Tree or No Tree

Hello,

As a person who does not feel obligated to put up the Christmas tree very far before Christmas, I find myself in a dilemma. When I was growing up my family did not decorate for Christmas until right before Christmas. Actually I do not remember any decorations when I was small, but the Christmas tree would appear Christmas morning.

 Leroy and I will be gone from December 19 to December 26. We usually put the tree up on about the 14 or 15 of December and leave it up through the church’s official notice of the Christmas season. I am not sure that it will be worth it this time as we leave so soon after putting it up.

I am a little annoyed at my second favorite radio station for now playing only Christmas music. I listen to the radio in the car. At first when I heard the music I simply turned it off and rode home in the silence around me and the noise of my thoughts. Since then I have listened a little.

I was also astonished when I came out of the library in the dark on the Monday after Thanksgiving to see the town tree next to the library was all lit up for the new season. Many houses also had festive lights. There certainly is a strong tradition for getting the season going early, right after Thanksgiving. Even though people complain about the commercial aspect starting too soon, I wonder if they secretly enjoy it.

I do have out a Christmas note pad that I saw the other day. I am determined to use it up so I broke my own rule and put it out. Guess I do not write very many notes. I also got out some small Christmas cups because I often forget about them on the top shelf in the cupboard. I was looking for something else today and got them out instead. Sunday we will have our advent wreath on the table. For a change I checked ahead of time and we do have candles for that.

We have some fall decorations and I have seldom remembered to get them out. This year was a typical year. Decorating for seasons is not my strong suit. Maybe I should just throw in the idea of decorating as I spend little to no time thinking about it.

Paula

Miss Paula

Hello,

We wear name tags that produce our first names in large, readable letters. Often children, because we are all women, call of Miss and whatever our first names are. Hence I am Miss Paula to many children and adults. Probably many people have no idea of my last name.

Yesterday a man came in with his youngest who might be 2.5 years old. The father told me that they had gone to the public library while on vacation in Estes Park, CO. They had not been there very long when their youngest asked, “Where’s Miss Paula?”

I laughed with surprise as this kid, while in the library, hardly acknowledges my existence unlike his older brother who almost always greets me. In the meantime, he is standing over by the gum machine checking out the knob and the slot to see if there are any missed treasures.

His dad called to him, “Here is Miss Paula. Say hello,”

The boy turned around with obvious reluctance, looked at me, made a funny face, and turned back to his task. It seemed like normal behavior to me. I am still astonished that he even knew my name.

When they left, his dad said, “Wave good-by to Miss Paula.”

This kid raised his head from his father’s shoulder, grinned at me, and waved a great send off.

Life is full of mysteries, some with great gift wrapping.

Paula

Nervous

Hello,

Last night I was once again a wake for a while before morning. Is this becoming a habit? It is a habit I do not want. I saw in a sleep coach article that we should set an alarm so I do not continually try to look at the time. The alarm will take care of getting up. We have set the alarm for three days now. I have managed not to look at the clock. It takes some effort on my part to see it because of my limited distance vision so that was not too hard to get down. Leroy has learned how to reset the alarm with just one button push. This was a three day experience. But he had it down now. Tomorrow maybe I can sleep a little longer as I know for sure that the alarm will go off.

This morning I took care of book keeping our money information. I had not intended to do that, but our credit card bill was unusually large, demanding a look at it. I had forgotten that our flights at Christmas were on there as was Leroy’s Medicare bill. Since he does not collect social security that is a bill that must be paid if we want to receive the benefits. He does want those benefits. There are some pluses to aging and we consider that one of them. Just those three expenses explained the large payment due. At least our account was not compromised. Everything else was something for which I had a paper record.

I also ordered the books that I will distribute to the Little Free Libraries in the neighborhood. That took a little bit of adjusting to get the total to come out so I could spend the entire action team money. Now it is just a case of waiting for the books to come and get them ready to distribute. I am looking forward to doing that.

For the church book club in January I need to order books through ILL at my library. Now the trick will be to figure out the proper time to order and get those in people’s hands before the February meeting. Last night I just realized that I will not be home from our cruise yet. That caused a sad feeling to move through me. At least I will read the book before I go. My real joy in book clubs is the discussions and I will miss that.

My nervousness is gone because I have tackled some of these “hanging over my head” tasks.

