A day with no shoveling

Hello,

 

We did not have to shovel snow today, but we did chop a little ice that was on the sidewalk. It was only a little because it mostly did not come up. Our neighbor was busy getting snow on a pile so cars could more easily turn the corner. I stopped and told him, “You do such a great job opening the crosswalks.”

 

He replied with a grin, “It is my specialty.”

 

Who knew? He also sweeps up that corner when he mows the lawn. It is amazing how much care some give to the smallest detail.

 

Leroy and I went shopping this morning, both to buy and to return one thing. I tried to tell Leroy how to drive and he did not like that. We are still together, but we did have a few words. Can you imagine?

 

We did one impulse buy. We have a cover that stops spatters in the microwave. Once Leroy had thought he had set the timer and instead he ran the microwave ruining the fairly new cover. I called the company and learned that we could still use it even though it was quite bubbly. Leroy wanted to replace it because he was embarrassed by it. I suggested that we discard it when we move because it is a rather big bulky item. He acquiesced, but not willingly. He was out shopping a few days ago and found one for the low price of $1.79. He did not buy it but mentioned it. Today we went back, looked and bought it. On the sales receipt I noticed that it was really on clearance, it had been $10 which is more like what I had paid for the original. I guess for that much of a bargain we can figure out how to pack it when we move.

 

Paula

Who Likes to Shovel Snow?

Hello,

 

Last night when we went out to shovel snow, it was much deeper. It was fun because our downstairs friend was out too. I am not sure why, but at times I felt like laughing because it was a bit daunting. By the time we went in, we were all tired and ready to be done.

 

When I got ready for bed I happened to look in the mirror and saw ugly love handles, I think that is what people call them. Where did they come from? Also my belly seemed to have grown and be hanging as well. Too tired to stand up straight makes everything sag? This morning I happily did not see such appendages. Great! It is not a permanent fixture.

 

Leroy woke us at 5:18 am. This guy is crazy! He wanted to be sure that we got the shoveling done before he went to work. We were both pleased to see that no more snow had come after we stopped last night. I assured Leroy that I could manage to clear the rest of the sidewalk since I would be home all day. After we made sure that the area behind the garage was good, Leroy went down to the end of the alley where the snow plow typically leaves a pile across the entrance. When I finished what I was doing, I went to help. That was a pile of packed stuff. We only made one path through, but that is ok as not so many use the alley. People could wait for each other.

 

 

I now declare that about three inches of snow is the limit of my happy shoveling.

 

Paula

Snow

Hello,

 

What should I write about? I have had a quiet day at home. Snow started to come in the afternoon. Once it started it was immediately serious. I texted Leroy to find out when he was coming home so I could have the incline to the garage cleared. That keeps it much better for longer. He said, “I am leaving work at 3:00, but will stop at the post office on the way home.”

 

Because it was 2:50, I immediately started gathering warm clothes to go out and start shoveling. I cleared a sidewalk path to the garage, when I looked behind me I could see that it was almost covered once more.

 

At the garage I started shoveling. Some of the same spots were cleared at least three times. Leroy still had not arrived so it was on to my side of the garage. Then back to Leroy’s side. When he got home, he went and put on some different clothes. We both worked until we had cleaned by the garage once, but knew we could not keep up. I was so grateful that the snow was dry and light.

 

The sidewalk was covered with at least three inches by this time. I thought we might just do a narrow path, but we worked until we had it all open for about five minutes. I am planning to go out again before bed so we do not have such a large amount to deal with in the morning. Course, maybe it will quit before morning. I like to get it cleared before people walk on it because those steps often create slippery spots. I still like snow and I find it satisfying to shovel because it looks so good when done.

 

We went back out. I can say there is a lot of snow. It now seems heavier, perhaps because of the depth.

 

Paula

Birds and Mice

Hello,

 

The day after seeing the birds at the feeder no more birds were spotted. Then the next day I saw another one but only one and it did not hang around long. It checked out the seeds and moved on. We did not see any today. Disappointment abounds. We are going to move the feeder to our “office” window as there is a close evergreen tree. We wonder if that will encourage more birds to try it. Squirrels are much more of a concern here, but we will see what happens.

