May 8, 2012

Where Does Time Go?

I can't believe how fast time flies! It has been almost a month since I wrote the last entry. I have been busy, busy working for both City University and Skagit College. And, I finally conquered the new website -- Moodle! I like it better than Blackboard and City University is still on Blackboard. I go in occasionally to see what my interns need to do academically, but I don't teach online for CU. Two schools, two different websites, two different passwords, two different groups of emails to read -- it can get a bit confusing!

I just returned from the first of two trips to Ashland this season. I've never attended the spring plays before which means that I have often missed some interesting plays that are usually gone by June or so. The outdoor amphitheater doesn't open until the threat of rain lessens, so all the plays were either in the new theater or the beautiful Angus Bowmer. We saw the best Romeo and Juliet I've ever seen. I've always known that Juliet is 14 years old, but this is the first time I actually believed it. She was fantastic -- impetuous, silly, mercurial, full of herself -- just like a 14 year old! And, Romeo was gangly and somewhat awkward -- it was really quite wonderful. The White Snake (based on an ancient Chinese folktale) was visually amazing and beautiful. Chekov's Seagull was full of unrequited love and angst, almost a downer, but it invoked lots of discussion among the viewers. We also saw Animal Crackers full of zany comedy ala Marx Brothers and an advent garde show Medea, Macbeth, Cinderella that was either crazy brilliant or just crazy. It was a potpourri of the three shows - perhaps dreamlike -- yet well done if rather confusing. All the acting was wonderful as usual. Five of us went from Bellingham and had a lovely time watching plays, eating, shopping, and sleeping since we were exhausted by the end of the day. It is difficult to see so many plays with so little time to discuss and digest them -- especially the day we saw both Romeo and Juliet and MMC.

The flights down were short in themselves, one a bit over an hour and the other a bit over 1/2 hour -- depending upon the direction we were flying. But, we had enough of a layover in Seattle to make it a long and tedious day - especially coming back. It is nice to be home again. My next trip back to see the rest of the plays is the first of August. Here's the five of us in front of our lovely flat in Ashland, Oregon - the Main Street Inn.

Posted by Marilyn at 4:50 PM | Comments (1)

April 19, 2012

Losing Things That Are Dear

When Dani's in-laws, Jon and Margaret, spent the night at my house before I drove them to Vancouver to hop a plane to Hong Kong, I had to confess that I couldn't send Dani's clothes with them that she had requested and that they had left room for in their luggage. The thing is, I packed them and put them away so very carefully that I can't find them. It is a complete mystery. When Dani and the boys were on their last hours getting ready for their leaving Bellingham for a year, they had much to do. I suggested that she leave the things she wasn't going to take and I would pack them up and store them in my basement. She was taking care of so many last minute business and house details, that it made sense for her not to worry about anything else. After they left, I began organizing things in boxes. Dani had already organized most things in piles. All I had to do is box them and James' friend, Eliot, came over to tote and carry them into the basement.

When Dani asked that I send things to her because she had lost weight and needed her summer clothing, I went looking. I found James clothing, I found Nico's clothing, I found the box of sox that I packed away, I found the heavy jackets, but I simply could not find Dani's clothes. AmySue came across the street and we both looked everywhere. There are some things that Dani and Charles had previously stored and, I confess, we didn't look into all those boxes. On Jeni's advice, I went over to the storage place to see if I had inadvertently taken a box over there when I checked it out after they left. I looked at our church rummage sale for her favorite clothes to see if, God' forbid, I had mistakenly taken a bag there. I don't even remember what I packed them in -- I presume a box but perhaps not.

My gut feeling is that they are somewhere. My biggest fear is that they got thrown out or taken to Goodwill (although I don't remember going to Goodwill in the past year). Dani has been more than gracious, but I am perplexed and concerned. I guess it taps into another time in my life when I climbed into our VW bus with kids and luggage and somehow, on the freeway while driving through Carlsbad, CA, the back window fell open and Jeni's suitcase fell out. Although we circled around several times, we never found it. It contained all her precious items that she had taken on the visit to her paternal grandparents. She was devastated. I was aghast for several reasons - I must not have checked and latched the back window carefully. What if a child had been sitting there?

