Hodgepodgin' It

It's Wednesday Hodgepodge time again. Head over to Joyce's From This Side to the Pond to see what everyone else is talking about. (After you finish here, of course.)

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1. Labor Day weekend (in the US of A) is approaching...what's something you've labored over this year? 
Whew, tough one. I have labored most over the areas of sin in my life that I want to overcome.

2. What is one word to describe your 'job' or career?
Homemaker

3. What was your worst or least favorite job ever? Why?
When I worked in a shop that sold cake and candy supplies. I got tired of the smell of chocolate! (I recovered, though.)

4. How do you measure contentment?
I measure contentment in terms of peacefulness. When I feel peaceful, I feel content.

5. Pickles-like or dislike? What is something you eat that requires a pickle? Dill, bread and butter, sweet gherkins...what's your favorite kind of pickle?
I love pickles of all sizes, shapes and varieties. Thanksgiving dinner requires pickles! Those little, sweet gherkins are always part of our relish tray. My sons and I fight over them.

6. In your current house-town-state, what is it you like living close to?
I should say Washington, D.C., but since I hardly ever travel up the road to get there (too, too much traffic), I can't say that. Instead, I will say the Potomac River because I love any body of water.

7. What is one thing on your 'want-to-do' list before summer draws to an official close?
I haven't gone kayaking at all this summer. Hopefully, I'll get off my rear and go at least once.

8.  Insert your own random thought here.
Sadly, our neighbors two doors away have lost their home and must move by tomorrow. We don't know them well because English isn't their first language. They are quiet, friendly, hard-working people and it breaks my heart that the poor economy (he is in construction and remodeling) forced them into this situation.

Blazing a New Trail

Today, Heidi from Heidi'sbooks and I are having a blog swap.  She shares some of her thoughts about a transition she's approaching on Transitional-Woman, and I'm reviewing The Chosen on her blog.

Last year I read an article in Forbes Magazine listing the top women executives. It was a fascinating article showing where each woman worked, how much money she made, and what assets she controlled. It also told each woman’s age. All of them were in the 48-60 age group.

I’m approaching that age group and also headed for a major transition in life. How is it that you can work yourself out of a job in 20 years? You see, I’ve homeschooled for 18 years, organized co-ops, lead 4H groups, planned community service projects, lead support groups, edited newsletters, etc. In a few short years all my students will have graduated, and I will face the empty nest (sort of)—and in the process lose my full time job.

When I think of all the possibilities, I get giddy with excitement.

As I look around my church at what the other ladies in my age group are doing, I realize that most of them are working full-time jobs. Most are doing jobs they enjoy. Some work long hours, commute, and arrive home late at night. Saturdays are filled with laundry and catching up on everything that gets pushed aside during the week. Kudos to them. They work hard, and are salt and light in their workplaces. But they have relatively little time for community outreach, ministry, or helping others in the church.

What if I chose a different path? What if I used all my past experience to work for the church and community just like the business woman moves up the corporate ladder? I could continue down the same path moving into an expanded position. What if a group of the first wave of homeschool-mom-retirees put their experience to work in the community and church? That’s a tour de force volunteer army. I think we could see a fundamental shift in our society.

What needs are not getting met in our communities? How many elderly have visitors at the nursing home? I don’t even know most of my neighbors, and church visitation has become a thing of the past. How are the older women teaching or helping the younger women? There are so many needs and people are going it alone. Maybe it’s time to bring back that sense of community.

I would like to wear a business suit and carry a briefcase, but maybe it’s time to blaze a new trail.

Heidi from Heidi'sbooks is a homeschool mom with five children who loves reading and talking about books.  For the past few months, she's been diving into the great Russian authors.  Whew!

If You Repeat a Lie Often Enough ...

I'm afraid that middle-aged people are liars.  I've recently (very recently) arrived at this juncture and discovered that this whole life stage is cloaked in lies, deceptions and delusions.

Middle-aged people, from hereon to be referred to as MAP, speak lie after lie probably working under the belief that if you repeat a lie often enough everyone will start to believe it is true.  These are some of the statements MAP have talked others into believing.

• These are the best years of your life.  - Why?  My body is falling apart, I can't remember what you said five minutes ago and no one calls me "Miss" anymore.
• Your kids can take care of themselves and you don't have to worry about them anymore.  - HA.
• You can embark on a whole new career.  - Who's going to pay the mortgage while I'm embarking?
• Fifty is the new 30.  - You have got to be joking.  I don't look or feel anything like I did when I was 30.  And things haven't changed for the better.
• As a MAP, you have gained so much life experience and are so much wiser now than you were when you were younger.  - If that's true, why do I keep making the same stupid mistakes?
• You don't care what other people think about you  anymore.  - Then why do so many MAP get plastic surgery?  Why does it take me more time than it used to applying make up?  Why do I bother going to the gym?  Am I really doing all of this just for me?

In case you're wondering what age bracket actually constitutes middle age, I heard on talk radio today that this group includes people from 45 through 64 years old.  

Okay, so I lied when I said very recently.  

Yo Ho, Yo Ho, A Writer's Life For Me

Were you aware that there are about seven billion writers and wannabe writers in the world?  That's a rough estimate, but while reading through hundreds of the more than 1,000 blogs that are part of the Blogging A to Z Challenge I have encountered an extraordinary amount of writer's blogs.

Everyone writing a blog is actually a writer to some degree, but there are innumerable people who would love to earn their living as writers - particularly as writers of fiction and poetry.  The writers whose blogs I've read exhibit an amazing amount of creativity, energy and excitement.

While writing fiction has never been one of my dreams, mainly because  I don't have plots and characters running around in my brain, I am in awe of those who are actively pursuing their dream of becoming a published writer by actually writing, not merely talking about it.

The only thing left to say is, Write On me hearties yo ho!

Today's Blogging A to Z letter is W

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From Pianos to Yarn

I paid a visit to my local yarn store last week, not because I needed anything, but because it just makes me happy to be there, and because yarn stores aren't usually very busy, I had a nice long conversation with the owner.

I am relatively new to knitting so only discovered this tiny, little shop tucked into the corner of a plaza about a year ago.  The previous owner, who was expecting her third child, decided she needed to be home to raise her young family and made the transition from business owner to stay at home mom.

The new owner, recently retired from a 33-year career with the federal government, but still young and with no desire to actually retire yet, thought it was the perfect business opportunity for her.  We started talking about life transitions.  I shared with her about the pivotal place I am in my life (ending a homeschooling career, facing an emptying nest, but still with a lot of good years ahead of me).  And she shared some of her story with me.

In addition to an exciting career with the government, she was also a concert pianist and had a music studio in her home where she taught piano.  After doing this for many years, she began having problems with her wrists and wasn't able to play piano anymore.  A friend of hers apparently sensing her need for a new creative outlet, taught her how to paint.  She had one of her lovely paintings in the shop.

She also shared that in the midst of a life she has loved and found fulfilling and exciting, she also endured the death of her 23-year-old son from a heart attack.

And now, here she is the owner of a yarn shop.  The next step, she said, will be to sell the shop in about five years when her husband retires and spend their time together enjoying each other and life.

I'm sure when she was a brand new college graduate she never envisioned the places life would take her and the varied careers she would have.  This is the exciting part about transitions.  Things we could never dream of sometimes happen.


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