keeping up

Sometimes I find keeping up with the "times" to be quite an effort. When you think about it, I was about 6 or 7 years old when we got our first television set. It was the event of the year - people would come over to watch shows. My favorites at that time were Willy the Worm (yes, it was a great show - Philly residents of a certain age will remember it) and, of course, Howdy Doody. Later, we watched Milton Berle (Uncle Miltie) and Sid Caesar faithfully.

I 've seen a lot of firsts - my husband created a computer for his 8th. grade science fair (this was in 1959) and won the prize. But recently the firsts just seem to come faster and faster. No sooner do I get used to one remote control than Fred (my husband) finds a newer, better one. Actually, I recently met a man in his thirties who didn't own a computer. Not that he couldn't afford one; he just didn't want one. However, he does own a cell phone -- naturally. What did we ever do without them? Don't get me started on cells phones and cars!

At times I just want to throw up my hands and give up. Maybe I could perfect my skills in one area and just stop trying to keep up with the newest developments. But then my daughter tells me about blogs and says that I am actually allowed to read what she writes in them (unlike the days of her teenage diary), and I have to keep going. Pray for me.

Back home again

Can't believe that it's already Jan. 18, 2006 (need to keep writing that so I'll eventually get the year right). Have been through a whirlwind of activity since last post. Spent xmas in DC with oldest son and family and helped them move on Dec. 27. Yes, the trucks pulled up that morning and started carting things out as we were still madly packing boxes. Of course, Amanda (age 5) had the stomach flu that day and we had to actually pick her up from the family room couch so the movers could take it. This should have been no surprise to anyone as her 3-year-old sister had the same flu the week before and actually threw up on her sister's head in the middle of the night --- ughhhhhh!
Well, we got to Michigan, moved them in and promptly turned around and went to Disney World for a week to watch Mom run the Disney Marathon on Jan. 8. She did really well and we were all very proud of her. Had a fun and hectic week in Disney and returned to PA last Saturday, after spending a night in Chicago when my flight was cancelled. That's never too bad though because I get to spend the night with my cousin who lives there.
So-----back to a somewhat normal routine. Am seeing the eye doctor today because I lost my trifocals sometime in mid-December. They are NOT in this house or anywhere I might have been during that time - very frustrating. My husband lost his good watch in the same timeframe, but he lucked out. A week or so ago he found it in the economy size bag of toilet paper when he went to the garage to get a new four-pack. My only comment when he joyfully called to tell me this was, "Were my glasses in there?" Of course not!
Having lunch now with my good friend whom I haven't seen since before xmas - ttyl.

11:11

Sorry, Jen, just missed it - here it is --- maybe.

Pictures!

Well, there's my picture - almost big as life! I can't seem to figure out how to put it in my profile. I didn't mean to put it in the post, but I'm tired of trying to figure this out. By the way, I never did get to see my brother. The flight was cancelled and I returned home by train, bus and my son, Steve. I spent from noon to 10:30 pm accomplishing this. Aren't the airlines great?! Of course, my luggage went on down for the visit, but did return to me the next day. Tomorrow we're off on our Christmas travels -- DC, PA, MI, FL, PA -- be back Jan. 13. Will see all the kids and grandkids. Am really looking forward to it.

Karen 

Flying south

I'm off tomorrow to Augusta, GA to visit my brother and his kids and grandkids in the "warm" state of Georgia. I guess that's all relative. I looked the weather up online and found that it will be around 55 degrees all weekend. Right now, as the temp is about 15 degrees here (PA) with snow forcast for tomorrow, that seems really warm. But I do remember a couple of months ago when the 50's seemed really cold. As I said, it's all relative.

Looking forward to seeing all the family. John is my only sibling, and, if I didn't contact him and go to see him once in a while, communication would stop. It's not that he doesn't like me or anything - he just doesn't communicate! Is this a guy thing? I guess it is, partly, but it does hurt my feelings too. Once I tried to call him and found that he had moved, and it was far enough in the past that there was no new phone number to give me. I called his ex-wife (we're still close and so are they) and she knew where he was - he had moved from NC to GA. She knew this because, in that their kids are shared, she keeps closer track of him than I do. Hopefully, I'll always know where she is!

Cats, Cats.........

Just waiting for daughter-in-law to deliver their new kitten to my house - yes, I said "their". Seems they want to get their 4-year-old daughter a kitten for Christmas. They already have one cat and also twin sons, age 14 mos. Why would they want a kitten? Oh, to be young and foolish again. Of course, this necessitates a foster home for the next three weeks, aka Gramma.
It's really ok with me, but I'm not too sure about the two resident dogs here - cockapoo(age 13) and miniature poodle(age 11). The kitten will probably be freaked out - whatever. Wish me luck. I'll see if I can figure out how to enter a picture of "kitten". Naturally, I won't be naming her - that will be up to said granddaughter, who has in the past picked out such names as Mia, Marie, Pumpkinhead, and Lina for her stuffed toys. Other cats in the families of my children have been named Sassquatch (kitten's brother), Monkey, Gandolf, Chipka and (best of all) Clever Paw. This should be interesting.

First time blogger

Well, here I go! Inspired by my daughter, I will tackle this new form of communication. I must admit that typing is much easier on arthritic fingers than writing. Although the thought of whom I am communicating with is daunting. (That last sentence caused a momentary pause to assure grammatical correctness!) Not sure if I like this color - we'll see.
This new start makes me reflect on early writing efforts. When young, we were all trained in the proper use of "thank you" notes. One would be sent for every gift or kindness received. They would all begin with the proper salutation and end with the appropriately emotional or unemotional closing. These were often laboriously considered - one wouldn't want to end with "love" if it might be misconstrued - "fondly" might be more correct. And there was always the noncommital "sincerely," but would you be thought cold?
Oh well, all that nonsense seems to have disappeared with the advent of email. I do enjoy email, but can't keep myself from using complete sentences and correct grammar and spelling (hopefully) - carefully checked before "sending."
My nextdoor neighbor just called to tell me that we lost a shutter in a strong wind last weekend, and had we noticed that fact? I had to admit that we hadn't, although we have been out of the house frequently since then. Thank heavens for neighbors! Just what we need - a fixit project outside in the snow. Let's see if I can remember this long enough to tell my husband when he gets home with dinner.