Thursday

 Lora sent the pictures from Tuesday at Villa Alamar and here are three:       

Evident here, Betty has gained a startling amount of weight; in the atrium.                                                                              

                          Above, Betty is pointing to one of our baby pictures in the album I brought.

            More in the album.  

Lora had texted two other pictures, but unfortunately, when I tried to transfer, I accidentally deleted them. I'll see her today at T.O.P.S. and ask her to re-send.

I had trouble with the Internet connection--or something--and signed up for something called Restora. It seems to have remedied the situation--good thing, for forty-two bucks.

Left to meet Diane and found my remote wouldn't open the Hill Street gate. I went around to Woodland Avenue and the back gate, and that wouldn't open, either. Luckily, one of the  neighbors was driving out and she clicked it open. Hours later, when I came home, I couldn't open the front gate on Telegraph, either. After T.O.P.S. this morning, I'll stop into the office and get a new remote.

Diane and I, having brought our own lunches, sat, ate, and talked happily for--oh, three hours. When we finally parted, I bused to Michelle's, my tax accountant, at Cypress Place to pick up my concrete return (at my request, she had also sent me the digital version, which I immediately forwarded to Mike). I didn't stay, as I knew she was under the gun to finish up her clients' returns--just gave her a check for her fee, and said goodbye.

Walked to the Telegraph Road Von's (not the one near me) to get coffee they had advertised on sale, but that's not available until today, so I'll wait. Got the 11 bus to the transit center, then the 6 home, so I didn't get in until 5:30.    

NOTE: Good grief, after years of the bland, same-old, tame-old "theme" on this blog, I changed it. Not sure if I like it and, in fact, I thought I would have the beach scene I selected at the top, but it's not there. I'm sorry  I did it and may switch back or to something else.

Wednesday Without Much Going On

Kind of a dull day. I did a color wash in the morning while I trying to put a little organization on my father's memorabilia trove. I dug out some of the photos I have, but just a tiny percentage of the whole. Here are some from long before I was born:

My Mom and Dad at a picnic before they were married. The original is dated 1918, when my Dad would have just graduated from high school. He's on the front right, lounging. This is one of the few of him with a grin on his face. Mom is the third girl from the left.

The young Byrne family before the twinnies were born. They are on the Domino Lane farm, circa 1935, judging from baby Frankie in the front. Gene is on Mom's left, Larry and Jimmy in front of Dad.

Later, circa 1929, also on Domino Lane. Jimmy and Gene in front of Mom, with left, Uncles Ed and Frank, and Dad. I posted this one on Facebook and my cousin, Marifran, commented; she was actually embarrassed by what her Dad, Edmond (left), was wearing--94 years ago!  

When I went through some of my other family treasure trove, I came across pictures of Holy Family parish, in Manyunk, where Dad went to grammar school (I assume all or most of his siblings did, too). I emailed the contact there to ask if they had material from about 1913 or '14, and earlier, when Dad would have attended.   

I looked up from my absorbing labors and realized it was after one. Thought I'd take my lunch and bus to Montgomery Avenue, where Ellen used to live and enjoy it on a bench near the river. However, when I neared the bus stop, I realized I had forgotten my phone. Went back to get it, met up with Vickie on the way and we stopped to talk, at which point, I realized it was extremely windy, so I lost my enthusiasm for the trip. Instead, I headed over to Von's for broccoli, tuna, and a twelve-pack of 805 (beer).

Stopped to check my mail on the way back and ran into my pal, David, the ornithologist. He's now engaged in trying to persuade management to refrain from further trimming of the trees because the birds don't like it. Well, he didn't say that, of course; he reminded Manager Bianchi that trees are the birds' habitat and they need to build their nests on the branches. We must have stood there talking for forty-five minutes or so before we said goodbye.  Home and it was almost 3:00 before I finally had lunch. Just puttered around the rest if the day, except for...

...I can't decide if this is amusing or unsettling: Without going into detail, I've briefly been PMing with a man from Bucks County I "met" on Facebook. This is not one of those obviously scamming  communications (two have been directed at me), in which a stranger, whose FB page shows a handsome and clearly virile guy who "wants to get to know you better."  "Marc" (dollars to doughnuts he used to spell it with a "k") B. and I started commenting back and forth on a certain site, one thing led to another, and the situation starting going where I don't want to go. I looked him up and I think he is or was a car salesman in or around Philly, probably in his seventies. His communications were shading into the provocative and good grief, I need that like another grey hair, so I restricted him from my chat list--bye-bye, Marc! 

Tuesday And My Twin

Had breakfast, then hastily put together some old pictures in an album before Lora picked me up at 9:30. We drove the Pacific Coast Highway to Santa Barbara in less than an hour on a beautiful warm and sunny day. 

When we got there, Betty was, as she often is, in the recreation room.  One of the staff, a lovely young woman, was batting a huge balloon back and forth to the seven or eight seated residents. As soon as we walked in, Betty gave us a big smile. I'm sure she recognized me as someone close to her, but have no idea if she knew I'm her twin. Lora and I sat with Betty on a couch and participated in the balloon game, which was actually fun. The young woman then read aloud a story about a woman and Snoopy, the dog. Whether the residents understood and/or enjoyed it was hard to say. 

We stayed in the recreation room about an hour, then I suggested we sit in the atrium. I showed Betty pictures in the album. I don't know if she actually recognized herself, me, and other members of the family, but when she saw this picture*:

                                                     

...and I asked her who it was, she said, "That's your father." I was amused she didn't say "our" or "my," but pleased that she knew him.  Lora took some pictures, but hasn't yet sent them to me; when she dos, I'll post here.

At noon, we followed Betty to the dining room, as an aide helped her into a chair, then said goodbye. I broke down in the hallway and Lora embraced me; she has had--and still has--some unfortunate family happenings in her life and is so sympathetic to others.

We went to Joe's Café, where Vickie had taken me the last time I was there and both enjoyed it immensely. We were there for two hours, and I heard a lot more about the ups and downs of her life. Got home about 3:30 and, on impulse, left almost immediately and bused to the mall. I've been looking for Vanity Fair undies and didn't find them there, either. Did buy blueberries and spinach.

