New Computer Glasses

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I had noticed over the past few months that I was able to see the birds and cicadas fluttering in our backyard maple with my computer glasses…and my vision was not as great for the computer screen distance. So - it was not a big surprise that I needed new computer glasses when I finally got my eyes checked recently. It turned out that my eyes had gotten better since my last checkup(back in May 2019) – at least when it comes to distance vision.

I’d gotten brown plastic frames previously – thinking they were only glasses to wear around the house. Almost as soon as I got them, I realized I should have gotten more colorful frames, so I had already thought about colors before my appointment…just in case I needed a new prescription; red or turquoise were the top contenders. The technician showed me frames in both colors and the red ones appealed to me the most. Here they are with last summer’s straw flowers.

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I’m savoring crisp computer-screen-distance vision….and the color of my frames every time I see myself in the mirror!

Summer Plans

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My theme for this summer is catching up….and consciously maintaining practices that sustained my wellbeing during the pandemic. Being at home right now is such a pleasure: there are mornings cool enough to comfortably work in the yard or go for a hike, there are fabulous seasonal veggies and fruits available from the farmers market…and I am catching up on all the health-related checkups I put off for over a year. My husband organized our house’s heating/cooling system check up, asphalt driveway sealing, and deck re-staining. And I am continuing my high-volume book browsing (Internet Archive is like a candy store for books!), Zentangle making, getting 12,000 steps per day, a bit of yoga, writing down what I am celebrating/thankful for, writing blog posts….days are full…never boring!

Being able to go to Texas to see my aging parents in May was an important milestone…a relief from the time we had to stay at home where I could only see/hear them virtually. I’ve already planned another trip for July and will see more of the family then at a wedding. The big event for my parents after I left was a large mulberry tree being cut down in their yard. It had been ailing for some time and finally the rot around an old spilt was significant enough that the big trunks could crack apart at any time with the potential to damage three houses! My sister sent me a picture midway through the cleanup. I found myself wishing I would have been there for the drama! There is grief for the old tree….but also relief that it didn’t fall and cause a lot of damage.

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Being vaccinated gives me confidence to make the plan to drive to Texas in July and then again in September. I had anticipated that I would be more confident in July that I was back in April just after I was fully vaccinated…but the delta variant has reduced my confidence and I’ll keep wearing a mask when I am not sure everyone I am encountering has been vaccinated. I’ll be making the drive over 3 days with a stop in Springfield MO to visit my daughter where they are having a surge of cases due to the variant. I am glad she got moved to her new house during the lull in cases in late May. She is back to curbside pickup rather than going into any store.

I have opted to not volunteer this summer…waiting until the fall to get back into those activities…but the decision isn’t because of the pandemic.  The type of volunteering I enjoy the most is outdoors; in the summer it tends to be in the hotter part of the day which is sometimes problematic for me; I don’t want to cancel at the last minute because the temperature is too high or the air quality is not good. Toward the end of the summer there will be training for the new fall programs – I’m sure the pandemic has changed them a bit – and then I’ll get back into the fray.

Overall summer 2021 has been enjoyable so far and I am looking forward to the rest of it!

30 years ago – June 1991

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Looking back at June 1991 – it seems that life had a faster pace…almost an unsustainable pace but common in families where the adults work and the child is less than two years old. We had company for 2 weeks out of the month. The first was a visit from a sister that had recently moved into a new house and needed a break for the flurry of that activity; we enjoyed several outings to the park and Ladew Topiary Gardens…discovered that McDonalds was an excellent place for lunch with a 21-month-old.

The second visit was a sister’s family – that included their daughter (a week older than my daughter). We prepared the girls prior to the visit by showing them pictures and videos of each other; it worked…they were immediate buddies. We went to parks and several museums (one was The Cloisters which was a children’s museum then and is now a wedding venue, another was Rose Hill Manor Park & Museums)…read books, splashed in the small pool on hot days, and enjoyed every inch of our house and yard. One was talking more…the other seemed to enjoy more complex books. We all had ‘Maryland is for Crabs’ t-shirts! In the picture below my daughter is hugging a tree along the Cunningham Falls State Park boardwalk – one of the outdoor places that was enjoyable for everyone in our group.

