Change Is Hard

…but change is certain.

Category Archives: Uncategorized


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A break from the snow

Those of you still struggling with snow might enjoy a quick glimpse of something not covered in the white stuff.  So here you go.  (Click on any of the photos to see more detail.)

Walking through the woods on a sunny day.

Walking through the woods on a sunny day.

Of course you might just become jealous.

Fishing lures glow in warm sunlight.

Fishing lures glow in warm sunlight.

But don’t be too jealous, I have to go back home soon.

Steps up to a view.

Steps up to a view.

Dramatically at the top of the tower.

Dramatically at the top of the tower.

And I hear that the snow there has not been vanquished.

Three of the four.

Three of the four.

So soon all of this warmth and sunshine will be but a memory.

Heading for adventure.

Heading for adventure.

Soon I too will be back in the cold and snow.

Home.

Home.

Sad really.  But someone will be glad to see me when I get back.

It's OK, I LIKE snow Mama!

It’s OK, I LIKE snow Mama!

Photo credits:  Walk in the Woods and Steps to a view:  Beth Badger; Dramatically, Three of Four and Heading for Adventure:  Bruce King;  Fishing Lures and Home; Dawn.


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Wordless Wednesday

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Shhhhhh……Katie here, don’t tell Mama I’m talking to you.  This is supposed to be wordless.  Yea.  Right.  Like a Sheltie is ever quiet, you know what I mean?  Anywho…  I think my Mama has been feeling a little down and I’ve done my best to remind her she has me, me me ME!  And what more could she want, right?  So guess what?  I, me, myself and I, arranged for the sun to come out today!  Just for her!  (Well, if any of the rest of you see it too that’s OK, I can share.)  I am, after all, nothing less than a Princess…and a Princess gets whatever she wants, right?  And I wanted sunshine.  So I asked, and I got it and I sure hope she appreciates it.

Now I need to go take a nap.  This has all been exhausting.

You can thank me later.

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Feeling blue

Sun sinks on another day.

Sun sinks on another day.

It’s only mid-winter…and it’s been a long cruel season already.  First there was the massive layoff at work causing the loss of several really good people from my life.  Then there was the permanent loss of a friend.  And just tonight I learned that Casper de Ghost crossed the rainbow bridge.  And yes I know the loss of a dog I’ve never met is not the same as the loss of a human friend in real life.

But still.  I’m feeling blue.

Tracks across my heart

Tracks across my heart

And I’m looking at the tracks across the back yard with my dog Katie and wishing there were flowers blooming and sun shining and that time could stand still during the good stuff and that we didn’t all have to go through loss after loss after loss and just generally feeling blue.

And somewhere on the television a doorbell dings and Katie flies off the chair we share charging the front door in order to announce danger, in order to protect her house, and, I know, me.

And I have to smile and acknowledge that not everything is lost and even much of what seems lost is not really gone, just somewhere different.

And I go and collect my crazy dog and we sit down to watch some silly sit-coms so that we both can laugh for a little bit and forget about the danger just outside the front door.

And it is good.

Always watching

Always watching


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Weekly photo challenge – selfie

WordPress challenged us all to post a selfie in this week’s photo challenge.  Given the kind of weather we’ve had up here this winter I thought this was appropriate.

Baby it's cold outside.

Baby it’s cold outside.

As usual you can go to the original post in the link above and see what others are posting in this challenge.  I hope that they are warmer!  Here and here and here are a few of my favorites that have posted so far.  If you go to the original link there are likely to be even more that you like.


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Who is that old lady?

You know how when you’re talking to an old lady you often have to slow down and explain stuff to her?  Or help her figure out some new thing?  Or maybe drive more slowly as you come up behind her because her turn signal is on and you’re not sure if she’s really going to turn.  Or not?  I hope you were kind, didn’t roll your eyes.  I hope you were patient.  Because I think that old lady might have been me.

I’ve been watching me at work lately.  And I’ve been watching them.  Those of you my age will know the them of which I speak.  They are all tall and thin, wearing sharp suits.  With short skirts and very high heels or tightly knotted ties, sharply creased trousers and shiny shoes.  They hurry to meetings in pairs or groups carrying their half open laptops and talking seriously about IMPORTANT THINGS that will have IMPACT in their departments and across the company.  They are intense.  They are young.  I squish over to the wall as they swish by, move aside as they come crashing down the stairwell, heels clicking, as I am slogging up in my heavy snow jacket, hat, worn out but warm mittens, boots, steamed over glasses.  I don’t think they even see me.

