Happy New Year

Well here we are again, on the brink of a brand new year.  2019 is almost upon us, and I know that the coming year will fly by just as fast as this year has. When I was in high school, way back in the 1960s. any year after 2000 seemed impossibly far away, yet here we are, well into the 2000s.  In case you're wondering, I have not made any resolutions this year.  Why should I set myself up for failure?  I have discovered one positive though.  Since I'm paying most of my bills on line these days (who could have imagined that in 1962?) there is much less chance of writing the wrong year on my checks.  Progress indeed.  Happy New Year everyone!!!

Easy to assemble

I am expecting company in a few days.  I may have mentioned this before.  It's been on my mind a lot lately.  In fact I've been waking up at odd hours of the night (like 4:00am) thinking of things I still need to do or trying to decide what to feed two adults and four children, ages 2-12.  Last night at 3:56am I realized that I don't have enough towel racks in my guest bathroom.  So, today, after church, I took myself to Walmart and, with the help of a friendly clerk who led me half way across the store to the hardware area, I found, and purchased, an over the door towel rack.  The package said it would be easy to assemble, and guess what, it was.  Six little screws and my handy-dandy Phillips screwdriver and, hey, presto, I have an over the door towel rack.  Only two problems: (1) with the towel rack in place the door won't close so no privacy. A lot of people like privacy in the bathroom.  and (2) it bangs agains the wall when the door is open.  I really don't want holes in the drywall.  Happily, I have come up with a solution.  I hung the towel rack in the guest bedroom (which is pretty close to the bathroom) on the outside of the closet door.  Nobody cares if the closet door doesn't close tightly and at least there is a relatively handy place to hang three big damp bath towels. I know, I know there are six people coming but, hey, it's a start, and there's always the shower rod.  

Facts that don't help at all.

I learned this earlier this month "On average a person has 70,000 thoughts per day." Wouldn't you think, if I had had 70,000 thoughts today, at least one of them would be worth bloging about?  Nope, I've got nothing.  Oh wait, here's another fact.  Today is "Tick Tock Day."  What do you suppose that means?  Is it simply that we're winding down to the end of the year or does it mean that I should go on line and shop for a lovely new watch?  Well, tick tock, it's bed time.  I guess I'll never know.

Not the prediction I was hoping for.

You may have noticed that this has been an unusually warm December.  Not tropical, mind you, after all we do live in Indiana, but still temperatures in the 40s and 50s are relatively pleasant. I appreciated this when I was pumping gas earlier this week.  However there have been two weather predictions in my 'Old Farmer's Almanac' calendar that have me concerned.  I've always felt that, after Christmas, it's fine with me if we just slide right into spring but these predictions don't bode well for the kind of spring I'm dreaming of.
On December 25 the quote was "At Christmas, meadows green (the grass does look green from my balcony), at Easter, covered with frost."
And today "Who doffs his coat on winter's day (I saw lots of people running around without coats today), will gladly put it on in May." So now you have been warned.  

What's in a name?

I didn't know that winter storms were named these days but evidently they are.  I guess I shouldn't be surprised.  Hurricanes have names and so do tropical storms and wild fires, so why not large winter storms?  Today I heard on the national news that Winter Storm Eboni is dropping lots of snow across the midwest (except for northern Indiana evidently).  Eboni?  Isn't that the dark wood from which black piano keys are made?  I know that the wood is spelled 'ebony' but still it sounds the same.  Wasn't there an old song "Ebony and Ivory?"  It seems to me that if someone wants to name a SNOW storm they might have considered a more appropriate name.  I know, you're probably going to point out that this is the 5th named big snow storm (who knew?) so the name had to start with 'E.'  But why not Eggshell or Ecru?  Too bad it has to start with 'E.' Alabaster would have been catchy or Ivory.  Although maybe the namers were thinking of all the potential black outs from downed power lines.  In that case Eboni might make sense.  
Just out of curiosity I googled the definition of 'Eboni.'  It is an Egyptian baby name which means Black. So now you know. Can't wait to hear what they name the next big snow storm. I vote for 'Frosty.'

it's evidently not permanent

Three days ago I suddenly lost my hearing, at least partially.  It has been the strangest feeling. I hear swooshing sounds in my left ear (sort of a perpetual rain storm) while my right ear is still hearing a little.  I really didn't have time to look into this while going through the usual Christmas Eve and Christmas day celebrations.  The hearing problem did lead to some interesting moments.  I managed to read my assigned scripture at our late service but had no idea what my voice sounded like. My son said I sounded normal.  On the ride home after the service my granddaughter said that she had spent some of her holiday time with her boyfriend, but she was sitting on my left and I heard her with my right ear so I thought it was my daughter speaking and asked what she was doing spending time with her daughter's boyfriend? Everyone looked at me strangely until I realised who had actually been speaking.  The whole next day went like that.  When my brother called from Spokane to wish me a Merry Christmas I couldn't hear him until I thought to switch the phone to my right ear.  I got a good feeling of how awful it must be to not be able to hear well. Today, I did have time and went to the doctor to see what is going on.  It turns out I have a minor infection and some fluid in my left ear, all of which can be cured.  In ten days I should be back to normal, or at least my version of normal. 

and to all a good night

Last night I spent the night at my daughter's house so I could be there to experience Christmas morning with her and her husband, two grandchildren and three grand-dogs.  I assumed, since my grands are teens now that they would sleep in. Not so, we were all awake at 6:30am.  Some things never change.  We explored stocking treasures, unwraped larger gifts and sniffed the breakfast casserole baking in the kitchen.  All this before 7:30. Some things do change though and I looked on with interest as my grandteens unwraped purple tights, blue and purple hair dye, a set of throwing axes and target board, a large computer monitor and much more.  The gifts have changed but the delight was still there.  I guess Santa is keeping up with the times but I do wonder how he got that computer desk down the chimney.  More family came later, adding eight more people, more food and another dog to the melee.  All in all a busy fun day. I shall sleep well tonight.  

Christmas Carol Quiz

Each Sunday morning our adult Sunday school class discusses a topic from the series provided by the on-line resource called the Wired Word.  Usually our discussions are serious, but this morning's topic created a laughing, light hearted conversation, just perfect for two days before Christmas.  The discussion was based on questions about various familiar Christmas carols.
Here are a few of my favorites:

What unrealistic claim is made about baby Jesus in "Away in a Manger?"

What carol was originally written to be accompanied by guitar because the church's organ was not working?

Regarding "We Three Kings" where does the Bible say how many there were?  Where does the Bible say they were kings?

What carol did American preacher Phillips Brooks write after seeing a little community in the Holy Land lit up against the darkness during a Christmastime visit?

Merry Almost Christmas everyone. 

facebook surprises

I belong to Facebook.  I guess that's the right term, but I don't follow facebook posts and I very seldom respond to a post, let alone post anything of my own.  Lately though my computer has taken to showing me little pop up tips about something new that has been posted on facebook.  Often I don't even recognize the name but this evening the little info box told me that my daughter had posted a new picture so of course I looked at that. I decided to check it out on my little tablet because my laptop was open to another program.  I did and it was a great picture of her surrounded by a candy cane patterned wreath.  My daughter is the only person I know whose passport and driver's license pictures look really good so I wasn't surprised. What did surprise me was the other stuff that popped up.  There were lots of cartoons and funny pictures and poems and more, none of which were from sources I recognized.  I have to wonder how long my little Nexus tablet has been accumulating all this stuff behind my back, and why?  I'm thinking I need to learn enough about facebook to find the delete button. 

Christmas shopping

I thought I had finished my Christmas shopping but realized today that there were a few more things I needed to buy.  I tried to avoid Glenbrook Mall but ended up there anyway.  It was busy but I imagine it will be much busier tomorrow.  I had fun walking through the mall and exploring all the temporary kiosks along the way.  It's amazing the variety of stuff I could have bought but I wasn't buying for anyone who needed brightly patterned tights or super fluffy socks, nor was I ready to discuss what I use on my skin with a pretty young thing. I was tempted by a puffy vest with a Ball State logo on it but it cost $70 so I passed after remindung myself that I was supposed to be shopping for others. That's the hardest part of shopping for Christmas gifts.  Once I get in the spending mode I tend to find all sorts of things that I 'need' for myself.  Ho, ho, ho and happy last minute shopping everyone.  

still not perfect

Over the last many years I have written a poem each Christmas to give my friends the highlights of my year just past.  I worked on the principle that poetry kept my 'news letters' brief and if people wanted more detailed information they would ask.  This year I kept it brief (one page - lots of white spaces) but I couldn't make it into poetry so I called it a 'prose.'  I have been hand delivering these missives whenever I'm in meetings or otherwise seeing friends.  Yesterday, a friend called me in the evening to tell me how much she liked my news letter.  In fact she said she liked it much better than the one her husband had just written.  So I was feeling pretty good about this year's creation this morning as I sat down at my computer to print out some more copies.  That is until I noticed that there was a misspelled word in the very first line.  Happily, I had only handed out about 10 copies at this point, and I was able to correct the error before I printed any more copies.  Of course the fact that I sometimes make spelling errors will come as no surprise to regular readers of this blog.  Actullay, I bleam the errors on my comptuer keybroad which seems to rearrange letters unred my finregs.  