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Being outdoors…doing something with water…was one of my daughter’s favorite activities. We had tomato plants and gladiolus getting ready to bloom in the garden around the oak tree.

A summer cold made the rounds. My daughter had it for a few days…mine lingered and I eventually went to the doctor – got medicine for ear and eye infections.

In world news – children in Iraq were dying of cholera and other water borne disease…the Kuwait fires were slowly being extinguished.

Overall – it was a month full of juggling work with home life. I can’t say that it was a balancing act…it was more of a blending and using every minute optimally…exhausting but rewarding.

By the end of the month, I already had plane tickets to visit Texas in July. My husband would be with us on the flight down then continue to San Diego for a conference…the blending rather than balancing strategy again.

Gleanings of the Week Ending June 18, 2021

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Top 25 birds of the week: Terrestrial Birds – Several ancestors of chickens in this group!

3D-printed material to replace ivory -- ScienceDaily – ‘Digory’ made of resin and calcium phosphate particles….can be used to restore old ivory artifacts.

Managing Colorado River risk | Science – The reduction of water in the Colorado River basin over time…the challenge of managing that reduction for 40 million people that depend on the water source.

Death metal: Evidence for the impact of lead poisoning on childhood health within the Roman Empire – A study of 173 skeletons from 5 sites dated AD 1st-4th centuries.

First State National Historical Park Gains 254 Acres – This could be a good day trip for my husband and I…getting there early enough in the morning for it to not be cool enough for a good hike.

Incredible Close-Up Portraits of Solitary Bees Highlight Their Character – Wow! A great project done during COVID-19 quarantine!

Human Teeth Hold the Secrets of Ancient Plagues - The Atlantic – Finding ancient pathogens in old bone….an interview with Johannes Krause, director of the archaeogenetics department at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. Teeth are like a time capsule: bits of blood protected by the enamel.

Cool and COVID-safe: How radiant cooling could keep our cities comfortable and healthy -- ScienceDaily – Looking for ways to stay cool at lower energy costs than traditional HVAC systems.

Tiffany Stained Glass at Art Institute of Chicago | Smart News | Smithsonian Magazine – A church window transitioned to a museum and restored…now on display.

Mysterious Ailment Blinding and Killing Birds in Washington, D.C. Area – Glad we’ve had our feeder and bird baths put away for the past 6 weeks or so since we are in the process of getting our deck worked on. Fledglings of blue jays and grackles seem to be the birds impacted the most.

Enjoying Home

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There is so much to enjoy about just being home. Even yard work is appealing! On the third day back – I was out early with the goal of cleaning out the front flower beds. I didn’t have enough energy to set the goal to completing the job…instead strived for two wheelbarrow loads back to the forest/brush pile. It was not too difficult and my long sleeves/gauntlet gloves protected my hands from poison ivy (there might have been one plant) and blackberry thorns.

I took short breaks to photograph tiny mushrooms, blooming clover (the clover we planted last fall in the problem areas of our yard is growing well), cicadas at every turn, and tiny blooms on our bushes.

I already have plans for another round in the front yard and then will begin work on the chaos garden (which is completely wild this year).

My husband and I have enjoyed some short ‘field trips’ to Brookside Gardens and to view the recent partial solar eclipse. One field trip per week is probably about right for us – even though we are still spending most of our time at home. We are choosing venues where there are outdoors…usually in the morning (sometimes very early)…where there are unlikely to be crowds. There are a lot of places we’ve enjoyed in the past that we haven’t been to for over a year!

Since I knew I would be going to Texas several times this summer, I opted to not sign up for the CSA this year; I’m going to the Farmers Market instead which happens ever Sunday. It’s worked well so far. I got spinach, broccoli and snap peas the first week…spinach, squash, and artisan bread with pecans and golden raisins the second week (the spinach is for green smoothies). I’m still a little overwhelmed with veggies since my husband doesn’t eat them…but I know how to freeze any that I have left over!

Last Sunday when I was pulling into the driveway after my trek to the Farmers Market, I noticed a lot of cicadas on the day lily leaves growing around our oak tree. Do you see three in the picture below? The temperature might have still been a little cool for them to be flying around. One of the things I like about our yard is how much wildlife we have around!

