Monday, April 6, 2026

Learning To Play. Finally


I woke up this morning to discover that not only was it raining, it was also COLD. Well, you know- Florida cold. Okay, Florida cold for April. 
Okay, okay! It was sixty degrees.
And I was freezing. I had to dig out one of my sweaters that I'd already washed and put away for summer. I am so not complaining though. As long as it doesn't freeze, I'll take all the coolness we can get before the sun turns into a broiler unit and we all sizzle like bacon place under it. But my poor dollies just looked cold too with their naked little legs and bare feet poking out and so I covered them up with that piece of knitting I did years ago. It was supposed to be part of a poncho sort of thing but I never did sew the different pieces together so now I have that piece and Jessie has the other piece and sometimes the boys use it to snuggle under when they're sick. I tucked the little girls up and that made me feel so much better. I absolutely know that dolls cannot feel the cold. I'm not that insane. But I think maybe when I was a child my dolls became an immensely important part of my life because I needed something to love with all the fierceness of my little girl heart, and I can't stop thinking of them as needing me to take care of them. 
Or perhaps in taking care of them, I am taking care of little girl me. 
I don't know. But the fact is, I have always anthropomorphized my dolls and some stuffed animals, too, and I suppose I always will. 
Or perhaps this is just my adult way of playing with dolls. 
And I really, really appreciate the fact that Mr. Moon does not tease me or make fun of me about this. I believe he may understand. 

The point being being here though is- don't the babies look cozy? 

I was so tired last night that I felt as if I should get an Olympic medal for having the strength to floss and brush my teeth. I had pushed the physical activity for at least three days in a row and I think I'd just reached a point of exhaustion. So when I saw the rainy, gray day spread out ahead of me, I was happy. A good day to stay in and take it easy and I did! I did a few household things but the only steps I took outside were to kiss my darling goodbye when he left to go up to Lake Seminole. 
Yes, he's determined to finish up the doing the flooring in the upstairs bedroom he's been working on and getting the other bedroom's floor started at least. He also feels like he needs some fishing time and I agree. He hasn't even moved the boat from the dock for a few weeks and by golly, he did not buy that place to get it in shape for the Tour of Homes. 
It's a fishing camp.
Mostly. 

Before he left today, though, he decided to look around for a different carrier for our phones and internet. I told him about an experience I'd had the other day at Costco and was taking a quick stroll around the Mac display. I noticed a guy I thought was a Costco employee in the general area and I quickly told him that I was just browsing and he assured me that no, he wasn't selling computers, he was part of the AT&T kiosk that's always at Costco. I told him I wasn't looking for a new carrier plan either and he said, "Well, maybe you should be. We have some pretty amazing deals." 
Sure. Whatever. 
But I do tend to trust "the" Costco and if they've given space (or rented space, I have no idea how this works) to a company, it's not going to be a scam at the very least. So Glen said he'd stop by there on his quick trip to town to do some other things and he did. When he came home he was pretty excited because it turns out that yes, the AT&T guy had convinced him that we could indeed save money on switching to their plan AND we could get new iPhones without having to trade ours in. 
Excuse me? 
Now who knows if this is all as good as it sounds but Mr. Moon is pretty good at asking questions I'm sure most people don't even think about. I sure don't. And he got answers that satisfied him. 
I'm scared to death because I hate change and the carrier we're on now has served us fairly well and the phone I have now has not had one problem in years. Plus, I think the camera is pretty darn good.
But getting a new iPhone is the adult version of getting a new toy and who doesn't like that? 
(See above about the dolls.)
The phone will be an iPhone Air which I'd never heard of but after reading a little about it online, sounds pretty okay. My only issue may be the camera because I love the camera on my old iPhone 13 Pro (I think) and of course a camera is very important to me as my photos are an integral part of my blog life. I am no photographer and would never claim to be and have found the iPhone's capabilities in the photographic arena to be pretty fucking amazing, even if mine are not. 
But hey! Let's give it a shot. 
Pun not intended. 
So I guess all of that will be happening within the next week. 

Now- here's a story. Recently I bought three dresses from eBay. I was starting to panic a little because I have almost no summer wardrobe beyond tank tops and cargo shorts at all anymore. What I have been wearing for years in the summer for all of my trips to town and so forth, have been Flax brand linen dresses which are perfect for our summers. Cool as can be, breathable, pretty colors, extremely well-made and almost all of them have pockets. 
After I had bought the dresses, I realized that two of them were the exact same dress but in different colors. 
This does not bother me in the least. Not a soul in this world would ever notice because what women of my age are wearing does not generally appear on anyone's radar screen unless they are the sort of women who are either dressed so cool and beautifully or else are wearing something entirely inappropriate to their age and body size. 
Lord knows I do not fit the first category and I try not to be in the second. 
And also- I don't care at all whether anyone realizes I have two of the same dresses. 
Both of them arrived today, they fit perfectly, and are just what I wanted. One of them is red and the other is my favorite color of teal. 


