Blogging again!

Almost two months later, here I am again. Blogging since 2006 recently seemed like too long a time. Having a vacation, various trips, and enduring the hot summer of south TX (which continues), I will attempt to get back to writing. 

So here is a random sampling of my retired life:

• I have gotten two postcards from Dee, who commented on my last post in July that she would like to exchange postcards! I have enjoyed her cards so much that I feel like I have found a new friend! It is really easy to write a few lines on a postcard and count it as "mail." 

• The Wisdom Class started again this past Tuesday with a new book that is sparking interesting conversations: The December Project: An Extraordinary Rabbi and a Skeptical Seeker Confront Life's Greatest Mystery by Sara Davidson.

 Although Reb Zalman died this past July, he spent the previous two years talking to Sara Davidson, a seeking and spiritually cynical writer, about dying and death, with stories about his life thrown in. It is very interesting how he met theologian Howard Thurman when he was a young man and thought he was the janitor!

Later, he came to admire him as his professor.

I liked how Reb Zalman described dying (or the "dark end"):

"I don't think it's all dark. Something continues. It's as if the body and soul are tied together with little strings. The closer you get to leaving, the more the strings loosen and the more you connect with greater awareness, the expanded mind." (6)

So often Americans look to Eastern religions for further answers, but it seemed time for us to look at Judaism, the foundation of Christianity in the Wisdom Class.

Reb Zalman and Sara Davidson

•  On the various trips we've taken, I have read a lot of books. I finished the witches trilogy by Diana Harkness with The Book of Life. It's been fun to read all three books; I even re-read the first two before reading the third when it was published this summer. Just days ago, I finished the latest Louise Penny mystery that features Inspector Gamache: The Long Way Home. Louise Penny writes better with each mystery; this one was excellent. 

• I found other books on my travels in independent book stores, so those will be on my list to write about in the near future. 

• And here is a wonderful quote about listening, which was our opening meditation in the Wisdom Class this past Tuesday:

• “Listening is a magnetic and strange thing, a creative force. When we really listen to people there is an alternating current, and this recharges us so that we never get tired of each other. We are constantly being re-created.”
  
  
  
                      ~~Brenda Ueland (1891-1985) writer, editor, teacher of writing
   

Postcards!

Postcards! Long ago, I read a newspaper article where someone advocated sending postcards in place of letters, which took too long to write. That's still a valid suggestion. Dash off a thought!

I like to send postcards, always have and probably always will. As I get ready to go to WA State for our annual summer visit, I am wondering if any of my friends would like me to mail them a postcard. . . .If I don't already have your address, which could be likely for blogging friends anyway, please send it to me!

I have my postcards stamps along with my little address book ready to be packed. I can easily pen in a new address.

It will be nice to leave the heat and humidity behind for a few weeks and to see daughters, Chuck's parents and family, and friends. We are always reassured that two people stay in our house to take care of the dogs (and one cat) while we are gone.
Do you want some mail?

Friday Five: Trips

Last week and this week, I am driving long distances in Texas, first to Houston and today to Austin from Corpus Christi: both times to meet relatives from Canada flying here. This makes me think of trips taken in my life: vacation, moving, visiting relatives, visiting friends, seeking a new home, going away to school, and probably many more.

For today’s Friday Five, tell about five different trips you have made in your life due to different reasons, modes of travel, or whatever category you choose! 

1. The most recent trip was getting my cousin Margaret at the airport in Houston. There were also multiple trips in our two days in Houston--to various restaurants, to the museums, and our return to Corpus Christi, where the GPS saved me. I got lost a few times, but the GPS "recalculated" and eventually got me to the desired location.

2. In 1964, my parents and I returned to the USA after living on a Navy base in Japan for the previous three years on a ship. It was a Navy ship that seemed nice to me; it had a theater. As I recall, I slept on the top bunk while my mother slept on the bottom, and I cannot remember if my father was in the same cabin or a different one! I remember the booming of the ship as it slapped down into the water during a storm, which was scary. Every day for the eleven days on board, I wrote a long letter to my best friend Nancy. When we reached San Francisco, I mailed all those letters as soon as I arrived. She told me that her father called her to tell her that he'd gotten the mail at his office, and she biked there to retrieve them all.