They are in my department too, noticing when I do things in a slow methodical way on my computer.  Noticing when toolbars are appearing that don’t need to be, when I open things in a less than efficient manner.  They show me, patiently, how to do things faster, cleaner, BETTER.   I add those bits of knowledge to my brain hoping something else as or more important doesn’t fall out.  I polish my smudged glasses and continue on as I was because I know how to do things my way and it all gets done.  Doesn’t it?

These days I catch a glimpse of me walking the halls at work and see someone who is a lot older than I thought I was.  It’s a jolt every time.  But I see me in the young people rushing about enthusiastically too.  They remind me of me just a few moments ago.  Or was it years.  Well never mind, my memory is slipping.  More and more frequently I realize that the old lady I see on the street and smile at is me.

I hope I can be patient with her.


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You’d be 85

Today is Dad’s 85th birthday.  It seems something of a milestone, one that shouldn’t be forgotten, though I can’t imagine him at 85.  I suppose he would have been similar to the Dad I knew at 75, maybe with a few more wrinkles, but the same twinkling eyes, the same stories, the same advice.

Dad and his little sister

Dad and his little sister

I can’t send him a card through snail mail, can’t email him or give him a call.  I can’t even text him, but then  he wouldn’t know what that was anyway.  On the other hand…if he were still here I bet he’d have the latest smart phone because the whole information at your fingertips phenomenon would have fascinate him.  Though I wonder if he would have sprung for the expense of having internet available 24/7.  No, I think maybe instead he’d have been content to be in his boat, watching the sun set, floating in the warm water of his lake.  Sure he’d check his messages when he got back to the house, but I don’t think that smart phone would have been used much on the boat.

In his canoe.

In his canoe.

The little boy who loved the water, grew up on the river, and took my Mom for a canoe ride on their first date, grew up to be a father of four kids who got to grow up on a lake and spent many summers canoeing there and on rivers.  We got to camp in National Parks across the country and see things lots of kids never did.  We got to sit around the dinner table laughing until our stomachs hurt and tears ran down our faces.  We got to ride bikes to town and climb trees in the woods and go water skiing after work.  We got to have a dog named Sam and guinea pigs named Barney and ride the lawnmower and plant a huge garden.  We got to go to college and grow up and live in nice places.

Most of that is due to having a Dad who was responsible and supportive.  And who loved us unconditionally.

So thank you Dad.  And Happy Birthday.

I hope you get this birthday card and know we all love you and miss you.

Forever.

Dad 044


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Weekly Photo Challenge: Object

This week the WordPress photo challenge is Object.  You’d think that would be easy.  Just take a quick shot of something..anything…right?  All things are objects.  Still.  It should be more than that – maybe something that represents your part of the world, a photo that is intriguing, interesting.  That makes the challenge, well, challenging.

During my drive to doggie school yesterday I saw a couple of things that might fit the challenge, but the weather was so bad there was no place to safely stop.  I’ve kept those items in mind for a day when the snow is not blowing sideways, the roads not so slick with slush.  You may see some of them yet.

In the end, for this challenge, I looked no further than my own driveway where the truck was parked covered in the latest snowfall.  Such interesting shapes revealed themselves that I had to see whether or not the camera saw it the same way.

Rear view mirror and defining windsheild edge.

Rear view mirror

And because I couldn’t decide which photo I liked better, I’ll give you another.

Blinker

Blinker

We are pretty tired of snow here.  Sure it’s beautiful, but it was more beautiful in December.  Now it’s just work.  And cold.

Going nowhere.

Going nowhere.

There are so many objects  to focus on for a photo study.  Look around your house.  You don’t have to go on a grand adventure to find something interesting.  I’m looking forward to seeing what you come up with.  As usual, here’s a few of my favorites of those already submitted.  Just click on any of the links.  Or you can click on the word Object at the top and go to the original post and look at lots more!

Enjoy!