#MicroblogMondays: Stunned

I had another post in mind for today -- until the phone rang yesterday afternoon.  

It was my mom.  She told me she'd had to read the weekend newspaper page three times because she just couldn't believe her eyes.  

There was an obituary. 

For my dear friend R. of 41 years.  

To say I was stunned was an understatement.

I'm still stunned.  

Mom said it sounded like she was hit by a car, a couple of weeks ago now.  After I hung up, I did some Googling. Besides the newspaper & funeral home obituaries, I found a slew of press pieces and a few social media posts from mid/late November. She had indeed died as the result of being hit by a car, at an intersection close to her condo building in Winnipeg. She was the second person to die at that intersection this year, and friends held a candlelight vigil for her there a couple of days later that received a lot of media coverage. I gather that she actually survived the run-in with the car with a fractured leg and was taken to hospital, but died there suddenly the following day.  

She was 67 years old. 

I am sure I have mentioned R. many times in this blog, although not by name or perhaps even initial. I met her in the fall of 1984, when I took over her job as a reporter at the weekly newspaper in the small town where my parents had recently moved.  She was moving on to the radio station in another nearby small town, but still lived in our town, and we covered the same town and municipal council meetings, school board meetings and other local events -- often followed by a few drinks at a local bar with other local newspaper and radio reporters. (We called ourselves "the Junior Press Club.") 

A year later, I got married and moved to Toronto, and a few years later, she did the same. We'd stayed in touch and met up a couple of times a year for lunch, whenever she was downtown, or for a shopping spree at the One of a Kind craft show, or a matinee at the theatre (we saw "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" with Donny Osmond and "Chess" together), or a lecture through the Unique Lives and Experiences lecture series (we had season tickets for a year).  

Then her husband died, and a few years later she decided to move back to Winnipeg to be closer to her family and friends there. She would occasionally drive out to where my parents lived to see me and have lunch, including the last time I saw her, when I was "home" in July), and when she published her first (and only) book this spring -- a memoir about growing up in poverty in 1960s-1970s Manitoba, and how her mother held the family together. Dh took me to a bookstore about a half-hour's drive from here when she was there signing copies. (My mom also saw her this fall at an event & signing organized by the local library.) I will treasure my signed copy and I am so sad there won't be any more books. She told me (with a mischievous grin) that she thought her next book would be a novel about a smalltown newspaper ;) and we both had a good giggle over that. 

Besides being a talented writer, she was a master of many crafts. She sewed, knitted and crocheted many of her own clothes and as gifts for others, made quilts, and was a certified quilt appraiser who only recently let her certification lapse. She loved to travel, and had a wide circle of friends. 

R. was also childless. She was a stepmother to her husband's children (in particular the youngest son, who lived with them when he was a teenager), and a grandmother figure for their children. When Katie died, she told me about her younger brother, who died as an infant, and how she still had a couple of his toys.  She also lost her older brother a few years ago, and is survived by her older sister.  

2025 has not been a good year in many ways.  Too many people I knew and/or loved -- many of them my own age or younger -- departed this life, including (but not limited to) fellow blogger Bamberlamb, my friend M. from our pregnancy loss group, my cousin (last month), not just one but two of my high school classmates (within about two weeks of each other this summer), as well as our English teacher, Mr. P..  

And now R.  :(  

There's a Celebration of Life planned for this summer, right around the time I am usually "home" for a visit, followed by the interment of her ashes in the smalltown cemetery up north, where her parents are buried. If I'm there, I will certainly attend. 

Hug the people you love. Make that phone call, send that email, arrange that lunch date.  Life is short, and tomorrow is not promised. 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

#MicroblogMondays: All is bright :)

I'm kind of behind on my Christmas prep -- two weeks of being flattened by a nasty cold/flu/whatever that was will do that...! 

But I'm just about done with buying presents for the great-niblings (plus  birthday gift(s) for Little Great-Nephew #2), as well as the Littlest Princess. That's a good start.   

And tonight, I finished off my Christmas cards & popped them into the mail.  

And the weekend before last, we put up the tree.  

This makes me happy.  :)  

This makes me happy.  :) 
I especially love the extra light it brings to the room! 

 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

#MicroblogMondays: Really annoying thing: Sick :p

I guess it's a good thing I had fun at Little Great Nephew #1's birthday party (a week ago Saturday). 

Because I have been SICK, all this past week, with a horrible cold, the worst I've had in a while. 

I ran a temperature, 100F at one point, I had a stuffy head and a horrible cough that rattled my chest, shredded my already-raw, sore throat and left my diaphragm/ribs feeling sore, and I even coughed up a little blood at one point. I went from feeling a scratch in my throat on Monday afternoon, to feeling pretty lousy by Tuesday afternoon, and like utter crap for almost the entire rest of the week. I think I can safely say I'm feeling somewhat better (started feeling less crappy over Friday/Saturday) -- but I am still far from 100%. I am coughing less (and it's a lot looser), but I have not been sleeping well, even propped up on pillows, and I have NO stamina. I have not left the house in a week. 

Dh hadn't talked to his brother all week, so he called him on Saturday night. Guess what?  Dh, BIL, Younger Nephew, his wife & LGNiece all feel fine. But all the rest of us -- LGN#1 (the birthday boy) & #2 (still not even a year old), Older Nephew, his wife, her mother, and his (SIL), have all been sick too, all week long. :(  (Not sure about any of the other partygoers?)

LGN#1 missed the entire last week of school, including his actual birthday (he was so disappointed -- they announce the kids' birthdays on the PA system, and he was looking forward to that). SIL even lost her sense of taste. I never lost mine, but I didn't have much of an appetite for most of the week. (The ultimate indignity? When I weighed myself on Friday, I had GAINED a pound. Go figure...)  I tested myself for covid on day 3 -- negative -- and we both had our covid & flu shots two weeks ago -- but now I'm wondering if maybe it was covid after all? 

I suppose it's par for the course, after spending a couple of hours with 20 small children (plus parents), no masks -- not to mention taking a swig of water from the wrong water bottle (oops, and EWWW...). (One of the perqs of childlessness: less exposure to these kind of situations/germs!)

Still, I wouldn't have missed the party!  And better now, I guess, than a month from now,,,! 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

#MicroblogMondays: And now he is SIX!

