2026 Life Logs, Day 189: Overload
Date: Wednesday, July 8, 2026
Weather: Mostly Sunny, Windy; High Temp 79, Low 66 degrees F
Location: At Home with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

I am still running on overload. Since I have done nothing other than focus on my sister’s needs since she arrived 15 days ago, adding other tasks back in is difficult. This week I have tried to add back library responsibilities and Indivisible planning for future actions, while still trying to get all of the things done to get my sister settled. It is true overload to the point where I can’t even think straight. I did get Bruce and Jane’s car back to them today and enjoyed sitting on their deck getting advice on some of the medical problems I have been trying to figure out. Just talking to other people helps. But still, tonight I find myself dizzied with all the needs to be done and all that I want to do. The Tall Ships have their ‘parade’ in the Boston Harbor on Saturday morning and I would love to see that. I will just put one foot in front of the other and see where I land!

2026 Life Logs, Day 188: Work Day with a Break to Watch Soccer
Date: Tuesday, July 7, 2026
Weather: Rainy Day, Much Cooler; High Temp 70, Low 61 degrees F
Location: At Home with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

Since Wednesday, June 24, I have done absolutely nothing other than work on all of the things necessary to get my sister settled into Bridges Memory Care. But this morning, I had to write checks for the library and deliver them and do one last task for Encore (which I didn’t finish). When I took a break to eat lunch, I turned on the television to watch the beginning of the Argentina vs Egypt World Cup game. I found myself cheering for Egypt and the score was 2-0 in favor of Egypt when I turned off the game. It looked like Egypt was going to win this one. But a little later, I turned the game back on. I was curious as to just how badly Argentina, with soccer’s greatest player, Lionel Messi, was being beaten. The score was still 2-0, but just after turning the TV back on, Argentina scored and I was trapped. Then Messi tied the score with an unbelievable goal. The game was now tied and there was no way I could turn it off now. The reigning World Cup champions pulled off a win 2-3 when it didn’t look possible.

While watching the second half of the game, I got the call that my car was ready for pick up. They said that the only problem they could find was the missing service belt and they had replaced that. So, after the game, I went over to see if Sam could go with me to get the car. I still have to get Bruce and Jane’s car back to them, but I will work on that tomorrow.

I finished the day getting caught up on Indivisible happenings of the past two weeks and working on a plan for our July monthly meeting next week. I made the decision to not go see my sister today, but I saw a photo of her on the Bridges Facebook page. She had a hair appointment today and I could see from the photo that the hairdresser did a wonderful job. Patsy looks like herself once again. It has been three weeks since she had her hair done in North Carolina, and she definitely needs her hair done once a week!

While doing all of the above, I thought a lot about Ollie and how he is doing at Scout camp in this rain that just doesn’t end. And I thought of Mark all day. On a Tuesday in 1942 on 7/7, 84 years ago, Mark Daniel Handley was born. And this September on 9/11, it will be 10 years, an entire decade without him. It doesn’t seem possible, but that is probably because he is always with me. And always will be.

2026 Life Logs, Day 187: Allegiance
Date: Monday, July 6, 2026
Weather: Rainy Day, Much Cooler; High Temp 70, Low 61 degrees F
Location: At Home with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

The US Men’s National Team competing in soccer’s World Cup has done one thing nothing else could do in our current political environment. They brought us all together to cheer for the home team. But the home team did not prevail tonight in the game against Belgium. From the beginning, they did not show that spark that a winning team needs. So, it was disappointing, almost embarrassing at the end, but they are our home team, and I stand behind them 100 percent. In the late 1960’s, my sister Patsy, her husband Joe, and their two young children, moved to Akron, Ohio. They became Cleveland Browns fans and my entire family from West Virginia became Browns fans as well. And still today, although decade after decade, the Browns were not a winning team, most people in my family are still dedicated Browns fans. There is something to be said for that kind of allegiance.

