Most of the time, I do a great job of ignoring the obvious – I’m not getting any younger. But I do have to brush my hair every day, and that means looking in the mirror. What a shocker when I'm so good at seeing myself in my mind the way I looked in my twenties, or even in my thirties!! But as they say, the alternative to getting older, unless your name is Dorian Grey, is to die young.

Last week I managed to turn my ankle in a shallow pothole and fell smashing my knee on the pavement. Once upon a time I’d have jumped up and plastered a bandaid on the cut and promptly forgotten the incident unless someone asked what I’d done to myself. But getting older means healing takes longer. It might also have contributed to the fact that I managed to tear some ligaments on the way down, which means the recovery is even more dragged out. So I hobble about feeling stiff and old, but the body is an amazing thing, and I will heal eventually.

In the mean time, however, I’m trying to be positive about the benefits of being a senior citizen. Among the obvious are being retired and being my own boss, not having to set an alarm clock, the freedom to take trips anytime I like and go for walks on the beach in the middle of the day.

It also brought me the opportunity to try things I’d never done before. With the last of my kids through college, I was free to look around and ask myself, what would I really like to try now? I took up skydiving, which was fantastic. Then I joined the Peace Corps and spent two years as a volunteer, sharing the wisdom and experience I’d gained over the years and garnering many  unexpected blessings in return. I moved to a lovely bungalow by the beach in a place warm enough to walk on it every day and enjoy the sunshine.

Another thing most of us discover is that we’ve made all the stupid mistakes of youth and managed to learn and grow from them. The wisdom gained is precious. We’ve acquired a whole new respect for how fleeting time and life are and therefore a better appreciation for every blessing that comes our way. And we get discounts nearly everywhere (except on airlines.)

I can’t honestly say I’d turn down an offer to switch aging with a portrait were the chance to come my way, but I also have to admit that I love my life the way it’s turned out. Sure there are things I’d change if I could, not being a widow high on the list, but mostly I’ve been blessed. I’ve got adult children who are wonderful people I admire tremendously, who are always there for me with love and support. I’ve got a growing brood of grandchildren who are adorable and fun. I’ve got great friends I enjoy spending time with and while not perhaps the biggest blessing, I found the time to get serious about writing and I’m now a published author and I love what I do with all that time that’s mine to spend.

As my T-shirt says . . . “Life is Good!”

So, I leave you with these quotes to ponder:

"We live in a youth-obsessed culture that is constantly trying to tell us that if we are not young, and we're not glowing, and we're not hot, that we don't matter. I refuse to let a system or a culture or a distorted view of reality tell me that I don't matter. I know that only by owning who and what you are can you start to step into the fullness of life. Every year should be teaching us all something valuable. Whether you get the lesson is really up to you." —Oprah

“Old age ain't no place for sissies.” —Bette Davis

I’m a list maker, which might be surprising to some, especially my writer friends who know how much I hate outlines and synopses. My books are character driven, as opposed to carefully plotted. When I travel, I’m far more likely to book my first and last night accommodations in a city I’m visiting, even for the first time, then let the rest of the trip unfold however it might depending on things that catch my eye, or people I meet and conversations I get into. I revel in that way of travel – it becomes an adventure with surprises around every corner. I see things and go places I’d never have considered had I planned out my itinerary in detail. Likewise, in life, I have, in the words of my favorite poet, Robert Frost, “taken the road less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.” All of life is an adventure.

But back to the list thing. Even though I don’t pre-plan my traveling adventures, I always have a list of things that need to be done before I leave and things that need to get packed. At Christmas there are lists of gifts that need to be ordered or shopped for, gifts to be sewn, cards to be sent, decorations to be put up, and cookies to be baked and delivered. On days that I seem to have a lot to get accomplished, out comes the pad of paper and a list gets drawn up. There is satisfaction and a sense of achievement to be had in checking things off as they get done. And, of course, if I do something that wasn’t on the list, it gets added and promptly checked off. At the end of the day, all those check marks are a reward for hard work and diligence.

