I’ve Seen Her With My Own Eyes

A week of blogs about one friend is a lot, but tonight will close out the week with all the good news people have been asking for.

I made dinner for Jan, Rex, their daughter Kim and grand daughter Morgan who are in from Texas to help out. I texted Jan when I had ll the food made and it took a bit for her to get back to me. She was having her second nap of the day. Since she slept in her rented recliner I felt like she deserved two naps.

I let myself in the front door because thankfully their big dog crocket was with their son David. Jan was up and dressed looking like she does on any regular day. She hugged me without pain before I hugged everyone else.

After a detailed description of how well she was feeling she showed me one of her drains that was clearly working. If I didn’t know she had undergone surgery 27 hours before I never would have guessed.

Due to Jan’s poor reception to regular anesthesia she had nerve blocks, which might still be working at the time of my visit as she said her pain level was a two. Such great news.

We had a really good visit, sitting out in the sun talking with Kim and Rex. I suddenly realized I had been their too long for a food drop off visit. I hope I did not wear Jan out, but she did not appear tired. It was also getting close to dinner time and she was happy I had brought Salmon as it appears many other people had mentioned bringing the same chicken dish. Note to self, don’t bring chicken to a meal train as that is what everyone else is bringing.

I hope Jan continues to feel as good as she does today. She was quite miraculous, but then again she is that way normally.

Prayers Answered

For those of you who have been praying for Jan McCallum, the prayers for this part of her cancer journey have been answered. She went in for surgery this morning and the report was it was successful. She was home before four this afternoon and is reclining in her Mastectomy PJ’s with some kind of inflatable contraption wrapped around her. For someone going for the flat look they have her looking more like Mae West right now.

She needs to rest and hopefully will have enough pain medication to sleep through the night. Rex and her daughter Kim are with her so she is well cared for. True to Jan’s style she has already sent many group texts and her Bubbly of bosom buddies have been cheering the good news.

This is just the start of her journey and she can well report on how things go for herself. She has read the messages you have sent through the blog. I have loved hearing from so many of her far flung friends who I have heard about through the years. Thank you for keeping her in your prayers. You all made a difference. Jan’s lifetime of making friends everywhere she goes shows through. Hooray for a good day for Jan!

Ask Your Higher Being to Watch Over Jan

Not everyone I know is a believer. Believe in what, Dana? Believe that we are connected to each other. Believe in karma. Believe is a higher being. Believe that dogs are angels from heaven. Believe that how we care for the earth is important.

I don’t care if you believe in one God, Many gods or no god at all. Jesus does not have to be your guy. But you can still be a believer. You can believe that there are things outside your control or that you can’t see the whole picture and therefore you have to have faith things will work out the way they are supposed to.

So no matter what you believe, or don’t believe I want to ask that you summons whatever higher power you might think about, even only sporadically, and ask them to watch over Jan McCallum. Then add Jan’s surgeon Maggie DiNome to your request. While you are at it mention Rex, Kim and David, Jan’s husband and children. How about all the nurses and surgical techs, and health aids?

Jan has her surgery tomorrow morning and gets sent home the same day. No one gets better in the hospital, but going home is rough too. I am praying for low pain and high drainage. Good sleep and a quiet home. And good margins and no more cancer.

Doesn’t matter what you believe, doesn’t hurt to ask. Doesn’t matter if you don’t consider yourself worthy of asking, you aren’t asking for yourself. Just in case prayers multiplied works better, let’s do it. You can do it right now, or when you wake up. You can do it twice or ten time. Silently or loudly proclaimed. You can name the being you are asking help from or whisper into the wind. Just ask, but name Jan.

I believe in connection and goodness and light, but I also believe in good doctors. So I have faith that Jan is in good hands, but just in case I’m going to ask the one I believe in to watch over Jan. It’s for selfish reasons. But my higher being is OK with that. That being knows there are so many who love and depend on Jan. I just don’t want there to be any question about who he needs to watch over tomorrow. It’s Jan!

Bye Bye Boobies Party

When Carol heard about Jan’s cancer she thought Jan needed a lunch to gather her friends for moral support. Jan suggested it be called the “Bye Bye Boobies Party.” Carol said she just couldn’t call it that. Helen joined Carol in hosting and a plan was hatched. I brought a watermelon salad made with arugula I grew and mint that grew itself from my garden. Deanna made some mini muffins. Carol, who loves an excuse to bake, made many desserts, including an orange olive oil cake with oranges from her tree in Naples.

Sara gave a heart felt blessing that kept getting interrupted by the timer on the stove telling us the quiche was done. Carol read a list of suggestions for things we could do for Jan, beside signing up for the Meal train Lee created.

The suggestions are:

Go walk Crockett for Jan Since she won’t be able to control him and can’t lift more than five pounds.

