Soon Ah Very Soon

A blast from the past. 

Once upon a time, responding to the one and done, the threes of me, and other types of memes what's your favorite this or that, what's the last television show you watched, if you were forced to eat the last thing you eat from now on, what would that be..etc., was the order of the day, these things were  are a popular method to build traffic for a web pages.  

All over social media now, there are admonishments and warnings about participating in such folly especially when you don't know the source for this is how hackers are able to cull information about the responders toward . . . well, hacking them, co-opting their identity to do...whatever.    

So, I do no longer participate.  

Fact is, my participation on social media (FB and IG) is pretty minimal these days.  There is a small group of former bloggers who are still on FB and a smattering of family members with whom I interact but otherwise I stick to the art groups where we share and support.  

My IG presence is nearly a 100% art sharing space as far as my input with few exceptions; like when I shared the news of Pete's death.  

Yes, our elder statesman Pete died earlier this year.  I wasn't in a place to share that here until now as this space, of the other internet spaces I occupy on-line are intensely personal despite it not being a private space.  He was my first pet as an adult and my very first cat (ever).  I miss him everyday and have found it difficult to navigate the space his absence has created.  

I'm sharing that as a way to say yes, the time has come for looking back and looking ahead.  

Soon, very soon, 2022 will be a reality. Many are marking their resolves for the coming year.  Many are adjusting or creating habits and the such. Many are looking to change lanes and switch courses.    

I am among the many.  

What that all will look like in the reality of the coming months is yet to be seen.  

Perhaps more conversation in tis regard is forthcoming in the coming weeks.  

It is nearly December; warm and toasty mittens, hot cocoa, cozy evenings.  

I hope you all have had a pleasant and peaceful holiday--whatever you call it, how you identify it, celebrate it.  Or even if you don't (didn't) I hope your Thursday was full of hope, peace, love, and comfort. 

May Peace Be With You.  

November

 

In August of 2016 I participated in a "getting to know you" meme: The Threes of Me 

And for the sake of getting something out of my uninspired brain and some ON the books for November before it is no longer November, I thought I'd revisit the THREES now. 

Three Names I Go By:  Not much has changed here: still 1.  Deborah 2.Ma 3. Miss Debbie (although the third variation may appear as Miss Deb or just Deb.)   I am also an aunt and a cousin so, I may go by auntie or cuz.  

Three Jobs I have Had in My Life: I add to the previous list: camp counselor, writer, (unpaid) and artist.   

Three Places I have Lived: All I said then, and Chicago Ave., Taylor Ave, and 18th Street.  

Three Favorite Drinks: (I have no idea what I was thinking then? hahaha) those were good but favorites? Hmm... today: turmeric/ginger tea, water, and toss up: coffee or tequila--I guess it depends on the day and / or who is making the coffee.     Seriously, I don't drink hard liquor much at all anymore but when I do drink, I lean toward tequila or whiskey.      

Three TV Shows I Watch in real time: 2 of the three from then I no longer on the air, so to replace those two: 911 and Supermarket Sweep and to add: Blue Bloods.   

Three TV Shows I Watch On-Demand: then, yes still true though I haven't seen either of those in quite a while.  Now: FBI   CSI: Las Vegas and $100,000 Pyramid, and Succession. Truth: 95% of my screen watching is "on demand" or streamed.  

Three Place I Have Been: yes, of course those and: Milwaukee, WI  Memphis, TN and Greenwood, MS 

Three People who email/(communicate with me on social media) regularly:  I don't even remember who Addie is/was?  Anywhoo...my daughter, a very good friend/blog buddy, one of my many cousins.  

Three of my Favorite Restaurants: my daughter's skills, the pandemic, and economics have kept me out of restaurants for the most part these past few years.  I did have Nando's on my birthday and it was enjoyable.  

Three Sets of things I Hate: Those from then all pretty good and valid hateful sets.  However, full disclosure I began to embrace beets more over the last few years, mostly in the form of juice. Not horrible.  I am still not moved to try fresh or pickled beets.  