 

There have been no more mice in the trap and we are grateful for that. At least it should mean that there are no more mice in the apartment, right? Leroy has not heard any mice walking around. He also has not seen any out of the corner of his eye. The trap is still set and will be for another day or two, depending on what I feel like doing.

 

Strange we want more birds and no mice. Are we hard to please?

 

Today we took three walks. There was the short pre dawn walk. After online church we walked to church to give our contribution to world hunger. There was an outdoor collection Then in the afternoon we walked to get more steps. It had started to rain/snow. It seemed that the walk might be short, but it just got longer. It was about our regular long loop size in a different place. We counted the people that were out in the two mile trek. We saw twelve, but did not actually meet some of them. They were ahead of us and we never came close to catching up to them. I was getting tired by the time we got home and Leroy was getting cold so it was just refreshing to get in the house.

 

Paula

Fitbit

Hello,

 

Leroy gave me a new Fitbit for Christmas because my old unit would no longer work. I mourned the passing of the old because it had given me good service for at least two years, it could have been three years. My friend, who gave it to me, had also used it for at least a year.

 

When I first tried to connect to the Fitbit app on my phone, I could not get the new to connect. I had much more success on the laptop, but it still took some fussing around. Could that be my age, since I am a year older now, or does everyone have to do a bit of fussing? I finally found the place where I could delete the old and add a new. Then it all worked perfectly. I did not want to know what was happening with the phone app, but I tried that this afternoon. I was pleased to see that it welcomed my new model. It took a little time updating, but then it was seamlessly connected.

 

With this new model I can have more functions available. Not sure that I am ready for all that. I am happy to have the date and time display, but I do not know that I want a lot of notifications. Sometimes I like to disappear into my own world where no one can find me. It is called solitude.

 

I walked today while wearing the new device. It seems to me that it records more steps than my old one did. Does that mean I might actually walk less than I did in the past? I have read that all these tracking devices do not record the same, but they are consistent with themselves. So I can compare one day’s steps to another.

 

Paula

Merry Christmas

Hello,

 

Wishing you all the best as your life goes forward. May you find joy in unexpected places.

 

We needed a picture of us for the postlude on the live stream service yesterday. No recent ones were in our possession. Our wonderful downstairs friend is skilled with phone camera. We were quite pleased with the result.

 

Paula

 

Windy Walk

Hello,

 

Yesterday, Leroy and I took a walk in the late morning because we had learned that the temperatures were to be seriously dropping. At that moment it was a cool 52 degrees F., but fine for walking. The wind was blowing quite strongly so we made the first part of the walk in the most open place with the winds at our back since we did not want to face that on the homeward trek. We did meet four other walkers who also might have wanted to beat the cold. We met one hardy bicyclist. I figured it would take a lot of strength to work against that wind. As Leroy commented, “It would be a bit scary to have it from the side.”

 

When I held my arms out with a particularly strong gust, it blew me along. Since the storm last summer, we have much greater respect for the wind and what it can do.

 

When we got to the park Leroy stated, “It is good that the trees and branches have almost all been cleared from here.”

 

“Yes, if they were still here we would not walk in this area because of fear of a tree or branch hitting us.”

 

We understand the need to clear them out, but it is still a bit painful to look across the park and see so much open space.

 

By the time we got home the temperature had dropped about three degrees. It kept dropping all night. When we started our walk it was that balmy 52 degrees F. and this morning when we walked just a shorter distance it was 8 degrees F. In the morning we were bundled with long underwear, hats and good mittens.

 

Paula

Mouse in the house

Hello,

 

Yesterday Leroy said, “I think we have a mouse in the house. I heard this little stepping sound, looked up and caught a glimpse of something with the corner of my eye. I then saw it again going around the corner. ”

 

I was a bit skeptical. After all how much noise would a mouse make walking? Maybe Leroy just had floaters in his eyes. How can mice be on the second floor? How do they get here? But in spite of those feelings, I said, “If you fetch the trap I will set it.”

 

Leroy does not like to set traps. Could be, he is afraid of snapping his finger. It is a little tricky to get ones fingers to safety. I am just happy it is not a rat trap or even a bear trap. How does one set a bear trap?

 

He could only find one trap in the attic even though we both think we should have two up there. I put a thin layer of organic,(Only the best for a mouse, you know. Actually it is all we have in the house.), peanut butter on the proper spot.

