It’s hot, that’s all I’ve got

Posted on July 11, 2024 | 5 comments

Just me, over here sweltering in Central San Joaquin Valley heat. Records have been broken for highest temperature for the day, most days over 105F degrees; highest LOW temperature for the morning, 80F degrees. I could go on, but you get the idea. It is just hot, has been hot, and will continue to be hot.

Any errands are done early in the morning with the goal to be home before 10 a.m. I spend early mornings watering all the yards to keep the cats cool during the days and even the nights. The air conditioning is set to come on at 80 degrees, indoor temperature, during the day and 84 degrees during the night, which is usually around 2 a.m. Cooking is minimal.

That last sentence, about cooking, well, sometimes I make an acceptation. Like on Wednesday when I realized I had three bananas that were beyond eating stage but would make good banana bread. I used the convection setting on my oven and the four small loaves turned out very well, with minimum baking time. Terry, who is not a fan of banana bread, even liked the end product. We are eating lots of watermelon, cantaloupe, salads, sandwiches, and ice cream.

The high for Monday was 112F degrees but it didn’t stop Ladies Who Lunch. We are an unstoppable group, in retirement just like when we were teaching. You can see the group who showed up for a lovely lunch at a new to us Mexican restaurant here on my Instagram account.

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How do you know if you are rich?

Posted on July 8, 2024 | 11 comments

A list I recently saw and thought how applicable it is to so many of my friends, both in 3D and online:

The New Wealth of 50+

Healthy body

Happy knees

Calm mind

Peaceful sleep

Full heart

True friendships

Something to look forward to

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First Saturday in July…

Posted on July 6, 2024 | 1 comment

…and it will be a scorcher — 114F degrees is the prediction. It was 111F on Friday. The weather forecasters has promised us a long stretch of extreme heat. The next two weeks will be hard on people, pets, and produce.

As you could probably predict, I am watering the yards for the cats and the plants. The cats who stay outside tuck themselves under plants with lots of overhang and where water has left cool ground. The covered patio was like an oven on Friday and there were no animals to be seen there. The squirrels go up high into the Italian cypress after lying around on the cool dirt in the mornings. All of the critters are drinking lots of water. I refill the water bowls at least twice a day. Evaporation takes some of it, too.

Although I am not happy about grocery shopping on a Saturday, today I must brave the heat and the crowds and go. I have not shopped all week and our food supplies have run very low, especially the fresh fruits and vegetables, which we have been living on during the heat wave. I am hoping to find some prepared foods, too, so that I don’t have to heat up anything but the microwave.

Addendum: The grandchildren will not be here this next week. Our granddaughter tested positive for COVID after having a headache and sore throat for a couple of days. We are all very disappointed.

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Lots of money goes up in smoke

Posted on July 5, 2024 | 5 comments

I don’t know how it was in your neighborhood, but here in upper middle class northwest Fresno, the 4th of July was a BOOM to the local economy and for the illegal fireworks merchants.

Explosions started July 4 just past 8 p.m., twenty minutes before sunset, and were still going at 5 a.m. July 5, 10 minutes past sunrise. Although the street to the west of us had the safe and sane, traditional fireworks, the rest of this area had the illegal variety, the kind that costs thousands of dollars.

Earlier in the week, Fresno police made contact with a woman selling illegal fireworks through Facebook and arrested her and confiscated over $3000 worth of explosives. Just from what I heard, and briefly saw, 100 times that amount actually made it out on the streets and into the air.

My thoughts last night were tuned to the complaining I hear about the economy in this country. We hear it every day, how expensive food, utilities, gas, rent–all things we need–are, and yet, the same people have thousands of dollars to blow up. I’m at a loss.

Same thing for traveling. More air travelers this past week than in any other time in history. Again, I don’t know what your community looks like, but ours is filled with new cars, too. I keep thinking, “there is plenty of money out there, why are people complaining?”

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Staying aware and upright in old age

Posted on June 30, 2024 | 3 comments

Last week I met with a young woman and her camera crew to tape a segment for our church’s 150th celebration video. I wrote earlier, and in other places, how she kept me on track and would stop me when I began to ramble and even give me sentences with what I was trying to say. She was excellent at her job. More of us old people need someone like her to follow us around and make us look and sound smarter!

Later in the week Terry and I were once again at the cancer center for his sixth injection for that tiny neuroendocrine tumor that the oncologist thinks can be treated. We are hopeful as we know there are many others who do not have such a good prognosis. We see them as we sit in various waiting areas to move to the various labs, offices, and treatment rooms in this very large medical complex.

