Garden Kale for supper

Hello,

 

I went to the old community garden this afternoon and picked a nice amount of volunteer Red Russian Kale which went into a stir fry. We added winter onions picked from our front garden as well as some garlic chives. Oh, I forgot I also picked some cilantro in the old community garden. It was all quite fine. Leroy pronounced it good.

 

We need rain. I am not sure when I will be able to pick more kale if it does not rain soon. That garden space is not easy to water.

 

We have also used some oregano that has come back close to the house as well as onion chives. I love getting all these greens. I might even get back to that old community garden and harvest some dandelion greens which seem to be doing quite well.

 

I love getting the early spring greens. I even miss the lamb’s quarters as I now have no source for that.

 

For some reason our mint is quite slow. Maybe it always is and we just forget, but we cannot yet get enough to make tea. Right next to it a dianthus plant is blooming nicely and I think it is early.

 

We are enjoying a pair of birds go in and out of a hole in the tree in the neighbor’s yard. It is right at eye level for us. I was also pleased when I picked up trash around the block to see four parts of bird’s egg shells. Those babies are growing.

 

Paula

Washing Machine Eat Clothes?

Hello,

 

I washed kitchen linens today, lamenting the loss of one red kitchen towel that disappeared after the last wash. Today one of the drying clothes was gone! Where do they go? I have searched the washer several times, feeling inside the rim where I cannot see. Nothing was there. These cloths have been hung out to dry. Do you suppose that the strong winds carried them away and out of sight? The neighbor’s fences have not been repaired since the derecho, so that would give them plenty of room to sail out of sight. It seems a little unlikely, but who knows.

 

We do not have much trouble keeping track of socks so I do not think it is the machine. The towels seem far too large to disappear down the drain.

 

I like having clothes on the line, but I seldom see other clothes lines with things on them. Last evening Leroy and I walked down an alley that we had not traversed before. How exciting, someone else had clothes out to dry.

 

Hanging out helps the environment and my psyche as it gives me a good reason to spend some time outdoors. I even get a number of steps walking back and forth. It could even be seen as a money saving strategy. Seems like a win, win to me unless you do not have a clothes line or your washer is in such a place that it is difficult to get the clothes outside. The only downside might be clothes that disappear.

 

My missing towel is just discovered hanging on the towel bar. It never made it to the machine at all.

 

Paula

A bit of Rain

Hello,

 

We had planned to take a Sunday afternoon walk with some friends, but the drizzle stopped those plans. The man has a cold and did not want to get out. Leroy has taken the opportunity to take a nap. I am planning to walk later in the day as it is to clear. I just hope we get enough rain to make a difference to the thirsty plants.

 

We did not walk this morning because Leroy was willing to cut my hair one more time. He mostly does a fine job with just a few missed hairs here and there. We figure that my curls hide a lot of this. Guess curly hair is good for something. The rainy damp air helps my hair to curl a bit more.

 

This afternoon Leroy and I managed to both get our 10,000 steps. Leroy often complains that I record more steps even when we are on the same walk. However, today he consistently had more steps than I did. We both found it quite windy and a bit cold with that wind blowing on us. Leroy commented, “Our trackers should show extra steps for working against this wind.”

 

It so was so good to get home and into the warm.

 

Before that we talked to some young neighbor friends who were also out for a walk. They have already planted things in their garden. It was fun to visit about that. There is hope for the world if young people are interested in gardening?

 

Paula

What a Day!

Hello,

 

I went shopping in the morning. Before I got on the interstate a city police car’s flashing lights became visible. I easily pulled to the side because there were no other cars around me.

 

When I pulled off the interstate and waited at the stop light, I saw the car behind me pull off to the side. The flashing lights of a sheriff’s car were visible. I pulled to the side thinking there would be enough space. However the vehicle ahead of me was a pickup truck with a trailer behind. The truck could get over, but the trailer was still somewhat in the lane. The sheriff car managed to get past, but at the red light there was still a car in front. The sheriff blew some type of serious horn, the light turned green almost immediately and the car in front moved out of the way. Just as I was pulling off into the parking lot of my destination, I heard more sirens. A fire truck sped past. Before I could get in the store I heard and saw two more fire trucks and some other emergency vehicles. I was happy to be off the road and glad that the emergency was not at my house. I prayed for all of those involved.

