Uh oh . . .

The batteries died so you can't see the end of the story.  (This is supposed to be a video!)

Can't believe we just spoke with  a 48 year old former student as we were indulging in a luscious breakfast at the Roadside Diner. He said, as former students are wont to say," Don't you remember me? You are Mrs. Rose, right?" Of course I do remember faces but I'm afraid names escape me most of the time! Met my first students when I started out subbing at Plainfield High in 1965. If I suppose I met at least 60 new kids a year for 32 1/2 years that's around 2,000 students not counting the years I subbed! (I'm not counting my regular classes because I had many of those same students for at least three years or Chess Club.  Only counting Freshmen, Study Halls and Home Room.)No, I don't remember all the kids, darn it! It was a close encounter of a good kind. Jeff mentioned that he plays horseshoes and knows where we live. We invited him to play when he has time to stop by. He said he has put in three pits with cement runways in his backyard and the lighting necessary for late night pitching! Looks like Ps&D's Pop has another place to pitch horseshoes! Jeff did mention drinking beer and wine with a somewhat quizzical look on his face. So I told him that at 48 years old it was okay! It's no wonder I loved teaching. Lots of very nice human beings.

Colder than a witch's tits today as Grampa would say. Good gravy. Where the devil is Springtime? Supposed to be here this week. Hope it's going to make it!

Follow up on the dare from Kiddo. I found an easy rendition of Beethoven's Für Elise and if I practice some more I should be able to show off when he comes for his Frication!

Quote:  The contented man is never poor; the discontented never rich.   ___George Eliot

Superior comprehension . . .

New mugs!  I love them.
 

Gotta hand it to that Kiddo. He understands some of the vicissitudes of life. This morning Grampa invited him out to breakfast at McD's. Kiddo asked me if I was going too I said no. I'd just stay home and be all alone in peaceful contemplation. He eyed me and said, " Exactly right. Just like Mom." How much more better can it get? He's only eight years old and understands how nice it is to be alone! ( Naturellement, we only need this respite on rare occasions!) When I was making his bed this morning I was flabbergasted that the top sheet had just about completely disappeared to the bottom on one side! I asked "How do you do that?" His forthright answer, "I don't know but my Dad does it too!" Good grief. It's in his genes!

Grampa is off to the flying field and I am alone to drink my coffee and try to play Für Elise on the keyboard. That's also Kiddo's fault. He dared me to play it as well as he did with a special iPad app! I know I'm on the losing end of this dare!

Quote:  Socrates being asked the way to honest fame, said, "Study to be what you wish to seem."

Addendum . . .

Hot-diggedy-dog-diggedy-boom . . . my iPad is all tuned up! I'm impressed. I'm sure the at least five different IT people that worked with me are not impressed but hey, it's their job and I sure as the devil gave them some work! Feels good to be chugging along at a much faster pace.

Can you smell the wood burning ? ? ?

Temari Ball

Oh my dear lord.  I've been on and off on the phone with Apple all evening. My iPad is getting pokey so I thought I might need a new battery. I won't even go into what I had to do to talk to someone at the closest Apple Store in Providence.  We'll just say that I have to have an appointment and they couldn't book it for a week ahead!!! So I telephoned and ended up speaking with someone who had me open to a diagnostic page on the device and he told me the battery was fine but I should clean out the whole iPad and start over. The reason for all the phone calls is that it takes time for the device to get all stored on the computer before we can empty it out and it then becomes brand new again and then we have to restore all the stuff I like from the computer using Wifi. Whatever.  Suffice it to say that it is at this time downloading all the stuff I've purchased as apps and then tomorrow when they call at 8am we'll get all of the stuff from iTunes and I should be good to go!  It really is running much faster now. They've also sent me some emails so I can try to do more useful things on my own.  HA!  Dreamers they are!

Had a nice visit from a friend I've known since All Hallows.  She brought me a Temari Ball, a Japanese art form I believe. She is very artistic.  I have a book she signed for me.  She did the cover illustration. It's really very nice.  Ps&D's Pop gave her a blue bird box and a post so she can attract the pretty things.  Hope she has good luck. Will pick up the Kiddo tomorrow and hope the snow doesn't mess up the weekend!

Quote:  Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.   ___Rousseau

Very nice . . .