Are yoo ready?

A friend and I were talking yesterday and she said "It's about a week and a half to Christmas."  When I pointed out to her that it was exactly one week till Christmas she got a kind of 'deer in the headlights' look and I could see the panic setting in.  Of course, she and her husband had just the day before returned from a two-week stay at a resort in Florida followed by a one-week cruise in the Caribbean so it was hard to work up much sympathy for her 'not yet ready for the holidays' concerns.  I did find it amusing to hear that her husband, a mensa-brilliant 81 year old who walks with a walker, won the lip sync contest on their cruise ship singing "Yellow Submarine."  Obviously he has hidden talents.  And she has pictures - always good for a little familial blackmail on down the road.  

So now I know

I've been weaving scarves for my grandchildren as their Christmas presents.  People have asked me how long it takes me to weave a scarf and I wasn't really sure.  It's one of those projects that you can pick up and put down.  But today I've been working on one that I need to finish before Christmas and I figured out that actual weaving time works out to about nine inches an hour.  The scarves contain 72 inches of woven fabric (11  inches wide in case you're curious) so that means each scarf takes about eight hours of actual weaving time, not counting the finish work.  So now you know what I've been doing in my spare time today - four hours to go on this one.  Which further explains why this is such a late and short blog.  

It could be true.

Today, according to my calendar, is "Wright Brothers Day."  It seems to me that this day should be more widely celebrated than it is but I will admit that December is a pretty busy month so I guess I understand.  Here's a related fact that I just learned today.  When Neil Armstrong walked on the Moon, he had a piece of fabric from the left wing (actual not political) of the 1903 Wright Flyer along with a piece of wood from the airplane's left propeller in his pocket." I am assuming he had permission to take these items with him and wasn't involved in a bit of vandalism.  Personally, I'm interested in this special day because, according to my mother, our family is distantly related to the Wright brothers.  My mother's mother's maiden name was Wright and she was a second or third cousin.  So there you have it, our family's only known clain to fame.  Although, now that I think of it, we are actually related to Frank Lloyd Wright also.  My mother received a tiny little bit of an inheritance after he died.  So I guess we have two claims to fame, but all in the same family.  I should really do some research someday.  

Another fun Arena experience

Last evening three friends and I attended a play at Arena Dinner Theater.  So-so dinner but really good play. It was a musical comedy called "She Loves Me" and, according to the program, takes place in 1934 in Budapest.  Thankfully, the really excellent actors did not try to speak with Hungarian accents.  Until the play started I was sure I had never heard of it before, but in the first scene there was a plot twist involving a musical cigarette box, and I knew, when I saw that, that I had seen the play before.  The play was written in the 1960s so it's not surprising that I mught have seen it but I can't remember where or when.  Someone suggested that it might have been at Stratford but I don't think so.  I think the production last night was better than the first time I saw it.  While Arena puts on really good plays they can't top a Stratford production.  I would be recommending that everyone go see this play but last night was the last performance.  If you  ever do get a chance to see it, it's lots of fun.  

Happy Birthday to me

In truly contemporary fashion my birthday greetings today came in many forms including real actual cards (some even came in the mail), texts, facebook and even one real live phone call.  This evening my daughter and family took me out to dinner at Wu's.  They let me suggest the place, Chinese was fine with them, and I didn't realize that they had never been there before.  I'm happy to report that they enjoyed it very much.  The five of us were seated at a round table with a 'lazy Susan'* in the center, making it easy to pass dishes.  All in all, it was a lovely evening. Everyone enjoyed their food.
*By the way, my friend Susan finds the term 'lazy Susan' somewhat offensive while I dislike the phrase 'loosey goosie'.  Lucys and Susans of the world unite!

Party Time

I almost didn't go.  This evening our apartment complex held their anuual Christmas party in the penthouse of the other building.  This is always a fun event with drinks, munchies, a canned food collectiom and a chance to visit with neighbors.  I had been out most of the day at meetings and was really tired when I got home this evening, about 6:30.  I had just about decided that I wouldn't go when I met two of my neighbors coming out of the elevator as I was waiting for it. They were all cheery (perhaps they had started partying earlier) and asked if I was coming to the party.  I told them maybe, came on up to my apartment and then decide to be a little sociable.  So I gathered up a little canned food to take to the party and headed over to the other building.  For the cans of food I got 5 tickets for the prize drawing.  No idea yet if I've won anything, but I had some spiked eggnog and got involved in conversation with neighbors I knew and some I didn't. These were two young couples who actually live right down the hall from me and I had a good time learning about their job searches, recently earned degrees and mutual interests like travel and theater.  I've said it before.  One of the great pleasures of living here is being able to see young faces.  I'll be 74 tomorrow, far and away the oldest one in our cheery group this evening, and I'm not kidding anyone with my looks but it really is fun to interact with younger people.  Let's hear it for age diversity.  

A smooth edge indeed

More lovely Christmas music.  This evening I enjoyed a concert at our church (First Pres) given by a group called "Smooth Edge 2."  They are billed as an a cappella jazz group.  Their eight voices blend together to create an amazing sound.  It feels like there are musical instruments involved but it's all vocal and quite impressive.  This is the third time I have heard this group and they only get better.  Tonight we enjoyed jazzy interpretations of several Christmas classics plus some songs that were new to me.  All in all a delightful evenng. I recommend this group.  

Good Old and Brand New

I love it when old and new technologies merge for fun.  Yesterday I picked up my granddaughter for a day of shopping and a sleep-over.  She had agreed to be my fashion consultant in the selection of gifts for my 'angel tree' girl.  As we were driving from her home to Kohl's (I had some really good coupons) she mentioned that a friend of hers was playing Snoopy in the Fort Wayne Youththeater production of "A Charlie Brown Christmas."  We decided it would be fun to go and she checked the times on her phone.  The play was on at noon, and by juggling our very flexible schedule for the day we could make that performance. Next step, still on her phone of course, she checked availability of tickets.  This was at 10:15am and she discovered that there were 4 tickets left.  She then used my credit card to reserve two of those tickets.  We did some quick shopping, got to the theater in plenty of time, our tickets were waiting, and we had a fine time enjoying the good old Charlie Brown story which was first aired as a TV show in the 60's, (very old tech). "Snoopy" did a great job with her part, as did all the other young actors, and she was delighted that my granddaughter was able to come and see the play. Isn't it fun when new tech and old tech create such a happy result?

new technology

Today I took my brother for his every-four-year colonoscopy.  We are both very faithful about this since our mother died of colon cancer.  Everything was just fine today, he got a clean bill of health. My job was to wait around while he went through the procedure and be ready to drive him home after.  This I did with no problem. 
The new technology I refered to in the title came into play during the waiting time.  Before I was taken to the correct waiting room, and it's a good thing I had a guide or I might still be wandering around Parkview, I was given an informational brochure.  In this brochure was a color coded list and instructions to watch the TV screen in the waiting room.  The brochure also contained a code number for my brother.  When I got there I saw the TV and found the rectangle (one of several) with my brother's code number in it. Then, as the morning wore on, I could watch the colors change.  And it did.  I saw it go from 'in surgery' (they seem to call everything surgery) which was blue, to 'in recovery' pink.  Then a nurse came and guided me toward the exit so I could go get the car. All in all, it was a very smooth system. Good job, Parkview Randallia.  

this might work

Every month or so, my Old Farmer's Almanac calendar shares a couple of ideas for curing headaches.  I don't suffer from headaches much but I always read these just in case.  The first suggestion today is "Ask a seventh child to blow in your ear."  Unfortunately, I don't know a seventh child so I will have to pass on that on.  My mother-in-law was one of 12 children but you just don't see families of that size much any more.  
However the seconnd one has promise: "Soak your feet in hot water for 15 minutes.  Pur on warm cotton socks and lie down for 15 minutes."  No idea if this will cure anything but it certainly sounds relaxing and it doesn't seem like it would do any harm.  Maybe some of those 'old wives' knew what they were talking about, or maybe they just needed a break from all those kids.  

Calendar highlights

Well, here we are in December, and I bet you thought you knew all of the December holidays - Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, New Year's Eve, Kwanza and Hanukkah.  But here are some you may want to add to you celebration list.  For example, today is 'International Ninja Day.'  Since I don't know any Ninjas (international or otherwise) this one doesn't interest me too much, actually not at all.  However, December 13 (in addition to being St. Lucy's day - see last Sunday's blog) is 'Hot Cocoa Day.'  Now there's a day I can warm up to.  But that's not all.  December 16 is 'Chocolate Covered Anything Day.'  Aren't you glad it's December?

