WOTD BY GRYPHON

HIATUS

2010-11-04T18:19:00.005-05:00

The word of the day for November 4, 2010 is "hiatus"
noun
\hī-ˈā-təs\
Latin, from hiare to yawn — more at YAWN
1. a : a break in or as if in a material object : GAP [the hiatus between the theory and the practice of the party — J. G. Colton] b : a gap or passage in an anatomical part or organ. 2. a : an interruption in time or continuity : BREAK; especially : a period when something (as a program or activity) is suspended or interrupted [after a 5-year hiatus from writing]. b : the occurrence of two vowel sounds without pause or intervening consonantal sound.

It's been way too long since I last wrote. I do hope you all got through the summer well. I've been adjusting to life with Lloyd in a care home. Now that his meds are straightened out, he is adjusting to the home, himself.

It is such a relief to know that someone is always there if he falls, that I don't have to argue or cajole him to take his meds, that I don't have to tell him repeatedly that chocolate is not good for the dog.

The staff at Golden Living of Wichita are competent and cheerful. They're always willing to answer my questions. They listen to what he says, even when his diction is unclear or just incoherent.

Lloyd in the dayroom-taken from the foyer of Golden Living of Wichita.

Our quote for today is from Henry Fielding. (1707–1754), The History of Tom Jones “IV. In Which Is Introduced One of the Pleasantest Barbers That Was Ever Recorded in History, the Barber of Bagdad, or He in Don Quixote, Not Excepted":

“Alas! sir,” answered the shaver [barber], “my father disinherited me for
it. He was a dancing-master; and because I could read before I could dance, he took an aversion to me, and left every farthing among his other children.—Will you please to have your temples—O la! I ask your pardon, I fancy there is hiatus in manuscriptis. I heard you was going to the wars; but I find it was a mistake.”—“Why do you conclude so?” says Jones. “Sure, sir,” answered the barber, “you are too wise a man to carry a broken head thither; for that would be carrying coals to Newcastle.”

;^) Jan

Just a quote today

2010-05-10T14:52:00.003-05:00

Our quote for the day from a friend of a friend on FaceBook discussing Carrie Vaughn's "plan that is sheer elegance in its simplicity."

Kevin Martin: "A plan so elegant you can dress a weasel in it?"

;^)

COVERLET

2010-05-01T09:13:00.007-05:00

I have been redecorating. The comforter on the bed has gotten threadbare and worn enough that I was thinking of using it as a quilt backing. Then I remembered that quilting means sewing: not one of my favorite activities. I splurged on a new bedspread and pillow shams from Pyramid Collection catalog. (The spread and shams were a "catalog exclusive," which meant I couldn't order it online - that doesn't happen often these days.)

Also, my sister and my daughter both gave me artwork for my birthday this year - a Randal Spangler and a Ruth Thompson, respectively. I had both pictures matted and framed at Michael's to coordinate with a couple of Sandra SanTara gryphon drawings that I have had for several years. A wall hanging from last year's Renaissance Fest is now a window hanging.

Now I need to wash/paint the walls.

Our word of the day for May1, 2010 is "coverlet" - Pronunciation: \ˈkə-vər-lət, -(ˌ)lid\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English, alteration of coverlite, from Anglo-French coverlit, from covre (it) covers + lit bed, from Latin lectus c more at lie

Date: 14th century

: bedspread

Our quote for the day is from Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (1547–1616). Don Quixote, Part 1. The Harvard Classics. 1909–14.:

[The traveler's bed], which, though it was made of canvas and coverings of his mules, was much better than the knight’s [Don Quixote's] that only contained four boards roughly planed, placed on two unequal tressels; a flock-bed, which in the thinness seemed rather a quilt, full of pellets, and had not they shown that they were wool, through certain breaches made by antiquity on the tick, a man would by the hardness rather take them to be stones; a pair of sheets made of the skins of targets; a coverlet, whose threads if a man would number, he should not lose one only of the account.

;^)

CORRECTION

2010-04-18T19:59:00.003-05:00

I apologise in advance for the quality of the photos. They were taken while driving on a fairly busy street. Kids, don't do this at home without adult supervision.

Sometime last autumn, I noticed what I took to be a tarp-shrouded tree in front of a building that I pass several times a week. I assumed that it was a tree that was just a bit too fragile to handle Kansas winters. Because of the conformation, forced-as I thought, by the constraining ropes-I thought of it as a blue ninja tree.

Last week, the tarp was removed. The object of my imagination was reavealed as-a statue of what looks like a Chinese historical figure. I've no idea what the story behind that statue, although the person I saw working on the front lawn might be of Chinese ancestry.

The word of the day for Sunday, April 18, 2010 is "correction" — Pronunciation: \kə-ˈrek-shən\
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
1 : the action or an instance of correcting: as a : AMENDMENT, RECTIFICATION b : REBUKE, PUNISHMENT c : a bringing into conformity with a standard d : NEUTRALIZATION, COUNTERACTION [correction of acidity].
2 : a decline in market price or business activity following and counteracting a rise.
3 a : something substituted in place of what is wrong [marking corrections on the students' papers] b : a quantity applied by way of correcting (as for adjustment of an instrument).
4 : the treatment and rehabilitation of offenders through a program involving penal custody, parole, and probation; also : the administration of such treatment as a matter of public policy—usually used in plural.

Our quote for the day is from William Wordsworth (1770–1850), "Michael: A Pastoral Poem":

Would Michael exercise his heart with looks
Of fond correction and reproof bestowed
Upon the Child, if he disturbed the sheep
By catching at their legs, or with his shouts
Scared them, while they lay still beneath the shears.

;^)

ANCIENT

2010-03-07T20:09:00.007-06:00

It's official. My husband's 80th birthday was Friday. I provided cake for the residents and staff of Golden Living. The Golden Gate Bridge is Lloyd's favorite spot. In 1977 he successfully jumped from the south end of the bridge.*

Cyb, Claudia and I went in together to buy him an MP3 player with headphones and a lanyard. (I engraved his name in several places on the case and headphones and stitched his name to the lanyard.)

Claudia brought her son Mitchell with her from Arkansas. On being asked, Lloyd told her that he was sixteen.

Staff put the MP3 player in his bed table at night, so I got it out for him both yesterday and today. He enjoys the music I loaded. I'm going to have to find more 50s and 60s jazz for him.

The word of the day for March 7, 2010 is "ancient" -

Pronunciation: \ˈān(t)-shənt, ˈāŋ(k)-shənt\

Function: adjective

Etymology: Middle English ancien, from Anglo-French, from Vulgar Latin *anteanus, from Latin ante before — more at ante-

Date: 14th century

1 : having had an existence of many years
2 : of or relating to a remote period, to a time early in history, or to those living in such a period or time; especially : of or relating to the historical period beginning with the earliest known civilizations and extending to the fall of the western Roman Empire in a.d. 476
3 : having the qualities of age or long existence: as a : venerable b : old-fashioned, antique

Our quote for the day is from Thomas Fuller (1608–1661), Of Marriage.:

They that marry ancient people, merely in expectation to
bury them, hang themselves in hope that one will come and cut the
halter.

;^)

*No big deal - he only jumped from the bridge walkway to the approach walkway!

HOLIDAY

2009-12-24T19:38:00.007-06:00

Happy Holidays to ALL. Whatever you are celebrating this time of year, I hope it's happy.

I went to see Lloyd this morning during a lull in the storm. The wind was still high (27 mph with gusts to 50mph), but the sleet had stopped. I gave him his presents and read our Christmas cards to him. We popped a Christmas cracker together. By the time I started home, it was snowing again.

To give Speedy something to do while Lloyd and I were exchanging good wishes and kisses, I gave him his present—a hambone. He thinks this is an excellent present. He even wanted it in the car—an unusual event. When we got home, he almost refused to give it up to take off his hoodie. As you regular readers know, he hates clothes, so you know he is really serious about this bone. All this afternoon, he has been in a quandary because I would not let him bring the bone up on my lap. Finally he opted for a snooze on my lap over munching on the bone.

The word of the day for December 24, 2009 is "holiday" —

Pronunciation: \ˈhä-lə-ˌdā, British usually ˈhä-lə-dē\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hāligdæg, from hālig holy + dæg day

Date: before 12th century

1 : holy day. 2 : a day on which one is exempt from work; specifically : a day marked by a general suspension of work in commemoration of an event. 3 chiefly British : vacation —often used in the phrase on holiday —often used in plural. 4 : a period of exemption or relief [corporations enjoying a tax holiday].

Our quote today is from Charles Lamb (1775–1834), Work:

Who first invented work, and bound the free
And holiday-rejoicing spirit down
To that dry drudgery at the desk’s dead wood?
Sabbathless Satan!

;^)

APERTURE

2009-12-06T13:46:00.017-06:00

The living room windows were two double hung on either side of a picture window; now they are two sliders and a picture window.
The two front bedrooms are still double-hung, but without the divided panes.

The master bedroom had two double-hung windows that were replaced by sliders.

The kitchen window now has a crank-out window that I can open instead of the double-hung that called for balancing on the kitchen sink.

Also, the patio door was replaced with one that has a keyed lock.

"Renewal by Andersen. We love our new windows" goes the catchy Southard Corporation jingle. Those of you who know me well know that I tend to take advertising with a large grain of salt. Yet, from my initial inquiry through the finished installation, I have been favorably impressed with the workmanship and professionalism of the Southard Corporation employees and the quality of the Anderson products.

Yesterday I received the survey from Renewal by Andersen concerning the replacement windows that were put in last month. The Southard Corporation replaced all five windows and the patio door. They now are all double paned—filled with insulating gasses. I purposely avoided the triple panes because of the extra weight. These new ones can all be washed from the inside; except for the patio doors and the stationary picture window, they all tilt or can be lifted inside—by me if necessary.

Now I must consider new draperies for all of the windows. I just ordered some woven wood panels for the patio door, to which I will add some sort of valence once installed. I've had the same drapes in the bedrooms for nearly thirty years, so I'm thinking about possibilities for them as well.

Our word of the day for December 6, 2009 is "aperture" — Pronunciation: \'ap-ə(r)-,chu̇r, -chər, -,tyu̇r, -,tu̇r\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin apertura, from apertus, past participle of aperire to open
Date: 15th century
1 : an opening or open space : hole. 2 a : the opening in a photographic lens that admits the light. b : the diameter of the stop in an optical system that determines the diameter of the bundle of rays traversing the instrument. c : the diameter of the objective lens or mirror of a telescope.

Our quote for the day is from Alessandro Manzoni (1785–1873), I Promessi Sposi, The Harvard Classics. 1909–14:

The poor man wandered from room to room, pale and almost breathless with terror, striking his hands together, commending himself to God, and imploring his servants to stand firm, and find him some way of making his escape. But how, and where? He ascended to the garret, and there, through an aperture between the ceiling and the tiles, looked anxiously into the street, and saw it swarming with the enraged populace; more terrified than ever, he then withdrew to seek the most secure and secret hiding-place he could find.

;^)
-

CONSTRUCTION

2009-11-10T12:49:00.011-06:00

So, I decided this autumn to get some of the projects done around the house. I've got Speedy at Bessie's Puppy Love Daycare during the day, so neither he nor Lloyd will be bothered by the noise/mess. I started with the plumbing. This week, Handyman Matters is building a deck just barely big enough for a chair or maybe two. Mostly though, it is because I'm tired of having to go up and down the ten inch steps to get in and out of the patio door.

Naturally, although the weather had been really nice last week, yesterday it rained like crazy all morning. Fortunately, I had cleared out the garage so that Ed was able to put the framework together out of the rain. Today he is putting on the floor and the lattice-work to keep critters out from under and Speedy from jumping out into the lawn instead of the patio.

The word of the day for November 10, 2009 is "construction" — Pronunciation: \kən-ˈstrək-shən\
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
1 : the act or result of construing, interpreting, or explaining. 2 a : the process, art, or manner of constructing constructing something; also : a thing constructed constructed. b : the construction industry [working in construction]. 3 : the arrangement and connection of words or groups of words in a sentence : syntactical arrangement. 4 : a sculpture that is put together out of separate pieces of often disparate materials.

Our quote for the day is from Ulysses Simpson Grant (1822–1885):

I know no method to secure the repeal of bad or obnoxious laws so effectual as their strict construction.

;^)

CHALLENGE

2009-10-29T13:01:00.003-05:00

The following is a list of books I have read since September 1, 2009, to complete the Goodreads Seasonal Reading Challenge for Fall 2009. The challenge runs from Sept 1 through November 30, 2009. Two people were finished with all the tasks by the end of September! Some people didn't even decide to join until last month.

