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February 2012 - All The Single Girlfriends

February 29th, 2012 Leap Day

Feb 29, 2012 by

February 29th, 2012 Leap Day

Leap Day occurs every 4 years, that extra day added to the Gregorian calendar in leap year. It is also considered the one day of the year that women are culturally allowed to ask a man to marry them. You can thank St. Bridget for that as in 5th century Ireland when St. Bridget complained to St. Patrick about women having to wait for so long for a man to propose. According to legend, St. Patrick said the yearning females could propose on this one day in February during the leap year. Gee, thanks St. Pat! The first documentation of this practice dates back to 1288, when Scotland supposedly passed a law that allowed women to propose marriage to the man of their choice in that year. Tradition states they also made it law that any man who declined a proposal in...

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The Power (and Fun) of Single

Feb 27, 2012 by

The Power (and Fun) of Single

Society is beginning to realize something us long-time, extremely single people have known all along. It’s fun to be single. And, I’m not talking single bars and all-night parties.  Although I do admit, I had a really, really, really  good time in my younger days. I could never run for public office. ‘nuf said. Thank GOD they didn’t have Facebook back then. Although it would have been nice to have voice mail; I might not have wasted all those hours hanging around all casual, waiting for a guy to call…(Remember? Oh, I know you did it too.  And sometimes you picked up the phone to make sure it had dial tone.)  But I digress… ANYWAY, single has become legit! We’re no longer those poor, sad people who droop home to dusty little apartments to...

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The Beet Goes On

Feb 24, 2012 by

The Beet Goes On

I asked the members of my food class called A Matter of Taste-Food and its Many Attractions – what they loved to eat and what they hated. It’s amazing how much energy people have for the foods they don’t like! At the top of the list was liver. A few people came to its defense, including me, but I wasn’t about to convince anybody to give it another chance. (I grew up eating fabulous Jewish chopped liver made with real schmaltz and I still adore Pate of any kind.) Next on the list were beets, followed by Brussels sprouts. That proved to be a rallying call and I pledged to bring in at least one dish from each ingredient to see if we could have a few conversion experiences. I felt a bit messianic...

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Changing Lives: One Apple At A Time...

Feb 17, 2012 by

Changing Lives: One Apple At A Time

Today’s Foodie Friday takes a different focus.  Have you ever heard of a “food desert?” I hadn’t until a few weeks ago when my girlfriend Deborah and I saw the documentary film  The Apple Pushers at the  Atlanta Jewish Film Festival. I walked into the theatre expecting to see a movie about food carts in New York. I walked out with an appreciation of how a small “green cart” can change people’s lives. I also left with the a greater understanding that knowledge alone will not right obesity. Nor will information on how to eat healthy lead to nutritious food choices. Oh sure it’s important to know about the food groups or the new “food plate.” However, easy and affordable access to fruits and vegetables is often the critical missing link.  As I munch on an apple while...

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ATSGF 1st Anniversary

Feb 14, 2012 by

ATSGF 1st Anniversary

One year ago today an amazing community of Girlfriends began a new adventure together. All The Single Girlfriends captured the imagination of women who had blown out the candles on their fortieth birthday cake. Some weeks ago some years ago. We wanted to change the perceptions about women who are “single in spirit” after the Big 4-0. We knew we were still as fabulous, sexy and amazing as the day before .. maybe even more so! So we did what Girlfriends do .. we told our stories. What happened was even more amazing. By sharing our stories we found kindred spirits. Among our diversity of experiences we found similarities. We touched lives and we validated the importance of girlfriends .. to support, to share, to just have fun. Thanks to Marianne Richmond for her...

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Failure + Girlfriends = New Directions at Age 66...

Feb 14, 2012 by

Failure + Girlfriends = New Directions at Age 66

The meme of our time is failure.  In fact, the folks at the HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW are all worried about Mark Zuckerberg’s leadership at Facebook since he hasn’t as yet failed and therefore not proved he has what it takes to come back Well, I got really lucky there.  In 2003, I lost it all, ranging from my executive communications boutique to my mind.  Nine years later, sure, I agree it was the best thing that happened to me. At the very least the fear of failure is gone.  That in itself breaks us open to using our talent instead of blindly following some rules we grabbed onto chasing success.  And that in itself is a lot. But it wasn’t enough to help me move out of hiding out inside myself.  The missing piece...

