Who Needs Snow?

What a wonderful Christmas! We headed to Murfreesboro to spend Christmas Eve and Day with Libby, Led and Savannah and Led's mom, Marilyn. This precious angel was singing the blessing at 20 months old for our Christmas Eve dinner...and then we wished the Baby Jesus a Happy Birthday! There is nothing as angelic as a baby...unless they've had too much sugar which happened on Christmas day!

Don't I look lovely? This was around 7A on Christmas morning...thank heavens the hair wasn't too horrid, but of course you don't tell a baby to wait while you put on makeup....so all natural! We had the best time with Savannah...you know you've overwhelmed her with presents when you ask her if she wants to open another present and she says "no please"! After a wonderful Christmas day brunch, we headed home to nap!!


Today the tree came down and we started the preparations for the Notre Dame/Florida State Bowl Party at our house and the arrival of Woody's brother and his family for the Mississippi State versus Wake Forest Bowl Game here in Nashville on the 30th! This was supposed to be my year to go to a Bowl Game, but with MSU playing here in Nashville it was silly not to stay home...so ND get back to a bowl next year!! Tomorrow is house cleaning and Wednesday is cooking! This holiday season has been fabulous...we usually head to Florida for the winter but it's so much fun with Savannah that we probably won't head down til February. January is cold in Destin anyway! Estelle and David suggested we go in February...bet they're having canasta withdrawal like we are!

I think my tip for you is to enjoy your friends and family, not just at Christmas, but all through the year! As we get older, we will begin to lose loved ones or may suffer poor health and not have the freedom to run and play....it's important to embrace every minute to the fullest. Run and play and hug and love! Hope you've had a blessed holiday season and best wishes for a Happy New Year!

The Doomsday Prophecy and Dementia!

The History Channel is running Armageddon Week including a series of shows on the Apocalypse 2012 predictions of the Maya Long Calendar...the last baktun of the calendar ends on December 21, 2012. Soooo.....if the world is ending in a year, does that mean I don't need to diet? If the Mayans were so smart...where are they now? Did they leave with the aliens that helped them build their civilization? The problem with all this is that so many of the wars, disasters and conflicts happened as predicted in the katuns that make up the baktuns. December 21, 2012 is also the date of an unusual cosmic alignment where the earth completes a wobble that occurs only every 26,000 years. How did they know? Is this a cataclysmic event? How does this correlate with Nostradamus?

Now you know what I watch when there is absolutely nothing on television!

When I struggle to find something on all these high definition channels, I generally settle on something that is profound...like whether the Mayans were really that smart or how sharks hunt or how to remodel my bathroom on $2.98...JK...it costs more than $2.98. At first I felt guilty about not using every minute of every day in a productive manner, but then I remembered that I'm retired. Life is getting shorter and I should have time to consume vast quantities of knowledge...hopefully in this case, inconsequential knowledge! It's also much cheaper than going back to school unless you find a college that lets you audit or sit in a class free...however...tip for the day...It's never too late to learn something...you can go back to school, watch the History Channel or HGTV, tutor your grandchildren, teach literacy in your community, or just read.

If we quit learning, our brains weaken and life becomes really boring. Not using your brain has also been linked to dementia...I would rather watch the History Channel than lose brain cells! I know people who can only talk about the past and have no clue about anything going on in the world or even in their own community. Our world is challenging us daily...it is important to be engaged and learning and contributing right up to either the end of the world or the end of our lives...whenever they occur!

The Downfall of Rome!

For those of you who know me well, you know I'm addicted to gossip sites and blogs. While I temper it with the NY Times and the Washington Post and post under the nom de plume Healthcare for All, I also love to read about the Kardashian's and Elin Nordegrin and lots of other people who's lives seem unbelievably fascinating to boring old me! One of the things that I've learned is that there is so much negativity in responding to entertainment posts and political posts that I may have to give up this guilty pleasure. I don't really understand why people read things and then say how horrid the people or actions are...if you don't like someone or something, don't read it and then say such incredibly angry things. Civil discourse seems to be missing in the world today. Profanity and tirades are not constructive. If you read something and disagree, state your case. If you're smart enough to use a computer and can read, then one would expect that you could link words together to agree, disagree or make recommendations without resorting to boorish language that would embarrass your mother!

Perhaps my tip for the day is to remind everyone that if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all...or to paraphrase a bit...if you can't add to the educated discourse, then perhaps you shouldn't show your ignorance by posting!

