Cats, cats, cats…

And a kitchen... We bought a house! We moved last August, and I soon realized that the kitchen would not work for me. I love to cook, and the kitchen had about 8 inches of usable counter space. Also, it had very little storage. Certainly not enough for my collection of tools, pans, and ingredients. We decided to redesign the kitchen, with the help of a designer. After a search where I read all the reviews - especially the poor ones - I settled on a designer who has been wonderful to work with. We are so lucky that she really heard what we wanted, and put it all into the plan. It took a good 6 months to order everything (the cabinets took the longest to come in), and the construction started June 27. I'm pleasantly surprised that it only took a week and a half to get the old cabinets and floor undone, and the new floor and cabinets installed. As of today, the appliances are in, and we're waiting for the counter to be templated and installed - template tomorrow, installation in a week. Then it's just a few finishing touches and it's finished! So... cats. My son is staying with us while he's in transition from Colorado to NJ. For many reasons, he's here and his wife is with her parents in NJ. We have his 3 cats with us, too - one of the reasons he's here. Our cat, Dozer, we have discovered is not a fan of other cats. They have formed a tentative truce, though, so things had settled down when my nephew reached out to ask if we could take their cat. They are breaking up with their partner, and can't take their cat with them. My son and his wife are cat parents, so we said Circe (nephew's cat) could join the crowd. Well, now, that may have been a mistake. Circe apparently doesn't like other cats, and has become more aggressive as she gets more comfortable with the people. This isn't working out, so we have a call out to re-home her. Meantime, we have nightly spats, and no one is sleeping well. The sooner she finds a new family, the better. Of course, it has to be the right family, which might take a bit. For now, we have loud spats, some fur balls flying, and a lot of growling through the night. Good thing I'm on summer vacation.

Something Old, Something New…

Journaling hasn't been a daily thing for me, although at times I wish it could have been. I'd like to try, though. I've been reading a book by Matthew Dicks about storytelling (Storyworthy), where he suggests doing 5 minutes of "Homework for Life" every day - take time to notice beautiful live events every day, and write them down. Now THAT, I can do. So, from this week: 5/15/21: Dedicated kids decorating - Juniors and sophomores. I'll get a whole different crop of Sophs next year - I won't be teaching Honors, so I'll change my approach again. I love teaching. 5/14/21: Walt not renewed, Erica in CO. 5/13/21: Senior Vision Boards: "I really enjoyed hearing about people's goals" 5/12/21: Missed a meeting this evening - forgot all about it. 5/11/21: Nick dropped in - back from remote! He stops in to see me, has lunch with me, comes to see me through the day. Relies on me to keep him straight. I love that kid. Gave me such a big hug. Kids like him are why I teach. 5/10/21: Talked to Tony about taking the bar. Feeling like this is possible. Traded stories about family law and the ridiculousness of who gets custody of Fifi the poodle. 5/9/21: Mother's Day is usually hard, but not as hard this year - Will reached out! My sisters always text me on big days, and Will reached out to them this year, too. Evolution can happen. My heart is warmed. Past years have been hard, this one could have been, too, but this made it easier.