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I picked up some cicada carcasses from the driveway and did a little macro photography after I put away the produce.

I also brought in some stalks of day lily buds; it’s the same every year at this time – cutting the buds as soon as they are big enough to open in water…before the deer eat them!

I enjoy just about everything about being home…rejuvenating myself for my next foray away in mid-July.

15 months in COVID-19 Pandemic

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15 months in….The pandemic is waning - although not as rapidly as it would be if more people were vaccinated. It is frustrating that we have not reached herd immunity levels via vaccinations already. At this point, there are vaccines available to all over the age of 12; many states have closed their mass vaccination sites and transitioned to smaller venues due to lower demand. The variants are causing localized surges in cases among unvaccinated people; so far, the vaccine is still effective against the variants although a bit less so for some variants. I am continuing to wear a mask any time I am in close proximity to other people (particularly indoors)…thinking about those that are too young or impacted by immunological challenges. I’m glad that most states are working to address vaccine hesitancy….hoping that those efforts will increase the numbers of people vaccinated enough to achieve herd immunity but worried that some areas of the country will continue to be hot spots for COVID-19 into the future. As time goes on, it is harder to be sympathetic with people that refuse the vaccine…and then get sick…and increasing the probability that at some point a variant will emerge that the vaccines don’t stop.

I continued the trip way from home over the past month and returned home. It was a huge change after being at home all the time during the pandemic. It was invigorating and stressful at the same time; I became more aware of my changed perception of other people. Keeping distance has become habit. Many times wearing a mask prompts silence too; it’s time to reinstate greetings to people we meet on sidewalks and gardens!

After I got home, the different between my area of Maryland and the places I traveled through (in Texas and Missouri for the most time) were noticeable. The CDC map shows that Maryland’s vaccination rate is higher than where I had travelled – but I noticed that people here are still wearing masks more frequently too. When I got to the grocery store (in the early morning), everyone is masked. At the Farmers Market, most people are wearing masks even though it is outdoors (likely to be close to other people though). At Brookside Gardens, people have a mask with them and put it on if they are close to other people. I haven’t ventured out more than that. My husband (also vaccinated) is still doing curbside pickups rather than going into stores.

I have re-started checkups. Dentist was first; I needed 3 crowns (one a replacement of a 30-year-old crown and the other two were for teeth with big fillings). Optometrist was second; my eyes had changed enough (my eyes has improved!) to need new glasses; I used that as an excuse to get red frames for my computer glasses. There are still more appointments to catch up on everything I delayed since March 2020.

I’ve started wearing earrings and makeup again although not on days I will be wearing a mask.

With all the activity of the road trip, the number of webinars over the past month dropped. Now that I am home again, I am enjoying the Maryland Ornithological Society Convention webinars with my husband. Others are on my calendar for upcoming weeks. There are some that I might watch that were recorded while I was traveling…it’s a bit overwhelming!

Overall, it’s been a good month. I’ve expanded my horizons, but life is not back to the way it was pre-pandemic. There are some aspects that maybe I don’t want back!

Home Again – Day 2

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The second day I was back – I was still exhausted but forged ahead. I started the day with a 6:30 AM trek to the grocery store to restock the refrigerator with fresh veggies and almond milk and eggs which my husband doesn’t eat on his own (he claims he gets his fresh veggies in his takeout orders!).

In a intentional move toward pre-pandemic ‘normal’ – I put on earrings after I got back from buying groceries (I had stopped wearing them during the pandemic; afraid of the mask dislodging them or getting tangled)…wearing ones my daughter had gotten me for Mother’s Day.

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My husband had made our taco filling recipe a few days before I returned home and we both enjoyed leftovers for lunch. I picked up some blue corn chips with my groceries and ate my serving as a dip. I extended my serving with some sauteed mushrooms and tomatoes…put some chess on top.

I ordered a summer dress for an upcoming wedding and a smaller docking station for my laptop (responding to the bulk and clumsy configuration of the larger docking station I already have). I also ordered some wool dryer balls since my daughter has found them to be effective. It felt good to follow up on lessons learned from my road trip…start preparing for the next one.

