Talking Into the Future

“No distance of place nor lapse of time can lessen the friendship of those who are thoroughly persuaded of each other’s worth.”
Robert Southey, English Poet 1774-1843

We have a friend in Ecuador Joss, who used to be an avid blogger but now spends her time writing and doing craft work. Occasionally we spy something she has to say on Facebook. For a time she would sometimes join us on our weekly chats and she it was who coined the phrase “talking into the future”.

As I have said before, we are the first in the world to see the sunrise. So when we talk it is 10.30 am on Sunday here in New Zealand, it is 4.30 pm on Saturday in Ontario and Ecuador.

Long before the internet and cheap long distance phone calls, all calls to family in the Northern Hemisphere started with “What time is it there”. Not too difficult to work out for the UK as we are 12 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time, but of course this changes when either country Springs forward or Falls back. But time for calls to California was more difficult to work out.

Now we have the internet and with the world clock app we can readily see the time in any part of the world.

What else is running around this aged mind today? Well Summer has not returned to our far off land and we are warned there will be heavy rain and strong southerly winds in the next few days. Oh yes, another difference. The cold wind here in New Zealand is the Southerly, while in the Northern Hemisphere it is the Northerly. So when buying a house here, one looks for a Northerly outlook. The weather is the subject of chats and messages between us. Nobody ever tires of talking about the weather. But it is something we can’t do anything about, so this evening when it rained I told myself that it was good, I didn’t have to water the garden. At this time of the year, the flowers (and weeds) are blooming, but with the wind the ground dries really quickly.

Other differences? Of course when I am starting my day, Chris is getting ready to end hers – 18 hours difference at present. And sweaters and thermals compared to Summer dresses and sandals. soups vs salads, hot drinks vs cold, and on and on. You get the idea.

And if you have read any of my posts in Growing Younger Each Day you will know I am enamoured of Mary Oliver. Her quotes are peppered throughout my posts. I don’t expect A World Apart to be any different. time

 “I believe in kindness. Also in mischief. Also in singing, especially when singing is not necessarily prescribed.”
Mary Oliver, American Poet. 1935-2019

And from an author new to me –

“Writing is nothing less than thought transference, the ability to send one’sideas out into the world, beyond time and distance, taken at the value of the words, unbound from the speaker.”
Arthur M. Jolly, American playwright and screenwriter. 1969 –

A World Apart Finds a World Together

“No distance of place nor lapse of time can lessen the friendship of those who are thoroughly persuaded of each others worth.”
Robert Southey, English Poet 1774-1843

When we, (JB and I) conceived the idea of a joint blog a world apart I figured it was a pretty unique idea, inspired of course by Murder is Everywhere. Quite naive because of course everyone in the WordPress world is that far apart from someone else somewhere. So it follows our uniqueness is not in distance but in ourselves.

What has happened is that we have reestablished old connections and are making new ones. I have come to believe that we find what we need when we need it. So given a long and convoluted thought-path in predawn hours I found myself reading and seeing exactly what I needed at that moment.

Let me introduce you to Stuart Danker, assuming you have not already met. so much of what he said struck home, I even made notes, you know so I could give you some brilliant quotes. Alas, my early morning jottings are not as clear as my mind and I can make no sense of the scribbles. I can only suggest you pay him a visit.

I am off to begin my November 27th, Saturday in chilly -3C southwestern Ontario, believing optimistically that spring is just around the corner!

Have a lovely day wherever you are! Chris

Getting to Know You

“No distance of place nor lapse of time can lessen the friendship of those who are thoroughly persuaded of each others worth.”
Robert Southey, English Poet 1774-1843

In the few days since we published the first post here, we have reconnected with blogging friends from our other blogs and met some new folk who will no doubt, become friends.

Don’t you just love the blogosphere? Friends, most of whom we have never met, and probably never will. but whom we consider our firm friends.

In fact, in the ten years since I started blogging, I have met only two of these virtual friends in the real world.

Some years ago, when in Oxford in England, I met Sallyann of Photographic Memories.  Sallyann was one of the earliest followers of Growing Younger Each Day and over the years we have followed and continue to follow each other’s life.  I have been with her, virtually, during her daughters’ weddings, her wishing and talking about going to live to live beside the sea and her subsequent move. i have followed her travels with “hubby” to exciting places in Europe.  And I have followed her clever refurbishing of her house and making a garden. By the way she has a pet snake!