I love simple solutions

Last year I was at the mall with my grandson. We were browsing in the bookstore when we came across a book I wanted.  When I suggested to him that he tell his mom about the book as a possible Christmas gift for me, he quickly took his phone out and took a picture of the cover.  You've probably been doing this for years but for me it was an 'ah hah!' moment.  What a simple way to remember.  Later in the day he pointed out a game he might like to have and, when he wandered off down another aisle, I took a quick picture with my phone.  I may be old but I can learn new tricks.  Since then, I frequently find myself using my cell phone to take pictures of things I want to remember.  Obvious things of course like pictures of people and places, but also book covers to remember authors' names, medicine bottles, and, this evening, pictures of gift suggestions emailed to me by a niece in Spokane.  Who ever imagined that telephones, once tethered to the wall by cords, and usable only for making phone calls, could evolve into such nifty, multi-use gadgets. And mine is only a semi-smart phone. 

I did not know this...

but now we all do, thanks to my nifty calendar.  Here's a fact that might make you feel a little  better about Indiana winters.  The largest reported snowflake measured 15 inches wide and 8 inches thick.  It was discovered by a rancher in Montana in 1887. How long do you suppose it bounced around in the atmosphere?  Too bad that rancher didn't have a cell phone handy to record this phenomenon.  I'm sure it would have gone viral. No idea what that monster snowflake weighed but I wouldn't want it landing on my head.  So the next time you see a snowflake or feel a bit of winter chill, be glad you're not a rancher in Montana.  

Now I'm ready.

No, I haven't finished my Christmas to-do list that I outlined yesterday but I am ready to tackle it.  This evening I attend the annual Candlelight / St. Lucie service at Trinity English Lutheran Church.  This is an amazing program that I have seen three times now and it absolutely fills me with the Christmas spirit.  According to their printed information, this is the 76th Candlelight Service and the 38th anniversary of the Santa Lucia (or St. Lucie) observance.  I've been intrigued by the legend of St. Lucie, since discovering, when required to write a report on a Christmas related person in highschool, that her saint's day (also her birthday) is my birthday, December 13.  Since my first name is Luci I think my interest is understandable.  I don't know what life was like in the third century AD (or CE if you prefer) but I can't imagine being driven to the extreme of gouging my own eyes out to avoid marriage.  While my first name is Luci, my middle name is not Grace, and I proved once again this evening why I should NEVER be the one to wear that crown of candles.  As I was leaving the balcony after this beautiful service, somewhat blinded by the light of my candle (consider the irony) I missed a step and excuted a magnificent fall.  Only one step down, thank goodness, on to a landing, but there I was flat on my back, and slightly stunned because the back of my head was the first part to hit the floor.  Everyone was very solitious.  Nothing broken.  I was OK within a few minutes, just shaken.  It will be interesting to see where I have bruises tomorrow.  

almost finished

Well really, not even close.  I'm feeling content because my tree is up and most of my other decorations are in place.  However, my pre-Christmas to do list is still quite lengthy. Some items are easy, like buying flannel sheets for my guest bed, but others take a little more time.  I'm making six of my family gifts this year and only have  4 1/2 finished.  Also, I like to write a Christmas poem each year and I haven't started that yet, not to mention addressing the envelopes.  I did buy stamps today, so that's one thing done. Also, I'm expecting two, maybe three sets of overnight visitors this month and am hosting one carry-in dinner for a group I belong to.  And, of course, there's the gift shopping for all those people I'm not making things for.  OK, that's enough to think about for now.  I'm going to bed.  Perhaps some poetic inspiration will strike while I'm dreaming. If it does, I'll try it out on you tomorrow.  

no blog today

Taking a sick day.  Believe me you don't want to hear the details.

a wise old saying

There's an old saying that goes "Don't switch horses in mid-stream."  A modern version might be "Don't change numeric catagories in mid-sentence."  I know it's not as catchy, but a young reporter on this evening's news should listen to my advice.  While introducing a man who has been active in "Toys for Tots." an admirable charity, by the way, the reporter said that this gentleman had been involved with the charity "for the last (and here he fumbled a little) 30 decades."  Really?? He looked awfully good for 300+ years old.  Happily, the anchor man worked '30 years' into his final wrap up, just in case any of us were really confused.  

a new toy

Today I got to play with a new toy.  Well, technically, it was an arts and crafts tool, but a new one to me.  This evening I helped with our annual Advent Festival at church.  Lot's of carry-in soup for supper, yumm, and Christmasy craft projects for the children.  That's where I came in.  I had agreed to help with the set up and our youth pastor said he had some things for me to cut out.  I envisioned sitting and cutting with a pair of scissors but he had something much better.  I don't know the name of this tool but some elementary school teacher might.  It was a flat tray with a roller device across the top.  A set of shaped blades imbedded in a sheet of stiff foam is layed on the tray, a few pieces of paper are placed on top of the foam and the whole tray slides left or right propelled and gently pushed down by the roller and, hey presto, it cuts out clean, crisp shapes.  In an hour, I cut out wreaths, Christmas trees, candles, bows, snow flakes, and ornament shapes.  Then, of course, we helped children assemble creations like advent calendars, using the shapes I had cut.  That was fun too.  

Thw Festival Of Trees

Today, for the first time ever, I visited the "Festival of Trees" at the Embassy Theater.  This display of amazingly decorated trees has been going on for several years but in the past I've always seemed to miss it.  Every year by the time I would hear advertising about the festival it would be over.  But this year, I actually got to see it, and it was ok. The theme this year was "White Christmas" and most of the trees were strung with white lights which I found kind of repetative.  There were a few that were quite beautiful and I did enjoy the experience but it wasn't the 'wow' I was expecting.  The friend I was with did serve in the Navy and toward the end of the display, which extended over two floors and a balcony, we found the Navy tree.  It was really well decorated with white ropes looped over the branches and a white sailor's hat as the tree topper and ornaments in the shape of anchors and other nautical things.  It was fun and really well done. All in all, a good experience but now I'm sitting here enjoying my old tree cluttered with ornaments made or given by various family members and friends, many connected with fun memories of times spent together through the years.  I guess I know which one is my favorite tree.  

One more thing to think about

I mentioned in my last blog that one of my nephews and his family may be coming to visit me for a few days later this month.  I am excited about this and very pleased that they are coming, but I realized, as I looked around my livingroom today that it has been a long, long time since I have entertained a two-year-old.  I need to do a little (or a lot of) child-proofing.  I've already hung the least precious, most sturdy ornaments toward the bottom of the tree but now I need to think about the stuff on my shelves.  I can only move so many things up to the highest shelves.  But as I sit here I am looking at the big bin, now empty, in which I store my Christmas tree ornaments.  It occurs to me that I could hide a lot of fragile pieces in their.  Problem solved.  Now all I need to do is figure out what these kids will eat for breakfast.  I think they will probably want more than my usual hard boiled egg.  I might actually have to, gasp, cook something.

Christmas just got more exciting...

I had been told that a nephew and his family who live in Spokane will be moving to the Washington DC area for a couple of years on a military assignment and that they might stop by Fort Wayne on their way.  I've known about this possibility for some time but thought that this move was to take place 'sometime next year.: I just found out today that they may be coming as early as this December.  This is very exciting for me because we may be able to have a Christmas celebration while they are here.  My Christmas tree is up and almost all decorated, my balcony lights are on and I am pleased that my apartment will look very festive while they are here.  Now all I need to do is figure out how to sleep six people (they have four children, ages two through ten) in my two-bedroom apartment.  Between couches and beds I know we will make it work. 

another passport note

When I renewed my passport last month I also ordered a passport card.  When I received my new passport yesterday it was all alone but there was a form inclosed explaining that my passport card and my old passport would be mailed separately.  I guess that makes sense for security reasons.  My old passport arrived today and I am happy to have it back, even with two holes punched in it, for the history it represents (22 countries at last count) but I was amused to see that, while my new passport was mailed in a priority, insured envelope, the old one came in a plain brown envelope.  Who knows how the card will arrive?  
Here's something else that gave me a little laugh. I admit to being easily entertained.  On the picture page my passport is identified as being a passport in three different languages: English - passport, French - passeport, and Spanish - pasaporte (or maybe that last one is Italian?).  These three words are so similar that I don't know why they bothered.  If they want to identify the document in other languages, why not Chinese or Korean or Burmese or German or Russian?  Yet another question that I'll probably never have an answer to.  Ah well....

passport puzzle

A few weeks ago, with the help of a very nice postal employee, I bagan the process of renewing my passport.  It came in the mail today and it looks very nice, new and crispy clean with all those blank pages.  I guess those will be a challenge to me.  I love to see those pages being stamped.  If I had lived in the good old days I would have had one of those suitcases with the travel stickers pasted all over it.  What surprised me about this passport is that, after all the jokes you hear about terrible passport pictures, mine doesn't look too bad. If you overlook the lack of glasses and a smile, it sort of looks like me but, because of the lighting or something when my picture was taken, I look like I have strawberry blonde hair.  This is not a bad look, in fact it's the look I had for many years, but for the last several years (10 at least) my hair has been gray.  So here's the question. Do I dye my hair to match my passport or just hope security people will assume I had a very rough flight?  

