Saturday, December 24, 2011

Saturday Before Christmas

This morning at 7:30 I will meet my brother-in-law for breakfast. We do this most every Saturday morning. Then I don't exactly know what I will do. I may go ahead and bake my pies and get that out of the way.

Slinky did pretty good last night and I got some good sleep. I fed him an extra portion of dog food and he slept better. He woke me up at 11:30 and I let him out to go poo and then again at 4:00 this morning to go pee but it is cold out there this morning so he rushed right back in. He wanted to be fed at 4:00 but after he came back in I ignored his crying and barking and he eventually gave up. I may fed him extra food at night to help him sleep better. I'll give that a try and see.

More later....

What a day!

I had breakfast with my brother-in-law and then spent the rest of the day working on the newsletter.

I went to see my sister at 10:30. After that I finished the newsletter. First I went out to church and picked up the gift Sue and John brought for Gerry and I took it back to Windsor Place.

I got it sent off to those online and then bought the envelopes and got them all addressed this afternoon. I saved the edited newsletter to a CD so I can take it to Service Office and Supply on Monday or Tuesday. They will print off the 105 I need to send off in snail mail. They will also fold them to get them ready to be stuffed. I will need to cash the checks sent to me by the classmates so I can buy the stamps too.

In the morning..early..I will bake my two pies for Christmas lunch. I will bake one pumpkin and one pecan. I will need to be at Leslie's at 9:00 in the morning. I need to find a box to pack my gifts up in.

Merry Christmas to all!

Friday, December 23, 2011

Vacation Friday

I will not work today. I worked Monday so I would not lose a day of work. I'm not sure what I will do. It's very cold and if I go anywhere I will have to put Slinky in the garage. He will hate that. He woke me up every half hour after 2:00 this morning. I don't know what his problem was but if he keeps that up I will be exhausted all the time. I will probably need a nap ths afternoon.

Yesterday after work I went with Leslie to Bartlesville to buy the ingredients for her Christmas dinner on Sunday. Wal Mart did not have all those exotic ingredients she needs. She spent $120.00 and that did not include her ham. Wow! I hope it will be worth the cost.

She also bought my lunch. We stopped at Garfield's and had fish and chips. They have excellent fish and chips. They are not a bit greasy. She has all next week off. She suggests we go back to Bartlesville on Monday to see "Sherlock Holmes". The movie is on there. We may do that if she doesn't change her mind.

As we stopped for gas in Dewey, it began to snow. It snowed harder and harder as we drove home but the ground was too warm for it to stick so we got no snow. That's good because my little car probably couldn't make it out there in the snow. I had met her at Tyro so I drove home after it began to get dark. Slinky heard the car come into the garage and started barking to get in the kitchen.

I had a good time and a good visit with Leslie....some quality time that's hard to come by anymore. Her job is so demanding.

Both Keith and Scott called yesterday too. That was neat! Scott will be coming home on leave in January. He will be in the states from January 23rd until February 3rd. He will be with Becky most of that time but she will bring him to come see the family and me on Sunday for church and dinner afterward.

I may call Bob A. later and see if he would like to go to Cherryvale to Just Us for lunch today.

Updated note:

We did that and had a good lunch and visit. We will meet for breakfast tomorrow and then I will go visit Phyllis.

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Friends Again

After Slinky chased Missy off his bed Tuesday, she was afraid of him. She had been just showing herself anyhow. Good natured Slinky had tolerated her crowding him on his own bed but Tuesday was just too much. She hissed and spit at him and he came unglued and growled and barked at her as he chased her off HIS bed.

Today, he is his old good natured self. She very gingerly approached him about space on his bed and he gently moved over a bit to allow her some. No problem. I hope it will be awhile before she gets nasty with him again.

Yesterday after work I went to Independence to get my hair done. Today I will go with Leslie to Bartlesville while she shops for some special groceries for her Christmas dinner. It's always a special treat to get to go with her anywhere...and anymore, with her demanding job, the opportunities are few and far between.

I called her yesterday at her lunch time in hopes of getting to have lunch with her but they were swamped and she was eating at her desk. So I went to the Railroad Inn by myself and read my kindle while I ate my lunch. It was a beautiful day. I wonder how many more beautiful days we will have before winter sets in. Yesterday was the first day of winter. Brrr.

By the way, Bob and I set four mouse traps at church. The first day we caught no mice but they got the bait anyhow. We reset them. Yesterday I stopped and we had caught two mice. I left the other traps set. We may have even more. When Karan and Leslie brought in the Christmas decorations from the shed, they also brought in some mice. I hope those two were all but I will continue to set those traps until I'm sure of that. I want them to leave the decorations in the unused classroom this year. Mice are really nasty and we had not had a problem until this year.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

My Wonderful Classmates!