And then just two years ago I met Lois Roelofs of Write Along With Me. Lois had just lost her husband and had taken a cruise that included a very short stop over in Wellington. Unfortunately, Covid was just rearing is ugly head around the world and it was some time before Lois could get home again.
Lois is a reasonably new blogging friend, a retired nurse and author, whom I started to follow when she took us through the months following the diagnosis and leading up to Merv’s death.  We learned about his absolute faith in God’s forgiveness (not that I think he had done anything awful to need that). We learned also that he refused invasive treatments, preferring to live his life his way util the end. A nd now we have moved with Lois as she dealt, and deals, with life as a widow.

If you don’t know either of these fascinating women, take a trip over to their sites.  I am sure you will be interested in getting to know them.

I love meeting new people.  I talk to all and anyone when out and about. A trait that used to embarrass my children when they were growing up. And then my grandsons would ask “Granma, do you know that lady/those people?” (and yes. we always spell Granma without the d).

It becomes harder to make new friends as we age.  No more parents’ groups, school runs, guides, brownies, football, or netball matches, so now we rely on the internet and our blogging friends.

………

And for your edification and amusement. Laugh if you will if you live in the frozen north and remember how I bragged I was Summer here. Well Summer came and went on Thursday, November 25. You cannot rely on the weather in Wellington. So apart from hat and sunscreen, I always have a sweater or jacket, and an umbrella is never far away.

JB
27/11/21

Hope Springs Eternal but Inspiration is often Accidental

Thursday 25th Nov’21

The painting above hangs in my living room and for a lot of reasons, to me, represents Hope. It has its own story but that is not the purpose of my visit with you today. This is less about Hope and more about Accidental inspiration.

JB and I FaceTime every week as you know, me late afternoon on one day and she early morning the next day. It’s always interesting and frequently an inspiring couple hours of chat, laughter and general world-problem-solving sort of time. One of the the things we frequently bemoaned of late was the question of how we were able to blog every day years ago but could not today. Then we talked about our followers who had stayed with us over the last ten years and those whom we follow.

She had gotten on to a wonderful blog called Murder is Everywhere found at murderiseverywhere.blogspot.com many many years ago. I’m thinking about ten. It is wonderfully entertaining and is populated by a number of writers around the world. (I think it is twelve but their banner at the top says eleven.) Zoe Sharp is one. JB will be able to give you a much more intimate look into this group.

The point is that during this conversation – Inspiration struck. Could we do a joint blog? I mean we are a world apart geographically but??? Well you know the result of that. Today I just wanted to honour Murder is Everywhere and thank them for the Inspiration.

Chris of North Lat 43

Another Difference

Good morning from a sunny, still, and warm, Wellington Thursday. Well warm to us. We have a very temperate climate – no really highs or dreadful lows. So Summer heat for us, requiring air-conditioning, open windows and doors, and trips to the beach, is a balmy 25/26 degrees. And warm? 20 degrees is warm for us.

You may not know but Wellington is classed alongside Chicago as being one of the windiest in the world. So on a still day like this, we celebrate.

And we are the first country to see the sun each morning. So while it probably is still Wednesday where you live, today it is Thursday here.

Today I am going to a friend’s for lunch. She lives over the hill. Well I always tell Chris that anywhere else in the world, one would call the Rimutaka Hill a mountain, but in New Zealand…. Oh yes, we are a mountainous country, great for skiers as no ski field is more that four hours drive away, and in many places, Such as Christchurch in the South Island, the field is much closer.

Lunch will be outside beside her pool and then a walk through Greytown a little village that has been almost forgotten by time.Unfortunately, we don’t have the old buildings and the little picturesque villages of England. New Zealand is a young country, and we now keep any building over one hundred years old. This has not always been the case, as during the heady days of the 1980s many old and lovely buildings were torn down to make way for the glass fronted monstrosities that now house offices in our Capital and other cities. But we are learning that heritage is important.

