Books

I could make quite a list of the books that I like. The last book we had in bookclub makes the top of the list of books that I LOVE.

The name in itself is so quirky that I could love it just because of that: THE GUERNSEY LITERARY and POTATO PEEL PIE SOCIETY. It is the sole volume published by Mary Ann Shaffer, with editing and finishing help from her neice Annie Barrows.

I love so many aspects of it. It's a small easily read volume with everything one wants in a good read: suspense, love, hatefullness, gallantry, values, humor, -- in short, WAHOO. Take my advice and order it immediately.

The intriguing title will become clear as you read. I've read it twice now, and will soon begin the third read. I am smitten!

Take care.

Athletic? Hardly.

Okay. Those of you who know my astonishing ability to fall have followed my adventures through the years. I developed a technique which became known as "Tuck and Roll." The most spectacular example of this was the time I fell on the up escalator at Ohare airport. I was about half way up when I lost my balance, fell, tucked and rolled and rolled and rolled.... the steps kept renewing themselves. Happily, someone eventually turned off the escalator. I suffered a cut on my head and inumerable bruises, but survived relatively unscathed.

I thought that was possibly my last and most spectacular example of my expertise in this regard.

I was wrong. Friday night I was fast asleep on my back in my cozy bed, dreaming a happy dream, when I decided to ROLL over. I hadn't realized I was so close to the edge and fell off the bed. I found that I had managed to TUCK my head securely between the mattress and the bed side table. I got quite an egg on the side of my head.

I had reversed my usual method... I had rolled first and tucked second! I do not recommend this variation and hope never to repeat it. Nope... from now on I will tuck and roll in that order.

I still have an egg on the side of my head, but it has not yet turned into a bruise. My hearing is slightly affected, as well. Yahoo.

Take care.

More

Aunt Naomi stayed with us for six weeks. We took a trip to the beach where she got terribly sunburned without being in the sun. She was on a shady porch, but somehow the sun is reflected from the salt crystals in the air. She was on gold treatments for her rheumatoid arthritis which made her especially sensitive to sun.

She slept under a mosquito net but still got many mosquito bites. No matter what difficulty she took it in stride. We had a blast. We celebrated "little" Naomi's second birthday together.

But then it was time for her to leave. We took her to the airport and I slipped her this little hairy hare to put in her purse. It is a rabbit carved out of some sort of quartz. A pun, if you wish.

Take care.

More about Aunt Naomi

She was never Miss Iowa. I don't think it would occur to her to enter a beauty pageant. She was, however, beautiful in every sense of the word.

After she arrived we spent lots of time talking. Of course! And then she settled in to sew and be helpful in every way she could be. When she discovered that one of my friend's sister was also a victim of rheumatoid arthritis and was in a sanatorium nearby she insisted we go to visit her. I think she was curious as to how it was to have rheumatoid arthritis in Brazil.

The visit was complicated by their speaking two different languages, but I translated as much as I could. Her name was Lucy and she tried to support herself by painting goose eggs, one of which is shown in the picture above. Aunt Naomi had great empathy for her.

Each time I see that goose egg, it reminds me of our friendship and our trip to see Lucy.

I am very sentimental, and love collecting things that remind me of events. The wooden cup that the egg sits on was made by my uncle Carl. He was a master of both wood working and painting walls to imitate wallpaper.

take care!

FINALLY

I am thinking about friends of the past. My best friend over the years was "Aunt Naomi". She was really my sister-in-law, but because we named our daughter Naomi after her, she became aunt naomi to make it clear.

When our family was in Brazil living in Novo Hamburgo, Rio Grande do Sul, we got a letter from her in November saying she was planning to fly to see us and would probably be arriving on January 16. As we didn't have a phone and it took forever for communication to arrive, January came and we had received no further confirmation of her plans, so on the 16th we all got in the car and drove the 45 miles to the airport. We decided we would meet any plane that she could conceivably be arriving on, and spend the rest of the time just goofing around.

