Are you an optimist or a pessimist? Clearly an optimist. For the most part, I have hope of a fun and interesting tomorrow … even for he literal tomorrow despite the predictions of hail which are forcing me to rethink our sightseeing plans. I can dream of new adventures and can turn most hurdles into…
Category: speak
Packing: It Gets Easier with Practice
When I first started traveling alone with the kids, I would start the planning and lists a week in advance. I’d start packing days before the trip…..partly from excitement and partly from nervousness. I’d obsessively print out itineraries, contact numbers, reservations and more. Over the years, the packing and preparation process has gotten much quicker,…
What’s your idea for a perfect Sunday?
What’s your idea for a perfect Sunday? How would it differ from a typical Sunday? If it’s Sunday where you are, what kind of day is it so far? A typical Sunday does not exist for us. Sometimes I wish it did, but then I realize I’d be giving up something I love, the lack…
How do you define a friend?
How do you define a friend? This morning as I was reading through my latest Facebook feed, a post from an old neighbor caught my eye. She was lamenting that screens are taking the place of personal contact and fears for the future of “friends”. I am a facebooker; I admit it. I read it…
What’s the single most important thing you accomplished in 2010?
What’s the single most important thing you accomplished in 2010? And how do you plan to top it in 2011 (perhaps by completing your blogging challenge!) Today’s question is stumping me, since the most important things aren’t things I’ve accomplished. They are things I’ve lived and loved! Spending time with my family and discovering new…
What is the bravest thing?
Looking for some inspiration for just about every aspect of my life today (hello, mid-life crisis!), I stumbled across The Daily Post, an “an experiment in blogging motivation from the folks at WordPress.com”. Today’s topic is Topic: What is the bravest thing? The question immediately brought to mind a blog post I read earlier today…
Mondays are for Dreaming: Knowing When to Divert the Flow
As I sit here, watching the sun rise over the Atlantic Ocean, I am having a difficult time dreaming of being anywhere else at the moment. Despite the frigid temperatures, the beach is still the place I dream of the most. I love visiting and learning about other places, of course, but the beach is…
What Do You Pack for Texas?
Bags of books, of course. While, given that we are packing and unpacking more often than not, we have our packing down to a science, our packing style varies wildly, based on where we are going, how we are going to get there and how long we’ll be there. For instance, as we headed off…
Kidless in California
Labor Day weekend, I headed out to California without kids or husband. They all stayed in Atlanta to head to Dragon*Con. But I was not without family. I spent my west coast weekend with my mom, my dad, my sister and her fiance, seeing the sights and having fun. I am quite certain that this…
Quiet before the Storm
I sit here quietly in the Admirals Club in San Jose. With almost five hours stretching ahead of me, and with very few items from my “list” than can be accomplished from here. It is a strange feeling to know that there’s nothing pressing, and I can take my time organizing various things at a…
ET, Don’t Phone MY Home
….because you will not get an answer. Leave a message, but there’s no telling when I’ll get back to you. It drives some visitors to our house nuts; I do not answer our home telephone. “Aren’t you going to get that?” Nope. Pretty much anyone I would care to talk to knows that the only…
YAB (Yet another blog)
Yes, it is that time again. I started a new blog. Actually, I revived an old, dormant blog and gave it a facelift. Visit TravelGoon, and if you like what you see, please: Like it on Facebook Follow on Twitter Subscribe via RSS There is likely to be some double posting between that blog and…
what to do?
After weeks of struggling and dealing with setbacks, I have conquered my to-do list. The girls and I have nothing scheduled for the next two weeks, other than my work and their homeschooling. (Rob, on the other hand, is going to Argentina, and I am green with envy.) What do I do with myself? It’s…
I’m Tired
I have so many things I want to blog about. Our trip this past weekend to LEAF. Thoughts on throwing out the baby with the bathwater (and all the dogmatism that drives me nuts). Our upcoming trip to Turkey and frustrations of not being in control. The girls and their knitting and pottery creations. But…
photogoon
For the past few years (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010), I’ve tried to take at least one photo a day and post my favorite in my Picasa albums. I don’t always succeed in taking a photo a day, but each year I get closer. So far for this year, I’ve only missed about five days! …
blogging
It comes and goes. I’ve renewed my commitment to blog. I don’t have any grand illusions that anyone stops by my blog very often. It gets quite boring here, I know. I bore myself. I often fall into a zone of just doing enough to cross the item off the list instead of putting a…
reflections
Last week, while stuck at the cabin, I had lots of downtime. I couldn’t get done most of the things on my ever-growing to-do list. I had lots of time to think. Probably too much time to think, as is evident in my blog posts from the end of last week. I also believe that…
failing at juggling
today was one of those great days. everything went more smoothly than could possibly be expected. we drove through Charlotte in rush hour and didn’t get stuck in any traffic. We had money left on our Smartrips cards, so we didn’t have to wait in the long line to refill them. our hotel room looks…
always out of step
it’s been true for my whole life. i always, always feel out of step with the rest of the world. i don’t get it, whatever it is. i don’t have it, whatever it is. you think i’d have figured out how to deal with this sense of not fitting in by now and not let…
power? or fulfilment of a promise?
this weekend I was placed in a difficult position regarding an announcement list that i co-moderate. when my neighbor (and good friend) and I started a new pine lake yahoogroup, we created it with a mission. this mission statement has been clear form the start and is listed on the page for the group. though…