So as Chris dresses up in her thermals, sweater and boots, I am getting ready with a light dress (plus a jacket just in case) and hat, and of course, sunscreen. By the way, in case you don’t know it, New Zealand and Australia have the highest rates of sun cancer in the world. So nobody goes out without hat and sunscreen a soon as the clouds lift and the sun shines.

So that’s all for today. Who knows what I will write about tomorrow! JB

Attractive Differences

It’s a balmy 6C here at 43.4516 N Latitude today, while my friend basks in an approaching New Zealand summer. Why balmy you ask? The morning started out at -2. As a rusty trusty Canadian I have a rule. Below zero I wear leggings under jeans and clothes to venture out. I suppose if I had long underwear that would be my garb of choice.

I must say I love winter, and summer, well, all the seasons. First snow, go outside and breathe. The air has a crispness and purity that I can’t find any other time of year. Went the ground and trees are covered in thick snow the world around takes on a quietness only experienced in winter. I used to think I wanted to live with palm trees all year round and in fact lived in south Texas for a couple of years, and thought I would stay, but a trip home after eighteen months to hills, streams, lush greenery, the whole flora and fauna thing and I was hooked.

Southern Ontario, where I abide, is nestled in the beauty surrounded by great lakes, hills, history, and vineyard! Love Canadian wine – okay – also New Zealand wine. Oh and German – well I am an internationally favourite drinker. Or is it internationally favoured drinker? Anyway, you get the point.

I must dash – in the middle of blocking and sewing together a knitting project – takes longer than the darn knitting but well worth the effort. Just had to pop in and thank all who ‘liked’, ‘followed’ and ‘commented’ our inaugural post yesterday.

Y’all have s wonderful day!!

WELCOME TO OUR BLOG

A World Apart

This is an idea by Chris Gingerich of Bridges Burning and Judih Baxter of GrowingYounger Each Day. We aim to show you two older women living on opposite sides of the world, who have never met but who are now firm friends. We meet for coffee and chat every week, even if it is only virtually. We both bring our coffee to the table and spend the next hour or two enjoying each other’s friendship.

So let us introduce ourselves.

I am Judith Baxter, JB to my friends. Chris and I have been friends since we both started blogging in March 2011.From initially connecting there, we progressed to emails, messages and now FaceTime. We are firm friends who discuss any and everything on a regular basis.

Now a little about me.I was born and brought up in the East End of London during and after the Second World War. The…

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Hello from The Other Half

As JB has said – Welcome! We are gradually building so changes are afoot (not unlike the game).

Here we are: one is about 43 degrees N. latitude and the other almost equidistant about 40 degrees S. latitude. Yin and Yang, north and south, summer and winter.

We are never quite the same but never really far apart. Two women, two minds, different personalities and experiences, choosing a life of meaning through continual growth and learning, and at the same time negating ageist opinions if exactly what an ’old lady’ should be.

Please join us in our new adventures! Chris – of the Frozen North

WELCOME TO OUR BLOG

No distance of place nor lapse of time, can lessen the friendship of those who are thoroughly persuaded of each other's worth.

This is an idea by Chris Gingerich of Bridges Burning and Judih Baxter of GrowingYounger Each Day. We aim to show you two older women living on opposite sides of the world, who have never met but who are now firm friends. We meet for coffee and chat every week, even if it is only virtually. We both bring our coffee to the table and spend the next hour or two enjoying each other’s friendship.

So let us introduce ourselves.

I am Judith Baxter, JB to my friends. Chris and I have been friends since we both started blogging in March 2011.  From initially connecting there, we progressed to emails, messages and now FaceTime. We are firm friends who discuss any and everything on a regular basis.

Now a little about me.  I was born and brought up in the East End of London during and after the Second World War. The second of three daughters; little money in the family but lots of love. I met and married my Dashing Young Scotsman at 19 and with him moved first to Scotland, then New Zealand, Canada, and back to New Zealand. Since returning here I have had a busy and rewarding life. I sold Real Estate, I worked as as a small business adviser, I started my own company managing commercial properties, then became a Life Coach when I published my book Stepping Stones for my grieving clients. I devised and ran several courses, the most noticeable, Memory Lane. And now I’m retired enjoying life with my four grandsons their
parents and my friends.