snow days

 Do you remember the thrill of snow days / schools closed when you were a kid?  These days the children end up with e-learning days which probably aren't nearly as exciting. But it was fun back in the day.  Tonight I had a similar, almost as exciting, experience.  You may have seen a recent weather report, predicting quite a bit of snow coming our way on Wednesday and Thursday.  I was all set to start making excuses to the director this evening about not being able to drive in bad weather, when he announced that we are moving back opening night for a week, allowing us to make up a couple of dress rehearsals that we will probably miss this week because of the snow. While I know this snow will be a big problem to a lot of people, I'm having a fun flashback and enjoying the idea of a little bit of time off.    

Going to the dogs

 Every time we have a new theater production at First Pres Theater the gallery committee has a new display of art in the gallery (which is also the lobby for the theater).  Over the years we have had lots of interesting displays of all sorts of art works - sculptures, paintings, pottery, weaving and so much more.  You get the idea.  We show mostly local artists but have featured art pieces from as far away as Japan and Palestine.  The art on display now is local and very unique.  In honor of the play "Sylvia" which is about a dog (and no, I don't play the dog) they are showing 200 dog pictures created by school children from several local schools.  These are some of the best of a larger exhibit that was first shown as part of one of the major dog shows held a couple of years ago at the coliseum.  Many, many years ago, in my first career, I was an art teacher, and it's always a pleasure for me to see what elementary school children can create.  Such imaginations!  So, if you're coming to the play, which starts next weekend, be sure to make time to admire the art.

Mozart

I went to the Philharmonic with my friend this evening.  It was a program of all Mozart with an interesting little tutorial on the influence of the ideas developed by the Manheim orchestra in the 1700s on Mozart's work and a comparison of how some Mozart pieces are played today (slowly and ponderously) compared to how they were probably written to be played with a much livelier tempo.  All in all it was a lovely evening of exciting music.  When it comes to music I am not a performer, two years of piano lessons proved that, but I am an excellent audience.  I will never play in an orchestra but I have often wondered what it would feel like to sit in the middle of the orchestra while they are playing and feel the music swirl around me.  I will probably never experience that, but stranger things have happened.  Maybe I should put it on my bucket list.  

a sweet??? memory

 There is a scene in the play I'm in rehearsal for where the man says to his dog "You love babies, you're always licking their faces." The dog stresses that she doesn't like babies at all but their mouths taste so good.  I urge you to see the play to understand this scene but the line always brings back a memory from my first baby's childhood.  My little one, about one year old at the time, was playing quietly in his playpen while I fixed supper.  I was cooking and he wasn't fussing so I wasn't paying really close attention, but when I looked over the center counter to check on him, he was on his hands and knees in the playpen with his face smooshed up against the mesh while our little dachshund stood on the outside licking my child's face over and over again.  I immediately pulled my son back to a far corner of the playpen, washed his face thoroughly, gave him a toy to distract him, and went back to the stove.   A few minutes later I looked over the counter again just in time to see my son crawling purposefully across the playpen, to the spot where the dog was patiently waiting to resume the licking.  Admittedly, this was a time in his life when my son was teething and drooling a lot.  Maybe this little experience felt good to both of them.  I'm happy to report that neither of them suffered any negative consequences.

Stomatitis?

 Have you ever heard of stomatitis?  I hadn't until my grandcat was diagnosed with it this week.  Turns out it's an inflammation of the soft tissues of the cat's mouth.  You can Google it if you want all the gruesome details.  Untreated, it can lead to all kinds of health problems but it is treatable with antibiotics and oral steroids.  If all else fails, they will pull all of the cat's teeth.  My son's vet described it as the cat being basically allergic to her own teeth.  Of course my son and daughter-in-law are administering all of the medication as directed.  Unhappily, cats don't seem to appreciate what's good for them.  Evidently there is a lot of scratching, clawing and hiding under the bed going on at my son's house these days.  And people keep telling me I should get a cat.