My bent-back-into-shape coal bucket

As incredible as it may seem we went to the new Sterling School and Ps&D's Pop was able to fly off of the wet, saturated left field and I got in 45 minutes of walking around the track and school. 52 degrees, sunny, blue sky and a great day to be out and about. First time I've really walked out of doors in months! To top off this crazy weekend where Kiddo had to stay home because of the snow factor in Moosup UCONN men with Kevin Ollie at the helm won their last game of the season in an overtime over the Friars. Very cool win. They had at least three of their better players with broken body parts on the bench and they still managed a win over a Providence team that has been surging at season's end. I even managed to clean the house too. Whoopee! Nothing special going on this week. Will probably be able to go pick up more fallen branches when the snow finally melts off of the hill. We could go sliding today but hopefully the Friday/Saturday storm will be the end of Winter. Last week as I was cleaning up in the yard I found an old coal bucket right across the wall from the spring. Grampa thinks it's junk but I like it. He pulled it back into some semblance of bucket shape. I will let a friend borrow it for a while as she wants to use it in a painting. As I write Grampa is out pitching horseshoes  past the snow covered garden!

Quote:  It is a noble and great thing to cover the blemishes and excuse the failings of a friend; to draw a curtain before his stains, and to display his perfection; to bury his weaknesses in silence, but to proclaim his virtues on the house-top.   ___South

Mac and Cheese to celebrate . . .

Two shots of the beautiful humming bird sculpture.

Couldn't decide which photo I preferred.

Just returned from a celebratory lunch at the Rte. 12 Diner. Dr. Slater told me I was in just terrific shape at my yearly checkup and I'll run with that. I called Ps&D's Pop from Norwich to ask him to take me out and he was most agreeable although he had already been there for coffee and a cinnamon bun while I was at Backus!  Maybe I'll skip making supper tonight! Waiting for the latest Nor'easter to hit us. So far so good. I went to East Granby yesterday to have lunch with younger sister and the roads were just slightly wet in places. Had on and off rain and snow showers but Grampa was right when he said the weather wouldn't be a problem. We had a great visit and capped it off by devouring one of the Baby Cakes from the Harvest in Simbury. Oh wow. Can't do that every day. Chocolate cake with raspberry cream filling and a luscious butter cream frosting. Super tasty. Brought home two cookies her Kiddo had made and some chocolate covered strawberries. May have to go on a starvation diet after this trip!

Quote:  Assertion is not argument; to contradict the statement of an opponent is not proof that you are correct.   ___Johnson

New way to get rid of the snow . . .

Impressive display from Bonsai Numero 2

Ps&D's Pop has a promising way to get rid of the snow piles. He brings in a bucket of snow and uses it to cool off the dozen boiled eggs he cooks up. Inventive! It is very sunny out today but so cold and windy that it is brutal if you are trying to walk outside. Just came back from Big Y where I saw a cart taking off in the wind aimed at a nice new truck. I hurried to stop the Elantra and get to it before it hit but the truck owner was just coming out of the store and beat me to it. I took it from him and used it to shop. I still can't believe that people are so rude, lazy and uncaring that they would just leave a carriage to damage other people's vehicles. I guess I'm grouchy because I'm pretty fed up with human beings at the moment, in particular those in Connecticut and DC.

Had a pleasant weekend and was surprised how much basketball Kiddo and I played outside Friday and Saturday. He's getting to be a fiend! It was cold and he was working so hard he was all red-cheeked and drinking big mugs of water. I, on the other hand, was cold even with gloves and a hat spending my time rebounding and recovering balls that got away from me and down the side of the house going across the street! Yesterday was really fine as card playing cousine and I went to see Le Petit Prince at UCONN.  I was really impressed with the job they did with puppets. Crying my way through a good part of the production was good for my soul. "On ne voit bien qu'avec le cœur. L'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux."  One must treasure friendship and those we love.

Stopped in to see younger brother and his wife Friday when my appointment at Backus for routine testing let me free very early: 9:30am appointment and I was already back in the car and calling J. at 9:28! Wonders shall never cease. We had a nice visit and when my sister-in-law came home she gave me a beautifully colored bluebird statue made from stone (calcite?) which they had bought at a big Rock Show in Arizona. Looks very nice on  Grampa Rose's big old desk.  Hoping to see younger sister Wednesday but the crazy weather is starting to look iffy and my left hand fourth finger is telling me that we are going to have some sort of storm. Shitski. Wish Winter would call it quits.

Quote:  'Tis sad work to be at that pass, that the best trial of truth must be the multitide of believers, in a crowd where the number of fools so much exceeds that of the wise.   ___Montaigne