5 POINT TASKS
1. Daughters of the Grail by Elizabeth Chadwick
2. After the Apple by Naomi Harris Rosenblatt
3. Jack Nastyface: the Adventures of an English Seaman by William Robinson
4. Krapp's Last Cassette by Anne Argula
5. The Crucible by Arthur Miller
6. Web of Evil by J.A. Jance
7. My Journey with Farrah by Alana Stewart
8. The White Gryphon by Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon
9. Unstrung Heroes by Franz Lidz
10. This Time Together by Susan L. Liepitz

10 POINT TASKS
1. Run Silent, Run Deep by Edward L. Beach
2. The Seven-percent Solution by Nicholas Meyer
3. Stories Children Need by Carolyn Sherwin Bailey
4. When the Ground Turns in Its Sleep by Sylvia Sellers-Garcia
5. A Visible Darkness by Michael Gregorio
6. Sacred Ground by Mercedes Lackey
7. Aphrodite's Flame by Julie Kenner
8. Joining by Johanna Lindsey
9. Jayhawkers by Bryce D. Benedict
10. Catfantastic 1 edited by Andre Norton and Martin H. Greenberg

15 POINT TASKS
1. The Girl Who Stopped Swimming by Joshilyn Jackson AND
- Swim to Me by Betsy Carter
2. Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede
3. Addition - 11 The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho AND
- Division - 31 1st - The Black Gryphon,
4. Valor's Trial by Tanya Huff
5. Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel García Márquez AND
- Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter by Mario Vargas Llosa
6. Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
7. Risk by Dick Francis
8. Japan: The Ramen King and I by Andy Raskin AND
- Canada: Burying Ariel by Gail Bowen
9. Dance with Chance: Making Luck Work for You
------ by Spyros Makridakis, Robin Hogarth & Anil Gaba
10. To Sir, with Love by E.R. Braithwaite AND
- Pay It Forward by Catherine Ryan Hyde

20 POINT TASKS
1. Zora & Nicky by Claudia Mair Burney
2. Exile's Valor by Mercedes Lackey,
- Fanuilh by Daniel Hood AND
- Grayheart by Tara K. Harper
3. Julie & Julia by Julie Powell

25 POINT TASKS
1. Ogden Nash's Zoo AND
- You and No Other by Cathy Maxwell
2. Restoree by mother, Anne McCaffrey AND
- Dragonsblood by son, Todd McCaffrey
3. The Funny Thing Is... by Ellen DeGeneres
4. Marie Antoinette: The Journey by Antonia Fraser
5. The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield
6. The Shadow of Blooming Grove : Warren G. Harding in His Times by Francis Russell
7. 1: Compromised by Kate Noble,
- 2: Look Again by Lisa Scottoline AND
- 3: Fool for Love by Eloisa James
8. person: Saving Faith by David Balducci,
- place: The Witches of Karres by James H. Schmitz AND
- thing: Face Down under the Wych Elm by Kathy Lynn Emerson
9. A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks AND
- Just Do Something by Kevin DeYoung
10. The Werewolf Principle by Clifford D. Simak

30 POINT TASK
1. Holes by Louis Sachar AND
- The Private World of Georgette Heyer by Jane Aiken Hodge

50 POINT TASK
1. The Seeing Stone by Kevin Crossley-Holland,
- Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons by Lorna Landvik AND
- Baby Teeth by Blythe Holbrooke

Totals: 45 tasks, 62 books, 690 points
Reward: an expanded mind, a disheveled house and the right to choose a task for the Winter Challenge.

The word for the day for October 29, 2009 is "challenge" - Function: noun
Date: 14th century
1 a : a summons that is often threatening, provocative, stimulating, or inciting; specifically : a summons to a duel to answer an affront. b : an invitation to compete in a sport2 a : a calling to account or into question : protest b : an exception taken to a juror before the juror is sworn c : a sentry's command to halt and prove identity d : a questioning of the right or validity of a vote or voter. 3 : a stimulating task or problem. 4 : the act or process of provoking or testing physiological activity by exposure to a specific substance; especially : a test of immunity by exposure to an antigen.

Our quote for the day is from William Shakespeare (1564–1616), Romeo and Juliet Act II. Scene IV:

Ben. Tybalt, the kinsman of old Capulet,
Hath sent a letter to his father’s house.
Mer. A challenge, on my life.
Ben. Romeo will answer it.
Mer. Any man that can write may answer a letter.
Ben. Nay, he will answer the letter’s master, how he dares, being dared.

TOOTHLESS

2009-10-12T13:08:00.002-05:00

SCRUMTIOUS

2009-10-05T07:26:00.009-05:00

Greetings and Salutations

DJ and Vicki in the entry court

DJ rejecting a hat that might have fit Hoss Cartwright

As the men in kilts were too fast, I managed to catch one in plate armor.

Vicki checked out one of fellows in a kilt from afar.

They also had a dog in a kilt.

It was "Men in Kilts" weekend at the Bonner Springs, KS, Renaissance Faire. The day was cloudy, breezy and cool, so DJ lent Vicki and me each a cape. As we were all in vaguely 16th century garb, the capes worked very well. It was a really good day to go to the Faire.

The food was excellent. Vicki had the veggie wrap for lunch to allow her to have the strawberries and whipped cream. As the fruit was served on top of funnel cake, I became the enabler; I ate most of the funnel cake so she didn't have to overeat. For some reason, I kept calling it "flannel cake," so my sister decided it was red plaid.

The word of the day for October 5, 2009 is "scrumptious".

Pronunciation: \'skrəm(p)-shəs\
Function: adjective
Etymology: perhaps alteration of sumptuous
Date: 1830
: delightful, excellent; especially : delicious

Our quote for the day is from Sinclair Lewis (1885–1951). Babbitt. 1922:

Babbit: “Honest I did. Well, well, come on—now we’re friends—what’s the darling little name?”
Ida: “Ida Putiak. It ain’t so much-a-much of a name. I
always say to Ma, I say, ‘Ma, why didn’t you name me Doloress or something with some class to it?’”
Babbit: “Well, now, I think it’s a scrumptious name. Ida!”

;^)

TOAD

2009-10-01T07:43:00.004-05:00

Handyman Matters sent out James to install a permanent Hale door for Speedy. This one has two flaps and weather stripping for insulation. The transparent, black security panel is Lexan (TM) and has a bolt latch which also holds the panel up without removing it from the tracks. Plus the door itself won't interfere with the patio door in any way. The timing was approximately a week for delivery of parts and two and a half hours installation. I had intended to put in a mechanized door, but finally decided that Speedy can go in and out under his own power. We're green at our house.

Speedy went outside just after full dark last night. I was in the bedroom when I heard his door flap magnets clack. He started barking in an unfamiliar pattern. When I got to the the patio door, I could barely see him circling something on the patio, nose to the object. Once I flipped on the lights, I could see that a toad had hopped up onto the concrete.

I went out and got the poop-scoop to encourage the toad to leave the fenced portion of the patio. Unfortunately, I didn't grab Speedy first. The instant the toad moved, Speedy was on it. "No! Drop it! Leave it!" Speedy complied, somewhat reluctantly. The toad appeared unharmed; it hopped off through the fence and off toward the unlit part of the patio.

As dogs have no lips, you can't say that they exactly spit. However, Speedy was making the attempt to spit out that nasty toad-taste. He wouldn't take a drink, so I held him over the sink and managed to rinse his muzzle, although I don't think I got any water on his tongue. So he sneezed and spat for the next half-hour. This morning he is fine. He may have learned a lesson, but I don't intend to bet the farm on this. The weimaraner that lived across the back fence used to spend much of the summer and fall catching toads and "spitting".

The word of the day for October 1, 2009 is "toad" Pronunciation: \tōd\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English tode, from Old English tāde, tādige
Date: before 12th century
1 : any of numerous anuran amphibians (especially family Bufonidae) that are distinguished from the related frogs by being more terrestrial in habit though returning to water to lay their eggs, by having a build that is squatter and shorter with weaker and shorter hind limbs, and by having skin that is rough, dry, and warty rather than smooth and moist. 2 : a contemptible person or thing.

Our quote for the day is from William Shakespeare (1564–1616). The Tragedy of Macbeth, Act IV, Scene I:

Round about the cauldron go;
In the poison’d entrails throw.
Toad, that under cold stone
Days and nights has thirty-one
Swelt’red venom sleeping got,
Boil thou first i’ the charmed pot.

;^)

SALES PITCH

2009-09-16T18:12:00.002-05:00

I've been window shopping. That's right, I need to replace the windows. A week ago Thursday, I stopped at four businesses that advertise window replacements. All four made appointments. I told all four that I would be looking at other vendors.

The first salesman came out the next day as arranged. He did the whole pitch: showed me samples and a short video about the company. (What did we ever do without laptop computers?) He did a rough measurement of the windows and we discussed possible replacement options. We even talked about the feasibility of a through-the-patio-door dog flap for Speedy. He gave me a rough estimate and said he would get back to me in two weeks with a fine-tuned estimate.

The second guy was to come out Wednesday, but he called to postpone the meeting as he would be out of town until late Thursday evening. He wanted to come Friday afternoon, but that was when the fourth guy was to come out. How about later Friday, second asked? OK, I said. Then the first guy calls and says he will be at the State Fair on the day he had set up to return; could I work him in sooner? Sure, come on Saturday, I said.

So the third guy calls and cancels Tuesday with a promise to get to me Saturday morning. The fourth guy doesn't show on Friday afternoon - no call, no explanation. I call the second guy after waiting a half hour and asked if he'd like to come out a little sooner. Which he did with alacrity. He measured the windows and showed me samples. He even had a solution to the dog flap problem. He asked about the others. I explained about the rearrange schedules. He said, they're just trying to be the last one you look at so you'll be more likely to buy their product. Like he wanted to do, I guess. I said, I'll call Monday whether or not I choose your product.

The third guy came out Saturday really early, did the measurements, gave me a price. I rejected his proposal on the spot, because I thought his price was too high for his product. He also wanted to sell me more than I wanted, so his company is out of the running.

The first guy came back and said, we can do the dog flap, but I really don't recommend it because the materials aren't the same composite as our regular windows and will not have the same warrenty as either the less expensive sliding glass door or our top of the line swing doors. Plus, there's the problem of the screen door needing a flap as well. As I'd already figured that one out, I said write me up the final estimate. His configuration will cost about a fourth more than number two's. Still I like the first company's materials- also, the willingness to work with me on configuration and to listen to what I say. So I've signed with company one, Southerd's, who have been doing business in the area for about sixty years.

Tuesday number two called. (I had forgotten I meant to call him Monday) I declined his offer. You went with the last guy to present, he accused. I told him that it wasn't a matter of timing, nor of cost, but that I was sold on his competitor's materials. I said I was especially impressed by the minimal expansion/contraction rate of the composite that makes up the frames.

"That's just silly," he said.

Take a moment to think on this. I've told this guy I work in engineering - with composites. I've mentioned that my Dad was an award-winning window and door salesman (among other things for a lumber warehouse) for most of his working life, giving me the opportunity to pick up a thing or two about construction. I've asked what I thought were pertinent questions when the sales guy didn't offer the information on his own. So when I explain why I'm turning down his offer, he basically tells me that I'm stupid. I had to take a deep breath at that point.

"Nevertheless, I'm going with your competitor. Thank you for your time." [click]

He was lucky. That was the second time I didn't go postal on Tuesday.

The word of the day for September 16, 2009 is "salesman" Pronunciation: \'sālz-mən\
Function: noun
Date: 1523
: one who sells in a given territory, in a store, or by telephone

Our quote is from Sinclair Lewis (1885–1951). Babbitt. 1922:

The service of the Lord had been more profitable. He was about to retire with a fortune. It had been well earned, for, to quote his last report, “Rev. Mr. Monday, the Prophet with a Punch, has shown that he is the world’s greatest salesman of salvation, and that by efficient organization the overhead of spiritual regeneration may be kept down to an unprecedented rock-bottom basis. He has converted over two hundred thousand lost and priceless souls at an average cost of less than ten dollars a head.”

;^)

TRAVEL

2009-09-04T14:03:00.012-05:00

First, I would like to thank those of you who have been kind enough to enquire about me and mine. Lloyd is back in the hospital (after a couple of months in the care home) for refusing to eat and take his meds as well as threatening the staff. I have a feeling that this will be a cycle for the foreseeable future.

Speedy has finished his Advanced Obedience Class. He passed his Canine Good Citizen certification test (by the skin of his teeth. He has a spring under his tail that bounces his hind end up immediately after he completes his "SIT".) I need to send off for the certificate and tag.

Meanwhile, I have been attempting to (re)build a normal life. I've been attempting to sort out thirty years of accumulated stuff with the intention of not having to do thirty-five years worth when I get ready to retire. I also have attended church, joined a book discussion group at the library, did the Summer Reading Challenge on Goodreads and looked up some friends of long-standing.

The weekend of August 16th, my sister and I drove up to Minneapolis to see my high school friend, Doc Anne. (We had lost touch with one another shortly after graduation, and only found one another again through the sad event of her brother's death.)

We had a great visit. We chatted as though we had only been separated a few weeks. Although I had never met Dan, her husband, he seemed so familiar that we must have been good friends in a former life. As I had never been in Minnesota, they took me on a tour of Minneapolis featuring the park around the stone-arched railway trestle across the Mississippi River and the sculpture garden. My sister decided to spend the day resting in the motel room, but joined us for supper.

On the way home we stopped at our home town: my sister had lunch with her mother-in-law and I lunched with another friend, Alice, whom I have seen infrequently since school days. She's working at the newspaper now. She has a son, who is married now and living out of state.

I drove past the house that I still think of as my Dad's. There's a For Sale sign in the yard. No, I'm not even thinking of buying: I'm in the process of renovating Lloyd's and my house. The current owner probably should tear the house down and make the property into a parking lot.

The word of the day for September 4, 2009 is "travel" — Pronunciation: \'tra-vəl\
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): trav·eled or trav·elled; trav·el·ing or trav·el·ling \'tra-və-liŋ, 'trav-liŋ\
Etymology: Middle English travailen, travelen to torment, labor, strive, journey, from Anglo-French travailler
Date: 14th century
transitive verb 1 a : to journey through or over. b : to follow (a course or path) as if by traveling. 2 : to traverse (a specified distance). 3 : to cover (an area) as a commercial traveler

Our quote for the day is from Francis Bacon (1561–1626), Of Travel:

Travel, in the younger sort, is a part of education; in the elder, a part of experience. He that travelleth into a country before he hath some entrance into the language, goeth to school, and not to travel.

