life
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master of your fate?
“The first 12 years of retirement should be the richest, fullest, most intentional years of your life. Not the most cautious. Not the most careful. The most alive.” That’s Dan Haylett’s advice in, “Your 12 good years.” If only that worked for everyone. Today, as I push my cart towards the automatic doors at the… Read more
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FINDING THE SWEET SPOT
Recently, a player saw this paddle and said, “Wow, that guy sure hits the sweet spot.” I checked out my own and realized it’s not nearly as defined. Finding the ‘sweet spot’ (“The optimal point that produces the best possible result.”) takes focus, practice, consistency and a relaxed approach. You can’t just hit one great… Read more
Advice, Commentary, fiction, Humor, Inspiration, life, Nature, Philosophy, Pickleball, SPORTS, Sweet Spot, travel, writing, Zen -
HOW YOU LOOK IS NOT HOW YOU ARE SEEN
Last week, I was feeling particularly lovely and vibrant, so I took some selfies in the garden to share with my kids. However, when I put on my glasses to look at them, I was stunned. Surely that weathered face and wrinkles didn’t belong to me? I started to delete them, then stopped myself. Since… Read more
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YOU OLD PEOPLE!
A couple times a week, I go to the gym to lift some light weights. (Apparently, bearing my own weight is not enough.) I do 3 sets, 8 reps each, on 5 machines. Each set takes about 30 seconds which means 15 minutes total, because I don’t dally. I’m alone in this endeavor, however. The vast majority here… Read more
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CRY BABY, CRY!
I took this picture in my doctor’s waiting room because it made me sad. Even older people sit on their phones silently scrolling. We don’t talk to each other anymore. For someone who didn’t cry much as a kid, I’ve made up for it in adulthood. These days tears spill from my eyes, often over… Read more
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LOVE LETTER TO OUTRAGE
When I see injustice around me, my blood boils. A switch flips in my head and I go ballistic. Research says that we react most strongly to the things that personally affect us. Our immediate self-interest and personal relevance are the most powerful drivers of our emotional response. The premise is that since I was mistreated as… Read more
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PJs AND BIRTHDAYS
When the first freeze of winter hit, I pulled out my flannel PJs and found only one mismatched pair, which had a long-gone, elastic waistband. They were given to me almost 20 years ago. I did the math and realized that my next pair may well outlive me. So, I purchased these, so I’ll look… Read more
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by
in
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YOU GO FIRST
Remember in school when the teacher asked a question and you shrank down in your seat hoping he’d call on someone else? No one wanted to go first. Years later, at my very first dance, I quickly realized that waiting for someone to ask me could take forever. Life was too short to just stand… Read more
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The Bark & The Bikini
I found hundreds of these tree bark striplings lying in the gutter, covered with mud. They had fallen from a Manzanita tree on a populated street in La Jolla. Countless people stepped on them as if they were garbage, not noticing them at all. But their paper-thin delicacy and colors captivated my eye. After rinsing… Read more
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OH, CHRISTMAS TREE!!
For almost every Christmas of my adult life, I’ve had real trees in my home. The smell of pine coupled with the soft twinkle of lights, is magical. In my 20’s, when I lived in tiny apartments, I had little trees in pots which I decorated with miniature decorations. After the holidays, I planted them… Read more
AGEFULLY AGING 