stowe, Vermont, 2014The White Mountains, Bartlett, New Hampshire, 2013The rocky coast of Maine, Kennebunkport, 2022Nantucket, Massachusetts, 2007Walden Pond, Concord, Massachusetts, 2023The beach border of Westport, Massachusetts and Little Compton, Rhode Island, 2006Newport Harbor, Rhode Island, 2023. This is the 1970 America’s Cup contender Heritage.Watch Hill, Westerly, Rhode Island, 2021The Outer Banks, North Carolina, 2003Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, 2009Delray Beach Florida, 2021Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, 2014The aquamarine Gulf of Mexico in Longboat Key, Florida, 2022
LAST ONE: the iconic Grand Canyon, Arizona, 2023. Pictures don’t really do it justice. There’s a quiet awe to the place that perhaps this video captures just a tiny bit.
If you made it to the end of this post, THANK YOU for looking at all my pics. I loved taking them.
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