Things that bug me

Here is a list of things that drive me crazy, in no particular order:

1.  Getting to the end of anything and having to squeeze or scrape out the last few grams (to make sure that nothing is wasted):  toothpaste, shampoo, honey, peanut butter, etc.

2.  Visiting the bathroom and finding out that the toilet paper holder is empty or nearly so — am I the only person who knows how to replace it?  This also applies to paper towels in the kitchen.

3.  Waiting for a repair/delivery person to appear in a certain time interval and they don’t show up

4.  Pulling up to an intersection to make a right turn at a stop sign or light and having a huge SUV or van appear to my left, totally blocking my view of oncoming traffic

5.  Overtime periods in anything — football, baseball, basketball, concerts (encores)  — I would much rather have a favorite team lose than have to sit through an overtime (and probably have them lose anyway)

6.  I dislike commercials so much that I never watch live TV anymore — everything that I watch is recorded on the DVR.  Now, if I accidentally forget to zap through a commercial, my brain automatically tunes it out anyway. 

7.  Losing things drives me nuts.  I generally keep pretty good track of stuff — usually items are temporarily misplaced and reappear later.  I lost an old wedding ring a couple of days ago (I have about 3 of them for different sizes of me).  I remember putting it on after playing golf, but then it must have fallen off in the car (it was a little loose). 

I lost my walking poles in Montana last summer.  I missed these so much that I replaced them.  A few weeks after replacing them, on a return trip to Montana, I found them.

After our move to Reno, I couldn’t find the lid to a large Tupperware bowl that I use for making bread and large batches of things.  After looking through all of the obvious places, I ordered a new one.  A few days after receiving it, I found the old one — in the place where it was supposed to be!

The best way for me to find something that I have lost is to replace it.

8.  People close to me who lose things REGULARLY:

 I have already documented husband Scott’s propensity to lose things (see blog of March 4, 2010, Scott).  I am afraid that daughter Amy has inherited his “loser” gene.  Over the years Amy has lost numerous purses/wallets and other things.    Her purse was dropped into the ocean through an opening in the Queen Mary in Longbeach when she was about eleven.  A wallet was found in the dirt under the tree in a friend’s yard many years after she lost it.  She left her purse on a park bench in Niagara Falls, Ontario, when she was in high school.  She lost (was stolen) her new camera in a bar in Ithaca on her 21st birthday.  She lost an earring (from a $100 set) that she had borrowed from a friend in college. She lost her wallet on a train in Amsterdam when she was on a business trip.  And so on…   Now that she doesn’t live with us, I don’t know what she loses on a day-to-day basis, but every once in a while I will hear an allusion to something lost.  I think her husband Paul has a similar gene.  It’s a little early to tell if grandson Malcolm (age 5) will follow in their footsteps.

9.  Radio stations that start playing Christmas songs right after Halloween!  I love the Christmas songs, but let’s wait until after Thanksgiving.

10.  Karen Carpenter’s recording of “Merry Christmas Darling” — I recently heard it done by Lea Michele on “Glee” and it was beautiful, but I think Karen Carpenter’s recording is just too sappy and it always makes me cringe…

After that final rant, let me wish you all good tidings, good health, and a very merry holiday season.

Quilting

Yes, I have developed another obsession since my post of more than a year ago.  I warned you that I was about to take a quilting lesson.  Well, I did.  And then I did again and again and I am still doing it.  I have created numerous quilts and table runners/toppers and have plans for many more.   It is a harmless hobby that keeps me nicely occupied in my retirement. 

The problem is that there is a limit to the number of quilted things that one needs.  However, I still want to keep making them.  So if you appreciate such things, I would love to share them with you.   

