I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the passage of time. Why is it that as I get older, time seems to move by at an accelerating rate? I’ve been wondering: is it just me, or do others sitting here in the middle-aged cheap seats feel the same way? Most research seems to suggest that my perceptions of time have a lot to do with where I am in my life cycle AND what increment of time I am measuring. In time perception studies, adults in mid-life [MOI!] report that the hours and days pass at … [Read more...]
What’s Your Car Avatar?
It was with a bit of a sad heart that this week, after ten years and 150k miles of faithful service, I finally had to pick an upgrade to replace Ol’ Bessie. She’s been a reliable chariot indeed, with only one spectacular breakdown near the end; and even then she had the good sense to snap her serpentine belt right in front of the Plow and Hearth outlet. Fear not friends, Bessie will now live out her years down at the lake, housed in a spacious and clean garage and saved for weekends tooling … [Read more...]
Don’t I Look Great… For Sixty?!
Busted. Here’s how it went down…. I had been pestering hubby Greg to start putting out on the dresser his clothes, and his everyday “must-haves”, for the next day before he climbed into bed each night. He’s a grown man, and he can certainly dress himself, but I had become weary of the o’dark-thirty mad dash around the bedroom in search of matching socks, shoes, cell phone, car keys, belt, etc. He had obliged and it had been working out pretty well… until last week. On a recent early morning, … [Read more...]
What Fifteen Thousand College Students Are Still Teaching Me About Love (Happy Valentine’s Day)
**This blog posted has been updated from its original posting on February 14, 2012** Observing our world from the middle-aged cheap seats, I can recite a litany of reasons to not love what I see. School shootings, freak and destructive storms, crazy political rancor – it can all make a gal a little despondent. However, in the spirit of this upcoming Valentine's Day, I would like to instead share that hope - and youth - springs eternal and is most certainly thriving in a place that has taken a … [Read more...]
A Blog By Any Other Name
As hard as it is to believe, this coming week marks the one year anniversary of my blog launch. YEA! Happy Anniversary! A big THANK YOU to everyone who has followed and encouraged me, commented, and provided wonderful feedback. When I began this journey, I had NO idea what to expect. Would I be able to find something interesting to write about on a regular basis? Would anyone stop by, read, and maybe even leave a comment? Would the blog become a giant time-suck and get in the way of: my … [Read more...]
There Once Was a Girl From the South…
Who never stopped running her mouth…OK, I think we all know where this is going. Do you know what a limerick is? A limerick is a funny little poem containing five lines. The last words of the first, second, and fifth lines all rhyme with each other. Here is an example that most of us will remember from our childhoods: There are a few things that the Irish truly cherish: a good tale; a worthy competition; and the occasional fine spirit (liquid or ethereal, you decide). This is why, as a … [Read more...]
Whoa…. I Just Said What?!
As it’s the end of the year, I’ve been reflecting a bit on the happenings in my life across 2012. Overall, from my vantage point up here in the middle-aged cheap seats, it was a pretty good year. We did lose too many good friends as they left this world to move on to their next adventures. Reaching the mid-life marker seems to bring with it the reality that some of us leave this world too soon. 2012 also seemed to bring many opportunities for me to do or say things that I never thought I would … [Read more...]