I've found as I get older, I'm becoming more sensitive to how our country seems to be spiraling downward in civility. Kindness seems to be missing in our day to day interactions with others. When there is no concern for others, aren't we heading down the same road that led to the downfall of Rome? Someone posted today that charity should not be forced. I don't know that I agree with that...perhaps we should educate others as to why charity is important because our country seems to be a bit too self-centered lately. We are only concerned about ourselves and what we can get out of life in our personal greed. How can we ignore the children in our country who are hungry? How can we ignore that greed on Wall Street has destroyed so many lives? How can we ignore that so many people have no access to healthcare? Why are racism, sexism and lots of other "ism"s still condoned?

I think perhaps I need to go to bed now...maybe I'll feel better in the morning but right now I'm bummed. Please let's be nice for a while..at least through the holidays! Try to say one nice thing a day...or more please!! And if you post in response to an online story....think before you hit enter!!

Christmas Cookies and Retirement

Well, I'm officially re-retired again! One of the nice things about consulting is that eventually you are through and can be home and making Christmas cookies with your granddaughter! Now if Marsha will give me a break for a while before finding me another job!

We've had a wonderful few weeks...we combined a trip to my favorite casino...Harrah's Cherokee....a trip to Chapel Hill to see our beautiful 7 year old granddaughter...and a trip to Greenville, SC to finish my consulting engagement there. Since Chris and Jen moved to Chapel Hill, I just can't ask Woody to drive 540 miles in one day...we are too old! So Cherokee is halfway. One of the perks of Harrah's is how generous they are with incentives to come and play including free rooms! Of course, usually I pay more than a Ritz Carlton with my losses.  This time came home about $50 to the good!

Riley is almost as tall as I am and I am so hopeful that she will be tall, thin and blonde...which was always my personal goal.  The closest I ever got is one summer I decided to be a blonde which is not a good thing for a swim instructor/lifeguard and chlorine aficionado...green is not a good hair color shade! We had a wonderful time eating and shopping in Chapel Hill...so the thin thing is not likely either. Nantucket's had a wonderful lobster roll and incredible desserts! It was fun to see Bella the great dane and her new brother Charlie the bulldog. Chris and Jen's house is in an incredible wooded and hilly setting which I love but only because I don't have to do the yard. Chris and I agreed it reminded us of the Knollwood house except our lot there was flat. The trees make it so established even though it's a newer area.

Woody and I both love Greenville...we hit our favorite TJMaxx and our favorite restaurant, Takosushi...and yes, it's southwest/far east so you can have enchiladas or sushi (or bait as we call it in the south). Woody got to go to The Lazy Goat and High Cotton, two of my favorites. Isn't it funny that I seem to blog about casinos and restaurants? And now you know why I still consult on occasion to be able to afford my preferred lifestyle. So my tip for this blog...If you want a really fun retirement, consider a part time job since the market hasn't been kind to any of us!

My consulting work allows me to remain professionally engaged and still feel that I am helping cancer patients...this time a physician practice. I met some of the most dedicated staff I've had the pleasure to work with in a while! There have been lots of challenges, but they've never lost sight of why they do what they do. So keep all cancer care providers in your prayers...and pray you never have to meet any of the wonderful people that spend their entire careers caring for patients and families with this dread disease. I've spent almost 40 years in cancer care...it is the most rewarding thing I could ever imagine...from nursing to education to administration to consulting, I've always loved it.  I guess that this is the passion that everyone tells you to find and is the reason I've not been able to quit working completely.

As we enter this Christmas season, don't forget to put Christ in Christmas. It's not things; it's so much more. Making cookies with your granddaughter, watching your granddaughter climb a tree, missing the grandson you don't see as often, seeing how a kind word and and coffee can help a patient and family deal with a new diagnosis, leaving a little extra tip for the frazzled waitress who may be trying to get through school or care for her family...well you get the idea! I'll let you decide how to put Christ in your Christmas. You'll feel great! Merry Christmas!! 

Turkey, Victoria's Secret Fashion Show and Instant Depression!

Let's see...we ate our selves silly on Thanksgiving and then were subjected to the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show last night = instant depression!! I was born weighing more than the models from last night! And if that's not depressing enough...I'm not even 5'2'' anymore (well if I ever really was). I just don't understand how some people are so genetically blessed and then there's the rest of us! I used to say that at least I had brains until Giselle and Heidi started making a brazillian dollars! So beauty and brains...what's a normal old broad supposed to do? Fruit cake anyone?

