Or, am I ever on-track??  The laptop is working again thanks to a new router or modem or somesuch thing.  Fortunately, RC dealt with whatever the problem was and now we are back up and running.  So, I’m delighted to be able to once again write a blog post.

I am participating in a study group at church this fall based on the book, The Artist’s Way – A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity, by Julia Cameron.  (I apologize for not putting a link for the book here – I seem to be encountering trouble as I attempt to do that.  Google it if you are interested.)  We read and discuss a chapter of the book a week.  As the dust cover describes it, the book deals with the subject of creativity; and, “during the 12-week journey” readers will discover “the inextricable link between their spiritual and creative selves.” The subject of creativity in this book is not meant just for those trying to be writers (moi) or painters or sculptors or photographers, or whatever one might think of as being an artist; it is meant for everyone, as we all create in different ways every single day.   I am finding the information very fascinating and thought provoking.

I eagerly read the next chapter of the book just about the minute I return home from our weekly group meeting.  This next week the chapter includes a section about perfectionism that has struck a chord with me – so much so, that I just feel compelled to share the message as there are likely those of you reading this that just like me, suffer from trying to be perfect whenever you are creating something!  I hope I can convey the message clearly and succinctly enough that you will have an aha moment like I did reading it.  If you don’t get that from my writing today, pick up the book and read Week 7.

Here are the key points of Ms. Cameron’s ideas about perfectionism:

• Trying to perfect whatever we are creating and wherever we are creating (home, work, play, child-rearing, volunteer activities and so on) is not about making things perfect; it is a refusal to let ourselves move on – an obsession.
• Perfectionism causes us to lose sight of the whole – we get mired in the details of making something perfect.
• This is the one I like the best – perfectionism causes us to “correct our originality into a uniformity that lacks passion and spontaneity.”  I can relate this one back to a comment my instructor made to me in a class about blogging – he said my work was “modest”.  I don’t want it to be modest, I want it to be awe-inspiring!! My editing and re-editing in an attempt to make my posts perfect has likely caused me to be just a modest writer.  I end up losing my passion and spontaneity.
• The perfectionist always finds room for improvement, thinking he/she is being humble.  Ms. Cameron says in reality, this is egotism!  Too much pride, maybe.
• The perfectionist has the notion that nothing he/she does will ever be good enough – we keep trying to perfect it.
• Perfectionists need to realize a normal part of creativity is letting go…as Ms. Cameron says, “do the best we can by the light we have to see by“.

Ms. Cameron posits that we cannot realize our creative potential if we are always trying to perfect everything we do.  We need to take a risk – risk to not look like we don’t know what we are doing (that is my personal fear).  We will never create anything if we say or think we can’t afford it, we are too shy, too old, too afraid to make mistakes, too afraid to try something new, etc.

Of course, perfectionism is all a mind-set…not necessarily easy to overcome when like me, you have spent several hundred years developing it (perfecting it really).  My message today, mostly to myself –

LET IT GO…MAKING MISTAKES AND NOT BEING PERFECT IS OKAY!

I feel like I have just written a book report – and, in reality, I guess I have.  Not sure if I have done the message of this chapter of the book justice (is it perfect??).  I’d love to hear your comments on the subject of perfectionism; feel free to write something below. 

Just when my head is swimming with ideas for blog posts, the trusty old laptop dies and our computer guy is out of the country for 3 weeks!  Sure, I still have my tablet and for that I am grateful; but, typing a whole post on this thing is very cumbersome.

So, lest you think I’ve given up on this blog, I’m just letting you know I am on a bit of a break.  I hope you will be patient with me and join me when I post again – for topics like why can’t I remember much from my childhood; why do young women all seem to tailgate when driving and other pet peeves of mine; and perhaps a follow up on the class reunion I was so worried about – see a previous post.

Please stay tuned. I’ll be back. Meanwhile, enjoy this fall season.