Thus, in spite of the fact that I love to live my life by the seat of my pants, January 1^st always inspires me to consider the new year, another clean slate, another beginning, and ponder what resolutions might make me a better person, or my life more rewarding. Out comes the pad of paper, or more often in today’s world, the Notes app on my phone, and the list of possible resolutions get jotted down. Eventually, I narrow that list down to just a few. Like the sage advice when applying to college, I try to pick one thing that I know I can achieve, one or two that I can achieve if I stay focused and work at them, and one that is a reach, but if achieved would definitely make my life much better.

I’m no better than anyone else, though, and far too often on January 15^th or February 6^th or some other day not long into the new year I find myself admitting I’ve already failed to meet even the easiest resolution. I’m a lot more likely to meet my goals if I tell someone else what they are so this year, I’m going to post them here for all the world to know. It’s so much easier to justify not meeting my goals when I’m the one who knows what they are. But my kids know about this blog so the likelihood of not having to answer to anyone is slim to none and my excuses would have to be really inventive. So here goes:

•  Write at least one more book in my Tide’s Way Series

•  Edit and submit my Time Travel Historical for publication

•  Get back in shape and walk the beach EVERY day

•  Lose weight

•  Take a trip to at least one place I’ve never been before

•  Make one new friend

So – what about you? Are you making any resolutions this year? You are invited to comment on mine, make suggestions or even add your own, or explain why you don’t make resolutions. (We’re all different so this isn’t a judgment.) And however you begin your new year, make 2015 a good one, live every day, try not to miss opportunities. And God bless you.  Skye-Writer

The little girl climbed up into Santa’s lap and carefully smoothed her skirt over her knees.

“I know you aren’t really Santa Claus,” she whispered conspiratorially.

Lt. James “Mac” MacAlister leaned back and peered down at the girl from under the bushy white eyebrows someone had glued on over his own sandy brows. This was not an accusation he’d been prepared for when he signed on to do this Toys for Tots gig.

Mac gave the thin young shoulders a hug and confided, “I’m one of Santa’s elves. Santa Claus can’t be everywhere at once and right now he’s busy at the North Pole. So he sent me to check his list for him.”

“Is that why you’re not fat enough for your suit?”

“What gave me away?” He chuckled in his best Santa imitation.

“You kinda feel like my daddy used to,” she said parting her knees to poke at Mac’s hard, muscular, very unSanta-like thigh.

Mac wondered if her father was a fellow Marine or just a guy who worked out a lot. But whatever, she made it sound as if the man was no longer with the family.

“What would you like Santa to bring you?” he asked, trying to redirect the conversation.

“I don’t need anything. Not really . . .” she trailed off wistfully. “But my brother wants one of these.” She pulled a tattered page from a toy catalog out of her pocket and spread it for him to see. It featured a Tonka Dessert Fox SUV.  “He’s still too little, and he doesn’t understand why Daddy can’t come home. Mommy says Santa Claus isn’t coming to our house this year.”

Tears prickled unexpectedly in Mac’s eyes. He blinked them away and gave the little girl another hug. “Surely there must be something you would like?”

The girl folded the page from the catalog and pressed it into Mac’s hand. “Just the truck for Sammy. Even Santa Claus can’t bring my daddy back in time for my dance recital, and that’s all I wanted. Except maybe—” she paused, then added in a hurried, hushed little voice, “maybe a new pair of ballet shoes.”

Mac produced two Tootsie Pops from his voluminous pocket and pressed them into her hand. “One for you and one for your brother. And I’ll be sure that Santa Claus gets your message, but I need to know your name so he can deliver the truck to the right house.”

