LoriLoo

Laughter is the Best… Everything!

January 7, 2022

bloganuary
Today’s Bloganuary prompt:

What makes you laugh?

Laughing is one of my favorite things to do and hardly a day goes by without multiple hearty guffaws. One of my favorite types of humor is puns, and I work with some masters of puns: Lance, Zandy, Andrew, Aaron, Courtney, Clea, Matt, and others. These normally take place in Slack, over text, and I can hardly keep up with them, amazed at how quickly the retorts fly back and forth. A recent thread, during an otherwise serious Town Hall:
- Aaron really shelled out on the egg-related puns.
- I am waffling on what to share in this thread
- The best brunch places have donuts on the appetizer menu, just sayin’
- They’re on the menu, donut you know it
- this is a great brunch of puns
- omelette you finish
- I gotta give you a ham — that was excellent
- I gotta admit, that pun was bacon for a while
- Egg-cellent!
- I was surprised when I looked at this thread and sausage advice
Related, jokes (usually childish ones) make laugh until I almost can’t breathe. I love hearing others tell them, and when I try to tell them, I often laugh so hard I can’t get the punchline out. I recently took a public speaking course (thank you so much BetterOn!) and one of the assignments was to make my coach laugh. This was my attempt:

And then there is this book, Wee Hee Hee: A Collection of Pretty Funny Jokes & Pictures, which I sent to some of my favorite young people during the pandemic. We would FaceTime and take turns reading jokes and guessing the answers. Some examples:
Q: What’s the difference between a fish and a guitar?
A: You can’t tuna fish.

Q: What kind of haircut do bees get?
A: A buzz cut

Q: Where do cows go for fun?
A: To the Moooo-vies

Hours of fun. You get the idea 🙂

And then there were the shaggy dog stories my Dad was infamous for. We sat around the dinner table, begging him to share one. Here’s one of my favorites.

If it’s remotely funny, chances are you’ll get a laugh out of me.
5 comments on Laughter is the Best… Everything!
Inspiration All Around

January 6, 2022

Asheville Living, bloganuary

Today’s prompt:

Who is someone that inspires you and why?

My goodness. There are so many. The memory of my father. I think about how he endlessly worked to build bridges and create understanding. And how he was so kind and compassionate to everyone he met.

And my mother. Who inspires me to practice patience and understanding. I often don’t understand the world she’s living in, but I try to meet her where she is. She also inspires me to not take things so seriously. She “helps” me clean the house by throwing trash in front of me when I’m vacuuming, so that it’s easier for me to see. I am so entertained by this.

And my teammates. Who encourage me to consider different perspectives, inspire compassion, and provide so many laughs throughout the day.

And friends, who have followed their passions, and inspire me to do the same.

1 comment on Inspiration All Around
Playing by Ear

January 5, 2022

bloganuary

Today’s Bloganuary prompt:

What is something you wish you knew how to do?

Play the piano by ear. I see friends sit down at the piano and joyfully tickle the ivories. I love the spontaneity; I love the carefreeness. Just sit down and play.

I took lessons for about 15 years and can read music. And sheet music is my crutch. I get nervous without it, and when someone invites me to play without sheet music I feel a small wave of panic come over me. I can usually remember a few measures of former recital pieces (Für Elise; Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring), and then I fade out.

Playing in the privacy of my home, with my tattered sheet music in front of me, brings me great joy. I love the feeling of my fingers on the keys, and the ease that comes from practicing a piece over and over; the reading becomes easier, more fluid. I love the actual music: the sound of chords, the rhythm of notes (triplets are my favorite).

I’ve considered signing up for lessons again with the sole intention of learning to play without sheet music. Learning the basics of what works together and what doesn’t. Adopting a playful attitude with music, rather than a studious one. Looking forward to sitting down at a piano, even when my sheet music is carefully tucked away at home.

4 comments on Playing by Ear
Flying the Friendly Skies

January 4, 2022

bloganuary

Today’s prompt:

What was your favorite toy as a child?

I was five years old when Santa brought me Barbie’s Friend Ship plane. My first real flight wouldn’t come for two years later, but I loved imagining flying the friendly skies. I carried the plane with me everywhere. To school, back home, to friends’ houses. I loved imagining where Barbie was flying to, which sparked my love of globes and maps. I made up elaborate stories about where she was going to and what she was doing.

Not necessarily a toy, but my favorite pastime was reading. In the winter I would curl up on our couch, in front of our wood stove, and read from dawn until dusk. In the summer I would find a place in the grass, and do the same. My favorite thing was to finish a book in one sitting. I remember finishing Jane Eyre during a power outage, during a winter snowstorm, reading by sunlight then candlelight.

I eventually was able to fly on real planes, and engage in real adventures, far better than what I had imagined when I was five. But my favorite pastime is still reading a complete book in one day, curled up on the couch.

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Winter Beauties

January 3, 2022

Asheville Living, bloganuary

Yesterday we were walking without jackets, enjoying 70° F weather. I took down all of our outside Christmas lights and drug the Christmas trees to the curb for recycling. I worked in the garden, planting tulip bulbs (I can’t remember where I’ve planted things, so spring will be the ultimate surprise!), and clipping back dead plants. I marveled at our camellia bush, full of beautiful pink blossoms. I know it’s hardy, and I wondered if it would survive the cold front supposedly coming through.

I had my doubts. Could the temperature really drop 50° overnight and bring snow?

