Sally and I go see a movie, Hamnet

 Best Christmas "hymn" ever, not about exhausted Mary birthing that baby every damned year in the dead of winter.

Lights sparkling  on a dark rainy night in December- just my cup of tea! Sally and I went to see Hamnet at the Pickford downtown. We went in  dark daylight at 2:00 . I waited for her in the lobby .

I had an art  studio upstairs once , it was grand! Two rooms, leaded glass, large  windows that opened wide onto the street-   an ancient brothel (?) it was set up that way.  Built as a department store in 1904  with "offices" above- later became an antique shop and then a Deli . A brother and sister rented the space, they were all of 21 years old, fluent in ASL ,because their little brother was born deaf, English and Polish. Fun and charming little family , served polish food and played loud music. I worked across the street @ Little Panda, an import shop, and had lunch from the Deli when I could afford it. Slim chance of affording anything- I made $2.50 an hour early 80's. Took what you could get,everyone was poor.

waiting for Sally in the lobby looking out onto the street.

The film is a good one, comes with advice to stack your purse with tissues because, they warn, floods of tears. I shed not a one but did prepare with half a  toilet roll in my bag. Sally bought pop corn,  freshly popped  in small batches- real butter as much as is desired.  Sprinkle options of brewers yeast flakes or Parmesan or cinnamon and sugar.  Tea or coffee if one needs a warm up- choice of  whole milk or half and half. Bottled organic soft drinks- and an array of sweets. 

 Our favorite theater by far. 

Erik was in high school when the theater was gathering money to build their idea. They sponsored film competitions at schools to interest the kids in a future of film making. Erik entered twice,  and with his team,  won first prize twice.  Glorious  days of kids in the house filming, editing, laughing  way too much. Our family contributed hundreds of dollars to the building project. It took YEARS! Anyway, it holds a place in our hearts.

Movie over, vanta black  and raining outside, of course.  The old Mount Baker apartment building across the street lit up , eight floors built in 1929, art deco-ish  on the inside , is now low income housing- IN STYLE, I might add. the apartments are charming old school. 

Sally reckoned that we should walk over to the Leopold, another old building  that has gone through a few incarnations, but is now once again a hotel. There is a pop up bar that she wanted to check out.

I could not get out of there fast enough!
 

There is the hotel bar that is much more mellow , nicer. We did not stop for a drink , we  wandered through the downstairs .

The ballroom where Dead Maggie had her 90th birthday party.

I would give them a nickle for this ceiling light though it might be  demanding to keep it sparkling. Plus I would have to build a house around it. So, I guess I will keep my nickle. As they say- a nickle saved is... a nickle.
 

 so-Hamnet is a most worthy film to see- Jesse Buckley is amazing. Acting skills that will slap you silly!  Her character's  force and emotional journey symbolized  in the wearing of her red dress throughout the film. She deserves ALL of the prizes! 

And now, I love you and leave you with  over -it -apples on a tree...and a ginger bread/ graham cracker  looking house across the street from My friend's across town. Yummy.

it just needs icing....

 

 

 

 

 

shut off

 

 

Yesterday i drove out to Home Goods to get stuff to fill  baskets for the neighbors.  Silly cow struck my fancy though I did not buy any. 

Remembering when I was changing buses @ Catford on my way to Greenwich. A muddy, large, unattractive growlly man blocked my way as I was leaving the bus,  got into my face and said something about something and then finished with "silly cow". The visual of a cow being silly made me laugh, which was not what that man intended- Clearly he wanted to intimidate but , sorry, failed-" silly cow" - is hilarious.  "Cow" is the best so -called insult ever. And silly is the only way to be.  

I did not buy the Silly Cow Chocolate but may need to go back to do so. It's a winner.

These folks are blocking the drive way. Not sure how long they may be there, fixing the deep water filled hole where the cul de sac 's wires live. The ADU has presented a few problems, Buried electricity is one.  They may shut it all off in another minute so I am racing to get this posted.

 

 

darkness has befallen us

 

Two O'clock in the afternoon and we need a flash light to make our way through the house. Bloody hell- it is dark!

this morning the line up waiting for  something warm to eat.

Frosty

It did not get quite so dark until afternoon. A nap would be welcomed... I drank a cuppa instead, and that is not working .  My eyes are worse today, not  because of the lack of light but because I ate mashed potatoes and wheat bread- Always a mistake as they are inflammatory things and my eyes are canaries in the mine.

Penetratingly cold today .  This is winter at its best?

Erik sent a photo of a pizza he was given, made especially for him. He delivers free pastries  to the little pizza shop staffed by trans youth, usually he trades pastries for a slice, but they know him now and love him dearly. It is endearing that there is a community of people surrounding our Erik who all look out for one another. 

Speaking of caring for one another, My neighbor sent this link to me this morning. Pretty sorry damned country, this.

HERE 

Yesterday I visited a friend who has just had a second knee replaced. We discussed care for the elderly and decided that it would be wiser to have someone go down to Railroad Ave and score fentanyl- adios. y'all.. 