Picture Day

 At rehearsal tonight we were told to dress up a little (look decent was, I think, the term that was used) because at tomorrow's rehearsal they want to take a group picture for promotional purposes.  I'm not too concerned about this because, since I'm tall, I usually end up in the back row, and, with luck, a little out of focus.  Since we've done all of our rehearsals wearing masks, I think it would be good if we wore them for the picture.  Just thinking about pictures does bring back memories of elementary school picture days, and high school for that matter.  Not my favorite memories.  The first school picture event I clearly remember was in first grade.  The memory is of me getting home after school and telling my mother that we had our pictures taken.  She was upset that I hadn't told her that it was going to be picture day.  Evidently children were responsible for things like that back then.  I think she said something about wanting to curl my hair.  I'm not sure how much that would have helped.  Thus began the years long saga of memorable, but mostly unfortunate, school pictures.

it might be safe to walk on now

 I've been watching with interest the freezing over of the St. Mary's River as seen from my balcony.  I believe I've mentioned before that I am easily entertained.  Over the last couple of weeks I have watched a thin skin of ice form along the shores and slowly spread toward the middle.  For several days it looked very shaky, nothing I would want to walk or skate on.  Then it started to look much more solid as ice met in the middle.  I like to watch the reflection of lights on the river at night but suddenly there were no more moving ripples, just a solid mirror-like unmoving reflection.  Tonight there is no reflection at all, just a coating of snow softly lighted by the street lights on the bridge.  Which is just as well, because it is much too cold to stand out there looking at the river tonight.  Keep warm everyone.  

It left me wondering...

 Today is National Peanut Butter Day.  It's also Talk Like a Grizzled Old Prospector Day, but I have no idea where to go with that.  Concerning peanut butter, which is one of my favorite sandwich fillers, there was an interesting report on one of the news shows this evening.  A man evidently threw an ice cream shake on a worker in a snack shop, somewhere in the western US, because he was angry that the shake he had bought earlier and taken home had made his little son so ill that he had to be taken to the emergency room.  The child is ok.  The man had supposedly told the 'shakista' that his son was allergic to peanuts and was upset to discover peanuts in the shake he took home.  After everyone calmed down there was an informal inquest.  In her defense, the shake maker said that he had ordered a peanut butter shake.  Makes me wonder what he thinks goes into peanut butter?

best laid plans

 Yesterday I cleaned up my apartment, getting ready for a gathering of church friends this afternoon.  I also spent a good amount of time planning for an adult Sunday School class that I was supposed to lead this morning.  Then the snow came and everything got cancelled, leaving me with a planned lesson on a topic I wasn't very excited about and a refrigerator full of snacks and desserts with no one to eat them except me.  So here I was, faced with unexpected free time, a good book to read (I always have a book to read) and lots of goodies to snack on.  I'm happy to report that I have borne up well under the change of plans.  Oh yes, there was also a bottle of wine.  Cheers!

cleaning up around here

 My mother, who was a wonderful person with lots of interests, firmly believed that the time to clean house was when company was coming.  I am happy to report that, thanks to a fair number of visitors, my mother and I (following in her footsteps) managed to keep a semi-decent home.  There is a sign in our elevator advertising an apartment cleaning service (once, weekly, by-weekly or monthly) but so far I have resisted the temptation.  As you may gather by this rant, I was faced with apartment cleaning today because I have a gaggle of friends coming over tomorrow afternoon.  I did manage to finish my chores but it was a close thing.  The thing is, I have become spoiled by my Roomba.  Today, because I needed to get several things done quickly, I set the Roomba loose in the guest bedroom while I vacuumed the living room the old fashioned way.  It worked ok but I had forgotten about the dreaded cord.  I didn't fall down, quite, but I did managed to tangle the cord around my feet several times. I am resolved to plan ahead better and let the Roomba do all of the vacuuming from now on.  It's just a matter of giving it time to recharge its little battery between jobs.  It really is a marvelous little machine.  Now if I could just teach it to hop up and vacuum the furniture, and whisk a feather duster over the shelves all would be well.  Hmmm??? Sounds like a cleaning service, doesn't it?

Does this mean I'm a looser?

