Bfth's Boring Blog

  It's Wednesday, which means I'm in the office.  Because it's important that I be in the office, right?  (If you need to catch up:   https://bfthsboringblog.blogspot.com/2022/09/new-weekly-routine.html , which is really the start of the whole process...sort of.)  As a side note, the express bus was EARLY this morning and while I gave myself enough time to get to the stop based on the time that it was supposed to arrive at my location, when I checked on my walk down, what should have been a bus arriving in 15 minutes was now arriving in 7.  Good thing I wore old loafers as I did a modified "run" (I'm NOT a runner) downhill and managed to get to the stop with 4 minutes to spare...This express bus thing can be a challenge.  It also requires more walking, but it takes me DIRECTLY to Penn Station in Newark and if I purchase a Flex Pass (20 one-way trips to be used in 30 days) it will be cheaper than what I am currently doing.  Of course that means that I'd hav

  Judy Blume is everywhere again.  There's a wonderful documentary out there  Forever Judy Blume  (I highly recommend it) and they've made a movie out of the iconic,  Are You There God, Its Me Margaret . To me, that's a good thing.  I grew up reading Judy Blume.  I'd like to say that I've read everything she's written, but in doing my research I haven't.  There are a least 2 "middle grade/young adult" books that I missed:   Just As Long As We're Together , and  Here's To You Rachel Robinson.   I guess I "aged" out of them. Maybe now is the time to find them and read them...maybe now is the time to go back and read ALL of them. I know Judy Blume is (currently) one of the most banned authors. I never got the whole banning thing.  Telling a kid/teen NOT to do something (often) only makes them want to do it more!  If you don't want your child to read something; don't let them, but don't tell me or my child what I can or ca

 Today is the first day of the 4th marking period at school.  For us, it is the first day of the last marking period, period.  My son's 13 year (I'm counting elementary school) is coming to an end.  (Funnily enough, he will be spending this first "last" not in the classroom, but on a field trip to see "Wicked" which I believe includes speaking with some of the cast members and learning about their training and experiences.  Furthermore, I believe one of the cast members [although I do not know if she is part of today's discussion] is also a professor at the college my son will be attending.  Is that a sign?  [A sign of what I don't know.]  While his intended major is not theater, I do hope that he will be involved in some way with their theater department as it has been such an integral part of his life over these past 4 years.)  What has happened in the past 13 years is amazing.  Not only for my son, but for all students. It does seem like a lifetim

  I recently finished Michelle Miller's book  Belonging: A Daughter's Search for Identity Through Loss and Love.   It is a powerful memoir and it got me thinking about my own sense of belonging, or lack thereof.  It got me thinking that probably ALL of us are looking for that sense of belonging. As a child, Michelle doesn't fit into any neat category.  Do any of us?  There must be someone out there who does, or who feels as though they do.  I never felt like I fit in.  (Honest revelation:  I still don't feel that I do.)  I think as a child I was cute, but not THAT cute.  I was "chubby," a term/group that no one wants to belong to. (I can still feel the sting of the elementary school "bully" who made fun of me when I wore my orange parka.)  I was smart, but didn't belong to the group of really smart students and when I ended up in "advanced" classes in high school, I never felt like I completely belonged.  I was part of the music program

April 2013 Ten years ago I sat down and wrote this:   "Friday, April 12th Steve took me to see Michael Nesmith at the Union County Performing Arts Center; a charming theatre that has been around since the early part of the last century and miraculously survived being torn down and becoming a parking lot.   It was not the first time the two of us had seen “Papa Nez” in concert.   While promoting his album Tropical Campfires in early 1992, he had done a concert at the now defunct Lone Star Roadhouse in NYC.   Both Steve and I were there; even though we didn’t even know each other yet."   It was my first blog post.   What I write today will be my 1,353rd published post on this space.   There are posts out there that I never published.   Posts that I never finished.   Posted that ended up elsewhere. (I'm an occasional contributor to MyVeronaNJ.   I believe my first articles appeared in 2014, which means I have another anniversary coming up next year.   I am still incredibly f

  Believe it or not, this is not a preachy post about metaphorically walking in my shoes.  No preaching today.  (Or at least not too much preaching.)  Today I am writing about actual shoes. I love shoes.  I love shoes because in general, if I have gained weight or lost weight, they still look good.  The shoes I bought 5 years ago still fit, even if I have gained a few pounds.  Not so for those pants that I bought.  I find that most of my shoes stand the test of time, unlike many other things in my life.  Even cheaper (or really cheap) shoes seem to last.  So, if it was completely up to me (or if I had it in my budget), I'd buy lots of shoes.  Of course I have a small(ish) wide foot so I've found that finding dress shoes could be a challenge.  (And often expensive.) With the pandemic, I bought less shoes. I certainly didn't need heels, even though I love the way that they look.  I rarely wear them anymore.  So when I put on a pair on Easter Sunday...well it was an unpleasant

  Dear Mom, Easter weekend was certainly strange this year, but Easter has been strange EVERY year since 2018, as that was really our last TRUE Easter together with you, dad and Aunt Julie.  Things changed after that with you moving to the shore, Covid and Aunt Julie moving to western Pennsylvania.  I've tried to keep the holidays "special", but it hasn't worked out too well. You weren't well last Easter.  We all came down to see you on the Saturday before, but it was awkward.  You didn't enjoy your favorite foods and could barely eat.  It was upsetting and the last holiday that we, along with you and dad (as well as M, your caregiver) were all together.  It wasn't really happy. I took Good Friday off, as your grandson was having oral surgery.  He had one wisdom tooth removed (the one that was coming in sideways).  It went well, but he was understandably nervous.  He'd never had any kind of procedure done so we were all a bit unnerved.  I had made a ps

  Lent is almost over.  I've got a lot of chocolate hidden away, ready to make an appearance on Sunday.  (And you can bet that I will be cramming plenty of it into my mouth at the first opportunity.)  However there is one thing that will be missing this year from my Easter basket:  jellybeans.  I'm not just talking about any jellybean; though most are pretty good.  (Unless you are talking about black jellybeans, which I believe should be banished from not just the planet, but from the universe.)  I enjoy Jolly Rancher or Starburst brands.  Jelly Belly are overrated in my opinion.  But the BEST jellybeans in my book are Russell Stover brand.   Yes, they make chocolate and that too is completely awesome.  However, there are other chocolates that I know (too well) and love.  It's their jellybeans that made their mark on me and EVERY year I make sure to buy a bag or two when I go to the grocery or pharmacy.   As a matter of fact, I had a hidden a bag from last year away a

  For me this has been a strange Lent.  I almost called it "unholy" but I didn't think that was quite right.  Perhaps I should call it the semi-observant Lent or the Bfth's inactive Lent.  Honestly, there really isn't a right way to describe it. As always I went into the season with the best of intentions.  I find Lent to be a time of reflection and I felt that I needed that.  It didn't happen.   Let's just say this Lent has been weird.  Most Sundays I was unable to physically attend church services.  Instead I spent a lot of Sundays (and Saturdays) on the Garden State Parkway going to see my father, who has been in and out of the hospital and is currently in a recovering in a rehabilitation facility.  (I was hoping he'd be well enough/strong enough to go back home by Easter, but that isn't going to happen.  I'm now focused on getting him back by the first week in May.)  It wasn't what I was planning or expecting.  (When is ANYTHING?) Furth

 Life is full of unsolved mysteries.  Some are big (where is Jimmy Hoffa?) and some are small (where did the other sock go?).  Some CAN be solved, but we don't necessarily want them to be (why can't I get rid of those 10 pounds?  Why is it taking so long to lose just one pound?).  Some will just remain frustrating mysteries and I suppose we have to deal with that. I was thinking about all this while I was out walking this morning.  Yes, spring is seems to be really here (meaning temperatures are above 42 when I get home).  Since the mornings are warmer (although still dark), I've taken to the streets again.  Walking outside in the mornings gives me time to think.  I feel that I come up with some of my best ideas/topics when I'm out walking.  (You might disagree as I ramble on here.)   One particular mystery, which really ISN'T a mystery, was why I am moving so slow these days.  The answer, which I don't want to hear, is that I am getting older and I just don

  This past weekend was another "Fest" weekend. (reference:   https://bfthsboringblog.blogspot.com/2023/04/whos-fool.html ,  https://bfthsboringblog.blogspot.com/2022/04/thoughts-from-endemic-fest.html .)  The weekend stirred up a lot of different emotions (especially as this was the first weekend that I have not gone to see my father since the end of 2022).  Frustration, anger and sadness were more prevalent than in previous years, but I don't want to focus on that.  (Nor do I want to talk about how exhausting the weekend is...and not in a good way.)  I want to focus on two moments of joy.  Number one was both planned and spontaneous.  How can that be?  Well, my husband (who runs the video room) was showing a set of Badfinger videos on Saturday afternoon.  (I hope you don't have to Google Badfinger, but if you must do it now and then listen to some of their music.)  One of the guests at the fest was Joey Molland.  (If you had to Google before, you shouldn't have

  I'm the fool.  (Furthermore, I live on a hill...think about that.)  Why? Because for the 31 years (including the 2020 Covid virtual one) I've been coming to  The Fest For Beatles Fans . (I've actually been to 33 fests.  In my younger years, I went to the ones in Los Angeles [nightmare and not because of the fest, but because of an airline strike] and Chicago)  For the majority of those years, I've been coming with my husband.  (He "proposed" in our hotel room, but that's another LONG story.)  In the "beginning" I enjoyed the convention.  There were great guests, friends (oh, the wonderful friends I have made) and music.  However, for over a decade my husband has been running the video room, which changes things.  Instead of enjoying the show, he is running it and for better or worse (where have I heard that phrase before?), I am by his side (for the most part).  Working the fest is very different than attending.  It's exhausting and I'm