Signs of Spring We've been in Oregon for nearly 2 months. Most days have been cloudy and cold. But today I started seeing signs of spring! We don't see daffodils in Texas. I love these. Sun The sun came out, too! I'm starting to wonder what our yard will look like, when we return to Texas. The big Texas winter storm, (named Uri) evidently killed off lots of landscaping. Our neighbor says all our Oleanders may be dead. Flowering Branches While walking, I saw some branches that gave me a little hope. I often pass uprooted trees on my walks and runs. The ice storm from weeks ago did a lot of damage. But this tree is still thriving. There's hope for our plants back home! Animals We encountered this sweet friend on a walk, near our daughter's house. There's still a pandemic out there and lots of worry in this world. But the rebirth of spring is always a time of hope! I'm feeling positive!
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Texas First I was furious when the governor announced opening TX and lifting the mask mandate. It looks Alabama will lift theirs on my birthday. "We should have a choice!" is what many say. The people who say that... how many of them will choose to wear masks? This is different than seatbelt laws, that some still fight. My mask keeps YOU and me safe! And Texas is lifting the mandate, as it reopens 100%. In Oregon But we are still in Oregon. So I'm not going to think about it right now. This is the window of the cafe, where we picked up carryouts. Things are a little different here. When we went on a walk with Heidi and Baby Charlotte, I had to smile at this Masked Moai! We wore our masks as we walked in Laurel Hurst Park. Everyone we passed wore masks. We don't have to mask up when outside. But just like the RBG image in the store window... it shows respect for those we pass on the walk. Trees We have less than 2 more weeks of Oregon. I'll miss the trees. I'll miss being in an area where most seem to respect pandemic courtesy. But mostly, I'll miss this little one and her parents! Stop in California Don and I don't know what our options will be for vaccines when we return to Texas. We at least know how to "road-trip" safely. We've had practice. We'll be making a stop in Sacramento to see Scott and Chali. No worries about those 2 not taking this pandemic seriously. This is what you see on the wall, when you enter their home.
I'm so grateful to have family that's in agreement, about keeping each other safe. Cancel Culture Lately, I've seen a lot of ranting social media posts. "Those left wing liberals are trying to cancel Dr. Seuss!" No one is cancelling Dr. Seuss! There are just some books in question. I will always associate the pandemic times, with the confused and complicated cancel culture topic. Reading to Charlotte I can't wait to read Dr. Seuss to this little girl someday. I hope she adores the illustrations and the soothing rhythms, of the Seuss books. Seuss' zoo book will stay tucked away, until she's old enough for discussion. We own Don's childhood copy of "If I Ran the Zoo". Two years ago, I wanted to use it as a prop, for a Zoo Theme, that I was doing with some senior groups. When I picked up the 70 year old book, I gulped an illustration of... Charlotte's Library Oh how I love children's books. These books are special ones, that Charlie's aunt picked out for her. I read most of these to my kids. There's a Dr. Seuss title included. Dr. Seuss shared some pretty amazing messages in most of his books. No one is boycotting all Dr. Seuss books! Books I Never Had I love these books that Heidi received at her shower. I don't remember any books from my childhood, that empowered little girls. Well, maybe Pippi Longstocking. Pippi gave me confidence to be myself. Charlie will need some good books and good parenting to prepare her for this crazy world! Little Library When Charlotte gets just a little older, she can cross the street to her neighbor's Little Library. The cute little box, just popped up the other day. What a perfect way to share with neighbors, during these isolated times. There's even a bottle of hand sanitizer and a tiny garden on top. There are children's books and adult books. Today, I added a book that Don just finished. Then, I wrote a message in the library journal. Reading By the time we got back to the Airbnb, the sun was still out. I could see Mount Hood again! It was about 55 degrees, so I grabbed a blanket and some tea. All this thought about books... I decided it was time to read!
Missing TX We have less than 2 weeks in Oregon, before we head back to Texas. I'm excited to get back to warmth and sunshine and my own house. Not Excited to Leave I am not excited to leave this sweet baby or her parents. Don and I have fallen in love with Charlie. She's going to start doing the really fun stuff and we won't be here to see. Now I Really Want to Stay Actually, I don't want to go back to Texas. Not with this in the news, today. Governor Abbott wants to open Texas 100% and to end the mask mandate. Why? Has he been vaccinated? I haven't. I want people to continue being safe with masks and distancing, until those who want a vaccine can get it.
