THANKSGIVING

Thanksgiving 2008

For what am I thankful today? For the ability to cook eat and enjoy even when plan A becomes Plan B or C.



I have been organizing my graphics today so they are more available to use no matter what program I am in.

I found this picture of a porch in winter, and it surprised me. Except for the color of the house being white instead of yellow, it looks like the porch and ramp that Gloria and Toby put on their old house a year or so prior to selling it to Ben and Denise. Then, with the wreaths and garland, it looks like how Denise and Ben decorate it. We are going there for Thanksgiving with the family on the 30th. I will be doing cranberry and rolls.

Today I had chicken, and sweet potato, and a little cranberry with cottage cheese. Plus of course stuffing. My verdict. Stovetop is the best. The stuff I had to buy today because the store was out of stovetop was not nearly as good. The advantage of cooking your own TG dinner is that you don’t over eat. Watching Christmas movies on TV was good. Getting my sweaters and sweatshirts out for the holidays and the cold days ahead was good. Tomorrow, I will put up the lights. I don’t know if the tree will get done, but it will at least get upstairs from the basement.



The cat has had a ball, playing with his “da bird” feather toy. He too is saying, “Life is good!”

Last night’s intro to our Christmas music went well, I think. I could not see to read the music so I went by memory. I don’t know if we hit good notes or not, but I think we had it. Next week is the big concert. I just hope that with only two more rehearsals that it comes together. Then the season can wind down a little. Too bad I have to get a newsletter out by next week.

It will seriously take time away from Christmas cards, and tree decorating. I think I will do the tree a little at a time. Then sometime after the 16th, I can sit and enjoy the peace of the season. Tomorrow I will go to Bed Bath and Beyond to look for extra remote plugs for my outside and inside lights. Strangely appropriate, I am watching the movie Click on TV. That is were Ben Affleck gets the remote control for his life at the “Way Beyond” section of Bed Bath and Beyond and misses his whole life because he fast forwards through it. At the end he wakes up and finds out it was a dream. Well, as we discussed Wednesday morning, God can work through dreams, and this one is an example.

Well this is enough for now. I am doing this on MS Word because it is quicker, and I can then cut and paste it to the blog, and then the only thing I have to work with is the pictures.

Hope your day was happy. OH yes, I started the day watching the parades with my sister in Colorado. Hopefully Cell minutes are free on Thanksgiving. I couldn’t reach my sister in Port Huron. I guess she was out. Hope she is OK.

FLATS

A Flat can mean a lot of things. Just try to look it up in the dictionary. It can be a shoe, a note that is below pitch, anything horizontal with no dips or rises. In England it is a residential area? Or a living space of less than 30 square meters. It is about that meaning, that I write, specifically the type that are upstairs or downstairs in a subdivided house, at one time the complete home somebody built and lived in.

I have been thinking for a while about the various apartments and living spaces I have had since leaving home to seek my fortune.

Many of those early places that I called apartments were actually flats. I first explored the romance of living above another residence long before I ever paid rent on such a place. When I was young it was safe, or thought safe for girl scouts, even brownies to go door to door in their neighborhood to sell cookies. Cookies back then were about 40 or 45 cents for a box. As far as I can tell the boxes have not changed, although the price is considerably more. We had the original shortbread, perhaps a sandwich cookie, and a new one called chocolate mint, which have never ceased being my personal favorite.

Well, on the street behind us, which had sidewalks, there were sometimes two residences in one house. The second residence was usually upstairs, and the number on the door had the fraction 1/2 in its number. I do not know if my mother knew this, but when I asked her after the fact, she did not seem overly concerned. Our life in the 1950’s was much more innocent than these times when no kid goes door to door to do anything, and especially not alone. Mother explained that these were apartments that were upstairs over the house. I found that fascinating. Then I realized that my grandmother’s house was subdivided into flats, and so was my Uncle's house. I suspect that he was able to maintain his lifestyle from the rent from these three or four flats that his big brown house on Lincoln Avenue contained. I wonder if that house ever had been lived in totally by one family. It was really quite large.

There were lots of old homes that had been subdivided like that in Port Huron. I wonder about the history of these houses. Did they get divided during the great depression when my mother told me that many families lived in some houses while others were boarded up? Or were they divided before then to accommodate relatives, or as income property? My friend M. B. and I once cleaned the windows on one of the upper flats for my uncle. I can’t remember if there was a little porch, or if we actually went out and stood on the porch roof to clean the outside windows, when my friend realized that here she was standing on a rooftop almost on the main drag of the city, but we did this. Young people are impervious to fear. I think if I tried that today, I would fall through.

Then later on when I was in college I actually knew people who lived in such subdivided space and I discovered the word, “flat” which I guessed referred to the fact that other than the entryway, there were no stairs in these spaces. There were upper flats (with the 1/2 in the address) and lower flats that probably included the original living space. I lived in quite a few of these places while in college and visited even more that my friends lived in. When I started teaching, some of my friends lived in these, but I started living in apartments in real apartment buildings, and eventually landed in my present 1000 square foot, three level condo. Had I been able to learn the ins and outs of stairway life earlier in my adulthood, I perhaps would have looked for a condo on one level that would not now have the challenges of stairs.

With my space all on one or perhaps, two levels I would not have the need of three televisions, several radios, two microwaves, two coffeepots, and various other duplicate items purchased or retained only because of the convenience of being able to use them at whatever level I found myself. But I am grateful for my quarters that almost totally belong to me now. I do not think the bank will decide to move into it’s portion of my dwelling, but if they did that would be *interesting. (*No pun intended) Seems like when you have two coffee pots, you drink more coffee. Maybe not so good.

I can still remember when I was here with no furniture, hardly, and no roommate. How large it looked. How I loved my big bright windows. And the open staircase, How appealing it looked. I still like those features. Back then I didn’t need two microwaves, or televisions. But it was easy to acquire them, as the old ones were not quite done being used when the new ones came. I like my life here, and I just don’t go running up or down the stairs, like I would run up or down a hallway, or would I even do that? Who knows? Certainly not me.

Well it is almost time to go run up the stairway to get ready to go to choir. It is dark outside, and our much begged for extra rehearsal is tonight. I hope I can do better, and I hope the rest of the choir does better also. We sing our first number the eve before Thanksgiving, and the concert the following week. We did not feel ready last week, and need the encouragement of a successful rehearsal. Hope so anyway!