Sure enough.. there she was! What a wonderful reunion. She had brought a trunk of goodies for us, but it was nowhere to be found. They informed us they would let us know when it arrived.

So we trotted back home. What a great thing for her to come so far! She suffered from rheumatoid arthritis, so abhored drafts of any kind. Somewhere I have a picture of her sewing, with the zipper at the back of her dress open, the skirt hiked up, and a big square fan blowing on her from about four feet away. 106 degrees will do that to ya.

Quite a long time went past and we were notified that the trunk had arrived so we went to procure it. By some miracle everything was intact. Oh happy day!

More on the next post. Take care.

wahoo

Spent the last few days wallowing in great tennis. The final men's match must go down as one of the greatest ever played. Federer finally pulled it out, but Roddick mounted a monumental attack on the great one!

Had great news about Elaine. She's back home, going to her granddaughter's wedding, and keeping on trucking.

Have my readers gone away? One person commented on my last blog! She did comment twice, but still. I am going to start a new series of memories of the past. So stay alert.

My ears are adjusted and are working Great. Hats off to the earguy!!!!

Take care.

odds and ends

I just finished "Careless in Red" by Elizabeth George. I love reading mystery stories that are also literary works. I especially like it when the characters grow and change through the various volumes of a series about certain characters. I think this series has been hurt by the transfer to British Television. I like to envision the characters as I have them in my brain, not as someone else has envisioned them. Bad books can make good movies. Great books rarely can.

We have had very bad news as our sister-in-law, Elaine, has suffered a stroke. Although she seems ok physically, we heard she was unable to speak. She has been such a positive light to my whole adolescent and adult life. She is truly a sister and a friend. We await further news. It is hard to be old and realize you cannot rush to the side of those you love when they are having difficulties. Not only is it difficult to do, you would just be a further burden for those you are trying to assist. So we send our prayers to God on their behalf.

Just a note: Why does "being in the dumps" have such a different meaning than "being in the dump."

Take care.

The Pits

I am down in the dumps because of what I consider uncharitable attitudes towards those with whom we disagree.

There was a craze at one time with kids to say "What Would Jesus Do?" They even had bracelets that had the initials "WWJD."

As I remember Jesus loved his enemies and those who despitefully used him. And he cautioned us to do the same. This taking of political sides with vitriolic attitudes by those who consider themselves to be Christian is absolutely astonishing to me. Read the Beatitudes.

Take care.

Pearls of Wisdom choo choo

Oh, dearie me. To think my pearls of wisdom are so widely sought!

George is slowly healing up and his sciatic pain is gone.!!!!! Now he just has to be careful not to upset the 5 inch slice up his backbone. So far so good.

I have been up and down. Naomi was here for a few days. We were going to go camping, but felt we were not up to it, so we just camped here at home. Fun. She cut my hair and took me out for lunch at Butler's Pantry in Alex. We visited the book store! and she bought me the latest Laurie R. King book. Great few days. We went to the sauna at It Figures and I decided to sign up for it. I am always so cold, it should be a good alternative to my mom's Wool Quilt.

As usual our book club was stellar. We discussed the book Middlesex, the Pulitzer Prize Winning novel by Jeffrey Eugenides. It is the story of a girl who discovers she is a hermaphrodite, and she is really a boy. A wonderful story of a wide span of history. We thought it was a bit long winded, but in general a good read.

I am having a roller coaster existence at the moment. One day up, the next day down. We'll have to see if we can even it out in the up area, and wipe out the down. Good luck.

Take care.

hi ho

I find it is difficult for me to be at the computer for any length of time without getting (being?) a pain in the neck. My outlook on life is improving, so - in order to have something to moan about _ I have to develop a new ache or pain. Tell me it isn't so!