I don't remember how old Jeni was, maybe 5 or 6? But, she was unforgiving for years. It became the family curse! Lost treasures! A complete mystery about how we could not find it at the side of the road. And, now, I've lost another one of my children's boxes of treasures. What kind of mom am I? I can only hope that the travelers will return and someone will uncover the treasure in a surprising, hidden, and safeguarded place where I have lovingly placed it. Otherwise, I'm going to be marked forever as the uncaring, careless, and irresponsible mother that I feel like I am. But, then, it's just stuff! Right?

Posted by Marilyn at 9:00 AM | Comments (0)

April 12, 2012

A Peculiar Neurological Glitch!

Isn't that a great line?

I was listening to a wonderful podcast the other day. Krista Tippet of "On Being" was interviewing the California psychologist, Sylvia Boorstein, who wrote the book "That's Funny, You Don't Look Buddhist." Krista had read the book years before and introduced Sylvia as a very wise woman whose writings had been especially meaningful as Krista became a mom for the first time. The interview was so good that I actually listened to it twice because I knew that it would be removed from my iPhone when I synched it with iTunes. It was just as good the second time. Sylvia had some very wise things to say and she was also very funny and wry. When I looked her up on the web, I found pages and pages of her quotes and sayings listed. I thought that I was the only one in the world who had never heard of her.

She described herself as having chronic anxiety which she called her peculiar neurological glitch. That spoke to me clearly since my lovely husband used to call it my roving anxiety which hovers in the air until it finds something (anything!) to land on. So, if all is going well, it is just hovering ready to strike. When I shared how anxious I was about something, he would often refer to the syndrome I possessed that had to go somewhere. He would say that I was most likely worrying about nothing in particular - I just had to worry and whatever it was at the moment became the target of my anxiety. It might be an airplane ride, a spot on my arm, a child not calling on time -- whatever captured my attention at the moment.

Sylvia said that if she could think of that tendency to worry as just a neurological impediment, she could dismiss it when it threatened to overtake her. Her husband, late for an appointment, could cause her to rehearse all the bad things that might have happened to him. She chose, instead, to realize that she had that neurological glitch that attacked in such a time and that she didn't have to give in to it but could concentrate on other things instead. She had a funny line when she said that what could set the glitch in motion every time was receiving a telephone call with a morose voice at the other end saying, "Hi ma."

Of course, since I tend to worry most about those closest to me, Don also used to say that I could only be as happy as my least happy child at the moment. Last month, Dani was sick and had a bad cough in Hong Kong so we talked very little on Skype. That tapped into the memory of her coming home sick from Vietnam many years ago after having been given a strong antibiotic that set off an allergic reaction. At the time, we didn't know that was the problem and she kept getting worse until she found her way to a naturopath who built her system back up and helped immensely. However, we were really worried, so having her again so very far away, out of touch, and sick just kicked in the old anxiety.

I can worry about anything. I worry about my kids and my grandkids. I worry about myself. I worry about friends. I worry about church. I worry about my house. I worry about my work. I worry a lot! But, I can still hear Don's voice in my head helping me through all those worrying times. And, now I have a new friend who explains that my worry is probably a very peculiar neurological glitch. That amuses me so much that I might even forget to worry!

Posted by Marilyn at 11:51 AM | Comments (0)

March 21, 2012

Moodle Madness!

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I had to learn a new online platform for my Child Development II class. This has been an extremely time consuming journey. I have to:

a) learn how to manipulate everything from my assignments, my grade book, importing pictures and videos, and moving stuff around that they loaded from my Blackboard site. Then,

b) Figure out what to do with the students who took the Child Development I class because the instructor already mistakenly taught 1/3 of my class. She had them buy the publisher's edition which takes out the adolescent part. That means that they have already spent $75 on a text that does not serve my classroom; to get the last 1/3 of the book they have to spent $125 more for a book they already have except for one section. I'm working with the publisher to send me some free copies to lend out for those who took Connie's class. Then!!!! they have to sit in a classroom for four sessions that teaches the very same material!!!!

c) I'm rereading the newest edition of the text because it is really much better than the old edition - and it is time consuming and filled with boring stuff like research as well as interesting stuff about growing children. And,

d) I'm trying to creatively circumvent assignments that the students might already have done in Child Development I. And, finally,

e) I always try to redo the assignments anyway which bring them up to date and make life more interesting for me to teach.