 

Even though he did not see this mouse in the kitchen, I set it up there with the string tucked under the fern stand. That anchoring is to keep the mouse from running away with the trap.

 

All day and no mouse came. When we went to bed the trap had been undisturbed. In the morning going to that side of the kitchen I spied the trap turned over with a good sized mouse in there. Eek!

 

“Leroy we have a mouse,” I said, “I nominate you to take it out.”

 

That part of the job Leroy will do so I was happy.

 

I set the trap again even though Leroy believes it is the only mouse in the house. Tomorrow we will learn if it is here. But if no mouse I vote leave the trap for another day or two.

 

Paula

The last kale harvest

Hello,

 

Leroy told me the temperature is to drop tomorrow in the single digit area. The kale will probably not survive the low. I went today to harvest the last of it. I gave it to a friend who cooks for many food insecure people. I was disappointed at how little kale was left, but I believe she will still be able to find a use for it even though it will not add any large amount of food.  

 

It was a bit of a struggle to pick it because, even though it was in the 3o’s, my hands kept getting cold. I could have chosen a more flexible pair of gloves, but did not think of it until I was at the garden and did not want to go back. I believe there was some new growth since I cut the last time. At least small new leaves were showing. I am happy to be picking something from the garden on December 22^nd. What a gift! This new spot for the community garden has been a struggle because it is hard to get the soil worked up well from sod. The kale has become the star performer. Unfortunately, others do not appreciate it as much as I do. I am impressed at what struggles the pioneers must have had to coax food from the ground.

 

Leroy and I will both be home tomorrow. Not sure what excitement life might bring. Tonight we did see the two planets almost merged. At least we believe we were looking at the right thing.

 

Paula

How many decorations do we need?

Hello,

 

Last night Leroy and I realized we had not gotten out two crèche sets. They are not stored with the rest of the Christmas decorations because we think they would not do well with too much hot or cold that resides in the attic. This morning Leroy set about pulling out the set from Kenya and the one from Slovakia. He found three. We had forgotten that we have two from Slovakia. After we went around the house and counted, we learned that we have a total of eight. We do not need that many, but we have most of them as gifts which makes them special. There are some other things sitting around that I am not sure how we acquired them, but they are not my favorites. They should go out.

 

We have been talking some about moving someday into a smaller place. That would mean some downsizing even though many of you think we do not have so much. It has been growing since we have lived here so long. There is something about moving that contributes to thinking “do we really need this?” Even frequent moving has a purpose. Some of those things help us in unimagined ways. I know that less stuff means feeling freer and lighter. Once some material object gets attached it can become difficult to extract with grace.

 

Neither Leroy nor I are wearing many clothes that would be considered more out in public wear. Someday we will be out in public more so we are not quite ready to get rid of many things, but some items are inching that way. Just how much clothing does any one person need?

 

I got rid of some hair this morning. That was an easier decision. Leroy cut it for me as he has done for almost the entire year. He says that he needs to cut some more. I too think this cut was not quite up to his usual style.

 

Paula

Changing Landscape

Hello,

 

On my walk today I took in the changes on a street where, in three or four blocks I counted ten tree stumps that had not been there before. Going though the park in my neighborhood revealed even more changes and tree clearing. It is so open which makes it almost unrecognizable. Surely replacement trees will be planted, but knowing the growth rate of trees, it will be a long time before they become beautiful giant shade providers.

 

Another changing landscape is our bodies. Leroy and I have both lost weight from his illness, he because it was too much of a chore to eat and me because I do not easily eat when I am anxious. We have been trying to gain weight, but it is slow going. I have added a bit more than Leroy has. He is constantly pulling up his jeans and complaining about keeping them on. A belt barely does the job anymore. My clothes stay on with little difficulty.

 

I was applying for some more life insurance. For that I had to have a health exam. The blood work showed two areas where I am not on the positive side. It must not be a big deal because the agent said that they gave me the top rating in the health department which means that I could get more value for less cost.

 

After much decision time this morning, Leroy rode his bike to work. It is not that cold, but it is to be possibly below freezing when he comes home. He is worried about snow melt, water running across the street, and then freezing. He is concerned about slipping on the resulting ice. I think the streets are so clear he will be ok. I am glad he rode his bike as it always gives him a lift in spirit.