In the early afternoon, I walked around the yard to photograph the periodic cicadas that have emerged this year. This is the third time we have experienced it…the second time in this house. I had seen their bumbling flight in the trees from my office window. At ground level, I zoomed in on the insects in the grass or crawling up tree trunks. There seemed to be a lot of sheds in our cherry tree. Enjoy the slide show of the best cicada pictures from around the yard!

Home Again – Day 1

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My time away from home on the road trip (Maryland to Texas to Missouri and back to Maryland) was from April 17 to June 2. It was my longest time away from home since my junior year of high school when I traveled with an Up with People cast/traveling high school; I was away from home for semester length stints then. This time was very different both because of the intervening years of experience, returning to my own home/husband rather than my parents, and more recently impact of the pandemic but there was a similarity too – coming home was a return to the place I felt most secure after going out into the world with some anticipated trepidation.

The first thing I did when I got home to Maryland was to walk down the driveway taking a few pictures. I had missed almost all the iris blooms. There were only 2 flowers remaining…no more buds. The day lilies were beginning, and the deer had not eaten very many (yet). The Virginia creeper was vigorously growing up the oak tree. The trees and yard had filled out while I was away.

I unpacked the car…tried to disperse items close to where they could be put away. For some reason I was exhausted even though the drive had been easy…and sedentary. Being home again felt odd instead of ‘normal.’ I was grateful that my husband had kept things in good order while I was away. Somehow the list in my head of what I needed to do felt overwhelming. More about that in tomorrow’s post.

Road Trip Home

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The closet in the guest room of my daughter’s house in Springfield MO was the best….but after being away from Maryland for more than 6 weeks (in Texas and Missouri), I was very ready to head for home. It was a rainy morning as I started out at 7 AM. I stopped as I was backing out and rolled down the window to take a picture of the rosebush by the driveway.

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I’d selected a different route than my previous road trips between Missouri and Maryland with the beginning and end segments the same as before: Springfield MO to St. Louis MO via I44 (the same), St. Louis to Charleston, WV via I64, Charleston WV to Morgantown WV via I79, Morgantown WV to Hancock MD via I68 and the I70 for the rest of the way home (the same). I made a stop for the night in Lexington KY which was slightly more than halfway.

My first stop was to buy gas about 1.5 hours into the drive. It was a rest stop as well and I bought a Stuckey’s pecan roll remembering that I always wanted to try one as a child and not remembering if my parents ever bought one for me. It was way too sweet, but I managed to eat half that first morning and the rest on the second morning of the road trip. The rest of the stops that day were at interstate rest stops – which I prefer – except the last one for buying gas so that would have a full tank for the next day. I also picked up a chicken teriyaki bowl from Subway for my dinner at the hotel. The drive was easy – no accidents and the few places the road was under construction did not slow be down much; I made it to the hotel within half an hour of the prediction my car’s nav system had made when I first put in the destination.

The second day was an even better road trip day. I got off an hour earlier…just as it was getting light. The highway was in good condition all the way and very scenic (Kentucky, West Virginia, and Maryland). The traffic was light (not many trucks) and I enjoyed the curving roads through the Appalachians and Alleghenies. The rest stops were less than an hour apart and I stopped at most of them; I only needed one stop for gas – shortly before I got into Maryland. I was in Maryland by noon and home by 3 PM.

This route will be my first choice from now on; I’ll be retracing it in July when I head back to Missouri and then Texas. I will probably choose a different hotel…one that is easier on/off and not at so close to the center of Lexington. Otherwise, I’ll do everything else about the same: use the interstate rest stops when I don’t need gasoline, eat food I already have the car during the trip as much as possible, wear a mask when there are a lot of people around.

Springfield, Missouri Farmers Market

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My daughter took me to the Springfield, Missouri farmers market two times. I was overwhelmed with the place (and the household moving activities we were embroiled in) during the first visit…didn’t buy anything! The market is held under a covered pavilion with food trucks and a few vendors extending beyond the covered area. And it has more vendors than just farmers! The second visit was easier for me because we were done with the hardest parts of the moving and the market was more familiar.

I bought a large bulb of fennel with feathery top and a large mug for next winter’s hot tea. When we returned to the new house, my son-in-law promptly put the bulb in water to keep it fresh longer but we both started eating fennel with almost every meal (except breakfast).

