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Archive for June, 2026

Playing Mahjongg By Myself

Posted in Books, Journaling, Wedding, Country, tagged , , , , , , , , , on June 30, 2026| Leave a Comment »

First of all, strike up the band! It’s been 250 years and our country is still standing. We’re a bit bruised by the current occupant of the White House, and maybe our bones are getting brittle, and sure, our friends overseas (and to the north and south) don’t want to play with us anymore, but it’s all good. At least the SCOTUS sometimes still gets it right – every now and then. The New York Times reported yesterday:

“The Supreme Court on Monday declined a request by President Trump to review a $5 million civil judgment against him after a jury found in 2023 that he sexually abused and defamed the writer E. Jean Carroll. The announcement by the justices did not include any reasoning, and no public dissents were noted.”

Hooray for E Jean! She will maybe? get her 5 million; yep, the Justices pretty much said Mr T is a sexual predator, so what? He was found to have done the dirty deed at Bergdorf’s and he’s going to have to pay the fine. Maybe he can sell a few more coins with his head on them? And hold the presses! The Supreme Court just now rejected Mr T’s efforts to end birthright citizenship by a 6 -3 vote! Will wonders never cease.

But this morning I wanted to talk about personal friendships, and gaming. Not the internet type of gaming which is a solo endeavor – the kind where you actually sit down at a table with humans. My husband Bob isn’t competitive. In fact, he hates thinking of anybody losing, because when you win somebody has to lose, right? I used to joke that my husband was the only doctor in these United States who hates golf! He comes by this disinterest naturally.

His Mother, Grandma Ada, also looked askance at games in general. She never retired from her marriage counselor career, helping all the aides in her senior living community navigate love and loss. Whenever asked when she was going to retire, Ada would say, “What am I going to do, sit around and play canasta?”

It’s kind of funny that my sister Kay also has some disdain for games although she’s been known to play a card game called Spit and Malice. Sounds intriguing right? There’s a guy named Bill who would love to rope her into a weekly Bingo game, stay tuned! I used to think only Catholics played Bingo.

My neighbor, N, told me she started playing Mahjongg by herself to get better at learning the 2026 card and figuring out what to discard during the Charleston. She was a little slow in the beginning getting started, wanting to ask our teacher, Robin, for recommendations in the library. Since Robin flew back to NJ for the summer, N and I have been hosting games in our homes and I’ve noticed that she is now faster and surpassing many of us in her level of play!

So I figured I’d give it a shot. My dining table is set up as if four people are playing Mahjongg, but it’s just me. It’s difficult keeping four hands together and trying to stay focused while phones ring and the laundry calls my name. One is the loneliest number.

Did you happen to catch the PBS show “Wired for Connection?” https://pbs.org/show/wired-for-connection?source=social

Stay with me. It’s a fascinating look into the latest science on loneliness and how we humans are social animals. Evidence based, they study the effects of friendship: lower blood pressure: reduced dementia risk; stronger immunity; better sleep; and a longer lifespan. Not bad! And you would not believe the actual health complications that can result from a solitary lifestyle.

I’ve never been a girl gang type. Usually my MO is to have a few close friends and that’s it. Both of my mothers were loners. The Flapper was too busy working to socialize and Nell never learned to drive. We were like two Rapunzels on that hill in Victory Gardens. But since moving to Nashville in my dotage, I’ve acquired a bit of a posse.

There’s a few women who live on my street that are “ride or die” friends. And of course there’s cousin Peg in East Nash. We have the Germantown crew who still consider us friends/neighbors since we survived a tornado together, followed immediately by the pandemic and one near/trip to Italy. There’s always the Big Chill childhood friends who are scattered geographically but still close. And just this past year, I’ve found a whole new group of Mahjongg mavens!

There’s R who gives me a ride in her menopause convertible. There’s A and C, also Jersey girls, and Em a native Nashvillian and a realtor. There’s D who’s in charge of keeping a space for us in the library, and the aforementioned N from the block. And there are more women who cycle in and out depending on their schedules.

So I’m feeling hopeful. We Americans can right this ship! And I’m going to invite a few people over for the Fourth – the holiday that forever changed my family in our Year of Living Dangerously. Because why not celebrate our freedom while we still can?

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Sneaker Waves

Posted in Books, Journaling, Wedding, Country, tagged , , , , , , on June 23, 2026| 4 Comments »

Every time we travel, I learn something new. For instance, I’ve never heard of a sneaker wave. We’re not talking Nike variety, this is a particular kind of ocean wave that is like a mini tsunami. It usually follows a relatively calm number of regular waves and sneaks up on you, rolling beach walkers out to sea.

On this trip to California I’ve been getting a lot of sneaker wave feelings. Sitting at Twohees on Father’s Day watching a clown make balloon animals for the Twins; touring the Rocker and Kiki’s new house with their contractor: watching the girls play in water fountains at the botanical garden, suddenly my eyes well up. All the feelings just bubble to the surface and I’m lost.

