Tag: Writing

Posted in 2023, life, Memories, thoughts, Writing

Like a Piano with No Keys

Posted on by nancyb422

What would your life be like without music?

As far back as I can remember, there was music in my life. Whether from my parents’ big hi-fi that could play 45, 33, and 78 sized record, from my dad’s transistor radio sending out Hank Williams and Johnny Cash, or from the little portable record player that we had to put a penny on the arm so the records wouldn’t skip!

In my elementary school, we had music lessons with actual music books that we learned to read notes and sing from after being give our C from the nun’s pitch pipe. At church on Sunday, I loved to sing the hymns, following the notes on the page.

My love of music carried me through good times and bad times. It brought me to piano lessons at age 57 because the sound of a piano and watching someone play has always mesmerized me, it was always my favorite part of songs.

So a life without music at this stage in my life would be like a piano with no keys. Silent and sad.

Posted in 2023, friends, life, thoughts, Writing

45 Years Ago!

Posted on by nancyb422
Lyman Hall Class of 1978

Last Saturday, my high school graduating class of 1978, had our 45th class reunion!

I’ve been on the reunion committee since our 15th reunion and numbers have dwindled from event to event.

We managed to get 53 people to attend – which included spouses! No matter how hard we work to get the word out there’s always excuses and no responses to our letters, emails, facebook posts.

We originally planned a group 60th birthday party event in 2020, but as you can guess, it didn’t happen! We used the same outdoor venue and the same theme – Bar-b-que! It was so festive with red checkered tablecloths and napkins and hay bales, corn stalks, and mums for decorations. Some people weren’t happy about the “casual” event but hey, we’re the committee!

We have a core 8 classmates who have worked consistently on the reunions and I don’t know what we’ll do with ourselves until it’s time to start meeting for our 50th reunion! They have become therapy sessions for those of us dealing with aging parents, and cheering sessions for those of us with children getting married, and grandchildren coming along.

Does your high school still have class reunions? If they do, do you attend? Tell me!

Posted in 2023, life, thoughts

Forks – Forking Forks

Posted on by nancyb422

If you had to give up one word that you use regularly, what would it be?

If you have watch “The Good Place” you’ll remember Eleanor, played by Kristin Bell, has lost the ability to swear so F*(#, becomes Fork.

My first recollection of saying the word was when I was 11 or 12 and said “Fongool” at the dinner table! Oooh, even with non-Italian parents, they knew what I was saying!

It can be a noun, verb, adjective, and adverb. Very versatile! It pops out of my mouth in personal conversations and it’s probably why my public conversation sentences are a little more measured.

Whether you say “freaking” or “fracking”, or “forks” it’s still the same thought. I think it’s time for me to give them all a rest. There may be some conversations that I’ll be totally mute but hey, it’s worth a try!

Posted in 2023, life, thoughts, Writing

The Land of Many Pens (and Pencils)

Posted on by nancyb422

I accumulate pens and pencils. At times, I will pull 4 or 5 out of my work bag. I don’t know how they get there because I only use it to transport work I bring home and back to work untouched.

I might be working on my computer at the counter, need a pen and go get one, only to realize one was by me already.

I have pens I love so collect them at every chance I get – Webster Bank pens! – and they have to be clicker pens! No stick pens with caps for me. Those are the first pens that tossed.

I love #2 pencils with a point so I sharpen them constantly. They have to have an eraser so I automatically add an eraser to them.

I developed a thing for mechanical pencils and bought them and their respective replacement leads. Then I discovered disposable pencils and they populate my drawers.

Watching Project Runway, I discovered erasable pens! I know there already were erasables, but I didn’t like them. These are awesome! Pilot FriXIon clicker and it comes in a variety of colors. I now have a set for home and work. I make sure I don’t use them at work for check writing or anything of permanence.

I know it’s not just how the pen feels in my hand but also how it flows. It has to be medium flow and definitely not skip. That gets tossed directly into the trash can with no second chances!

Something about a good pen makes me slow my writing down and really form the letters, and really enjoy the handwriting process.

In my desk
On my desk

Posted in 2023, life, Writing

More like – “What Haven’t You Searched For On The Internet?”

Posted on by nancyb422

What was the last thing you searched for online? Why were you looking for it?

I currently have 107 tabs open on my iPhone’s Safari browser. I’m in constant search mode!

Last night I searched for were walking/running shoes. Thanks for reminding me!

I was out walking this weekend and noticed the support in the shoes I was wearing was not as comfortable as usual. They are little old because I wear them forever. I’m the “hey but there’s no holes in them yet!” wear them til they disintegrate type of person. I probably have the receipt – no, maybe not but I do know I bought them over a Labor Day weekend one year!

Anyway, I found a brand called Altra and the style is Solstice XT 2 and they’re sold at a running store about 20 minutes away. The reviews said they were a good walking and running shoe and they looked good. I always agonize between a 6.5 and 7 so I’ll probably take a trip to try them on.

If you know anything about them, tell me in the comments!

Posted in 2023, life, Memories, Writing

TeenyBopper Shows and More!

