High School Reunions

Do you embrace the opportunity to reconnect with old high school classmates or dread the thought entirely? 

I recently received an invitation to a high school graduating class reunion in my old home town.  Although I graduated with a high average, that year was not a good one for me.  I didn't even attend graduation or the prom.  

• Hands up if high school was one of the most awkward times in your life. 

• Hands up if you can't remember half of the people in your graduating class. 

I had some good teachers - three that I remember who stirred that love of art, reading for exploration and... escape.

As for classmates, I remember few.  I can't even match names to faces or recall how our lives intertwined.

• I recall the awkward attentions from a shy redheaded boy with whom I went on a movie date the summer before.  I think about "what if" I had continued to date him instead of the tanned, blonde Adonis who swept me off my feet.  

• I think about the short, skinny boy I sat beside in grade 12 business math and whom I tried my best to help with algebraic formulas (the kind that mattered in real life).  He had a physical disability that affected the way he walked.  I thought I had it bad.  I found out years later that he  committed suicide.  I wonder if it was due to his disability, of giving up on life or that he was bullied into adulthood. 

I too have memories of exclusion and subtle bullying.  They were not as noticeable as the onslaughts one encounters in middle school but they were there.  If you didn't look a certain way, wear the right clothes, if you lived on the wrong side of the tracks or your family was poor, you were not included in certain cliques. 

On the funny angle, I have thoughts of the movie Romy and Michele's High School Reunion where two quirky ladies pretend to be successful business women when attending their high school reunion.  They claimed to have invented the Postit then dug themselves into deeper holes and embarrassments.  

I remember spending many hours in school libraries and public libraries.  I remember reading A LOT.

As it would happen, my current work schedule will not allow for me to attend the reunion.  In my heart, I would like to reconnect with a few people once again, to catch up from where we left off.  Maybe in five or ten years.

I may just become one of those big city tourists who invade Georgian Bay during the summer.  I fondly remember the Bay, the canoe rides, nature treks and carefree life of our early teens.

Thanks for dropping by.  Meander on over to an excerpt from The Year of the Rabbit, a novel about fate, family and forgiveness.  There is much mention of the refreshing Georgian Bay.

• You can download a free ebook sample from Smashwords.  
• If you have an iPad, you can download from the iBookStore for 99 cents.  (Please note:  It is incorrectly identified as children's fiction).  
• If you have a Sony eReader, get a copy of the novel here. 

T

Checkups and Journeys

When things get stressful, I listen to classical music to drown out distractions and annoyances so I can concentrate on the task at hand, to stay in the moment.  

At times I will permit myself to dream of exotic destinations, far away places and handsome, reassuring faces. 

Being a proactive dreamer during a recent financial checkup, I set things in motion by starting a "Travel" savings plan with my account manager.  She supported my plans to explore different parts of Canada, the Americas and Mediterranean within the next five years. Surely by then, my young folk will have tested their wings sufficiently and have left the nest.  

By that time, I hope greedy, inconsiderate humans haven't poisoned our planet, our Mother Earth beyond recovery.  I also have hope that radical testosterone levels have subsided so it will be safe to travel to places like Europe and Egypt; to see the architecture, pyramids, the Nile and the great library of Alexandria.  

Maybe by then I can afford one of those consumer space trips and get half-way to the moon?  Fly me to the moon...

Okay… back to reality in my safe little corner of the world. 

As for vacation this summer, I only took one day and worked straight through the rest - except for weekends.  We should thank unions of the past for those.  I do not work in a unionized industry yet offer a shout out to federal public servants who are experiencing yet more job cuts. People need jobs - especially angry, idle young men.

I did not mind working the entire summer since we had a big IT project planned and knew that most users would be taking vacation.  Also, the office has AC so that it made for a comfortable working environment during another stinky, humid Ottawa Valley summer. 

Once the digital dust settled after the technology cut-over, I took time to recover my sanity, to attend to some personal and family issues.  I also made time for a routine medical checkup and consultation.  

During a previous visit with the good doctor, I had asked him what exactly was that scenic colour printout on the ceiling tile above the examination table.  He responded that it was a photograph of a golf course in the UK. 

"How nice," I thought but didn't press him for reasons WHY this or similar images were pinned above the examination tables in all the rooms in his office.  

When I saw it again during my recent checkup, I wondered if it was posted there for benefit of his patients, to keep the ladies calm during probing sessions - or was it there for the benefit of the doctor?  

I put myself in his shoes, thinking about how many baby bulges and lady parts he encounters every day.  I can picture him occasionally looking up to admire the greenness and calm of the golf course on the ceiling and thinking, "Just twenty more of these examinations and I can have that dream vacation…"
 
This brings me to the word "Backpack" I scrawled on a large postit and pinned above my computer workstation a couple of years ago.  

When certain technological "advances" are causing me grief or I struggle to maintain a professional demeanor, I look up and smile at that little sign, that reminder and encouraging word.

Backpack.  

A backpack is a thing you pack for a short or long journey.  Whether it's a physical journey or an emotional one, you get to decide what goes in and how much you are willing to bear.