I don’t think I am alone in feeling like September is a time for new beginnings.  I’m certain for me, at least, that is because as a kid, going back to school in September after the summer break always provided me with the opportunity to be, in my mind, a new, improved person.  I would dream of being a better, smarter student, achieving better grades, and above all, being a more popular, cool girl!  (How sad is that?!?  I never did achieve what my immature brain conceived as popular.)

To this day, I feel like fall is the time to restructure my life a bit after the less-structured, more easy-going summer.

• Time to change into fall clothing – sweaters, sweatshirts, long pants replacing short-sleeved tees, sundresses, capris and sandals.
• Time to change meal menus – heartier soups, roasts, baked chicken dishes replacing burgers on the grill and summer salads.  Couple this with making an attempt at getting back to eating more healthily (that may be a made-up word)…less trips to the Dairy Queen in the evening.  (Notice, I said less trips, not no trips!)
• Time to pack away summer home/garden décor and bring out the fall stuff – mums replacing snap dragons in vases and in the garden, candles added to brighten the waning daylight hours.

• Time to rev up the exercise program.  This is really foremost in my mind today.  My 1/2 hour stints three times a week at the community center using the stationary bike or elliptical machine and track are a paltry attempt at staying in shape.  Just this morning I read I should be exercising 4 hours/week to help prevent getting breast cancer.  (If I read it on the internet, it must be true!) A bout with plantar fasciitis this summer kept me from my previously customary walks through the neighborhood to supplement my indoor exercise activity.  I really prefer the outdoor exercise, but our current health insurance rewards us by paying for our community center membership if we use it at least 12/times/month…thus, the approximate 3 times/week I go there.

Need to use these more often!

 So my resolve today is to:

•  get back to exercising more.  The foot problems have healed so I intend to get outdoors frequently and enjoy walks in the wonderful fall weather.  (Hoping for wonderful fall weather…is into December asking for too much?)
• prepare and eat healthy meals and snacks.
• bring out the fall/winter clothing once the days turn cool, tossing, donating, or consigning anything I know I won’t wear…part of my decluttering process noted in a previous post.
  
• refresh the house and garden with fall decorations.  We really are fortunate here in MN to experience four distinct seasons.  We need only display our seasonal décor for about 3 months at a time – not enough time to tire of anything.

I suppose I could add I will do a thorough house cleaning as part of my new beginnings regime; but, I’m thinking that probably won’t happen.  It’s a nice thought though.

Here is a recipe I just found on Pinterest this week while searching for new ways to use the apples that fall into my yard from my neighbor’s tree.  It seems like a healthy choice for a breakfast or snack item.  Easy and quick to make too…gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free – what more could you ask for?

Cinnamon Apple Baked Oatmeal Cups

Preheat oven to 375 degrees; or, mix up and wait until morning to bake

2 cups old fashioned oats                                                                                                                                     1 tsp baking powder                                                                                                                                           1/8 tsp salt                                                                                                                                                                1/2 tsp cinnamon                                                                                                                                                     1 cup milk (can use unsweetened coconut milk to make it dairy-free)                                            1 egg                                                                                                                                                                          1/2 cup mashed banana (about 1 1/2 medium bananas)                                                                       1 large apple, peeled, cored and diced

Combine the dry ingredients; add the milk, egg and mashed banana and mix until combined.  Stir in the apple.

Grease a muffin tin and fill each cup w/the oatmeal mixture to just about the top.  Makes 12 oatmeal cups.  Bake for 20-25 minutes.  Store in the fridge or freeze.

Enjoy!

I’d love to hear what some of your “new-beginning” ideas are if you agree this is a good time for them.  Feel free to comment below.

I’m sitting in Marquette, Michigan as I write this.  RC has business here and I came along for the ride.

