Category: SPECIAL

UPDATE: i have not left you. I had a personal tragedy

10/24/2020

If you noticed that I haven't posted any new blogs in the last six weeks, there is a reason.

I want to let you know what is happening in my life and ask for your prayers, thoughts, and well wishes.

Six weeks ago a trip to the cardiologist resulted in the death of my dear sweet husband. We have been together for a very long time. He was my best friend.

I will return in a few weeks, maybe sooner if possible to share my experiences with this type of death. I want to share what I have and will continue to learn.

Please stay with me and know that I appreciate everyone of you who have been faithful readers, commenters, and emailers.

Tragedy will happen to all of us, if we live long enough. We can survive, even if your heart is broken in a million pieces, as mine is. My heart will mend but there will always be a scar left by this tragedy.

God bless you all
and
I thank you in advance
for your
prayers and thoughts.

XOXO

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SPECIAL: The 4th of July - The United States - Our Great Nation

7/3/2020

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Tomorrow is the celebration of our great country's independence. It is one that has always been a day of cookouts with friends and family, concerts, picnics, boat rides, skiing, and fireworks. Some people would take vacations and visit our national monuments and historic battlegrounds. It was a time for all Americans, no matter of your origin or skin color, to celebrate the blessings of this country.

Is this country perfect? No.
Name one country, if you can, that is perfect. Every country has it's own issues to deal with. Some handle their issues better than others, some never handle the issues at all. Most issues can not be "fixed" overnight. Many issues take time to fix. Time not only to implement the change, laws, or leadership needed to fix the issue, but also time for the people to adapt and accept the remedy. The later is the most difficult. But one thing for sure, rioting and looting do nothing to speed the process along.

Tomorrow, when you seek ways to celebrate without risking Covid-19 exposure, remember to pray. Remember to pray for our great nation and the people (all people) who live in this great nation. We have always needed prayer, but especially now.

Try to remember:

God is still in control and
everything "will work for the good
to them that love the Lord
and are called according
to His purpose."
- Romans 8:28 (NKJV)

Remember, that:

God "desires all men
to be saved
and to come to the
knowledge of the truth."
-1 Timothy 2:4

(Notice, the Bible says "all". It doesn't matter to God what color your skin is. He's sees our spirit and soul, not skin color and loves us all and wants all of us to be saved.)

Celebrate the blessing in
living in one of the
greatest nations on earth!
Happy 4th of July!

XOXO

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SPECIAL: Memorial Day for the Over 50 - Safe, Sound and Blessed

5/22/2020

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This Memorial Day Weekend will be different than Memorial Day's in the past. With social distancing, masks, and still some closures, it will be totally different in how we celebrate. With the emphasis on the vulnerability of people over 60 years old and children, we need to be more careful while still celebrating life.

While certain businesses and recreational activities (such as beaches and parks) have been allowed to open now with restrictions, we should not lower our standards of self protection. In fact, we should be more aware of it since we will probably be doing more outside of our homes.

Don't let the virus stop you from enjoying your Memorial Holiday, but be aware of the dangers. If you are going to be around your grandchildren, remember the dangers, but still enjoy those children with all your heart.

If there is one thing we should all take away from this "lock down" is how fragile our lives really are. At a moments notice we can lose contact with our families and friends, either through illness, national emergencies, death, and many other situations.

My bottom line message today for this Memorial Weekend?

Appreciate every minute you have with your family and friends because you never know when that opportunity will be snatched away.

Have a blessed
Memorial Day Weekend!
Get out and enjoy the fresh air, sunshine (or rain, lol),
and the company of loved ones (within safe parameters).

XOXO

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SPECIAL: COVID-19 and Staying Social - Whether 6 feet away or 6000 miles away - It can be done

4/3/2020

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With everyone on "lockdown" or "hunkering in-house" or whatever you want to call it during this COVID-19 crisis, it can be lonely if we fail to pay attention.

Attention to physical needs such as toilet paper, hand sanitizer, masks, etc., are important - especially food. In the hustle and isolation we sometimes forget that we have wonderful technology available that makes staying in touch possible for almost everyone.