Hope you all have a Happy Thanksgiving, however you decide to spend this day. Be Thankful. We have much for which to give thanks.

Shortest post ever

This is a test. My last post didn't get emailed. Google must be having troubles. I am just checking to see if it mails this one.

FOOD

I decided to add Garfield as a regular to my blog because so often his simple hedonistic ways reflect my own. Tonight while smelling the wonderful aroma of my meatloaf cooking, and having just blown out the candles that got rid of the noxious smell of the fish I microwaved this afternoon, I decided to see what was happening both on my blog and the tomato man's blog. I discovered to my dismay that somehow Ray White's blog had been deleted! I quickly checked his son's blog and discovered that Google was working on it. They had better. His is one of the premier blogs on the web and he and his daughter have put a lot of work into it. I imagine, he does not need this experience, especially so soon after AOL booted us off their journals area.

But this blog is about food. Tomatoes are food. So I guess it fits. After my vigorous grocery shopping yesterday I am dealing with the food I bought. Tonight's dinner will be salad and meatloaf. Trying to bring my blood sugar down. Its been a little high and I have a doctor appointment soon, and want to show good results, besides just plain not feeling tip top when it is high.

My friend Vicki and I just got back from the funeral home. The husband of a fellow worker who retired before us had died after a very long life. He was one of the greatest generation and his WW II uniform was in prominent display. I was impressed that the cloth and the color still looked good, and that the jacket was so small. These young kids went out and fought for our freedom in what could have been the end of the world as we knew it. Of course, I didn't know it having been born in late 1944, but my life surely would have been different had these young guys not gone forth to do their duty and fight for freedom. The folk at home did their part too, and some of the best encouraging literature of our time is from that era of brave brave people.

Vicki stopped in to call her hubby to check about food too. Had my cabbage soup been fresher I would have sent some home with her, but I fear it is on its last days, if not ready to toss . Had some this afternoon, and the carrots tasted canned. They weren't . So not to share with others.

Well the meatloaf is done. I am ready to eat. Ben called me about the Thanksgiving gathering on Sunday the thirtieth. I will be bringing my cranberry sauce, and rolls. Its at two and I have my small group at six. Guess I can miss small group if I have to. I made it all of the other times. But then again, I don't want to drive home in the dark, so I may get back in time after all.

First COLD day

I am still learning the ins and outs of this blog, but I am writing this particular one because I have re set it up to mail to my family. My two sisters and niece. I have not heard any responses from either sister, so I almost assume they are all in Las Vegas, or wherever that other time share Pat wrote about was. I did not want to fill up their mailboxes with graphics. So, Until I hear a response from either, I will take their names off the email list again. Just in case I blog again. I, too have been busy, with Christmas preps for a musical that is not quite coming off as planned, with the two newsletters I do each month, and other STUFF. Today was the first day I wore my winter coat. I should have added a scarf. Its good to see the sun shining again after being dark all morning. I even slept in. I missed my exercise class because I forgot I had it, and was coupon shopping at Kroger's after breakfast with the gang. I totally forgot. Well, will get it on Tuesday anyhow. Bought lots of good stuff. Feel like with the auto industry failing that it is only so long that we will any of us have any money to spend. Mood in the store was sure to that effect, then I heard at Noon that they got part of the money. It is sad.

My joke of the day. If Pro is the opposite of Con, What is the opposite of Progress?
Well, they did vote for some of the money, so maybe its not so bad after all. Even the representative of Toyota wanted it to pass.

WINTER Musings

IT'S CoooLD OUT THAR

Winter has come in November, at least for this week. Photo at right is through my living room window. Yes that is snow on the pine tree, and no leaves on the maple that so recently was full of colorful yellow splendor.

Next photo shows there really isn't so much snow in S.E. Michigan as one would think. And the brown spots on the pine, are signs of disease, basically a worm that infects these pines in the Spring. Reminds me to share my info from when I was on the board with Al about what needs to be done to save our Norfolk pines. We lost two or three already. Our trees are part of the beauty of living here. Hate to lose them. but buying new ones may help the economy. NOT a good reason to be careless. Hiring a tree doctor will help the economy too.

ON Aging and Hurting

One time after camping with some friends, we arrived at an old motel in Mackinaw City, where we stayed because we were either tired of setting up the tent, or had decided that we needed a treat. One of my friends was the first to use the shower, and emerged saying these memorable words to me: “Mary, you don’t Know how good it feels to be clean!” The other camper, my sister, Pat, was quick to defend my honor, that her sister did indeed know what it felt like to be clean, and we all had a good laugh.

I thought of this today, because after a long week or more with severe pain in my right shoulder, and arm, due to typing constantly on the computer for three days while I finalized BOTH of the newsletters that I do, I feel a lot of freedom in both my neck and my arm. My neck and left shoulder and arm are PAIN FREE!. And HOW GOOD IT IS to have no pain in my left shoulder, and minimized pain in the right. The right one, has let me know that I won’t be doing too much typing today.

But, never fear. There is plenty else to do that does not involve typing. But, how good it feels to

be able to get up relatively free from that pain. I discovered last night that I could scrunch one of my throw pillows under my neck and it helped me to finally get not only a good nights sleep, but also relieved more of the strain on my shoulders than just the pillow top mattress did. I can’t even remember if I took an Excedrin last night, but I probably did.

I thought of how one of my friends from small group had commented about my taking a nap Sunday Afternoon, and how the main reason had been the aching shoulders (both of them.) Although with my habit of rising before sun up, a nap is not such a bad thing if one will be up until eleven and has to be alert at night. Plus, yesterday was so gloomy, it seemed right to take a nap.

• 

• Today we have a light dusting of snow on the ground and it looks as though the sun may indeed peek out sometime soon, but at least it is brighter than yesterday with the rain. They say it will be like this all week, so we get a chance to move gently into winter. And all of this before Thanksgiving.
  

BAD ECONOMY

All the news is about the auto industry and how dependent we all are on it. I discovered that my misgivings in the 1990's about lifting tariffs (translate "free trade") and about the global village (translate that we and the peasants of the third world will have the same living standard) were genuinely wise concerns. Too bad that the decision making persons, who at the time I deemed more equipped to handle such decisions, did not share in this same caution.

I applied for Social Security on October 27th and had it direct deposited in the account that does not get my pension. So, now that account can take care of all the big bills, and the other account can take care of all the everyday stuff. Sounds like a plan anyway. Until I buy a new car, in which case the real reason for applying will come through. Hopefully by then the mortgage will be paid off and I won't hurt too much.