“It’s Maggie,” the girl chirped as she slid off Mac’s lap. “Maggie Reynolds.”

~~~~~

The Dessert Fox SUV was easy. Finding out where Maggie Reynolds lived wasn’t hard either. Discovering the whereabouts and status of Maggie’s father was the challenge. But Mac wasn’t in Intelligence for nothing.

It turned out that Sergeant Don Reynolds was stationed in the Middle East, seven months into a year-long tour. His wife was pregnant with their third child who was due in less than two weeks and money was tight.

Mac did some more recon to discover what Maggie’s mother needed most in the way of assistance. He sent his own Marine elf, aka Lance Corporal Trisha Burke, out to find the SUV for Sammy and a new car seat for the coming infant. He got another buddy to promise a total overhaul of the family’s aging vehicle and paid a local nursery to deliver a tree to the Reynolds home. Toys for Tots would put more toys under the tree, but there was one other surprise Mac had in the works. He hoped he could pull it off. Perhaps he could change Maggie’s mind about the scope of Santa’s powers.

~~~~~

Maggie hurried to her spot. She fluffed the spangled tutu and peered over the ruffles to gaze yet again at the brand new ballet shoes that had appeared on her doorstep just that morning. They were exactly the right size, and they had ribbons that matched her tutu perfectly. How had Santa Claus known?

If only Daddy could have seen her dance tonight, then her Christmas would have been the best ever.

As the curtains began to part, the music started. Maggie quickly placed her feet in the correct position and raised her arms into an arch above her head. She lifted her chin, determined to smile and pretend that Daddy was watching. She pointed her toe and began to dance.

Then she hesitated. Her heart thumped and tears slipped down her cheeks. There, right in the front row, holding Mommy’s hand sat a Marine in his best uniform clutching a bouquet of pink roses.

Santa Claus had brought Daddy home in time after all.

Be sure to visit the other Blog Hop sites for more Christmas stories of hope, peace and love. Wishing everyone a blessed holiday:

Ginger Simpson http://mizging.blogspot.com/
Beverley Bateman http://beverleybateman.blogspot.ca/
Fiona McGier http://www.fionamcgier.com/
Diane Bator http://dbator.blogspot.ca/
Rachael Kosnski http://the-doodling-booktease.tumblr.com/
Margaret Fieland http://www.margaretfieland.com/blog1/
Helena Fairfax  http://helenafairfax.com/
Anne Stenhouse  http://annestenhousenovelist.wordpress.com/
Marci Baun  http://www.marcibaun.com/
A.J. Maguire  http://ajmaguire.wordpress.com/
Victoria Chatham http://victoriachatham.webs.com/
Kay Sisk http://kaysisk.blogspot.com
Skye Taylor  http://www.skye-writer.com/
Lynn Crain  http://www.awriterinvienna.blogspot.com
Rhobin Courtright http://www.rhobinleecourtright.com/

Connie Vines  http://connievines.blogspot.com

Bob Hope made his first USO debut in May of 1941 and continued throughout WWII. In the words of John Steinbeck who was a war correspondent in 1943 - “When the time for recognition of service to the nation in wartime comes to be considered, Bob Hope should be high on the list. This man drives himself and is driven. It is impossible to see how he can do so much, can cover so much ground, can work so hard, and can be so effective. He works month after month at a pace that would kill most people.” 

It’s hard to argue with Steinbeck’s assessment considering that Hope did over 200 performances for 35 consecutive years, from WWII to Korea, to Vietnam, Lebanon, Iran and Iraq, and the Persian Gulf.  This included 8 straight Christmas tours during the Vietnam War and a Christmas show in Lebanon just 2 months after the bombing of the Marine Barracks in Beirut. In all, his USO tours went on for over half a century, bringing a bit of home and laughter to our military men and women wherever our government chose to send them.

While I worked on Christmas projects, I popped in a compilation of Bob Hope's eight years touring Vietnam at Christmas. I felt nostalgic watching those shows from so long ago. Partly, I supposed, because I was young then, too. But more because in spite of the turmoil and protests that the Vietnam War created here in America, it seemed a more innocent time. Mr. Hope brought girls to sing and dance for soldiers who were barely more than boys and had never been so far from home or so close to death on a daily basis. He brought sports stars and astronauts and comedians. He brought letters from home. He carried a golf club and did soft shoe routines. He joked about the perils of flying into those dangerous places, about arrested landings on carriers and about being in a war zone. It occurred to me that half of the punch lines would be considered politically incorrect today. Even the singing of Silent Night at the end of every show would be considered offensive to some today and therefore deemed inappropriate. And I began to wonder where the spirit of America has gone.

