It has been so long that I have forgotten how to work this site!! A lot has happened since I last wrote. Way too much to go into detail. But some of the highlights and lowlights are....
Highlight- My nephew got married at the end of August. It was a beautiful wedding and I was honored to be able to help with it. Lots of fun!
Highlight--In October 2013 I took a road trip with a friend to New Orleans. New Orleans is one of my top favorite cities and I had not been there in years. The goal was to go the Crescent City Blues Festival to see Sonny Landreth and Jonny Lang. And to also add some Hard Rock Cafes to my list. We made it to the HRs in Nashville, Memphis, New Orleans (I had been to the NOLA one before but they moved it into the French Quarter so it counts as a new one!), Biloxi, Destin and Atlanta. We spent a couple days in Lafayette, LA where we saw Sonny perform. On our way back home we stopped in Bethesda, Maryland to go to Georgetown Cupcakes and then to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy in Harper's Ferry, WV. A place that I have been waiting to visit!
Highlight--In April 2014 my friend and I drove my father down to Washington DC so that he could see the monuments. He had been many years ago but he hadn't see the new memorials such as the Korean Memorial. Since he fought in the Korean War he really wanted to see it. We stayed at the same hotel I stayed in the last time I was in DC. We had rented a wheelchair to cart my father around since he doesn't have the strength to walk very far. We had good weather and the cherry blossoms were in full bloom. The best part of the trip was how many people came up to my father (who was wearing his Navy hat) to thank him for his service.
Highlight-- I was able to take another trip to Disney World in June with my niece. Her boyfriend came along this time. It had been 3.5 years since we were last there. We took the train down, as usual. It was hot while we were there but it only rained heavy the first day. It was fun but a very different trip for me. I have another trip booked for August 2015 with my niece, my brother and his kids. Its a long way out but it will give us time to pay for it.
Lowlight-- My father's health is going down hill and he requires more care than before. We bought a wheelchair and he uses it every time he goes out now. His lack of mobility has cut back on how often he gets out now because the friend he used to hang out with can't manage the wheelchair on her own.
Huge Lowlight-- I lost my job at the end of August. I was told back in March that it "might" happen but I thought deep down that it would not happen. An instance where the Law of Attraction did not work for me. Early August I was told it was going to happen and by the end of August I was done. I have a severance package which is saving me financially and mentally. About six weeks later and there is no job in sight. Yeah, it terrifies me. I stay in jobs probably longer than I should because I prize stability above all. To not be anchored to a moor is debilitating to me. I have been using the services of a career counseling service...taken umpteen webinars and online classes. I have only applied to four jobs (but didn't get them) but I have been reworking my resume with the help of the service and it is looking pretty nice. So, most of my days are spent getting myself ready to apply and interview for jobs. If I don't get one soon I will go insane!!
Lowlight--My healthy eating has gone out the window. I struggled for the past year but I wasn't gaining. When I was told back in March that my job was in jeopardy that was the beginning of the end. I didn't do too poorly until I went to Disney World. Since then I eat as if I am a person on death row. Not pretty! I keep planning to get back on the wagon but, honestly, right now I am having trouble just keeping my head above water. My priorities are different. On the flip side I KNOW I feel better about myself when I am eating healthy and exercising. So, it is not helping me to eat crap and gain weight.
Lowlight--I lost a lot of friends over the year. My little group of friends that enjoyed so much decided that I wasn't worthy of them, I guess, and one by one they just left my life. Because of this my interest in Girl Scouts has hit an all time low (these friends I met thru GS) and I am looking to get out. This year will most likely be my last. And there are other friends who have drifted out, as well. I honestly do not know what I have done. But I am tired of bending to what others think I should be. Too old for that crap.
Highlight or Lowlight depending on how you look at it-- I have been writing again. Period. End of story.
Welp, that's all the pictures I can post until I can figure out how to get more of them off my phone and onto Google!
