Catching Up

Tim and Joe are both out of town this morning, we are having snow flurries so its cold, I'm waiting to buy Van Morrison tickets at 10 this morning so I have a little time to "catch up" because things have been pretty interesting.

Tim's father passed away last week; on Sunday, March 14, 2010. He was 86 years old. We knew it was coming, had been expecting it anticipating it but when the call came in at 3:45 a.m. (or 4:45 a.m. if you had reset your clocks appropriately) we had mixed emotions. We were happy it wasn't a call that something had happened to one of our kids but we were so sad that Tim's dad was gone. He was a good man. We've lived away for almost 15 years so our visits were limited. At the end, Tim was able to get up to see him at least once a month. It was weird about two weeks ago we were getting phone calls and emails that Bill was really declining. We decided to go see him. Booked our flights, and the week we were leaving, Tim's last living uncle passed away. Bill had wanted to live longer than his brother! We had a great visit with Bill, he was in a good mood, he was alert, we played cards (yes, I even played cards and not too badly!), talked - he got to attend his brother's wake (almost a dry run for his own wake), we took him sausage and biscuits from Hardee's (?) to him on Monday right before we left. During the next week he began a final decline which ended on March 14.

We were able to get the kids, after some serious haggling with Delta, to the funeral. Tim and I left on Wednesday, flew to Minneapolis, picked up a car and drove to Winona. We spent the evening with our friends Kris and George, had a wonderful meal and wonderful conversation. We picked up Andy on Thursday morning and drove up to Minneapolis. Joe and Lesley arrived around 1ish, shared a rental car and drove out to the funeral home for the wake. Tim and I are unbelievably lucky in that we have some amazing friends who chose to come and pay their respects to Tim and his family. It was very touching. Mike conducted the funeral service and he did an excellent job. It had to be challenging for him but I can't imagine someone better than him for the job.

Being with the kids, all of us together, was a little bittersweet. My kids are amazing! They are intelligent, passionate, beautiful/handsome people. I enjoy their senses of humor, their ability to conduct a conversation and meet complete strangers. Their strength is so amazing! But watching their faces as they faced the death of their grandfather was sad. I don't know all of what they were thinking but I know they were somewhere deep in their heads about this loss. Lesley managed to put a copy of Madeleine in the casket with her grandfather (after we loosened his tie and Greg put in a deck of cards). Then Lesley had to go to the airport, Andy and Joe went together for a cigar, Tim took a nap and I read my book...

Joe is in Philadelphia - ended up getting in really late last night - for an interview with the Temple University School of Podiatry. He was in New York City last week for an interview with the New York College of Podiatry.

I'm leaving for New York on Thursday with my niece for her 10 year old birthday trip. I've got a little shopping to do before I get away.

And, then there are the Van Morrison tickets - May 7. Can't wait!

Irritated

I am on a bit of a tear today. I am so frustrated.

I'm a volunteer. For some dumb reason, I have believed that the donation of my time is incredibly valuable to an organization. Apparently that's not the right way to think of it. And, I'm finding something different. I find that most organizations tend to be very self-centric - or donor centric. If you donate money to a organization, or I should say if you donate a sizable amount of money to an organization, they treat you like royalty. Donate 20 hours a week of your time and you are barely recognizable and completely disposable. It's not that I think I'm invaluable but I do believe I am valuable. I am the face of your organization in the world. As a volunteer, I pay my own way - meals, airfare, gas, cabs, hotels. I am expected then to bring some friends along and they too are expected to pay their own way. I volunteer to work whenever you need me - sometimes putting in some pretty long days and doing some pretty physical things (moving tables, etc). I frequently rearrange my schedule to accommodate last minute requests for meetings, etc. I don't ask for anything because I am committed to the cause. I don't ask for recognition but I do want to be recognized and respected. Sometimes it would be nice to be treated like I was an important financial donor. Maybe given a VIP opportunity.

Maybe I really need to rethink all this. Maybe I am not being honest with myself and with others about what it is that I want from volunteering. One of the things that is really important to me is that when I volunteer I am getting to spend time with people who think like I do. It's nice to feel like you have a place where you belong. Last year, I attended a couple of conferences for women that I paid for. I didn't belong in those groups - their focus was so different than mine. That was frustrating. So when I volunteer one of the things I enjoy is the time with friends - people I have come to know and trust and people whose company I really enjoy. All very important to me. Maybe volunteering is just a social opportunity - but I don't really think so.