If you had told me, 27 years ago this month (and still reeling from heartbreak of pregnancy loss), that 27 years later I would find myself in a party room at a retro video game arcade, surrounded by some 20 excited kids aged 6 and under, plus their young parents -- and even having some fun while doing it --  I never would have believed you, 

And yet there I was, at Little Great-Nephew #1's 6th (!) birthday party on Saturday. Older Nephew discovered the arcade, tucked away in a little strip plaza in a small town not far from where they live, and often takes LGN#1 there for some fun on the weekend (although it's probably a toss up as to who is having MORE fun! lol). 

It was a lot bigger inside than it looked, containing more than 170 (!) arcade games, including some of the ones I remember playing at the campus pub back in the Dark Ages (i.e., the early 1980s, lol), including Galaga, Space Invaders, Pac-Man and Donkey Kong, as well as tabletop games like air hockey and foosball.  It also has a party room and birthday party packages. The kids each got a cup full of tokens they could use to play the games, and some of them spit out tickets they could collect and exchange at the front desk for prizes/trinkets. 

LGN's mom/Older Nephew's Wife was very organized, and the grandmas, Younger Nephew's Wife & I pitched in to help set things up quickly (and take it all down at the end). She had Super Mario/gamer-themed plastic tablecloths, paper plates, napkins, etc., from the dollar store, juice boxes, water, bowls of chips & pretzels. Loot bags that we handed out at the end. And the cake, of course. :) Her mom also made cake pops and we put one in each loot bag. And they ordered a couple of party-sized pizzas to be delivered. 

The kids were so cute -- they were all so excited, but of course LGN#1 was the most excited of all! He hopped out of the car already wearing his party hat! Hugged all the kids (boys & girls) as they arrived and when they left, and hopped up on the platform when everyone was eating and yelled out, "Attention, everyone!  Are you all having a good time??"  And later, "Did everyone like the pizza?"  His grandfather thinks he's going to be a politician, lol. We went back to Older Nephew's house later to open presents and eat more food. Needless to say, we were in bed early that night, and last night too!   

The one thing that gave me pause was when a young mom arrived at the party room with her child in tow.  "Are you {LGN#1]'s grandma?" she enquired. (!)  

My first thought was "Do I LOOK old enough to be someone's grandma?"  And then I realized that to her, I probably did! lol  I just laughed and said, "No, THAT's [LGN#1]'s grandma, over there!"

And now... as you might imagine, in a room full of 20 little kids (plus about as many adults!), especially at this time of year... I feel like I'm getting a sore throat. :p  Not only that -- I grabbed someone else's bottle and took a swig out of it by mistake. Oops (and ewwww...).  (One mom breezily told Older Nephew's Wife that her child had been up half the night, sick to his stomach... but they came anyway.  ONW was NOT impressed.)   

Oh well, what's done is done...!  I handed around the Purell bottle when we got back into the car, lol  And I DID get both my flu and covid shots about two weeks ago (thank goodness!). I will gargle with salt water later. I guess if I'm going to be sick, better now than a month from now...!  

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

Super Mario/gamer-themed decor & cake.  :) 

#MicroblogMondays: The dog ate my #MM post

Okay, I don't have a dog. And I AM posting today, albeit later than I usually do on a #MM.  

However, I do have an excuse. 

I'll be honest, I didn't have anything drafted or planned in advance for a post today. I figured I'd have plenty of time today to think of something to write about.... and then write about it. But morning drifted into early afternoon...  

I was enjoying a large mug of tea (with milk and sugar), sometime before 2 PM, when... disaster. The half-full mug slipped out of my hands, sloshed all over my brand new WHITE top and yoga pants, onto the chair (fortunately, leather and wipeable) -- AND onto the keyboard of the laptop, sitting in my lap. (Thankfully, only a few drops got on the floor.) 

I sat there, stunned, for a moment. Dh sprang into action, unplugged the computer & took it over to the kitchen counter. I recovered my senses, got up and turned it upside down over the sink, to try to drain as much of the tea as I could out of the keyboard. Dh got the dishcloth & started wiping it down, then my wooden lapdesk (which the laptop sits on in my lap), and the chair.  

Once we'd mopped up most of the liquid we could see, I (finally) turned it off. I wiped down the keyboard with a cotton pad soaked in rubbing alcohol, and cleaned around/between the keys with cotton swabs also dipped in rubbing alcohol. (Note to self: must do this more often... ewww.....).  

I grabbed my phone and Googled "spilled tea on laptop keyboard" to try to figure out what else we should be doing. One post suggested turning it upside down over a towel. I think this would apply more to a conventional (desktop computer) keyboard vs a laptop -- I was afraid that opening up the laptop too far/wide might damage it (more than I might have already) -- so what I did was open it up, set a towel over the keyboard, close it and then turn it over, so that the keyboard part was facing down into the towel (and when I checked, there was a little more wetness coming off the keyboard, so it was obviously the right thing to do).  

Then I went to the bedroom and changed out of my wet clothes, spritzed my top with stain remover, and hung them up to dry (before putting them in the laundry). And then I called my personal Geek Squad -- i.e., my sister's techie partner -- for advice. 

I was relieved when he told me I was on the right track. He suggested that I should open the laptop up, turn it on its side (like an open book), and set it in front of a fan to help it dry out faster. I asked him how long I should keep it off before trying to turn it on, and he said a couple of hours should do the trick. He said the likeliest problem would be the keys getting gummed up.  

I held my breath, plugged it in after about 5 hours, and pressed "start."  

So far, so good. (Fingers crossed.)  I even managed to reopen all the tabs I'd had going before I shut everything down and pick up where I left off. (Thank you, Chrome History!)  

Next on the agenda:  That backup I've been procrastinating on doing... (I DID do one a month ago.)  

(Please tell me I'm not the only klutz this kind of thing has happened to...)

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

#MicroblogMondays: My tormentor, my friend, my cousin

The phone rang earlier this afternoon, my parents' number. It was my dad, and I knew right away something was wrong. 

For one awful moment, I thought he was calling about my mom. (It wasn't that.)

But he had to repeat himself two or three times before I realized who he was calling about.  

My cousin. 65 years old. 11 months older than me. Died in his sleep overnight. 

(The freaky thing is, his dad ALSO died in bed, at 65, right at this time of year. Mid-October, 26 years ago.) 

He was a big guy (retired cop), had some health issues over the years, probably drank a little too much. Very opinionated -- revelled in being a sh*t disturber.  ;)  Lots of nervous energy.  

