February 11, 2026, Book Club

 Book Club

An organization to which I belong has 3 gatherings each month.  A formal business meeting, a book club, and a coffee/lunch are scheduled for each month of the year.  All are scheduled for the first, second, and fourth Wednesdays.  Today was the second Wednesday, so book club it was!

The book club meets at Panera's, a chain restaurant.  Panera started as St. Louis Bread Company.  They have yummy bagles, lunches, and fresh coffees.  It is a pleasant setting for us ladies to gather and discuss each month's book.  This month's book, Finding Dorothy by Elizabeth Lett, was well received by the entire group.

AI gave this brief summary of the book:   ". .a historical fiction novel that tells the story of Maud Gage Baum, the wife of The Wizard of Oz author L. Frank Baum, focusing on her life and her efforts to ensure the 1939 MGM film adaptation honors her late husband's work. The narrative uses a dual timeline, exploring Maud's rebellious youth as a suffragette's daughter and her early life with Frank, alongside her experiences on the film set as she connects with a young Judy Garland and tries to protect the spirit of the book. "

A well written book that pulled me into the story line within the first few pages.  The author had pursued her research so thoroughly that each person was almost three dimensional.  After reading this book I am now wanting to rewatch the original film starring Judy Garland.  One event toward the end of the book told of the struggle to have the signature song included in the final take.

If you are looking a an easy read for the coming months,  I hightly recommend this tome.

Thanks for stopping by for a chat.

Janice

February 8, 2026 Borrowed Beauty

 Borrowed Beauty

Yes, I know, still skipping days.  It will take more discipline than I currently choose to have to be posting daily.  It is my choice at this point.  Actually it is a matter of looking for the inspiration.  Today's inspiration came from a blogger in Sweden.  The blog is Björn Rudbergs writings.  His post on February 2, 2026 is Candlemass.

Hubby's maternal family line traces back to Sweden.  The family Bible is written in Swedish.  Reading Björn's writings feel like showing respect for that heritage in a small way.  The Candlemass poem introduced a new liturgical season to me.  One in my Protestant background which was not celebrated.  For the non knowing, like myself, here is one link to better explain candlemass.

As for the inspiration from Björn, it was the haiku that closed his haibun:

zigzag in the snow
tracks traversing the meadow —
the snow hare’s evening
Björn Rudberg

Can I in some way keep the feeling of this haiku in one of my own.  Well, there is neither snow nor snow hares where I live.  Maybe my imagination can take me to a snowy landscape.  Or to a treasured memory with tracks.

Cape Cod, October 2005

watery fingers

reach for the plovers tracks

erased by the moon

petra domine

Nowhere close to the elegance of Björn's writings.  Still inspired to create a haiku.  That feels so good.  

Thanks for stopping by for a chat.

Janice.

February 6, 2026: What's Up?

 What's Up?

The jig is my usual response.  Sarcasm is part of the DNA of my family.  Family communication accepts it as normal responses.  That has changed with addition of our DIL's family.  Well, her dad gets it.  She is not a fan.  It goes completely over the head of her daughter, our Granddaughter #1.  That means often a response has to be explained.  Often there will still be a puzzled look in response to the explanation.

Communication is so very important in relationships.  Relationships with individuals, organizations, and between nations.  Communication can take so many forms.  People actually being present and talking.  All the electronic options from phone calls, face time, emails, texts, and the list goes so far beyond those.  Take for instance my Hubby's hobby, amateur radio.  Yes, speech is probably the number one way of communication between the hams, as they are called.  Number two is Morse Code.

For those of you unfamiliar with Morse Code, here is an excerpt from Wikipedia:

"Morse code is a telecommunications method which encodes text characters as standardized sequences of two different signal durations, called dots and dashes, or dits and dahs.^[3][4] It is named after Samuel Morse, one of several developers of the system. Morse's preliminary proposal for a telegraph code was replaced by an alphabet-based code developed by Alfred Vail, the engineer working with Morse. Vail's version was used for commercial telegraphy in North America. Friedrich Gerke simplified Vail's code to produce the code adopted in Europe, and most of the alphabetic part of the (ITU) "Morse" is copied from Gerke's revision."

Hubby meets up 'on the air' on a semi regular basis with other hams to practice code.  Dits and Dahs float through the apartment.  The electrical impulses will actually turn on and off his bedside table lamp that has touch control.  Yes, that is rather strange.