Offer to do shopping or to the farmer’s market

Bring lunch

Call for check ins

Chauffeur Jan around

Visit and play games with Jan

It was a wonderful chance to be with friends in support of Jan. Sadly we forgot to take a photo while everyone was there. The most important thing is Jan felt the love. Then she went home and hosted a neighborhood party to let all her new friends in the neighborhood know. They are a tight knit group as they all moved into this new neighborhood at around the same time. I feel certain they too will take care of Jan, and most importantly walk Crockett.

Natural and Artificial?

Russ did some cleaning out of the pantry today. I know, he’s good like that. He found a jar of Maraschino cherries we must have brought home from Maine. Why we brought them home I do not know. I am guessing they are from Maine because they came from Walmart and Maine is the only place we ever shop at Walmart.

Sometimes I like to make a mocktail with gosslings diet ginger beer, lime juice and a cherry with a splash of juice.

Since Russ found this wayward jar he asked me if I wanted a cherry in my watermelon, turmeric, ginger, lime mocktail. I said sure. Live big, it’s a holiday.

Then I got a look at the jar. “Natural and Artificial Flavor.” Nothing about a Maraschino Cherry screams natural. Just look at the color. Now I am certain at one point the cherry was natural, before it was soaked in sugar syrup and zapped with some laser to make it neon red.

My issue is with the need to label Natural and Artificial Flavor above the name. I’m sure it’s a full disclosure thing, but once you add anything artificial doesn’t that cancel out any natural part? For the .79¢ these things cost can you have any illusion they are a high percentage of natural?

In order to label something natural shouldn’t it be 100% natural? A drop of artificial means that it is tainted.

I am not complaining about these cherries being artificial, I bought them expecting them to be. I don’t believe in spending $26 for those all natural cocktail cherries. I would prefer to go without the cherry all together rather than spend $26. I grew up in the sixties and drank plenty of strawberry Quick. What the hell do you think was in that?

Let’s just label these Cherries, artificial with a hint of real cherry. No one who buys them is expecting anything more.

Who’s In Charge?

Every night Shay demands her dinner at 6:00. We don’t eat until almost an hour later, depending on how the cooking is going. Shay’s dinner is a multi-course extravaganza. Kibble base topped with some warmed rotisserie chicken. This is followed by a cheese course and then a second cheese course. Dessert is her half a doggie NSAD which she eats like candy.

It takes her a while to savor all her courses, but as soon as she has deemed herself full she demands that Russ go in HER sun room and play with her and some of her toys.

It does not matter if he is finished with dinner or not, but as soon as she is ready she demands sunroom time. I am not required, or sometimes even allowed to join them.

If I stand in the doorway she gives me the side eye, “This is Daddy and me time.”

If Russ is away she does not annoy me into going to have after dinner play with her. She might just go right up to bed after dinner, obviously despondent that Daddy is not there.

Shay’s training of Russ is impeccable. She has him exactly where she wants him at the exact time. Many a time he has gotten up from his half finished meal to throw a blue dog for her to catch in the sun room. We have tried to play with her in the breakfast room so we could eat together and that is a hard no, as this 22 pound diva drags Russ away. Who’s in charge here? I think the answer is pretty clear.

A Bubbly of Bosom Buddies

While I was at the Durham Bulls game last night with Russ and our friends Michelle and Richard, Jan was back at the hospital getting one last scan to identify something fishy looking from the scan she got earlier in the day.

She texted me last night that the results were not in yet. I felt like she had enough already, but said my nightly prayers and posted my blog.

It was no surprise that the messages of support for Jan were many and far flung. She is well loved by anyone who ever met her and through her years of Heading up Pixels to Pages she traveled the world teaching millions how to make digital scrapbooks.

This morning she got the good news that the shadow that required looking at was nothing critical, just some innocuous thing in her body. This was good news. So it looks like if nothing else changes in the next few days she will have her procedure Thursday.

With that worry behind she turned to coming up with a name for the many friends who are also acting as her spirit animals, because I am just one of many. Jan wanted an original name for this group, like a gaggle of geese gets or a murder of crows, but something happier.

So it was decided the emotional support group will be known as a Bubbly of Bosom Buddies. As one of the most Bubbly people I know, I find this to be the perfect name for Jan’s friends. So I invite you to send any loving wishes, prayers and advice to Jan you want. You can do it through this blog or Facebook as Jan will get all the messages.

Knowing people are wishing her well gives her lots of endorphins, which can’t hurt in these days. As one of the Bubbly I wish I could thank you all personally.

Jan’s Emotional Support Animal

My friend Jan got some bad news a couple of weeks ago. She has given me permission to write about it. 34 years ago as a young mother she got breast cancer. It was caught early and she had all the cutting edge treatments for the time. I met her just a few years after and we became fast friends. She told me then about her cancer survival, but I never thought of her and cancer because she is the most vital person.

Her bad news came with her most recent mammogram. She called me right after she had the squishing, but had not heard from the doctor, saying she knew she had cancer. Of course she was right. She didn’t feel anything and she didn’t feel bad, but she knew. She had to go for another mammogram with contrast and an ultrasound sound and they found some more spots.