30 books in 30 days

I just read a blog post that inspired me to try this myself. It is from Courtney Rodgers, and can be found here. This got me thinking. I already do a Goodreads annual challenge, where I decide how many books I will read in a year, and then challenge myself to exceed my goal. This year’s goal is 175 books; I’m already at 125, and I have a 4-hour flight ahead of me tonight, and 3 books in progress. I’m guessing I will hit 130 by the end of the weekend. Could I do a 30-day challenge like this and add it to my 175-book challenge? Should I make it part of my 175 books? September is a very busy month for me, as a rule. School starts up again, and I have a little different schedule every year. Plus, this year I have the added challenge of a new classroom (right across the hall from my old one, so I didn’t even change hallways), with a new roommate who has classes in the room during my prep periods. That just means I will adjust my free time a bit, but it also means that September is a bit rough for me. This year, I have the additional challenge of my partner working in the same building, and him not being able to drive, so I need to chauffeur both of us to our various appointments. By the way, you know you’re over 55 when you have multiple doctors for various ailments. Just saying. So, can I realistically complete this challenge? I think so, for many reasons. I have discovered in recent years that I’m a pretty competitive person, and I’m the most competitive with myself. If I challenge myself, I MUST succeed at the challenge. This also means that I’m careful about how I challenge myself, so I don’t set myself up for failure. So, yeah, 30 books in a month? I can totally do that. Another reason I think I will succeed is that I work hard to keep my home time sacred. I try very hard not to bring school work home - I don’t always succeed, especially when grades are due, but I try hard. This challenge will ensure that I keep home time sacred, because I won’t have time to do school work - I’ll be reading to meet my 30 books! Oh, and all that time waiting at doctors’ offices? I can spend that reading, too! I am committing to this challenge, then! Every day I will try to post the book I’m reading - and hopefully I finish - and a few words about my reaction to the book. I’m not a fan of writing reviews (gives me flashbacks to book reports in grammar school! Which I know dates me!), but I will give some feedback, mostly for my own information. My favorite books to read are romance novels and “chick lit.” I enjoy reading about relationships, but not in an angsty way. I look for happy endings, and ongoing relationships. Right now, I’m reading a few series: The Westcott Series, by Mary Balogh; The Black Dagger Brotherhood Legacy, by J.R. Ward; and the Scandal and Scoundrel series by Sarah MacLean. I falso started reading the Kat Holloway Below Stairs mystery series, by Jennifer Ashley. I’m not usually a big fan of mysteries, but this series sounds pretty good. Book 1 was good, anyway. I’ll let you know how the next ones turn out. I also love two Nalini Singh series: Psy-Changling and Guild Hunter. I don’t mind re-reading books I really like, so I might get into these again, before her new ones come out this fall. Wish me luck with this!

Post-English Subbing

The good thing about subbing in an area outside of my expertise is that it expands my horizons into ideas I haven't thought about for a long while (as I said, around 35 years!).

I've been writing research papers for years. Since I started college in 1993, actually. I was a late-bloomer; I didn't go to college until I was 31. I did things backwards - married, had my son, then went to college. Anyway, with all my writing experience, and my editing experience as a teacher, I see myself as an expert. However, that expertise ended with non-fiction writing. I have loved writing since I was young, but when I tried to write some kind of fiction, I got stuck. Everything I wrote felt trite or uninteresting. I had lots of words, but few ideas. Well, actually, I had lots of ideas, but couldn't express them in a way that made others want to read them. Or made me want to read them.

Here comes the expanding horizons part. The teacher I was subbing for, Ken, is an amazing writing teacher. He has his kids writing and writing and writing, and not worrying about the quality of their first drafts - everything is subject to revision later. He had them read an essay called Shitty First Drafts by Annie Lamott, that talks about "down drafts", "up drafts" and "dental drafts". You can read it yourself, but the gist is that the down draft is going to be revised. Every time. Down drafts are for putting ideas down on paper. Revising those ideas as you go along can actually limit the process. This is a revolutionary concept for me. It frees me up to just write and not filter or revise as I go. It reminds me of the idea behind National Novel Writing Month. Just write. Turn off your inner critic and just get your thoughts on paper. Or in the computer - whichever works.

I've been playing with the idea of writing a novel in November for years, ever since I heard about NaNoWriMo. I got stuck on silencing my inner critic, though. That darn critic is pretty loud! I practiced while I was subbing, though - to circle back to my original topic - and I'm ready to try writing 50,000 words in 30 days. Wish me luck.

Other ideas that came out of this experience - I need to rewrite the essays I submitted with my teaching applications this summer. I'm not sure they were my best work, and my ideas have refined as I've been back in the classroom. It's time to revisit the ideas and to be sure I'm expressing myself clearly. Wish me luck there, too!

English Subbing

So I'm subbing for an English teacher for a few weeks, which is weird for me, since I haven't had to think about English stuff for oh, about 35 years or so... I tested out of my college level English classes, so I never had to take college English. I have, however, done a LOT of writing in my college and graduate classes, so the concept isn't completely foreign. Certainly not as foreign as, say, math or science!