In spite of having come of age during the Vietnam years, I still did a considerable amount of research for two books that I wrote featuring heroes who fought in that far away place at a time when we did not thank our men and women who gave so much when called. I learned far more than I wanted to about the bleak and frustrating day to day slog. About men who gave their lives while politicians gave lip service. I learned from the men themselves about the heartbreak of losing friends on the battlefield and the added heartbreak of being spit on and cursed when they finally made it home again themselves. With these revelations not so faded in my mind, I watched the soldiers who came to Bob Hope’s shows. Men who were tanned and thin, some who were wounded, all who were disillusioned and yet, in spite of all that, there were smiles on their faces during those shows. For those brief hours, the war receded and Hope prevailed.

Bob Hope did his last USO Christmas tour in 1991 when he was well into his 80s. Since then others have taken on the crusade to bring a bit of home and holiday cheer to our soldiers at Christmas and all year. People like Gary Sinise, Jay Leno, Stephen Colbert, Randy Travis and Billy Joel, Robin Williams, Robert DeNiro, Willy Nelson, and dozens more. But there will never be another Bob Hope. His was an era like no other. And as his signature song says . . . “Thanks for the Memory.”

                              .

The first book in Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series is one of my all-time favorite books and I’ve read it several times already and will probably read it several more in my lifetime. And being a lover of books over movies, I wasn’t sure that the series would measure up. How wrong I was!

Sure there were differences, but in the first eight episodes, they were good ones. In the book the reader fell in love with Jamie so easily and quickly that Claire’s memories and worry over Frank made you want to shake her. I mean, with Jamie there, what more could she want out of life? Even after she began to fall in love with Jamie, she often withdrew quite unexpectedly and without explanation from Jamie’s point of view and hurt him in the process. It put one quite out of sympathy with her.

The book (and the TV series) starts off with Claire and Frank headed to Scotland at the close of WWII on a second honeymoon because they’ve been apart so long that they needed to get to know each other again, so how on earth could her feelings for Frank be so strong when the present was Jamie? Very little about Frank was included in the books. But in the Starz series, Frank is portrayed far more caringly. We see him grieving her disappearance, in the police station still demanding action weeks after she’d gone, and even when he finally gave up, he is drawn to visit the stones one last time before leaving Scotland to return to his teaching post. It helped the reader/watcher get into Frank’s point of view and feel sympathy for him and thus for Claire in spite of Jamie. That was a definite plus in the writing for the series.

McTavish as  Dougal                            Menzies as Frank  &  Black Jack                      A grieving Frank

One never liked Dougal in the book, but the series made his mixed and less than friendly intentions subtly even clearer in the mannerisms and expressions Graham McTavish brought to the dialog.  The casting was well done for all the characters, but especially Sam Heughan. He may not have looked like Jamie when he first got the nod, but his transformation was fantastic. He portrays Jamie perfectly with a sense of humor, the eagerness of a young man, even one with a price on his head and in his often heroic care for Claire. Catriona Balfe makes a wonderful Claire and Tobias Menzies is perfect in his dual role as Frank in the future and Black Jack, the villain in the past. I loved the entire cast – well done.

There was nudity and even sex that would never be allowed on network TV but it was tastefully done. The dialog was fantastic – love the accent and the inclusion of the Gaelic even when I don’t know what’s being said. It added so much to the flavor of the show. Scotland is a beautiful and very different country and having this filmed there is another huge plus. Fog and weather just as one might expect in Scotland draws the watcher into the setting so well you can almost feel the moisture collecting on your clothing. And who doesn’t love horses? Ronald Moore has produced what is sure to become a classic. I can’t wait for the next part of the series and you can bet your boots, I’ll be purchasing the DVDs as soon as they become available so I can savor it all over again. If you love romance, time travel, and Scotland, you will love this series. If you've not read the books, then I won't tell you more of the story - I'll let you enjoy it as it unfolds.  

