Back after a break to recharge and take a road trip for some fun things, as well as – it turns out – some challenging things.

A college graduation!! Always fun, meant a couple of days in a hotel around family, eating out, hotel breakfast (there’s a reason when they are free) and not always knowing what the day’s schedule was. Or when (or if) we were planning to have lunch. I am a lunch eater; the people I was with are not. I had to self-advocate regarding the light hors d’oeuvres they had enjoyed while I detoured to a restroom. I didn’t know I had to choose and took advantage of a conversation about what was next on the agenda to have some fruit and cheese that would need to hold me for a few more hours.

I went on from the celebrations to the next state to visit some family from my parents’ generation. It’s always nice to visit and get caught up, not so much to watch people struggle with the ever-changing world around them. One of the things I did after getting home was change the settings on some of the puzzle games I play to make me think more and rely on hints less. Every little bit, I hope.

I drove home partly via Route 50 through West Virginia. Worth the extra time it took, and not to be attempted any time there could be bad weather. I was not at all close to them, but I got a closer look at wind turbines than I’ve ever had before. They were massive.

I also got back into being a citizen archivist with the National Archives and Records Administration. They’ve been running a program for some time, and I had done some transcribing a few years ago but stopped. It’s all online from my computer so it’s very easy. I do have to stick to documents that are typed with minimal handwriting on them. Poor images of really old documents with old-style cursive is beyond me at the moment.

The world has been pressing on in the meantime. The world and Catholic church have a new pope, which brings possibilities and excitement. The courts are soldiering on at multiple levels and the news there is mostly hopeful.

I have more things on my plate, including getting the supplies to create my own protest sign. Inspiration for what to put on it will come – as will the opportunity to make use of it.