Hello Twice......

January 2018 was special on the celestial calendar. Two full moons in one month. And the Super Blue Blood Moon came to say hello tonight. It's a beautiful sight....even without the proper telescope or camera lense.

No secret that the full moon means something special to me.....and to have two full moons in one month at the start of a new year was wonderful.

Here she was from our little deck.......one more hello straight to my heart.....

Changing Plans......

It was a late night group email that popped onto my phone just before I went to bed last night. I read it....and I re-read it. I thought "No....this can't be right." And I turned off the light and went to sleep.

As soon as I grabbed my morning coffee I opened my emails and re-re-read it. And I thought "I hope this is some kind of horrible hacking thing.....and not from her at all." But I messaged my friend on Facebook to check and she said yes, it was from her and it was real.

And it sucks. It's the kind of news that no one ever wants to get No one wants a family member, or a close friend, or a neighbor or a friend from work to ever get this kind of news. Because it's the kind of report that is life-changing....and it sucks.

And once again my friend's email forced me look at my life, my fortunate life, and think once again just how lucky I am. But she is fortunate too.....and lucky until this week....until this doctor visit....until this diagnosis.

So all the plans she and her husband had for 2018 have been replaced by a new plan......all energy and efforts will be thrown at an unseen but formidable foe. 2018 will be spent following doctor's orders, undergoing difficult treatments, waiting for test results and blood work. 2018 will be filled with concerns, and worries, some tears......but also lots of hope.

There has to be hope.....there will be hope. And those of us watching "from a distance" will try to find ways to be supportive and helpful and to let her know she is in our thoughts. We are holding her close to our hearts and sending positive energy her way.

It's all I can do.....it's not enough.....but it's what I can do. I alter my 2018 plans to include her.....in my everyday thoughts.

This sucks.....

Dollars and Sense......

I met a friend for lunch at The Milwaukee Art Museum last week. It was a good visit. We hadn't seen each other in months so there was a lot to catch up on and the lovely MAM lunch room overlooking Lake Michigan was a nice setting. Our conversation continued as we visited the main exhibit and the visit ended with a hug and a promise not to let so much time go by before getting together again.

Then, on the drive home, I was listening to the news on NPR and there was a story about Puerto Rico and the agonizingly slow recovery for the island after hurricane Irma roared through. It seems that banks and morgtage companies had given home owners a three-month moratorium on payments and the grace period is coming to an end....so mortgage payments will have to be made.

In spite of the fact that many, if not most, of the homes in question are still uninhabitable. The owners jobs are gone and many had moved to the mainland to try to find work until they can go home to their beloved island, pick up the pieces, and begin again.  I began to picture home after home sitting empty....some needing major repair. Home after home going into foreclosure. Home after home continuing to sit empty and fall into more disrepair. And family after family losing not only their home, but their dreams for a prosperous future. And banks owning more and more homes that no one wants to buy.....so communities in PR becoming "shells" with few residents remaining.

And I began to wonder......how does this make sense? Dave and I have owned ten homes and so we are very familiar with mortgage payments. I sold residential real estate in New Jersey to put the kids through college so am even more familiar with mortgage payment obligations and how to explain the process to new homeowners. I do get it. And certainly if you are asking a mortgage company or a bank to "bet" on you by loaning you several hundred thousand dollars in order to buy a house, it is your responsibility to make the payments.

But still......in this instance.....it just seems to me that Irma's wrath should guarantee a longer "grace" period. There should be some flexibility because of the almost insurmountable obstacles still facing the US Citizens who call Puerto Rico home.

It is really going to make sense to see so many foreclosures and so many banks holding so many properties and perhaps eventually selling them for pennies on the dollar. Would it make more sense to take each individual case and negotiate some kind of payment plan......or make a decision that the house is beyond fix-able and the loan should just be forgiven.

I don't know......it doesn't really make sense to me....but maybe it makes cents to the companies holding the loans.

I keep remembering an old TV commercial.....and I don't remember the product....but a voice made a simple comment something like "It's not nice to mess with Mother Nature!" Mother Nature messed with Puerto Rico.......and somehow, to me, requiring homeowners to start making mortage payments again is like rubbing salt into an open wound. Maybe it makes cents......but it doesn't make sense.

My 1950's Playground......

It was a bit warmer today so Dave and I walked the few blocks to town for a cup of coffee. On the way home we went past some new construction - more condominiums going up almost next to our building.

As we walked by I had an immediate flash back to my childhood.

I grew up in Park Ridge, Illinois. We moved there from the city and our first house was on North Home Avenue. It was a small brick two story, but a very nice first house for my parents, my little sister and me. It was on a nice street....with lots of other young families. A few blocks away there were acres of apple trees and fields to explore and climb. The neighborhood was growing and between fourth and sixth grade I can remember lots of new homes going up. As each construction site started, it gave me and my friends all kinds of new places to explore. And new hills to climb....these kinds of dirt piles became our Mount Everest, our hide and seek spots.....our playgrounds.

