Why didn't I think of that? A guy, Jonathan Evison, wrote a book called The revised fundamentals of caregiving. It is fiction, but I had a LOT of material on THAT subject, having spent many years accompanying my mother through all the stages of one of those "life care facilities", The Quadrangle, in Haverford, PA.
Another frustrating Sprint interaction ruined my morning. It is the PIN number and the security question. Somehow I ended up with a totally nonsensical combination of security question and answer. I can't seem to get rid of it. I will just have to resign myself to the situation where the security question is "What is the name of your first pet?" and the answer has NOTHING TO DO with the question. I would never choose that question because there could be several forms of the name. They assigned me the question and the original answer they assigned me was "delicate". Huh? I just have such an overwhelming need for life to make sense, it causes me high anxiety.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Monday, September 24, 2012
Ok, now I am in library heaven. Got the laptop set up with a view overlooking the Intercoastal waterway in Sea Isle City. Sharpened my pencil, got help getting online and am settled in for a few hours of "desk work". Now I only wish I had a fly swatter and that I had bought fudge. Somehow just arriving in a seaside resort town gives me an overwhelming desire to BUY FUDGE.
So far today I have done a few things around the house, participated in a yoga class, gone out to lunch, driven down to Sea Isle City, and sunbathed on the boardwalk. It is pretty cool to be able to do such stuff on a MONDAY as I am recently retired.
Went to a "new" lunch place, Sal's pizza, on Buckshutem Road in Bridgeton, which was very much like the "old" place, RJ's dog House (or something like that). I did have a spectacular "special" and am happy to go back. My toasty sandwich included chicken, swiss cheese, spinach, roasted red peppers and chunks of garlic. YUM!
So far today I have done a few things around the house, participated in a yoga class, gone out to lunch, driven down to Sea Isle City, and sunbathed on the boardwalk. It is pretty cool to be able to do such stuff on a MONDAY as I am recently retired.
Went to a "new" lunch place, Sal's pizza, on Buckshutem Road in Bridgeton, which was very much like the "old" place, RJ's dog House (or something like that). I did have a spectacular "special" and am happy to go back. My toasty sandwich included chicken, swiss cheese, spinach, roasted red peppers and chunks of garlic. YUM!
Sunday, September 23, 2012
What is a blog? An online diary that serves as a welcome diversion from working, meeting people or having sex. Ever.
This is on a magnet I purchased at a GREAT bookstore in Lewes, Delaware. I go there once a year with some friends and I was delighted to see that Biblion was still in business. Truthfully, I don't BUY many books, as I am FRUGAL and a librarian and a retired person. Librarians are specialists in getting stuff for FREE. This is a USED book store, but with oodles of other cool stuff like bookmarks, magnets, greeting cards, etc. Also, the owner leaves little notes around the store calling your attention to things and she makes cool arrangements of items. I got a couple of good quotes there (another one of my addictions).
Wow, it is really hard to blog and listen to the Eagles football game at the same time.
I am listening to the local radio station on the computer. Also I am a bit chilly. I am sitting at a picnic table in front of the Bridgeton Public Library and drinking a Diet Coke and the day is waning. I refuse to admit that I am COLD. After all, I am the person who never put a coat on all last winter. Oh dear, now it is starting to get BUGGY.
Sunday is such a drag of a day. Nothing is open. OK, that is a bit of an exageration.
But, I needed a library and an electronics store. That is why I am sitting OUTSIDE a library in order to get wireless access.
This is on a magnet I purchased at a GREAT bookstore in Lewes, Delaware. I go there once a year with some friends and I was delighted to see that Biblion was still in business. Truthfully, I don't BUY many books, as I am FRUGAL and a librarian and a retired person. Librarians are specialists in getting stuff for FREE. This is a USED book store, but with oodles of other cool stuff like bookmarks, magnets, greeting cards, etc. Also, the owner leaves little notes around the store calling your attention to things and she makes cool arrangements of items. I got a couple of good quotes there (another one of my addictions).
Wow, it is really hard to blog and listen to the Eagles football game at the same time.
I am listening to the local radio station on the computer. Also I am a bit chilly. I am sitting at a picnic table in front of the Bridgeton Public Library and drinking a Diet Coke and the day is waning. I refuse to admit that I am COLD. After all, I am the person who never put a coat on all last winter. Oh dear, now it is starting to get BUGGY.
