We write this blog to share our stories, humor, and inspiration with women over 50. In return, we welcome you to share back. We hope you’ll take the time to get to know each of us and tell us what you think, feel, and believe. We are not celebrities or the world’s leading thinkers, but we sure think about the world and have an opinion, just like you, about everything!
Annice, Jane, Betty,
Sadhvi and Sydney
Annice
In 1996, at the age of 42, I got married – for the first time. That means, I was single most of my life, despite both significant and insignificant relationships. I was living in Washington, DC, working at the World Bank and traveling to Asia, Africa, and Europe. In 2000, my husband and I decided to leave our hectic urban life full of friends, unforgettable dinner parties, and politics galore, in search of a simpler life. We headed for the mountains of Asheville, NC and I guess that makes me a Southerner by choice. I’m happy to say that, tough as it was at first, I’ve found work and friends, some of whom are part of this new blog we’ve created.
Sadhvi
Sadhvi is your average menopausal woman who is trying to find the balance in life over 50, without any eggs in her basket. She doesn’t want to look or feel the way she felt when she was 20, or 30, but maybe 40! Knowing that everything is OK unless you think about it helps her make it through each day. Gardening, poppies, baking, cooking, and painting on things also helps. Yoga too.
Jane
I am, first of all, a writer and mother of four nearly-grown children with their own unique personalities. My husband, Tom, is an environmentalist and historian, and, more importantly, a good and funny man. I have three sisters, and I had two great parents: a 94 year old father who just died, who loved life and a good game of Canasta, and a strong, loving, opinionated mother who was a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat–I wish she could be here to see Obama in office!
Sydney
Sydney was born of the need to communicate—a need that, at an early age, made her want to pursue an acting career, but life got in the way for a while. Born in Brooklyn, she attended Wesleyan University in CT as an African Studies / Theater dual major, spending her junior year at The University of Ghana, where she performed with a Ghanaian folkloric dance troupe. After college, Sydney was hired as drama coach for an international childrens’ dance company. Scared to jump with both feet into acting, Sydney decided to go to Law School instead and became an entertainment attorney for a time. Family illness brought her back to New York, where necessity led her into teaching and frustration with the public schools inspired her to design poetry and writing programs for young readers in the state’s public library system.
The recent economic downturn has caused Sydney to make a choice: to become a fretful and scared 50-something – or to claim her Goddess. So, after all these years, Sydney is boldly going for her gusto. She’s gotten professional headshots, enrolled in acting classes, and joined a professional actors’ union, positioning herself to pursue her original dream and setting out on an adventure all her own. Oh boy!
Betty
What I knew for sure growing up was that I was going to get the heck out of the mountains – I planned to live in some exotic city surrounded by people who did not all look like me. Fast forward a couple of identity crisis and it turns out, that although I’ve moved a lot, I’ve never gone very far. While I would still love to visit those exotic cities, my home is in these Southern Appalachian Mountains. Other cultures continue to fascinate me, but I have discovered my own neighbors and culture are also fascinating. Imagine that. I’ve been very lucky that my work has allowed me to travel and meet people “out on the rural routes” all over these old mountains. My only international travel has been to rural Kenya, where to my amazement, the women reminded me of my aunts. Learning how rural folks – wherever they are – create their livelihoods has become my life’s passion.
