Aging in Wonder

The World from Rough Stones

by Malcolm Macdonald, published in 1975 by Alfred A. Knopf

Maybe my favorite genre — reminiscent of Masterpiece Theatre series productions. Its 570 pages are written against the backdrop of the construction of a railway tunnel in England from 1839 to 1841. The story begins with Nora, a poverty-stricken but well-bred young woman who lives by her wits and her body. She meets “Lord John,” former “navvy,” (tunnel laborer), now rising by his shrewdness and uncommon people skills to the position of General Contractor.

The book title describes not only the building of the tunnel, but the couple’s synergy, elevating them to financial and social success. Though the book is ends satisfactorily, you sense that John and Nora are not finished making deals. Their family story is continued in three sequels, The Rich Are with You Always, Sons of Fortune and Abigail.

Though technical in its description of 19th century railway construction and finance, the story is carried by its cast of strong characters. It contains a few explicit sexual scenes, so I wouldn’t recommend it to everyone.

The Ladies of Missalonghi

by Colleen McCullough, 192 pages, published in 1987 by Harper & Row

A short, entertaining read, with an ending you might not expect. Missy Wright, 33-year-old spinster, is dominated by her mother and maiden aunt and the other members of the clan that controls her Australian village.

The arrival in town of stranger John Smith, who has bought a nearby valley, coincides with a fainting spell that Missy suffers. After he rescues her, she determines she will not spend another minute as “mousy” Missy.

Her sudden boldness secretly pleases her mother, mortifies the clan — particularly rich, beautiful cousin Alicia — and charms Mr. Smith.

(Some reader reviews claim this book copies the plot of The Blue Castle, written by L. M. Montgomery, most famous for her Anne of Green Gables series.)

Outliers: The Story of Success

by Malcolm Gladwell, 309 pages, published in 2008 by Little, Brown and Company

My notes indicate that I heard about this from Diggy at Upgrade Reality, but it was also a book that one of my sons had requested. Diggy cited from the book that it takes 10,000 hours to become a master at anything — 3 hours a day for 10 years.

However, the book covers much more than the 10,000-hour rule. Gladwell proposes that innate talent is important, but the year – and sometimes month — of your birth, circumstances and opportunity, length of school year, Eastern or Western culture of work, have much more influence than mere creative genius.

Despite being driven by extensive research and statistics, the book was easy to read and understand. Gladwell’s other books include The Tipping Point and Blink.

Although it’s not a self-help book, as I supposed it might be, it is an enlightening examination of worldly success.

Books, Work Australia, Book Reviews, England, Gladwell, McCullough, Success

To Bangkok, Houston, Albuquerque, Lincoln, Denver and back again!

And while I have had article ideas rolling around in my head, I have also been struggling with the focus of this blog, asking one of the best questions anyone can ask when making a decision: “What’s the point?”

Trying to Focus

Actually, focus is a pre-blog struggle, and one that my first blogging mentor, Seth Waite, emphasized in his very helpful but now inactive blog, The Blogging Agenda. At the time, I thought I knew what the focus would be – helping other Baby Boomers take their aging in stride, stay physically healthy and not become jaded because of our or others’ perceptions of what we should be in our 50’s and beyond.

As I progressed, however, I had a hard time gaining an audience – in part, because I wasn’t hanging out with those whom my blog might benefit. I found myself hanging out, instead, with blogging and writing experts who, though challenging and educating me, also made me realize how far behind I am in those realms.

In addition, I’m not considered any kind of expert in the field of aging well. Yes, I am comparatively healthy, take no medication (yet) and continually pursue and think about ways to keep myself from growing feeble as I age. But that doesn’t make me any kind of expert.

It makes me one more voice in this worldwide cacophony of advice and opinion they call the blogosphere.

When writing for the blog, I mentally vacillated between wanting to make it a personal journey and a research project. Response to the blogs seemed to vacillate as well. Probably because of the title, the article on Surfing Snails – written a year ago – remains the most popular blog. It’s significant that it’s one of the ones I most enjoyed writing.