Backpack. 
 
Aside from the visual and cardiovascular stimulation of watching George Clooney in "Up in the Air", where I first encountered the meaning of word, the phrase "What's in your backpack?", it has for years provided a reminder of where I am (and why); and where I want to be (and when).

In a few weeks, I will once again travel to visit family members.  For this journey, I would really like to take an airplane.  I need to push the limits of my comfort zone, to spread my wings.

Although it has been many years since I have flown, I'll be up in the air and receptive to meeting a charming, salt and pepper haired gentleman.  Ah, George.... If he doesn't materialize, I'll listen to music, read a good book or look out the windows to admire the autumn colours below. 

Yes, indeed.  It will be a good opportunity to relax and appreciate just being in the moment, enjoying the journey and looking forward to the destination.

- - - 
I am tickled pink that you have read this far!  If you like my writing style, you will enjoy "The Year of the Rabbit - a novel about Fate, Family and Forgiveness".  I recently celebrated the one year anniversary of the eBook version's release.  Smashword customers get to set the purchase price.  Do drop by.

T

Role models, reading and libraries

Is it too late to have found a role model?

Approaching my delayed maturity, I think I have found a role model.  I have only just recently discovered her existence and her 1981 book "Social Studies".  

I just love the acerbic wit of 60-something Fran Lebowitz as interviewed and allowed to opinionate throughout Public Speaking with Martin Scorsese. (Yes, I fused a noun and an adjective to create a verb.  That's creative license for ya.)

How does one get that kind of gig, with writing a couple of best-sellers in the 1970s and 80s then make a living talking about reading and how one hasn't written anything for decades?  Can one do that after publishing a wonderful, bittersweet novel (that is yet to be discovered by thousands of readers) and blog one's tongue-in-cheek social commentary about once a month?  

 

Fran Lebowitz certainly has opinions about many things including libraries, authors and their talent (or lack of).  I share her respect for libraries and books.  I am though, almost afraid to ask if she would like to read my yet to be discovered novel. 

Quote mash:

To lose yourself in a book,

as a child the library was the world,

a book is supposed to take you away,

it is supposed to be a door, not a mirror.

To close with the role model reference, I think Florence T. Lyon would make a good Canadian version of Fran Lebowitz. She would be polite, a little shyer, a little more tongue-in-cheek than acerbic, and on the socially acceptable side... she doesn't smoke. To offset the latter, she would be willing to consume wine on a daily basis.  That's to help with the shyness.

All she needs now is a good agent. 

T 

Happy New Year

If you have school-age children, you will likely agree that this weekend is the one before a fresh new year.  

Those of us who remember our school days with some fondness will agree that the first week of September is more like a new year than is January 1st. 

I remember the promise of new clothing, new pens, colour pencils and wads and wads of fresh, blank paper!  I recall the surprise of seeing classmates who grew inches taller over the months and crushes who seemed even more attractive and swarthy due to their summer adventures.

Then there were the teachers, lockers, cliques, bullies and getting lost trying to find your classes.   I try to block out memories of the strict Math teachers and fondly remember the inspiring English teachers. Thank you Mr. Tremaine and Mr. Maul.  Thank you for making us sit quietly for ten minutes as you would read a selected passage.  You ignited my curiosity to read more works of fiction and quite possibly, a desire to write some of my own. 

Now-a-days, we're hearing terminology like "the inclusive classroom" where "... teachers will have to consider the many learning styles and needs they may have in the classroom. That means, going beyond the textbook."

Parents not only have to budget for "in" clothes, textbooks, student fees and non-skid running shoes; they also may have to go beyond the calculator or home computer purchase to satisfy the need for a smart phone or tablet. 

The times they are a-changin'.  

At least my children are older now and most can budget for their own needs.  It will be nice to see them back on a (a-hem -- mother-approved) schedule and moving their bodies a bit more regularly.  Parents of the younger, energetic sort will truly see this as "the most wonderful time of the year". Sorry, I just can't get the modernized, consumerized version of that song out of my head!

This blog post is brought to you with thanks to unions of the past who made this a holiday, Labour Day weekend.  

If you like my writing style or want to comment on this post, please "+1" it or -- comment on this post. To read some of my other writing projects, visit the domain for my novel, The Year of the Rabbit. 

Nostalgia from the Large Print Aisle

It was the winter of 1985.  Due to being in the right place at the right time, I scored a  work term at a small town Public Library.  Those were fun, promising days.  I was able to use my creativity, satisfy a sense of order and learn what it was like to corral and calm energetic children during story time.  I also had a sweetheart who made my heart thump and my knees wobble.  Good, tender memories. 

I am not sure if the sense of order came before or after working in the library.  What I am sure of is the enjoyment I had touching, skimming and sorting those books.  The library brought in the local news paper to photograph the three of us participating in the government-funded program. 

Holding a pile of large print books and smiling coyly for the camera.

Although I enjoyed that work term, I did not pursue a career in library sciences since I heard that it would take years of college and the pay was not great.  I did not have the patience, money nor deep enough love to commit to that dream.  I was still not sure what I wanted to be when I grew up!  I later scored a retail job at our local Canadian Tire (Yay!) and box office night work at our local Cinema.  

