During the last week, I’ve been trying to deploy all the tips I spend time writing about. Grievinggardener.com went down last Friday. I’d been working on some writing, saved it, and decided to log on to the site like a normal reader. I just wanted to see what y’all see. To my horror, y’all were seeing nothing at all. All 780+ posts were missing. Only the titles appeared.
Blogging since September 24, 2020, I thought of all the words that were gone forever. I’ve always intended to print a hard copy of my work. Then, I’ve had the false sense of security that the days of printed work are long past. My words are safe in “the cloud”. For a time, there was no access at all.
I also enjoy seeing how many people read each day. Which blogs are the most popular? How many readers have I had since I started? (677,896). In which countries do my readers live? (Over 80, at this point.) Everything was zero-ed out.
For days, I enjoyed international travel time to Indian, Pakistan, and Malaysia. Taiwan and the Philippines. Who knows, maybe Beijing. Through the many countries to which I traveled by phone, no one could seem to identify that there was any problem.
“No, Miss Joy, all is fine. All working. No problem. Ask your technical advisor. They be back on Monday.”
Well, that didn’t work out too well, as I am my own technical trouble shooter. Probably how the problem started in the first place. It took many calls, and then, “POOF”, like magic, things started working again on Tuesday night.
With no blog on Monday and Tuesday, the alarm was sounded. If I were having a medical emergency, I know of four wonderful friends that would each send a posse of help. Please, never stop checking! Living alone is a precarious place to be. I so remember lying on the living room carpet just days before Christmas 2020. I’d managed to trip over Oliver’s dog bed, spraining my ankle in the process. With my “Help I Can’t Get Up” necklace hanging on my lamp in the bedroom, I was stuck for a bit and left to ponder my next move.
Miss Firecracker, The Goddess of the Central Coast, CC, and Angel of the Aluminum Cloud all checked in to make sure I wasn’t buried under the apricot crop. Please, never stop checking. Long days of heat and fruit picking ladders can be a bad combination.
Living alone can be a lonely existence. Those of us who do, know.
Don’t forget to keep hope alive.
H.O.P.E.
HOLD.
ON.
PAIN.
ENDS.
Accepting life “As It Is” has become the norm here at Winterpast. The “As It Is” part is includes excitement, fun, and love of friends and family. For this moment in time, I’m the most blessed woman in the world. I live on a street with real neighbors who sit in the front yard when they want to visit. Oliver has turned the corner into a real good dog. My Mysterious Marine is convincing me that I CAN cook some pretty good meals. God lives in my soul, making sure I’m safe and healthy. It just doesn’t get better than this very moment.
Hope and acceptance involve hard work. It’s difficult when you just want to pull the covers over your head and hide. It’s an uncomfortable, out-of-your-comfort-zone, in-your-face challenge that starts the very day you become the one that still has to move forward alone. The one who still has a Forever.
Whatever you do today, try something just a little different. Cook a new recipe. Even a new radio station can give you a different perspective. Focus on the positive. Forget the negative. Life is a beautiful journey. Don’t waste it.
More tomorrow.