 When Meg Cameron, a Marine MP, returns from a war zone, she and her husband Ben are faced with the toll war, guilt and loss have taken on their marriage. Ben is also fostering a police dog named Kip who lost his handler and his spirit to a perp with a gun. While Ben tries to help his two wounded warriors find healing, Meg struggles to fit back into her civilian life. Meg debates returning to active duty, a move that would surely end in another deployment. Ben's fears climb. What if her pain and confusion take her back into harm's way again, and he lost her forever?

                                                            ~~  ~~  ~~  ~~

Meg shot out of bed. It was the middle of the night. Where was she? The room was cold. Not Baghdad! She shivered. She was home. In her bedroom. Immediately her heart rate eased off its frantic pace. She slid her feet to the floor and stood.

She shivered again and stepped silently away from the bed. The sexy red shirt was probably still on the kitchen counter. She groped blindly in the ink-dark closet she shared with Ben, hunting for her bathrobe. Unable to locate the robe, she settled for a soft chamois shirt of Ben’s that came nearly to her knees. She wrapped it about herself and crossed the room to the window.

Ever since that first night so far from home, she’d had daydreams about her first night back home. Daydreams of sleeping in their luxurious, king-sized bed where she could spread out and get really comfortable. Sleeping the whole night through without the sound of war at her doorstep. And being able to reach out and touch Ben any time she wanted to. 

But it hadn’t turned out anything like the daydreams that had gotten her through their year of separation. After a year on an army cot, she wasn’t used to sprawling, or sharing her bed. Ben seemed too close, too possessive, even in his sleep. His arm draped across her middle, his breath in her hair. It felt claustrophobic.

Meg had gotten used to sleeping the way soldiers have always slept, half on alert and ready to respond in an instant. She’d grown accustomed to having people awake and moving about, on guard while she slept. But home was eerily still with just the little creaking sounds of a settling house and no one keeping watch.

She’d been dozing fitfully, and now that she thought about it, she decided it must have been Ben’s dogs barking that woke her. Which was puzzling. There had been a constant cacophony of dogs roaming loose in the streets, day and night, in Baghdad. Stray dogs barked all the time, but she’d gotten used to them. So, why tonight had the barking brought her bolt upright in bed in a cold sweat reaching for a rifle that wasn’t there?

Hugging the chamois shirt closer, she stared out over the yard that was so familiar, and yet in a weird way, so unfamiliar. The dogs had already quieted again. Some stray animal must have gotten them going. Maybe a raccoon moseying about, hunting for something to eat.

Scout hadn’t barked unless he was alerting someone that he’d detected unseen danger. He hadn’t barked when he’d stepped on a hidden detonation plate either. Meg shuddered and hugged herself harder.

That hadn’t been her fault.

“Not my fault,” she whispered the mantra aloud in the hushed dark room.

Everyone in her unit had insisted that Scout’s death was not her fault. Scout’s handler hadn’t blamed her either. But she’d clung to her self-recrimination and had a melt-down over the dog’s death in her commanding officer’s arms. Unexpected and inexcusable desire had flared up between her and John, and she had wanted to lose herself in the passion of it and forget about Scout.

That desire had been her fault.

“You all right?” Ben slipped his arms about her waist and bent his head down next to hers.

Meg’s heart slammed into overdrive at Ben’s sudden closeness. “I’m—I’m fine.” It appalled her that she hadn’t heard him getting out of bed. It appalled her that her mind had been so full of John and the forbidden things she’d felt in Baghdad that she’d become completely unaware of her surroundings. A shocking breach in good soldiering.

“I thought I heard you crying.” Ben pulled her back against his chest and rocked her gently. “What’s wrong?”