It was a good day...

...also very filling.  I hopr you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving day.  Most of my family gathered for a traditional dinner.  Happily, my son and daughter-in-law hosted and all I had to do was provide sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie.  We managed to keep the political conversation to a minimum and I discovered that two other people in my family share at least part of my views.  I am not alone. Then we tackled religion (no great differenccs there) and finally got around to sharing humorous family stories, some of which I actually hadn't heard before.  All in all a delicious and satisfyingly normal Thanksgiving.  I really do have lots to be thankful for.

Another tradition experienced

This evening a friend and I went downtown to experience the 13th annual "Night of Lights." It was fun, although I was reminded that I really don't enjoy large crowds.  We saw several displays light up including the ever popular Santa and reindeers (or is it reindeer, I never know). That brought back memories of seeing the older version (before LED lights) on the side of Wolf & Dessauer's Department Store when I was about five years old.  
It was also cold tonight.  I considered it a good "dress rehearsal" for my trip to Finland next March.  I bundled up in layers, wore the heavy red coat my brother gave me with scarf and stocking cap and am happy to report that I stayed nice and warm.  Well, my nose got a little cold but that's to be expected.  Needless to say I was not concerned about looks. All in all it was a fun experience but probably not one that will become an annual must-do for me.

Pass the common sense please.

I understand they are toughening the laws about texting and driving and I'm OK with that.  Except, it seems to me common sense would dictate that drivers keep their eyes on the road.  One can only hope. Today I heard of another situation that seems to also point to a lack of common sense.  There is an annual, very colorful Polar Express train, heavily decorated with Christmas scenes on the sides of the cars that travels through the country during the Christmas season but this year, according to the report, the train will not be lighted as it travels along late at night.  The reason, last year some people got too close to the train, trying to get good pictures and the powers that be are concerned that someone will be struck by the train.  I do understand their concern but it does seem a shame that a lack of common sense on the part of a few (you don't stand close to moving trains) diminishes the event for everyone else.  Earlier this year when I was visiting the Grand Canyon I heard of several recent incidents (there and in other cliff-filled parks) of people falling to their deaths while taking selfies.  Perhaps common senses needs to be taught in school, or maybe, just maybe, people should sometimes put down their phone/cameras and just enjoy the view.  OK, I'm climbing down off my soapbox now before I slip and fall.

I won't be buying that.

I mentioned last week that I have been enjoying a variety of Christmas catalogs that have been showing up in my mailbox.  I received one yesterday that is new to me.  It's called "Wind & Weather" and as you might guess contains lots of decorative weather related items like multifunction barometer / thermometer gadgets and pages and pages of outdoor Christmas and any time decorations.  Since my 'outdoors' is limited to my balcony I am not really tempted by most of these.  However there was one item that caught my attention.  My son-in-law has a wonderful collection of nutcrackers (you know, the kind that look like old time soldiers) and from time to time I have added one to his collection as a Christmas gift.  So, in the catalog I saw a very nice, traditional looking nut cracker that is almost five feet tall and meant to stand guard by your front door.  I though it might be a fun gift until I looked at the price.  $399.00!!! Yikes!  I love my son-in-law a lot but that isn't in my gift budget for this year or any year.  I'll keep it in mind for when I win the Power Ball lottery.  Or, maybe when I write the great American novel and sell the movie rights.  Equally likely events.  

a unique Thanksgiving celebration

Every year, for at least 15 years now, the Korean congregation at our church hosts a Thanksgiving Dinner after church on the Sunday before Thanksgiving to honor US veterans who fought in Korea during the Korean War.  The number of veterans is dwindling year by year as you might expect, but, since the entire congregation is invited, the total number of attendees goes up year by year.  While we are all happy to honor the veterans, we've also caught on to the fact that ihis is a really delicious dinner.  Not only do they serve up all the usual Thanksgiving goodies - turkey, beef, ham, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, dressing, gravy, pumpkin pie, etc. - they also serve kimchi, noodles, rice, dumplings and pulgogee.  Needless to say, I didn't need much for supper this evening. Let's hear it for great Thanksgiving traditions.  

Elf, the Musical

I've seen the movie "Elf" several times and have always enjoyed it.  Tonight I got to see the Civic Theater production of "Elf, the Musical."  It was a big production, great sets, 35 singers and actors (including some very funny elfs) and seven musicians.  The singing, dancing, skating, and acting was all very well done.  My only complaint, and it's just my opinion. is that all of the musical pieces were sung at the same intensity and volumn.  I like musicals with a variety of types of songs - some soft and slow, some loud and fast. "Oklahoma" comes to mind.  This evening's was a fun performance but no "Oklahoma." On the other hand, we all ended up believing in Santa by the end of the show, so it was a success,

40-31

I'm not a huge sports fan but I do enjoy seeing coverage of high school girls basketball.  Especially if the teams involved are familiar to me.   Tonight, for example, I learned that Woodlan (my high school) beat Leo (the eternal rival) by 40-31.  You go girls.  I like to daydrean that if we had had girls basketball at Woodlan fifty-eight years ago I could have been a star.  I know some big city schools had half-court girls basketball way back then but it wasn't an option at Woodlan.  We didn't even have football until my senior year.  While it's fun to imagine I could have been a basketball star, even in my daydreams, a reality check reminds me that, as a tall, gawky teen, I had two left feet.  I know this is true because when the class of '62 was practicing for our graduation processional, after our principal had carefully explained that we would step forward right foot first, doing the hesitation step, I boldy stepped forward left foot first, which the principal loudly pointed out to everyone.  Thankfully, this was only practice. Talk about lasting trauma.  When i got married, my father and I agreed that we would not be doing the hesitation step as he walked me down the aisle.

Accidental

There were several reports on the news today of traffic accidents, thanks to the first messy, icy, mushy weather of this season.  It seems early to me and I didn't like seeing leaves frosen in the slush but I did my 'little old lady driving' imitation (oh, wait, that's not an imitation) and managed to get to and from my appointment unscathed.  This evening, though, I enjoyed a different kind of "Accidental."  A friend and I attended a musical fund raiser for an Associated Churches project held at Come 2 Go, also known as C2G.  The young (they looked very young to me, 20 ish?) group who performed were called "Accidental" and they were very good.  They played and sang well and weren't too loud.  All things I appreciate.  A happy accident indeed.

I know I should...

but I probably won't.  Tomorrow, according to my nifty calendar, is "Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day."  What a fine idea, and just in time for Thanksgiving when I will no doubt fill it up with leftovers. However, on the list of fun household chores, cleaning out my refrigerator doesn't make the top five, or the top ten or the top 15 for that matter.  If you're wondering what I would consider fun household chores, those are things like baking brownies (I need to do this for a lunch on Sunday) and watching Roomba vaccuming my livingroom (if I had a Roomba).  That's it, those are the only fun  chores I can think of.  Oh, and watering my house plant.  That's not too bad.

I love my library!

Libraries have always been good for getting books to read but in the last week I've put the library to uses I never would have imagined a few years ago, let alone in my childhood.  This week I have renewed some materials on line, checked out a movie and a series of TV shows.  I have not yet tried the 3-D printer but I could for a dollar an hour.  This evening I had a little time between meetings at our church and walked across the street to the library to buy a sandwich and a cappucino.  Good stuff to eat and good stuff to read. What more could I want?  Last week I had to pay a 50 cent fine for an item I neglected to renew on line (even with their emailed reminders). I remarked to the librarian (yes they still have those, and no, they don't serve the coffee) that it's really embarrassing to have a fine when it's so easy to renew books.  She replied that it's much more embarrassing when you actually work there.  Nice to know they're human too.

mathematical joy

It's fun to see the light come on.  On Monday afternoons I tutor a 4th grade boy in math and reading.  I tutored the same student last year and I remember that at the beginning of that year he couldn't multiply or divide and was very shaky on math procedures in general.  We worked quite a bit on math but I really credit his teachers, last year and this, for unlocking his math potential.  Today, when we sat down to work he started explaining to me how to calculate area and perimeter.  We worked on several problems and he noticed that the area number was always larger than the perimeter number.  He challenged me to find a rectangle with measurements that resulted in a perimiter number that was larger than the area.  We found one and he was very pleased.  Next week I'll show him an example where the two numbers are the same.  Obviously, I like number games but it's so exciting to see him really enjoying math.  

Remembering a veteran I never knew.

