What calms you?

It's a high anxiety time. I talked to a good friend recently who said when she "gears up" putting on her facemask - and mentally prepares for a trip to the grocery store, she notices how anxious she feels. I can relate. I bet you can too. Shopping is not a leisure experience anymore.

A couple weeks ago I quipped that leaving the store be all like "I just pulled off a caper!" I put on my buff and gloves to shop at HyVee. At the store, I pick my places - trying my best to keep distance between me and the other shoppers and staff. Sometimes I hold my breath! I know, probably dumb - I haven't seen that method being touted as a way to be safe. Still, like holding my breath riding in a car driving by a graveyard when I was a kid, or not stepping on a sidewalk crack, I've adopted this behavior during Covid 19 times.

I started thinking about what helps me reduce stress. Reading Twitter and other news sites aren't stress reducers! So I'm trying to do less of that. I (and many others) enjoy doing Jigsaw puzzles. I started this hobby even before the pandemic as a way to reduce screen time. Walking and listening to books are two other great hobbies for me. I read fiction, but I marvel at the amount of educational information passed on in the books I read. Love my soaker bathtub for stress reduction too.

Today I'm listening to "The Tale Teller" by Anne Hillerman. It's part of the Leaphorn, Chee, Manuelito Four Corners detective series - started by Ms. Hillerman's father Tony who passed away in 2008. His daughter Anne carried on his legacy, writing the series which contains a great deal of information on Native American culture and antiquities. The reader speaks Navaho - the dialect is so intriguing. The characters are well-developed and dependable. During this time, I'm finding it best for me to read/listen to books where the good guys come out on top in the end. Lately, I've returned some books early that seemed to be too negative. I don't need that right now.

I've been thinking back to simpler times. Our high school class is planning next year's Class Reunion and a group email brought up some memories. All good ones - funny stuff about interaction with teachers and each other. I'd forgotten about what a body-baring time in life that was! A great deal of "mooning" (dropping drawers to show one's butt") and "streaking" (running buck naked) was happening. There are no photos and I wasn't involved. One classmate's brother attended a basketball game in a long trenchcoat. As we all stood up at the start of the game, he opened his coat to let loose two pigeons that flew around the gym pooping during the rest of the game. Incoming!

Jack was such a handsome boy! 

It was a fun time, but I sure wouldn't want to go back to those years. Teen angst you know. I was so fortunate to have a horse - Poco HiJack (Jack). He was wonderful therapy. I could ride him, brush him, or just lay on his back and sing while he grazed in the small fenced-in area at the Guttenfelder farm where he was boarded. He was solid and huggable, calm and secure. Hey - he sounds a lot like my husband! haha

Paul enjoys hunting to reduce anxiety - check out that happy smile! 

Everyone needs ways to reduce anxiety. I hope you are getting for yours!

Ch ch ch changes

Our local newspaper, The Des Moines Register has a "can't miss" section, call "2 Cents Worth". It's a short anonymous blast by readers. Yes, the proverbial train wreck that one can't stop looking at. I admit it's a guilty pleasure of mine. Topics range from politics (local and beyond) to dog poop to thanks for turning that wallet in at the mall.

Recently a post (or a letter to the editor) blasted our local grocery store chain, HyVee, for changing. The poster thought they should "stick to just providing good food". Gee, I'll bet the brain trust at HyVee never thought of that... (this is what I do - read the posts and ridicule them).

The grocery industry is near to my heart because this was my first foray into the working world. Dateline: Gamble Robinson Company, May 1980, Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Unsuspecting young college graduate - fresh from four years of fun and "book learning". I quickly figured out that college accounting and economics had nothing to do with the real world of being an Office Manager at a grocery wholesale operation.

The other employees in the office (not 4-year college graduates) were kind enough to teach me everything I needed to know. It was a crash course in real life working world. I grew up a great deal during that year in Sioux Falls.

Today, Gamble Robinson is gone - swept up years ago by another, larger corporation. I miss the Snoboy fruits and vegetables logo! The second location I worked at, Gamble Robinson in Omaha, is now a parking lot at the Old Market.

