A neighbor named Libby B. called yesterday and asked to borrow the transport chair. (I run a "classified" column in The Breeze for those who want to buy, sell, or rent anything and I list the chair as free to lend.) Libby, whom I had known only slightly before, asked if I could bring it over, as she doesn't drive. I did and we spent an hour or so talking. Her husband has some kind of vein problem and can't walk, horribly enough. Last week, she had a terrible time trying to get him up from the floor. Libby also gave me a good story for a piece I'm writing called "The Best--And The Rest." This consists of little vignettes on experiences people have had in various situations, some heart-warming, some funny.
Spent a lot of the rest of the day calling people to contribute to that piece and also to a little "Family Traditons" one I write. Got some interesting stories, but one, for sheer peculiarity, stands out and I'll menton it here:
Kathy D. told me that in her hometown, she and all the other kids used to dress up in costume on a particular fall day and go door-to-door asking for treats. Well, duh--who didn't do that on Halloween? Oh, but wait a minute--they "went begging," as they called it, on Thanksgiving! Yes, in the morning every Thanksgiving Day, they went out for trick or treat. That is so bizarre, I can hardly wrap my mind around it. Love the story and I'm going to check to see if I can find out if the town of North Bergen, in Hudson Sounty, New Jersey, still follows this practice. Incredible.