What to Pack

Hello, We buy a cheaper ticket when we go to Miriam’s because we store a box of clothing at her house. I am still wondering what to pack because I seem to have gathered some things that I just “need”. Need and want are a sticky place to get caught when not honest with myself. I washed almost all of the laundry in the house today. It was nice in the afternoon so I hung out larger items. All smaller things such as socks dried in the house. It was still cold to have bare hands outside. It is so much easier to hang out clothes without wearing gloves. We had forgotten to get a devotion booklet at church. That was going to be my afternoon walk, but Leroy picked up a copy when he was at church for bible study. I took another walk and got some steps dealing with the clothes. I will have to step some more to get to my goal. Paula

Windy and shopping

Hello, We went to stores this morning. Leroy needed to exchange a pair of leather work gloves that were a bit snug for him even though they were size large. Luckily there were some extra-large on the shelf so he did fine. We still have some money in gift cards. After a few trips up and down aisles we decided to go to the next store where we also have a gift card. Decisions are not good for us. We again left without getting anything. I am more of a need shopper than a want shopper so that might be a hold up in the process. The wind was listed as 30 miles per hour. We certainly did not dispute that. It was quite daunting to be out by the stores where the wind had free reign of the parking lots. I talked Leroy into going into the mall which was close so we could get some more steps. There were a number of people who had the same idea. It is not as nice as walking outside on a good day, but certainly more comfortable than being out today. We did take a short walk outside this afternoon. It was great to come inside. I still need over 1500 steps, but Leroy is finished since he is watching TV and walks at the same time. I had expected to walk to church today, but that will be better another day. It is so nice to live in a house that is warm. Also, nice to have a car that blocks the wind and has a heater that works. What luxuries we live with. Paula

One Christmas party

Hello, Leroy’s “Office” party was last night at a coworker’s home. There were no cars parked on the street so we thought we were much too early, but found that people could park in the back. I was anxious about going because I really do not know many of his coworkers anymore. There are many new people now. I think he said there are only five who were there when he first came. I actually enjoyed myself a bit as I found people to talk to that I could relate to. That has not always happened. Can you imagine these couples were a little older than some, not older than us, is anyone older than we are? But they had some life experience. There were also two couples there who were vegetarians so that was interesting. One of the couples had lived in Utah for a few years. Because they were military people, they really did not know the state very well as the base was their home. One other couple had a son who was a minister. We have another Christmas party tomorrow afternoon. I am not anxious about this one because I will know most of the people there and so feel much more comfortable. It is for the church choir and their neighbors. Paula

Black Candles?

Hello, Leroy went on shopping errands. One task was to get two more advent candles plus the Christ candle which is white for the middle of the wreath. He came home with two black candles and one white. He was tired from working all day and there were a lot of people in the store. He thought he had picked up two dark blue candles only to see in the light by the check out that they were actually black. He had stood in line for a while and did not want to give up his spot so he just bought them. He explained, “They will burn up fast.” Those candles are in the wreath burning fast. Think about how we use color words to denote certain conditions. White for purity. The black hatted cowboy hinted he was a bad guy. True blue denotes strength and sticking to the correct stance. A black heart is no good. Yet black creates good outlines. Black and white are in contrast which is actually very helpful at times. Is there a significance to the color candles in the advent wreath. They used to be three purple and one pink. Now many of them switched the purple for blue. Some wreaths have all red candles. Getting different color candles was probably not worth the hassle for already harassed Leroy. Instead, it creates thinking about the meaning of candle colors, life, and where we put our emphasis. Paula

Tai Chi

Hello, Our tai chi leader is on vacation so I lead the heart healthy moves at the beginning of our class while another guy leads the forms. While the rest were doing the forms, I spent time working with a person new to the class. It is nice that two people are comfortable taking over the lead. If this could not happen, I guess that class would be cancelled. As often happens with a person new to Tai Chi, he was a bit overwhelmed by that fact that the rest of us know what we are doing most of the time. It is hard to start something and feel so far behind. I first did tai chi 23 years ago. They showed me a little of the beginning of one form and then just had me follow along as best as I could. After a break of many years I was in a place to join another group. They did the form a little differently, but again I could just follow along and adjust as best as I could. It worked. Now there is a new place and a new leader again the form is slightly different, but I have adapted. It certainly helps me to feel better and more flexible. What a good thing that is, to relax into it. With an older memory that can take a long time to feel comfortable and easy. It will be great to have our leader back next week. I’m always happy to have him take over. Each place that I have been, the beginning moves have been different. So that is nice to learn some new things. At Holden Village another couple was into another series of movements. The important thing is to move all parts of your body so it can continue to preform for you on a daily basis. Paula

