A QUIET 4TH OF JULY

Very quiet, indeed. So quiet that I awoke this morning perspiring and straining for any sound at all. The power had once again gone off, and there was no A/C, no ceiling fan, no clock to let me know the time. A rather bleak start to the holiday, don't you know?

I dressed quickly and went out to mist the orchids hanging from my wonderful Japanese maple while planning a trip to Wendy's for a cup of coffee and some kind of breakfast treat. Thankfully, within an hour the power came on---SWEPCO magic--- and I didn't have to make the trip.

Did a few other chores related to trying to keep the house neat and tidy, but not as many as I should have. 100+ temps slow me down quite a bit.

This year the 4th has been quieted by a burn ban throughout the state, and a local ban on the sale or use of fireworks by private individuals. Every year since I've lived here the pets have really been miserable because fireworks were permitted one week prior and one week following a big holiday; this year they were spared.

The big public fireworks display down by the Red River was o.k.ed, so many people were planning and did attend. There are public stages down there where various bands and performers are scheduled. There are also food vendors and souvenir sales persons. Chillax, Jaz, and I went last year, and it was fun, but I didn't even consider it this year as we have had so much 100+ weather, such a drought, that I didn't want to be out there at all. The four of us did have grilled steaks at their house last night which was yummy. And am I glad it was last night.

So, here on the 4th, what happened. Thunderstorms actually moved into our area starting about 7:30 p.m. The big fireworks display should have been over by now, but I don't think it's even started. We haven't gotten much rain from this, but we have gotten a little, and we are most grateful for that. Thunder is still rumbling, and there has been plenty of lightening but not really the cloud to ground type.

I did look for my annual viewing of 1776 and called Jaz and Dagromme (sorry to have waked you) to tell them when it would be shown on TCM. Guess what? I recorded it this year; now I don't have to be beholden to the library or channels that might show it. It's mine for all the coming 4th's of July. YEA! I love that production. Of course, I'm the only person on this continent who still uses a VCR. What the heck?

To be very serious for a moment: The signing of the Declaration of Independence was a momentous event in history. Certainly I'm no authority or even a student of its gifts to us, but I intend to study it more closely and decide whether we are living up to its inspiration. Since our nation began in this way I think we should give it close scrutiny and make some choices. What do you think?

CRAZY CRAVINGS!

As you know the on-going project for a few months has been to get the house ready to sell. WELL, during the time when I was painting outside I began to have strange food cravings. I think it is related to doing repetitive tasks that are relatively mindless; therefore the mind tends to drift toward, "What's for dinner tonight?" There is no rhyme nor reason for these cravings; they just came with undeniable force.

The first one was for Stove Top dressing. Obviously, this is of no culinary significance, but that's really what I wanted, and I wanted it really, really badly. I gave in and picked up a package, and eased my pain.

The next craving that came was for vanilla ice cream (Blue Bell, of course) with cooled left-over morning coffee poured over it. Those little icy crystals are such a treat for the tongue. However, one has to really spread those portions out over a lengthy period of time, or one makes oneself sick to the tummy. I speak from experience.

The next craving that came was for cantaloupe; no doubt that was driven by May's warming weather and their appearance in the grocery stores. But I know that they appear much earlier than when they are actually in season, so I gritted my teeth and avoided them. One point for me!

Once the house was finally on the market (June 2) I was ready to celebrate. The downside is that once one gets everything "Ready", one doesn't want to mess anything up, and that includes cooking anything that might make odors in the house or mess up the range. So, what was I craving then? My fabulous sauteed liver and onions, of course! (If you haven't tried mine, don't knock it. Mine are wonderful.) Well, after a week, I said, "To heck with it." Bought the liver and cooked up this yumola treat.

Next I gave in to the lingering craving for cantaloupe. The one I bought is o.k.; the flavor is almost there, and the texture has a little farther to go as well. It was not a waste of money, but I'm glad I waited.

What is the latest craving? I gave in to it today, and for supper I had a BLT sandwich. Of course, that meant frying bacon and tonight or tomorrow morning I will have to clean the stove top because the photographer to do the virtual tour for the on-line ad for the house will be here at 10:00 a.m. Maybe I'm beginning to take this high exposure in stride. Or maybe it's dementia. Either way, I'm covered.

IT'S ALL SHOW BIZ!

