Grief

It's 2 years since I moved to Lancaster PA and 3 years since I was left alone. While I'm thankful for the years we had, my grief is forever. For the first time, I have no one to share my days with and miss the closeness at the end of the day when we shut out the world, even for just a little while.

"you never realize how lonely you are until it's the end of the day and you got a bunch of things to talk about and no  one to talk to" unk.

Solar Eclipse Port Clinton OH April 8 2024

We were in Idaho, in the Path of Totality for the 2017 eclipse. I never dreamed I'd be fortunate enough to see another eclipse in my lifetime. What a honor!

When I learned that my hometown, Port Clinton OH, would be in the Path on April 8, 2024, I promised myself I'd be there. I'd committed to being there for at least a week so I could see childhood friends, tour, see old sights, maybe take the ferry over to Put-In-Bay. It was even more special when Carla and Arthur decided to join me and flew over from NYC to spend time with me.

The eclipse in Ohio was spectacularly different from 2017 and totally unexpected. The skies were clear, the sun was shining, and the total eclipse looked like a glittering circle of diamonds in the sky...Lucy didn't show. The 2017, the eclipse in Idaho was blurred by the smoke from the forest fires in the area, even though it was a sunny day.

I rented a condo on the shores of Lake Erie, with access to the private grounds and beach to avoid crowds and enjoy the eclipse. 

We packed food, drinks, jackets, and chairs and moved on down to the water's edge well before the eclipse began. There were only about a dozen folks, mostly guests, as the summer residents had not yet arrived. Arthur brought along eclipse music.                                                                                                            

None of my pictures captured the glow of the diamond ring. I was too busy admiring the spectacle to fuss with camera settings. I just set it up, did my best, and reach up to press the shutter button occasionally. 

Believe it or not, most everyone left right after the diamond ring, but we stayed to the entire time. We couldn't bear it to be over.

So let me leave you with this. Arthur filmed the view we never see from the other side...and it's incredible!

Lancaster PA recap 2023

Bye 2023!

Two anniversaries have gone by since I was left alone. I have settled into life in Lancaster PA for the most part. Even though I am free to do as I wish, I can't shake the feeling that I should rush home or call if I'm running late. I'm trying to stay busy, but sometimes I just waste an entire day, staring or sleeping. There is so much to do here, and I have few friends, so I'm fearful of going out alone. My love of hiking and photoraphy will eventually break that habit when I'm fully functional.

I've already been involved at The Creative Factory https://lancastercreativefactory.org/renting studio space to work on my favorite hobby, lampwork beads.

In other news, I had my right hip replaced in April 2023; I went to rehab for 3 months then continued in the MAG (Medically Adaptive Gym) with a personal trainer.

I spent a few days at Ocean City NJ, enjoying the sandy beach and swimming in the ocean.

Despite being active, I was hospitalized with DVT (deep vein thrombosis) and pulmonary embolism, blood clots traveled to my lungs. My doctors were certain this didn't happen due to my hip replacement 4 month ago, so I'm forever on blood thinners.

Christmas guests included brother Ken, daughter Carla and fiancé Arthur, and we had a Christmas Eve fire at their AirBnB. The warmth of family, good food and libations kept us cozy in the chill night air.

Games!

Strasburg Railroad

Stockings, even for the kitties

Sunny

Treking poles!

Goodbye 2023, Happy New Year!

https://youtu.be/YE6bDb13MWs?si=r0feesVIqJJMIEbF