One form of communication that is offensive is what the man in the White House does in the middle of the night using AI.  Putting himself in a plane and dropping poo on protesters.  Dressing himself as the Pope.  Last night he posted a racist image of former President Obama and First Lady Michelle.  Actually, those forms of communication show such an uncouth nature.  It is shameful for our nation as a whole.

I'll take the dits and dahs that turn on the light next to my bed any day.  Meanness has no place in a civilized nation. 

Thanks for stopping by got a bit,

Janice

February 2, 2026 Nobody is Visiting

 Nobody is Visiting

After years of neglect of this little blog, folks quit checking for posts.  I've done the same thing.  Recently I have checked on a few of my old regulars sites.  As I visit the sites I would check almost daily the posts are dates two to four years old.  I wonder what has happened.  

Some stopped due to burnout.  Lemon Drop Pie, Ginny, was Voice of the Year in 2013 in the Heart category.  Her most recent post was June of 2024.   I met Ginny through a weekly meme challenge led by Second Blooming.  That blog site is gone.  The network she used is now defunct.  I cannot remember her name.  But I remember her joy raising a son, her husband's heart attack, and her seven fishes Christmas tradition.    

A few it was, sadly, due to illness and even death.  There was one 99 years old lady's blog that the announcement was made by her son that she had passed.  Another blog just ended with the post titled 'Cancer'.  Stage 3.  That was written on July3, 2022.  One Italian blogger has posted nothing since the height of the Covid outbreak in Italy.  I pray she was not a victim.

There are still a few of my old favs that I am still following. Little Wandering Wren still posts to Facebook stories.  Doses of Wild YAM is very much still posting regularly.  Wildbird Wednesday blog/photography meme already has posts for February 3rd.  Same with Skywatch Friday as submissions were made on January 29, 2026.  

There are two bloggers in Canada that regularly post.  Seasons in the Valley's writer, The Furry Gnome, resides near Georgian Bay in southern Ontario.  His writings influenced Hubby and I to visit that area in 2016.  That same trip took us to share dinner with Traces of the Soul writer, Cheryl Lynn.  That is a highlight to get to meet a person face to face.  

Through one blog or another I was led to Carpe Diem Haiku Kai.  With that blog I learned about the beauty of haiku and other forms of Japanese poetry.  The author/teacher, Chèvrefeuille, of that blog is a nurse.  Due to the Covid pandemic he was unable to maintain the weekly meme challenges.   Attempts to revive the site have not succeeded.  Sure miss this site.

Visitors would be welcome again to this blog.  But first I must begin reconnecting.  I need to look for birds to photograph.  Surely I can take photos of the sky to rejoin that group.  After all, Covid is generally not the invisible enemy now.  But it left a dark stain on our physics.

Hope to see you soon,

Janice

February 1, 2026, Inspiration

 Inspiration

How does one get inspired?  Where can an inspiration come from if one just sits in a recliner?  Wish I had that answer.  Today is just another lazy Sunday.  I took a walk.  We received a grocery delivery from Wally World.  The kitchen was put back in order after breakfast.  The cat is still here while Son and DIL are in Aussie land.  A bright, crisp afternoon on the first day in February.

The walk was started by gathering up all the garbage needing to be removed.  Clean liners placed in cans.  One very full trash bag carried down 3 flights of stairs.  Hefted the bag into the dumpster.  Heading toward the sidewalk glistening grass surprised me.  The sprinkler system had performed its duty in the freezing temperatures.  The grass was covered in ice droplets.  Not the most reliable surface of a middle old person to cross.  The transit was made with nary a misstep!

For the next 20 or so minutes my eyes took in the area around the complex.  Surely there is something inspirational going on along the way.  The disk golfers are out enjoying the hobby.  A gentleman is sitting in the slide door of his van.  He speaks first.  The van was crammed with essentials.  Inquired if he travelled much.  "I try", he responded.  He noted it was his second home.  The feet propelled me onward with no inspiration to be found.

A loop was made using sidewalks.  Thoughts were few.  "If I cross here is it considered jay walking?"  "I'm getting hot so I'll remove the gloves, hat and unzip the coat."  Done and the feet just keep moving forward.  I return to the area with the glistening grass.  I've warmed up but the grass is still covered in ice droplets.  There should be some sort of inspiration in that, but no.  Guess today's post will just be SOC.

Take care,

Janice

January 31, 2026 Where Is Yesterday?

 Where Is Yesterday?