But the unpaid time and effort it has taken to write the articles – popular or not – have not produced a good return. Small return for large effort produces burnout – particularly when the same amount of effort brings financial reward when expended for paying clients.

So where are you going now?

My intent now is to develop a website and blog that are more in tune with what I do for gainful employment.

For at least twelve years I have been doing what is now known as Virtual Office Assistance.

Since moving from the Chicago area in 1998, I have worked as a virtual administrative assistant for a Chicago-based General Contractor, while also working full time – first in the Career Resource Center of a university in western Tennessee, then as an office manager/copywriter/bookkeeper/project manager for a small advertising agency in the Mississippi Delta. I have now become their remote editor, proofreader and copywriter. Recently, I have also expanded into the insurance world, laying out ads and doing some research and web marketing for a small agency in Houston.

Though I still find the learning curve in the web writing/blogging sphere steep, I do not find it so in the area of administrative assistance. The organizational and software skills come naturally. MS Word, QuickBooks and Excel are daily tools, and I have used both Access and PowerPoint. My equipment is new; I regularly take phone dictation and use internet faxing services. It’s all in place. I’m good at what I do and eager to expand my capabilities.

However, I’m still not ready to give up on this blog. I still believe that as long as we have breath we can approach the world in wonder; we can recognize that we live in a wonder-filled world. This blog helps me express that passion and may give others an avenue to do the same. So until time and energy constraints make it impossible, I’m keeping this avenue open — if only to talk about the reasons for all that traveling!

Wonder, Work Administrative Assistant, Blogging, Business Services, Virtual Assistant

You may have experienced it.

It’s a typical busy day in the office. You’re fielding calls, answering e-mails, greeting people as they come into the office.

Then someone calls who is angry before you answer the phone. They are ready – expecting – a confrontation. They have reasons to be upset and are determined you’ll hear them all.

After forty years of experience in the business world — often as the front desk person – I’ve learned how to respond.

I’ve learned how to unruffle feathers. I’ve learned when it’s important to be firm and when to give in, when to insist on what’s right and when to turn the other cheek.

If you’re the target of a complaint – whether or not it’s justified – here are my suggestions for responses to avoid, and some you might want to try. Read more…

Attitudes, Work anger, complaints, customer service, service

Most people talk excitedly about the New Year as a new beginning, a fresh new start. For some reason, I haven’t been able to get into it this year.

Maybe it’s because I’m always making promises I don’t keep, and it gets old after awhile. Why make year-long resolutions when I’m not fulfilling my week-long promises?

I heard one man say he hesitated to make resolutions for things he should already be doing. I tend to agree with him.

Others advise you not to make resolutions; set goals instead. I agree with them, too. Read more…

Attitudes, Work Goals, Impulses, New Year, Resolutions, Time Management

This is a continuation of a 3-Act Play. See Act 1, “The Conflict,” and Act 2 “The Consultant and the Boss”

Productivity Consultant:

Boss-Cheryl, I trust you’ve worked this week on being more aware of Cheryl’s time and energy restraints. And Employee-Cheryl, I hope you appreciate the changes that Boss-Cheryl is willing to make on your behalf.

This is how you can help her.

1. Budget your time like you budget your money.

I know you’re a Dave Ramsey fan, and you use his envelope system well. You decide what you’ll spend on groceries, clothing, fuel and entertainment, then you stick the cash in an envelope. You know that when the envelope’s empty, the buying is finished.

However, there’s an important difference between income and time: Income can grow; time is static. Read more…

Self-Discipline, Work Attitude, Blogging, Choices, Time Management, Writing

Act 2: The Consultant and the Boss

See Act 1, “The Conflict,” where Self-Employee-Cheryl rebels against the work schedule that Boss-Cheryl has set for her, while also complaining of interference in her personal life.