But he was full of life and laughs and jokes and stories. He knew EVERYONE. He'd send me photos of random people, out of the blue, and I'd think "Am I supposed to know this person?"  And then I'd realize I DID know this person. He was golf buddies with at least two guys I knew from high school. I used to joke that he should go to one of my high school reunions because he'd know as many people there as I did. 

We were born in the same small town, near where our grandparents farmed, and lived there for the first few years of our lives, and spent a lot of time together then. Later, both our families moved further afield, but we often stayed with his family when they lived in the city, and we saw each other at our grandparents' farm, summers and holidays. He was kind of like the big brother I never had. 

As we got older, he (and his brothers) used to tease the life out of me. I was a sensitive kid, and he made me miserable at times. And yet? As an adult, which cousin did I think of most often, want to see whenever we were "back home"? (Go figure...) 

Sadly, that didn't happen as often as either of us would have liked, especially after I got married and moved 1000 miles away to a different province, and he got busy with his own family (three kids, now adults -- the youngest is a few months older than Katie would have been). The last time I saw him was 7 years ago in the fall of 2018, when I was "home" for Thanksgiving, and he brought his mom (my aunt) and another aunt out to my parents' place from the city for a visit, one afternoon. (We took a photo then -- the last one I have of us together. I'm glad I have it.)

But we "friended" each other on social media (I tried to ignore the crass joke memes and political things he'd post -- and some of them WERE funny), and he'd occasionally message me privately with an old family photo, or a note about how his mom/my aunt was doing. Once in a while, he'd call me (often when he'd had a drink or two, I suspect). He always made me laugh. The last time we chatted, he told me he wanted to see me next time I was home, and he really wanted me to meet his oldest daughter, because she reminded him so much of me (!).  

And he'd always end off by saying, "Love you, cousin." And I'd tell him "Love you too."  

And I did.  

I will miss those calls. I will miss him. 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

#MicroblogMondays: It would have been nice...

We had lunch and spent Saturday afternoon at Younger Nephew's new home, about a 30-minute drive from here, along with BIL & SIL, Older Nephew & his family. It was noisy and chaotic with two excited children under the age of 6 running around together, plus a cranky, teething baby, who cried every time his mother went out of his sight (!) -- but it was a lot of fun too.  :)  

The three great-niblings modelled their Halloween costumes for us:  Little Great-Niece is going as Cinderella, in a pretty blue dress I would have KILLED for at her age;  LGNephew #1 will be Superman (his costume has padding that looks like abs!!  lolol) -- and his baby brother will be wearing a Batman costume!!  He didn't like wearing the cowl/hat/mask, but he still looked hilarious. Many photos were taken.  :)  

As the afternoon began to wind down, SIL suggested to LGNephew #1 that he read to her from the new Halloween book she'd brought him. They sat together on the couch and he read the entire book aloud! I was mesmerized. He is still not yet 6 (birthday coming up soon), just in Grade One, and he reads SO WELL. There were only a few words he struggled with -- he's improved tremendously since the last time I heard him read. I was SO proud of him!! (and told him so!) -- I got a little teary listening to him. He's growing up so fast! 

I'm not sure it was just listening to him read that got me so emotional, though. It could also have been the sight of him sitting like that with his grandma. Then Little Great-Niece joined them after a while -- one on each side, snuggled up to SIL. 

I will admit, I felt a momentary pang of envy. 

It would have been nice... 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

#MicroblogMondays: I dreamed a dream...

I had a really weird dream a few nights ago. 

I was by myself, walking along a desolate country road, somewhere between the border town where I was born, close to where my paternal grandparents had a farm, and my maternal grandparents' home, 20 miles away in NW Minnesota. (The border did not seem to be an issue here, lol.)  

I wanted to go to my grandparents' house in Minnesota, and I thought I'd walk there (20 miles -- with my bum knee -- yeah, right...!!). But then I remembered -- the house is gone, and there's no one left there. (Just one of my second cousins, and a childhood friend from the neighbourhood.)  

So I turned and started walking in the direction of my other grandparents' farm, a few miles outside of town... but the road petered out into big snowdrifts, and I realized it hadn't been plowed -- and then I also remembered that there was no one left at the farm anymore either (hasn't been in almost 40 years...!). 

So I turned again and started trudging back into town -- although there's really no one there I could ask for help either. I thought that maybe I could get a room at the motel there, and then a ride into the city the next day -- or start walking there in the morning (60 miles...?!). 

But then I realized that although my sister and a few cousins live in or near the city, I couldn't rely on them to take me in either, certainly not long term. And I'm not sure I really belong in that city anymore either (if I ever did).  

When I woke up, I realized that I've been struggling with these themes & questions my entire life.  Where is home?  Where do I belong?  (DO I belong anywhere??) Do I matter to anyone (besides dh and my parents -- who aren't going to be around forever...)?  Who will be there for me if/when I need help (especially in my later years)?  

I've had similar dreams before, but for some reason, this one really bothered me and has stuck with me since then.

I think a lot of childless-not-by-choice women struggle with these questions. 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

#MicroblogMondays: Odds & ends

• 
  Lana Manikowski at "Infertile and Childless. So Now What?" nails it in "The Grief That Comes Without a Funeral." (Italics & boldface from the original text.) 

Here’s what few people understand: infertility grief isn’t just about a failed IVF cycle or a miscarriage. It’s about the futures we already built in our imagination. The baby names we whispered. The vacations we dreamed of as a family. The family photos we pictured on holiday cards. Every negative test isn’t just a single “no.” It’s another lifetime quietly slipping away, one no one else even knew existed. That’s why it feels so heavy, because you’re mourning futures no one else will ever acknowledge. There are no condolences. No casseroles. Just silence.

• "On the Outside," Y.L. Wolfe tells it like is: "Childless Women Do Not Need Your Unsolicited Advice."  Subheading:  "Yes, we've considered all the options, and no, we don't want to talk about it with strangers."  PREACH!! 

Small excerpt: 

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. The truth is, childless women make people uncomfortable. We’re living proof that life doesn’t always go the way you want it to. Our very presence inspires people’s worst fears and thus, I suspect, they feel unconsciously desperate to comfort themselves by acting like this is a problem that could easily be fixed.

• Y.L. Wolfe's writing is always great, but (as an amateur genealogist) I especially loved this article she wrote for Medium (which may or may not be paywalled?):  "The Unexpected Branching of a Childless Woman’s Family Tree." (Subhead: "Expanding the meaning of legacy for women who didn’t get the chance to have children.")  Excerpt: 

I don’t believe for a moment that our line ends here. That our existence won’t still reach as far into the future as it does into the past.

