I’m lying in bed listening to one of the wonderful sleep mixes Dan has put together for us. The view is crystal clear after last night’s storm blew away most of the remaining leaves. Marley is snoring between us and the fluffy comforter feels wonderful on this chilly night in Birmingham. Along with listening to … More On Medicinal Escapes: Part I
As I’m sure it was for so many this year, Thanksgiving was a bit sad and a bit surreal. I wanted badly to have as normal a holiday as possible after months of living with the pandemic, even though it would just be Dan and I on the guest list. We planned and cooked a … More On Gratitude Between the Cracks
On this Thanksgiving Day, in this year that has seen so much suffering and strife, I am reminded to be grateful for moments of connection, be they through masks and squinty smiling eyes or through computer screens. I am grateful for home and for love, still felt deeply in empty chairs around the table. I … More Thanksgiving Day: Tiny Ripples
As we approach the Thanksgiving holidays, most of us tend to turn our focus toward gratitude. 2020 and its unwelcome gift of Covid 19 have made that a Herculean task, providing more reasons to feel sadness, fear, and isolation rather than the joyous gratitude of the holidays in normal times. These days I often feel … More On Gratitude in Ungrateful Times
Thanksgiving was many things during my childhood; I remember my brothers and sisters and their spouses coming, filling the old house on Westwood Lane with laughter and stories as Mom busily cooked in the kitchen. They poured through the photos in the two metal tins, reliving their own childhoods through the treasured family photos. I … More Thanksgiving at The Piccadilly
This Thanksgiving break was truly medicinal. Seriously; I took on way too much the last two months and was at the end of my proverbial rope as classes came to a close a week ago Friday. I absolutely love my career teaching, but I have a tendency to think I can do it all, taking … More The End of a Holiday
That for which I am grateful… The beauty of fall from our sunporch. The steadfast love of a good and gentle man. The faithful companionship of animals…even demon seed Shiva. The gift of music. The gift of friends who are family. The gift of memories. The gift of travel. The grounding gift of home. The … More That For Which I Am Grateful: A Photo Journal
Yesterday was the first day of my Fall Break, but it didn’t feel like a break at all. I was out sweeping up leaves for several hours starting at 7:30am, cleaned the house, taught two lessons, checked in an AirBnB guest, and cared for my sweet man who is recovering from surgery. All wonderful things- … More On Caregiving for Loved Ones…and Loving Myself
Part of our front yard with new sewer and drainage lines…it looks like a scene from ‘Mad Max at the Thunder Dome’. It is pretty amazing looking back on our now fifteen Thanksgivings and (soon to be) Christmases at Chez Gainey and realizing that on four or five of those holidays, we had plumbing emergencies … More On Glitches, Gurgles, and Gobbles: A Thanksgiving Postscript
I had a dream last night, one so vivid and powerful that I woke up compelled to write down the words a covey of angels. In my dream, a colleague of mine, a very spiritual man, thanked me for sharing the phrase with him with tears in his eyes, though I don’t remember the context … More Thanksgiving: A Covey of Angels
The View from Here 