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 |   My random thoughts and reactions to my everyday life. The voices like a forum. |
| I do not know quite what happened or when , but my hubby and I now qualify for seniors' discounts at some venues. This creates a quandary; in order to save money, but not face, we have to admit to our age. HMMMM..... We definitely do not consider ourselves to be old. In this day and age ,when people as a whole are living longer and healthier lives why are 'young seniors', those in their fifties, like moi, considered 'old'?? It's so true that age is just a perception! "Maturity" is very objective/subjective, and I object! |
| Welcome to December 2018, bloggers! This kicks off our second UNofficial round with ☕️ Lilli and I co-hosting again this month. *Bigsmile* Your first prompt of the month is: It's December! Here in sunny SoCal, we don't get much snow, despite it being winter. Some are glad for that, some others, not so much. What are your thoughts on snow? *Snow2* What are my thoughts re snow? Oh, they are as complicated as the weather here in Northern Ontario, Canada. We definitely are familiar with snow. It made its first appearance about a month ago, and more of it has continued to accumulate. That's a word we hear far too often, "accumulation". This is fancy speak for piling up, as in snowbanks, snow drifts,. Sometimes, I bemoan snow in my Facebook posts, and I am reminded of this because of an app that re-shares memories. This is a FB post of mine from November 30th, 2012. : It's the last day o9f November, snow's on the ground. People are bundled, muffled, and bound. Today it is chilly, tomorrow might rain. Canadian weather is tough to explain. This old poem reflects today's wintery weather. November 3oth, 2018 is eerily the same. Apparently, I submitted two different snow posts to Facebook on November 28th, 2012. Huh, I really do ramble on about the snow. My cheeks are rosy, ( the ones near my nose), and my toes are tingling from the cold I suppose. I just finished shovelling, scooping, and piling. This white stuff creates work, and my arms aren't smiling. The snowflakes are falling, they're a beautiful sight. They are white, sparkling, and so very bright. Too bad the traffic turns it to slush. Now there's a wide path of grimy brown mush. Memories of my neighbours' faces float obscured by swirling snowflakes and mufflers. If we venture outside, only our eyes may meet. Scowls, or smiles remain hidden. Brief conversations ensue. I may hear, " it sure is cold", or "my house just sold." Maybe I'll hear, "I'm freezing", or I'm leaving." "I wish I was in Cuba", or "I wish I played the tuba." So, yes, I am all too familiar with snow. It will linger until at least April of next year. I am resigned to another season of pushing it around in a futile attempt to control where it amasses. |
| PROMPT November 30th What is one new fact you learned about a fellow blogger this month? I hesitate to concentrate on just one fellow blogger. I confess I have not read and/or followed every blogger participating this November. Yes, I attempted to read and comment on several posts, but as I stated not all of them. The writings that I did peruse were always thoughtful and thought-provoking. Brave to all the bloggers! I did learn that everyone's voice is valid. It amazes me that we all play with words, rearranging them into cohesive combinations, and still we manage to be creative, unique. Each one of us puts our own spin on a prompt. We share our efforts and trust that we shall receive positive feedback and encouragement. So, I suppose I've realized that there are many people who have made a commitment to not only write, but improve their efforts. They all sit down, buckle down, and write. I salute you all! |
| PROMPT November 29th On this last Wildcard Thursday of the month, make me a list of prompts to add to the Challenge War Chest for future rounds of the 30DBC. What has been your favorite day of the week, and why? So, now it's my turn to be a prompt prompter> Hmmm, I suppose I can think of a dew writing ideas.... Open your dictionary to a random word. Read the definition. Write a story that uses that word. Pretend you are a dog for a day. Write about that day from the perspective of the dog. Where is your favourite place to escape when you need to be alone? Describe that place using your senses. Write a story about something that scares you. How do you react? How do you feel? What if your mirror started to speak to you? What would it say to you? If I would've known then what I know now, I would've never.... Finish this story.Write a story about a time you were caught doing something embarrassing. Spend some time watching people around you. Choose one person, a stranger, and write a story about their day. Use descriptive words to recreate a visit to a street fair, carnival, or other special event. Honestly, I do not have a favourite blogging day of the week. As vaudevillians say, "I like all the days that end in 'y'." Seriously, the prompts and topics from all the days appeal to me. I respond to the challenge. Sometimes, I'm coerced into researching something unfamiliar and that's a good thing.. I'm amazed continuously by the varied replies these prompts spawn. I appreciate that each blogger creates their own unique spin. |
