Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

A Little Story

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Wild mustard growing down by the road. I know it’s considered a weed, but like most flowering weeds, I change that to ‘wildflower.’ There’s a beautiful clump in the secret garden.

I managed to get Microsoft Word back on my computer after signing in to my Microsoft account. Under my account information, I found my purchase history which gave me the option of downloading the version from 2016 – which is really all I need. Hurrah!

Then I tried printing something from my laptop and discovered I really didn’t need the software for the printer. And then I went on Canon’s site and put in my printer model and there was the software for the ‘scan’ option on the printer, so I downloaded that. I scanned the Italian dialect notes that I need for my coaching session today. Success.

So I think I’ve, at least temporarily, solved my problem. I’m not downloading a bunch of photos and documents that I really don’t miss from my backup drive. I’m keeping it spare. Just what I need.

A quick story for you. My dear friend Jan, who lives in my hometown, is 79 years old.  She, like my friend Joe and my best friend Laural, was adopted. Joe gave her a DNA kit from Ancestry for Christmas and she did the test and submitted the information. Ancestry contacted her with a DNA match saying she had  a cousin or sibling.  She has recently been contacted by her half-brother and half sister! At the age of 79!

She knew that her mother was from Boston and came to Detroit to have her baby. And her adoptive mother showed her the birth certificate. But she never had any inclination to find her birth mother. She was raised in a loving family and her father was a Methodist minister. Her half-siblings didn’t know until later in life about their older sister. Their mom had married a man several years after giving birth to Jan and though he knew about the baby she gave up for adoption, they didn’t. When they found out, they started searching for their sister. They’ve been searching for years. And now, this miracle! Her brother contacted her right away and they’ve been communicating. Last week, she had a zoom session with her siblings. And next month her brother – a Unitarian minister – will be traveling to Detroit to meet her.

Isn’t that amazing? She sounds so surprised and happy and I couldn’t be more thrilled for her.

There you go, Some good news today.

Have to go prep for my session today.

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.

 

Pondering

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More fleabane. It’s everywhere, and it’s so pretty. I love how the initial bud is a lavender color and then, when it opens, it’s white.

Trying to figure out if I want to transfer things from my now defunct laptop to my new laptop. I do have a backup which would allow me to do that, but it’s complicated because I would only want to copy a few things and that might be impossible to do. But I realized this morning that I don’t have the printer software on this computer – not that I use it very much – and I also don’t have Microsoft Word. My particular version of that is quite old – so does this mean I have to just bite the bullet and get a new version? Sigh. Again – I don’t use it that much anymore, but I’m doing a session with one of the actresses from A Man of No Importance tomorrow and all of a sudden I’m reminded of these things.

Time to retire? I don’t know.

Of course, I also need to remember that I can use Don’s laptop with the software already on it. I may do that until I figure out what to do.

I am really enjoying a relatively clean, clutter-free laptop and I know it will get a bit more cluttered over time, but I would really like to keep it this way.

Unlike my home. But that’s another story.

Olivia changed her clothes the other day. She’s ready for Spring.

Stay safe.

Happy Sunday.

 

The Gardens and the Readalong

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White violets in the garden bed on the other side of the house.  They’re quite beautiful this year.

I wandered around with my camera yesterday afternoon so I could have a record of this particular moment in time. It’s good for me. I feel my shoulders drop. Instead of a quick glance, I really see  what has emerged from the ground.

I caught the bridal veil spirea a bit late in its bloom, but better late than never. I love the frothy look of what is usually a random green bush.

We’re laying low this weekend. My back needs a rest, Don’s had a difficult week. I’m working on my puzzle (Klimt) while Don plays his guitar and ukelele. I’m reading a lot as well. Both of us are stunned by Tolstoy’s writing. I’d put him right up there with Shakespeare – truly one of the greatest writers ever. What a gift this readalong is! I’m reading War and Peace – a tome I would normally avoid because of the commitment it requires. But with a chapter a day? No big deal. I love it.

The same man who started this is planning on a readalong next year of the Thomas Cromwell trilogy by Hilary Mantel. In this case, these are books I have avoided because I’m not a big fan of historical fiction. Yet I’ve heard so much praise for her writing, especially in the articles that were written at the time of her untimely death. So I’ll probably do that as well. Next year.

Okay.

Stay safe.

Happy Saturday.

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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