Today in not only Veterans Day but also the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I "the war to end all wars."  Well. it was a hopeful thought.  My father-in-law fought in France during WWI and from some history I've read, it was a very nasty war.  I never met my father-in-law.  He died in his 50's, before my husband and I met, from heart and lung problems which began years before when he inhaled mustard gas during the battles.  His name was Clarence but everyone called him 'Brick' because of his red hair.  I asked once why Brick and not Red, turns out one of his brothers was called Red.  I guess my daughter and granddaughter come by their red hair honestly.  I think my husband's parents were married in, or close to, 1920.  I know they had been married for 15 years before my husband was born and that was in 1935.  He was a child of the depression and I guess my mother-in-law was feeling that depression.  She told me once that when she was about 8 months along she had the thought that "this child will probably grow up to be a criminal, like Dillenger."  Happily he didn't. So today I'm saying thanks to Clarence for serving in WWI, and, more importantly, getting this whole family started.

Veterans Day Eve

Tomorrow is Veterans Day and I will honor the veterans in my family then but today is Veterans Day Eve, also known as my daughter's birthday.  She is 45 today which doesn't seem possible but I've done the math and it's right.  Or, as my grandson pointed out, it's  the 35th anniversary of her first double digit birthday.  When she was young it was very convenient that her birthday was the day before Veterans Day because the kids always got that day off from school.  Since they didn't have school, her girlfriends could come to a birthday sleep over. Now there's a missnamed event if there ever was one.  But they were fun times and happy birthday memories.  Now she shares her birth date with her brother and sister-in-law whose anniversary is the same date. which makes for more fun family celebrations.  Isn't it grand how life rolls on?

Karaoke anyone?

This evening I attended a different kind of musical program presented by Heartland Sings, formerly known as the Heartland Chamber Chorale.  Their music is always beautiful but tonight was just for fun.  The music was still beautiful but instead of an evening of operatic or classical music it was an evening of music by The Carpenters.  People were invited to register ahead if they wanted to perform karaoke style with the professional quartet, the lyrics were projected on the big screen and everyone was invited to sing along.  I did not perform on stage.  My best contribution to music is, and always has been, audience member.  One of the karaoke singers would have done better to also stay in the audience but the others were all quite good.  "We've Only Just Begun",  "Rainy Days and Mondays" and "Close to You" were among my favorites.  In February they will be doing a similar program of Beatles songs.  I think I would like to see that also.

missions accomplished

Today I got two projects finished that had been on my mind for some time.  Things did not go as smoothly as I had anticipated but I have successfully applied to renew my passport and my driver's license.  However, I should have done a little more research.  I did go on line to renew my driver's license and was informed that I couldn't renew on line if I had done so last time.  So off I went to the BMV where I was informed that if I wanted a 'secure card' I needed my birth certificate, marriage license, passport and social security card. Since I also planned to renew my passport I had all of those items with me except my social security card.  I never carry it with me.  Turns out I could get a regular license without all that stuff ($17.50 and my old license, thank you very much).  I did pass the vision test although it was a close thing and I didn't break the camera so all is well.  As for the passport, a very helpful clerk at the downtown post office took me through the process.  As I was reading the sign posted on the pasport office door saying that they were open by appointment only, the clerk saw me, asked if I was renewing or needed a new passport?  When I told her it was a renewal, she opened the office, gave me the form to fill out, took my picture (another take off your glasses and don't smile masterpiece) and gave me a form to fill out. I showed her my driver's license and old passport (which got sent off with the application) and wrote a check. ($140.00 for passport book and card).  I did have to go back home to get my checkbook because you can't charge the cost of a passport. Who knew?  Anyway, I've done it and within four weeks I should have two brand new documents proving who I am.  I've been told that they will return my old booklet with the new pasport and I hope that's true.  I know I can't use it any more but there are ten years worth of memorable stamps on those pages.  

A little known fact

At least I didn't know this.  November is "Peanut Butter Lovers' Month."  I wasn't aware that peanut butter has a month of its own but it certainly deserves one.  After all it is one of the basic food groups, right up there with chocolate.  I also noticed on my calendar that tomorrow is "Cappuccino Day."  Perhaps I shall indulge in a chocolate cappuccino and a peanut butter sandwich.  After all it is important to celebrated these noteworthy days.  Notice how I just slipped chocolate in there even though it doesn't have a special day in November?  Some things deserver to be celebrated on a daily basis.  Besides, Thanksgiving will be here in two weeks and I need to sharpen my eating skills.

Election night

Well it's over.  The big midterm election is over.  Some won, some lost and, I suspect, life will go on.  Some of my choices won, some didn't. I am not devistated.  In fact I am actually quite excited.  Do you realize that we will not have to listen to a political commercial until the 2020 presidential campaign?  Those ads probably won't start until mid 2019.  So I figure we have at least six blissful months before the barage begins again.  There really ought to be a law that candidates can't start advertising until two months before the election.  Sadly, I'm guessing that falls into the "don't hold your breath" catagory.  Ah, well.  On a happier note, I finally tried out the steak at Ruth's Crist Steak House this evening.  A friend discovered that if you eat at the bar during happy hour (4-6 pm) some meals are half price.  I had a lovely little steak with crab, asparagus and Bernaise sauce for $13.  Of course by the time I added a glass of wine, coffee and a shared salad it wasn't cheap, but still quite comparable to other steak places in town, and yes, the meat was very good.  I was actually quite mellow by the time I got home to listen to election results.

a mini identity crisis

On Saturday I sat through a meeting in which our motivational speaker referred to Fort Wayne as Fort Worth (once even Fort Worth, Indiana) four times in his speech.  Finally someone spoke up from the audience and corrected him.  This evening I was at a church committee meeting so did not see the president's speech.  I did, however, see some highlights on the late news in which President Trump repeatedly referred to being in Indiana but never once referred to Fort Wayne. Again, this was on the parts I saw.  I do realize that his main purpose in being here was to support the Republican candidate for senator, which involves a state wide vote but still I would have like a mention of Fort Wayne,  I like Fort Wayne.  I appreciate living here.  I would just like to see our good city receive a little more national attention.  Don't forget to vote tomorrow.  Unless, of course, you don't support my candidates.  Then you can skip it.

I guess I'll pass

I heard an interesting commercial on TV the other day. No, not a political ad, I've been muting those.  This one was an ad for cosmetic botox.  All the warnings of possible side effects are enough to assure me that I never want to do this but one statement really made me womder.  The announcer said that this treatment would make the lines in my face look better.  What does that mean?  How does a line look better?  Is it deeper, more clearly defined, easier to see?  If I was considering this process I would want to be assured that my lines would become invisible, look gone rather than better.  Honestly, the thought of a face lift (better yet a full body lift) has flitted thorugh my mind from time to time - usually when I'm looking in the mirror - but when I consider the cost (and possible pain) vs. the long term results, I realize that I would much rather spend my kids' inheritance on travel.  Much more fun.

Eldorado

This morning when I looked outside about sunrise I thought I was looking at the fabled city of gold.  I've commented before about how many trees there are in Fort Wayne.  In the suummer the view I see from my balcony is a sea of green, with an occasional building here and there.  This morning, with the early sun shining on all the trees that have changed color it was a sea of gold with a occasional shot of hot red as an accent.  God is such a great artist. 

I've got to go set my clocks back now.  Not sure if I'll be up in time for sunrise tomorrow. Enjoy your extra hour everybody.

Just a little dizzy.

I don't think the sidewalk was actually moving up and down but it felt that way for a little bit.  Earlier this evening a friend and I went to a gallery reception at Artlink (very interesting) and then decided to get supper at Main Street.  As usual the food was very good, and, as usual. I was tempted to try one of their interesting martinis. It was very, very good, but also more potent than I remember them being.  Perhaps it had something to do with starting to drink it on an empty stomach.  Whatever, by the time I finished my meal and the drink (I wasn't going to leave any of that chocolate, caramel concoction in the glass) I was actually feeling a little woozy.  Happily, I have nowhere to go but bed right now.  I'm sure it will be all better in the morning.  It better be. I'm heading for a Presbytery meeting at church.

Here we go,

Happy November everyone. Now that Halloween is just a sweet memory, it's time to get serious about Thanksgiving and Christmas. Someone asked me earlier today if I had started my Christmas shopping yet.  The short answer is "No."  I'm waiting for my BFF to tell me she has finished her shopping.  That is my yearly signal to start.  Unfortunately, it was my dental hygienist who asked the question and she had her fingers in my mouth as she asked it so my answer was less than clear.  I am happy to report, however, that the hosting duties have been assigned.  My daughter-in-law's mother will be hosting Thanksgiving and my daughter will be hosting Christmas dinner.  I'm so excited.  I'm perfectly happy to cook and carry in and delighted that I won't be faced with all the dishes and other clean up to be dealt with after the event.  Ho, ho, ho. Things are looking good.

Happy Halloween!!