Yesterday, we made a stop in Marinette, Wisconsin on our drive here so RC could work with a distributor to demo some equipment to a customer.  Not being a part of that work, of course, I sat in the car and waited throughout the hour and a half appointment.  (Fortunately, it was a lovely summer day – I would not agree to wait in the car in the winter!)

I was armed with things to keep me busy during my wait – crossword puzzle, ipad – so Facebook, internet, email, etc., novel, magazine and of course, red licorice!

But, the most enjoyable entertainment was sitting in quiet and just listening to the sounds of summer.  I had the windows down in the car and spent some time just being still.  Here’s what I heard…

• a dog barking
• children calling to one another; laughing; playing
• a lawn mower
• an ice cream pedal cart playing some funny melody (It would drive me crazy if I was the peddler and had to listen to that song over and over all afternoon.)
• a motorcycle
• traffic noise on the street
• construction noise – a pounding hammer, power tools as perhaps being used in building a house

For some reason listening to these sounds was very nostalgic for me – remembering summers in my youth. (I cannot figure out if I am using the word, nostalgic, correctly [noun, verb, adverb ???]; but, hopefully, you can figure out what I mean, even if I have erred.)  Maybe as a young person with fewer responsibilities and concerns I was more aware of insignificant things going on around me, and thus, more in tune with the noise of my surroundings.  I must admit, now, in my usual hurried state to accomplish something, I don’t take much time to just be still and listen.  Whatever…at any rate,  hearing these things yesterday, reminded me of summers long ago, and that created a warm, fuzzy feeling for me.

I happen to love summer, that may have aided in providing good feelings for me in my non-busy time yesterday just enjoying the sounds.  During Minnesota winters, many of us – myself, included – do not venture outside much other than to get to work, take care of shopping, appointments, etc.   And, even if we do take walks or exercise in some way outdoors, we won’t hear some of the sounds I listed above; or may not be aware of them as we just hurry to get out of the cold.  Winter is time to enjoy the lack of noise when we are outside – that silence can add to the enjoyment (or be the only enjoyment?) of the nature of that season.

I pulled out my notebook after realizing I was hearing summer, and listed many more summer sounds, impressed by how many I could think of –  thunder, rain, the breeze rustling the leaves in the trees (remember, I don’t like wind,  so it has to be a breeze for me to enjoy the sound), birds chirping, squirrels scolding, mosquitoes buzzing (yuck to this one!), sheets on the clothesline flapping in the wind, and my favorite of all – crickets chirping in the evening.

I would highly recommend and encourage you to take some time on a nice summer day to go outdoors and just be still and listen.  Maybe all the wonderful sounds will affect you the same way they do for me and provide you with a warm fuzzy or even nostalgic feeling.

Enjoy!

I’m taking this opportunity today to write about a wonderful weekend I recently spent with just women; and, to thank the ladies that made it a trip I’ll remember with delight for the rest of my life.

THE PLAYERS:

The ladies included my daughter, Amy; my sister, Bonny; Bonny’s daughter and my niece, Laurie; Laurie’s daughters & Bonny’s granddaughters, Beth and Mollie; and very close family friend and neighbor of Laurie and Bonny, Judy.

THE SETTING:

San Francisco, California – I swear, we saw every bit of it!

PROLOGUE:

Many years ago – in 1970, to be exact – Bonny and her family left Minnesota and moved to Camarillo, CA due to her husband’s job transfer.  Though through the years, there have been regular visits, letters (snail mail back in the day), emails and phone calls, there has not been much opportunity for we sisters to spend any length of time together.

As time went on and Laurie became a mom, and her daughters became young adults, Bonny, Laurie, sometimes Beth and Mollie, and good friend, Judy, began taking trips together – just the girls!  And, to fun places, no less, like New York and New Orleans, just to name a couple.  I would hear about the trips and be envious.  (The envy in spite of the fact I do an annual girls’ weekend with Amy and dear friends we consider family, each year; but, that is another story.)

