The little guy

So here's a smile, taken before I stepped of the deck and broke my ankle. I'm grounded, can't drive with the "moon boot" on, and our little guy is really starting to get interesting. He makes lots of faces, lots of noises, and cries less. He likes to move around, likes car rides, likes to look at the world around him.

At this point, the eyes are still blue, and we're hoping they stay. And each day they notice more and more. And he's hearing more too. Lots of things to see and hear, much to be curious about. Life seems more interesting each day, and watching him descover things is never dull. Ah, how nice it must be to have no worries!

Karma is a...well, you know

Karma. Yeah. Karma smacked me on Sunday. Not in the head, but in the ankle. About 10 months ago I was doing a good deed for a neighbor. Mowed his lawn when he couldn't. Stepped off his driveway, and my right ankle turned under me...and I fractured it. Ten days before a trip to Dallas. So I spent 5-6 weeks in a "moon boot" and another 3-4 in an ankle brace. The good news was that I was able to have a handicapped tag for my car. The bad news was the I couldn't drive for the first weeks...as long as I was in the moon boot.

Sunday my neighbor told me he'd moved his yard that morning so there was no risk of me breaking any bones. And that's where karma comes in. We had the kids and baby over and transplanted some trees; it was a beautiful day. After they left I went to water trees, stepped off the side of the deck and ... yeah, the ankle went again, only I had farther for it to drop this time...a foot or so instead of a couple of inches. The sound and the pain were unmistakable...I knew I'd broken that same ankle again! No broken bones for 53 years, then I break the same one twice in 10 months!

Today I find out for sure, but I don't really need the xrays to tell me what my body already knows. I think this is a more serious break than the first one. So, I am grounded for the next several weeks, totally at the mercy of others to get around, stuck on the couch icing the ankle. My oldest arrives in less than a month and there will be lots of walking to do. Thanks to karma, that will happen slowly, really slowly.

Celebrating at the beach

Here we are at Cannon Beach celebrating my 54th birthday. It was fairly cloudy, a bit windy, but warmer than many times I've been there, later in the spring. So it was a great birthday, celebrating with Pat and Ginger. For the first time, Ginger went right into the waves, no fear. And she barked at kites and birds, and howled when the birds flew away. She's definitely a spaniel!

Just a really nice day to get away, to revitalize, to let the brain clear of all the gunk that invades daily. While we love the mountains, there is just something about the ocean that pulls us back again and again. The air is full of salt spray and the waves hypnotize you. The sound and the motion are constant and in a way, restful. The ocean remains our favorite destination, even if only for the day.

So, now I'm 54. I won't dwell on that other than to say that sometimes it feels like my 30s were yesterday. Other times, they were a thousand years ago. The good news? I'm still alive, still kicking, still enjoying that day at the beach.

The printed page

And where do you get YOUR news? I find that much of mine comes from the internet, but I'm not ready to let go of my morning newspaper. I also get news from newscasts...I'm a dinosaur who likes the evening news, whether at 5, 6, or 11 p.m. I know, I can see videos online, read the paper online...and the more I do online, the more paper and news ink we conserve. I know all this, but I still hold steadfast to the touch and feel of that paper. The visual turning of the page and scanning for interesting headlines with my morning cup of coffee is one constant in a life everchanging.

And when we no longer print papers, will the printing of books fade away as well? As many households as there are with computers, there are many more without. The poor and the elderly would end up without the same access to information. Would it be necessary to drive to the library and sit in front of a machine that feeds you news? And just how possible is that??

So I'm a member of a bygone era. Just by using the word "bygone" makes me a member I suppose. But I'm hoping there are others out there too. Yes, often I'll see an article in the paper that I saw online the day before. But I still want the feel of that paper. To check the weather in places where I have family, to read the funnies, to get my local news, and to see what national news made the paper. I do read articles online, but after a while I just can't hold my head in the right spot for reading any longer...damned bifocals!! Well, that's what happens to eyes when they age. So good light and the printed page can be easier to read. Not exactly like the large print addition of a book, but the folded paper is light and easy to take with you. Much easier than lugging your computer around!

I am not one who loathes technology...I mean, this IS a blog, not a handwritten journal. But, the arthritis in the right hand makes putting thoughts on paper harder than typing them out. And the blog allows me to add photos!

I'd be lost without the chance to wander through bookstores and I wouldn't know what to do if there was no morning paper. Even though I do sometimes read it that night. ;-)