Mr. Murphy, the Move from Hell, & a Korbel Cheers!

Some of you know by now that I am a new resident of Santa Rosa, in the heart of California’s Wine Country!

Yes, I’ve left my beloved San Diego (not to mention kids and grandkids) to return to my native Northern California – although my roots are in a direct line from Santa Rosa to the state’s eastern border county, El Dorado, in the Gold Country – Sonoma County borders the ocean, and that works for me.

The ambivalent decision to move so far from my loved ones was not made lightly. However, cousins Ron (like my brother) and Jimmy (it’s his childhood home!) made a roommate offer I couldn’t refuse. (Think of us as The Golden Girls of Three’s Company. LOL!)

Although no one of retirement age wants to move – what an odious project at best – I’m hoping it will provide more time to work on my writing. Timing is everything …

You've heard of Murphy's Law, right? "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong." Ol' Murphy just LOVES me.

The plans were set – all was in order to move. Penske rental truck reserved, help on the way, 90% of “stuff” still in storage/boxes from earlier this year – easy-peasy, right? Ah, Mr. Murphy had his own plans …

Are You Where You Want to Be?

And … Will You Leave a Personal Legacy? 

[Note: You will have an opportunity to answer these questions in an essay. Everyone who enters will receive a free Lifetime Membership in the 39 and Holding Club! If already a member, designate a gift recipient. Read below for entry details.]

It’s been said many times, “we are not our parents’ grandparents.” Style, relevance, and most of all, ATTITUDE, define the current older generation – which is setting a Rock & Roll precedent for the future of society.

Moving into an unparalleled aging demographic, it’s the refusal to acknowledge sedentary “old age” that is also unique to this era of 40+ people.

If you are over forty and agree with those statements, take a moment to consider where you are in life. Introspection is frequent for those “of a certain age.” Lately I’ve been scratching my head, wondering what the hell was I thinking twenty, thirty years ago … how about you?

Not all people close to or already in retirement … OK, fewer than you might think … prepared for those once-called Golden Years. Even in a perfect scenario, it’s a daunting time as our lifestyles, minds and bodies undergo intense alterations. Add the Great Recession and it’s been pure, tarnished hell.

Are Fruits and Veggies a Natural Time Machine?

Take me back to 39 … take me back to 39 … take me back to 39 … no, silly, not the year, the AGE.

If I say it three times and munch a couple blackberries, will I be 39 years old again?! Slim, tennis-worthy, shiny hair (without L’Oreal’s auburn color)? Hmmmm … nope. Didn’t work.

Ah, well. However, I still believe aging is as much attitude as it is an unstoppable physical progression.

This doesn’t stop us from trying every miracle drug or food combination the next anti-aging guru puts forth. Bottom line (and I do mean the bottom pun) is our overall health and slowed aging benefits from offerings of the garden.

“… while many foods from chocolate to popcorn promise these health benefits, your best bet for a long, vibrant future begins with produce,” says Oprah.com on Yahoo!’s Shine.

Do I eat tons of fruit and vegetables? Sadly, no. As a kid, I consumed the standard veggies when forced to, and many basic fruits. But for some reason, they never became a standard in my diet. 

Although I’m told I look young “for my age” (appreciate and loathe that statement), and I’m relatively healthy, it’s possible my “extra” stubborn weight hangs on likely because I do not eat the good-for-you foods at an age when it truly matters.

How about you? Have your eating habits changed as an adult? For the better or worse? Or like me, have you tried to eat better, to no avail?

Fruits and veggies won’t turn back time, but …

Alcoholism – or Not. It’s Proprietary.

Just before St. Patrick’s Day I half-read an article on Yahoo! Shine that quotes Dr. Richard Saitz (a primary care internist and professor of medicine and epidemiology at Boston University Medical Center) in an unequivocal statement: "Any woman who drinks four drinks is going to feel it, unless she has alcoholism." 

Worse, the article warned, it (alcohol consumption) can cause breast cancer, brain damage, and heart disease” and other dire ailments. 

I say “half-read” because I’ve seen the statistics before. They are nothing new. Yes, it’s true, alcohol is bad for you. But …

Life … Half-Full … Half-Empty … Half-A_ _ ed!

 Wow – three months to the day – sorry for such a delay in posts, but sometimes life is NOT “just a bowl of cherries.” [Anyone under 39 won’t know the significance of that statement. :-) ]

Yep, I’m wrestling with the pits. So this is going to be a short one.

I’m experiencing one of life’s many speed bumps and it’s a doozie. You know how the older we get the less we like change? And moving? Well that’s right up there with the taste of sour grapes. Or a twist of lemon. Or that over-ripe lime slice … hmmmmm, wonder if I have any Corona in the fridge?

Ummm, anyway … I’m packing my life away once again for another turning-me-on-my-head move. At my age, moving isn’t just a short interruption, it’s a back-breaking, joint-crunching, headache increasing, pain in the a _ _.

I know in a few weeks I’ll be settled “somewhere,” and I always find a measure of joy wherever I am. But THIS is the furthest from any vision I had of myself oh, so long ago, when stretching my 39-year-old mind to consider beyond middle age. How did I get here?!

Choices … we must live with the consequences of them, as well as those with exciting results. But much of my current angst is also thanks to our country’s misrepresented financial state of affairs, coupled with the debilitating recession/depression (my own interpretation).

New beginnings … I used that topic once for my most successful essay contest (I ran several in the ‘90s while heading a Southwest writers’ group). For most, the phrase elicits visions of hope … not necessarily true when facing (or surviving) drastic, life-changing events.

So wish me luck … through a veil of emotional and physical pain, I’m trying to view it optimistically and hope that the new life which awaits can be cheered, not with a glass half-empty, but one half-full that I can enjoy filling to the brim again. (Pass the Guinness!)

 

It isn’t an age … it’s an attitude!

Rock On!