Writing letters and sending physical cards are nice ways to show you are thinking about someone, but with the danger attached to the virus being spread through the mail system, we can't really rely on those old tried and true forms of communication.

We can, however, still pick up the phone an dial the number of a family member or friend that we miss and want to talk to. That still works and almost everyone has a phone.

What really works well and is almost as good as being face to face in person ( note: I said "almost"), is using computers and smartphones along with available technology to not only talk to a person, but also actually SEE that person or persons.

It is quite possible to have a family reunion of as many as 30 or more family members on the screen at one time to see and talk to each other and share things.

Here are some really cool apps that you can download and use to talk, see, and share screens with one person or with several and most of them are totally free:

Facebook Messenger Video or Audio Only - you can video chat with anyone on your friends list in Facebook easy.
FaceTime – still one of the best options IF your friend or family member has and IOS device (iphone, ipad, Mac, etc.) You can video chat or audio chat.
SKYPE – still available and still an option for those on Android devices. The video has improved over the years, but there are still a few little glitches such as delays and voice is not great (good, but not great).
Zoom – free to use for 40 minutes with as many participants as you would like. Great for family “reunions”, “virtual parties”, etc. They have a few security issues, but it is mostly related to using passwords that are too simple. Use a tight password, you “should” be good. (download Zoom for meetings)
Telephone – a good old phone call is always a great way to communicate. You can keep in touch by calling or texting. Either is better than no contact at all.

It's important to stay socially connected while also socially distancing. Keeping in touch is vital to staying healthy mentally and emotionally. Checking in with each other is not only mentally and emotionally healthy, it is also important.

If someone lives alone, you may their only line to humanity. They may be mentally on the edge and you are the one to bring them back.

This is a tough time to be sequestered, but especially for the elderly, single, or others living alone. Remember, reach out, but do it safely.

Have you ever used FaceTime, SKYPE, Zoom, or Messenger to communicate with friends and family? What is your favorite and why? Do you know of any other available communication outlets that can be used to connect? Share your information and let's help each other get through this scary time.

XOXO

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SPECIAL: Covid-19 - The Blog I Struggled to Write

3/22/2020

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This week has been a week of conflict.
I had a whole other topic I was going to publish, but in the back of my mind, the COVID-19 virus kept popping into my head. I wanted to deal with it from the perspective of a person over the age of 50, but I also wanted to be sure that I was encouraging, not sensationalizing, and also, truthful.

After a sleepless night and much daytime thought, I finally decided how to write this blog on the COVID-19 virus that says what I want it to say.

This virus has changed our lives so much in such a short time, but it is temporary. Finally, I narrowed the points I wanted to make and hopefully, I have chosen the right words to use so that you understand my message. The COVID-19 virus topic is a hard one to discuss.

Here are the points and at the end you will find my overall message to everyone over the age of 50:

First - There has been much discussion on the name of this virus. It is not unusual for the United States (and other countries, as well), to refer to a pandemic/epidemic/virus by the name of the country of origin, creature of origin, or area/region of origin. For example:

Hong Kong Flu Pandemic (AKA: Category 2 Influenza) 1968: First case originated in Hong Kong (July 13, 1968) and in only 17 days outbreaks were reported in Singapore and Vietnam, and within three months it had spread to the Philippines, India, Australia, Europe, and the United States. While short lived and resulting in a low mortality rate, it still killed over a million people, including 500,000 residents of Hong Kong which was at that time 15% of it's population.

Asian Flu Pandemic (AKA: Influenza A) 1956-1958: Originated in China and within two years it from it origin of the Chinese Province of Guizhou to Singapore, Hong Kong, and the United States. The World Health Organization estimates the final death toll at 2 million deaths, with 69,800 of those in the United States.

Asiatic Flu or Russian Flu Pandemic (AKA: Influenza A, subtype of H3N8) 1889-1890: First cases discovered in May 1889 in Central Asia (Turkestan), Northwest Canada, and Greenland. It claimed the lives of over a million people in the short period of its existence.