Sunday is such a drag of a day. Nothing is open. OK, that is a bit of an exageration.
But, I needed a library and an electronics store. That is why I am sitting OUTSIDE a library in order to get wireless access.
Friday, September 21, 2012
Communication breakdown, or, One if by land, two if by sea. It seems with all of our communication options, one must still be wary of everyone's personal limitations...
- my answering machine at home is full and I don't know how to deal with it remotely
- a friend has limited minutes so won't call or text, he just emails
- a friend has no room in her cell phone message box, then she had security issues while trying to access AOL and on a cruise entered a foreign country where she REALLY had trouble accessing it.
- my sister lost her cell phone around three weeks ago. There is a strange man on her answering machine at home and she does not seem to get the messages I leave her. Her boyfriend has to wait for the iPhone 5 to come so he can give her HIS phone
- Another friend has THAT SAME STRANGE MAN on her answering machine and she NEVER answers the phone. She always has to call you back.
My favorite activity is inactivity. I was just thinking this as I was laying on the beach around 26th street in Ocean City. I was taking a little "vitamin D" bath and imagining Grace Kelly frolicking on that beach (I was right near her house). I took a picture of her house.
Life always seems to "come around". I visited Grace Kelly once in the royal palace in Monaco. I was traveling with some friends during a junior year abroad experience in Paris. My girlfriend had a thing for Princess Grace and had written to ask for an audience. She granted it. She had a cold that day but was gracious with us and talked about her volunteer activities. We also talked about our Phildelphia/Jersey shore connections. I remember looking out the window and seeing the royal children coming home from school. Then, her youngest sister, Liz, ended up living at The Quadrangle, in Haverford, Pa, where my mother was incarcerated (I mean lived) for 15 years.
- my answering machine at home is full and I don't know how to deal with it remotely
- a friend has limited minutes so won't call or text, he just emails
- a friend has no room in her cell phone message box, then she had security issues while trying to access AOL and on a cruise entered a foreign country where she REALLY had trouble accessing it.
- my sister lost her cell phone around three weeks ago. There is a strange man on her answering machine at home and she does not seem to get the messages I leave her. Her boyfriend has to wait for the iPhone 5 to come so he can give her HIS phone
- Another friend has THAT SAME STRANGE MAN on her answering machine and she NEVER answers the phone. She always has to call you back.
My favorite activity is inactivity. I was just thinking this as I was laying on the beach around 26th street in Ocean City. I was taking a little "vitamin D" bath and imagining Grace Kelly frolicking on that beach (I was right near her house). I took a picture of her house.
Life always seems to "come around". I visited Grace Kelly once in the royal palace in Monaco. I was traveling with some friends during a junior year abroad experience in Paris. My girlfriend had a thing for Princess Grace and had written to ask for an audience. She granted it. She had a cold that day but was gracious with us and talked about her volunteer activities. We also talked about our Phildelphia/Jersey shore connections. I remember looking out the window and seeing the royal children coming home from school. Then, her youngest sister, Liz, ended up living at The Quadrangle, in Haverford, Pa, where my mother was incarcerated (I mean lived) for 15 years.
What I love about Ocean City...
- the alleys in between the streets
- the library/pool/arts center/Yianni's cafe and museum
- no alcohol so less chance of someone PEEING on your lawn
- the 2 1/2 mile boardwalk
- the "free" beach way down at the end
This is the first "vacation" I have been on since BEFORE I announced my retirement in January 2012. Some people would say my whole LIFE is a vacation since I am retired.
A vacation from the vacation?
Just finished a book by Joan Rivers, called I hate everyone...starting with me. Some of it was laugh-out-loud funny and much was over-the-top insulting, outrageous and politically incorrect.
It is hard to write while watching morning shows on TV. I am very limited in the multi-tasking deparment.
- the alleys in between the streets
- the library/pool/arts center/Yianni's cafe and museum
- no alcohol so less chance of someone PEEING on your lawn
- the 2 1/2 mile boardwalk
- the "free" beach way down at the end
This is the first "vacation" I have been on since BEFORE I announced my retirement in January 2012. Some people would say my whole LIFE is a vacation since I am retired.
A vacation from the vacation?
