So Many Dishes

It’s almost impossible to pick one thing that like to do in my leisure time. When I retired, my doctor gave me orders not to let my brain turn to mush. Here are the activities that help me follow that directive and have fun at the same time.

Reading. I love reading a wide variety of books. I tend to read a lot of historical fiction, and, in the last year or two, it seems to be dominated by WWII fiction. I just finished The Book Spy by Alan Hlad, which Ken gave me for Christmas. I like mysteries, too. Favorite mystery writers include Anne Cleeves and Elly Griffiths.

Diamond painting. This is a hobby I picked up a year and a half ago, just to try, and got hooked immediately. It’s essentially a variation on paint-by-number, gluing little plastic “diamonds” to a canvas based on a color coded grid. It’s relaxing, and I feel I’ve accomplished something when I finish a project.

Music. I love to sit at the piano and play and sing. Usually, though, this is something I do when I’m alone. I don’t mind working on the music I need to learn for our church service when Ken’s around, but otherwise, I’m less comfortable if I’m not alone. I think it’s because my mother was very critical when I would practice for piano or voice lessons when I was younger. She would call out from the kitchen, “you made a mistake” or “that’s wrong,” and I never got over that.

Leading tours at the botanical garden. This is a late fall through spring activity; nobody wants to go through the garden when it’s hot and the mosquitoes are out 😄 I began volunteering not long after I retired in 2013, and I still enjoy it.

Photography. I’m strictly an amateur, and all my pictures are taken with my iPhone these days, but I especially enjoy nature photography, especially close ups of plants.

And now, I have to add blogging. It’s all fun!