Three of my favorite cars (that I've owned):  I can't think of any other car that I've owned to add to the list from then.  I was hard pressed to come up with the list then.  I am pretty sure that my criteria had to do with the reliability of the cars listed.   

I am not that "IN" to cars.  I do not own one and haven't owned one in at least a dozen years.  That said,  I have considered procuring one at some point--expense and other factors keep that thought at bay.  

In other news, I've spoken to 4 relatives via the telephone in recent days.  That may not seem newsworthy but it most certainly is.  The conversations have thrown me into a fit of nostalgia which I will allow may have as much to do with the impending winter holidays.  

Cheers 

Time Is On Our Side! ?

 My daughter will celebrate another birthday tomorrow. As is often the case with impending birthdays or other celebratory events, we've spent some time leading in reminiscing. I found myself being pulled back to my twenties, her twenties, and to some degree, my mother's twenties which I don't remember at all since my mother was only 20 when she gave birth to me. 

I guess twenties kept coming up as being...pivotal. 

?! 

Mine certainly were. But then so were other decades in my six.  I find myself thinking about what this current decade will bring; what I shall manifest, how I might want or need to pivot to adjust to changes that have and will continue to occur as is the natural order of things.  

Time will tell.  

"How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are?"  ~Satchel Paige  

 

Almost Gone (the month, the year, aaarrgh)

The title of this post has changed more frequently than my hair... well, to be fair, my hair hasn't changed all that much in recent weeks.  Yes, I'm still growing it (or allowing it to grow) and do what it does.  Every few days I take it down and twist it back up.  Since I'm going going anywhere I don't concern myself with styling it.  I just want the braids to be relatively neat and tidy. 

I am reminded though why it is I cut the hair off and kept it off oh those many years ago. 

Styling.  What.  A. Pain.  

However, less so since I will (whenever I do "fix" it to meet people) no longer concern myself with hot combs, curlers, and tools of that ilk.  I imagine one day my fingers won't be nimble enough to braid but that day isn't today.  

Let's catch up: My daughter is working at what must be her 400th nursing / assisted care facility since the beginning of the pandemic.  I exaggerate of course, but jeez louise, she changes jobs...a lot.   On the plus, she seems to "win" at interviewing.  Hopefully this place will be the right sauce. At least until 12/31/21.  I feel like me having said anything at all has jinxed it...Fingers crossed, it didn't. 

My son's industry is creeping back to life.  Auditions have begun but instead of going into a casting office; actors are asked to email a self-tape.  So, actors are having to learn how to record the auditions "sides" and send that in to the casting agent / director.  There are guidelines toward producing a good or acceptable tape as well as well as an industry / service toward actors finding scene partners. According to my son, a lot of his peers are struggling with this pivot.  

The actor (he is now officially, "the creative" ) is writing, expanding his music performance tool kit and making ends meet by busking around the city. He was even able to snare a few bona-fide music gigs over this past year.   Oh, and teaching.  He led a MasterClass for first and second year theater students at is alma mater recently.  There are two or three more sessions planned over the coming semester.  He came away with mixed reviews after the first session.  He liked the students but was unimpressed with the professor. (One of HIS former professors--awkward) LOL 

Anyhoo...we're all just plodding along, putting one foot in front of the other, keeping our distance, wearing our masks, and staying safe.  

PS: I no longer care WHO hosts "Jeopardy"!  (Not that I ever really did, but now...ugh--way to ruin it people!  Way. To. Go.)

Take very gentle care, gentle people.    

Faux Greek

 

Thanks to my daughter's interest in culinary arts and her working to build a career as a cook / chef / kitchen manager, I don't do a lot of cooking anymore.  I never was much of a cook. Sure, I learned a thing or two from my mom and grand-mom, could certainly follow a recipe, and was able to do a bit of improvising to come up with a "special" dish. 

One such dish was a take on chicken cacciatore.  