I am part of the class of the Field Kindley Memorial High School class of 1953, a most generous group of people. Right after graduation, one of our classmates named Dean started a newsletter and sent it to everyone in the class...at the time 283 of us. He kept it up for ten years and then a woman named Norma took it over from him for several years. Later another woman named Shirley took it over for some years. In the late 1900's, they asked me to take it because I was computer literate. I have done it ever since.

For many years they each sent me a Christmas card with their news. Nowadays the 83 who have computers and are online send me e-mails with their news. Everyone notifies me of changes of address and e-mails and always send me their news. I have one classmate man who watches the obits with me and then I notify the ones online of our losses. Those who are not online will learn of our losses when they get the newsletter. Every Christmastime, right after Christmas, I send out 188 newsletters and this year 105 will go by snail mail and 83 by e-mail. Of the original class, 95 are already deceased.

Where does the money come from? I let the classmates know we need the money and the money rolls in. We have several who are wealthy or well to do and they evidently think nothing of sending the needed money. It was Dean and Donna this time. If they send more then we need, I will give it to the class treasurer for the next class reunion. Every five years anymore we have a reunion. Those of us who live in the hometown (at least a dozen or so of us, at least) plan the reunion, a get together, a banquet and some special events.

This time the treasurer sent me word that we did not have the money for the newsletter. She suggested I send it out by e-mail only. That meant 105 classmates would not get the news. I mentioned that to the classmates and I have $300 coming right away. I will send out 83 by e-mail but the 105 without e-mail will get one too. Thanks to the generousity of those classmates.

Isn't that wonderful?

What a lovely Christmas gift for the class.

Another Wednesday

Back to work today. I didn't sleep well last night at all. Slinky woke me up several times and I could not get back to sleep. So even though I went to bed at 8:30, I did not get much sleep. Maybe I can catch a nap this afternoon after my hair appointment.

If it doesn't warm up today, I will have to put Slinky in the garage. We will see. I don't leave for work until 7:30. If he has to go in the garage, I will come home after noon and let him out to pee before leaving for Independence.

I read yesterday afternoon and worked on my class newsletter while he and Missy were in the kitchen. I have been working on one of my new books. I'm not particularly impressed with it. It's a little raw. The name of the book is "Right as Rain".

I have several others to read so I may just give it up.

More later...

I went to Independence, ate lunch while reading my kindle and went to the beauty shop. Afterward I ran by the Dairy Queen and got a coke and drank it on the way home.

I've been back to working on the class newsletter this afternoon. Three more days and I will start sending it out to those online. I will take it to the printer for the 105 I need done there. Then I'll buy my envelopes and stamps and get it in the mail after it's finished.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Cake Tuesday

Slinky snapped at Missy this morning. He was willing to share his bed with Missy but she spit and hissed at him and he finally just lost it. He growled and barked at her and rushed at her and scared her half to death. She jumped over the barrier and stayed away from him from then on. She got what she had coming to her. She's lucky he didn't hurt her.

We had set mouse traps at church to catch that little mouse that came in with the Christmas decorations. On our way to Independence, we stopped to check the traps. the little fellow had stolen the cheese and peanut butter off the traps without setting the trap off. We reset the traps in hopes that we will get him this time.

Our congregation made cakes today for the dinners being served at the First Christian Church in Independence. Bob A. and I took them to Independence and then we went to Wal Mart and did some shopping before going to Big Cheese and having lunch. Afterward we picked up the Bible that Karen B. left at our church on Sunday. We took it by her house but she wasn't home so we left it at her landlady's home.

Then we came back and I took him home.

I gave him two pieces of my blackberry pie.

Then I came home and ate a piece myself. I spent the afternoon with Slinky in the kitchen. He likes the Christmas music and generally sleeps through it. It's getting cold now and he will be sleeping in the kitchen.

Ruminating About Health Matters

I have been working on my class newsletter this last week or two...in my spare time. We have 83 class members online and 105 that are not. I have the local office supply store print the newsletter off each year and fold it for mailing then I stuff the envelopes, put stamps on them, sort them and get them mailed. I do this right after Christmas and have for fifteen years. Before I took it over, three other classmates in order had the job.

Last night I heard from the wife of a classmate whose husband has had a horrendous experience with the medical community. I wish I had the space to share their experience here but I don't. Every time I hear of one of these medical catastrophe experiences, I am grateful for my good health and hope when my time comes, I just die quietly in my sleep. My experiences with doctors and hospitals has not been good. In the past year two of my friends have lost their husbands from infections they picked up in the hospital. And there is my own experience in trying to get Bob's problem diagnosed over a six month period, only to finally discover his cancer after it had spread over his entire lymph system. The worst part of that experience was just trying to get it biopsied. The surgeon we went to declined to do the biopsy because of Bob's diabetes...he said. Then he told our family physician that we had declined to have it done....an out and out lie.