She had already made her plan for treatment even before the doctors had one. Their’s matched hers, ‘cause she is smart that way.

She is scheduled for a double mastectomy next Thursday, if all the pre-op tests are OK. Today I took her for her Bone Scan and CT. Jan has deep veins and does not like needles so I was there to tell her stories while they poked around. The tech invited me to come back and distract all the other patients.

Between the CT and the bone scan we walked around the garden at Duke and played some Mah Jongg against each other on our devices. I got to go in the with her for the bone scan where she lay perfectly still on the table for forty minutes while the machine made it’s drawing of her skeleton. I did not talk to her through that since she had to be still and I could not be trusted not to make her laugh. For the record she has a very nice skeleton.

We went to lunch after to celebrate her birthday which was this week. I took her home and she declared I was now her official emotional support animal. A badge I will wear proudly.

It turned out there was one thing on one of her tests they wanted to explore more thoroughly so she had to go to Durham Regional for an other scan this evening, but her husband took her.

We are praying that additional thing is a whatthefuckanoma and is nothing consequential, but the word is still out on that.

I ask that you please pray for Jan. Not actually the way a minister who called her to pray with her did, and said, “Jesus, put your hands on Jan’s breasts.” We got a laugh out of that thinking that there wasn’t much Jesus could do about those breasts that are going.

Jan wants everyone to remember to get your mammograms regularly. This cancer is not related to her previous one 34 years ago. It’s just bad luck, as Jan says. But she has a plan and she is an expert at working a plan.

Lee Wolman is doing the meal train for Jan. She is thrilled when other people cook for her and Rex. As the official emotional Support Animal I will keep up to date on her needs and if you want to help I am certain I can find you a way. Prayers and chocolate, that’s what I think Jan wants most. No hands on her breasts unless you are a medical professional. Maybe Jesus can lay his hands on her doctors.

Bad Smell Investigation

In my burning the candle on two ends week I have had little time to do home drudgery. I had my last beyond beginners class at my house this morning. While it was going on I went to the kitchen to fill my tea and smelled a bad smell. I was unsure if it was coming from the garbage can, or the refrigerator because I smelled it when I was getting the tea out of the fridge, which is next to the garbage.

Since it was the middle of class I could not investigate. After class I threw some things away from the fridge that could be the issue, but then I had to drive to Dunn to teach my night class.

Dunn is a good drive away so it made for a very long day and week as this was my third day in a row doing morning and night classes.

I got home tonight and went to the fridge to fill my glass with ice and water. The smell is still there. I am too tired to start sniffing around. I have an early day taking a friend to the hospital tomorrow for pre-op work up before a big operation.

I am not looking forward to smelling everything inside the fridge. I recently clean it out and there is just not that much in there and nothing obvious is jumping out at me.

Russ checked the freezer to make sure everything in there was still frozen. Thankfully it was. He is not good at sniffing out something bad. I can’t count how many times he has asked me if something was bad because he has no sense of smell.

So this job is going to fall to me. I am not looking forward to tomorrow afternoon. I wish there was some device that could tell me what the offending odor item is that does not involve me smelling everything. I hate bad smells.

Mah Jongg Mirrors Life

As I was teaching experienced players Mah Jongg today I got into a discussion about how players who lost the game react. I stated that so many players are quick to reveal their losing hand to show their “almost” Mah Jongg. Often times players do this before they have even looked at the winners hand to verify it is actually correct.

Never reveal your hand until you have verified the winner. If the player has called Mah Jongg in error than they are called dead, but so are you for having revealed your hand.

The reason people reveal their hand prematurely is that they want to show you how smart they are too, or how close they got, or that you won by a hair, or any other number of reasons. I too am guilty of showing what I was going for, but did not make.

The more I think about this the more I recognize traits in people they might want to change if they only realized they were doing it. How often does someone join a group and immediately want to start talking about themselves. I know I do.

At a recent celebration for a friend I listened to two people dominate the conversation and ignore the person being celebrated. I know these people, who are all friends, did not purposely mean to do that, but they do it all the time.

I have another friend who is skilled at asking specific questions to each person in a group so they have a chance to shine before she ever mentions anything going on with her. It is a most welcome trait, which I want to try an emulate.

As I write a daily blog about any old drivel about me, I usually want to hear about other people because I figure if they were the least bit interested in me they might have already read what was going on with me. This does not mean I am not talking about myself, lord that would take an act of god. But, like revealing your Mah Jongg tiles, it is best to ask about others before making it about you.

My advice in Mah Jongg is you don’t always have to reveal what you are playing. Instead take a moment to celebrate the winner. Let her have her moment in the sun. Soon enough you will have another chance to win.

I am going to work on applying this same advice to all aspects of my life. That does not mean I will stop writing my blog about the randomness of my life. The difference is, if you read it, that is your choice. If I see you in person, then I want to hear about you. You got enough about me.