Pete Seger wrote Turn, Turn, Turn in the late 1950s and it became a #1 hit sung by a number of different artists, but the words are the oldest of lyrics, taken almost word for word from the Bible - Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:

a time to be born and a time to die,  a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,  a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,  a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,  a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,

a time to search and a time to give up,  a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,  a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,  a time for war and a time for peace.

But amazingly missing from this litany is a TIME TO BE THANKFUL.

This week take time to be thankful,    For the gift of your life, for your mother and your father,  For the gift of those to love and those who love you,  For shelter and food, for education and learning,  For health and employment, for recreation and pleasure,  For the companionship of pets, and all the good things in your life.  

And especially for the FREEDOM to enjoy all of these gifts and for the soldiers who protect that freedom, who go where you do not want to go and do things you will never fully understand, who put their lives on the line for you, and for all of us in the name of Freedom. 

And as you sit down to the traditional family feast, your plates overflowing with all the good things you love and look forward to on this day, as you cheer on your favorite team or go for a walk in the beautiful, peaceful world around you, take a moment to THANK those who will be at work this day; the nurses and doctors, the firemen and police, pilots and cab drivers, hotel staff, waitresses and cooks, even the clerks who man the stores should you choose to shop on this day.

Take another moment or several to pray for those who have none of the things that make your life rich and wonderful. Ask God to watch over the homeless, the orphaned and the hungry, those who are cold, alone, ill and afraid, those who are not free, those who are beaten and those who have no hope.

Because – there is a time to be thankful for all the gifts under heaven.

  BEST EVER HOLIDAY MEALS  

I love turkey anyway. Not just the bird in all its glory when served with all the trimmings, but all the various ways to use leftovers as well. But there was one turkey sandwich that will forever remain in my memory as the best turkey sandwich I ever had in my life.

My youngest daughter was born on Thanksgiving. I woke in labor before the sun was up, but in spite of this being my fourth pregnancy, my labor was doomed to be very long. My husband was antsy about getting to the hospital on time, but the contractions were weak and far apart so I told him it wasn’t time yet. He eventually convinced me to at least head over to my mom’s house where we were expected for dinner later on anyway so at least the kids would be where they needed to be when the time came. Dinner came first, but being in labor, I knew I should not be gobbling down a heaping plate as usual so I picked, tasting a bit of this and a bit of that. Finally, by mid-afternoon the contractions had steadied to five minutes apart and I conceded.

Off to the hospital we went in anticipation of being parents again by supper time. NOT! It was a good thing I’d studied the relaxation techniques of Grantly Dick-Read because I never would have lasted using the Lamaze method. The hours stretched out as contractions came and went, my husband offered nearly continuous massage and doctors and nurses checked in and left again. Shortly before midnight, Lori finally decided to make her entrance, three minutes before the end of Thanksgiving. She was beautiful and healthy and all was right with my world.

Until the hemorrhaging began. It was my husband’s night from hell and I’m sure my physician was not happy to be dragged back to the hospital twice in the night either. Before dawn that crazy Friday I was in surgery. For four hours. And as anyone who’s had major surgery knows, afterwards they keep you on first a liquid diet, then a bland one. I had so been looking forward to having that plate of turkey as soon as everything was over. Friday and Saturday brought nothing but jello and herb tea and equally flavorless fare. But Sunday I was finally allowed to order off the regular menu.

My Mom, bless her heart forever, arrived during the lunch hour with a fat, luscious looking turkey sandwich. I tucked into that sandwich like I hadn’t eaten in weeks and it was the very best sandwich ever. I’ve since tried to duplicate it. I put all the same things into the sandwich my mom did, but never has one tasted so incredibly delicious. I still love turkey sandwiches and always will, but in my mind, that one can never be beat.

