My mom and my dad's sister, my Aunt Mary Rowe, were great communicators. They would write a pithy quote on their letters and cards to each other and other relatives as well. I expect I've inherited their love of these short little quips of wisdom or humor. With the Corona Virus and sequestering, I've found I do not have more time than usual. But I do more things that I like to do in the time I do have. So, here are some words from ages:
Well, first, a word of wisdom from me: Don't do business with AT&T if you can avoid it. They have to be one of the worst companies for customer service.
Now, to the greats:
No man can conform his faith
to the dictates of another.
The life and essence of religion
consists in the internal
persuasion or belief of the mind
Thomas Jefferson, 1819
That woman tempted me,
And she tempts me still.
I pray to God,
She always will!
Perhaps the author (unk.) was fearful to sign it.
Life is short, live it!
Love is rare, grab it!
Anger is bad, dump it!
Fear is awful, face it!
Memories are sweet, cherish them!
Another unknown author but
a great quote.
Anything too stupid to be said, is sung.
Voltaire (1694-1778)
Last words of a dying Pancho Villa:
Don't let it end like this,
Tell them I said something- (1877-1923)
This is lousy weather for a wedding toast
but then it is lousy weather for just about anything.
It poured rain, ceaselessly all day.
Here is to the Bride
May you always have diamonds on your fingers
and knock-you-dead-destroy-the-paycheck
dresses to wear.
Here is to the Groom
May you have an indestructible paycheck.
Sunday, April 5, 2020
Tuesday, March 24, 2020
QUIPS AND QUOTES
Sometimes, we need a little levity.
To be alive, not just the carcass
But the spark. That's crudely put
But if we are not supposed to dance
Then why all the music?
By Gregory Orr
My candle burns at both ends;
It will not last the night;
But, ah, my foes, and ah, my friends...
It gives a lovely light.
Edna St. Vincent Millay
He who doesn't like
Wine,women and song
Remains a fool
His whole life long.
Author unknown to me.
Fortune favors the brave.
Virgil Aeneid 70 BC-19 BC
Anything too stupid to be said is sung.
Voltaire (1694-1778)
Aside: Those oldsters didn't mince words.
The hand that rocks the cradle
Is the hand that rules the earth;
The hand that holds four aces,
Bet on it for all you're worth.
Author unknown to me, but it sounds good.
Ciao
To be alive, not just the carcass
But the spark. That's crudely put
But if we are not supposed to dance
Then why all the music?
By Gregory Orr
My candle burns at both ends;
It will not last the night;
But, ah, my foes, and ah, my friends...
It gives a lovely light.
Edna St. Vincent Millay
He who doesn't like
Wine,women and song
Remains a fool
His whole life long.
Author unknown to me.
Fortune favors the brave.
Virgil Aeneid 70 BC-19 BC
Anything too stupid to be said is sung.
Voltaire (1694-1778)
Aside: Those oldsters didn't mince words.
The hand that rocks the cradle
Is the hand that rules the earth;
The hand that holds four aces,
Bet on it for all you're worth.
Author unknown to me, but it sounds good.
Ciao
Friday, March 20, 2020
GREED AND FEAR.
No one is responsible for the Corona Virus. It just happened. People are fearful and hopefully, as I, and others face Isolation things will improve. For the first time since I've been diagnosed with cancer, my Doctor asked me to skip a treatment and stay home. Part of the reason is that I'm doing well and I'm at great risk to have blood work and an infusion at my age with a serious disease.
My grandson, Stewart and his fiance, Allie, returned from Europe three days ago. They were immediately quarantined. I asked them what they were doing and they told me they were working jigsaw puzzles and eating a lot of popcorn. Allie is a nurse and Stewart is a tech writer, so he can work from home as long as his services are needed. And Allie will soon be needed with her skills.
My daughter bought me a lot of groceries so I could last a month without going to a grocery store. I'm at risk because of age and disease. I'm being very careful. But, I went to the post office. That is not very careful. I was out for therapy and I convinced myself it was all right. NOT! No one in the post office, not the customers or the workers wore masks or seemed at all concerned. I immediately came home and washed, washed, washed. I shouldn't have gone there.
My son Doug walked in his ankle boot cast to his local grocery and found the shelves quite empty. He has a turkey in his freezer, and was looking to buy some potatoes to go with the turkey. He said, "I can live for a week or more on a turkey. He called me from the market and I suggested he get stuffing mix to go with his turkey, or boxed potato flakes. All gone! Looking at the emptiness he asked a checker whey the shelves were so bare. She told him that a group of men, swooped in and took everything. She found out they were hoping to sell the stuff on the black market when things get desperate. That is criminal greed.
