A friend from the past

In a few moments someone with whom I spent much time in the past is coming to see me. Etta retired, closing her business which was nearby to my home, and is now officially retired. Already today she has been to yoga class which means she is an up and at 'em girl. She lives not far from our shared friend, Brenda. I actually introduced the two ladies to each other before Brenda even came to work for us, and they became fast friends. Brenda had then worked for the developer of our community and Etta handled the closings. Worked out great for them, and then Brenda came to work for us, which was even better.

Besides our business dealings, I worked closely with Etta when we built her home many years ago. I can remember clearly persuading her to use a vibrant  paint color for her front door when everything else she chose was safely neutral. The color was named "Watermelon" and how strange that I remember this detail!! She was thankful later for me pushing her to stick her neck out that way. 

Etta and her daughter are such good friends to Brenda that at least once, sometimes twice, a year they take her along with them to the Bahamas. They used to have access to a beach property but now they just stay in a hotel or inn when they go. It is such a wonderful getaway for them all, and a special treat for Brenda. They are so good to her, and for her!  I used to send my discarded clothing along with Brenda for her to give to a lady they were friends with in the Bahamas. One year the lady sent back a lovely necklace and anklet for me. She made the jewelry and sold it to tourists who came to her display set up along the path. So primitive an existence, and yet so grateful for my donations. 

I am looking forward to playing some catch up with Etta, and since she expressed a desire to visit my church with me sometime, this might be the first of many regular conversations! More later!

"Do not fear"

This was the theme of our Ladies' Advent Service (or ABC, as our hostesses call it) at Victory. It is such an enjoyable evening at this service by women and for women, followed by sumptuous treats at beautifully decorated tables. The best part for me is getting see all the ladies again. One lady I got to see came via iPad, as her daughter-in-law, Jenna, made it possible for Marilyn to "attend" from her home. Marilyn has inoperable cancer of the heart and her days are spent in a hospital bed set up at home. Ordinarily she'd have been in the middle of this whole ABC event, but this time, only a spectator from the comfort of her home. 

Carol came by to pick me up and direct her to our destination. We drove in misting rain which was unpleasant but not horrible (at least, not for me as a passenger!). Laurie was supposed to join us but her husband had to work last night so those plans were changed. Only the three of us signed up to attend, which is sad because it's such a wonderful way to 'look forward' to Christmas. 

Esther, seated across from me in this photo, was our hostess. She told us how the first ABC held here had 35 in attendance and this year's reservations topped 90. It is just that popular an event, with their members inviting family members and friends to share this special time with them. 

Before Carol came for me, I watched the Jaguar game. At halftime I was hopeful the Jags would be able to pull off another victory but, alas, it was not to be. At least we'll get to watch the Packer game tomorrow night which will make up for our sad Jaguar game. It was great to spend the time in worship and fellowship with Carol and the others at Victory. Such a lovely evening...

"Are you a friendly neighbor?"

My friend, a Realtor, sends out a newsletter every month or so through her real estate business. I used to be paid to prepare these mailings for her so know all about them. This month's letter arrived and was lying on my bed when Justin came in. Seeing the letter, he laughed a bit when he read the title question.  "You???", he asked.  I told him I chuckled a bit when looking at it because I am sure my neighbors get quite annoyed with me...Not really, but I truly didn't need a reminder letter about it. How unfortunate, though, that some folks do need to be encouraged in such a fashion.

The suggestions were made to get to know your neighbors better for safety reasons in addition to just being the right thing to do. To make your neighborhood a smiling place to be. There are gift suggestions such as cocoa mix in a mug, a poinsettia, or baked goods taken to the door to introduce yourself. This brought to mind how a few years back each of the residents in my building received ceramic mugs with candy in them one morning before Christmas. No one knew who did it, and people were guessing it was me. They said this sounded like something I would do, and I was a bit ashamed of myself for not doing it! I don't think the gift giver ever came clean but it sure was a nice gesture. But, it didn't really help us to get to know each other better, by remaining anonymous. What it did, though, was put a smile on the receiver's faces and the gift giver's, as well.

