Developing new skills

Or refining old ones? Nancy W. and I were talking at dinner recently about some changes we are making in our day to day existence, some of them almost unnoticeable. One thing she has done is put herself on somewhat of a budget, taking out a certain amount of cash each month and making it stretch, limiting what she pays for with credit cards, and so on. She has two homes to get sold, one is her father’s and one is her own on the other side of the river. Work is going on to rejuvenate her house and has been for over a year, which is dragging out far too long. Once it’s ready for sale and sold, she will be in a better place, though she is probably doing the right thing for the long haul with her budgeting now.

Another thing Nancy is working on is based upon something she saw on-line, from an unusual source. I am not sure that Willie Nelson is the father of this or if he is simply associated with it now, but the statement was basically thus: “From now on I will focus on what my friend is saying rather than planning what I will say in response.”  This seems simple enough but it is certainly not. Often we can’t wait for our friend to finish their sentence to jump in with what we have to say. Try it sometime---or pay attention to your conversations with others and see how frequently you jump over someone else’s words. Talk about exercise! People like me have trouble with voids so it will take dedicated practice to get better about this, especially when I get so excited when talking with others. Years ago I mentored a young lady who often did not have her listening ears on. My counsel to her would usually be to: “Listen with your mouth closed”. Willie Nelson’s got nothin’ on me! And, I must take my own counsel to heart!

The old switcheroo

A while back my friend, Nancy, was here for dinner, eating in what we call the dinette. As we ate, Nancy was telling us a story and became animated, sort of throwing herself back in the chair. Crack! We heard wood in the back of the chair snap and immediately she jumped up. Oh, she was so embarrassed!

Justin gave her another chair (there are 4) while she was apologizing. It is an upholstered chair so we could not readily determine the damage.  She insisted that she would pay for the repair. She 'has a guy', as the expression goes, but I said no to that. This was a set I bought from a client of Joanne's who was ridding her home of extra furniture. It was used when we got it about eight years ago, and not very expensive. Since Justin and I are both people of some size, the chairs were getting a bit creaky. 

I have another set in the river room which is rarely used for dining so Justin and I talked about swapping the two. Those chairs are iron and will certainly stand up to our sitting down. Justin said he would ask Jesse to help him since he's helped Jesse recently with moving a bunch of stuff. So yesterday, that happened. 

 Here is the river room set now in the dinette/living room. Blends well with the iron pieces in the room, but much smaller table top. These iron chairs can hold us!

The river room is now smaller with this larger topped table in place but the glass doesn't make it seem so. 

The task was somewhat simple, the worst part being the big glass top from the dinette, because it's heavy. I started carrying the chairs but found myself underfoot. Justin knew I would like to polish the underside of the glass-topped table while it was off so I did that, and took care of the rest of the prints afterward. He knows me so well! I also had the guys rotate the rug in the river room before putting the table in place to even the 'wear' from the sun and traffic on it. Jesse was a good sport with my being finicky about placement and such. 

I had considered simply swapping the chairs but each set has different colored iron, plus the floral pattern on the upholstered chairs would not look good with the tiled top on the river room table. Initially I was not going to get the 4th chair repaired since it didn't cost me much in the first place but have since re-thought that. Still won't let Nancy pay for it though. Connie, our maintenance lady, told me of a place to take it for repair, saying she has used this lady as have others in the building. That is good enough for me! My concern is that the sun will be unkind to the upholstered chairs in the river room, as it has been to the end table which is shedding its varnished finish. We shall see....I might need to either replace them or have them reupholstered in the future. 

My mom, now 90, came to visit me in 2012. When she saw that glass-topped table she remarked, "I thought you said you would never have a glass table again..." Oh, what a memory that woman has! Likes to remind of things I have said or that Justin has said, does her little 'I so busted you!' chuckle. I very likely DID say that when I had a 4 year old eating at the table but that is no longer the case. I have since bought stock in Windex and have let the chips (or crumbs) fall where they may. Never say never!