Productivity Consultant:

As usual, both of you bear some blame for this conflict between work schedules and personal life. I’ll address my first comments to you, Boss, because it seems you have some unrealistic expectations.

1. First, purge your to-do list.

You add things to Cheryl’s duties that just pop into your head. Sometimes they’re not necessary or even helpful. But you know that once it’s on that list, it nags and nags at her.

Worse, you make her use an Outlook reminder that pops up and reminds her of what she hasn’t done. Just “as the LORD gives and the LORD takes away” – since you put it on that list, you can take it off! Read more…

Self-Discipline, Work Attitude, Blogging, Choices, Time Management, Writing

Act 1: The Conflict

Employee:

I wish my boss would get off my back.

Sure, she schedules me for only 26 hours of work a week. And when I want to go off on a trip somewhere, all I have to do is give her a couple of weeks’ notice. Oh, yes, she also provides health insurance.

But she’s put this schedule on my desk, telling me which hours to work, when to take lunch, even when to do my housework.

She tells me that if I want to have any personal time in the morning, I must get up at 5:30, be dressed and ready to walk at 7:00, eat breakfast and be at my desk by 8:30.

And those items on the To-Do List she keeps piling on?! What an unreasonable, insensitive nag!

Well, I’ll show her! I’m taking a break and playing a game of FreeCell! Then I’m going to the kitchen for a snack.

Boss:

Go ahead! Play your games. Eat your apple.

But don’t come complaining to me that you’re behind schedule on two of your three blogs, your family reunion commitments, and following up on another possible paying job. Read more…

Self-Discipline, Work Attitude, Blogging, Decisions, Time Management, Writing

Someone (Hm-m-m!) once said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.”

Good advice for a blog, as well, don’t you think? So this morning, in the interests of giving this blog some focus (while also procrastinating),  I have examined the topics and frequency of previous blogs.

Blog frequency? Two at the end of May, eleven in June, four in July, one in August. The frequency has obviously fallen off.

Topics? Six essays on aging, five on nature and other observations, four on attitude, two on health, and one on family.

Therefore, to

1. increase blog frequency,
2. create accountability,
3. address niche issues (aging well with grace, wisdom, wonder and joy) and
4. also have fun writing about subjects that catch my fancy,

I am publishing the following editorial calendar for all the world to see. (So far, that’s a world of 10 people who have left comments, 35 “unique visitors” and 30 spammers.)

Mondays: Posts about Aging: health, diet, exercise, attitude, etc.

Wednesday: Pop-up Proverbs. My intention is not to look for these, hence the term “Pop-up.” But if they were to pop up in an e-mail from a reader (that’s a hint), it would count. In lieu of pop-ups, there’s always Grandma’s Little Notebook of Sayings.

Friday: Cook’s Choice. This means personal essays, musings about sharks, snails, storms or other (self-defined) insightful observations.

Talk to me: What do you think? Still too broad? Too self-serving? If so, what type of articles would be more helpful and/or entertaining? Book reviews? Cultural commentary?

Anyone out there?

Self-Discipline, Work Blogging, Writing

#7 – On the power of one

“Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.”

Jeremiah 29:21
The Old Testament

Why I like this.

This portion of a letter sent from the Old Testament prophet to those in exile under King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon struck me as good advice to anyone who is in a circumstance not of their own choosing. Jeremiah is telling them to make the best of it. Read more…

Wisdom, Work Attitude, Bible Verses, Money

Learning how to develop this blog has been – and is – great fun. Discovering anything new has always made my brain feel good.

As most of us know, if you want Internet-related help these days, you ask somebody younger. In developing this blog, my help has come from a son, a son-in-law and virtual blogging mentors. I have been amazed at the amount of free instruction they make available to anyone who wants to learn.

So, appropriately, I want to express my appreciation to: Read more…

Wonder, Work Blogging, Discovery, WordPress, Writing