THE STORY:

So, it was time for Amy and me to join forces with our California relies and have our own girls’ weekend with them.  San Francisco was chosen as our destination because (a) Mollie lives there and could be our tour guide – AND, oh what a fabulous guide she was; and, (b) San Francisco is a city with much to offer tourists for things to see and do.

Wednesday:

Amy and I left Minneapolis on a 5:55 pm flight on Wednesday and joined Bonny and Judy, who drove to San Francisco from Camarillo that afternoon, and Mollie who, as I said already, lives in the city.  (Laurie and Beth were not able to join us until Friday evening.) We had time for a quick glass of wine before heading to bed that evening as we wanted a good night’s rest before embarking on a very full day of sightseeing planned for Thursday.

A side note here:  Mollie was delighted to have us visit “her city” and to welcome us gave each of us a gift of San Francisco/California treats:  chocolates in a tin depicting a San Francisco scene (mine was the Golden Gate bridge), flavored and very pretty macaroons made in San Francisco and packaged in a cute gift box, and an individual serving size bottle of champagne or Proseco…a very thoughtful gift and so sweet of her to think of us in that way.

Thursday:

We were fortunate to have Judy’s Trailblazer which had a third seat that eventually accommodated all seven of us, for our tour bus.  Mollie expertly drove us all over the city following a schedule of stops that she had carefully thought out.  We saw views of the city from Twin Peaks; drove over the Golden Gate Bridge and stopped at lookout points in Golden Gate National Recreation Area in Marin County;  trudged up a hill to look at the Painted Ladies houses;

drove down the crookedest street (not Lombard) in San Francisco, plus drove down the beautiful Lombard Street which is also very crooked and steep; ate clam chowder in the famous San Francisco sourdough bread bowl on Fisherman’s Wharf; bought chocolates at Ghiradelli Square; walked through the grounds of the  Palace of Fine Arts built for the 1915 Worlds Fair;

drove through the various neighborhoods – Mission District, Haight-Asbury, Tenderloin, Japan Town,  Embarcadero, Castro, (not necessarily in that order); rode a trolley car to the Castro area and had late afternoon martinis at a bar called Martuni’s on Market Street.

Whew!!

Back to our hotel – tired, but happy, for cheese, salami and crackers and some very tasty guacamole and chips provided by Mollie.

Fell into bead and asleep before my head hit the pillow.

It was a full, wonderful day!

Friday:

Back in the car by 10:00 am – saw Mollie’s studio apartment in the Mission district; took a cable car ride in the Nob HIll area – praying the cable car brakes would not fail on those extremely steep, hilly streets;

got a glimpse of Chinatown from the cable car; and had a wonderful lunch in the Union Square area at Neiman Marcus where Mollie’s husband, Carlos, graciously served us an elegant meal of lobster bisque, yummy popovers and Proseco.  I felt very pampered at lunch, and the people watching (the other restaurant patrons that likely frequent Neiman Marcus) was great!

Friday afternoon after our delightful lunch, we drove across the Bay Bridge to Berkeley.  We spent some time driving through the streets of the famous UC Berkeley campus and picked up Laurie at the train station where she arrived to join us from Sacramento after attending a work conference there.

Friday evening we dined at the Tonga Room located in the Fairmont Hotel on Nob Hill.  It was fun to see the very elaborate, ornate lobby of the hotel.  Beth, who lives north of San Francisco a few hours, joined us at dinner.

After dinner it was on to the Top of the Mark – another Nob Hill landmark – for after-dinner beverages and a spectacular view of the city at night.  Nightcaps followed at the Japanese bar where Carlos holds down a second job as a bartender.

Exhausted by bed time – which with the time change for Amy and me translated to 2:00 am MN time.

Another full, wonderful day!

Saturday:

All seven of us finally together, we rode BART to Fisherman’s Wharf and from there took the ferry to Sausalito.  Time for one very strong Screwdriver drink on the short ride across the Bay, nice skyline view of San Francisco, plus a close-up look at Alcatraz.