;^)

REPLETE

2009-07-19T19:01:00.004-05:00

I stopped at Braum's Ice Cream and Dairy Store after attending Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I needed the sustenance of a brownie fudge sundae, than which there is no better made than Braum's. Then I went home and took Speedy to the park to work on his sit-with-D-cubed. (That's distance/duration/distraction, which he doesn't get much of in our house.)

A neighbor boy was sitting on a bench in the playground, looking bored. I went over to him after a period of "No, Speedy. Sit, Speedy" and asked if he would like to help by coming over and greeting me so that Speedy could practice company-manners. As a reward, I offered to let the boy pet Speedy. The meet and greet went off without too much jumping on Speedy's part, but he still needs a great deal of practice. Subsequently, while we were petting Speedy, another boy came up on his bike and asked if he could pet Speedy. The dog was in heaven: multiple petting!

We went home after that. Speedy obediently jumped the perimeter cable when I held it down a bit. Then I about did myself an injury, as my foot slipped on the cable as I went over. Fortunately, I managed to catch myself without looking too foolish.

Oh, and yes, I enjoyed HP&HBP in spite of the gratuitous fire. Of course, I had read the book - multiple times - so I knew when they had just cut out unessential stuff and when they really lost all contact with Rowling's narrative. I'd give it 4 out of 5. And I'm glad they're getting book 7 ready as I write. From http://www.imdb.com/ I see that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is to be released as a two-parter. I was afraid that by the time they released it Radcliffe, Watson, et al. would be old enough for real-time depiction of the epilogue.

***POTENTIAL SPOILER ALERT***
I did enjoy the cinematography in that the lighting was dark. Even the outdoor daytime scenes were rainy or cloudy. I also thought the scenes of Draco in the Room of Requirement were quite well done. The scene with Harry at Dumbledore's side after Draco and the Death Eaters get away is very nicely done also, although not "strictly true" to the book.

The word of the day for July 19, 2009 is "replete" — Pronunciation: \ri-'plēt\
Function: adjective
Etymology:Middle English, from Middle French & Latin; Middle French replet, from Latin repletus, past participle of replēre to fill up, from re- + plēre to fill — more at full
Date:14th century
1: fully or abundantly provided or filled [a book replete with…delicious details — William Safire]. 2 a: abundantly fed. b: fat, stout. 3: complete.

Our quotation is from Henry James. (1843–1916). The Portrait of a Lady:

Isabel came back to Florence, but only after several months; an interval sufficiently replete with incident.

;^)

PLUMBING

2009-07-16T13:04:00.003-05:00

Today I stayed at home, remoting to my work computer. I had just plain gotten tired of jiggling this faucet handle a tad to avoid dripping or activating the toilet mechanism just so for the flapper valve to seat properly. Then the master bath shower head sprang a leak, and the same day the handle on the outside tap broke as I was trying to close it tight enough.

So I got on-line to Service Magic who matched me up with several handyman services. I chose the right one, I think. Mike from Handyman Matters got here at ten a.m. as agreed, looked at all the little problems I have with the taps, etc. He gave me an estimate I can live with. Then he turned off the main at the meter and proceded to take things apart.

There is something slightly perverse about human nature. The second the main valve was shut off, I needed to use the facilities. Never fails, like the itch at the end of one's nose when one's hands are full of glop. Ah, well, I suppose I can always pull out the box of unused puppy pee-pads.

The word of the day for July 16, 2009 is "plumbing" — Pronunciation: \'plə-miŋ\
Function: noun
Date: 1666
1: the act of using a plumb. 2: a plumber's occupation or trade. 3 a:the apparatus (as pipes and fixtures) concerned in the distribution and use of water in a building b: an internal system that resembles plumbing ; especially : one consisting of conduits or channels for conveying fluids.

Our quotation is from John W. Gardner (1912 - 2002):

The society which scorns excellence in plumbing as a humble activity and tolerates shoddiness in philosophy because it is an exaulted activity will have neither good plumbing nor good philosophy...neither its pipes nor its theories will hold water.

;^)

INDOLENCE

2009-07-03T18:33:00.004-05:00

The company, at the Unions' behest, gives us Friday off this year because Independence Day is on Saturday. I had originally thought, oh goody, more time to read. However, I decided that, as I have been moving things about, I ought to get with the program and get the bookshelves I have been promising myself ever-so-long. So yesterday on the way home, I picked up a couple of DIY media storage units from Walmart.

It took about three-quarters of an hour construction and about three hours of recuperation for each unit. Anyway they are nearly full of the books that I had brought up from the basement that I am determined to keep on hand. They have taken the place of the unused bar table and chairs that were in the dining area. My next project is to get a cabinet to store Speedy's paraphenalia (you can see the containers on the left in the last picture. Now I can spend all of the Fourth with a glass of sun tea and a book, listening to the neighbors' fireworks.

The word of the day for July 3, 2009 is "indolence" — Pronunciation: \'in-də-lən(t)s\
Function: noun
Date: 1710
: inclination to laziness : sloth

Our quote for the day is from Henry James. (1843–1916). The Portrait of a Lady:

He wintered abroad, as the phrase is; basked in the sun, stopped at home when the wind blew, went to bed when it rained, and once or twice, when it snowed, almost never got up again. A certain fund of indolence that he possessed came to his aid and helped to reconcile him to doing nothing; for at the best he was too ill for anything but a passive life.

;^)

MYSTERY

2009-06-29T20:37:00.003-05:00

The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

My review

Calling AM Smith's narratives mysteries is really a disservice. In The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency he touches on mysteries, true, but the real story revolves around a full life - in this case of Madame Mma Precious Ramotswe - and justice in many things great and small. I am pleased to see that this is just the first of a series, as I want to know more about Mma Ramotswe and her friends.

I just finished this book for Cynthia's Summer 2009 Reading Challenge for the Day of the African Child task. Having also just read Mr. Smith's The Sunday Philosophy Club for the July Masters of Mystery Book Discussion at my local library branch, I wondered how the change of venue would affect the structure of the narratives.

The Sunday Philosophy Club by Alexander McCall Smith

My review

"Isabel Dalhousie saw the young man fall from the edge of the upper circle, from the gods," has got to be the best opening line since the book that opens with the protagonist's death in a bowling accident.

Ms. Dalhousie, with help from Mr. Smith's engaging set of characters, works out the cause of the fall while working her way through a life rich in relationships - her own as well as others'. A satisfyingly rich read.

View all my reviews.

I must say that Ms. Dalhousie of Edinburgh is an entirely different creature than Mma Ramotswe of Gaborone. Mma Ramotswe sets out to become a detective with a frank determination. Ms. Dalhousie almost backs into the detection by virtue of her philosophical struggles with morality as editor of the Review of Applied Ethics.

These two books are the start of separate series. Both of them, I feel, adequately introduce their principals and create interest in the later books. The voice of each book is entirely consistent with the settings.

The word of the day for June 29, 2009 is "mystery" Pronunciation: \'mis-t(ə-)rē\
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural mys·ter·ies
Etymology: Middle English mysterie, from Latin mysterium, from Greek mystērion, from mystēs initiate
Date: 14th century
1 a: a religious truth that one can know only by revelation and cannot fully understand. b (1): any of the 15 events (as the Nativity, the Crucifixion, or the Assumption) serving as a subject for meditation during the saying of the rosary. (2)capitalized : a Christian sacrament ; specifically : eucharist. c (1): a secret religious rite believed (as in Eleusinian and Mithraic cults) to impart enduring bliss to the initiate. (2): a cult devoted to such rites. 2 a: something not understood or beyond understanding : enigma. b obsolete : a private secret. c: the secret or specialized practices or ritual peculiar to an occupation or a body of people [the mysteries of the tailor's craft]. d: a piece of fiction dealing usually with the solution of a mysterious crime. 3: profound, inexplicable, or secretive quality or character [the mystery of her smile].

Our quote for the day is from Alexander McCall Smith, Mma Ramotswe in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, Anchor Books, 1998:

It was time to take the pumpkin out of the pot and eat it. In the final analysis, that was what solved these big problems of life. You could think and think and get nowhere, but you still had to eat your pumpkin. That brought you down to earth. That gave you a reason for going on. Pumpkin.

;^)

INTERMEDIATE

2009-06-07T18:27:00.012-05:00

Speedy

Speedy has been working hard for the past eight weeks. Today he finished his Intermediate Obedience training. The instructor, Connie from Petsmart, is a real whiz at showing us how to get the dogs to do what we want. As my uncle used to say, "Obedience training is to teach the people how to handle their dogs."

Dogs, unlike cats, want to please their people. It is only fair that people figure out what the dog can do, and consistently ask him/her to do that thing under the same circumstance until the dog has "learned" to come/sit/stay/whatever on command. Speedy has learned the basics, along with a couple of dandy "tricks"—behavior not entirely necessary for good canine citizenship, but easy to do and fun to watch. His tricks are "shake"(lifting one paw), "crawl" (just what it sounds like: on the belly) and "dance" (up on the hind legs).

The Petsmart instructors are pushing for Speedy to take Therapy Dog training after his Advanced class. I don't know whether we'll go for that or not. Being a Jack Russell terrier/chihuahua mix, his breeding is really against being calm and cool around people in the nursing home. Although, if Lloyd were willing to make the dog behave, I might be able to leave Speedy overnight with Lloyd.

Rommell

Toby

Molly

The word of the day for June 7, 2009 is "intermediate" — Pronunciation: \,in-tər-'mē-dē-ət\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Medieval Latin intermediatus, from Latin intermedius, from inter- + medius mid, middle — more at mid
Date: 15th century
1 : being or occurring at the middle place, stage, or degree or between extremes. 2 : of or relating to an intermediate school [an intermediate curriculum].

Our quotation is from E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898:

The Jewish Rabbi believed that the soul of the deceased was consigned to a sort of purgatory for twelve months after death, during which time it was allowed to visit its dead body and the places or persons it especially loved. This intermediate state they called by various names, as “the bosom of Abraham,” “the garden of Eden,” “upper Gehenna.” The Sabbath was always a free day, and prayer was supposed to benefit those in this intermediate state.

;^)

STREPTOCOCCAL

2009-05-19T07:41:00.003-05:00

The good news is that I don't have strep throat. The bad news is that I do have something—probably terminal sudbunny's disease—for which the doctor prescribed sulfa drugs. I complained that sulfa always comes in such large pills. I already have a sore throat. The sulfa molecules are apparently very large, so they have to have a large delivery system—rather like the difference in sending a document by Kevin Bacon on a bicycle and sending a nuclear missile by railcar.

This is not swine flu. I might get some sympathy for that. No, this is just spring allergies getting out of hand and opening the door for even nastier stuff. One of my co-workers has been muttering about the "Days of the A'pork'alypse" and 'Ham'ageddon. My niece says one of her co-workers reminds us that there were a great number of people prior to the presidential election who said there would be a black president when pigs flu. Black president—swine flu....

Anyway, today I am working from home. I will not post a photo; it would not be a pretty sight. Suffice it to say that I put my laptop on the hassock in the living room, in front of the most comfortable chair in the house. Speedy decided that he wanted to join me. "Off" I tell him... several times. We finally come to an accomodation. So, I am on the front edge of the chair and he is curled up behind me. Every time I need to go to the kitchen or bathroom, Speedy has to get up, too. (He has separation issues.) Then when I sit back down, there is jumping, shaking and shoving until he is comfortable. This is one of the reasons I usually go in to work.

The word of the day for May 19, 2009 is "streptococcal" — Pronunciation: \ˌstrep-tə-ˈkä-kəl\
Variant(s): also strep·to·coc·cic \-ˈkä-kik, -ˈkäk-sik\
Function: adjective
Date: 1877
: of, relating to, caused by, or being streptococci [a streptococcal sore throat] [streptococcal organisms].

Our quote for the day is from Anne Landers:

You need that guy like a giraffe needs strep throat.

;^)

SASSY

2009-05-03T19:28:00.004-05:00

Deadly Charm by Claudia Mair Burney

an Amanda Bell Brown mystery

Claudia Mair Burney’s Amanda Bell Brown is a delightful lady and excellent sleuth. Too bad her life hasn’t been on a smooth path lately. Still, in Deadly Charm, she perseveres—with God’s help—through an intervention, an exorcism, and a possible murder to get her marriage and life back on track.

Burney has written an engaging cast of characters who carry the reader through the plot with verve and grace, giving Deadly Charm both style and attitude. Her grasp and depiction of milieu is excellent. I found this to be a thoroughly satisfying read.

That said, I feel I must tell you that I don't read much in the Christian Fiction genre. The writers of CF tend to think that they must write perfect people. However, of the people I know who lable themselves Christians, the ones I tend to like the most are the ones who don't claim to be perfect. Most CF novels tend to be about as interesting as having to sit on the end chair next to your name-dropping aunt at Thanksgiving dinner.

Ms. Burney is certainly a welcome change from novelists who think that just inserting the name of Jesus every third paragraph makes a book Christian, and also from those that think dialogue full of curse words makes a character sound macho or evil.

The word of the day for May 3, 2009 is "sassy" — Pronunciation: \'sa-sē\
Function: adjective
Inflected Form(s): sass·i·er; sass·i·est
Etymology: alteration of saucy
Date: 1833
1 : impudent 2. 2 : vigorous, lively. 3 : distinctively smart and stylish.

Our quote for today is from Anna Quindlen (20th century), U.S. journalist, novelist. Living Out Loud, “Baby Gear,” (1988):

The best thing about Sassy Seats is that grandmothers cannot figure out how they work and are in constant fear of the child’s falling. This often makes them forget to comment on other aspects of the child’s development, like why he is not yet talking or is still wearing diapers. Some grandmothers will spend an entire meal peering beneath the table and saying, “Is that thing steady?” rather than, “Have you had a doctor look at that left hand?”

