Work on a course II for the teen empowerment course I facilitate...

The most useful class I've taken for my every day life was a workshop on relationships and the differences between the sexes.  It really opened my eyes and improved my marriage.  (We both took the class.)  If you ever get the opportunity to take Elena Moreno's relationship workshop (she's based in Mexico), do it!!!

The most useful class I've taken for my job was Teaching Elementary Math Concepts...I had a bit of a math phobia before taking it and now I love math and love teaching it...all because of one class!

I loved all my philosophy classes, my art history classes, even my music appreciation classes.  But if I had to narrow it down to the most useful, it would be the two above-mentioned.

I have a situation at work...a coworker I don't really get along with.  I've been really stressing over it.  Our working relationship isn't very good and I've been trying to figure out how to improve it.  My plan is to invite her to tea to discuss it.  I'm very scared of how it's going to turn out.  So it's been on my mind a LOT lately...like a LOT!!!

I'm going through such transition right now...my grandmother, who we lived with and cared for, just passed away and my children just moved out (to live on campus) last weekend and this weekend.  I would love to spend another day with Gram and my kids, all together, laughing and talking, maybe putting a jigsaw puzzle together, which is something we used to do with her.

As an assignment, little more than a year ago, I was asked to make a heart-to-heart connection with a stranger.  I chose a small elderly man from my neighborhood.  In all the years I've lived here, I'd see him several times a week, walking around the neighborhood.  He never looked up or spoke.  As I walked toward him on this particular day, the intention was to make a connection with him...he not only looked up, but made mention of the beautiful day.  He has spoken to me every single time we pass each other since that day.

Since that day, I often reach out and make those connections. 

Right now it's my grandmother...and helping her pass over. She's dying. 

We're bringing her home from the hospital with Hospice today.  We have a hospital bed in her livingroom, in front of her big picture window, which overlooks the farm.  This is where my grandfather spent his last few days, too.

My memories of her and my grandfather and growing up on the farm have been very comforting these last few days.  And I'm sure will help me through the next, more difficult, days ahead.

I had to laugh when I remembered, as a little girl, asking my mother if we (my sister and me) could spend the night at my granparents'.  My mother said it wasn't polite to invite ourselves over, so we'd sneak upstairs into my parents' bedroom and call my grandmother and ask her to call  and invite us to spend the night, because it wasn't polite for us to invite ourselves.  She always waited about 15-20 minutes and would call and invite us up. 

I used to think she knew every song in the world, because she was always breaking into song, after we'd said a catch phrase that was part of a song she knew.  (She did know an awful lot of songs!)

She had a rock garden, which I loved very much.  When we bought our home, she offered it to me.  I dug up every single rock and carted them to my house and I have lovely rock borders around all my flower gardens now.  And they mean so much to me, that they came from her travels.

She's been picking things from the air the last few days...I imagine she's picking 4-leaf clovers, as she'd spend a lot of time, sitting on her front lawn, looking for and finding them.  I'd look, too, but I never found any.  She always did.

She made pajamas that she kept at her house, for our sleepovers.  She'd give us baths, put baby lotion on us and we'd get in those homemade pajamas and she'd make up beds for us on the couch, just outside their bedroom, knowing full well, that by morning, we'd both be in bed with her and Grandpa!

She always had sweetened cereal at her house.  (We never did.)  And we could have ice cream BEFORE dinner, if we wanted!

She also always had butterscotch candies in her pocket, just under the tissue.  I hope to be that kind of grandmother someday.

Sorry...not very enlightened...but the question I woke up with was "How long can I possibly lie here before I must go relieve my bladder?!"  Answer:  20 minutes.

Now I can't remember if I found Zaadz through Ode magazine or if I found Ode magazine through Zaadz...hmmmm...either way, I found one great thing through another great thing. 

Yesterday's was pretty tasty...oh so simple yet super healthy and wonderfully delicious!  My husband made a wonderful bean soup and I made "Kale Crisps" to sprinkle on top.

But if I'm to write about something that will never be forgotten, then I'd have to mention that we gathered with a bunch of vegetarian friends for a very memorable Thanksgiving Feast last month...so many incredible foods there...I coudn't have possibly had a bite of everything there!  And everything I did have was positively wonderful!  I had my first taste of cranberry pie and buttermilk blueberry pie.  They were incredible!  The food was cooked to perfection and the company was extraordinary.  We had a wonderful evening that I shall never forget!

I would move to Montreal, if they'd have me.  My family and I just LOVE Montreal!  We go at least once a year.  My kids would like to move there after they graduate from college.