A Waiting Game

Today's horoscope for Cancer from today's Washington Post:

You are a sign that is ruled by the Moon, and today's solar eclipse could hit you hard. You might need to wait at least six months to understand the meaning of this event. You will have a clue one week and one month from today.

I guess that means I have to wait until January 12, 2019, to understand what, if anything, may or may not have happened today. And on August 19, I might have some idea just what that event was unless, of course, it happens in the next four and a half hours.

Who Gets the Short Straw?

It seems as if overnight or every time you turn around, straws are the hot topic. We could and should be worried about plastic trash in general, but something about straws has hit a nerve. It hit mine a bit early; I've been using metal straws at home for quite a while. I would agree that eateries bring or offer us straws with too many beverages. I can drink my glass of water or iced tea lips to glass thank you very much. There are beverages, though, that call out for a straw. Milkshakes. Smoothies. Thick cold substance hovering between a solid and a liquid.

One of my birthday gifts last weekend was a set of metal straws of a smaller circumference than the metal ones I already had. Some of these are even bent to mimic bendable straws. They fit into a velvet bag and fit just right in the bottom of my purse. I've used them at a couple of places around town. I don't drink Starbucks coffee often--the coffee tastes somewhat burnt--but I stopped in today for an iced coffee post-swim and pre-quilt guild meeting. I noticed that they had for sale a re-usable plastic glass. I thought that the least I could do was get one. I may never use it at a Starbucks to get the 10 cent discount offered, but I'll use it at home if nowhere else. The barista asked if I wanted a straw. I took great pleasure in whipping out one of my metal straws and noting, "No thanks. I brought my own."

What Goes Around

I don't like being in crowds; I never have. And if the crowd starts moving, making me move with it, I pretty much suffer a panic attack. That's why I deliberately avoid situations in which that might happen. If I have to be in a moving crowd, leaving a sporting event for example, I stay as close as possible to the person I'm with, usually the husband.

But by deliberately avoiding large crowds, I often find myself not going to events I'd like to, or that I think I ought to. An example is the Women's March the day after the 2017 Presidential inauguration. I really wanted to be there. I really did. At the same time, I found the thought of the crown absolutely terrifying. Even the crowds at the local event seemed daunting. I asked two dear friends who were going to the event in D.C., one from here and one from afar, to represent me, to be there in spirit for me. Knowing how I feel about crowds, they both agreed.

This past weekend saw Families Belong Together rallies held nationwide in protest of the current administration's program of separating immigrant children and parents. While I did not even consider trying to get to the national rally in Washington, D.C., I hoped that the local rally might be manageable in size, and decided to give it a try. What I posted on my Facebook page pretty well describes my motivation.

Going to the Families Belong Together rally today. I normally avoid crowds, but we no longer live in normal times.

The same friends who represented me at last year's Women's March offered support and guidance. Stay to the sides of the crowd. Feel free to step back out of the crowd. Stay close to the husband. And my local friend asked for a ride to the rally, giving me a second person to whom I could turn.

I wanted to make some sort of poster to take along, but not enough to make a special trip into town when I discovered the sheets of foam board I thought were in my studio closet weren't actually there. It was evening by then, and the rally announcement had said there would be poster-making supplies on site. My friend, on the other hand, was prepared and had a great sign.

We lessened the distance we had to walk by using my temporary disability parking tag. As we walked toward the rally, both the husband and friend noted that there were places I could sit so as not to overdo my still-healing knee (that weekend, the knee replacement was 10 weeks old). Next time, I'll listen to them and/or bring my own chair. My knee was extra-swollen and awkward for the rest of the day.

We ended up, not intentionally, at the front of the small area in which the speakers made their remarks. If you know me and if the video link works, you can see me here at the beginning and end of the report. The end is a longer shot than the beginning. If you don't know the husband, he's the gentleman to my right. He is also the gentleman shown "up front" in the photo at the start of this post.

The crowd was not at all bad; I had nothing resembling a panic attack. I didn't experience any real anxiety, though by the end I knew I had overdone it as far as my new knee was concerned. It was a good event; I am extremely glad that I decided to give it a go.

The rally was this past Saturday. Yesterday, I went to one of the quilting chapters to which I belong and at which I am one of the younger members. Not more than a couple minutes after I got there, one of the older members (I'm guessing she's in her late 70's) said she had to talk to me and took me aside, away from the tables at which people were sitting. I, of course, started thinking, "Oh crap, what did I do wrong now?" The woman, wife of a retired minister, said she had seen me at the rally not in person but on one of the local news broadcasts. She thanked me for having gone, saying she had wanted to go but knew that she would not be able to manage it physically. She was glad I had been there in spirit for her.

So I was represented in spirit at one rally then, later, did my own representing in spirit at another. What goes around comes around, and this time that's a very good thing.

It's Been Too Long

I really should try to update this blog more often. An entire year between one post and the next does not make me happy. As I go through the day, a thought here or there is followed by another thought that I should write something about the first thought. You can see how often I've gone through with that. It's mostly because somewhere, possibly folded in the emotional baggage some of us carry, is the thought that keeping a blog or journal is a waste of time. I need to work on changing that. I like to write and therefore should write even if it is just for myself.

My six-months-from-New-Year's-Day birthday means it's another new year, this time a new year of my life. According to the horoscope in today's Washington Post, here's how that year might go:

This year, optimism becomes a given in your life. You will see concrete results from this attitude change. If you are single, you have a strong personality, so you probably will need someone a little less intense for a partner. You will have several potential sweeties around you. If you are attached, this year offers many romantic moments. Aquarius teaches you how to express your feelings.

Do I have to be single to be strong? Does that mean I am not strong having been married for a third of a century? I'm also not sure how being married relates to the "several potential sweeties" angle. If I skip those thoughts and go to the next line, not passing "Go" on the way, "many romantic moments" doesn't really seem like much for a whole year. How about some excitement on a front other than the romantic one?

About those "concrete results" from being more optimistic, well, there might be something to needing to be more optimistic. My 62nd year had more than a few rough spots. Several people I know got medical diagnoses of a less-than-positive nature. The results for most have, however, been positive. While I do have pretty much the dream job (part-time, from home), I'm still adjusting to the retirement of my boss of several decades (and the only reason I went back to work when asked to). Even after more than a year, there are new things to get used to with a new boss. Even though it was the right time, saying good-bye to our canine companion Biscuit still hurts much more than a little.

And my own physical condition leaves a lot to be desired. While I feel so much better after April's knee replacement, to get there I had to give up several things I loved doing and that kept me in great physical condition. And let's not talk about the more than 15 pounds I've gained as a result. I went from being in the best physical shape I'd ever been in to being in worse shape than at any time since childhood. Would being more optimistic help here? Probably, but it's not necessarily easy. I am working steadily at getting my strength back while also dealing with knowing that more of my weight gain may have come from emotional eating rather than lack of exercise. Having lost 30-plus pounds at one other time in my life tells me that I can do it. It also tells me that it won't be easy. Note to self: Try to feel more optimistic about succeeding.

Should I offer resolutions for this new new year of my life? Would "be more optimistic" count? Would "blogging more than once a year"? Spending less time on social media and more time in creative pursuits? Keeping the house and environs neater and more organized? All the resolutions that come to mind are based on improvements, suggesting there is a lot that needs fixing. Which I know, when it come right down to it, there is.

So let's start small, with putting up another blog post before 2019. And add a photo or two next time.