An Invincible Summer - A Woman's Journey

One day, as a young child, I was visiting my cousins when I discovered that I had a grandpa I knew nothing about. When she was 17, my mom got pregnant with my oldest sister Pam. Mom’s disengaged, neglectful father disowned her. Being that he rarely talked with her anyways, I don’t know that it broke her heart, but she’s no longer with us so I can’t say for sure. My mother and my grandmother would get together, secretly, fairly often. I loved my happy, fun loving grandma Ruth. We met grandpa Virge for the first time somewhere around my eighth birthday. That would’ve made my sister Pam around 19! Talk about holding a grudge. Anyhoo, my grandparents eventually moved to a town called Yucca Valley, which is about an hour from Palm Springs, California. We would visit often, and although an introvert, Virge took a liking to me. He gave me a nickname and would allow me to sit in his studio while he worked on his art. All the years he made his wood enlay pictures, he never gave a single ...

The irresponsible attempts to scare citizens with the idea that Sharia law might be infiltrating our government are maddening. In SC, State Sen. Larry Grooms proposed a bill to prevent the use of "foreign law" in SC courts. According to a 2019 article about the bill by Tom Barton: Critics of the legislation argue  Sharia is as much a threat to U.S. constitutional rights as Old Testament Bible verses calling for the stoning of adulterers. The American Bar Association opposes such legislation , stating it is “duplicative of safeguards that are already enshrined in federal and state law.” “American courts will not apply Sharia or other rules (real or perceived) that are contrary to our public policy, including, for instance, rules that are incompatible with our notions of gender equality,” the Bar Association wrote in a 2011 resolution. No court in SC has ever applied Sharia law. Rep. Grooms pointed to an overturned NJ case where Sharia was cited by a trial court in a s...

I've mentioned previously about some problems at work.   A couple of millenials have been reinventing the wheel, picking my brain for all they could (having never once run marketing program like mine) and moved forward with their program that seem to exclude my involvement. They have left me hanging, unsure of where I stand and, now, have gone on their merry way with the job that I have been doing for the past 30 years. I have been in turmoil for months.  The company they have hired to do their physical work, called me for some advice, and, while we were talking, this guy, who has been in the business for decades, says to me, "May I be blunt? This plan of theirs simply does not make sense for what they are doing. It would be perfect if you were selling Ferraris or fine jewelry but you are not. You are asking for people to donate their household goods."  VINDICATION!!! I've been saying it for months. These young men, who think they are smarter than everyone el...

There was a short break in rain yesterday and off the to the golf course we went. It was stunning! I spent some time pretending I was neighbors with my friend  Bill  (a talented photographer in Ireland), as all I could see was green everywhere I looked. The air was crisp and wind was light, so that this fair weather girl, so long as I wore a jacket, was pretty comfortable.We had a blast even though my game is not so great after breaking my wrist. Ah well, I'll get there.  Earlier, I had texted my girls to let them know that I had had the most amazing morning at work (info to follow). Then I got this while golfing: Now I know that being 22 and still living at home is probably not my girls ideal. She's got about 9 more months of school and then some time to get on her feet before she can fly again. But I love that she looks for the positive and I love that we have a pretty darn good relationship. It was a good mom day and a really wonderful day with the B...