Since I had again gotten up at 4:15, I set the phone and took an hour's nap. Ellen called on her way home and we had a good, long conversation. We're going to hike in Ojai the Sunday after next: I have docent duties at Dudley House this Sunday.  

I was surprised to get a text from Margarita asking if I planned to go to the BCNN meeting next Wednesday. I texted back I'd like to, but Julie wasn't going, did she want to pick me up? She answered yes, so I'll see her next week.     

*This is a copy of the portrait of  my father painted by the artist mother of a friend of my brother, Frank. He commissioned it after my father was killed.  The friend's name was Bruce Apel--I don't know what ever happened to him--alive or dead, dunno. The original hangs in my niece, Carolyn's, living room.

Monday: Milk, Mental Illness, And A Clockwork Orange

Stripped the bed and did a bleach wash, re-made, folded, and put away.; I was finished this and breakfast before 9:00. Of course, I get up so early (about 4:30, as a rule), it's more like the middle of the afternoon for normal people. The flip side, natch, is that I'm in bed by 9:15 or so, read for a bit, then conk out. I'm okay with it, though; it seems to be the way my body wants it.

Called Vanguard and got the info on the forms Michelle questioned. Emailed the answers to her, hoping this was the end of my ordeal with taxes. We had a few more exchanges, then I signed electronically and happy day, it's done. I'll get a fair amount back and think I'll offer to bring Joel and the boys out here again.

Called Wells Fargo, as I had gotten a bill for two "channels" on Prime Video I don't remember ordering. They took it off with no problem. I'm also going to call Goggle and ask about a bill for something or other from them.

Emailed Diane to see if she wanted to go to Olive Garden and share a $25 gift card I have. It's in Oxnard and she thinks that's too far (we'd have to get the Access Van), but suggested we meet outside O'Leary's, bringing our own, which is fine by me. Penciled it in for the day after tomorrow.

Walked to the Hill Street branch of the library to take back the Stephen King book. I then sat down and read for an hour--so very fine to be there, in the quiet, reading. It was a book called Nobody Cares About Crazy People, a history of the treatment of the mentally ill, plus the private sorrows of a father whose son had schizophrenia and took his own life. Borrowed that and also took out Mind Over Meds, by Dr. Andrew Weil about life style changes in lieu of too many drugs. I've read a lot of his books; he and others led me to a semi-plant-based diet and the value of exercise.  Also requested the DVD of  A Clockwork Orange (Malcolm McDowell, y' know).

I left and was on my way to The Market when LaVonne called. We chatted, then made a date to meet at Hill Street Café next Thursday, April 6. We'll have a late lunch, at 2:00, because they offer a 25 % senior discount then. Continued on to the Market, where I  got milk, oatmeal, and yada, yada. Went across the street to the tiny atrium at the office complex. It was quite serene, as usual, and I enjoyed the quiet ambiance and the fountain bubbling out of the rough log sculpture:    

Stopped at Wal-Mart for a few items, then bused home. Checked my email and was thrilled to see messages from the dean of the Little Rock College library and the assistant director of something or other. They were responding to my request about my Dad's time there, both on the faculty and as a graduate student. I emailed back, but they probably won't get my message until this morning, as they're in Arkansas.

Lora called to confirm she'll pick me up at 9:30 this morning and we'll go to see Betty, then to lunch at Joe's Cafe.  I called Carolyn to tell her and we had a nice chat. 

Sloughing Through Sunday

...and the tax stuff, from which, it seems I WILL NEVER ESCAPE! 

Okay, I'm being dramatic. Michelle looked over my submissions and emailed me to the effect that I need to provide another Vanguard (investments) form. I couldn't see where on the website, so sent them a message and assume they'll get back to me. I seldom have to contact them (they just keep putting dough in my bank account), but the few times I have, they've been courteous, knowledgeable and helpful. 

Besides that, I rearranged two closets and got them a little more functionable. All that took until lunchtime, after which I walked over to Von's for frozen fruit (free, because I buy there so much) and sumo citrus, my new favorites for breakfast.

I also looked up Little Rock College where my Dad taught right after he and Mom were married; he also got his master's there. Unless I  missed something, it's now the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. I asked for access to their digital documents, although I think there's only a slim chance his tenure there would be covered. I'll try to get in touch with their archivist, too.

The business about my picture in the BCNN yearbook continues to annoy me. I asked editor Carolee to see if I could improve the picture taken by the "BCNN photographer," which highlights every damn blemish and wrinkle. Instead of attempting to do it myself, I submitted it to Free Restoration and Colorization. Got a number of enhancements; here are old me and the new and improved version:

Went over to Suzanne's at 5:00 for one of our little social sessions. She and I were interested in Vickie's account of her sojourn to San Luis Obispo and plans to bury Mary's ashes in a particular garden there. Suzanne told us she's planning another trip in May; can't remember where, but I'll hear more about it. 

Aside from that, nothing much else going on. I went out only to walk over to Von's for fruit. It was still chilly, but sunny, at least. I hope the rain holds off tomorrow, when Lora's taking me to visit Betty.

Show Biz Saturday

I spent almost the entire morning on getting my mother's memories in shape. It seems simple enough to go over it and revise where the transcript was screwed up, but it was anything but. I had both versions printed out, but they didn't correspond in structure, so I had  had to keep going back to the recording itself.  (Did Mom actually say "ipsa len way?" No, she said "it's a long way...")  Finally got it finished and started  pulling up pics from the past, so I can illustrate some of what she was describing.

After lunch, I started preparing for dinner (or "supper," since it was an early one): set the table, read what the (frozen) alfresco chicken required, and generally straightened up. I thought I'd prepare it, then keep hot in the smaller slow cooker. I didn't have any side dishes, so I just added bread and wine. Jim got here promptly at 5:00 and we ate, then left for the museum at 6:00.

