Bfth's Boring Blog

Vacation; not a necessity, but I think we could all use some sort of break from the madness.  At the end of 2019 I had some sort of plan for the summer of 2020.  My son would be going away for 12 days to the Galapagos Islands; during which time he would be celebrating his birthday.  The thought of him being away on his birthday was a hard one for me, so I thought we would celebrate a month before with a trek to  Skytop  as we have been doing for several years now.  I planned it out and made the reservation just after the first of the year.  And then... As with everything; the resort closed (I'm thinking perhaps for the first time in its nearly 100 year history, but I could be wrong.)  Then it opened in May with very strict guidelines (as in you had to wear a mask everywhere except your room and there was no dining, but the kitchen would provide take out).  As May turned to June; the incredible staff was able to make adjustments so that...

I know Independence Day has come and gone...and it was a mighty strange one, but love and pride for one's country doesn't just fall on one day. I've been thinking a lot about "my" country; which is actually OUR country.  It IS mine because I am a citizen, but I don't "own" it...I share it with all the other residents.  ALL of the other residents; not just those that I like or are like me.  I love my/our country because we are so diverse; and yet we are so alike. I do love my/our country.  To show my patriotism, I fly the flag.  I wear red, white and blue on and around holidays like Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, etc.   But external is only a very small part of the way that I show my love for this country.  It is the visible; but the invisible is so much more important.  For if you "show" your patriotism but do not act it, I do not think you truly love our country.  You can fly your flag and wear the colors, but if ...

A previous vacation I went on vacation.  There STILL is a pandemic going on (despite what some people might say or think) and I went on vacation.  The whole idea of going away on vacation during Covid-19 is pretty amazing and also scary.  When I planned this vacation it was BC (before Covid); the New Year was just dawning when I put down my deposit and I had no inkling of what was to come.  As the months progressed, I gave a lot of thought to this vacation and I WILL have a long post (probably multiple ones) about it in the near future.  But for now, I want to say thank you to a very specific and special group of people who made 4 days safe and relaxing for my family and I (as well as all the other guests.)  While this is aimed towards employees of a specific resort, I hope everyone who happens upon this post will read and take my words to heart. To every single staff member (which means those I met or saw and those who I didn't) of Skytop Lodge:...

"The Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more. You will think me transported with Enthusiasm but I am not. I am well aware of the Toil and Blood and Treasure, that it will cost Us to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these States. Yet through all the Gloom I can see the Rays of ravishing Light and Glory. I can see that the End is more than worth all the Means. And that Posterity will tryumph in that Days Transaction, even altho We should rue it, which I trust in God We shall not."  So said John Adams.  He was wrong....

I'm no fashionista.  I make plenty of fashion faux pas, but I do have one fashion tip that I really think you should pay attention to. Wear a mask...  Whenever you are in an area where they will be a group of people; wear a mask. You might not think its fashionable; you would be wrong.  Check out my son when we attended the Rally for Justice.   Don't ever tell me you can't be stylist AND safe, because clearly you can.  He looks like he stepped out of the early part of the last century; another time when masks were necessary to keep society safe. I know I'm biased, but this kid can pull the look off.  You could too. One fashion note I'd like to point out in both photos is that the mouth AND the nose are covered.  This is important.  REALLY important.  If you thought the whole Justin Timberlake/Janet Jackson nipple slip was scandalous; the covered mouth/nose out is not only bad fashion, but it also defeats the whole purpose of wearing a ma...

If you follow me on social media, or if you've read some of my blog posts, you know that I am an early morning walker; or at least for the months when it is warm enough (above 40) and safe enough (no slick pavement; I'm NOT ready to be that "old" lady who falls on the sidewalk and can't get up).For the past 7 years (give or take), I've been tracking my miles via the MapMyWalk app.  According to the app in mid June my lifetime stats were as follows:  DISTANCE 5,391.11 mi & DURATION 2.27 months.  I've had a few glitches over the year, but recently the app has been pausing on me and I've been very frustrated by that...hence last Sunday's post . I was so frustrated this past week that I started to look at other apps.  And so on the recommendation of a friend I switched over to the Runtastic app.  I tested it.  It worked pretty well  and I was happy with it, but I was a little disappointed that by using a new app, I was "losing" my 7 year...

It had to happen sometime and it seems like that time is here.  The time when I am returning to "normal."  When I say that you know I mean "the new normal."  Not life as we knew it, but life has it will be until it won't.  A new phase that we will all have to go through.   A return to a semi-normal life started on the 23rd.  Three things happened that day that put me (and my family) squarely in the "welcome to the unknown world, where you aren't necessarily safe, but you need to be as safe as you can be."  Make sense?  It's a world I'm about to enter. It started with a return to the all-volunteer church thrift shop.  We've been closed since early March (I think the last time I volunteered there was on Saturday, March 7th for a brief time before heading over to the high school where my son was performing in the "spring" musical).  The plan was to be open 10-1 with only 4 volunteers, one of which was a specified cashier, and...