1.  Sudoku (40.5″ by 40.5″)         (table topper or lap quilt)         

2.  Energized  (38.5 x 44)             (table topper or lap quilt)

3.  Thimbleberries Pumpkin Glow table runner    (16 x 40)

4.  Thimbleberries Winter Scape table topper (20 x 26)

5.  Faded Memories table runner (15 x 33)

 

6.  Dancin’ Teapots table topper

7.  Floral Quartet table topper or lap quilt  (45 x 45)

8.  Floral Garden throw  (49″ x 63″)

9.  Just Too Easy! throw (52 x 62)

10.  Hollyberry table topper (34 x 34)

11.  Log Cabin Pumpkins table runner (27 x 36)

12.  Christmas Log Runner (59 x 20.25)

13.  Jeweled Forest table runner (22.5 x 37.5)

14.  Christmas Star table topper (20.5 x 20.5)

15.  Crazy Eights throw (38 x 45) 

16.  Crazy For You throw (62 x 62)

I have seen this made up in lots of different color combinations — most of which looked alot better than this picture which is on the front of the pattern. 

17.  Party Time table runner (26 x 74)

18.  Tea ‘n Roses table runner (48 x 18)

19.  Sitting Pretty table topper (38.5 x 44.5)

These are just a few of the hundreds of patterns that I have (I guess that being obsessive about patterns goes along with the whole quilting-obsession thing).  I have patterns for every season.  I have also made several quilts that are larger than the ones I have just shown.  I made a king-sized quilt for a friend last winter.  I’d rather never do that again — it was just too big when it came time to quilt the layers together.  It also required a lot of fabric and was therefore extremely expensive to make.

The Bands

About a year and a half ago I noticed an article in our local paper about a New Horizons  Band that was going to be starting up in the Reno area.  This organization originated in Rochester, New York, and now has many chapters throughout the U.S.  It is targeted at people over 50 who have never played an instrument or haven’t done so in 40 or 50 years.  I was hooked immediately and decided to sign up.  What surprised me was that Scott was also interested.   The link for the band is

www.newhorizonsmusic.org/.

I have always been a musical wannabee.  In elementary school I “played” the clarinet for two years.  The clarinet was only functioning for 5th grade.  My younger siblings then got ahold of it and broke keys or whatever so that it no longer worked.  Rather than tell anyone (Mom didn’t have the money to get it fixed), I faked playing throughout 6th grade.  I have always wondered why the band teacher never caught on.  Granted, I never had private lessons, but I must have been a pretty good faker.

In junior high I was apparently enrolled in both band and chorus in the same class period , but my schedule said chorus.  Given the condition of my clarinet, I decided not to fight it.  By the time high school arrived, I regretted my earlier decision because most of my friends were in the marching band and were having lots of fun.

When I was about 12 I started doing alot of babysitting.  One of the houses had a piano which gave me the opportunity to try it.  I had learned how to read music by not playing the clarinet; so I first taught myself how to play with the right hand and then gradually added the left.  Over the years, as an adult, I have taken a few lessons from three different teachers, had one recital at 34 (never again!), and finally came to the realization that I only enjoyed playing for myself.  Scott doesn’t seem to mind my playing; and his undiscerning ear sometimes thinks I sound good.

I have been in many choruses over the years — primarily church choirs, but for a few years I was in a barbershop chorus and quartette.  I also played the recorder for a few years thanks to the influence of friend Lydia.  I became obsessed (as I often do) and purchased two soprano and two alto recorders thinking that I could get Scott to join me.  He did for about one month, and then he lost interest.  It wasn’t much fun doing it by myself; so I eventually stopped.  Let me know if you need a recorder!

So you can see why this new band appealed to me.  We went to the organizational meeting, rented our instruments, and began learning and practicing.  Scott got a clarinet.  He had played percussion in elementary school and had taken piano lessons forever (with no follow-through).  I got a flute because I always liked the sound of it.  And then we had

 

fun!  About 40 people joined the band at the start.  It was a social thing as well as an intellectual and emotional experience.  Many people have left the band for various reasons and a few new ones have joined.  The music is getting more difficult but we are getting better.

After a few months of renting, I was successful at purchasing a clarinet for Scott on e-bay and a flute for me on Craig’s list.  My flute actually came from the mayor of a suburb of Minneapolis.  I picked it up when I was visiting for niece Rachel’s baby shower.  He (the mayor) forgot I was coming to get it early on a Saturday morning.  He finally came to the door scruffy-looking in his wide-open bathrobe.  Needless to say, I didn’t stay around long enough to test the flute.  I just picked it up and bolted.  It turned out to be fine after some adjustment from our favorite musical instrument repairman.