And so when I am getting dressed, I'll be able to decide whether I feel more in a red mood or a teal mood. A tomato mood or a Caribbean mood? 
Choices!

And to add to the colorful day, I actually started glaze-painting what I hope will be Billy's spoon rest in his new kitchen. 
I cannot tell you how much I enjoy sitting down with my brushes and little bottles of Stroke and Coat with my ear buds in listening to a book and just letting myself use color without much premeditation or any judgement as to what is supposed to go together and what does not. 
My fish and my flowers are not made for any standards except for what make me happy. 


As always, the colors will look different after the fish comes out of the kiln. 

I think when I go in on Wednesday, my little pot pie dish with the chicken on it will have been fired and I am curious as to how that has turned out. 

I am having fun. 

Playing with dolls. Playing with clay and with color. Playing in the dirt and playing with words. Playing with photography. Playing with my husband. 
This is another part of aging that I did not foresee. 
I am having fun. 

It seems that because the congress and senate seemingly refuse to do what must be done to remove the demented, evil idiot who is somehow the president, the world as we know it may be ending any day now and I feel no guilt whatsoever in having as much fun in the meantime as I want. 
Well. You know- in a seventy-one year old lady way. One may wonder what sort of fun that would be. 
Now would be the time to find out. 

Love...Ms. Moon


34 comments:

  1. I agree about fun. My days are mostly lovely, making stuff, taking care of my surroundings, cooking food I like. I never realized that old age, like mine, pushing ninety, could be about fun! Well, I never expected to find out, after being almost an invalid for my first two decades. I hear you about covering your dolls, and I'm glad Mr moon gets it.

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    1. Your days sound like the reward to a life well and fully lived and part of that reward is that you are STILL living a life well and fully lived. I love that.
      I think that one of the things that Glen first saw in me was the way I took care of my children. He knows I have a very strong nurturing streak in me and if that extends to dolls, so be it.

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  2. Oh yes, as far as I'm concerned, our sole purpose in our senior years is to have fun, however we define it, to indulge ourselves by doing exactly what we want, when we want, to the extent that we can. We have nothing left to prove. Freedom!

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    1. It's so funny how yesterday I felt like I was indeed playing and loving it so much and today I woke up worrying and anxious about the stupidest things.
      Sigh.
      I think both of you ladies know how to do what I am trying to learn.

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  3. Your words struck a chord. I need to look for more fun and less "should be doing". We're a long time dead and if we can't have fun at this stage of our lives, when will we?

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    1. "Should be doing" is a toxic and false premise. And you are right- if not now, when?
      Never would be the answer to that.

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  4. I am so pleased about the dolls being cared for by YOU, the most nurturing person on the planet! - they are as real as I am! . When i take Bernice and Bubbles down from their perch - they are almost too real- I feel so much love for them. Just wads of cotton ...but... I understand how you feel about your compo /plastic children. The same as Keeka feels about her jarred animals. I can not see any argument against love of molecules in varying forms being recipients of love. We are all the same stuff.

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    1. We love what we love, don't we? People don't collect things and keep them around unless they DO love them, whether salt shakers or critters in alcohol or cats or dolls. Humans have a grand capacity for love.

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  5. The dolls DO look very cosy under that pretty blanket and I also dress my dolls and stuffed monkeys appropriate for the weather. If I remember. The fish spoon rest looks great and I hope the colours still look good after firing.
    I have the i-phone 12 pro and I love the camera on it. I don't plan to upgrade anytime soon unless it dies, fingers crossed that doesn't happen.

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    1. I am hoping the colors look BETTER after firing. I want them to be more intense and of darker hues. We'll see.
      I wasn't planning on upgrading either but here we go, I guess. My 13 Pro has been a champ.

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  6. You have the right attitude. Those dresses are great. I’ve bought shirts I’ve liked in two different colors. They create a completely different look. I love that teal. There are some teal greens I don’t like, but the ones that are more blue always please me. I bought the iPhone 13 Pro because of the new camera. I love it. Would love to upgrade, but have no justification. I’m sure I’ll think of something. Stay warm. 60 is cold!