Paula

Leroy's Sunday Off

Hello,

Leroy did not have to work at church services or do his class tonight. When he got home from church he took a big nap. Since then he has done some reading. But friends called and said they were cleaning up the garden so we both went to help. It was great to spend some time visiting. I think both of us like to visit while we are doing some not so difficult task. We took out a lot of paper that we had put down to keep the weeds at bay. Some mulch had blown off and paper threatened to become debris in the neighborhood. I was pleased to see some new cilantro about an inch high. Someone told us this morning that the weather could hold for two weeks yet. I think that would be great as more chard is also growing. The oriental greens are still good along with some of the kale. Other kale looks like it has had it. It must be colder there than by my house as my kale still looks quite fine.

After he came home Leroy cleaned off his bike wheels and some of the frame. Air also went in the tires. His brakes had been complaining mightily. It is better now. He said, “Riding the bike in the winter is dirty business.”

Then he got the idea to clean out the rain barrel which had collected quite a lot of unwanted settlers. I went up and down stairs to bring down small buckets of water. That gave me enough steps to get to 10,000 today and the rain barrel’s openings are not clogged with roof run off. It was wonderful to be outside and that is a plus.

Next Leroy cleaned off his stamp storing shelves. It is a nice day off when he feels like he has accomplished so many things around the house.

We scheduled the tours for our cruise in January. I had been concerned that we might forget, but we got it done. Maybe I can sleep better tonight. Both of us logged a lot of awake time.

Paula

This is us at the garden two years ago. We have not changed that much neither has the garden.

Cleaning

Hello,

Yesterday I noticed dust on the furniture in the spare bedroom. This morning I tackled that task. I did fairly well with everything except the bookcase that Leroy uses for his stamp collection. I know better than to touch that well organized, stacked this way and that area.

I decided that it had been a long time since I had seriously cleaned out the book cases in the hall. Two of them have pictures and other memory type things there. That is harder to get through. Someday I will have to eliminate more of the pictures. A year or two ago, I took pictures and showed them to the grandchildren. They all wanted some of them, so I gave them away as most were extras. Some were pictures my parents had and I did not even know some of the people in them. Sophia showed me once that she has her share in an album. Nice to know they have gotten a little more life or interest for them.

Leroy is participating in a secret Santa gift exchange at work. He will buy some things for this person, but they also like art books so he is going to give them a book of Russian art that we got on our trip to Russia. Leroy did some consulting at the seminary library in St. Petersburg. We did not go to the Hermitage, but went to a Russian art museum. The book has seldom left the shelf so it is moving to a new home.

Once in a while I see recipes in a magazine that look good. Apparently the intention to make them is all that I have because they mostly just sit on the shelf. Today they went into the recycle bin. It cleared off a bit of real estate. We both have books that we intend to read. For me it is being saved for that day when I do not get to the library. So far that has not happened. Those books are so patient. Perhaps I will move them as that might be a time when I cannot get to the library. Reading each day is essential to my sense of well being. Leroy’s books are mostly by the author, Louis L’Amour. Leroy’s goal is to read every one of his books. He might be over half way to that goal.

Paula

Holiday

Hello,

Leroy and I had a quiet day yesterday. We ate a little more food than usual because we ate using my Mother’s china. The plates are quite large. During our normal life we eat from small plates.  In deference to the holiday, I made mashed potatoes. This almost never happens at my house.

In the afternoon, Leroy and I went to a park close to our home. Walking for two hours through the woods and in the prairie soothed the soul and added steps to my Fitbit. We both like getting in the woods and outdoors. We would have liked to see some wildlife, but besides other humans, birds were the only visible creatures.

We also visited on the phone with each of our children’s families. That was good as well. Grateful for all these people in our lives.

Leroy is working today and tomorrow. I have, as usual, both days off. This morning when looking at the IPod I got a message about how I needed to call Apple because my device had been hacked. It seemed strange to me, but I could not get rid of that message. As instructed, I called the number; however I could hardly hear the person with a little bit of an accent. They told me they would call me which they did. I answered, but did not hear them right away so I hung up just as they answered. I decided I had better call some family to ask questions about this. Since the people on the east coast were likely to be awake, I called Sarah. They were able to tell me that it probably was a hacker and I should completely log off. After doing that the IPod seemed normal once more. They also advised me to change passwords on my emails, etc. I spent some time doing that as some programs are easier to navigate than others.