I was stunned. Doug was too. However, the store had a sign up front that said no returns would be granted on receipts for purchases from March 17th forward. According to her, that put a stop to it. .
Now, let's talk about fear. This happened in a Save Mart, earlier, where Doug went to buy some hamburger and the butcher told him they were out at the moment but he was getting a side of beef in and to come back in about two hours and he'd have some meat in the case.
He returned and a man and his wife took all of the meat the butcher had cut and wrapped and put in the case. The butcher asked the guy to take a package or two. Allow someone else to have a some meat. The guy defiantly went to the check stand. The checker asked him to put some of it back and only take two packages. He growled at her, "Check me out!"
And she did. I consider that greed and fear.
I don't know if that Save Mart made it a policy, by posting a sign, requiring patrons to limit their purchases to what they need immediately. Doug's truck broke down and he cannot drive anymore and must hobble in his cast to the local market with the empty shelves. Maybe, deliveries will continue and the shelves will have more than bare spaces.
I hope we have leadership in Washington that can get help for everyone very soon. After all this isn't a political issue, it is a health issue and we should all be working together to keep the Corona Virus from spreading. I'm so grateful that I have stupendous neighbors who call and check on me and ask if I need anything. I'm grateful that I don't need anything but resolve.
May we all get through this with a minimum of disease among our friends and families. This pandemic is like nothing we have ever faced as a nation before. It is financially troubling especially for people like young waiters and waitresses who depend on tips to make ends meet and suddenly are unemployed with nothing coming in. And, who will gather the homeless and find treatment and testing for them who can continue to spread the virus without check?
Isolation, though not permanent, can surely slow the spread of this deadly disease. I pledge.
My grandson, Stewart and his fiance, Allie, returned from Europe three days ago. They were immediately quarantined. I asked them what they were doing and they told me they were working jigsaw puzzles and eating a lot of popcorn. Allie is a nurse and Stewart is a tech writer, so he can work from home as long as his services are needed. And Allie will soon be needed with her skills.
My daughter bought me a lot of groceries so I could last a month without going to a grocery store. I'm at risk because of age and disease. I'm being very careful. But, I went to the post office. That is not very careful. I was out for therapy and I convinced myself it was all right. NOT! No one in the post office, not the customers or the workers wore masks or seemed at all concerned. I immediately came home and washed, washed, washed. I shouldn't have gone there.
My son Doug walked in his ankle boot cast to his local grocery and found the shelves quite empty. He has a turkey in his freezer, and was looking to buy some potatoes to go with the turkey. He said, "I can live for a week or more on a turkey. He called me from the market and I suggested he get stuffing mix to go with his turkey, or boxed potato flakes. All gone! Looking at the emptiness he asked a checker whey the shelves were so bare. She told him that a group of men, swooped in and took everything. She found out they were hoping to sell the stuff on the black market when things get desperate. That is criminal greed.
I was stunned. Doug was too. However, the store had a sign up front that said no returns would be granted on receipts for purchases from March 17th forward. According to her, that put a stop to it. .
Now, let's talk about fear. This happened in a Save Mart, earlier, where Doug went to buy some hamburger and the butcher told him they were out at the moment but he was getting a side of beef in and to come back in about two hours and he'd have some meat in the case.
He returned and a man and his wife took all of the meat the butcher had cut and wrapped and put in the case. The butcher asked the guy to take a package or two. Allow someone else to have a some meat. The guy defiantly went to the check stand. The checker asked him to put some of it back and only take two packages. He growled at her, "Check me out!"
And she did. I consider that greed and fear.
I don't know if that Save Mart made it a policy, by posting a sign, requiring patrons to limit their purchases to what they need immediately. Doug's truck broke down and he cannot drive anymore and must hobble in his cast to the local market with the empty shelves. Maybe, deliveries will continue and the shelves will have more than bare spaces.
I hope we have leadership in Washington that can get help for everyone very soon. After all this isn't a political issue, it is a health issue and we should all be working together to keep the Corona Virus from spreading. I'm so grateful that I have stupendous neighbors who call and check on me and ask if I need anything. I'm grateful that I don't need anything but resolve.
May we all get through this with a minimum of disease among our friends and families. This pandemic is like nothing we have ever faced as a nation before. It is financially troubling especially for people like young waiters and waitresses who depend on tips to make ends meet and suddenly are unemployed with nothing coming in. And, who will gather the homeless and find treatment and testing for them who can continue to spread the virus without check?