My point? Times change. The grocery industry is really changing. Prepared meals are a big thing. Amazon purchased Whole Foods. If you don't change - you could become a parking lot. The Fareway Company (another grocery chain - sticks to food, not open Sundays) has a model of not changing. It has worked well for that company to-date. It will be interesting to see if Fareway survives with this MO as Millenials become the largest group.

Giving Back

It's been a while since I put myself out there, volunteering. I've been looking for opportunities and finally, thanks to a conversation with a co-worker, got hooked up with Lutheran Services of Iowa (LSI). I'm a  rookie classroom assistant in their English as a Second Language program for refugees. After I contacted them about my interest in the program, the application process was fairly rigorous, including a TB test at the Polk County health center.

I volunteer once a week for two hours in a classroom with an instructor named Sue. She does a great job of being very inclusive - getting all the 12-14 attendees involved. For the first hour, we all work together as they practice listening, speaking and writing. For the second hour, I have had the chance to work one-on-one with a participant - using flashcards and worksheets. That has been especially fulfilling for me - though I need to work on ways to assist the person I'm working with better. I hope it comes with experience!

This Thanksgiving, I'm thankful for this opportunity to meet new people from places I've never heard of. Paul and I are off to Saint Louis to be with our family. I hope you have a lovely holiday! 

Checkin' in

I spoke to the man on the mountain today. No, not Moses - Paul G. Goldsmith, The Great White Hunter. Elk are playing hard to get this year. (Phew!) Don't tell him I said that...And it rained all day yesterday and last night. So he was a drowned rat, but just like Annie - the sun came out. Today. It sounds like they're hiking out tomorrow and hunting in the lower area. Heading home on Friday. I'm glad. I miss him! Plus I'm a little freaked out about this moving thing and he's not here to calm my nerves. The nerve of him!

Next week it's my turn to be gone and his week to stress out all by himself. I'm going to Boulder and Winter Park with five of my High School homegirls for a long weekend. Woohoo. That's going to rock. Hiking, beverages and laughter. Plus I think we're going to try that Croning Ceremony I read about - or we'll fake it and just pretend.

Monday I worked until noon and drove to Madison, WI all by my lonesome. I had a book on CD to listen to on the way there. Still Life With Crows by Preston and Child. It's about a six hour drive - and I didn't have a GPS, alas. Pablo has it in the mountains. But I managed to find my way to the Microtel. Why is it Indians are in the hotel biz, Vietnamese gravitate to doing nails and Chinese do food? That was one thing I pondered on the way home, when I didn't have a book to listen to...

The next day, I met with several people from Wisconsin DNR about their Green Tier Program. The program cuts through regulations for companies who are already going over and above doing good things environmentally. Cool stuff. I arrived in downtown Madison early and walked around a bit. Of course their capitol isn't quite as impressive as ours...no gold dome. I met the program chief and we headed to the Marigold for breakfast - I had a lovely tomato/artichoke quiche.

Madison is built between a couple lakes. It's a lovely town. I wish I would have had more time to look around. Lunch was with 3 staffers at a place called the Great Dane - on a veranda outdoors. Quite lovely. I'm awful at eating and talking though...everyone was done and I was still chewing!

It was after 8 p.m. when I got back to Joan's. And my roomie is at Lake of the Ozarks, so I'm Home Alone! Except tonight - her niece Kimmy will be here after her class at Mercy.

shoes made of chocolate

It's massive!

Tonight after work I visited the most hugest HyVee in the world - the new one on Douglas in Urbandale. It just opened in August. Here are a few photos. From this video display, it looks like they're going to Leed certification. That means they've gone all out to reduce waste, save energy and recycle. It's very impressive! I must say I'll go back.

Video display showing enviro stuff

HyVee Lounge area...
 

Today at lunch I spied this T-shirt at a shop in the East Village. Thought my pal Vidette might appreciate it. It's prolly tough to be African American in a town like Creston that's 95% Caucasian...

See my head in the window - almost as if I'm (a pasty white girl) in the shirt