I am a bit disgusted with myself as it did not feel right in the first place, but I went ahead and called. Does that mean I am easy to scam? I know better than click on links on the computer that do not seem legit, but there is more to learn.

Paula

New Toilet

Hello,

We have a new toilet. Leroy and Clark, mostly Clark, were able to get it hooked up and functioning. It is great to have this water sparing, properly working tool in the house. The old one still worked, but it occasionally needed quite a lot of persuasion to get the entire job done. It reminds me once again how much we take for granted in our lives as I know many people in the world do not have such a possibility. It is just one more thing to be thankful for. Even the old one that was a bit cantankerous required my thankfulness, even though I did not give it, for the job that it did without out complaint for such a long time.

What would it be like to go through every room in the house and note all things that are an asset in my life? Leroy and I could do that tomorrow along with being grateful for the many wonderful people in our lives.

I am reminded of the time we were in Paris along with Miriam and Andy. It was cold and rainy. By the time we went up to the top of the Eiffel tower the rain turned to snow and we could mostly just see gray air outside the windows. Back on the ground it was rain once again. The guide book told about touring the Paris sewers, or storm sewers. So we did that. Leroy and I found it particularly interesting. I had read some things by Victor Hugo who wrote about the sewers. I learned on the tour that he had actually been down there. We took pictures with us by the balls down there, but they are not digital pictures and I would have a long time finding them. On the internet you can find pictures of the balls that were used to keep the sewer cleaned out. This invention allowed the city to stay clean and to enlarge its scope. Seems to me we should honor that inventor, but I do not know his name. Those same balls are still used today. What a simple thing, if you can think of it, to keep us healthy. If seems to me it was stated that if the sewer pipes were put end to end they would reach from Paris to Istanbul. Guess it says something about my nature that I was more impressed with the sewer museum than the Eiffel Tower. Practicality, practicality!

I am grateful that I can live in sanitary conditions.

Paula

Blooming Flowers

Just time to share some photos of the flowers in my house that give me joy.

Paula

Story Time

Hello,

Story time was my gig this week because the leader was out of town. I have certainly done this before, but it is a bit far back in the past. My co-worker had already shown me the craft and where things were stored to help manage that. She had also picked out five books. Three were for the younger sat. Most of these children were on the young side of the game. We have some colorful “donuts” that the children can sit upon. Apparently there are times that the lure of changing (some other color suddenly looks better), throwing or rolling is strong.

I decided to start off with a rule: if they were not sitting on the donut it would be taken away. That worked fairly well, but changing was embarked upon almost immediately. The second rule: only two different donuts per the story time.

I soon realized that I should get out of my chair and perhaps that would draw the attention of the children closer to me. That seemed to work fairly well. At least one and a half stories were finished. Then someone wanted to select another color donut. I pushed the donut cart into a small corner and sat in front of it declaring that everyone had to keep what they had selected. We then finished the last story and moved on to the craft table. Luckily all of the adults with the children were helpful, helpful, and helpful. The time flew by.

Some of the children got done and started to run in the larger meeting space. I decided to run with them. It was great; however they seemed to be happy running in circles in one direction. I told them I was getting dizzy and needed to change. After that our running was a little more random, but we all had a good time.

Story time is not for the faint of heart.

Paula

The Key

Hello,

Yesterday I hurried out of the house and down the road to Ely because I was the person in charge of getting the meeting room open so we could have yoga. The key I have doesn’t open that room, but it does open the library through which I have access to the meeting room. I tossed my coat, purse, keys and other unnecessary items on the desk or on the floor, rummaged to find my “yoga” pillow, the forms if there were a new person, a pen, “my” IPad, and headed into the hall. Just as the hall door was closing behind me I realized that I did not have my keys with me. The library was locked to me and everyone else who was coming. Upon opening the external door to the meeting room, I greeted the three people who had already gathered and told them I could not get in the library. Somehow I felt all cut off from what I might need. Someone asked me, “Do you need anything from there for the class?”

At my no, they assured me life would be good and we could proceed as we normally do. I have to confess that concentration and focus were difficult for me to grasp. Says something about how yoga is ingrained in my psyche; not as much as I had hoped.