In honor of this spooky autumn day I an going to share some fun facts that I found today about pumpkins.  
1. The only continent where pumpkins can't grow is Antarctica. No surprise there.
2.  Pumpkin flowers are edible. I think I'll add some to my next pumpkin pie.  
3. Pumpkins were once recommended for removing freckles and curing snake bites. No instructions on how to use the pumpkin were included with this statement. Do you rub pumpkin goo on a snake bite or throw a pumpkin at the snake?  While that last option might not cure the snake bite, it would feel empowering to smash that snake.
4. Eighty percent of the pumpkin supply in the U.S. is available in October?  Could that possibly have something to do with the natural growing cycle of pumpkins?
5.  The largest pumpkin ever grown weighed 1,140 pounds.  No info about how many pies were made from that pumpkin.  
And speaking of pies, my brother is pastor of a church that has a unique fund raiser each year.  They make and sell home-made, or actually church kitchen made, pie crusts. They are really good.  I've ordered 4 and at least 2 of them will be used for pumpkin pie.
And here's something I learned last year while mixing up pumpkin pie filling.  I had enough pie filling left over after baking 2 pies for another one so I froze the remaining filling in a zip loc bag.  Two months later I needed a pie so I thawed and baked the filling I had frozen in one of the church pie crusts (talk about lazy baking) and it tasted wonderful. Happy pumpkins, happy fall everyone.

It's Decision time.

I watched the televised debate this evening between Mike Braun, Joe Donnelly and Lucy Brenton, all running for US Senate.  I started watching the debate pretty sure who I will vote for but the more I listened, the more conflicted I became.  I hadn't given much thought to the Libertarian candidate but I must admit I was impressed with much of what she had to say.  It's not just because she's a woman or because we share the same first name (although I did note those things).  I would like to vote for her just to make a staements but I know I need to vote for the candidate I had already decided on.  It looks like it will be a tight race.  Interestingly, this was one of the better, more civil debates I have seen during this campaign, as opposed to the never ending commercials which spend all their time slamming the opponents.  I think the tone of the debate was set when all three candidates agreed to actually answer the questions asked without digressing.  They all did a pretty good job of it.  

Sheep and giraffe and princesses, oh my!

This evening First Pres held it's second annual children's Halloween festival.  Last year I participated by helping with set-up and running one of the games.  The game I oversaw involved pingpong balls being tossed into little red buckets.  It also involved lots of balls missing the buckets and bouncing all over the floor. After chasing bouncing balls for a little while last year I decided to change the rules of the game.  In addition to getting one piece of candy for trying and one for each ball they got in a bucket, they got an additional piece for picking up the balls.  This year our youth pastor was refering to it as the "Luci" and encouraging everyone to bribe the littles to pick up.  He also made sure each of us (we were a lot of senior citizen volunteers) had a chair so we weren't standing for the whole two hours.  All in all it was an easy evening of watching costumed children have a good time and take home lots of candy.  I enjoyed seeing the costumes. There were several princesses, a tiny incredible hulk, a little wooly sheep, a giraffe and a wonder woman among others.  All great fun and everything a children's Halloween party should be.  The only thing missing was bobbing for apples and that would have just made for a lot of soggy costumes.

They're getting closer

I mentioned a week or so ago that there is a crane on a barge in the river near the Spy Run  bridge over the St. Mary's River.  They have been busily clearing inderbrush along the banks of the river and now the stretch that I can see is quite bare along the stretch where Hall's Gas House and the Deck are located. except for a few large trees that they left standing.  I think this is all part of the ongoing effort to reinforce the banks and reduce runoff but it isn't very pretty.  Now I'm wondering (1) how will they get their equpment to my side of the bridge and (2) how much are they going to clear away?  There are actually two old half-dead cottonwoods that I expect will fall in the river sometime soon.  They can go, but there is also a lot of very pretty shrub and tree growth along both banks.  Honestly, I wish they would just leave my view of the riverbank alone. Ah well, time will tell. At least it's an interesting (if slow moving) show that I can tune into from time to time.

music at the Embassy

I attended a performance of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic at the Embassy Theater this evening.  It's hard to beat the combination of beautiful music and a beautiful setting.  The program will be broadcast on WBNI 94.1 FM on Thursday, November 8 at 7:00pm.  To be honest, I probably won't listen to it again.  I really enjoy going to concerts but I find that I enjoy the visuals as much as the music. I like to see the orchestra members perform.  This evening the piano was placed so that I could see the pianist play and that was amazing.  The special guest pianist was a young lady named Lise de la Salle.  She's from France in case the name didn't give you a clue. Not only was she an outstanding pianist she was wearing "the sexiest outfit I've ever seen at the Philharmonic" to quote the lady sitting next to me.  I will admit it isn't common to see a concert pianist wearing a bare mid-drift outfit. See what I mean?  You miss out on a lot if you don't see the visuals.

You can thank me later.

I like my apartment very much but it does have its flaws.  My least favorite feature is the electric heating system.  I do like the fact that each of the three major areas has its own heating unit so I can shut off the heat in rooms I'm not using.  What bothers me though is the fan noise especially in the livingroom unit.  It's just loud enough that, to hear TV over it, I have to turn up the TV volumn to a level I don't enjoy.  My other option, and the one I usually choose, is to turn off the heat while I'm watching TV.  I can bundle up in blankets and I really don't suffer, but sometimes I notice my nose getting cold.  We are having a rather chilly October right now and that got me thinking about the cold months ahead.  So today I did something about the situation.  I bought a small radiant heat space heater. I am happy to report that it has a nice even heat and a very quiet fan.  As I was bringing the heater into the building I met one of my favorite maintenance men here.  He saw what I was carrying and assured me it was a very good idea.  In fact he said many tenants use small space heaters and he predicts that it will save me money on my electric bill.  That sounds like a positive plus.  What I anticipate will really happen is that, now that I'm prepared for really cold weather, we will have a very mild winter.  You can tahnk me in April.

Chicken anyone?

Once a month, on the 4th Thursday, some other church ladies and I get together at First Pres to prepare a meal and feed people who live and/or work around the church.  Some live in adjusted rent apartments across the street while others are evidently homeless and a few work in the area.  They start coming in about 9:30am and we serve lunch at 11:30.  We serve good nutritious food which is generally well received but, once a year, in October we serve Kentucky Fried Chicken.  I'm not sure how the word spreads but we always have many more people eating when we serve chicken.  Today it was close to 100 people.  Many people had seconds, sone had third helpings and nothing was wasted.  The mashed potatoes rran out first, then the biscuits, then the gravy and coleslaw and finally the chicken.  Of course the cookies set out for dessert went in a flash.  One of the unexpectedly popular items was boxes.  KFC delivers their large orders in aluminum foil containers and these are brought in in very nice, sturdy boxes, about 18" x 24' x 12" deep, with attached lids,  Our order was contained in eight boxes and every box was claimed by the end of the morning. People also carried away the aluinum pans for recycling.  It was a bit like locusts cleaning out the place.  Then we played BINGO. I was the caller.  People get very excited about winning $1 prizes.  Much better odds than the mega-million lottery and it doesn't cost anything to play  All in all a very good day.

A day to plan for

Tomorrow is "World Pasta Day."  That's 'world' not 'whirled' as opposed to 'whirled peas' which everyone seems to find very desirable.  I though you should know now so you can start that spaghetti sauce simmering.  My mother made the best spaghetti sauce (mine is pretty close) and I remember it simmering all afternoon.  Yumm!!
In the meantime here's one more picture from the southwest to enjoy:

Hah! I bet you thought it was going to be another picture of rocks. It was snowing in Bryce Canyon.  I thought these trees were beautiful.

Now you see it, now you don't.

It's like magic, or my computer is messing with my mind, or both.  Here is one more picture from my recent trip to the great southwest, this one from the upper reaches of Zion National Park.  Yesterday I couldn't find these pictures at all, and now here they are.  So I'm going to test my luck and try one more.  

This is a view of the grand canyon, but you probably guessed that.  Wow, now I'm feeling so lucky that I wish I had bought a lotter ticket.  Ah well, there's always next week.

the Luci and Ricky show

A group of ex-teachers and other senior types gather at our church each Monday afternoon during the school year to do one-on-one tutoring with students from a local elementary school.  Last year I was paired with a third grader named Ricky and at the end of the year, much to my pleasure, he asked me if I could be his tutor again this year.  I was pleased to agree to this arrangement even though he did his best to make me feel ancient last year.  When I mentioned at our first meeting that it was fun that we were paired together like  "Lucy and Ricky"  he looked at me blankly.  He had never heard of the old "I Love Lucy" show.  Later in the year he gently informed me that I looked about 100 years old.  Despite these blows to my ego, I was very happy to see Ricky this afternoon.  We had a good time and I learned something that had not come out last year.  He was filling out a form with information about himself and answered the question about what he wants to be when he grows up by saying he wants to own a restaurant.  I think this is an interesting choice for a 9 year old. 