3.  In 1974 (only ten years later!), Chuck and I drove from Virginia to Oregon, where he was going to start graduate school at Oregon State University in Corvallis. He drove a U-Haul truck while I drove our blue Datsun 510. At some point, we got separated, and I grew fearful that we had lost each other so I speeded up. I arrived at a pre-determined motel, called my parents, the police, etc. on a pay-phone. (No cell phones!) One operator told me that their had been an accident with a U-Haul truck, so I was very frightened. But Chuck showed up, asking me how I ever could have thought that the U-Haul truck could be faster than our car!

4. When I was growing up, we only visited relatives when my father was transferred to a new military base and we were moving. I remember moving from Quantico, VA to Camp Pendleton, CA in the summer of 1958. I had heart-shaped ash-trays made out of Play-Dough to give to my grandparents we visited in Arkansas on the way. They were safely sitting in the sunlight of the rear window sill of the car.

5. My mother told me how she and I flew on a propeller plane to Seattle when I was a small girl. She said it was very turbulent weather, and the plane was deathly quiet. The only voice heard was hers as she continued to read me stories.

Friday Five: Favorites

Just getting back from four days of silence, I am suddenly thrust back into the world. Wrestling with choices and seeing elderly decline in others, I am flummoxed about a Friday Five–so think of a favorite off the top of your head for:

1. food--salmon! Being from the Pacific Northwest, I love salmon. My husband Chuck grills the best salmon in the world--much better than in restaurants in WA, OR, and here in TX! He wraps it in aluminum foil, first spreading melted butter, lemon juice and dill weed on it. Yummy!

2. drink--I like HOT tea when it's cold, so here in south TX, that's only in the winter. Visiting colder climates, it is wonderful to drink hot tea. Last year I discovered Harney and Sons Tea Blenders and really like their special Hot Cinnamon Spice Tea when it is cold.

3. animal--Dogs! Although cats seem to like me more than I like them. Visiting a friend today, her cat kept kneading my arm and purring--leaving scratch marks under my sweater!

4. color--Green! We have three rooms in our house painted green, one wallpapered with green leaves, and green carpet in four rooms!

5. time of day--Cool, quiet mornings, especially when no one else is awake.

Bonus: Any favorite you haven’t mentioned above that you want to bring up!

Writing and receiving letters, cards, and/or postcards--snail mail!! And I just received a nice note from former blogger Catherine.

Friday Five: Love!

RevKarla brings today's Friday Five to RevGalBlogPals:

Happy Valentine’s Day!  I know that some (a lot) of you are digging out from snow and ice and lack of electricity.  We feel for you, and love you!     Some of you have a love-hate relationship with Valentine’s Day.  ‘Nuff said.     I happen to enjoy Valentine’s Day in spite of having exactly one date ever on VD (before I was married).   I love celebrating Love!   So, all that is to say is that our Friday Five is to tell us about five random things that you love.

I could fill up each of the five loves with all my children, grandchildren, husband, and friends I love. Instead, I will try to branch out to other aspects of my life.

1. Cards and Mail: I love to buy and send cards. (I also love to receive them, which is sadly a rare event for me.) Whenever I visit somewhere new, I have to look at card shops, as there aren't many "different" cards offered in Corpus Christi for sale. This month, I am participating in A Month of Letters Challenge for the month of February.

Recipe Here

I love to send Valentines, maybe because of being a former elementary school teacher back in the days when it was possible to celebrate Valentines Day. Also because my grandmother always sent me beautiful, glittery Valentines as I grew up.

