Christmas

I wouldn't say that I "love" Christmas like lots of people do.  I usually get a little down during the holiday season and don't really know why.  I guess I don't like the expectation of everyone thinking you should be happy for the holiday season when in fact you should try to be happy all the time!

But what I do like about the holidays is the receiving of holiday cards.  If you know me, you know I like to receive cards, make cards and send cards.  So many people don't send holiday cards anymore and that is a shame to me.  But those that do, I love getting them, and I say thank you.  Even if there isn't a holiday letter inside explaining to me what everyone has been up to I still enjoy them.  I thank the Lord I have friends that still remember me and take the time to send that holiday greeting.  And, I love reading all the letters -- I know a lot of people make fun of them, but I do enjoy reading about all the wonderful things people are doing and the love they are sharing.

Our family didn't have a lot of "traditions" at the holiday time when I grew up except maybe two that I remember.  My father was a pressman for the Peoria Journal Star (PJS), the daily newspaper in Peoria Illinois where I grew up.  He always worked nights.  But Christmas Day was the only day of the year, the PJS didn't publish.  So, my dad would always have Christmas Eve off from work.  We knew he would always be home that night.  In fact, my mother and father were married on Christmas Eve because of that very fact.  At the time, he was an apprentice and didn't get much time off at all, so they knew they were safe in planning a Christmas Eve wedding and that his friends from the newspaper could be at the wedding. Every year on Christmas Eve, it seemed as if everyone we knew came by the house and "celebrated" my parent's anniversary and Christmas Eve.  I don't know how it started, but every year, we could always count on seeing our friends, neighbors and relatives that one time of the year.  No one was sent invitations, everyone just showed up.  My mom always had lots of food and everyone brought their homemade goodies to share with everyone.  I don't remember my mom working for days getting things prepared......it just happened.  I'm sure she did, but don't they say that the sign of a good party is when it looks effortless?

Another tradition that we had involved my dad.  He was an orphan growing up.  His mother had some problems in child birth after one of his siblings was born and could no longer care for my dad and his siblings.  They were put in an orphanage and all of the children were adopted out to different families except one who ended up staying in the orphanage until she was a young adult.  The family that adopted my family didn't end up raising him as he ran away and headed up to Illinois (he was born in the south). In adulthood, he ended up finding a sister and a brother and was able to actually reunite with his birth mother before she died.  But, having grown up an orphan he didn't exactly have many traditional Christmases.  He never asked for a lot, but he loved opening presents.  So, we would wrap everything and anything for my dad to unwrap on Christmas day.  He was a big fisherman so we would end up wrapping individual little hooks and fishing flys just so he would have a lot to open up.  It sounds silly, but he enjoyed opening all the presents as much as we enjoyed seeing him smile.

My dad died the year before my son was born.  One of my biggest regrets in life is not having Alan sooner so my dad could have met him. They would have been buddies.

Life's short.  Make your own traditions with your family and cherish the moments you have together.  The tragedy that unfolded recently in Connecticut should bring that home to everyone.

Fun with Jen

This week I got to spend some one on one time with my beautiful daughter-in-law Jennifer Lee.  We went to see "The Cake Boss", at the Cobb Energy Center in Atlanta.  He gave us some cake decorating tips as well as shared his humor with us.  I had a great time spending time with Jen and having a girls night out. Thanks for going with me Jennifer!

Happy Thanksgiving

It's a time to be grateful and I have a lot to be grateful for.  Thanks to my friends for sticking with me for the person that I have become.  I don't know what I would be without my friends and family.  We have so many material things that we sometimes overlook the most precious gift of all -- love and support.

My family growing up wasn't the most functional of families so holidays were many times not the happiest times.  Thankfully, our small family hasn't gotten to that point and hopefully never will.  I'm grateful that Alan and Jen have moved back to the area and we can see each other more frequently.

What are you grateful for this Thanksgiving?

Not missing In Action

I promise I am not MIA.  I have had so many thoughts lately -- was going to sit down and write about them and as quickly as I thought about them, they left me.  I even wrote some of them down, and then couldn't find where I had written them.  November has been busy and I've been trying to keep up, but it's amazing to me how much gets by me these days.  I'm slowing down and everything else speeds up -- or at last that is what it seems like to me.  The holidays are fast approaching and I feel like a deer in the headlights.  I'm anxious in a bad way and can't really figure out why.  Hopefully, by the time I do, the feeling will be gone.