Right now, at least by next week, I am without a physician. My doctor is giving up her practice to work at the Cherokee Clinic thirty miles south of here. I really want a woman doctor but there aren't many around here. Luckily, at this time at least, I am pretty healthy....but at 76 that can't last forever.

I stayed with the doctor that delivered my last two children for forty years until he retired. Then I changed to the doctor I have had now for the past ten years. I only see her at her practice once or twice a year but that's because I have been healthy and my philosophy about doctors and hospitals is we are healthier if we stay away from them as much as possible.

And I never...repeat...never..want anyone to put me in a nursing home. I told my daughter that and she said, "sometimes there are extenuating circumstances, Mom." That's scarey! My Great Aunt Margie lived to be 104 and finally died in a nursing home. My family usually is long lived. And mostly they have lived in their own homes. My mother was the exception. She was a heavy smoker and died of COPD at 68 in a hospital. And, of course, my only sister is suffering from Altzheimers Disease and lives in a nursing home in a special unit for dementia patients.

But the situation is a concern. If I should really need a doctor, I have no idea where I would go.

Monday, December 19, 2011

A Working Monday

I will work today because we will not be working on Friday. I will bake my two cakes this afternoon or tomorrow morning and take them to Independence later in the morning tomorrow. Bob A. will help me and then we will eat lunch at Big Cheese.

This will be a big day at work. After I finish filing, I will go back to working across the hall and moving the 2000 LM files into boxes for shredding and moving all the 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 files forward on the shelves. That will take some time. Then, I will move 2006 across the hall where these older files are. Then finally, I will move 2007, 2008 and 2009 forward in the files on the office side of the office in their proper order. The last file clerk has them all out of order. It's a huge job. I am usually exhausted after all that. This will take a couple of weeks...maybe longer.

Wednesday is my hair appointment in Independence. I will go up right after work and pick up Juanita for lunch. We will go to Pizza Hut. That's near her home and my hair appointment is at 1:30. So we will only have an hour. I am taking her Christmas gift to her too.

Then I will work Thursday and be off on Friday. I will clean house on Friday. I will bake my pies on Saturday. I have kept this week fairly free until Christmas on Sunday.

If we are off on the following Friday for New Year's Day, I will work next Tuesday. I have to make up my time lost or lose the money and I need the money.

More later in the day...

After I filed for an hour and a half, I began moving files from one six shelf unit to another. I packed up all 2000 files for destruction. Then I moved each year (2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005) each one shelf unit west so I can bring the 2006 files over from the office to the storage area on the other side of the courtroom. I got it all done today except for moving the 2006 files across the courthouse to the storage room. I'll do that Thursday morning...or at least begin it. I'll have to pack them into file boxes and then take them over one by one on a moving truck. That kind of exercise should be good for me at 76.

Then I will move the 2007 files to the unit that had formerly held the 2006 files, the 2008 files will be moved to the former 2007 area and the 2009 files will go into the unit where the 2008 files had been. That ought to keep me busy for awhile.

When I got home I baked my two cakes and when they cooled I iced them. I picked up Bob A. and we went out to church to set some mouse traps. Evidently when Leslie and Karan brought the Christmas decorations in from the shed, they also brought in at least one mouse. I set four traps and hope to eliminate the little fellow this week.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Big Sunday!

I will bake my beans this morning and put them in an insulated bag so they will stay warm for today's dinner at church. I baked my pie yesterday morning.

We have our Christmas service this morning and a dinner afterward. We have invited guests to the dinner. In the afternoon, after I get my letters done, I will attend Jerry's retirement party and then this evening will go to Bredesen's for the Living the Questions group.

It will be a big day.

More later...

I got my beans baked and also wrapped the gift for Sage and got it ready for mailing tomorrow. I also addressed the special Christmas cards I got for my children and got them out on the mailbox for mailing too.

Slinky is out on the patio. It's been in and out...in and out all morning. He is out now for good.

I will have a lot of stuff to put in Bob's car when he comes. There's my beans, the candy and the pie. Then I will also take my purse, of course.

Later...

We had a nice crowd and most stayed for the dinner afterward. Most also brought food so we had plenty. I came home with two thirds of my blackberry pie and most of my peanut clusters and some of my baked beans.

I will take the peanut clusters and pie to Bredesen's tonight. Maybe they can eat it up.

I did get over to Jerry's retirement party and there were many people there. I stayed about 40 minutes said my farewell's to Jerry and left. I did get a short letter out to those members online. I still have to print off those that go in the snail mail.