Words of Wisdom, Not Hate

This was sent to me by someone who knew I was an Auburn fan.  Phillip Marshall has been an Auburn journalist for many years, but I don't read many sports columns or blogs, so I had just about forgotten about him.  

Contrast this with what Clay Travis wrote in his column that I mentioned earlier.  Night and day.  This is what a person writes that has the interest of mankind at heart along with his country, not the divisive drivel that so many writers seem to thrive on - hate-mongering, propaganda, and fear-evoking stuff.  Sadly, far too many are drawn to the latter.  That is what the Russians wanted in our country, and it looks like it's what they've gotten.

So, thanks, Phillip, for this little bit of sanity and kindness.

ON LOVE, HATE AND AN OLD MAN'S JOURNEY

On Dec. 25, I will be 71 years old. I have witnessed so much history.

I watched television for 18 hours the day Neal Armstrong stepped onto the surface of the moon and said “One small step for man. A giant leap for mankind.”

I’ve gone from black and white television and transistor radios to the wonders of the Internet.

I haven’t personally experienced the horrors of war, but I’ve lost friends who did.

My two brothers, my sister and my father were gone before they were 50 years old. I miss them terribly to this day.

I listened to Martin Luther King say he had a dream in one of more powerful, impactful speeches in human history.

I saw George Wallace stand in the schoolhouse door at the University of Alabama, creating yet more hate and fear because of the color of someone’s skin.

I saw an African-American be elected President of the United States.

In my lifetime, the scourges of polio, small pox and tuberculosis have been wiped out. Cancer and HIV are no longer that death sentences they once were.

But no one has yet found a cure for hate, for intolerance.

Those evils are more easily spread now by the wonders of social media. And they take many forms. They take the forms of made-up conspiracy theories designed to literally destroy those who might think differently. They take the form of name-calling and belittling, of trying to diminish others.

In their worst forms, those evils take away joy and happiness and even life itself.

If there is one lesson I have learned in my years on this earth it is that hate for someone because he or she looks differently, talks differently, believes differently, loves differently or worships differently ultimately damages the hater more than the hated.

Love and understanding, empathy for the struggles of others that we might not understand, compassion for our fellow man and generosity of spirit is where life’s greatest blessings can be found.

There are no blessings to be found in hate. Only darkness.

Ho-Hum

What's new?  A weekend of muddling around and not getting much done, fighting a sore throat and headache along with some aches and pains - but no temp and getting better.  I think I need more activity.

My family is on a short vacation before school starts, a beautiful place called Point White on Bainbridge Island.  The girls enjoyed their ferry ride and then getting to enjoy the beach pretty much by themselves. 

I think I see Ryan in the background paddleboarding.  I'm also seeing that mountain in the background, I think it's Mount Rainier.  And confirmed.  It's always a beautiful sight, and I'm sure they were thrilled it was clear enough for it to be seen.

Out of all this beauty, the one thing that the girls were looking forward to most was bunk beds!  Two sets of them. Hopefully, they didn't disappoint.  I'm so grateful they get to have these little excursions and grow up surrounded by this beauty.  I'm going to ask to go next time.

I was texting with Emily this morning and asked if the bunk beds worked, and she sent me these pictures.  They were tired after their day on the water!

So bottom bunks are free!

I have duties today!  I'm going to go over and sit with Luna the cat and make sure she's not lonely and clean her litter box.  Then I'm going to pick up Graysen's school supplies and computer from the school.  They'll be home to pick up Katherine's Wednesday.

While I'm over there, I'm going to lay out the quilts on their big dining table and measure and probably head straight to Issaquah and buy the batting with my Michael's and Hobby Lobby coupons.  What are the chances that they won't both have the same kind of batting?  No problem.  I'll just wait until next week and go back to one of the stores and get the second one.  

I think I'm going to add a new binding to Emily's old quilt if I can find just the right color.  That will give it many more years and is easy enough to do.  

Then I'll come back and water the garden unless it rains today.  I feel like a real person again with all these activities.  I might treat myself to a bought coffee at some point.  

What else is new?  I can't leave without another fact-checking mission for yet another tweeting of misinformation by the king of lies donaldtrump which led to much re-tweeting which got so. many. people all excited and throwing away their masks.  This article explains it well, and it's too complicated to explain to those who just want to blindly follow what trump posts without asking any questions or doing any research.