After about 10 months of playing the flute I decided to try the clarinet.  I finally realized that I prefer playing harmony and the flute plays mostly melody.  I also enjoy playing in the lower register.  This summer I have started playing the bass clarinet, which is even lower, and am enjoying it.  The bass clarinet is the one on the left.  I think the regular B-flat clarinet is third from the right.  It feels like a toothpick after I have been playing the bass clarinet for a while.

This spring we joined another band, the Monday night band, which is an offshoot of the first band (made up mostly of those who were disgruntled with the Thursday night band).  We are not disgruntled; we just look at it as another opportunity to play with a group.  I play the bass clarinet on Monday night and the regular clarinet on Thursday night.  Here is the link to our local Thursday night band:  www.renotahoenewhorizonsband.com  It has some current pictures.

It isn’t true that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks!

Scott

Scott is my husband of nearly 41 years, Amy’s dad, Malcolm’s grandpa.  He is also the classic example of an absent-minded (ex) professor!

His exploits are legendary.  For 31 years in Buffalo there was a cadre of friends who helped to keep track of him.  Debbie N would call him when he left the garage door open.  Bob L would let him know when he left a light on in the car.  Various golfing buddies would recognize the things he left behind and would keep them safe for him.

Granted, he has a lot of stuff to keep tabs on — his cell phone, his keys, his wallet, his insulin pump, and his glucose test kit.  He usually takes inventory of the five things that are supposed to be in his pockets; but sometimes he forgets.  I have suggested that he get a man-purse…

I have received calls from him at various times of the day or evening when he has been out at a golf banquet, or playing poker, or whatever, and have had to bring him keys, or insulin pump, or another necessary item he has left at home.  In Atlanta with his brothers he left his cell phone on his golf cart.  It took weeks before it was sent back to him.

He began with a clean slate in Reno.  However, he is starting to develop a reputation here as well.  He plays golf nearly daily, depending on the weather.  He went to a golf tournament last fall, only to discover that he had left his golf clubs on the cart at a different course on the previous day.  He had to rent clubs (at an exorbitant cost), and retrieved his own clubs at the end of his round.

Along with the absent-mindedness comes the ability to concentrate on only one thing at a time, to the exclusion of everything else around him.  Amy will attest to this; when she was growing up, it was at times impossible to get his attention.  Dad, Dad! DAD!, poke, poke! POKE!

I am afraid that he will never be cured of his absent-mindedness.  I just wish that he wouldn’t TELL ME every time that he misplaces something!

The Grand Canyon

One of the many reasons we chose to move to Reno is to have the opportunity to drive to places in the Southwest that we have either never seen or want to revisit.  One of those places is Arizona.  I have always wanted to see REAL cacti (the saguaro ones with arms), and we also wanted to see the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.  Many years ago we visited the North Rim in the middle of the summer and were very disappointed — mostly by the thick haze over the canyon and the “flatness” of it — it seemed like we were looking at a fuzzy painted mural.

So at the end of January, after 37 days of no golf in Reno, we spent a week seeking out better weather and new vistas in Arizona.

We spent one night in a motel in Las Vegas.  We were within walking distance of the “strip” and spent a few hours trying to figure out what all of the hoopla is about.  The facades of the casinos are unique and interesting, but once inside they are all the same.  Not being gamblers and not wanting to pay the prices of the entertainment, we were very quickly bored.

The next day we saw the Hoover Dam.  These feats of engineering always amaze me — I find it hard to believe that mere mortals can figure out how to make things like this.

As we headed toward Phoenix the countryside was filled with lots of joshua trees.  I later learned that these are actually a variety of yucca tree.  Between Phoenix and Tucson we finally came upon the saguaro cacti.  Wow!  I wanted to take a picture of every single one — they were all so unique.  Here are a few:

In Tucson we visited the Desert Museum and the Air and Space Museum. Both   were worth visiting again.