Ebola Virus 1976: Originated in the Ebola region of Africa (Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sudan). It moved across the globe in such places as England, Zaire, Italy, Uganda, Philippines, and the United States. It is still on-going with the death count at 1676 as of 2018.

As you can see, calling a pandemic/epidemic/virus by the name of origin is nothing new and not meant to insult anyone, only to identify the strain. (In the 16th century, we had the American Plague; and the Philadelphia Yellow Fever Epidemic in 1793; just FYI)

As far as our President driving the name of this virus as the Chinese Virus... yes, he is doing it to irritate the Chinese government - NOT the Chinese people or Chinese Americans. The Chinese government tried to cover this virus up, as they do a lot of things they do, that hurt their own people and people of other countries.

But the history of naming these events by the origin is nothing knew and not meant to be insulting.

Second - With each pandemic, epidemic, and virus, we have learned something new and developed better methods of dealing with each. We still make mistakes while trying to avoid nationwide panic.

No matter how our government handles such events, we can still do better. We learn with each event.

The big thing to remember is this: Everything is temporary. Life is temporary, no matter what we do to delay death, we will all die one day. Sorry, but that's the truth.

It is a fact, however, that people can increase their chances of survival in these events if they stay calm (not panic), stay positive (no doomsday thinking), and devise a plan to stay safe.

Third - As people over the age of 50, we have experienced our share of pandemics, epidemics, viruses, and other such events. We have knowledge, wisdom, and skills. Our age group is better prepared for this type of event because of our experience.

The key is to remember those experiences, remember they are temporary, and remember what we learned from each.

The MESSAGE is this:

Be safe,

listen to the guidance provided by the government and health officials,

stay calm,

stay positive,

remember this is temporary,

remember we have been through similar events before,

and above all remember, God is still in control and he hears our prayers

(lean on your spiritual beliefs,whatever they are)

Don't be taken in by those who make a big deal about the name of COVID-19,
instead concentrate on what you need to do.

Are you fearful of COVID-19? Do you feel helpless or in control? Do you have faith in your God? How has this event affected the way you look at life now and in the future?

XOXO

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SPECIAL: Valentine Love - Love Yourself First!

2/14/2020

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Being over 50 years old has not come without experience. Every year that I live is one more year of lessons learned, lessons practiced, and lessons taught. One of the most important lessons I have learned, the hard way, is to love myself first.

To love myself before I love someone else, makes loving someone else easier. Being happy with who I am, makes it easy to be myself with someone else. Caring about other people, doesn't require me to forget myself. In fact, if i were to try to love someone before I loved me, would only make me a hard person to get along with, make me unhappy, make me feel neglected, and make me feel alone. It is impossible to truly love another person and make them happy, if you don't like yourself. You have to like your own company, before you can be comfortable with someone else.

Valentine's Day is a day that typically celebrates "couples". But "couples" doesn't have to mean two married people or two people in romantic love with each other. Valentine's Day is really a day to celebrate love...love and love alone.

If you are single, alone, widowed, separated, or divorced, you can still celebrate Valentine's Day and enjoy it. Don't let the lack of a mate make you feel that you are unloved, because someone, somewhere loves you ... even though you may not even know it.

Take care of yourself emotionally, physically, and mentally. If you can be happy with only yourself, you can be happy with another person. If you are not happy with yourself, you will never be happy with another person.

If it's physical unhappiness, you will bring that into your relationship with another person. It will show itself as jealousy, envy, and selfishness. You will always be comparing yourself to someone else, thinking they are prettier or more handsome than you are. If the truth be told, to the one who loves you, you are the most beautiful or handsome in the world - flaws and all.

If it's emotional unhappiness, you will also bring that into your relationship with another person. It will show itself as jealousy, envy, greed, selfishness, and often fear. The fear of not being good enough, fear of losing someone, and other ways that fear shows itself. If you realize your own self-worth, then you will be emotionally happy and you will bring happiness to your relationship.