Wow, it was jammed. The meeting room had been renovated since I was there last and I like the huge mural on the back wall:

 We were able to get semi-okay seats in the third row, but as happens more and more frequently, the row in front seemed to be reserved for six-footers. However, I was able to peer through to get a glimpse of the the two on the stage, but the interviewer, Igor Davis,* is obscured:

Here is Malcolm as his current self:

The talk was preceded by a ten-minute video on McDowell's career, including, of course, scenes from A Clockwork Orange. The interview itself, was fun to see and hear and at the end, McDowell mentioned how much he likes living in Ojai. Now, wouldn't  you know, I'm interested in seeing the movie again and in reading the book--maybe this enthusiasm will last, maybe not. Anyway, it was good to be where people were interested in a veteran of movies and maybe not the current media-guided craze.  

Home by 9:00 and after cleaning up from the meal, I got on my jammies and found a prime video documentary on Luci and Desi. I'm always interested in show biz lore, so watched that for forty-five, then turned in. 

The down note to the day: Michelle emailed me that I hadn't included two documents in the tax package I had delivered to her. Damn, I'll have to look them up. She will, however, send me back both a hard copy and a digital one, which I requested with a view to Mike doing the chore next year.     

*I had "met" Igor Davis years ago, when I attended a book signing and talk at the museum centered on his book Manson Exposed, which is now on the bookcase to my left. And, good grief, he's older than I am--born in 1935!  He and Malcolm McDowell, both Brits by birth, have lived in the area for years.                                                 

Satisfying Friday

 ...because I lost a bit, and also completed some of my on-going projects. Weighed in at 128 at home and 129 at T.O.P.S. for losses of 2.06 and 1.06, respectively. The meeting was okay, although somewhat formless. There were seven of us; Lora stopped just to get weighed, then left. Said she'd text me shortly re out trip to Santa Barbara on Tuesday.

After breakfast, I spent a considerable amount of time using the hole punch to get my father's yearbook copy in a binder. I put a  cover on it, too:

Also spent an hour or more trying to finish the re-typing of my mother's recording. I have copies of both what Mike had had "typed" from the voice version and what I re-did (arranging into paragraphs, correcting errors, and so on), but for some reason, I'm getting screwed up in trying to synchronize. Will persist.

Putting all that aside, I texted Michelle to tell her I'd bring my income tax crapola over. Packed a lunch, took my cart and bused, then walked, to Michelle's. As ever, she was very cordial; asked me to sit down  and we chatted for a half-hour or so at her kitchen table. She looked over what I had, asked a few questions, and all seemed in order (whew!). 

We then turned to catching up with each other's lives and she dropped a bombshell: She has bought a 29-foot RV, is going to give up her apartment, wind up her business, then embark on extensive travels--first to Alaska, then all over Canada. Wow, I envy her! Michelle, 62, is long divorced, has one unmarried daughter in her thirties, is a committed health and fitness devotee (runner, yoga practitioner, and vegetarian-ish). She's been doing  my taxes since I moved to California eight years ago and met her at Colony Parc, where we both lived.  We're also Facebook friends and, living vicariously, I enjoy seeing her adventures skiing in the Alps and hiking in her native Honolulu. Here's Michelle eight years ago when I met her:

Anyway, after our conversation and her looking over my info, we said goodbye and I took off toward the Poinsettia Shopping Center and the outside lunch area. This is near Urbane Café, where Diane and I often meet. Ate, then walked the mile and a half to Office Max. Bought seventy-two dollars worth of ink, then went to Audi next door. This is a supermarket I sometimes visit and I wanted to pick up something to feed Jim for early dinner today before the Malcolm McDowell thing. Got a chicken/pasta mix, a loaf of the Artisan bread I like, and some green ice cream, which was on sale, presumably left over from St. Patrick's Day. From there, I bused to the transit center, then home. 

Mike usually video-calls me on Saturday evening, but I asked him to call me last night instead, because I'll be out tonight. He did, from his car, after dropping Violet off at volleyball practice. He was driving the whole time with the phone on the dashboard, and I silently marveled at modern life. He said Paula got back from China on Thursday, and the family is going to vacation in Thailand for two weeks when the girls are off school. 

Thailand, la-de-dah! When I was 14, I was lucky to get to Pleasantville!  

Thursday And Thriving

And that's mostly because of good friends. Early on, I got a very welcome text from my friend, Leslie. She and Dennis, and Pat and I, were down-the-street neighbors for fifteen years or so, until Pat died and I moved away. Leslie is considerably younger than I am (about 13 years, I think), yet she and I bonded in a special way. I somehow believe, although she was never in the same circumstances, that she understands my feelings about my dear twin better than anyone else besides family.  I can't explain that, I just feel it, so it was good to hear from her. (They're now in Florida, where they spend the winter months, but will return to Jersey.) 

I then dressed, had breakfast, got my cart, and walked down to the Hill Street Café to meet Diane for lunch at 12:30. What a great time we had! Since the  glorious sun was streaming down, we sat out on the patio, and that was lovely. It's hard to believe, but we didn't leave for three hours, we had so much to talk about. Finally, I walked Diane to the bus stop, then strolled on to The Market and Wal-Mart. Picked up a few items, but not the large paper clips I wanted. Why not? Because neither place had them. A few months ago, neither had regular boxes of long envelopes; I ended up buying a huge box that cost me ten bucks. Weird that only certain things seem in short supply.

While I was in Wal-Mart, Jim called. He had seen information about the Malcolm McDowell thing at the museum to which he and I are going tomorrow. He hadn't realized there was a charge for non-members, but I assured him it was my treat, since I am a member, so technically--or something--the two of us will attend for the price of one. I asked him to come to my place at 5:00 and we'll have a  light supper first. Later, when I made my reservation on-line, I was asked how many would attend, put in "two," the admission total came up $0.00, so there seems to be no charge after all. Not sure what's up with that.

A while ago, somebody on Facebook's Free Photo Restoration and Colorization colored my mother's wedding picture:

But yesterday, somebody on "Vintage Philadelphia" did the same thing. This, I actually like better than the earlier colorization--it's softer, more subtle, and looks more like my Mom:

Wednesday: The Past And My Peepers

Wonders will never cease: I got the income tax stuff pulled together! It took me an hour or so to add to it, check it, copy it, and so on, but that's not bad. Called Michelle to tell her I'd drop it off on Friday. 