 

Paula

Our Christmas tree is up

Hello,

 

I helped Leroy bring the boxes down from the attic. I then went off to the store to do a little shopping. That great Leroy got the artificial tree together without my help, amazing! He also put on the lights and the gold garland. I was happy to have him do all these tasks. Unlike some people, I am not so excited about putting up the tree. Do you think it was because the tree did not come in my house until Christmas Eve? Certainly the idea of putting it up on Thanksgiving does not fit my concept of what is proper. Plus we leave the Christmas decorations up until the end of the Christmas season which is on January 6^th.

 

I did help put on the ornaments. We are sure now that at the end of the season we will eliminate some of them that are rather tired. There are plenty of them so none will be missed. Many of these were gifts so putting on the tree is a little trip down memory lane.

 

There are a number of things that we set around the house and we put out all of them. Some of those also need to go. But since we stored them we are using them this year.

 

Last year, Leroy insisted that we must get new lights. I was not so convinced. At the mark down after Christmas we did buy some and I am glad we did. They look nice.

 

Our church wanted a picture of us. We did not have anything recent and we are not good at taking selfies. Our downstairs friends helped us. I thought it was a very good result. Amazing what people can do when they know what they are doing.

 

Paula

A Walk in the Cool

Hello,

 

Leroy and I walked yesterday when I came home from work. We had had a short walk in the morning that was fine because there was no wind blowing.

 

The afternoon walk was a bit breezier, but still ok at 20 some degrees F. We saw a couple we know and caught up with them which gave us a nice socially distanced visit. The woman is having knee surgery today. I am impressed at how much she walks. She uses some support of a cane or hiking pole. Her theory is that being strong is an asset for healing

 

It was a sunny day and there were maybe ten to fifteen people out on the trail, walkers with dogs, walkers without dogs, skateboarders and one bicyclist. I was impress that so many people did not stay inside just because of the cold.

 

Today it was about the same temperature, but we did not see so many casual walkers, and no one we knew. It was good to be out, but the air was damp and not so comfortable. I was glad to get home and into the warm.

 

We should have taken some pictures of the park. They have now removed quite a number of the piles of logs and brush. It looks so different. It still looks damaged, but much clearer. They were working hard today.

 

Yesterday and today we saw roofers working. I was impressed that they would be up in the cold. That job takes some fortitude and courage.

 

Paula

More Kale

Hello,

 

Even though Leroy was not excited about going back to the garden, I asked him to go with me and he almost never turns me down. It was a much less pleasant walk this afternoon with a cold wind blowing. We had walked in the morning when the temperature was several degrees colder, but felt much more comfortable because there was no wind.

 

In yesterday’s pictures all those clumps by that kale were additional kale plants. I had been hoping to be able to pull them, but that did not work out. Instead I was able to snap them off while Leroy held the bag for me. Holding the bag was a big help. We switched roles and he managed to pull one, but it was not very easy. So we went back to the snap off method. We are too lazy to clean them at the moment so they are resting on the unheated back porch. Even though the temp got down to 16 degrees F., they were not frozen. I find that quite remarkable. Most leaves could not tolerate that. I wonder what it is about their chemistry that allows for such cold weather. Perhaps Leroy is right that the snow insulated them.

 

I work tomorrow and it is my understanding that we are to get to the single digits in the morning. That will surely freeze the rest of them. I am hoping that in the spring some of them will revive and sent up shoots from the roots. We have been lucky like that in the past.

 

I really feel satisfied when the plants defy the odds and contribute more to life.

 

Paula

Snow, Snow, Snow

Hello,

 

It snowed during the night creating much light coming in even though blinds were drawn. The bedroom windows have the addition of light darkening curtains, but they were unable to entirely filter the intensity.

 

Leroy and I went out before 6:00 am to start shoveling. We always get up early so that was normal. The snow was wet and heavy requiring quite a bit of strength or smaller shovels to get some lifts up and away. It was snowing steadily so the first places were already covered by the time we got done. It felt good to get out and accomplish something. We will have to do it again later, but at least it will not be the full amount, maybe about half.

 

Later, the snow was not so much so we finished the shoveling in a hurry. I know it is unusual, but I enjoy doing that. It gives me such a sense of accomplishment when I see the cleared sidewalks.