We did have a wonderful Thanksgiving with Libby and Led and Savannah and Marilyn and tons of friends...I made the dressing, or turkey bread as Riley calls it, cheese cakes and Publix's finest cajun crab dip and spinach dip. Led fries dozens of turkeys for everyone...he's a good boy...and Libby and all her friends made tons of great food. We kidnapped Savannah after dinner so the kiddos could play poker and party all night. Thanks for a wonderful Thanksgiving...we're blessed to have wonderful friends and family.

Now to go see Riley, Chris and Jennifer in Chapel Hill by way of Harrah's Casino in Cherokee, NC! Now that they have moved about 100 miles further, Grandad really doesn't need to drive for 10 hours and Mimi just has to help him out by letting him rest at 250 miles which just happens to be at one of my favorite casinos...and Paula Deen's restaurant doesn't hurt! So now you see why I'll never look like a Victoria's Secret model! Then off to Greenville, SC to finish up a consulting gig with some incredibly wonderful people...if you ever get sick in Greenville...go to St. Francis Hospital...wonderful care!

Hope you've all had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend and are ready to ramp up for Christmas! I've finished all my shopping, put up our tiny tree, and mailed all my Christmas and Holiday cards today. Don't you hate me? I may not be tall, thin and blonde, but I'm a heck of an old semi retired broad! Now relax and enjoy the season...and don't forget what it's all about! Thank you Lord for all our many blessings!

Walk the Walk People!

I am struggling a bit in my life right now...there are so many bad things going on in the world that effecting change seems insurmountable. From child abuse at Penn State to continuing economic downturn for the middle class to hungry children in the wealthiest country (that would still be us I think), I wonder how one semi-retired person can even begin to make a difference. When I work, I know that I can impact change in cancer care for the better, but as an individual, can I really impact change in the lives of others? Woody and I had been talking about the fact that Meals on Wheels in Sumner County couldn't meet the needs of those who needed help...and then we started talking about the Samaritan Center Food Bank. We love the Samaritan Center...they are a wonderful not for profit group that serves Sumner County. While I was working this week, Woody went by and talked to them about what they needed. He said the shelves of food were almost bare! While all of us are cutting back on discretionary spending, the majority of us have sufficient food and shelter. We are heading out on Monday to buy food to donate to our local food bank...usually we do things like this quietly as we don't feel the need to talk about good works, but this time I may shout it from the roof tops! If just one person accepts the challenge to walk the walk and donate food, I'll take the heat for talking about good works rather than keeping quiet like we usually do. Now...off the high horse!

Spent most of the past week in Greenville, SC doing a little work. There are some of the most wonderful people in the cancer program at St. Francis Hospital. Their efforts to enhance their program and better serve their community are laudable. Got home around midnight on Wednesday...it reminded me that I'm not as young as I used to be but while I'm working, I am energized. Not enough to go back to full time...but, well you get the picture.

After resting up on Thursday, we picked up Little Miss Dangerous, AKA Savannah (or Nannah as she calls herself), for a sleepover on Friday night. We went to Shane's for dinner...she loves beans and chicken strips and of course we had a coupon! We had great plans for Saturday, but we were having so much fun here at the house that we didn't go anywhere but WallyWorld to pick up a few things. They have some of the cutest little $5 jogging suits that are perfect for daycare. We did puzzles and read and painted Thomas the train! I think you don't always have to spend a lot to entertain your grandchildren! So the tip of the day is give the gift of time to your grandchildren...listen to them, play with them and give them unconditional love. Sometimes that's better than almost anything you can do, except maybe take them to Disney!

We're so excited...we're heading over to Chapel Hill to see Riley....oh and her mommy and daddy too. We don't get to see her as much as we'd like. We had a great Labor Day weekend with both Riley and Savannah but it's still too long between visits. That's one problem that many of us grandparents' share...our kiddos live too far away to see them often. Even retired, we just don't seem to find as much time as we'd like to visit. Or maybe our kids are just too busy!


So this week...walk the walk and do something good for an organization that is serving the needy in your community...I promise you'll feel better than you thought possible! And love on your grandchildren if they are close or send them a card if they are far away! Hugs from H'ville!

The fun things in life and potty!

