Monday Morning Thoughts After a Working Weekend

Thankful...that's how I feel.

I remember my first freelance features story for The Herald-News in May 1999 when I, a single mother of six children ages 2 to 15, was wondering how we would survive, how we would still carve out a family life when I needed to work so much, and how they would grow up to be wonderful people when my attention needed to be diverted away from them so much.

While watching the field of journalism change from 1999 through the end of 2013, it never occurred to me I might ever become an employee. Instead, I built out my freelance career and accepted additional opportunities from other clients.

My youngest son earned his GED in November 2013 when he was just barely 17. He had already been taking classes at Joliet Junior College since January.

In December 2013, I learned Shaw Media had bought The Herald-News. I thought that was the end of the freelance writing as a full-time job and resolved to look for work after our family Christmas in January 7.

Instead, a work colleague urged me to submit my resume since I was the ideal candidate (in her opinion) for the position. So I did, never dreaming I'd get a response.

But I did. And I was sitting in a chair as a new employee in The Herald-News office on January 15, 2014. So I guess the kids and I all graduated from our homeschooling experiences together.

"Thankful" really does sum up how I feel.

In 1999, I wound up working three independent contractor jobs for The Herald-News. I was home-based and my kids were nearby for all three jobs. My connection with The Herald-News allowed me to both work and raise my children and not choose between the two.

My children learned their keen work ethic through Herald-News related job opportunities. And we lacked no family life. It wasn't the same as in the past. But nothing stays in the past. So we must keep what we can and carve out the new.

I even met my second husband through delivering newspapers for The Herald-News.

One side fun fact: I was sick my first day as an employee at The Herald-News, although I didn't realize it until I walked out the door - I was that overwhelmed by my new role.

Ten years later, I'm telling hospital staff it was my 10th work anniversary. That's because on July 15, 2024, I was hospitalized for my second bout of diverticulitis in five months.

So I came into the role sick and spent a milestone anniversary sick. Hey, at least I'm consistent!

And in true journalistic fashion, it's now time to figure out WHY I'm having these repeat attacks, despite my good lifestyle habits.

Finally, you should know all six kids grew up into some of the nicest people you will ever want to mee.

Ten Years

Yesterday was a significant day for me in many ways.

I turned 62 and a half (because we recognize half birthdays in my family).

It was Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which should be a day or service instead of a day off. So I tried to be extra nice to the people caring for me in the hospital and worked diligently at copyediting "The Fifth" by Ed Calkins, Steward of Tara as my energy allowed.

It was the day that Joliet's MLK Day of Service was canceled due to weather, a disappointment on so many levels. It was the day I was finally hoping to cover the event. I'd written many pre-stories over the years but covering it has never actually worked out. I will try again next year!

It was the day I came home from the hospital.

And it was the day, ten years ago, I became an actual employee of The Herald-News under Shaw Media. )Ironically, I was sick that day, too. If anything, I'm consistent!).

I had freelanced feature stories for the publication since 1998. a real honor since I grew up reading that newspaper (my family always had a subscription).

I wrote so many pieces that many people were surprised I wasn't an employee when I announced my hire. They thought I already was.

Journalism as an industry has undergone so many changes since I was a child, since I was a young adult, since I started freelancing (on an electric typewriter with plenty of whiteout - remember that?), since the advent of social media, and even in the ten years since I was hired.

I am really, really surprised in a very good and humbling way that I am still here, that my relevancy hasn't (yet) expired. 

The best way to honor that, I feel, is to get some work done today and give it my very best. The last image is a card someone had given me in gratitude for a story I had written. It was one of my reminders of why I was there that I kept tacked on the bulletin board at my desk.

Happy Tuesday!

A Calendar of Thankfulness

The image of this calendar, drawn by Matt Coundiff, appears in a chapter heading in the BryonySeries young adult (and up) vampire novel "Visage."

At first glance, it seems like the wrong teaser image to use for the blog I'm posting.

I finally completed updating the BryonySeries calendar for November, a bit late, I know, but with all the background challenges this year, I'm thankful for completing it.

Almost every date in the calendar in still relevant. That's because behind every date is a quick reminder of a reason to be thankful, perhaps a reason that never consciously occurred to you.

For those new to the BryonySeries calendar, Timothy set it up like an advent calendar. Click on the date and find the surprise for the day behind it. The surprise might be an actual BryonySeries event - or it could be an activity or reflection. Its "theme" also links to a BryonySeries book, citing it as the reason or inspiration.

Now the reason why this image, dated May 1977, works, is because of what it actually illustrates in the book: a staunch, immovable selfishness by one character as he marks each "X."

So as we move through this Thanksgiving week practicing gratitude, let's also purify every intention behind out businesses and let the actions of our thankfulness match the thankfulness in our hearts.

Have a great Monday!

A Quick Pause for Thankfulness

Nearly every plan I had for this weekend went to the wayside when I wound up in the ER Saturday and had an unexpected minor procedure.

But a few blessings arose from that.