My take was basically seared chicken thighs with onions, garlic, and canned tomato sauce that I spiced with hot or barbeque sauce. It was spooned over rice. Nothing fancy but the kids loved it. And because it was easy and fast (my two "what's for dinner?" rules) it appeared often.  

Over the years I was able to create "faux" takes on a number of fancier fare. They weren't the real deal but were tasty enough to pass muster and please the target audience. I was also able to learn how to prepare and perfect (for my family) cultural staples; macaroni and cheese, cornbread stuffing, greens, and candied yams over the years.  

Still, I considered myself a so-so cook.  

Some weeks ago my daughter brought home some of what she'd prepared at the nursing home.  She described the dish as, "a kind of Greek" chicken which is from here on out shall be dubbed, Faux Greek Chicken.      

My daughter is a much better cook than I am; much better than I ever was, better than I will ever be.

Mostly because she loves it (I never did) and because she has patience and is excited to learn more. 

I do, however, enjoy tasting her creations and will occasionally serve as her sous. 

It is all good.  

 

 

  

Turn Around and it's July

Koala

 

EMU

Lynx

Do you how many songs have Hello as a title or Hello in the title? There are at least 200 and in the wondering about that question, I wondered about the other; goodbye. While 'goodbye' is also a popular theme, it is not quite as popular as hello (at least not as far as the title is concerned.)  I'm sure there are a LOT of goodbye songs that don't actually say the word. 

Or maybe not.  

Anyway, HELLO!  

I'll be back soon with more to say, but in the meantime allow me to share this . I saw the exhibit on Saturday and was blown away.  Her exhibit as well as being up close and personal to the Obama portraits were certainly worth the trek to downtown Chicago via the trusty transit authority--where due to federal mandate--masks are required.  (Note: no enforcement).  

Interesting times we are having.  

Stay safe folks.  

Junio

 

We are six days into this new month and I've already lost a day.  All day Thursday I was operating under the premise that is was only Wednesday.  This, in and of itself, wasn't an epic proportion tragedy. It has presented more like an annoyance that the work stuff (tasks I set up to get stuff done in accordance to pre-determined schedules and deadlines) was now off which undoubtedly impact the off-the-clock task list and schedule.  

Otherwise, June has gone as expected; it has been hot, noisy (thanks to Memorial Day fireworks, motorcycles, bikes, four-wheelers, blaring car stereos, and of course, kids playing) and reflective.  

The half-year mark is kind of a natural point of looking back as well as looking forward.  Looking back, goals established at the beginning of the year have not been fully met. Some daily goal benchmarks were met but clearly not consistently or urgently enough as the expected results are missing.  

So, looking forward: Reset.   

The plan, I believe, was a good plan, but I need to be more consistent and approach each day with a bit more urgency toward reaching and achieving.  

Cheers to June.  Here's to the days and weeks ahead.  

  

Calling All

Look This Way 

Rules dictate that I can't share names or any other information about the clients I work with or (and especially) the patients.  But, I want to talk about one patient, well, actually a series of patients who called on what was, "a normal" Wednesday afternoon.  

The patients who reach out to me (the company) call to talk about a bill they've received for we are, after-all, a medical billing company. Aside from those callers who are offering credit/debit card information to pay their bill, are those who have some sort of dispute, need some clarification, need to offer some additional insurance detail, or  just want to vent.  

The normal Wednesday was full of venters.  

The first venter didn't remember the doctor named on the bill she's holding in her hand.  The treatment given during a recent hospital admission.  This statement is a common vent.  Often, when one is hospitalized an army of practitioners may storm through a room. Patients are generally not in a position to take note or notes of who is who or even why. So, when they receive a pile of bills some weeks later, they are (often) perplexed.  This venter was less than satisfied with the information I provided. Very often the venter isn't looking to understand (or to be understood). They typically just want to be heard.  She eventually ran out of steam and hung up.  

The second venter couldn't understand why she's receiving a bill 2 years beyond the treatment date. I tried to explain that the bill in her hand wasn't the first one mailed; that I couldn't explain why  none of the others found her, but tried to assure her others had been mailed even giving her those previous statement dates. She was convinced that we were trying to scam her, that someone had co-opted her identity and is trying to take her $17.82. She hung up with an air of satisfaction that she'd bested me (us) in our attempt to extort her money.  