Short version - and only my version:  Someone named melQ read the article, took what he wanted to out of it and left out some important facts.  Donald saw the tweet and retweeted it because it "proves" what he's been trying to say.  Covid is not real.  It's not killing people.  The CDC is lying to us.  Interestingly, the tweet was removed for violation of Twitter rules - such as misinformation.  It didn't stop 60,000 people from retweeting and posting on social media and saying, "I told you so."  How many people reading these posts believed it without asking any questions and immediately reposted?  My favorite was the sports writer Clay Travis.  I imagine most sports fans WANT to believe we'll get back to college football now and are happy, but how fair is it to mislead thousands of people who take him at his word.  I'm sure he won't amend his column and say maybe the facts got skewered somewhere along the way.

Bottom Line:  No one dies from JUST Covid-19.  There is ALWAYS another condition, maybe more, the ones that you actually die from, so to say only 6% die from JUST Covid and 94% have pre-existing conditions is false and misleading.  The majority of the other 94% have a condition brought on by Covid that caused their deaths.  

Any data can be manipulated, and I just hope this one didn't bring on complacency that gets someone in serious trouble.  

Off to my duties.

----

I did about half of what i was going to do.  

Fed Luna the Cat.

And let her use me as a pillow. 

I filled the car with gas and went to pick up the second grade supplies.  That was nice.  There was no waiting at all, and I got to meet Graysen's teacher who really won't even be teaching until November because she's having a baby.  I met the cute substitute who seems bubbly and very sweet.  

It was good to see some action around the school, even if it's for just a short time.  It looks a little lonely most days.

Looks like Luna is not speaking with me in spite of my sitting with her and feeding her this morning.

She has her own little Chromebook - just like PopPop's.  Katherine gets an iPad.

Emily said the kindergarten class had a Zoom introduction meeting this morning, and they did it from the vacation house.  Emily's description:  It was for just a few minutes of absolute insanity and kids staring into the screen like they were on drugs.  It was so weird.  Lori made it funny and then crashed zoom, then sent a funny email about how well it went."  Sounds typical.

I got a video of Graysen meeting her class, and it was the cutest.  Her eyes were glued to the screen, and she would hear a familiar name and just give this little wave and smile.  I was glad to hear two more names of little girls she knows.  She was grinning about that too.

Graysen is all about the friends and social life.  Katherine wants to skip that part and get down to the business of learning as much as Graysen knows.

I just decided not to go anywhere else.  I'm like that sometimes.  I just go home.  I'll go back and water the garden and take out their garbage cans - and mine - later on and then get a cup of coffee and sit on the balcony.  Tomorrow is September, and that makes me really happy.  

Bunny Slippers to Trapping Bunnies

 Yesterday was actually a good day with my just taking the day to talk to friends and reflect and just enjoy the memories.  

Kathy and Alan celebrated their 49th anniversary today in very limited fashion.  Congratulations to them, a long and beautiful marriage.

My visit to the library was good.  I like their system and the library's app.  You make an appointment on the app to pick up any books on hold and either drive or walk to get them.  I walked, and when I left my house, I clicked the "on my way" button.  When I arrived, I clicked "At the library." And my books arrived on the outside table already checked out.

I had asked for two surprise bags for the girls, and they were ready too.

We have a hard time finding books we like in that small library and do a lot of requesting our own, and this wasn't much different.  There may be 3 or 4 that they'll enjoy, but I tried.

I maybe should have specified girls.

It's a nice service though, and I saw Graysen sit down and read one of them today when we first got to our garage playroom.

After playing with the Barbies a little and petting Alfie the little white dog who stopped by for a visit and talking with Edna and Susan, they decided they wanted to walk around and find some friends to play with.  It didn't take long to find Leland and Xander and Cadence running with huge sticks - just because.  They were determined to trap a bunny and were going back home to get a cat carrier to disguise.  So naturally, we got all involved in it.

I love this picture.  Last days of summer.

Picking blackberries to put in the cage to lure the bunny in.

That bunny is nibbling away and not paying them the least bit of attention.

After lunch, I cleaned up the kitchen while Ryan took Graysen back to the orthodontist to get her expander adjusted.  Poor baby couldn't close her mouth all the way.  It didn't hurt.  She just couldn't swallow well.  I think all she had for lunch was a strawberry milkshake and a mango-pineapple smoothie.

