(From the Archives of Not Your Grandmother's 70, October 2018) What would you tell your younger self? Ah, the time machine question. I was recently challenged to write about what I would tell my younger self. Obviously: “Keep writing!” I wrote as a young girl. When...
From the September 2015 Archives Causes, campaigns, elections. Everyone has an opinion. Or do they? I am dismayed at the number of people who seem to be anti-having any opinions or at least think you should keep them to yourself. Stay quiet. Keep your opinions to...
Purses, totes, handbags, pocketbooks. Women have owned all these for as long as I can remember. We always have to have our purse - handbag - with us. Need tissues, lipstick, a checkbook, a wallet, and now a cell phone. Even multiple cell phones. Men are mystified by...
Spiritual advisor, counselor, guru, therapist, resident philosopher, teacher – all terms for someone who gives you guidance mainly by listening without judgment, perhaps interjecting just the right words of wisdom. Many people pay for such advice, but most of us...
I have been reading recommendations that say it is not appropriate to compliment little girls on how pretty they are. I do it all the time. “Oh, you are so pretty.” We don’t say that to young boys. We might say they are cute, but we mean cute as children are...
(The picture above: Graduation from Western State University College of Law in Irvine, California. To my left is my son-in-law Doug Vavrick and to my right is my daughter Kathleen Quirk.) Funny, sometimes we experience what would be life-changing events, and we know...
How many New Year’s Eves has it been? I remember the year I said that I had no expectations of anything happening in the coming year. Funny, before the year was over, I was married. The one and only marriage I have ever had. While that may be a subject of future...
You ain’t never been blue; no, no, no You ain’t never been blue, Till you’ve had that mood indigo. That feelin' goes stealin' down to my shoes... You know what it is. The pits, the gloomies, down in the dumps. Rolled up in a ball on the bathroom floor. In...
I recently took a group tour abroad with what we politely call “mature” people. Most were couples, and something that stood out as unusual for such a group was that most women had different names than their husbands. I commented to one of the women that I found this...
(Yes, these are words to a song) FunnyDid you hear thatFunnyYeah, the guy said honey,You’re a funny girlThat’s me; I just keep themIn stitches doubled in halfAnd though I may be all wrong for the guyI’m good for a laughI guess it’s not funnyLife is far from sunnyWhen...
The question for today: How to impart wisdom to those following behind without sounding like a know-it grumpy old person. I started this blog when I celebrated my 70th birthday. My challenge for the BIG birthday was a two-week trip down the Colorado River through the...
I have been reminiscing over past posts, and this one still rings true. It is amazing how life repeats itself. Here we go: Today I took a walk on the beach, hoping to find a solution to a problem I had been wrestling with. I found an answer, but it was not what I...
We all have rituals. Some around events, holidays, and rites of passage. When do we find we must create new traditions? I recall years ago when I picked up my grandson from daycare. We had regular “gramma dates.” He is, at this time, four years or so. He tells...
Do you ever have days when your life sucks? I don’t mean significant momentous tragic events like a health problem, serious relationship issues, or, God forbid, a car collision or other disaster. No, I mean just one of those days where you have what we may call the...
I hate it. Always have. I feel like the naïve young woman who got on a train and traveled solo across the country from Spokane, Washington, to Dallas, Texas. I had to navigate changing trains, ordering meals, and getting my luggage. But there was my handsome fiancé at...
How did it happen? It wasn’t always so. The Air Force Officer was with his young wife (that would be me). The pretty new teacher. Once, an organization needed to nominate someone for “Man of The Year,” and I was selected because the nominee had to be under 35. I was...
I have a concert ticket. What is it I hope to see? I feel that I have seen all the concerts on my bucket list. One of my earliest was one I didn’t know was a big deal until much later in life. I wish I had paid more attention. I was in a tiny jazz club in Seattle. The...
I didn’t really lose it. It was just put away for a long time. I don’t know when I found it again or what made me even look for it. After all, I had more exciting necklaces to wear, and the simple little gold pendant was not meeting my fashion sense at the time. Now...