On that dark note on a dark day in a dark country I wish you all well- I am off to Nap,  my squishy bed under  two down comforters and a hot water bottle. sounds like the best option.  Useless day. 

How dark is it?

 

SOOOoooo dark!

 

 

little dog, raccoon poos, and Home Depot, ICE OUT

Time marches on to Christmas, I have decided to have Christmas dinner here again on my birthday. I ordered English crackers and am planning to have Cost Co bail us out . Their lasagna and ham are mighty fine, or so reviews claim,  Garlic bread and  salad, Dessert - easy...pick up some Bailey's and egg nog- and that will be that!  Or so I say now, things can change but at least I will have essential crackers and paper crowns.  The Portuguese  family will be spending Christmas in the sunny desert, hiking and soaking in vitamin D. 

Orphan, Nat, surprised and hiding from the little dog who thinks he lives here. He is licking the pan, though there was nothing left in it that was interesting except  Ghost of  turkey.

He is a cute little rascal, Came right in and made himself at home. Sniffing and sniffing  and picking up  crumbs under the table. Checked out the rubbish which was full of grand smells but he could not get the bag open. He is a funny little thing, he gave me a kiss and then off he went, back onto the deck and away. 

I cleaned raccoon poos from the same corner of the deck that they defiled the other day. I guess we did not use enough RE-PELL. I could not find it in the garage, Dennis is gone. the garage is his mystery heaven,  I can not find a thing in there! Stacked to the ceiling. He knows where most things are stashed (?) Garages are a guy thing.

Did you see the hilarious protests going on @ Home Depot? Loads of protesters in a long queue taking up most of the store, each buying a cheap ice scraper. Though they are making four dollar sale each time , I am sure that the store is losing business/$$$  because of the long queues of protesters. Signs were worn- "Ice Out, Home Depot!" 

Clever, clever! 

 

 

catching up with family - the usual thanksgiving

Pup trying to let his friend in to have some bird and pie. "Please, sir"

Best thanksgiving ever- relaxed, delicious and the kids were all happy. Everyone going off into their adult lives well grounded. Interesting choices. Keeka is off to Australia , freelancing her art business.  Maddy piloting the big ones through the sky as well as teaching in a  Montessori school in her free time. Also planning trip to Ireland.  Austin applying   to eco -architectural program , three options, U of Dub, L.A. or the Netherlands. Of course consensus was Netherlands. Max , having quit his job in DC is now at Columbia in Medical school,  a 3.7% acceptance rate,  difficult to get into but you know Max! genius child.   He is loving it so far, cutting up cadavers...He did not carve the turkey. Dennis did , with a hack saw. Non surgical.

Wayne and Carol getting everything sorted and could leave tomorrow , but Carole has drum lessons planned  in February. They will leave in March. Portugal sounds very appealing hearing their enthusiastic  stories. A mellow country, friendly and lively , and best, affordable.

Kim will teach for two more years. This year she has an easier group of children than she has had in the past. Because she is "Teacher of the Century", classes assigned to her are generally the children who need more "teaching"  from a highly skilled person. It is exhausting, so this year she caught a break !   She only has two children who present challenges, one who has childhood gratification syndrome and one autistic child . It is like a vacation for Kim. 

Dave is still piloting and will be until he is given the boot for being old, a long time from now. He loves his job and is paid very well. Gravity or failed engines have not had their way with him.

Erik, still in Portland , rides his bike to work  on the path in between ICE headquarters and Tesla  dealership, both of which  have well attended protests daily, biking through clouds of tear gas. Used to it, old hat. In the evening he  bikes around to donate food to homeless and to stock the  outdoor refrigerators in his area ,maintained by the owners of the properties- A food bank. of sorts. 

Dennis's brother could not come, last minute heart issues. 

(Wayne's large head and everyone else's tiny heads) 

Dave helping out the granny.

How many blogs and posts will look just like these today ?

Anyway, looks like we are on to Christmas-clomping along through Fairhaven. Gourds replaced by cedar boughs and glitter. 

The next get together may not be until summer. It will be a modest Christmas. I asked Erik what I should get from the Northpole for him this year. He said..."nothing, perhaps a smile, a nod, a wink and a bottle of Baileys.".OK, can. do! Simple.

PS- Erik. tells of young man murdered at Burning man- the murdered guy was Russian , the killer will never be found...when Erik returned to work , his coworker (from Ukraine) said " thank you, Erik, I knew that you would kill for me...."  and everyone had a good laugh, except for the dead guy.
 

thankful, new sheets, table of gourds

Kim holding what Flora made at school today...pretty sure that the teacher "helped" with the project of being thankful... Flora has four year old developmental writing skills, which is to say, scribble. They are all going to Seattle  for Thanksgiving, otherwise they would be here. Anyway, Emily and I thought that Flora would have been more grateful for Bluey and candy - I think she got a nudge from. teacher.  