It could.

I awoke this morning to howling wind, freezing temps, and a dusting of snow. It was just enough to make everything appear magical.

Camellias enjoying 70° weather

Camellias enjoying the first snowfall

2 comments on Winter Beauties
I Would Walk 500 Miles

January 2, 2022

Asheville Living, bloganuary, Travel

Today’s Bloganuary prompt is:

What is a road trip you would love to take?

Going anywhere with good friends is a treasure. But road trips aren’t my favorite. Mainly because I don’t enjoy driving (that’s what living in a city for 25 years with no car will do to you) and riding as a passenger lulls me to sleep immediately.

Walking, however, is another story. I love walking. I love the rhythm of walking, the ability to take so much in. You move slowly enough that the details don’t escape you. My favorite manner of walking is walking without a schedule. Meandering and allowing the day to unfold. There are a couple of walks in the United Kingdom that have piqued my interest – the Coast to Coast, the walk along Hadrian’s Wall. And once there, I’m sure I would discover many more.

For now, though, I’m happy walking the trails of the Blue Ridge Mountains when I can sneak away, or walking through Asheville neighborhoods and the Arboretum with Mom when I can’t.

7 comments on I Would Walk 500 Miles
Bloganuary

January 1, 2022

bloganuary

I’m super excited to be participating in Bloganuary, a month long blogging challenge. (You can join, too – the more the merrier!) Today’s prompt:

What advice would you give to your teenage self?

Oh, goodness. I’m not sure my teenage self would have listened. But I would have told her to embrace her quirkiness; it’s something to celebrate, not something to be hidden. And to focus on the moment, and not try to plan so far in advance, because things will change in ways that you can’t even imagine.

Advice that I loved that my teenage self embraced, without being told, was embracing every opportunity that came her way, and defaulting to “yes” not “no.” Here’s to another year of “yes!” Happy 2022!

2 comments on Bloganuary
Me vs The Voles

December 31, 2021

Asheville Living

Voles have overtaken my yard. I’m generally a “live and let live” type of gal. And, these voles have more or less recreated the Sierras in my yard (front and back) so that walking through the yard is a hazard. Something had to be done.

A neighbor told me that voles don’t like castor oil. So I bought four bottles of castor oil from the drugstore, mixed them with water in a spray bottle, and coated our lawn.

I was severely underwhelmed by the results.

What I expected: Voles, overwhelmed by the scent of castor oil, exiting my yard en masse. Kind of like the reaction of the Wicked Witch of the West when she was doused with water. Or Moses, parting the Red Sea. An immediate, grand, response.

What actually happened: Nothing.

No voles left my yard. If anything, they created more tunnels. So I bought castor oil granules, which you spread over the lawn and in the tunnels, and methodically move the voles one direction or the other. I don’t love this option, because this simply means moving the voles to another spot. ie, to one of my neighbors’ yards. So I’m trying to move them towards the street, to the very wide swatch of grass between the sidewalk and the road.

I’ll report back in a week.

4 comments on Me vs The Voles
Night Visitor

November 3, 2021

Alzheimer’s, Asheville Living, family, grief

You crack the door and shuffle in

Crying hysterically

Ugly crying

Face swollen with red blotches

You crawl into my bed

And snuggle hard, grabbing my hand to your face

Through tears, you sob

He’s dead, isn’t he?

I inhale then whisper

Yes.

Why didn’t anyone tell me?

We were there with him, Mom

We held his hand and told him we loved him

More sobbing.

More sobbing.

More sobbing.

I think you are asleep when

You stumble out of my bed

I’m going back to my room

I see you turn towards the guest bedroom and

Gently guide you back to your room

Where are you taking me?

You yell

Back to your room, Mom

It’s time for bed

A tight hug and you sob

What is wrong with my head?

Why don’t I know anything?

I tell you it’s okay, tuck you in, return to my room,

and

ugly cry.

8 comments on Night Visitor
Happy Halloween!

October 31, 2021

Asheville Living, family, Holidays

“We haven’t seen this many children in eons!”

Mom was in her element. She loves socializing. She loves children. She loves candy. We sat on the porch in rocking chairs, 6 feet away from the small table with a huge bowl of candy on it. As soon as she saw children approaching on the sidewalk (a good 30 feet from where we were sitting), she started gesturing, inviting them to our porch, “Come here! Come here!”

“How many can I take?” the unicorns, Cruella DeVils, Spidermen, and vampires asked.

“As many as you want, sweetie!” I tried to explain to her that we’d likely get hundreds of children over the course of the evening, so maybe we’d want to limit them to 1 or 2 pieces. “Oh, yes, that’s what I was thinking.”

The next group of children arrived. “Look at you! Aren’t you just precious! Take as much as you like!” Fists emerged with overflowing handfuls of miniature candy.

It was more important for her to enjoy herself that for us not to run out of candy. Mentally, I started thinking about what else we had in the cupboards. A box or two of granola bars. Some small bags of peanuts. Possibly some hot cocoa packets? If nothing else, I had some one dollar bills we could give out if we ran out of everything else. Do kids use Venmo at Halloween?

The kids would leave and she’d exclaim again, “I don’t know when we’ve seen this many children!” Then she’d laugh and laugh and laugh.

“We’re having a good day today, aren’t we?” I often say what I want her to believe.

“I haven’t had this much fun in ages!” Me, too, Mom. Me, too.

2 comments on Happy Halloween!