The students are working on writing ever shorter memoirs in class, and as I prepare for class, I find myself really struggling. I love words. I live by words. One of my fondest memories is of my godfather, my Uncle Bob, teaching me a new word every time I saw him. This was a big deal, since he lived in California, and I lived in New Jersey, so I didn't see him that often. In his last years, he took great delight in forwarding me his Word of the Day email. I have every one saved. For a person with a vocabulary the size of mine to write a SHORT anything is a real effort! The first piece the kids wrote was a 60-word memoir, then a 6-word one, then 140 characters. EEP! I gave it a good try, though, and I tried to follow my own advice to the kids - whatever comes out of my head is valid and good. The only way it could be "wrong" is if the format or style doesn't meet the criteria. Other than that, my words and my message are valid. I hope. (ha.)

So, these are my examples:

60 words:

Moving can be painful and positive at the same time. Starting over is overwhelming and cathartic - paring down years of memories to only essentials. Realizing memories are stored in the mind, not in possessions. Deciding what to keep based on need, not want. Resisting advertising's siren call to buy ever more. I now have a “one in, one out" rule.

6 words:

STRUGGLING! 6 words? So not me!

140 characters:

Food, Yarn, Books, Family, Cat, Bed. All the essentials of my life that make me happy. Add in 70s and 80s reruns and country music, and I'm blissful. (129)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Next up, the kids are doing an encyclopedia in the format of Amy Krouse Rosenthal's Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life. I expect I'll have an easier time of this one, since there's no word or character limit. Wish me luck!

Meanwhile, fall has arrived in New Hampshire in all its glory.

Random thoughts for today

I read an article on the BBC website about a Danish concept called Hygge - the idea of creating a warm, homey atmosphere and good times with good people. It reflects the way I'm trying to live my life these days. Slower, more appreciative of the little things that make life comfortable and welcoming. Good food, good conversation, good company. I'm grateful that I have an abundance of all those things.

So, along those lines, I'm going to hang out at home today, watch football (ok, that's good times for me!), and make a small batch of peach jam with some peaches I've had in the fridge for a couple of weeks. That's about all they're good for at this point, anyway, so why not?

I'm also going to work on the Christmas stockings for my partner's family. I've been chipping away at them for a while, and it's finally cool enough to get some good work done on them.

Hygge for the win.

I took this a few years ago, in Lexington, MA

Dinner!

I had an inspiration for dinner tonight. A friend of my mom's makes chicken in the oven, coated with olive oil and Italian breadcrumbs. SO, I modified the recipe (of course) like so:

Fry up 3 slices of bacon until crisp, over medium-high heat. Remove from heat.
Slice up red pepper lengthwise, and cook slowly, over medium-high heat in the bacon fat, until soft. Remove from pan and keep warm.

Coat 4 chicken thighs in olive oil, and then coat in Italian breadcrumbs. Add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan, and cook the chicken thighs at medium-high heat for about 1 minute each side, until firm. Place the chicken in a sub roll (long roll, whatever you call it where you are!), top with a slice of provolone cheese (I thought that fit the Italian theme best. If you like other cheese, use that!), and top with the red pepper and bacon.

I used potato rolls, which were VERY long, so each roll took two pieces of chicken. I served the sandwiches with baked potatoes, with lots of butter and sour cream. YUMMY!

Widow's Voice: There's No Place Like Home ......

This really says what I have wanted to say for a long time. It's exactly what I have been thinking and feeling for years, and the reason I decided to leave Cape Cod, in the end.

Widow's Voice: There's No Place Like Home ......: ...... even if it's a brand new home. And sometimes ...... especially if it's a brand new home. (Not new as in newly built, bu...

Another new beginning

Here I go again. Moving. I hate moving, and swore for years that I would never do it again, but here I am moving for the third time in the space of one year. Maine has been good, if not exactly what I expected, and now it's time to move on.