Want to hear about some other great holiday menus and meals" Check out some of these:

Marci Baun  http://www.marcibaun.com/
A.J. Maguire  http://ajmaguire.wordpress.com/
Fiona McGier http://www.fionamcgier.com/
Judith Copek http://lynx-sis.blogspot.com/
Diane Bator http://dbator.blogspot.ca/
Beverley Bateman http://beverleybateman.blogspot.ca/
Skye Taylor  http://www.skye-writer.com/
Ginger Simpson http://mizging.blogspot.com/
Victoria Chatham http://victoriachatham.webs.com/
Margaret Fieland http://www.margaretfieland.com/blog1/
Rachael Kosnski http://the-doodling-booktease.tumblr.com/
Anne Stenhouse  http://annestenhousenovelist.wordpress.com/
Heidi M. Thomas http://heidiwriter.wordpress.com/
Helena Fairfax  http://helenafairfax.com/
Kay Sisk http://kaysisk.blogspot.com
Rhobin Courtright http://www.rhobinleecourtright.com/

Who doesn't love men in kilts?            or bagpipes and music?                          Craigmonie Hotel,

                                                                                                                    Inverness, Scotland                       

My bio boasts that I like to think of life as adventure and I haven’t passed up too many opportunities that have come my way, but some of the craziest adventures happened when I least expected.  One of these was in the lovely, and fascinating city of Inverness Scotland.

My sister and I arrived in Inverness and were lucky to have prebooked a room at the Craigmonie Hotel, because as it turned out, we arrived there at the end of the National Mod and the city was hopping, the hotels all booked. A mod is a festival of Scottish Gaelic song, arts and culture, and Inverness was overflowing with men in kilts, bagpipes, bands, dancers and the lilt of Gaelic being spoken everywhere. Everything that is romantic about the Scots in one place and we were there to enjoy it.

After a day of exploring the sights and sounds, we dressed up to go to “high tea” in a cozy little place near St. Andrews Cathedral. As we were leaving, we noticed that across the hall from the tea room, there was a small bar where a man playing the accordion. We moseyed on in and sat down to enjoy the music, but before we were even halfway through our first mug of beer, he stopped to whet his own whistle. So, my sister headed over to ask if he was done playing for the night and returned to our table with the man right behind her inviting us to join the party celebrating the finale of that year’s mod.

Now we were overdressed considering everyone else was wearing Jeans so we said we’d be back and hustled up the hill to our hotel to change. As we left, we mentioned to the desk clerk that we were headed to a party and he told us to have a good time.

And we did.

Until four o’clock in the morning.

We didn’t pay for a single drink but we consumed way more than we should have. We were encouraged to join in Scottish dances we had no idea how to perform, but somehow it didn’t matter that night. We heard some really great music and partied very hearty. What a fantastic night we had with a most welcoming and talented bunch of Scots. And it was all quite by chance. (See what I mean about not passing up opportunities that came my way?) But the adventure was only beginning.

As I said, we had imbibed rather more than either of us was used to, so the walk back to our hotel was more of a wander. The most exciting part of which was the trip across the River Ness on the walking bridge that swayed in the wind. Or was it us that swayed. In any case, it was an achievement to reach the other side still standing.

To our total dismay, when we reached our hotel, it was locked up tight. Having stayed in a number of bed and breakfasts and guesthouses, we thought perhaps our room key would open the door. That was not the case. So, while my sister continued to knock on the door, hoping that someone in management would hear and come to let us in, I hunted for another door that our key might work in. None was to be found, but just as I came around the last corner, I noticed a window placed low in the stone building with a neat round hole cut in it. God only knows why, probably had something to do with my inebriated state, but I reached in and discovered the window was not locked and opened easily. It was dark as sin inside so I had no idea where it opened into, but without any other options, my sister and I checked to make sure no one was around and wriggled inside. Thankfully, before we fell into who knew what, our feet touched down on the stainless steel counter of a commercial dishwasher.

So, now we were inside, and we were in the kitchen but where to next? We could see absolutely nothing. Hand over hand, we made our way along the walls until we finally found a door. We only knew it was the dining room by a faint shaft of light glinting off the crystal chandeliers. But at least there was enough light now guide us onward. Emerging into a carpeted hallway, we booked it up the wide curving staircase to the rooms above, praying not to get caught, and arrived at our room and flung ourselves inside. I stood with my back to the door, my heart pounding and my head spinning not quite believing what we'd just gotten away with.