I also continued to listen to my mother's recording and made some corrections on what I had typed. I'm not finished yet, but should be shortly. On the Vintage Philadelphia Facebook page, I put my mother's wedding picture; she and my Dad were married on August 4, 1923, in St. Gregory's Church in Philadelphia. There were a lot of admiring comments by members and, I guess, no wonder:

                                                  

She was 21 then, and surely a virgin. I don't know why she wasn't "dressed as a bride" in white, but I know it wasn't because of the old idea that only virgins wore white. I also put the picture of my father's fraternity at Villanova on Instagram. I'm still not very adept at handling that, but I'm learning. 

Looking up info on St. Gregory's, I was thrilled to stumble into this web site: 

I left for Miramar, the ophthalmologists, at 1:00. Debated whether to wear boots, but didn't; luckily, it just sprinkled a bit here and there and I didn't even open my umbrella. Doc examined and there don't seem to be any major new problems. I'm not "due" to get new glasses until January (that's when my insurance will cover), but I decided to spring for them myself. I have plenty of the cheapie reading glasses, but the ones from the doc are bifocals and include middle distance, as well as close. Must remember to make an appointment in August with Dr. R. to check the macular degeneration. 

Having lunch with Diane today/Going to the Hill Street Café/Good, good, what else can I say?/Just rain, rain, please stay away! 😛

Teeming Tuesday

And it came down all day. After breakfast, I started in on copying and printing my Dad's yearbook. What a chore! My printer, years old, balked at doing the whole thing at once, so I resorted to copying a few pages at a time--152, all told. I was so absorbed in it that when I finally looked up, so to speak, it was after 2:00. At one point, I ran out of copy paper. Gnashing my teeth, I rang Suzanne's bell and she gave me all she had. Miraculously, it seemed, it was exactly enough--the last page printed on the last sheet.

Had lunch, then put on my boots and raincoat, grabbed my umbrella, and slogged over to CVS for more copy paper. I gave Suzanne back what she had lent me and restocked my copier. I then started working on my mother's memories. I've retyped most of it and corrected some errors, but I seem to be missing the last part and now I can't remember how I got into the app-provided voiced part. Emailed Mike to ask him. In the meantime, I listened again to the recording and was able to correct the places that were clearly in error in what I had. 

Aside from calling Ellen to be sure she got home safely, that was virtually my whole day. In the meantime, my unfinished income tax is just sitting there.  I must get it done before again turning my attention to the past. That will always be there, silently waiting.

Mostly Enjoyable Monday

Yes, things are looking up. It was overcast, but didn't rain, so I took my cart back to WinCo. Why, since I had been there the day before? Because I had seen they have some reasonably inexpensive wine and, although I don't know who all will drink it (I almost never do; like it too much), the truth is, I wanted my wine rack to be fuller. Anyway, I walked to Telephone Road via the overpass, then bused the rest of the way. Got what I wanted (two cabernet, two Chardonnay) and a few other things, and bused back. Wine looks good in the rack.

Weather forecast said today we'd have a downpour (AAGH!), so Lora and I decided we'd go to see Betty on Friday after T.O.P.S. That's fine by me; I'll just take a change of clothes, rather than keep on the white capris I always wear to get weighed. 

After lunch, I looked again into the Villanova website and its archives. Wonder of wonders, the Belle-Air yearbook, the very first one they printed, is from 1922, the year my Dad graduated. And here he is:

I had no idea he was in R.O.T.C., or even that it existed then. Also, I'll have to pursue another question: I see no mention of the debating team, so is the following picture actually of a different club and is it at Villanova, or what gives?

He's standing on the left, fading into the darkness.

I found it difficult to maneuver on the archive website, as I had to choose and copy only one page at a time, so I emailed to ask how I could copy the whole book. We'll see if they respond.

I emailed Diane to tell her the Hill Street Café was calling us and we needed to meet there for lunch. Made a date for Thursday. Ellen called on her way home from work and we had a good talk. 

Showered and bused to the Stone Fire Grille for the Soaring Spirits dinner. I was early, so only Vera and Susan were there, but then Renee, Amy, Gayle, Debbie, Anne, and Claire came in. We had a good time talking, as ever, and darling Vera, as ever, took me home. On the way, she told me the dream of her life is to go to the Galapagos Islands and see the turtles. Vera has a thing for turtles; has nine as pets, who live indoor and out, and often shows them on Facebook. She likes lizards, too. I can't say I like either, but I like Vera a lot. She's in her middle forties, is the founder of our Soaring Spirits chapter, lost her husband in an accident when she was pregnant with their second child, is a very attractive blonde roughly six feet tall, and she's the one who introduced me to Fractured Actors. 😄

Assorted Sunday...

...Referring to my mood, that is. I get too frantic and upset over things sometimes and that's what happened when I turned my attention to the income tax prep yesterday. I won't even go into what went wrong and how long it took, but I had finished breakfast and the Sunday crossword (a really good one, at least) about 9:00 and from then until lunch, I was digging things out, recording stuff, and so on.

Then Suzanne called and asked if I wanted to go to WinCo. Yes, and by the time I got home with my goods, I had cheered up. I messaged Mike to say I wanted Michelle to still do my taxes. It isn't that I don't think he's competent; he certainly is. I just don't want to change my pattern at this point. Anyway, he's fine with it--actually, I suspect he may be regretting the offer, so it's okay--although I still haven't finished the things Michelle needs. 

However, I decided to kick off for the day and started retyping my mother's memoirs. I'm having a good time more or less living her life of ninety and more  years ago and counting. Will resume today.

I texted Lora to see if she wanted to put off the trip to see Betty in Santa Barbara tomorrow, as it's supposed to rain a lot. Either is okay with me and sadly, it wouldn't matter to Betty. Haven't heard back from her yet.

Saturday, Jim, and My Mother-In-Law

I thought I'd have to run over to Von's for something to give Jim for lunch, but as it turned out, my larder (read "freezer") was well-stocked. I found a good amount of pasta and meatball, left over from when he was here a month or so, plenty for both of us. I just added a little more sauce.