Just finished a book by Joan Rivers, called I hate everyone...starting with me. Some of it was laugh-out-loud funny and much was over-the-top insulting, outrageous and politically incorrect.
It is hard to write while watching morning shows on TV. I am very limited in the multi-tasking deparment.
Thursday, September 20, 2012
"I'm glad I'm not the only one who takes pictures of their food", a woman said as I snapped a picture of the cheese plate unexpectedly received at "The red store" tonight. She came over and showed me the picture she had taken this morning of a "bacon doughnut". She was dinnering in Cape May Point, New Jersey, but had breakfasted in Nyack, New York.
This was only one of the surprises of the night. "The red store" is a building, it is red and it is a store, but it does not say "The red store" anywhere on it. It is also impossible to find.
My friend and I were a bit taken aback with the menu which was fraught with strange ingredients (or are we just country bumpkins?!?!?) Also, we weren't sure if we were UP to a four course dinner of "tastings" for $50. So we ordered an entree each. Of course, this was very difficult for her as she is "gluten free" and VERY picky.
So, this cheese plate arrives. We looked at each other in consternation. I hope they didn't think we ordered the whole shebang? But then there was the issue that I KNEW the manager. Perhaps we are being treated VERY WELL in spite of being cheapskates?
So we commence to nibble at the variety of cheeses, grapes, honey, quince jelly, nuts, burnt dried olives, toasted bread, and strawberries cut into creative shapes. Then MORE stuff comes...a squash fritter for me and for her, a special creation of roasted figs with a sauce including pickled onions. It sounds horrible but was surprisingly delicious. After our entrees of stew for her and lobster for me, we received surprise desserts. The bill was quite reasonable. It really pays to KNOW someone, and a special someone he is.
The other highlight of my day was taking a bike ride up and down the Ocean City boardwalk. It is 2 1/2 miles and it was a superbly gorgeous day with miles of fantastical clouds in every direction. I am a bad exerciser and was very uncomfortable on this bike which came with my cottage. Here is what was hurting me....my butt, my hands, my knees and my ankles. But I felt quite the sense of accomplishment for having done it and now I can cross THAT off my list. My friend was garnering quite a bit of attention as she rides a RECUMBENT bike which is a bit unusual.
This was only one of the surprises of the night. "The red store" is a building, it is red and it is a store, but it does not say "The red store" anywhere on it. It is also impossible to find.
My friend and I were a bit taken aback with the menu which was fraught with strange ingredients (or are we just country bumpkins?!?!?) Also, we weren't sure if we were UP to a four course dinner of "tastings" for $50. So we ordered an entree each. Of course, this was very difficult for her as she is "gluten free" and VERY picky.
So, this cheese plate arrives. We looked at each other in consternation. I hope they didn't think we ordered the whole shebang? But then there was the issue that I KNEW the manager. Perhaps we are being treated VERY WELL in spite of being cheapskates?
So we commence to nibble at the variety of cheeses, grapes, honey, quince jelly, nuts, burnt dried olives, toasted bread, and strawberries cut into creative shapes. Then MORE stuff comes...a squash fritter for me and for her, a special creation of roasted figs with a sauce including pickled onions. It sounds horrible but was surprisingly delicious. After our entrees of stew for her and lobster for me, we received surprise desserts. The bill was quite reasonable. It really pays to KNOW someone, and a special someone he is.
The other highlight of my day was taking a bike ride up and down the Ocean City boardwalk. It is 2 1/2 miles and it was a superbly gorgeous day with miles of fantastical clouds in every direction. I am a bad exerciser and was very uncomfortable on this bike which came with my cottage. Here is what was hurting me....my butt, my hands, my knees and my ankles. But I felt quite the sense of accomplishment for having done it and now I can cross THAT off my list. My friend was garnering quite a bit of attention as she rides a RECUMBENT bike which is a bit unusual.
So many places to rent!...(so little time). Just took a walk down the alley behind the dwellings on West Avenue in Ocean City. I have to alternate some ACTIVITY with the SLOTH. I AM the mistress of sedentary activites, after all. I met a guy riding a bike. He had a cigarette stuck in his mouth. One hand was holding the bike handle and one hand a leash with a rather large furry dog who ran beside him and right into me. "He's just checking you out", he said.
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