 

In the afternoon we went to the community garden and picked a bit of Red Russian Kale. I had to knock the snow off, but it was quite fine under there. I hope to be able to pick some more before it is all gone. Leroy believes that the snow will help insulate it. It can tolerate 19 degrees F., but it is to get to 12 later in the week. That might be too much for it.

 

This morning Leroy and I did the ten movement Tai chi form. I miss the 24 movement form, but since we are meeting on line we have been doing this shorter form because we do not have so much space to move around our homes. It has the same movements as the 24, but they are in different order so it required quite a lot of thinking at first. Good memory test.

 

Paula

Hanging out Clothes

Hello,

 

We hung out two loads of clothes today. It is amazing that we are still doing this almost half way though December. It was cool/cold, but now it is quite fine outside. Ironically in the summer the clothes are almost constantly in the sun when on the line. Now, however, it is a much harder to find the sunshine as it is lower in the sky and the house blocks that possibility. In the summer with much more heat, the clothes do not need so much sun to help them dry.

 

The clothes were quite dry in just a few hours. It must be the dry air that is helping the process. Leroy helped with both hanging and taking them down again.

 

I am only going into work two days of the week. I notice the difference. I did work two other hours this week, because I am the library representative for the monthly book club. I also do yoga from home. It was disappointing this morning as there was only one other person there, but it was nice to visit with her since I have not seen her for some time. Two of the others let me know that they had other obligations. Having others come to the yoga sessions keeps me working at it myself because I feel responsible to try some new routines.

 

Leroy and I took a long walk this afternoon. There were roofers working on at least three places. I am sure those people were happy that we have such nice weather, yesterday as well. I still see many tarps on roofs. Somehow I do not expect that all of them will be taken care of before serious winter arrives. Do roofers work in blizzards? I know that soon I will not be hanging out clothes. I will miss that fresh outdoor smell.

 

Paula

Flat Tire

Hello,

 

Yesterday, Leroy called to tell me that he had not left work yet because his bike had a flat tire. That did not really fit into my schedule, but of course, I would come since it would be a three mile walk home. I finished up what I was doing and drove there in “his” car. Neither car is large enough to accommodate the bike with all wheels on.

 

Leroy grumbled a bit, “We need that new bike carrier at home now.” We had left it at the shop thinking we did not want to store it and when the garage door is worked on we would have fewer things to move out of the way.

 

He took off the quick release front wheel and we put the bike in the car, but needed to take it back out and orient it the other direction to accommodate the handle bar. When removing the wheel something on the quick release bolt broke so that will have to be replaced someday. For now Leroy took the item off of my bike since I do not ride in temps that are below 50 degrees.

 

Last night, while I was on my virtual book club meeting for the library, Leroy brought the tire into the kitchen and looked for the leak. It was a hard search, but he finally found a very thin wire. When putting on the repair patch he managed to glue his fingers together. I have some finger nail polish remover so he managed to get them apart without damaging his skin.

 

He just came home now and declared that the bike tire held him up coming and going.

 

Paula

Big Black Trucks

Hello,

 

Big black trucks are working in our neighborhood.  They are doing more clean up now. They went through two times taking trees and tree parts. Now they are taking fences and other debris that was damaged in the August 10 derecho. Amazing how ordinary this word, derecho, seems now. I had never heard it before about August 12 or 13.

 

The other day, Leroy and I were walking in the park and one of those big black trucks came over a rise. We immediately stepped off the path, both because we did not want to be run over and we were happy to see them working. It is my understanding this a company from Michigan. I can attest that they are working seven days a week. They also seem to be working for sun up to sun down. I have gotten so that I wave at them when I see them, hoping they realize that is a thank you wave even though I know they are being paid.

 

This morning, Leroy and I walked past a pile of stuff on the sidewalk that has been there since August. We do not like walking in the grass in the dark. Once I stepped in a hole or depression in the lawn. Most people put it out closer to the street. Leroy said, “This is so far in they will not take it.”

 

Some of the stuff is from a remodel and not the storm so I did not think they should take it. However, this afternoon they took it. It was difficult, but they managed. I was impressed at the long arm of the claw. Many of the things fell from that scoop and they had to return to that spot more than once.