So many people in the auto industry hurting. They are being offered buy outs and pensions, and my advise is TAKE IT! I am not an optimist that thinks we will pull out of this slump anytime soon. I know it is tough. I was there a few years ago but without a buyout. My pension was to be about 1/3 of what I was earning, and 1/2 of what my take home was at the time. Being single, I had lived rather frugally compared to my married friends. Kids cost money, but I grew up from age 10 on with clothes from the dime store, and the Salvation Army and Goodwill stores. I made it. It was socially tough, probably part of why I am single, but I made it. My parents survived the Great Depression, and I guess I learned some during that time of what they learned during their time. Soup plays a factor. It is nourishing and can be a meal.

This morning I heard on WJR the fact we have known all along, that everyone who has health and pension benefits and is enjoying them, has the auto workers to thank. They set the standard, although at the time, we just thought that as professionals with degrees we should at least get as much as a worker on the line did. After that was accomplished, we and the auto workers thought it would never end. And without our realizing it, even auto jobs got more specialized. Specialization is good, but it also leads to limited similar jobs when you get laid off.

Now here we are looking at what could be the end, and many of us, including me, are cutting our losses and grabbing what we can while the golden goose is still a setting.

Early Birthday gifts

The past few years businesses you frequent in the Detroit area have been mailing out cards for discounts during your birthday month. This year I have a whole pack of them, mostly from Hallmark stores, but a couple from other places including my hair salon. Last week I window shopped in a Hallmark to see if there was anything I might like to get. Last year I got a tea pot.

Well, it is Friday. A week since I wore out my arm on the computer doing two newsletters in a row. Last night I used one of my birthday promotions to get 15 percent off a massage. I was hoping it would help my arm. I think it did a little, but it will take time for it to feel better. It did help the backache out though. I was able to come home and take the garbage out, and pick up my mail, where two other birthday greetings were found.

One was my license tabs, which I got online for the first time. Now I have to remember to get them on the car before the end of the month. The other was a card and letter from a librarian who was at the other Jr. High when I first started working, and who developed the library program at my district before retiring. M. is 84 years old and wrote about how she had to put her beloved companion German Shepherd down.

She still lives alone and drives to see her husband of sixty years in assisted living. I think I shall send her my loss of pet sympathy card and a little note about Chloe. I know how hard it is to lose a pet. Its one of the responsibilities you take on when you choose to have one. Her kids brought her one of their full grown dogs, but she does not feel the security part of dog ownership with this one, a friendly golden lab.

This morning I had to get up really early, before 5 AM to see if I could catch the gal who prints the one newsletter, because I had something to give her. She arrived around seven. It seems that when they have parent conferences the elementary folk get a day off. But then they put in two days and two nights in a row. Lynn looked awful and sounded even worse. She said she was on her way to the doctor. I felt bad for her, but she was faithful in printing the newsletter, and in delivering it.


My arm hurt while I was putting labels on the envelopes, and there were only thirty, since our membership has gone down with increased dues and about sixteen have opted for the e mail sending. Those folk got their letter a full four days early. and one of them found an error which I had missed. Easy to correct on the paper copies. Went to the Post office to mail them and passed my old school, and discovered that the Middle Schools were off today too. Parent conferences are a good thing, but very intense and tiring on the staff. Good to have the weekend to recover.

Well, back to the massage. It was a nice experience and really did not cost anymore than it does to color my hair. I get this 15 % coupon every year, and usually time it so the color job will be what I use it on, but this time I don't need the color just yet. I do need a hair cut, but that will be on Tuesday. I scheduled another massage for January.

Next week is the furnace man's time to come and check the furnace out for winter. After that I need to get the Sears folk out for the other appliances. I have stretched the dryer and washer about as far as they will go, and the car you already know about. I suddenly feel less stressed since Social Security deposited the first check into my account last week. I will have to give myself a talking to about how far that money will NOT go, but for right now I am getting some long overdue repairs done. And for this I am thankful.

Finally made the cabbage and tomato soup, and was afraid it was not going to be as good as the last time, but I just had a bowl, and while it is a little heavy on tomato, it is still good. It amazes me that an almost full dutch oven will fit totally into the tureen. This is where the red soup sits, waiting to cool while I finish today's laundry and watch the Wizard of Oz. What a grand old delightful film. I think I should have it memorized by now, but I will cut out at nine, because Crusoe is on NBC and that looks promising too. I really need to rest a little anyway.


Now to hunt for legal graphics so I can make this entry less boring.

Good joke of the day from my calendar:

If PRO is the opposite of CON, then what is the opposite of Progress?
I love this kind. But in this case hope the answer is not true. Especially in regard to our failing auto industries.

Monday Musings

Today was spent with the four page newsletter that Comcast, or someone in cyber space did not deliver to the president of the org for which I was doing it. I should have called her last night but I got busy, and thought she was too, since she did not respond to the email. Well, she did. I got it this morning. The time on her email said 4 PM yesterday. The last time I checked last nite was around 11 PM. I don't know what is going on out there, but we agreed to phone when we send important documents just in case the powers that be mis-deliver again.

I also did Laundry and I cooked up a storm. The photo today is of my new soup tureen, purchased after Thanksgiving last year for a smidgen of its original price. I have used it to make the soups I cook look good. Presentation is important even if your only diner is yourself. I guess that is part of being good to oneself. And occasionally someone stops in and they get a special meal from a special dish. Today's soups are: Cabbage (not yet a soup, but the cabbage got cooked anyway) and Chicken Rice with a touch of lime juice.

That is what is in the tureen and it tastes better than it looks, and it really does not look bad. If I wanted I would have added some kind of thickener, but I have become convinced that clearish soups are best. I could have run the rice through a blender and gotten a healthy cream that way, but this is great. Filling, and tasty. AND the tureen goes from fridge to microwave to table, with no trouble. It also goes in the dishwasher. Good purchase.

And Lastly, I gleaned this from a most depressing poem about getting older, that was meant to be a light look at aging. I removed all of the parts about not eating right, and not letting things matter that should matter. Someone sent this by email to me along with a whole bunch of cutesy pictures. Sometimes I wonder, if we really gain from our aging. I hope we do.


Getting older:

I have seen too many dear friends leave this world
too soon; before they understood the great freedom
that comes with aging.

