Zest & Aplomb

Politics, Bookgroup and Please Make It Change

This is not a political blog, and while I’ve remained mostly quiet in public spaces, I have feelings about everything happening. I mean, who doesn’t? If you want to skip this post, you should look away now. If I lose some of you, I’m okay with that. But to say nothing on the subject feels too disingenuous.

I have big feelings about it—so big that I’ve begun mindfulness practices and imposed phone viewing limitations. When I’ve been in social groups recently, and we’ve briefly touched upon the subject, I’ve learned that I’m not alone in my strong feelings. As we all know, we are deeply divided along political fault lines.

April 17, 2025 by zestandplomb

Relationships

Turning 80 Isn’t As Easy As Turning 60

By Cheryl Ryan

My Mom turned eighty a few weeks ago, and my sister and I flew to Arizona to celebrate her. While there, we took her to an elegant dinner at L’Auberge de Sedona, a restaurant beside Sedona’s gorgeous desert river. Then, we stopped by her favorite dance club, the 10/12 Lounge, for a quick listen and spin on the dance floor. Honestly, I can’t remember the last time I was on a dance floor, but she goes weekly.

My Mom has always loved to go dancing. But she said she couldn’t feel the music she always felt. Not for the last couple of years anyway. Between Covid, Cancer, Chemo and the onset of Parkinson’s, her recovery has been rough.

March 10, 2025 by zestandplomb

Lifestyle

2025: Taking Care of my Little Piece of Earth

By Cheryl Ryan

Special note: Unfortunately, due to a glitch, or worse yet, user error, I’ve lost my entire auto email list!! Such a bummer! I’ve entered those I know were following, but it’s only a fraction of those that were there. If you know anybody who was following or might like to follow, tell them to re-sign up on this website pop-up. Thanks so much.

2025

It’s a new year, and I’m renewing my commitment to care for my little piece of this earth. I know, I know, if you’ve been here for a while, you’ve heard this before. But little by little, I am making changes. I promise!

Recently, I’ve seen some cool companies and newsletters that have caught my eye. One is Ridwell. It’s a paid service that costs as low as $14 per month and picks up recyclables from your doorstep. They take typical plastic, multi-layer plastic, paper, glass, batteries and more. Once picked up, they are delivered directly to places where those materials are repurposed for newly created products. I’m still on the waiting list, so if any of my neighbors are reading this, please sign up so that they know there is enough interest to serve our area. I saw their cans on stoops all over Oakland the last time I visited. It would be cool for apartment and townhouse communities to share a subscription, creating a recycling community.

I’m now subscribing to One5c, a free, informed newsletter about the consequences of our actions on the environment. Going deep into the perils of our impact on Earth can be overwhelming, so you can go as deep as you want. What I like about this newsletter is that if you want to start small, there are articles like ordering eco-friendly toilet paper brands (hint: the winner was whogivesacrap.com). Or if you’re in the market for a new puffer jacket, they describe what is the most eco-friendly solution. I was surprised. I just ordered my first box of ‘Who Gives A Crap’ TP and will report back.

February 7, 2025 by zestandplomb

Lifestyle

2024 Fall Fashion –Trending For All Ages

Be Cheryl Ryan

I’ve been cleaning out my closet to get ready for fall. I’m on a recycle and throw-away tear, leaving me on the hunt for a few new things to round out my wardrobe. As I’m looking for inspiration to replace my old clothes, I feel grateful for the recent Millennial and Gen Z styles.

They seem to embrace comfortable and practical fashions. The vast majority have basically thrown spike heels out the window and are choosing flats, sneakers, comfortable wedges or block heels for an elevated look. They’re also into the Birkenstock look—which I’m not sure I can do, but if you are so inclined, they do look very comfortable. And I sure wish we’d been wise enough to don those wide-brimmed hats they’re all wearing at a pool or beach day.

October 18, 2024 by Cheryl Ryan

Create

How Are Your 2024 Goals Going?

By Cheryl Ryan

Well – it’s been a minute. The official first day of summer is in a few weeks, and I’ve been busy doing all the Spring things. For the past two years, we’ve been traveling during Spring, so I’ve had some catch-up to do. And although it’s been busy, it’s been lovely being home and I’m feeling ready for Summer.

My 2024 Garden Report

Along with weeding, I’ve been planting and rearranging flower beds. My veggie garden looks pretty good, but my flower garden – not so much. I can’t seem to get it right, even with all that before Spring planning. My zinnias got munched by something that ate off the tops. My next round of seeds never came up, so I’ve just sprinkled a new mix of wildflowers. What the heck? Most of the green I see are the winter weeds, who are happy about the amateur gardener providing unseasonable water. I can only say, it’s a good thing that I don’t make a living as a farmer.

June 5, 2024 by Cheryl Ryan

Lifestyle

Spring Planning: We’re Down To The Wire

By Cheryl Ryan

We’re having a perfectly wet winter here in Northern California. There has been enough rain to make activity planning frustrating but a good amount to ensure a beautiful spring and summer. I’m using my rainy downtime to go through thirty years of photos, taking them from overstuffed, dusty bins and loading them up to the cloud.

My daughter suggested getting a fancy scanner, making the actual scanning part easy. So, it’s the organizing that is taking so long. But it’s been unexpectedly fun to take the trip down memory lane! There are some long-forgotten gems in there. And I thought I looked terrible in those photos back in the day—well, I have a much different opinion about that now. It was also fun starting the project with my daughter. She loved seeing her long-lost baby photos.

March 7, 2024 by Cheryl Ryan

Wellness

Loss: An Inevitable Part Of Life

By Cheryl Ryan

This past year, both of my husband’s parents passed away. It didn’t happen overnight, yet somehow we didn’t see it coming. Things changed for my mother-in-law when her hearing loss became more profound. We started speaking more clearly, then louder and finally less. It was frustrating for her, but I’m not sure we fully realized how hard it really was. Communication was her love language, and as much as we needed to hear her, she needed to hear us more.

As my father-in-law’s walking became increasingly unstable, we worked to introduce canes and walkers to keep him upright. He mostly rejected those, enduring many falls, but we all kept moving forward. As the changes mounted, we adjusted. Adjusted our interaction style as they adjusted their ways of staying in the game of life. Throughout all these changes, we instinctively knew they would be leaving us, but we never really knew what that would look like.

February 9, 2024 by Cheryl Ryan

Lifestyle

New Year’s Resolutions…so last decade?

By Cheryl Ryan

I’m a bit behind in making my resolutions this year, but I didn’t make any last year. So, I’m going for late rather than none in 2024.

I’m hearing from millennials that New Year’s Resolution lists are out. Choosing a single word or phrase for the year is in. The reasoning is that setting your intention is less pressure and more achievable than checking off items from a list.

I’ve been making resolution lists for more years than I care to admit, and they’ve worked pretty well for me. I’ve typically checked off three-quarters of my resolutions each year. In fact, I’m not sure I would’ve achieved some of my loftier goals without my list.

January 26, 2024 by Cheryl Ryan

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