We've had an exciting two weeks! Woody and I have been in Greenville, SC working with a wonderful physician practice.  This is my first two week engagement and it was a real experience. We had a delightful stay at Marriott's Residence Inn with Andy the Yorkie and Harley the cat! I love hotels that allow pets. As long as I have my babies and hubby, we can be at home anywhere. There are wonderful restaurants in Greenville...loved Pomegranite, TakoSushi and California Dreamin! Woody got to go visit his sister in Anderson and on Saturday, we drove up to Hendersonville, NC and did a little Christmas shopping...I've already given away two of my "Christmas" presents because they were so cool I couldn't wait...sorry Ginny and Libby! Oh yes...I did work about 10 or 11 hours a day, not counting the work at night!

The fun parts of Hendersonville, NC were the Curb Market and Jump Off Rock...as we were hiking up to the rock, we saw a beautiful young woman in a Notre Dame shirt. We stopped to chat and her husband Michael turned out to be on the 1988 Championship team the year I was on campus finishing my MBA! There are always new friends when you travel. We had a great chat about ND and football and Lou Holtz. We also met a delightful older couple who reminded us of how much we should treasure our time and the ability to travel while we are "young enough" to enjoy it! We talked about how lucky we are to be able to travel while we still have our health. So my tip for the day: Don't put off things too long...you may not have the chance again!

Now for the potty! Savannah came home and told mommy that she had to go poo poo in the potty! And success! She's a ways from being totally trained....but baby steps! Her potty plays music when she's successful. I guess the Elmo Potty CD and her wonderful day care are working!! Her mommy is traveling this week so we're keeping her a few days to give daddy a break. Our beautiful niece Olivia is playing soccer at Cumberland on Tuesday so we'll take Savannah to her first college game.

Hope you have a wonderful week...and don't put off the fun things in life!

Fall Pilgrimage in Natchez, MS

Stanton Hall

We had the most wonderful trip to the Fall Pilgrimage in Natchez! The tour of antebellum homes was so much fun. The lovely families of Natchez open their homes during the fall and spring and other special times during the year with some homes offering tours year round. If you've ever had an interest in the south, the Civil War, priceless antiques and homes to die for...you must plan a trip to Natchez. Our favorite event was the Amos Polk's Voices of Hope Gospel Choir and dinner at the Carriage House Restaurant at Stanton Hall. I even got to sing along on Amazing Grace...and got invited to sing with them whenever I wanted! Obviously all those choirs in church and nursing school paid off! Woody and I took so many pictures...I just have to get them uploaded for sale soon!

Longwood

Several of the homes are really interesting...Longwood is the largest hexagonal home in the country...the basement is completely finished and the family was forced to live there when the war of northern aggression interrupted the building process. The main floor, second floor and up are unfinished just as left by the workers when the war started.

Rosalie

Our favorite house was Rosalie...it is owned by the Daughters of the American Revolution and beautifully furnished and maintained. What was so fun was to hear the stories of so many of the houses from descendants! Several of the houses have been in the same families for decades. We even met the grandson of the family that owned TuJacque's Restaurant in New Orleans and the daughter of the CEO of Howard Hughes' Empire, Ginger Hyland, who has a collection of antique purses and crowns! We also met Jimmy the Crickett, aka Scott Smith of Spring Hill, who helps his friends with the tours. He is the most knowledgeable young man you could ever hope to meet about the traditions and antiques of the the era. His own home in Spring Hill is open for tours so I think we might have to drop in on him!


I could post dozens of pictures since we saw 23 houses! And the food was fabulous...Sandbar just across the river in Vidalia, LA serves fried shrimp that is oh so close to Dewey's in Destin. Magnolia Grill's shrimp and grits and pan seared redfish are also divine. Cotton Alley Cafe was great for lunch and Breaud's Seafood had great grilled oysters. There was a cute little casino, Isle of Capri, that had a great southern foods buffet but I must say their slots were generous early in the evening and then got tight so you gave back all your winnings.

The piece of advice for this post is to wear comfortable shoes! We walked and climbed stairs and hills over uneven surfaces but it was well worth it. You can have so much fun if your feet don't hurt. We watched people hobbling around...if they had worn comfortable shoes they would have had much more fun...besides, they'll never see any of these people again. Comfort over style when you're a tourist. There is a second piece of advice...look for local or near by festivals and events. You don't always have to leave the country or even the state to have an adventure! Now on to the next excellent adventure!