I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of
the 60 & 70's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep
over a lost love .........I will.

Sure, over the years my heart has been broken.
How can your heart not break when you lose a loved
one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's
beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what
give us strength and understanding and compassion.

As you get older, it is easier to be positive.
You care less about what other people think.
I don't question myself anymore.
I've even earned the right to be wrong.

So, I like being old. It has set me free.
I like the person I have become.
I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here,
I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be.
And I shall eat dessert every single day. (If I feel like it)
This last is a freedom not recommended for diabetics! Although in small portions it could be OK.

Pretty Sunset after Rainy Day

Today they finished pouring the cement. In seven days, I will be able to get back into my garage. It will be a long wait. But at least now there will be no early morning shuffling of cars.

This morning I had to move my car from in front of my door to back down the street, where it still sits, though vulnerable. Just after the guys finished smoothing off the last of the concrete, it began to rain and did so for most of the day. I finished one newsletter, and began another. Then it got dark and dreary. I shut the windows and blinds. Around six, I noticed a pink light coming through the holes in the blinds where the strings go through. So I opened them to be greeted with one of the most beautiful sunsets I have seen around here. I grabbed the camera (and my shoes!) and went out to take these two photos, but the photos do not do it justice.

Watching Jeopardy and the news. News not good. Ford and GM are both facing a dire future. When I went to look at new cars while mine was in the shop, there were lots of folks waiting to have their cars fixed, but none in the showroom. I could buy a new car, but they have made a headrest on all new cars that digs into the back of your head, giving you a terrible pain if you drive them for too far. Now what is that all about? They did show me a Malibu with a seat you could tilt forward, so the thing didn't jab into your head if you had the seatback up.

They said it was done so folk wouldn't get whiplash. Well, I never had whiplash, but I could have an accident in one of those cars if that thing banged into my head for too long, with or without whiplash. So I hope my 116,000 car lasts just a little longer. Or I could buy a car that was built before they put that strange thing in it.

A BEAUTIFUL AUTUMN DAY

Today: The Perfect, warm Autumn day. Except for the construction. They are putting in new pavement all over the place, particularly right outside my garage door. They are doing this in several different parking lots, maybe to take advantage of the good weather so they can get it all done at once. Trouble is it means we all have to park in the street, or in my case today, I am parking right in front of my unit, which is an advantage, but if the people who normally park on the other side decide they want to do that, then nobody will be able to get out. But I am leaving my car there. The garbage guys come tomorrow, and I don't want to think about them hitting my car. Maybe they will any way. who knows.

I took a walk with my camera which I shall soon give to Gloria and before the batteries ran out managed to take a close up of some remaining leaves of the burning bush outside my dining room and some of the yellow leaves that are falling all around us. Al said that the lawn service came in, took one look, and said "We aren't going to deal with this" Big trucks everywhere, cement blocked off all over the place. They made a wise choice, and we get the thrill of kids walking through thick crunchy leaves.

Tomorrow it is supposed to rain, so the Indian Summer is over, but I did get my tulips in and so far the squirrels have left them alone.

I was so worn out from the funeral, Wednesday, the dinner election night, and planting the tulips and getting pies, etc. etc. etc., that I decided to skip my arthritis exercise class, although it is quite enjoyable. Instead I went to a coffee and bagel shop and had lunch then went grocery shopping and window shopping at a Hallmark store. I guess I needed it.

Now I am cooking a whole chicken I bought. As I think about it, it cost more than buying a ready cooked one, but I think it is bigger, and it will be fresher. Its an Amish fryer, and I guess I was inspired by a health food nut I talked to in the Bagel shop. This was a black man whose daughter is studying holistic medicine in a college in Seattle.

We talked about this, and U of M and their lousy football season, and the Ann Arbor Art Fair and the Detroit riots, all of which we experienced in our lifetimes but from different sides of the then racial divide. I am surprised at my changed attitude toward my black neighbors as a result of seeing the tears of joy in Chicago and other places, even though I did not vote for Obama. I surprised my neighbor Gloria when I told her that I would have voted for Condoleeza Rice, had she run for office. I had, and still have my doubts about Obama. Hopefully he will prove me wrong and be a good leader, and the things about terrorists, and "sharing the wealth" will prove to be not a part of his leading.

Church leaders say to pray for the new administration whether we elected them or not. That I will do. Oprah's show yesterday was classic. She shared some of the same things we saw in Chicago on Tuesday night. Jesse Jackson crying real tears. I can only imagine what this must be like for these folk and I do have empathy with them.

This is not as well written as most of my posts, but I am tired. I think after taking the trash out and having a nice chicken dinner, I am going to retire early, perhaps with an aspirin for my headache. Wow! I just did spell check and the only thing it questioned was Condoleeza. And I am too tired to look it up.
Mary S.

The Red Car

So who takes a picture of a rental and posts it on the Internet? Well, If it were not fire engine red, I probably wouldn't. The red towel on the hood, is because the TOAST did manage to get into the garage and wanted to sit on it. After all, its one of his favorite spots. The towel keeps the car safe, and the cat from well being actual TOAST.

Today they started working on the motor mount of the old car. Its a gamble, but if this stops the problem with the hesitation, it will be worth it. They seem to think it is a fix. I think so too. In the meantime I have a free rental for a day, which I upgraded to the car I may want to buy. Didn't do much with the car, but drive it home, so after working on the condo newsletter all afternoon, I decided to take the Red Cobalt for a spin for about fifteen minutes.

Went to McDonald's for an iced coffee and bowl of soup. Tried out the CD player, and checked out all the special information on the information display. Still can't figure out how to get the headrest to lean back a little. It really is uncomfortable. The rest of the car is fine. If I buy one, I will get the one with the leather heated seats, and all that comes with that. But the head rest is a BIG problem. Is this a new thing with new cars? I noticed that the gal at the rental office had the seat back reclined which gave no support to the back.

They left the manual but I couldn't find anything. I think I will take the car back early even if they don't call me. First of all, I don't want to pay for the extra day, and secondly I bet a car salesman will tell me how to fix the head rest. I will have to ask him/her how to find the engine heat gauge. A tachometer is nice, but I like oil pressure gauges and heat gauges. Wonder if they only put tachometers in the bright red models?

It has other things too, like headlights that turn themselves on and off automatically, tire pressure gauges, a dome light that stays on long enough for you to get out of the car, an automatic trunk opener. The CD player keeps playing till you get out of the car too. I read somewhere that you can run the power windows off the battery for a few minutes as well. At least most of the controls are similar to the Prizm, but it is a tad narrower, and a tad longer, something I am not quite used to yet, but it won't be bad.