;^)

DIATRIBE

2009-05-02T08:28:00.003-05:00

This is a loooong post. It is mostly so I can keep track of what happened this past month. The short version is that placing an adult in 24 hour care is very difficult if that person is neither violent, observably aggressive, incoherent nor comatose when persons in authority are in attendance. Legal problems you never thought of will arise. Insurance won't pay for nearly anything. Paperwork to prove anything is never where you thought you put it.

I'm still working through a number of things, but I am getting where I want to be: physically, emotionally, mentally, socially.

The word of the day for May 2, 2009 is "diatribe" — Pronunciation: \ˈdī-ə-ˌtrīb\
Function: noun
Etymology: Latin diatriba, from Greek diatribē pastime, discourse, from diatribein to spend (time), wear away, from dia- + tribein to rub — more at throw
Date: 1581
1 archaic : a prolonged discourse. 2: a bitter and abusive speech or writing. 3: ironic or satirical criticism.

I could not find a quote for today, so you get the diatribe:

Sequence of Events Concerning Placing Lloyd Combs in 24 Hour Care:
1. In the weeks before March 13, 2009, Lloyd would often refuse to eat what I fixed and left for him. He claimed he could get his own lunch, but would not eat or take his meds unless reminded by someone in the house.
2. Jimmy Fields of Home Instead Senior Care warned me that Lloyd was denying that he was married to me and also that Lloyd would refuse to eat if he thought I had fixed the meal. However, most afternoons, Lloyd would take his meds at Jimmy’s direction and would eat a snack and supper with me after I got home from work.
3. On Thursday, March 12, Lloyd demanded to know why I thought I was in charge. I told him because I love him and wanted the best for him. He said I didn’t love him and then denied that we were married.
4. The morning of March 13, Lloyd had a difficult time, he had one of his anxiety fits about 4:00, but settled down. At 6:00am, I could not rouse him to take his meds and eat his breakfast. He had several more anxiety fits before heaving himself to a sitting position. He got out of bed, but fell forward into the bathroom. He did not hurt himself, but managed to pull himself up to sit on the toilet.
5. I took his glucose reading, gave him his meds and left his breakfast for him, as I had to be at work.
6. I came home at 11:00am as customary and found that he had not eaten his breakfast. I fixed his lunch and left.
7. Per prior instruction, I called Mrs. Roberson, the nurse who usually attends Lloyd’s examinations by Dr. Buth, and told her that Lloyd had fallen. I also explained about the anxiety fits.
8. Monday, March 16th, I made an appointment with Elizabeth Henry to discuss obtaining guardianship and conservatorship for Lloyd because I knew that he would resist being put into 24 hour care.
9. Tuesday, a nurse from Dr. Buth’s office called and told me to make an appointment for Lloyd to see Dr. Buth. The first available time was on Thursday, March 19th
10. March 18th, I met with Ms. Henry and explained the situation. She said she would go to court the next Monday and get me temporary guardianship.
11. The 19th we saw Dr. Buth. Lloyd was given a mini-mental test, on which he scored 12 out of 30, a definite decline from the past mini-mentals he has taken. Dr. Buth told Lloyd that I would need to arrange 24 hour care, as I was no longer capable of giving him the care he needed.
12. That evening, Lloyd asked repeatedly if Dr. was joking. I answered, “No, you need more care than I—even with Jimmy’s help—can give you.”
13. Lloyd refused to eat or take his medicine—both pills and insulin. He also refused to allow me to do the blood glucose check. He threatened to call the police on me.
14. I called Dr. Buth and explained the situation. Dr. Buth told me that if Lloyd refused his medicine in the morning, I should call EMS and have him taken to Via Christi/St. Joseph for a psychiatric evaluation.
15. The next morning, the 20th, Lloyd refused to eat or take his meds, again threatening to call the police. I called 911. An EMS unit was sent out, but they would not take him as I had no guardianship order in hand and by that time, Lloyd was not violent nor unresponsive.
16. I paid Ms. Henry to start the guardianship proceedings.
17. I looked at a couple of nursing homes and talked to staff at several others and settled on Sandpiper Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center.
18. Angie from Sandpiper came out to do an assessment.
19. Thursday, the 26th, from the Agency on Aging came out to do an assessment. Pamela Thompson, who was assigned by the court to represent Lloyd postponed her meeting with him until the next Tuesday.
20. Tuesday March 24th, Ms. Thompson came and served the court papers on Lloyd and talked with him (making her assessment).
21. I went to sign admittance papers to Sandpiper for Lloyd, Thursday, April 2, for admittance the next day. I asked what I should do if Lloyd refused to go to Sandpiper with me. They told me to call EMS and have him delivered to St. Joe’s.
22. When I got home, Lloyd was dressed and wanted to know when “the lady was going to take [him] away.”
23. April 3 Lloyd refused to go with me to Sandpiper. I called 911 for EMS. Even with the guardianship papers, as Lloyd was neither violent nor comatose, they wouldn’t take him against his will. Fortunately, one of the EMS personnel persuaded Lloyd to get in the ambulance.
24. I followed to see that Lloyd was properly admitted to the Senior Behavioral Health unit.
25. After admission to the hospital, Lloyd decided that he did not want to talk to me.
26. April 9th, Lloyd was transported to Sandpiper.
27. I took the dog to visit Lloyd on Friday, April 10th, Lloyd was overjoyed to see us.
28. Monday the 13th, I received the court order that I was to post bond and sign an oath for the conservatorship.
29. I visited Lloyd at Sandpiper again on Saturday morning (giving him a shave) Sunday evening and again Tuesday, the 14th (again shaving him)
30. The nursing staff said he wasn’t taking his meds or eating and they had done a blood test at Dr. Bryant’s request.
31. April 15, 2009, James from Sandpiper called to let me know that Lloyd had fallen while being helped to the toilet in the early morning hours. After getting back to bed, he had one of his anxiety fits. When James tried to help him, Lloyd “turned over and started trying to punch” James.
32. Dr. Bryant was called. He ordered that Lloyd should be taken to St Joe’s.
33. I arranged for a bond policy, which I will sign April 16th.
34. At some point on Wednesday, the St. Joe staff was told that Lloyd hit someone at Sandpiper.
35. Lloyd told me that he had had a fight with “one of the black men on the staff” at Sandpiper. He had to defend himself as he “didn’t want to be beaten to death.”
36. I went to the Wednesday staff meeting anyway. The dietician, Donna, witness to Lloyd’s episode. She said he was sitting down in the day room when he cried out for help and started shaking all over as though he were having a seizure. James, a nurse, went to help him. When James touched him, Lloyd pushed him against the wall, pinning him between the chair and the wall, and came up swinging. He also said, “You want a piece of this?” Donna called to him: “Come over here, Sir. You’ll be safe here.” James escaped during this distraction. Lloyd looked at Donna and said, “Why would I want to do that? You’re just as bad as the rest of them.” Then he sat back down in the chair as though nothing had happened.
37. Visited Lloyd at St. Joe every day.
38. Dr. Marsh put him on Haldol for “paranoid delusions”. The staff also worked to get him to eat with the others and attend in the day room instead of hiding in his room.
39. April 28, Lloyd was released to Sandpiper again.
40. I took Speedy to see Lloyd. Lloyd told me that the male nursing staff were a bunch of thugs, that I had made a mistake by sending him back to Sandpiper because the men were talking and conspiring against him.
41. I gave Lloyd a shave and told him that I would see him Thursday. He was upset, and did not want to go in to supper.
42. Thursday, Lloyd was cheerful and there was no mention of conspiracies. However, someone asked the name of his dog. Lloyd said, “That’s not my dog, it’s my mother.” The nurse said, “What’s your mother’s name?” His answer was “Cybil.” Not sure if this was a joke, a memory lapse or an attempt at a joke when he recognized a memory lapse.
43. I’ve asked that Sandpiper do his laundry. Doing laundry all week is too tiring for me.

FORTITUDE

2009-03-21T10:05:00.002-05:00

My sister sent me today's post, bless her liver. I think that she knew how my latest attempts have been turning into screeds of self-pity, which get wiped before I can hit the PUBLISH POST button.

I am reminded of the greeting card with the picture of the cat hanging onto a limb by both front paws. The caption inside reads “Just Hang In There”.

Of course, just hanging in there can be for the birds. In a former life, known as high school, we had physical education classes twice a week. Being a total klutz, these were not my favorite times of the week (and during marching band season I managed to avoid them altogether) . Organized sports (basketball, volleyball, softball, badminton) were a total disaster—usually I ended up being a referee/umpire by virtue of nobody wanting me on their team.

But the truly worst times were the physical drills and tests. You know, all the calisthenics, the relay races, the obstacle courses, climbing ropes (the only thing I was good at), the sit-ups, the chin ups, and the dreaded hang time.

I don’t know the official name for that last exercise, but it was torture to grab that bar and just hang there while the arms started shaking and the hands burned.
Right now I know that Jan is hanging on for all she’s worth and everything is shaking and burning, but I also know she is stubborn as all get out and she is not about to let go of any more than she has to.

Hang in there, kid. Love you bunches.

A smooth sea never made a skillful mariner, neither do uninterrupted prosperity and success qualify for usefulness and happiness. The storms of adversity, like those of the ocean rouse the faculties, and excite the invention, prudence, skill and fortitude of the voyager. The martyrs of ancient times, in bracing their minds to outward calamities, acquired a loftiness of purpose and a moral heroism worth a lifetime of softness and security.
--Author Unknown

The word of the day for March 21, 2009 is "fortitude" /ˈfɔr tɪˌtud, -ˌtyud/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [fawr-ti-tood, -tyood] –noun
Origin: 1350–1400; ME -tude
Synonyms:See patience.
: Show mental and emotional strength in facing difficulty, adversity, danger, or temptation.

Our quote for the day is from Jacqueline Bisset:

Character contributes to beauty. It fortifies a woman as her youth fades. A mode of conduct, a standard of courage, discipline, fortitude and integrity can do a great deal to make a woman beautiful.

;^)

PREHENSION

2009-03-13T07:50:00.003-05:00

Lloyd fell again this morning. He had gotten out of bed and was on his way into the bathroom when he went down. I don't think he actually had gotten his balance. As he is so much larger than I, there is no way that I can effectively help him when this sort of thing happens. Eventually, he was able to pull himself up, using the fixtures, but it was not easy.

His hands are all swollen this morning, also. He complained about the pain and swelling before he got out of bed. Catching himself certainly did not help. I asked if he would like me to get the heating pad to lay on his hands when he got off the throne. "It doesn't do any good," he said, waving away the very thought. It took him five minutes of working to get his wedding ring off his finger. It left a deep depression between knuckles. I soothed some lotion onto his hands because the skin was very dry.

Recently, I've been looking at nursing homes. It's depressing, but I know the time is coming that he will have to have 24 hour care outside our home. He will not go willingly. He refuses to go to a Senior Center for day care, and thinks that having Jimmy come in to help is a waste of money. Lloyd won't even discuss signing power of attorney for medical matters to make things easier. Speaking to a lawyer the other day, I learned that I will have to go through the court if Lloyd won't voluntarily sign the POA.

This all sounds depressing, and it is. However, I've been praying for help in these matters, and I forgot the adage, "If you pray for patience, God will send you tribulations."

The word of the day for March 13, 2009 is "prehension" — Pronunciation: \prē-'hen(t)-shən\
Function: noun
Date: circa 1828
1: the act of taking hold, seizing, or grasping. 2 a: mental understanding : comprehension. b: apprehension by the senses.

Our quote for the day is from Norman Mailer (b. 1923), U.S. author. Stephen Rojack, in An American Dream, ch. 5, Dial (1965):

I had a quick grasp of the secret to sanity—it had become the ability to hold the maximum of impossible combinations in one’s mind.

;^)

AVERSION

2009-03-05T14:09:00.003-06:00

This is a folk tale, so it is told in the third person.

Once upon a long time ago, when the Gryphon was still limber and spry, she attended a modern dance class on a regular basis. This was part of the course requirements at a state university where all the students were otherwise sober and industrious. A couple of Gryphon's step-roomies also attended this class, which is how Gryphon got involved in the first place.

One of the usual problems set for the class was, in groups of five or six persons, to perform an improvisational dance. On one occasion each dancer was told to choose one of her group to stay as close to as possible and choose another to avoid during the course of the dance. Gryphon's step-roomies were in other groups, so she chose two others whom she knew slightly and the dance began. Avoiding the one young lady was fairly easy, as she appeared to be chasing after someone else. However, the other chosen dancer was very difficult to approach. The dancers twirled and writhed as the music played. Gryphon was a step away from catching up to her chosen dancer when the music ended.

The chosen dancer put her hands on her hips and said to Gryphon, "I chose to avoid you, but every time I turned, there you were. It was awful."

Gryphon explained that she was sorry, she hadn't meant to discompose her classmate's well-being, but that was the rules of the excercise—to stay with the one chosen. She had really meant to honor this classmate and, eventually, develop a friendship. That burgeoning friendship died in the course of a three-minute dance.

Now, I wonder about the surfeit of stalking that has swept our nation, our world. Do stalkers feel entitled by their perception of the rules of life to discommode their chosen victims? So many times we hear that the stalking victim has enlisted friends and family, or even the police, attempting to avoid the predator to no avail. Stalkers seem to think that an absent smile is a come-on, when the rest of us recognise it for the polite dismissal that it truly is.

So, just why is it that stalkers miss or ignore the clues telling them to back off, find someone who might possibly care on whom to lavish their attentions? Do they listen to too much 1950s Rock & Roll—"Take Good Care of My Baby", "There Goes My Baby", all those "she's mine and if I can't have her I'll die" songs. Do they have delusions of grandeur: think they are as good as the rest of us?

