A pollen-covered bee inside a Rose of Sharon bloom. Taken this morning.
This Rose of Sharon is the gift that keeps on giving. I suppose it’s finally reached maturity because the blooms have been non-stop for a month and a half. I suppose all the rain we’ve had has helped as well. The smaller Rose of Sharon, just a couple of feet away from this one, has some buds that I think might open. Fingers crossed!
More rain yesterday morning – pounding rain – and then later in the day it got cooler outside, with quite a strong breeze. This morning it is sunny and much cooler, with a gentle breeze. It feels like a front has moved out and cooler air has moved in. We just might not have rain for the next five days, which seems impossible given the constant rain we’ve had this summer. But, I’ll take it. A lot of weeding and cleaning up needs to be done .
Speaking of rain, I’m thinking of everyone in Southern and maybe Northern California, as Hurricane Hilary heads your way. I know you need rain, but I imagine you don’t need rain, winds, and potential flooding. You’re in my thoughts.
Don took some photos of me while I was painting yesterday. I had no makeup on, I hadn’t really brushed my hair. He was so excited about the way they turned out and showed them to me.
I saw an old woman.
Really, it was shocking. He kept saying, ‘but you look beautiful!’ Trust me, I didn’t. But he looks at me through the eyes of love, a love of 29 years. I see him the same way.
But I was very depressed and wanted to cry. (Truth be told, I did cry a little.)
I was going back through about 5 years of IG posts the other day because I was trying to find some information that I thought I had posted. It’s always fun to be reminded about what happened on any given day, but what became increasingly clear to me was how much I’ve aged in the past 5 years. At this age, I suppose that’s to be expected.
Nevertheless, it made me sad. My hair is almost fully gray now – if you lift up the hair at the back, there is still a bunch of brown showing, but it’s hidden by the gray. I wrote several posts a few years back about embracing gray hair and I’ve never attempted to color it, or disguise what was happening naturally. That doesn’t mean it isn’t shocking on any given day, it is. I’ve gained weight. It’s harder to lose weight these days – for Don, as well. And he used to be able to cut back on food and lose 20 pounds just like that.
I’m trying, believe me, but I don’t like the way I look now. Of course, wearing a bit of makeup would help, even if I only do my eyebrows. I hate wearing makeup these days and I know Don doesn’t care about that sort of thing at all. But maybe I should…
Anyway, I am blessed to be with someone who loves me and tells me I’m beautiful every day.
I just need to see that, as well.
Mowing today.
I read a chunk of War and Peace this morning. And The Bullet That Missed, the third book in the Thursday Night Murder Club series, arrived at my library yesterday and I immediately drove over there to get it.
I started a new painting and I’m not at all sure about it, but I was sleep deprived yesterday so I didn’t have things in perspective. Hopefully, I’ll get back to it later today.
Stay safe.
Happy Saturday.
I hear you, Claudia. I spent my 73rd birthday in the hospital so I’ve been feeling pretty old too! But I’m still here and my heart is beating steadily and so life goes on…
I finishing a terrific book, “Lessons in Chemistry” and have really enjoyed it a lot!
Hope you have a lovely weekend!
Stay safe!
I’m glad you’re home and feeling better, Ellen. That’s what is most important.
Stay safe.
hej, ellen. keep healing, relaxing. happy belated birthday and may the year ahead be full of ease and happiness for you and those you love.
will be praying for you!
kathy
Your post struck a chord with me. I’m approaching my 70th and share the reaction to seeing yourself. It’s hard to accept that aging involves losing control of so much. Wrinkles, sagging, grey hair, hair loss, perplexing weight issues, etc. (I’m fighting chronic hives, too.) I have to be mindful that it would be easy to fall into bitterness. I’m glad that you have such a wonderful partner – he’s a treasure!
I try to stay positive, Irene, but sometimes…
I sure hope those hives get better very soon!
Stay safe.
