Hello to all my friends in the WP community. I’ve been away for a long time. A lot has happened in the past two years. Some planned and some unexpected. Life has been turned upside down. I had foot surgery from a torn tendon in June 2021 and have had a rough go at recovery. I’ve gone through physical therapy, pain management and a stem cell injection. I can’t wear closed shoes, much less hiking boots for more than a couple of hours. I will be going through another procedure in January, 2024 in hopes they don’t have to cut it open again.

In October, 2021, one of my dear friends broke her hip. After breaking it and/or dislocating it many times and undergoing 4 surgeries, we found out she has dementia and possibly Parkinson’s. While in rehab with the hip, she broke her pelvis in two places. Frank and I spent endless hours helping her stay alive. Long nasty story there with her now ex-husband. She finally got out of rehab after 6 months and is living in an apartment with her daughter. Another friend of mine is her daytime caregiver.

We haven’t gone birding or hiking much since my surgery. This year has been better and we have taken a few weekend trips on trails that we can drive. We have seen 190 different species compared to 94 in 2022. I bought an E-bike and that has changed my life! I can get out on trails and be in nature that I haven’t been able to hike to. Life changing, actually! I finally got decent pics of the American Flamingo at St. Marks Wildlife Management Area in March.

2023 has had it’s ups and downs. My beloved Heaven went to her namesake on February 5th. I suffered panic attacks for a while. My uncle passed away after suffering a heart attack in April and we flew to Texas. First flight since the pandemic.

When I returned, I underwent a nuclear stress test. Turns out, I had a 90% blockage in an artery in the left ventricle of my heart. They put in a stent and now I have blood flow once again. I developed a hematoma and spent the night in ICU. That was fun! I’m lucky to be here! The pain in my chest wasn’t just panic attacks.

In the past year, I have been writing a full-length novel with my best friend. We finished it on July 31st and want to publish under our pen name, ML Quinn. We are now seeking representation. I’ll keep you posted on that as I am setting up a new blog, mlquinnbooks.blog. Pure optimism here!

Good news! We had two new grandbabies born in 2022. One in April and one in September. Both boys!

I’m not sure when I will continue Bird Weekly and I’m sorry I dropped off the face of the Earth for the past two years. Our Etsy business has grown leaps and bounds and has turned into a full time job. Yay!