 My favorite catalog came in the mail today, and one of the sweatshirt messages resonated with me.  It said "Some days I amaze myself. Other days I look for my phone while I'm holding it."  There's a commercial on TV currently that shows a man searching for his glasses while they are perched on top of his head.  I'm sure it's meant to be funny, but I fail to see the humor.  Does it seem to you that it's easier to loose things these days?  It may be because we have more stuff.  That's my theory.  I mean, it must have been harder to loose stuff when you lived in a one-room log cabin with minimal possessions, don't you think?  I live in a two bedroom apartment, really not that large, but I still spend time searching for my glasses (never on top of my head) and my phone and sometimes my keys.  Being black, my phone blends right in with my black desk top, so I always look there first.  But it isn't just glasses, phones and keys and it isn't always my fault.  For instance, my recliner eats pens and pencils.  They disappear, never to be seen again.  My sofa is pretty good at that too.  I suspect a furniture conspiracy.  I need to sign off now.  My recliner is trying to swallow my phone.  

Say Cheese!

 Today is National Cheese Lovers Day.  Coincidentally, but happily, I was able to celebrate with a deliciously cheesy sea food casserole at lunch at the Oyster Bar.  I hadn't been to the Oyster Bar for a very long time but I certainly hope to get back again soon.  Today is also Penguin Awareness Day.  I'm pretty sure that I'm aware of penguins.  I mean, I think I would notice if I saw some slip sliding down the St. Mary's River, which, by the way, is beginning to look like a skating rink.  It's funny to see night time reflections on the water that just sit there, no ripples.  I do like penguins, I mean they are very cute, and I'm happy to report that there were no penguins in the sea food casserole.  

please pass the salt

 Today is National Popcorn Day, and I happily found my self in the popcorn aisle at Kroger's earlier today.  So I am celebrating with Kroger's (already in the bag) popcorn.  The flavor I selected is white cheddar and caramel - quite a tasty combination, sweet and salty.  I recommend it.  I am sitting here right now trying to convince myself that, special day or not, I really don't need to eat the whole bag in one day.  On the other hand, it would be such a shame to let it get stale.  

another icy story

 When my son was in high school he played in the jazz band with the show choir at his high school and the choir director was very strict about no absences.  It was a dark and icy evening, but he was determined to go to the scheduled rehearsal at his school, about eight miles away,  His father and I tried to convince him to stay home but he was adamant and we didn't realize how bad it really was.  He promised he would be careful and I watched from inside the house as he drove away.  As he hit the gas to accelerate out of our driveway he got on the road, spun completely around, and drove back into the driveway.  Parked his car and came inside.  He calmly announced that he had changed his mind and decided to stay home.  We accepted that without much comment except to say that we were glad he had changed his mind.  I don't think he ever knew that I had watched the whole event.  

ice skating

 It was an excellent day not to go anywhere.  Since it was MLK Day, I didn't need to drive to the volunteer tutoring I do on Mondays, and for Covid reasons we had decided on a Zoom rehearsal, so I didn't have any reason to brave the ice.  The traffic I can see from my balcony was pretty much crawling all day.  They were reporting on the news about how many slide offs and crashes there were today.  Every one of those drivers has my sincere sympathy.  It is a sick feeling when your car starts heading off in the wrong direction, and I know all about turning into the skid, but sometimes that car just keeps on sliding.  Once, many years ago, when I still had to get up and drive to work each day, I was driving south on Clinton when conditions were icy.  I was going slowly and cautiously but when I tapped the brake for a red light, I felt my car start to slide.  Before I could do anything, I had done a 360 and found myself facing back the way I had just come.  Amazingly, there was no traffic in either direction.  I took it as a sign, and carefully drove back home.  Sometimes my guardian angel has to work overtime.

mask envy?

 Or maybe mask confusion? My regular readers know that I am a fan of mask wearing. For the obvious reason - they cover a lot of wrinkles - but also because, in church I can sing out while hoping no one can hear me.  After social hour I can cover up and not offend anyone with coffee breath.  I have quite a fine collection of masks starting with one I made from a sock way back when this pandemic first started, some crafted by my sister-in-law, some paper surgical ones, and some very cute ones from Vera Bradley.  But none of them are the new suggested best kind, the N95 (made in the USA) kind.  I noticed at church this morning that several people were wearing the new masks, so I suppose I should too.  But now the question is should I get the kind with two straps that go around my head or the kind that loop over my ears?  The straps that go around my head don't make my ears stick out as much.  You know what I'm really hoping, and my main motivation for buying the new style masks, is that, as soon as I buy them, the pandemic will be over.  I know, ridiculous right?  But hey, it's certainly working for my friend who bought the new snow blower last year.  Speaking of which, I saw a truck with a snow plow on its front driving down the road Saturday looking hopeful. It was just sad.  