My two co workers who are usually there by this time had other obligations that day. I was to do story hour and someone else was coming to “man” the desk. At ten minutes before the hour they had not yet arrived. I started to feel panicky again. I could not see the schedule in the office to learn if they were coming at nine when the library was to open or closer to story time. My phone was also in the office so I could not call anyone. Someone volunteered to go to the home just a few doors down, of a faithful tai chi member. This person called my boss who said that the helper with a key was coming at nine. Indeed it was just a few minutes later that other co-worker came and opened the door.

I went into the lobby and told her about my dilemma as she unlocked the front door. I then went back to get my things and stood by that locked door in the hall, but it did not open. After a bit I knocked on it, nothing happened. Then I called her name and again nothing happened. At that point I walked back to the lobby door and entered the library through the unlocked front door. My co-worker was not in the library. “What happened to her?” I wondered as I looked for her.

In a few minutes she again entered the library. She had gone out to the external book drop and brought in the books from that source. I almost laughed as I saw her and my confusion evaporated.

What a morning!

Paula

Prepared

Hello,

After work, Monday night when I got out to the car I saw frost on the windows. I searched unsuccessfully, in the car, for something with which to extract it. I even tried a cloth that I keep in there to use if there are rain spots on the windows. I turned the car on turned up the fan, heat, and buttons that proclaim the ability to clear front and rear windows in the cold. Soon the front windows looked a bit better. I also used the washer function consequently the wipers were able to clear it enough that I could see almost everything. The back was not as good, but I departed anyway. All went well. One good thing about driving at night I could see the head lights behind me through the haze.

As soon as I pulled into the garage I put a brush with a scraper in each car. Now we are more prepared for winter driving than we were just a week ago. However, today it was warm enough that I washed out my garden gloves outside and felt quite comfortable doing that in spite of the brisk wind blowing.

I like to take the screens off for the winter because I like looking through clear windows. I have done that so I am more ready than I was. I washed half of the windows, but have not motivated myself to finish the job. I only seem to think of it when I do not have the time to tend to that matter.

I have switched my winter and summer clothes around so I can dress more warmly if I need to. I even found everything that I thought about finding.

The flannel sheets are on the bed so it feels deliciously cozy to slip under the covers as we go to bed. The down comforter is on top to give warmth from above. What a great experience!

Paula

Glad Things

Hello,

We carried umbrellas to church, but it did not rain on us. All of the books that go back to the city library tomorrow have been returned to the book kit so I can deliver them. I got an email from the library reminding me that they are due tomorrow. Oops, I had forgotten about them since they are at church.

The tire went flat again, but in the garage. Our downstairs friends have an air pressure producer (Can’t remember what they are called.). Leroy filled the tire, took the car in, where they found a screw in the tire, repaired it, and just charged a small amount.

I made gingerbread today using butter and cow’s milk. It tasted great, but Leroy’s lactose intolerance made its presence known. Usually I use olive oil and some soy milk.

We used up all but a few tomatoes that we have been trying to ripen. Much Swiss chard from the garden as well as tomatillos was used today. I love the produce, but I am getting weary of feeling like I must use it before it goes bad. Now I feel as if I am gaining on it all.

I just read a Newberry Award book and, as expected, found it to be a great read.

Sunday school class gave me much to think about and perhaps it will change my life. Change is a big thing and not always done easily.

Leroy purchased a new brighter light to use when riding the bike. He got a mount so it can go on his helmet or on the bike. He was so excited to get it set up on his helmet that he rode his bike to church tonight. Usually he walks to his class.

Paula

Phone Birds and Straw Hair

Hello,

This morning Leroy went to a meeting at church. He, unfortunately, left his phone at home with me. About half an hour before the meeting, he left early because he had some other things to do at church, his phone started doing a little bird tweet with some musical tones to let him know that his meeting was coming up. I tried to stop the birds from singing, but I needed a password to get into his phone. Fortunately the birds gave up after three or four signals. Unfortunately they tried again every few minutes until the meeting had started. I did not feel very friendly towards them by the time it was all over. In this apartment, I could not get away from the sound. I would have called Leroy for his password, but, alas his phone was here and there is no secretary at the church on Saturday to answer the church phone.

Straw hair has nothing to do with that phone. I just want to say that I am not a swimmer so I do not always realize just what pool water does to hair. It turns mine to straw. I did wash my hair, but I did not use the shampoo and conditioner that I had brought from home. Instead, I used the stuff that was provided. I can say that I am not a fan of this practice and will not do that if I can remember the results in the future. When I washed my hair at home I was quite taken with how good it looked and felt. Who knew that just a different product could make such a difference? Not me! I usually ignore ads and just get whatever, especially if it states that it is good for curly hair. I am grateful for the research that those hair care companies have done to improve their products.