All this is but a prelude to saying that I have been completely obsessed! I used Martin's expertise to put some color in the course headline

, and yesterday I went down to the college to check in with Linda, a psych prof and a techie for the department. She was amazing. All week I had been gathering questions to ask for things I couldn't seem to quite get. She not only answered those things in short order, but she gave me lots and lots of tips for doing stuff that moodle does that I didn't know about. I'm anxious to get back to the drawing board and finish off downloading some stuff.

Why am I so obsessed with this? I didn't particularly want to do it, but I feel like I've been on a significant journey. But, here is the rub. I HAVE to do it to teach the class which begins on April 5th. I have no choice (except to do it poorly which isn't a choice). Why, why, why don't I have the same kind of drive when it comes to my own projects or my own writing? I've been avoiding learning Scrivener, a program that Martin swears by, because I think I don't have enough time. I avoid writing daily even when I have something "in the works." If I had worked on my latest story the amount of time that I have struggled with moodle, it would be long finished.

What is there about motivation? I could certainly learn from my friend, KJ's blog, about this topic because it is a favorite of hers. I could definitely learn from my son who writes consistently even when he has a full-time demanding job and a toddler. It has something to do with internal and external motivation.

I guess I need to hire someone who will stand over me with a whip! Nah! I would then get belligerent.

Here is a picture I'm using at the top of my course page (with his father's permission):

Oh, Lord, please help me to find perspective! Amen!

Posted by Marilyn at 9:36 AM | Comments (2)

February 24, 2012

Elizabeth George

I have been reading Elizabeth George since she wrote her first novel in 1988, "A Great Deliverance," introducing Thomas Lynley, the eighth earl of Asherton and an Inspector with Scotland Yard. Along with his Detective Sargeant, Barbara Havers, we have traveled all over the English countryside together solving crimes and becoming friends. I have her 17th and newest mystery, "Believing the Lie," sitting upstairs next to my bed to be read after I finish the newest Sara Paretsky.

We had a falling out in 2005 when she decided to kill off Helen who had been wooed, won, and married in the novels during the previous 17 years. To make it worse, she was pregnant with Lynley and her first child. And, to make it really bad, she was simply standing on her doorstep when some idiot came along and shot her. It was out of the blue. It was violent. It was totally unexpected, and it was a mean thing to do to her readers.

Now, I do believe that since Helen was in George's imagination, she should have the right to do what she wishes with her characters. But, it was what she did to her readers that I totally disagreed with. We really liked Helen because George made sure that we liked Helen. She was part of our imagination, too. And, I have been gratified by the fact that many of my friends were angry with George and, after listening to literary podcasts, I'm convinced that many, many people in the literary world thinks she made a huge mistake.

After she killed Helen off, she wrote a book entitled, "What Came Before He Shot Her," which I refused to read. But, I have picked up the sagas in the next few books mostly to follow poor Lynley as he wanders, broken, through the countryside (and solves a few mysteries on his walkabout). But, I'm still mad.

Which brings me to the fact that George chose her 8th novel to be the Whatcom Reads book of the year where all of Whatcom county (bookgroups and individuals) read the same book and the author gives lectures and book talks all over the area. Last night she spoke to a large audience at Whatcom Community College and, of course, during question time someone asked her why she killed Helen. George is a smart and sometimes humorous speaker, so she went into this long, drawn out explanation about how she thought the character was expendable because, after all, what can you do with a baby in a mystery novel and their marriage wasn't going anywhere, and blah, blah, blah. She got lots of laughs about explaining what she could write about babies and diapers and spitup, etc. But, it all sounded like a excuse she had made up to cover her error.

I don't think she'll ever live it down. I know I won't ever forgive her (well, just enough to keep reading). I still think she was dead wrong. I just finished reading Henning Mankell's final Kurt Wallender mystery and he does a masterful job of taking Kurt into old age and having him solve his final crime. I haven't been following Wallender over the years, but I did appreciate how he closed off the character for his fans. Authors have a responsibility to their readers. They simply cannot take several volumes to insinuate their characters into your mind and then cut them out with an assassin. There is enough of that kind of thing in real life, and when that kind of gratuitous violence happens on a favorite television series, I immediately cease watching that show. When L.A. Law threw Roz down the elevator shaft, I never watched again.

After all, I read and watch television for pleasure!

Of course, that could be a whole new blog post!

Posted by Marilyn at 12:56 PM | Comments (0)

I Work for Free!