Branches will grow out from us, whether we have children or not.

and 

It’s important to remember that legacy isn’t just about biology...  you’re passing on parts of yourself to everyone you come across, whether you are related to them or not... there are countless ways to pass down your family values, your ideals, your wisdom, mostly in a manner that cannot be quantified or measured.

In fact, you’ll likely never know the impact you have made on the people in your life and the ripple effect that will have long after you are gone, on people you’ll never meet.

Legacy is a much bigger concept than we’ve been led to believe.

• Ali Hall at "Life Without Children" ponders "Why We Need To Change the Language Used for People Without Children" (subhead: "And all the ways 'childfree' and 'childless' are used against us"). (Not sure I like her proposed alternative... the quest continues...!)  
• This wasn't the first post I read musing about language choices for those of us living without children, and I'm certain it won't be the last...!  In fact -- the third post I ever wrote for this blog -- back in November 2007! -- explored a similar question:  "Am I childLESS or childFREE?" 

• Well worth a listen:  Jody Day chats with Zoe Noble of  'We Are Childfree" (which is both a Substack and a podcast, available on many podcast platforms, such as Spotify). 

• Not ALI-related, but another thoughtful & interesting piece from Charlie Angus at "The Resistance," about the most famous political assassination in Canadian history (not that there have been a lot of them -- and thank goodness for that!). I thought some of you might find it interesting! 
• As I mentioned in this post from 2017 (about a trip to Ottawa), as a high school senior taking part in the Rotary Club's Adventure in Citizenship program, I was being driven to Parliament Hill on the first morning, and the man driving me pointed to a street corner in passing and said, "Over there is the spot where where they shot D'Arcy McGee."  I had only a hazy idea of who D'Arcy McGee was at that point, but his remark stuck with me, and I looked him up when I got home, (We passed by the plaque marking the spot on that 2017 trip -- the same one pictured in the Substack post -- and I took a photo of it. We also had dinner at D'Arcy McGee's pub, also mentioned and pictured in the post.)  
• I vividly remember the other assassination mentioned, which took place 100+ years later, in October 1970 -- the "October Crisis," in which separatist terrorists kidnapped Quebec cabinet minister Pierre Laporte and British diplomat James Cross in Montreal, and murdered Laporte. (Cross was released.) I was 9 years old at the time, and one of my school friends told us Laporte had been beheaded (!). Her father was an RCMP officer, so we figured she would know. (He wasn't; the poor man was strangled.)  

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

#MicroblogMondays: Cottage weekend

I know I had a few ideas in mind for a #MM post this week, but they have all completely left my head. 

So I will just say that we spent the weekend with BIL, SIL & dh's cousins at their cottage (for the 5th straight September), enjoying good food, pretty scenery (fall colours not quite as advanced as they were the same weekend two years ago, but getting stronger every day we were there), great company and great conversation (aside from a few too many "Grandkids are the best!" references for my comfort...!). 

Back to reality today!  

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

View of the marina across the lake, from the dock on Saturday afternoon. 

#MicroblogMondays: Odds & ends

• 
  "I had an accident," my 86-year-old father sheepishly confessed over the phone on Sunday afternoon. (!!!)  VERY thankfully!! he's fine!  
• However! -- the wall between the garage and the laundry/mud room of the house is not. :( 
• He was bringing the car into the garage when it started raining on Friday. His foot slipped on the brake and the car crashed into the wall. (!)  :(  There is a sizeable dent in the wall that I am told you can see daylight through. (My sister was there this weekend, and has promised to send photos.) 
• Funnily enough, the car came through with barely a scratch too. 
• It will probably cost several thousand dollars to repair the wall -- money that my parents do not have to spare. ("Dust off your chequebook,"  my sister told me grimly.)  My sister's partner has boarded up the crash site to keep out the cold, rodents, etc., until it can be fixed.   
• The potentially good (?) news to come out of this is that my parents have agreed to add their names to the waiting lists for seniors housing in several different places in town this week -- something we've been wanting them to do for several years now. 
• I always thought it would probably take a crisis of some sort to get them to move. I'm just glad it wasn't something worse! 
• Big changes to come in the next few months/year, I think...  :(  
• World Childless Week is over and (sadly, as is often the case for me), I still haven't read or watched very many of the wonderful offerings now available on the WCW 2025 website. If you haven't yet done it yourself, go have a look! 
• I did manage to post something every day during WCW about the daily theme and any relevant posts I've written, all tagged "WCW 2025." 
• Seasonal allergies haven't bothered me much in recent years -- and when they have, it's usually in late May/early June. But this past week or two, I've been suffering through violent sneezing fits, scratchy throat & ears;  itchy, burning, sticky eyes; fatigue.... ugh. I've been taking Claritin daily since this started, which usually does the trick... I'm feeling somewhat better this weekend (fingers crossed...!), but it sure took its time kicking in...!  
• I know everyone advises you to close the windows & run an air purifier, but I hate to do that when it's been so nice outside (and the time that we can do that is rapidly dwindling, as temperatures start to drop...!). 
• I was so sad to hear that Robert Redford died this past week. (How was he 89?!!).  
• I fell in love with Redford at age 12 when I saw him (and Paul Newman! -- were there ever two more gorgeous men on screen, together or separately??) in "The Sting." (I didn't get to see "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" until several years later, on TV.) 
• My sister & I saw it with our two cousins, while our parents watched "Blazing Saddles" -- rated R -- in an adjacent theatre. And "The Exorcist" was playing in the theatre right next to ours.  I remember my cousin pressing his ear against the wall to see if he could hear people screaming, lol. 
• A few years later, my mom took my sister & me to the drive-in theatre -- on a school night! (such was the power of Redford back then...!) -- to see "The Great Gatsby." (But first, we had to sit through "The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad" -- what a double bill!!)  
• We saw "The Way We Were" around the same time.  And, in the years that followed, "The Great Waldo Pepper," "All the President's Men" (which I wrote about here), "Three Days of the Condor," "Sneakers," "The Natural," "Out of Africa" (saw that one on one of my birthdays), "The Horse Whisperer," and so many more -- not to mention the amazing movies he directed -- among them "Ordinary People," "Quiz Show," and "A River Runs Through It." 
• I was reminded of a popular dessert from the 1970s (which my mom still makes from time to time). It was commonly known as "Better Than Sex"(lol) -- but on my Mom's recipe card, it's called "The Next Best Thing to Robert Redford" (or simply "Robert Redford"), lol. 
• I realized the minute I mentioned this dessert, someone was going to ask for the recipe -- and while I think I have a copy somewhere, I took the easy way out and Googled, and sure enough, up it popped. If this isn't the exact same recipe my mom had, it's pretty close!  Enjoy! 
• ALI note:  Did you know Redford and his first wife Lola lost their first son Scott to SIDS in 1959?  He was just two months old. :(   (His parents were in their early 20s.) He also lost his second son, James, in 2020, to cancer, when James was 58.  
• They don't make 'em like that anymore... 
• While dh watched the first NFL game of the season on a recent Sunday afternoon, involving his beloved Pittsburgh Steelers, I blocked out the cursing and yelling (lol) by catching up on some podcast episodes, including a couple from The Full Stop.
• I also listened to episode #71 -- the one I appeared on with Sandra McNicol in February, talking about childlessness and pregnancy loss. (I posted about it here.) This was the first time I'd actually listened to the finished episode on audio only, although I'd watched a video recording the day after we recorded it. Maybe it was because I was actually just LISTENING and not WATCHING myself on a screen too, or maybe enough time has passed, but it was (thankfully!) not as difficult to listen to at this point..
• Y.L. Wolfe muses "This Is Why We Hate Childfree Women"  ("we" = society). (The answer is in her subhead:  "They represent everything the patriarchy fears.")  
• British podcaster and author Elizabeth Day had an article in The Guardian recently about a life-changing call with a psychic. (There's an ALI angle.)  
• I've been following Charlie Angus's Substack, "The Resistance," for a while now. Charlie is a year or two younger than me, a punk rocker in his youth (!) who still plays in a band, and who was, until recently, a member of Parliament from the New Democratic Party (NDP), representing the riding in northern Ontario where he was born. He's been one of the most vocal and effective advocates for a strong, independent Canada in recent months. 
• This particular post is about the Group of Seven (a group of influential 20th century Canadian artists), and how Tom Thomson's famous painting "The Jack Pine" personifies and symbolizes the country and our spirit of survival and resistance. 
• As a proud Canadian, and a member at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, which has a large holding of Group of Seven artwork, this one struck a chord. ;)  
• I appreciated this Substack post from Garrett Bucks at The White Pages about social media and the role it plays in building community, for good and for bad:  "The Internet is Killing Us." 
• In a similar vein:  I'm an unpaid subscriber to Katherine May's Substack "The Clearing," and while most of this post -- also about social media -- is paywalled, I completely agree with her thoughts in the portion that's visible (particularly the second paragraph I've quoted here):  

