Rearview Mirror


Rearview mirror...
Why do we look in the rearview mirror? I confess they make me a little dizzy when I'm backing up. I much prefer rearview cameras. Even better, no backing up. I love it when the parking space in front of me is empty, and I can drive straight through.
Naturally, as January 1 approaches, everyone is looking in their rearview mirror. Paragraph after paragraph filled Christmas letters with highlights of 2017. I don't do Christmas letters. Perhaps it's because I don't have children, and no one cares where my cat goes to college.
The first hint for me that 2017 would not be an ordinary year was in January when we learned that my husband's job would be outsourced. When I sum the major events of my year in one sentence, it sounds like it was a "piece of cake." This year: lost one job; found new job; added two heart stents; rehabilitated two knee replacement surgeries; moved father-in-law; lost one ED (retired); welcomed new ED; cared for sick cat.
I'm happy to report closing out 2017, my husband loves his new job, I have a fantastic new ED, my mother can walk, and my father-in-law is comfortably settled.
My cat is fat and happy. And looking forward to college next fall.
(Pictured: Sebastian appreciating art or, like the other cats in the picture, begging--we're uncertain.) I'll think about writing a Christmas letter next year.
Wishing you the best in 2018!
~ LowTide explorer, Carolyn Fjeran


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

"War of the rubies ..."

Image
LowTide Morning - August 25, 2018 "War of the rubies ..." On my deck, a cherry tomato is climbing, clinging to life inside a wire cage. The vine looks like sin, but the hummingbirds love perching on the top of the cage as if they are king of the hill. Male hummingbirds are aggressive and territorial. I wonder, do birds have testosterone? I have a couple of ruby-throated hummers going at it in my backyard. "Your mama..." "I know you are, but what am I?" The fight is on. They dart, dive, twist, and smack talk. I just refilled the feeder yesterday. There is plenty of nectar for all. For now. But they don't understand that there is an endless supply. I suppose they fight for what they fear is expendable. I was about to say there is no need for all this fighting. But who knows what tomorrow will hold; I might forget to refill the feeder. Yes, that has been known to happen. Don't judge. Just as children fighting for love and attention, hummers don't ...
Read more

PIECES OF A PUZZLE

Image
January 31, 2016 Ann Crammond, second executive director of the Atlanta Botanical Gardens, was looking forward to a post-retirement trip to the Antarctica. The trip was scheduled one year after her 11 year tenure as executive director. She was an avid horticulturist featured on Atlanta's WXIA TV "Noonday Gardener." In her lighthearted style, she quipped that she was looking forward to the Antarctica because, "No one would ask her to identify any plants." Understood. There are thousands of plants in cultivation and exponentially more in the wild. Gardeners are prone to share bits and pieces of a plant hoping for a positive ID. Horticulturists can be like a dog with a bone if they cannot immediately provide an answer. Plant keys are an old tried-and-true method, but slow and laborious. Today, one of my favorite gardeners presented a lovely clipping of a shrub neither of us could name. Next came an internet search for a plant key. In the process, I found an intrigu...
Read more