The final venter didn't know the practitioner, didn't remember the treatment, didn't understand why she's receiving a bill, ("I have insurance!!!") didn't trust me (the company), didn't have any money to pay any, damn bill, didn't appreciate that we were harassing her. This venter opted to use her outside voice during most of her vent.  She was a big fan of punctuating her sentences with some profanity. 

I have clearance to hang up on this type of venter.  However, I rarely hang up on them. I will either stay quiet until they run out of steam or ask them to please stop shouting and certainly stop with the profanity.  I assure them that I will do what I can to assist but will not engage. I will not match them shout for shout.  

I understand the measure of frustration these patients feel.  I understand that many feel powerless and overwhelmed and need to vent.  I admit, some days I have less patience for the venters even if I do understand the frustration that drives them to the phone. Still, I hang on and try to do what I can to help them (and of course, collect their payment or promise to pay).   

The final venter did stop shouting and did edit the profanity however we didn't get any closer to her accepting the current reality. 

She will likely pay her bill. . . eventually.  

Or not.  

She may even call again. 

Maybe even on a Wednesday. 

On the upside, since I work from home now, I can log off, take a walk, pet the dog, have a tall drink of water (or juice, or make a smoothie), or primal scream it out.   

And then, get back at it.  

  

 

Another Year Older

Pete at Fifteen

Do you remember when you first learned to read? Or write? Or ride a bike? Or anything that you can point back to that changed the course of your life? That opened your world? That upset the applecart in sometimes good or sometimes not so good ways?  

That first one? 

Fully disclosure, I do not remember many of the life altering moments. Well, not the exact moments but certainly took in full measure of the changes, the shifts.  I recall quite fondly the first time I rode a bicycle all by myself.  I remember the first bike I received as a gift. I remember using those wheels, and my power churning those wheels to put some distance between home and the rest of the world.  

Well, the neighborhood, at least.  

One of the exact moments I remember is meeting Pete.  And I remember bringing him home from the shelter.  Pete, you see, was my first pet as an adult.  Actually, the first cat....ever.  My family owned dogs (many dogs) when I was growing up.  My children didn't have pets as children.   

So Pete checked many boxes with his presence.  

Pete, like Buttah, were the pets, the cats I didn't think I wanted and certainly didn't think I needed.  

I was wrong. Pete is exactly what my household needed at the time and is exactly right for the household now.  He's a prince.  He's not a cuddle puddle kind of cat and that is okay, I have understood that about him from the very beginning. I respect his boundaries. He loves that about me.  

The other first I remember is the very first blog post on this space.  I remember discovering blogs as I was discovering myself, as I was, in the word of former first lady, Michelle Obama, "becoming." I was living a shadow life, a shell of my actual self, going through the motions, keeping up appearances, following the path set out before me.  

It would be some posts later before I actually uttered the words, that truth, the soul of me--that which others in my life report to have known, or had guessed to be true.  It would be some 1,000 (plus) posts later that revealed other truths, insights, humors, highs, lows . . .   

And loss. 

Within these pages I talk about the loss of my mother, my father, the diva dog and the orange boy. Thanks to these pages I was comforted and supported. I have cherished the community that visited here and grateful for the bloggers who have shared their lives, journeys, insights, truths, highs, lows, and more.  I cherish the friends made through blogging.  

Like Pete, this space is fifteen years old this year.  (Pete, 03/06   Middle Girl, 03/29) 

Like I love the prickly Pete. I love this space even as the community at large has opted for other mediums or distanced themselves off the internet. I love what remains, I love what may be again someday. And even if it is never like it was, this space will remain a special repository for my thoughts, truths, joys, and pains.  

I remain ever grateful for the readers, commenters, fellow bloggers, and friends.    

May peace be with us all. 