2012 Walk To End Alzheimer's

Thanks to TEAM ATHENS -- and everyone who contributed to this year's walk.  It was a beautiful day and I appreciate everyone's support!  Here are a few photos from the day!

Still Alice/Left Neglected/Love Anthony

I've written about my friend Lisa Genova before.  She is the author of the above named books.  I first met Lisa a few years ago when she wrote Still Alice -- about a young woman that had younger on-set Alzheimer's (YOAD).  A friend of mine also with younger on-set told me I needed to read the book as the lives of people with YOAD are widely misunderstood. Through him, I got to know Lisa.  In February of 2010 I met Lisa for the first time in Savannah.  She had just finished Left Neglected and was starting to work on Love Anthony.  She told me that Love Athony was about autism.  She was explaining to me how she was handling the subject and I couldn't quite get into my head how it was going to work.  A few weeks ago, Love Anthony came out.  I bought it but didn't pick it up until this weekend.  When I picked it up, I couldn't put it down.

Without ruining the story or the ending for you, I wanted to say that Lisa has nailed this just like in her other two books.  The story involves two women whose lives are paralleled throughout the book, with them coming together at the end. One woman writes a book about autism, the other woman has a son that has autism.  When they meet, the woman who has the son tells the other woman that she has written the story of her son's life.  This was such a poignant moment for me, because when I read Still Alice, I said out loud to no one, "this is the story of my life".  I couldn't believe that she had captured this so eloquently and so on target.  So, when I read this in this book I thought it was very ironic for me.

And, Lisa also gives a shout out to Athens, GA -- which certainly brought a smile to my face.

I know I wrote about Left Neglected when it came out as well.  It's about a neurological condition called Left Neglect.  I had never heard of it and it just fascinated me when I read the book.

If you want a good read, please go get Love, Anthony.  You will not be disappointed -- oh, and bring some tissues because you are going to need them.

Trip

As you can see, I was in Arizona last week.  Finally got to take the Grand Canyon off my bucket list.  Also visited Sedona Arizona as well.  What a beautiful state.

The bottom photo is my childhood friend, Jan Mangis Thomas.  Jan and I grew up together in Bartonville Illinois.  We went to elementary school and high school together.  Jan has done a much better job of keeping up with everyone we went to school with than I have so it was nice to hear what everyone was doing!  Jan and her husband moved to Arizona a few years before I moved to Georgia.  We've known each other over 50 years and haven't seen each other in 40.  What a nice reunion at the end of a great trip.  Thanks to Jan and JP for dinner and old times!!!

Arizona

For the past four days I've been in Arizona.  Yep, one more thing to check off the bucket list.  Earlier this week I went to see the Grand Canyon.  I can't describe it, pictures don't do it justice. I was overwhelmed by the size of it.  A mere person seems so insignificant when you see such a "wonder of the world". 

Now I am in Sedona -- home of the Red Rocks.  I didn't quite expect this -- I expected this type of view in Colorado, not Arizona.  I also have always wanted to go to the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorada -- a natural amphitheatre made of the beautiful Red Rock.  I've just had a few hours to look at Sedona but expect to do much more today.

Then, tomorow, I am catching up with an old childhood friend.  We went to elementary school and high school together.  A few years ago we caught up with each other on Facebook and have been staying in touch ever since.  She lives right outside of Phoenix and tomorrow we will be together for the first time in close to 40 years.  I'm anxious to see her.  Some friendships never die.....they just stay dormant for awhile and then will erupt when we make it possible.  Why don't you take a few minutes and reconnect with someone -- whether it be over the phone, through the internet or by a hand written note -- isn't that a novel idea these days?

Old Friends

This past week, I had the good fortune to see a group of ladies that I have not seen in a long time.  Years ago we used to play tennis together and we were able to get 12 of us together to have lunch.  It was great to catch up and to see everyone again.  I wish we wouldn't have waited so long.

It's finally started to cool down some in the south and it's finally nice to be outside.  Now, if I only had that screened in porch I've always wanted.......

Alzheimer's Action Day

is tomorrow, September 21st.  Join me in wearing purple for the cause!

I know it has been awhile since I last blogged.  I've been busy.  Over the course of the last 10 days I have given 7 different talks to groups around Atlanta and Athens.  Today was my last one until October 9th. So, I am resting tonight.  Today's talk wasn't as good as I would have liked it to be -- I was pretty tired going in and I know that affected it.  But thanks to all who had me come and speak.  I really enjoyed meeting everyone, getting to go to new places and found some new friends.  What can be better than that?