This made me chuckle.

So far I haven't been overly impressed with my page-a-day trivia calendar.  Too many questions about movie and TV personalities whom I've never heard of, and, frankly, don't care about.  But I enjoyed today's entry.  "What is a group of hippopotamuses called?" You might guess a herd or a gaggle or a band, but no, the answer is a bloat, as in 'a bloat of hippopotamuses bathed in the river.' I could spin off into a paragraph about feeling bloated or feeling hippoish but I fear that would fall into the category of too much information.  

Don't try this at home.

 Today is National Dress Up Your Pet Day.  I don't recommend it.  I will admit that I have seen several dogs in the elevators here (especially tiny short-haired ones) sporting warm looking sweaters in the winter.  I can only assume these dogs are smart enough to appreciate an extra layer of warmth.  Or they are smart enough to figure out that no one will take them outside unless they cooperate.  I commented to one dog owner, on a snowy day two years ago, that her little plaid clad dog should also have boots.  Her heartfelt response was "Oh MG, no! Then I would never get him to come inside."  So, while some dogs may be willing to cooperate, cats are not.  I learned that lesson when I was about five years old.  As for dressing up other pets, the only ones I can think of who might cooperate are monkeys, maybe.  I have never had, or wanted, a monkey for a pet, so I really don't know.  Parrots? No.  Hamsters? No. Goldfish?  Maybe a mermaid outfit but I don't think so.  

Awe......

 Today is National Rubber Ducky Day and if that doesn't bring a smile to your face I don't know what ever would.  If your adult children are middle age, like mine, I have no doubt that the memory of Sesame Street's muppet Ernie singing the Rubber Ducky song is now dancing through your mind.  In fact, it may be stuck there for the next several days.  You can thank me later.  I had another Zoom rehearsal this evening and was surprised to see, when I mentioned that it is Rubber Ducky Day, that two people had rubber duckies right there beside their computers.  It's good when I don't have to celebrate these special days alone.

Drink up!

 Today is National Hot Tea Day, and, as a matter of fact, January is National Hot Tea Month.  This all makes a great deal of sense.  I can't imagine celebrating Ice Tea Day in January but hot tea is just about the most soothing thing I can think of.  I have been a tea drinker all my life.  When I was a child, especially in the cold of winter, my brothers and I always had hot tea, with milk and sugar, with breakfast.  My mother was convinced that we shouldn't drink coffee until we were adults but tea was perfectly ok for children.  Who was I to argue?  I have mentioned my tea habit (I drink at least four cups a day) to various doctors, and without exception they have said it is good for me.  These days I drink it without sugar but it's still really good.  And, I'm proud to say I've been able to pass on the habit to my grandchildren (all nearly adults now).  When they stayed with me in their younger years I served them hot tea with milk and sugar, my mother's recipe, and they still request it when they come to visit.  One more thought; drink tea with milk (two percent or skim is fine) but not cream.  Cream is too heavy and adds a funny taste, in my opinion, and others seem to agree with me.  When I've been served tea in England, Scotland and New Zealand it has always been served with milk.  Just a fun fact.  Drink up and keep warm.  

