Not being able to sleep at night is one of the big downsides of post-menopausal life, but I have to admit one thing. It did lead to me becoming a writer. It started when I woke up around 2:00 or 3:00 AM and lay there wide awake until daylight, night after night. My mind would wander for hours, worrying about the future more than anything else. One night I finally decided to get up and write about the things that worried me, and that led to my first blog. I discovered that I enjoyed writing, and the words came to me easily. Then my friend Kim encouraged me to try writing for publication in a regional magazine that published some of her work. She invited me to a meeting for the contributors to the magazine, and I took a story I had written about Mama with me. I was able to show it to the editor, and she liked it well enough to schedule it in the following month’s magazine. Thus, I accomplished one of the things on my “bucket list,” publishing something I had written. That first story led to two more articles for that magazine, and then I asked a local newspaper editor if he would consider publishing some articles I had written on “Making Your House a Home.” He did, and even let me have a monthly column on the same topic – with my picture and everything! That only lasted until we moved here to the mountains, but for a while, I was actually recognized by people I didn’t even know. That was kind of fun.
Since moving here, I have not attempted to publish anything, but I am still writing. The blog lives on. I hope to continue publishing at some point, but I have been preoccupied with adjusting to our new life here, taking care of Mama and cleaning her house, and fixing up the house we now live in. Besides that, we still have the responsibility of looking after our old house until we can either sell or rent it. That has meant lots of going back and forth to Watkinsville. Then there was hosting the family reunion in October and Christmas for the whole family just recently. We’ve had lots of other company as well, for which I am very grateful. In addition to that, I tutor at the children’s home one day a week. The point is, I am not lacking for something to do; in fact, there is not enough time to do all that needs to be done. For example, Doug gave me a fiddle for Christmas. (Learning to play the fiddle is another item on my bucket list.) I have a book and DVD to help me learn to play it, but have so far only found time to work on it one day.
This week we’ll be going back to Georgia to celebrate Doug’s birthday on New Year’s Day with his mom and dad and, hopefully, Sean and Misty. We’ll be watching the dawgs play in the Capital One bowl, of course. On Friday, we plan to take down some of the wallpaper in our old house and clean out the fish pond. Doug also needs to blow all the leaves off the lawn. I just hope the weather is good.
Next week we will be preparing for our cruise. We plan to leave on Saturday, the 10th and drive to New Orleans, stopping one night along the way. The ship departs on Sunday evening. We should return to port on the 18th and then start home. I know I will be ready to get back here by then. I really am a homebody, and a week away from here is pretty much my limit!
When we get back, Doug and I are committed to going on the South Beach diet together. After the cruise, we will certainly need it! Truth is, we need it BEFORE the cruise! I decided on the South Beach because I think the only way I will overcome my addiction to sweets is to just cut them out altogether. Besides, I am afraid my blood sugar might be getting too high.
I hope Doug is adjusting to retirement. I know he sometimes misses going to the office each day and being around other people. At least he really does like living up here. He always did dream of retiring to the mountains one day. That day just came a little sooner than either one of us thought it would! He is trying to keep busy, and there is plenty for him to do around here. Yesterday he worked on the posts that hold up the deck. If you recall from a previous blog, Daddy nailed 2X6 boards around each one, and I filled the cracks with foam and spackling. Doug scraped and sanded them smooth so we can paint them in the spring. The basement and woodwork still need painting as well.
Doug also spent a lot of time on the net yesterday, researching information on renting out a home. It is looking more and more like that is the thing to do. I don’t think the economy or the housing market is going to pick up anytime soon, and it seems like the only things selling are houses priced well below market value – or at least what WAS their market value. It really worries me having that house just sit there empty. We need to do something right away.
Doug has also found a new hobby – wood carving. I thought he did a good job on the rooster he carved for Vivian and the trout he carved for Sean. Next he plans to carve a bear. I am getting him a wood carving knife for his birthday.
Today is New Year’s Eve day, and we plan to take down and put away the Christmas decorations. 2008 is about over, and all I can say is, good riddance! Let’s all hope that 2009 is better. It will certainly be interesting. Being the political junkie I am, I can’t wait to see what happens when Obama becomes President.
Tonight we have reservations to eat at the Old Hiawassee Grill. Sean and Misty gave us a gift certificate to eat there for Christmas. It is a very nice restaurant, and we haven’t tried it yet. After eating at this fancy restaurant, we plan to go to the annual New Year’s Eve Possum Drop at Clay’s Corner! I’ll let you know all about it in a future blog.
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