It makes me sad to see those whose health has deteriorated both through illness and age. However, this week I did see a man come off of an elevator with a very ingenious walker. It was as tall as he and all he does is put his arms straight out, and push off, and he rolls right along. I told Terry that should I ever need a walker, I want that one. It might be cumbersome to load in and out of a car, though, but I would be willing to give it a try. It would be much like having an upright rolling desk.

Speaking of elevators, Terry commented, as we left one, that no one must be teaching elevator etiquette any more. As in, wait until all the passengers have left the car before attempting to get in. This situation, though, I told him is different. These are elderly people, most of who are sick, and they are no longer self-aware. Maybe they never were, but it seems as people age, they lose their awareness of their surroundings and the others who share the same space. I wonder if that young producer-director who gave me my lines could also help with that.

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This & that in this week

Posted on June 28, 2024 | 2 comments

The last week of June has been busy, somewhere to be, something to do, every day of the week. Next week, I’m staying home. It’s a holiday week and the weather forecast is HOT so it will be nice here in my cool house with the books I have to read. Here’s hoping none of the forest fires cause any power outages or that the blazing heat doesn’t blow out the neighborhood transformers.

Speaking of this week and books…I had two books that sounded promising but both disappointed in the first 20 pages. If I don’t like the characters or at least want to know more about them, then I quickly lose interest. Such was the case with Commitment by Mona Simpson. It had an interesting premise–single mother raising children in Southern California to be successful humans. She loses her mind in the attempt and has to be “committed.” Her children, though intelligent, struggle to make a way for themselves as well as care for her. The children annoyed me. Maybe if I had stuck with it until the end I would have seen them in a different light, but I decided my time was more valuable and gave up.

The other book, One Perfect Couple, by an author I’ve previously liked, Ruth Ware, had a husband at the very beginning I didn’t like. He wanted to get on a reality game show, on a desert island. His wife, hard-working, nose-to-the-grindstone, was not happy about it, but I could tell she was going to give in and they would become contestants. No thanks.

On Wednesday I headed to our church for an early afternoon taping session for a video showcasing the current life and times of our church which will celebrate 150 years this fall. There would three interviews recorded that afternoon with current members of the church speaking as to when and why they became members and the work they do within the congregation. I was speaking to my work with deacons and children’s sermon.

The young woman doing the video was delightful and very helpful with my part. I had asked to do this as early in the day as possible, because, as you know, I am not very capable late in the day. My time was 1 p.m. She asked the questions and I answered. If I sputtered or got tongue-twisted, she would stop the taping and give me sentences to recite. That was very helpful. From what I am hearing, our current president could probably have used someone like this young lady in his debate last night with that other guy.

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During the summer months…

Posted on June 26, 2024 | 10 comments

Terry and I no longer travel during the summer months. What with the cats and the yards, and the hotter summers, we just don’t feel that it’s a good idea to be gone. Even though I don’t have the responsibility of storytelling during these three months, there seems to be other tasks to accomplish like catching up on medical appointments. I got in the habit of doing that when teaching and still do.

The cats, the yards, upkeep of the house, laundry, meals…those are the things that take up so much time, especially in the summer. I see friends twice a month for lunch. Terry goes to cardio rehab. There’s church on Sundays. It’s all very simple. Nothing grand or elaborate.

And yet it all takes lots of time. The food part, especially. Planning, shopping for, fixing, eating, cleaning up. I don’t remember food being such an issue when I was younger and working. I shopped after work, fixed foods on Saturday and Sunday that would provide leftovers for us through the week. Then on Fridays, we went out to dinner, and started it all over again.

Terry and I do our own breakfasts, but there needs to be food in the refrigerator and cupboards to accommodate that. Terry orders coffee from Peets and makes a fresh pot every morning. He also makes fresh orange juice every few days. We share those beverages. Terry eats cold cereal every morning except on Saturdays. He makes pancakes every Saturday which requires eggs, buttermilk and Bisquick, which I must keep stocked. I occasionally buy bacon when I find uncured for a reasonable price for him to enjoy during the week with leftover pancakes. I eat a bagel, toast, frozen waffle, or some such bread product almost every morning.

Lunch is usually on our own. It’s only at dinner time that we sit down together and have a good meal. That takes planning, coordination, and plain old preparation. If we eat out for lunch, like I did on Tuesday, we bring home either leftovers or an extra meal to share for dinner. Some weeks during the school year I order dinners from the cafe/bakery to pick up on Friday so we will have food for over the weekend.

It all sounds so simple, and yet just the daily living seems to consume a whole lot of time, effort, and energy.