There you go.  Somehow yesterday was missed.  Where did it go?  What so occupied the brain cells that blogging thoughts were nowhere to be found.  It is a mystery.  I know there was a day.  Two loads of laundry were completed.  Four online puzzles were completed.  The cat was fed.  We ate the remaining chicken and dumplings from Thursday's cooking.  January 30 happened but was I present?

Do you ever have days like that?  You know they happened.  You see you made comments on Facebook posts.  You vaguely remember watching Shannon Makes.  You vaguely remember watching the latest Pateron member vlog post on Reawakening Château de Purnon. You leave comments on both sites.  You check on the blogger in Scotland via her blog, Doses of Wild YAM.  

Somehow you make it through the 50+ emails.  Mostly ads that come because you signed up to get a discount on some something or other xx number of years ago.  Then one of the emails takes you down the rabbit hole of reels.  Or personal business issues.  Or the remembering to apply for the refund of the broken item from Temu.  Or one of the hundreds of distractions that have become the life of an aging lady.

WARNING:  Rabbit Hole Ahead!

Awhile back, don't even ask me when, I became curious as to what age was considered 'elderly'.  Would I be ranked as elderly in able to qualify for some sort of rate cut, I seem to remember.  Google to the rescue.  "What age is classified as elderly".  Talk about a rabbit hole!  By the time I came out of those tunnels I had aged 10 years.  And I had learned a new set of labels for age classification for 'old'.

Here is a summary from a bunch of probably young researchers at Mayo Clinic.

Key, detailed aspects of aging from Mayo Clinic-related studies include:

• Definition: Generally, 65 years or older is the standard for defining the elderly.
• Sub-groups: 
• early-old (65–74) 
• middle-old (75–84)
• late-old (85+)
• Health Focus: The focus at this age is on managing chronic conditions, physical/cognitive changes, and maintaining independence.
• Research Metrics: Studies, such as the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging, often analyze populations within the 65+ range to determine health trends. 
  

So, there you have it.  Far from young but a bit shy of ancient.  I'll give myself a by on neglecting to write a blog post for yesterday.  Yesterday found me square in middle-old age.  In addition, I am a full fledged member of the popular We Do Not Care Club.

Thanks for stopping by,

Janice

January 29, 2026 Birthdays

Birthdays

My three sisters each had two sons and one daughter.  About 4 years ago when sending out ecards I noticed something kind of interesting.  Each of my nieces' husbands had January birthdays.  All three were in the last 3 days of the month.  What are the chances of that!  Two of the nieces have May birthday, only 3 days apart.  The youngest niece was born in September.  Youngest is probably 20+ years younger than the other nieces.  So, they did not all fall under the same sign to influence those choices.  Just a freak coincidence.

Each month I have a goal of sending e-cards to everyone in my PEO group.  In addition, family members and close friends are included in the greeting sending out.  There is a variety of choices so no one receives identical cards.  I cannot guarantee that the next year someone might get one I sent out last year.  They received a greeting cause they are on my Luv Radar.  If you read this blog, which no one is since I was radio silent for so long, and do not get a greeting there is a reason.  Usually it is either I do not have a good email address or I do not have your birthdate on record.

Last December I reached 79 years circling the sun.  Well, outside the womb.  Hubby reached 85 in September.  Those six years difference made little difference until about the last 5 - 10 years.  These days the difference is showing a bit more.  Some days I think how hard I pushed him when he was just too tired to keep going.  I work to not do that any more.  Yes, age does have an influence on how well our bodies serve us.  All the years of not lifting correctly, carrying too much body weight, rotating shifts at work, the air we breath, and our inherited DNA are huge determining factors.

In the US and Canada it will be interesting to see if births rise in about 9 months.  Blackouts and other events that cause folks to stay home are like some sort of love potions.  During my recent hospital stay I was in the maternity wing.  I had to giggle at the irony.  One of the nurses and I were joking about that.  Then we drifted to the effects of blackouts, etc on birth rates.  She noted there was a huge surge in births following the Covid shutdown.  Now I am wondering how many births are a direct result of boredom.

Regardless of what circumstances surrounded the conception of the children in my sisters' lives I am glad.  Lots of fun memories to recall on a cold winter day in January.

There are 41 folks in this photo.  All but two are members of my sisters' and my families.  And there are at least 2 buns in the oven in the group.  BTW this is only part of the family.  

Take care,

Janice