I eventually saved up money, joined my sweetheart in Ottawa and continued working retail.  Working in "the big city" was a cold disappointment compared to the relaxed pace of a small town.  After a couple of weeks I registered for a word processing course (when a word processor was an actual computer!) and aimed for office work instead.  


A few months later, good Karma - and possibly a pinch of good work ethic from my stint as an office temp - presented me with more opportunities.  The Information Services department in a small organization created an Administrative Support position for me.  I used this thing called a dumb terminal that connected to this thing called a VAX.  I learned about computer operations, how to run batch jobs, perform backups and apply user permissions using ACLs.  I learned how to use a wonderful word processor called "Word-11" before it and other decent products were crowded out by aggressive brands offering WYSIWYG features - on a new piece of hardware with a new operating $ystem, of course.


Even with those windows of opportunity in the working world, dreams of a future with my sweetheart soon faded to black. I distracted my loneliness by making new friends and taking more courses.  I read to escape the pain.

My work life evolved in the exciting world of Information Technology.  In the blur of that late-1980s existence, I soon married a seemingly wonderful man and subsequently co-created three beautiful children. 

IT work provided plenty of opportunities to learn new skills and attend courses.  I became immersed in the world wide web, electronic mail then online collaboration tools. My aptitude and creativity were recognized and nurtured by a succession of superiors.  The pay has helped me as an eventual single parent.  I have been a valued contributor to the objectives of my work family.

I am toying with the idea of owning a cell phone (yes, I'm one of those hold-outs) or committing to a smart phone with Internet access.  I still cannot justify the cost and possible distractions.  Those small screens do not appeal to my reading preferences.  I have come to realize that my electronic skills, my love of pen & paper and appreciation of the QWERTY keyboard for creative writing will soon be augmented by the pinching, stroking and zooming techniques of a tablet. (A-hem... my birthday is coming up this month.  Nudge, nudge.)


In June my oldest child graduated from university (insert warm, gushy feeling).  I satisfied her gift request by purchasing an Amazon Kindle.  This device can "hold" thousands of public domain books.  This seemed perfect since she is an avid reader and loves the classics.  At least that is a small consolation as I lament the future of the printed word and methods we choose for publishing, writing and reading. 


Regardless of the potential for massive data storage and oodles of options for reading devices, I still enjoy the tangible book.  I like holding it, dog-earing special sections - gasp! - and - the horror! - writing notes in the margins.  Not that I would do this in books I borrow from the library but I find it interesting to see scrawls from previous clients.

Perhaps you do too? 


T


Thanks for reading this far.  If you like my writing style, consume some excerpts from my novel "The Year of the Rabbit".  Sera Fletcher, the main character loved to read and volunteer in her library.  The library also served as a refuge from the loneliness of losing her best friend.  

Planting a seed at the crossroads

Last night I enjoyed another quality lecture hosted by New Acropolis Ottawa. 


This one was titled "Confucius, A Leader in Times of Chaos". A snippet from the event page: "Confucianism is interested in developing a social order based upon the cultivation of the individual. It seeks political harmony by trying to achieve a perfect moral harmony in man himself."  

The lecturer stated that although the word "man" is used throughout the verses, the wisdom applies also to women and to all humankind.  I recall years ago while working in a library, I sorted, shelved and borrowed many books - including those on Confucianism.  Some of the wisdom stayed with me; some of it escaped my pretty blonde head - pushed out by growing demands of daily life, working full time and raising a family. 

Isn't that typical of many noble interests we have at some time in our lives?  I can observe that it is easy to become distracted by consumerism, fashion, gadgetry, competition and... survival.  Every once in a while, we are presented with an event that makes us think about what is REALLY important in our lives.  As we get older and wiser we finally accept that not all things can go as we have carefully laid out.  Life is what happens when you're making plans.  Family takes priority - even when you're writing about Fate, Family and Forgiveness. 

Writing this book over the past four years has provided me with good therapy.  I have met and learned from knowledgeable people.  I even made some great new friends. 

So here I am planting the seed for this bittersweet story and giving it a little boost before I focus on a few life changes. 

Empty boxes, anyone?

Blonde Philosophy 101

On Monday evening, I completed the introductory cycle of New Acropolis' Active Philosophy Workshops.  I feel enlightened as I walk the path on my constant (yet often interrupted) quest for wisdom.  Many thanks to the instructors for their patience in answering my frequent questions. 

According to an UTNE Reader article, Philosophy classes are conspicuously absent from (US) secondary schools' curricula.  The author of a related article "...argues that a philosophical foundation is an essential tool for discerning and skeptical students and citizens." 

I recommend the New Acropolis introductory classes to anyone who wants to share in "...reflections and philosophical dialog in order to face today's world challenges and contribute with actions to a new and better world." 

There's something to be said about meeting in person, about "being there" and discussing with others over reading a book.

Know thyself and don't stop asking questions!

T

Women philosophers: Hypatia of Alexandria