The word of the day for March 5, 2009 is "aversion" Pronunciation: \ə-'vər-zhən, -shən\
Function: noun
Date: 1596
1obsolete : the act of turning away. 2 a: a feeling of repugnance toward something with a desire to avoid or turn from it [regards drunkenness with aversion]. b: a settled dislike : antipathy [expressed an aversion to parties]. c: a tendency to extinguish a behavior or to avoid a thing or situation and especially a usually pleasurable one because it is or has been associated with a noxious stimulus. 3: an object of aversion [inconstancy is my aversion — Jane Austen].

Our quote for the day is from Agnes Repplier (1858–1950), U.S. author, social critic. “A Kitten,” In the Dozy Hours (1894):

Why does not the kitten betray some of the attributes common to the adult puss? A puppy is but a dog, plus high spirits, and minus common sense. We never hear our friends say they love puppies, but cannot bear dogs. A kitten is a thing apart; and many people who lack the discriminating enthusiasm for cats, who regard these beautiful beasts with aversion and mistrust, are won over easily, and cajoled out of their prejudices, by the deceitful wiles of kittenhood.

;^)

CASTAWAY

2009-03-01T07:39:00.005-06:00

Late night Friday, we watched Cast Away with Tom Hanks. Now, I am not normally a Tom Hanks fan. I know he is a creditable actor. His work has won awards, etc. Still, I remember the sitcom, Bosom Buddies, that he participated in early in his career. I realize that the material was fluff, but it did nothing good for my perception of the man.

My problems aside, Hanks carries the main acting burden for Cast Away. His character is sympathetically, if somewhat optimistically drawn. How many of us would have survived one night on a deserted island without so much as a pocket knife. Hanks did give a good performance, both in the physical emulation of setting up housekeeping on his island and the emotional in giving up the relationships that had kept him going throughout his exile. If that's a spoiler, I'm sorry. Y'all had plenty of time to see the movie before I did.

The word of the day for March 1, 2009 is "castaway" Pronunciation: \'kast-ə-,wā\
Function: adjective
Date: 1542
1: thrown away : rejected. 2 a: cast adrift or ashore as a survivor of a shipwreck. b: thrown out or left without friends or resources.

Our quote for the day is from Anne Sexton (1928–1974), U.S. poet. “Doors, Doors, Doors.”:

Castaway, your time is a flat sea that doesn’t stop,
with no new land to make for and no new stories to swap.

;^)

PANCAKE

2009-02-24T13:31:00.006-06:00

Happy Fat Tuesday, y'all. Or ShroveTuesday or Mardi Gras if you're French or Carnivale if you're just about anything else.

As those of you who have read my prior calendrical musings probably know, Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Vernal Equinox. Tomorrow is the start of Lent, a period of 4o days of fasting, interrupted by Sundays, leading up to Easter. So today you have your last chance to eat up all the meat and fats in the house so you don't accidentally backslide and get found with bacon rind or a quarter-pound of butter in your maw.

Some of us just give up for Lent. Some of us try to figure out if we qualify to pass (pregnant women, folks with diabetes, etc.) on the fasting. Some of us are just glad we belong to denominations that don't insist on fasting. Maybe the Muslims have it right: their fasting at Ramadan only lasts from sunup to sundown. Makes it a lot easier physically for the long haul.

Anyway, there was a race this morning: the annual international competition between the ladies of Olney, England and Liberal, Kansas, USA. The Kansas winner and Overall Champion was Ms. Tasha Gallegos of Liberal.

(See KANSAN WINS 60th PANCAKE RACE)

The race involves running down the street with a skillet in one hand. During the course of the race, the runner has to flip a pancake and catch it in the skillet three times. I don't know if there are Olympic style tryouts, but on the other hand, no one has (so far) been accused of doping-unless you count extra syrup.

The word of the day for February 24, 2009 is "pancake" — Pronunciation: \'pan-,kāk\
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
: a flat cake made of thin batter and cooked (as on a griddle) on both sides.

Our quote for the day is from Antonin Scalia, recalled on his appointment to US Supreme Court, Newsweek 30 Jun 86:

[In a big family] the first child is kind of like the first pancake. If it’s not perfect, that’s okay, there are a lot more coming along.

;^)

IMPETUS

2009-02-21T08:53:00.007-06:00

Sorting through the last year's paperwork for supporting tax evidence, I ran across last year's Valentine's cards, a ten-year-old check register that had escaped the search and destroy mission I did a couple of years ago and a letter responding to my Christmas letter about Lloyd's circumstances. I did find all the W-2 and 1099 forms and the 1098 forms, although I will have to call the company that holds our second mortgage again. They won't send out a 1098 unless I insist. I have a handful of thank you's from charity and the personal property statements. I'm all set to get started with my taxes, right?

Wrong. Along about October, TurboTax sent out my 2008 disc(s), which I laid aside unopened until needed. Now the TTax package lies somewhere in the flotsom that lines the floor of my computer room. Now I have to sort through the detritus: sort, shred, file and re-pile—at least until I find the discs.

Logically, the room is finite. There cannot be infinite material inside. Yet, I don't seem to be able to clear more than enough space to walk into to room for more than two days at a time. If I had more space elsewhere in the house, I would move everything out (putting it all in logical, logistical piles) install file cabinets and bookshelfs, and then herd everything back in in logical order. Oh to have Mr. Spock as my organizer.
The word of the day for February 21, 2009 is "impetus" — Pronunciation: \'im-pə-təs\
Function: noun
Etymology: Latin, assault, impetus, from impetere to attack, from in- + petere to go to, seek — more at feather
Date: 1641
1 a (1): a driving force : impulse. (2): incentive , stimulus. b: stimulation or encouragement resulting in increased activity. 2: the property possessed by a moving body in virtue of its mass and its motion —used of bodies moving suddenly or violently to indicate the origin and intensity of the motion.

Our quotation is from Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (1825–1911), U.S. suffragist and rights advocate. From her 1893 speech at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago: “Woman’s Political Future,” as quoted in Black Women in Nineteenth-Century American Life, part 3, by Bert James Loewenberg and Ruth Bogin (1976):

So close is the bond between man and woman that you can not raise one without lifting the other. The world can not move ahead without woman’s sharing in the movement, and to help give a right impetus to that movement is woman’s highest privilege.

;^)

THRASONICAL

2009-02-14T13:48:00.005-06:00

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

A few weeks ago, I picked up Appaloosa, a western starring Ed Harris, as Virgil Cole, and Viggo Mortensen, as Everett Hitch, because Lloyd likes a good western. What with one thing and another, we hadn't watched it until today. The movie certainly qualifies as a "shoot-em-up" as three people are shot dead before the opening credits and several more before the movie's end. However, there's plenty of time for some interesting introspection.

Renee Zelweger, as Mrs. French, certainly plays a very different character than she did in Miss Potter. There is evidence that the town fathers partake of the same character traits as Mrs. French. Jeremy Irons, as the villain, did not chew scenery—a refreshing relief. The town is gritty with no glaring anachronisms, and no Peckinpah dwelling on the blood and guts. The hero, if that's the right term, rides into the sunset at the end.

This is not John Wayne or Hopalong Cassiday, much more in the noir vein with a deserved R rating. Ed Harris directed the Robert Knott/Ed Harris screen-play based on a novel by Robert B. Parker. An excellent movie, but not light-hearted.

SPOILER ALERT: Everett Hitch killed the wrong person at the end—of course, if he'd killed the right one, he couldn't have ridden off into the sunset.

The word of the day for February 14, 2009 is "thrasonical" — Pronunciation: \thrā-'sä-ni-kəl, thrə-\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Latin Thrason-, Thraso Thraso, braggart soldier in the comedy Eunuchus by Terence
Date: 1564
: of, relating to, resembling, or characteristic of Thraso : bragging , boastful

Our quotation is from Harris/Knott, Appaloosa, Phil Olson, played by Timothy Spall:

Evidently, Bragg's claim of association with our president wasn't just thrasonical.

;^)

APPEAL

2009-02-10T10:35:00.003-06:00

I wrote to my cousin in Australia about the Victoria bushfire that has taken so many lives, livelihoods, and living spaces. Specifically, I asked what we could do to help. This is her answer:

Dear Jan,

Thank you so much for your concern.

This is the worst natural disaster that has ever occurred in Australia, and our worst loss of lives outside the World Wars.

We will be making a donation today. We've been tossing up between the Salvos (Salvation Army) or the Red Cross for immediate action. They say they need money for people to go and buy clothes, but the government is giving immediate grants. We also hear that mountains of donated goods are already arriving in the affected areas. A lot of aid will be required to help people start to rebuild their homes, and in some cases, entire towns. And the medical aid for the burns victims will be ongoing as well. Any of these organizations are good for immediate relief as well as follow up services.

Here are the email addresses for the
Salvos www.salvationarmy.org.au/donations and the
Red Cross http://www.redcross.org.au/, as well as for the
Commonwealth Bank's Bushfire Appeal commbank.com.au. Just specify 'The Victorian Bushfire Appeal.'

When we first came to Australia, Paul had an uncle (since deceased) living in an area called Healesville, which is under threat today. He loved Australia and the bush so much, and introduced us to its beauties. It was a lovely area; I just can't imagine how it must look now. Thanks so much for getting in touch.

Love,

Kathy

:_^(

RODENT

2009-02-08T10:59:00.003-06:00

Most of yesterday I cleaned out the under-counter corner kitchen cupboard. Because of its inconvenient construction, I keep only things that are infrequently used in that cabinet, except for a rack, usually filled with broiler pans and trays, that just fits through the cupboard door. At some point in time during the past month, we entertained a mouse or mice in that cabinet. They had apparently gotten in through a gap in the sheet rock where the 220v electric line comes through. I also noticed that I had stored mouse poison in that cupboard the last time we had mice. The baits were entirely consumed, so I'm probably lucky I didn't find a dead mouse in the cupboard.

I'm not afraid of mice; they are just disgusting. When I was a child I noticed that Daddy would set the mouse traps, as my mother didn't have the knack or strength to do it; Mother would empty them (throw the full ones in the trash) because Daddy was too tender-hearted—a perfect partnership. At my house, I get to do both offices.

So I emptied out the pans, etc., vacuumed and pulled out shelf paper. (Yes, I used a filter mask and rubber gloves. No sense in courting Hanta virus.) Next came a bath of the entire cupboard—chlorine bleach in water. A thorough drying was followed by a good spray of disinfectant.

I filled in the access hole with some silicone grout—I couldn't find the spackle, apparently used on some other project or shuffled under the mass of garage detritus. The grout, however, just filled the hole before the tube ran out, so I figure it was meant to be.

During the drying periods, I threw out everything I could of the cupboard contents and washed the rest in hot water with chlorine in the rinse and then ran everything possible through the dishwasher on the sanitize cycle. New shelf liner went in and then a very few salvaged items that I do use once in a blue moon. Last of all the above described rack and the pans and trays. Next I need to clean out the cupboard under the sink. No mice, but I've certainly accumulated a lot of things under there.

The word of the day for February 8, 2009 is "rodent" — Pronunciation: \'rō-dənt\
Function: noun
Etymology: ultimately from Latin rodent-, rodens, present participle of rodere to gnaw; akin to Latin radere to scrape, scratch, Sanskrit radati he gnaws
Date: 1835
1 : any of an order (Rodentia) of relatively small gnawing mammals (as a mouse, squirrel, or beaver) that have in both jaws a single pair of incisors with a chisel-shaped edge. 2 : a small mammal (as a rabbit or a shrew) other than a true rodent.

Our quotation is from Robert Burns (1759–1796), Scottish poet. repr. In Poetical Works, vol. 1, ed. William Scott Douglas (1891). “To a Mouse,” st. 7 (1786):

The best laid schemes o’ mice and men Gang aft agley;
An’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain, For promis’d joy!

;^)

MUNICIPAL

2009-02-05T07:48:00.005-06:00

Kath's (Mother Hen) latest post is a cute rhyme about her trip to a thrift shop. She has a pensioner's free pass to travel. What a wonderful thing to have.

A free bus pass wouldn't work very well in most of the United States because the bus systems here are such a joke. In most small towns there is no bus line. Small to medium cities may have a bus line, but to keep costs down one has to go to the central transfer station for most trips to the other side of town. Most folks won't put up with a 2 hour bus trip that only takes 20 minutes by automobile. Also for inter-city trips, Mid-western and Plains states towns with bus stations are so much further apart here than in Great Britain. Plus, if there is a bus stop it is usually on the highway—nowhere near shops—with no guarantee that there will be intra-city transport once you get to the town.

Admittedly, in some places in the States, where the population base is large enough, or where they are dedicated to the Green principle, the intra-city systems are better developed. Portland, Oregon, for instance, has a good light rail transport in conjunction with a bus system that really seems to work. Still, my son (who lives in Portland) has a pickup to take when he goes junking for his art materials. If he wants to visit friends in California, he rents a car. If he comes to visit us, he flies and then rents a car when he gets here.

Our word for the day is "municipal" — Pronunciation: \myu-'ni-s(ə-)pəl also myə-, mə-, -'ni-sə-bəl, ÷,myü-nə-'si-pəl\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Latin municipalis of a municipality, from municip-, municeps inhabitant of a municipality, from munus duty, service + capere to take — more at mean, heave
Date: circa 1540
1: of or relating to the internal affairs of a major political unit (as a nation). 2 a: of, relating to, or characteristic of a municipality. b: having local self-government. 3: restricted to one locality.