Criss Crossing the State

Today was a Mah Jongg all-the-time kind of day. I started with a Beyond Beginner class at my house. There is nothing I like more than rolling out of bed and teaching Mah Jongg. I had all people I knew and liked! We played three scenarios on Real Mah Jongg and won all three. It makes everyone so happy when we win everything. Better yet, it proves what I am teaching them works and helps them make the best possible decisions. I love teaching people “How to think.” So much better than teaching people what to think.

In the middle of the day I scheduled future classes. One in Raleigh in November for the Junior league. The other’s are two different weekends at High Hampton’s in Cashiers. Mary Celeste Beall, the owner of Blackberry Farm in Tennessee contacted me last month to talk about Resort Mah Jongg. She recently completed a total renovation of High Hamptons. Two of my Lyford students, Claire and Lynn had told Mary Celeste about learning Mah Jongg at Lyford and she thought it was a good fit for High Hampton’s.

I will be having a Beginner course and a Beyond Beginner on the last weekend in January at High Hamptons. And the last Weekend in April I will do Beginners again and then a special Three day New Card Class with New Card Strategy. As soon as I get more information about those classes I will post it.

If you have never been able to get into one of my classes, or you have a group of friends who want to take a little vacation and learn Mah Jongg three hours a day while enjoying a world class resort this might be up your alley.

After scheduling I drove to Dunn, and taught a group of beginners tonight. Teaching a morning class at home and a night class over an hour way on the same day, three days in a row, is not my best scheduling job.

I think teaching two classes a day at High Hamptons will be far superior. I hope to see you at a mah Jongg table somewhere soon.

All In The Family

When Mah Jongg takes off with one person she might just want all her friends and family to learn. That’s what happened with Emily. She learned and then she gave her new daughter-in-law to be a gift of classes with a bunch of new friends. Next she is giving her mother a class for her friends to learn with her.

Emily loving Mah Jongg has been great for me. I have so enjoyed getting to know her friends and family who have all started learning thanks to Emily.

The funniest part about Emily’s gift is she is not always home when we show up at her house for the lessons. That does not mean Emily is not hosting. She still puts out food and drinks for everyone. Once she was even in Florida and texted that pizza’s were arriving and they were paid for along with the tip. I wish everyone took lessons on how to host Mah Jongg classes from Emily.

Now when the family goes on trips together there will be a large group who can play together. CC, this means you are going to have to learn to beat your grand mother, mother and Aunt. I can’t wait to hear all about it. Nothing is better than a Mah Jongg playing family.

Tomorrow is Shay’s Birthday

Tomorrow Shay will be 13 years old. I can’t believe she has only been the high princess of your house for 13 years. It feels like much longer.

I had a big birthday 13 years ago and my Dad gave me a very nice check for that birthday. I decided to spend half of it on getting Shay. Carter had been begging for a dog. Russ had determined he was not allergic to Shay’s cousin Brady Pottenger so we took a chance on getting one of the puppies in Shay’s littler.

It was a small litter of three. Shay’s breeder Butch decided who get’s which puppy. Carter and I went to visit the puppies when they were about five weeks old. Shay was a quiet girl and Carter thought she wanted a more energetic puppy. Butch chose wisely and we got the dark chocolate bundle of fluff.

She was the perfect choice for us. Carter considered Shay her dog, but Shay quickly choose Russ. It has been a great love affair.

Her coat has lightened, but her posture has remained perfect. She is more devoted to Russ than ever, but is generous enough to love all of us, even if it is not equally.

13 years as the Princess of the house is a good start. We pray for many more happy years with our sweet girl. She was the best present my father did know he was giving me.

The RePaving Pain

Last month two short men walked around the neighborhood and put a no parking sign in each person’s yard all along my street and the surrounding ones. They announced that there could be no parking during daylight weekdays for four weeks due to the repaving of our street.

I have a fairly big driveway, but often have more people to my house than my driveway can hold. So many times friends are parked on the road in front of my house. In fact, my neighbor often looks at her calendar to see if she is missing an event at my house when she sees cars as the cars are more reliable than her memory.

These short men placing the signs did not ask me if I was going to be having people to my house for these whole four weeks. Turns out I am having A beyond beginner class at my house This coming week and I am trying to figure out exactly what to do.

Some of the people know each other and I can ask them to car pool. But I think I am going to have to run a shuttle myself because I can’t fit all the cars in my driveway and there are no close by streets that don’t have the no parking signs.

It is understandable they need to be able to work on the street without cars parked on them, but I wish they could be more precise about where they are going to be working, in case it would be OK to park in front of my house. I have not noticed what all the yard people are doing with their trucks, but this has to be a problem.

I’ll be contacting my class members, but now is when I wish we had those personal aircraft contraptions so people could just fly into my front yard.

I know this is a first world problem and I will be happy to have a freshly repaved street. I just wish they did it when I was in Maine.