So, there is something to being a friendly neighbor. I have certainly experienced such here in this building. I love my neighbors and go out of my way to let them know how much I appreciate them. They are at my door with chicken soup when I am recuperating from oral surgery (Ellen), or come running with mops and buckets when that particular need arises, and yes, even pay to have my drywall repaired/painted when needed from a leak. It is just surprising to me that people need reminding to be good neighbors, but I guess it does. I know of some people who have no idea who their neighbors are, only enough to wave at, if that. One person tells me about a neighbor who actually turns their back when waved at as she passes by. For no apparent reason, just turns his back. I would take that challenge on, but not my friend---she just keeps waving!   

Other ideas in this letter suggest being considerate of others and keep your place tidy. These are things you learned growing up, and should carry over into your work place and everyday living. I do try my best to not be noisy for my neighbor's sake and am friendly when they come and go in my presence. Just the other day I gave a pitch to a couple looking at one of the units for sale (heard they ended up buying), telling them how nice it was to live here, and so on. Oh, goody, I'm getting new neighbors!!

Lunch with Martie

After a long time of Martie and I not seeing each other, today was the day! For one reason or another we have not hung out together for ages. We did see each other at a wedding in late June and it was great to catch up there, though briefly. She is busy with grandchildren, great-grands, work, her husband, her brother...Life gets in the way of our fun!

We agreed to meet for lunch at Grumpy's which is close to her work. She didn't have to be in until 1:30 so we had two hours to talk and eat and talk some more. I think I got caught up on all her family's news. Her sweet 'little' grandson, whom we called Man Man, turned 15 today which is so hard to believe. I've known him since he was about 4 years old and to imagine him as a teenager is nearly impossible!

This picture was taken at Justin's 21st birthday party in 2009. There is Man Man (now known as Little Mark) behind me, eating meat on a stick. Usually he ate grape tomatoes but this time he switched it up!

Tonight Justin and I went to worship for Advent services. He worked today but not as long as he did yesterday which allowed for him to get a rest before church. We had toyed with getting our dinner from Panda Express like we did last year but then Justin suggested we swing by Ming Moon on way home to pick up what he was craving. I just had some crab meat rangoons for my dinner while he had beef and broccoli. Oh yum! Can't go wrong with Ming Moon on a full moon night!

Reminiscing part II

This morning I was forced to watch a local TV channel because once again my FOX connection is missing from my bedroom TV. I can barely tolerate to watch CNN or Headline News so I put on the local news to see what was going on. It was pretty 'intense' as these types of programs tend to be, with the reporters out on a crime scene making dramatic use of hand gestures, expression, and theatrics when describing something which happened hours ago. The latest report was that the crime scene tape was removed and the investigation moved up the road a piece. There is only so much that can be said 12 hours after the crime took place.

This actually was rather big news for our area  with the late afternoon murder of a young mother and the abduction of her 10 year old daughter. The murderer/sexual predator was captured early this a.m. in the woman's vehicle, which he stole, being pulled over in a traffic stop at the McDonald's just outside of Middleburg. This is a little too close to home, especially for my friends who live out that way. 

Besides this dramatic story, there was a 'stock' story about how much more prevalent toy injuries are these days. I don't recall the time frame they used, but evidently kids are eating their toys, breaking parts off and hurting themselves with them, and so on. This brought to mind a trip to WI not long after we'd moved to FL. We were at the home of my brother-in-law for a visit where Justin played with some of his cousin, Kevin's, toys while the parents sat around chatting. 