Early last October I had cataract surgery in both eyes. The surgery went well and I was fine for about two weeks then complications set in. That was quite miserable for several months but all is well now. During Christmas we visited our youngest daughter and her family in AZ…..had a wonderful time but came home with RSV. We weren’t sure we’d survive but after several weeks we were okay. Then in March my mother had a stroke and passed away a couple weeks later. She had dementia and had been in a nursing home but it was still such a shock. I doubt I will ever fully be over that. Then it was garden time. We plant several large vegetable gardens (I do a lot of home canning and freezing), lots of flower gardens and a few herb gardens. While working on those, the allergies were worse than ever but I made it through with just a few more herb gardens to do. Then my husband and I both got very sick with covid. We had taken every precaution, had all the shots, etc. but here we were…..down sick right when we needed to be working in the gardens. After a week or so, Ed was getting better but I was getting worse. I ended up in the hospital on Memorial Day and didn’t think I’d ever come out of it alive but, thankfully, I did. I still don’t have an abundance of energy. The weeds have taken all the flower and herb beds but Ed was able to keep the vegetable gardens in good shape. We have been canning lots of vegetables and putting lots in the freezers so that’s good. I said all of that just to say……..I hear you Claudia! I turned 71 on May 27 (spent my bday with covid) and I tell everyone I went to bed one night a normal person and woke up an old woman! I also noticed that while everyone was so nice and good to me while in the hospital….they also treated me like a little old lady. When I look in the mirror, that’s what I see……a little old lady. But, just a few months ago I thought I might well be seeing the end of my life so I guess I will just be thankful that this “little old lady” can still get around…..can still can 104 qts. of green beans in one day and also clean the house (well, hit the “high spots” anyway) and even though there was a little moaning and groaning, could still move by the end of the day! You are beautiful, Claudia. You have a good life and a husband who loves you dearly. Getting older is just part of it. And now, I need to hobble into the kitchen and start moving those 104 qts. of green beans over to the pantry…….have to make room for the tomatoes that need to be canned in a little while. Hope you have a wonderful weekend!
Lorinda I am so sorry for your loss and the illnesses you both have suffered.
Yes getting old is very very difficult.
I am scheduled for an MRI this week looks like I may need a hip replacement.
I must admit I am a little jealous when I see older couples walking. Hopefully I will be fixed and can move forward. Yup that is what we have to do. Thank God for every day no matter.
Thank you, Linda. Several of our friends have had hip replacements recently and have done very well. I will be keeping you in my prayers. Take care.
Thinking of you, Linda as you get that MRI. I know a lot of people who have had hip replacements and are so much better for it.
xo
Oh, Lorinda! You’ve been through so much! I’m so happy you pulled through all of it and are feeling strong and healthy again. It does put it all in perspective.
Stay safe and stay well.
hej, lorinda …
sending sympathy and hugs to you on the loss of your mother.
i am so sorry that you’ve had to go through that and so much illness, too … you and your husband.
i hope the canning process and those yummy foods bring you much enjoyment.
sending hugs your way. i’ll be praying for you and your family. and (even though bugs kind of freak me out) if we lived closer, i’d be over to weed your gardens.
peace …
kathy
It feels like fall here today — cooler weather, but sunny and at least the horrendous wind has eased. They say it will be pretty warm today and it’s working it’s way up. I’ll take it!
I know what you feel about the looking old. We don’t always FEEL old, but I have the same thing. I thought about it first with my hair (though I like it much more since I got it cut — but it’s still gray!) and then when I started using my walking stick. (Which looks more hip than a cane but still….). Add to it too much weight and I look older than I am. And it’s harder to lose anything, even with activity and food regulation. I’m trying hard now and grab on to every little result as a small victory. I guess it just comes with the territory — and maybe the genes.
“Every little result as a small victory” – that is such good advice, Jeanie That’s what I’m going to do.
Thank you.
Stay safe.
same from me!
i love the realness, wisdom and positivity i find here! thank you all.
kathy
Hi Jeanie! I adore your white hair! I saw the photo of you on your fun blog. Lovely.
Thanks, Verna! I’m getting used to it!
dear claudia …
thanks very much for sharing all you do and especially the tougher stuff. good to let that stuff out, for starters. also, another reason for you to hold your head high, be commended and know that you are loved.
regarding the new photos … i get it (speaking just about myself here, i am not a photogenic person) … but you are photogenic and beautiful with classic features, all that wonderful hair and a genuine smile. plus you have a wonderful man who loves you!
but i know, from experience, that physical changes (though a natural part of aging and probably from all the stress of the past several years) aren’t always easy to take. i’ve long welcomed grey hair … wrinkles, feeling invisible to much of american society and negative health changes, however, are not welcomed! some days i’ve cried or been irritated by it. on better days (which is most of them), i remind myself that it’s what’s inside that matters more and go on doing my best to live a good life. sometimes with makeup and sometimes not.
