Share Your World 27th March

Much to my chagrin, we are “rebounding” on COVID. Not seriously, but enough so I feel like the progress I made is disappearing.

I’m not desperately ill, but I’m not where I hoped I’d be by now. There’s nothing more to do. Inhalers and patience seems to be the order of the day.

Here are this week’s random questions

Do you have a lot of friends or do you know a lot of people ?

I used to know a lot of people and I had a lot of friends. Then I moved overseas, where I also knew a lot of people and had a fair number of friends. When I came back to the States almost a decade later, many of the people I had known had moved to other parts of the country. Then I moved to New England and married Garry. I never quite rebuilt the “friend network.” I’m not sure I entirely wanted to reconnect with everyone.

I had changed a lot since I was in my 20s when had a big social circle and a very active social life. I didn’t want company all the time. I certainly didn’t want people dropping in without warning. Fortunately, everyone else had grown up so they were far less likely to be dropping over.

I met people at work and they were friends while I was working, but when I stopped working those relationships petered out. I think that happens to a lot of us. The thing we had in common was work, so when work isn’t there, there aren’t any common interests.

The friends I have now — other than online friends — are mostly the people I’ve known since college. We do have a lot in common. It’s just there aren’t nearly as many of us as there used to be.

If you are at a party and know very few of the guests, do you mingle and introduce yourself, sit on the sidelines and people watch, or discreetly leave?

I feel lucky this isn’t an issue anymore. If it’s “that kind of party,” we don’t go. Problem solved.

What is the best job you have ever had?

Working as an editor/writer for Doubleday. That was a GREAT job. The people were great, the work was fun and the pay was good. The hours were ideal. It didn’t last. Not only did I leave, but the company changed ownership. Nothing was the same after that. I don’t even think the building is still standing.

Can you swim?

I learned to swim by playing tag in a pool. It turned out to be easier to swim than to run in water. I’m not a world-class swimmer, but I can tread water for hours and do most of the basic water stuff.

I was learning to dive for a while and I liked it. You don’t even have to know how to swim well to dive. It’s a different sport. Just watch out for your teeth. I knew a lot of divers missing front teeth. When you miss a dive and go face first into the board or platform, OUCH! You need a strong sense of balance to be a good diver. If you lean back too much, you land on the small of your back. OUCH. Too far forward? Another OUCH. Belly flops from a high board aren’t cute.

Worst? If you are leaping from the edge of the pool and go up without going forward, you crack your shins on the edge of the pool and lemme tellya, that really hurts. I cracked both shins. I think that was the last time I dove. It became obvious diving wasn’t going to be my sport.

These days, should I decide to swim — and as far as I’m concerned, anything colder than a shower is too cold for me — I walk carefully into the water.

Categories: #Photography, #SYW, Anecdote, Humor, Share My World, Spring

Tags: #gallery, #Humor, #Photography, #SYW, Marilyn Armstrong, Share Your World, spring, swimming