Isolation, though not permanent, can surely slow the spread of this deadly disease. I pledge.
Tuesday, March 17, 2020
AN IRISH BLESSING.
It is St. Patricks Day today and I recently learned that using the term Paddy is a derogative term. So I shan't go there.
My mother was French and my father was Irish, English, Belgian, Scotch and a wee bit of this and that. My mother wryly commented, "You can be a Heintz 57, but if there is a little bit of Irish in you, you consider yourself Irish." And so it was with my father. He drank heavy as a young man and to save his marriage he became a teetotaler. Once in a while, he'd sip a little and he'd sing us those Irish ballads he remembered from his youth. Sad and soulful, Oh Danny Boy, would have we kids in tears. As his tongue got thick, the accent got thicker and the songs much more fun. This one comes to mind:
Oh, lady would you be kind enough to give me a bite to eat,
A slice of bread and butter with a ten foot slice of meat,
A piece of pie and custard would tickle me appetite
For really I am so hungry I don't know where I'll sleep tonight.
Chorus:
Hallelujah, I'm a bum,
Hallelujah, bum again,
Hallelujah, give us a handout to revive us again.
The Little Rock Candy Mountains, was another favorite. Ah, I guess I'm awash in memories.
But here then is the Irish Blessing, author unknown.
May there always be
work for your hands to do,
May your purse
always hold a coin or two,
May the sun always shine
on your windowpane,
May a rainbow be certain
to follow the rain.
May the hand of a friend
always be near you,
May God fill your heart
with gladness to cheer you.
Top o' the mornin' to ya!
My mother was French and my father was Irish, English, Belgian, Scotch and a wee bit of this and that. My mother wryly commented, "You can be a Heintz 57, but if there is a little bit of Irish in you, you consider yourself Irish." And so it was with my father. He drank heavy as a young man and to save his marriage he became a teetotaler. Once in a while, he'd sip a little and he'd sing us those Irish ballads he remembered from his youth. Sad and soulful, Oh Danny Boy, would have we kids in tears. As his tongue got thick, the accent got thicker and the songs much more fun. This one comes to mind:
Oh, lady would you be kind enough to give me a bite to eat,
A slice of bread and butter with a ten foot slice of meat,
A piece of pie and custard would tickle me appetite
For really I am so hungry I don't know where I'll sleep tonight.
Chorus:
Hallelujah, I'm a bum,
Hallelujah, bum again,
Hallelujah, give us a handout to revive us again.
The Little Rock Candy Mountains, was another favorite. Ah, I guess I'm awash in memories.
But here then is the Irish Blessing, author unknown.
May there always be
work for your hands to do,
May your purse
always hold a coin or two,
May the sun always shine
on your windowpane,
May a rainbow be certain
to follow the rain.
May the hand of a friend
always be near you,
May God fill your heart
with gladness to cheer you.
Top o' the mornin' to ya!
Saturday, February 29, 2020
WAS VOTING EASIER?
I ask the question, was voting easier? In a word, NO! I took directions from the newspaper. Turn on-to Stanislaus Ave. Turn right on Tuolumne Rd. Turn right again and you will see directions to the polling place. Nope. Turned up Stanislaus, dead ended into Cliff Rd. Turned right found Oneida Rd. Rt. again, Tuolumne Rd and signs for the polling place. Whoops, sorry, the polls don't open until 8:00. My protest: I called the County and they said 7:00 a.m. I did not get a mail ballot. They should have mailed one to everyone, I was told.
I went out for breakfast and returned approximately 8:45. The machines weren't working. After 15 minutes or so, the machines cooperated and they found that I was indeed a registered voter. I voted in less then 10 minutes and left. The poll workers were extremely nice and helpful. I'm still miffed that after 44 years in Murphys, there was not one polling place in our fair village.
Sour grapes on my part. I hope it is better organized in November.
I went out for breakfast and returned approximately 8:45. The machines weren't working. After 15 minutes or so, the machines cooperated and they found that I was indeed a registered voter. I voted in less then 10 minutes and left. The poll workers were extremely nice and helpful. I'm still miffed that after 44 years in Murphys, there was not one polling place in our fair village.
Sour grapes on my part. I hope it is better organized in November.
Friday, February 28, 2020
MAKING VOTING EASIER?
Most of my news comes from my newspaper. I was under the impression that the powers that be were trying to make voting easier, by having more voting days, meaning more choices. What a shocker when I found out that there is NO PLACE IN MURPHYS to vote. I've lived here for 44 years and there is not place to vote in Murphys? How can that be. Guaranteed, voting will be down from normal with conditions I will list:
I can vote election day in Arnold at the Library. Take note, Arnold is an area with more vacation homes than permanent residents. They are only open election day. Did I get something in the mail explaining all of these changes? NO! Arnold is twenty-five miles from me one way. Drive 50 miles to vote? Not very practical for most people I know.