but you don’t need my advice. you’re doing great.
sending hugs to you and everyone else as we carry on
happy mowing and weeding! happy reading and painting! happy cooler, drier weather for you! happy saturday and sunday!
kathy
ps … yes, praying for everyone dealing with hurricanes, fires, all sorts of troubles. stay safe, everyone and everything!
also, love the photo of the happy bee covered in pollen! :)
But it’s okay to cry – I think we all need to let that out when times are tough. I do think the past 6 or 7 years has been very hard on most of us. It’s really taken a toll. You’ve been through a lot, too, Kathy.
But we stay strong and know that we are blessed and look for the good, right?
Stay safe.
i agree. for one reason or another, for being happy or sad, i cry every day. good to get feelings out!
and yes to recognizing and giving thanks for all the blessings and focusing on the good things. they are all around!
just back from grocery shopping and getting the oil changed in my car. now to take a shower and get into some air conditioning … getting hotter again.
hope you and don have a great weekend!
hugs,
kathy
It’s rather mild here, but I think it will be back in the 80s on Tuesday.
xo
I do not like the side effects of aging. I’ve had some long simmering health issues and when I went to the doctors after three years, I felt like they had gotten much worse overnight and, the last three years taken up with Covid, the death of my husband, and serious hip problems. Have a very hard time getting around and now that I’m living alone I need more and more help. This is very depressing and scary. Someone else mentioned there’s been an awful lot of stress for Everyone, and it is still a very stressful time, especially with the climate catastrophes. Half my family lives in South of Los Angeles on the coast and I’m very worried about them, fortunately the apartment complex is on a hill, but that could make the wind a lot worse. Like Don, I grew up in California and the idea of having this kind of storm is completely alien to my experience. The newer construction was built to withstand hurricanes, but there are lots and lots of older homes in apartment buildings, pre-and post World War II, that aren’t built for this kind of stress. A few years ago, there was that a state of out of control fires in the same areas. It seems unnaturally swinging from one extreme to the other. I’m thinking of the people particularly in Canada, Hawaii, and the ones who are experiencing devastating heat. I’m sorry to hear that one of your trees was lost to saturated ground, but glad that no one was hurt. It’s a good time for you to invest your creativity and emotion in painting. May you and Don stay safe.
I think of Hawaii and Canada and California and Greece and everywhere there are wild fires as well. You’re right – extremes everywhere.
I understand about needing help. At some point we’ll have to hire someone to do major chores around here, but we’re trying to keep doing all of that while we can.
Take care, Nora.
Stay safe.
sorry for all you’ve been through, nora.
i’d help you if i could. if there’s a way, please let me know!
and maybe it’s not painting for you, but i hope you have something you do that brings you happiness every day.
sending hugs. will be praying for you (and everyone else here … claudia’s post has really resonated with lots of people!).
kathy
It is a shock when you look at a photo shot from an angle that emphasizes how much you’ve aged. I turned 74 a couple days ago. Most days I feel like I always did but some days I feel every single year. Where I see physical aging the most is my neck. That reminds me I need to get the late great Nora Ephron’s “I Feel Bad About My Neck.” I think reading that will maybe make he laugh instead of cry about the sagging there.
As long as you have someone who loves you unconditionally and you stay interested in the world around you, both of which you do in spades, Claudia, you will never really be old in spirit. Dean and I have both lost a brother, each of them far too young to die. I’m grateful to still be here and just lean more and more into my mother and one of her sister’s (both of whom lived into their nineties) favorite sayings: old age isn’t for sissies.
Take care,
Kay
My neck has been the most obvious sign of my aging for a while now. I’ve aged there just as my Mom did.
By the way, I read that book and it’s wonderful.
I lost my brother when he was 44. Much too young. I understand.
Stay safe.
i am sorry that you and your husband both lost brothers … :(
i agree with your advice (via your mother and aunt).
and i want to read that book, too!
hugs and prayers,
kathy
Thank you, Kathy
peace!
happy monday and week ahead, kay.
stay safe!
kathy
Beautiful picture, Claudia! I first heard of Rose of Sharon from the character in the book The Grapes of Wrath, my favorite book and movie. I totally get your feeling of aging! I think my gray hair makes me look older, but I like the color….and I like not having to deal with it. Makeup would help, but I have a watery eye due to dry eye, so I forgo the makeup! I go for ease! Sounds like you’re going to have a little break from the rain to dry out a bit. We aren’t expected to get much rain, maybe some sprinkles.
