http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again Home again RSS Feed http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2012-02-09_top_notch_edmonds_merchants Prior to our recent snowy weather, I made an appointment to have my car serviced. My family has taken cars to Edmonds Automotive Service, on 3rd Ave, for as long as I can remember. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2012-02-09_top_notch_edmonds_merchants http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2012-02-03_benjamin_bradbury_peterson__1995_2012_beloved_cat_companion_friend__ My cat Benjamin died in my arms this afternoon. A long time ago, I promised Ben I would always do whatever I could to keep him from misery. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2012-02-03_benjamin_bradbury_peterson__1995_2012_beloved_cat_companion_friend__ http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2012-01-19_anticipation_vs__reality I’ve long thought that the anticipation of a happy occasion is a gift in itself. Anticipation lets the imagination roam, creating expectations, floating along on excitement that builds every day. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2012-01-19_anticipation_vs__reality http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2012-01-12_an_evening__off_ Sometimes too many days go by without opportunity to see my small grandchildren in West Seattle. I get lonesome. Then I call daughter Lisa and offer to stay with Adam and Abby while she and husband Eric enjoy an afternoon or evening out. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2012-01-12_an_evening__off_ http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-12-29__all_in_its_own_time In my kitchen, I keep a hand-lettered sign on the door of a cupboard. “Do the Worst Thing First,” it commands. Most people who step into my kitchen notice the little sign. Often they read it aloud and comment on it. “Is that what you do?” a friend asked me. “The worst thing first?” http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-12-29__all_in_its_own_time http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-12-22_those_good_christmas_feelings Here it is Christmas week, and I am sitting by my tree, feeling the warmth from my little electric fireplace, thinking about the events of this Advent season. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-12-22_those_good_christmas_feelings http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-12-15_why_leave_town_to_shop_ Edging into mid-December, I am prompted to write again about shopping locally. I’ve driven recently past the jammed parking lot of a huge chain toy store, cars trolling slowly up and down the rows, drivers hoping someone will vacate a parking space. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-12-15_why_leave_town_to_shop_ http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-12-08_remembering_christmases_past Every year when I think back to my childhood Christmases in Edmonds, I long for my parents and grandparents and the holidays we shared. This year, I walk the same sidewalks in the same crisp December weather, past the familiar bakery, park, theatre and the old Carnegie building that used to be the library. My library. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-12-08_remembering_christmases_past http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-12-01_let_them_know_you_care Working in my daughter’s kitchen on Thanksgiving day, helping put the final touches on dinner, I heard my small grandson Adam suddenly call out, in the midst of his play in the living room, “Where’s Grandma?” He appeared in the kitchen doorway, frowning. “Hi sweetie,” I said. His frown disappeared. “Oh, there you are!” Reassured, he went back to his play. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-12-01_let_them_know_you_care http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-11-22_so_much_to_be_thankful_for It’s nearly Thanksgiving, and The Beacon has early deadlines this week. I need to get a column in today, and I don’t feel in the mood to write. I’d really rather bake banana bread or read a novel. I considered looking through some holiday columns from past years, polishing one of the November ones a bit and using it again. But Thanksgiving is not a time for recycled words, replayed emotions. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-11-22_so_much_to_be_thankful_for http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-11-17_reacquainting_myself_with_grandchildren My grandson Adam at two-and-a-half is sweet and funny, independent and happy. Not surprisingly, his mom reports that some days he acts “a little two-ish”—a term not necessarily intended as a compliment. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-11-17_reacquainting_myself_with_grandchildren http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-11-10_written_at_sea__part_deux A difficult thing about cruises is choosing what to do when the ship makes port calls, when vacationers can choose from an array of (mostly expensive) on-shore entertainment. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-11-10_written_at_sea__part_deux http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-11-03_written_at_sea_ I sit surrounded by scraps of paper, pages torn from small notebooks, words scribbled on receipts. That’s not much different from the scene in the corner of my home office most weeks when I write my column. Here’s the difference: I am a few thousand miles from home on a cruise ship. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-11-03_written_at_sea_ http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-10-27_a_great_start_to_a_grand_cruise There's something about taking a trip with a childhood friend—after retirement. My friend Mary and I pretty much lost touch with one another for a few decades in the middle of our lives, and that's a shame. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-10-27_a_great_start_to_a_grand_cruise http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-10-20_the_essentials_of_packing Planning a trip takes time and energy, whether the travel plans are simple or complex. I’ve spent weeks planning for a Panama Canal cruise with a childhood friend, sailing out of Ft. Lauderdale, following a pre-cruise stay in Virginia with her son and his wife. What a wonderful opportunity. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-10-20_the_essentials_of_packing http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-10-13_edmonds_library___get_involved The annual Edmonds Library Open House next Monday, October 17, at 650 Main Street, is a free community event aimed at showing local citizens their library, entertaining them and increasing their knowledge of what the library has to offer. The 5 to 6 p.m. Open House at the library is hosted by the Edmonds Library Board and funded by the Friends of the Edmonds Library. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-10-13_edmonds_library___get_involved http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-10-06_another_wonderful__wots_ Every year I look forward to the Write on the Sound Writers’ Conference, held in Edmonds the first weekend in October. This year, more than 230 participants attended the conference at the Frances Anderson Center, coming from as far away as New York, Florida, California, Colorado, Hawaii and Canada. Forty participants listed Edmonds addresses. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-10-06_another_wonderful__wots_ http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-09-29_finding_memories_in_stored_boxes I’ve been finding all sorts of treasures during my too-lengthy project of sorting through boxes I’ve stored—and ignored-- for half a dozen years. My favorite finds? Yellowed newspaper clippings, unexpected reminders of the past. Their worn edges poke out from between layers of less significant items. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-09-29_finding_memories_in_stored_boxes http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-09-22_the_worst_things_first I’ve been working my way through some boxes of paperwork I’ve been ignoring for way too long. As is true of many chores I put off until I can’t avoid them any longer, now that I’ve started, I’m surprised to find that I don’t really mind the job. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-09-22_the_worst_things_first http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-09-15_volunteers_get_their_due It’s no secret that volunteers have a good time working at the Edmonds Food Bank. The Carol Rowe Memorial Food Bank at Edmonds United Methodist Church seems to bring out the best in those who volunteer. I’ve never worked with people more dedicated to the jobs they were doing. http://edmondsbeacon.com/columns/home-again/article.exm/2011-09-15_volunteers_get_their_due