Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

It’s been touch and go on whether I would get into the holiday spirit this year, what with over a months worth of health problems, but it finally hit this morning!

Luckily Mike had already gone out to cut our honorary Christmas bush, put it in the stand, brought it inside and watered it. Man, that tree was thirsty! And speaking of the holidays, let’s see what our other Boomer bloggers have been up to this week!

What would the holiday be without Moms? One of our new columnists Jennifer Koshak says:  Mommyisms are things that only a Mother would say, but in this case, they are things that only my 98-year-old Mother could say.  Go visit UnfoldAndBegin.com to read the latest installment in Laugh With These 3 New Mommyisms. 

Lest we forget, the holidays are super tough for those who grieve, Carol Cassara over at A Healing Spirit reminds us of the writer Joan Didion’s moving take on grief in two memoirs she wrote after the deaths of her husband and daughter. Her writing on grief is some of the most lucid, moving and deep, worth reminding you of if you’ve read them, and worth reading if you haven’t yet.

Speaking of celebrations, another of our new members, Sue from Sizzling Towards 60 & Beyond recently was asked: “What was your BEST birthday ever?” She immediately thought of her recent 60^th birthday celebration, but then, after looking back over 60 years, she found that there were several others that might be rated as ‘the best’.  Find out why this best birthday question reminded Sue of the importance of reflection and gratitude.

Meryl Baer of Six Decades and Counting spent the past few days close to home, actually at home, caregiver to her sick hub. She was healthy, but to avoid going stir crazy, she came up with a list of things to do while caring for a temporarily sick person who needs attention, but not 24/7 care. Go read her cute and funny list of fun suggestions: 10 Things To Do While Home With a Sick Spouse.

Rebecca Olkowski has been getting her steps in to stay in shape. She strolled the beautiful Napa wine country with her family during Thanksgiving. Then, she hiked up to the Griffith Park Observatory in Los Angeles with her sister after they drove back. You go girl!

On The Survive and Thrive Boomer Guide, Rita R. Robison, consumer journalist, offers us highlights from her recent vacation to Australia. Robison went to Sydney, where she lived in the late 1960s, to revisit the places she lived and worked. She and her sister, niece, and great nephew also visited Perth, a city Robison choose because it’s Australia’s only major city that she had not yet visited. In addition, she wanted to see Perth because it’s on Australia’s west coast like Seattle is on the west coast of the United States.

Tom Sightings is in a reflective mood this week, pondering What Makes Us Happy? He has done a little research, and has a few ideas of his own. Maybe you can chime in with a few insights of your own. Skip on over to Sightings Over Sixty.

Hope you are all enjoying the pre-holiday slump like I am! Time to get out those old music CDs. What are your favorites? We love Wind Machine, Portraits of Christmas from 1990(!) and Polar Express. As many of you know, watching the Polar Express is an annual ritual for us. Even though we almost have it memorized, we always find something new and different every time we watch. There is much more to this simple childhood tale than meets the eye. Genius at work here! Can you hear the bell?

So pleased Sunflowers & a Showy Four-O-Clock decided to bloom right in front of Buddha!

Try as I might to avoid or ignore the mean, ignorant people of this world, they still turn up in the most unlikely places. Yesterday a troll turned up on the Amazon sales page for my new book. What world does this guy live in? Wherever that is, it looks mighty grim to me, and his criticisms are absurd too.

I know my book isn’t anywhere near perfect, but it is an honest description of our “adventure” here in rural southern Colorado. From our original thoughts of moving to Ecuador to retire, to the purchase of our property, and then the move to Walsenburg three summers ago, this is our story. My favorite part of his rant is:  “This book is more like a daily diary of her thoughts for the moment.”                     Hello, this is a memoir after  all. If you feel my thoughts and feelings are “fluff” then why the hell did YOU buy the book? There are all sorts of free websites about building a passive solar home.

Just go read those, you moron!

My final comment on this obviously brilliant Internet troll and his poorly written rant, in responsive to his line: “She fancies herself as a writer…” I fancy you to be some miserable asshole hanging out alone, because you’re so naturally nasty and negative. Am I right?

Mike’s response to our friendly neighborhood book troll:

If this guy didn’t want a memoir, why did he buy one? This book is not about the technical aspects of solar building. There are plenty of detailed sources available for the technical information needed to properly design a solar home. The house was only about 10 percent more expensive than the house we sold. Besides being passive solar, the house is a major upgrade in quality and interior finishes. I also love my oversize garage that’s almost twice the size of the old one. There is no comparison between the corporation built tract home we sold and our new custom solar home! The trials and tribulations of building a beautiful retirement home in the country is what this book is about.