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Valentine’s Day Observations

Feb 14, 2012 by

Valentine’s Day Observations

Want to know how folks in relationships spend Valentine’s Day? From DINKS to polyamory, check out the guide from CNN on how people spend Valentine’s Day. While interesting I admittedly, I skipped to what I thought might be the juicier bits regarding the relationships with multiple romantic partners. I learned nothing new other than the author’s advice ‘If you are in a couple, you should consider stepping up your game.’ Then when I was looking around for Valentine’s Day chocolate ideas on Facebook my friend Constantina posted this: NYC sewage plant to offer Valentine’s Day tours. Evidently, each tour ends with a Hershey’s chocolate kiss – not the chocolate I was seeking, I assure you. As you can see recently, I had the opportunity to absorb more data about dating and romance than one should. I was on a road trip with my...

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The Hardest Part of Changing the World...

Feb 13, 2012 by

The Hardest Part of Changing the World

I had a post almost finished.  All about how for (less than) 40 cents a day you could help save at least a small part of the world.  Our big “ask” for our readers (and my fellow atsgfers) to step up and help us help others.  But…you’ve heard it all before, haven’t you?  If not from me, from about a thousand other worthy causes. (I’ve been writing about our Adopt A Village project for several weeks here, on my blog and on Lipsticking.)  Then, I talked to Leslie Kahihikolo of GHNI and scrapped the post. Started over.  I asked Leslie why she got involved with GHNI.  Long story short, because the people touched her heart.  She saw up close what GHNI does.  Met the people behind the pleas. Got her hands (literally) dirty. (That’s her,...

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Diversity

Feb 11, 2012 by

Diversity

Recently I had the wonderful fortune of attending a diversity event at Atlanta’s Pace Academy. The event was the brain child of the Director of Diversity at Pace Academy, Philip McAdoo. Mr. McAdoo had the bright idea to create an event around an evening with Jesse Tyler Ferguson – the famous and out, actor known as Mitchell Pritchett on the ABC sitcom Modern Family.    The program included a reading from the Alliance Theatre’s 10th anniversary Collision Project that dealt with different views of the Declaration of Independence and the rights of all human beings no matter what creed, sex, religion or romantic persuasion. It was brilliantly executed by Susan Booth and a group of students that were not Pace Academy alums. Those young people did a brilliant job and I am not just saying that because I...

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Encore!

Feb 9, 2012 by

Encore!

Now that the New Year is over a month old I am finally getting myself grounded enough to share what’s happening in my life again. I have started what some call an ‘Encore Career.’ Check out the website that supports the concept. I am the Executive Director of the Northwest Center for Creative Aging (NWCCA).  As our intro says, “We help adults find their purpose and live into their potential as they age. We enrich lives by creating conversations, fostering connections and serving as an educational resource. Our philosophy addresses the whole person – mind, body and spirit – with a range of programs committed to creative aging. We welcome people of all ages and stages.” I wasn’t looking for a new job and it happened in the same way that other jobs and experiences have happened...

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What Can I Do? I Only Have So Much Money!...

Feb 6, 2012 by

What Can I Do? I Only Have So Much Money!

Some quick math for the ATSGF Adopt-A-Village project: $12/month X 12 divided by 365 = 39.5 cents Over the past – um – three decades or so, I’ve blown a lot of money, on good things and bad. When working in corporate America, I tried to buy my way to happiness($65 for a make-up brush? No prob! I didn’t even look at price tags. Gulp…) My mid-life crises always seemed to involve some combination of men and new cars. (Oh Ah! A convertible!) Then there were the biz deals that didn’t work out (I’ve been worth a million or two, a time or two…on paper. Good thing I didn’t run out and spend it.) I could easily have several hundred grand in the bank (I don’t)…but ah well, I did have some good times....

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It’s Time For Susan G. Komen To Experience a Pink Transfer Day...

Feb 6, 2012 by

It’s Time For Susan G. Komen To Experience a Pink Transfer Day

It seems that one of the underlying reasons that Susan G. Komen Foundation decided to stop funding Planned Parenthood was because  pro-lifers were creating all kinds of mischief at local Race For The Cure Events. Okay, that is probably a simplified version of the story. Obviously, there was more to the decision than the hassle of having to deal with a bunch of pro-life activists. The truth is, If the executives at Komen were not pro-lifers, the threats of the activists would have remained just that,threats. Laura Bassett of The HuffingtonPost is reporting that Karen Handel, Komen’s Vice President of Public Policy, came up with the cocky-mamie plan to disqualify organizations “under investigation” from receiving grants. Like a really dumb criminal  who thinks his plan for murder is full proof, Handel actually believed that the public...

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