Getting mixed up

The other day I wrote a Facebook status update which stimulated many fun comments from others. I wrote: "How sad is it that Connie (maintenance lady) carried in a delivery from UPS and knew it was for Justin?" It was clearly marked as a Kitchen Aid mixer so it most assuredly is NOT mine. For a long time he's been hankering for one of these fancy kitchen items and my argument about it was that I have a perfectly good stand mixer which serves us well when needed. Yes, it is older than Justin is but still does the trick. The cooking shows on TV and stuff made on Pinterest use this Kitchen Aid product and he badly wanted one. Fortunately he had a coupon to use plus got an additional discount which made it cost about $100 less than usual. He took the second from the bottom choice of machine which came with extra accessories which he will use. I simply shake my head...

But, here's the deal---we have had this discussion more than once, how I don't care for anything being on the kitchen counters, no clutter, zero. And he was determined that his mixer needed to be kept out, even ordering it to color coordinate with my tile back splash. Yes, he was pandering to me! It weighs a ton so it's really too heavy to carry to the pantry and back again on a regular basis. Our shared joke is that he is going to end my days on earth some way or another to get his inheritance (we are so funny!), using a reference from Seinfeld as part of our shtick. "Elaine, what are YOU doing here...?" as Jerry mockingly pretends to suffocate George in his hospital bed. Now our joke is that Justin having this giant mixer out on my counter is going to be the death of me, but I'll fool him and get over it. Or, will try to!  I've already tolerated the coffee maker being out full time now as he likes iced coffee, and now this! Ugh! I wonder if coffee makers come in cobalt blue?

Such a terrible thing!

This morning, a lovely hot one, my friend, Nancy, sent a text message to me. It is Bill's birthday and while he still has to work (from home) she felt like she could tear him away for some time at the pool. We agreed to meet at 1:00 pm, with her bringing crackers and me bringing my freshly made ham salad.  I was in the process of grinding the meat when she messaged me. She was contacting Nancy W. and Bob as well to meet at the pool. This was so exciting---our first real outing of the season!!

Nancy W. got there first and had already gotten in the water. It was very cold but she said it was nice. Yeah, right! I used my handy dandy freezer bag Justin gave me for Christmas to keep the ham salad cold as well as my soda cans. Bob came over a few minutes after I got out there. He looks so good, can hardly tell that he'd had a stroke last fall. Was back to his normal self, that grumble muffin!  All we needed yet was Nancy and Bill and the crackers to have ourselves a party...

After a little bit Nancy came through the gate with the crackers but no Bill. She had terrible news to report---Bill was trying to file his taxes and found out that someone had already filed using his info AND gotten a tax refund!! Oh my! Nancy said the police were at their house at the moment and Bill was on the phone with the IRS to figure out what was going on. Two years ago when they lived in SC, the State Dept. of Revenue had been hacked and people's private info compromised, so they are guessing that's how this happened today. 

We all felt sick about this but still managed to have some ham salad on the crackers. Even Nancy had a couple before she went back home. Besides the horror of having an identity theft to deal with, they also had something going on with one of the air conditioners which was causing water to drip from the ceiling. She said she was handling that problem while Bill took care of the other one. Heartbreaking, simply heartbreaking!

Nancy W. and I enjoyed the ham salad and crackers after Nancy M. left. Bob had just eaten lunch so only had one or two. We did get into the pool a couple more times, including once when Maureen and her family showed up. She is a teacher but took a day of vacation to spend time with her daughter visiting from OH. If you recall, a few weeks Nancy W., Mo, and I went to eat at Santioni's for her spring break. I hadn't expected to see her again so soon while school is in session. It was fun. This is far earlier than I've ever gotten in the pool before, with last year being my earliest on record, in mid-May. I have out done myself, starting yesterday, getting in Nancy's pool. 

