girl at large

Happy Birthday Tom!

Tom and friends in a pumpkin patch, at The Little Farmer. My brother Tom has had to share his birthday festivities with Thanksgiving preparations all his life, and every so often, it actually falls directly on Thanksgiving Day. This is one of those years--so, as I eat my prepackaged turkey breast-for-one, I'll be thinking of putting a birthday candle in it just for him!

President Obama!

Woo-hoo! What a night! When they called it, at 8pm Pacific time, I was standing on my balcony overlooking the lights of downtown Portland and could hear my neighbors on either side hooping and hollering--shouts of "I can't believe it!" "Did he really do it?!". I could hear shouts, whistles, car horns and pots being banged. I got through to Anna, at Grandma Mickeys keeping her company as they watched the results come in. She was in tears. Excited messages were left on the cell phones of a number of Quinlans--who had tickets to the speach in Grant Park! I caught Aunt Maria as she was standing in line to get in--I could barely make her out over the sound of the crowd, and got to tell her that they had just called it. My sister Peg was still up, despite the late hour in Brooklyn, and still waiting for it to "sink in". I called Mom in Turkey, (who cares that it was 5 in the morning there!)--she answered the phone with "We did it!" What an amazing night, and watching the coverage of Chicago--well, it made me want to go home to that great city. Congratulations America, you did it!

Why Yes, It Does.

While at the chiropractor's this week, when discussing the current dismal state of affairs and the gloomy pervailing attitude, I mentioned that despite the disaster befalling all of us at the low-end of the scale (now is not the time to make your living on commission), I've somehow entered a state of relaxed resignation. I'm no longer stressed, I know there's nothing I can do and that it's out of my hands now. This acceptance has brought me better sleep and an acid-free stomach. My doctor replied: "The End of Days suits you!"

The Curtain Closes

We were blessed with an amazingly beautiful October here--dry, warm and sunny! That's all over now, as switching back to Standard Time means darkness before 5, and the last few days have been rainy and gloomy. When winter begins in the Pacific Northwest, it's as if a big curtain is drawn across the sky--swoosh, that's it, summer's over!