After watching some of the pregame at home and singing “Country Roads” with the entire stadium in Seattle, I headed to Heather and Jed’s to watch the game. Heather had said there would be a crew coming, but I didn’t know she meant there would be an entire living room full of Falmouth High School soccer players, present and past. There was more testosterone in that one room than I have ever witnessed in such small space. After inhaling dinner, they ate all the rest of the food in the house as snacks. It was fun to be a part of this watch party.

This morning I got a call from my good friend Jane Woodin. After reading last night’s log, she called to offer the loan of her car for the next couple of days while I am waiting for my car to be repaired. I accepted immediately and am so grateful for the offer. Bruce came late morning to pick me up, and I then drove Jane’s red RAV4 to Bridges to visit with my sister and then on the to the grocery store, and then this evening to Heather and Jed’s for the watch party. Thank you, Woodins!

No word on the car yet. The garage had a full schedule today before I had my car towed there. But they will get to it tomorrow and let me know the verdict.

2026 Life Logs, Day 186: Ken Burns, Doris Kearns, Jane Fonda
Date: Sunday, July 5, 2026
Weather: Rain Overnight, Partly Sunny; High Temp 78, Low 63 degrees F
Location: At Home with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

Ken Burns, Doris Kearns, Jane Fonda … all individuals who make a difference. This morning I watched NBC’s Special Edition of Meet the Press and thought that Ken Burns summarized the situation we find ourselves in at this point in our history as a country spot on. I first met Ken Burns sometime in the 1990’s when he was working with the Board of New Hampshire Public Radio on a special project. Then, as now, he was wearing his signature jeans. I met and talked with him again at another New Hampshire Public Radio event in the late 1990’s when his daughter Sarah was attending St. Paul’s School, Heather and Justin’s alma mater. At this meeting, we talked as parents. Justin was in college at Hampshire, Ken Burns’ alma mater. So, we had much in common and I found him to be so positive and down to earth and easy to talk to. But this morning when I heard him speak about the history of this country, I heard a man with who has spent fifty years studying the history of this country, and who still has that positive attitude. There was also an interview with Doris Kearns Goodwin, and just a small clip of Jane Fonda, I think testifying before Congress. I you didn’t watch Meet the Press today, I highly recommend trying to see it.

Heather took me to see Patsy this afternoon, and Heather was successful in getting her new tv working. One problem solved. But I left as I have the past few days, feeling like Patsy is not settling into her new home. I knew this might be the case as moving anyone with dementia is problematic, but I had to hope it would work. The problem is that Patsy just does not socialize with anyone other than family. She has not for the past five years, and I am not convinced she is ever going to. I am struggling with how to best help her without making myself sick with constant worry about her. I am going to attend a Bridges caregiver webinar tomorrow night. Maybe it will help get me started on the road to understanding how to deal with this.

I stayed home with Shadow tonight instead of going to Heather and Jed’s to watch the Mexico-England World Cup game. Shadow had not eaten for two days, so I was also worried about him. But as soon as I wrote to Heather saying I was staying home, he ate. I think he stopped eating because it was so hot, but at least now that he has finally eaten, I will be able to go to Heather and Jed’s to watch the USA-Belgium game tomorrow night. Right now, watching world cup soccer games is the only thing that keeps me from constantly worrying about my sister. There are just so many problems. In addition to my car breakdown yesterday, I got a call around 12:45 am early this morning that Patsy was found sitting on the floor beside her bed. She had obviously tried to get up without help. Thankfully she was fine. But it seems that I just go from one problem to another. So World Cup soccer game diversion is much appreciated. One day at a time, one problem at a time, with one or two soccer games a day mixed in ,,, maybe this will get me through.