Tomorrow, on a Saturday, I can drive to Angels Camp, only eleven miles from my house to go and vote. Is it in a recognizable hall? NO! I was told over the phone, go to Stanislaus St until it ends, turn right , then another right on Tuolumne St. and signs will direct you where to go. Again, this is the only day that site will be open. When our voting ability has gotten worse, not better, turnout is sure to be diminished.
I'm really bummed about this and feeling helpless to do anything about it. A letter to the newspaper may help get people riled up before the general election. Riled up enough to perhaps get some stability in our election process. Democracy depends on our right and our ability to vote.
I'm still stunned that this is so.
I can vote election day in Arnold at the Library. Take note, Arnold is an area with more vacation homes than permanent residents. They are only open election day. Did I get something in the mail explaining all of these changes? NO! Arnold is twenty-five miles from me one way. Drive 50 miles to vote? Not very practical for most people I know.
Tomorrow, on a Saturday, I can drive to Angels Camp, only eleven miles from my house to go and vote. Is it in a recognizable hall? NO! I was told over the phone, go to Stanislaus St until it ends, turn right , then another right on Tuolumne St. and signs will direct you where to go. Again, this is the only day that site will be open. When our voting ability has gotten worse, not better, turnout is sure to be diminished.
I'm really bummed about this and feeling helpless to do anything about it. A letter to the newspaper may help get people riled up before the general election. Riled up enough to perhaps get some stability in our election process. Democracy depends on our right and our ability to vote.
I'm still stunned that this is so.
Sunday, February 23, 2020
NO HOT WATER
Plumbing is for plumbers. A blocked sink that suddenly will not open makes me laugh, but the undrainable sink isn't really funny until I lie on the floor and try to fix it and get the giggles. I don't know who invented rubber gloves, but oh, how I treasure them for plumbing tasks. Living single is challenging. Getting up on a ladder to clean the
screen on my wood stove pipe would give me a warmer, less smokey house.Getting on the roof at my age with a bum knee on the right and a bum ankle on the left is something I shouldn't try. If I get desperate enough I will. I'm frigorific and shrammed. (I'm into new vocabulary words.) Yes, I'm showing off, because I'm fascinated by some of these old English words because they are so useless, or, as the old English say, bootless. I actually started collecting them because I wanted to wow my daughter with words she probably wouldn't know when we play scrabble. As busy as we are that hardly ever happens anymore. Such long words aren't practical anyway. Loess will work when you have too many esses in your hand. It means windblown soil, like drifted desert deposits. Zolaf is good when you have a hard to use Z with combined with a hard to use F. It is a tea spout sleeve. Just what everyone needs, but hey, in a scrabble game, it works. These daffynitions come from Merrium Webster. I swear they are real. How about saln, for peace and harmony. Or serac, a cut in the earth. Stupa, a mostly conical structure for storing bones. I have personal knowledge of stupas from my trip to Thailand. Too many N's? How about nene. A Hawaiian goose. Xerus is a type of giant squirrel. Zeru is a humped bovine. You've heard the word capo. Sounds like a mobster boss instead of a moveable bar on a guitar.
Well, I've had my fun with words. I must heat water on the stove to wash my dishes and hope Monday brings someone agile and talented to my rescue. Ciao.
Well, I've had my fun with words. I must heat water on the stove to wash my dishes and hope Monday brings someone agile and talented to my rescue. Ciao.
Monday, December 23, 2019
ACORNS, WEATHER AND FAD FOOD.
The day before yesterday, I spent a solid two hours blowing acorns off my deck and sidewalks and driveways. Thousands of them. Radio personality, John Tesh, on Intelligence For Your Life, talked about the new fad food making the rounds- acorn meal. He mentioned starving squirrels. I wish he could direct them to my house.
After blowing the acorns I realized they were still there, thickly clustered around the perimeter of my driveways, decks and walking areas. Dang! Dust pan after dust pan load I dutifully removed and tossed into tree barren areas. Aha! Problem fixed.
Yesterday we were warned of a huge storm coming in with lots of rain. Ferocious winds blew all day with no sign of rain. Acorns blew down with such force the acorns popped like firecrackers on the hard surfaces. The rains eventually came in a torrent dropping even more of the unwelcome crop of squirrel food. ( I only have two squirrels in my yard.)
