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Showing posts with the label Journal

Journal Keeping - You Don't Need to Write Well

 February 12, 2021 Today was the final day of the annual Caregivers' conference put on by Coping with Dementia .   This morning I was part of a panel of three authors talking about keeping a journal.  We had all been caregivers for someone with dementia, we had all kept journals in some form.  Vicki Veasey started out keeping her journal in calendar form.  This helped her keep track of her parents' symptoms, appointments, happenings.  By keeping track on a calendar she was able to see that her father experienced symptoms around the time of the full moon.  That realization helped her be prepared to deal with those symptoms. That's interesting!  The other panelist was Linda Burhans that does a regular radio show dedicated to caregivers .   Journal Writing 101 I write on paper and I write online. You don't need to commit to every day.  I don't do commitment. With a journal it can be private for just your eyes. You don't need to write full sentences. You can do jus

Free Virtual Dementia Caregivers' Conference

 Hello!  I have not written to you in a while.  Sorry, procrastination happens.   Maybe it wasn't procrastination as much as the anxiety or weirdness of the political unrest. (For you reading this in the future, on January 6th, 2021 there was an attack on our US Capital with the crowd chanting to hang the vice president who was about to certify the election results from the 50 states.)  The events on top of a year of the rise in cases of COVID19 has many of us anxious and I didn't want to write anything about it and add to our anxiety.  But how could I write and not mention it?  Families and friends are torn apart by not just differing opinions, but deep beliefs in what is the truth. How do you prove what is real when someone insists that every source you site they don't trust.  Every fact you site they believe is false. That is some of our experiences during these times. Anyway, that isn't what I am writing about.   What I wanted to let you know about is a free virtual

Weerolling My Life Away - Amid Chaos in the USA

6/4/2020 It is Thursday,  I only have a quick moment to write before I get ready to go to a birthday gathering.  I am excited to tell you all about my first trip in my Weeroll.  But this afternoon a group of neighbors with whom I have been having COVID-Style happy hours is going to celebrate one of our member's birthday.  This time, however, the birthday gal wants to have our gathering inside her house, on her chairs, eating a shared cake. Yes, keeping our distance inside .   I am not sure it is safe if one of us happens to be sick and doesn't know it. That is the big thing about this illness.  You can be sick and contagious and not have symptoms and spread it around to quite a few people, just by talking, sighing, laughing. But, hey, enough is being said about the turmoil in the world without me reminding anyone.  Instead I will insert a link to a video of an interview of the Dali Lama on how he deals with fear and change.  You may find it a nice reminder to turn

Surreal Living In the Beginning of COVID-19

It is March 26, 2020 Hello! I hope you are well and finding ways to stay mentally healthy.  We are social creatures and isolation and distancing are both un-natural and uncomfortable. I found a song on Youtube that was supposed to be funny, but made me sad. "All by myself, don't wanna be all by myself anymore..." Those of us that are retired are feeling very fortunate to not be depending on a wage right now, with many businesses closed for a period of social distancing in an effort to slow down the spread of the COVID-19 virus. I woke up this morning having another difficult night trying to sleep.  My shoulders hurt because they are used to heavy lifting at the gym, I think.  Or maybe they hurt from the lack of giving hugs and getting hugs.  This social distancing is physically difficult for those not living with family or pets. When I descend the stairs to start the coffee, I can sense my tears are ready to erupt.  This is a feeling I am very familiar with,

Is it natures eye candy?

Hi, Wow, what a lovely drive today.  Thanks for making coffee for me, Cindy.  I enjoyed it so much. We had moved my tent-cot under the shelter of the awning  on my hosts' trailer to see if the dew would not leave it so wet in the morning.  And it worked!  It was dry and I could pack it up right way.   I left the Cradle of Forestry before 7:30 and turned right though it felt so wrong.  Cindy said right was North and right was right.  So I went right and pretty soon I saw a sign saying I was on 276 North.  She was correct and my directional compass, that used to be flawless had failed me again. Hwy 276 took me down the mountain and back up and down and winding through the forests.  In Waynesville (not Waynes World, but that comes to mind) I turned right on business 23 and then turned onto Hwy 209.  That is when the fun really kicked in. No traffic pushing me or pulling me.  I kept looking for places to pull off the narrow road so I could take pictures and soak it in.