I was one of the true believers in the early days of Twitter, and I’m still grateful for so much of what I’ve found and learned across the various platforms I’ve been on. But I think, on both a personal and professional basis, social media has become unmanageable. It’s addictive by design, primed to draw us into tribalism and conflict, and - unless your creative practice is making short videos - a major distraction from the work that matters.




And yet; and yet. I’m averse to the view that social media is uniformly evil or dangerous; I still believe that it can bring isolated people together in a way that we’ve never seen before. I don’t think I’ll ever be the kind of author who does no socials at all. I love the opportunity to be in contact with the the people who read my books and with other authors. I often think of how unnerving the author’s life must once have been before we could do this: sending out books into silence, and perhaps waiting months for any response.




So I remain on social media, but in a far more controlled way than I once did... 

I've been trying (trying!) to wean myself away from social media a bit, especially the mindless scrolling. I still have a Twitter/X account, but rarely go on there. I'm on Bluesky & Threads, but try to limit the time I spend scrolling there. I am not on TikTok. 

On Facebook, I generally just go straight to "Feeds/Friends," where I only see content posted by my friends. (There's a feed for "Groups" too.)  Depending on the friends (lol), I may not may not be interested in or agree with what they post (but that's where the "mute" button comes in handy, lol), but the "Friends" feed is much more curated than just scrolling through the random stuff in the general feed, and I get to see more of the stuff that matters to me -- i.e., my friends' posts -- which is what I came to social media for in the first place.  

• Infertile Phoenix has noticed a substantial increase in the number of views her blog has been getting lately, and asked readers to indicate if they're human (or bots?).  
• Someone commented on Phoenix's post to say it was probably "'referral spam—fake visits that try to show up in your Google Analytics so you’ll click the link or buy their “traffic” service. It’s noise, not real customers.'" That's good to know. 
• I don't often look at my stats -- I've never been one to worry about increasing readership and getting clicks, etc; I'm just happy if people who are looking for support and want to feel less alone find my blog. 
• But I was curious, so I had a look. Sure enough, there's been a SUBSTANTIAL spike in page views recently. If I look at the trends over time, there was a small spike in mid-2023, a larger spike in early 2024, and then a HUGE spike this past month, peaking at almost 86,000 views on Sept. 19th alone (an all-time high)! That's BONKERS!! (compared to what I was getting in years gone by). 
• The U.S. is still a top source of viewers, but I've had a huge uptick in viewers from Hong Kong, Singapore and Brazil, among others.  
• "Referral spam" or not, it's a bit creepy. I wonder if AI is scraping my blog (our blogs?) to fuel its databases... or possibly (even worse) whether childless women are being targeted and monitored in some way for political purposes?    
• I try not to get too overtly political here -- but it seems like everything is political these days, especially when it comes to women, reproductive matters, and those of us who have deviated from the "norm" (even when that's been despite our desires and best efforts). 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

#MicroblogMondays: It's World Childless Week! Day One: Our Stories

(Reposted with updates and additions from previous years' WCW Day One: Our Stories posts.)   

World Childless Week is here!  -- an entire week filled with inspiring and comforting things to read, watch, listen to and participate in, focused on a different topic/theme each day (and new material posted daily too). If you miss some of the live webinars, don't worry;  they are posted on the WCW website later in the day/week to be enjoyed and consulted indefinitely. (Previous years' WCW content is also available onsite -- what a great resource for our community!) 

As usual, I didn't manage to get my act together to write something new (or even in time for a morning post...!)  -- but I'm always happy to promote WCW here. A couple of years ago, it occurred to me that I've already covered many of the WCW topics in my blog over the almost (gulp) 18 (!) years I've been writing here. So each day this week, I will *attempt* (I have great intentions...!) to post about the day's topic here, with some links to some of my own previous writing here on the subject (if any). (Some of the content I wrote for previous years' WCW summary posts may be repurposed for this year's posts.) 