It's so hard to decide on a title for this post because it will cover so much time, so many events, and a lot of work. My apologies for not keeping up with the blog; I have been critical of others for their lack of sustaining; now I'm guilty as well. So be it. MAYBE I won't cast stones in the future---but don't count on it.

First, I need to mention that our orchid society voted to host the national organization's spring show for 2011. I voted against this as did several others---we who are the worker bees. However, the vote carried by two votes. This occurred about 1 1/2 yrs. ago; the AOS (American Orchid Society whom we were hosting) recommends that a society start 3 - 4 yrs. in advance to raise the necessary money, make plans, etc. Did our society heed this advice? Of course not. Therefore, we have worked our buns off to bring all this about including monthly meetings of the "show committee" which I will testify were not all that much fun and were always at the time one would normally be eating supper. I left on several occasions because I had done my part and was too hungry to sit there any longer listening to the same thing we'd heard for four months running and the re-hashing of the same arguments over rather inconsequential "stuff."

We did bring it all together, and the show was a huge success according to all those who came from out of town. Here's a picture of our society members filling "goodie bags" for the registrants.

What was in the bags? Three strands of Mardi gras beads, decks of cards from the casinos as well as a pair of dice, little Tabasco bottles, a little vacuum bag of coffee from Community Coffee, a 2 oz. jar of Pepper Jelly made by one of our members, a little orchid plant ready for planting, and the usual note pads, pens, emery boards, etc. It was a nice collection of stuff. We did this loading about 2 1/2 weeks before the show. The bags are nice for "green shopping"; I've already used mine.

Dagromm, my Texas son, gave me two nights at the Hilton, the hotel adjacent to the Convention Center where the show was. I think being able to just go there, bathe, and fall down kept me going through the early part of the show. It was wonderful, because I really was too tired to drive the four miles home, much less get up early enough to make it back downtown for the next morning's early activities. Mack stayed with Chill and Jaz through the whole thing, and I'm grateful for that.

There was drama behind the scenes resulting in losing more members, adding to those we lost by deciding to host the show to begin with. So, was it worth it? I'm still undecided, but my inclination is to say "No." We'll see how it all plays out; however, I am not taking on any more responsibilities. Period.

On the Wednesday after the show the Interfaith Pharmacy where I volunteer moved from its tiny location to a much, much larger facility. We really needed to move, and I'm very thankful that it worked out. However, spending five hours cleaning the old place and organizing a portion of the new space put me right back to where I was at the end of the AOS show. . . needing to sleep for about two days straight.

In addition to this I decided about eight months ago that it was time to downsize and have less responsibility for home and yard. My plan was to sell the house and move to an apt. so that I wouldn't be responsible for plumbing, A/C, yard, whatever. I just can't do all of it anymore, and it is too costly. Then Chillax & Jaz suggested that I take the money from the sale of my house and use it as a down payment on something where we could all live, along with Oyster, of course. Initially, they would take up the payments on the new place, and when we balanced, I would kick in a portion. Well, that suited me just fine because as I age I'm occasionally frightened of being undiscovered in an emergency situation. My big stipulation is that we have separate living quarters and that I have my own kitchen; we have different hours, food choices, etc.

So, the big cleaning up, de-cluttering, sprucing began. Right now I have to say that my closets are the best portion of my house. Sorry, Goo, but the revered Pilgrimage shoes, went the way of the trash a couple of months ago, but I did take a memorial picture.

This was probably more traumatic for me than for you. C'est la vie.

The realtor whom I have decided to use for the sale of the house gave me pointers on getting ready to go "on the market." One of those was certain loan appraisers don't want to see any peeling paint. Well, my storage area behind the carport definitely had some peeling paint, and after power washing it (one of my orchid society buddies did that) it looked even worse.

Grim, isn't it?

So, in addition to the big show preparations, I was faced with de-cluttering and painting. Well, I have wound up painting about 85-90% of the carport and storage area as well as about half of all the window frames (outside). The deterioration is due to weather and sun. You don't really realize you're living in a dump until you want to sell it. Then the realtor gently slides the reality glasses on your nose.

Here's the storage wall now.

