Sophie's Story

   Yesterday we went out to lunch with Evie. Evie is an elderly woman I met when she was one of my customers. We struck up a friendship which had now developed into her becoming my adopted grandmother.    We have been out to eat many many times with her. It's one of the few times she gets to leave her house. (Her health is fragile so mainly she only leaves her house to go to medical appointments.) We used to take her out to eat once a month at an Italian restaurant whenever  we fed the missionaries. She loved that. The missionaries liked it too.    She always wears jewelry when she goes out.  It doesn't matter if she is wearing a sweatshirt or a dressier shirt. She always has earrings, at least one ring and a necklace. She must have a massive collection because I seldom see her wear the same things twice.    She has  good taste when it comes to her jewelry. I'm always complimenting her on something she is wearing or asking her about what stone she has. Most of the time

   We have been home from Door County for about a week. I know that I should be searching for jobs, filling out applications, updating my resume and trying to figure out how I'm going to explain that I almost got a consulting only pharmacy licensed. That's what you do when you lose your job, you start searching for another one right away.    I'm not doing that. Instead, I'm taking a week off to catch up. I washed all the clothes from our trip along with our sheets, towels and anything else that needed washing. I mopped the kitchen floor and cleaned the cats' water fountain. I started knitting the baby presents for my adopted niece since I didn't get them finished on our trip.   There were a lot of things that I neglected while I was working at the clinic. I was given some birthday presents which are still sitting on the floor of my spare room. Things need to be cleaned and organized. It's supposed to be nice out this weekend and I am going to pull all t

   I ran lightly up the stairs to our room in the bed and breakfast. Once I got to the top I walked to the door four room and went inside. I paused for a minute inside the door. I wasn't gasping for air. I didn't even have to stop to catch my breath on the way up. I was carrying my knitting bag which is pretty heavy. I didn't have to drop it as soon as I got through the door.    That wasn't the case last year. Last year I had to take the steps slowly. Usually I had to pause at the top to catch my breath. In fact last year walking anywhere was a slow process. When we walked in the woods we had to stop every few feet so I could catch my breath.    That is what happens with someone suffering from severe anemia. I didn't know it at the time. I just chalked it up to being very dehydrated and maybe a little anemic. I was taking an iron supplement. I'm a health care professional , I know what I'm doing. What I didn't realize until after we got home from Do

   Today is our first whole day in Door County. Thankfully it was not raining this morning and the sun was peeking out from behind the clouds. It was a good day to go the the Apple Festival. We had never been to the Apple Festival before. In fact we didn't even know there was one. After a wonderful breakfast and conversation with Kirstie and Chad who are the new innkeepers,we headed out. The first thing we noticed was that it was a bit nippy and a breeze was blowing.    We got the the place where the festival was taking place. We were early as things were still being set up. There was going to be pumpkin painting and apple launching. The apple launching looked interesting. A large slingshot made of bungee cords was rigged together and fastened to the ground. There was a small roof over the contraption. Tied to the bungee cords was a small pouch where the apple being launched was placed. There were three large barrels set up a good distance away. If your apple landed in the barre

   "I'm on my way to get you, pack up your stuff. We're done." I held the phone in my hand not quite believing what I'd just heard.     "We're done?"     "Yes," said C. "Get your things together." All of them."     I hung up a little dazed. I couldn't leave. I was supposed to stay and answer the phones. I had follow up calls to make. I couldn't leave. We had patients tomorrow that I was supposed to work with. I stayed at my desk trying to understand what just happened.    C came in. I knew he had just come from a finance meeting with the doctor that owns the clinic I work at and the newly hired office manager. He sat in the chair next to my desk. I looked at him, confused.    "We're done," he said. "Pack up."    The short story was that after a review of finances, it was determined that all non essential  staff were going to be laid off. As a pharmacist, I fell into that category. It di

   There has been a lot of articles and opinions about social media and its advantages and disadvantages. Studies have shown that users of various types of social media have a detrimental effect on mental health. To me it's a no brainer. If you spend all your time socializing online and don't get out to meet real people it does bad things to you. Then there's the whole issue of cyberbullying, which means that a victim literally has no safe place to go since the bullies can follow via phone or tablet.    Sometimes, the internet can help bring people together. I've experienced this several times. I've found a few people that I had lost touch with over the years. My latest experience was this past week. I'd like to share it.    Several weeks ago, I peeked at one of my accounts. I saw a work anniversary for Greta Oldenburg. I knew Greta from many many years before. I dated her older brother for about four years. We'd met once after the breakup when I