THE BITCHIN SISTERS - Nancy and Janet are old and in the way!

WHEN YOU GET TO BE OUR AGE you've got some stories about cars and trucks you've owned--anyway, if you live in rural Wisconsin you absolutely need a vehicle. Nancy and Janet remember cars from their childhoods. Vehicles seem to have stories of their own, through the years. From cross-country trips with four children in a station wagon to the disappearance of a silver Mustang, 50 years ago, For most people cars frame our lives.

How many times have you looked back and marveled at the result of a choice you made--a relationship, a change in employment, a move to a new place. Do you wonder what MIGHT have been your life if you had made different choices. Nancy found a life's work; She counsels listeners to become more confident, and to make choices that benefit them.

What is it that you seek out? A rare bird at the feeder?

A great bakery with your favorite donuts? A yarn shop? Or maybe it's some hot live music OR some HOT Thai cuisine! What do you seek out?

The bitchin' sisters and their friend, Ann, describe three "splitting p" stories. Janet left an abusive realtionship when she still had young children, Nancy's husband died unexpectedly, and Ann's husband of over 40 years left her for a woman wo was younger than their grown daughter--in China! But what did these women do? They'll tell you how they survived, changed, and grew. And you? How did you survive change?

PETS are not always the fluffy, cuddly kind.

In fact, it seems that the sisters and their friend, Ann, recall stories of some unusual pets, over the years. Still humans seek the companionship of other living beings, no matter how humble.

NANCY tells the story of her husband's sudden death, and how her motorcycle became a means to healing and rebirth. She tells of the far places she rode and the solo trip to Maine, where she had lived years before. She tells of friends along the road. She tells us about meeting Mike, now her husband, on a "poker run." Since then they have traveled 170,000 miles together! She's led an INTERESTING life...

TODAY my husband remarked that the LAST CENTURY was ACTUALLY more than a quarter of a century ago! So MUCH has changed, and I don't just mean the obvious. Not computers and cellphones, I've tried to keep up with that, and I've done pretty well. But there are SO MANY THINGS that have changed while I wasn't looking! I was a hold-out for a cellphone, and that cost me. And then when I got one I had a stupid accident with it. ETCETERA. I don't even have an air-fryer. I can't imagine hOw it works. I'm SO last century. YOU????

YES! NANCY GOT MARRIED ---AGAIN! And why not? She ans her "better half" had been living together for over 20 years when they were presented with a religious reason to marry. BUT IT WASN'T EASY! There were many steps. MANY STEPS! They followed them all and, on the way, they did sweet little things for each other. They behaved like young lovers, with gifts and gestures. Even when a family tragedy interrupted their timeline, they persisted. Now, together as man and wife, they can live out the rest of their lives.

IF YOU HAVE THE INCLINATION you can help make your community a better place. Can you read? Maybe you could volunteer to read to children at the library or dschool. You can join a friends group and help where your interests lie. Mark talks aout his 37 years of service as a volunteer Emergency Medical Technician. Janet used graphics skills to promote several friends groups. Even Nancy's KNITTING GROUP made knitted gifts and found a way to help. Are you a Lion? A Scout leader? There are many ways to contribute, expecially if you are retired. THAT'S WHEN THE FUN BEGINS! You get to spend your time doing things you love -- for other people!

THERE IS NO DENYING THE RESTORATIVE POWERS OF NATURE. Janet and Nancy reminisce about childhood days spent in the woods of the Catskill Mountains. This provided a lifelong desire to live in the country, in the woods, in nature. So many people live in cities, in hi-rises, in duplexes, in apartments. Do they ever see the night sky? Do they have any connection with the natural world? Both of the bitchin' sisters live in the country. Janet volunteers at a local "forest school" where her great grandchildren spend the entire day outdoors--and it'ts all a part of the public school system! Go back to nature!