I did go over to Von's for whole milk because I wanted to make pudding (the milk I use for my oatmeal is low fat). Went, and found the Friends of the Library were having their semi-annual book sale. I bought five, including one of the poetry and two plays by my hero, William Butler Yeats; one on Lew and Edie Wasserman, movers and shakers in old Hollywood; another show-bizzy tell-all book; and a manual on improv. I can hardly believe myself, as I'm still working on Elderhood and Superpatriots, not to mention all the books I haven't started yet. 

Jim got here at his usual 12:30 and I was happy to see he seemed in a better frame of mind. We followed our usual routine: chat on the couch first, repair to the table, eat, go back to the couch, talk.... He picked up the tell-all and proceeded to read me a short passage on how unpleasant Steve McQueen was. I asked if he'd drop me at Office Depot so I could get ink and would get the 11 bus home. To my surprise, he said he'd also take me home and he did.

I'm not sure if I mentioned that my brother, Frank, had asked my mother years ago, to record her memories on a tape recorder. This was passed around the family, but I had forgotten about it until my nephew, Wes, messaged it members of the family. My son, Mike, asked for it, I forwarded, and he had some kind of app that wrote out what she said! He PMed it to me, I transferred to a document, and I intend to re-type it (there are some obvious errors) so the fam can see it. 

More family re St. P. day: I got this card today from the trees (?!) in Japan:

I'm not sure if my daughter-in-law meant to write "three," but I found it amusing. (Names are obscured as my son doesn't allow them on the Internet.)

More family--in-law type: My niece-in-law, Amy, posted on Facebook that her grandmother, my mother-in-law, had won a medal in an Irish dance contest. (When? Why, 109 years ago.) Here she is with her dance partner, her brother, along with the medal. 

Having known her in later life, it just seems incredible that she was ever young and light-hearted enough to dance, let along win a prize for it. She always seemed somewhat morose and world-weary to me. No, we were not close. 

Addendum (mostly just to clarify things in my own mind): I forgot to add that son Mike called me, as he does on weekends.  We started to talk about income taxes and he said he'd do mine--free, of course. I agreed, but now I'm having second thoughts. I think I want to just let Michelle do it, as she has these past eight years. More on this later. 

Friday, Noreen, And Malcolm McDowell

Another pretty busy day. Cheryl picked me up, as usual, for T.O.P.S. There were only five of us--both Lora and Lennie are away, I think on the same trip to Portugal. I conducted the program, which went well. I gave them a series of questions, then guided discussion about the results. As for my weight, at home, I was 129.4 for a loss of .02; at T.O.P.S., I was 130.6 for a gain of .04. Ho-hum.

Home, changed, had breakfast, then left almost immediately for town. I was a little late, as the high school has half day on Fridays and there were lots of kids on the bus. Made it, though, and Noreen and I had a good lunch, and good, heart-to-heart talk. After we said goodbye, I went a few doors down to The Coalition and, after being told Owen was at lunch, left the info about Fractured Actors to have someone give it to him.

Stopped at the museum and renewed my membership. That was forty bucks and I hope it's worth it, as some of their activities had to be curtailed after COVID. I'm hoping to entice Jim to go with me to the Malcolm McDowell thing next Saturday. 

Stopped in a few places and bought a pair of socks, then bused to the transit center. I debated whether to go to Office Depot, as I need ink, but then thought of Target, at the mall. I looked it up on my phone and, yes, they had Canon 225, so I walked down there. Darn, they didn't have it in the store, only on-line. By that time, I didn't feel like going to Office Depot, so it'll just have to wait.

Home at 5:00 and Suzanne, back from San Diego, came over with a chronicle of her trip and pictures. She stayed until almost 6:00--it's nice to know she's back. Since I had had a big lunch, I just had one of the avocados, plus a few leftover cranberry meatballs (really appetizers) for dinner.  

Called Jim at 7:00 and we talked. He seemed in a somewhat more elevated mood, which was good. He'll come to lunch today and I'll introduce the subject of the museum next week. 

Around Town On Thursday

Breakfast and a few chores, then I  walked to The Market and Wal-Mart for three pounds of tomatoes, a vegan "bowl," and black tights with feet. Why? Because I had bought a rather short skirt (well, it covers my knees) several months ago, hung it in the closet, and promptly forgot about it.  I found it again and want to wear black with it. Bused home.

I always have a book to read at lunch and started Elderhood. After the first few pages, I knew it was a kind of personal affirmation of my beliefs and ideas about aging. I'm so excited about it, I want my own copy, not the library's, so looked it up on Amazon Books. Of course, they have it, but I don't do Amazon Prime (it would be senseless for me, as my total orders don't even approach the extra charge). It then occurred to me to look at Barnes & Noble--bingo! They had it, of course, and all I had to do was take the 6, then the 11 bus to get there.

Did so, rushed in, and was very annoyed to be told they didn't have it in the store, but would order it for me; should arrive in four or five days. Of course, they'd add shipping if it was sent directly to me, so I told them I'd pick it up in the store. I have Soaring Spirits (our dinner meeting) on Monday and I'm hoping it will be in by then, as the Stone Fire Grill is right across from B & N.

Home, I made up my signature roasted tomatoes and onions. Had some of that with leftover cranberry meatballs for dinner. 

Ellen called on her way home and I was delighted to hear she was feeling more chipper than she had on Monday. The switch to DST is hard on a lot of people, maybe teachers in particular, and she also had parent/teacher meetings and other situations to deal with. I remember in my working day feeling overwhelmed at times--was it all worth it? why did I want this job?--so I was so relieved to hear she was feeling better.

Oh, in addition: I got most of my income tax stuff done; still have questions for Michelle and I know she wants the items as soon as possible. Will try to get it to her by Monday or Tuesday.

I'm meeting Noreen for lunch today (T.O.P.S. in the morning, of course) at Pierano's, which is close to 
The Coalition, where Owen works. I think I mentioned a few days ago that his wife was interested in Fractured Actors. I wrote up a letter to her and added some info on the theatre company and will give it to him today.