Covid strikes again

 We learned earlier today that the stage manager of the play I'm in rehearsal for has Covid.  Not seriously ill, but we are going to have our next two rehearsals (tomorrow and Thursday) by Zoom.  I am sorry for the stage manager but not too upset about the Zoom rehearsals.  It gives me a little more time to finish memorizing my lines.  It did occur to me that maybe we could just make this a radio production.  We could all just read our lines, and I look a lot younger on the radio.

make it look good

 Today is National Clean off Your Desk Day.  I must admit this is not so much of a problem now that I'm retired as it was when I was working.  Once, long ago, when I was the relocation manager in a real estate office, I took a picture of my desk because it had become so stacked up with files and other papers that I couldn't see the surface.  I promised myself that it would never get that bad again, and I cleared it all off and filed things away.  I think I managed to keep it semi clear for a week or two.  I even read an organization guide called "File It, don't Pile It." That's a great idea if you have enough file cabinets.  But desks aren't the only things that get stacked up.  There have been times in my life when floors, tables and countertops in my house were piled with papers.  Mind you, I didn't live alone at that time.  There were several contributors to the muddle.  I admit to clearing spaces off before company came by putting everything in paper bags and putting those on top of the washer and dryer, which were in a utility room with a door I could close.  I was never so desperate as to stash things in the oven but I knew a friend who resorted to that solution.  When I was selling real estate I saw some pretty creative efforts to clean houses.  In one house, the listing agent had evidently told the sellers to clear off the kitchen counters, but I don't think the agent mentioned that they should wash the dishes.  When we toured the house (at a Realtor's open house) the kitchen counters were cleared off, but the sink was piled with so many dirty dishes, pots and pans, that the stack touched the ceiling.  It was an amazing (disgusting but amazing) engineering feat.  

soup sipping, continued....

 According to my younger brother, who is ten years younger than I am, he was taught to spoon soup away from himself, across the bowl.  Maybe I wasn't paying attention when this lesson was taught but I think, and my brother agrees with me, that this was a lesson he learned from our Polish step-mom.  My dad and she married when I was grown and living away from home, so I didn't have the advantage of her training in European etiquette.  I'm surprised she didn't say anything when she ate with us at my house, (she tended to be rather outspoken about the way things should be done) but perhaps I lucked out and never served soup when she visited.  Alas, I shall probably go through the rest of my life, spooning my soup the wrong way, but I promise you I won't slurp it.  I do have some couth. 

sipping my soup

 Once, long ago, there was a great debate, via Anne Landers or Dear Abby (not sure which), about which way round the toilet paper roll should be put on the dispenser.  To my knowledge, that debate was never satisfactorily resolved.  Of course over is correct, but recently one of my guests put a new roll on the dispenser in my guest bathroom under, not over.  But I digress.  Recently I was reminded of something I learned years ago during a visit to the college I eventually attended.  According to the charming upperclasswoman who was showing me around campus, the proper way to eat soup is to dip your spoon into the soup and move it away from you, not toward you, to fill it.  I had never heard this before, and was a little surprised, because I thought my mother, who had grown up on the east coast, knew something about etiquette.  But I gave it a try, at least while my guide was watching.  Recently I came across a little poem taught to British children to teach them about eating soup.  It was something about the little spoon ship "sailing away from the shore." I wish I had written it down.  But I served chili to some friends on New Year's Eve, and I'm pretty sure they all dipped their spoons in the soup and brought them toward them.  This evening I was watching a British comedy on PBS and the lady eating soup was sailing her spoon away from her.  So now I think maybe this is just a British thing, like not switching your fork back to your right hand, after you cut your meat.  Maybe I'll try to change my soup eating technique, or maybe I will never eat soup in public again.  I wish someone would tell me which way is correct.  

bobbles and bubbles

 Today is National Bobble Head Day.  You know those funny little statues people have in their cars with loose heads that, well, bobble around.  Some of them are kind of cute but I have never had any desire to own one.  On the other hand, tomorrow is National Bubble Bath Day.  I'm not sure, but they may have been just going in alphabetical order with special days here.  It is still fairly early in the month of January.  But, I must admit, a bubble bath sounds much more appealing to me than a bobble head.  Although, if I'm totally honest, a good hot shower sounds good too, and it's a lot easier to get out of my tub from a standing position.  I know, too much information.  Try not to think about it.  