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I noticed some murals on the buildings around the pavilion and took some pictures with my phone. There are probably more…I’ll look around more next time I visit later this summer.

The experience prompted me to realize that I should frequent the farmers market back home in Maryland…as a substitute for my not participating in the CSA this season (too much anticipated time away from Maryland to handle a weekly share).

Springfield, Missouri Yard

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My daughter and son-in-law recently bought and moved to their first house…one with a beautiful yard. At first, I enjoyed the yard from the sunroom in the early morning before the moving activities began. All the windows are screened so the pictures are not great --- I was thrilled to see the hummingbird (probably a ruby-throated) and a woodpecker (probably a downy). It appeared that a pair of cardinals were nesting in a cedar. There were squirrels and bunnies around as well. Later the pea plants my son-in-law is growing for a project were moved from their rental house and were put on the brick patio where they would get some sun for part of the day.

I walked around the yard on a subsequent day and took pictures that I could label with the trees/scrubs I could easily identify…and then more detailed pictures. The backyard has a decorated gate…and lots of great plantings. We learned from a neighbor that the owner before last was a Master Gardener…and many of the plantings from that time have endured! The dogwood was already growing seeds. There were swamp irises still blooming and some other plants with lots of buds that I wasn’t sure what they are, but I anticipate some native perennials that will be good for pollinators. The holly was blooming. There are a lot of evergreens and ferns in the space between the house and the neighboring house. I’ll document the evergreens there during a winter visit.

The side and front yard have the largest trees: Southern Magnolia, Oak, and River Birch. The magnolia was shedding more leaves than usual after some extreme cold last winter…but it had lots of buds and is starting to bloom. The maples and redbuds (in back and front) are smaller; all of them have produced many seeds this year. There are two types of native hydrangeas (wood in the back and oak leaf in the front).

Even the edges of the driveway are scenic. There are brick walkways in every direction from the drive into the yard; they are littered with magnolia leaves. Even the water spigot is special. Some miniature roses were just starting to bloom in the bed between the garden room and the driveway as they moved into the house…with lots of buds.

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The house is great…the yard is amazing. What a wonderful home!

Carrollton TX Yard – Tree Trimming

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Surprise – I opened the blinds one morning and saw a tree branch hanging vertically on the other side of the glass! I went out the front door to get a different perspective of the broken branch….from the front sidewalk and then from the street.

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Fortunately, my parents have a company that has taken care of their trees for years…and the owner could come to assess the situation on the same day. My parents opted to have all their trees trimmed at the same time as the broken branch was removed since the crew could do it the next day and they would leave the larger pieces (cut into shorter lengths) for fireplace wood next winter.

It was a good thing it was lawn waste day for their area since there was a big pile of branches at the curb by mid- morning. A big truck with a claw came and picked up everything (the person at the controls looked like he really enjoyed his job!).

By the end of the day – there was another pile as big as the first (view from the house and then from the street). The whole front yard would have been covered by tree branches if the truck had not picked up the early branch pile.

The 2-person crew worked from 7:30 AM to about 2 PM…a job well done.

After they left, we assessed the piles of wood. Some of them went to the wood rack immediately. Some might be big enough to use as plant stands…adding a layers to a garden area.

Want to count some tree (branch) rings? Use the arrows to move among the three samples. It’s hard to count the ones in the center….but even without those, think about which one might be the oldest branch…which is the youngest?

Sandwiched

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I am sandwiched between elderly parents and an early career daughter. Many of the articles about being in this situation seem to focus on the stress of being pulled between the two generations. My perception of it – so far – is how lucky I am…not the stress it might cause from time to time. Yes – I can’t be everywhere at once – but I am not the only one involved. I am married and have three sisters…all in the situation with me!

The distance between Maryland (me) and Texas (my parents) requires a two day drive…it’s slightly shorter but still 2 days to Missouri (my daughter’s). Flying is easier between my home and my parents since both are major cities; the flights to my daughters all require at least one stop.  Overall – it is a challenge to get to them fast. Virtual is helpful but not the same as being there in person.

I was fortunate that neither generation of my sandwich had an emergency during the pandemic. Traveling the distance quickly (driving or flying) is already a challenge…it would have been incredibly traumatic to not be able to travel at all; I’m glad we are all vaccinated now so the travel restriction is lifting.