Posted on by nancyb422

What TV shows did you watch as a kid?

In the mid 1960s through the early to mid 1970s, my sisters and I loved to watch, The Monkees, The Brady Bunch, Here Come the Brides, and The Partridge Family. All these shows had cute guys in them and we were Boy Crazy!

It’s weird to google and see the years that these shows aired. The Monkees was on from 1965 to 1968 when I was between 5 and 8 years old. We were crazy for Davy Jones. How odd to be mooning over this 20+ year old man when we were that age. Right?

We watched variety of other shows, never missing the Wonderful World of Disney on Sunday nights. We even watched Lawrence Welk and the Jackie Gleason show together as a family.

Obviously, we didn’t have the channels we have today (but I bet you still watch about 4 of them right?)! Channel 5 out of New York gave us I Love Lucy, and The Bowery Boys movies. And how could I forget the original Little Rascals!

That definitely brought back some memories!

Posted in 2023, life, thoughts, Writing

The Early Bird Catches The Worm

Posted on by nancyb422

What’s your favorite time of day?

I love early morning seven days a week.

It started when my son was born. He woke up at 7am every morning on the dot so if I wanted to work out or be showered and dressed before he woke up, I had to get up, I had to have a plan.

I started waking up at 5am and working out to exercise tapes for 45 minutes to an hour. I knew the routines by heart so I didn’t need too much volume. After my workout, I’d take a shower and be dressed before he woke up.

Was it my FAVORITE time back then? Probably not, but it started the day off right and this habit was born. 33 years later I have the alarm set Monday through Friday for 5:15. I have my coffee and then go and work out. On weekends, if I’m feeling awake, I’ll get up and just drink coffee and relax and read.

It’s quiet, it’s peaceful. When I walk outside to go to my workout next door, I see the moon or the sky getting lighter. I look at my flowers or just admire the yard. No one’s around, no lights are on and it’s just me.

Posted in 2023, family, life, Writing

Family Folklore

Posted on by nancyb422

Where did your name come from?

I have a twin sister and our dad always joked that he wanted to name us Gretchen and Gwendolyn but our mother refused because they were the names of two dogs in the neighborhood!?! We would argue over who might have received which name. Since I’m older and Gretchen was always said first, i claimed that would have been mine. I’m hindsight, Gwendolyn could have been shortened to Gwen and “Gretch”=nope.

So we became Nancy (me) and Gail. It was 1960 and I think mine was a popular name because of Nancy Sinatra. I don’t know where Gail’s name was plucked from. My older sister is Janice. I don’t know where that came from either.

It’s funny because of all our generation of cousins, we are the only three who don’t have a “family name”. No Julia, Elizabeth, etc. and certainly no “catholic/saint names”!

Also, none of us were given middle names. One name was enough we were told. What the heck?

Nancy is ok but for some reason people call me Cathy by mistake. I tell them, “call me whatever you want, just don’t call me late for dinner”. Hahaha

Posted in 2023, life, Writing

It’s A Good Place To Live

Posted on by nancyb422

What do you love about where you live?

I live in a 40,000+ town in Connecticut that was incorporated in 1670. My family has lived here since the mid 1920s. It is very conveniently located between the two major highways running north and south in the state and close to two major cities.

It is a decent sized town (all 169 locations in Connecticut are called towns, and we have counties but we don’t use them like many other states do). Because it is so old (353 years old!), there were many farms that had animals, fruits, and vegetables growing in them and a few still remain.

Ok, I love my town because it is large enough to have box stores, but they don’t dominate the area. We have a great “center of town” with good restaurants, a classic town hall, and new coffee shops, a couple of spas, and a good selection of hair salons.

My town has many activities to gather people together. It has a great Farmers Market in the summer, a weekend festival in October to celebrate the town, and a holiday stroll in early December.

Our town is involved with preserving open space and we have trails for hiking, mountain biking, and fields for soccer, baseball, softball, and courts for tennis and pickleball.

Our public library is one of the best in the state! When I was young it was in a beautiful building built in the early 1900s. When they ran out of room, they built another one a short distance away. When they needed more room in recent years, they added on again! It’s a beautiful, welcoming place with wonderful programs.

The more I talk about my town, the more I realize how much I love it. I left in 1988 to live in California with my new husband. We moved back in 1995 to buy the house I grew up in, to be close to family, and to raise our son in a great environment. I’m so happy we came back!

Posted in 2023, life, thoughts, Writing

This Is What I Look Like

Posted on by nancyb422

How would you describe yourself to someone who can’t see you?

If I needed to describe my physical self to someone who can’t see me, I would start with – I’m short! 4’11” to be exact. If you could see me you might think I can’t be the age I give you. I think it’s just my height that throws people off.

I have an average face. It’s nothing that would make you do a double take if you could see me! I have blue eyes that are behind glasses every waking moment.

I have light and dark brown hair with streaks of blonde from the sun. It’s a mix of colors if you know those colors and the length changes depending on my mood.

I have fair skin that has seen too much sun over the years. If you could see me outside, I might have a hat on to shade my face.

Since you can’t see, that is me.