Speaking of the above: I was horrified when I tried to print out the letter, that my thick black ink is out, so every other line was faded grey. What to do? I hit on the idea of printing it in blue and happy day, that worked. Darn, I was across from Office Max today and should have stopped for ink. Maybe I'll go there today after lunch.

Wonderful Wednesday

 Wow, we worship Wednesday with wild wackiness! 

Okay, I'll stop. It was, though, a good (maybe "wonderful" is an exaggeration) day for a lot of reasons. It didn't start off that way--was raining steadily in the morning. However, it stopped early on and after a cloudy period, the sun came out, the sky turned blue, and that was so-o-o good.

Also good was the fact that editor Carolee and I were finally able to get my picture in the right format for the BCNN yearbook. It isn't the picture I wanted, in fact, it's one I dislike, but now I can quit dealing with it, which is a relief.

Another good: I was able to get on Messenger and send to my nephews and nieces the info about my Dad's high school years. I also sent it to my children and grandson, and put it on Facebook, PLUS...

...very good: I gave up trying to get anybody from the Villanova Alumni Office to call me back and called Admissions, then a few other departments. The person at Communications directed me to the archivist (Beaudry--I never saw that name before--Allen) and said they have digital archives of yearbooks! I think it's too much to hope the 1922 one is digitized OR that they'd let me buy an actual book, but at least I'll see if I can get somebody to copy what pertains to my Dad. Called Ms. Allen and left a message.

A goodie, too: This book, which my friend, Pat, had mentioned in her blog, came in and I bused to town to the library to get it:

I probably won't start it for awhile, as I'm still reading Superpatriotism and also picked up one of Stephen King's anthologies at the library. When I read serious stuff (the other two mentioned), I like to intersperse it with junk. I look at it as something like the practice of clearing the palate with a bland food during a sumptuous meal.  

Doubleplusgood:* When I got back from town, I found that Vickie had left a bag on my door with two beautiful avocados in it.

Gooder and Gooder: I was able to get into, with no problem, the Fractured Actors Zoom meeting last night. It was a recap of the planning meeting I attended in January, but it clarified some things, so I was glad to "attend."

"It's all good": I first heard that phrase from my niece, Chrissy, and I like it. My big brother, Jimmy, was her Dad and next month, it will be a year since he died. That isn't good, of course, but the fact that he graced the world with his presence for 97 years, is. Here's a picture I took of them when I visited in Virginia eight years ago, before they moved to Bangkok:

*From 1984, that sadly prophetic book in which Orwell imagines a future where words are dropped from the language, so "Newspeak" will narrow thought. To an extent (obvious at the barely literate level of social media), I believe that is happening now.  

Tuesday: RAIN, RAIN, WHAT A PAIN!

And it came down pretty good.  That kept me in most of the day, unfortunately, but I did get a few things done. Although I was tired, having had little sleep, I was determined to dust and mop the hard floors. That entailed moving all the eating area chairs into the living room, as well as the wine rack and so on; I had it done by 11:00, though, and it looks good. Also washed and dried the area rugs. Started pulling together documents to give Michelle for my income tax and did a few other boring chores. These come under the category of what I call "business," mostly financial stuff.

Diane called and we had a long talk. She's the only one I know in my circumstances--that is, who doesn't drive, but is adept at getting around via bus, Access Van, Uber, and a private party she pays to drive her. I told her about my Sunday with Stella--AAGH!

I took two short naps and felt better after. The best thing was--and is--that the pain in my leg hasn't happened again. Let's hope it stays away.  After lunch, I...I...--I hate to admit it!--I watched television! Yes, in the daytime! In my defense, I was forced to stay in and I was bored to death. I enjoyed it, but another indication of my slide into a desultory life is the fact that I had a small glass--the last of it--of  Molloy's Irish Creme while I was watching.     

Here's another picture of my grandfather and his barber shop. This is a particularly poor photograph, but one of the nice people at Photo Restoration Free Service improved it a lot. I wish it could be sharpened a bit more, though. 

                                                     

No question who the proprietor is in this one. Interestingly, he has "hair cutter," rather than "barber" on the awning.

Note: Happy day, I slept well and just got up at 5:20, practically the middle of the afternoon. 

My Grandfather And Me On Monday

Cloudy, cloudy overcast/but even so, I had a blast...

Um, no, actually, I didn't, that was just for the rhyme. Guess I could have written "and I wanted to get away so fast" or "and I hope that's the friggin' last..." Or whatever.

This was my real blast of the day: A member of the terrific Facebook group, Photo Restoration and Colorization Free Service, enhanced this picture in front of my grandfather's barber shop in Philadelphia. He, George Figenshu, is standing fourth from left. I assume the men also in white coats are his employees. Unknown: other men, who may be customers or simply bystanders, and the woman and children, whom I believe are not relatives. Maybe the little boy just got his hair cut?

                                       

To top it off, another member colorized the picture and yet another provided the shops address: 

Okay, down to business. I thought I'd like to go to Macy's and Target to see if they had any jeans with a partial elastic waist. Bused to first one, then another Target, but didn't see any just the way I want, either there or at Macy's. I had packed my lunch, so I paused long enough to eat it at the gathering area in the mall. It was very quiet, slow Mondays, I guess, and that was fine. At Target, I did find an enormous cauliflower, which I snatched up and took home. Roasted it with the mayo/parm dressing, put a nice chicken breast in at the same time and it was a yummy meal. 

Note: I had a terrible night. Woke up at 12:56 for the usual, went back, then every five minutes or so, started experiencing a stabbing pain in my right calf. Took some aspirin, which didn't help. It's now 4:40, got up a half hour ago. Pain seems to have subsided to a large extent, but I'm worried about what it could be. I assume it's not arthritis because it isn't in the knee or other joint. Later: But happy day, it hasn't hurt for hours now, so I'll chalk it up to Arthur and turn to better things. 

Sunday With Stella--Sufferin' Succotash!

