A few days ago, Naturally Savvy, for which I am the Savvy Over 60 contributor, posted my article: Ten Things I Wish I Knew before I Turned 40. I put a lot of thought into that article, and even though I came up with ten things as my editor suggested, I know it is still incomplete. I didn't address religion, or money, or women's equality a subject so much in the forefront today. I also didn't discuss marriage, or children, or what to do during retirement, or politics. The list is a work in progress. The list will never be complete. Perhaps to entice you to go over to Naturally Savvy to read my article and other articles I've contributed, I'll give you a few examples from my list. But really I'd love for you to share your list either here or at the Naturally Savvy link. Only spend time with people you care about. Life is too short to feel obligated to be with people we don't care about. Learn to excuse yourself gracefully. Gently fade away. And believe me they won't miss … [Read more...]
Ten ways to reinvent yourself after sixty
I am Naturally Savvy's Over Sixty Expert, contributing about an article a month at the website. This piece was originally published on March 31, 2013. Please go there to read more of my articles on topics relevant to women over sixty. I love exploring ways for us to keep moving, keep working, keep creating, keep experiencing life to the fullest no matter how old we are. I first heard of the term reinvention when I entered More magazine's February 2010 Reinvention story contest. My story about how I returned to work outside my home and began to write regularly after the suicide death of my son came in eleventh in the number of votes received out of over 500 entries. With that, the term reinvention became part of my vocabulary. I write about it frequently. Nora Ephron said it's good for women to reinvent themselves every ten years. She also said reinvention seems easier for women than for men. And I agree. In fact, seven years after I went back to work full time, I retired and … [Read more...]
What a difference a week makes
Actually since my husband Bob started walking just less than a week ago our lives have changed considerably for the better. The scooter has been picked up (its real name is RollerAid by Footsteps), the crutches that were always at the ready on the bottom and top floor landings and the walker that he used for help in hopping in and out of the shower are now in the garage. The only implement still in use is the boot though at his physical therapist's advice he's even wearing that less and less at home. Walking with the boot causes another malady an aching back, so the sooner he can walk with a regular pair of shoes the better. He's also been staying at work longer, he's not reluctant to go out to dinner, and we even went to the movies and opera this past weekend. So, all in all things are definitely looking up especially since I don't have to bring him his orange juice and paper in the morning. He actually went out the last two mornings and brought the paper in to me. (My only … [Read more...]
The big "step down" is almost here – I hope!
Next week, we hope my husband's doctor will say it's okay for him to put weight on his healed broken foot. That doesn't mean he's home free. He'll still have to wear the boot, he still won't be able to drive, and he'll have to spend an unknown amount of time in physical therapy. But it's all a step in the right direction (no pun intended), coming not soon enough. We have both gotten impatient and a little snippy with each other. Seven weeks of his being dependent on me and seven weeks of my serving him have taken a toll. I'm sleeping poorly. I have black and blue arms from all they hits they've taken by my husband's little scooter, and I'm feeling like my creative life has taken a step backward (no pun intended here either). And I know he'll be glad when he won't have to be a passenger in his own car. Just this morning he was so frustrated when I was being particularly careful about backing the car out of our driveway into oncoming traffic. He wants me to be more agressive. Well, … [Read more...]
One month already
At a formal wedding last Sunday (with scooter) My husband fell and broke his foot one month ago today. And two weeks ago he had surgery to fuse his bones together with ten stainless steel pins. Now two weeks post op he's feeling healthy again -- his appetite is back, he's free of infection, and his spirits are up. All he needs to do is stay off his foot for another four weeks - for a total of eight weeks. It's a tall order for the patient and his prime caregiver (moi), but we're committed to his complete recovery - so that's what it will take. I wrote a poem early on about the fall. So in honor of this month anniversary, here it is: Even A Broken Foot Accidents are just that Accidents Yet some can be avoided like my husband's the other night. He walked willy-nilly toward a dark room that the hotel should have had well lit. And while groping in the dark for a light switch he fell down a short flight of stairs and was rewarded with immediate pain in his foot and … [Read more...]
There’s no whining about a broken foot
I've had a lot on my plate for the last week and a half. I haven't been neglecting my blog, I've just had too much going on. First and foremost, my husband Bob fell down a short flight of stairs last week while we were on vacation in California's Gold Country. We were there to take in a little history and sip some of the fine zinfandels that flourish in Amador Country. Then we were to go to a zinfandel and food tasting in San Francisco and spend our last two days touring the city a place we've always loved to visit. Unfortunately his fall and the broken foot that resulted cramped our style. We still tasted some fine zins, but the only touring we got in, in San Francisco was a movie theater where we saw the wonderful Biutiful with Javier Bardem. I highly recommend the movie but you don't have to have a broken foot to enjoy it. We also had a couple of great meals one with a dear friend whom I met years ago at Esalen. I had intended to start work immediately upon our return on … [Read more...]