I saw these on the counter.  The mystery fruit.  

Emily thought they were a kind of squash and picked them, but Ryan told her he thought they were pumpkins and that they had picked them too early.  We were wanting a delicata this year, but after some research, these seem to be a Sweet Dumpling.

Looks like there won't be a pumpkin this year unless a miracle happens.

As I was putting up the dishes, I realized how nice it is not to have the every-meal demand for a certain color of plate or cup and hurt feelings over not getting your special one.

I miss some baby things, but that's one I don't miss.  That and diapers and week-old lost sippy cups of milk under the bed and throwing food on the floor.

So the conventions are over.  I didn't watch this last one, of course.  I knew how disgusting it would be to hear lie after lie after lie - 21 of them in one hour.  I heard the fact checks this morning for about half of them, and it boggles my mind how this kind of thing is accepted.

There is misinformation spread in both parties.  That's the downside of  politics.  But the sheer volume of these lies is just amazing and the inclusion of ones that have been debunked time and again.  Trump has wrongfully claimed that he passed the Veterans' Choice Law dozens of times, and it's always false.  Always.  Every single time.  Obama passed that and Trump continued it and signed off on it, but so what, if his people believe him, mission accomplished. 

He claims that Biden will take down the border wall.  Totally false.

Democrats want to take away your guns, defund the police, destroy your suburbs, take away your religious freedom, destroy your country.  What a sad, sad man. If people would do some research, they would see that these claims are false or only partially true. The country is close to being destroyed now by his own hands, and he wants to save it.  No words for the anger and hatred he has stirred up between two groups of people who basically want the same thing from a leader - one who will actually do his job and lead our country and not cause embarrassment every single day.

The Chinese are backing Joe Biden.  Why?  Because Trump is "unpredictable." Just what we need in the leader of our country.  Putin is backing Trump.  Why?"  Because they have a puppet in him who does their bidding, even if he breaks away from America's Constitution.  

Trying to get it all out and clear my brain and sleep soundly tonight. I think I'm there!  It's going to be a news-free weekend.

The Binderts go on a little trip Sunday, and then school will start.  The girls found out their teachers.  Kathrine got Ms Boyles, Graysen's lovely kindergarten teacher from two years ago.  Graysen doesn't know her teacher, Ms Hughes, but she has a nice group of kids that she knows in there, not that it will make much difference who is in her virtual class. They're just excited about their little bitty school and the fact that their "teacher" will be bringing her baby to class 3 days a week.   Sure hope they will get back to physical school before too long, but it doesn't look hopeful.  

A Day to Wear My Bunny Slippers

 One of the main sayings of Susan Pierce Thompson of the Bright Line Eating program is there are days when you just need to forget everything and put on your bunny slippers.  I'm thinking my cat socks will have to do.

I'm being very deliberate where I let my thoughts take me today and will just glide right on by the things that worry me, upset me, and even anger me.

The top thing on my mind, whether I glide on past or not, is that today was the day Mike and I got married in 1967.  We had 49 years and 2 weeks of that marriage, and it's hard not to have him here every day.  I would love to have him here being the voice of reason when my thoughts go to dark places or when I feel hopeless.  To make me laugh at myself and at his silliness.  Someone to call me Baby even after all those years.  Someone who knew what I was thinking, which wasn't always a good thing, but it usually was.  Someone to rescue me from having to make decisions and to tease me about my lack of concern about where my livelihood came from.  Someone who was so invested in his family above all else and was so proud of us even when we didn't deserve it.  Someone to promote every little hobby or interest I had through those 49 years - and there were many - and to always be sure I had exactly what I wanted or needed to make life easier.  I miss him every day, and I don't see that changing.  We do all miss him, but it's almost like he's there with us even if not in person.  The girls are very comfortable talking about him and the little they remember, and that makes me feel so good.  We saw a huge dandelion fluff blow past us one day this week, and they both started chasing it and yelling, "PopPop!"  Sometimes it's unexpected feathers that drift down.  Or rainbows.  Or ladybugs.  Or anything we want it to be.  I'm so thankful for the memories and for the strength that I gained only from spending those 49 years with him.

I thought about looking for another picture of our wedding rather than this overused one, but this is handy and I do believe it is my favorite.  I see it every day on my bookshelf, and it keeps me going.

I'm still a little sad, but it feels good to talk about my feelings and just remember.  