If it's mental unhappiness, that will be harder to deal with. Often mental unhappiness is the result of a chemical imbalance, hormone imbalance, a side effect of medication, trauma, and a host of other causes. If it is a mental unhappiness, you need to talk to your doctor about causes. It might be as simple as changing a medication.

If you are alone through the death of a partner, divorce or breakup, or you have chosen the single life doesn't mean you can't celebrate Valentine's Day. A valentine can be anyone. It is someone you love ... a niece, a nephew, a friend, your dad or mom, anyone .... including yourself.

I had a friend a few years ago who was alone by choice, she has since passed on. She used to treat herself on Valentine's Day by doing something she never usually does.

Here are some of the things she did during the time I knew her:

1. Spend the day at a spa being pampered.

2. Take a day trip someplace she had never been.

3. She bought herself a beautiful bouquet of flowers.

4. She bought herself an expensive bottle of perfume she loved.

5. She bought herself a new outfit.

6. And other things, like take in a double feature at the movies, then eat someplace she had never been or her favorite place, and a lot of other little things.

If you are alone, here are some other ideas that would be a way of celebrating Valentine's Day:

1. Prepare your favorite meal and binge watch a Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, etc., series.

2. Get your favorite snacks that you never eat (because you are trying to eat healthy, lol) and make it a pajama and movie day.

3. Visit someone who is also alone, like an elderly neighbor, a nursing home, someone in a hospital, take a homemade lunch to someone, etc.

4. Get out of the house and walk. Walk in a park, a mall, your neighborhood, or anywhere you feel like walking. Take in the sunshine and pay attention to all the birds singing, dogs barking, and people chatting.

5. Go to a bakery and indulge in a forbidden treat.

6. Get a massage.

7. Get a real book, with actual paper pages, sit with a cup of hot tea, iced tea, coffee, and read, read, read.

There are so many ways you can treat yourself. You can be with other people or completely alone and still celebrate this day of love.

You must love yourself first! Always take care of yourself!

If you are alone this Valentine's Day, what are you doing to celebrate? What have you done to celebrate this day of love in the past? Most important question...do you love yourself?

Happy Valentine's Day!

XOXO

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SPECIAL: Thanksgiving - As we age, we are more thankful!

11/22/2019

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The older I get, the more I realize how blessed I am. I am healthy, I am physically active, and mentally sound (well, most people think I am, anyway, lol), and I have a loving family. I know that there are people in my age group who have it a lot worse than I do and yet, they are happy, content, and thankful.

When we were young, we skipped through life and sometimes we stopped long enough to "smell the flowers", but most of the time we were skipping from place, one person, one event to another and not taking a lot of time in between. That's one of the beautiful things about getting older, we have learned to slow down and appreciate every step in life.

Thankfulness comes from within. You can have a huge meal on the table and your family gathered and still not be thankful.

It can seem like this holiday marks the beginning of the rush season of Christmas shopping and parties. But, I encourage you to take time to look at your life and see all the wonderful things you have to be thankful for.

If nothing else, you live in a country where you can still worship God or whomever you worship in any manner you choose. You can still decide where you want to live, you are not restricted to one region.

You have choices and opportunities that many in the world do not have. Remember that!

Now for a little background on this lovely holiday:

"Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday celebrated on various dates
in the United States, Canada, some of the Caribbean islands, and Liberia.
It began as a day of giving thanks and sacrifice for the
blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year.
Similarly named festival holidays occur in Germany and Japan"
According to Wikipedia

It is celebrated on the following dates in these countries:

1st Thursday in November Liberia

Last Wednesday in November Norfolk Island, Australia

2nd Monday in October Canada

4th Thursday in November United States

It also celebrated on various dates during this same time period in many other countries such as: the Philippines, the United Kingdom, Grenada, India, the Netherlands, Saint Lucia, the Caribbean Islands, just to name a few.

In the United States, it was observed from the time of the founding fathers until the Lincoln era on various dates determined on a state by state basis. The last Thursday in November was the recognized date in the United States by the 19th century. It aligned with and eventually replaced the existing holiday of Evacuation Day.