Our quote for the day is from Charles, Prince of Wales, on Peter Ahrends’s design for an office building housing additional space for the National Gallery, address at 150th anniversary celebration of the Royal Institute of British Architects, NY Times 12 Oct 84:

[It’s] a kind of vast municipal fire station … a monstrous carbuncle on the face of a much-loved friend.

;^)

CANDLEMAS

2009-02-02T19:31:00.007-06:00

Happy Groundhog's Day. Or Candlemas. Or Imbolc. Or whatever holiday you're celebrating today. The groundhog saw his shadow, the day dawned bright and clear. So we'll have six more weeks of winter instead of just a month and a half.

We finally made the trip to Omaha that we had been planning. The day was sunny, but not too warm. If it hadn't been for the shimmy in the left front wheel, the dog getting sick and Lloyd insisting that I wasn't using the most direct route, it would have been a great drive.

Claudia and her son, Mitchell, are doing fine. She's thinking of moving to Arkansas, where her mother and step-father live. It would be a great move for her. All of her family except for a couple of Lloyd's cousins, with whom she has little contact, have moved away. Her best friend moved to Texas last year. So now she's decided she needs to be closer to her mother and her nieces and nephews. She will actually be a couple of hours closer to us, as well.

Coming home was a much better trip. We had a cloudy sky, but no rain. No construction zones slowed us down. The wheels all stayed on the car. When we finally got home, Lloyd told me, "I don't want you ever to drive me all over the map like that again." Not a problem. In spite of what Lloyd tells everyone, I do not like to drive.

The word of the day for February 2, 2009 is "Candlemas" Pronunciation: \ˈkan-dəl-məs\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English candelmasse, from Old English candelmæsse, from candel + mæsse mass, feast; from the candles blessed and carried in celebration of the feast
Date: before 12th century
: February 2 observed as a church festival in commemoration of the presentation of Christ in the temple and the purification of the Virgin Mary.

Our quote for the day is from Robert Herrick (1591–1674), Ceremonies for Candlemas Eve:

Thus times do shift,—each thing his turn does hold;
New things succeed, as former things grow old

;^)

HEALTHY

2009-01-30T13:33:00.003-06:00

Yesterday, my primary care doctor gave me the results of all the tests they took last week. Apparently, I am disgustingly healthy for a woman of my age. The blood pressure is medicated to a reasonable level; the cholesteral is humming along at normal; the blood sugar is good.

Anything else, he asks me. Well, I've got this pain in my wrist that started in November when I took out the birdbath with the riding lawn mower.

So I got sent down to x-ray-not that they expect to find anything, but just in case. Monday, I call in to their automated line and get the results on that. Meanwhile, I'm to wear the wrist bracers—which I wear to ward off carpal tunnel—all the time. Make that as much time as is practical. I'm not about to wear them while showering, etc. Also, I get some heavy-duty meds for the pain (Celebrex) for the next couple of weeks.

Tomorrow, if Lloyd feels better, we will be on the road to Omaha. I'll try to remember to take the camera this time so I can take a few pictures.

The word of the day for January 30, 2009 is "healthy" — Pronunciation: \'hel-thē also 'helt-\
Function: adjective
Inflected Form(s): health·i·er; health·i·est
Date: 1552
1: enjoying health and vigor of body, mind, or spirit : well. 2: evincing health [a healthy complexion]. 3: conducive to health [walk three miles every day…a beastly bore, but healthy — G. S. Patton]. 4 a: prosperous , flourishing. b: not small or feeble : considerable.

Our quote for the day is from Gilbert Keith Chesterton (1874–1936), British author. Generally Speaking, “On Sentiment,” (1928):

It is as healthy to enjoy sentiment as to enjoy jam.

;^)

OX, and Happy Chinese New Year

2009-01-26T09:56:00.005-06:00

Happy New Year of the Ox.

Took Speedy to the vet Saturday for his annual immunizations. He took it pretty well, but he does not like to take the heartworm medicine. It probably isn't necessary for Speedy to take the heartworm medicine year-round. Still, it's easier for me to remember to give it to him once a month without trying to remember if this is a month he doesn't need to take it. Besides, the medication keeps him from picking up other parasites as well. The flea and tick medicine is a liquid that absorbs through the skin. He's not so unhappy to get that, except he knows that he gets it the same time as he has to take the pill for the heartworm.

My quarterly physical is Thursday. I'm hoping that I will also get a clean bill of health. Then Lloyd and I have the dentist next month, and Lloyd to the podiatrist the month after. It's a never ending round. Not quite as cheerful as the monthly holidays we used to have at school. January was New Years; February, Valentine's and Presidents' Days; March, St. Patrick's Day; April, Spring and Easter; May, Mothers' Day; June, Graduation. As July was outside the school year, we didn't get Independence Day, but we celebrated all the same. August got no holiday, but is often depicted as a day on the seashore. September was Back to School; October, Halloween; November, Thanksgiving; December, Christmas (now the p.c. Winter Holidays). Now the greeting card companies are inventing holidays, and Congress keeps declaring this week as Pickle Week or National Internal Combustion Machine Day. The disadvantages of having so many celebrations is that they get lumped together like St. Ursula's 1100 virgins.

Practicing Hindus have so many gods to choose from, they apparently have the same trouble with holy days. I keep sending the fellows from InfoSys (who are from India and mostly nominal Hindus) holiday greetings for whatever pops up in BeliefNet. One of them wrote back to say that he never knows what holiday it is unless he happens to be off that day anyway.

The word of the day for January 26, 2009 is "ox" — Pronunciation: \'äks\
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural ox·en \'äk-sən\ also ox
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English oxa; akin to Old High German ohso ox, Sanskrit ukṣā bull, and perhaps to Sanskrit ukṣati he moistens, Greek hygros wet — more at humor
Date: before 12th century
1: a domestic bovine mammal (Bos taurus) ; broadly : a bovine mammal. 2: an adult castrated male domestic ox.

Our quote for the day is from Jon Cleary, author, b: 22 November 1917, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, High Road to China:

The ox is slow, but the earth is patient.

;^)

COHERENCE

2009-01-25T13:59:00.003-06:00

Wonderful things are brought to light when one is looking for something else. While digging out all the books in the house to catalog in LibraryThing, I have found the Eighth Grade grammar book I had thought lost forever. Plain English Handbook by J. Martyn and Anna Kathleen Walsh guided us lost and wistful, nearly-adult hopefuls through grammar and usage of the English language. With this book, if you write a coherent sentence, I can diagram it, and anyone with the least comprehension can understand what your sentence means. The collary to that is that if your sentence cannot be diagrammed, it is not coherent by definition.

Mrs. Deutsch taught us English with strict attention to composition and spelling. There were no exceptions to her rules. One did not chew gum, not even out in the hallway. She would collar you and drag you into her room to spit out the offending wad into the waste basket. As I have mentioned before, she would sing "Sixteen Tons" as she ambled up and down the aisles between desks during tests.

The word of the day for January 25, 2009 is "coherence" — Pronunciation: \kō-'hir-ən(t)s, -'her-\
Function: noun
Date: circa 1580
1: the quality or state of cohering: as a: systematic or logical connection or consistency. b: integration of diverse elements, relationships, or values. 2: the property of being coherent [a plan that lacks coherence].

Our quotation is from Michel de Montaigne (1533–1592), French essayist. “Of Friendship,” The Essays (Les Essais), bk. I, ch. 28, Simon Millanges, Bordeaux, first edition (1580):

What are these essays but grotesque and monstrous bodies, pieced together of different members, without any definite shape, without any order, coherence, or proportion, except they be accidental?

;^)

FASHIONISTA

2009-01-22T10:07:00.006-06:00

Not that it's really any of my business, but what did Michelle Obama's Inauguration ballgown rejects look like? The one she wore is a lovely dress. Still, Mrs. O seemingly had a difficult time moving the train from under her feet. It didn't hamper her moves for long, though. It looked like she and President Obama enjoyed all the dancing and parties.

There will be many who deride Mrs. O for her fashion sense. Hey, we all can't be Jackie Kennedy, and thank goodness. From the many photos of Mrs. O taken during the campaign, she has solid middle-class sense of fashion. She probably heard my mother's fashion advice: Wear clothes tight enough to show you're a woman and loose enough to show you're a lady. Horizontal stripes will make anyone look fat. More than one pattern or texture look busy and detract from the wearer. Wear colors that minimize either a sallow or ruddy complexion.

The last time I dressed up for an event was Cybil and Ryan's wedding, a year ago October. The dressy pantsuit that I wore was comfortable, but the pretty shoes were not. I haven't worn heels higher than 1" since about 1990. It's suprising how much difference a half-inch makes.

The word of the day for January 22, 2009 is "fashionista" Pronunciation:
\,fa-shə-'nēs-tə\
Function: noun
Etymology: 1
fashion + -ista (as in Sandinista)
Date: 1993
: a designer, promoter, or follower of the latest fashions.

Our quote for the day is from Gilda Radner (1946 - 1989):

I base my fashion taste on what doesn't itch.

;^)

INAUGURATION

2009-01-20T19:12:00.002-06:00

My son-in-law tells me that he has been teaching my grandaughter to tell jokes. Apparently she hasn't quite gotten the hang of it. Part of this is probably because they didn't start with Why did the chicken...? No, this is what he started with:

Barack Obama, after his first full day of work, dismissed all his aides so he could finish a few loose ends and just sit and savor his new position. After a while, he got thirsty. He decided to go down to the White House kitchens rather than calling down and disturbing the staff from their well-earned rest. Once in the corridor, he saw that a soda machine had been installed just a few steps away from the door to the Oval Office. Immediately, he delved into his pockets for the wherewithal to get a Coca Cola.

He was appalled to find there was no change.

Perhaps this a bit subtle for a five year old. She has been telling this joke, but substituting George Washington for Barack Obama—both achronistic and surreal. I suppose I will have to call and teach her a few elephant jokes to counteract Ryan's nonsense.

The word of the day for January 20, 2009 is "inauguration" — Pronunciation: \-,nȯ-gyə-'rā-shən, -gə-\
Function: noun
Date: 1569
: an act of inaugurating ; especially : a ceremonial induction into office.

Our quotation is from Robert Frost (1874–1963), U.S. poet, Reply to invitation from President-elect John F Kennedy, NY Times 15 Jan 61:

If you can bear at your age the honor of being made president of the United States, I ought to be able at my age to bear the honor of taking some part in your inauguration. I may not be equal to it but I can accept it for my cause—the arts, poetry—now for the first time taken into the affairs of statesmen.

;^)

RANDOM

2009-01-19T06:07:00.005-06:00

Cybil and Ryan came down from the KC area Friday stayed over night. They played with the dog, watched Batman cartoons (their choice) and went shopping with me Saturday morning.

Actually, Cyb (she's my shopping enabler) and I went shopping while Lloyd napped and Ryan stayed at the house and worked on a new D&D scenario for their gaming group. I bought her a cast-iron skillet and a laser toy for their cat.

Lloyd had gone for a checkup by his Primary Care physician Friday morning. Although he got a good report, he was very morose because I had driven him in my car instead of his. He thinks I am lording it over him because he can't find the keys to his car. Well, I put them away for good reason. His driving skills are deteriorating from lack of use as well as the Alzheimer's. The last time he drove, my teeth were on edge the whole time.

Anyway, we went out to Riverside Park late Sunday afternoon - in his car (but he asked if I would drive, so I said "Sure"). That seemed to make him happy. He agreed that he would wait for the weekend to go to Omaha to see his elder daughter, so that I can go with him. As he doesn't remember the last couple of times we have gone to Omaha, I am developing a reluctance to go in the future.

WOOHOO! The count meter is over 1000 today.

The word of the day for January 19, 2009 is "random" Pronunciation: \'ran-dəm\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English, succession, surge, from Anglo-French randun, from Old French randir to run, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German rinnan to run — more at run
Date: 1632
1 a: lacking a definite plan, purpose, or pattern. b: made, done, or chosen at random [read random passages from the book]. 2 a: relating to, having, or being elements or events with definite probability of occurrence [random processes]. b: being or relating to a set or to an element of a set each of whose elements has equal probability of occurrence [a random sample] ; also : characterized by procedures designed to obtain such sets or elements [random sampling].

Our quote for the day is from Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1845), U.S. poet, critic, short-story writer (as it is the 200th anniversary of his birth). quoted in Julian Symons, The Tell-Tale Heart: The Life and Works of Edgar Allan Poe, pt. 1, ch. 12 (1978). Broadway Journal (1845):

Their hotels are bad. Their pumpkin pies are delicious. Their poetry is not so good.

;^)

TERMINATION

2009-01-15T07:55:00.003-06:00

Jeanie says that in Britain legally they couldn't terminate my employment while I was on leave. Well, technically they can't fire me here while on leave, either. Actually, I wasn't sacked, but fell victim to a real comedy of errors. First Boeing decided to sell our division. Our division management found a buyer so we could be a stand alone company—Spirit AeroSystems, Inc.—owned by Onex, a Canadian holding company.

Those of us with a certain amount of time-in-service and at least 55 years old were allowed to retire from Boeing with a Boeing pension and retirement benefits (health insurance, very important here as there is no National Health in the US). However, Spirit would transition those of us who wanted to work for the new company into their workforce with our Boeing “hire date,” thus giving us the same salary, benefits and retention ratings. I thought that sounded good: get paid a pension and a salary and get the same benefits as though I'd been working at the new company for 25 years.

The catch for me was that I had to be in hospital (surgical removoal of intra-uterine cancer, which was uneventfully successful, thank God) when the actual change-over happened. Before the changeover, I asked specifically if being on leave of absence was going to mess up things for me. Representatives from both old and new companies assured me that there would be no problem. I was to set things up on-line for my retirement, and nothing would happen until I “pressed the button” to start retirement when I got back to work. Everything else was to happen seamlessly. When I received the doctor’s release, I would go through Medical for their release, and then back to work at Spirit.