This really makes me angry. Pandemic TV These are some shows that Don and I got hooked on, during the pandemic. I'm glad there's a light at the end of this pandemic tunnel, but I'm also running out of time. We've had 12 Covid months and I haven't accomplished wonderful things. I haven't made much of a dent in the list of shows and movies I want to see. Golden Globes Last night we watched the Golden Globe Awards and I was reminded of more shows. We watched in our Airbnb, on the TV that rests on 2 boot boxes. I'm so glad Don ordered this TV and didn't listen to me 7 weeks ago when I said, "I don't care if there's no TV in here. We can just read!" It was cozy, sitting in our pajama pants, quietly watching the ceremony. We looked like some of the actors, who were filmed at home in their jammies. After a year of pandemic, I'm getting used to all the virtual ceremonies and celebrations. Virtual Golden Globes Usually I skip the Golden Globes and gear up for Academy Awards. But in these past 12 months, I've learned to welcome all TV celebrations. There were actually many sweet moments. These faces above, were indeed my favorites. Someday I won't recognize all these faces, but they all made me happy. What I Will Remember This ad for Frida Mom's, may go down in my memory, more than the show. When I saw the realistic commercial aimed towards new moms, I texted my daughter. She had already heard about the controversial ad, that shows more breast than any TV ad in the past. I'm sure some oldsters booed this shocking ad, but I cheered. I would have appreciated this 34 years ago when I struggled to do what I had thought was supposed to come naturally. My stress would have been eased, had I known other new moms were fumbling and hurting like me. This whole "Breast is Best" world puts a lot of pressure on women. I didn't have great success with breastfeeding, back in the day. I would have appreciated some guidance. I craved more alone time, to figure things out. But there were visitors and outings to navigate, along with my awkward nursing skills...
Wait! How dare I complain. New mamas like Heidi have just dealt with 9 months of pandemic pregnancy. They continue to be restricted and isolated, if they are cautious new mothers. I hope before long, Heidi can safely meet up with other moms and share support and tips. Until then, cheers for technology. Man, I could have used Google, back in the day! Ending Blog? March is here! It's been almost exactly a year since I began ranting about Covid in this blog. I swore I would stop this documenting nonsense when I got vaccinated...or at least in a year. I haven't gotten the vaccine. It seems like everyone I know is getting vaccinated. People are celebrating all over Facebook, but Don and I haven't joined the club. We've been away from home for nearly 2 months and I'm not 65 yet. I'm frustrated, so I will keep ranting and documenting. My Obsession I've always been obsessed with recording. I got my first diary at age 10 and I've been keeping track of memories ever since. When Heidi was born 34.5 years ago, I documented everything she did. Now her own baby is 2 weeks old and she's starting a "Baby Book" for Charlotte. It's time to pass over her old baby book. Fixing the book The old book is sort of a mess. Photos have come unglued and pages are wrinkled and damaged. I repaired a bit. And I read a bit. Oh, what fun to remember the day, when Heidi came into the world. I found one page that needed more than repairing. The blank page has been neglected all these years. I could never find the perfect words to write my message, to the perfect baby.
It only took 34.5 years. I wrote a message and now I'm handing the book over to Heidi. Whew! I feel much better now. No Picnics We've been in Oregon for 7 weeks. It's been cold and icy and rainy and snowy, much of the time. I haven't spent much time worrying over the fact that the picnic shelters and playgrounds are still closed due to Covid. Closed Since the Ice Storm This park is in walking distance of our Airbnb. The picnic shelter has been closed, but the hiking trails have been fun. But 2 weeks ago, the park closed down after a huge ice storm. I need this park! It's been great for hikes, but I also like to walk here and chat with my dad on the phone and tell him about all the things I see and hear. Trails are closed. Happy Valley Park But today, the sun came out and the temps rose to 54 degrees! Happy Valley Park was open and it was swarming with families! The fencing (for Covid closure) that surrounded the playground was in the process of being removed. I've never seen so may happy kids, swinging and climbing and seesawing! About a quarter of the young kids were wearing masks. I'm glad my parenting days, never included mask enforcement. New Parents These parents were wearing masks. Hopefully Heidi and Jamie will never need to worry about masks with their kids in the future. Charlotte is 2 weeks old today and this was her first outing. What a perfect day to get out! But, after so much cautious isolation, it was sort of odd to be out in a busy park, sharing the path with bikes and scooters and other strollers. Picnic This was Charlotte's first picnic also. Although she didn't eat any of our smoked salmon or cheese. Charlotte slept through our picnic. She slept through photo-time! I think she liked the sunshine, though. Then it was time for Grammaloon to get in the photo. 3-generations! Missing Moo and Daw! Oh how I wish my mom (Moo) and grandmother (Daw) were still here. My mother inspired my love of picnics! Our little 4-generation group went on many picnics, back in St. Louis. How I wish Daw were here to grin and sigh the way she did when Heidi was a baby. She could also tell us a story or 2, about her own pandemic memories. She had the Spanish flu.
