June 16

My nose is dripping, every morning it runs. Sometimes like a faucet, sometimes a stream.

1965

I got 2 swim suits today!yellow and white. Marcia called. She went to Kirby's and Joey, Dennis and Rodney were there. Dennis likes her and Rodney asked her who the girl with the dress with the gold sunflowers was. IT WAS ME! She told him, when he asked how old I was and he asked if I was allowed to date.

Comment 2006

And with that entry, the 1965 diary falls silent until August 8, while I was away at Camp Maria Pratt as a program aide. Evidently, I did not take the diary with me. What a school year it had been! Academically, I was all over the place. For the best part of the year I was besotted with love for a senior. I struggled to understand love and sexuality at a time when hardly any real information was available, and popular culture was saturated with myth and fantasy. Beyond my personal bubble, there was a disturbing world of racial conflict, assassinations, war and nuclear terror.

But the summer of 1965 was a retreat from all of that. No boys, no TV, no newspapers, just a hundred of so girls living in tents and singing by the campfire. Oh, reality intruded now and then. 

1966

One week to go! Started packing today, also went shopping. I bought p.j.s and a robe, and this record book and two pens. I hope I can keep writing, and not sluff off. Everything will be so wonderful - I’ll remember this trip forever!

Took Dad to Waterbury for a neurological check, also. He has something rare, but not dangerous.

School ends tomorrow - next year I’ll be a SENIOR - impossible! We get report cards, too. Here are my approximate marks (sheer guesses):

English III   90

Spanish III   94

US History  85

Math III.      80 (My last year!!!!!!)

Chem     80

PE.               A or A-

Dance.         B or C

I hope I do better, but I probably won’t.

Comment 2023

Summer 1966 was my first big adventure: six weeks in Mexico City with a Spanish teacher and his wife. Buckle up!

1987

My sabbatical is coming up. Am I looking forward to it! I keep wondering how exactly I am going to manage my schedule. It’s going to be entirely new, and very freeform. Right now it looks like this: Writing on Saturday. Kiddo 1 in afternoon kindergarten M-F, Kiddo 2 at daycare M and W afternoons. Research M and W afternoons.

1995

What a strange flight. We left DC at 2:30 pm, flew to Chicago, left Chicago at 4”40 pm, and arrived in Sweden at a little after 8 am. Really, it was 2 am. Kiddo 2 got about 3 hours of sleep, and that was more than anyone else. Then we made our way to the hotel (Had a little mix-up because they had our name misspelled.)

So we napped a bit longer, then got up and made our way into Stockholm. The village we are staying in, Vasby, is small but very cosmopolitan. There are lots of bicyclists who commute into the city. The parking lot was full of bikes. The kids were a bit tired, but game, and we kept the touring to a minimum. We saw some of downtown Stockholm by foot, by bus, by train and by boat. It’s lovely, picturesque, lively and friendly. More diverse than I expected. Oddly, the best part is Vasby. To get a feel for a place, small is sometimes better.

1998

I killed nearly an hour playing Tetris today, but it was after a good cleaning session in the kitchen. It feels like summer today – – hazy and hot. The trees and lawns are lush and deep green (of course, it has rained and rained!)

We have painted part of the bedroom the new color and it is beautiful. I was a little nervous about pink (a soft dusty rose, in fact) after years of gray and blue. But the rose walls pick up the color in the rug, and the blue sheets and curtains give the taste of sky blue pink. Luscious. Excuse me, Miss Suzy wishes to go out.

2004

Ready to leave Denver (sort of). My train leaves in a couple of hours and I am nearly packed and about to check out of the hotel. It’s too bad I can’t spend more time in Denver. It’s been a while since I was here, and there have been so many changes.

My roundtable went very well - - it helped me to think more strategically about how to approach change in my department. Since I can’t redo the curriculum by fiat, I need to work with the faculty to get them on board. This is my last chance to try my strengths as an administrator.

10:45 am Winter Park, CO We rode through the fog and drizzle from Denver to the Moffat Tunnel, then emerged 10 minutes later into brilliant sunshine. To my delight, they were NOT working on the tunnel today so we are taking the scenic route!

2016

I continue to struggle with my weight. I know I need to get my blood cholesterol down, that my knees will be happier if I am lighter. But clearly eating more fruits and vegetables will not do it all and a few minutes of dancing is not enough, either.

My nose is dripping, every morning it runs. Sometimes like a faucet, sometimes a stream. I had another unrestful night. I need to go to sleep earlier, perhaps without a screen. It is also not a good idea to take my nap at 4:30 or 5 o'clock, which is what I did.

I am puzzled as to how I watched English Babu, Desi Mem the first time. I swear it was on YouTube, but it's not showing up. This is a major monkey wrench in my plans.

I have a slight headache, perhaps because of last night's beer. Unlikely, it wasn't that much. More likely it is the barometric pressure. The front is moving through, bringing rain and humidity

Today I finally settle the Social Security situation. Or I hope. It is all my fault! But this should end the saga. Then I will do some shopping at Wegmans for stuff for the Fat Man this weekend.

This morning's playlist is ending with the Agnus Dei from Missa Gaia. That is the most beautiful piece I've ever performed. It never ceases to pull at me, wherever my mind is. Today it makes me feel peaceful and introspective. The chords when the sopranos hit their high note speak my arms tingle. A strange sensation, even stranger to associate with music.

Four of discs. “It may be hard to say no as she is overrun by people and things. Perhaps she is choosing to be open to an influx of activity.”

I imagine this in relation to General Assembly. So many people, so many opportunities and obligations. I must choose carefully so I have time to experience and savor.

Explanations, 2023:

Fat Man: For years, we collaborated with another couple on an auction item for our church called variously “A Cheesy Evening” or “A Cheesy Evening with the Fat Man” or eventually, just “an Evening with the Fat Man”. As you might guess, the refreshments featured cheese. “The Fat Man” was a radio play written by one of the participants, a parody of “The Thin Man” series. It ran for at least ten years of silliness.

2023

For your listening pleasure: