Bfth's Boring Blog

 Dear Dad, It's a hot summer day at the shore.  Yesterday was the first race of the season for the BBYRA, so of course I was thinking of you and knowing how much you would have wanted to be out there on the bay.  (While also NOT wanting to be out there...it is possible to love something and also dislike it at the same time, especially when relying on nature.) The wind was typical yesterday and by typical I mean ever changing.  There was no air in the morning, so you would have been sweltering under the sun.  I put the a/c on in the house.  Then then wind picked up and I was able to go out on the deck and be comfortable, first under the umbrella (which I managed to get out of the shed and [sort of] assemble on my own) and then in the sun sitting on the lounge chair.  It actually got cooler, and more windy, in the afternoon. (No surprise there.)  It actually got chilly and I put on a sweater (one of mom's; the one with all the sailboats on it).  (Meanwhile, just 50 miles nort

 I t's summer.  It's Saturday.  And here's what I'm thinking... Outdoor showers are awesome.  Showering under the sky (whether it be blue or dark and scattered with stars) is something to experience.  Use coconut shampoo and "tropical scent" body wash/soap and you are taken away to the island life no matter where you are. Downside?  Bird poop on the floor.  And that's why I wear flip flops (and aim the shower spray to wash it away). The gulls are using my dock as a "dropping" ground and feeding station again.  (They catch crabs and then drop them on the ground in order to break the shell open and eat them.) How did this happen?  This planter has always had a little pine tree/sapling in it, but now there's an eastern prickly pear in there too?  There is an eastern prickly pear in the front of the house, but this is behind it and in a planter?  I'm guessing local birds have had a hand in this.  The peach tree is starting to blossom.  These

 Summer officially arrived yesterday.  Of course it's been feeling like summer all week with temperatures in the 90s.  (Climate change people, it IS a thing and it IS something we need to be dealing with, but that's a post for another day.)  The ceiling fans have been going non-stop at my house and we've kept (keeping) the portable air conditioner on 24/7 in our home office, set to the lowest temperature the unit will allow.  It's not that it will get to that temperature and it's not to keep us cool.  It's to the computer equipment in there from overheating and dying.  As my husband said, our electric bill may be high, but it's cheaper than having to buy all new computer(s) and the "stuff" (that's my term) that goes along with it. This has been the week of graduations.  Yes, my son graduated from high school last year, but several of his friends graduated on Wednesday night and his girlfriend graduated last night.  For some reason, this has tug

  I was on vacation for the first couple of days this week.  Initially, I had planned for the long Father's Day weekend away. (To take my mind off the fact that this was the first one where my father was not around; it didn't work.)  That had to be changed from Saturday - Tuesday to Saturday - Monday as my son was invited to his girlfriend's prom, which was on Monday night.  Nonetheless, I had taken Monday and Tuesday off so I kept it that way.  (Although things have been so busy at work, which is the norm, that I did check in both days to catch up with emails too numerous to count.)  And that was a good thing, since we got home early afternoon on Monday, I had a chance to catch up on laundry, grocery shopping, helping my aunt out a bit and (best of all) getting a pedicure. However, today it was back to a physical office.  It's no secret that I'm NOT a fan of going into the office and I am really not a fan of the commute.  I love the flexibility that working from

When my son was in high school, he was active in the drama group. Being his mom, I was active in the parents group that was associated with that. The big fundraiser for the group other than the shows that they did was something called a flamingo flocking. You can check it out on Google but basically a flock of plastic flamingos show up on your lawn for 24 hours and then go away. A friend (or an enemy) pays for this to happen. It had been done with great fun for several years.  (Before my son had even hit high school, I flocked my high school English teacher who was about to retire.) Unfortunately his first year was 2020 so that didn't happen to the COVID.  In 2021 I became the co-president of parent organization and the task of flocking fell to me.   Because we had been out of service for so long I decided to flock all of the schools with all the principal's permission to announce the spring musical which was later that year than it ever been before again due to Covid.  Also be