Thinking about my son’s determination as a child, his ability to focus and his undeniable talent as an artist. Did I know when he would spend hours with his friend in our garage making stop motion films that he would grow up to lead a band in our garage?

And that band would take him around the world and land him in LA to make music for the film industry.

And did I think that in his 40s he would become the sweetest girl dad and the kindest husband? Parenting is such a crap shoot. We do the best we can at the time, and for some of those early years I was not as present as I should have been. I wasn’t happy leaving the Berkshires and living in suburbia. But eventually I came around, and found my tribe and started writing for a different newspaper.

I threw the baby Rocker birthday parties at the beach. I encouraged his curiosity. And I made tiny pizza bagels for the boys in the band and told the bass player to read Dune, never knowing that my son would work on the movie trailer. That he would compose music for Spielberg’s Disclosure Day.

Now I look at the Twins toddling around, both playing a harmonica while learning lots and lots of words like: Wow; Monkey; Car; Fish; and best of all NANA! Oh and when one girl gets excited, and starts to scream, the Rocker looks her in the eye and asks her how she’s feeling?

“HAPPY” she says.

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A Winning Streak

Posted in Books, Journaling, Wedding, Country, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on June 16, 2026| Leave a Comment »

What a week!

The Knicks WON the NBA Championship with some of the most thrilling plays and underwhelming referees in the history of the game. Growing up in NJ, I’ve always loved the Knicks ever since their last win in 1973 when they defeated the Lakers. I was glad the crowd booed Mr T when he showed up at Madison Square Garden for Game 3, and happy to see Prince Harry sitting with the Commish at Game 5 for the win. I even loved seeing Taylor Swift do a little dance!

Tay Tay’s biggest fan, our Love Bug, has started training for high school basketball in the Fall. She even told me that she shot a 3 pointer that missed, while simultaneously running up to the basket to tap it in for the points. Incredible, she assisted herself! And that the girls played a boy’s team and WON. I’ve honestly never been so proud. Of course, I had to tell her about Bille Jean King. The Bug’s coach would like to recruit her for bigger and better teams, but for now she’d rather focus on volleyball… and starting high school.

And in even better news, last Thursday I walked into the library for my weekly Mahjongg game, fresh after the Knick’s come from 29 points behind win, and asked if anyone saw the game? Only the youngest woman there smiled and yelled YES, and I confessed that I’d gone to bed while the Knicks were 25 points behind thinking we were doomed. And now I cannot stop watching videos of the NY crowd at MSG losing their f-ing minds as the ball is gently assisted into the basket for the winning point. It is pure unadulterated joy! And just about an hour later, in the library…

I WON at Mahjongg for the second time since I’d started playing this year and I felt for just a few minutes a kind of joy – not the jumping up and down kind of joy – but an incandescent, quiet pleasure in understanding this game, in stretching my mind.

I was starting to feel defeated by Mahjongg. We had all been learning to play on the National Mahjongg League 2025 card, when the new 2026 card came out in April. Yep, just when you think you have a handle on strategy and a bit of memory for the winning lines, they throw it all up in the air and present you with a whole new card. “Save your 6s;” “Never stop the Charleston;” “Look for pungs;” were some of the tips I heard in the whirlwind of combinations my brain was trying to follow. This is not a game for the faint of heart.

Lately I’d had a passing thought, maybe I should return to the beginner’s table, where the play was slower and talking encouraged. Then it all came together.

To top off the weekend, we met our Germantown friends at the Schermerhorn Symphony to celebrate Juneteenth with the Nashville African American Wind Symphony (NAAWS). This is their fifth year in the community elevating composers and musicians of color. It was a glorious night filled with classical music alongside jazz and even some pop.

And speaking of concert halls, how about the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts? The tarps went up and the huge bronze letters came down on Saturday after Rep Joyce Beatty of Ohio initiated a lawsuit to remove Mr T’s name. Thankfully a judge ruled that the center could not be renamed without approval from Congress. Thank you Rep Beatty.

I believe the tide is turning. Let’s make a joyful noise for our nation’s birthday this year.

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Waiting for Smaug

Posted in Books, Journaling, Wedding, Country, tagged , , , , , , , , , on June 9, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Right before the deluge of rain yesterday, our bathroom vanity showed up. Wayfair was supposed to text me between 2:30 and 6:30 to tell me they were 30 minutes away, instead I heard a faint knock on the front door at 1:30. It’s a good thing I was home, waiting, and not out looking at ceiling fans with Bob. I’d had a green vanity with a marble countertop in my cart for weeks, but when it came time to order I changed my mind. It was the marble. It’s too precious, too expensive, and too much trouble for the occasional guest to worry about staining.

Today we’ll open the carton to make sure the sink isn’t broken.

