His birthday

I celebrate the life of Russ Heym. He is my middle son, and today is his birthday.
I hoped I could talk with him, but he was busy.
Between his job and his family, he's always busy.

I'll talk with him tomorrow, or sometime.  I love him so much!

On the run today...

Drove zooming along the interstate, easterly.  Signed in and was grateful there was an empty seat in the waiting room, because 3 people were outside smoking. If one of them left that seat, it was empty when I got there, so I had a fair claim.  The first sheet of signed in names was full, so I started at the top of the second sheet.

And waited.  And waited.

There is such a waste of manpower (woman power too) in that waiting room at the Dept. of Motor Vehicles, to obtain a license to drive in our United States, specifically in North Carolina.

3-1/2 hours later they had crossed off about 7 people who left.  And fortunately those who had a road test had to have someone with them, so that meant 2 people would be crossed off the list at the same time...or at least left seats empty for the next people.

At 1:30 I was finally called.  There were 2 officers doing the tests, one of whom would go out and do the driving portion every once in a while.

Their computer was slow...on a new thing they do about getting people registered to vote.  I'm glad they're doing it.  I had already checked to make sure I was registered, and I am.  So this was really just duplication.  But they are systems people, and must follow all the details given to them.  No wonder it takes so long.  My eyes (with glasses) were good to drive.  I didn't have to do any written test this time.  Nor a road test. And considering I'm almost 76, that was kind of surprising.  I hope the next test in 5 more years will include more information checking to make sure I'm a safe driver still.

But I also will need to get the Real ID by 2020, which is so I'll be able to enter federal buildings or go on flights in the US.  I couldn't find my birth certificate (and don't have a passport) in order to get it today...plus I think you needed an appointment.  So I'll do it sometime in the next 2 years and get a better pic taken of me!

The cost? One day of my life, driving 24 miles each way, $25 cash, being part of a strange mix of our citizens in that waiting room.  I just wish I could figure out what they could be doing while waiting.  The Highway Patrol officer said they needed someone to answer the phones.  Ha ha.

And I ate my chicken sandwich driving 75 miles an hour coming home (the way all citizens drive, 5 mph over the posted speed limit.)  Ahh.  A late lunch on the run!

Big events, little steps

For me a big event means doing something that's rare, that other people take part in (usually) so we can share it, that maybe is one of those life changing events.  In the meantime, I take a million little steps.

Yesterday was one of my day trips with my friend, Helen.  We decided to go to Boone, NC.  Neither of us had ever been there.  When I checked on line, there wasn't much besides a university and lots of chain stores that can be found in any community.  Would it have a personality of its own, or just be another rubber-stamped college town?

I decided it did have some personality, but it seemed to not have many really old buildings well preserved, like we have here in Black Mountain.  That's ok.  The university has lots of new looking buildings, much bigger than I'd originally thought.

And there's a smallish downtown area with some vintage type stores locally owned.  I'll be posting on my other blog about them.

Today's big event might be considered small steps for many of my friends.  I've dragged out the vacuum, and the mop.  So far, the kitchen floor is drying, while I give my back a break and write this.  Next will be this office area/the living/dining area, then another rest...then bedroom and bathroom.  That will be my final cleanse for here at home, then I'll lug the laundry to a local laundromat, wait for it to run and then celebrate my cleanliness with a friend and pizza.

I had thought I'd renew my driver's license today, but didn't get up early to go get in the line.  When I called DMV, the woman said every day there are waiting lines for 2-4 hours.  I thanked her, since last Fri. I decided not to stand in line (it must have been a 4 hour day).  I have to drive 20 or so miles to Marion NC where the DMV used to be able to process people faster than Asheville.  I wonder now. 

I hope this is just another little step.

Talking to myself

Well, that's what this blog seems to be. But I have a sense that just about anybody could be lurking and reading about my life...though why is a big question.  So I talk sometimes to myself.  Usually when I do something stupid, and admonish myself.

Today was the day to mail a birthday gift to one of my sons.  It's something that I think he'll laugh about, though it isn't anything new, but something I had tucked away.  He will be 51 next week.

But there was a big festival downtown, and I realized parking at the post office might be next to impossible.  So after doing the impossible, I did the improbable, and toured around some of the festival booths (and posted about it on my blog "Alchemy of Clay and Living in Black Mountain")

It was very hot by the time I left...so I came home and kind of collapsed for a while, and kept drinking as much water as I could.  The rest of the day I looked into my ancestry records.  I had found a great times six uncle James Clack, and all the records so far on Ancestry didn't have him having any children.  Then I found that he did, and then fostered his daughter with a nearby family.  There had been an article written about them in 1827 in Tennessee. 

So I enjoyed playing detective.  That's what this ancestry stuff is all about.  Discovering, piecing together information, and sometimes tearing down what has been put together wrongly.

Moving beyond my comfort zone

I read that somewhere...how there is only growth if I move to the edge of where I'm already comfortable, then stretch just a toe over it, maybe even take a little step.

So today, rather than doing just one thing out there...or even maybe two...I plan to do at least 4, maybe 5 activities.  Yes one is easy, then come home and relax and review the conversations, the things that were difficult, the ease with which I accomplished it.

