2025 End Mishmash

My goodness, here it is almost the end of the year. Some days seemed to drag on and others positively zipped by.  2025 has been overall a very good year.  As always, there have been hard things, but I'm glad to have lived it.

I think the above photo is from the spring or summer based on my hair and what I'm wearing ... I've been ever so slowly been growing my hair longer.  Going from a pixie cut to what will be just about shoulder length or a bit longer takes a while, especially as my hair grows more slowly now.  That aging brings wrinkles and the streaks of grey were not a surprise, but my hair growing more slowly was a thing I didn't realize is a 'thing.' As I recall, spring and summer meant getting adjusted to the regular gym, working with a trainer, making new friends intentionally in Bible study and meeting up for coffees, frozen yogurts, and breakfasts.  And early morning watering and weeding work to beat the hot sun.

I think this was late summer or early Autumn, and I'm too lazy to look at the calendar.  A friend of many years from my teaching days and I went to the Hollywood Bowl to see Jesus Christ, Superstar.  She's fifteen years younger, so wasn't of an age to remember when the album came out.  I hadn't been there since I was a teenager, and attended Easter Sunrise with my church youth group.  It was quite powerful, and a good experience. But I'd just as soon not attend a sold out performance there again ... 17,000 seats, so you can imagine the logistics of getting in and seated then out again.  Thankfully we parked in a transit lot and took a dedicated bus to the venue; traffic was unimaginable with police directing traffic.

Also in the spring, May I believe, I went with my friend Lynn to Fresno for quick stay, just two days.  We went to the Forestiere Underground Gardens, an amazing place.  Built by an Italian immigrant years ago, it's an underground home he built and cultivated trees and plants above and below ground.  Pictures are online ... I took very few; it's become my practice these past few years to simply be in the moment rather than taking lots of pictures. We stayed in an older hotel adjacent to the Gardens, and on part of the original acreage. The grounds of the hotel were filled with fruit trees, probably from the originals; lots of citrus along with cherry, apricot, and I'm not positive what else.  Both mornings, the owner gave us bags filled with tangerines, oranges, grapefruit and tangelos picked earlier that morning. Delicious!!  While there we visited the Japanese Gardens; quite lovely with the arched bridges, maintenance buildings in the Japanese architectural style, and in the very middle a bonsai tree collection which was ranked eighth in the world.  

Above is where I stopped for lunch in Seligman, Arizona on my way home.  The food was good, and the place was filled with photo-op spots around the property.  

 

I took 'regular' for the past few years trip to Albuquerque in October, stopping in Flagstaff, AZ both ways. I spent my time with family there for several days.  My aunt and uncle are in assisted living now, so it was bittersweet. Unlike most years, I didn't go to Tulsa or Montrose, Colorado.  My budget is tighter due to dental work, and my friend in Colorado was having severe health issues and felt next year would be better.  I'll fly back to see my Tulsa friend, hopefully during 2026 if the airline craziness calms down; I only spend a day or two due to her dementia and no longer being able to take her out of town for safety reasons.   

This Monday was a cooking day.  I made a batch of chicken with a new recipe ... Greek spices, lemon juice and zest, chicken thighs and Yukon potatoes diced.  It turned out very well, and I'll make it again. Next time I'll bake thin-sliced lemon with it, as recommended.  I'm curious to see how they taste.  I also made small batch of beef stew, which hit the spot.  So, twelve meals in all.  It can be frozen, but I don't like the texture of the vegetables after freezing. The chicken has been put two by two into the freezer, and I'm eating one serving per day of the stew ... four servings in all. I recently bought lamb shoulder to try a Persian stew recipe I saw ... it involves whole dried limes among the spices.  Hopefully I'll like it; it looked delicious when I watched an online cook prepare it.

This is me feet up in my little family room a few days before Christmas. Today only the wreathe remains of the Christmas items.  I'll take it down today.  I went pretty minimal on the decorating this year, feeling a bit tired and during the season. I'm bouncing back, and have regained my energy. We had our Christmas on Monday of the week, as it was the day both kids were off together.  We had one friend over to join us.  I made homemade lasagne, and a nice salad. The 'kids' handled garlic cheesy bread and two Costco-bought desserts: creme brulee layered cake and apple pie (my daughter's favorite pie). Both were good, but the creme brulee cake was my favorite of the two.  

Today it is raining, and I'm waiting to see if the roof will leak over the window to the right.  It leaked last year and was fixed, was fine through the following months.  But, we had heavier than normal winter rains for several days along with wind with the storm that traveled down the California coast last week.  It is raining again today and is predicted to rain off and on for the next week.  No drips yet, and no strong winds, so we will wait and see ... I have set up the drip containment and moved my great grandmothers' rocker to be safe.  The roofer's been called by the landlord, but with the damage and flooding we had in the area I'm sure it will be some time before he contacts me.

It has been a good year overall.  Some sad things, some hard things.  But some pretty wonderful things, many blessings, new friends and lots of laughter.  

Here's to a wonderful new year for us all. 

💗💋

This is today ... you can barely tell because of my sweatshirt, but my hair in the back is almost to my shoulders ... short shag right now, but will grow it several inches past my shoulders ... it's taking forever, but I like it.