Possessed Computer

If anyone is trying to read the post called, "Rembrandt," please click on the words, "read more," in the left hand corner of the blank post.  For whatever reason, my computer decided not to print the text.  Who knows why.....only the computer!
  

Rembrandt

 

Beautiful Beaufort

We spent a few days in Beaufort, South Carolina thanks to a gift from Tony and Marie.  They gave us a visit to Rhett House, a B&B that is celebrating its 200th birthday this year.  We had to delay our visit due to hurricanes and the virus, but we finally went and had a wonderful time. 

We really had no agenda and I think that was why we had such a good time.  We went where the days took us.   We took a horse drawn carriage ride through the area with Kate the driver and Angus the horse.  I love looking at the mansions.

There were a ton of restaurants in the area, but one was very special.  It was called, "Hemingway's."  It was under another structure and smelled of mold and old stuff.  The bar took up most of the area and so did a huge fish tank.   There were funny signs hanging on the back walls and the whole place had a "like it or leave it" attitude.  On our first visit, the bartender was talking to a friend of hers who was sitting at the bar.  Tony and I were the only other people there.  The friend was also a bartender at another place and she was sharing a story about the local "ho" who came into her bar with no pants on, just a thong.   Well, it didn't take long for Tony and I to be in that conversation!!  The bartenders, who seemed rather rough, turned out to be fun young ladies.  It's amazing how first impressions can be so off the mark. 

We also enjoyed interacting with Taylor, the young lady at the front desk at Rhett House.  Everyone there was so accommodating, but Taylor was the best.   The day we left, we gave her a small gift, a sea glass bracelet;  she was so surprised she cried.  She is someone who puts all of her efforts into doing a good job.   

The weather and the water were beautiful.  We walked (well, I sort of hobbled) to the visitor's center and museum.  South Carolina is full of history and beautiful mansions but it was the trees that captured our attention.  They were at least 300 years old and really big.  There were a few trees that were planted in one yard, but the branches grew across driveways and paths into someone else's yard.   Some of the branches were so big that they dipped onto the ground and started to grow upward again.  They were majestic. 

The Rhett House had gardens in the back with tables and umbrellas so we shared some wine there and listened to a tour guide talk about the area.  In the morning, we had breakfast on the veranda.  

We had a really great time, but it was good to get back home.  Dixie stayed with her Godparents and discovered ducks on one of her evening walks.  We got a message telling us that she was enamored with them and wanted one as a pet.  She'll have to settle for a stuffed toy duck!   As usual, she had the run of their house and ate very well.  

We will go back to Beaufort, maybe even the Rhett House, it's a really beautiful and peaceful place. 

The backyard garden

Our bathroom at the Rhett House

The living area/bedroom at Rhett House

Angus and Katie chatting about Beaufort!

Rhett House, going into the garden

A mansion on the tour with beautiful trees

The tree branches laying on the grass

Wine, in our Beaufort glasses

The tour guide 

The visitor's center and museum

Goofy signs at Hemingway's

In honor of 2020, "Blink if  you want me!"

Dixie got a  new, fluffy bed-she likes to tip in 

and then lay upside down in it.  Goofy dog. 

Getting Busy

We are doing a quick trip back to Cleveland this weekend for Emma's first communion.  So it's in Friday night, communion and party on Saturday and out on Sunday.  After that, we go to South Carolina to stay in a B&B.  Just what retired people need--a vacation!! 

The weather is absolutely beautiful now.  This is when I love North Carolina most.  The mornings and evenings are cool and during the day, there is a soft breeze.  Flowers are still blooming and it's nice to be outside.  It will be cold in Cleveland, but that's OK--it's Cleveland!

I am still writing for Cape Fear Voices, but I am now doing some research work as well.  We are putting out a glossy magazine in January, 2021 about the effects of Covid so I am researching the international aspect for another writer who has been nationally published.  It is interesting work.  International will be the smallest section of the magazine so it is a good way for me to learn how to research and how to work with another writer.   