The pandemic year has probably increased the need to travel to my parents more frequently. Maybe I will feel the pull more acutely…or not. I going to stay with the idea of savoring the time with both generations!

Ins and Outs of Walkers

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My mother has been using a walker off and on for several years…all the time for the past year or so. Over that time – she has used 3 different walkers and learned some lessons.

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The walker that is best for her now is this one.

Tennis balls. One of the most common mods made to walkers is adding tennis balls to the feet. On the one she has now they prolong the life of the rear push locks.

Fold down seat. The first walker she used was like the current one but didn’t have a seat. It worked about the same for walking. The seat adds a place for her to sit anywhere she needs too (the kitchen is a place she uses the seat a lot…or as a perch to cut a flower outdoors) and can be used as a platform to take things along with her – a basket of clothes to/from the laundry, the newspapers out to the recycle, etc.

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2 wheels are better than 4. She used a 4-wheel walker for a time. It rolls very easily and worked well when she only needed the walker occasionally and she was going on longer walks. I remember a 4th of July when the family made a short hike down to the neighborhood vantage point to see fireworks; she enjoyed them from her walker seat! She used it in the house until the past few months. It rolls too easily for her to manage now.

Move 2 wheels to the inside of the walker frame to minimize width – increase maneuverability. The walker she is using now came with the wheels on the outside of the walker as had the first one she used. We moved them to the inside so that going through narrow places (doorways, hallways) was a bit easier. It’s surprising the difference that little bit of reduced width can make!

Folded size. Since the walker goes with her everywhere – the folded size and the ease of getting it folded/unfolded is important. The seat on the walker she is using now folds up and the sides fold inward. It fits easily into all the family vehicles.

Overall – the walker she is using now is honed to her needs….and she is making the most of every aspect of it!

30 Years ago – May 1991

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May 1991 was a hectic – and traumatic month. One of my sisters experienced a mid-term miscarriage, my husband started a new job (carrying boxes increased his back problem), I was juggling 2 projects for the first half of the month requiring frequent travel to Atlanta, my daughter was exhibiting some ‘terrible twos’ behavior a few months before she was 2 (deciding she didn’t like baths, sometimes refusing to feed herself, taking off at her fastest run across a cemetery, grabbing my glasses from my face), and my computer monitor failed making it impossible to work at home for a few days until we made an emergency purchase of a new one.

On the positive side – my daughter was loving the outdoors. In the early part of the month, she thoroughly explored the back yard – smelling the roses, feeling the branches of the willow sweep over her, and picking some chives flowers to bring inside.

The later part of the month was dry enough that I turned on the sprinkler to water the yard one afternoon….not anticipating how thrilled my daughter would be. She immediately went to play in the spray. It was her first experience with a sprinkler.

Some other firsts that month for her: riding the train at Wheaton Park and an escalator. One of her books had an escalator and she was excited to see and ride a real one.

I was writing letters to family on my computer but sending them snail mail. The books I was reading (airplane rides were prime reading time for me) were mostly used books. I noticed a young child waiting for the bus and worried that my daughter would be doing that in a few years.

Even with all the things that happened over the course of the month – by the end things were looking good for June: husband was settled into new job, one of my projects was done so there was only one ongoing, and we expected visits from 2 of my sisters in June (separate weeks so not an overwhelming prospect!).

Prepping for a Road Trip

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As soon as I got my vaccination, I began to make plans for a road trip from Maryland to Texas to see my parents. During the last week before I was fully vaccinated (i.e., the second week after the second shot), I made hotel reservations as a halfway point, got my car serviced and fueled (it was the first gas I had bought since last fall), and did some grocery shopping to stock up supplies for my husband at home and purchase what I would need for the road. It was the first time I had shopped in the store for months! I got there a few minutes after sunrise and stopped to take a picture before I went into the store.

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I was appreciating the springtime in our neighborhood too. The maples are going to seed. The tree in our back yard looks golden compared to the spring green of the tulip poplars of behind it. Soon the leaves will dominate, and the maple will look green too…but I’ll be in Texas by the time that happens. It felt odd to realize I would not be at home for over a month after not traveling at all for over a year.

