I have been delinquent in posting for a long time, and I hope everyone is healthy and doing as well as possible during these turbulent times. I haven’t been out of the house much at all, like many of you. I miss so many things, with family and friends at the top of list.  My husband, Roy, and I are passionate travelers, and we are grounded like millions of others.

We are lucky to have a great place to stay and have plenty of things to do around the house to stay busy.  We have cleared many things out (with more to go), and Roy has done lots of outside chores–his latest was fixing the sprinkler system which required tons of digging and encounters with a number of creatures during the process.

I have been baking and cooking a lot, trying a lot of new recipes to mix things up.  Tonight, I am making blackened tilapia with asparagus.

Being able to bake my own sourdough bread has come in handy, as it was tough to get flour early on. A friend who has a restaurant had whole wheat and white bread flour in bulk and I was able to buy some from him when it was really scarce.  I just baked some bread this morning.

It’s been kind of great not to put makeup on every day, except for the odd Zoom, Messenger or FaceTime call. I try and amuse myself by wearing some clothes I haven’t worn for years or creating a combo I have never worn together.  It’s all really comfortable stuff, though.  No business suits!

In fact, when I went through my closet, I had plenty of business suits to give away with huge shoulder pads from the 90s…..I wonder if that will come back in again!

It’s amazing how much time we spend on keeping in touch with friends and family. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s twenty percent of my time….phone calls, emails, texts, instant messaging, social media, FaceTime, Zoom, Messenger videos….it is so good to see how everyone is doing and that they are safe and well.

One person in the family had the virus, but recovered. Two wonderful people who played key roles in my early life died of the virus….one in upstate New York and another in my hometown of Milwaukee. So, so sad….

I have tried to make contributions to help those in need and support causes I care about during these turbulent times.  It is tough to see people in the U.S. and around the world suffering….

Here’s hoping that you are well and cared for.  Like everyone, I am looking forward to returning to a more normal life when it is safe. All the best to you and take good care.  Phyllis