So I got my doctor’s release and went through Medical, who said they would see the paperwork through the Leave of Absence Office. At the badge office, I exchanged my Boeing badge for a Spirit badge.

On Monday morning, I went in to work. The time charge system would not allow me to enter my time. My boss had a pointed conversation with the Payroll people, who fixed things. The next Monday, I went out at lunch to feed Lloyd. When I came back, the computer was locked up; I couldn’t get it to respond. Off I went to the Boss, who has a few pointed conversations with several offices. He came back and said, “Looks like you aren’t employed at Spirit. Boeing retired you, and as you were on leave, Spirit didn’t pick you up in the “snapshot” of employees to transition.” The humor of the situation was not apparent at the time. Before I left work that day, I had been reinstated.

Although my computer access was up and running the next day, it took them two weeks to get the financial aspect sorted out. I ended up with a “Day One” hire date, but got all my benefits except my vacation/sick leave, which Boeing cashed out, rather than reserving as with everyone else. It took Spirit more than a month to get all my computer systems reinstated. So now I am doing the same job, for the same boss, at the same desk as three and a half years ago.

The word of the day for January 15, 2009 is "termination" — Pronunciation: \,tər-mə-'nā-shən\
Function: noun
Date: circa 1500
1: end in time or existence : conclusion [the termination of life]. 2: the last part of a word ; especially : an inflectional ending. 3: the act of terminating. 4: a limit in space or extent : bound. 5: outcome , result.

Our quote for the day is from Gaius Sallustius Crispus (c. 86–35/34 B.C.), Roman historian. Jugurtha, LXXXIII:

It is always easy enough to take up arms, but very difficult to lay them down; the commencement and the termination of war are not necessarily in the same hands; even a coward may begin, but the end comes only when the victors are willing.

;^)

LACERATION

2009-01-13T19:03:00.008-06:00

Here's a lesson for you. Don't change direction in the middle of a doorway—especially if the door is heavy and the latch plate is at elbow height. I was headed into the ladies' restroom at work when this happened. I don't normally make an abrupt u-turn at that point, but the floor was flooded, and I stepped right into the puddle. After managing a three-cornered tear in the elbow of my favorite dress and scraping a fair amount of skin from my forearm, I noticed that someone had put a sign on the door listing a trouble ticket number. The reason was not mentioned in the note. Before going back to my desk, I added "FLOOD" in large letters to the notice.

The fellow at the next desk wanted me to go to Medical. I refused. There's no way the company quack is getting his fingers on me for a minor scrape. Been there, done that, had the album signed. I've had to wait over half an hour to get blood and dirt cleaned out of scraped knees while they x-rayed my sprained foot. When I had my gall bladder attack, they called my husband to drive me to hospital. When I came back from my leave of absence after the last surgery, they assured me all the paperwork would be done without any more problems. They didn't mention that they had managed to terminate my employment while I was on leave of absence.

The word of the day for January 13, 2009 is "laceration" — Pronunciation: \ˌla-sə-ˈrā-shən\
Function: noun
Date: 1597
1 : the act of lacerating. 2 : a torn and ragged wound.

Our quote for the day is from Mason Cooley (b. 1927), U.S. aphorist. City Aphorisms, Fourteenth Selection, New York (1994):

Most self-laceration is more noisy than painful.

;^{

NASCENT

2009-01-11T15:01:00.003-06:00

I've been having a quiet day. I had a piece of chocolate cake with ice cream (yes, I know I said I was off chocolate this year, but it is my birthday, so sue me. I can be off chocolate again tomorrow) at lunch time. We'll have steak and potatoes for supper. Lloyd gave me some cash for a present, which I promptly blew on a couple of DVDs—The Storyteller starring John Hurt. I remember watching these on television and thinking that I ought to record them.

I've been trying to decide if I want to catalogue my tapes and DVDs on LibraryThing. Probably not, as I am already up to 550 books, only about ten percent of which actually belong to my sister, my husband or the kids. A couple of hundred years ago this would have amounted to an amazing treasure. Of course, they didn't have sound recordings then, either. They had to tell their own stories and make their own music—act out their own dramas, make up their own gossip. What a bunch of softies we are!

The word of the day for January 11, 2009 is "nascent" — Pronunciation: \ˈna-sənt, ˈnā-\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Latin nascent-, nascens, present participle of nasci to be born — more at nation
Date: circa 1624
: coming or having recently come into existence [a nascent middle class] [her nascent singing career].

Our quote for the day is from Jean François Lyotard (b. 1924), French philosopher. repr. In The Postmodern Condition: A Report on Knowledge (1979, rev. 1986). “Answering the Question: What is Postmodernism?” Critique, no. 419 (Paris, April 1982):

A work can become modern only if it is first postmodern. Postmodernism thus understood is not modernism at its end but in the nascent state, and this state is constant.

;^)

SURVIVAL

2009-01-07T10:10:00.006-06:00

One of my friends recently sent me a joke about a hypothetical "survivors" show. I've never been a fan of this sort of show. For one thing they aren't about real life at all. They have a camera crew with the participants who can help if any real trouble surfaces. The contestants invariably come off as greedy above all else. Filmed reality usually turns out to be stupider and meaner than anyone in their right mind would want to be. The only thing worse is the "Jerry Springer" type show where the participants have taken the fun out of dysfunctional by berating/assaulting/battering one another in public for problems that make no sense to non-participants, but the audience eggs them on to escalate the violence.

This reality show business all got started when writers got organized, asking to be better compensated for their work. Not that it's the writers' fault that the producers decided the television public doesn't tune in to well-scripted (not to mention witty) programs. It's apparently too much effort to produce a Carol Burnett Show or M*A*S*H or Maverick or even Mr. Ed. We do get a lot of police drama. In the evenings there's a CSI for everyone. But I still find myself looking at TVLAND and NICK AT NIGHT, because they show cogent, reasonably intelligent programs to which an old fogey like me can relate.

The irony of this dearth of script writers is that reality show participants are now hiring writers (at below union scale) to write "natural, witty" repartee that can be dropped into the participants on-air "conversations".

The word of the day for January 7, 2009 is "survival" - Pronunciation: \sər-'vī-vəl\
Function: noun
Usage: often attributive
Date: 1598
1 a: the act or fact of living or continuing longer than another person or thing. b: the continuation of life or existence [problems of survival in arctic conditions]. 2: one that survives.

Our quote for the day is from Virginia Satir (20th century), U.S. family therapist and author. As quoted in The Winning Family, ch. 16, by Louise Hart (1987):

The recommended daily requirement for hugs is: four per day for survival, eight per day for maintenance, and twelve per day for growth.

;^)

REVERT

2009-01-05T13:58:00.003-06:00

The day is clear, but cold—only 28F this noon with a light breeze. First day at work this year. Those who have been working short work weeks here will all be back at work full time next Monday. Yes, I wrote my password down, just in case, but found I didn't need it. Everyone who crossed my path so far today has received a cheery "Happy New Year." Most of them returned the greeting heartily.

Someone propped a duster on its handle in my co-worker Vic's chair. Apparently this was because Vic is out with the flu instead of in his rightful seat. I added a smiley face on the dusting cloth to make things more realistic. Unfortunately, the duster is neither as congenial nor as knowledgeable as Vic. The consensus is that we would rather the duster have the flu.

At lunchtime, when I got home to feed Lloyd and Speedy, the dog did not meet me at the door as usual. When I got to the bedroom there was a lump under the coverlet next to Lloyd. Obviously the dog knows where the warm spot is. I had put his t-shirt on this morning as it was so chilly. He doesn't like to wear it though, and tries to wriggle out of it. Let it be noted that once the shirt is on, he stays out longer. In fact, he ran outside while I was fixing his lunch bowl; barked a couple, three times; ran back inside; shook himself as though he were wet and ran back outside. By that time, both Lloyd's lunch and his were ready. So I fed them both and came back to work.

The word of the day for January 5, 2009, is "revert" — Pronunciation: \ri-'vərt\
Function: intransitive verb
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French revertir, from Latin revertere, v.t., to turn back & reverti, v.i., to return, come back, from re- + vertere, verti to turn — more at worth
Date: 15th century
1 : to come or go back (as to a former condition, period, or subject). 2 : to return to the proprietor or his or her heirs at the end of a reversion. 3 : to return to an ancestral type.

Our quote for the day is from Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945), U.S. president. Letter, March 27, 1940, to Governor Henry Horner of Illinois. The Roosevelt Letters, vol. 3, p. 310, ed. Elliott Roosevelt, George G. Harrup & Co., Ltd. (1952):

You and I ... are convinced of the fact that if our Government in Washington and in a majority of the States should revert to the control of those who frankly put property ahead of human beings instead of working for human beings under a system of government which recognizes property, the nation as a whole would again be in a bad situation.

Horner had written FDR to inform him that the Illinois Democrats urged him to run for a third term as the only hope to continue the liberal orientation of the government. FDR responded that certainly a liberal ticket was necessary but that he was not indispensable to its success.

;^)

SUPERSTITION

2009-01-03T12:30:00.004-06:00

I spent a couple of hours this morning taking down our outside Christmas decorations. I wanted to take advantage of the nice weather today, because they need to be down by Epiphany for good luck. (The woman who made up that superstition had a bunch of whiny children to get out of her hair while she took a well deserved post-holiday rest.) All of the inside decorations are also ready for the basement except for Lloyd's Santas that stay all year round and the Christmas tree. Lloyd says he wants it to remain because it is such a cheerful thing; therefore, it is no longer a Christmas decoration.

Putting the decorations away is usually an easy thing for me. Of course, there are alway pine needles that somehow make it to August by lurking in the pile of the rug, but most everything else can be folded and boxed in a couple of hours. If it takes longer than that, I say start pitching it.

The word of the day for January 3, 2008 is "superstition" — Pronunciation: \,sü-pər-'sti-shən\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English supersticion, from Anglo-French, from Latin superstition-, superstitio, from superstit-, superstes standing over (as witness or survivor), from super- + stare to stand — more at stand
Date: 13th century
1 a: a belief or practice resulting from ignorance, fear of the unknown, trust in magic or chance, or a false conception of causation. b: an irrational abject attitude of mind toward the supernatural, nature, or God resulting from superstition. 2: a notion maintained despite evidence to the contrary.

Our quote for the day is from Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe (1749–1832), German poet, dramatist. Wilhelm Meister’s Travels, Reflections in the Spirit of the Travellers (1829):

Superstition belongs to the essence of mankind and takes refuge, when one thinks one has suppressed it completely, in the strangest nooks and crannies; once it is safely ensconced there, it suddenly reappears.

;^)

SOMNOLENCE

2009-01-02T12:14:00.005-06:00

A quiet New Year's Day—not that I expected anything else. We went to bed around eight on New Year's Eve and woke up about five-thirty New Year's morning. If anyone set off fireworks or firearms during the night, I did not hear them.

As I had spent most of New Year's Eve getting everything cleaned up for the new year—an old superstition, if you will—most of Thursday morning was spent watching the Rose Bowl Parade with Lloyd. That's the first time I've done that in years. It's the first time he's done that in years. Of course, I had a book in one hand: the usual way that I watch television.

Lloyd has never come to grips with me being able to do other things while I read. Once a long time ago, we were in bed watching tv. I had my head on his shoulder, reading. To tease me, he bent his arm so that it lay across my eyes. I said nothing, as I could see the book perfectly well underneath his arm. When I came to the end of the paragraph, I turned the page. He almost freaked out as he was expecting a quite different reaction.

This New Year's we had roast pork tenderloin, left over from Christmas; black-eyed peas, for good luck; corn bread and spinach for dinner. It was delicious if I do say it myself. I hope you all had a quiet holiday and wish you all good things for the coming year.

Our word of the day for January 2, 2009 is "somnolence" — Pronunciation: \'säm-nə-lən(t)s\
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
: the quality or state of being drowsy : sleepiness.

Our quote for the day is from Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862), U.S. philosopher, author, naturalist. Walden (1854), in The Writings of Henry David Thoreau, vol. 2, p. 99, Houghton Mifflin (1906):

The morning, which is the most memorable season of the day, is the awakening hour. Then there is least somnolence in us; and for an hour, at least, some part of us awakes which slumbers all the rest of the day and night.

;^)

ANNUAL

2008-12-31T08:07:00.006-06:00

Happy New Year's Eve.

This is Lloyd's and my wedding anniversary. We had what you might call a whirlwind courtship. When he was pointed out to me by a mutual acquaintance, a voice in my head said, "You're going to marry that man." So, when he proposed to me—not eight hours later—I said yes. That was just before Christmas, and our wedding was barely two weeks later on New Year's Eve.

We've been married forty-two years now. We have raised two only children: our daughter was born nearly fourteen years after our son. Both of us are cancer survivors. Both of us have been able to find work when we needed it, and Lloyd was able to retire in 1996 at the age of 66. God has been good to us.

Sometimes people ask how we have been able to stay married so long. A determination to work things out between us is a key. Humor is another. If either of us were incapable of laughing at ourselves and the situations in which we have been, this marriage would have been on the rocks many times. Another point in our favor was that both sets of parents showed us in many ways that they loved and respected our choice of partner. (I always said that were I to run away from home, I would run to his mom as mine would just send me back.) We stayed away from those relatives who disparaged our relationship.

When we were first married, Lloyd worked for an aircraft field service team that contracted to repair, replace and retrofit airplane parts. His job has taken us from border to border, coast to coast and even to Puerto Rico. We have seen so many wonderful places and met many wonderful people.