Dinner has been narrowed down to 14, I think. I made stuff today and put the table together. Washed new sheets for Erik . They are incredibly soft Turkish cotton flannel.  Such a DEAL from the Homestore! I also bought new place mats , napkins and table cloths for loooooooong table-  All in all very little cash was parted with . It is a great store at the moment, how long it will last is anyone's  guess, but I won't need anything ever again. Family will be  scattering. Big dinners- a thing that just will be no more, I reckon. I say "poo".

 How many orphans can sleep on the new pillow? That was the contest this evening. 

 

Tomorrow the turkey will be prepared, the apples and walnuts will be chopped, and that is that.  

Erik will be driving up after work, six hour drive- sleep, eat thanksgiving dinner , sleep and leave the next morning in time to go to work, six hour drive back. I hope that holiday traffic is not hell. Full of tryptophan  , staying alert on the road could be challenging. I am so excited to see him- it has been ages! 

There are gourds on the table instead of flowers, it is their time to shine. 

fingers crossed the frozen brick of a bird thaws overnight. If not, I will just toss it in the bath with me until it snaps out of it. It will be like bathing with a dead baby, I am afraid...maybe i will come up with a better plan.  

Tomorrow we will  go over to Peter's to witness his daughter's signature on something that one must do  when one's father dies. We won't linger, there is still cleaning to be done, shoving things into bags and tossing them  under the stairs. "my , how tidy your house is, Linda Sue. You are adulting well." 

The weather is cooperating, warm and rainy.  Street lights come on at four in the afternoon.  And so the long sleepy winter drags on like a giant , wet , dark , slow  slug. This is just the beginning, by March we are all  felling close to suicidal- every time.  One might think we would be used to it by now. 

 A dark house in a dark area of the world, why paint your house so dismally? I guess because it matches the climate? There has been a trend of painting houses charcoal and black and whatever this color is. 

Cute house across the street from Jesus's House. Dark as night, trendy!

 

 

Goodbye Peter, lunch with Stella, Rosemary, and Portugal

Yesterday we said adios to Peter in his choice of church and his choice of ceremony. Some French, some Dutch and some Indonesian spoken.

The service was nice enough, Friends of Peter were all wonderful and on the right side of history.  The woman seated  in front of me had rainbows in her hair. I inquired- she got her hair rainbowed by a young Palestinian woman who works in the Peace and Justice Center- sends her earnings to Palestine. Palestine was the theme of the day , besides Peter and Jesus.

 The dahlias at the entrance still growing beautifully. they seem to be loving the rain and cooler temperatures.

There was a reception offering trays of cookies and home made   this and that. We skipped , but did have a conversation with a few people  beforehand. Mary said" I am so surprised that you came!", I guess surprised because we are not fans of Jesus or church. We are fans of Peter and Mary and family! Of course we would  show up- we even dressed fancy  and combed our hair! 

Came home, I made more Pulla. This time they turned out better but I did not put enough salt in . My excuse is "this is for folks with blood pressure issues, totally intentional"...  health food- just looking out for y'all.

Stella and I went out before she left for  California. We went to the usual , Black Cat , for soup and salad. Dependable and affordable. The rowan tree lost every  bit of green  , showing off bright  berries against red brick. Lovely tree.The gold tree in the background is still clinging to  gold flecks.  Must be November!

Stella is going to meet her daughter, Grandson and great grand daughter. They will all stay together and go to Disneyland for a couple of days.

Stella's first trip to Disneyland! I wish that I could have gone with her!   Aware of the shite company Disney may be but I do love a joy filled day of silly fantasy , reality replaced for a moment, with extreme and grand ridiculousness.  

I love Disneyland. 

Oldest son and wife have returned from Portugal , having gone to sign a lease on an apartment in the far south, LUZ. While there ,they went to Nice France to hang out with Sister and her wife, they live there now. A great time was had . Oldest son is so ready to leave this country.

They intend to  be gone by March- this is the last thanksgiving we will all be together.  

They had to sign a lease before they even have a visa, which could be problematic. In order to apply for visa , one must have a residence in Portugal to go to. Bass ackwards. It is possible that a visa could be denied and then , there they are , with an apartment paid for remaining empty.  

Anyway, we hope that  they are well on their way- committed to this new adventure!

I will send the money that Flora made  along with them so they can  be financially secure, probably. Generous of me, I know. 

This morning I watered the indoor plants. Pleasantly surprised by rosemary blooming so delicately. She is pretty!

This Sunday morning is not too cold, not too dark, raccoons behaving nicely. They had made a loo out of the corner of the deck where the kitty door once was. "How dare you," I scolded ! I shoveled the poos into a bag and took it to the big trash bin- cleaned the area well, and sprayed it with  Re-pells -All, works like magic. Today I will scrape the mud from the glass and shine up the windows. By the time Thanksgiving rolls around the mud will have returned, I am sure.  Too many raccoons have been showing up at the crack of dawn, I discourage them  with my broom. I wait for my little family of known mother and children to come, only then will I dip into the bag of dog kibble. Do NOT report me! That is all.

Except for this:

Remember Perry Como? He's back!

Eugene Levy is genius!