Where do I get these "friends"?  After I partly finished the so-so Sunday crossword, Stella texted me about 9:30, asking if we could meet. After a lot of back and forth, we decided on a late lunch on the patio at Pierano's, across from the mission. Met at 2:00, but a combo was playing there and it was very loud; I suggested we go to Paradise Café a few doors down instead, and we did. 

I had an unusual and really delicious grilled turkey/pesto sandwich and a terrific "Purple Rain" IPA. With the first sip, it became my new fav (although I'm not sure I can find it anywhere else). I liked their glasses a lot, too--small, slender, and comfortable to hold. They have a shop attached and actually sell them, but when I found they were ten bucks each--ha! They can keep their glasses, I have plenty of others. So the meal was delish, but...

...being with Stella can be an ordeal for a variety of reasons and what happened after we ate is an illustration. While we were still seated, she suddenly took out of her purse a case with one hearing aid in it. She wanted me to try it on (she was wearing the mate). At first, I refused--try on a damn hearing aid in a restaurant?--but she was so insistent, I finally took it to shut her up. Tried to fit it in my ear and just heard a kind of chirp (I'm sure I didn't have it in right). Stella took out a brochure about some freakin' hearing aid place and kept telling me I should go there--"it's not far from where you live," "look, it's only a hundred dollars," and on and on. 

Damn! If there's anything that infuriates me, it's somebody telling me I should do something they think I should do and they don't wait to be asked; they're going to guide me along because I'm too feeble-minded to do it myself. I already know plenty about hearing aids and I'll get one when I'm ready. Incidentally, Stella is one of the people I find difficult to hear because she speaks in a very soft voice and a droning monotone. I finally got her to take it back and shut up about the topic.

After, we went across to the Mission gift shop because Stella wanted to get a "golden rosary" for her sister--don't ask me why (she didn't find one), The shop seemed akin to the new-age-y one in Ojai. Both have all kinds of items to pay homage to benign supernatural beings and to protect buyers from evil spirits. Actually, they did have some lovely Christmas ornaments--not all religious--and I might go back and buy a few for next year's...(Mimi, are you nuts?  you don't need any more Christmas ornaments!)

We then went across the street to The Coalition and darned if Stella didn't find glasses almost identical the ones at Paradise Café and much less expensive; I bought two. She then went home and I stayed in town a bit longer. Home about 5:30, pleased to see it was still light out, thanks to DST.

Soggy Saturday And A "Sprint Marathon"

 Darn, it was overcast most of the day and rainy in spots. I took my cart to Von's for some necessities and some just-wanted-them-ties.  

Called Muckie and we had another good long talk--more than an hour. She's doing okay--still has pancreatic cancer, but the good (cancer stable) report last time was uplifting. Because she's electronically challenged (she doesn't use the Internet at all), I had sent her an actual post office letter last month, which included the pictures of her, Betty, Pat R., and me at my place from years ago. This time, I promised to send her some pics of when Betty's old boyfriend, Jim Downes, came to visit. I decided to just copy what I had written from my entry last September 22, which is when Jim was here. It took me a while to do that, but considering the lousy weather, I didn't feel like going out, anyway.

Son Mike video-messaged me at about 5:00, as he's been doing every Saturday afternoon. He had just driven Paula to the airport, as she's going to China for two weeks for business. Mike himself is gong to Sri Lanka next week on business. While we were talking, he got a text from daughter, Vivian, to say she and a friend are going to Europe for several weeks in the summer. Also, she'll spend a semester in the U.K. as part of her curricula at U. of Hawaii. Geez, when I was that age, I was excited to get to Philly!

--RACING NEWS--

My little Mikey participated last week. After what he has to say about it, I posted some pics:

From his Facebook entry: "Conditions were … horrible. Another year… another SPRINT (eg. “short”) triathlon. Hadn’t swum in a month but got 6 in age group. Cycling mediocre on a very wet course and run was … well I finished without stopping despite 5 pounds of mud on my trainers 👟 !!"

It was run in the mud...

...cycle several miles...

...and visit the fishies...

...my little Mikey! 💖

Flooded Friday

Maybe not flooded, but it rained all day! Cheryl picked me up for T.O.P.S. and only Lora and Bev showed up otherwise. I had worked  up a program, but suggested we skip it and just get weighed, then scram, to which all agreed. We just chatted for a bit, got weighed, then left. I stayed the same at home: 129.6 and lost a smidgen--.06--at the T.O.P.S. scale at 130.2. Got home, had breakfast, changed clothes, then readied myself for lunch at Diane's.

Luckily, I had called for the Access Van and it picked me up a bit after noon and got me to Diane's twenty or so minutes later. Even so, I was sorry I hadn't worn boots; in the time it took for me to  walk to the complex entrance, my ballerinas were soaked. 

Got to Diane's and was surprised to see her table set for only two, as I had thought her friends were coming, also. No, she had had them over on Thursday and they had left for Mexico (just a visit) that morning, so it was just us. As I hostess gift, I brought her a small decanter of the last of my Irish crème and she greatly appreciated it.

Diane served a truly delicious Italian style meal: bean stew, cannolis, peasant bread, and biscotti, accompanied by plenty of Chardonnay. (Yes, red is more traditional with Italian, but I like both.) We ate and talked and talked and talked--about our backgrounds, our children, other family, and more intimate stuff. 

The Access Van took me home about 3:30 and I stopped in at Vickie's on my way to my place (it was still steadily coming down). We chatted for a bit and she showed me the laptop Suzanne had given her, having received it, I think, from the mother house. Vickie told about her plan to have Mary's ashes mixed with others; it's considerably less expensive, it seems, then other methods. Personally, I don't have much interest in what happens to my remains. I intend to donate my body to science, then it will be cremated and the ashes buried in my husband's and my grave in Jersey. However, if my children want to do something else with them, that 's fine by me.      

Got my bill from the electric company, showing a credit of $22.41, incredible since I've had the heat on more the past month or so than I ever did before. I guess I overpaid.     

I hope I finally was able to shrink this enough for editor Carolee to use it for the BCNN "yearbook." Sent it to her and got back at reply about attaching instead of putting it in the body of the email. Did seo, sent it back, and if this doesn't work, I give up and will just omit my picture.