I also have dry eye and my eyes are very sensitive because of it. I miss the days when I could wear makeup with no problems!
Thanks so much, Barrie.
Stay safe.
This post seems to have resonated with so many of your readers, as it has with me. I don’t mind very much looking older but I really resent that I can’t physically do things I used to take for granted, like opening new jars or climbing ladders.
I’ll be 70 in a couple of years and that fact sometimes hits hard. But I see my mid-90’s Mom still mentally sharp and living alone and hope I inherited those good genes. (BTW, I have a mix of white and black hair…Mom’s hair is mostly black and she does not color it.) The genetics for long life and few health problems live in my Dad’s genes as well.
99% of the time, I’m happy with how I look and feel. And the other 1% doesn’t crop up too often, though I am very wistful about the youth my late husband and I shared. He’s been gone over a decade now and I often think about how much older I am now than he was when he died, and wonder if he’d like, and love, the “new” me that was shaped because of his death. I think he would.
Bless you, Wendy, I know he would.
You’ve had to deal with profound loss, Wendy, yet you still keep going, are a great mom to your children and are young at heart.
Stay safe.
i am sure your husband loves the “new” you, wendy … 100%!
sounds like you are doing great. keep going!
sending hugs and prayers,
kathy
Hi Kathy: thank you so much. I appreciate your comments, which are always so positive on this blog!
thank you, wendy!
hope you’re having a lovely day and doing something you enjoy.
stay safe in every way.
kathy
I love that Don sees your beauty even if you don’t. I look in the mirror and also wonder who that old lady is. I don’t have much grey hair but the lines on my face are really starting to show. It’s a face I’m ok with and I’m a bit surprised by it. No makeup but the people who love me don’t care and the others don’t matter. Big Hugs to you.
Sounds like a very good attitude, Linda.
Thank you.
Stay safe.
Becoming reconciled to the aging process is a frequent topic with our friends and siblings. Thankful to still be around, grateful for every moment of health, but yikes! It’s kind of a mind bender to see who you’ve become. I obviously haven’t looked 25 for years and years, but I didn’t look or feel that much different until my 60s. (I’m 64) But now the changes are swift and cascading. And I realize the cosmetic changes are just the beginning and the least problematic aging issues. It’s like once the estrogen really dropped, I went from “older” to “old”. We like live music, but frequently seem to be the oldest ones there. We won’t let that keep us from things we enjoy, but of course it feels weird. As old people, it just feels like you really don’t belong anymore. A very new experience. BTW, hurray for Don for putting together that concert series and remaining creative and showing an older face out there. Whenever I see older performers, I feel vicarious pride!
Also, being spoken to in a patronizing way sometimes. Waiting for someone to call me “dear”! Went on a family trip to Italy over my birthday with 3 generations and people thought I was my 83 year old father’s wife and were calling me la Nonna (grandmother). I don’t even have children. Being a granny is lovely, I’m the right age and my father is in incredible shape and looks 10 years younger, but still! Boo hoo, haha! Had a couple of incidents like this on the trip, and I cried a little too.
Yes, I feel the same way about the drop in estrogen.
I have, for several years now, been the oldest person at a rehearsal. There may be one or two exceptions, but that’s it. It’s very disconcerting.
Thanks so much, Louise.
Stay safe.
keep going to those live music shows, louise, and doing whatever else you want to do!
we belong!
kathy
ps … i’m 65 and going by myself to see gino vannelli in chicago next month!
Well, I’m right there with you Claudia. I stopped coloring my hair last December. It is short and I think I’ve had almost all of the color cut off now. Some days I look in the mirror and am shocked to see that grey haired old lady.
I looked at the calendar the other day and realized I have at least one medical appointment every month for the next few months…mammogram, osteoporosis screening, colonscopy, eye pressure check, and I have to wear a heart monitor for a couple weeks as follow up to a procedure I had in January. Whew! I think health maintenance will take up more and more time. It can be depressing.
I try to focus on all the things I can do and be grateful.
Take care
It can be very depressing. Hang in there, Marilyn!
Stay safe.
