Monthly Archives: April 2012

The Writer Within

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I started blogging about five years ago, when I was counting down to 50.  It was a way to keep a journal as I approached a very important birthday. As many of you, my readers, know, along the way my life had its ups and downs and downs and ups. Two weeks shy of turning 50, I lost my husband, my soulmate of 25 years after a traumatic illness.  Later that year, both my children graduated – one from college and one from high school – leaving me with an empty nest.  I had to reinvent myself.  And so I did.

Many of you traveled this journey with me through my blog. You watched me grow during my countdown to 50 and continue to watch me grow during my life after 50.  You told me in a recent survey that you read my writing because you like my authentic voice, my fun spirit, and my optimistic style.  It is because of all of you, my dear readers, that I continue to blog.  You have helped me through the bad times and the good times, through my fears and through my grief, through my mistakes and through my triumphs.

I am very proud to share some good news with all of you.  I recently applied for a scholarship to attend the American Society of Journalists and Authors’ (ASJA) 41st Annual Writers Conference in NYC.  I sent off my application along with my writing samples and my blogger resume.

“It is with great pleasure that I hereby notify you of your selection as a recipient of a 2012 ASJA Writers Conference scholarship. Congratulations! We were very impressed with the quality and number of applications we received, and yours was indeed a standout. We are very happy to offer you a place at the Conference,” said the note from ASJA’s Executive Director.

According to their website, ASJA was founded in 1948 and is the nation’s professional organization of independent nonfiction writers. Its membership consists of nearly 1,200 outstanding freelance writers of magazine articles, trade books, and many other forms of nonfiction writing, each of whom has met ASJA’s exacting standards of professional achievement.


OMG!  Wow-o-wow!  OMG! Wow-o-wow!

I am one of 10 scholarship winners selected to attend the ASJA conference.  My writing impressed the writers.  In addition, I receive a mentor time with a published author.

OMG! Wow-o-wow! OMG! Wow-o-wow!

Am I excited?  You betcha, betcha, betcha! OMG!  Wow-o-wow!

I read all 72 pages of the online agenda. I want to go to this seminar and that one and that seminar and this one.  Ooh, ooh, ooh, I can’t wait to mingle with all the journalists and authors and learn from the literary. I can’t wait to be in a room full of writers.

Hold on a minute.  I, Judi with an “i,” never liked creative writing or English class in elementary, middle or high school.  I cringed when I had to take a creative writing class in college. Now, during my life after 50, I enjoy writing and look forward to putting my fingers on the computer keys.  Like a good wine that gets better with age, I too have learned to enjoy the things I disliked in my younger years, thanks to the wisdom and wit I have gained with age.

And so dear, dear readers, with many thanks to you, my writer within is emerging.  And one day, soon she may be a published author or have a paid byline in a magazine or newspaper.

OMG!  Wow-o-wow!

Am I excited? You betcha, betcha, betcha!  Hope you are too.

Judi

A Proud Mama Boasts About Her Boy

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I opened the letter that arrived this week from my son D’s university.  He will graduate in about a month from today.

“Congratulations,” read the letter, “I am pleased to advise you that you will be recognized for your academic accomplishments at an awards dinner. You are graduating with Latin Honors: Cum Laude. You will receive a Latin Honors medallion, which can be worn at Commencement.”

Tears of joy welled in my eyes. I smiled and jumped up and down.  I sent a text to D to tell him how proud his mama is and how proud his dad would have been if he were here. (I know he is looking down on D from up above and quietly beaming.)

Just the other day, I had found D’s birth certificate as I was filing away some papers. I was reminded of how quickly he came into the world almost 22 years ago  He was born at 12:33 a.m. and I went into labor late the evening before. He was my second child and when his older sister was born, I had to be induced because my water had just trickled out. When I went into labor with D, I had a flood all over the car. We weren’t sure whether we were going to make it to the hospital in time.

“The head is crowning,” I remember Dr. M saying that night. “The baby is almost here.  Just one more push.” Out popped D.

“It’s a boy,” said Dr. M.  My husband was smiling from ear to ear. He was so happy to have a son. I on the other hand was concerned. I never thought I would have a boy. How was I going to raise a son?  I hadn’t grown up with any brothers, only one sister. My father was not a sports enthusiast. I knew about Girl Scouts and Barbies.  I knew about party dresses and bows in the hair, not bowties or even how to knot a tie.

Yes, it was a surprise to hold my baby boy D in my arms more than two decades ago. Unlike parents today who want to know the sex of their baby ahead of time (sometimes even through a blue or pink cupcake filling) and post the news all over their Facebook pages in advance of the birth, I never wanted to know the sex of either of my babies ahead of time. To me it was worth the wait.

However, since there was no Facebook or Twitter or YouTube back in 1990, it is fitting that I take an opportunity to boast in a blog post about my boy D who is all grown up now. When I look back on my life of the past 22 years, he is one of my proudest achievements. (Note: Should his sister be reading this post, she and all readers should know that my daughter A is also one of my proudest achievements.)