Anyway, I can't stop thinking of the horrible violation Bill is experiencing and will pray for his peace of mind and heart when I go to sleep tonight. I hope he can get some sleep, that poor guy. I will call tomorrow to see how things are going, hoping there is some sort of resolution to this without too much difficulty. We assume he needs new credit cards and bank accounts...oh, my goodness! I hope the powers that be can catch the culprits who did this and exercise swift justice on them. 

The value of friends

Nancy W. and I had an impromptu dinner at The Club tonight, casual grille night. That means we don't need to put on our church clothes for dinner. For just over $20 we are served a dinner complete with bread, appetizer, salad, and entree of steak, fish, or chicken. She and I generally get the Delmonico steak, getting a second or third meal from what we take home with us. Already my mouth waters in anticipation of my remaining steak and baked potato, and I only got home about two hours ago. It will make a good dinner for me tomorrow night. Oh, yum! Nancy generally takes my salad home with her---they simply box it up right away. Tonight I even ate the appetizer which I often give to her if it's fish or shrimp or something I don't like. This evening's presentation was ham based and I enjoyed it.

This afternoon we were in her pool, very early in the season for me. She lured me over with the declaration of the water being 85. Who could resist an offer like that? Actually the temp was more like 82 but I got in anyway, twice! Some of Nancy's other neighbors came over as well, ladies I know, and we had a nice time talking and paddling about. It was then we decided to go have dinner at The Club. 

So, while we were enjoying our meal, I brought up a subject I'd been pondering of late. I mentioned a few ladies I know who don't have any female pals with whom they go running around, and Nancy remarked, emphatically, "I don't know what I would do without my girl friends!". (It's kind of funny to call them 'girls' at this age, but that's okay). I could not agree more. The ladies referenced earlier either have friends through their spouse or just spend all their time with family members. That might work for them, and work nicely for them. Neither Nancy nor I have family down here so we make up for that by having friends from the neighborhood (both of us), church (in my case), school friends (her case), and work (my case). And then there's Facebook for friendship. That doesn't help people with the hanging out part but at least having regular virtual interaction with friends is a blessing. I speak from first-hand experience and blessing. 

Nancy and me at a fashion show at The Club

What is our role in these people's lives? Do we 'fix' those people, help them break out of their shell, find out more about them to see if they are content in their situation? Or, simply mind our business? Not all personalities are the same, of this I am well aware, but I would imagine that just about everyone would like to have someone with whom to talk and depend upon, or to schnudder with. When counting blessings, I count my friends twice!

I must be getting old

Many years ago my sister and I had taken my grandmother, Lily, to Copp's, a store which is the predecessor of today's superstores. Grandma always wore hairnets, as was the custom for her age group, and told us that she needed some more. Lori went to grab a package and returned to find us moving down another aisle. 

When she handed them to Grandma, Lily asked how much they were. Lori told her they were 33 cents for a pack of three. SCREECH!!!  She slammed on the brakes and asked incredulously, "Wwhhaatt?" Oh, it was hysterical! This story would be so much better if you could hear me say the 'wwhhaatt?'. Talk about highway robbery! She could not believe how much they had gone up in price since the last time she bought them. Now, granted, it might have been a very long time if my mom or auntie picked them up for her and Lily never knew how much they cost. Still, it makes me chuckle yet, to picture her slamming those brakes on in the aisle in shock. Eleven cents a piece for a white hairnet---unbelievable!

I had this similar experience recently at Publix. I went on Friday to get a prescription called in by my dentist because a couple of my teeth were giving me threats and I wanted to be ready in case it was an abscess. Anyway, the script wasn't available yet so I wandered around the store for a bit. Got soda which was on special and then went looking for some lotion. Normally I have a bottle from Justin from Christmas or Mother's Day to last me, but my legs still suffer from winter dryness so I wanted to get something to hold me over. 