There are several of us on this project and we have our meetings via "Zoom," an online application that allows you to have virtual meetings.  You can see everyone on the call, but you are in your own home.  Thank goodness Brenda had a legal meeting when she and David were here visiting so she downloaded Zoom to our computer.  I felt positively computer savvy!

We are going into what I call "birthday" mode.  Starting in September, we have several family birthday's that take us right through December.  For the grandchildren;  Alex turned 3 on September 26, Anthony will be 6 on October 5, Sam will be 12 on October 15 and Zach will be 9 on October 18.  

Tony and I watched the first presidential debate and thought that T-rump did a great job--of making Biden look good!   I can't wait until T-rump is out of office and prosecuted for all of the laws he has broken as president.  

The fact that he paid $750 in federal income tax for two years just really put me over the edge.  It reminded me of 1976.  I was widowed that year and found out that I had paid more in federal taxes that Richard Nixon because he "donated" so much to his library.   There is something fundamentally wrong with this country when stuff like that can happen.   

Dixie is doing well, but we can see more and more gray hair coming in around her face and on her ears.  She will be 8 in January, but is still very much a puppy.  She will be vacationing with her Godparents while we are in Cleveland.   That means home cooked chicken meals,  sleeping on whatever bed she wants and having the run of the fenced in backyard.   Look out, bunnies, she won't be leashed!

And so, that's about it in Leland.  We continue to hope that a Covid remedy is found quickly and that no more people have to die because of it.  

One of my favorite pictures of Alex.  Happy Birthday, 3!

RBG

I wrote on Facebook the impact that Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death had on me.  I said that I don't cry for politicians or judges, but I cried when I found out that RBG had died.   

Tony and I saw the movie about her life, "On the Basis of Sex," and the documentary, RBG.  Like her, both were powerful and thought provoking.   I have often said, that the only basic difference between men and women is the manner in which we pee.  People would laugh when I said that, but think about it.   Think about that for a minute.  Do men have an extra pair of hands?  Legs built of steel?  X-ray vision?  No.  Do they have an extra brain?  No.  So why would anyone think that women are intellectually inferior?  Why would law professors criticize women for being accepted into a law program because they "took up a space a man could have."  Did women take different tests to get into the program?  Was there a pink test that had easy questions on it?  No.  At every turn in her youth, she was questioned.  Not for her ability, but for her gender.  

RBG was my hero because as my career progressed, I faced some of the same scrutiny, and it made me angry.   Years ago when I worked for Chemical Bank, our division moved into a new facility, the management team took a tour.    When we got to my office, a male peer (Vice President, exact same title) of mine turned to our SVP and asked, "How come she gets such a big office?"  Keep in mind, our offices were the same size.  Our SVP, responded, "To reflect her responsibilities, just like yours."   Why would my male peer even think he had the right to question the size of my office?

There was also a time when family members were discussing work.  My husband, who has always been proud of my work ethic, said, "Jan is at her desk every day by 7:00, even though the work day doesn't start until 8:30."  At that point, a male family member looked at me and said, "why, do you have to make the coffee?"  Tony jumped back into the conversation, and said, "she has people who make coffee for her."  I wouldn't ask people to make me coffee, but I got his point.  The male family member didn't.  He wasn't criticizing me, to him the only reason why a female would be at her desk an hour and a half early was to get the coffee ready for the men. 

These are the attitudes that Ruth faced so many years ago.  I'm guessing our daughters are still facing those same attitudes.  Why?    Women are as good as men and every woman should know that, remember that and live by that. 

And so, my hero has died.  Here are some of her words that made her my hero :

"A gender line helps to keep women, not on a pedestal, but in a cage."

"Woman belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn't be that women are the exception."

"I would like to be remembered as someone who used whatever talent she had to do her work to the very best of her ability."

                                            And my personal favorite.....