| PROMPT November 28th Write about an experience that changed your opinion on something. Many years ago, a lifetime really, I learned that not all volunteers are created equal. Not all people help out because of the goodness of their hearts. Bullies exist everywhere and they spew their atrocious behaviour indiscriminately. Picture an early Saturday morning in June with balmy weather. I was the volunteer coach of a 7 to 8-year olds' T-Ball team, girls to be specific. We had fun attempting to play a modified version of baseball. The game rules were similar and the participants still ran the bases and fielded balls. We wore team t-shirts donated by sponsors. Sure, it felt great, empowering, to win a game, but we knew that wasn't always possible If we managed to win a game that was considered great, but if we lost we dealt with it. It wasn't the end of the world. We were a rag tag group of females. Not all of us were athletes. We experienced our own team and private triumphs. We cheered each other, and we liked to laugh. On this fateful morning, we encountered a father / coach. To describe his as intense would be understating it. He hollered at the girls on "his" team and belittled them. As the game was played, we were losing. As I stated, that was nothing new, or terrible. Time passed and seven innings were behind us. I noticed the players , coaches, and family members of the next scheduled game starting to arrive and lean on the fence. I glanced at my watch and realized our time for the diamond had expired. I approached my fellow coach and pointed this out. I gathered "my" girls to form a handshake line and we said our good-byes. This man exploded. He screamed in my face. He threw a bat. He waved his arms. All of this occurred in full view of all the girls.. He demanded that I stay and play two more innings. He called me several profanities and a whoosie. I calmly re-explained that our time was up and he had his win, so why would we stick around. We'd had our fun and now it was time to relinquish the field to other teams. He continued to vent as I walked away from him. I was neither impressed, or intimidated. I chatted with a few of "my" parents as I packed up equipment. Apparently, I was supposed to remain and permit him to attack me. Who knew? He followed me to the parking lot and continued his assault. I ignored him and climbed into my vehicle. The greatest shock was yet to happen. His very pregnant wife jumped up onto the running board of my truck as I reversed. I braked and waited. She was every bit a raving bully as her husband. She pounded on the window and screamed at me. Sadly, their daughters were front row witnesses to this. It seemed like an eternity, but she finally stepped off and away.She had to strike the fender as I drove away. I'm not going to lie and claim that I let this wash off me. The experience left me trembling. I relived it for a few days. After some contemplation, I phoned the league president to ask for advice. He'd already been contacted by parental eye witnesses and he'd requested that the other coach resign. I learned that some volunteers have an ulterior agenda. I also reinforced my acceptance that I am not competitive. |
| PROMPT November 27th Do you have any "weird" tastes in food? Carrots and ketchup? Peanut butter and ice cream? Watermelon and salt? Can you convince us to try your odd food combo? I've often wondered about our early foodstuff pioneers. Obviously, they wandered in search of strange new items to eat. Perhaps they operated on the dare system as in, I dare you to put that in your mouth and swallow it. Who waded out into the ocean, scooped up a clam, pried it open, stared at the pale, mucousy contents and thought to him or herself, I bet I can force this down. It just needs a bit of butter. Someone had to be the first to trap a lobster. Did this adventurous gourmand then look past the shell, the claws / pincers. and antenna to envision something to savour? Ah, of course, served with butter it had to be delicious. The same is true of snails. They're not all that remarkable, or noticeable. They slither along on a trail of slime and they tote their hard-shelled homes on their backs. What about their appearance screamed, eat me, you know you want to? Huh, with a dip into melted butter these would be marvelous. What drew these scavengers / gatherers to pull fungus from the ground? Oh, wait, it was the pretense of sautéing these mushrooms in butter. Who experimented with ears of corn and decided to dry each and every kernel for future consumption? Yes, it was the allure of reheating this popcorn with butter. So, butter seems to be the one ingredient that makes anything palatable. Butter is slathered on bread, buns, muffins, pancakes and more. Years ago, senior clients insisted upon a pat of butter atop their bowls of cream soup. Again, who discovered that butter could be created from milk? Careful, don't shake that fresh milk, it'll solidify. And this leads me to contemplate cheese. Most cheeses are aged. This is a fancy term meaning it's left to its own devices. In the process, cheese acquires a distinctive aroma. Despite this, cheese is a sought after delicacy. No, I don't believe I eat any weird food combinations. The person who paired chocolate and peanut butter is a genius , as is the clever one who combined salt with caramel. Now my mouth is watering as I recall fabulous pairings. Strawberry and rhubarb are fantastic. One of my newest discoveries is Chicago mix popcorn. Cheese and caramel are a wonderful taste. Oh, I'm dreaming of other delectable chocolate combos: chocolate and caramel, chocolate and mint, chocolate and orange. Ah, chocolate is as important as butter. You know if you mix chocolate with butter, and introduce heat, you create fudge. Now this is the ultimate combination! |