I need to think about this. Obviously.

I did sent out the first Mango Tree Foundation newsletter - we misspelled Colombia on the first line!!!!!!!! I think it's because someone else typed the first draft and I didn't think at all about checking the spelling - I knew what I had written was correct. Even funnier that all the Mango Tree partners looked over the email!

Going to see Half the Sky Live tonight. Should be fun.

Snow

It's snowing in Atlanta for the 2nd time this year. Its so beautiful but it makes me so miserable. I don't hate snow, I just hate the weather that comes along with it. Wind, freezing temperatures. Plus, its March 2 here...no snow in March. This just reminds me of how depressed I would get when we lived in Minnesota and it would snow 6 feet in mid-March. Or how when it was Easter there was sometimes snow...contrary to all I grew up with in Texas, that's for sure.

This has been one long nasty winter. Perhaps I have just re-adjusted to the wonderful balmy weather of the south. Perhaps as I get older (I know I promised not to use that phrase or word) I just can't tolerate it too well.

I was in Bogota February 16-19. Very productive trip. Working with a new partner - INPlazados. They are a wonderful organization of young Bogotanos who are completely committed to working with Yo Mujer and to helping solve some of the issues of the desplazados. It's so awesome. I'm so excited. Trying to write about that trip as well...check out the Mango Tree Foundation website - www.mangotreefoundation.org. Maybe sometime soon I will be able to put something on that website. If you're a MTF fan, look for a newsletter, soon.

My dog has gone absolutely crazy these days. She is getting older - her ears and eyes are not so good. Her hips work because she has good puppy drugs. Every morning she has decided it is her responsibility to wake us up. By 730 she is in full tilt barking mode. And, she won't stop until we get up and come get her. Sometimes there are puppy surprises in her room, sometimes there aren't. I take her out, every day, just like I always have and it seems like she is forgetting what she is supposed to be doing!!! She will walk in the house after a nice walk and leave little puppy surprises all the way down the hall. Fortunately, it's manageable. Helps that we don't have carpet anymore downstairs. That way, it's just a wipe and a spray of some kind of cleanser. While I do think her quality of life may be slipping, she seems so happy.

I am doing some serious thinking about the food we eat around here. Both Tim and I have put on some weight. Part of it is our lifestyles are so centered around working and being on the computer. Part of it is that we have been trading injuries lately. His back, my foot, his back, my shoulder, his shoulder, my back. It seems to be nonstop. I have really been out of things since early January - my foot was such a mess. Knock on wood, but I think the worst is over. I went to physical therapy with an amazing therapist(Karen Davis Warren), increasing massages (from one every six months to one a month!), got orthotics, got new orthopedic (Darren Newfield), got new shoes and basically quit doing anything "ballistic." And anything "ballistic" includes walking, tennis...all those things that I enjoy doing. So, I have gone back to the gym - lifting weights, cycling, yoga...hopefully figuring this out. I did get to play tennis last night - for an hour only. It felt good - I didn't do a lot of running...but it was nice to hit the ball.

Okay, so I got a little distracted...there's been a lot of talk lately about the quality of the food we eat, we, not just me and my family but the world. A very good friend of mine has been posting on Facebook Michael Pollan's "Food Rules." They are so sensible, and are a great way to try to change or diets. I get frustrated with the "organic" rules...how are we sure that what we're buying is really organic an that it's not just a marketing ploy. I feel like so much of what we hear in the news, read in the paper, etc is just marketing. I have gone back to reread a book I first read when I was 18 and the doctor first detected an irregular heart rhythm..."Diet for a Small Planet." It's an interesting read - plant based diets. Then I went to Borders to investigate some current literature..."The Omnivore's Dilemma," "Animal Vegetable Miracle" - both managed to find their way into my hands and up to the checkout counter. While I havent had the chance to read them yet, it's just a matter of time. (In fact, I expect to get a lot of reading done over the next month because I will be traveling some - planes are a great place to read.) If you're looking for some interesting reading, I suggest you check out Michael Pollan, Barbara Kingsolver and Frances Moore Lappe. I don't think you will be disappointed. Plus, the big movie for foodies these days is "Food, Inc." I'm nervous about watching that - not really sure I want to know how my food comes about but I'm certain that I must watch because I need to know how my food comes about. Anyway, food for thought!

Haha - winter storm warning in Atlanta - 1-5" of snow. Crazy, so crazy.