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    1. I dreamed last night of the ocean and it was the same color as that dress. There used to be a clothes designer who had a color she used
      that she called "Cozumel Blue." I was so delighted when I saw that.
      I love my camera too! I surely hope I don't end up regretting this. As I said, I have no reason to upgrade, really. I think the iPhone 13 Pro was an excellent model.

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  7. Lovely dresses. My arms are too fat to go sleeveless. I look for 100% cotton in whatever I wear because any man made ingredient is like being inside an oven. When I was going through menopause, my doctor suggested mens large t shirts to sleep in, also 100% cotton. That was 25 years ago and I still prefer that. No one is looking to an 80 year old woman for style inspiration. I am glad you are having fun.

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    1. And now my arms are too crepey to go sleeveless but oh well. Fuck it. The world will have to deal with it. It's too damn hot here to wear sleeves in the summer.
      I sleep in a T-shirt too. It is so very, very soft and I love it.
      I have to say there ARE some 80 year old women who are indeed known for their style inspiration. I'm just not one of them.

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  8. Well, I don't own any dresses or even skirts anymore. I have to make more of an effort to have fun. I've been busy taking care of people lately and, frankly, I'm feeling worn down and the troubles of the world are getting to me.

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    1. You can't just abandon the people who need you and decide to have fun, can you? I mean, you could but YOU wouldn't.
      I wish your life was less about trouble and caring for others and more about a little fun.

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  9. All my little projects are like that. Learning to paint with watercolors...the small framed paintings, the notecards, the crystal mobiles (none of which are selling), now the bookmarks. They are fun for me to make. I just like making things. My whole life has been making things.

    I have two dresses I wish I could still get into but no. I tend towards skirts and t type shirts when I feel the need to wear something other than pants, short or long, or leggings.

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    1. And I meant to say, it's been chilly here in the mornings for the past three days. Like you I don't complain because I know how unbearably hot it will get when this passes.

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    2. What? No one's buying your mobiles? I have a hard time believing that. They are beautiful!
      I like making things too. There are many ways to create from gardening to cooking to fine art. I think that the act of creation is a holy thing and we feel that when we have created something.
      The weather right now is PERFECT! Oh, if it were only like this year-round.

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  10. I'm in the slumps right now. Pottery starts tomorrow so that will be good. I do miss playing and building with the clay. It's a hopeful endeavor.
    It's snowing here, a lot, and that's got me down too. I think it's the high blood pressure meds. I'm irritable, snapping at my husband, weepy, crying at the drop of a hat and I can't sleep. Last night it was about 2am before I fell asleep. I feel like I have PMS.
    I'm glad you had a good day and I love those linen dresses, especially the colours. Beautiful.

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    1. After seeing the casserole dish you made on your post this morning I am not jealous, although yes, I wish I could make pottery like that, but I am in awe. Woman! You got it going on!
      Have you thought about trying HRT? A lot of the symptoms you're having surely sound like it might help.
      As you know, I do love color.

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  11. My innergirl wants to come play with you!

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    1. Playmate, won't you come play with me? And bring your dollies three, climb up my apple tree...

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  12. Your dolls look very warm and comfy. There is no question, they are well loved and cared for.
    The spoon rest for Billy looks terrific. I wonder what the color change will bring after firing.
    Red and teal are favorite colors for me too. The dresses are beautiful.
    I woke up to snow. Thankfully it melted in about 2 hours. Still, I want Spring weather that does not include snow.

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    1. From experience what I've learned is that the colors intensify and deepen which is awesome.
      I love red and teal too. Maybe we love teal because it is a combination of blue and green which are probably the best colors.
      I'm sorry. Snow is not spring.

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  13. It was Arizona Cold here too in the 60's, and since we'd had 109 already, it's just very volatile weather that can't make up it's mind. I think we should have Fun all our Lives, why not? Loved the Two new Dresses and their bold vibrant colors.

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    1. That's so crazy! Is this highly unusual for Arizona weather?
      Those dresses are pretty vibrant, aren't they?

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  14. I love the fish can we see a photo post firing

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  15. I am most enthusiastically looking forward to playtime, Level 1 will be sometime after moving, Level 2 likely also be after sandwich time as that is the phase of my life that I am in, and Level 3 after finishing working.

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  16. I like your new summer dresses with bright colors. Then you talked about your pottery class, and it clicked: how about some chunky, arty beads that you could make into necklaces?
    I long for 60 degrees. Ha! Bonnie in Minneapolis

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  17. Indeed, fun is just about all we have at this point. We certainly don't have a functioning government or a respected democracy! I love your new dresses.

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Tell me, sweeties. Tell me what you think.