Jaz has been helping me take things to the storage unit I rented three months ago to hold things I'm either keeping or selling depending on where we wind up. She has also helped with grooming the yard, and I'm counting on her for the "final cleaning." That means the cleaning before the realtor comes to take pictures to go on the web. Selling a house has become very scary. It used to be that people knew how many bedrooms, bathrooms, sq. footage was available, and then they could come look and decide if this was the place for them. Now, they can look on-line and if they aren't really smitten they won't even come look. This was not the way I wanted to make my entertainment debut.

I'm doing the best I can, and I'll let you know the website if you want to see the house at its best. But you have to ask. Sorry, but I don't want you burdened with more than you want.

Take care, everyone, and understand that I have been thinking about you. I've just been swamped and still am. Keep your fingers crossed for me and the house sale.

THE KING'S SPEECH & DEJA VU

Ever since this movie was first publicized I've wanted to see it, but didn't until today, Feb. 27. Yep, the day of the Academy Awards. Remember, I saw True Grit in December during my fabulous visit with my daughter, and I loved it and predicted it would be nominated. The cast in TG was great, and the re-make terrific, and it is dear to me. However, as a retired speech pathologist The King's Speech had more than a little allure.

My trek to see Speech was definitely not in vain. It was more than rewarding; it was reliving a portion of my career. And it was not a painful experience. It was a joyful one.

Probably most viewers are drawn into the agony of the stuttering George VI, and that is understandable, and, certainly Colin Firth was outstanding in the role. How can one's heart not be wrenched by his struggle? And how can one not be moved by his perseverance despite the altering of all his perceptions of life?

However, my hero was Geoffrey Rush's character, Lionel Logue, because I had lived there. Stuttering, stammering, fluency disorder---whatever you choose to call it---is one of the most difficult problems to treat. And as I watched the movie I finally analyzed what I had done in my work. There were, of course, textbook solutions; but, take it from me, hogwash. One had to establish who controlled the therapy setting, get inside each person who stuttered (that is, find the memories, experiences-good & bad without judging anyone but seeing their effects), retain a sense of humor, and move toward one small goal at a time. One had to be the master, sometimes the enemy, then the mentor, and then the friend. And the therapist's role shifts among these venues from one encounter to another. I never knew which one was coming next. Instinct becomes the rule of the day, and it is exciting. I can't boast that every stuttering person I worked with became fluent, but I have one vivid memory of success.

As a public school speech pathologist I received a referral for a fourth grade boy who stuttered, the son of a prominent family in the neighborhood. His mom was big in the local P.T.A.; she referred him; her older daughter was also very successful in the school. Stutterers have unique patterns, and his, as I recall, was to hold the initial sound of a word for a prolonged time before completing his thought. Example: "Mmmmmmmmmmmy mother is bringing cupcakes today." And sometimes there were repititions of initial sounds: "C-c-c-c-an you come?" To summarize quickly let me say that he expressed feelings that he didn't live up to the family standard, and when I asked what he would most like to do he stated that he wanted to be on the school's annual talent show. What did he want to do I asked. Well, he was a very smart boy, but he didn't sing, dance, play a musical instrument.

In fifth grade he got his wish. His mother came to me and begged that he not be on the talent show, and I assured her he would be fine. He asked me if I would be there, and I asked him if he wanted me to be. He said he would understand if I had to be at my other school, but he would really feel better if I were there. I made sure I was there.

And what did he do on the big Talent Show? He was the Master of Ceremonies. He did a beautiful job.

OUR SNOW DAY

It's now Friday, and we haven't gone above freezing since my last post. A wintry mix onslaught was to begin during last night, but when I took Mack out a little after seven this morning the only evidence in my neighborhood was a few large sleet balls. I probably could have counted them had I been so inclined. I wasn't. When we returned inside I gave him his treat and promptly climbed back into bed for another couple of hours. Hibernation comes easily to me.

When I awoke again there was actually a shallow snow cover on the ground. Nothing was falling just then, but off and on throughout the morning we had freezing rain showers, fine sleet showers, and snow showers with varying sizes of flakes. The weather channel predicted that our high would be 34, so I kept expecting all of it to start melting. The reality was that the temp never went higher than 30, so almost all of it remains on the ground, and, of course, tonight we will be back in the mid-twenties. It's not pretty as there are still patches of green in various places in the yard; the golf course looks pretty good, but they mow regularly, and I don't in the off season.

