Pushing on a Rope
Family
Snow Daze
Another day, another snow storm — or at least that’s how it’s starting to feel these days. And yes, another snow day. At the rate we’re going, Catherine will graduate high school after she moves into the dorm at Hofstra. But even high school seniors greet the news of no school with childlike glee. After … Continue reading
Flashback Friday — A Walk on the Beach
We need a bit of relief from this never-ending, icy-cold winter, so flashback to June 1997, one of Catherine’s first trips to the beach. Never mind that she wouldn’t now be caught dead in a hat at the beach … or anywhere else. (Or that she’d run away if I ordered summer outfits from the … Continue reading
Flashback Friday — Bar None
Flashback 40 years to December 1973 … because, well, this one is too good to pass up. It’s Basil, who had just turned 18, working a holiday party at his parents’ restaurant, The 19th Hole (which is still in business in Stamford under different ownership). They had the restaurant for four years, from ’72 to … Continue reading
A step ahead
This will no doubt amaze you, but perhaps you are in the same boat: I have the ability to be embarrassing even if no one is watching. All month, I’ve been participating in Find Your Stride 2014, a free online challenge to take 10,000 steps a day — a widely recognized fitness milestone that most … Continue reading
Flashback Friday — Collegiate Dreamin’
Flashback to fall 1996 and this silly picture of Catherine in an Arizona U sweatshirt that belonged to Basil (I don’t know why; he didn’t go there). The photo seems appropriate given the news this week — four college acceptances so far, including Hofstra, her top choice. When she checked in with someone at the … Continue reading
Flashback Friday — Opa!
Flashback today to 1922 or 1923 — we’re not sure. Basil’s cousin, Penny, dropped in while I was taking down the Christmas tree on New Year’s Day, laden with presents and good cheer. Among the treasurers she brought us was this photo, a copy of one she unearthed while digging through old memories. I think … Continue reading
Shaking things up in 2014
It’s a new year, with a blank slate. How will you fill yours? I don’t bother much with resolutions anymore — they never end well for me. But striving for a fresh mindset seems to work — at least until the chaos really hits the fan. Living outside my comfort zone, as I have been … Continue reading
Flashback Friday — What. A. Year.
Having a few much-needed days off could be perhaps the best Christmas present of all. Briefly freed from the 5:30 am alarm clock, and the treadmill of tasks and chores, I’ve been able to catch up with friends, take stock and plan ahead, turn the events of the past 12 months over and over in … Continue reading
Blame it on the pie
Hindsight being 20/20, it’s all clear to me now: I should have known better. It should have been obvious that no amount of early shopping forays, wrapping on Thanksgiving or freezing a bunch of cookie dough would stave off my annual December meltdown. I hung in there pretty well for a long time. But I got … Continue reading
Tastes of the Season
The great Vanech Christmas Cookie Bake-off concluded last weekend with 10 varieties baked and ready. I’ve written before about how Catherine’s tree nut and egg allergies changed the face of this annual family tradition. Lots of the old standbys — Black Walnut Crescents, Queenies, Sandies — are now just for reading. I often think, in … Continue reading
Pushing on a Rope 