I hope they fix mine enough to get through the winter. I am so used to it, but that's what I get for driving the same car for so many years. It has the same engine as the Malibu in a smaller car, which is good thing for power. Its pretty zippy. Now do great aunts look spiffy in bright red cars? I didn't mind it.

Well, all that work on the newsletter and the car was enough for one day. So I am taking an early retirement tonight and hitting the hay. Who knows what tomorrow will bring forth. Heard that Obama's grandmother who raised him died today. If he wins it is too bad she didn't live to see it, but if he loses its probably good she didn't live to see that either. Its hard to lose someone though so even though I don't agree with his politics big time, I feel bad for him.

Marley and Me

For all Pet Lovers

I just finished the book by John Grogan, called Marley & Me. John is a news columnist who adopted a yellow lab puppy early in his marriage. The dog turned out to be a challenge, but over the years of his marriage and raising a family, the dog worked his way into their hearts and lives. I knew this book would end sadly, but the journey of Marley’s life was totally enjoyable and one that I as an animal lover could well identify.

I decided to put this in my blog, when I laughed so hard that I cried during the telling of having the dog literally drag the table away from an outdoor eating area in Boca Raton, Florida, where diners were encouraged to bring their furry friends. Toward the end when Marley gets old and you know what is coming, the tears come for a different reason. When I realized Marley’s intense loyalty to John, as his favorite person. When the dog would climb the stairs even though his back legs were not working right, just because he had to be by John wherever he was, I was minded of my TOAST.

Toast will follow me everywhere. When he is gone, I will miss his pushing the bathroom door open while I am in there. His howling when he is on one floor and I am on the other. That cat misses me when I am gone too. I will surely miss him when the inevitable happens.

I cried uncontrollably when Marley had to be put down, but the book does not stop there. Grogan goes on to deal with his grief, writing a column about this “Worst Dog in the World”, and gets such a response from other “Bad Dog” owners that it fills his email box. While reading them, there is a mutual healing going on, and Grogan goes on to get another dog.

In my case though I feel that the Toast will be my last cat. I don’t want to leave an animal so loyal alone to deal with grief. I will deal with it, but with a brain the size of a walnut, I don’t think my cat can do as well. And I won’t do that to him.

I want to quote from a paragraph Grogan writes before writing the column that makes the whole book a treasure.

“What I really wanted to say was how this animal had touched our souls and taught us some of the most important lessons of our lives. ‘A person can learn a lot from a dog, even a loopy one like ours’ I wrote. ‘Marley taught me about living each day with unbridled exuberance and joy, about seizing the moment and following your heart. He taught me to appreciate the simple things.a walk in the woods, a fresh snowfall, a nap in a shaft of winter sunlight. And as he grew old and achy, he taught me about optimism in the face of adversity. Mostly, he taught me about friendship and selflessness and above all else, unwavering loyalty’”

And this is why, dear reader if you have read this far, I recommend this book. The last chapters mellow out the awful pain of the demise of Marley. As I put the book away, I discovered a post-a-note that my neighbor to whom I had loaned the book had placed there. She dubs it as “very enjoyable reading.” I can’t remember how the conversation went, if she had heard of the book, or if it was because she had just acquired a very unruly male purebred medium sized dog, but she got to take it on a camping trip and had returned it. I did not pick it up again until after I had cataloged it on the Library Thing. I am glad that I did.

Oh yes, If you are in my area and want to borrow my copy, I am willing to loan it out to the first person that asks. It makes my big collection of books more meaningful to me if I can share.
Mary S.

Don't forget to set your clocks back this weekend!

On Oct 31, 2008, at 12:30 AM, Cherryl wrote:
The Treasury Department has issued a new one dollar bill.........

I do too.

Mary Wrote:

Last week I was reminded of a photo I saw when we were studying depressions, particularly the 1930's in school. It was a black and white grainy shot of a woman lighting her stove and using paper money for kindling. I didn't know this in the 50's when we studied such things but the photo was from Eastern Europe.

A lot of people in my neighborhood growing up used pot bellied stoves or other types of wood burning stoves for heat. I think they burned anything. I am guessing a lot of folk burned coal, but wood, paper, yard waste, even garbage could be burned in there. Coal was the most efficient for being slow burning and giving off a lot of heat. Studying the depression and hearing about how folk went around picking up stray coal lumps, was probably more meaningful to kids of the fifties, than it is to kids today.

Wonder if kids even realize how disgusting handling coal could be. Wonder if at Christmas, they don't say "Wow!" if someone says they will get a lump of coal in their stockings. I shoveled a lot of coal and cinders in my childhood, but not nearly as much as my parents did.

We had a coal furnace and a coal stove for our hot water. These were both in our basement. The neighbors stoves were less modern and sat in their living rooms or the center of the house. I always felt deprived because I thought the wood burning stoves were terrific and a sign of affluence. I was either confused or ahead of my time.


I still don't have anything that burns wood in my living room. I do have two electric space heaters though. One upstairs, and one down. Make that three. There is one in the basement too. I only use them when I am actually in the room. Today I didn't need them. I had turned the furnace up to 73 last night because I was sick.

Good thing too, because I went to bed early and forgot to take the garbage out. I woke up at my usual time before six AM, and thought how I let myself sleep in on Fridays because I would wait for the garbage guys to bring their noisy truck. Then I would get up. Trouble is Waste Management INC. put us first on their list shortly after I made that "rule" so they come quite early.

Well, I thought about how living with trash in the garage all week, would be pretty smelly, if we experience the warm up we are supposed to have next week. So I saw that I had not put yesterdays clothes in the hamper yet, and simply put them on over my PJ's and gathered up all the baskets upstairs and down, added them to the bag in the garage. and got it out there. It is quite nice already for six in the morning. Then I decided that the kitchen bag would probably survive the nightly critter invasion, since it was almost morning, so I put the basement trash in the kitchen bag, and out it went too. So, Smelly job is done, and I am ready to go back upstairs and get dressed for real. Or at least take my glucose reading so I can eat something.

Amazing how being sick makes you eat the right foods. I am drinking cold water instead of coffee. I will have a well balanced breakfast, and probably start cooking the cabbage and tomato soup. I don't like being sick. OH, yes, I turned the furnace back down to seventy also. Costs money, and I am not chilled anymore.