After three days of golfing in Tucson we headed North again.  After a quick stop in the cute, artsy town of Sedona, we arrived at the Grand Canyon just in time to see the sun setting.  It was spectacular. 

It was a wonderful time to visit.  There had been a lot of snow the previous week, so the trails and most of the sidewalks were impassable, but the view points were cleared out.  There were tourists, but not hoards of them, and the air quality was so much better than in the summer.  There was very little haze to obscure the views.

The next day we treated ourselves to a helicopter tour over the canyon.  There were a lot of clouds, but they added to the depth perception.  Awesome!

Ana — a year later

Some marriages end.  It is always sad and there are many reasons for it.  It is also impossible for outsiders to understand what happened.  But sometimes things are just too nasty.

Ana is the lovely lady from El Salvador who has become my friend while we have talked and laughed and cried as we both practice our English.  She has become much better at communicating with her work-place associates.  She is respected for her work ethic and her always positive attitude.  She has learned how to placate a very difficult immediate supervisor because she loves her job and doesn’t want to do or say anything to jeopardize it.  But the welfare of  her children, Jay (14) and Kat (17), is always her primary concern.

Ana’s husband, Juan,  works for a vinyl siding business that was hit hard by the economic woes in the country.  The company chose to close up the Reno site and consolidate to the Seattle area.  After many months of uncertainty, a few of the employees were offered the chance to keep their jobs — Juan was one of them.  Sometime in the early fall he went to Seattle and took an apartment with several other men in the same position.  He didn’t come back to Reno until Christmas, although he spoke to the family nearly daily.

Shortly after returning home, he told Ana that he didn’t want anything to do with them anymore — not just her, but the children, too.  He admitted that he had been lying to them for more than the past year.  He would tell them he couldn’t do things with them ( go camping, bike riding, go to LA to see his mother, etc.) because he had to work, but he just didn’t want to be with them.  He told her that he was sorry that he ever married her, he was sorry that he had a vasectomy five years earlier, etc.  Kat overheard all of this.

Although terribly hurt, Ana is a very strong person and she will eventually deal with it — as she says, divorces happen all the time.  But she is devastated for her children.  How could a father feel and behave this way?

Ana has seen a counselor who was at a loss to help her.  Her advice was to talk to a friend.  That’s me.

Yuck!

This morning I tried a new recipe.

Years ago we won a year of soups at a church auction and one of them was especially memorable — it had chorizo sausage and kale in it, and it was fantastic.  Recently I watched one of Rachel Ray’s 30-minute meal shows, and she made a similar soup.  So this past week I started gathering the ingredients.  I had never used kale before and was excited about incorporating this nice dark green veggie into a healthy soup.

So this morning at about 6 am I started.  First the EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) went into the pan.  Then, as Rachel had demonstrated, I sliced the chorizo into sections and removed the casing.  I was surprised by the texture — it didn’t seem firm as it had seemed on TV.  Then I put it into the frying pan.  Words cannot describe the red mush that coated the bottom of my pan.  I cooked it and cooked it and it never seemed to change.  I couldn’t tell if it was done or not.  Eventually I realized that if indeed I were to complete the soup there was no way that I would ever be able to eat it.  I finally went back to the packaging that I had already put into the waste basket.  The darn stuff is made of pig salivary glands and lymph nodes and apparently lots of paprika (hence the red).  “Yuck” does not relay my disgust.

So I tossed it, headed to Safeway for some Kielbasa, and started over.  The final soup was actually pretty good.  Later in the morning, I googled recipes for kale and chorizo soup.  One of them came with the warning to use smoked chorizo, not Mexican chorizo.  Apparently that was what I had bought,  although it wasn’t labeled as such.  So watch out for that crazy stuff!

Nostalgia

This past weekend Scott and I returned to Buffalo for the first time since we moved 14 months ago.  Because we are very happy with our lives here in Reno, I was surprised by the strong feelings that overpowered me during our visit.  The purpose of the visit was for Scott to participate in a golf tournament at his old golf club and for both of us to catch up with friends.

