Under Construction

This is today's view of our front porch, soon to be a sunroom. It has been stripped down to the floor, roof supports and roof. The workers will return on Monday and add doors, windows and knee walls. The pile you see in the center is the stack of furniture moved out of the way for constuction. The cats are very upset because they have always claimed the porch as theirs and without barriers to prevent them from wandering off, we are keeping them in the house.

It Is Done

Our library is gone (or nearly gone). I just finished taking the last load of about 1100 books to the Salvation Army. This doesn't mean we'll stop reading. It just means we will stop accumulating books.

No Points for Deal Making

Yesterday I decided I couldn't swim in books any longer. We had a wall of floor to ceiling bookcases. All full. Even had a smaller bookcase in front of the bookcases. My computer desk was filled with books, the floor was stacked with books, one bathtub was filled with books, my husband's dresser was filled with books. In the living room,---well, you get the picture.

Anyway, I decided to start with the paperbacks. Because I need one hand free to support myself when walking, I packed the books in plastic bags. I packed and carried eighteen bags of books to the car---no small deal for me. My original intention was to take the books to our local Salvation Army. Some place along the way, my northern European roots came to the forefront and I wondered why I should just give the books away. With a quick phone call, I confirmed that a used bookstore in a town about 25 miles away would be glad to look at my books (meaning all eighteen bags would have to be carried into the store).

So with husband and books tucked in the car, we drove off to Wellsville. When we parked in front of the store, I noted with dismay the two-foot high mound of snow between the car and the sidewalk. Bravely, I attacked the snow only to discover I couldn't get through it without falling. So back to the car to get my cane. At this point, the shop owner came flying out of the store and announced that I shouldn't be doing anything and that she would unpack the books. We finally compromised. I stood on one side of the snow wall and she got the books out of the trunk and handed them across the barrier to me.

Then all eighteen bags were carried into the store and stacked by the owner's desk. One bag at a time, one book at a time, she selected the books she would buy. I carried the rejected books outside, waiting to go through the same dance to put them back in the car.

The owner selected 118 books and paid me------------eleven dollars and eighty cents. That's ten cents a book! When I told my husband, he dryly pointed out that would cover the cost of the gas. We went to McDonald's for lunch and that cost four dollars and change so lunch was covered too but the rest of my killing was too little for a bank deposit.

We drove back to Hornell and went straight to Salvation Army. I backed up to the Donations door and went inside to tell them that I had 100-200 books to be donated. A guy came out with a cart, loaded the rest of the books, thanked us and pushed the cart inside.

We went home where I decided to take the rest of books straight to the Salvation Army. By then it was pretty obvious that I had made no points for deal making.

Ryder's Bed

On my other blog (www.sirryder.blogspot.com), I just posted the same picture and the story of Ryder using this basket for his bed. He used it for years until I decided the sheepskin was too dirty and replaced it with a new piece. He never got in the basket after that. Now he sleeps on the floor or in a people's chair. And I feel guilty....

Forecast of Spring

Sounds like Panxsutawny Phil isn't any happier with his forecast that we are. And I'm always happy to comment on members of the current administration, even if I have to use a mouth piece.

Flower Power

I'm a so-so gardener, convinced that nature doesn't need a lot of help from me. I'm offering this photo as proof.

I have very small, easy upkeep flower beds that give us a lot of pleasure.

I'm looking for this year's blooms.

Reset Your Clocks

I hope everyone remembered to reset their clocks last night.

Speaking of clocks, the photo on the left is a picture I took of the display on a building across the street from our hotel in Paris a few years back.

Robin Sighting

I saw my first robins today. The photo is misleading because the robins were in a small grassy area surrounded by fields of snow left by the Valentine's Day storm.

We also saw flocks of wild turkeys and some deer. After all the snow, seeing anything else is exciting.

A Good Winter Read

I read Beverly Lewis' series THE HERITAGE OF LANCASTER COUNTY that chronicles the young adulthood of a girl who grew up in an Amish family. While some might consider this a religious book, I found it to be good fiction---a strong plot, well-developed characters and a style of writing that kept me turning the pages. I look forward to reading more of her books.

Let's Pretend

Remember when you were a kid playing with a sibling or friend? You wanted to play a new game and would say so. "Let's pretend to play school." "Let's pretend that we're in the jungle.""Let's pretend that I'm a giant." And so on. Most kids are very aware of what's real and what's fantasy.

Flash forward to adults. Which adult says "Let's pretend that this credit card is really cash."?Or "Let's pretend I'm sick so I can stay home from work." "Let's pretend I stopped at that stop sign." Notice how the labels are removed and the line between reality and fantasy disappears.

Move onward to the federal government. When they shout "Support our troops!" do they add "Let's pretend Walter Reed and V.A. hospitals take care of those who were harmed in the line of duty"? Guess not.

Once again it is Kids 1 Adults 0.

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".