Archive for July, 2015
The Demise of the Family Road Trip
A recent Wall Street Journal headline recalled “Vacation-Planning Before Google Maps,” with great Throwback Thursday memories of the traditional American family road trip. But more than the AAA TripTic has vanished. The family road trip is largely vanishing, as well. Living history museums—even the biggest and best like Colonial Williamsburg—are…
Travel Tip #9. Make Reservations in Advance
Make all important reservations in advance and organize all your confirmations and other travel documents for easy access. When your husband was alive, you might have risked a road trip without hotel reservations every night. It is not a wise thing to do as a widow. For peace of mind,…
Seizing Opportunities to Celebrate
For whatever reasons, we widows seem to forget how to entertain. We slip into neutral gear, waiting for others to invite us. But never have relationships been so important. In place of that companion who was always there, we need a multitude of relationships to compensate. We need to practice hospitality….
… & here’s the green bedroom
Green walls, flowered English chintz and vintage 1930s Colonial Revival twin beds referred to in yesterday’s blog, “God’s Compensation“… my Dallas condo, bought 10 months after Lev died, was my first opportunity ever to decorate exactly as I wanted. Everyone says, “Don’t make any important decisions the first year,” but this…
God’s Compensation
I call it God’s compensation. The loss of a spouse is completely overwhelming. In place of that unique relationship, in place of that companionship, surviving spouses—if they are of sound mind and body and if finances permit—receive an enormous measure of freedom and independence. Like most women of my generation,…
Travel Tip #8. Plan After-Dark Activities Carefully
Are there restaurants near the hotel? Does the hotel have a restaurant and room service? Are cabs available and safe? This is information you can obtain from the hotel website or the concierge in advance. Vignettes of best-laid plans gone wrong In Amsterdam in summer 2010, we were staying at…