Cheers to the 5 generations. Cheers to picnics and babies. Cheers to sunny weather and things feeling more normal! Keeping Healthy Don and I are keeping ourselves healthy... for this little girl and her parents. We haven't been able to be vaccinated, so we have stayed safely in our "Baby Bubble" of 5. It's not hard. But curbside shopping and cooking in the Airbnb is getting old. Dorm Cooking It's hard to eat healthy stuff when all you have is a crockpot and microwave. We ordered a toaster and we use it in the bathroom so we don't set off the smoke alarm. Clean up is not easy. That's a tiny crockpot actually. It fills the sink. Veggie Baby We would be cautious and careful even if there wasn't a pandemic in our world. This sweet Veggie Baby is worth a little inconvenience. Restaurants are beginning to open for inside dining in Portland. But we wouldn't be going anyway. Charlotte doesn't really care about sushi and tacos anyway. She also doesn't care about vegetables right now. Crab Cakes Charlie's parents don't eat meat, so we have an extra challenge helping out with meals. I'm not the most creative cook in the world, even when we have a nice kitchen. The other night we brought the groceries over to Heidi and Jamie's and Don made crab cakes on that beautiful new stove top. I used the oven for cheddar biscuits. And Charlie slept! How could I ever think of complaining about anything!
50 Million! It's not that long ago that we saw the first American getting vaccinated. It was on the news and I was giddy watching. Today we reached 50 million vaccinations. I'm not totally sure what that means. 50 million since Biden became president? Who knows, but I'm glad to see these numbers go up. I'm glad that about 50 people I know have been vaccinated. Hmm? Maybe 100. Just a few family members. I can't wait until we all are and we can plan reunions and gatherings! Johnson & Johnson! Yesterday, the Johnson and Johnson vaccine was approved. It's only one dose, but slightly less protective. That's okay. I'll take it. I'll take Moderna or Pfizer or J & J. I don't care if I'm sick a day or 2 after. I'm ready!
Baby Time Don and I have been in Oregon for over 6 weeks. Baby Charlotte has been here for less than 2. We rented an Airbnb so we wouldn't have to be helicopter grandparents, hovering constantly. We're giving the new parents space. But it's hard staying away. Today we gave the parents their own space. I washed some baby clothes in the Airbnb washing machine, which is better than mine at home. But, I needed to hand wash a few. Our sink is tiny and Oregon is moist! Air-drying takes forever! Man. These really are cute, though! Sunshine Finally! The cold and drizzle has kept us inside much of the time. I'm trying not to complain because many people like my dad, have been pretty much isolated in a room or two, for a year. But yesterday evening the sun broke through and I spotted a double rainbow! Sunshine at Cathedral Park With no baby plans today, Don and I took advantage of the sun and headed into Portland to see the bridges. St. John's Bridge is my favorite. The high was 45, but it felt heavenly! It just felt good to stroll and see other people. Seeing Others There were a few dog walkers and I spotted a couple picnics. Some very young kids were playing ball. We were outside and distanced, but every single person, (including the kids) was wearing a mask. Man and Birds This man in the park was the most entertaining of all. He lugged this big container from his truck and walked down to the water. The seagulls and ducks acted like they knew him. He scattered some kind of seed or feed, over the river bank and the birds flocked! LOVE We walked down to a dock where we spotted a few fishermen. Then I noticed this sign. What a happy little surprise! The plywood L was about 20 feet high. Simple white letters with a happy message.
gofundme.com/savethelovepdx Looks like a sweet cause, to make this sign permanent. Yay for sun and bridges and LOVE signs! Yay for the baby that we'll see tomorrow! |
Not-So-Happy List
Cancer, Covid & Coronary... I started this complaining list/blog, in May 2016. I posted 200 gripes about my breast CANCER and then I was done. On March 13, 2020, I started venting all over again, when another disease (starting with a C) interfered with my life. This time it was the invasion of COVID and it affected every person. I ranted for a year, until I got my COVID vaccine in March 2021. CORONARY Artery Disease was the reason I restarted this blog on September 26, 2021. This time it was my hubby Don, who was dealing with a worry that started with the letter "C". Coronavirus and Cancer, Coronary Artery Disease! All are evil, but none can totally get me down... if I vent! I usually end up feeling a little more positive at the end of each post! Navigating This Mess! The most recent post is at the top, from coronary posts in 2022, back to cancer posts in 2016. To find past posts, look below the "Archives" section, to find "Categories". Archives
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