Enjoy! :) 

*** *** *** 

Day One is focused on the theme "Our Stories" (as it usually is).  

We often find our words are dismissed, truth laughed at and emotions swept aside. If you are childless due to infertility, circumstance, chance or tough choices, you can share your story here with confidence. We won’t judge, we are just hear to listen.

Today is YOUR day to share YOUR childless story in YOUR way.

I'm a firm believer in the power of telling our stories (if only to each other, at least at first). Meetings of the pregnancy loss support group that dh & I used to facilitate would always begin by going around the room and having each person introduce themselves and tell us their story, what brought them to us. Sometimes (especially at first), the stories would be long, detailed and filled with tears. Over time, new details would emerge that we hadn't heard before. And we'd learn to develop a shortened "Reader's Digest" version of our story, which left more time for the longer stories (plus, over time, the "regulars" would all get to know each other and each others' stories pretty well, so it wasn't quite as necessary or important to go through all the details for the umpteenth time). 

Telling and retelling our stories to each other like this, week after week, in a supportive environment among others who had similar stories to tell, was good practice for handling those inevitable innocent questions and awkward encounters that all of us experience, sooner or later. In training sessions, we also learned that telling our stories, or some version of them -- over and over and over again -- actually helps our brains to process what happened. 

I think the same principles apply to our stories about our childlessness.  Our stories matter, because they're OURS, and because by telling them, we light the way for other childless women looking for support and comfort.  

Our stories remind each other that we are not alone.  

This entire blog, of course, is my story :) (or at least parts of/a version of it) and it has evolved, along with my story, over the past 18 years.  A barebones, thumbnail version of my story can be found in the "About me" Blogger profile near the top of this page on the right-hand side (or in the link here). You can find a slightly longer version in the "About me" page (found just under the title/header of this blog). The "Timeline" page (link right beside the "About me" link) also gives you an idea of how my story unfolded and some of the significant dates & events. 

If you're *really* interested in all the gory details (and be forewarned, some of them ARE a bit gory, emotionally if not physically), I wrote a series of posts tagged "1998 memories" in which I relived my one doomed pregnancy, 10 years after the fact. I did the same thing with "The Treatment Diaries," all about our foray into infertility treatments, 10 years after we abandoned them and resigned ourselves to permanent childlessness. 

I also wrote a few posts shortly after I started this blog, where I told a condensed version of my story (up to that time): 

• Blogtivism: My Story (& how mandated coverage could have helped) (November 2007)
• How we made "the decision" (November 2007)

If you have some difficulty telling your story to others (and I know I have!) -- especially to parents who might not understand/appreciate the subtleties of involuntary childlessness -- take comfort in the words of Brene Brown -- who emphasizes the importance of telling our stories -- but also this:  

Our stories are not meant for everyone. Hearing them is a privilege, and we should always ask ourselves this before we share: "Who has earned the right to hear my story?" If we have one or two people in our lives who can sit with us and hold space for our shame stories, and love us for our strengths and struggles, we are incredibly lucky. If we have a friend, or small group of friends, or family who embraces our imperfections, vulnerabilities, and power, and fills us with a sense of belonging, we are incredibly lucky.

Check out today's content on the WCW site, including community members' contributions. Today's webinars have all concluded (as World Childless Week is a UK-based initiative, most webinars take place in the early morning through mid-afternoon hours, North American time), but all were recorded, and the videos will be posted to the WCW 2025 Day One page, as well as the WCW YouTube channel, for anyone who missed seeing them live.  

There will be more community submissions and webinars tomorrow, when the topic will be "Childless LGBTQIA+." 

(Mali is also promoting World Childless Week on her blog -- check out her post here.) 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

#MicroblogMondays: Odds & ends

• 
  Apparently Friday, Aug. 22nd, was Rainbow Baby Day (trigger warning: baby photos) -- and while I didn't spend a lot of time on social media that day, my feeds had more mentions about it from various loss/infertility/childless accounts than I've ever seen in the past. (I'm going to have to add this one to my calendar so that I remember in the future and it doesn't take me by surprise again!) 
• All power to those of you who have had your "rainbow baby(s)" -- but huge thanks and bouquets to those few lovely souls (many/most of them from the childless-not-by-choice community, but also a few who were not) who dared to remind people that not everyone is lucky enough to get their rainbow. 
• Of course, some of us might still get a rainbow -- albeit maybe not in the form of another baby. 
• Previous Rainbow Baby Day post from 2020 here.  
• I love Lisa Sibbett's Substack, The Auntie Bulletin, and I loved her recent post about "The Seven Blessings of the Aunties:  Here’s what Aunties bring to families." I feel like we're all potential "aunties" and role models to the younger generation, even if we don't actually have nieces, nephews, godchildren, etc. in our lives (at this particular point in time, anyway). 
• I especially liked #4 on Lisa's list ("Aunties teach kids about life's options"), although the text mostly reflects the childfree by choice. I would add that simply by our presence, those of us who wanted children but didn't get them can show by example that a good life can be possible even if it's not the life you originally wanted or assumed you would have or that all of your friends have. Learning to deal with grief, loss and life's disappointments and roll with the punches is hard, but it's a something we'll all find ourselves doing, one way or another, and we can help model those skills for the younger generation. 
• Sari Botton's Memoirland Substack recently featured a post from Natalie Frenkel, "Friendship and Fertility," about struggling to conceive, and the effect it had on her relationships with friends who could (what Jody Day has called "the friendship apocalypse of childlessness"). There's a lot here that's familiar!  
• Trigger warning:  The essay is illustrated with a photo of two women, one of them with her hand on a pregnant belly (!).
• This one popped up on my phone as a random Google notification -- about pronatalism and families, "legacy," living your own life on your own terms. It starts with a great personal story about living well being the best revenge (lol), and then segues into a more general essay about having a good life without children.  
• The article is mostly from a childfree perspective, but I was happy to see this acknowledgement:  "But for those who wanted kids and couldn’t have them — whether because of money, health, or life throwing curveballs — the emotional load can hit harder."
• Trigger warning:  The thumbnail image has a border around it of cartoonish babies, bottles,soothers, etc.  There is also a photo of a mother with small children.
• A few choice passages: 

But here’s the thing — choosing a child-free life isn’t some shiny new TikTok trend. Aside from the baby boom in the ’50s, history has always had its fair share of people saying, “No thanks” to diapers and playdates.