I started thinking about moving closer to my mother back in May, when she came home after rehab from her fall, and it was my turn to go back and forth to help her out. My older sister spent over 2 months going back and forth from her home in NJ to MA to help my mom out. Come May, I had things to take care of on the Cape, so I ended up going back and forth every few days between May and June. It was a long, difficult trip, and I started thinking about if this happened again. I realized that I really wanted to be closer to Cape Cod, so if I did need to travel to help my mother out again, I could be there more quickly, and the trip wouldn't be as hard on me. I started to look at jobs in MA, and quickly realized that rents there are terribly high, so I went over the border to New Hampshire, and decided on Concord.

I have found a job within TD Bank in NH, which I start in 2 weeks (YIKES!), and I have found an apartment complex I like, and expect to move November 1. Eep! It's coming up fast! Now starts the whole packing process AGAIN. The best part is that I am clearing out more stuff - believe it or not, I still have more stuff to get rid of! I have cleared out so much, I didn't think there was anything left! There is a lot left to give away, though, and I have roughly 2 weeks to do it. It will get done, but it's going to be more stress, on top of the stress of changing jobs. It is exciting, though! Another new beginning!

I'm excited to be back in a city again. I'll be moving to a quiet part of Concord, so I won't have city sounds, but I will have city conveniences. I have missed Starbucks and multi-cultural food. Things I don't have here in Mid-Coast Maine. I'm excited to move to an apartment with a laundry in the building, and with updated appliances. And a bathtub. My apartment here is very cute, but I have missed those conveniences. I'm excited for my new job. It's a few steps forward within the company, and it gives me much more chance to advance further. When I pass the bar exam (someday...), I'll be in a better position to move up into the legal department within the bank.

So, some good and some stress, as always. Coffee will be an essential part of my diet in the coming weeks. I have done it before, though, and I'll do it successfully this time, too. Wish me luck!

Death is safe

The title is a quote from my aunt, who is recovering from surgery for an aggressive, cancerous brain tumor. She has been told she has about a year to live. Damn cancer strikes again.

My cousin, her daughter, posted this sentiment on a blog her family is writing to keep our large and widespread family up to date on my aunt's progress. (I have 20 first cousins, and we're all pretty close) My cousin was, understandably, reluctant to share the idea, but I think I know what my aunt means. Death is a logical end for all of us. My Daddy used to say "ain't none of us getting out of this alive!" Every human being knows this at some level, but most of us never think about it. We can't. We would become obsessed with the idea that death could be around any corner, at any time. However, my aunt lost her husband - ironically to an aggressive brain tumor - when she was 44. He was in his late 50s, I think. I'm sorry to say I don't remember my uncle's exact age when he died. I was 18 and as self-absorbed as most 18-year-olds tend to be. I do know he died shortly after Christmas, 1980, and that the whole immediate family was there with him. In the same way that I was with my husband when he died. My aunt and I share that bond. We were both in our 40s when we lost our husbands, we had been married less than 20 years at the time, and both our husbands died of cancer.

Watching a loved one die, helping them through their last days, helping them prepare for death, preparing for their death, changes how a person looks at life. Not only while the loved one is still with us, but forever after. I take life less for granted now. I put up with less garbage. I am more aware of love. I am less impatient - most of the time. Except, perhaps, when I'm driving in Boston, but that's another realm of existence, really. I treasure connections more. I always valued my family, and I feel that even more strongly now. I make time to have conversations without hurrying through them. I simply try to experience life more deeply, because I feel strongly how fragile it can be.

I think that's what my aunt means. Death comes after life. It's safe, because it's expected, eventually. None of us want to dwell on that thought - it would be unhealthy to dwell on it too much, I think. We can, however, be aware of our eventual end, and treasure what we have now, knowing it may be gone, sometimes sooner than we think it will be. So, death is safe. Life is precious. Value both as part of the process, and go hug someone. Preferably someone you know. If it's a stranger, you'll have a whole new set of problems. Just sayin'.

Christmas P.S.

I almost forgot some of the sweetest moments of my Christmas week!