| PROMPT November 26th Was there ever a time in your life when you didn’t want to do something, but motivated yourself to do it? What was the thing, and what did you do to motivate yourself? August and September of 2014 found me dealing with a great many "things" that I'd rather not have to do. My Mother ended up hospitalized with what would turn out to be pneumonia and a staph infection. Both illnesses struck suddenly. On minute, Mom was in her home functioning and the next she was strapped to a gurney enroute, in a wailing ambulance, to her final hospitalization. Both infections progressed swiftly. She, however, shut down slowly, inevitably, day by day. Her decline could best be described as inexorable. It had its own timeline. Every day, my younger sister and I travelled the same roads in a 90-minute round trip. We paced the same hallways. We sat with Mom. We attempted to speak with her, and we listened to her feverish mutterings. Communication proved difficult. We did not have the advantage of context. We witnessed outbursts and strange ramblings. We consulted with medical staff. We drank too much tea. We reminisced with each other. We sent text updates to other family members. We could see that Mom was failing. Although incredibly painful, we decided that there would not be any extra efforts to sustain, or resuscitate her. Yes, we requested a DNR order. We had both heard Mom state that if necessary she wanted no heroics. She'd survived many a medical emergency and she was well aware this could not continue forever. She'd made her peace and accepted her inevitable death.. Mom did not wish to languish in a retirement home, and the idea of life support frightened her. When Mom died after a twelve day ordeal, there was a funeral to plan. We honoured her express wishes and opted for cremation.. I composed and delivered a eulogy. I hugged so many people and normally, I'm not a touchy-feely person. I received an outpouring of love and support. Post funeral I had an estate to settle. I executed Mom's behests. My sister and I emptied her home. We donated many of her earthly possessions. We created memory boxes for her immediate family and made sure to divvy up the extensive angel and Christmas ornament collection. Motivation? It's what Mom wanted.. She'd always taken care of us. The least we could do was honour her wishes and her memory. |
| PROMPT November 25th As the challenge comes to a close, reflect on the Blogging Challenge so far. Have you learned anything about your blogging style or has it evolved over the course of the month? What was the most difficult part? If you do this challenge again, what would you change? Congratulations to Ice_Dragoness NaNo Winner for your Nano win! Congratulations! *ConfettiB* *ConfettiG* *Cool* *NoteB* *NoteO* *NoteB* *NoteO* *NoteB* *NoteO* *NoteB* *NoteO* *NoteB* *NoteO* Well, this isn't my first rodeo, er, um, I mean my first attempt at blogging. In the past , I've participated here and enjoyed it. Sure, sometimes the everyday little things of life interfere, but I persevere. I sit at my keyboard and I compose a blog. I suppose I like the challenge of a daily prompt. With that short time frame, I cannot ignore, or procrastinate with my reply. It keeps me on my toes. I am compelled to string coherent words together and call my creation a blog. . Has my style changed, or evolved? Hmmm, I'm not certain. I believe my voice is mine and I express it here. Yes, there are instances in which I struggle a bit more. As I've mentioned before, my grey cells need the exercise. At least, the effort doesn't render me incapacitated, in pain, and gasping for a breath. Sorry, I cannot think of any improvements at this moment. Can I say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it? |
| PROMPT November 24th It’s the last Creation Saturday of the month! Write a holiday related entry/story/poem using the words: festive, food, gifts, family, cheer, candy cane, and eggnog. Hank sighed. He looked festive in his crooked reindeer antlers. Although a bit tattered, they still jingled every time he so much as breathed. \he couldn't possibly not breathe. His sensitive nose twitched non-stop with all the delectable food smells wafting around him. Hearing his name, Hank focussed on his nearby family bedecked in bright Christmas sweaters of snowmen, snowflakes, and Santas. In the twinkling lights, laughter tinkled. Glasses of golden egg nog clinked to salutations of, "Cheers!" Rising and stretching, Hank trotted to the delectable peppermint candy cane waving from an outstretched hand. Gifts like this only come around once a year and he planned to indulge his sweet tooth while he could. To Be Continued? |
| My favourite food... Oh, this is an easy unequivocal answer. I love pasta. Rotini, ziti, penne, spaghetti, macaroni, lasagna, whatever, it really is all good, no make that delicious. Apparently, I've always preferred Italian cuisine. As a toddler, my tonsils were surgically removed and my parents had been cautioned to only permit jello, or popsicles for my initial recovery. That was not what I had in mind and I demanded " sgetti" . They relented and I did not suffer any ill effects. We celebrate family birthdays with lasagna. It's a tradition and highly anticipated. Oooh, mouth watering just considering it. Pasta pairs magnificently with everything, chicken, beef, pork. Of course, many veggies lend themselves to the creation of a sauce, too. Tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, and celery blend to make magic. There's nothing like the aroma and taste of garlic, oregano, and basil. |
| PROMPT November 22nd Today in the US is Thanksgiving, a day to spend time with loved ones rather than labor over a blog entry, so the prompt is short (you can thank me later *Laugh*). Write a list of five things you are thankful for. That’s it! You are free to make your entry as long or short as you choose. THINGS I AM GRATEFUL FOR: my hubby of 40 years, our children believe he has no sense of humour, but he's put up with me for a long time! My 3 children: Carrie, Christopher, and Danielle....thanks for the laughs, and the numerous unplanned expeditions to emergency rooms my 2 grandgiggles Sydney and Emily, plus Alexandra expected to grace us with her presence in early February...thanks for being so incredible and keeping me young! my siblings, my parents, my grandparents...you permitted me to just be me the gift of gab..... I meet/encounter wonderful people cookies.... unlimited books....there's always time to read just one more paper, pencils, pens.... writing material memories...I cherish each and every one WDC....thanks for inspiration, inclusion |
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