The big difference now? We’re actually talking about it. From smashing tired stereotypes to questioning what “family” even means, the conversation is louder — and bolder — than ever.

and

...different has a way of making people uncomfortable. Friends and family might need time to adjust — especially if they pictured your life a certain way. But here’s the thing: the person who has to live that life is you.

...At the end of the day, whether you raise kids or not, your life can still be full of love, meaning, and joy — on your own terms.

Sometimes, the most powerful legacy isn’t the one you’re handed — it’s the one you create for yourself.

• Not ALI-related, but this Substack post from Judith Hubbell at "Too Old for This Sh*t" deserves to be widely read and shared. It's one of the best defenses and explanations of feminism that I've read in eons. Bravo!! 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

#MicroblogMondays: End of summer blues

Maybe it's because it's suddenly the end of summer -- and I feel like we didn't have much of a summer at all. (Like, WTF happened??) Between the heat & humidity, the smoke, and the two weeks at Mom & Dad's, the buildup to the wedding we attended and Katie's day, it's gone by in a blink. (And yes, I know it's technically still summer until mid-September, but you know what I mean...!)  

Maybe it's because August holds a few too many grief and loss reminders:  Katie's day, the recent wedding of her second cousin (the same age as she would have been), the "anniversary" of FIL's death in 2018 (which I wrote about here, here and here)...  

Maybe it's because there was a sudden flood of back-to-school and off-to-college photos from American friends on my social media feeds today, reminding me of the photos that were never taken... (They weren't the first back-to-school photos I've seen -- they started earlier this month -- and they won't be the last -- I expect to keep seeing them through mid-September -- but they were noticeable!) 

Maybe it's because I realized that there are just two weeks left before the kids head back to school here -- and we still haven't gone for gelato yet this summer. :(  Or washed the balcony door/windows. Or done any of a number of other things I've wanted & needed to get done this summer. 

Maybe it's because the hordes of back-to-school shoppers were out in full force when we were at the mall last week, making it far busier than usual -- and I'm debating whether it's worth braving the crowds to go there again this week? 

Maybe it's because I'm reading reports that covid is on the rise again (and we didn't get our boosters this past spring -- the one date they were offered at our family doctor's office didn't work for us, and it looked like I wouldn't have qualified for one anyway, since I'm under 65 (!) and they tightened up the eligibility guidelines... hoping things will be different for the fall...). 

Maybe it's because the on-again-off-again Air Canada flight attendants' strike is continuing (despite the fact that they were ordered back to work), meaning a significant trip this fall to mark our 40th wedding anniversary is becoming less and less likely. 

Maybe it's because Little Great-Nephew #2 is suddenly sprouting teeth (and perhaps consequently, was crankier than his usually smiley self when we saw him recently) -- and his big brother (LGNephew #1) is on the verge of losing his first (!), as he enters first grade at school (!), reminding me of how quickly they're growing, and of the little girl who never got to grow up at all. 

Maybe it's because dh's allergies were acting up in a major way this weekend -- and thus HE was crankier than usual too. 

Maybe it's because the overall state of the world is so dark and crappy right now. (I don't think I need to list all the reasons why I feel this way;  you all probably know.)  What kind of a world are we leaving those adorable little great-niblings? 

Maybe it's because I had a lousy sleep last night -- partly because the joint where my left big toe meets the rest of my foot was sore, giving me flashbacks to when I had gout, four years ago (also in August!). It's not red or hot or swollen, as it was then (yet?), but I've been taking some ibuprofen as a precaution. 

Maybe it's because I was up more than a pound from the previous week (WTAF?!) when I weighed myself last Friday -- and almost 3 pounds from my pre-vacation weight. I'm basically back to where I was in March. :(  Still better than I was when we got the cholesterol lecture from our family doctor last October, and certainly better than my all-time heaviest weight -- but still a setback from the progress I'd been making. 

Maybe it's because I've recently had to back out of a couple of things I had previously committed to, and have been feeling incredibly guilty about it. 

Maybe it's because I'm so far behind on my Goodreads goal, with books I need to read and want to read piling up around me. 

It's been more than 40 years since I had to return to a classroom, but (as you can probably tell by now...!) it feels like I've had a bad case of the end-of-summer blues these past few days. 

On the bright side (because I don't want to be a complete downer here): 

Our 5th annual cottage weekend with BIL & SIL, dh's cousin & his wife (and, this year, another cousin too), is on for late September. :)  Something to look forward to! 

I started looking at places within driving distance where we could take a getaway for a few days in September or October. 

I had a lovely Zoom call with some online friends this weekend. Always a day brightener!  :)  

The extreme heat, humidity and wildfire smoke/poor air quality of the past few weeks seems to have broken:  it's a glorious 21C/23C humidex this afternoon (69F & 73F, respectively) with a nice, slight breeze, and our balcony door has been wide open all day. FINALLY!! 

Dh saw that I was in a blue mood and took me for gelato this afternoon. Wouldn't you know it? Our favourite gelato shop is closed on Mondays. We went to Dairy Queen for Blizzards -- again, lol. We've decided we'll try again for gelato soon -- like, maybe the Tuesday after Labour Day, when all the kids HERE will be heading back to school. ;)  It will be a welcome distraction -- something to look forward to -- (and an excusable reason to drown my sorrows in gelato, lol). 

How are you feeling as the end of summer approaches? 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

#MicroblogMondays: Mixed feelings at the wedding

Saturday was dh's cousin's son's wedding -- which I've mentioned in several previous anticipatory posts in recent months/weeks. As a recap/reminder:  He's 27, exactly the same age our Katie would have been (he was born in April; Katie was due in November;  my pregnancy overlapped briefly with his mom's; I was newly pregnant and "out" about it at her baby shower). The bride is, I think, a couple of years younger than him -- but still around the same age generally as Katie would have been. 

Needless to say, while I always enjoy a wedding, and while I was happy for this lovely young couple, and while I was looking forward to getting dressed up and seeing dh's cousins (always a fun bunch to hang out with), I had some very mixed feelings as the day approached. (Especially since the day was so close to Katie's delivery "anniversary,"  a few days earlier!)  