Once in Sausalito we hit a couple of shops including one that sold charm bangle bracelets (Alex & Ani brand).  Bonny generously purchased each of our group a bangle with a San Francisco charm depicting a cable car, the Golden Gate Bridge and the skyline.  A perfect remembrance of this fun trip and our time together!

We stopped in a local bar on the street for yet another beverage and some lunch.  This is where the day got very interesting.  We proceeded to the rear of the bar where there was a small outdoor courtyard.  At one of the tables in this courtyard, sat a couple of older gentlemen playing chess.  Soon, an elderly woman named Joan, appeared and struck up a conversation with us.  We invited her to sit with us.  Joan said she was 80 and told us she sometimes plays chess with the two guys.  Obviously, all three were locals who are regulars at this bar.

Joan claimed she was some sort of national chess champion for 7 or 8 years (perhaps not currently, but many years ago?).  She also proceeded to tell us she worked as a spy in the 1950s.  With a somewhat surprised voice, she said she had never told anyone about her spy activities before – I felt honored.  If her stories were made up, she had us fooled.

I was somewhat disappointed that Joan had to depart before we could hear more about her spy gig.  She was entertaining her God-daughter for dinner.  In fact, she invited us to join them for dinner, but our transportation back across the bay being the ferry precluded us from accepting the invite.  It would have been an interesting evening, I’m sure.  I must say, however, I was a bit concerned about the dinner since she said the roast was in the freezer – and it was already 3:30 pm.  Dinner was likely going to be very late by the time the roast was thawed out!

Back to the City on the ferry in the late afternoon, and on to our hotel for some girl talk, wine and more cheese and crackers.

We spent the evening just visiting, laughing and enjoying our stories.

Sunday:

Amy and I had to leave our hotel on the airport shuttle by 9:00 am to catch our flight back to Minnesota.  After hugs all around and some tears (me), we said our goodbyes and left our California gals.

EPILOGUE:

I think a fun time was had by all.  Personally, I enjoyed getting to know my grand nieces, Beth and Mollie, better, and catching up with Laurie and Bonny.  Bonus was gaining a new friend in Judy.

I am grateful I had the opportunity to take this trip with the California ladies, and thank each of them for their part in making the weekend special.

For any of you that were not part of the weekend, but still reading here, I strongly encourage you to plan periodic getaways, if you’re able, with your peeps.  A relaxed, fun time away from daily routines provides a perfect setting for re-connecting and re-freshing!

Love to Amy, Bonny, Laurie, Beth, Mollie and Judy!

My 50th high school class reunion is scheduled later this summer.  I can’t decide if I am eager to attend this 2-night event or not.

I grew up in a southern Minnesota town of about – at that time – 30,000 people.  The public high school there drew all the kids who lived in town plus the surrounding rural areas.  My class was made up of about 550 kids.

Though just a very average student, and one who really only took classes because they were required – with the exception of my senior English class which I enjoyed because I got to write and really delve into grammar, sentence structure, etc. – I didn’t enjoy the academic part of high school all that much.

But, I did love the social aspects of those three years.  I had a steady boyfriend for a good portion of that time.  One who had a job and therefore money, and access to a car so we usually could go to movies, out for a burger or somesuch activity on our dates.  (Actually, we spent a lot of time at the local A&W rootbeer stand drinking mugs of root beer and eating popcorn; and, by the way, this dude is now my husband of nearly 48 years!)  I had close friends and enjoyed getting together with them for dancing at a local hangout.  I was a cheerleader for the boys’ football and basketball teams, and looked forward to games on Friday evenings.  Cheerleading practice after school 2 or 3 afternoons a week provided a fun extra-curricular activity for me.  I enjoyed my cheerleading squad – we had great times together.

