Last night I had the opportunity to go backstage at Grand Ol Opry and observe my fabulous daughter in law, Natalie, in the preparation for her hosting roles on Grand Ol Opry Live AND perform as a member of Runaway June. It was the first time since the pandemic started that artists were allowed to invite family backstage. The Opryland staff take Covid precautions seriously. I had such a good time and was in awe of the skill it took for Natalie to juggle all of the roles she had last night. I hope there is a daughter-in-law day soon. I have much more to say about Natalie.
Today is Siblings Day. There are 5 of us – Terry, Tamara, Timothy, Troyt and Traci (or the 5 Ts). I am the only one that left Iowa. We have all become parents and had very different paths through adulthood. While our views of the world are very different, we have always agreed on the importance of family. I will visit them in June towards the end of my travels. I hope we can all be together to update this 2018 photo.
I have had persistent loss of taste and persistent loss of taste and smell since Covid. I have grown pretty accustomed to it. I think the loss of taste decreases the desire for any second helpings which is a good thing. I can tell one flavored coffee syrup is different from another, but not what each flavor is. This past week I had my first glimpse that my sense of smell might be coming back. I thought I might have smelled the fresh salmon as I removed it from the packaging. Later than evening, I had a brief feeling that my environment had gone from black and white to color related to smell. It was odd, brief and not related to any pharmaceutical enhancement. The following evening, I feel pretty sure that I actually smelled the basil in pesto. I have hope.
My first Covid vaccination in Tuesday. I begin my travels on Friday April 16th. I am getting very excited.
Tamara Unleashed 