2026 Life Logs, Day 164: Viva Cabo Verde
Date: Friday, July 3, 2026
Weather: Sunny and Hot, again; High Temp 87, Low 73 degrees F
Location: At Home with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

I didn’t get home until late this evening and then before I even get out of the car, I got a call from Xfinity trying to help me figure out how to get the cable working on the new television I bought for my sister. Then I had to spend some time outside with Shadow. He was alone all day and I only got home once to let him out. While doing this, I missed the last half of the Cape Verde – Argentia World Cup game. Here’s what Heather posted about the game: “Cabo Verde just showed us what the World Cup — and all of sports, for that matter — is really all about. They laid down a HUGE performance, kept us all on the edges of our seats for over two hours, and came so close to knocking the reigning World Cup champion out of the tournament. Cabo Verde won in spirit if not in score.” I will watch the game highlights, but it sounds like I missed the best game of the World Cup so far. But post game, I loved watching the Cabo Verde team stay on the field basking in the glory of their accomplishment. Winning is not everything and they are the perfect example of that. The important thing is how you play the game.

Today was sunny and hot, again, and I was on the run, again, and didn’t eat dinner until 9:30 pm, again. I sound like a broken record. But at least part of the running around today was for me. I needed a new grill and there was not a grill in Falmouth I can afford. The cheapest were across the bridge, but there was no way I was going across the bridge on July 3. After spending 2 hours of my life at the Xfinity store to sign up for cable television for my sister, I headed to Bridges to set up the tv and cable box. But I had no luck getting it to work. I talked with Xfinity on the phone, but they gave up as well. So, I made sure Patsy ate her lunch, and then I drove backroads to Hyannis to avoid the traffic to buy a grill at Home Depot. I spent last evening trying to drill out screws to replace the burners in my old grill, but even after I got the screws out, I couldn’t get the new burners installed. I decided I had to have a new one and now I do. I had to have them take the side tables off to fit it in my car, and I still have to get them back on before I can use it. Or at least one side had to go back on because the ignition button goes through it. I’m hoping Jed can help me get the side tables back on. It looks like it is going to be a hot summer making cooking dinner outside very desirable.

Tomorrow, I turn my attention to celebrating the 250th anniversary of this country I love. I wish I had the energy to write here all of the things going through mind, but I do not. So I will enjoy tomorrow and hope to get back to doing all I can to assure that we have a democracy going forward. The one thing I will say is that accomplishing this is going to take each and every one of us doing what we can, something, anything, to make it happen. Democracy is not a spectator sport. You can’t keep by just watching from the sidelines.

2026 Life Logs, Day 163: On the Run
Date: Thursday, July 2, 2026
Weather: Sunny and Hot; High Temp 86, Low 72 degrees F
Location: At Home with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

I have no air conditioning in my car and this was definitely the wrong day to spend much of my time running around in my car. But that was basically my day. By 8:30 am I had driven the 15 miles north, just shy of the Bourne Bridge, to drop Shadow off at Pampered Paws. I did this on Friday, almost two weeks ago, but when I got home with him, it became obvious that he had not been groomed the same as all of the other times since I have taken him there every 7 weeks since late 2020. But I literally didn’t even have time to call and tell them. When I called a week later, they insisted I bring him in to make things right and today was the day. I then drove home to the things for my sister that I had forgotten to take with me. I then drove the 10 miles to Mashpee, made sure Patsy ate her lunch, and drove the 10 miles home. I picked Ollie up and drove him to the Falmouth Country Club to play golf, and then back to Bourne to pick up Shadow. I got a text from Heather when I got home that she was finally arriving at the Falmouth bus depot, so I was delighted to drive the half mile to pick her up. She got off the bus carrying a 60-pound duffle bag and her backpack. She really enjoyed her time in the Arctic but was certainly ready to be back home. So, the day was a lot of running to and fro, but at least I got to see Ollie and my daughter! Jonah gets home tomorrow from Hawaii and Ollie leaves early Sunday morning for a week at Camp Yawgoog in Rhode Island with his Scout troop. Today was a lot of being on the run, but for the first time in two weeks, I got to see my family. That made me very happy.