We have book club today, so I am abandoning my nursing for the morning. George is recovering from the back surgery that removed a cyst from his L5 vertebra ( it was pressing on his sciatic nerve.) He seems to be doing quite well. In two weeks he will be able to play golf! We'll wait to see how that goes.

He has been sleeping in his recliner as it can be stretched out almost straight. It would be almost impossible for him to get out of bed. Soon. We're such a cozy couple - both asleep in our recliners. I can remember my folks doing an afternoon snooze that way, with the TV on. I would notice they were sleeping and turn the TV off... which would wake them up with protests that they were watching such and such a show, which had been on about an hour earlier. Ah, the vagaries of old age are catching up with us. It's frightening when you find yourself turning into your parents!

I'll tell you about bookclub next blog. My neck is telling me I've typed on quite long enough!

Take care.

Conflict

It's rather wimpy of me to complain about conflict when all I am talking about is doctor's appointments interfering with trips to the gym with my pals! Between George and me this week our trips to the doctor and the hospital are interfering each day.

I'm going for a rather minor check-up today and tomorrow George starts on the road to pain- free living. He's having an operation on his back to end his sciatic pain. It'll probably be a two day affair.

So it looks as though I might make the gym on Friday... Time will tell.

For those of you who like to ponder the imponderables I will HIGHLY RECOMMEND the DVD of "What the bleep do we know". You can order it from Netflix. If you are like me you like to ponder things and get a flash now and then that you understand. I remember watching something from Stephen Hawking. I understood about a tenth of it, but it was fascinating to both George and me. This is more understandable, but still gives a lot to ponder. I loved it.

Take care.

Yessireesir... or something

When I start to find pears looking good, you know that I am soon up to snuff. I am even floating through the art room now and again. I might even take up a brush sometime soon. Or maybe something else to smear paint around on some YUPO paper. Wahoo.

I have a sad event to share. My new zippered sweatshirt has disappeared down the rabbit hole. Every once in a while some item of ours just disappears into thin air. We sometimes find the item and we often never see it again. An immutable mystery..

George is set up for back surgery on the 4th of June. It's supposed to take away his constant sciatic pain. Prayers are appreciated.

Take care.

Wahoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dear Friends of the Blog:

I am having trouble getting used to having my old zip back!

The ear guy will be happy to hear that the new adjustments to my "ears" are great. My eye guy has been a great help with my new lenses: I now see 20/20. And my body guy will be happy to learn that the increased thyroid has made me peppy. I think he was afraid I would become hyper. I thought - me hyper! Let's give it a try.

In short, I'M BACK! (who was the evil character that used to say that?)

All of the little corrections have evidently coalesced into a peppy me. To say nothing of the dear prayers of all and sundry. Praise God.

Have a wonderful weekend. Take care.

siblings are great!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEAR FRAN!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
and many mo-o-o-o-o-re!

love, /

Blue Cloud Abbey

As we were leaving Blue Cloud Abbey in South Dakota, we prevailed upon Colleen to snap a picture of us in the entry. As you can see, we are a motley crowd.

We had an inspirational time. We could sleep, talk, walk, watch DVD's, eat... and eat... and eat.
Well, it defies description. We plan to go again next year (or sooner, if possible) but stay longer. If you would like to go there, let me know as I have the info. I guess going mid-week is smart.

I know it is hard to imagine, but I am speechless. (Typeless?)

Take care.

OK Already!

Hmmmm. I am wearing some of my stylin' new duds and preparing for a three day trip with my fabulous book club ladies. You can await my detailed report of said trip.

Right now I am enjoying the greening up of the grass. And, of course, the blue lake waters next to the reeds. My favorite color combination.

I went to the eye guy yesterday, and it seems my right eye has taken a recalcitrant turn. He prescribed new lenses for my stylin' rims which I ordered and which will soon be ready. Of course, "soon" is such a relative term. We'll wait and see how soon "soon" is. The doctor said the change will be rather severe and I might feel the floor coming up to see me. Just so I don't go down to see the floor, we'll be ok.

