by Judy Handley | Nov 7, 2016 | Life After Windbird 2016 |
Life After Windbird, Day 87: Election Eve
Date: Monday, November 7, 2016
Weather: High 50, Low 34 degrees F
Location: At Home at the Studio, Falmouth, MA
No matter your political preference, I think all of us will be really glad when this election is over. But being the political junkie that I am, I am watching the events right up until the end. That is how I spent my evening. My day was a mix of exercise at the gym, a call to Social Security with very long wait, and working on getting photos from the past four months edited and named. I have decided to tackle just one online account problem per day and today that was Social Security. I thought I had an online account, but actually it was Mark’s account. So I had to set up a new one. And in doing that, I found out that paperwork I signed and handed in at the local Social Security office in September was never processed. They evidently lost it. So I need to do that all over again tomorrow. But at least I found out.
Tomorrow morning I will vote in a polling place for the first time since moving aboard Windbird in 2003. Since then I have had to vote via absentee ballot as a ‘transient’ in New Hampshire. This will be my first time to vote in Massachusetts. After that, I will head to Heather’s to be with the boys for a bit. There is no school tomorrow, but it is not a holiday, so parents have to work. Heather is taking the day off, but has to run a school fundraiser from 7 to 10 am and then she will do a five-mile run before returning home. Once she gets home, I will then run a few errands and head home to spend my afternoon bracing myself for tomorrow night’s election returns. Can’t wait for this to be over.
by Judy Handley | Nov 6, 2016 | Life After Windbird 2016 |
Life After Windbird, Day 86: Cold Weather and Kicky Fashion Models
Date: Sunday, November 6, 2016
Weather: High 51, Low 40 degrees F
Location: At Home at the Studio, Falmouth, MA
The 51degree high temperature today does not reflect how it felt. It was WINDY and it felt downright COLD. The move overnight from Eastern Daylight Time back to Eastern Standard Time seemed to signal an immediate change from fall to winter. There was even a little sleet here and there today. But fall will return and hopefully that winter chill in the air will stay at bay for a few more weeks.
I spent another frustrating day dealing with online account issues. I am very, very tempted to go back to paper bills and sending paper checks to pay them. I really thought I had all of the accounts changed into my name and now I am finding that Mark’s name is still embedded into the inner workings of the accounts, keeping me from making online payments. Heather and Justin thought they had these accounts all switched over back in September, but not so. I’m going to work on this again tomorrow, and very honestly if I can’t get everything settled I feel like cancelling all the accounts and starting from scratch. Of course, that would mean going without electricity, heat, phone, or internet for a day or two, so I’m probably not going to get that extreme. But this is one case where technology has not been helpful. Thankfully, Heather had invited me over for an artichoke dinner this evening and that gave me the sanity break I needed. Before dinner, Sam, Jonah, Ollie, and Joey and Molly from next door put on a fashion show.
Sam was the producer and director, in charge of music, lightening, and floor directing,
and the others dressed for two different presentations and an encore. Jonah was a lacrosse player and a baseball catcher,
Ollie was a fireman and an astronaut,
Joey was a knight and an astronaut,
and Molly was a dog owner and a rock star.
They performed with flare and brought forth a much needed bright spot in my day.
The fashion show was followed by a wonderful dinner. Heather found artichokes at the grocery story yesterday that looked really good and immediately called me to invite me over for dinner tonight. She knows just how much I love artichokes. They were “perfect” in Sam’s words and accompanied by a squash risotto. Both were delicious. Thank you, Heather.
I’m not sure how this week will go. I have a long list of projects that could keep me busy for weeks, but Tuesday is Election Day and there is no school here. And then Friday is a national holiday, Veteran’s Day, with no school. So I have offered to help with childcare if needed and on Friday will attend a Veteran’s Day observance that the Scouts are part of. Jed and I had talked earlier about working on Friday to start assembling the new storage shed that was delivered back in early September. But he has a grant due tomorrow and another one that he is a contributor to that is due early next week. Plus, he came home from the Scout outing this weekend with a cold. Actually, I think he went with a cold and it just got worse. As a result, he might have to wait on storage shed assembly until he is feeling better. We’ll just wait and see how the week goes.
by Judy Handley | Nov 5, 2016 | Life After Windbird 2016 |
Life After Windbird, Day 85: Fun Saturday for Grandkids
Date: Saturday, November 5, 2016
Weather: Mostly Sunny; High 55, Low 43 degrees F
Location: At Home at the Studio, Falmouth, MA
Zumba! That is how I started my day at the gym. At one time in my life I was a dancer, but it has been decades since I have done any dancing, let alone Zumba-type movement. Just glad there are no cameras to capture the action. After Zumba class, I came home and got ready for Jonah’s soccer game. He is such a delight to watch. He is so enthusiastic and encourages his teammates when they make good plays. He is sometimes goalie and sometimes forward, but always full of energy.
Ollie and I played a little soccer game of our own and Ollie had two little girls from the preschool that he played with as well.
Jed and Sam were not at soccer this morning because they are at a weekend-long Scout outing. The Scout Pack has a Facebook page and many photos were posted from today’s activities. Sam loved his introduction to archery as well as just hanging out with friends.