My plan for the road trip was to minimize interactions with people along the way which meant carrying enough food and drinks in the car…lots of hand sanitizer…a supply of masks. The drive would be a pretty one with trees and wildflowers along the interstates, but I was more anxious than usual because of the impact of the pandemic. I was not the only one that was getting out for the first time in over a year…and it was hard to predict how the places where I’d stop along the route through Virginia, Tennessee, Arkansas, and Texas would be. Would people wear masks? Would the rest stops all be open? Would they be crowded? Would the motel indeed be as I expected…with minimal interaction to get checked in?

Stay tuned for a post in a few days about my road trip….

30 years ago – April 1991

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After the flurry of guests that we had in March 1991, we were back to being on our own in April….new challenges. My daughter was at a temporary family day care during the day for most of the month; it seemed to be working well but I rejoiced that not only did she remember her original day care provider after several weeks away, but she seemed thrilled to be back in that situation by the end of the month.

My husband was in the process of moving from Johns Hopkins to Applied Physics Lab for his work. It was a big ‘win’ in terms of work and a much shorter commute for him. We made a weekend trip to his Johns Hopkins office to move some items like plants and files. The heavier books were already on the way to the new office. We might have been the only people in the building. My daughter enjoyed pushing her stroller unimpeded in the hallways.

I was traveling to Atlanta frequently for work and by the end of the month was quickly getting to a stopping point on that project so that I could start the next one which would involve a longer commute. There was an announcement about a ‘work from home’ pilot and I wondered if I would be able to participate to avoid the long commute at least one day a week.

The trips to Atlanta – sometimes done in a long day (intense meetings in the middle) – were the first travel I’d done for work since my daughter was born. It felt odd to be so far away from her. At the same time – I savored the quiet time on the plane - enjoying good books. I was using a card I’d received from my Grandmother as a bookmark. It took some effort to carry enough reading material with me on those trips….it made the briefcase heavy since this was well before electronic books!

It also seemed like there were more letters exchanged that April – mostly with family. Everyone seemed to have a busy month – travel to San Francisco for a class, 2 people moving, another getting pregnant, ducklings escaping their enclosure to make friends with dogs, and birthday celebrations. Reading about the flurry of activity was quite a contrast with our lives this year during the pandemic and, to a lesser extent, without the challenge of careers. There were lots of comments about how pretty the spring trees and flowers were; that hasn’t changed.

Lessons from an Elderly Cat

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Our cat is 19 years old. He has been thoroughly pampered during the pandemic since we’re at home rather than traveling…or even venturing out very much. My husband is the ‘primary care person’ – but we both enjoy talking to the cat…observing the cat live well in his aging body. Here’s my list of lessons from our aging cat.

Sleep when you want…and not always in the same place. There are cat naps…and then longer periods of sleep. If he does go to sleep out on the screen deck – he is there for hours. He enjoys a longer sleep in his donut at least once a day – or he did during the winter months; that could change now that it is getting more inviting outside. He has a chair in the basement where he goes when he does not want to be disturbed and some darkness during the day. We humans sometimes put a lot of emphasis on ‘sleeping in our own bed’…but maybe the change of sleeping somewhere else is one of the things that makes travel appealing. For me – I like to vary where I do my mindfulness ‘rest’ which rejuvenates me as much as a ‘cat nap.’

Seek out sunshine. All cats like to find a spot of sunshine…and our elderly cat is no exception. Being warm probably makes him feel less achy. It works for humans too…but how often do we take advantage of a sunny place….sitting by a window or outdoors.

Drink water more frequently than you eat. We have a water fountain for our cat, and he uses it frequently. As we age, sometimes our thirst indicator is not as accurate, and we get dehydrated. I’m glad our cat seems to not have that problem…or maybe the water fountain is appealing enough to draw him over to it.

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Move about even if it sometimes hurts a little. Our cat still goes up and down the stairs although sometimes he looks reluctant. He seems to think about it…..then goes up or down quickly…get it over with. My husband and I are already talking about our next house not having stairs…that we want to age in place but not in our current house.

