IN THE MOOD

My younger readers may never have heard of Glenn Miller or this classic, In The Mood. I think they will enjoy watching the orchestra play, and might even find themselves tapping their toes. And how about those flying trombones? The whole orchestra puts on quite a show. This brings back lots of memories, as I learned to "jitterbug" to that when I was in junior high school. Of course, we never could match the expertise of our parents who jitterbugged through WWII, and in a few short years our steps and music were replaced by "rock and roll".

As I have found myself saying I need to get "in the mood" to write a new post, the above song came to mind. It really cheered me up after all of the depressing headlines of the ongoing election campaign. Not to mention the devastation being caused by Hurricane Matthew. The Haitian people have yet to recover completely from the massive 2010 earthquake, and we continue to hear of the destruction there and along the Eastern seaboard of the U.S. caused by the same hurricane with another one looming in the distance. We cannot ignore the plight of the Syrian refugees, nor of their citizens trapped in Aleppo, deprived of food, water, and medical assistance. (Please open your hearts and pocketbooks.) Then there are the melting glaciers and ice caps, putting more wildlife in danger of extinction. Sometimes it seems the doomsayers may be right, and the end of the world is near. 

But life does go on, for however long, and there are many reasons to celebrate and experience the joys of living --especially in America. 

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This past Labor Day my daughter Carajean and her husband Branch had a 

(Photo by Rob Binder)

big celebration for their 27th wedding anniversary. Most of our family celebrated with them, with the exception of my granddaughter Hannah, who had other commitments. Her dad was here, as well as her brother Cameron and the love of his life, Allison. Most stayed at the new place that CJ and Branch recently bought on Lake Travis, about 3 minutes from my home. As they won't move into it until next year, there was no furniture, and everyone had to sleep on air mattresses. The food, water sports, movies, and camaraderie made up for any discomfort, so I'm told.

Carajean came down first and brought along her beloved dogs, Honey

and Nimbus. They all spent one night with me, and Nimbus insisted on sleeping in the double bed with me and Carajean. He's apparently used to this, and managed to move out of my way each time I turned over! Nimbus is the younger of the two, and thoroughly enjoyed being on the lake. His life jacket was a little too big, but next time he'll have the perfect fit. Honey is getting old, and creaky joints made her trips up and down to the lake more treacherous. They both seemed to love all of the excitement and having their family around.

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Grandson Tanner and his Mom, Carajean, are currently in New York at Cornell University. Tanner wanted to take a tour of the university, and although he is not certain he will be admitted, he is going to give it his best shot. He said touring the campus gives him some good ideas for his essay. "Evidently," says his Mom, "the essay is just as important as his scores and grades.. It is a breathtaking campus, fall colors outstanding. One of the rooms looks like Hogworts in Harry Potter.. I think he would fit in, be challenged and inspired at Cornell."

If not this Ivy League school, I feel pretty certain that Tanner won't have any difficulty in gaining admittance to one of them, which is his goal. Besides being a straight A student throughout his school years, Tanner plays cello in the school orchestra, and is on the tennis team as well. In his last tournament a couple of weeks ago, he won both his singles and doubles matches. Smart, talented, and good looking, too! (Just a little grandmother's bragging.)

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What are you in the mood for? Maybe listening to the music will take your mind off the current political climate, and even give you a little inspiration along the way. Or maybe you'll feel like dancing?

Peace and love,

Marilyn

P.S.

I mailed in my voting ballot on Saturday. How about you?