“I don’t know if I want to go to the Awards Ceremony,” said D when I spoke to him the other night.

“What do you mean you don’t want to go?” I asked politely. “Your mother wants to go.”

“We’ll see,” said D.

“Okay, it’s up to you,” I said. (What I really wanted to say was that if he didn’t want to go, I would go to the dinner for him and get the Latin Honors medallion and maybe I would wear it for him if he really didn’t want to wear it.)

I am such a proud mama.

Go D! Go D! Go D!

Judi

Forever Wrinkle Free

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“What about Retin-A for wrinkles?” I asked my dermatologist, as she removed the four stitches from the spot of pre-melanoma that she had taken off my back a week earlier. “Before you try a prescription medication like Retin-A or Renova for your wrinkles,” said Dr. W, “I would suggest you try a milder form in an over-the-counter version. Some people are sensitive to Retin-A and you have to stay out of the sun when you use these products.  I like the RoC line with retinol. Why don’t you try it as a night cream?”
Off I went to Ulta, the beauty supply store, to buy my new wrinkle cream. I purchased the RoC Retinol Correxion Deep Wrinkle Serum. (There were so many products in the skincare aisle that I likely added a wrinkle or two to my face just squinting to read all the fine lines of copy on each package.)
According to the RoC website, RoC Retinol Correxion Deep Wrinkle Serum will help me “get up to 10 years back to the look of my skin.” (Ooh, ooh, ooh, will I look like I am 44 instead of 54 after 12 weeks of using this serum? Ooh, ooh, ooh, I hope so!)
After washing my face, dabbing it with diluted cider vinegar, and putting on my RoC retinol serum (it does have a bit of an odd odor to it, but the odor dissipates quickly), I climbed into bed and opened up the March issue of InStyle magazine to learn more about “turning back the clock on aging” from Dr. Fredric Brandt. According to In Style, Dr. Brandt is the celebrity go-to guy for nonsurgical facelifts and so-called Baron of Botox. Here are Dr. Brandt’s tips:
1. Dr. Brandt recommends wearing at least a teaspoonful of sunscreen on your face every day. He says “protecting your skin from the sun lets the repair enzymes shift from defending skin to healing it.” (I agree and have been using SkinCeuticals Physical Fusion UV Defense SPF 50 on my face instead of foundation. My esthetician D suggested this UVA/UVB sunscreen fluid which is water and sweat resistant. I also like that it is tinted, so I don’t have to use foundation.)
2. Dr. Brandt say to exfoliate just once a week with an at-home microderm system or peel.  Dr. Brandt says that if you exfoliate too often you won’t be able to use other anti-aging products, like retinol. (Ooh, ooh, ooh, I want to use my RoC retinol serum, so I better listen to Dr. Brandt.  I only exfoliate when I go for a facial, which has been about once every few months. I will have to do some research on at-home exfoliates or just make more appointments with my esthetician D.)
3. Dr. Brandt says women spend too much time focusing on tiny fine lines that don’t have a big impact on their appearance.  He says that “it’s the changes in the shape of your face – sunken cheeks, undereye hollowing – that really show your age.” (Sorry Dr. Brandt, but as of now I am not going under the needle with a filler to plump up my face. Nope – no Restylane for me – not yet – I am too afraid of using any fillers.)
4. Dr. Brandt says that the redness and itching that many people feel when they first add vitamin A-based creams to their regimen are “all part of the acclimation process.” To see results, he says you have to persist. (I hear you Dr. Brandt. I will be persistent.  I will rock the RoC retinol serum for the next several weeks.)
5. Dr. Brandt says that the older you get, the less foundation you need. He says that “base tends to settle into wrinkles and lines , which makes skin look duller.” He says to apply a light weight tinted moisturizer instead of a heavy foundation. (I agree and that’s exactly why I switched from foundation to a tinted sunscreen fluid. I feel guilty that I stopped using my Bobbi Brown foundation – so sorry Bobbi I love your makeup book called Living Beauty, plus your name ends in an “i,” just like mine.)
6. Dr. Brandt says that “if you don’t protect your neck now with SPF, prepare to be covering up in your 50s.” (What?  Am I going to have to wear turtlenecks for the rest of my life? I really don’t like the way turtlenecks look on my body. They do not flatter my face or neck at all.) Wait a minute – Dr. Brandt says that I should not worry. He says that I should be proactive and use cream below my chin, but be careful.  So glad I read this article because Dr. Brandt says that “the skin on the neck is more sensitive and that I should use retinol on this “fragile area no more than two or three times a week.” (Thank you Dr. Brandt for this important information. I just went out and bought L’oreal Age Perfect cream to put on my neck four to five nights a week when I am not using my retinol serum.)
This is really starting to get very complicated. With my menopausal memory, I know I am going to become confused. I better mark up a calendar just for my wrinkle creams and tape it to my bathroom mirror so I can coordinate my regimen. I do want my face and neck to stay forever wrinkle free during my 50+ years. I definitely don’t want to have to wear turtlenecks the rest of my life.
Judi