by Judy Handley | Feb 15, 2025 | 2025 Sailing Logs |
2025 Life Logs, Day 46: Making My Neck Happy
Date: Saturday, February 15, 2025
Weather: Overcast and Windy, Snow Late; High Temp 29, Low 25 degrees F
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA
It has been snowing for the past couple of hours. Shadow and I just went outside and found about a inch of lovely white snow on the ground.
It is 26 degrees out right now, but during the night the temperature is going to go up, not down. By the middle of the night, it will go up above freezing and by 10 am the forecast says it will be 40 degrees with rain all day tomorrow. I definitely prefer the snow, but unfortunately, I don’t control the weather.
Since October, I have had what I will call a stiff neck, just on the left side. I’m sure I have written about this, but I don’t think I mentioned that I finally started physical therapy for it this last week. I have learned a lot in that week about what makes my neck ‘happy’ and after this morning’s session, I came home and spent the rest of the day rearranging things that aggravate my neck. My television was too high, so I had remove the half-high bookshelf it was sitting on and put it on the same low IKEA low shelving unit it was on when I lived in the cottage. Here, I was using that low shelving unit in the kitchen. But now it is in the living room and the half-high bookshelf is in the kitchen. Last weekend, I moved the location of my computer to a higher table, but it is still not right. I have ordered an adjustable shelf for my laptop and will have to buy a wireless keyboard at Staples tomorrow. And then there is my cell phone. It is the real problem. I tend to read all of my news on my phone, work my daily mini-crossword, and on and on, all while holding the phone in my lap. That means I am looking down and that is a no-no. It needs to be at eye level like my computer screen and my television. Did you know your head weighs about 15 pounds. And your neck is happiest when your back is straight and your head is facing forward, not up or down. The PT told me this morning that they are now getting a deluge of teenagers in physical therapy with the same neck problems that I have been having. And it is all because they spend so much time looking down at their phones. And now I am going to go to bed and read, sitting up straight and holding that book up at eye level.
by Judy Handley | Feb 14, 2025 | 2025 Sailing Logs |
2025 Life Logs, Day 45: Happy Valentine’s Day
Date: Friday, February 14, 2025
Weather: Blue Sky Sunny Day, Windy; High Temp 34, Low 19 degrees F
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA
Happy Valentine’s Day to all. I feel like there must be a Valentine joker who made my day disappear right before my eyes. I got up, walked with Shadow, had breakfast while reading the local weekly paper, and suddenly it was time to pick Ollie up after school. Where did those hours go? I had a flurry of emails about Encore business and did some research on possibilities for field trips for my Newcomers/Encore field trip group. Evidently that took 5 hours, or the Valentine joker simply made those hours disappear.
Heather and family are off to Vermont for the upcoming school vacation week to ski and snowboard. Heather and Jed ski. The boys snowboard. Last night Heather sent a text inviting me to come visit them next Thursday and Friday. On Thursday, they move from an Airbnb they are sharing with friends to one just they will occupy. And evidently there is room for Oma for a night or two. Pets are allowed, so Shadow and I might make the trek to Vermont. Otherwise, I have the whole week to work on a few projects I have been trying to find time for since November. So, I’m hoping the next few days are way more productive than today.
by Judy Handley | Feb 13, 2025 | 2025 Sailing Logs |
2025 Life Logs, Day 44: Drippy, Messy Day
Date: Thursday, February 13, 2025
Weather: Rainy, Melting Snow; High Temp 44, Low 26 degrees F
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA
Shadow and I had to do our morning walk in a rainy world this morning. It was not pouring rain. Just drippy and messy as the rain was melting some of the snow still on the ground. I then went to a Newcomers General Meeting where the program was Reverand Nell Fields spoke for No Place for Hate–Falmouth. No Place for Hate is a national organization with local affiliates whose purpose is to build bridges, combat bias, and promote respect for all people through advocacy and education. Nell, as she is affectionately referred to in this community, started by telling us the story of the eraser. The rubber eraser was invented in 1770. It was almost 100 years later in 1858 when it was added to the end of a pencil making it so easy to erase your mistakes when writing. Nell then went on to define eraser versus the act of erasure and led us to the present day when certain words are being removed or erased from federal websites. She noted that you can remove the words but that does not make them go away. She moved on to diversity, pointing out that bio-diversity is necessary for a healthy environment. We were then led through an interactive exchange which pointed out that we all have much more in common than we have differences. The presentation was a timely and very positive focus amidst the deluge of negatively in our lives right now.