Today after all my morning preps, I'm going to yoga at the Lakeview Center.  Getting down on the floor and moving those old bones in different postures ever so easily (groans not allowed, well that's my own rule)...where the teacher lets me do just as much as I feel able.  Then go upstairs for the Council on Aging supported lunch, which is one of my favorites, roast beef etc. That's 2.

3. Then I plan to drive to the DMV (Dept. of Motor Vehicles) in a nearby city (we don't have one in my small town) and get my drivers license renewed for another 5 years.  That is the biggest thing to do, of course.  Why?  Well this may sound petty, but I have to have my picture taken.  And that's the picture I'll have to flash any time someone wants a photo I.D.  So it's a big thing.  How shall I arrange my thinning hair?  The last time I had it done my hair was down and somewhat curly, though at least the natural shade of white.  Maybe I'll leave it down again, thus hiding my ears...which aren't all that bad.

See, my vanity is raising it's ugly head (which of course it would rather keep buried in the sand, thinking it is terribly ugly and all.)

4.  And then, after either passing the test or not, I'm coming home and will fix something for a pot luck dinner at church.  There's also a movie, but I never stay for it, because looking up at the big screen hurts my neck.  And mainly because it's the last night of the Tournament of Champions for Jeopardy. OK, I know it's a rerun from last year...but I don't remember things too well, and really don't know who won.  So that's the last activity on my list, and TV shows don't count, because I don't "go out" to do them.

So wish me luck on my 4 biggies.  So far I don't think I have a thing to take to the pot luck...so that's on my mind as I go do shower, dress, breakfast and nebulizer treatment in less than an hour.  Whizz.

Wednesday beginning and...

I'm going to volunteer at the history museum again today.  Last time (my first 2 shifts there) it was rainy so lots of tourists came in to do something dry while visiting.  New Zealand, India, Colorado, St. Thomas, New York, Florida, just a few of the places that they mentioned.

Breakfast before nebulizer treatment, both of which have waited while I drank my first coffee, read emails, Facebook, and blogs.

MIDDLE -
I've been surprisingly busy as docent at the museum.  I'll show some pics of it, over at blog Alchemy of Clay and Living in Black Mountain...

It was just families of 3 for a while, which felt like a lot of people.  But then several came together as a group of 12!! And before they left there was a thunderstorm.  That meant they were huddled around the front door waiting for the husbands who had gone to get vans in the rain to come pick up the rest of the group.

So today I've had 31 people come in, though nobody is here right now.  There were some people who just are asking directions for Herb Way's photo show at the Black Mountain Center for the Arts next door.

LATE -
So tired I put my head on pillow and curled up on the love seat after turning on TV and eating some crackers to soothe my stomach.  Slept for a few minutes, which is unusual for me.  Then watched a bit of TV.

That's how I end the day.  Read my book a bit before turning out the light.  See if this was a real journal I'd mention only eating some veggie soup and crackers for dinner.  I did work a bit on my ancestry blog too.  But I know that's boring.  Maybe all of this is, so I think I'll just pull most of it off the blog and stick it into my journal.  Ha.  Love the portability of computers!

Days like this still have decisions

Some dreary wet days are not inspiring at all.

So we follow the paces we've trod before, just going through what has to be done each day.  No inspiration.  But the life continues, for which we're (royal plurality of we) grateful.  OK, I'm glad to be alive. And it's cool when it's wet and cloudy.

The leaves of trees hang silently outside my living room window, here where I sit at the table.  I've opened the door to see the hummingbird feeder, and one lovely little lady looked in my eyes and decided to flit away for now.  She'll be back when I'm not looking.

Some new sounds, new male voices talking.  There's a repair crew about to fix the water leak in the parking lot.  I see one of my elder neighbors standing right in the middle of it, as if a woman belongs there in her shorts.  She'll probably tell them how to back-hoe.  She's probably done this herself.  Some of my neighbors are a hoot.

I've already made a few decisions since the first one of getting out of bed.  I read a poem by Rumi.  That was nice.  I touched the pages and used the feather bookmark of a long-gone friend, thus she is with me today again.

I then decided not to rush to post office to mail a card for a birthday next week...I'll mail it later in the day, and it will bring a smile to my dear friend, my daughter-in-law who's not married to my son.

Then I thought of what to take for lunch for Spanish class...and now that menu is set in my memory, waiting till it's time to pull it out.

I made coffee, opened the laptop, and looked to see if comments on blogs had come in while I had it closed.  Yes, a couple.  The blogger used to notify me of comments with emails.  Those days are sadly gone now.  Maybe I should try to get that to work again.

And that's how a new thought appears, and a new plan of action.

I've said all I wish to share here for now.  It's one of those days.  When something momentous happens, I might put it in my journal.  What, you think, this isn't like a journal?  No, this is to give some stories to you, little glimpses into a 75 years and 11-3/4 months old woman's life.  The fact that nobody reads this is beyond my caring at this point.  I've written.  Thus I'm an author.  I can read this again, or nobody can ever read it.  Ha.  Some days I care about that.  Not today.