And laugh about this picture too: 

That blackboard in the background.  Our church's fellowship hall and Sunday School rooms.

The goofy look of relief we're giving each other that this day is just about over, all the pageantry and pictures and smiling and greeting people, and we were just on the verge of being on our own and doing exactly what we wanted to do for the rest of our lives.  And being not a little scared.  

That cake! It was a beautiful cake, and we did good.  I didn't like the bride and groom figures so chose wedding bells.  It didn't fall down.  We managed to cut a very nice slice of cake for each other.  Neither of us was a smearing the cake in our faces kind of person, thank goodness. I'm not even sure we knew about that.  The only problem with the cake is that we had a taste and didn't really like it.  We should have had one of our mothers bake it.  When we ate the top tier on our first anniversary, it hadn't gotten any better!  

I see all of Mama's touches in the picture.  This was her crowning moment, this wedding.  She loved planning and preparing for weddings and showers and things, and I had almost no interest.  She loved her punch bowl and was able to feature it with some sort of yellow punch, I think.  She knew what little treats to order for the finger foods.  I think I remember little round mints that someone in town made.

All those napkins with our names on them that we used for years because there were so many left over.  Mama probably ordered the 500 pack.

My personality in that dress that I loved.  I had only one requirement to start with.  It could have no lace on it.  And I found one that didn't.  There were hundreds of embroidered white daisies on it though, all around the bottom and on the train and around those cute little scalloped sleeves.  It was perfect for a hot August day, and I loved every one of the little details of it, especially all those covered buttons on the back - because I didn't have to be the one to button them.

Those young faces.  Mike had turned 21 the week before, and I would be 21 the next month.  That's really young.

My special little celebration today will be going to the library that he loved so much and picking up my books that I have on hold.  Wearing a mask.  How could we have ever imagined such a thing in 1967.  Or even last year.  I've saved the Sunday newspaper and will ceremoniously take out the NYT crossword this afternoon and work on that with a cup of coffee.  I will chat with him a bit and thank him for being patient with me all those years and for never giving up on me.

My other thoughts today will be on my sweet Graysen.  She has to have a procedure to expand her jaw to make room for all her teeth and to keep her tongue from pushing against them.  Katherine has to have the same procedure, and she is getting evaluated today.  Graysen has known this was happening for two weeks and has been counting down the days on her calendar.  Precious girl.  I hope it's as special as she thinks it's going to be.  My heart just hurts for her and for any discomfort she has to experience.  And for her innocence.  Knowing that she's going to get a mermaid tail retainer (or something like that) has her so excited she can hardly stand it.  I mentioned Tuesday when I left her that I would try to see her the next day, and she said, "Okay, but Mimi, don't forget Thursday I get my expander, and I want you to be there when I get home to see it."  Sounds like maybe an ice cream type of afternoon.

All other things I do today, I will be mindful and thankful.  Debby and Tom made it through the hurricane last night safely in a Houston apartment with hopefully no damage to their camper.  

I've found my Jan, one of my oldest friends that I had lost touch with this year.  We're both off Facebook, and that was our main point of communication, but we have been known to write emails that take half a day to read.  We just make ourselves a cup or two of coffee and immerse ourselves into each others' lives until we catch up.  Right now, we're doing chapters.  Yesterday we covered our constant surprise at not being able to do things like we did when we were 16 or 30 or 60.  Who knows what we will discover about each other today.

I'm thankful for my new friends that I have discovered recently and for the old ones that I've reconnected with.  And the ones that have just always been there for me.  They make me smile and even cry sometimes, but they keep me grounded and connected.  For my family, of course, and the pleasure of seeing The Binderts for a few days.

I'm trying to think of other things that will bring me joy today (besides a nap), and I'll do only those things.  

Lovely Tuesday

 I put my anger and sadness behind me and had the best day.  

I spent the morning practicing free-motion quilting and realized I'm just as awful as I used to be at it.  I doubt I'll get good enough to do anything on the girls' quilts, but I now have the time to get a little more comfortable with that part of my machine.

Millie and the girls walked over yesterday afternoon.  I had gone to the garage to sift through some stored things to see if we could include anything in the yard sale Elise is helping with.  Luckily, I had already sent away a couple of boxes, because they found their little crib music box and a Fisher-Price musical teapot that they just hugged and hugged.  I'll keep those here for future playing.