Mother’s Day Came Late

My mother came back into town yesterday so today I was finally able to deliver her Mother’s Day gift to her. I know I am lucky to still my mother at my age so celebrating her is important. She recently moved into a new apartment at her retirement community and finally has a porch.

She has outfitted it with four chairs a table to eat at and a side table. The big thing she wanted a porch for was plants. We got her two tomato plants right when she moved in, but she needs more places to put put plants.

With all those tables and chairs there is not much room. She said it is important to have a living thing to take care of, a child, a pet or a plant. We all voted plants as the best choice.

So the mother’s gift idea came from Russ for window boxes that could be hung on her porch railings. She was thrilled when she opened them.

The real gift was my putting them together and securing them to the railings. I took a “before” photo of the boxes without plants. I can’t wait to see what she ends up putting in them. They do make a nice addition to her porch.

Her only complaint is that her porch gets dirty and she needs a way to keep it clean. It’s called a broom. She can get that with her plants. I was not going to get her a broom for Mother’s Day. It might imply the wrong connotation.

Death of Another Appliance

Last month it was the dishwasher. Yesterday it was the microwave. Getting a new dishwasher is a much bigger pain in the neck, than a microwave.

On our anniversary I wrote Russ a cards telling him he was getting a new dishwasher for his gift. When he was heating up my dinner last night he announced that the microwave made a thunk sound and would not turn back on. 20 years with that model seemed like a reasonable lifetime.

While I was teaching Russ researched which microwave would fit perfectly in our space. He texted me the answer and on my way home I stopped at Lowe’s and picked it up. I told Russ this appliance was his Father’s Day present.

Since his birthday is not until October I hope this means no more appliances will bite the dust until at least then. Russ is tired of getting appliances as “gifts.” I am getting tired of going to Lowes. It is much easier if Russ does the research and I am just picking them up.

Good Cheap Entertainment

Day two at CCC teaching beginners and beyond beginners. My beginners are just getting used to me, but many of my beyond beginners have been with me for a while. I truly adore this group of women.

Beyond beginners is the afternoon class and everyone is always just a little punchier in the afternoon. We spent almost an hour talking strategy. As we were wrapping that up and starting the practice rounds, I told one of my regular students that she already knew what we had just discussed. She said, “Yeah, but you are just good cheep entertainment.”

I have decided I need to work that into my marketing somehow, “Yes, I can teach you Mah Jongg, but the bonus is I am just good cheep entertainment.” Who cares if you learn anything, you laughed and had fun and it hardly cost you anything. That’s me.

The Best Party Of The Season

No matter how tired I am, going to the Garden Club year end Picnic is always energizing. Thank goodness the party was at Kathy Eason’s beautiful house since we had to be indoors. I did take a peek outside to see how gorgeous her gardens looked, even if it was pouring rain.

I may have dropped out of almost all the clubs I belong to, but I doubt I will ever have a day when I don’t want to be in Garden club with this group of wonderful friends.

Thanks to the hostesses. Doren’s salmon and Kay’s chicken were divine. As usual all the dishes everyone brought were fabulous, but Mary Eileen’s Tres Leches Cake imported from Dallas this morning took the prize.

Thanks to Stephanie for her excellent year as president. I look forward to a wonderful year next year.

Even Russ had a great time. We stayed longer than we should have, but it was the most fun party of the spring Season. Happy Gardening.

Three Parts to my Day

I awoke to my street being ground down to be resurfaced. It was not as awful as I had anticipated. The machines working outside were not TOO loud. The only problem came when I tried to drive out of my driveway and the many men in many machines acted like it was a big hassle for me to do that. They obviously had never met me and I was not willing to wait fifteen minutes to get out of my driveway.

See, I was on my way to my needlepoint group and it was my birthday celebration at needlepoint. This is the biggest day of the year. My small group of stitchers are the best gift givers on earth. I am anti-gifts, except if they come from this group, then each one is perfectly thoughtful and totally original. A highlight was a needlepoint canvas of my new license plate given to me by my friend Christy. Sadly she was Not there today for me to thank in person, so I am starting my thanking here!

I loved all my sweet presents, especially the ones brought from far off places that involved a flight back here. But no gift is as good as the friend who gives it.

The other wonderful thing is the birthday “cake” made especially for the birthday girl. Today Nancy made mine, a basque cheese cake. I don’t think I can ever eat another kind of cheese cake as this one was award winning!

The third part of my day was New card Class at Greensboro country club. my friend Lesley set up this class and it was a nice group of mostly new players who had never had any exposure to me before. Imagine what that must have been like for them. It was a late class for me so I got home just after ten. I have a quick turn around as I leave for classes in the morning around 7:45 AM. Tomorrow’s another packed day in three parts.

Laid Back Mother’s Day

As I predicted we stayed mostly at home on this Mother’s Day, which was great with me. We did go to church, as I was certain that all the graduations were not going to effect church attendance.