First, my daughter-in-law and I had a wonderful week exploring her area. I haven't had the time on my visits before now, and it was a real treat to see southern NJ through the eyes of someone who truly loves the area. We also stopped at a yarn store at one point, and my DIL spotted a skein of yarn that she fell in love with. She asked if I could make her a hat out of it, and of course, I said yes. I can't refuse family when they ask me to make them something. I know they appreciate my knitting, and know they will appreciate it, so I just can't resist. The hat is almost half done now...

The other sweet moment was with my nephew, at breakfast, the morning after the long drive. My other sister, his aunt, had taught him to crochet while she was there, and he took right to it. He's very talented - his stitches were nice and even, not too tight, and the double crochet looked good with the yarn he used. A future crafter in the making! We snagged another one! The sweetest part was seeing how proud he was of his work, and how he couldn't wait to show me, a fellow crafter, what he had done. He's caught the bug for sure!

Warm memories on a cold day. Nothing like them.

Winter days are here

Winter is really, really here. The temperature has been in the teens during the day, and single digits at night. It's been so cold that the weather folks are telling us to cover all exposed skin if we're going to be out more than a minute. That means bundling up to my teeth just to walk the dog. Thank heavens I have the dog to get me out, or I'd never leave the house! She loves the snow, so I spend about 15 minutes outside every 2 hours or so. No strictly utility walks for her - she wants to dive in and get her nose into every drift! It's doubly good because all that diving through snow drifts wears her out, so she comes in and crashes hard for the next hour or so. That tells me the exercise is doing her good!

Christmas was wonderful after all. I drove to NJ to spend a week with my son and daughter-in-law, and stopped at my mom's and older sister's houses on the way. I was so happy to see them. It really helped me get in the Christmas mood after all. I ate way too much, stayed up way too late, and generally had a wonderful time. On the way home, I stopped at my mom's again, and got to see my other sister and her two kids, so that was a really happy bonus. The only downer was getting caught in a snowstorm on my way through Connecticut, so my 6-hour drive to my mom's turned into 12 hours. Owie. Thank God I was safe, though, and thank Daddy for getting me out of a couple of sticky situations. I kept hearing his voice in my head telling me to "throw it in 1st gear and don't stamp on any pedals!" It worked! I guess the 5 years he lived in Minnesota before he and my mom married came in handy, huh?

So now I have a new year of knitting projects to look forward to, along with a part-time bank teller job to get me through the next few months, until I take the bar exam. Things seem to work out for the best, somehow. The part-time job even gets me health insurance, which was a real concern for me. I think I'm more excited about the insurance than about the paycheck! Well, not really, but it's a close second.

Happy New Year everyone. Make it a good one.

Christmas

I'm having trouble getting into the Christmas spirit this year. It's not just being in a different place. I think it's part of my grieving process.

My husband, Steve, and I used to do a huge thing for Christmas - outlined the house in multi-colored lights, put up a huge tree and 4 little ones, midnight services at church, prime rib for dinner Christmas day, family gatherings all over, the whole thing. Then he was diagnosed with cancer in October 2005. Christmas that year was wonderful - all the family came over, my step-daughter was flown home from Afghanistan early, it was heartwarming and homey and made wonderful memories.

Then my dad passed away January 13, 2006. On Christmas Eve day 2006, we called Hospice for my husband. They did the intake on Christmas Day. He lasted until January 3, 2007. I haven't really done Christmas at my house since then. I did put up a couple of the small trees, but it's not to the extent we decorated in the past. Strangely enough, doing only a little is almost worse than doing nothing at all. This year, I'm doing nothing - because my Christmas stuff is still at my old house. Another snafu. My mover didn't finish the job, and now is not responding to my emails and calls. Great. At least I know where my stuff is - I just can't afford to pay extra to get it up here right now, because...

On Thursday of this week, I was laid off/ terminated/ fired. Whatever you want to call it. My boss called it "terminating our association." Totally blindsided me. Threw me for a loop. I really did not see this coming. I usually have some sort of idea about this kind of thing, but this time, nothing. Totally out of the blue. That's, I think, the hardest part of this. If I hadn't been hearing "good job" about my work, if he hadn't given me a letter three days before, listing assignments for the next few weeks and outlining the next few months, I would have had some sort of idea.