                                                                                       

Dog With A Ball In The Creek

     

  

       

  

  

  

Outside

 

Slowly but surely? the villages cities, states, are re-opening.  Slowly but surely? vaccines are becoming more accessible. Slowly but surely? my confidence of not just being outside (beyond walking the dog) but on public transportation is growing.  

I re-loaded my transit card in anticipation of running a few errands over the next several weeks.  

I will likely take public transportation to get the vaccine when my number is called.  

Slowly. 

Surely.

Gingerly. 

Cheers to Spring! 

                                                                  my annual ode to spring

                                                                       Here they come 

Out with the Cold

Neighbor's Frozen Masterpiece

 

February theme: Botanicals

A couple of weeks ago we got nearly a foot of snow overnight.  I had the happy luck of having to walk the pooch before the building management came around to clear the stoop and walk.  Following all that luck, I missed the last step and face planted into the fluffy new snow in the front of our building. 

There is lingering pain in my right knee, which took the brunt of the impact, radiating down my right leg. Otherwise, I'm okay. And thankfully, a warm snap and a bit of rain have mostly rid our environs of that thing called snow.  

Mostly.  The grassy areas are still masses of slowly shrinking mounds which means I get to tromp through to pick up after the pooch.   

In other news, one of the recent art prompts was, "Signs of Spring." That prompt pairing with another group's theme for February: Botanicals meant that I spent many days looking at and drawing plant and other images depicting S P R I N G.   

I am ready for warner weather, brighter days, and lighter clothing.  

More than ready. 

Winter

 

Spoiler alert, it is winter here in the mid-west.  Well, it's winter in other places as well, but yeah...winter.  I wouldn't say I was in shock or awe over the winter weather we have been battered with  these last (what feels like) 1,000 days, I mean, it IS the mid-west, but good golly when will it not be snowing, when will it not be less that 30 degrees? Or, more than 20? 

Still, we're not having a Texas experience. My heart goes out to those folks and to all folks who are experiencing anything for which they were not prepared and for which a solution feels far away. 

I cannot let tis day, this post go by without noting that eight years ago today my mother took her last breath.  While I do (mostly) wrap myself in the happier times and drink in her infectious laugh I cannot deny that there is a void, a hole in my heart that is always missing her. I have gotten through these last (what feels like) million days by . . well, truth be told, I don't know how, maybe the sketchbook / art groups. 

My daughter noted in her FB mention of the occasion that, "on this date 8 years ago I lost my biggest fan." Which is true, as much as I champion my daughter (and son) my mom was even more robust in her cheering on! And that sentiment is exactly my sentiment. Mom was MY biggest fan too.

We are all cheering for one another but it isn't quite the same.  

Closing the book on this day, I have some sketching to do. I see the weather forecast is for partly sunny with temps rising to maybe twenty degrees over the next several days. One of my neighbors is working on an elaborate snow sculpture. It looks like he'll have time to finish it and we all will have some time to ooh and ahh over his masterpiece before nature shifts.  

Winter.  

One Year in Three Weeks

 My new favorite candy is Giant Reese's Peanut Butter Cups stuffed with pretzels.   I have only had one and given my new life goals, one is all I'll have for some time to come but I thought that you should know that I have a new favorite.  

However, I have not yet tasted the Mocha Chocolate KitKats.  On the face of it, that candy stands an excellent chance of becoming my favorite. But, again, given my new life goals I likely will not know for some time the potential of Mocha Chocolate KitKats moving into the favored role.  And again, I thought that you should know. 

Oh, by the way, new life goals are really old life goals that took a hiatus and are now back front and center.  You all probably know the drill, labs came back indicating yada x3, medical professionals advises certain actions and changes yada x3 and so the journey is re-booted and continues.  These last few weeks have been a trial to say the least.  The net results however, positive.  

Onward. Forward.  

I am sure you've notice I haven't spoken of THE events of the last few weeks / days.  Some made me extremely angry and anxious while others made me extremely happy and hopeful. 

H A P P Y NEW  Y E A R!!   HOPE FILLED NEW  D A Y!!!