I went from one meeting to another to picking up Ollie after school and finally getting home to take Shadow out to play. But by late afternoon, it was foggy and truly messy outside. The snow in the yard was mushy with areas of standing water and in the driveway there were patches of ice. We chose the icy driveway. It was challenging, but we managed to play fetch successfully.
I have spent my evening burying my head in the sand, ignoring our current political situation. Instead, I finished watching The Mandalorian. I’ll be back at it tomorrow.
by Judy Handley | Feb 12, 2025 | 2025 Sailing Logs |
2025 Life Logs, Day 43: The Rollercoaster Went Off the Rails
Date: Wednesday, February 12, 2025
Weather: Snow Overnight, Overcast and Snow Flurries; High Temp 37, Low 32 degrees F
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA
Last night I was feeling a bit of hope because people were starting to push back on the Trump/Musk bulldozer approach to dismantling the United States government. It seemed that we the people were making a tiny, tiny bit of progress. But this morning, when Tulsi Gabbard got confirmed as Director of Intelligence and Pete Hegseth spoke to NATO allies and outlined Trump’s plan for Russia and Ukraine, it was obvious that the roller coaster we have been riding since Trump’s inauguration went completely off the rails, crashed and burned. I can’t even write about it. I’m sitting here holding my head in between sentences. Zelensky, as the voice of Ukraine, is not even going to be at the table to discuss the fate of his country? Freaking unbelievable and unacceptable. But what to do???
It seems a shame to end a day so depressed when my life here in Falmouth today was so delightful. We got a thin covering of snow overnight, so our world was freshly white this morning. After clearing off the walking path and my car, I headed out to spend my morning and early afternoon at the First Congregational Church giving my Voyage of Windbird presentation to their Women’s Union group (three different women’s groups merged into one).
I went early to set up my computer and the projector, sat through their business meeting, gave my presentation, answered questions, and had lunch. I always love giving the presentation as it brings back so many wonderful memories and today’s audience was most receptive. I think we all enjoyed spending an hour of our cold, snowy day sailing through the tropics. Then I came home to play outside in the snow with Shadow and spend an afternoon catching up on email communications. Life was good … then I caught up on the news of the day. That’s when the roller coaster crashed. I dare not think what tomorrow might bring.
by Judy Handley | Feb 11, 2025 | 2025 Sailing Logs |
2025 Life Logs, Day 41: Autocratic Breakthrough
Date: Monday, February 10, 2025
Weather: Mostly Cloudy; Temp 34, Low 19 degrees F
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA
When I hear people saying our country is heading into a Constitutional crisis, I shake my head and ask why they are saying ‘heading’. We are in the midst of a Constitutional crisis. Judges are ruling that things Donald Trump is doing are illegal and he is simply ignoring them. And so far, there have been no consequences. As Rachel Maddow said on her program tonight, that leads to autocratic breakthrough. If what our courts are saying is ignored, and Trump just keeps steamrolling along, we are going to wake up one morning and realize we are living under a dictator. At that point, ‘going back’ will be very difficult. It is almost impossible to know what to do. But as I see it, if a few Republican Senators don’t stand up to what Trump is doing or the courts do not find a way to impose consequences, we are going to get to that ‘break though’ point sooner rather than later.
Well, that was dark, but I had to get it off my chest. Other than the totally devastating things that are happening in this country, life here in Falmouth is going along as usual. Today was a Monday when Heather had a Select Board meeting and Jed had a Health Board meeting, so I was on dinner duty at the Goldstones. Tonight, it was chicken soup with matzo balls. After dinner, Sam shared with me that this morning he received an acceptance notice into a history program at Groningen University in the Netherlands. This acceptance is conditional, pending his final grades and AP exam results, but it is a step forward. He will not hear until May whether or not he is accepted into their international relations program, the one he really wants. But I say any acceptance should be celebrated as the college acceptance waiting game is so stressful. On the health front, Heather took Ollie to the pediatrician this morning and found he has not one, but two ear infections—one in each ear. So, he is on antibiotics and tomorrow morning she is going to take Jonah in to be checked as he is having trouble with his ears as well. But the good news is that all of the Goldstones are feeling a tad better. The boys are super anxious to get totally healthy so they can enjoy their week of snowboarding during next week’s winter break. I’m routing for them.
It is 26 degrees out right now, but during the night the temperature is going to go up, not down. By the middle of the night, it will go up above freezing and by 10 am the forecast says it will be 40 degrees with rain all day tomorrow. I definitely prefer the snow, but unfortunately, I don’t control the weather.