This was a day that commemorated the British exit from the United States following the Revolutionary War. It became a national holiday by a presidential proclamation by Abraham Lincoln. It was not fully realized, however, until the reconstruction era was over in the 1870s following the civil war. Lincoln designated the last Thursday in November as Thanksgiving.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed another presidential proclamation on October 31, 1039 that changed Thanksgiving Holiday to the fourth Thursday in November.

And that's this day came to be.
Remember, EVERY morning that you wake up on this side of the dirt (🙂), it's a good day.

Be thankful for every blessing in your life this Thanksgiving holiday, no matter how big or how small that blessing is.

Do you have any unusual Thanksgiving traditions? Do you share a meal with family and/or friends? Do you take inventory of your blessings on a daily basis? Are you aware of all the many blessings in your life? Are you thankful to be alive and over 50?

XOXO

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SPECIAL: Happy 4th Birthday to US - The On Fire and Over 50 tribe!

10/18/2019

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It is hard to believe that I have been writing this blog for four years. I started this blog with the idea and goal of encouraging women over the age of 50. It has grown to include men and people who are not yet 50, but are almost there and have definite feelings about it.

Over the last four years, I have received several emails asking me to write about specific topics and I have tried to meet every request that I have been given. This blog needs to be what you need and want. The only way I can know what you need is if you tell me. I encourage you to drop me an email if there is a topic, product, idea, or anything that you feel is important to you as you age.

As I have said, many times, I am not an expert, but I do know how to find experts and find information. All product reviews are my own opinions only and not an endorsement either way, pro or con.

I am a curious woman, myself. There are things that I want to know, things that I need to know, and things that are inspirational. Everyone over the age of 50 should be curious and learn as much as you can about anything and everything.

None of us have been the age we are today before today. It is new territory for all of us. It brings issues with it, important issues and we need to communicate with each other to find the answers or solutions to those issues. The answers and solutions may be different for each one of us, no two people are the same. There are some common ground areas that we can help each other out...but we must communicate and share our ideas, thoughts, and experience.

I am going to make a challenge to each one of you to :

Share your ideas, thoughts, and experience with the readers of this blog
and also on our FaceBook page.
Help someone else and maybe you will find what you need also.
Look for opportunities to share with other readers.

New things are coming to this blog.

Look in the next couple of weeks for a FaceBook announcement of a new feature that is coming to this site. I have some things I want to add (for free) to this blog as Resources for You and Fun Stuff.
Stay tuned and watch the On Fire and Over 50 FaceBook page for coming news about various features I am adding just for YOU!

Feel free to comment below with a birthday greeting for Of Fire and Over 50 community, four years down, hopefully many more to come.

XOXO

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SPECIAL: "Think Dirty" - How dirty are you?

8/2/2019

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As an over 50 or even as a under 50, this is something you need. We are all trying to live healthier lives and eliminate poisons, pollutants, chemicals, etc., from our personal and household products. Think Dirty is just the thing you need to accomplish this.

Think Dirty and
Get Clean!

A few weeks ago, I was listening to the radio and this ad came on for a new app. We can all use a good app, right? The app is Think Dirty and it is the dirtiest app you will probably ever find.

What you do after you download this FREE little miracle of an app, is scan the barcode of a product that you want to know if it is safe or not.

For example, shampoo. Scan the barcode of the shampoo you use and it will show you every single ingredient used to create that shampoo and rank each ingredient as to toxicity.

It will tell you what the ingredient is, if it is on a banned list in any country, the dangers of this ingredient and what it is supposed to do.

Once you know the ingredients and their safety, you can make an informed decision on whether to buy or continue using it. I love this app!

It's so easy and it provides so much information on your product. If your product is not in their data bank, you can scan the barcode, take pictures of the front and back of the package, take a picture of the ingredients, and take a picture of it description. Submit it to Think Dirty and they will analyze it for you and load in their data base. Perfect!

If you are interested in knowing what is in your products, download the Think Dirty app and start getting clean!

Have you ever wondered what is in that bottle of conditioner, shampoo, toothpaste, moisturizer? Would you use this app to find out? Let us know if you download this app and what you think of it. Share your opinion of this app. Think Dirty and get clean!