Today is a beautiful day. Hope we all have a great chance to enjoy it.

Mary S.
Harrison Twp., MI

This n that

Well, Its about time I add something to this blog, or my family will think I have croaked or something. There are serious things happening with some of my church friends, and I am not quite occupied with "me" right now. On top of this, I managed to start getting the symptoms of the flu, right before I was going to go find a place to get a flu shot. At exercise class this morning one of the men sneezed in the middle of an exercise, and because our arms were engaged with the exercise, he was not able to cover his nose. I immediately sensed that I was vulnerable. You kind of know those things sometimes.

Anyway I got through the afternoon fine. Had a nice salad at the Big Boy, since Mc D's had discontinued their great Asian salad, I figured this was a nice choice, except a little more expensive. I was able to shop a little at K Mart, and started feeling ill. Now I know I didn't catch it from the gentleman in my class, but I decided it was time to go home and bundle up. Such a beautiful day too. Glad I got to enjoy it before this malady hunkered in. Took a nap. Woke up with a chill and fever all at the same time. Turned up the heat, and force fed liquids, and orange juice and took two aspirin. At least the fever went down. But I will be waiting a while for that flu shot. They say it is not good to get the shot when you have symptoms.

Found a new beautiful blog. It won awards because of its tasteful pictures and homey comments. Its called Back Porch Musings. Done by a sweet older couple in MO. Check it out. It is really beautiful and tasteful. Has lots of nice fall photos, and stuff like that.

Most folk I know have not had to sign in for a google account to access these blogs. I know I didn't to access Deb's blog, but my sister who is on MSN says she had to log in as a google member. I somewhat can see how this could be possible, but basically it does not compute in my brain.

I mainly signed on today to say. Yes, I am still here. No, my car is not fixed yet, but it did get a quick fix so it is safe to drive until they get the parts it needs. I guess that will be done on Monday or Tuesday. They will give me a rental car for the day. This has been a pretty good old car for me. While waiting at the dealership yesterday for two hours, I explored some other cars than the Malibu.

The Cobalt has a four door sedan that is very much like the Prism. That may be my solution. It comes in bright yellow, which I think a little too loud for me, and other colors. I'll probably ask for red or white, as these can be seen more easily by other drivers.

At breakfast this AM one of the ladies said they had just bought a Saturn Vue. That car had been on my list, but the dealership is a long way away. I am not sure I want to make the financial commitment either. Maybe next time, if there is a next time. If the Cobalt drives like the Prism, I will be happy. I have had two Prisms and would be happy with a third, except they don't make them anymore. So between my friend an me, we are doing our part for the Michigan auto industry. Maybe more folk will do this too. This "Let's keep spending even if conservatively" philosophy will help,,, just a little.

I finally applied for social security yesterday, then went to the dealership, and committed the first check which will come in November, for the motor mount and tune up. At least it is cheaper than a new transmission, but it was a blessing that I felt impelled to go check up on the tune up and give them the symptoms, which had started to resemble more than just a problem with the gears up shifting. Although the repair is going to cost more than the car is worth, I don't want to be rushed into getting a new car, and they repair cost will be about what two new car payments would be, so I don't feel badly about it. I would rather drive, and sell a car in safe condition. With the SS money plus a raise (COLA) they gave me in my pension, I am at a comfortable income again. At least that is what it looks like. I may even get the condo paid off. Yippee! Want to have it total equity, so no matter what housing goes to as long as my neighborhood stays safe, I will be free and clear.

When they said "motor mount", it clicked in my brain with the new noises the car was making, and my first question was "was the car safe to drive?" A while later the technician said, that it would be. I was surprised when I got the car back that although they had charged me nothing, that it rode a little better. Then it made sense. If the tech was in checking the mounts, of course he would have tightened them if possible. Nevertheless, I shall take it easy with this car till it is fixed. He also bumped out the dent in the hood that the trailer hitch on the truck in front of me on the Harsen's Island Ferry had made. In some ways it is nice to have an old car. I would have paid big bucks to fix that little dent on a new car. With this one. I'm just glad the hood latch holds and I'll slap a little rust-o-lium on it, maybe.

I took J., the lady who moved into the Gardens apartments, to breakfast this morning with THE GROUP. There were thirty of us this time. A new record. J was able to sit by S. M. who lives in a neighboring city to where she owns her home. They had a great conversation and everyone made J. feel welcome. This is such a great group. J. really enjoyed it. I was glad the car was fixed too. I was getting concerned that I had offered to drive someone someplace and then the car started acting badly. Glad we found out what was wrong.


Well, I guess I have said enough. I will retire early tonite and pray for my friends, one who is sick herself, and the other whose young son is seriously ill. One more orange juice and I shall wrap up warm with a compress on my aching head. Hopefully the dealership will call tomorrow. Maybe the car can even be fixed tomorrow, but I seriously think it will be Monday. At least I feel a little better anyway.

Rwanda

After spending some of the weekend reading about the horrible things going on in other parts of the world it was good to read in this morning's Washington Post online about the way in which Rwanda, the site of such horrible genocide in the last decade, is now recovering and even having community work days where neighbors help neighbors to rebuild. The fact that women are being recognized as leaders is ironic.

A few years ago I was at Sam's Club and picked up Left to Tell, by Immaculée Ilibagiza, who has since appeared in countless meetings and on PBS in the United States telling her story of forgiving her enemies after losing almost her entire family, her life as she knew it and being personally imprisoned in a small bathroom with several other women in the home of a friend who risked his life to hide them from the madness that went on for many weeks all around them.

I did not think the book would be popular, as the book I had about the man who survived Dar fur, was not well received, but after Immaculée spoke at a local mega church here, many of my friends were asking me if we had it in our library, not because they wanted to borrow it, but I think because they thought her story such a good one of rising above hatred and atrocity. I have to agree. Right now my copy of Left to Tell has been loaned to a friend who has lived and worked in a neighboring country where economic disaster is happening because of an over zealous ruler, and people are suffering greatly. I thought it and he thought it would be good to read her story.

I am still learning how to put links on my blog page. So if you try any of the links let me know if they work. I am particularly interested in the Washington Post link as I subscribe the this paper, and it may not work for other people who are not subscribed. Thanks. Time for breakfast. Seems like an overindulgent thing after thinking so much about the troubles of the world. Recovery was the theme of the Post article, and after seeing so much evil it is good to read of recovery. Hope it will happen in India, Iraq and elsewhere. Pray the atrocities will cease.

