Phone Call in the Night

For the last four plus years, I became accustomed to receiving phone calls in the night from the nursing home or the hospital regarding my mother. I got the last one early this morning. My mother passed away this afternoon.

One of my brothers and his wife are at sea on the QE2 but we were able to reach them. They can be back next Monday so things on on hold until then. It's tough. More later.

World's Ugliest Cat Candidates

I get a regular parade of visitors to my website looking for the world's ugliest cat. Here are a couple more candidates, although I regard the kitty on the bottom as pathetic, rather than ugly.

Thoughts on the Passing of a Classmate

I read in the paper yesterday that one of my classmates passed away. We were in school together from grade one until we graduated; there were sixteen of us in my class. I haven't seen him since the day we graduated, about forty-nine and a half years ago. Regretfully, I never knew the man Clair became, but the boy he was taught me one of life's best lessons.

One year (while it was still politically correct) Clair drew my name for Christmas. When I opened my gift, it was a beautiful scarf. I thought it was the perfect gift and wondered how a
boy could pick out something so wonderful. It was years later that I realized that his mother and two older sisters most likely made the selection but by then, it didn't matter; Clair had his permanent, special place in my heart.

After the gift exchange, I started studying Clair, secretly I hoped. The striking thing I noticed was how easily he used humor to ease awkward situations. That strategy has helped me cope with life since I learned it from Clair.

Thanks, buddy. And I'll catch your next lesson up yonder.

I Finally Read It

I read The Da Vinci Code last week and felt like singing with Peggy Lee "Is that all there is?" Oh, sure, it was a good book and certainly contained controversial material but after all the hype, I had expected more.

A far better book in the same genre, in my opinion, is Daughter of God by Lewis Perdue. What do you think?

Red Hat Power

My sisters and I have discovered the power of red hats---you can do whatever you want to do, no matter how silly! The maturity gained through the years disappears in about ten seconds.

As Jenny Joseph said so well:

I shall sit down on the pavement when I'm tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.

By the way, I'm the one in the red hat.

The Thief (a.k.a. Old Age)

We stopped at the nursing home tonight to see my mother. Lately, she has sat in her wheelchair very placidly so I was somewhat startled to see her carefully smoothing out bedtime supplies on her bed. I stood in the doorway for several moments watching her and wondering what she was doing as she carefully arranged a protective bed pad and over that a fully-opened adult diaper.

When I put my hand on her shoulder and she turned around to see me, she smiled and said, “I was thinking about you tonight. I had to make a bed and I thought I should call Lillian and have her help me.”

Then I realized that in her world, that was what she was doing---making a bed, just like she had done a million times before old age had crept in and stole so much of her mind.

Winter's Soft Colors

I hear people complaining because winters in upstate New York are "colorless." I beg to differ. Winter is not colorless; the colors are different, a different pallette and much softer.

This is a stream near us. I love the soft grays and browns.

I'm Back!

Here I am again! First there was my 90-year-old mother's latest hospitalization and then my "new" (14 month old) computer died.

My mother is better. My dead computer is not. I replaced it today and now have to set everything up again.

Bear with me.........

Antique Dealers: Size A-A Or D-D?

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  I love looking for antiques. Show me an antique store and I'll show you a happy woman. I have decided over the years that antique dealers come in two sizes:
• A-A for Arrange to Appreciate
• D-D for Dump to Discover
  The A-As have breathtaking arrangements that force the antique seeker to appreciate the similar items selected for matching time period, colors, uses, whatever. The D-Ds just dump boxes, piles, stacks of unrelated items forcing the antique seeker to dig through everything to make his own exciting discovery. I haven't decided if one size suits all.

"Duty"

I've been thinking about the implications of the word "duty". It's an honorable word and one which commands respect from 99.9% of the population but I just realized that I don't care much for the word and what it implies. I would like to think that if I'm compelled to do something, then I am motivated by more noble reasons than "duty".