Looking back on it in a more sober frame of mind, I still don’t know what else we could have done at four o’clock in the morning. It was pretty chilly in Inverness in early November, and besides, we’d paid for our room and we’d even told the clerk we were going out partying. Why hadn’t he told us the place would get locked up at some point? It wouldn’t have been so amusing if our mother had received a trans-Atlantic call to inform her that her daughters (who were old enough to know better) were in a Scottish lockup, being held for breaking and entering, but it sure was an adventure while it was happening.

                                                 Uquart Castle ruins on Loch Ness

I’ve been told that allergies can be acquired at any point in life. If that’s the case, then I am definitely allergic to winter.

You have to understand. I grew up in New England. I spent my childhood winters frolicking in the snow. I even carried that well into adulthood. I enjoyed snowball fights, downhill skiing, cross country skiing, coasting and pretty much everything but driving in the stuff, although I learned how to do that pretty well, too.

Cold never bothered me all that much either. I just donned more layers of clothing and stepped out regardless of the temperatures outdoors. Getting cozy with a hot cup of tea, a book and a crackling fire was pretty sweet, almost as sweet as curling up under a mountain of quilts, down comforters and flannel sheets.

But something happened to me along the way. Looking back on it now, I have to guess it was my decision to join the Peace Corps in 2002. They sent me to the South Pacific where my initial reaction was “Good God it’s hot here!” But over the two years I spent working and playing there, my body must have adapted. It was probably a good thing that I arrived home again in May. I had the summer, however short it is in the state of Maine, to adjust back to my former self before the ground froze solid and the wind chill sucked all the mercury out of my thermometer.

I think the first hint that I might no longer have what it took to live through a northeast winter might have been after I adopted a new dog. First thing every morning and then again when I returned from work, he needed to be walked, and as he sniffed and moseyed his way along, the artic chill would shove its unwelcome fingers down my neck until my muscles were so tense they would begin to cramp.

The other thing that I always thought picturesque and cozy was the return to standard time. Driving home in the dark with lights glowing from homes along the way seemed to make nighttime feel friendlier somehow. But after my return from the South Pacific where the winter days and summer days had been very similar in length, the ever-shrinking daylight hours grew more and more depressing. Not only was it dark when I drove home, it was dark when I got up to go to work in morning, as well. After two years of learning first hand what cabin fever was all about, I escaped for a vacation in St Augustine Florida when an endless March stretched ahead of me and my home was still held fast in winter and would remain so until sometime in May if I was lucky.  The rest is history.

I’ve lived here in St Augustine for six years now and never looked back. I could write several blogs about my new hometown, but they can wait. For now, I’ve discovered I’m allergic to winter. At the first reminder that we would be turning our clocks back, I began to whine and dread the loss of evenings filled with enough light for a walk on the beach. Then came this blast of cold that moved in over the weekend. My nose began to itch and the sneezing fits started. Next came the endless dripping like a leaky faucet. It got worse today when I had to wear a sweatshirt to walk the dog and put shoes on my feet. Then the photos began appearing on Facebook. Photos of Gillette Stadium in Foxboro Mass having snow removed before the Patriots game began and highways covered with snow from the midwest to Maine. I shivered and sneezed and dug out a new box of tissues. This has to stop. It’s only November.

My daughter suggested that it might be something in my air ducts considering I’d turned the heat on, but those are the same ducts that convey cool air when the AC is on so I don’t think that’s my problem. Perhaps something growing outside? But that’s unlikely considering that St Augustine is not tropical and we do have a winter here when trees and grasses do not bloom and spread pollen everywhere. Next will come a scarf, my wooly hat and a jacket. So, the only logical conclusion I can draw is that I have grown allergic to winter. I don’t recall having this problem in the South Pacific so now I’m wondering . . . maybe I’ll have to consider moving to the Keys . . .

P.S. I still know how to drive in snow, it’s the idiots who think 4-wheel drive means they can stop as quickly as they get going that scare the crap out of me now.