Issues of the day

Hello, We must be trying to write the world’s best Christmas letter, because neither of us thinks the results are good. Maybe today we can get it at least good enough to finalize it. Nothing funny comes to mind to include to make it light hearted. Were we too focused on the serious? I went to the Doctor for a check up and my blood pressure was not good. It was much better when I checked it at home, but not at first. Before I went home, I made a stop at the social security office. I can say I have always had good service at this local office. It was to deal with my supposed lack of income for 2019. This guy noticed that the wrong box had been checked on my W 2. It looks like it was retirement income instead of working income. Maybe this will solve the problem. Who knew such a little check mark could make such a difference? Then on the way home I was almost in the middle of an intersection when a car turning left pulled in front of me. I am grateful for the good brakes and tires on the car. It made a bit of noise, but stopped in time. True I was also in a left turn lane, but it was marked that one should be there to get on the interstate, but not until the next light. I will be more careful next time. Or maybe I will just go a different way. Certainly, that must have raised my blood pressure. Paula

Strong Wind?

Hello, I had forgotten to go to the post office for stamps. So, we went today. They were certainly busy with many people waiting. The guy who helped us was quite patient and cheerful. We wanted quite a number of stamps so it took some decisions to get the job done. There were a lot of commemoratives to choose from. The wind was commented on by one of us. Our house is in a more sheltered place. On the way home we stopped at a grocery store that had a great sale on organic honey crisp apples. We managed to purchase several other things that were on sale. Now I have to figure out where to store all this stuff efficiently. Again, the wind was commented on. After lunch we took a long walk. The wind seemed even stronger and the temperatures had dropped. I noticed white stuff in the air. It took a while for Leroy to see it too, but then it became quite noticeable and almost seemed like sleet as it struck our small areas of bare skin. It was wonderful to come back home. The furnace is thankfully working. We will not be going out for another walk as we can walk in this space to get the steps we want. I just finished reading, The Mitford Affair by Marie Benedict. She writes historical fiction. I have enjoyed her other books and this one also appealed to me. Again, I learned a lot. I had never heard of the Mitford sisters. Paula

Hanging out Clothes

Hello, Well, clothes were on the line today and if it is nice another load will be out tomorrow. Clothes lines are such a great invention. How wonderful that they are still acceptable in some locations. I managed to get a lot of steps going back and forth. Leroy rode his bike today. But might drive tomorrow since he has an early morning appointment and does not know how long that will take. These days make it easier to get in some nice long walks. The mask is on my face to protect my nose from the sun. Those saved face masks have come in handy. Guess they will hang around longer. There was a little breeze today and that was quite refreshing. Paula

Gift Giving

Hello, I find gift giving to not be my skill. Other people seem to do so well, knowing just the perfect thing. My family did not exchange luxury gifts, but leaned more to the practical. However, I remember the feeling of being able to give my mother a “pop up toaster”. We three children pooled our money to be able to do that. Our old toaster was a type where the doors on both sides came down and there was no automatic to it. It had to be watched to determine when the bread was toasted on one side, the bread turned and toasted on the other side. Frequently the bread burned as my mother worked doing other things to get a meal on the table. My mother would be moved to swear or curse, not too much. It would scare me as she fumed about the smoke in the house along with the wasted bread. Jewels might have been nice, but the automatic toaster was much appreciated. Even though these were not luxury items they almost become that when there is no money to be used for such an article when you already have one that works. Most of the people I gift today do not really need anything. I am then at sea in a possibility of hundreds of things to get, but what would be best? Or then there is the case of Leroy, many of the things he might want are best procured by himself because I do not know what is right such as stamps for his collection. Paula