We walked to the yogurt shop, and the girls chose only pineapple this time and not one of those concoctions that make my teeth hurt - like watermelon and cotton candy or watermelon and chocolate.  They both did insist on their gummy sharks, Swedish fish, and gummy worms for toppings.  

We then walked to a shady-ish park and let them finish eating them.  I was carrying the yogurt so the girls would walk faster before it melted and was wearing my mask and tripped on a high place in the sidewalk.  That cursed mask blind spot.  Millie and I were proud of my comeback though.  I'm sure it wasn't pretty, but not a drop was spilled and I avoided the ground.  Scary though.

The walk home was nice with discussions about electric cars and baby bouncers, Beany Boos, acorns and so many other things.  

As we entered the path by the Gardens, the girls spotted what they thought was a deer or maybe two.

Graysen took my phone and recorded their approach to the deer, just one fairly big one.  It was cute to hear them talking to the deer, but the video picture itself is mainly the path and grass and sky.

She did get this picture, and I cropped it for her.  We think it was a Mama Deer, and she was not jittery at all, just chomped and looked and chomped and looked.  Finally as the grown-ups got near, she ran toward us and then veered off into her underbrush.  

Once back home, we got some water and watched the guys finish up on the back fence.  I'll have to take a picture of the new one later.  Millie and I had a chance to also finish up our week's conversation since the girls played so sweetly on the side of the house, making tools from nature and sanding and measuring and sometimes fighting over who got the longer stick.

The bouncy house was my main reason for going back with them, and it didn't disappoint.  It inflates in seconds, and it's just perfect for letting off a little steam. 

This looks like the beginning of a wrestling match.  Graysen looks ready, but Katherine looks like she knows there are going to be hurt feelings and pain involved.  I interfered pretty quickly and suggested something else.

        

They called it Charades, but I really just called out a letter of the alphabet, and they acted it out for us to guess.  We were cracking up over some of their interpretations, and that spurred them on to get crazier and crazier.

When I called out F, Katherine was looking like a fish swimming around, so I guessed that, but then she said, "NO.  A flounder."  Sometimes I would recognize what they were but give silly guesses, and they would fall into heaps of laughing girls.  "Are you a monkey buying groceries?  An ice cream cone?  A goat girl?"  One questionable one we had to count.  They had learned on one of their nature shows that there is something called a Jesus Christ lizard because of its ability to walk on water.  Is that sacrilegious?  When they were acting out G, this is the one thing we couldn't guess.  Maybe because it doesn't start with G!

I appreciate the emails and texts I've received about my state of mind recently and the assurances that I'm not alone in my feelings. It's so appreciated.  I need a lot of help in times like this to hold onto my faith.

I had heard that one of Billy Graham's granddaughters spoke at their convention and figured she had joined his children in using their influence and power in their political crusade.  The patriarch of the family at 92 regretted his involvement in politics but not so Franklin and this granddaughter.  They don't seem to care about the character and actions of the man they so ardently support, preying on the gullible nature of believers.

I did see this refreshing article though about another granddaughter who has joined the Lincoln Project and is honest and very courageous.  Saying of her uncle after he proclaimed that God allowed trump to win:  When Franklin Graham portrays trump as aligned with the cause of Jesus, he "diminishes not only my Jesus but all he stood for  and came to Earth to fight against."     

On the far end of the spectrum, that QAnon-supporting newest member of the senate was invited to the convention, whether to speak or not, I don't know.  This is a spokesperson for a potentially terrorist organization.  When asked about his opinion on QAnon, our president said, "I don't know anything about them, but they seem to like me."  I guess that's the only thing that matters.

Bitterness level:  5. Anger level:  4.  Hope level:  6.  Disbelief level:  10.

Feeling Hopeless

I can't contribute anything today because I have too many feelings, too much fear, too much knowledge that the country is out of control and will never be in a good place again. 

I'm just keeping my fear inside and spending the afternoon with my babies, looking for some decency and sunshine and love and smiles.  

A Grandmother Day

 Such fun yesterday.  My girls are lucky enough to have 3 grandparents to love on them.  Their South Dakota ones have been away from them so long that they just decided they needed to come see them in person, so they arrived Thursday evening.

Emily is out of town, and I hadn't talked to anyone in their house until yesterday, but I know it's been a fun, crazy time.  Millie (Grandma) said yesterday that she was really ready to sleep when the end of the day came, and Graysen said, "Katherine and I sneaked into your room this morning, and you were still asleep."  