Oh boy. I turned 70 this year and am definitely looking it. I started going gray at 17 (genetics) and have been coloring my hair ever since. I told myself once I hit 70 I’d stop, but the line has now moved to 75. It doesn’t help the wrinkles and the saggy skin, but I can look in a mirror from far away and still pretend! I actually liked wearing a mask since it helped to hide some of the wrinkles. Weird, I know.
So did I! The mask hid most of my sagging neck!
Stay safe.
I know exactly what you are saying. I feel your words. I, too, have felt despair at what is happening to my body. The only time I look good is in total darkness. What also comes to mind is Joni Mitchell’s lyrics “You don’t know what you have until its gone.” I will say the photos I have seen of you , you are a beautiful and very sophisticated looking woman. You have the look of a European woman.
Take Care,
Kaye
I’m sure you look wonderful in the daylight, Kaye!
Thank you for your kind words.
Stay safe.
Your readers have shared lots of good advice about aging. I’m 77 and sometimes feel everyone of those years. I had a health scare a year and a half ago and spent six weeks in the hospital. I didn’t think I would make it but I did. Things are not 100% back to normal but I’m here. I think it’s how old you feel inside that counts. My mother-in-law used to say she felt 39 inside despite being in her 80s. It’s not important what colour our hair is. As long as we don’t go around looking like “slumpadinkas”, a word Oprah used to describe people who wore sweat pants and stretched out tees. We are worth the effort to look better pulled together. And we mustn’t ever forget that we are loved. Hugs, Elaine
I feel quite young inside, Elaine.
I’m glad your scare is over and that you’re thriving.
Stay safe.
I share all the signs of ageing that each of you do, but, to my great fortune I have inherited my father’s blue eyes and white hair, which is what I remember most about him in his later years. If I am out in public, it never fails, I get complements from people of all ages and I thank him each time. I can truly say that I have never gotten so much attention in other phases of my life. How fortunate am I!
My mom had beautiful blue eyes and gray hair.
Good for you, Anne.
Stay safe.
At seventy-four, we both are feeling and looking our age. Every time I get a look in my magnifying mirror I am astounded at my wrinkled and crinkled skin! Who can this old lady be, anyway? So I don’t look very often and only wear makeup and real clothes to go to the doctor. (With my sparse grey eyebrows I usually look like I don’t have any.) All this is to say…I don’t care! I’ve made peace with it. You are beautiful and I’ll always be older than you. Just be glad to still be taking up space on this crazy planet. And I’m glad you guys are here, too.
Last visit to Fred’s doctor, she came into the room saying, “If one more person stops me to say how cute you guys are, I’m going to scream!”. So, I guess it’s all in the eyes of the beholder, huh?
I’m so glad you and Fred are doing well, Shanna.
And that you’re so cute that people comment on it! Bravo!
Stay safe.
Hello Claudia
I read your blog often, but rarely comment
After a very difficult few years , including a move from the UK to Australia, the ending of my marriage and then Covid ,
my husband and I decided to try again and I returned to the UK . Out of nowhere he was diagnosed with Prostate Cancer. The prognosis was not great , but we were told he could expect to live for another five years . The medical team were very wrong : he died in March, 15 months after his diagnosis, and a few days before his 64th birthday . The last months were brutal , and his death was not peaceful. I am left at 58 living a life I don’t want, and wishing it had been me who had died .
Aging is a part of life I guess – I have chronic health anxiety so don’t let my picture be taken , don’t look in mirrors – I have even taken to cutting my hair late at night in the kitchen using my reflection in the mirror as I cannot see my face as I do that – don’t go to Doctors ( and I feel those who were responsible for the care of my late husband let him down). I think I am trying to say that part of me thinks aging should be celebrated- for all the people, like my husband , who didn’t get the opportunity
Siobhan x
Oh, Siobhan! I am saddened to hear about your husband’s death. I had no idea. I send my heartfelt sympathy to you, my friend.
You are beautiful. Please don’t wish it was you who had died. You are loved and you deserve happiness. Time will help in coping with your loss. I’m sending you a hug and a wish for a renewed appetite for life.
I agree with your last statement. My brother died at the age of 44. I was 39 at the time. Every birthday, every year, I acknowledge the fact that my brother never got the opportunity to age. So yes, I celebrate my years for the most part.
