The Pits and Pieces

  Two medical appointments this past Monday consumed the better part of my day, leaving me with a little something extra inside. Both appointments were at a nearby hospital (with outrageous parking rates). At the first appointment, I was injected with a small amount of a radioactive nuclear tracer, followed by a relatively quick body scan. The waiting in the waiting room was longer than the procedure itself. The body scanning machine was large and very impressive. On the ceiling, there were four light panels, two of them the ordinary kind, the other two featuring lovely blue sky with fluffy white clouds. A nice touch, I thought, but I wasn’t on my back long enough to appreciate them. I didn’t know then how much more I’d appreciate them during my second appointment, two hours later. The radioactive tracer now had to be given time to work its way through my body and into my bones. I left the hospital to do a few groceries and have lunch at a plaza nearby. The hospital itself has a lo...

  It’s hard to know what to write about these days, given the state of the world. I hung my Canadian flags inside my window on Flag Day on Feb. 15 th , the 60 th anniversary of the Maple Leaf flag. Canadian patriotism has been on the upswing, and I am here for it. A writing friend was cautioning on the dangers of patriotism veering towards nationalism. She explained it this way: “ patriotism is a feeling of love and loyalty for one's country; nationalism, on the other hand seems to emphasize disdain or even hatred for other countries and a feeling of superiority for one’s own ”. My thoughts are that what Canadians are feeling right now is patriotism, and in general (and I admit this is a generality), Canadians don’t have it in them to be nationalistic. (However, the truck convoys come to mind and I am glad we’ve been able to take back our flag). We’re not overtly patriotic enough to segue into nationalism. And besides, given the recent weather, it’s just too darn cold and snowy....

  January 2025 felt like the longest January ever. We had extreme cold, snow, the inauguration south of us, threats of tariffs, a mid-air collision followed by the most appalling comments, LA fires. The month went on and on, finally coming to an end with one more blast of winter. Birch Trees On the personal front: Creativity :   I took four watercolour in-person painting classes at my local community centre and how I love watercolours. Painting with watercolours is so different from acrylics. The water does its own thing, running off in a different direction, creating unexpected patterns. Sometimes you just have to sit back and see what emerges. I am including some of my watercolour paintings in today’s post. Health: When people say things like ‘age is just a number’ – what the heck does that even mean? I’m the kind of person who silently cringes and rolls their eyes when platitudes are offered up as wisdom. Is this saying supposed to make you feel less bad about your a...

  Waiting Room Thoughts : The other day I was in a medical waiting room. Anticipating a long wait, I took a book with me and settled in for a read. The room was full of people, shifting and shuffling in their chairs, every one of them on their phones, even the toddler, who abandoned his screaming as soon as his mom handed him her phone. Couldn’t blame her, I’d likely have done the same; trying to tame toddlers in a public space is no easy feat.  There was a BIG sign on the wall to turn cellphone volumes off as a courtesy to others. But, as people were called in for their procedures, and others took their place on the seats beside me, four of them were watching something on their phones, volumes on, no earphones. Okay now don’t get me started on people who have their phone volumes on in public places like waiting rooms and trains where we’re in a confined space with no escape. I don’t want to be one of those older people who complain about the rude behaviour of others, but ...

  As the year comes to a close, we undoubtedly find ourselves sorting and sifting through the events of the past twelve months. What worked, what didn’t? What brought us joy, sadness, laughter, happiness? What do we want to take with us into the new year and what do we want to leave behind? Sometimes what we want to take with us or leave behind . . . are people. In my last online writing zoom group, we were reading our pieces and discussing friendships. I have a few that go back over 50 years. That is quite something and to be treasured. Women’s friendships are precious, especially as we get older, and, as I wrote for my group: “Society puts a lot of emphasis on romantic relationships and family ties, and much less on the friendships between women, often reducing them to girls’ nights out. But it is these friendships that quietly sustain and nourish us, humming along as a connecting thread in our lives, and we do ourselves a disservice if we don’t see them as a vital part of our ...

  Yes, I’ve been painting again, because I’m at a stage in my life when I can happily ignore chores and the approaching festive season and indulge myself in what I want to do. I wanted to paint, and so I did.  I marvel at how much less ‘guilt’ I feel now when I ignore the ‘shoulds’. And I think yes, it’s partly because of the age and stage of life I’m in, and the realization that I know myself so much better now and can acknowledge that I’ve never been really good at any of the traditional domestic-related tasks and I’m okay with that. It’s not who I am. I’ve worked for many (many!) years, pay my taxes, raised my child, try to be a good citizen, and now I find I want to spend my time writing, creating art, playing, connecting with people who inspire and ignite my curiosity, and ... keep on learning. I’ve signed up for a series of watercolour painting classes next month. One might think – you really should first try and master acrylic painting, but, no, why wait until I ‘mast...