 

I walked to a public mail box and was impressed at how much cleaner it looks around here. There has been so much junk out along the streets that was storm related. Who knew clean up would take so long. It was a seriously big job that those big trucks have tackled.

 

Leroy said, “I saw the city working on one of the tree root balls. So they are trying to take care of those as well.”

 

Paula

Mailed Christmas Letter

Hello,

 

This year Leroy and I have been faster to get together a letter to send out for Christmas. Part of that is that Leroy has more time off and when we talked about doing it he sat right down and did his part. That hung over me for a few days, but was much harder to ignore than when he is barely thinking about it.

 

Even after it was “done” it sat on the computer for a few days. We talked about having him print it off at work, but then realized we have a printer now. It does not have color capability which is fine for most things. We could at least print it off and proof it which is easier for both of us to do when we are reading from paper. We then decided the pages were too full, are we wordy? Leroy found a small graphic that could be in just black ink and look fine. After both of us read it, Leroy went ahead and printed off a number of copies. While listening to the Manheim steamroller Christmas music, I actually got about a fourth of them ready to mail. I am so impressed with us and the ability to move along on this project.  Do you think that the prednisone Leroy takes is giving him energy?

 

I needed to get a power cord out of a drawer that has many cords in it. While there, I almost got waylaid into the total sorting mode. For some reason this drawer also holds larger mailing envelops, some new and some old. It is time to lower the supply. I did make piles of those I thought could go out. When Leroy comes home he can give his opinion on the process. Certainly I want more of the cords labeled as it is hard to find, at least for me, the cord that I need for any particular item. Why are not these things universally created so they would fit on any of the items we own? One of life’s mysteries?

 

 

We “went” to Christmas at Luther, our alma mater last night. That is one advantage of technology. It was great to see that on our big new TV.

 

Paula

Phone To Car

Hello,

 

We have had a phone connected to the car system for a long time. I like that because I can answer the phone without searching for it. It is nice that the voice comes over the speakers, I certainly feel safer than it would be to have a phone on my lap or up to my ear. Since we got new phones in September, I have not been successful getting that new phone connected. Both Leroy and I have tried unsuccessfully to complete the job. He was able to connect his new phone in his car with little to no difficulty. Pushing the proper spots, did not help at all. After a call from Leroy that I did not answer because I was driving, I brought the car manual inside to read at my leisure. Luckily it was in English.

 

There were some instructions that I did not think we had tried. I took it back out with phone in hand. Just so as not to confuse the car with the old indication of Paula’s phone that appeared on the car screen, I deleted all old devices and started over. It was actually rather simple and it was connected in just a few minutes. I called Leroy to make sure that it worked and it did!

 

Now if you call me and I am driving I will answer unless there is something on the road that requires my strict attention. One thing about technology it is great, but if we cannot figure it out it is like a marvelous treat hidden just beyond our reach. I am grateful for instructions and the ability to read and mostly understand them.

 

Paula

Walk Around the Lake

Hello,

 

That Leroy has become even more fixated on getting 10,000 steps. He wanted to walk to the lake that is about a mile from our house. We had not walked in the early morning so we had few steps. We also walked around the lake and noticed that there was a skim of ice on it except in certain areas that mostly seemed to be full of birds. We saw gulls, geese, ducks, and a large white bird that was too far away for us to identify. It was nice to see so many of them in the middle of the day.

 

We also saw four walkers and five bicyclists. One of the bicyclists zipped past us, startling me. I had been paying little attention as we had not yet seen another bike. Often riders will call out, “On your left.” to let us know they are going to pass us. This guy was quiet and fast. I had been wandering all over the trail, assuming we owned it since there were so few people around. After that fast pass I stayed more on my side of the trail and looked before I stepped randomly to the other side.

 

By the time we got home from this long walk we figured that we had put on over 8,000 steps. Both of us were a little tired. So we had to have a snack and a cup of tea.

 

We had gotten some green tea from our favorite source. Because of the pandemic, they are only selling it in pound packages. We got the pound, poured out a small amount to use soon and put the rest in the freezer. Even though it seemed expensive per pound, we figured that it is actually cheaper than buying tea bags. It is also so much less expensive in terms of waste and damage to the environment. Another plus is that it is organic. What a win, win.

 

Paula