Snow in St. Clair Shores in October!

What a surprise. As I look out the window from home, north of SCS, it is sunny and wet. The trees are bright yellow and the sun is peeping through the leaves at my windows. Who would have thought that a few minutes ago driving the lake road home from church at around 14 mile road there was SNOW on the road, amidst the fallen leaves.

Good thing I am an old pro at this type of driving. Could have been pretty, but slick. Ike was sitting on his porch across from mine and told me that it had not snowed here, but it had hailed. The pellets were still on the ground when I went to get yesterday's mail and I picked up one of my hanging plants to store in the garage until I am ready to bag it for the landscaping truck to take away. The two geraniums are still intact on my porch, but I suppose they will be going too.

I do not like this forced denuding of the flower gardens, but I suppose it does get one ready mentally for the upcoming winter. At least the sight of snow this afternoon, surely did. Me? I want to hang on to the last flower until the last leaf is off the last tree. But these things are not to be. This morning when I got to church one of the greeters approached me with an address and asked if I would be able to pick up a lady who just moved into the senior apartments down the road. These are the Gardens Apartments, and are a great place to live if you have the money. They are around 1000 square feet and have their own van that takes people grocery shopping and on private outings.

The lady's name is J. Her daughter, S. is a nurse who lives way upnorth. The apartments are letting her try out the apartment for a month, letting her stay in the furnished guest apartment. I think she likes it already. I had lunch with them at a local Polynesian restaurant, and invited J. to our Wednesday nite dinner and teaching service meeting. I think I will hook her up with some of my friends who can drop her off at choir when their class is over.

She may also be interested in going to my arthritis class with me at Beaumont. They have a lot of different classes, so there may be one she can do. But I bet the Gardens has something as well. I know that her township has a senior center, which I forgot to tell them about at lunch. S will email me from upnorth, so I can let her know about that when she gets home. Her Mom has some other relatives in the area, so she may already know about the center. Also, as she makes friends at the Gardens I bet she will get more of a knack for the region. If my sister's experience in P.H. is any indication, you can have a lot of fun at these senior apartments.

I told Ike and Rick next door that as soon as my Social Security comes through I will be ready to buy a better car. They are both interested in mine. Hopefully I will soon find the title while going through my paperwork that Flylady started me going through. Amazing the things that are turning up. The two hundred dollars that showed up in a drawer was the best so far though. Still living on that.

Went to Waves Restaurant. Had a great meal of sauteed perch with champagne sauce, with sweet potatoes and asparagus on the side. They had coconut Chicken and Hawaiian chicken salad. They did not think the chicken was done enough. They were going back to her Mom's house to get some of her things. She has a neighbor watching the house and has notified the police to keep an eye on it as well. Hopefully the real estate market will get better this spring when they will be trying to sell it. Two bad they can't get two buyers bidding for it like I do for my car.

Maybe they will. Maybe the economy will take an upturn. Maybe Things will get better. Didn't they used to have a song in the 1930's. Just around the corner theres a bluebird in the sky. So lets have another cup of coffee, and lets have another piece of pie, or buy a car or a house or something. Now I understand what that song was all about. Get the economy rolling again. Pie, Coffee, cars, houses, trips. Whatever. Right now I will just be happy with a car I can depend on, and my neighbors want a good junker for their second car. Also. Car has to fit in the garage.

Today is the Trunk or Treat event at church. First year in a few that I won't be working at it. My back won't take all the standing. Hope my exercise class will change all of that. For a while the weather looked like it wasn't going to cooperate, but right now it looks fabulous. Chilly but bright. Made to order. Hope they have a great time. Glad I am able to not be in it. Have a lot of stuff to do here today. Paper stuff. Library stuff, Want to finish the Shack book. More about that later. Hope your day is as good as mine has been so far. Had enough for lunch that all I need for dinner is some of my cabbage soup which is getting better and better but soon will be gone.

Today, I think I learned how to put links on my blog. Hope you can connect to this without joining Google.

Facebook Adventure

Well, Today I joined Facebook, much against my better judgement. My friend Deb of PlansbyHim had joined and had invited me to join to. They call joining being a friend, and there is quite a pressure to add other people as friends. I wonder why? Anyway, my niece Lucy was already on and she agreed to let me add her as a friend. I think a lot of folk who have kids and grandkids join because their kids are on there. From Deb's site it looks like they have a good place for photos and it is free, as far as I can tell. They have little quizzes and things but apparently you can't really take them unless you give them several email addresses. I don't do that kind of thing.

Guess I will stick with my blog/journal. Came on today because I wanted to read the Garfield Cartoon for today. Maybe I will work on adding more cartoons. I only add them if they don't have advertisements. Played scrabble with A.G. tonite. Her Stand Down at the State Fairgrounds was productive. She really appreciated the books which I had all sorted and in bags on the porch this morning. She felt real good about it and got thirty new clients to distribute furniture to.

She beat me at scrabble twice. Toast got his new medicine. I got sick after breakfast, and decided to skip my arthritis class, so I guess I will go to Curves tomorrow. I knew I kept that membership up for some reason, although the arthritis class is more of a work out for me. I think it was the turkey sausage at breakfast, or sinus problems Or the candy I ate yesterday that was supposed to be for Halloween. Think I won't buy any more candy, but hide in the basement on the 31st.


Winning Scrabble and eating some of my tomato cabbage soup made me feel better.

Was this a "God Thing?"

This morning I was getting a stack of children's books and tapes of various kinds ready to give away to my friend A. who works with homeless shelters, and churches in the inner city. I put a tape on my tape player to see if I wanted to keep it for the library, or give it away.

It was a fascinating Black lady preacher, who had a great sense of humor, and was single, like me so I kept listening to her. Well, little Toasty, who was sound asleep in the other room, heard this strange woman talking in an animated way and came right into the office wide eyed. Finding the source of the sound he got up on the table and SAT on the boom box!

I called A. to tell her of this humorous incident and left a message on her cell. When she called me back we talked a little, she thought maybe the cat was not so attracted to the preaching as much as maybe he wanted to quiet her down. No, I told her. The lady was good, and discovered that A. not only knew the speaker but had worked with her in a clowning ministry. I pulled the tape out to read the lady's name. It was most appropriately "Joy."