I've been seeing Mourning Doves (or is it Morning Doves?), sparrows, finches, downy (sp?) woodpeckers, and just a few purple grackles. The grackles seem to have moved on. Yippee! The starlings haven't come to make nuisances of themsleves. AND THE MARTINS ARE HERE!!! Now life as we know it can continue.

KL: Is your adorable birdbath holding up? A thing of beauty!

Take care. (There is a pair of gold finches now. The male is spectacularly yellow, and the female a muted chartreuse. Beautiful.)

Heavens to Betsy!

It's time to officially announce that my daughter is a genius.

She's came up for the weekend, and we drove to Alexandria. I didn't have enough energy to get out of the car. She managed to take me to lunch (We went to the drive-in at Jimmy John's and shared a #1). Then she went to fleet farm and got grass seed and trash bags for George and got gas. In addition, she found an adorable sweat shirt/jacket for me. Then we went to Herberger's. I had some coupons for one of their fantastic sales, but I wasn't up to the crowds, so she went in, coupons in hand.

She bought me two pair of JEANS and a pale blue T-shirt. I thought, is the girls nuts?

Jeans are hard to find even for yourself. But I didn't have enough energy to protest. We stopped for coffee at a drive in window at Dunn's Coffee, and then we went home.

Both pairs of jeans, the T shirt and the sweat shirt/jacket fit me PERFECTLY. What a genius. I mean she should be a professional shopper.

As you can tell, I just can't get over it. Take care.

acting

Last night I watched the movie "Apaloosa" which stars Ed Harris and has his father, Bob Harris, as the judge. I thought it was fun seeing Bob in a movie. He and Fran used to act in a Thespian organization sponsored by her Presbyterian Church in Evanston, Illinois.

The movie was beautiful and filled with great music. It also starred Renee Zellweger, Jeremy Irons, and Vego Mortenson. It was based on a book written by Robert Parker.

Some of the conversations were difficult to hear... well, not difficult to hear, but difficult to understand... even with my new paid for ears! When the movie was all over, I had this light bulb go out in my head! Maybe you can make the DVD do subtitles!!!!!!!!!! Voila. You can. From now on we're in business. Netflix, expect more rapid exchanges from us.

We have purchased two converter boxes for the dread June 12 deadline when all analog transmission will cease and digital transmission will be king. Now it's to figure out how to attach said box to our poor old machine. If I read the directions I will probably be able to do it. If not, I will call Jim. Remember our old friend, Fran?

It's a rainy day. George has worked himself to a frazzle preparing the garden, and the nice dark earth looks great. The seasons flick by!

Take care.

Stuck

OK, KL.... you have hit the nail on the head. I was stuck with nothing to say to you all. But now I feel un-stuck. You have done it with your great comment. It was also great fun to see you and KW and the others at the gym. I couldn't do much, but it's so much fun to talk and laugh.

KW is taking a fantabulous trip to Ireland. So the care and prodding of yours truly has been passed on to KL. They try to keep me up and running as much as possible.

It is a windy rather disagreeable day. Brrrr. I suppose we'd think it was mellow if it were winter time, but I want sun and warmth and green grass, thank you very much.

Oh, well... in due time. Take care, y'all.

Pot Holes

We just returned from a trip to Mpls/StP and I gotta tell ya, they have the pot holes from H E double Toothpicks. I mean, out here in the boondocks we have some potholes, but there isn't much traffic so you can dodge to one side or the other to escape. In "The Cities" You are surrounded by cars going at astronomical speeds, and there is no place to go but down into the dread hole.

We even had a hunk of black top hit our car from the car ahead of us hitting a hole. Sigh. And you know that Naomi had about $2,000. dollars damage from one. Her car was undrivable as the front end was kaput.

Soon the green grass of Spring will arrive. The snow will be gone. Golfing and gardening will begin. But will the potholes be repaired? Time will tell.

Take care. Really.