The kitchen appliances are all stacked neatly in the middle of the living area, waiting for the plumber. I didn’t want a big L-shaped kitchen in our little casita, they will be lined up against one wall – half of a galley. And I opted for no dishwasher, and instead ordered a washer/dryer combo like we had in our Charlottesville four square.

Don’t judge me. My brother, sister, and even my husband and daughter prefer washing dishes the old fashioned way, I’m presuming anyone staying with us will be sharing meals with us anyway.

And speaking of my sister Kay, she’s waiting for the elevator in her NYC co-op to be replaced. She would like to have her furniture shipped down here; along with her artwork, this would make her Nashville apartment feel more like home. It feels more like a hotel at the moment, with good restaurants, PT and OT that comes right to her door, and all the T’ai Chi and Bingo she never knew she wanted. Since her arrival, we’ve talked about making this a permanent move, but she’d been on the fence.

It’s hard to wait with uncertainty.

The work on the elevator was delayed, so a two month stay is stretching into three. Still, nothing can be done until there is a new elevator installed…

Our twin granddaughters are on the move in LA. They’ve started walking and are trying running and jumping too! They know lots of words and love to sing the “I Have Two Eyes” song with us on FaceTime, sticking out their tongues, blowing kisses. I cannot wait for our visit in a couple of weeks; last time we were there, they were still holding onto our fingers to take a few steps.

But we have to wait – for the plumber, the elevator, and our trip to California. Even the Love Bug is waiting to start high school and get her first phone, without social media mind you. The Pumpkin, OTOH, has finally become the proud owner of a bearded dragon named Smaug thank you Tolkien (pronounced Smog). He waited to find the perfect, large terrarium, he biked to the stream in the park to find a big piece of driftwood, and he signed a contract with his parents about its care and feeding. Let the summer commence.

Although we will still have to wait until at least June 13th to see if the Knicks can pull off a championship season!

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to be Rude or not to be Rude

Posted in Books, Journaling, Wedding, Country, tagged , , , , , , , , on June 2, 2026| 2 Comments »

Since I’ve stopped watching morning TV shows with my coffee, my life has improved. No more cursing under my breathe, a political veil of dread no longer accompanies me to the shower. Instead, I open my iPad to Substack and read – about how women need estradiol hormones after menopause; about a writer’s style vs their voice; about the intersection of physical and emotional pain; and occasionally I’ll read Mary Trump’s insights about her uncle.

But last night, after visiting Kay for some tech support, I was caught off guard by a barrage of comments on Threads – my pivot away from Twitter aka X – about an interview on the Today Show yesterday. People were up in arms about the way Craig Melvin treated our former First Lady, Dr Jill Biden. The word that kept popping up was that he was “RUDE.” So of course I had to open the interview this morning…. but first I put the Today Show on and was astounded at how simplistic and redundant it was, and this was before the puff pieces. I didn’t miss it in the least.

I wanted to see if Melvin would apologize. He didn’t.

Over the years I’d done my share of interviews for a local newspaper. Of course there were no cameras, and some were just on the phone. But I would try to dig beneath the facade of local color, not focus on what they were selling me about themselves. Why did the nurse move here? When did the hedge fund guy get interested in basketball? I’d take a corner and run with it, to fill out their personality on the page. To overuse an overused word, I’d try and make them relatable.

Jill Biden needs no introduction. She’s a smart, competent woman, a college professor, who married an older man. She raised his two sons as her own after the devastating car accident that killed Joe Biden’s first wife and baby daughter. Being a native of Scranton, PA and having been torn from my family after a car accident, I had always loved Joe Biden. And Jill was his rock, his “gut check.” Now she’s written a book – a memoir, “View From the East Wing.” You remember the East Wing don’t you? Bob’s reaction to all the press is similar to many Democratic strategists – why bring this all up, the failed debate and his failing health, right before the midterms? This is what Jill said in a January 2024 AP interview, when her husband was 81 years old:

“I say his age is an asset… He has wisdom. He has experience,” (Jill Biden) continued. “He knows every leader on the world stage. He’s lived history. He knows history. He’s thoughtful in his decisions. He is the right man or the right person for the job at this moment in history.”

And now she tells us she thought her husband was having a stroke while debating Mr T on June 27th of that same year. I watched my husband have a stroke, and he didn’t go right back to work. The doctors told her he was fine. But she wanted to “…lift him up.” Melvin pressed her by asking if Joe was too old for the job, and wasn’t she setting a “pretty low bar” by telling him only that he’d answered every question later that night. She insisted it was his decision and his alone, to stay in the presidential race. I felt sorry for Jill Biden, but I can’t imagine she wasn’t prepared to play hard ball with the press. I actually find it demeaning for people to react as if she’s a poor, pitiful older woman who needs protecting. Get over it social media, we Boomers have survived Watergate and worse.

Jill Biden wrote the book. She watched her husband lose support, she watched the bulldozers tear down the East Wing. It was like living in a Shakespearian tragedy. She has a right to her own story. Another First Lady had this to say about that.

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