the me I used to be (and still am, on the inside)

Aloha!

Yes, my name is Plum, and yes, I am from paradise. Across the sea. Or in the middle of it, whichever helps your perspective.

And yes, because I am a Woman of a Certain Age, I wear bifocals, and through them the view is of:

• my island home: the place where I grew up, flew away from, then returned to, some 30 years ago now;
• my 27-year marriage to my best friend, The Coach;
• my membership in the sandwich generation, having two kids in their 20’s — our boy, a fairly recent college graduate, and our girl, away at college in the Northwest — and elderly parents. All of whom I love dearly, even as they drive me nuts;
• my adventures in aging, as I attempt to deal, as gracefully as possible, with such challenges as the empty nest syndrome, the relentless ravages of gravity, and vicious hot flashes.

Welina mai nei — welcome to my island world!