Trying again - 

Ok, not sure why this worked this time.  I've been pushing lots of buttons and here is one picture.  This is a view from the upper levels of Zion National Park.  I will try to share more tomorrow.

I have been trying to download pictures from my recent trip.  This has always worked before, same camera, same connector, but when I try to copy a picture to this post it transforms into a series of meaningless letters and numbers and other symbols (at least meaningless to me). I shall continue to try to figure out what weirdness is going on here.  Stay tuned. Perhaps tomorrow I will have pictures.  It really was quite a beautiful trip.

It was a lovely day

Today is my daughter and son-in-law's 10th anniversary and to celebrate they renewed their wedding vows.  This is a second marriage for each of them and it appears to be working well.  Not only is my son-in-law a great husband he is also a wonderful father to my grandchildren.  During the ceremony today, he made promises to my grandchildren as well as to my daughter.  I didn't cry but I must admit I got a little teary as my now 6ft 2inch tall 17 year old grandson escorted his mother down the aisle while my almost 16 year old model thin granddaughter served as maid of honor.  Their first wedding, while very nice, was much less formal and occured at the courthouse, so I think it felt good to them to have this ceremony in the chapel at our church.  
After the ceremony we all (there were 30 in the party) went to Club Soda for a reception dinner, yummm!! The appetizers included bacon-wrapped scallops, the steak I had was very good (I brought enough home for another meal) and the cake choices were raspberry or carrot.  I had carrot and it was excellent. We finished everything off with a champagne toast.  It was a lovely day.

Binge watching

I've been curious about the phenomenon called "binge watching." I understand the concept.  People can access a whole multi-year series of episodes on Netflix or some other site of their particular favorite show. As I say, I understand the concept but I really couldn't imagine sitting for hours watchng TV.  That is, until I recently checked out two years of "Doc Martin" episodes from our wonderful local library. If it weren't for absolutely needing sleep I probably would be watching all night.  So now I will leave you wondering, with two episodes left, will she or won't she go to bed?

Christmas Catalogs

I think the lady who lived in this apartment before me did all her shopping through catalogs.  I know on line buying is the way to go these days but I think for her it was catalogs. Over the three years I've lived here I've received quite an amazing variety. This week alone I've received six, all with Christmas themes and that got me thinking about the Christmas catalogs that used to come in the mail when I was a child.  Now those were catalogs!  Nice and thick and full of marvelous things to long for.  They were even called wish books. My cousin and my brothers and I spent hours pouring over those colorful, glossy pages.  Sears, Montgomery Ward and J.C. Penneys had everything you could wish for.  Sadly the catalogs that come to me these days have lots of Christmas decorating ideas and clothes for the season but none of the really fun stuff. Where are the cap guns in Roy Rogers holsters, the doll houses complete with a tiny family, the puzzles and games that came in boxes, the baby dolls?  Last year I spent some time with a 10-year-old great nephew slowly paging through a Lego catalog and enjoying an earnest discussion about which kits would be the most fun to put together. It was fun to see a child enjoying a catalog.  I do expect I'll be getting a great long wish list from him sometime soon.  I guess the flip side of being a child wishing for marvelous things is to be an adult and be able to grant at least a few of those wishes. Remembering is fun but living in the now is better.

A Technology treat....

...and a technological problem.  On Sunday I bought a new purse at Kohl's.  I know, I know, the last thing in the world that I need is another pirse, but I liked the color and the size, it was on sale and it came with an interesting extra.  The extra is a small (credit card sized) chargeable battery that you can carry with you and have handy if you need to recharge your phone.  I seldom have a problem with my phone battery but this little battery might come in handy when I travel.  Unhappily, my nifty new purse also came with a technological trap.  When I started to clip off price and promo tags, I realized that the anti-theft device that was supposed to have been removed when I bought the purse was still attached. So I went back to Kohl's to get it removed. I walked into the store, setting off the alarm, walked over to the counter and explained my problem. Of course I had my receipt with me. The charming young lady at the counter said "Huh, I wonder how that happened?"  I didn't have an answer for her but, since this actually happened to me once before at Kohl's when I bought a rain jacket, I suspect it has something to do with the fact that old ladies are basically invisible.  

"Believe It or Not"

When I was a child, my brother and I used to love paging through a fat book in our parents' bookcase called "Ripley's Believe It or Not."  We would marvel at people with stramgly distorted lips and ear lobes and be awed by amazing records that had been set and animal antics that were hard to believe.
Now I am engaged in my own real life Believe It or Not situation.  The leaves are falling off the locust tree outside my window and I can finally see that the white plastic grocery bag which I first spied last winter is still hanging on a branch of the tree.  Based on my personal observation, that bag has been snagged on the locust tree since at least last February.  Nine months and it's still hanging in there.  So now I really need to see how long it can last.  My real question is, if that bag is so tough how come a sharp box corner can split the one in which I'm carrying my groceries?

Bryce Canyon

Still no pictures but one chilly memory to share about Bryce Canyon.  Bryce Canyon is famous for its hoodoos - tall skinny stacks of rock eroded by rain and wind into a forest of stone towers. It was fun to see them, even snow capped.  The day we toured Bryce it was 40 degrees, blowing and snowing. I took pictures of snow covered evergreens that reminded me of scenes I saw in Washington State last winter.  We didn't do the long hikes because the trails were slick with a nasty rain-snow mix.  Our chilly situation was easy to take though.  We could always get back on our warm bus.  The people I felt sorry for were a group of eleven or twelve traveling through the canyon on motorcycles.  I have never seen a more miserable looking group.  The weather was a surprise to all of us, but a real bummer to them.  

I'm back.

I've just returned from a week long trip "out west" to enjoy some of the natural wonders of our beautiful country.  I also had time to play a little Blackjack - fun.  We (I was with a tour group) visited four sites; the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, Valley Of Fire and Zion National Park.  I hope to have some pictures to show by tomorrow but photos never do the scenes justice.  All of the parks were beautiful but Zion was my favorite.  It was stunning with so many different rock formations and amazing landscapes.  Interestingly, during my morning devotion today I read this quote "The mighty one, God the LORD, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth." Psalm 50: 1-2. I think that the Methodist preacher / explorer who named Zion and many of the natural features in it, like Pipe Organ and Angels' Throne, must have been thinking of this Bible passage. The "perfection of beauty" really describes it.

This is not too surprising.

Another report from my trustworthy TV news reporters.  The five most stressed states in the US are New Jersey, New York, California, Georgia and Florida.  If you think about it, it's really not too surprising that people living in these states are streesed.  Think of the natural disasters just during the last year.  We've seen lots of storms and flooding along the east coast and wildly distructive fires on the west coast. I've suspected that middle America is really the best place to live and this confirms it. But just in case I'm wrong, I'm going traveling to some other states next week.  I'll check out the stress levels there and report back in a week.

I think I already knew this.

I heard the results of this study on TV this morning.  After some study, scientists have discovered that hugging is good for you, and it feels good too.  They did stress that they were talking about 'consensual hugging.'  Hugging calms you, relieves stress and generally makes both people feel good.  I'm assuming here that they studied two-people hugs as opposed to group hugs. I am blessed with a family full of good huggers so the results of this study were not very surprising.  In fact, I really doubt if it needed a study to prove that hugs are a good thing. Ask any three year old with a boo-boo or, for that matter, any adult who's feeling stressed. Hug on America!!

were you alerted?

I received an interesting text alert today.  Happily it was just a test, but now, I understand, the entire nation (or at least everyone with a cell phone, so essentially the entire nation) can be notified instantly of a national emergency.  This seems like a good idea, although if a missle was about to blow up Fort Wayne, I'm not sure I would want advanced notice. The other hazard I heard mentioned was a tsunami but I don't think that's a likely threat in Indiana.  Although it might be interesting to see a wall of water rolling down the St. Mary's River. What could I do about it? I think I might prefer to die in ignorant bliss.  I did think it was interesting that, since I had my phone on vibrate, I didn't hear the alert.  I just found it on the screen when I checked for messages after a meeting.  Since I often have my phone on vibrate I guess I don't really need to worry. I'll never know what hit me.  I don't think I have a problem with this new technology but it does seem a little "big brother"ish. 

more excitement on the river

I've mentioned the white crane that I see on the river this time of year.  She or he is still here, high-stepping along the shallow edge of the river.  Very pretty, very elegant, but today I saw a different kind of crane on the river.  I'm not actually sure if 'crane' is the correct term for this piece of equipment.  It really looked to me like a steam shovel except for having a 'claw' instead of a scoop at the end of its long jointed arm.  There it sat, when I walked out on my balcony this morning, on a large flat raft or barge (about 30 x 30 feet) with another smaller flat barge pulled up beside.  This is all part of the ongoing process of clearing a lot of dead wood and brush from along the riverbanks but it was my first sight of the process. I was in and out quite a bit today so I only actually got to see the big claw picking up logs and brush and depositing the debris in a big bin on the smaller barge once.  I was amused to notice that every time I walked out to check on its progress, it would be in a different position.  Still just west of the Spy Run bridge but back and forth on opposite sides of the river.  I finally got to see the power that moved it - a little flat bottom motor boat with upright pushing bars attached to the front. All very interesting but I'm left with two concerns. 1. What if it sinks in the river? Will it be like Mike Mulligan's steam shovel that ended up stuck in the basement of the new court house?  Only in this case, instead of becoming a furnace, would this crane become a home for fish and geese?  
My other concern is will it fit under the bridge to get to my side? Or will they need to take it up, out of the river, over the road and down the bank across from my apartment.  I hope I'm around to see that process. Have I mentioned before that I'm easily entertained?  