At the hospital, I had the same team (nurse and doctor) when I was there eighteen months ago for a similar situation. I was impressed with their care and attentiveness and sent a note to the hospital expressing my gratitude.

On Saturday night, I had the opportunity to tell them in person and let them know I had sent that note. 

I wanted something happy to read, so I brought this book with me to re-read, since I the second is out and I wanted to refresh my memory. I'm more than halfway through and hope to finish the book this week.

The author is a friend, a member of WriteOn Joliet, and handles all the art for the BryonySeries subseries, The Adventures of Cornell Dyer.

On Sunday, I took two naps (to the delight of my calico Faith) and finished one project that needed completion over the weekend (although I will need to check over my work today to make sure it's correct).

I wrote absolutely zero fiction (super disappointed about that since the next opportunity is a week away) and I wanted to get a jump on a big project at work on Sunday (oh, if I could clone me!).

But I live with/near three adult children who made sure I had everything I needed (and checked up on me when I seemed too quiet for too long), and I'm feeling super tired (but not unwell) today.

Maybe I'm just at that age, although my incident wasn't age-related. A friend's husband had a heart attack on Wednesday and another friend had a stroke on Saturday, mere hours before I headed to the ER.

What is the point of all this?

All things considered, it wasn't a bad weekend.

I got to read, nap, and be on the receiving end of some good care.

I don't know what today brings or what road I will travel.

But when the blessings show up, I hope to recognize and appreciate them.

Do You Know What This Is?

Or, more to the point, do you know what this will become?

Well, we're not sharing that until Monday.

But here is a hint.

This...stuff...will become part of a very unique "thank you" gift for select purchases of BryonySeries books at WriteOn Joliet's anthology release party on Dec. 8 at the Joliet Public Library, Black Road branch.

Of course, we will only have a limited amount of these "thank you" gifts. So we will offer them as supplies last.

Naturally, we have plenty supplies to make the very best gifts.

So if you are in the area next Thursday, and have a couple of spare minutes, please stop out.

Keep scrolling for more features of the night.

We will have anthologies and local authors selling their individual works. This picture is from the 2019 release party at The Book Market in Crest Hill.

We will have Santa. This picture was taken last year at the Joliet Public Library right after we packed up for the night.

We will have free, complimentary, upscale snacks prepared by Timothy. Here is Timothy's spread at The Book Market in Crest Hill in 2019.

And we will have Janet Staley, owner of The Book Market, will handle checkout and have special store offers for everyone who makes a purchase at the party.

And we hope to see you, too!

Art Linkletter: 'We Did With Less And Made It Matter More'

While double-checking a couple of "Art Linkletter" facts for a special Thanksgiving story for The Herald-News, I stumbled upon a gem of an interview with Art in 2009, eleven months before his death.

The YouTube video was called "Overcoming Challenging Times." It was some of the best four minutes and twenty-seven seconds I've spent.

Listen for yourself right here. It's my gift to you today.

Six Irish Sayings to Promote Thankfulness

Has the memory of Thanksgiving Day faded with the turkey and dressing leftovers and the long holiday shopping lists?

Or are you still counting blessings and basking in gratitude?

Maybe you're somewhere in between, grateful but busy and preoocupied?

Regardless of your place in the thankfulness chain, here are six Irish sayings to help increase feelings of appreciation in your own life. Maybe one (or more) will resonate with you.

"It's easy to be pleasant when life flows by like a song. But the man worthwhile is the one who can smile when everything goes dead wrong."

"Praise the good day at the close of it."

"A kind word never broke anyone's mouth."

"Get on your knees and thank the Lord you're on your feet."

"Hem your blessings with thankfulness so they don't unravel."

"May the blessing of each day be the blessing you need most."

Have a great day!

It's the Little Things That Matter

Sounds like the title for a fluff piece about counting your blessings?

Well, maybe.

But in this case, I'm talking about my ears - at least for now.

Several of us in our family have an issue with making too much earwax. So in addition to self care, I typically get my ears flushed once year before I fly out to see Sarah.

Except with COVID, I didn't fly out last year. So this little detail fell off my radar. 

Ooops!

So by this time last week, my ears pretty uncomfortable. However, not everyone is skilled at flushing ears. 

I've had a bad experience. One of my sons had a worse experience. My primary is very good at it (Dr. Rogers in Plainfield, if anyone wants a good primary).

At the end of last week, I called and made an appointment for her first opening - this Friday, as in July 16.

Except my ears were not having any of it.

By Saturday I was really uncomfortable. My ears were tender enough that I was concerned I might have an infection, too. I was extremely noise sensitive and felt sick all over. One week was a long, long, long ways off.

So on Sunday, I called my favorite quick care to see if it had someone available who was experienced with ear flushing. 

Except quick care closed early, and I was on deadline, so I couldn't just drop and go. Yet, the people at wuick care were so kind and said if I came in before the doors were locked, someone would see me.