Occasionally revert to your younger self. The cat enjoys playing with wand toys – puffs and snakes. He would play with little prompting when he was younger. Now he sometimes just follows the toys with his eyes. We still try to entice him. Sometimes he surprises us and ‘catches’ the snake. Another time he followed we around as I dragged the snake behind me! When I think of the ‘lesson’ translated to humans I think about the effect younger children have on older people; it’s so easy to slip into the play mode when interacting with the child; it’s as beneficial to the older person as it is to the child!

Get the news from different perspectives. Our cat has windows that he uses to check out what is happening in the world. One of his favorite places is the windows on either side of the front door. From there he can see the birds and chipmunks on the porch or front yard, the school buses, the people walking their dogs. On the covered deck, he watched the birds building nests through a crack in the decking, birds at the feeder, the trees of the forest. I’m not sure how often he checks the area under the deck from the French door in the basement. It’s deep shade there…some ferns, maybe deer coming through at dawn or dusk. Sometimes I wonder if he knows when the racoons try to raid the bird feeder at night.

Give and get attention. The cat is vocal about what he wants – and doesn’t. He has become a picky eater…and he wants company (often in the middle of the night)…and does not like to be alone in the house even if he is napping. At the same time, he likes to interact – with different meows and trills (if only we could understand his language better) and often initiates conversation and cuddles and treats and play. Cat and people need interaction!

Keep doing things you’ve always enjoyed. Our cat has always enjoyed being outdoors on the screened deck. Sometimes he naps but he often just appears to be relaxed/attentive. Do cats meditate? They often appear to be awake and alert…but inwardly focused.

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Be curious. It’s easy to tell if the cat is just taking a quick look outside….or if there is something drawing his attention. Maybe sometimes it is just a deep territorial response…but it looks a lot like curiosity. With people – there is a browsing mode…and then an increased focus once that survey spots something of higher interest. It’s a good quality to practice….and think again about taking on a child-like approach to the way we perceive the world.

Savor the stretch. Cats have the best stretches! Stretching feels good to humans too!

Vary your gait. Our cat generally moves slower than he did when he was younger….but he has bursts of speed or faster walking frequently. Sometimes it surprises him. As we get older, we may want to increase our consciousness of how we move and hold ourselves (particularly our back and shoulders).

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Eat smaller meals. Our cat has always been a grazer rather than gobbling up a lot of food at one time. Now he seems to be eating smaller amounts than before…but more frequently. He doesn’t eat things that don’t taste good to him either. There is more wasted cat food. As we get older – maybe our own food choices need to change…increasing our attention on the nutritional value of what we eat along with savoring foods we like.

Relax. Cats are masters of relaxation…and we humans need to give ourselves opportunities to relax and enjoy our lives every day.

There’s a lot to learn about aging gracefully from our cat!

Cherry Blossoms

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While our plum tree is the first tree in our yard to bloom, the cherry is not far behind. There is a time when they are both blooming. The cherry blossoms are lighter pink and larger…in the foreground in the picture below with the cherry in the background.

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Early in the month I did some experimental pictures of the cherry blossoms – high key, dark background, and blurry green. I like the high key version to see the details of the flowers and the subtle color…pink buds, tinge of pink in the flowers, the star in the center, the green leaves.

We had a hard frost after the tree started to bloom and then some very breezy days. I noticed that the petals were whirling away from the flowers earlier than I thought they would. It was sunny enough to photograph the flowers even with the breeze moving them around (particularly if I zoom rather than trying to get close)!

We won’t be going down to see the cherry trees in Washington DC as we have in previous years; the pandemic has made it too difficult. The trees around the Tidal Basin generally bloom earlier than our tree. I’ve been reading articles about the flooding around the Tidal Basin trending up in recent years…killing some of the trees, flooding/damaging walkways. It’s sad to think about changes like that.

I am choosing to enjoy the cherry tree in my front yard….its blooms are always part of my celebration of spring.  

Mockingbird in our Backyard

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I see mockingbirds in other locations frequently…not often in our backyard. The yard has less open area; over the years the trees around the edges of the yard have grown…reducing the grassy space. But sometimes a mockingbird shows up. When I first saw one recently – it was on the gutter of the covered deck… looking around. It stayed in place long enough for a portrait.

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Then the bird flew down to the bird bath and stayed even longer...getting drinks. Even though we’ve had rain recently – the wind and temperatures have dried up puddles. This bird was thirsty!