2. Baking: I love to bake, especially cookies. This week I made Valentine pumpkin bread which was surprisingly easy. I found the recipe on Pinterest. The pin showed chocolate cake with hearts (from a Sara Lee's pound cake), but I tried pumpkin bread for the Wisdom Class on Tuesday. It was a hit with everyone in the class and was so easy! I bet you could cut out different designs, like maybe a star or a tree.

3. Words With Friends: I love playing this game on my Ipad and Iphone. It is like Scrabble with a partner. I don't often win, because I play too quickly. My oldest son DC continually beats my by hundreds of points!

4. Soups: I love making big pots of soup, a rediscovered passion with our month of cold, cold weather (for TX!). I have made five different soups from my newest soup cookbook, The New England Soup Factory Cookbook, and each one has been judged by all as excellent. In fact, I have made their recipe for Vegetarian Muligatawny four different times already--twice for Chuck and me; for my family at Christmas; and for my family in Austin at AA's request (which greatly pleased me). I've been making such big pots of soup that I can share some with friends, too, while we have it for multiple days. I am grateful that Chuck likes soup.

5. Books: I love to read, look at, discuss books!  I even have a Pinterest board About Books with over 1,000 pins! I really love children's books, so it is a joy to find books for granddaughters Avery and Emma! It is exciting to find new ones, like Good Night, Construction Site which is so appropriate for these girls because their daddy supervises construction at apartment complexes almost every day. It is arriving for them tomorrow!

Friday Five: Randomness

RevKarla brings today's Friday Five for RevGalBlogPals, which I am going to do as quickly as I can because we're leaving for Austin to visit grandbaby Avery and her parents, who just happen to be our oldest son and his wife.

1. How are you?  What’s up with you?
I am fine and am hurrying to leave with Chuck for the 4-hour drive to Austin, TX to see Avery and DC and AA. We are looking forward to this and are grateful that two college girls will stay at our house and take care of our three dogs and one cat.

The other good news is that my RA seems to settling down. My rheumatologist suggested moving to 3 weeks between shots of Humira instead of 2. I've gotten to 2 1/2 weeks with no blips, so in the future the time may grow.....

2.  Last Saturday, I went to the outlet store and stocked up on underwear for the year.  I love a bunch of new fresh underdrawers!  I also love a cabinet full of paper towels.   What silly thing makes you happy?
Cute and unusual cards! I love to go to different places, like Seattle, Portland and Austin, and find shops with unique cards. Due to my daughters AE and KA, I like to find letterpress items, too.

We loved visiting the Oblation Papers store in Portland, Oregon, which prints letterpress cards and invitations.

3.  Give a shout out to someone you love, appreciate, or want to thank!
Thank you to Martha for organizing the new RevGal blogging site!

4. Miss Kansas has the Serenity Prayer tatooed on the side of her body.  I sadly do not have a tatoo, and maybe you do, but if you were going to get a prayer tatooed on the side of your body, what would it be? 
Bless ___________, change me.

5.  Use some or all or a form of the following words in a sentence:   jello, kittens, mercy, dump-truck, tabuleh, terror, skipping, monkey, Rev. , health, and snoring.
(I'm glad you wrote "some")
The Rev. was snoring peacefully, while the kittens were skipping over the jello in the health room where the monkey was lying on the toy dump-truck.

Friday Five: What's Sneaking Up?

Revjarla brings today's Friday Five to RevGalBlogPals:

Who knew it was the Second Friday of the month?   

Thank goodness something reminded me, but my apologies for the late post.  I have been busy getting ready for Blizzard Nemo (really, 24 inches in Boston?  Why on earth don't I have a snow blower???) and pondering life transitions--oh, but enough about me.  

How about you?  (NO SNOW in south Texas!)

1) What is sneaking up on you, and what have you been thinking about?

Both Valentine's Day and Lent are sneaking up on me. Since I am committed to writing every day with the Month of Letters Challenge, I've been planning on sending lots of Valentine cards, as usual. BUT I had overlooked it being Ash Wednesday so soon! 