 

Leroy tells me he thinks the stop lights in the city are set up so that when an emergency vehicle comes to them the light turns quickly to give them the right of way. Good if it is true.

 

I had seen a thing on social media about how when traffic is stopped on a major road in Germany, all traffic pulls to the side so emergency vehicles can get through. My trip to the store today made that seem like the most sensible idea.

 

This afternoon we got about ten packages of seed and five tomato plants from a person in a close neighborhood who had seen my post about the community garden being tilled. What a gift! We are rich indeed.

 

Paula

Guilty or not?

Hello,

 

Leroy spotted a spot on my back that he did not like the looks of. He took a picture. I could not say that it looked too bad, but he took a picture about a week later. It had not changed much. He visited the dermatologist for his regular check up and talked to one of the nurses. They could not tell either from the pictures, but thought having it checked was advisable. I tried calling the phone number for this group that has offices in many places in the country. I was put on hold so I decided to use the local number that the doctor had given me when I told him about my inability to convince the scheduler that I needed to be seen sooner and I really did need a timely appointment. The front desk could not get me in, before the month of May, so they routed me back to his nurse. She found some time for a quick look the next day. I was impressed with this ability.

 

When the doctor started looking he could not find the spot. I had to help with some idea of where it was. This is all a little hard since I cannot see it. He did find it, but checked my entire back and declared it and the spot just fine and not a concern.

 

I could not decide if I wanted there to be a problem or if it was ok to take their valuable time for nothing. Guilt set in a little although the doctor assured me that we should check things out. He also complimented us for paying attention to each other’s skin. I will see him again in October for a full body check which I do once a year.

 

Paula

How Hard Can It Be?

Hello,

 

Church is still on line for us even though our congregation has started the process of meeting in person, but on a limited schedule of people. We decided to let others have those spots first.

 

Yesterday I confidently turned on the laptop, went away for something, came back only to see that it was still spinning away and not coming on. I tried doing a hard turn off, plugging it in even though the last time I looked the battery was adequate. It still spun and spun, but came up to the first screen; however it was very slow to allow any forward movement. As church time got closer, Leroy turned on his tablet, but it was also moving very slowly. I then turned on my phone, but could not figure out how to get to the church service on the mobile website. About five minutes after church started, we managed to arrive on Leroy’s tablet. What a struggle to go to church and we did not even leave home!

 

We knew we could watch it later, but we wanted to be there at the time and it became a serious challenge to make it happen. We are now talking about buying a new laptop. Any recommendations? However, know that we are a stubborn duo and might ignore all suggestions.

 

I am not sure just what our worship experience was; I have to confess that every once in a while I would check the laptop to learn about progress or no progress. I think I forgot the purpose of being at worship. Somehow I suspect that happens to God often.

 

Paula

Community Garden

Hello,

 

Yesterday Leroy scheduled work time in the garden. We went to the spot, but no one else had yet come. While we were waiting a neighbor came in his pickup truck to say that he was ready to till the garden spot for us. We said yes and he went to get it, saying, “I will be back in half an hour.”

 

We wandered the new old garden spot talking about how large we thought it should be. There are only about three or eight of us that do that work so we have to be cautious not to till more than we can weed and care for. As we were discussing, another neighbor came. She too was quite excited to learn that a man was going to till it for us. We could not remember his name, but told her what we thought it was. As it turned out he was Tom rather than Ron, but what a gift that tilling was. His small tractor had a great tiller attachment on it. It was definitely a high end tiller because when it ran into some of the bricks and cement that were a house foundation, it made a bit of noise, but kept on working. I was impressed. I had never seen anything like that with its clutch that stopped the tilling action when it could not handle it. What a gift to us and the people who benefit from the garden. The college lets us use that land and that is also a gift.

 

Today, Leroy and I went to sift out some of the grass clumps and the weeds that were in larger pieces. The soil was wonderful to get my hands in as it was fine and soft. That tiller took it down about eight inches. I am impressed all over again.

 

Paula

Library Job?

Hello,

 

Yesterday when I was done with yoga I went to the bathroom to change my clothes to library work clothes. I was grossed out to see that the toilet in the stall was awash with toilet paper and a bit more. By that time two of my other co workers were there so I went to the office and reported the situation adding, “I am afraid to flush it.”