Today Leroy and I finished delivering the neighborhood newsletters. It gave me a nice walk. Then a plastic bag was floating around so I grabbed it and started to pick up trash as I waited for Leroy to get done with the newsletters. He found a bag as well and we filled both of them. If you look for trash it can be found and removed. Plastic is both a bane and a blessing. My negative feelings about it keep growing as so much of the trash is plastic and it will never disappear from the earth.

Paula

Neighborhood Newsletter

Hello,

This afternoon I delivered two and a half blocks of newsletters. I left a small segment for Leroy to do so he does not feel left out. He probably would not feel left out, but he usually does this block so I like to include him in the process. We will not deliver again until sometime in March.

It was cold today, but the sun was out and that always helps me to feel quite fine. I wore my old coat that is 17 years old. I once sent it back to the company to repair the zipper about five years ago. I suppose it is not in style, but I like it a lot. I generally wear it for “around home” or in the neighborhood purposes. It has great pockets, length, hood, and warmth. What more could I want in a coat. The zipper is sometimes a little recalcitrant, but I will not send it back again. I have looked for another coat to replace it, but do not find any just like it even from the same company. There are three newer coats in my closet that seem to fit different times and temperatures, but I would still get one more if I could find that perfect one.

Anyway it was great to be out recording steps on my tracker. I only need 500 more to get to 10,000 which I will easily do before bedtime.

I have applied for another action team grant and I am pleased to report that I received it. As soon as the money comes, more new multicultural books will be added to the little free libraries in the area close to me. It feels so good to be able to do this. I am allowed two action teams a year and this is my second.

The first was to advertise for the CROP walk in my area. It seems to have been successful as more people walked than had ever walked. I gather the donations were up a little. I did have some people tell me they had made contributions for the hurricane relief so they could not give, but many still were able to share some.

Paula

Picking Up Trash

Hello,

I know several people who frequently pick up trash, some every time they walk. I generally look at it, sigh, and wish people were not so quick to throw things down.

This morning as Leroy and I headed to church, I saw a plastic grocery type bag stuck in a bush. “No time like the present to pick up trash,” I thought as I snagged it.

I did not pick anything thing up on the way because Leroy was in a rush to get there to vote and then go to work. I was just going to vote and the trash would still be there on the way home. Before we got to church I stepped on another bag blowing past. The return street I walked on seemed not to have too much trash, but by the time I had covered four blocks I had one full bag that I was able to stuff in an almost full trash bin. If there were a receptacle on every corner would the neighborhood look different? Perhaps people would be neater if it did not take so much effort.

Another bag was in my area and I grabbed that one too. Across the street from me a person from Coe College was picking up trash, he however was not walking, but sitting on a small lawn tractor and using a grabber to snag the items. I found a cardboard box that was larger than I wanted to carry so I took it over to him and asked if I could add it to his pile. With a smile he said, “Yes!” I then asked if I could empty one of my bags in his large bin. I got to do that too. In the end I filled two more bags before I got home. I feel that mile is a little cleaner than when I started.

It is so easy to complain, even if only in my head, about the trash, but much more energetic and difficult to be a part of the solution.

Paula

Power Cords

Hello,

For Tai Chi last week, the instructor wanted to use a DVD for a segment of the class. I had found the DVD player and remotes for the player and the TV; both had been put away in a “new place”. It seemed everything was ready. While Tom finished the set up, the rest of us moved on to our opening exercises. Tom hooked the player to the TV; however the TV would not turn on. He fiddled around a while before I came over to check on what was happening as it seemed to fit under my area of responsibility. I checked all cord connections, even though I knew he was a retired engineer of some type. He assured me that he had checked all the cords as well. He wondered if the TV remote was not working. Finally I found a switch on the large TV by sliding my fingers all along the bottoms and much of the sides. It still would not turn on. I went to fetch batteries and saw that my boss was there. When informed of the problem she came in and starting checking the cord connections. We are so used to people not having this or that plugged in that it is the first line of defense and is often successful, but not today.