Tomorrow's high has been reduced from 47 to 38. Doesn't sound too promising, does it? Let's hope they underestimated this time, especially since my social calendar includes a baby shower in the morning. Keep your fingers crossed! I only have to drive a couple of miles---and, of course, I have to be able to open the gate.

I was a little productive on indoor tasks, but not as much as I would like. Maybe ma~nana. We'll see. I did take this photo; hope you like it.

"HOW COLD IS IT?" YOU ASK.

Yesterday, Feb. 1, I was rudely awakened by peals of thunder, and I remembered that a severe cold front was due in preceded by storms. It was about seven a.m., and the temp. was 62. Hurriedly I collected Mack to make a quick run out to the backyard so he could have a personal moment for his bodily needs before the storm broke. A light rain was already falling and lightning and thunder were making both of us flinch, but he did what he had to do, and we came back in. Within two minutes the wind picked up considerably and the downpour began, and the light in the sky had dimmed to the point of darkness again. The storm probably lasted only about twenty minutes, but that was long enough for the side street to be almost completely covered with water, and within an hour the temp. had begun dropping.

I forgot to mention that when I got up cable had been affected by the storm so there was no internet, no phone, and no TV. Just after Mack and I came back in my public radio station had a lightning strike, and it was silenced. After a few minutes they were able to broadcast locally, but didn't get the national feed back for another half-hour or so. Talk about feeling isolated!

A saving grace was that my power did not go out as it has so many times in the past.

Later in the morning I had to take a package to FedEx which is located in one of our larger shopping malls. By that time the streets had dried due to the strong wind. That went fine, but when I moved further down the mall, in the next block, I found that all the stores were closed due to lack of power. Some of those were Petco (my next destination), Office Max, Old Navy, Barnes & Noble, etc. I have no idea when they reopened.

As evening approached, and the temp. now forty degrees lower than in the morning, I made the decision not to put the lock on my gate as I normally do, for fear that it would freeze, and I wouldn't be able to go do my volunteer stint at the Interfaith Pharmacy in the morning. Meantime, PhannyCat decided to handle matters in her own way.

Mack was somewhat wary of this maneuver, but he didn't make a fuss.

Even with the little electric heater in the greenhouse the temp. out there was 42 when I got up this morning. Not a good temperature for orchids, but they'll just have to make do. Of course, outside the greenhouse it was 15 (wind chill, 2), and that would really have sucked the life out of them.

After primping with curling iron and make-up and putting on four layers of clothing I was ready to go to the pharmacy. But no; there was an unforeseen obstacle.

You guessed it! The whole d----- gate was frozen, and I couldn't budge it.

The prediction is for snow showers two days from now, and I think my "gate indicator" shows there is a chance of some accumulation as the ground seems to be sufficiently cooled down to sustain snow.

THE NEXT DAY & THE DAY AFTER

Another relatively warm, but cloudy day, and we even had a few gentle showers. It didn't deter us from window shopping at Saks while waiting for a bus.

Goo had received a text message the day before, New Year's Day, inviting the two of us to brunch on Sunday. She then invited a couple more people, one of whom was out of town. But the plan resulted in three of her friends meeting the two of us at an Irish Pub in Bethesda for brunch. It was all low key but with lots of laughs and a good meal. It was a pleasure to sit and talk with some of her friends. They are so lively and quick.

I questioned that the light fixture in the pub was really a "touch of Ireland." They had determined on a previous visit that the fixture represented sperm. You are free to make your own decision.

Actually, it has blue shading which doesn't show up in the photo.

Here is the brunch bunch with whom I dined. You can tell by their smiles that they have already eaten.

Goo and I browsed the shopping area in the neighborhood. I loved this holiday display that had both a Christmas tree and a menorah. Oh, Goo, I should have bought the green cloche at the kiosk; I've checked prices on line, and it was a deal. Boo-hoo! Well, only one regret is a pretty good record.

But then we went home and pursued my goal which was to go swimming one more time and sit in the sauna---true luxury. We did some household chores including laundry and then went downstairs for our treat. Another night of very good sleep.

On Monday I packed everything into the new suitcase, put on make-up (because I didn't want Goo's last sight of me to be as depressing as her first view when I arrived), and off we went to Union Station. We have had practice in saying goodbye, so we're very good at looking cheery.

Glad you can't see inside!