We came home to 20 beautiful tulips which Carter had delivered secretly. They were a sweet surprise from the person who made me a mother. Since I couldn’t be with my girl, this was a nice substitute.

From that point on Russ encouraged me to do whatever I wanted. Not that I needed encouragement. So I needlepointed all day. I have a big project as a gift I am working on so I want to get it done fast. It was nice to stitch all day without guilt.

Thanks Mother’s Day for coming at the right time.

Early Happy Mother’s Day to My Mom

You would think with my mother now living in Durham I might get to see her on Mother’s Day, but no, she’s gone to Shady Side for the weekend. So in your honor Mom, I am wishing you a happy Mother’s Day a day early, just so you will have more hours to hopefully see this. (Technology is not her strong suit so I might have to take a photo of this post and send it to her.)

One of my earliest memories of my mother is of her on our tiny, terrace in Dayton, Ohio. She had a chaise Lounge chair, which was really just one of those aluminum folding chairs with the colored straps that wove together to be the seat and back. I was about three and had a tiny tricycle that I could ride in a circle around her while she got sun in her lounge chair. I feel like I made thousands of circles because I don’t think the “terrace” was much bigger than her chair.

Another early memory is of my mother putting me on her bed in our house in New Canaan with pillows behind me and a coloring book and crayons. She said I was such a good girl because I would color for a long time so she could take a bath and not bother her.

I was the only child until I was three and a half so I learned early on to be good for my mother. It wasn’t until others came along did I learn I had a choice not to be good.

She said I was well behaved when I was little so now I would like to apologize for anything awful I might have said when I was a teenager. I don’t remember what that might have been and I hope she doesn’t either, but I’m sorry nonetheless.

I can’t remember that we ever did anything for my Mom on Mother’s Day when we were kids. At church, I recall some other women had orchid corsages on Mother’s Day, but never my mother. I blame this all on my father. Since we already brought her coffee in the morning on regular days I doubt there was anything special on Mother’s Day. Sorry for being a lame kid about thanking you for being our mother.

Janet probably did nice things for you long after I was grown and gone, but that was maybe as good as it got.

I am lucky to have you around and so close now. So I hope you know how much I love you and wish you a happy day everyday.

A Birthday Lunch, A Party and Some Time at Needlepoint

I purposely try and not work on Fridays. This way I can do all the fun things I want to do and have no guilt. Today was a perfect example of a play Friday.

I slept late, like 7:30, I went to lunch with my friend Shelayne for my birthday. She even beat me there. It is hard to find a time when she and I are both free at the same time, especially since she has just had her eleventh grand child and she is younger than me! I so appreciate her always celebrating my birthday with me.

From there I went to needlepoint. I finally finished my exchange ornaments and had to pick up some thread for a wedding gift I am stitching. Since I am creating this gift from scratch I have to test different colors and stitches to make sure it is all perfect. I often have an idea in my minds eye and then stumble upon another way to get there. It’s one of my favorite creative outlets.

Lots of friends were at needlepoint today so I stayed a while and visited, even though I could just stitch as I was still in the exploratory stage. Nonetheless it is always good to be with needlepoint Nancy and the gang.

Tonight Russ and I had a 70’s theme party to go to. We didn’t try to hard to dress for the theme. Russ didn’t complain too much about having a party to go to. It helped that the Beischers sat next to Russ.

We have officially crossed into the old group as everyone at our table kept asking each other if we knew the names of the young people. We didn’t. It didn’t matter. I thought it was just impressive we were at a party on Friday night.

That’s enough of parties for us for the weekend. It’s graduation weekend as well as Mother’s Day. There will be no leaving the house for us. Well, we can work in the yard and sit on the terrace, but as far as venturing out, it is best not to.

I look forward to the day they don’t put all the graduations on the same weekend. It’s kind of like getting peace in the Middle East. No one wants to move, but everyone would be happier if all the parents for all the schools weren’t coming to the same area for the same weekend. Glad to get to stay home.

Nature is Way Better than Technology

It was back to work this week after taking off my Birthday/Anniversary week. I had a great few days in Morehead and Pine Knoll Shores, but am always happy to come home to Russ and Shay.

I also was excited to come home and see my garden. It had rained a lot this week and has been warm. The early days in the spring garden are miraculous to me. You can practically watch the plants grow. I have tomatoes, many kinds of peppers, cucumbers, Japanese eggplant, green beans, zucchini, lettuce, kale, Arugula, basil, chives, mint, and parsley.

My Cherry tomato plant has grown taller than her cage and has two little arms of cherry tomatoes on her. It will still be some weeks before we can pick and eat her produce, but watching it grow is most of the fun.

Just consider how amazing the green beans are. I pushed a few little beans in a hill of dirt four weeks ago. Now I have plants. In another six weeks I will have beans growing. Come on, nature is way cooler than technology.

If you have little ones, teach them to grow something they can eat. It will have a life long effect on them for the better.

My Kind Of Day

Oh the luxury of only teaching one class today. I feel decadent. I slept in since my class didn’t start until 1:00. It was such a treat.

