Late Tuesday afternoon. I’m sitting on the couch, having finished the big job of the day, making beerocks. I’ve written about making these before. It’s only done a couple of times a year at most. I had a large roast and I have friends who would like to share in my foo production so decided now was the time because it’s a quiet week around here.
I will return to Columbia next week for in-person storytelling. When I contacted the principal of the school about coming back, he immediately returned a reply that said, “yes, come back on campus. The kids need you. It will be better in person.” So, there’s my answer to that dilemma. I have been reading about vaccinated people being unlikely carriers of the virus so that makes me feel safer to be around small, unvaccinated children. It looks like vaccinations for those under 12 may be coming soon. I hope so. I would feel even better then. Maybe we can even dispense with masks, but for now, the stories will be read with a mask.
About that title for this post…I went over to Ronni Bennett’s old blog, Time Goes By, and it’s pretty much just sitting there, nothing happening, but the blog roll she put together six or seven years ago is still there, and many of the blogs are still being kept up to date. It’s fun to travel around and see what others are up to. If you would like to check out some other older bloggers, click here for the list. You, too, can do some reminiscing.
Dkzody's Weblog 
Testing, testing, is this thing working again? I’ll find out, when I click post. At any rate, I see I’m still listed on the Elder Blog but, evidently, under the old address.
I’ll have to go see if I’m on that blog list. I think I remember having been added. I sure do miss Ronni.
Just today I was thinking about Time Goes By. It is hard to believe that Ronnie just meant to ghost us all. She was so honest with us. I guess we will never understand what happened or if her wishes for TGB were followed. I miss the group and even wonder if we should have started a small FB page. I have gone to the Storytelling page and started copying my stories so they aren’t lost.
I have always said, when you’re dead no one has to do what you wanted. Ronni probably miscalculated what her young friend would be able to accomplish. I am happy to see the site still there and able to access those blogs.
Glad to hear you will be able to return to the classroom!
I’ve checked in on the TGB site periodically over the past year in hopes that April would reappear. . . or ? I wonder what happened with April; does anyone have a clue? I suspect that she may suddenly have realized the scope of TGB as a project and thought “OMG–what have I gotten myself into?”, but we may never know. I didn’t fully realize until it was gone how much TGB had become a part of my day every morning, later in the past few years, to be sure. I’m glad we can still access the site. Ronni left an amazing legacy. I miss the group, too. I don’t think she “ghosted” us intentionally, but it is what it is.
I noticed that comments were shut down pretty soon after April took over which made me wonder if she just didn’t want to hear from Ronni’s readers as she had no idea of how to respond. Or even keep up. Time Goes By had a huge following. Every post got comments. April may have thought it would be easier to just let the blog sit there and come back later to take care of it, but that never happened, and what with the pandemic, something may have happened in her life that made it impossible to carry in.
good to hear, you’ve off to the campus for story time – but the mask might mean you don’t get the stories across that well. Because I guess at home your entire smiling face in front of the children…
I’m hearing from other Resiliency coaches who are back on campus that it’s hard and tiring with the mask. We are all pretty animated and work hard at engaging the students so the mask makes it harder and uses more energy. That’s why I’m spreading it over two days.
There are clear masks made for people/teachers who work with deaf people. https://pandemicpal.net/clear-face-masks-deaf/#:~:text=Clear%20Face%20Masks%20We%20Recommend.%201%201.%20Italian,Available.%205%205.%20Reusable%20Window%20Masks.%20More%20items
Yes, your being there will be a gift for the kids.
Yes, too. Ronnie’s blog is still linked to mine as are a couple of other writers that are much missed.
If I were 20 years younger (that would be 65) and much more tech-savvy, I might propose joining up with a couple of other former-TGB members to try our hand at a semi-monthly or monthly post. But, to be honest, I just don’t have the mojo anymore! My ambition and productivity drive have kind of left the building over the past several years. One other small problem: I totally lack the extensive research and journalistic creds, to say nothing of the fantastic life experiences, that Ronni had. But then, she was exceptional in so many ways.
Her blog was a lot of work. I couldn’t come close to what she did.
Absolutely agree! Even IF I were 65 and part of a group of 3-4 revolving contributors, it still wouldn’t be up to Ronni’s standards.
Gosh I miss Ronni, had some personal correspondence with her over the years. She would be saddened by the demise of her blog. But I do know the daily hours she put into it which were mind boggling.
It would be good to figure out a way of a team writing in it, even if only weekly.
XO
WWW
Wiswebwoman: I don’t think we could continue it on the same platform, but at least on a FB page we could start with posting links to news, SS proposals and legislative bills, medical studies, politicians who support and don’t support seniors, etc. I don’t think we could match Ronni’s deep knowledge and contacts that she developed over decades of research and work. It would need several admins.
I don’t think there can ever be another Ronni Bennett & I think her young friend came to the same conclusion.
dkzody: I think you’re spot on. At 40-ish, April probably has to earn a living as well as live her life. TGB was never a for-profit endeavor. Ronni put her all into it, especially during her final years, and it will likely remain her enduring legacy. What a wonderful legacy it is, too! (This is not to say that some of her former readers couldn’t create a “spinoff” though.)
April may not have been really prepared for the reality of death, both Ronni’s and the readers. If you are running a site for old people, it is a given. In her first sentence in December, 2020, she indicated that she counts down the year, months, weeks and days since her father had died over 7 years ago, which suggests having a problem accepting losses like those.
Susan: Yes, I recall her mentioning that and thinking: Wow, 7 years is a pretty long time to experience such a loss so acutely. However, people process parental death very differently. It’s certainly a fact that a website for old people will have an ongoing connection with “departure”. That, plus the sheer magnitude of taking on a project like TGB, may have ended up being a bit much. April certainly doesn’t owe TGB readers any explanation, but I still hope that some day she will update us even on a one-time basis.
I’m so happy you’ll be able to get back to the classroom. I just signed us up at CVS for a Moderna. I’m figuring on mixing our vaccines since we had Pfizer before. I’ve just started FaceTiming with my first grade grandson. Following your example, I am reading to him also. This past week, he actually asked me to show him the book so he could read it to me. Oh my! That was so much fun!