2)  What will you have for lunch today?

Maybe today is the day for a chicken breast sub at Subway with my husband Chuck. We like to split a foot-long, with him joking that we should measure it. . . .but we don't.

3)  If you were to get snowed in for two days, and you need to hunker down, what essentials and treats would you store up?

Soup making items and good mysteries!

I discovered a new mystery writer who writes fun, fluffy mysteries that take place in Australia in the 1920's--with a rich, smart and outrageous flapper named Phryne Fisher by Kerry Greenwood. While I was feeling unwell in the past week, I read lots of these from the library. Plus, I learned how easy it was to buy cheap ebooks on my Kindle, which reminded me of how cheap paperbacks seemed back in the last century.

(And the first Phryne Fisher book Cocaine Blues costs $0 for the Kindle right now!)

4) Tell me a story about one awesome thing you have experienced in the last couple of weeks. 

I am appreciating God's inspiration in getting me back to the discipline of daily meditation/centering prayer.

5)  What is your favorite office supply to splurge on? (now THAT is random, right?)

Not necessarily an office supply, but what I love to buy are cards and notecards! Always have and always will, as it does not seem like the end of written mail will occur during my lifetime.

Month of Letters!

Well, it is February 7, and I continue to write a card (and one long letter!) every day. Silly though it is, I am excited at the award badges I have received at A Month of Letters Challenge:

Today's Mail!

Trying to clean off some of the piles of papers on my desk, I resurrected three U.S. postcards that were printed in 1988. The postage was only 15 cents, but the newest rates for postcards is 33 cents. I found some extra stamps in our stamp box to add 18 cents to each little plain postcard so that I could write notes on them and mail them to friends today. The decor for the cards were the various colors of stamps that cover the top of these "antique" postcards were sent to Seattle, Cincinnati, and Zionsville. I wonder how long those skinny little white cards will take to get to their destinations.
They were fun to send, eespecially using my printing from when I was a second grade school teacher--that printing seems mostly legible.

I am trying to mail one letter or any other form of mail each day during this month of February. It's fun to send the notes and cards I have meant to send and never did. Now is the time!

USPS New Postal Rates

Did you know that the U. S. Postal rates just went up? In fact, they were raised four days ago! Thanks goodness, for "forever" stamps that don't have a price stamped upon them!

With thanks to Letter Writers' Alliance for this image.

A Month of Letters!

From the Letter Writers' Alliance:

February is almost here and that means it is time for A Month of Letters. Begun in 2012 by writer Mary Robinette Kowal, A Month of Letters has a simple concept- write one letter  each day of February and write a return to whatever you receive. It was a lot of fun last year and should only be even more successful this second-go-round. You can sign-up on the website and I'd also recommend following her blog on the subject. Plus, you can download fancy stickers for free and buy a pretty postcard. It's all great fun.


If you want something from me in the mail, email me your address!

Friday Five: Help!

Martha Spong brings today's Friday Five to RevGalBlogPals Blog:

his time last Friday I was on my way to the airport to pick up your usual host for first Friday Five. We had a mighty to-do list for the Labor Day weekend, and her accomplishments were so far beyond impressive as to be heroic. A dumpster is now full of water-damaged junk from my basement.

This was not a job I could have accomplished by myself. I had to ask for help.

I hate to ask for help. I love to give it. You may identify with these feelings.

So, for this Friday Five, please list four ways you have been helped when you didn't want to ask for it and one way you had a chance to help that meant a lot to you.

1. Like Kathrynzg, I was helped by Martha last month when I'd forgotten to do my third Friday's Friday Five. I was still in Washington State and had completely forgotten about it. Martha volunteered to bring one on, for which I am still grateful!

2. After my shoulder surgery and the ensuing recovery in January, my dear husband Chuck helped me in seemingly minor ways--like dressing me (and helping me to get my bra on!), blowing my hair dry and even putting soap on me in the shower. My right arm was immobilized, and I was severely handicapped, being very right-dominant.