However, as I have had to say so many times before, what is simply is what is. I'm treating myself to extra time with my darling children - my son and daughter-in-law in NJ - and while I'm there, I'll send out resumes all over, looking for temporary work. The hardest part is going to be the economic reality - I won't be able to afford the money or time to pay for a bar review course, now, so I have to put off the bar exam again, until next July. On the other hand, I will have time to get more integrated into the legal community here, to make contacts, and to work off some of my law school debt, so that's a positive thing. Now I just have to find a job to enable me to do those things!

I will have a good Christmas anyway. It's impossible not to, with my daughter-in-law's mother taking charge of the holiday! She's a Christmas nut, the way I used to be, and they are a loving, giving, welcoming family. I'm very, very blessed to have all of them in my life. I'll be there Thursday, and I can't wait. I hope everyone has a good Christmas, too. My prayers this season are for peace on earth. True peace, that comes from within.

Steve at his last Christmas, 2006

Quiet Saturday...

I love quiet Saturdays. Especially rainy quiet Saturdays.

One of the features of my new house that I love the most is the huge window overlooking my covered porch. I've never had a porch before (as an adult anyway!), and the window stretches almost the whole width of the porch. It's just so peaceful to look out and watch the rain fall. I hear it might be snow by next week again!

The dog and I have spent the day snoozing, getting up for a snack, going outside briefly, then settling in to snooze again. Well, she snoozed again. I studied bar stuff. Today was Contracts. It's the area I have the most trouble with, so I'm immersing myself in it this weekend. Sort of penance for not studying the topic hard enough during law school.

Meanwhile, the dog continues to snore, and Army and Navy are playing in the background, while the rain drips off the roof of the porch. Very peaceful.

May we all find peace this holiday season.

Happy Chanukah.

Breakfast!

I have fallen in love with granola and yogurt. It's a new relationship, but a strong one. I think this will last the rest of my life.

Step 1: Make a batch of THIS granola on Sunday, while football is playing. I used slivered almonds (which I toasted while I was mixing up the oatmeal), and dried cranberries and dried cherries from Trader Joe's. I also used 4 cups of oatmeal, and still added the 1/2 cup of oil and 1/2 cup of honey. I've never added salt before, but I did the last two batches I made. It really does make all the difference.

Step 2: Put a good amount of granola in a pretty large soup bowl. (I love my Mikasa Italian Countryside china!)

Step 3: Add yogurt. I used Swiss Style Vanilla, from a large container, because it was on sale this week for $2. I had used so much already, though, that I didn't really have enough for the consistency I like. I do like Swiss Style because it's thicker. Greek would work, too. I think thinner yogurt makes it come out more like cereal with milk, which is not bad, but not my favorite.

Step 4: add more yogurt, from a container. I didn't have vanilla, so I added black raspberry flavor. Mix it all around, so it's a big mess. See why I did step-by-step pictures? It doesn't look very nice at this point. Tastes FABULOUS though!

Step 5: Eat, with gusto! Of course, I had to have black coffee with it. Because that's an unchanging part of my morning ritual.

I could eat this stuff 3 times a day. It's amazing. A nice blend of grains, nuts, fruit, dairy... it fills me up, and is healthy as all get out. YUM!

Nice lazy Saturday

Surprise! It's snowing again! Light flurries - it's too cold to do much more than that. 20 degrees this morning, which is a HUGE improvement from yesterday's temperatures in the teens! Lizzie has been sleeping all day so far. She woke up at 7 and had to go out - of course, since Saturday is my sleep-in day - but then she went right back to bed, even without her breakfast! She did get up and wander around a bit when I brought her downstairs, but now she's sleeping again. She has the right idea!

I'm spending my day doing the usual weekend stuff - laundry, cleaning, baking, knitting, reading... it's a good day to be inside.