Things On Thursday

Stella texted me early to see if we could meet and after a barrage of texts back and forth, I said I'd bus to the Transit Center and she could pick me up there. She did and we drove to the beach at Seaward Avenue. It was chilly, breezy, and overcast, but picturesque: 

We went to a place called "Social Tap" with lots of craft beers and the usual type of food. We enjoyed it, but I was surprised at the cost; I had a hamburger and a beer and, with tip, the tab came to $32.48. I can remember when a fairly nice dinner would cost you that, but oh, well, easy come, easy...

On the wall was this collage made out of license plates:

Stella had some purple and white highlights put in her hair and I thought it looked very cute. Of course, she's just a kid; won't turn 80 until April:

We ate, then strolled around for just a bit, but it wasn't really good strolling weather. We left and went the The Market on Loma Vista. From there, I told Stella I'd walk to the Transit Center, which I did as  she drove home. While I was waiting for the 10, Ellen called and we had a good talk. I told her how very surprised and thrilled I was at what Greg wrote on my Instagram page (or whatever you call it).

Home at 5:00 and I finished up preparing for T.O.P.S. today. Damn, I had committed to do the program, otherwise, I would have skipped. As it was, I just dug out some old questionnaires I had devised two years ago; will have the group do, then use as jumping off points for discussion.  

Business Note: I revised the lease for my Jersey house to make it month-to-month and (electronically, of course) sent it to Susan and Cliff to initial; they did and sent it back. I forwarded to management and fervently hope they don't have a problem with it.

Social Note: Called the Access Van and will be picked up for lunch at Diane's today; also, will be driven home. Why not take the bus, as usual? Because rain all day is predicted. Speaking of--Bobbi just texted me that she won't be at T.O.P.S. this morning because she doesn't want to drive in it.

Physical Note: I've developed an annoying sleep pattern for the last week or so. I go to bed at my usual, between 9:00 and 9:30, read for fifteen or so, fall asleep right away, but then awaken sometime between 2 and 3. I get up for the usual, then find it hard to get back. I try to force myself to stay in bed until 4:30, but it's a bore. What's more, my arthritis has been bothering me, now more in my left knee. 

Philosophical Note: Things could be worse! 😁

Wednesday With Books

Heard back from tenant Susan and worked up a month-to-month lease. Sent it to son, Mike, to see if he thinks it's okay, and he does. I'll have Susan and Cliff initial, then I'll send to management and hope it's acceptable. Wrote out my St. Pat's day cards and sent off the ones to Singapore and Tokyo. 

I texted my granddaughter Vivian, at U. of Hi, asking her impressions of India (Mike and family went there for a weeks after Christmas) and she wrote back with a good, clear, few paragraphs. Mentioned the great disparity between upper and lower classes ("there is no middle class") and that people wanted to take pictures of her and her sister, as they hadn't seen girls with such fair skin. That's so depressing--the suggestion that Caucasian complexions are more desirable than darker ones. What's ironic is that V. and V. are a quarter Japanese. Anyway, I loved hearing from her. 

Finally finished and took back the 780-page bio of Ted Kennedy, which I found a real snooze-fest. It mostly chronicles the decades-old ins and outs of getting bills passed--or not--in congress during an era that seems as dead as the Kennedys themselves. Walked to the Hill Street branch of the library to return it and, still on a Kennedy kick, took out this one, by the G-man* who was with Jackie in Dallas:  

I had packed my lunch, meaning to eat it on the pleasant patio at the library. However, the wind was so chilly, I changed my mind and walked home to have it. 

I sent to Amazon for another book. Published in 2004 by political scientist Michael Parenti,* it shows the collaboration between government and mass media to maneuver the public into accepting the pain and carnage inflicted on others by our wars. 

Made one of my turkey stir-fries for dinner. I like to prepare the ingredients and freeze as much as possible beforehand, so I got out the ground turkey, chopped onions and peppers, and roasted tomatoes, stir-fried, added garlic, turmeric, and herbes de provence to finish. Boy, it was good and I have two more portions left.  

* Hill is 87, Parenti 89; add yours truly and I guess it adds up to a little intellectual gathering for octogenarians. 😄

Trifling Tuesday...

 ...because nothing much went on. I spent some of the morning hours on tedious "paperwork" and other crapola. Called Villanova's alumni office once again; I'm getting annoyed at what seems to be their indifference. After all, my Dad and two of my brothers are alums--doesn't that make me special?  😉

I decided to go back to Kohl's and find the two items I had seen on Monday, but didn't have time to try on; jeans with a partially elasticized waist and leisure pants. They were among a large number of clearance items and I stashed them together on one rack so I could find them later. Kohl's is in the B & N shopping center, as is Urban Cafe and the Vietnamese Noodle House, so I texted Diane to see if she wanted to meet me for lunch in either place. However, she responded she couldn't because "I'm cooking." She had told me about a couple she had just met at the off-brand church she sometimes attender. They had lived in Mexico as she had, and were coming for lunch on Friday. Did I want to join them? Well, sure.

Packed my lunch and took off. Walked to Victoria and Telephone and bused the rest of the way. I got to Kohl's, happily ready to try on my finds, and---they were both gone! Oh, darn, but the fact is, I don't need either one of them and I'm going to look for the jeans at Macy's, anyway. If I can't find them there, I'll look on-line. 

Ate lunch at the little area I had found some months ago, then just bused to the transit center and home; didn't feel like going to town or elsewhere, partly because it continues to be chilly. Met up with Suzanne coming in and we chatted a bit. She's going to San Diego today (?) to visit with some sisters and will be back Friday. Also saw Andy from upstairs; he's moving in with his girlfriend today and I'm sorry to see him go. He's about 25, I guess, and a nice young man. I hope we get another young person upstairs, also in Benny's apartment next to me.    

I had gotten a refund check from Citi Bank (I had doublepaid something) and had planned to take it to the bank to cash or deposit when I suddenly remembered I could do it via my phone. I did, it was quick and easy, and I was pleased at the convenience.