Accomplishments

Hello, It may sound crazy, but blowing my nose for the first time in three weeks was quite satisfying. It was not painful! I have been wiping my nose or heaven forbid snuffing, which is not as fruitful an effort. Last night we put the gel strip on my nose to aid with healing the scar. Leroy helped to get the size right. It is very sticky stuff and the first attempt was not quite right so it had to be pulled up, followed by a second attempt that was also a little off. It was noticeable when extracted, but not painful. Course the spot touching was very small. After reading the directions on the package rather than from the nurse, I groaned. It needs to come off after four hours. The other instructions talked about 12 hours. Luckily, I get up to go to the bathroom from time to time so I took it off at three hours. I will put it on before bed tonight so I can tend to it in a timelier manner. The strips are to be washed and reused so the recommendation is to alternate the use. What to do with them when they are sitting around? Also, how will I take them to Utah for Christmas? I will need to use them for months. Then there is that Panama Canal cruise coming up. Somethings get complicated. Grateful that this is all available to me. At church someone was talking about a place she traveled to and people do not have even a pain pill available. Rather the pills are so expensive they cannot get them. We are rich indeed. I ordered some Christmas gifts for our family in DC. I could not get the address to change to theirs for delivery, but chatting online with an agent got the job done. Grateful for that too. Paula

Favorites

Hello, Who knew I would have a favorite pen, eraser, font, or place to sit? There was a time when it was easier to just manage with whatever was around. Now I spend a little time searching for just the right item. Many people have favorite authors. This is especially true of those who write in series. People wait impatiently for the next book in the series. Am I becoming one of those people? It is much harder to find a book to read when the new ones are not going across my desk. That certainly allowed me to get an idea of what was appealing to me. It is so nice to go to a book club and listen to the opinions of others. We read “Catcher in the Rye.” This book did not appeal to me even the third time. Some there liked it quite a lot. After listening to their reasons, it changed my attitude towards the book, but not enough to read it again. My favorite garden is now becoming kale from the garden in December. These plants have all of my admiration with their tenacity.

Paula

Good Concert

Hello, There was mist in the air and the weather report talked about a winter mix for much of the evening. We drove instead of walking. The concert had been sold out so we made sure to park in an out of the way place. We can easily find those since we spend so much time in that area. The audience was enthusiastic which heightens the performance. I even sang almost all of the “ds” in the Hallelujah chorus. With so many voices it was easy not to over sing thus protecting the voice. It was over quickly, at least that is how it felt. Leroy heard that the concert is posted on line, but he could not find it. A more specific location might help. This morning there was snow on the grass, but not on the sidewalks. The walk to church was on alert, but it went fine with only one slippery place found. Paula

Kale yet?

Hello, This afternoon on a check at the community garden, kale was discovered to be thriving or at least not frozen. May not grow much more, but there are some edible leaves there. The small second cabbage head growth is also looking quite fine. Even the rainbow and Swiss chard look like they could keep growing. The low temperature at our house was 9 degrees F. Can you imagine that the plants can survive that? It is quite amazing. Today it was almost 49 degrees. Leroy rode his bike yesterday and again today. Apparently yesterday, the ice in certain spots was quite exciting, but he did not fall. He’s hoping that there was enough melt yesterday to make it much better today. He is not working today, but volunteering at the museum Christmas Mart. Is this guy tied up at work or what? He plans to retire in the spring, but can he make the break? Last night we had dress rehearsal for our concert tonight. Somehow Leroy and I barely managed to be on time. We are usually early. Tonight, we will be ahead of time. Paula

Like Shopping?

Hello, Leroy and I went shopping this morning. We did fairly well when looking for things that we knew were on the list. We have some gift cards. There are either a lot of things we would like to get but, do we want to move them in a year or two? Most of our time was spent wandering around the store discussing this and that. We left with nothing. Should we make a list and prioritize the possibilities? It is hard to know. It was also windy and cold walking to and from the store to the car. We were glad to go home. Several of books have come in for the little free libraries. It was a chore to figure out if more of them are coming. Some titles are duplicated and the list was quite long. More will be coming, but I am not sure how many. This morning in the 33-degree temperatures, we hung out bedding plus a few other things. Some dried and some did not. The high temperature was only 36, but a nice wind blew away much moisture. I may not repeat that until a time of warmer temperatures. Paula