The Blog: Spellbound by our own imperfect lives...

A vibrant and funny man from my town died of lung cancer yesterday. It wasn't too long ago we saw him at the gym working out vigorously. Life changes pretty fast some times. This morning, we had breakfast with good friends. Sharon and I have known each other since the early 70s. You can do the math. We went through breast cancer treatment about the same time and even though we didn't see each other for 30 years, we reconnected like it had been two weeks. Tomorrow, Sharon leaves for Rochester for her reconstructive surgery while her dad is dying in the hospital in Mankato. Such a tough time for her whole family in so many ways. Today is the 17th anniversary of the F3 tornado we experienced in St. Peter and towns surrounding. Here is what Wikipedia has to say about it.   Back then, we didn't take digital photos but some are available on the web. It's still hard to look at them. This picture was taken just as the storm came into town. March 29, 1975 als...

Regis and I get a kick out of our grandkids, especially the two boys. Whenever they come over for a meal, no matter what is served, they say it is the best meal ever. Well, spaghetti noodles poked through hot dogs is a special favorite but they say this a lot. Nana, that was the best lunch ever. This picture is of my best meal ever. I can't remember when I have enjoyed food as much as I did this seared tuna steak with pickled vegetables, basmati rice, and braised collard greens at Lone Star. I'll say this, too. This whole meal was about $15 and I paid almost that much for a tiny piece of tuna served as an appetizer in a plastic box at a place in Mankato not too long ago. So, thanks, Matt. Best meal ever!

Photo by Ruth Klossner Last week, by chance, I happened to be working at the front desk at the Nicollet County Historical Society. Thursday is not my regular day but they were short-handed and I could do it. By chance, a very nice woman, Ruth Klossner, came in to donate several crates of photographs from her time at the Lafayette Ledger. I helped her unload them, we chatted, and later that day we became Facebook friends. On St. Patrick's Day, she posted this photo of two children she spotted in the doorway of a pub in Ireland in 2004 when she traveled there. Katie, who Ruth has know since she was a child and who lives three miles away from Ruth, saw the photo on Facebook, recognized the little boy, and this conversation ensued. Katie: OMG Ruth! Was this photo by chance taken in Sneem, Ireland? I am pretty sure I taught the young man in this photo when I was student teaching in Ireland.  Ruth: Double OMG!!! Yes, it WAS taken in Sneem!!! Luckily, I included that info ...

Signs of spring! Tiny bits of green beneath the dead leaves in the garden. Evidence of a spring cleaning lines the curb for pick up. The spring flag has been hung. Burger baskets are back and the Legion. Old friends return from the South. Neighbors emerge from the winter hiding places and are seen walking, biking, checking out the little library. Cardinals sing lustily in the treetops.

I've spent a lot of time thinking about this lately. When do I get to tell my recovery story? It's a little bit like being a cancer survivor. Are you one from the first day? Do I consider myself a recovery hero today? Do I consider myself a recovery hero from the day I first decided to be one? This is my story. These things are true for me. Maybe they are not true for you or for the people you know or know about, but they are my truths. At some point in my life I learned to use alcohol to an extent that was not healthy for me. It was important for me to figure out the reasons but they aren't central to the story. From time to time, alcohol was a problem for me and I always recovered. It has been more of a problem for me in the last couple years and now I am recovering from that.  I'm lucky that in between these periods of over-drinking, I had long periods of time when I didn't. I have built a rich, full life. I have many friends and I have a husba...

Tom and Betty are coming home right after April 1st. We have missed them. I am working at two jobs and volunteering at two others in the month of April. It will be a busy month. I'm starting my straw bale garden about mid-April. We're going to try six bales and we plan to grow salad greens, tomatoes, peppers, strawberries, and a few other things. I like to shop at the farmer's market for some things...the things we don't eat enough of to grow ourselves. I'm taking Tiffany out for lunch today to celebrate her birthday. She turned 30 yesterday. How can that be? We celebrated St. Patrick's Day on Tuesday with corned beef and cabbage and a trip downtown to the parade. Such a goofy holiday. Gus is not in favor of holiday shenanigans.  I walked in the RunStrong 5K with my friend Michele. It's a fundraising race for the Livestrong program. After the race, we went to visit our friend, Mary, in the hospital. At nine...

Sometimes I wonder how I get myself into these messes. I have spent the last hour working on my schedule for the coming month, beginning March 23. I will work every day and some evenings until April 23rd and I am experiencing some consternation because of it. Ah, well. Not much to be done. I took a part-time job recently at Lone Star BBQ in St. Peter. I enjoy it and it isn't a lot of hours but now I have to and tell them all the lunch hours I am not available. Sad face. I agreed a while back to help with testing (ugh ugh ugh) at the schools. The money is good, the work is not difficult, but the hours are plentiful between March 23 and April 23. My straw bale garden will need attention in April, too. And I have a long list of spring tasks to accomplish...things like vacuuming out the trunk of the car and exchanging the snow blower for the lawn mower. I'm also continuing my work at the NCHS and at the AARP tax center. By April 23rd, I should be about ready for a vacati...

We seem to have a lot of spring birthdays in our family. Well, if you count February as spring, I guess we do. The two boys, Alex and Elliot turned six, Tiffany and Eric both have birthdays in March, April has a birthday in February, and Peter and Amber have birthdays in April. Tiffany and Eric had a party for Elliot at the Holiday Inn Express in Mankato. The kids had a great time. Not exactly an old person's version of fun, but very nice just the same. Lots of noise, high humidity in the pool area (ha!), and a ton of stimulation. I regret not bringing my suit...the hot tub looked inviting. Ella, Alex, Evelyn, Elliot, and Adam Peter wearing Zoey's goggles Birthday boy and mama Zoey and April Elliot Teresa, Tiffany, and Kensey I am going to visit with my sleep doc this morning. Then I have an errand or two, a coffee date, and the rest of a lazy day to work on my organization plan at home. Ta da! Happy Monday!

Regis is so good about taking Gus for at least one long walk, even on the coldest days. He has scoped out the spots in town to go where it is less icy on the icy days, less windy on the windy days, less sloppy on the sloppy days. This is part art and part science. I like to go but as with most things, I am a fair weather walker. I dread going out in the icy wind so most times, I don't. Regis had a complete blood panel done the other day and the difference walking has made in his health would make a believer out of you. His doctor is going to jump up on the exam table and crow like a rooster. Ha! I'd like to see that. I had a sleep study done on Monday night. I have had trouble with insomnia for years...waking in the middle of the night and unable to go back to sleep. It gets worse then it gets better, then it gets worse. I slept like a baby in the sleep study, even with a hundred wires, an oxygen meter on my finger, and something in my nose. Go figure. I usually wake up a...