Stay safe. Write if you need to talk.
xo
I am catching up with my reading, after being behind for several weeks. First, I wanted to tell you about my experience with the hurricane. At first, I didn’t think much of it, as I am no longer living mere blocks from the coast, but when the news reported that the fire departments were handing out sandbags, I re-thought my Friday evening. First up, visit the fire department, where I had visions of driving up and having hunky firemen fill the back of my car with sandbags. Not quite. You drive up, you park, you fill your own darn sandbags (they provide the bags), but it wasn’t sand — it was dirt, and you load up your own darn car. Not even any hunky firemen to look at to make the job a little more pleasant. And they neglected to tell you to bring your own shovel. Not having brought a shovel, and thinking that a sandbag ought to be filled with sand, we made our way to the big orange box, where we bought the last three bags of sand they had and some bags (none of this was expensive). But me, getting older by the minute — more about that later — was having a dickens of a time heaving those 50 pound bags of sand! That accomplished, we made our way to the grocery store to stock up on food that didn’t need to be cooked or refrigerated in case the power went out, and a flat of water. That means we bought a lot of fruit. Could be worse. By the time we finished, it was 9:00, and we were tired. Filled the sandbags the next morning and got them into place. There is a particular spot next to the house that seems to collect and hold on to water, so we wanted to prevent that as much as possible. All preparations accomplised, we stayed at home and awaited the arrival of the hurricane. Saturday was very windy, no rain, just wind. It started raining about 3:00 a.m on Sunday and rained steadily throughout the day and evening. I think we got around 2″ (don’t quote me — I’m terrible with numbers). I had thought that I wouldn’t be able to go to work on Monday, but there was no reason not to. A very little flooding in my area, some downed trees, but all-in-all, it could have been a lot worse. And it was, in L.A. and east of me, in the desert and the mountains. San Diego came through it fairly unscathed too. I’m under no illusions that this won’t happen again and that it won’t get any worse. I think both are going to happen, with fairly consistent regularity. I think Mother Nature is mad as hell, and she’s going let us know just who is in charge, just in case we think it might be us. All those global warming deniers aren’t helping soothe her temper any, either.
As I was reading your post, and everyone’s comments, my heart was hurting.
There was so much pain. I wish I could take it all away. I’ve been thinking these types of thoughts for quite some time now, and I’ve come to some conclusions. First off, I have better things to do than color my hair. It’s gray now and the rest of the world can just get over it. Then there’s the matter of invisibility. I’ve decided I like it. I can observe without drawing any attention, and I can do all kinds of things for the same reason. Lest any nincompoop think they shouldn’t pay me due regard when the situation warrants it, I have no problem with disabusing them of that notion. Being older has made me quite uninhibited and not nearly as concerned with being a “nice girl.” The heck with THAT! I’ve also decided that I will not give any creedence to the general belief that certain things are inevitable just because I’m older. Mabe they are, and maybe they’re not, but I’m not just rolling over and accepting it. My plan is to take the very best care of myself, on a daily basis. Everything is cumulative. Doing right by yourself day in and day out goes a long way. I’ve also decided to just accept the fact that I will be spending more time on bodily maintenance, trading my 8-5 for spending more time walking, and lifting those little weights, and gardening, and any other physical activity I can muster, Yoga would be good. I think my biggest problem is that 8-5
has turned me into a slug! As for my looks — well, I’ve never liked having my picture taken. This selfie thing just blows me away. People take pictures of themselves? Voluntarily? Why? Did they forget what they look like? My looks are my looks. Not too much I can do about them, so I don’t think about them. Besides, I think of the way people judge me for my looks as a litmus test of their character. There is a boatload of stuff I want to do, and not enough time to do it all in three lifetimes. If I just keep looking forward, and moving forward, I think everything will work out. But what I refuse to do us look backwards. No good ever came of that. We all die, sooner or later, and usually not of good health. Before I go, I want to fill my spirit with all that it will hold. By the way, I’m 68. Blessings on you, and your readers. May your broken hearts, and bruised bodies, and battered souls be healed. Turn your face to the sun.
I loved this comment, Elizabeth! Thank you. I agree with you about everything. I’ve never had the time or patience to color my hair, nor would I. I love your slant on invisibility. For an introvert like me, that is manna from heaven! I don’t like it in terms of my profession, but otherwise, it’s great.
So glad you came through the deluge okay. Yes, there will be more of this.
Stay safe.