I remember my friends, Sally, Lois, Jeannie and others spending all day Saturday exploring the new hills and collecting treasures. Nails and wires, those round silver "coins" that popped out of the electrical boxes and small 2 x 4 boards. Whatever caught our fancy. We'd explore unfinished homes....inside and outside....and no one ever told us to leave.

We'd dig caves or use cardboard boxes to slide down the hills. Imaginations gone wild before the days of video games.  We spent a lot of time outdoors in our neighborhood. During the summer months we continued to explore as houses went up and we also made lemonade to sell to the construction crews. We pulled a red wagon with paper cups and jugs of lemonade. The men were only too happy to see us and support our little venture, purchasing lemonade to cool down on hot summer work days.

All of these memories came flooding back as we walked past the new construction. It's a school day, so no kids were around.....but even if it was a Saturday, I had to wonder if today's kids would be intrigued the way we were.  Would they be allowed to just "run wild" and climb these dirt piles.

I sort of doubt it.....plus they'd probably think the activity totally boring. For us it was adventure.....unsupervised playgrounds. Here's a toast to the good old days!

A Small Grumble.......

Enjoying a week in the sun.....at least mostly sun! The sound of waves coming to shore, palm trees, white sand. Akumal is a lovely, quiet town....we walk or bike everywhere. No high rise buildings.....not the place to go if you are seeking a busy night life. But if you want to look out at sunrise over the ocean and walk off the beach to snorkel....it is perfect.

Except for the TV stations we get. The TV isn’t on very much....but we have been able to find “The Today Show” for a bit of morning news. And we are used to commercials in the US.....but believe me.....the commercials down here are somewhat different and LONG! We get about five minutes of the show...and then a ten minute onslaught of commercials. And the commercials repeat and repeat and repeat.....and most of them seem to have something to do with soccer. Announcers exclaiming about upcoming games, and local teams etc. etc. etc. Then we get a glimpse of upcoming dramas on SKY TV....and the comedies to watch.....and the movies you can rent. The same information over and over, every morning for seven days.

Well.....at least they don’t advertise pharmaceuticals.........

That Other World......

Put on the equipment...the fins, the mask, the snorkel.  Walk into the water a bit awkwardly......stretch out on your stomach and slowly kick.

Looking down, listening to the sounds of your breathing.....in and out of the snorkel. Other sounds fade away.....the regular everyday world fades away. Peace.

Spotted parrotfish, sergeant majors in a swarm, blue tang darting behind a piece of coral. A line of  curious squid in formation. A beautiful queen angelfish. Sea turtles, one very large with two remoras on its shell. A yellow spotted ray flying by and a small flounder hiding below me in the sand......perfect camoflage. A four foot barracuda......mouth gaping to display its teeth, watches closely as I float by. Fan coral waving in the current. One file fish, mounds of brain coral. Butterfly fish and grunts. A school of porgies.......grey/blue flashes as they move away.

This world beneath the surface.......invisible unless you put on the equipment and enter. So astonishingly beautiful......

A Temporary Change of View.....

I opened my little blog to see two really unpleasant images......from my last entry. So I decided it was time for a change of scenery.

These images are from our last trip to Akumal, Mexico a few years ago. Sun, sea, sand and snorkeling. A perfect week with friends.

We fly down again next week. Can't wait to get away.....so fortuate to be going. We may not see all of the same sights this time....but I know it will be sun, sea, sand and snorkeling. And time spent with other good friends who've never been there before!

Perfect and maybe a great way to re-set my brain......

Jump Right In.....

I woke yesterday to stories of North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, saying he had a nuclear button on his desk.

And first story today is The Donald saying his nuclear button "is much bigger & more powerful than his, and my button works!"

What.....two six year olds playing in a sandbox with the entire world as a "toy"?

Heartstrings......

It's not the best photograph....but for me it represents a priceless memory. I've written a few other blogs about my personal connection to the full moon. It was shining the night my mother died, and again on full display the night my mother-in-law took her last breath. So for me, whenever I see a full moon it brings a smile, maybe one or two tears and some lovely memories.

Tonight is the first of two full moons we will enjoy this January. January 1, 2018. I glance out the window over our deck and there she is....smiling down at me. A completely full moon, a calm lake and a shining pathway across the water....from the moon and straight into my heart.

The cold sky showed hints of soft pink, violet and differing shades of blue. Wind chill means outside it feels like it is well below zero.....but inside, through the window I feel like I've started the New Year with a warm loving hug from two women I still miss.

I was lucky they were both a part of my life.....one gave me life and the other gave life to the man who's been my husband for 50 years. I'm thinking this full moon was their way of toasting us to say "Happy anniversary!"

The TV is calling this a Super Moon.....for me it's another Moms' Moon........