Time moves on apace.   Since I had a 'funny do' when we were on holiday in Oregon in September 2025, I have been diagnosed with Afib.  Paroxysmal Afib to be exact.  I had a hard time accepting it mentally but think I am there now.  I still hate the randomness of it though.  Since a super kind lady at church gabe me an Apple watch to track episodes, I have bought one for myself and have found that helpful.  At the current time, I am waiting to have a loop monitor implanted in my chest (insurance cover permitting).  That will monitor my heart continually and will remain in place for 3 years apparently.

Anyway, to less boring stuff.  I am learning to play the drums!!!  Emma bought me a drum lesson for my 78th birthday and I loved it so have continued with a lesson each week.  So far I have had 11 lessons and this coming Sunday will be doing a drum solo at a local church together with the rest of my teacher's pupils.  Am I good enough?  Nope.  Am I enjoying it?  Yup.  Cannot imagine how I got into this!  Ha ha

I have also entered the local ROYGBIV painting exhibition.  My color was yellow.  I have done one painting which I am not happy with at all so have started another.  Might even remember to post it here you never know.

 Well, keeping up the regularity - not!  Just had my 78th birthday and am still in the theater.  Currently in The Laramie Project which is a hard hitting kind of on stage documentary about the torture and murder of Matthew Shepard a gay university student from Laramie, Wyoming.  I am loving the fact that this play can make a difference.  We are on stage the whole time and each of us plays around 6 different characters.

One of my characters is the doctor who first treated Matthew.

Here I play a Mormon minister and next
is a photo of us with 'big ass wings' to hide the preacher Fred Phelps.

The other big event in my life is that i have recently been diagnosed with Atrial Fibrilation about which I knew nothing.  Clearly, I know more and I suspect that when I was unwell in Oregon in the summer, that was the start of it.

It makes you really aware of your heart and when the heart misbehaves it feels just ghastly.  No warning either so as I have two mor performances this weekend I really amy praying that I don't get any incidents while on stage!

Yesterday was the 13th anniversary of our emigration!  Where does the time go.  I hate the direction that this country is going in though and think that the President, Donald Trump is a dangerous man.

 So at the fine old age of 76, I seem to have started an acting career!  I was lucky enough to get the part of Lady Bracknell in the Importance of Being earnest.

   

What a fab experience.  Emma was in it too which made it extra special. 

Both Chloe and Bella are heavily involved in the theater too.  Bella is becoming well known as an excellent sound technician and Chloe as an actor and singer in musicals.  Both are either in shows or rehearsing at the moment.

At the present time, I am in rehearsal for Blithe Spirit in the part of Mr. Bradman, the doctor's wife which is really exciting and Emma has just been offered at part in Twelfth Night (I will be in the ensemble).

Never, ever thought retirement would be like this for sure!

 Well, good grief........biggest gap yet!!

It's now 2024 and we have moved house twice more!  However, we seem to have ended up in my happy place.  New Bern, North Carolina.

What a wonderful place to live - really kind and friendly people and ALWAYS lots and lots to do.  Do I miss Texas?  Nope, well apart from a couple of friends and maybe their health system.

So we now live 'with' Emma, Henry and the three (teenage) grandchildren.  We found the perfect home - Steve and I have a kind of annex which is attached to the main house.  Our annex has two bedrooms (well one and my craft/art/work room, bathroom, living area and our own kitchen.  It's taken some getting used to in terms of the space and we have got rid of lots of stuff but I feel we are settled now which is good.  Here are a few photos....

New Bern has SO much to do.  There is always something happening.  The females of the family are all involved in theatre in some way.  Chloe into musicals, Emma and I have just finished appearing in The Importance of Being Earnest and Bella is a sound technician for a number of shows in town.  

 It's been over a year since I last posted...... here's a very brief synopsis...

We did the washing of vegetables and hands etc. etc.   Not allowed to hug or touch others which was bizarre and hard.  But I got a great Mother's Day gift in the form of plaster hands of the kids so I could hold their hands.

Poor Chloe couldn't have a regular birthday either so her friends did a Drive By birthday and we had a Party on the Porch for her - socially distanced of course.