 

Secretly, I had been hoping that one of them would say, since you are so old I will go do it, but the first reply was, “Flush it anyway. Was it a whole roll of toilet paper?”

 

When I told Leroy he said with a laugh, “So no one took your bait?”

 

I started walking back to the bathroom asking on the way, “Does anyone know where the water shut off valve is?”

 

“We should have something so you can take some of the paper out before you flush,” my boss said.

 

It was decided that a used plastic grocery bag would work. One of my coworkers helpfully got a bag out. I went back and retrieved it from her hand only to see a small hole in it. “This will not do, it has a hole,” I stated emphatically.

 

They giggled and smirked, but the solution was to give me another better inspected bag and to help me double bag the two bags.

 

I returned to the toilet with courage in hand as I put my other hand inside the bags, reached in, scooped up a quantity of who knows what, smoothed the bags around the goop, rapidly took it outside to the outdoor trash receptacle, returned to the toilet, flushed, and sighed with relief as the remaining items disappeared from sight. After washing my hands, I reported the result and went back to changing my clothes for the library day ahead. Who knew I went to a library school where this subject was not even addressed. Such oversight!

 

Paula

Kale is back

Hello,

 

I walked past the community garden to check on that Red Russian Kale. What excitement! It will be ready to pick in about two weeks. If I were seriously in need of greens I would also pick some dandelions in some more organic places, but alas we weeded too well in the fall in the garden. On my return trip I counted fifteen kale plants. There could even be more as they might be just a bit later. What spring bounty!

 

Also on the way home I went past a garden on the college campus. When we walked to church that garden was usually closed. Today it was open and the notice stated that it is open from 8:00 to 5:00 Monday through Friday. It is quite a nice place. I enjoyed looking at the spring flowers. It is on my walk list so I can see what is blooming next.

 

It stated that one could even have a picnic there as long as you left it as clean, or cleaner, than you found it. I will have to broach this subject with Leroy. Seems like a good idea to me.

 

I call an older friend almost weekly. It saddens me that she is forgetting what she has told me and repeats herself several times in the course of the conversation. We still have some good talks.

 

Leroy rode the bike to work this morning. He tells me that his slacks were too thin for the 34 degrees Fahrenheit. Yesterday when it was not so cold he wore warmer things. Some days it is hard to make the right clothing protection choices.

 

Paula

Saving the environment?

Hello,

 

We have not taken out the dead stems of plants and flowers from around the house. I have read that it is good to leave that stuff, which looks unusable to us, for the insects to take shelter in over the winter. It is not good to take it away too early in the spring as they need it until temperatures spend more time in the 50’s. Yesterday when we walked with friends, they walked past all of this dead looking plant material. I wondered what they thought and should I explain why it looks so unkempt? I said not a word and let them think what they pleased.

 

Today my library staff will have a team meeting. We will eat together since we have all, but one, been vaccinated and there are only six of us. We can still sit a distance apart. I bring my camping silverware and dishes so we do not use paper plates or “one use” plastic silverware. Those camp items are quite portable and if I lose one it is not such a big deal. I also bring cloth napkins because we do not need to use paper. We always use cloth napkins at home, some were homemade and some I bought at garage sales. Some sets have only three. Probably some were damaged beyond one person’s idea of usefulness. One of my colleagues almost always makes some comment about being fancy, especially when she sees the napkins. I have told her more than once that I like to use them to stop waste, but she does not seem to remember that. Little does she know “how not fancy” I am.

 

It is not a big deal to bring all the items home to wash. Could that be because Leroy often does the dishes at night and he waits on Mondays until I come home after 8:00pm? He tells me it is ok to add to the total, but I have told him more than once that I would be happy to wash. Washing dishes is one of my favorite household chores so I am happy to have no mechanical dishwasher.

 

Paula

Good Day

Hello,

 

We called friends and took a nice three mile walk up the trail and checked out the work on the new part which will be a tunnel under a busy four lane street. It will be so nice when it is finished. The bike trails in this city are so wonderful, especially when you live just two or three blocks from a trail that goes for miles and miles north or south of the city. In the city there are about 60 miles of trails with more and more of them connecting.