Long story short, everyone who looked at my ears at quick care agreed they were extremely full, so full they could not tell if I had an infection going on.

So the plan was to flush them and then see. However, they would immediately stop flusing if I felt any pain.

Now the strange thing about this is that, I felt no pain during the flushing, even though my ears hurt. It's hard to explain but true.

The good news is that I had no infection not even a hint of inflammation. It was the best I felt in a week.

So I went home, made some coffee, happily worked on a novel, and forgot to get organized for this week - which is a very short and tight week because I'm taking time off for my birthday.

This means, I'm sitting here on Monday morning surrounded by paperwork that I ignored since Friday, feeling overwheled, and writing this blog instead of planning my day.

The little things?

My ears aren't big, but they can make the whole body feel sick they aren't well.

A Monday and weekly to-do list doesn't sound that monumental, but when you're starting Monday and the list isn't written, the pressure feels high.

And yet, I've got this great cup of coffee sitting beside me and loyal readers reading this piece of rambling.

As nice as that sounds, it's not the stuff that changes the world.

Except it changes my world, making it nicer and brighter and allowing me to put the lack of a to-do list into perspective. Because I know I will write it soon and the day will take off.

It's the little things that matter.

Buggy Internet Box?

 For the second time in two days, the internet went down shortly after I signed on.

I know a few tricks to get things moving again, but I'm not as clever as my adults kids (or probably an eight-year-old, but those are in short supply at my house right now, thank you, COVID).

But after a few grumblings and a couple deep breaths, I wrote one of my stories fir The Herald-News this morning.

Just as I finished it, I was able to touch base with Rebekah. She had me up and running in ten minutes. Timothy is wondering if the problem isn't with the internet box since no outages in our area weren't reported - again.

So where I'm behind in email, I'm ahead in writing. And I'm thankful for people in my life that can solve problems that escape my limited technology skill set.

And look - the sun is shining now. 

All signs of a good day, right?

Because a photo of my internet box to accompany this post is, well, rather boring, I'm sharing one of Bertrand, my crocheted mouse, as he's enjoying a nice walk yesterday.

Still Thankful

I'm looking forward to a challenging week.

I have some major work training this week.

I'm working this weekend.

I have an ultrasound on Wednesday.

I have a family member who's sick and waiting for the results of a COVID test - and several more family members who were exposed.

I just spent almost all the time I was off work doing a hard edit on a manuscript that's (so far) 145, 531. The author is very dyslexic, so you can just imagine...well, let's just say I'm heading into a long work week being a bit screen blind.

And I'm working on two more side editing projects, too.

Soon, we'll be unpacking the Christmas tree, etc. But for now, I'm basking in serenity, gratitude, and a really nice cup of coffee.

I love my God, my family, my friends, my work, my projects, my life.

Challenges come and go. But some blessings don't change. And some challenges are blessings masqueraded.

For all of these, at least this morning, I'm thankful.

A Real Rest

In college, I had a poster that highlighted the benefits of contrasting activities.

For instance, it said that going out at night with friends ceases to be fun if it's not balanced by having some nights at home alone with a book and hot chocolate.

And that having the flu means you get to stay in bed and lose weight, whereas having a cold means you get to stay in bed and eat.

You get the idea.

I love immersing myself in interesting projects, which many times center around great stories, whether reading them or writing them.

And while I did have a long list of projects I wanted to accomplish over these last four days, I did nearly complete the two at the top of my list.

I finished the memoir and updated the family on its progress.

I almost finished the first round edits on a novel for a client. And I'm fairly certain I can finish those edits over the next couple of weekends.

As far as the memoir, I'm giving the whole a fresh read on Saturday and doing some tightening. Then Rebekah and I are meeting with Phyllis on Sunday to discuss photo placement and finish the formatting and cover design.

The goal is for Phyllis to see the proof before Christmas. Then I can do the final copy editing.

I had some other miscellaneous tasks I'd hoped to accomplish (like unpacking, pruning email) but those can wait.

Instead, I rested a lot, spent time with family, watched two episodes of I Can Hear Your Voice with Rebekah and the first few episodes of Disenchanted with Daniel, and attended a funeral Mass and luncheon.

Life is not all about projects.

But it's also not about the lack of them.

All-consuming projects and developing our talents take the attention off ourselves and onto the work: a good way to pass time.

Using those talents for others is also a good way.

People to love make the passing of time worthwhile.

Giving thanks for all.

Illustration by Kathleen Rose Van Pelt for "Bryony."

Gratitude

Very little about this weekend went as planned.

Overall, it was more work and less recreation than I wanted or needed.

And yet, none of it was bad. Most of it was really awesome...except for stressing about not getting done the work I needed to get done and having to tackle other projects.

Which is silly because it always gets done.

All weekend and into this morning, I'm working on being thankful for the adventures and opportunities, to learn again and still how to "enjoy the roll."

 I'm looking at my schedule this week to see where to carve out some down time. Because that's important, too.

And being thankful for a job that allows this flexibility.