Kate and I went to Four Corners to have brunch since we decided to make it a two meal day. Going out to breakfast is what makes this feel like vacation. I can’t remember the last time I went out for breakfast. We also went to the good cooking store. I didn’t buy anything since I already have every cooking thing, but Kate did. I’m not sure if this means she is going to cook.

Afterward we came back to Kate’s and played Siamese Mah Jongg. Kate beat me twice.

We played almost too long and rushed to get to class. All the students were already there 15 minutes early. They are taking class very seriously.

After class Kate’s dear friend and neighbor Lyn came by and went to dinner with us. We drove down to Emerald Isle. It was a good little drive. The funniest part to me was little village of Tudor houses we passed. The least beach looking places. More like some German town.

Kate was directing me where to drive and the last instructions were to turn into a parking lot of an office building. I drove down to almost the end of parking lot and asked where to go next. She said, “Oh, park right here.” The restaurant was on the third floor of an office building with no sign indicating it was there. It was fantastic. It was great to see Lyn who had not been here last year.

I’m now snuggled into Kate’s wonderful guest room while a big storm with lightening and thunder goes on outside. I love a good storm to end a great day.

Morehead/Atlantic Beach/Pine Knoll Shores Hurrah

Beach Mah Jongg started a month early this year. This is the first time I have come in May, of course I already was down here in February this year so May is not that early.

I had the first class at a new club for me, CCCC. So many clubs, so many C’s. It is a great group of mostly new women to me, but some returning favorites who have followed me around. Nothing makes me happier than having students who turn into friends because they take so many classes from me.

I got to this new club an hour early today because I was doing new card class as the first session and that involves technology. Usually I can set up for that class in ten minutes if it is at a place I have been before. When I go new places I never know what I will encounter. Good thing I was there an hour early because the tech was not working and it took the club manager every bit of an hour, with multiple calls to their AV vendor, two different HDMI Cords, One maintenance man and a 12 foot ladder to get it working. Amazingly he got it on exactly at 1:00, the start of the class!

The only thing that was slightly disappointing is the room was very bright and it washed the colors out on my power point. Nevertheless people learned.

My second class was a new card class at a MCCC. I told you it was a lot of C’s. Their tech worked perfectly, but the sun setting in the ballroom windows did require some people to have to put on their sun glasses inside. Thank goodness we are at the beach and everyone has their sunglasses.

I am so thankful that my friend Kate let me come and crash with her this trip. I am such a vagabond staying with whatever friend I can talk into letting me sleep in their guest room. Kate is a superior hostess and I am always noticing the things she does for guests, that I think I should do for my guests, but somehow have not. My favorite thing I noticed tonight is the two bedside clocks that have plugs for any kind of cords right on the front. There is no need to crawl around to figure out where I can plug in my chargers.

The last treat is that tomorrow I am only teaching one class so Kate and I get to go out in the morning and have a little fun before class. It’s wonderful down here in May. It’s empty and beautiful.

Congratulations to Carter

In Carter’s job there is a certification she could get. Her boss generously gave Carter the time and funding to take a class and test for the certification. The test was today. She had to go to a testing center to take the test. She picked the earliest time to take the three and half hour test knowing she would be best first thing in the morning.

The best part about standardized testing at these centers is she found out the results immediately. She finished in an hour and forty-five minutes with a ten minute break. In the class the instructor gave her the advice not to go back over her answers so she didn’t and submitted her answers. She said the response was fast, and underwhelming. You Passed.

So to make up for that lack of celebration I write this blog to say Yay for Carter. She is now SHRM certified.

On the home front Russ had a great experience with the installer of our new dishwasher. My plumber suggested getting a Maytag/whirlpool/kitchen aid, so I got the Kitchen Aid at Lowe’s. It came exactly when predicted and the installer was excellent. That chapter is closed.

On my front I want to thank my friend Nikki who organized the new Card class in Greenville today. It was great to see Lee and Martha and have lunch with Barbara and Nikki and the girls.

I’m off to the beach tomorrow. Seems that summer comes earlier and earlier.

Poor Russ

Well our anniversary and my birthday weekend are over. Actually two weekends, because we started celebrating last weekend when Carter was here. I know that our anniversary is also a special day for Russ, but somehow with it being back- to-back with my birthday he gets all the work.

This year since our dishwasher died I wrote on his card that he is getting a new dishwasher for our anniversary. Seems like a good gift considering I got hoses and spray wands for the garden. Since he got the dishwasher he is the one who has to stay home tomorrow for the installation. Tonight I showed him everything I know about plumbing in our house in case he needs to know anything for tomorrow.

For the record I would have taken the installation, but I have away class scheduled and since I have dealt with the last five dishwasher related visits I think it’s time for Russ to enjoy that experience.