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Summer and the living is friendly & delicious

Posted on June 25, 2024 | 2 comments

That trip to the eye doctor? So I could drive Terry home after his eyes were dilated? I went. I read my book for an hour or so. It’s a lovely office. Two patients came out through my wait and chatted with me about my book and my hair. Then Terry came out to say she didn’t dilate his eyes and he has to come back next Monday?!!!

Okay, so I sat for an hour waiting to drive him home only to find I will have to come back next week and do it all over. Good thing I love this man. Then it rained on us going home. In 104F degree temperature. No one knew we would have thunder, lightening, rain, oh my. A tropical storm from Mexico was whirling around and came our way. Same thing this Tuesday afternoon. The storm seems to be in no hurry to leave the area and blow out to sea.

Today had lovely plans. Or at least for me. Terry had cardio rehab. Actually, he likes cardio rehab so it’s fun for him. And it’s very good for him, physically and emotionally. And socially. Of course, he gets fairly good doses of social activity so I don’t worry too much about that element. I just read another piece today that says social interaction is crucial to healthy aging. That’s where my lovely day came in. I met two new friends for lunch. Chinese food at a restaurant where I’ve never eaten before even though it is an older place. This is our fourth time to meet, eat, and talk about our lives.

I think I wrote about these two women before. They are younger than me. Brilliant. Lovely. Successful. One is a retired nurse who just managed to pilot a book festival for the city. When she was done, she and some friends took off for a holiday in Mexico. The other is still employed, doing various types of communication for the our State university which is just down the street from where we met for lunch. She’s always on a deadline and often works while we eat. Being so smart, she can follow multiple conversations at a time. Both of these women add so much to my life.

We had really delicious Chinese food suggested by the working girl. I had never even heard of this restaurant much less eaten there. The dish I ordered was crispy beef which turned out to be very much like my favorite dish at our favorite restaurant. It was served a bit differently and I will know next time to order a side dish of chow mein. I brought home enough for Terry to have for dinner and an extra order of chow mein so I too can give it a try. We may be going to the new place more often as our favorite place is taking a few weeks of summer off.

Wednesday has a different activity–filming a piece for our church’s 150th anniversary. I’ll let you know how that goes.

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Full calendar for last week of June

Posted on June 24, 2024 | 7 comments

Although it is going on 7:30 am by the time I sit down here to write and say thank you for your kind words these past few days, I have been up and moving since just past 6. It will again be a hot day (108F on Sunday), so I had to get the yards watered and cooled for the cats. And of course, everyone, including the squirrels, needed to be fed.

Yes, thank you, dear Readers for encouragement and reinforcement on my past couple of posts. I handled the emails and it all worked out very well. The problems were solved and we are in a position to go forward. Well, there is still one sticking point, but it’s really out of my realm except for prayer. You may remember that I was on the board of our church’s preschool for a few years and then walked away a bit over a year ago due to a change in the direction a group wanted to take the school. It has not turned out to be successful. It is in God’s hands.

This week is full. Every day has something on the calendar. We will start and end with medical stuff for Terry. He has his sixth injection for his tumor on Friday, but our favorite Chinese restaurant is closed for the summer so I don’t know where, or even if, we will go out for dinner afterwards.

Our daughter is in charge of Vacation Bible School at her church this week. I think this is the 20th year she has done this. Terry and I would often go for the week to help in various ways, but her kids are old enough now to be big help and they don’t need my supervision. The attendance has also dwindled from 130 to fewer than 100. We will stay in hot Fresno and tend to the cat colony and our full calendar.

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Magic words

Posted on June 23, 2024 | 8 comments

Were you taught, when small, maybe in kindergarten, that there are some magic words we need to get us through life?

Please. Thank you.

That’s it. Pretty simple. Makes life more pleasant. Easy to say.

If you were taught these words at a young age, as I was, you probably use them often. I know I do.

I’m sorry are a couple more I’ve learned.

I need help. Good ones to have around.

Some incidents have come to light the past few days that remind me of how much these words make life better.

Unfortunately, I know people who don’t use these words. They are the people who don’t ask, they demand. They never encourage. They never have a nice word for anyone or anything. I hate to see them coming. I do my best to avoid all contact with them. Sometimes, though, it is impossible.

Remember those emails I was avoiding? I wrote about them yesterday, early, when I had the fortitude to open them and read and deal. More came yesterday. I still had the energy to handle them until the last one showed up, one sent by the person(s) who don’t use the magic words.

I never opened it because it was late on a very hot afternoon. I was tired. I had used up my goodwill energy. This morning, energized, well rested, ready for the day, I still haven’t opened the email. Instead I decided to write to you, dear Readers. Thank you for listening.

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