Overall, it was a reasonably good day.  I wouldn't want to have to get dressed up and wear makeup every day, but it's fun to do it once in a while.  :)  For those of you following my dress choice dilemma (lol) -- last referred to in my previous post -- I had just about made up my mind to wear the elegant navy dress I'd bought. But knowing the weather forecast -- for another very hot, humid day (humidex around 40C/104F) --  I changed my mind the night before and wore the (lighter weight, but somewhat less formal) floral print dress instead. Even though the hall was air conditioned, there were about 200 people there, and it was still a bit stuffy -- so I think I made the right decision!  (And hopefully I'll get a chance to wear the other dress another time soon!)   

The venue was kind of unusual -- but it was beautifully set up. It was not a traditional banquet hall, but an "event space," carved out of a commercial unit in a block of similar buildings built in the 1960s or 1970s in midtown Toronto  It had obviously been gutted and slightly renovated, but was essentially one big empty minimalist space. Clever use was made of floor-to-ceiling white tulle curtains to cover up some of the outer walls and carve it into separate spaces for the entrance/cocktails, ceremony (later the dance floor) & dining areas. The food was very good, the servers were obviously well briefed, bringing a tomato-free pasta course for me (and gluten-free for one of dh's cousins).  There were little cards on the table (along with the place cards showing our names) indicating who was getting chicken or salmon vs beef.  The flowers were absolutely gorgeous and must have cost a small fortune (see the photo below). We didn't drink a whole lot -- dh was driving -- but he did one shot at the bar with his male cousins, and I did likewise with SIL & the other women, and there was plenty of wine at the dinner table.

But obviously, there were a few "ouch!" moments.  As the bride (looking lovely, of course, in a stunning white lace dress) made her way up the aisle, solo (met halfway up by her mother, who accompanied her the rest of the way), I grabbed dh's hand & squeezed it tightly. Her father is not part of her life (not sure why -- not really our business anyway...), and she's an only child -- so instead of the traditional father-daughter dance, they had a mother-daughter dance (!). It was an up-tempo number, and actually kind of cute/touching to watch -- but again, mixed feelings, as you might imagine. Our table was in a far corner of the room -- no nearby exits -- and there were enough other tables close by to make it difficult for me to just get up & leave. So I stayed seated -- but when they invited ALL the moms & daughters to join them on the dance floor (!) -- I took advantage of the surge in people getting up and leaving tables, quietly told dh I was going to visit the powder room -- and did. And lingered just a little longer until I could hear the music change! ;) 

The mother-son dance was also a little hard to watch. A couple of dh's cousins that we were sitting with encouraged me to get up and take some photos -- because I almost always do. "Oh, Cousin X (sitting closer to the dance floor) is in a much better spot to take photos than I am," I said. And thankfully, no one raised an eyebrow or pursued the matter further. 

There were also some literal "ouch!" moments -- my feet (in new sandals, with a chunky 1-inch heel) were KILLING me, lol.  There was, as I already mentioned, the heat & humidity. And the music was so loud, you could barely hear yourself think, let alone converse with your tablemates. :p  It really wears on you after a while!  

We left early, before 11:30 (although we were not the first to do so, by far). (Am I getting old or what??)  By the time we dropped off BIL & SIL, got home, took off my makeup, put on my nightgown and wound down a bit, it was 1:30 AM. Neither of us had a great sleep.  So Sunday was a VERY lazy day!  Dh spent most of it napping on the couch and we did the bare minimum required in terms of making lunch & dinner for ourselves. 

Maybe it's a good thing the next family wedding is not for another year...??  ;)  

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here. 

The beautiful floral centrepiece at our table.
Each table had one, and those on the tables for the immediate families/bridal party/head table
were even more elaborate. (We left early, so I don't know if they gave them away to the guests!) 

#MicroblogMondays: Post-vacation odds & ends

I just got back from two weeks with my parents and sister last night and have had NO time to put together a proper post -- but I've been collecting a few odds & ends -- and since it's #MicroblogMonday...!  

• Many of the "annoying things and small pleasures" described in past posts about family visits -- including this one, this one, this one -- still apply. ;)  
• Also annoying:  the weather there. We alternated between extreme heat/humidity and cold/rain, with some forest fire smoke thrown in for good measure (air quality health index of 10+ -- out of 10, i.e., dangerous, on several days). "Sunny Manitoba" is one of the province's mottos/marketing slogans, but (sadly) it was decidedly not that this time around...!  :(  
• The weekend I landed at my parents' house was the 40th anniversary of LiveAid.  I didn't know until later that they were showing the entire concert again on YouTube -- I was pretty busy that day anyway, but I was sorry I'd missed it. 
• LiveAid happened exactly one week after our wedding.  I remember watching parts of the concert on & off that day from our hotel room in Calgary, where we were just wrapping up our honeymoon in Banff & Jasper (as well as a day at the Calgary Stampede, lol), before flying to Toronto to start married life together. 
• I've enjoyed watching the four-part LiveAid documentary series that CNN has been showing on past few Sundays. (Fourth & final episode coming up this weekend!)  Lots of great memories (but yikes -- some of those people have aged!). (But then again, so have I...!  lol)  
• A recent post from Grumpy Rumblings included a link to an article about "cinema's greatest scene" -- the singing of "La Marseillaise" from "Casablanca," my all-time favourite movie. The article is 10 years old, but it's a brilliant and thorough analysis and worth a read, especially if you're a fan! 
• I recently learned that our former family doctor of 28 years, who retired 11 years ago, died a few weeks ago.  Too late for us to attend the visitation or funeral  :(  but I would have loved to be there and tell his wife (who was his nurse) -- again -- how much we appreciated their care.  
• Doc appeared in several of my posts over the initial years of this blog, including my "1998 memories" and "The Treatment Diaries" series, and this post from 2014, where I wrote about saying goodbye to him before he retired. 
• As you will read here (gift link),  not only was he a heck of a good doctor, he was a Major League Baseball player and had four World Series rings!! -- two from his time as a relief pitcher (1964 St. Louis Cardinals and 1969 New York "Miracle" Mets), and two in his role as the Toronto Blue Jays team doctor. (His nickname was "Dr. Baseball,"  and his two sons made a documentary short film about him by that name! -- you can find it online.)  He also had an engineering degree, pre-medicine!  
• Since I wrote about the passing of my high school English teacher in late June, my classmates & I learned about the deaths of not just one but TWO classmates (less than two weeks apart from each other) -- both from forms of cancer. :(  Both were my classmates in junior high as well as high school (at that time, there were four K-9 schools in our town, as well as a couple of K-6 schools and two high schools).  They're not the first to go, and they certainly won't be the last (cough!) -- but seriously, aren't we too young for this to be happening?? 

You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here.