A cord that was hanging out of the TV seemed not to go to a power source, but it was difficult to see as the TV had been attached securely to the wall and could not be moved out. Both my boss and Tom declared it the wrong type of power cord for the TV. My boss was a bit aggressive in trying to ease it out. She was lucky that it did not come off the wall. She soon went to track down the manual that came with this item. The pamphlet indicated that the plug in spot was on the other side of the TV. I got out a small flashlight to assist in looking in tight places. There is a long heavy, hardly movable book case below this TV so we had to reach hands down when we did find a cord that could be the necessary one. Finally with much huffing and puffing as well as grunting and groaning we got that cord up, plugged into the back of the TV, it was already plugged in the wall and just been dropped there. The TV lights flashed and Tai Chi viewing could go on.

Such a time with just the lack of a cord plugged in the proper place. Sometimes in life the small things become very important. Are we all plugged into the proper source?

Paula

Blooming

Hello,

I am so blessed with blooming things in my house. The impatients that I cut before the frost are rooting in water and blooming in the office. Then the Christmas cactus, both white and pink, are putting on buds that are now large enough that I can see them as I walk in the bedroom. The pink one is especially loaded. I am looking forward to their full glory. Then in the spare bedroom, the cyclamen is blooming with one flower open and more to come. The living room violet has put up one flower stalk which now has three beautiful purple flowers open. I feel a little bad I looking at it because when I acquired this plant it was loaded with flowers that lasted quite some time. It had nothing more on it until just recently. I see no more buds anywhere. Maybe violets are not my specialty. I left the four amaryllis bulbs in the garage because I feel they need to experience a lot of cold to reach their full potential, however when I brought them in to put on the steps to the attic for more sheltered resting time, I thought two of them felt a bit of softness on the outer part of the bulbs. I told Leroy, “If I have killed them, you will have to buy me one or more for Christmas.”

He was pleased as he has a hard time thinking of things to gift me with.

Also about growing things, I went to the community garden this afternoon to pick what others had not. There was a nice amount of chard, but it is a bit stressed. One bag I gave to a neighbor and I will try to take two more to a food pantry that is close. There was also some arugula that I picked, however I am being selfish with that especially since no one else seems to be picking it.

All of the things in the cabbage family I left in their places, knowing that they can tolerate plenty of cold. The winter onions are also quite strong, but I had intended to bring some home. My backpack was full as well as a bag hanging from my hand. I had forgotten gloves so I did not want to burden myself anymore than that.

Paula

Vacation Photos

Hello,

I do not have time to write today and may not take the time tomorrow since I am working. I thought I would share some vacation pictures for those of you who might like to look at them. There are some of the kids playing soccer, climbing on the ropes and some in the water as well as a couple in the building where we stayed.

Here is the link. For those of you who do not know these people so well I am not offended if you do not look, however you might like to find the rope pictures just to see what that set up looked like a little bit.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/NgiIu6CLDvyLNjP13

Paula

First Vacation Day

Hello,

Our children were not to get to the destination before noon so we did not plan on that either. It was a beautiful day for a drive with the sun out and some trees showing their best color. It appeared to us that WI got more rain than we did as the grass looked greener.

At the resort, there were quite a large number of cars, but I found a spot by a car with a California plate. Sarah had already arrived so we called her to find out just where she was. We soon found her by the doors of the building. Would you believe that I had parked next to her rental car? I wonder what the odds were. We visited for a while before Jen arrived with her crew of kids and Miriam’s family. They all went to sign in so that we could head off to our condo. I truly like it that we could all stay in the same place which could sleep 14. We also had all of our meals there. One we ordered and the rest we cooked. Brian had planned the meals and sent food. I like the communal meals that are not in a restaurant as it was so much less bother and I believe healthier. It meant that we could spend more time as a group. The children were so excited to get into the water that it was hard to keep the excitement down as we cleaned up after eating.

I was just astonished at the number of people there since it was October I thought that would be the off season. Apparently all MN students had some time off and a good number of the keep to this spot. That meant that there were lines at many of the slides. Everyone was patient so that was not a problem.

Leroy’s lens came out of his glasses. He found a Wal-Mart there with a vision center so they could get it back more securely than he could. The sign said that 15 languages could be translated there. Wow! I suppose that is all of the people from other places who come to work at the resort since the town itself is so small. It is amazing that they come from all over the world.

Our condo was a bit of a distance from the parks, but there was a shuttle; however that was a bit of a long wait so we walked almost all of the time. I got in well over 10,000 steps each day. Nice health benefit for all!

Paula