Tomorrow, the Henry Knox Museum is having their holiday open house, at Montpelier, in Thomaston. Knox is one of my favorite characters from the Revolutionary period, and I haven't been there yet, so the holiday open house will be a nice introduction to the mansion. I may volunteer over there next summer. Or even work there part-time. Could be fun.

I'm off to transfer wash into the dryer, and to put another load in. I love weekends.

Front Yard in Snow

I love working from home

Especially on days like today. It snowed, so I haven't left the house all day. I like this. It was a light snow, barely 2 inches, but it was nice to sit in front of my very big front window and watch the snow fall, and know I didn't have to drive in it and worry about black ice or the other stupid drivers on the road.

I got a foster dog, Lizzie, from a Cocker Spaniel rescue in New York, about two weeks ago. She's 10 years old, black with a gray muzzle, and very sweet. We're having some potty training issues, but she's improving. She was in the kennel for about a month, and I think she lost track of how to let someone know when she has to go. She also sleeps very deeply and doesn't feel when she has to go, so sometimes she poops in her sleep. I have her sleeping on towels, and I do laundry a lot. It's a lot like having a toddler! She's very snuggly, and loves to run in the yard. I'm glad my front yard is fenced in - she LOVES to run out there.

In other news, work has picked up a lot. I love being able to get up a bit later - around 8 - and not having to commute! I just shower, make coffee, go out with Lizzie, then turn on my computer and get right to work. It's awesome. I can take a break when I need to, go to the post office or the store, or the dump when I need to. I do have to go meet clients and go to court occasionally, but for the most part, I'm at home. I love it. The only down side I have found is making sure I watch the clock, so I don't sit for too long, and so I remember to eat lunch. I'll look up at 3 pm and wonder why I'm so hungry, and why my behind and back hurt. It's because I've been sitting in the same spot since 8:30, with only a few short breaks to go out with Lizzie! Really, though, that is such a minor issue. I can eat a good, hot dinner every night because I have time to cook. I made cornbread this afternoon, to have with dinner. I really enjoy that part. I also really like being home with Lizzie, and having her company. It makes a big difference to me.

More later this week, when I have more time and a little less work to get done! Meantime, here's a couple of Lizzie shots:

My Maine experience so far

I've been here about a month, and it's been, well, very interesting.

I've had a few hiccups with the house. It was a bit dismaying at first because it was so different from my house on Cape Cod. Then again, as my son reminded me, it took me nearly 20 years to get the old house in shape, so I need to remember that and be patient. I love the size of the house, I love that my office is right in the house, and I love that the house has so much light coming in. It feels very comfortable.

I don't like that the heat is still dodgy - the landlord's handyman is working on it, but slowly. There are two furnaces here, one in the house and one in the office. The house one is connected to a very old oil tank, that needs to be scrapped. The office one is connected to the better oil tank, and the handyman is in the process of moving that one to the front of the house so the oil guy can deliver when there's snow on the ground. It's taking a looonnnnggg time. At least the house furnace is working right now, but I have no heat in the office. That's fine until the weather gets colder, which may happen any day now.

I am getting my boxes unpacked, and every time I get another area set up, I feel more at home. My office is set up, complete with a comfy chair with a lamp next to it, so I can read client papers in comfortably. I love the view from my office - I overlook my big side yard, and I can see the traffic coming and going on the street. My pictures are at the wall, my knick knacks are getting in place, and I have found some of my scented candles. More and more at home all the time.

The people here are very friendly and welcoming. I haven't been in a single store, diner, or even the dump when someone doesn't strike up a conversation with me. I have been to my local knitting group a couple of times, and the folks there have been welcoming.

I'm finding my way around, to the grocery store, the least expensive gas stations, the local hardware store. I'm spending quite a bit of time at the hardware store! I also have internet, HD TV and phone, so I'm a happy girl! I really feel like I'm settling in nicely. It is different, but in a good way. It's quieter, it's more peaceful, and I feel safer. I'm even training myself to leave doors unlocked when I'm inside the house! That's a huge step for me!

The next post will have more pictures. Promise.