 Then Henry lost his job (along with 300 others) and they decided to move to New Bern in NC.  I'd never heard of the place but.....we follow the grandchildren I guess.  

Then I was ill and needed major surgery.  No one could come to the hospital, not even Steve.  It was a grim time.  My faith and prayer got me through it for sure.

So in the middle of the pandemic, we put the house on the market.  Blanca was our realtor and we sold it within 4 days!!!!

We Visited New Bern for a couple of days and stayed at Hannah House B&B which was really lovely.  We loved New Bern from the start too!

When we had sold the house we took a few days to drive over.  No hot meals at any hotel or anything because of Covid.  We left on the 23rd September which is Bella's birthday and arrived here on the 1st October (my birthday)  Emma and Henry had got a house in Forrest Run neighborhood and we liked that.  We were lucky enough to get a home just five minutes from the kids and at a price we could afford because the people were in a rush to leave!

Now we are living in North Carolina and we love it.  Easily the best place we have lived here in the States.  Will write about life here in due course....

Thursday 19th March 2020 but not posted for a year for some reason!

Well, it's been a while I have to say!!
Today is Thursday 19th March and nearly everyone is inside because of the Corona Virus.  The virus started in China and because it is completely new, no one has vaccines or any treatment.
It's truly bizarre to live in this world now.  Today, in Texas, all schools, restaurants and bars are closed.  I must say that the majority of food places are doing food delivery or curbside service but it hasn't impacted us too much because we rarely eat out (maybe just a few times a year).  However for some people it will be a great blow.
There has been some crazy panic buying of ......toilet paper?  The symptoms of Covid 19 are dry cough, fever and difficulty breathing.  Not sure what they will be using the toilet paper for Im sure.
Anyway, this week we have done our first online shopping since coming to the States.  Kroger are  not delivering here but we went to their pick up point.  They were only short of four things we ordered so that's good.  We have lots of meals already in the freezer because whatever recipe Steve does is usually for more than 2 so we freeze what's left.  Sooooo glad for that.
The main defense at the moment is hand washing.  You would not believe the number of videos and instructions there are about how to wash your hands and it has to be for at least 20 seconds.  That's two renditions of Happy Birthday to You in case you weren't sure :-)

Sebastian

OK......I have a new role.....that of fundraiser.

So, this is the story.  One of our choir members, Blanca had a new baby.  I set up a Meal Train for her and when it was my turn, I took a meal round.  The baby was divine!  She let me hold him.  Ahhhhh.....nothing like it.  Then.............

Just two days later she has a call from the doctor to say there was a problem with his newborn screening!  Sebastian is diagnosed with SCID

SCID (Severe combined immunodeficiency) = No protection against infection

You have a newborn baby.  If you are lucky, you live in a state that does newborn screening for this condition, but then what?  I want to try and explain the effects….

Mom and newborn are isolated at home because ANY germs can infect and kill the baby.  Mom’s milk must be tested to ensure there is no bacteria.  Of course this means that the newborn gets used to a bottle so even nursing your baby is not possible.
Brothers and sisters cannot meet, touch, kiss, cuddle their new baby.  Mom communicates with her other children via FaceTime.  No visitors are allowed.
For a hoped for cure, the baby must receive a bone marrow transplant before he is 3.5 months old.  Preferably from a sibling.  Everyone gets tested in hospital - results take two weeks.
If there is a match, the baby has chemotherapy to get rid of any bad cells and then the transplant so that his tiny body can start building an immune system.  This is done in isolation in hospital with Mom with him for around two months.
There are NO support groups for parents or siblings that I have found.
The cost is likely to be more than $500,000 - medical insurance will not cover that amount, so there will be a minimum of $200,000 to find.  The cost of a house.
This is totally heartbreaking.  So far, on the Go Fund Me page I have set up we have raised $8,000 which is amazing.  I have also extended the Meal Train dates but this isn't as popular here as it was in California.
Blanca and I have been in constant contact.  We have decided that a BIG raffle would be a good idea, but I need help with that.  I have put out a call and she is looking too, so watch this space!