I got a text yesterday asking if I wanted to go for ice cream at the pharmacy across the parkway.  After a few texts about whether there was a place to sit and how we would get there, etc., Millie mentioned that they had ice cream and root beer and that I could just come over for root beer floats.  That turned out to be a wonderful idea.

When I got there, the girls were busy cleaning their room, so the grandmothers had a little time to sit out back and catch up.  Sharing grandchildren is the best thing ever.  No one else is going to listen to you brag nonstop about these children and agree with every word!  It was such a nice time.  I really wish they lived closer.

The root beer floats were a success, and there was much enjoyment and laughter and just a little silliness around the patio table.  

On the way over, I had found another little resin heart, and I was so excited about it.  Katherine had found one weeks ago near the park and picked it up, and ever since we've been looking hard for one for Graysen.  I hope no one saw me pick it up, because I'm sure they are meant for kids, but it was worth it to feel a little guilty.  When I took it out of my pocket, her eyes just sparkled and she put her hand over her heart and said, "Oh, Mimi.  My own heart."  It's amazing that such small things could cause so much pleasure,  I wish she had found it herself, and I have no doubt that one day she will find one.  They immediately wanted to set out looking for more.

There is a nice lady in town who makes them and hides them.  I'm not sure if it's still going on or if the one I found was someone's dropped one.  :(  Millie and I decided to take a walk around the neighborhood and keep our eyes open for more hearts.

It probably took 15 minutes to go two blocks because the girls kept stopping to examine rocks and talk about every little thing they saw along the way.  

So precious to us to hear them talking and finding pleasure in small things.  They had made little pieces of paper with art on them that they had been putting in the grassy median in front of their house, and it gave them such a thrill when one was found to be missing.  They are perfectly aware that maybe the wind blew it away, but it's more exciting to think that a person had picked it up and got a blessing from it.

Graysen confiscated my phone to do a video, so I don't have many pictures from the walk, but I did capture these from the (way too long) video.

We crossed the street and headed for Queen Kitty Hill and ran into the whole Jones family out for a walk.  Such excitement.  Their mom Tomoko and I talked about how starved the children were for socializing.  Last year, the twins would only tease Graysen on the way home from school, and she would just grin at them, and Cadence was a little too old for the girls, but now they're all just soooo excited to see each other.  

I know it's hard for their mom to keep these 3 kids in an apartment setting day after day.  The area in front of the office seems to be a nice meeting place for people.  Millie and I just sat on the shady bench and listened to them chatter.

It's funny that one of the twins gave this sparkly backpack to Graysen for her 6th birthday party, and they recognized it.  Then Cadence ran inside to get a similar one, and they then were able to have a long discussion about Beany Boos and which ones they have and how they would meet the next day to share some.

Of course, the boys then had to go find their little animals and join in.

It's the little things.  

I hope we can meet up again soon.  On the way home, they passed by their other friend Anna and stopped to chat with her.  I stayed home and let the others walk home.  Millie was pretty sure she knew the way from prior walks, but I know Graysen and Katherine were glad to "help" her.  I love how they call our side street - Baker Street - Bakery Street.  I always think of cinnamon rolls when I see the street sign.

It's the end of August, and I woke up to a fire in the fireplace - a small one, but Elise was "freezing."  I agreed with her.  This is crazy weather.    

I'm not sure what the plans are for today or if there are any or if they include me, but I'm open for just about anything or nothing.  I know Noreen and I have vague plans to have our porch coffee today since we missed each other yesterday.  

I plan to do no sewing or needlework but might start a new book.  I finished my 28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand.  I liked it okay from the start, but it got so much better, and I cried at the end.  That's always the mark of a good book!  It's based loosely on and references the old movie, Same Time Next Year.

I think I remember seeing it a long time ago, but I'm going to check and see if I can find a way to watch it again.  

I have a few real books checked out, so I think I need to see if I can read those now.  I have 3 days to finish Small Fires Everywhere before it goes back.  It's an e-book, so I can't do anything but read it - no sewing or mah-jong or puzzles while I'm listening, and I'm almost sure I've already read it, but I'll give it one more try.  

I'm ready for one last week of warm weather before September gets here, so I'm going to check the balcony and see if it's comfortable.  

