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