it's finally cold enough

 You know how sometimes you're pushing your cart through the grocery store and unexpected things (often covered with chocolate) just jump into your cart?  Well, sometimes, something similar can happen in other stores. Last March, for example, I was walking through Kohl's when a beautiful winter coat reached out and grabbed me.  I had been thinking about getting a new winter coat since my 15 year old all weather rain coat is beginning to look a little tired.  This new coat, on sale because it was the end of the winter season, is a down filled Lands End dark charcoal gray, full length coat, with a fur edged hood, that fits like it was just made for me.   And it was on sale for half price.  Obviously I bought it.  How could I resist?  However, this winter I was beginning to feel like my friend who bought a new snow blower and hadn't seen any snow.  In case you don't know, a down filled coat is very, very warm.  Until today, this has been a rather mild winter.  But today, oh happy day, I had to go out this morning when the temperature was in the teens.  My new coat felt wonderful.  But, now that I've satisfied my longing to wear my wonderful new coat, we can skip the rest of winter and just head for spring.  I mean, if it doesn't snow for Christmas, do we really need more winter?

the answer

 Well, it turns out that kakorrhaphiophobia is the fear of failure.  something you might experience if you try to spell kakorrhaphiophobia.  I wonder if this word has ever been used in a Spelling Bee?  It could scar a child for life. 

But on to other things.  Today is the day I undecorated my Christmas tree.  Kind of sad but I know I'll see it all again next year. Tomorrow I will disassemble the actual tree and store everything away until next year.  A friend suggested I should just cover the whole thing with a sheet and tuck it in a corner somewhere until next year.  Another friend of mine actually does that, but she has a big house with a living room that she never uses except at Christmas time.  This apartment does have a lot of storage room, but not that much.  Besides, the only doorway here that opens wide enough to get it through fully assembled is the door to the balcony.  I'm happy to report that my balcony decorations actually survived today's wind but I don't think my Christmas tree would fare as well.  So it's back in the box tomorrow.  

consider yourself warned

 My friends know that I am a big fan of page-a-day calendars.  Most years I have two that I reference every day.  One gives me a Sudoku puzzle, and the other some other kind of puzzle that is supposed to be good for my brain.  This Christmas I got a third one that has a trivia question every day.  The first two weren't very interesting but I have decided to share today's question with you.  I have not looked ahead at the answer and would love it if you would share some guesses with me.  I will give you the answer tomorrow.  Here's the question:  "If someone has kakorrhaphiophobia, what are they afraid of?"  Interestingly, my spell checker doesn't think this is a real word, but I have checked the spelling very carefully.  My best guesses so far are a fear of happy hippos or a fear of someone coughing on you, or maybe a fear of koalas but that's really hard to imagine.  Have fun.

coincidence?

 Is it just a coincidence that January 3, two days after New Year's Day is "Festival of Sleep Day?"  It certainly seems appropriate to me.  I must admit I have slept late and napped frequently over the last couple of days and I didn't even realize I was celebrating.  It's also "National Chocolate Covered Cherry Day."  Sadly (but really happily) a guest and I ate my whole box of chocolate covered cherries back before Christmas.  So I guess I'll just have to celebrate sleep.  Good night.  

House guests

 Or in my case, apartment guests.  Two friends (since high school, so old friends) spent this weekend with me to celebrate the new year.  The whole visit involved some cleaning and cooking and a lot of running around, and I'll admit it, I heaved a sigh and relaxed into my recliner for a nice nap after they left this afternoon.  This evening I was flipping through the channels (I do have that much energy left) and happened on the Downton Abbey movie about the visit to their place of the king and queen of England.  I'm feeling now that I may have skimped a little on my guests.  I did not serve them a seven course meal, although they did seem to enjoy the chili and nachos.  I did not polish the silver nor bring out the good crystal.  You can't use what you don't have.  Nor did I serve fine port and brandy.  Same reason.  We made do with sparkling grape juice, but it was a good vintage.  All in all, we managed to ring in the new year without any disasters, which is more than I can say for these Downton Abbey folks.  Cheerio, everyone.  

2022

 Happy New Year everyone.  2022 is off to a good start for me.  You can translate that to mean I got some good bargains while out shopping with friends earlier today.  It was a good way to celebrate the new year.  Fun fact for the day, not original but supplied to me by my west coast brother, 2022 in Roman numerals is MMXXII.  All nicely balanced.  That's all for tonight.  I think I'm still recuperating from my wild revelry last night.  If sparkling grape juice and cookies with two old friends counts as wild revelry.  We did stay awake until midnight. Woo hoo!