The hardest part of moving

It's not purging the gunk out of the house, although that's hard enough. It's not even saying good bye to friends - with Facebook and email, it doesn't really feel like good bye. It's not even planning what I can live without while the packing is going on. That's kind of like packing for a vacation. Or so I'm telling myself!

No, the hardest part is arranging for daily life changes. Things like transferring prescriptions (the nearest branch of the chain pharmacy I use is 30 minutes away), finding doctors, figuring out where I can get the oil changed on my car (again, the nearest dealer for my car is 30 minutes away), and the library! That will be my biggest change, I think.

I am a library devotee. I order so many books at my library down here that the librarians know me by name. I order so many books, I get a bin with my name on it when they start to build up. The librarians even call me when they haven't seen me in a while. I used the library for studying for exams and writing papers for law school. I used the library computers when my computer was on the fritz, while I was waiting for it to be fixed. I used the library printers when mine fritzed, while I was waiting for the new one to arrive. That's a lot of library usage.

The local library in the town I will be living in doesn't carry most of the books I had on reserve at the library I'm leaving, so I will have to order them through their system. Ok, no problem. But, to renew them, I will have to either call or email the library. I have been so spoiled. My library down here has a system where I can search their library online, order a book I want, and have it waiting for me whenever I'm ready to pick it up. I can also order books from around the state, not just from my local library system. The new library's changes are not bad, it will just be different, and I will have to remember the differences. I am moving to a smaller town, after all. The comfort of a smaller town comes with some adjustments. I will not be one of those people who moves to a small town and then complains about the inconveniences! I'll still have my Internet access, which opens up the world. I'll have my Overdrive subscriptions, so I can read books on my Kindle. I can order books from around Maine and pick them up at the library in town. I will still have access to the books I want to read, it might just take a few days to get them. Again, just different.

The Boy and His Wife come up next weekend to help pack, and to say good bye to the house. We're like that. Houses have personalities to us, I guess, and this one holds a lot of memories for us. Then the official packing by movers begins October 2! It's coming up fast! They will pack me over two days, then load, drive and unload on the 4th. I have my Internet installation scheduled for the 5th. It's rather tightly scheduled, so I really hope all goes smoothly.

Wish me luck!

A little rant, and a little news

First, the Rant: I am so sick of stupid ads on TV. The ones that treat viewers as if we're all stupid and automatically fall for the lowest, basest stereotypes. The ones that repeat every 5 minutes, because viewers are too dull to have gotten it the first time around. The ones that are so artsy and esoteric that I can't even figure out what they're selling. The ones that tell consumers that they're not worth crap unless they have the latest, greatest "new and improved" version of whatever they bought last year. {Don't get me on my soapbox about "new and improved."} I'm not going to mention crummy grammar or the Stupid Dad stereotype - although I could. Easily. I guess I will just have to stick with my Tivo or my DVDs, so I don't have to be subjected to the idiocy that is most marketing.

On the News side - I'm moving away from Cape Cod! After 25 years! I have a job offer in a small town in Maine called Waldoboro, and I'll be moving right around Columbus Day weekend. I have signed a lease with a nice couple who will rent my house on the Cape, and who I believe will take good care of it, which puts my mind at ease. I'm excited about moving forward with my life and my career, although leaving here will be hard. I always said I'd have to be taken out of here with a shovel, because I would be dead before I left. Guess I tempted the gods with that one. Of course, that was said when my life was wonderfully sewn up - my husband was still alive, I still liked teaching, my family was still close by. Now the family has moved on themselves, as they should. Teaching lost its appeal, and law gained appeal, and my husband has been gone more than 5 years now. Time to move on. I'm excited for the new career, the new house, and the small, quiet town I'll be moving to, although I'm sure I will have a good cry when I actually leave.

Meantime, I'm purging the garbage out of my house - even though I did that already after my husband passed, or so I thought. Amazing how much junk we accumulate, isn't it? I'm getting quotes from moving companies, looking for a church and a knitting group in Maine, and thinking ahead to winter. Finally, I'll get to wear all my knitted stuff! Possibly all at once! Glad I knit socks... and mittens, and hats, and sweaters...

Maine, here I come!