So, with all that positive experience back-story, why am I not more excited about attending this upcoming reunion and seeing old friends? It’s not like I need to be embarrassed to talk about my life since high school.  It’s been a good and respectable (mostly) life.  I have attended most of the previous reunions which have been scheduled every 10 years since graduation, and found most of them to be somewhat fun and entertaining.

I don’t do well in rooms full of relative strangers – as most of my former classmates would be to me now.  I have never mastered the art of small talk/chit-chat nor been comfortable striking up conversations with others in these types of settings.  I just become very anxious.  If someone speaks to me first, I can do just fine; but, I am not good at initiating the interaction.

On the other hand, I would hate to miss a good time and perhaps seeing some of the friends I had way back then but with whom I have lost contact.

As I sit writing this, I’m coming to the conclusion I should just bite the bullet and attend both nights of the reunion.  (First night is just classmates, second night can include spouses and significant others.)  Attending the functions will challenge me to loosen up and enjoy the conversations I may experience.  Maybe I’ll be pleasantly surprised; and, really, if I end up feeling like a geek because I can’t find anyone to converse with, I never have to see most of these folks again anyway so my embarrassment will be fleeting.  And, in reality, perhaps others will be just as uncomfortable as me and will welcome my attention, if I make the first move at connecting.

I can always strike up a conversation by saying…”remember when”…  The whole reunion could be just about reminiscing.  (Duh, maybe that’s what they’re all about!)  Certainly, I can remember lots of high school happenings to discuss; and, as I said before, I have fond memories of that time so could bring up some fun recollections.

Yes, I feel much better about this whole conundrum of whether to attend this affair or not after writing my thoughts here.  (So, thanks for listening – if you’re still with me!)

Have you attended a major reunion lately?  Would love to hear of your experience.

And, any of you classmates of mine that may be reading this – let me know if you’re planning on attending the reunion.  (Now you know how anxious I am about the event!)

Several years ago (in 2004 to be exact) I participated in a 6-week class at my church called You Can Make a Difference.  It was designed to help people determine their gifts and strengths/weaknesses, their personality type, and ultimately identify their passions.  The class culminated in the writing of a personal mission statement.

I found the class very enlightening and inspiring – so much so that for several years thereafter, I facilitated the Passion session of the course.  And, I do say I “facilitated” the class as opposed to “taught” the class as in reality, I probably learned more from interacting with the class participants, than they learned from me!

Every now and then, I look at the mission statement I wrote for myself at the end of that course.  Amazingly, it still feels valid to me today, many years later.  I know that doesn’t necessarily have to be the case.  Companies and organizations do change their mission statements as circumstances change; likewise, a personal mission statement can be always evolving.

I’m wondering if you have written your own mission statement and if so, what your thoughts are on the process?

If you haven’t written one, it is an interesting exercise you might want to try.  I would guess most of you reading this have lived long enough to figure out what you’re good at (or not), what you believe in, are passionate about, whether you’re an introvert or an extrovert, and what roles you play in life (spouse, parent, grandparent, employee, volunteer, etc.)…all things you might consider and incorporate in your mission statement.

From the You Can Make a Difference curriculum, a mission statement:

• Is a blueprint for your life
• Is a compass that provides direction when making decisions
• Is a motto stating what your life is about

Here is my mission statement as an example –

My mission is -

To show love, understanding and respect to all people with whom I interact so as to create and encourage harmony.

To respect, value and care for my own emotional and physical being so as to continue to be a contributing, valuable member of all groups with which I associate.

To be respectful of nature and to always find ways to enjoy it.

To complete any work I endeavor to do in an organized fashion with accuracy and efficiency.

To do all of the above so that my light will shine before others, so they may see my good works and give glory to our Father in heaven.

A mission statement can help to keep you grounded and serve as a beacon when you may be floundering.  I encourage you to write one if you haven’t already.  It would be great fun if you felt like sharing it …use the opportunity for comments below.  Other people’s missions statements can be inspirational!