One more week and Russ can get the last holiday that is for me out of the way for the year, Mother’s Day. It’s never a giant deal since it follows so closely on the other Dana related days. I would prefer to delay Mother’s Day until the fall when I really could use some pampering or a gift, but no one has agreed to that yet.

If it were up to me I would move all my events to months that are less busy. Not exactly sure when, but not May. May and December are the crazy months. Now that we don’t have a child in school May is not quite as bad as it used to be, but then everyone else is busy. It does not help to live in a city of Universities because graduations take over the month and no one can go anywhere.

Thankfully for Russ I am happy to stay home on Mother’s Day and work in the garden. This year it will just be nice to have a dishwasher other than Russ. Poor thing.

New Chairs, The Kentucky Derby and Liking 98% of the People I Met

Russ volunteered to go help me with taking my Mom to buy new outdoor furniture and tomato plants for her new porch. It was a successful morning getting everything she was looking for and setting it up. Now she can have three friends for lunch on her porch. Not that she is going to cook lunch, but she can have three friends for wine.

The highlight of our day was going to Michelle and Richard’s Derby Day party. Any excuse for Michelle to serve mint juleps and Richard to cook for a week. The saddest part of the party was the fact that it rained. I looked out at Michelle’s gardens and could tell they were in tip top shape, but not everyone noticed.

We talked to many interesting people. Russ really hit it off with an Economics Professor working in AI. I thought his wife was fun. There were old friends and grown children to catch up with. Eventually we watched the race, but I had little skin in the game and lost interest.

During that period after the race, before the winner was declared, did I have to endure a person I found to be someone I might want to stab if stuck in an elevator together for more than fifteen minutes. I won’t go into why, but you just know when you meet someone who makes your skin crawl.

It doesn’t happen often. I like most people. If you are one of the two percent I don’t like, I know it quickly. You may not ever know it.

Thanks for All The Birthday Wishes

For anyone who has gotten off of Facebook I am sure your birthday’s are just a little more quiet. I spent all day reading sweet messages from friends old and new wishing me a happy birthday. Thanks for the thinking of me on this day. I share it with so many friends, Gussy, Sarah, Beth, Vickie, Trisha, and Rose. I hope everyone born on May third had a great day today.

Birthdays no longer are just a one day celebration. I had a great lunch yesterday with Mary Lloyd and Christy, despite the waiter who narrated everything and not in an order you could necessarily follow. Many lunches to fill the rest of the month. Russ found me the funniest card of an Otter in a sea of Macarons singing.

Flowers from my mother and sista J. Plants, Sweet posts and calls from Carter. Calls and cards from so many friends and even a Dolly Parton Birthday song from my Friends Sam and Nancey with Dolly singing my name. How?

It was a beautiful day and I am thankful to made it another year doing things I love to do with people I adore. These days are not guaranteed so I cherish each one and all of you who made it so special for me. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Happy Anniversary

I was one day shy of turning 31 when I married Russ Lange. That was 32 years ago today. So I have been married longer than I have not been married.

Thank goodness for his sticktooittiveness. I might have over looked the tallest guy in the room due to his shyness. But he kept at me, even when I was much too busy with other things. He is clearly the best thing to ever happen to me along with the daughter we got.

I am glad he didn’t listen to his mother and married me. I am glad my father didn’t scare him away. They say when you marry you get their family along with them. You can overcome a family if you love each other enough.

I am looking forward to our next 32 years. To think of all the places we have been and all the places we will go. It’s a good ride. Love you Russ Lange.

Mom’s Moved In

My Mom moved into a new apartment in her retirement community. She wanted something with a porch and a den. It was a lot to move up to a bigger place, but I am certain she is in
a place that makes her very happy.

She has a cute porch and a place for plants. She says the best part is she can watch the ambulances come and go. I am so thankful that she had great movers who packed all her stuff up and unpacked it too as well as three guys who moved all the furniture.

Tomorrow the packers will come back and help hang all her art. I can’t wait to see the final look. With all these people helping there was not much for me to do, but I was there to instruct where to place furniture.

There are still porch chairs to purchase on Saturday and then hopefully she will be fully settled in her last apartment. She has a whole room just for art now that she has a den for her TV. I hope lots of painting will be painted in this new apartment. Way more paintings than ambulances seen.

Mom’s Moved In

My Mom moved into a new apartment in her retirement community. She wanted something with a porch and a den. It was a lot to move up to a bigger place, but I am certain she is in

a place that makes her very happy.

She has a cute porch and a place for plants. She says the best part is she can watch the ambulances come and go. I am so thankful that she had great movers who packed all her stuff up and unpacked it too as well as three guys who moved all the furniture.

Tomorrow the packers will come back and help hang all her art. I can’t wait to see the final look. With all these people helping there was not much for me to do, but I was there to instruct where to place furniture.

There are still porch chairs to purchase on Saturday and then hopefully she will be fully settled in her last apartment. She has a whole room just for art now that she has a den for her TV. I hope lots of painting will be painted in this new apartment. Way more paintings than ambulances seen.