XOXO

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SPECIAL: The 4th of July in the Beautiful United States of America - Celebrate!

7/5/2019

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If you are over 50 and have lived in America your whole life, then you know how much it has changed over the years. Some things for the better, some things not so much, and some things are still unclear if they are for the better or worse. I am still happy to live in this country and I have high hopes for it in the future.

When I was a child, I went lots of places all alone and no one ever bothered me. I played in my own yard, often in the front near the street and nothing ever happened to me. I realize that in some parts of the nation that was not the case, but in the majority of this country it was the norm. Children were safe to play outside unattended and no one ever bothered them. Nowadays, children should not be left alone in their front yard because there are people who will harm them. It's a shame that children today will never know that freedom.

When I was a child, a young child, I remember having to wear dresses to school. Girls were not allowed to wear long pants or shorts. Things have changed and I think for the better. Girls today can wear what they want to school (within reason) and as a result, are more comfortable to do more things.

What I am trying to say is things have changed both for the better and for the worse.

"As long as I live,
I will never forget
that day 21 years ago
when I raised my hand and took the
oath of citizenship.
Do you know how proud I was?
I was so proud that
I walked around
with an American flag around my shoulders all day long."
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Author and Actor

If you were born in another country and now live here, I hope that you see the wonderful things about this country. My hope is that you see "us" in the United States and not "you" and "me". We should have mutual respect for all people in this country.

As any country on this planet, we are not perfect and never have been. What makes us different is that we have corrected a lot of the mistakes we have made and all in a period of a couple hundred years. Other countries have been working on their issues for many centuries and still have no resolve. We are moving, we are correcting, we are changing.
WE ARE IN THIS TOGETHER!

My hope for the future of this great nation is that we can start to work together to solve problems and together to build a stronger and happier nation.

My hope is that we can stop pointing fingers at each other and start trying to find compromises. There are always two sides to every issue, so the best place to be in the common ground between the two sides.

This doesn't mean we should be all "conservative" or all be "liberal", but rather we should be citizens of this great nation and try to find solutions that benefit both sides.

Currently, we have two or more sides and they are at odds and are battling with each other.

This needs to stop.

As an over 50 citizen of the Great United States of America, I intend to celebrate the positives of this nation and pray for it's future. I intend to celebrate all the men and women who make this a great nation - ALL. I intend to celebrate the past that I was able to enjoy that my children missed, and celebrate all the wonderful things they were able to enjoy as children that I missed.

Life changes and it will continue to change. If it stands still, then we are all dead. I intend to continue to learn, to try new things, grow in spirit, and be happy for the time I have left. I intend to push the limits and live to the fullest.
To make the most of my life in the country where God has chosen for me.

"I couldn't control where I was born,
but I can control
how I support it
and live in it."
Sheryl, 2019

The Fourth of July is only one day... let's see if we can carry it through the whole year and make this great nation (through peace, communication, and compromise) even greater!

Have you lived in the United States your whole life? How do you feel about the United States of America experience both then and now? Are you proud of our nation or shameful of it? How do you plant to spend the Fourth, celebrating or boycotting?

Please share any feelings you have about this great nation, past or present.

XOXO

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<<Previous

UPDATE: i have not left you. I had a personal tragedy

SPECIAL: The 4th of July - The United States - Our Great Nation

SPECIAL: Memorial Day for the Over 50 - Safe, Sound and Blessed

SPECIAL: COVID-19 and Staying Social - Whether 6 feet away or 6000 miles away - It can be done

SPECIAL: Covid-19 - The Blog I Struggled to Write

SPECIAL: Valentine Love - Love Yourself First!

SPECIAL: Thanksgiving - As we age, we are more thankful!

SPECIAL: Happy 4th Birthday to US - The On Fire and Over 50 tribe!

SPECIAL: "Think Dirty" - How dirty are you?

SPECIAL: The 4th of July in the Beautiful United States of America - Celebrate!

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My mission​

Categories

Archives

About

Blog

Contact

My mission