Blast!!!

Yesterday, I ended up riding in a convertible down beautiful country roads - whey!hey! - to do a thrift store run with 3 others who are going to Burning Man (a week long "happening" in the Nevada desert where people - apparently - wear garish clothes!!!) We hit three thrift stores in 3 hours and I got some great things - four items for 7 pounds. The two guys had me laughing like crazy as they bought loads of women's clothing for a camp/ crazy/ clubby look - there's something about hairy chests and stretchy lycra pink tops that is so outrageous! They purchased the craziest things - a tea cosy for a hat - fur coats (for chilly desert nights) and were equally delighted with their bargains. The assistants in the charity stores also got a great kick out of these two straight, normal looking guys trying on these FAB-u-LOUS girly outfits!!

update!

I have a minor case of the summer sniffles - first cold I've had in eons and it appears to be a light one. My room-mate (also a massage therapist) woke up the other morning and asked how I'd feel about doing her 2-hour golf cart shift in exchange for a full-body massage. It was an absolute "yes'! And at 10am after we waved the last of the seniors off, I had the most gorgeous massage in an outdoor gazebo right next to the lake - it was like something out of an advert for a ritzy health farm!!
I've spent the last hour or two napping in the sunshine and feel superb (despite lots of scrunched up tissues being in my bag, my pockets, my sleeves!)
The building is now senior free and the furniture is being shuffled around as we return to spiritual retreat ctr status for tomorrow and the arrival of 120 guests who are coming to immerse themselves in an array of things ranging from environmentalism to shamanic healing to chant-leading to davenning to priestess training. So, it feels like my curriculum on seniors and ageing is coming to a stop for now and there are new subjects to learn in the university of life.
We had a round table discussion with our seniors (mostly in their 80s and 90s!) on "being a survivor". There were a lot of Holocaust survivors here, as well as people who had survived other things such as loss of a spouse, serious illness and so forth. Here is some of their life wisdom on dealing with adversity.
"Be curious and always look ahead. If you want a survivor outlook, don't look back!"
"There's no power in saying 'I'm unlucky' - just say it happened"
"Stay open to trust, eve if it hurt once to be open"
The seniors in this last trip had a great spirit and were a joy to work with - they were also incredibly well and healthy - many of them appeared 20-30 years younger than they really were. It seems that most of them swear by walking lots and swimming everyday, when i asked them what their secret is!!
Can't remember if I mentioned it, but I bought in on a co-owned staff car - which means that for $50 per month I get to share it with 4 others - wish I'd known about this possibility earlier!!! I am so loving the freedom it brings and the chance to explore!!!!