What most surprised me was the powerful “pull” of the physical place.  There were times that I actually had a knot in my stomach.  It started in the middle of the night when we arrived at the Buffalo airport to find that the lobby/food court/security area had been completely reconfigured in the short time that we had been gone.  The next day I discovered in our old neighborhood that the traffic circles, which had been in the planning stages for years, were completely finished and functioning beautifully.

I found that I needed to traverse all of the surface streets that I used to travel on a daily basis, starting with a trip to our former house.  Here there were feelings of shock and disgust when it was apparent that the new owners hadn’t trimmed a bush or removed a single weed from any part of the yard since they moved in!  And horror of horrors, they had dug out and discarded my favorite bush/tree — a smoke bush that was in the front of the house to the left of the picture window.  They replaced it with a hanging basket — not even something permanent!  I loved that bush so much that I cried when the harsh October Storm of a few years ago broke off most of the longest branches (at that point it almost reached to the top of the second floor).  Last fall we purchased THREE smoke bushes for our Reno yard.  Maybe I’ll have to go buy another.

I took a couple of walks that were part of my old routine — how comfortable and empowering they were — and FLAT.  I am gradually getting used to the hills in my Reno neighborhood but some of my muscles still need some work.  One of my walks ended at the beauty salon where I had had my hair fixed for years.  It was fun to surprise the “artists” that work there and get the best haircut that I have had in 15 months.  Thanks, Cheryl.

When we moved to Buffalo 32 years ago from Minnesota I found that the thing I missed the most (other than family and friends) was Target!  Buffalo didn’t get a Target until we had lived there at least 25 years.  Now I find that what I miss most from Buffalo is Wegman’s (a fantastic grocery store).  I also miss the specialty foods — La Nova’s steak pizza, chicken wings with blue cheese dressing (they don’t know about that important part out here in the West), beef on weck, Anderson’s soft serve ice cream, and our favorite Greek diners.  I tried to partake of each during my visit!  There went the diet…

On Friday I made the drive to Orchard Park to spend the afternoon and evening with good friends.  Just before meeting with them I made a quick stop at the high school where I had spent the last 18 years of my working life.  I honestly have not missed the school or the job which means that I really was ready to retire.  But I was curious to see the results of the new construction.  The science rooms on my floor  were completely remodeled last summer.  Everything was reconfigured — even doors and walls are in different  places.  It would have been nice to have taught in such a beautiful room with the new technology.

In addition to spending many glorious hours with teacher friend Pat and her doctor daughter Faye, I also had a lovely lunch and visit with Marie, my 90-year young second mother who was one of the first people we met in Buffalo in the summer of 1977.  Scott and I had supper and played cards with our bridge partners of many years, Dave and Jane.  I had a delightful breakfast and conversation with teacher friend Brigitte.   We had a festive dinner with golf friends Doug, Pat, Dougie, Cat, Brian, Dave and Linda, thanks to arrangements made by Dave.  I had lunch with special friend and walking companion Debbie, and then spent a relaxing few hours poolside with Pat and her daughters, daughter-in-law, son-in-law, and precious, gorgeous grandchildren.  At the final golf picnic we were at least able to say hello to many others.  So I/we were able to catch up with friends.  I haven’t done so much talking since I was lecturing about chemistry for 5 hours every day!

Do we miss Buffalo weather?  You’ve got to be kidding!  Do we miss the Buffalo friends?  Absolutely!  Have we made new friends in Reno?  Yes, wonderful friends.  Is it possible to have too many?  No way.  The knot in the stomach was there when we had to say goodbye.  But the best part is that it is so very easy to resume these relationships and carry on as if we hadn’t been gone and in many cases out of touch for over a year.  Thanks to all of you.  It was wonderful to see you again.

Have you ever had one of those days where you just should have started over?

This morning I had a doctor’s appointment at 10:30.  I don’t like to be too early because it is just more sitting around time.  But I also don’t want to be late in case they cancel my appointment or make me wait for an extra long time.  So I try to time it just right.

