Is it that cold?

Hello, Before we got into church someone asked, “Is it that cold?” They came in a car and probably did not go out of their house to get in the car. Leroy and I had on winter coats, scarves, hats, and mittens. We were not too warm. It was in the 20’s with a brisk wind blowing. It was nice to get in the building. The trip home was disappointingly not much warmer. I walked this afternoon and it was still cool even though it was in the 30’s F. One thing about being in the cold, it is so wonderful to come into a warm building. What a gift that we often just take for granted as our due. I thought that my Thanksgiving cactus plants were not to rebloom this year. But two of them are growing buds just now. It is exciting to see that. Only one of the three amaryllis is sending up a bud. The poinsettias are starting to lose leaves at a steady rate. The violets look good. It seems there is always something on one end of the bloom cycle. It puts a lot of color in my life. Our rubber band supply is set for a long time. I mentioned to a friend that I had gone to the store for rubber bands and they were out. He had some from his newspaper. He brought me many more than we need, or else they will last three years. Life is full of unexpected riches. Paula

Some Jobs Change

Hello, We had planned to be at church to do our usual unloading help. That was to be followed by cleaning the balcony. Our cleaning helper was not well so we would not do the whole balcony, but planned to do a part of it. We helped onload and put away some things. We finished the stowing of items and moved on to the balcony. The organist was practicing. He said, “It is just fine if you want to clean.” I moved a few things and got ready to clean the window blinds. It would not release all the way. Another guy came by. He also could not get it to release. He had another suggestion, “The new family bathroom is finished and needs cleaning so it can be used on Sunday.” Off we went in another direction. We had to brush or dust all surfaces to remove any leftover plaster. Then we had to clean the mirror, wash walls, the door, and the floor. We followed that by dusting and washing the baseboard in the area outside of that bathroom. All of the dust from one project seems to float around any open space. We were both tired by the time we went home. Paula

Another Trip Planned

Hello, One of the multiple cruise catalogs caught our attention. After talking with some of our traveling friends, we checked into the possibility. The trip to the middle east involved such a long plane ride that it lost some of the luster. I have wanted to go to eastern Europe. That seemed much more possible. After talking to the agent, we signed up and deposited money. We even upgraded the room so we have a balcony. Then we checked again with our friends about them joining us. For various reasons that will not happen. Almost immediately I had some quandaries. Could we travel without friends? We have not done that for many years. I have come around to the idea that it will be ok, but wonder if it will be as much fun. All of the excursions were a bit daunting with time involved. Some of them were listed as a higher difficulty. One has some altitude involved. I wonder now, can Leroy’s heart manage that? He tells me, “I will spend some more time working to get stronger.” There is only one city that we have ever been to and that is Budapest. We will again spend two nights there. All of the rest are just a one day stop except for Bucharest where we start. I believe it should be an interesting trip. We will go in November over Thanksgiving time. Hopefully the airports will not be too challenging two days after that holiday. That will be for the return trip. Paula

Harassing a Squirrel

Hello, Yesterday I came home to see a squirrel hanging on the birdfeeder. I came on the deck and told it, “Get off of there. Go away.” It moved but not really off the deck. I went closer and yelled again. It moved some more. It was almost within touching distance. I stamped my feet and repeated my advice. Finally, it left and ran up a close tree. Today I saw it back on the feeder. I raced downstairs, grabbed a broom, and proceeded to chase and run at it. It moved away very quickly to that tree. Later I saw it coming back on the deck. I opened the upstairs window, put my head close to the window, and yelled, “Get out of here. This is for the birds.” That squirrel ran up the tree. It must recognize my voice. But then it came sneaking back. “Oh no, it is back again.” I told Leroy. This time it was not impressed with the window yell. Once again for me it was time to go downstairs, grab the broom and go out. We were gone for a while. It was once again on the feeder. Leroy commented, “They are smart. It knew you were gone and it could do what it wanted.” I guess the squirrel is winning since I cannot be glued to the window all day. Paula

Saving money is a hard job

Hello, Saving money can be harder than shoveling snow. I would rather shovel snow at least there I know what I am doing. We have a foldable lamp that we like a lot. We can no longer recharge the battery. I ordered a new one today. The price was about what I expected, but there was a $7 shipping charge if the order was less than $35. What more could I buy that I really wanted? After thinking about it, I decided to get some make up. The phone rang and I answered as I was trying to put in the credit card numbers. Somehow the numbers were not correct. I forgot to see if the total was over the required amount which I had not written down and could not remember. When I finally thought to check about the shipping or not, the order was being processed and not changeable at that point. I had been just two dollars short of free shipping. Grumble, grumble. In the whole of life, it is a small thing, but annoying none the less. I do not order much on line. Leroy is more likely to do that. Practice does make it easier. Shoveling snow was not so easy this morning. It was wet and heavy. In places it was rather deep because the wind and blown it around. When we walked to church the places that had been shoveled were actually slippery compared to the unshoveled where we could walk though snow. When we came home the sidewalks that had cleared were dry even though the sun was not shinning. There must have been some residual heat to melt and dry it. Paula

Getting to Know my Dentist

Hello, Another dental checkup confirmed that I am healing well. It will be another month before the work is started on creating the bridge. Here I was hoping for it to be done. Guess I have no concept about how long all of this takes. Some minor adjustments were made so my jaw will not ache so much when I have the spacer appliance in my mouth. I can eat almost anything as long as the pieces are small enough that I do not have to bite them off. We have a dinner to attend for the volunteers at church. I will not be able to eat with this thing in my mouth. Can I handle eating in public with the gap in the front of my mouth? Am I vain? I like to think I am not, but it shows in this type of decision. Paula

Amaryllis Planted

Hello, I attended to some hard things this afternoon. The morning went well with a spirituality meeting. The first thing this afternoon, after I worked up my courage, I called the insurance company about a prescription. Does insurance rule the world? I learned that there was a pharmacy that was cheaper than the one where I had gotten my prescription. And the insurance company would not cover what I had purchased. The other more expensive place they did cover was forty dollars more than what I paid. Since I already had the compounded medicine, it will be next time before I check into this third place. After that I ordered more checks. We almost never use them, but we only have seven left. There are certainly widely varying prices for this item. I finally called and talked to a robot to get the job done. After that it was time to plant the amaryllis. They have been waiting patiently. Leroy helped a bit. We decided that it needed to be done in the garage because of the strength of the wind. There are now three pots in the house. The bulbs are small, but still feel firm so I am hoping for some growth and maybe even a bloom or two. Paula