A Sunday Morning Rant - and Giveaway!

The house is silent after a fun, chaotic visit with my daughter and granddaughter. My granddaughter is like a whirling dervish these days, singing, dancing, elaborate conversations with her stuffies. She leaves books scattered around the house but always remembers where she has left her favourite ones, Where Is Curious George? and the Pout Pout Fish in the Big Big Dark.

Saturday afternoon - After tidying, and starting a load of laundry, I poured myself a glass of wine, turned down the fireplace, and wrapped a blanket around me, attempting to conserve propane. Time to finish this week’s blog, but first, I had to confirm the final travel details for our upcoming trip- Vietnam visas and flights from Hanoi to Da Nang and, five days later, Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh. I am feeling organized. The only item left on my to-do list is to buy a dress for my youngest daughter’s wedding in Bali. My kurta for the nikkah ceremony arrived from India. It is gorgeous. Now, to find the perfect dress for the western ceremony.

I opened my draft blog file, looking for blog 178, as yet untitled. But the only file in the folder was a page of blog post ideas. I did a search of my documents. Nothing. I wondered if I had written in my Notes on my iPad. Again, nothing. Also, nothing in iCloud or my trash. The post had disappeared.

Frustrated, I went through the whole process again, but the file was nowhere to be found. I experienced a moment of doubt. I had written it, hadn’t I? This wasn’t just something I had composed in my head - which I have done in the past!

So, what to do? I had no desire to re-write the bog and decided to skip blogging this week. I poured myself another glass of wine, filled a small bowl with cheezies - yes, unhealthy, but I am an emotional eater - and curled up on the couch with the mystery I was reading, Between Two Strangers by Kate White.

Sunday morning - I woke up at 6:00 am with a twinge of guilt. I am committed to my blog and felt uneasy not posting anything. Usually, I have an extra blog or two ready in case I have a busy week or lack inspiration, but I had nothing. I opened my draft blog file again, hoping that blog 178 might have reappeared. Nope. Okay, I thought, definitely no blog this week.

Later Sunday morning - And now it is just after 11 o’clock. My discomfort has now grown out of proportion to the situation. Why can’t I just let this go for a week? But I can’t. I feel like I have to give you something!

I laugh as I write these words because I know only a handful of you start your Sunday morning with my blog. Or so you’ve told me. You may wonder why I’m not posting this morning, but most of you probably don’t notice when I miss a week of blogging.

And so, I thought I would share some quotes I saved this week and offer you a giveaway and a chance to win a book!

Quotes

The price of aging is high: constant aches, real pain and barely survivable losses. But each time my hip unseizes, it reminds me that this life is not going to go on forever, and that is what makes it so frigging precious. Another gift of aging is the precipitous decline in melodrama. Enjoying how unremarkable life is takes practice and time, and then the little things start to shine and delight. Life gets smaller and in its smallness it starts winking at you. - Anne Lamott, At 33, I Knew Everything. At 69, I Know Something Much More Important

Life is amazing. And then it’s awful. And then it’s amazing again. And in between the amazing and awful it’s ordinary and mundane and routine. Breathe in the amazing, hold on through the awful, and relax and exhale during the ordinary. That’s just living, heartbreaking, soul-healing, amazing, awful, ordinary life. And it’s breathtakingly beautiful. - L.R.Knost

Casa Casal de Loivos - Built in 1658, this 8-room hotel was our last stop on our Douro Valley hiking tour with Portugal Greenwalks.

This morning, I am in a cabin on the Platte River with three friends. We are on a writing retreat, silent most of the time, as we work on our projects. Right now I am listening to a coal train rumble by and watching the river. Yesterday I could see ice floes everywhere but today they have disappeared. I am waiting for the enormous old groundhog who lives on the riverbank to emerge from his den, and I am watching lines of geese fly over with the sun on their bellies. Ducks skitter past, just above the water. A bald eagle nests in the tallest tree across the river. I am feeling as happy as I ever feel. I am with friends, writing, and watching the river. - Mary Pipher, Facebook post, February 9, 2024

Travelling to Portugal and Spain? Nine Accommodation Recommendations

Last fall, I spent a week in Sintra before meeting my husband in Porto to begin eight weeks of meandering through Portugal and Spain. Several of you have asked if I would share a list of our accommodations. If you would like a copy of my list, along with links, please send your name and email address to me at agelesspossibilities@shaw.ca, and I’ll send you a copy this week.

What do you think about Ageless Possibilities? Send me a quote for a chance to win a book!

Over the next six months, I will be doing a slight re-vamp of my website. I’d love to include some quotes from you! Why do you read Ageless Possibilities? How do my stories resonate with your life? Email me a quote with your first name, age, and city where you live for a chance to win one of three life story books! By submitting a quote, you are giving me permission to include your quote on my revised website. I will draw three names from readers in Canada and the United States on Saturday, February 17. Unfortunately, postage costs prevent me from extending this to other countries - but you are still welcome to send me a quote. Email to agelesspossibilities@shaw.ca.