Another thing I will never do

I've mentioned before that there are some things that I will never do.  Sky diving and bungee jumping are high on my list.  But here's a new one:  Even if I win a humungous amount in a lottery (which isn't too likely because I seldom play the lottery) I will never spend $17,000,000.00 on a pair of shoes.  I don't care if they are gold plated and diamond studded (both true, as seen on TV) the heels were so high  - 6 inches? - that if I tried to walk in them I would fall off and break some part of me. If anyone would like to gift me with $17 million to test my resolve, I will accept your challenge.

hidden treasures

I heard a quick news blurb today about a couple who bought a crock pot at a Salvation Army store and found a treasure inside. I don't have any more details but it did remind me of the time my husband and I found a 'treasure' hidden in a crawl space accessed through the basement of an old house we bought on Lexington Avenue.  Our treasure was a bushel basket full of canning supplies and other glassware, covered by a piece of newspaper (the color comics to be specific) from 1935.  1935 happened to be the year my husband was born so he was quite excited by the newspaper.  I enjoyed the blue Ball jars with the wire wrap to hold the lids on.  Since I graduated from Ball State University I have a fondness for these early relics of our founding fathers and mothers.  The Ball brothers and sisters gave generously to the college over the years.  Since our discovery, I have given away most of the jars but I still have four.  I keep my tea bags in them and they are a sweet reminder of a time when we were young, energetic homeowners.  

calendar curiosities

Things I learned from my calendars today:
Today is "National Biscotti Day."  Who knew that biscotto has its own day?  I did not run out and buy biscotti.
September is "National Courtesy Month."  You have one more day to commmit some courtious acts.  I guess you don't need to worry about it the rest of the year,
2.97 million is the highest recorded mileage for a car.  It is a 1966 Volvo P1800-5 owned by retired science teacher Irv Gordon of Long Island, NY.  I'm not sure if this proves that this Volvo is a really good car or that teachers are rediculously underpaid. In case you're curious (I was) if this number is accurate, Irv had to drive 57,115 miles a year or 156 miles a day.  That is a lot of commuting.

business 101

I volunteered to help at Junior Acheivement Biz Town today.  Well, I'm not sure if it's really considered volunteering when a friend begs and pleads with you until you say yes.  Whatever, I was there.  I also helped with Biz Town last year.  I remember walking away then muttering "never again" but memories fade after a year,  It wasn't a bad experience today, just exhausting. 144 fifth and fourth graders milling around, some with purpose, some aimlessly, create a lot of noise and confusion without even trying. I did think it was interesting that much more of the process was done with computers and tablets than last year, and, as part of the shopping experience, the students were given debit cards to use for most of their shopping.  I was helping in the bank and was impressed especially with my tellers who quickly learned to enter account numbers and give citizens their spending money.  One teller was having so much fun that she told me she wants to be a teller when she grows up.  And that, I think, is the positive magic of Biz Town. Student citizens go away with some understanding of commerce, finance and possible future careers. I guess that makes it all worth it.

maybe I spoke too soon...

Yesterday I complained about political ads that spend all their money and air time panning their opponents, but today I actually heard a positive political commercial. I know that sounds like an oxymoron but it's true.  Of course, it was presented by a local hopeful, running for a state legislature position, and probably running on a tight budget so I may not hear it more that once or twice more before the election.  Too bad, it was quite refreshing.

early voting

I was talking with some friends earlier about the election coming up in November and the possibility of early voting.  I raised the question - if I vote early will all the political commercials disappear from my TV?  I am so tired of negative commercials.  Just once I would like to hear a one minute blurb from a hopeful politician telling me what he or she actually believes and wants to accomplish without bad mouthing the opponent. Sometimes I think that many of these negative ads will backfire. People hear a name mentioned over and over and over again without really listening to what's being said, go to the polls, look at the ballot, and think "Oh yeah, I've heard of him." and push the button. I really hope I'm wrong about that.  I'll let you know after the election if my fears were justified.

Seat belts on school busses?

Honestly, I don't understand why this is even still being debated. 42 states don't require seat belts on school buses, including Indiana.  One of the reasons I just heard mentioned on the news is a worry about kids not being able to release the seat belts quickly in case of an emergency evacuation. Really??? The children riding school buses these days have been strapped into car seats, and if they're older, car seat belts since they were newborn infants. Today, a Fort Wayne schools bus was involved in a relatively minor accident.  Evidently the driver lost control and the bus went off the road.  It didn't roll over or anything drastic but kids on the bus were bounced around a little bit. One child described being bounced off his seat, on to the floor and bumping his head.  Not a big deal injury but it didn't have to happen at all.  I would be willing to bet that, if put to the test, children of school age could unbuckle their seat belts as fast or faster than adults.  I've heard the same argument (can't get out fast enough) used by car drivers who don't want to buckle up and yet it's the law and studies show that the odds of surviving a car crash while wearing a seat belt are far, far better than if you aren't buckled up.  I am very pleased to know that the North West Allen school system has installed seat belts in some of their buses. At least it's a start.  Personally, if I was a school bus driver (note here: I would never turn my back on a bus full of kids and drive them anywhere.) I would much prefer to have all those little darlings buckled into their seats, instead of running around the bus. Just a thought.

Maybe she was right.

Yesterday I wrote, somewhat sceptically, about a newscaster who claimed that cows kill more people than sharks.  However, a news report this evening may support her claim.  The video showed a cow trying to climb into a farmer's truck.  It certainly looked like she (the cow) had mayhem on her mind.  Mind you, I have no idea how many cows may have killed people while driving a truck. It turns out she felt that her new calf was being threatened.  The farmer had taken it to clamp an ID tag in its ear.  Who knew that cows are "helicopter moms"?

As heard on TV

If you hear it on TV it must be true, right?  On the morning news this morning two reporters-in-training were presenting information about a fall festival being put on at a local farm.  One young reporter said that she would not be going out to the farm because in her words "I'm afraid of cows, they kill more people than sharks."  This may or may not be true.  I have not heard any news reports recently about deadly cow attacks, but the comment did remind me of one of my long ago boss's favorite comments "50% of all statistics are made up on the spot."  I'm pretty sure it was true in his case..  

lighten up..

On Sunday mornings I attend an adult Sunday school class that features materials made available on line. It's called the Wired Word.  Each week one of us takes a turn leading the discussion and tomorrow is my turn.  The topic tomorrow deals with the flooding that has been happening in the Carolinas this past week and making the decision to stay and rebuild or move away.  One of the questions included with the study material asks "Does God ever use disasters to send us a message?"
Personally, I don't think God works that way, and I know that having your home destroyed by a flood is no laughing matter but the question did remind me of my favorite flood related joke:
An old man, having decided not to evacuate, found himself trapped in his house as flood waters were starting to cover some roads.  His neighbor drove up in his truck and said "You'd better come with me before we can't get out of here." To which the old man replyed "No, I'm a good Christian and I trust God to save me." So the neighbor drove away.  Soon the water was rising fast and his yard was completely flooded.  A team of rescuers came by in a boat and said "Get in the boat, before it gets any deeper."  He refused again, giving the same answer he had given his neighbor.  By and by, the water had risen so high that the old man was forced to climb out on his roof to be above water.  As he sat there a helicopter flew over and someone lowered a rope ladder to him but he refused help again, still insisting that God would save him.  Eventually the old man was washed away and died in the flood.  When he stood before his maker he said "God, I have always believed in you. Why didn't you save me from the flood?" To which God replied "I sent you a truck, a boat and a helicopter.  What more did you need?"

well, I'm glad I didn't see that.

Yesterday I wrote about some curious things that I've seen along the river from my balcony.  Today, in the news, it was reported that the police pulled a dead body out of the St. Mary's River.  The report made it sound like it was right outside our building but it wasn't that close, which is just fine with me.  Interestingly, they said the body was in a tent.  So, now I'm wondering, was someone camping too close to the river's edge and got washed down stream? It's really not a very fast moving river.  Did the zipper get stuck on their sleeping bag? I know it's really not a joking matter but I'm just curious about how this happened. They said the autopsy results should be available tomorrow.  So we shall see. Stay tuned.