 

After our walk the man wanted to treat us to an ice cream since that establishment is just three houses from us. It was almost comfortable sitting on the deck enjoying that treat.

 

Leroy had to show them our new bike carrier and all of the features of this great piece of equipment. These people also ride bikes, but today was too cold for that activity. I expressed concern that they would leave us behind since they now both have electric assist bikes. They assured us they would be aware of others because if they did not they would not have any riding companions. Maybe someday we will also get an electric assist, but I am not quite ready for that yet.

 

I know I am always showing my flowers, but these cacti are just so impressive to me. They surely like their home here.

 

Paula

A Morning Out

Hello,

 

Because I am now off on Friday I went shopping with Leroy. He needed to return some dress pants. I was pleased that not very many people were shopping. Good distancing was much easier. We also bought a plant for a birthday present and that place was also quite deserted with only one other shopper in this large outside area. The next stop was the, not so busy, grocery store where we bought some nuts and fruits for the organ crew. That meant a stop at the church on the way home. After delivering the goods we stopped in the church office to chat a little. The second semi was there delivering organ pipes and facings. The senior pastor took us into the area to see pipes and more. We did not see any of the workers which was good because they are trying to stay well away from locals. It was an unexpected pleasure to see all of these parts lying around. As the pastor said it really is a construction zone.

 

After that we came home and unloaded our own groceries. We both felt good. There is a good feeling associated with giving things away. At church, Leroy asked the woman who does so much cooking and feeding of all types of people if she needed any help on Monday or Friday because he was available. She said the he could come in and fill some bags she hands out on Saturday night. The regular person who does that is going to be gone next week. I just realized I could help also. She said that would be good. We could work many feet away from her while she would be in the kitchen and we would not have to wear masks. That sounds like a deal to me. Neither Leroy nor I have done much volunteering in recent times. The community garden is going to need help soon so we will do that volunteering job.

 

Paula

Talking Helps

Hello,

 

My boss was at work yesterday. I told her I wanted to talk when she had time. Before the end of her day, she had some time. We discussed how to handle any mask defiance in the future. The plan is to ask them to wait in the lobby and we would fetch whatever it is that they want. I felt so much better after that. People have been so compliant that I was totally unprepared for someone to tell me that they did not need to wear a mask. It seems like such a small request to me considering that people are in the library less than 30 minutes. Sounds easy from my perspective since I wear it almost all day with the exception being when I am alone in the facility

 

We are excited because the organ builders are now at the church with our new organ. One semi arrived Monday evening and the unload started Tuesday with the second semi coming on Thursday. They will be working on the build for about a month after which there is a month or more of tuning. We are not allowed to get close to the process because it is considered a construction zone even though the organ has been built, it is a case of assembling it. If people were allowed in I can imagine that many people would be there to get in the way.

 

The congregation is feeding the crew, in part because of the pandemic. As it is they will have to quarantine when they go home to New York State. I am contributing fruits and nuts along with some butter that I had in my house. Leroy and I do not use butter so I am happy to find a recipient for it. Leroy took grapes yesterday and I took butter today. Tomorrow we both work. Friday we will bring something more.

 

Paula

No Masks

Hello,

 

Yesterday afternoon, two young women possibly in their thirties, so not likely to have been vaccinated, came into the library without masks. I asked them to put on masks.

 

“We are exempt,” one of them said.

 

Because I could not imagine what they said and whatever it was I was not expecting this answer, I asked, “What?”

 

She patiently repeated, “We are exempt.”

 

“What does that mean?” I asked rather dumbfounded by their healthy appearance. I realize not all illnesses show.

 

“Some medical issues,” one of them said.

 

I let them continue on to the seed library without another word. Anger shot through me as I thought, “I would guess you are lying.”

 

This strong feeling just amazed and overwhelmed me for some minutes. I stayed well away from them and did not even make sure they were checking out seeds as they should. I set my timer on my phone with a plan that if they were still around in 30 minutes I would ask them to leave. I was happy when they left on their own before the time had passed.

 

I suppose I should be grateful they did not say, we do not want to wear a mask, what would I have done then?

 

Later another woman came in without a mask, when I asked her to wear a mask, she gasped and said, “Oh I forgot, I have it with me, I am a nurse and I know better.”

