ELBEE If she’s Pollyanna then call me Santa Claus.
I was very touched to receive unexpected messages from friends who told me how I’d helped them navigate this past year. I guess sharing my crazy, unpredictable journey through COVID let people know that they were not alone.
ELBEE I think oversharing would be more appropriate.
This week with restrictions lightened there has been an air of cautious optimism. Yet attitudes still range from “I’m ready to go to dinner and a movie,” to “I’m wearing a mask forever.”
The uncertainty is its own challenge. At the market all of the “keep your distance” markers are gone. Masks are only mandatory for those who aren’t vaccinated but how do we know? How do we move forward? How can I help?
ELBEE I’m so confused.
I thought the best way was to get in touch with my inner Pollyanna and share some positives.
For instance, take this sign that I saw on a street leading up to the hiking trails.
ELBEE Notice how it’s cropped. You don’t want to know what else was posted.
I saw a notice on someone’s lawn to clean up after your dogs. To my surprise, they provided a roll of poop bags.
ELBEE I have to admit that was considerate although a bit embarrassing.
This art work, painted on a wall in the mountains, has remained untouched for years. Normally it would have been defaced. I guess it’s technically graffiti but it’s a timeless message and so fitting right now.
Kudos to the security guard who stays tirelessly at her post keeping watch on the delivery area of a local golf club. She has a smile and a wave for everyone who walks by. She has become a favorite of Gus and Stanley.
Lately, I began wearing two random, mismatched heart necklaces. It somehow felt right. I had them on last week when the husband and I met the oldest daughter and our granddaughter Samantha at the Huntington Library in Pasadena. The art gallery was closed but the beautiful gardens were in full display.
On our way out we stopped in the gift store 
where we saw a simple but perfect necklace. It was a thin chain with the word “love” in the middle. Samantha and I each got one and promised we’d think about each other when we wore them
Since things were going so well with the necklaces, and Samantha is an expert at TikTok, I asked her how she’d feel about making a video of me and Stanley dancing. The look on her face said it all. I guess despite the love and the necklace, grandma doing the fox trot with her dog was not something she really wanted to share with all of her friends.