Just about then A. saw a man walking down the freeway with a gas can, and realized that she was heading into the city with no cash and no gas. I had her stop by my house which she had to pass on her way, and was able to give her twenty dollars. She called later to tell me that gas is $2.66 on my corner, and that her "fuel low" light had gone on when she was pulling out of my driveway.

Was it God, that she just happened to see the man with the gas can between New Haven and Mt. Clemens? Was it God that the cat acted so cutely that I called her? Was it God last week when I was cleaning out my battery/camera/computer wire drawer and found that long missing envelope with my summer money in it last week? I had honestly concluded that I had spent the money and had forgotten about it. That was right after I had the garage painted, and there were lots of expenses there, so I concluded in August that between the painting and my dentist bills I was tight on money for a while.

Whatever, my friend called me back to thank me and to say if that all had not happened it would have been her walking on the side of I-94, and NOT in a nice area, looking for gas.

Absentee Ballots

I voted today. If there is one thing I like about being over sixty it is NOT having to stand in line to vote. Nowadays I don't think my back could take it. I tried to walk to a restaurant 1/2 mile away to meet a friend for breakfast and my back froze up. I forgot that this was AFTER I had pulled half the flowers out of my garden, but it should not be happening. I don't think I could handle standing in line for two hours to vote. I would probably have to bring a chair with me or maybe get one of those walkers with a seat, just for voting.

Anyway, after getting a letter from my township supervisor that explained where he stood on the one issue I was unsure about, I was able to start filling out the ballot. When I got hung up on the non partisan ballot, I went to the Right to Life site and found out if they recommended any of the candidates there. There were only two that I could use that for, but I discovered that a lot of the positions were ones where you were allowed to vote for three and there were only three running, unless you put in a write in. So my ballot is completed and signed and stamped and ready to go out tomorrow morning. Yipee! Tonight on 20/20 John Stossal is talking about campaign promises and how a president can't possibly fix everything. Hopefully they can fix the financial mess. My Social Security appointment is next week, but if the pension funds die, a lot of us will be in a big mess. I think I have covered my bases as best I can by applying for SS and by being extra frugal.

Tonight I went to the new Meijers store that opened where a fancy golf course used to be. I was shocked. Here was this beautiful store on a Friday night, and it wasn't crowded. My Meijers in Roseville is always crowded. This one is too far away for me to shop at regularly but they had specials I wanted to take advantage of, so I drove across town to get there. I also went and looked at the new park they built behind it. Pretty, but not as big as I thought it was going to be. Good for the neighborhood though. Wonder if the store was empty because of the economy, or because not many people in that area go to Meijers. I am not complaining. I like shopping when I have the store to myself.

Well, the day started early, and it is time to hit the hay. And the hay is very attractive right now. My Chiropractor noticed something different in my back too. He is going to take new ex rays next month. Hopefully he will still be able to work on my. I don't want to have surgery, but it sure feels like my back is freezing up when I try to walk very far. I tried some of the flexing exercises I learned in the arthritis class. Though how suspicious I must have looked standing on the sidewalk in front of someones house trying to flex out my back. This is something I don't like about being sixty.


Found some old photos from the 1980's when singles went to Mio for the canoe trip and Betty, Annie, Judy and I climbed up that 101 step wooden stairway that went straight up the cliff from the beach. I was glad to see we all, even Betty, looked so young. Much younger than I am now. This is true. Because in 1984 Betty would not have been sixty yet and I was just 40. What a difference. Now, Betty has been gone for 14 years, Annie has post polio and can hardly walk, let alone climb, and I don't think I could climb that stairway either. Maybe with a lot of excedrin. Anyway I welcome rest tonite. Its been a long and good day. Beautiful fall weather. Nice walk although painful to the restaurant. Colors on trees are just turning and beautful reds and yellows. And the Spinach omelet is good for arthritis, and not all that expensive. Time to sleep. See Ya.

Boring. Don't read unless you want to.

Small Group

Last night was my first small group meeting on the Strobel book. All couples, but three of us, two widows and me. All had grandchildren but me. I like the group because we are all middle aged and except for marital status at about the same place in our lives. You have to be serious to dig through the Strobel book and these folk have done some thinking. I was encouraged, too, because all had actually read the required readings. So often in these groups, folk look at it as a social event, and don't do the reading. I want to re read the first chapter because I was tired when I read it the first time. Its an important one about the argument of How a righteous God can allow suffering. I think I got my thinking confirmed in this. I discovered that as a single without children, my world view is a little broader than the those with children, who are more concerned about individual crimes against humanity. I am most touched by genocide, whereas the lady next to me was more upset about child abuse. This will be a good group.

Hot and tired

I had to turn on the air conditioner today. I guess that is OK. I was very tired, probably because I did not sleep well last night. I have those nights sometimes. I chalk it up to being older. Probably had something to do with being hot too, although it wasn't that hot last night.
TODAY however if different. I think it reached 81 today, and when the sun gets to the side of my house it gets really hot.


Little Things

I felt guilty for being so tired. Didn't get a lot done. Read a little in the morning, and emptied the dishwasher and put the dishes I left from last night into it. Made a big pot of coffee, and talked to the neighbors and watered my poor outside plants. It seemed like summer outside. Very humid. Somewhat hot. Dumped the cookies I bought for last nights small group into the trash, because I am not supposed to eat them, and having them there caused me to eat them anyway, which may be an explanation better than being hot about why I had such an unproductive morning.

Work on Libraries on the computer

Anyway, the afternoon was different. I got up and closed all the windows and made a big glass of fat free, sugar free vanilla iced coffee. It was great! Then I actually started inputting books from the SCSAG library into the Filemaker data file again. This is something I have not done for quite a while. I found most of my entries were for books that I question the cataloging on, so I clipped them so I can look for them the next time I am physically there. I gave up after an hour because I had plenty of cards to take to the library on Wednesday, or Tuesday, and I need to work as I go. After dinner, I think I will work some more on the Librarything online data base, which is a lot more fun. Then, there is laundry, and perhaps more anti clutter work to do. Whatever. The phone just rang. I really don't want to see people today, so I was glad when it turned out to be an "Arizona" call, which is usually a telephone solicitor from one of the groups I support, but who hire people to phone me anyway. That kind of activity bugs me. Sometimes I think if they hire fundraisers to bug me that they don't need my money, but when I ignore them, I don't have to know. If their message is important, they will leave one. The talking caller ID upstairs is a great help.