3. Every Tuesday morning our book study called The Wisdom Class meets. This is a group that tends to wander off on various other topics. It always helps when someone in the class redirects the conversation back to the book, instead of me always interjecting, "We need to get back to the book."

4. Last Christmas, my daughter-in-law AA and daughter MJ cooked the big Christmas dinner and all the other meals around that time, because I was really sick with the flu. It was such a relief to know that they were taking care of everything, willingly and enthusiastically. I'm sure everyone enjoyed their hospitality!

5. It's not easy to say who helped whom in many instances when supposedly I was "the good guy." There is reciprocal love in giving and receiving. I used to be better about sending cards and letters than I am now. In the past, friendships developed and deepened through letters/notes in a practice that began with concern for someone being ill or lonely. Even with few or no replies, I always felt a greater relationship with the person I was writing to.

Perhaps this will get me started writing more again. . . . .

Writing Letters of Sympathy

Due to my mother's death in 1992 and my father's death in 2002, I have long felt that I should write a letter, not merely a card, to someone who has lost a loved one through death. Taking the time to do this is something I put off though, as it takes so much time and thought. But I found encouragement from the following blogs, which I am directing you to:

Today at the Letter Writers Alliance I found a lovely link to Cole Imperi's blog Simplicity Embelished:

Donovan (LWA) wrote:
"Most recently, I found a great wealth of points on what not to say in sympathy writing over at the European Paper Company blog. This article, written by Cole Imperi, really analysed some of the typical items mentioned in sympathy notes and had insights that I hadn't considered."

As you probably feel, I would rather get a personal note saying the sender is thinking of me than nothing at all. Cole even writes a post about "Why I write letters".

Send someone a postcard, note, card or letter!

National Postcard Week!

I just learned that this is National Postcard Week! It started on Sunday, May 6 and goes on until Saturday, May 12.

Although I had never heard about this special week until I saw it tonight on the Letter Writers' Alliance blog, I then found more information about this week at a blog that is dedicated to Edward Gorey entitled Goreyana:

"National Post Card Week began in 1984 with the idea that the International Federation of Postcard Dealers and different clubs would create and send cards to celebrate the postcard and promote postcard collecting as a hobby. From 1984 to 1995, Edward Gorey created a series of postcards celebrating NPW for Gotham Book Mart. The cards announced an annual exhibition of postcards at the gallery and invited recipients to a cocktail party to mark the opening."

On vacations, I love to send postcards to friends and family. Sometimes I buy too many to send, and I end up storing them in a basket in a cupboard. I guess I will go and retrieve some to send out this week. I will have to buy some new postcard stamps, which now cost  32 cents so I'll have to buy some new stamps.

Write More Letters!

Letter Writers Alliance has this image for free downloading for wallpaper for your computer or tablet. I thought it was just a good reminder for me and maybe a prompt for you to send a note or card!

We've Got Mail!

Today is the first day of February and the first day of my letter-writing challenge.
That challenge is:

In the month of February, mail at least one item through the post every day it runs. Write a postcard, a letter, send a picture, or a cutting from a newspaper, or a fabric swatch.

Bonnie of Bonnie's Books is also participating in this effort. In fact, she and I have exchanged addresses and are going to send something to each other!

This will be fun! And if you want me to write to you, please email me your address by writing to me at hiltjan (at) gmail (dot) com.

s l o w i n g down

I am getting sick of my computer. I've been avoiding it with my arm in the sling, partly because it is more difficult to access with my arm in the sling AND partly because the computer is SO slow. Ever since Norton updated its security system, my computer gets slower and slower. Norton always seems to be doing a complete scan, even though we have unchecked those boxes on the Norton program.

It is frustrating, because I am used to quicker responses. Sometimes I sit for prolonged periods for actions to occur, even at times trying to delete one email! My Ipod Touch reacts more promptly than this pc.

I guess it is good for me to spend less time on the computer. With February approaching, I will be writing a note or postcard--with more (free) time to do so!