When asked when will there be enough women on the Supreme Court, she replied:

"When there are nine."  (The audience she was addressing, laughed at her comment.)  She explained, "There have been nine men on the Supreme Court and no one ever raised a question about that."

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was not "anti-man," she was pro, "be the best you can be."

Now, that's a hero.

 

Baby Yoga

The highs and lows of depression are still with me, but since David, Brenda and Alex have been visiting, I find myself laughing.  Really laughing. 

Alex is quite the entertainer.  She does Baby Yoga, sings songs, dances, counts and colors; while telling me what color she is using in English and then in Spanish. 

I am usually the last one up in the morning and when I make my way to the lanai where everyone is enjoying coffee, Alex sees me and runs to me with her arms open, ready to jump up and give me a big hug.

She puts her head on my shoulder and I whisper, "Did you have a good sleep?"  And she answers quietly, "yes....did you have a good sleep Momo?"   I could be happy waking up every day that way.   

We went downtown for dinner last night and she was so well behaved.  She had chicken and fruit and then we came home and had a small birthday party with cupcakes and ice cream.  She sang "Happy Birthday," with us and seemed to enjoy her presents.  We got her a pretty dress with a wide brimmed hat that she wears with the attitude of a super fashion model. 

She is back in school now and named off all of her classmates and teachers.  She is such a happy little thing.  She gets joy out of our twinkle lights and butterflies.  I put the lava lamp on the first night she was here and she lightly touched it.  I told her it was not hot, so now whenever she sees it, she states, "Momo, not hot."  

We played kickball in the back yard and she was fascinated by the yellow plastic flower in the Zeno's yard that spins in the wind.  Sometimes being with her is like seeing something ordinary in a very special way.  

I think when they go back to Florida, I'll be doing Baby Yoga.  I won't do it as well as Alex did, but it will bring back sweet memories. 

Pictures later......

The Highs and the Lows

 

I think that the trip home to Cleveland a few weeks ago took more out of me than I thought it would.  I was so excited to see everyone and get together for birthday dinners and social lunches.  But now that I'm back, I feel empty.  My depression is at an all time high and even getting out of bed is a chore.  

Maybe it was interacting with so many different people in a short period of time.  Maybe it was negative conversations.  Who knows?  But whatever it was, I can't shake it.

I'm being published again in Cape Fear Voices--and I'll be in a special glossy edition, but even that doesn't light me up like it should.  Depression is like having someone sitting on the top of your head.  It's heavy and it follows you all around.  I'm tired of being depressed.  

And now, it's September, fall--my favorite time of year.  Alex will be 3 at the end of the month and we get to see her next week.  I have been practicing my colors in Spanish, but she is probably way past that now.    

I've been writing letters to the Cleveland grandkids in response to the Birthday letters they gave me.  Each of them are so different.  I sent Ben a check for his birthday and it was cashed the other day.  I'm not sure why, but I looked at the back of the check when it hit my account.  He printed his name so Jenna could co-sign and cash it and I realized that he doesn't write in cursive.  I guess keyboarding has eliminated the need for learning cursive.   He is in public school now and I worry that he will feel out of place since he has been home schooled.  He's really cute, so I know the young ladies will like him.  I just hope that these final school years will give him good memories. 

Of all of the letters, Ellie's was the most entertaining.  It was more like a conversation than a letter.  As odd as it sounds, I felt like she writes like I do.  She starts on a subject, interjects a related thought and then says something funny.  She included a "PS" in her letter that said it only took her less than 30 minutes to type out her letter and that she was proud of herself.  Ellie has a strong sense of self that I hope she never loses.

Sam looks so much like Bill, Jenna's father.  He is athletic and gifted.  He played the banjo for us and he was very good. 

Zach is the sweetest kid.  He's quiet, but funny.  He can twist his body around like my sister, Fritz, used to.  Jon says Zach is not double jointed, but he sure looks like he is.

I'm glad we got to see them.  And, I have included a picture which to me is typical of 2020.  Sitting in a garage due to the virus.