I'm working for Skagit College for virtually nothing at the moment. I was asked to teach the hybrid (1/2 in the classroom, 1/2 online) Child Development class again (it didn't go last year for lack of students which is another story), and I said yes before I found out that they have moved from Blackboard to something called Moodle for their online classes. I have no idea who named it Moodle which sounds more like something you would eat than teach. I could understand Module or Modern or Master, but Moodle????

In any case, the good news is that they had recovered my old materials from Blackboard and the bad news is that I'm going through many training videos to learn how to manipulate those same materials in this new platform. It isn't rocket science, but it is slow and methodical.

To make matters worse, I find that the person teaching the Child Development class before mine, has been teaching part of my curriculum which explains why the last time I taught the class, students complained about overlap. Not all my students take the first class, so I guess I'll just have to make do the best I can. She has been nice enough to let me lurk in her class online so I can see how she uses the program. And, to be fair, my class is an unusual one for the community college. About five years ago, it got tucked into some odd place in the catalog in a section reserved for aids in the classroom who need to work on a paraprofessional credential. Since that time, I've lost the four year students who used to take it before they went on to Central or Eastern. I don't think they even know it is available at the community college since it is normally an upper division class.

All this said, I look out of the window and it is drizzly and dreary today so what else do I have to do? However, being an adjunct instructor means that I always have to stand, walk around, and calculate the size of the horse before climbing back on. Once I start riding, it will all come back to me. Once I have my email set up again, the course all organized on Moodle!!! and students in my classroom, I can ride into the sunset happy as a clam.

Posted by Marilyn at 12:29 PM | Comments (0)

February 14, 2012

It Might As Well Be Spring

I must have spring fever because I'm organizing up a storm. After finishing my mystery cataloguing, I have gone through about 50 CD's that Don left behind. They are mostly backups off his previous computers. I've glanced through them before, but this time I went through and put aside those that archive pictures from church and those that have family pictures on them. Most of the other stuff besides photos, I can't open because I don't have the requisite programs. I'm going to work to put the church photos on just a few disks (since there is quite a bit of overlap) and put them at church. I find it easier to pitch stuff this many years after Don's death.

I have also been going through some old tapes of sermons and other events to keep those that the family might want and throw away things that are not of interest to anyone. Yesterday I listened to a sermon on patriotism that Don preached in his early Bellingham days. I smiled at the few sentences that were simply out of date. He always said that sermons were to be listened to in the moment and would agree that old sermons don't always stand the test of time. He didn't like to be judged by his past sermons. Once he had to send a tape to a pulpit committee, and he agonized over it because it was not fresh and new. Heck, if he wrote a sermon at the beginning of the week, he'd have it rewritten by the next Sunday. I was still moved by the sermon. The theme of being a citizen of the earth, cherishing and taking care of our planet and all those who inhabit it, instead of spending so much money defending our little piece of earth from our supposed enemies who are also God's children was still fresh. I don't know what he would make of our recent political warfare. Well, actually, I do. And, to think, we used to be Republicans and both of us came from staunch Republican families who, I'd like to think, are probably now turning in their graves at the recent state of the party.

I've been going through old magazines and forcing myself to throw all those neat ideas in the trash can. I invited our old friends, Gordon and Molly Verplank, to come down from Canada for church and a Sunday luncheon. Gordon was the pastor of our neighborhood Presbyterian church when we first came to town. Then, he and his wife separated and he moved to Canada, met Molly (also a pastor) and they have both recently retired. It was nice to see them.

Now I'm into organizing a curriculum for a three session parenting class for church and learning something called Moodle for my Skagit class in the spring. Unfortunately, I said I would teach the class again before anyone told me that Skagit has left Blackboard for a whole new platform. Now, I have to learn how to navigate Moodle. However, they did save all the curriculum from my old class and can reload it. I had hard copies, but it is nice to know I don't have to put everything in by hand.

It's dreary today, and it was dreary yesterday. I tried to walk but the damp and cold bothered my knee so I just got halfway around the park before I returned to my car. I'm meeting a friend for lunch, and I had a nice Valentine call from my lovely daughter, Jeni. Life is busy, and life is good.

I'm off to organize some more. I love to organize. Happy Valentine's Day!

Posted by Marilyn at 10:31 AM | Comments (2)

February 9, 2012

I Did It!