I carefully opened the curtains this morning. There were puddles of acorns near the downspouts swirling there with equal numbers of broken twigs, dead leaves and in some areas huge dead branches fell in the yard. My decks look like they have acorn chicken pox.
But, on the bright side, it looks like an abstract painting.
One of these days, soon I hope, I'm going to learn how to put a picture on this blog. My new computer is wonderful but non techies like myself are still on a learning curve.
After blowing the acorns I realized they were still there, thickly clustered around the perimeter of my driveways, decks and walking areas. Dang! Dust pan after dust pan load I dutifully removed and tossed into tree barren areas. Aha! Problem fixed.
Yesterday we were warned of a huge storm coming in with lots of rain. Ferocious winds blew all day with no sign of rain. Acorns blew down with such force the acorns popped like firecrackers on the hard surfaces. The rains eventually came in a torrent dropping even more of the unwelcome crop of squirrel food. ( I only have two squirrels in my yard.)
I carefully opened the curtains this morning. There were puddles of acorns near the downspouts swirling there with equal numbers of broken twigs, dead leaves and in some areas huge dead branches fell in the yard. My decks look like they have acorn chicken pox.
But, on the bright side, it looks like an abstract painting.
One of these days, soon I hope, I'm going to learn how to put a picture on this blog. My new computer is wonderful but non techies like myself are still on a learning curve.
Friday, December 20, 2019
BUSY SEASONS GREETINGS.
It's been quite awhile since I've posted on this blog. Everyone has been busy preparing for Christmas; sending cards, mailing packages, singing and listening to Carols and most of all, attending every Christmas Party one can manage. I love the holidays.
My peculiar condition means, I went to see the play SOME THINGS AFOOT on Friday at the Murphys Creek Theatre with youngest daughter and then set my sights on a "speakeasy", open Mike poetry and readings at The Gallery in Angels Camp.
Doesn't work that way. I made the play on Friday, but was tooooo tired and exhausted to make it to Open Mike. That's how it goes. One symptom of the medicine I'm taking is profound fatigue.
Christmas kind of tippy-toes up on you and suddenly you realize you're not ready. OMIGOSH. My whole family, all six grandsons, all my kids, their spouses, a few strays, a couple of brothers hungry for home cooking, an adopted family, a politician, a neighbor or two, a rock hard conservative, some one missing a dog and a bunch of noisy democrats. A recipe for wonders not experienced in a long time at this big shack.
Yesterday friends helped me haul out the decorations and put up lights. I opened ornaments boxes I hadn't seen in a long time. Brushed off the dust and WOW! It's a wonderful day. Now I get to savor the wait; look forward to all the goodies that will come through the door and enjoy the weather. Predicted cold but clear and sunny through out the holiday. Can't ask for better than that.
On my home page this morning was a marvelous quote from Sophia Loren I'll pass on to you:
"There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you tap this source you will truly have defeated age."
So, what ever you want to do, do it now. There are only so many tomorrows.
My peculiar condition means, I went to see the play SOME THINGS AFOOT on Friday at the Murphys Creek Theatre with youngest daughter and then set my sights on a "speakeasy", open Mike poetry and readings at The Gallery in Angels Camp.
Doesn't work that way. I made the play on Friday, but was tooooo tired and exhausted to make it to Open Mike. That's how it goes. One symptom of the medicine I'm taking is profound fatigue.
Christmas kind of tippy-toes up on you and suddenly you realize you're not ready. OMIGOSH. My whole family, all six grandsons, all my kids, their spouses, a few strays, a couple of brothers hungry for home cooking, an adopted family, a politician, a neighbor or two, a rock hard conservative, some one missing a dog and a bunch of noisy democrats. A recipe for wonders not experienced in a long time at this big shack.
Yesterday friends helped me haul out the decorations and put up lights. I opened ornaments boxes I hadn't seen in a long time. Brushed off the dust and WOW! It's a wonderful day. Now I get to savor the wait; look forward to all the goodies that will come through the door and enjoy the weather. Predicted cold but clear and sunny through out the holiday. Can't ask for better than that.
On my home page this morning was a marvelous quote from Sophia Loren I'll pass on to you:
"There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you tap this source you will truly have defeated age."
So, what ever you want to do, do it now. There are only so many tomorrows.
Wednesday, December 4, 2019
CAN YOU READ THIS?
Can you raed this? Olny 55 people out of 100 can.
thnksnaivg is oevr and I've had athoner ifsnuoin. wahteer is bad. I'm Tarniing my bairn to get rid of my cncear. Hpoe it wroks.
Coia!
Mrya
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