Well, I searched the shelves to find the 'discount' stuff, even thinking some Vaseline Intensive Care would be good enough. Holy cow! These bottles, generous in size, were upwards of $8. SCREECH!!!  Wwhhaatt??? I decided to forego my purchase and make due with a bottle of stuff I got for Christmas at the Ladies' Group party, Tea Rose scent. Not my favorite scent, but, hey, if it does the trick, good! 

After I got my free prescription, I headed toward the check-out, passing the end cap where sale items were displayed. Yay for me---a bottle of lotion, not quite as large as the others but just fine, for $6. I felt like this was quite the coup, a score, finding this better priced product, name brand at that. I wonder if Publix doesn't market a no-name brand of its own for stuff like this. I am so good with generic products, not so good with dry skin!

Back to Lily's white hair nets---more than once when I worked at Shady Lane, I needed to go to her room (427) and borrow one of hers when I forgot my own. In my department hair nets were required for our tied up hair. Oh, I looked so cute with my dark brown hair sporting a white halo. And believe me, when I was done with it, I gave Lily back her expensive hair net, with interest!

I've been double-booked!

Today was a good desk day with the only people I've seen are those who live or work in my building. And I saw plenty of people! Don't need to leave my address to interact with anyone. Connie, the maintenance lady, uses my bathroom ever since the work has been underway at the pool area on The Club property. She comes and goes (ha, ha) most times without us seeing each other, since I am holed up in my room. But, today, she called for me to come out as she'd brought in Justin's new stand mixer which had been delivered by UPS. Somehow she knew that mixer was Justin's and not mine---how'd that happen?

I might have failed to mention the manatees returning to the basin and river. I'm sure every year I say this but it seems too early in the season for them to be back. This afternoon Connie called me to report a large manatee up close and personal in the basin. My goodness, that bull sea cow was as big as an island! He must be the boss of the manatess---wow! 

As the afternoon went on, I got a notice on Facebook that Ellen, my neighbor, had a present for me. She had traveled to San Francisco  for the Christmas holidays to visit her daughter and brought back a book for me. Only now is she getting around to unpacking, just like me she hates to do it, and came upon the book. 

Ashley Rose had found the book and thought of me so sent it back with her mom. "How to Talk Minnesotan", a mock tour book. According to Ellen, MN and WI are all the same, and I greatly appreciate the thought and will appreciate the humor included in this book. A sticker in the front indicates the book originated in WI, which is cool. The picture on the cover shows a 'rural' looking couple enjoying 'a little lunch'. Ellen came by with it on her way out. So thoughtful! 

After Linda and I watched The Five together, I grabbed a soda and went outside to sit on the sundeck with my neighbors. It was a beautiful day for it. We truly miss the giant tree that was taken down on The Club property as it provided relief from the sun on our deck. It was THAT large a tree. Today it was a non-issue, relatively cool for those that prefer it that way. Low 70's is tolerable, even for me. Anyway, after most of the group left the table to go in to have dinner only a lady from the building next door, Kathy, and Pat, remained. 

We three chatted together for a while and then it occurred to me to ask Pat if she still had my movie, "Midnight in Paris". She said she did and went inside to get it. I didn't mean I wanted it immediately but off she ambled, her back giving her a fit. Her unit is immediately adjacent to where we were sitting so she was right back. She gave me the DVD which I promptly loaned to Kathy, since she'd never seen it. As I explained to Kathy, I only asked about the movie as I like to keep track of those which I lend out. 

Pat also brought out a book with her, a brand-new one, titled "A Joy-Filled Life". She had picked it up at a seminar she attended in Orlando and thought of me. The author had spoken at the gathering her sister and she attended and got herself an autographed copy, and one to give me. She said, "It's spiritual, like you are..." and I did not choose to argue with her. Pat waited until it was only Kathy and me left sitting there to give it to me. Not sure the others would feel badly about not getting a book but it was considerate of Pat just the same. 

So, I got double-booked today! I have the best neighbors which sure helps one to have A Joy-Filled Life!