Tag: blogging

Retired: The Forever Young Generation Retools

(Or why a seventy-year-old woman wrote her first book) My younger brother just retired. So did my husband’s younger sister. Like me back in May of 2013, when I finally really retired from Cherry Preschool, after breathing a sigh of relief, they are asking, “Now what?” I’m not sure how to answer that question. Every... Read more »
By Laurie Levy,
June 20, 2016 at 5:05 pm • 

About Writing: My November Writer's Block

#MyMindIsShot&WeNeedGroceries…MaybeTomorrow? Yes, I actually wrote that in an email as an excuse for not working on my book or writing something for my blog yesterday. Totally embarrassing and totally true.  Lately, I have found it much easier to stumble through Jewel than come up with an original thought. ChicagoNow Community Manager Jimmy Greenfield recently posed... Read more »
By Laurie Levy,
November 24, 2015 at 8:02 am • 

Writing my Book: July...not so Productive

OK, this was totally predictable. Who told me summer was a good time to write a book? Why did I not even consider the possibility that first drafts are easy for me but actual writing requires revision and more revision? I am finally conceding that I welcome the interruptions. Ideas and first drafts are totally... Read more »
By Laurie Levy,
August 24, 2015 at 10:08 am • 
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Why I Can't Overcome my Addiction to Blogging to Write a Book

If you are still following my Monday morning chronicle of my efforts to write a book, you are probably thinking she’ll never do it. I don’t blame you. As the calendar flipped from June to July, I was still battling my vow to stop blogging, or at the very least, to blog less frequently. And... Read more »
By Laurie Levy,
August 17, 2015 at 9:47 am • 

Writing a Book: When my Granddaughter's Photos Become the Story

When I was working as the director of Cherry Preschool, one of the maxims I followed was “the interruptions are the job.” Writing isn’t that different. Often, the disruptions become the story. So while my day may total a big fat zero for writing my book, blogging about my granddaughter’s passion for photography inspires me to return to... Read more »
By Laurie Levy,
August 10, 2015 at 10:43 am • 

On Vacation: Celebrating my 200th Blog Post by Writing a Book

When I started this encore career back in September of 2013, I announced I was Reinvented, Not Retired. My first post was inspired by 64-year-old Diana Nyad, who had just completed a 110 mile swim from Cuba to Florida, something she had been trying to do for 35 years. She had trained for this fifth attempt... Read more »
By Laurie Levy,
June 8, 2015 at 6:32 am • 
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On Writing…My Encore Career

I took one of those online quizzes (ever so accurate) that asked, “What career were you meant for” and guess what? I got writer. That confirms the choice I made to start blogging shortly after I retired from a long career in early childhood education. I was meant to be a writer all along. I... Read more »
By Laurie Levy,
January 28, 2015 at 10:03 am • 

To the Folks Who Write Mean Blog Comments

I almost never read the blog comments at the end of my posts. I did it early on and felt like crying and quitting. How can so many readers not get that I’m trying to be humorous? How can so many of them say such mean things? How can they call me an idiot? Meet... Read more »
By Laurie Levy,
December 15, 2014 at 9:42 am • 

Seeing the Other Side: Helpful in Life but Maybe not in Blogging

I have always been the type of person who could see the other side. That’s not at all the same as agreeing, but at least I could acknowledge that there was one. This trait allowed me to keep peace in my family, refrain from arguing with folks whose politics differed from mine, and be a... Read more »
By Laurie Levy,
August 20, 2014 at 7:01 am • 
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My Encore Career as a Blogger: An Unlikely Pilgrimage

When I retired last year from my career as a preschool director, I was at loose ends. So I did what most retired women in my community do. I joined a book club, looked for a place to volunteer my wisdom and years of experience, and went out to breakfast with an old acquaintance. My... Read more »
By Laurie Levy,
July 31, 2014 at 6:51 am •