You’re Lucky To Have A Job

The other day I overheard a lunch conversation about how sick people are of hearing from their employers (for the past decade), “You are lucky to have a job!”

It’s true. People are sick of it.

It’s true. The employers are right.

Be the last to lose a contagiously positive attitude, and be the first to regain it.

Things will eventually get better.

Meanwhile, I’d like to offer a 3rd option.

Never lose it and continue to be the change you wish to see in others.

(scroll down or travel to Lane 8 )

9 Tips For A Good Blog

What makes a good blog? Many things.

Here are 9 blogging tips from Mid Life Celebration:

  1. Safe for children to read
  2. Predictable schedule
  3. Short
  4. Easy to read
  5. Thought-provoking
  6. Every photo by the author
  7. Every comment replied to
  8. Every email answered
  9. A balanced approach

Nine of the purposeful things Mid Life Celebration does to make a good blog.

(scroll down for yesterday’s Guest Blogger post, or click for Lane 8 )

Midlife Sandwiches

Eat More Chicken
Eat More Chicken

“Sandwiches”, by Lorie Sheffer.

“When we were kids, did you ever think we would grow up to become sandwiches, because that’s what we are,” my friend told me.

The Sandwich Generation is the term used to describe us. There are several types on the menu, too.

The Traditional: Those of us who are caring for aging parents as well as our own children who are still living at home.

The Club: Those in their 50s and 60s who are caring for aging parents, their own adult children and their grandchildren. Or people in their 30s and 40s who are caring for their own young children, parents and grandparents.

Open Faced: Anyone involved in elder care.

According to a Pew Research Poll, 1 in 8 American’s aged 40 – 60 is involved in elder-care.

I thought of this when I sat in at my father’s bedside and my daughter brought my grandson in for a visit. Up until June of this year Dad was very independent. It was sometimes difficult to get in touch with my parents because they were always out doing something. Since the day he was born, I cared for my grandson while his parents worked and I drove to his house every day to get him off of the school bus when he started school. He’s 10 now and he is used to seeing me almost every day. “I miss you. When can we have a sleepover?” he asked me. My daughter has a more flexible work schedule now, so I am trying to spend as much time with Dad as I can. I miss my grandson horribly. While neither my father nor grandson lives with me, I spend tremendous amounts of time with them. I miss my adult son, who lives 2 hours away and is a 4th year medical student. Needless to say, he doesn’t have much extra time to come home, though he and his wife do try to squeeze in a trip as often as possible. I want to go to Philadelphia for the day and visit them and see their new house. We text one another and chat on the phone regularly, but those things don’t replace a hug. I hate to miss a day of visiting Dad, so my husband and I have not left the area this summer.

And so it goes. The Life of a Sandwich.  It’s a familiar story. The characters differ, the setting and circumstances are not quite the same, but the core of the story remains. It is stressful and it is demanding and it is draining. But at the heart of it, there are people in our lives for whom we feel a deep love and sense of commitment.

(Lane 8 blog)

A Balanced Birthday?

HQ: Life's Day To Day Administration
HQ: Life's Day To Day Administration

Thursday was our Son’s 10th birthday.

Normally, Cheryl organizes all the presents.

Being on vacation this week with the new puppy, I had time to put some thought into his gift bag, and he received a balanced set of presents.

  • Mind: Book
  • Body: Vitamins
  • Spirit: Letters To God (dvd)
  • Money: Cash
  • HQ: Phone

Call it crazy, or brilliant, or weird, it doesn’t matter.

You know what matters?

No seriously, do you know what matters?

Because in the end, it comes down to what we do before we die.

(Body Blog)

Now I Get It

Always Be Prepared For "Bad" News
Always Be Prepared For "Bad" News

Was being helped the other day by someone who knows what I do (The Blog Whisperer) and she told me she finally gets it.

She shared that her Dad (71) was just diagnosed with cancer.

No warning signs.

Obviously, everyone hopes his cancer can be beaten, but this early in the game, no one can say for sure.

Suddenly, Living, before you die, takes on a whole new, and precious meaning.

Live, before you die. Now do you get it?

(Lane 8 blog)