After the soccer game, I invited Heather, Jonah, and Ollie over for lunch and Heather ended up helping me with my online banking mess. Even though I have all new accounts, even for utilities, the ebills are being sent to Mark with old account numbers. Hopefully I will eventually understand all of this and get it straightened out. But without Heather and Justin’s help, I would be totally lost. Thank you, H and J. Jonah and Ollie also wanted some of momma’s time, so after helping me she spent time building a new Lego construction with Ollie
and then went outside to play a little soccer with Jonah. Ollie joined in that game and the three of them had a fun time on the front lawn.
After Heather and boys left and I had a Skype call with Ziggy and Coco. That call and the gorgeous red sails on the sunset over the harbor ended a beautiful day.
by Judy Handley | Nov 4, 2016 | Life After Windbird 2016 |
Life After Windbird, Day 84: Dinner with Good Friends
Date: Friday, November 4, 2016
Weather: Mix of Sun and Clouds; High 57, Low 34 degrees F
Location: At Home at the Studio, Falmouth, MA
Bruce and Jane Woodin just returned from a three-week vacation in Hawaii. Olivia and Terry White returned recently from a Viking River Cruise in Europe. And tonight we all convened here for a reunion. We had a wonderful evening together. After dinner, we got to see a few photos from each trip. I am so bummed that I didn’t take a photo of all of us together again. You’ll just have to use your imagine see us once again enjoying each other’s company.
by Judy Handley | Nov 3, 2016 | Life After Windbird 2016 |
Life After Windbird, Day 83: Never Give Up
Date: Thursday, November 3, 2016
Weather: Mix of Sun and Clouds; High 64, Low 47 degrees F
Location: At Home at the Studio, Falmouth, MA
What a game! Game 7 of the 2016 World Series was just unbelievable. I’ve watched very few baseball games in my entire life, but last night was a must see. The performance of both teams just screamed, “Never give up.” I admit that I was thrilled with the outcome, but even more importantly, those two teams, because of their tenacity, gave us the best baseball game any of us has ever seen. But because of their tenacity, it was very late when most of us went to sleep last night. I don’t know about your day, but mine got off to a bit of a slow start. I did my daily battle with computer issues, did a little bit of photo editing, and in the afternoon I headed to East Falmouth Elementary to pick up Sam and Jonah. They love to hang out on the playground after school, playing soccer, and digging holes in the sand. I don’t quite get the hole digging, but the kids love it. So no need to question. After our stint on the playground, we headed home. I brought my computer so I could let Sam and Jonah watch some of the highlights from last night’s game. That spurred Jonah to put on his catcher’s gear and the boys did a little pitch and catch in the front yard.
Heather got home from her conference on Nantucket about the same time Jed got home with Ollie. I then took off to go to a yoga class at the gym. I went to one yoga class in Woods Hole this summer, but that is the extent of my knowledge of yoga. The young man leading the class tonight was very good. Some of the poses challenge my bad knee, but I will work on ways to adapt those poses. I now have two exercise classes and this yoga class that I will incorporate into my weekly schedule.
And speaking of schedules, I have been working on a scheduling a little road trip to Nashville to visit with my sister, brother-in-law, and niece Janet. I will do that during the first and second weeks of December, getting back here by December 18 to go to Revels with the Goldpebbles. Revels is a musical celebration of winter solstice. Mark and I have gone many times with the Goldstones and have always enjoyed it as the perfect way to usher in the holiday spirit. The Goldstones have decided to stay home for Christmas for the very first time since Sam was born, so I will be here to spend Christmas with them. After Christmas, they will head to Maine. I am not quite sure yet what I will do then. I’m planning a trip to Puerto Rico at some point to visit with Justin, Jo, Ziggy, and Coco, and will return to Nashville to spend a longer period of time with my sister. But I’ll try to space out those visits to help me get through the cold winter here.
Note: If my father were still living, he would have turned 113 years-old today. He was five years-old when the Cubs won their last World Series. He was not a sports fan, but he would have approved of the “never give up” attitude. Happy birthday, Hayes Winfred Martin.
by Judy Handley | Nov 2, 2016 | Life After Windbird 2016 |
Life After Windbird, Day 82: Shopping and Grandkids
Date: Wednesday, November 2, 2016
Weather: Mix of Sun and Clouds, Warmer; High 64, Low 53 degrees F
Location: At Home at the Studio, Falmouth, MA
As part of getting ready for the coming cold weather, last week I ordered a new comforter for my bed. I have duvet covers for standard/queen-sized comforters we used on Windbird, but a queen-sized bed really needs a king-sized comforter. So today I made a quick trip north to IKEA to buy a duvet cover for the comforter. And as long as I was in the neighborhood, I bought a few items at Costco before heading back to the Cape to pick Sam and Jonah up after school. Tonight I’m doing what many of you are doing . . . watching the last game of the 2016 World Series. I’m a traitor to the Martin family as they are all Indians fans. But Mark was from Illinois and the Handley Clan are solidly Cubs fans forever. I’m hoping for a Cubs win. The last time they won the World Series was in 1908. This afternoon when I told Jonah that 1908 is the year my mother was born, his eyes got as big as saucers. He then restated saying, “My great grandmother Ollie was born in 1908. That was a long time ago.” Go Cubbies.