  May and early June are months of graduation and even though my kid isn't graduating, that's a good thing.  Parking costs rise and traffic congestion becomes even worse and that's a good thing.  WHY?  Because when all of this is going on in Newark, I don't have to go into the office.  And I LOVE that! However, graduations are over and from what I hear the big brass is in the office this week, so you know what that means!  It's time to go back.  Now normally, I'd have come back on Tuesday, but yesterday would have been my dad's 88th birthday and I was "having feelings" about that.  (To be honest, I'm haunted by memories of his last birthday.  It was on a Sunday last year, and the summer church that he attended had just opened for the season.  So I made sure to fill his pew seat at the early morning service as one of his favorite ministers was filling the pulpit.  And later in the afternoon, I went to the care facility where he was and brought

These past weeks have been a little (?!) emotional for me.   (Outlined why in a post found  here )  So the fact that my heart is so filled with joy this Monday morning is truly a blessing.  Why?  Some of it is simple, some not so... Yesterday evening while my husband and I were at the shore my son went to see his girlfriend.  She attends a different high school than he did and will be graduating in just a few weeks.  She's a very sweet person and I'm grateful that she is part of our lives.  Unlike my son, she has never gone to a prom.  Her senior prom is next week and she asked my son to escort her.  (When my son went to his proms, he went with a group of friends...obviously this is a bit different.)  He had already agreed to go, but last night (and without our knowing), she "prom posed" to him. (If you don't know what a promoposal is:   https://www.merriam-webster.com/wordplay/what-does-promposal-mean )  Luckily, her mom texted me photos. (Which I will respectf

  If you don't know who (or what I am talking about), those are my dad's initials and today I definitely showed that I am his daughter. Let me backtrack a little.  My dad has been on my mind A LOT recently.  Both of my parents have, but my dad more than my mom.  We are at that time of year that used to be one of my favorites...summer.  I'm trying to keep it as one of my favorites, but it's been challenging recently.  My parents' anniversary (it would have been their 60th) was right before Memorial Day ( https://bfthsboringblog.blogspot.com/2024/05/60.html) .  Then there was Memorial Day, the unofficial start of the summer season and a time when I would visit my parents at the shore.  Follow that up by the a nniversary of my brother's death and then MY birthday. (It was not an easy one, for the first time EVER I just wasn't really feeling it )  We follow that up with my father's birthday in two days,  Father's Day, the official beginning of summer, t

  Today is NOT my birthday.  Today is the 80th anniversary of D Day.  (And if you don't know what that was, you need to dig in now and learn.)  However, my birthday is fast coming up (it's tomorrow).  And if you are reading this I have two requests for gifts that you can give to me. Number 1 is to remember and honor those who gave their all on this day 80 years ago.  Without them, our lives today would most likely be very, very different.  There were 9,388 American soldiers who died on D-Day or shortly after and are buried in a cemetery in Normandy, France.  They, and the ones who survived (and there are still a few who live today), NEED to be remembered.  Take a moment today to reflect on what they did and WHY they did it.  Honor them by thinking and acting as they would have. Number 2 is more personal.  No matter what your faith or beliefs may be, I would ask you to offer a prayer or good thoughts or positive energy into the universe (however you want to put it) for my dear f

   Yesterday, my son drove my husband to elementary school. They should have walked (in my opinion), but my son has a car and a driver's license so... It was the school that my son attended (and "graduated" from).  It was the first time he had been in the building since (I think) 2015. I think that shocked my son somewhat.  Walking into the building that he had spent so many years in for the very first time as an adult. So why were my husband and my son heading back to "our" elementary school?  It was primary day in NJ.  This was the first time my son was voting!  (If you are wondering why I didn't go too, this was a primary and I am registered as "unaffiliated" so I'm not eligible.) I am glad that this was his first experience.  I knew that there wouldn't be a lot of people there.  (Sadly not many turn out for primaries.)  I wanted him to go with his dad so he could have guidance if he needed it.  (He didn't.  The two of them had