Letter Writing Challenge!

My daughter AE in Seattle sent me a link to the "A Month of Letters Challenge."

I have actually signed up to do this for the month of February! I've always loved snail mail, and since my shoulder surgery I have gotten much more in my mailbox. So I am encouraged to do the same for my friends.

Here is the challenge:Last September, I took a month off from the internet. During my vacation, I told people that they could correspond with me by paper letter. Some people did. Some people still are. Every letter delights me.

When I write back, I find that I slow down and write differently than I do with an email. Email is all about the now. Letters are different, because whatever I write needs to be something that will be relevant a week later to the person to whom I am writing. In some ways it forces me to think about time more because postal mail is slower. “By the time you get this…” It is relaxing. It is intimate. It is both lasting and ephemeral.

How so? I find that I will often read the letters that I receive twice. Once when I get them and again as I write back. So, that makes it more lasting. It is more ephemeral because I don’t have copies of the letters that I write and I am the only one who has copies of the letters that my correspondents write. So, more ephemeral.

When was the last time you got a letter in the mail? December sees a lot of mail and you remember that sense of delight when the first card arrives. You can have that more often.

I have a simple challenge for you.

1. In the month of February, mail at least one item through the post every day it runs. Write a postcard, a letter, send a picture, or a cutting from a newspaper, or a fabric swatch.
2. Write back to everyone who writes to you. This can count as one of your mailed items.

All you are committing to is to mail 24 items. Why 24? There are four Sundays and one US holiday. In fact, you might send more than 24 items. You might develop a correspondence that extends beyond the month. You might enjoy going to the mail box again.

Feeling intimidated? It’s fewer words than NaNoWriMo and I know how many of you do that. Join me in The Month of Letters Challenge.

Sincerely yours,

Mary Robinette Kowal

How about you? Even a postcard or a picture will count!

Personal Mail 1963-2011

The U. S. Post Office continues to lose money. They are planning to close processing centers so that first class mail will take longer to reach recipients. The only complaints seem to be from companies about bills and payments taking longer to get to the proper addresses.

Unlike the above commercial for zip codes from 1963, regular citizens of the USA do not seem to be affected by the projected change in mail delivery--or the media assumes we do not care. I object to it, because I like to write notes and cards to friends and family and dislike the way such mail will take longer for them to receive.

In 1963 the Post Office visibly encouraged people to use zip codes, because back then there was no internet and little long-distance phone service. Living in Japan 1961-64, we came back to direct dialing on the phone and zip codes for mail!

I feel sad that letter writing is a dying art. In fact, a dear friend died in October at the age of 94 years and she was my most consistent correspondent. Her demise and also her age illustrate that the era of handwritten correspondence is disappearing.

Now I feel like the Postal Service is contributing to the idea that handwritten correspondence is outdated and slow. Snail mail will be even slower in the future.

Sad. . . .maybe my age (61) also shows why I still like to write with a pen, though I must admit I don't do it as frequently or prolifically as I did in the past.

Don't you like to get a "real" note (not a bill or advertisement) in the mail? At least, we'll get a few more in this holiday season, but after that I don't know.

Preparing for the Future

Oddly, I have spent much of today blogging for the future days in November while I am in Russia. It has been fun to post where I will (hopefully) be, along with a quote, poem or prayer that I like. This is not starting until November 1st, but I hope you will come back and look to see what is going on here even when I am on another continent.

Anticipating the future is getting me more interested in blogging again, an enthusiasm that lately diminished. I guess I've been too preoccupied with my health, dealing with new medications in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Time is also taken up with the water aerobics classes I attend each morning at the YWCA. And now I am trying to get things together for this trip to Russia where the temperatures will be at least 40 degrees colder than here in south Texas.

Since blogging is also a way for me to fulfill my desire to "write letters," I don't want to give that up. At least my fingers have been more agile lately so that I can type and also handwrite notes.