Last night I finished cataloguing my entire mystery library -- all 1200 books according to author and series. I used two sources. The first is Delicious Library which has a handy scanner for books that have ISBN numbers. Unfortunately, it does not take kindly to paperbacks as well as hardcopies. I usually had to enter those ISBN numbers by hand. But, then, up popped all the relevant data. The categories on Delicious Library had to be tweaked a bit to get them to record the data that I wanted to remember. Unfortunately, since I began collecting in the late 50's, many books did not have ISBN's so I had to enter everything by hand.

Second, I used a web site that I have gone to forever called, "Stop, You're Killing Me." It is a wonderful anthology of all mystery writers by alphabetical order. You can also look up characters (ie. Poirot) by alphabetical order and it gives you the author and books where they appear. Over the years, I (as well as other mystery fans) have added to their data base which is how they have become so comprehensive. I was pleased to add two new authors from my collection that they were missing. They didn't have Martin's friend, J.J. Hendersen or Bellingham author Linda Mariz. I would print out author pages for each of the writers I collect and check those against my collection to see what books I was missing.

Sadly, I lent books out over the years and didn't keep track of them. I still have some collections intact such as Ngaio Marsh, Christie, Dorothy Sayers because I rarely lend those. But, doggone it! Who borrowed the first Maisie Dobbs? I have all the rest, but my favorite volume is gone. OK, so next came my list. I made a complete list of all the things I'm missing so I can carry it around to used book sales (which is one way I originally built my library) and try to fill in the holes.

I don't have a clue why I am doing this. I don't think the library is actually worth much. I know that first editions are rarely worth anything these days if they are in the popular genre. Oh, I may have a few hardbounds that would bring a few bucks. But, I don't have anything really wonderful like a leather bound first British edition of Dorothy Sayers. Most of my complete collections are a hybrid group of volumes I picked up here and there. I love some of the old paperbacks that were printed in England in the 60's. The pages are golden and they are so fragile. I treasure the vintage art and the muted colors.

I will probably never ever go back and read the majority of books. Over the next years, I'll keep giving some of the lesser authors away. But, for now, I like to be surrounded by 50 years of reading pleasure. Many of these authors are very old friends. I have followed the characters throughout their series as closely as I have followed the lives of some of my acquaintances. I grieved for the loss of Peter Wimsey, Albert Campion, Roderick Alleyn, and dear old Maigret. I railed at Elizabeth George for killing off Helen. But, I thank these talented authors for hours and hours and hours of reading pleasure. And, I am thrilled that I can also look forward to many more hours with Monk and the Pitts, Inspector Montalbano, good old Rutledge, silly Stephanie Plum, and the wonderful Mailsie Dobbs!

A reading life is a good life indeed!

Posted by Marilyn at 10:54 AM | Comments (1)

February 2, 2012

Raindrops on Roses...

I was walking around the house singing "My Favorite Things" which got me to thinking what are my favorite things? Certainly raindrops on roses would be lovely to include but I'm not sure whiskers on kittens makes my list. Warm woolen mittens are also lovely, but I didn't grow up with mittens in California and I don't wear them now. I'm thinking they might be cozier than my leather gloves however. I certainly do love packages tied up with string but i don't dream of them when I'm feeling glum. So what, Marilyn, are your favorite things?

Ice cream is one. I absolutely love ice cream. I am addicted to ice cream and when Katie buys ice cream and then leaves on Wednesday to go back to Seattle, I always have to replace it before she returns because I cannot, simply cannot, avoid eating the rest every evening, even when she buys her favorite mint chocolate, and I am not crazy about mint. There is something about her mint chocolate that I like. Maybe it is because it is the only flavor around.

Of course, good black British tea is my favorite drink. I'm also addicted to Diet Cola but I try not to drink it because I imagine what it is doing to my insides. I love chocolate chip cookies. I must not have these in the house, in the freezer, or anywhere else because I will definitely eat them all up. I absolutely do not eat dough -- they have to be baked. But, they are so delicious!

Of course, food is not the only category on my favorite list. My favorite physical experience is nuzzling the nape of a small grandchild's neck. My favorite activity is strolling over the water at Boulevard Park listening to podcasts. My favorite restaurant is a no brainer - Abbey Garden Tea Room. My favorite outfit is jeans and a white t-shirt. My favorite hymn is "O Love That Will Not Let Me Go." My favorite book has always been "34 Charing Cross Road," although there are lots that would vie for the top choice. My favorite color is blue and my favorite number is 3.

