This year I decided to plant a larger variety of flowers than I usually do. Be bold, I said to myself. Go for it, and I did. The result is a delightful burst of color. In my office there's a large window to my right. I turn my head and look out onto my patio and garden. Such a treat! I hope that your gardens give you great pleasure this year.

AARP sends out three versions of The Magazine. The A version goes to 50 year olds. The B version to 60 year olds. The C version to 70 year olds and up. They mail out over 35 million copies in sequence, so it takes about a month to reach us all. I'm 74 and I don't have mine in the mail as yet. (the copies I have were sent to me by Karen Reyes, the executive editor who wrote the article.)

Readers in New England who are in their 60s got their magazine somewhere in mid June. I heard from readers who received theirs in the southern states by the end of June, and so it goes in sequence across the country until I imagine the end of July.

I'll get mine in my P O Box about July 8th.

I hope, if you've seen this article, which is part of a larger story about women sharing homes, (page 50) that you like it as well as the overall cover story about women sharing homes all around this country. It's a growing movement. [ See The New Housemates. in AARP: The Magazine ]

Some of you have written and asked me how to go about finding housemates. I will be Co-authoring a self-help book about just that subject with author Diana Leafe Christian, who is well known for her books on intentional communities. I will write the fictional part and she will write the What to do-How to do it part. We believe it will be a fine guide for anyone choosing to share a home. For those of you who do not get THE MAGAZINE you can read it here.

Have you looked, really looked at your feet and ankles lately? I was in my proverbial bathtub the other night and stuck my feet up on the sides. The toes looked familiar. They're the same size and shape they always were, but not my feet. They're wider, shaped differently, lumpy, it seemed to me in places and not the same shape that I recall. My ankles are definitely thicker. I used to be complimented on them and my legs as well.

It's harder to find comfortable shoes these days. If the right shoe feels great, the left shoe's snug, and I find it's best if I change my shoes several times a day. Oh, well. Things could be a lot worse, couldn't they? Thank God, I have feet and can walk

In December, the novel I have told you about called The Mountains are Dancing will be published, but it will have a different name chosen by the publisher. It will be called Come Walk With Me. This is not a ladies of Covington novel, but is the tale of Claire, who, when she loses her husband goes on a huge campaign to find another. It's quite a story! I think of it as her downward path to wisdom. There will be more about it as the time gets closer.

email: jmedlicott@mindspring.com

web: http://www.joanmedlicott.com