Later that night Justin was 'up in the night', as Mom likes to say, complaining as best he could at his young age about his ear. The next morning I called the doctor's office where we were patients only a few months before and they got us in. As Dr. Schmidt was examining him, he asked us when Justin had gotten tubes in his ears. We were stunned at that question since Justin never had tubes in his ears. "Hmmm..." he replied. He got a forceps and proceeded to pull out a little plastic piece of a toy from Justin's ear! What in the world?? What makes a guy think, "Here's a little piece of a toy which will fit perfectly in my ear..."? We were relieved he didn't have an infection or anything like that, just a simple piece of Kevin's old toys he had placed carefully in his own ear!

Ladies' Group Christmas party

Tonight was our Ladies' Group party tonight, the very earliest it could be in the season. What great fun we had. The food tables were laden with trays and dishes of food, oh my! There were 26 ladies in attendance, some for the first time, which was great. After we ate, Terri T. got us started playing Bunco, most of us new to the game. She and OJ, her lady friend, were most helpful in showing us the ropes. 

 Julaine, Jayne, Janet, Lynn, Kristi, and Betty

From the back, Ethel, Sue, Kristin, then Rachel, Carol, Julaine, Jayne, Janet, and Lynn

 Across the table Jean, Michele, Twila, Rebecca, Donna, Tamara coming in the door, Ethel, Gretchen, Sue, Fran walking with food, Kristin

From left Lynn, Kristi, Judy, Jean, Michele, Twila, Rebecca, and Donna

People gathering at the food table: Sue, Rachel, Jayne, Donna, Laurie, Carol, Julaine, Fran, and Gretchen

After we played one full round of Bunco, we did our gift exchange using a poem Janet brought. We had to go through some hoops in order to end up with a gift, not our usual Chinese Fire Drill-style. She sure put us through our paces! Such a good night and great fun with our group...

Reminiscing

My friends, Paul and Emily, with their extended family members, have made a tradition of going downtown Jax every year for the tree lighting ceremony and the boat parade. Photos from The Landing were posted last night and again tonight of their activities, many of them featuring their daughter, Sarah. They hotel rooms along the river's edge from which to watch the boat parade from the comfort of their room, but actually go in the flesh to see the tree lighting and hear the caroling, followed by the fireworks display. Thanksgiving weekend is quite action packed downtown. They have invited me to join them in the past, and I respectfully declined, allowing them their family time. 

When Justin was a little boy, we began the 'tradition' as a family of going to the tree lighting, have some dinner at The Landing, and enjoy the beginning of the holiday festivities. The food court had something for everyone with the Chinese restaurant where I got my meal. I think my former spouse got Mexican or perhaps a burger. Justin likely had hot dogs, but that much I don't remember. I do hope we fed him...He loved the fireworks, ooohed and aaahed over the colors and the banging, lights reflecting in the water, and such.  One year we took him to see/hear the fireworks for the 4th of July and he said, "They have fireworks in the summer, too!!" He only knew about the ThanksLiving ones!

Fast forward to the mid-2000's and there I was at the boat parade with Jesse's family, watching for Justin on his father's boat taking part in the parade. We were freezing!!  We sat on the porch at a restaurant from where we had our dinner, and after the parade, we walked over to the Times Union Center for a free concert by a semi-local band. For Christmas that year, Pam gave me a CD of their music. It was an unexpected day and event, and this memory came back to me as I thought of Paul and Emily making theirs.

A year or two after that, Justin, our friend, Olivia, and I were at the tree lighting ceremony on a lovely evening. Her folks, Owen and Sandy, came downtown to meet up with us, and we ended up at a sushi place upstairs overlooking the river. They had stand heaters on the porch but eventually it got too chilly for us outdoors so we moved inside. Twice Sandy ordered a sushi tray, NOT an inexpensive purchase, and the four of them just dined away. I did not eat sushi since we'd eaten dinner in the restaurant below the sushi place, so I was all set to simply enjoy the company. We sat there for a couple hours and had such a good time doing so. I don't think Justin drove yet so that means I must have driven us down there. Those details escape me but I do remember the impromptu fun had at The Landing on this weekend in past years. People come and go from our lives but at least some of the memories live on...