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No longer on the river and, again, an empty nester. Back to living on Fleming Island and making some more friends!

Saturday, April 29, 2017

PACE clothing give away

A week ago Friday I joined my friend, Terri, and her sister, Gayle, over at church to sort and fold clothes which Terri had hauled from her office. I didn't know they were going to do this and was happy to be part of the fun. I can sort and fold clothes to beat the band and do enjoy doing it for the girls. There was much much more clothing coming from the PACE Center which Terri would get help moving on Wednesday. 
This past Thursday Terri and the gang had gotten everything hauled from the back classroom where it was stored to the Fellowship Hall at church where we began in earnest with more sorting and folding. Besides the ATT Pioneers volunteers, Gayle, plus Janet B., from our congregation, came to help. When we had the room all set up Michael came in from the classroom and took our photo. 
 On Friday morning, we were ready for the girls from PACE to come and do their 'shopping'. I was privileged to help this young lady with her selections. The number of items they get to take is based upon an earned point system in the school year. Two young ladies had acquired enough points to get 50 items! They get to choose from the hanging clothes, folded items, purses, lingerie, sleepwear, and even shoes. 
 The girls were transported by their own PACE vans from their school to our church, about 12 at a time. Terri's group is quite organized with the way things are handled for the selections and bagged up. This is important since they are under a time crunch. I thought of Supermarket Sweepstakes where folks run through the aisles of the grocery store and throw stuff into the shopping cart to beat the clock. 
 Here's some of the room all done up and ready to be dug through. In between the visits from the girls we'd have about 45 minutes during which time we'd restack the clothes which had been rummaged through, locate empty hangers in the racks (the hangers were very nicely placed in boxes for the next event) and we'd move some stuff around on the racks to make them easier to see. Some of the groups had quiet girls while others had more excitement. I'm sure it's a bit overwhelming especially for some of the girls who come from less than ideal circumstances or from poverty. At the end of the shopping, I was completely worn out and excused myself while the ladies set about packing up. Terri had to be sure the Fellowship Hall was turned around and ready for Bible study on Sunday morning. She reported to me that she had done just that. 

Thankfully they could wheel some of the racks to the back classroom where they can be gone through again before being packed up for the next time. I look forward to helping with that next week, I'm sure!

Monday, April 17, 2017

I hate the words "used to"

Hate is a strong word, I should modify it to 'dislike' that group of words. One of my friends at church, Jackie, in her 80's, told me more than once how she has come to hate those words. "I used to be able to drive at night..."; "I used to be able to shop for hours...", "I used to be able to sleep all night..." and so on. All the things we used to do, or were able to do. I used to dance like my pants were on fire. Now, they'd have to actually be on fire for me to move like that! And then I'd not be able to walk for the rest of the week. 

Several years ago my sister, Lori, was telling how her husband and she were moving furniture around in their split-level. What formerly would have been a simpler task proved to be quite taxing. In Lori's words: "My days of carrying sofas down the stairs are over..." She 'used to' be able to carry stuff easily, but now, not so much. The physical limitations are just that---limiting. 

I remember how I 'used to' do many things on the job sites including demo work, nailing drywall, stapling insulation, nailing floors, staining and varnishing trim, painting walls and ceilings, painting the exterior of our homes. I used to be able to climb ladders, once even getting onto the roof of a house, but found myself unable to address the ladder when it was time to go back down! In those days, my husband was able to swing and lower me by my hood onto the rungs of the ladder. He 'used to' be able to handle me, as it were. 

Some of the things I used to do I don't miss much but there are other things for which I do wish. One is to hear my son's voice. I can make that come true by having my video tapes converted to DVDs. Not sure what is preventing that, it's on me to make it so. I used to be able to Jazzercise, now it takes all my strength to move from chair to bed to car to place where I am going. That might be an exaggeration but not too far off. My joints complain and my back hurts. I used to be able to pack up a household in really good time, whereas now, I'd have to sit down every few minutes to accomplish the task. At least I can still tell others, the able-bodied, what to do yet!

I used to wear big, heavy glasses but after having LASIK surgery, I no longer have to wear those. However, I am at a point where glasses might now be necessary again, after 17 years. Hopefully not so heavy and I am sure so large, though that is presently the style people are wearing. We shall see (ha ha)! I never used to take afternoon naps but now I do, every time I can. I never used to procrastinate but now I do, much to my chagrin. 

I 'used to' a lot of things, some of which I miss, and others I do not. I don't hate it yet as much my older friend does, but I imagine I shall some day. 

Monday, April 3, 2017

Looking at relationships

There is a scene in one of Justin's and my favorite movies, "Julie and Julia", where Julie has a sad lunch with her friends and comes to the realization about who or what they really are---terrible people! At least, that's the way they come across in the restaurant scene, totally self-absorbed and full of themselves. Simple Julie meets another friend later on and asks her the rhetorical question, "What does it means if we don't like our friends?" Quite telling. Are they truly friends or just people we know? 

I've had some recent experiences and communications which proved troubling, leaving me feeling sad and unsettled. What's going on with people? Why so touchy? Are our relationships so valueless and unimportant that they can be disposed of without any sense of loss? I hate to even think how close I've come to figuratively giving a pop on the snoot and say, "Knock it off!" The question is for how long does a person tolerate being poorly treated or spoken to before severing ties? When it's one's own family acting poorly toward the others in the relation, that is a tough situation. From the outside, it is easy to make suggestions on how to make the repairs to the relationship. The more people involved, the more complicated it becomes. It all gives me a headache, and sometimes, a heartache. Deep and abiding sadness, messing with my joy. Hate it, just hate it, for all of us.