Once you get started, you cannot stop. Your mind flits back and forth to all the wonderful things you love to do, the things you love to eat, the experiences you crave over and over, the beauty that makes life worth living. Of course, there's not enough room in a blog to name all your favorite and special friends and you could go on forever about what makes each of your children and grandchildren so very, very special.

The idea of the song, however, is how thinking about these things can change your outlook, make the sadness disappear and bring out the sun on a dreary day. I wonder why I don't think about chocolate chip cookies when I am in the middle of feeling sorry for myself? Why thinking about kissing Lionel's sweet neck does not take precedent over staying up half the night mulling over something that has annoyed me. Why do we sometimes wallow in negativity when our lives are so filled with things that we absolutely love to death? We humans are such queer creatures. Nature or nurture? Did I get all my anxiety from my upbringing or am I just programmed to worry? Isn't that what original sin is all about? We have within us the ability to dwell on the dark side or the ability to walk towards the light.

Who knew that such a silly and fun little song could evoke such philosophical musings? I'm going to close up this computer and go get a cup of tea.

Somedays the park in my favorite park is just magnificent!

Posted by Marilyn at 11:21 AM | Comments (0)

January 30, 2012

Girly Girl

I've never been much of a girly girl. You would have found me playing baseball on my street with the local boys when I was a kid. I ice skated weekly and played lots of tennis in my 20's. In Jr. High and Sr. High School, I loved PE and was fairly well put together when it came to volleyball, basketball and, of course, softball with all my prior street experience. In my era, girl sports teams didn't exist and I suppose physical aptitude was considered more masculine. My girly sports activity was dancing. I was a great dancer. As a pianist, my sense of rhythm made me go from song girl in high school to choral director in college and a dancer in several college productions.

When I graduated from playing ball with the local boys to having crushes instead, I became a bit more interested in my grooming. At about 13, I went to a local store and learned how to apply makeup, but I've always preferred a more natural look. I've never liked earrings or a wide array of jewelry. I prefer tailored to ruffled. Perhaps, I also prefer not to spend hours in front of a mirror when there are physical things to do. When I became a mom, I had little time (or even the budget) for fussy living. Even today, I love Dian who gets me in and out of her hair salon within 1/2 hour max.

My hair was the healthiest part of my body. I've had my share of permanents at salons over the years, but never understood how I could have a healthy and even luxurious head of long, thick dark red hair, and the puniest fingernails ever on the planet. No fancy nails for me - I can't even grow them for over a week without some kind of crack or peel which means that I keep them cut short. When I go to Maine with Barb Storms and Bette Keller I always come home feeling like I should go get some fancier nails, but when I'm away from their hands I change my mind. I'm still a bit skeptic of the chemicals involved.

When I retired from Fairhaven Middle School, I was given a couple of massage gifts which were so foreign to me that I gave them away. Imagine my surprise when a few years later I finally got got brave enough to experience my first massage, and decided that I was a fool for waiting to try such a relaxing and wonderfully pampering activity so late in life. Partly I was hung up in protocol -- do I wear my underpants or not? Now, isn't that just the stupidest thing you ever heard? With some embarrassment, I finally asked my eldest what she did in such a circumstance. Shucks! I had long since taken a shower before and after water aerobics with 20 other women at the YWCA. I don't think it was nudity as much as just not knowing what other people did. It took me a long time to confess and ask.

This brings me to the present. I have absolutely fallen in love with pedicures! I feel really silly to admit this. Jeni has tried before to get me to go with her. I'm getting to the age that it is harder to cut my own toenails with precision -- but I didn't realize how lovely it was to not only have them cut, but to have a leg massage along with it. I got one last summer and was completely hooked. To add to the enjoyment, the local place, Jimmy's salon, also provides a little fruit tray and a cup of tea while you sit and read your newest novel and let someone take care of you. I have now put pedicures into my budget monthly along with my haircuts. I would add massages to the budget, but they are much more expensive. I might even stop sitting on my hands and try a manicure before I'm 80.

I wonder what it is in life that sends us in one direction or another. What is it that makes us shy away from activities while embracing others? What makes us brave enough to speak to large classrooms of students while too timid to ask someone whether or not to wear underpants while getting a massage? What makes anyone at my age, with my long history of experiencing a fairly friendly universe, nervous about anything? Go figure!

Posted by Marilyn at 3:03 PM | Comments (0)