Nobody likes a news story that leaves them crying out of sadness or distress. This week, however, just about everyone has shed tears for the victims of the shootings in Newtown, CT and their families. Even the news anchors and reporters were not immune. There is no rational explanation for what happened there. Changes will be made in our society because of this occurrence. Schools and malls are easy targets and difficult to defend. My only surprise thus far is that they have not been targets of terrorism yet. Just look at the reaction the killing of 20 children has created and imagine what a coordinated attack on several schools across the country would create – especially if the attackers get away to strike another day.
I haven’t written here in quite a while. My last few blogs have also concentrated on pictures rather than words. So today I thought I would spend a little more time writing some rambling thoughts about what I’ve been up to.
In short I haven’t been up to much. My primary mission for the last few weeks has been to reclaim the shed storage area and workshop. I’ve made good progress but still have much more to do. I succeeded in cleaning out and putting away most of what accumulated in the shop. While I did that, however, a whole new generation of stuff piled up in the sunroom waiting to be moved into the shed. That stuff is now out of the sunroom and piled in the shop awaiting being put away. It seems like a never ending cycle.
On the bright side I have dumped several trash cans full of stuff and made on trip to the land fill to get rid of some stuff. Tomorrow our local Waterfront Mission has a truck coming through our neighborhood to pick up stuff and I have a pile of stuff to set out in the morning that they can use.
Eventually I hope to not be spending my life attending to the stuff I’ve accumulated and get back to doing some projects which are more fun.
We did the usual angel tree shopping for church and this year we ordered some items on-line. In order to insure they got here in time I signed up to a 1-month trial of Amazon Prime. That way we got free 2-day shipping on items. We also got access to Amazon Prime movies and TV and the kindle lending library. Since we have WI-fi access on both the TV in the den and in our bedroom we’ve watched a couple of movies and TV shows this week. I also bought my present from my sister and it is on it’s way to me with the free 2-day shipping. I got the complete Monty Python DVD set. Now I can watch the Dead Parrot routine or the Ministry of Silly Walks any time I want to laugh.
Yesterday our plan was to go watch “Life of Pi” in 3-D at the movies. Somehow the kid at the ticket counter thought I wanted to see the Hobbit and switched our tickets to a later showing in IMAX 3-D. We ended up missing our movie, getting a refund and spending the morning shopping instead. So Christian, Karen, Penny and I all got some clothes out of the deal. Penny and I are replacing most of our wardrobe because we both lost so much weight.
I haven’t given a diet update in months either so here is a quick summary. My weight loss totaled between 30 and 40 pounds. My weight now fluctuates over a 5ish pound range. We have reached the point where we don’t have to be sticklers about our diet for every meal. When we travel or visit we can eat meals without regard to the diet if we so choose as long as we don’t fall off the wagon too often.
Today was a typical day for us- one that makes being retired fun. I had planned to use the day to check the cars out for an upcoming trip and to clean up the garage area of clutter accumulated from Christmas shopping and breaking out Christmas stuff that was stored out there.
What I actually did was break out the ping pong table we use for laying quilts on (in our back yard) and helped Penny with her latest quilt. Then I wrote a letter stating that we had completed our sessions with the latest FOCCUS (yes that’s proper spelling) couple. That led to our next task, driving out to Hurlburt Chapel to deliver the letter and complete our responsibility. The couple will marry Jan 4th in Puerto Rico. Instead of driving back home for lunch Penny, on a whim, asked if we could eat Hawaiian today. I said why not? So we went off-diet for one meal and enjoyed a Hawaiian meal. The friendly server that was there on our first visit greeted us when we arrived. The food was as good as we remembered. When we left I wished her Merry Christmas “Mele Kalikimaka “ and she burst into a big smile and wished us the same.
I spent the rest of the afternoon gathering stuff from the sheds to put out for the Waterfront Mission tomorrow. They’re' getting 2 old TV sets, 2 never-opened mirrored medicine cabinets, a small ice-cream maker, a bread maker an old record player/dual cassette player and a host of smaller items – oh and 4 or 5 bags of clothes that no longer fit us.
It’s nice to be retired and have the ability to throw out the days plans, help out Penny and spend time together, have some fun and push off the responsibilities a day without any bad consequences.
OK, that’s enough rambling for now. Mele Kalikimaka !