2026 Life Logs, Day 162: USA
Date: Wednesday, July 1, 2026
Weather: Foggy Early, Then Partly Sunny and Hot; High Temp 79, Low 68 degrees F
Location: At Home with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

Although I saw only parts of the last half of the USA vs Bosnia-Herzegovina World Cup game tonight, it was definitely the highlight of my day. And I was thrilled to hear the San Francisco crowd belting out “Take me Home, Country Roads” after the game. Since I am a West Virginian, I loved it, but I had to text Jed to ask why they were singing that song. I didn’t realize it has become the official victory anthem for the US Men’s National Team. It evidently has no real meaning to the team other than being an iconic American song that everyone around the world seems to know the words to sing along. This mountain mama appreciates their choice.

As life goes, none of the things that I had planned to get done for my sister today happened. By trying to order a smart phone for her Dexcom glucose monitoring system last night, I managed to get her credit card cancelled. They put a stop on the card two weeks ago for another purchase I attempted, but last night’s attempt must have convinced them her card has been compromised. I spent the morning with her and talked with the PA who will be visiting Bridges every Wednesday and will see Patsy as needed. And I also talked with the podiatrist who saw her yesterday. I got home in time to have lunch and then began an afternoon of talking with her Power of Attorney about the credit card and about how to reimburse me for the thousands of dollars I have had to spend on her behalf. Then I was off again to spend some after dinner time with Patsy. We spent a lovely hour out in the garden enjoying a beautiful summer evening.

2026 Life Logs, Day 160: Illusions and a Philadelphia-Inspired Dinner
Date: Monday, June 29, 2026
Weather: Partly Sunny; High Temp 82, Low 61 degrees F
Location: At Home with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA

First thing this morning, I attended the first Falmouth Immigrant Rights Coalition Zoom meeting in weeks. But I realized halfway through that right now, I just don’t have the energy to put into this very important organization. I will continue to do what I can, but I am going to have to step down from being on the Steering Committee. Literally all of my time and energy right now is going into getting my sister settled, so some things are going to have to go by the wayside. I will stick with Indivisible Falmouth because that is where my heart is. We must do all we can to stop the current attack on our democracy. And that is a full time job!

I took some time to sit in the sun in the early afternoon and then I regrouped and got ready to go visit my sister and then go to Midge Frieswyk’s for our dining-in group gathering. I sat with Patsy while she ate dinner, helping her as I could. Without prompting, she just sits and looks at her food. Then I headed across the street to Midge’s new condo in neighboring Southport. On one side of the street you have a lovely senior living neighborhood and on the other side you have a ‘neighborhood’ for those dealing with memory issues. So, I guess you can live the good life until you can’t and then check yourself in across the street!

In honor of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia, tonight’s theme was food from Philadelphia. Midge served Philly cheesesteak sandwiches. A Philly cheesesteak is made with thinly sliced steak and melted Cheez Whiz on a long hoagie roll. Not the healthiest dinner choice, but really good. I decided to do Midge one better by brining a dessert snack that originated in Philadelphia in 1914. I made a tower of Tastykake individually wrapped-in-plastic cakes. The slogan for these high fructose sugar infused treats was “The Cake That Made Mother Stop Baking.” On the first day of sales in February of 1914 they sold $28 worth of cakes at ten cents a piece and by the end of the first week of sales they had made $222. By the end of the year, they grossed $300,000 in sales, and they are still going strong.

Heather is still in the Arctic, preparing for the two day trek home that begins tomorrow. Jonah is still in Hawaii, but will arrive home on Friday. Justin, Jo, Ziggy, and Coco are in England visiting with Jo’s family. I got a photo from Justin mid-afternoon showing him hanging by one hand on the side of a building at the Museum of Illusions with Ziggy and Coco standing and sitting on the top ledge of the front door and Jo hanging from the front. When I asked Justin if he was really hanging by one hand, he admitted that he was not. They were on the floor. Interesting illusion. But the full Strawberry moon tonight was not illusiion. It was beautiful.