So I left the house at the perfectly chosen minute, headed for the thruway, and very quickly day-dreamed my way past the first exit which is the one I wanted to take.  At some point I “woke up” and didn’t realize where I was or where I was going so I exited on the next ramp which led to one of the busiest intersections in town.  After waiting several minutes for the sequence of lights to change, I finally made it back onto the thruway heading in the correct direction.

Traffic near the doctors’ building/hospital was pretty heavy and I didn’t think I had time to get to the free parking ramp so I pulled into a metered spot.  I was ready to deposit my quarters when I realized it was only a 30-minute meter.  Most in the area are for two hours.  So I got back in the car, turned the corner, and pulled into a two-hour spot.  Got out of the car, went to feed the meter, realized that one of the quarters that I needed was bent and wouldn’t fit in the meter.  So I got back in the car, retrieved my bag of laundromat quarters from its secret hiding place, and finally purchased  the whole two hours — I wasn’t taking any chances!

When I got to the fifth floor I went to the wrong office.  Amazingly, when I finally got to the correct place, I was only about 10 minutes late.   They didn’t cancel me and actually called me in after only about a five-minute wait.

Obsessions

Webster defines an obsession as a persistent disturbing preoccupation with an often unreasonable idea or feeling.  I have had many obsessions throughout my life, but I don’t think that any of them were disturbing!  The unreasonableness of many of them is debatable.

My earliest obsessions were documented by daughter Amy when she was about ten years old and really into poetry.  She has always been an honest, accurate observer.  She wrote two poems about me.  The first was called “My Mom the Dairy Queen Freak.”  I don’t think that one needs any explanation.  The second poem was called “My Mom and Superman.”  This one needs a little background.  I have to admit that I was obsessed with Superman II when it came out — it had something to do with the boots and the cape, but I think it was mostly the romance between Lois Lane and Superman that hooked me.  The obsession didn’t extend to Clark Kent or the other Superman movies.  I saw the movie five times in one month — this was about 1982, before VCRs and DVDs.  I actually went to the movie theater five times by myself ($2 a pop at the matinees).

I think obsessions run in my family.  My brother Mark confessed to me years ago that his obsession with ice cream was so strong that if he had any in his freezer at home he thought about it all day at work until it (the ice cream) was gone.

A very young Mark (about 17)

In May of 1995 I became obsessed with Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice — especially Mr. Darcy.  It all started when I borrowed the videotape that my high school AV department had made of the A&E production (thanks Sue H.).  During Memorial Day weekend I must have watched it 4 times (at 5 1/2 hours each time).  As soon as I went back to school on Tuesday, I checked out the book and read it several times in succession.  After about two weeks of total immersion in the culture and language of upper society England in the early 1800′s, I found it very disturbing to be back in modern Orchard Park — it seemed like even my way of speaking had changed (I found I was taking “turns” around the school).  That summer I read the rest of Jane Austen’s novels and watched as many of the productions as I could find.  I now own the whole collection, both the books and the DVDs.  I don’t think I am obsessed anymore, but I do still enjoy them.  If you ever want to watch or read one, you know how to find me …

There have been other smaller obsessions over the years, but my most recent ones are crocheting and the flute.  I have always had some needlework project going on, but since I retired I have become very prolific.  One of the first ways that I got connected with Reno last summer was when I joined the Crochet Circle at the nearby Community Center.  It is a group of 8-12 women over 55 who get together every Monday (and sometimes Thursday) morning to work on crochet projects.

We can work on our own thing or we can make things for different shelters and groups that we support.  Last year over 100 afghans and numerous hats and scarves were donated to the homeless and to a shelter for unwed mothers.  We share patterns and techniques and talk about all kinds of things.  The Monday morning sessions have become one of the must-do events in my new life in Reno.  I think I have made at least 6 afghans since September.  I am always eager to try a new pattern.  Once I start it, I am eager to finish it.  And once I finish it, I can’t wait to start another.  Here are some of the things I have made in the past few months:

I have recently taken up quilting and have signed up for four 6-hour classes this spring.  I’m not obsessed yet, but who knows…

I’ll talk about the flute in my next blog.