 

I then talked to her a little about the other unnamed women. She did tell me about some possible medical issues that might prevent one from wearing a mask, but she felt as I did that it was likely they just did not want to wear one. She did know that people can just say that although they could have had a card that stated the case. She too said she becomes upset when she sees people being so careless. She told me what all face coverings that she has to wear. There is the true caring person.

 

I was amazed that I could feel so strongly about it and glad when the feeling moved on. I don’t like it if I am in a store and someone is not masked, but I guess because I am not in charge there it is a smaller emotional issue. While I have been there, no one else has come into the library without a mask on purpose. I must be grateful for those people who care and follow our rules. I must also forgive or assume that they were telling the truth. Those negative feelings certainly do not help me in the least. Take a deep breath and remember what is important.

 

Paula

Church for Holy Week

Hello,

 

Our Easter service was in the church parking lot. We brought lawn chairs, wear masks, and came dressed for the weather which turned out to be warmer than expected. It was great to be there to actually see the speakers and musicians in person. We sat a safe distance apart and could sing with masks on. What a good feeling. The wind was brisk so it whipped any escaping droplets away in an instant. It was sunny and getting warmer by the minute. This was the culmination to a wonderful worship week.

 

The rest of the services were streamed online. Thank God for all the technology that has allowed this participation. The service on Palm Sunday was meaningful beyond my expectations with recordings of congregation members doing the reading from their homes.

 

Maundy Thursday was well done and also helped me to feel that I was worshiping. Then Good Friday also added to the uplift of my soul.

 

This morning Leroy and I talked about walking to church, but decided that we did not want to walk and carry our lawn chairs. It is a mile one way. We could have walked because they did have out extra chairs for those who did not have a chair with them.

 

In the afternoon we went to a friend’s house where we had lunch with others who had also been vaccinated. It felt like freedom and excess since we have not eaten in someone else’s home for over a year. There were seven of us there and we all commented on how amazing it was that we could be together in the same house.

 

It was so warm outside that Leroy and I had to have a little argument, happens every year, about whether to open windows and let in the warm. I say, no, because it quickly gets too warm, but Leroy wants warm in rather than so cool inside.

 

Paula

State Park

Hello,

 

This afternoon Leroy and I went to a state park that we had visited once before. That day, however, it started to rain hard just as we arrived. We did not get out of the car, but just drove through and went back home.

 

Today was a beautiful day to spend time hiking (What is the difference between hiking and walking?). There are some steep hills here and we were quite tired by the time we finished. I had 11,000 steps so there was a bit of movement involved. If some more vigorous person had been with us, they might have thought we were slow.

 

We did see some birds overhead. Leroy thought one was a bald eagle. There was also a blue heron standing in the water and flying to new spots as we watched.

 

It was almost warm or we had on too much clothing. It has been cool here until now. Our bodies do no adjust so quickly. But we managed with water bottles and nuts to snack on. Even though this park was only about twenty miles away, it was obvious that the derecho did not affect it as much as it did in our city. There were so many big tall trees it was almost breathtaking.

 

Paula

Bike Carrier

Hello,

 

This afternoon we went to the bike shop to redeem some of my prize money on a two bike, bike carrier. This attaches to the back of the car. We had looked at it in the fall, but did not want to store it. Even I think I will like it, in spite of not paying much attention to such things. It seems so simple to use that I can probably even manage it on my own. It only weighs 45 pounds which I think I can still lift. The guy at the bike shop let us have the floor model and he put it on the car and showed us how to do it.

 

I also looked at a bike for me even though their inventory was a bit down. He took my name so I can look at the bikes expected in May or June when they come. He had a recommendation for me and suggested looking on line to see what I think ahead of time.

 

There will be enough money left for Leroy to also buy a bike, but he did not look at any today. Maybe another day he will do that. Leroy would really like a folding tricycle, but this shop does not have anything like that. The shop guy recommended Leroy go to a shop that specializes in such.

 

Just a little side note on my feelings after getting the last two shots, the arm that the DPT went into was a little sore, but the other that received the shingles shot was quite tender. Moving my arms did not seem to help much, as the next day when I did yoga I moaned a little. However, after yoga, both arms felt quite fine. Guess I should have done some of that the day before. I thought it would not have been bad to have a little sickness for some drama, but other than the arms I felt just super.

 

Paula