Good Day to Stay In

 This is just my kind of day.  It doesn't matter than I stay in most days anyway, but this weather was perfect for wearing my sweatshirt and pajama bottoms, drinking coffee and doing so many mindless things.

I enjoyed seeing the clouds roll in early this morning with coffee on the balcony, listening to 28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand, one of my favorite authors, and working on my long-neglected mystery cross-stitch.

I just went back out to check on my plants since I didn't water this morning and love the way the plants look at twilight.  

There are several clematis buds on the vine, but it looks like the central plant is dying.  The leaves are turning brown, and that bloom is wilty, but the new growth and buds look healthy, so we'll have to see.

These petunias and geraniums are healthy without any babying at all.  I do deadhead every morning and clean them up, but they give me so much joy.  The petunias smell so good too.

Those are old herbs beneath that I snip off sometimes but mostly just ignore.  I did plant dill, parsley, and chives in the same pot, and they're looking good.

Layla and I enjoyed the beautiful bit of sunset we saw.

My friends and I were talking yesterday about how just about the only thrill we get some days is a package arriving from Amazon - or their groceries!  Living in an apartment, we really want very little "stuff" coming in, but I did order something a couple of weeks ago for myself.

On some blog I follow, I saw the recommendation for a tiered stand for the kitchen, and with my teeny kitchen, I thought a little double-decker storage would be nice.  It was more than I really wanted to pay, but I shopped around for similar things and decided I liked that one the best.  It was from World Market.  There's not one near here, so I ordered it.  I used to like to visit World Market in other towns I lived in, but I'm not going to drive very far for any store.  It took weeks for it to get here, and I had just about forgotten about it until it arrived today.

My excitement was short-lived though.  It had plenty of bubble wrap but was kind of rolling around in the box, and the box was banged up.  When I took it out, it was assembled and looked like this.

I tried replacing the screws that I found in the box, but that did nothing to straighten it. I'm not sure exactly what the problem was.  The screw holes were enlarged and gouged out-looking, so I think someone else had had the same problem.  I'm sure it's a metal problem.

I dreaded contacting WM and setting up returns and refunds or whatever, but I went ahead and immediately called, expecting a big runaround.  A sweet voice answered and ended up calling me Miss Becky and complimenting the Allyn in my name - "That's pretty."  She listened sympathetically without judgment to my problem and just went right on and ordered me another one.  I had figured I would just ask for a refund, but since I don't have to send it back, I'll try again. They don't require you to send back things under $100.  That's kind of nice but unusual. If the second one is deformed, then I'll have two.  I feel sure Ryan can whip them into shape with some of his manly tools.

So I went ahead and put it in the proper place, and if you don't look really hard at the forward tilt, you can tell what it "should" look like.  It think it's just about perfect in that spot and rounds up tea and coffee things well. 

I love groping my way into the kitchen every morning and hanging out here.  I'm hearing Mike in my mind grumbling about there being no spot on that thing for his Taster's Choice container with the spoon attached with a rubber band.

I've heard nothing from the Binderts today, and I guess that's good.  I know they're having a good time.  I did a good bit of texting with friends and had a nice phone call.  I love people who understand me and make me laugh.  We all need that.

What I didn't need was to see on the community page another OMG Look at THIS! post that quickly got laughed away by sensible people.  

Someone had seen a video or something about your mail-in votes having D or R on them so "they" can get rid of your vote.  I'm still not sure who "they" is.  Are they Democrats or Republicans, these people who grab the ballots and throw away the ones they don't want?  Do they think people are allowed to stand around and sift through ballots and get rid of the ones they don't like?  What people and how do they get chosen?  

With about two minutes wasted on a fact check, the truth is revealed that the D or R appears only on the primary election ballots where you have to pick a party and only get ballots with that party designated on the envelope.  The PRIMARY election.  In the general election, naturally there is not a CLUE on the ballot as to the way you voted.  Do these people believe everything and are just too lazy to check for the truth - or do they know it's not true and just hope to carry on their anger a while longer.  Sad.  

Disclaimer:  I didn't know these things either, because I never heard of anything like this - nor would I ever believe someone is stealing my ballot - but a little knowledge is a good thing.

I thought today was Saturday, so I have the whole weekend ahead of me, although those two days will be no different than the last five.  We are going to have a sunny and dry week ahead, so that will be good for the kids and grandparents to get outside.