We settled in Wichita in part because of the job market here, and also because Tim had attended eight different schools in two years. It was time to settle in one place. Even after we established our home here, we have been able to travel to see relatives and to just see the country. And we have been able to continue the courtship long after the wedding.

Our word of the day for December 31, 2008 is "annual" — Pronunciation: \'an-yə(-wə)l, -yü-əl\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French & Late Latin; Anglo-French annuel, from Late Latin annualis, blend of Latin annuus yearly (from annus year) and Latin annalis yearly (from annus year); probably akin to Gothic athnam (dative plural) years, Sanskrit atati he walks, goes
Date: 14th century
1 : covering the period of a year [annual rainfall]. 2 : occurring or happening every year or once a year : yearly [an annual reunion]. 3 : completing the life cycle in one growing season or single year [annual plants].

Our quote for the day is from Wallace Stevens (1879–1955), U.S. poet. Journal entry, March 4, 1906. Souvenirs and Prophecies: the Young Wallace Stevens, ch. 8, ed. Holly Stevens (1977):

Poor, dear, silly Spring, preparing her annual surprise!

:^)

BIBLIOPHILE

2008-12-29T19:00:00.005-06:00

My sister invited me to join LibraryThing the other day. This is a site to inventory your library, or just list all the books you've read. There are chat rooms and billboards and that sort of socialization for librarians and others who work with or just plain love books and reading.

One of the easier ways to enter data for LibraryThing is something called a Cuecat, aka a barcode reader. Way back in the mid-ninties, Radio Shack was handing out these clever little critters (they are shaped like a stylized cat) left, right and center. The idea was that you could read the barcode on a product and get information above and beyond what was on the lable. Well, I never was able to find anything that had info out on the web. I really think the reason for their existence was to allow advertisers to develop a database of people who bought whatever objects and target them for further advertising. They are a lot more subtle about collecting their data now.

Anyway, I thought, that's just the ticket. I don't want to have to type in a kazillionty-three ISBN numbers (which is what the barcodes translate to) to populate my portion of the site. So, I did an exhaustive search, mostly moving piles of books and computer literature into other piles, until I found my Cuecat. Calloo, Callay, O frabjous day! HOWEVER, my Cuecat is ancient in technological terms: not a USB device. Either I find a converter, or I'll have to bite the bullet and acquire a new one. Maybe there will be more on this.

The word of the day for December 29, 2008 is "bibliophile" — Pronunciation: \ˈbi-blē-ə-ˌfī(-ə)l\
Function: noun
Etymology: French, from bibli- + -phile
Date: 1824
: a lover of books especially for qualities of format ; also : a book collector.

Our quote for today is from Pablo Neruda (1904–1973), Chilean poet. Memoirs, ch. 11 (1974, trans. 1977):

A bibliophile of little means is likely to suffer often. Books don’t slip from his hands but fly past him through the air, high as birds, high as prices.

;^)

METEOROLOGY

2008-12-27T08:29:00.005-06:00

It is amazing. Yesterday we had a cloudy, but warm, day. It was 54F. at 8:00am and 65F. at 8:00pm. This morning it is only 30F. with a projected high of 35F. and a winter storm advisory. Time to batten the hatches, I think. I do need to run out for a prescription refill, which I will do as soon as I finish this and put the kitchen dishes in the sink.

This sort of weather is typical of South Central Kansas: balmy one day, frigid the next and warm again a couple of days later. We don't normally get much snow, but ICE...

I use the word typical advisedly. When we moved to Kansas 35 years ago, people who mentioned the weather always would say, no matter what the weather was: "But that's not normal for this time of year." People are still saying this; ergo, there is no normal weather in SCKansas.

One meteorological phenomenon that is constant is the wind. Indeed, Kansas is named for a Native American tribe whose collective name translates as "People of the South Wind." I sometimes joke that there are only three days a year without at least a 10mph wind, and those days we get our own smog instead of Oklahoma City's.

The word of the day for December 27, 2008 is "meteorology" — Pronunciation: \ˌmē-tē-ə-ˈrä-lə-jē\
Function: noun
Etymology: French or Greek; French météorologie, from Middle French, from Greek meteōrologia, from meteōron + -logia -logy
Date: 1620
1 : a science that deals with the atmosphere and its phenomena and especially with weather and weather forecasting. 2 : the atmospheric phenomena and weather of a region.

Our quote for the day is from Adrienne Rich (b. 1929), U.S. poet. "Storm Warnings" (l. 12–14). Norton Introduction to Poetry, The. J. Paul Hunter, ed. (3d ed., 1986) W. W. Norton & Company:

Weather abroad
and weather in the heart alike come on
Regardless of prediction.

;^)

FRUCTOSE

2008-12-25T08:42:00.007-06:00

e Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Glad Yule, Seasons Greetings, etc. to all. e

While cutting up an orange this morning to make orange/banana salad—which my sister informs me no one in our family likes but me—I was thinking about Witchie-poo's song, "There Ain't No Rhyme for Oranges". This happens to be true: one of the few words in English that doesn't even have a good assonance. Possibly a case could be made for larynges, but I don't even want to go there.

Anyway, I had plenty of fruit in my breakfast this morning. Lloyd got half my orange with his egg and bacon on toast, but I had the breakfast salad plus raisins in my rice. Nummy!

Lloyd, Speedy and I opened our presents before breakfast. Lloyd got a calendar with photos of San Francisco—he already is enjoying his main present: an LCD television. I got a weather machine that will pull in the MSN prognostications so I don't have to turn Lloyd's tv on to see what the weather will be. Speedy got a t-shirt that says "I still live with my parents" and a dark blue sweater that looks really nice on him. My sister gave Corky another gorgeous Santa for his collection. She gave me a huge gryphon for my collection.

Speedy also got several toys and chew bones. He doesn't know which one to play with first. I have already put a few of them back for later.

Here's hoping that everyone out there gets, if not what they want, more than they deserve. And may all of my readers have a merry and happy and safe Christmas. If you are traveling may you arrive and return safely.

Our word of the day for December 25, 2008 is "fructose" — Pronunciation: \'frək-,tōs, 'frük-, 'fru̇k-, -,tōz\
Function: noun
Etymology:
International Scientific Vocabulary fruct- (from Latin fructus fruit) + 2-ose
Date: circa 1864
1 : a crystalline sugar C6H12O6 sweeter and more soluble than glucose. 2 : the very sweet levorotatory d-form of fructose that occurs especially in fruit juices and honey —called also fruit sugar levulose

Our quote for the day is from Tertullian (c. 150–230), Roman church father. Apologeticus, IX.8:

The entire fruit is already present in the seed.

0<\\\\\\\\\\\\\];^)

STRAYED

2008-12-23T18:19:00.004-06:00

My sister came to visit Sunday. She didn't stay overnight for several reasons. One was the extremely windy Sunday weather prediction for her area coupled with an early Monday morning trash pickup. For some reason having her mailbox blow off the post the week before has left her leery of putting an unattended trashcart on the curb all day in a high wind.

While she was here she showed us her gazumptillion photos of the Great Barrier Reef and Ullaru. I am quite willing to look at these as long as they are in conjunction (as these were) with photos of our cousin Kathy and her family, most of whom we hadn't met as they moved to Australia about 30 some years ago. Kathy's husband was the head of the mathematics department at the school where he taught until his retirement this past year.

On a side note, I had meant to take some photos of my sister's visit, but I mislaid my camera. Before going to work Tuesday, I had noticed that I needed to charge up the battery. I remember telling myself that I would do that when I got home. However the camera was not in sight when I came home that evening, and I forgot about it until Thursday afternoon. Then it worried me that I could not find it. I looked for it on and off this past week, but didn't find it until this morning. For some reason, it was atop the rosewood display case in the living room. I don't remember putting it there. I'm convinced that the Ephemeral Snatcher, a monster out of my daughter's role-playing games, is living in my house—moving things into an alternate dimension and dropping them back in at whim.

The word of the day for December 23, 2008 is "strayed" — Function: intransitive verb
Etymology: Middle English straien, from Anglo-French estraier, from Vulgar Latin *extravagare, from Latin extra- outside + vagari to wander — more at extra-
Date: 14th century
: wander : as a: to wander from company, restraint, or proper limits. b: to roam about without fixed direction or purpose. c: to move in a winding course : meander. d: to move without conscious or intentional effort [eyes straying absently around the room]. e: to become distracted from an argument or train of thought [strayed from the point]. f: to wander accidentally from a fixed or chosen route. g: err , sin.

Our quote for the day is from Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862), U.S. philosopher, author, naturalist. “Wild Apples” (1862), in The Writings of Henry David Thoreau, vol. 5, pp. 301-303, Houghton Mifflin (1906:

Nevertheless, our wild apple is wild only like myself, perchance, who belong not to the aboriginal race here, but have strayed into the woods from the cultivated stock. Wilder still, as I have said, there grows elsewhere in this country a native and aboriginal crab-apple, Malus coronaria, “whose nature has not yet been modified by cultivation.”... But though these are indigenous, like the Indians, I doubt whether they are any hardier than those backwoodsmen among the apple trees, which, though descended from cultivated stocks, plant themselves in distant fields and forests, where the soil is favorable to them. I know of no trees which have more difficulties to contend with, and which more sturdily resist their foes. These are the ones whose story we have to tell.

;^)

ATTRITION

2008-12-21T09:56:00.004-06:00

Since Dan blessed us with his family's foray into gingerbread architecture, Claudia has explained her tree-trimming and Monae describe her trip to the mall (brave girl), I decide to write about our decorations that didn't make it upstairs this Christmas.

Lloyd has a collection of Santas that has expanded to more than 30 since the initial gift circa 1990. As some of them are on permanent display in our living room (see December , 2008). I brought up a couple of hand-sized Santas that were in the tub with the Christmas tree. However, I didn't bring up the dancing Santa (synching to Elvis's "Jingle Bell Rock") or the one my sister gave him that is about the size of a three-year-old.

Also, I did not bring up the glass-brick, hurricane-chimneyed, red and green decorated thing that my dad picked up at a garage sale one year. Since I put the old artificial scotch pine and most of the trimmings in a garage sale about four years ago, I didn't bring up the remaining boxes of glass balls, nor the "glass and gold" ornaments shaped like angels, deer and musical instruments. The tiny Italian made wooden pixies and toy ornaments stayed behind, as well, with the felt tree skirt my mother made us when we were first married and the Christmas stockings, ditto. The Chrisamons are all still in tissue in their own box.

This year, since Lloyd wasn't watching while I decorated outside, I did bring up all the light strings, but any that were missing plugs (due to terrorist squirrels) or wouldn't light for whatever reason went in the trash. I suppose I should have given them to Goodwill for someone to change out the defective bulbs, but I didn't think about it until after the trash pickup had already happened. Maybe I should take all those unused baubles to Goodwill and get my basement storage back.

The word of the day for December 20, 2008 is "attrition" — Pronunciation: \ə-ˈtri-shən, a-\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English attricioun, from Medieval Latin attrition-, attritio, from Latin attrition-, attritio, from atterere to rub against, from ad- + terere to rub — more at throw
Date: 14th century
1: sorrow for one's sins that arises from a motive other than that of the love of God. 2: the act of rubbing together : friction ; also : the act of wearing or grinding down by friction. 3: the act of weakening or exhausting by constant harassment, abuse, or attack [a war of attrition]. 4: a reduction in numbers usually as a result of resignation, retirement, or death [a company with a high rate of attrition].

Our quote for the day is from Helen Hayes (1900–1993), U.S. actor. On Reflection, An Autobiography, ch. 12, Evans (1968):

Marriage is like a war. There are moments of chivalry and gallantry that attend the victorious advances and strategic retreats, the birth or death of children, the momentary conquest of loneliness, the sacrifice that ennobles him who makes it. But mostly there are the long dull sieges, the waiting, the terror and boredom. Women understand this better than men; they are better able to survive attrition.

o<\\\\\\\;^)

SNOW

2008-12-20T08:22:00.004-06:00

My sister just sent me this e-card which has been on the net since 2002—thank you, Joshua Held (animation) and the Drifters (Bill Pinkney, lead bass and Clyde McPhatter, tenor)—but it has got to be my all time favorite, as first one then the other of my relatives sends it every year. Check out Santa's knee action.

Santa and Reindeer

Hope you all enjoy the show and have a merry and a happy.

Our word of the day for December 20, 2008 is "snow" — Pronunciation: \ˈsnō\
Function: noun
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English snāw; akin to Old High German snēo snow, Latin niv-, nix, Greek nipha (accusative)
Date: before 12th century
1 a: precipitation in the form of small white ice crystals formed directly from the water vapor of the air at a temperature of less than 32°F (0°C). b (1): a descent or shower of snow crystals, (2): a mass of fallen snow crystals. 2: something resembling snow: as a: a dessert made of stiffly beaten whites of eggs, sugar, and fruit pulp [apple snow]. b: a usually white crystalline substance that condenses from a fluid phase as snow does [ammonia snow].

Our quote for the day is from Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822), British poet. "Rarely, Rarely, Comest Thou" (l. 31–36):

I love snow, and all the forms
Of the radiant frost;
I love waves, and winds and storms,
Everything almost
Which is Nature’s, and may be
Untainted by man’s misery.

o<\\\\\\\;^)

-

SALUTATION

2008-12-17T07:55:00.004-06:00

Since I always buy a gazillion cards because someone always sends me a card after those on my list have already gotten theirs, I thought I'd "send" ours out to everyone here for whom I have no land address. I like to get my cards from Current as they always have such lovely choices. It's probably too late to get anything personalized in time for Christmas, but shipping options make delivery possible even when buying right up to 12/19/08 midnight. If you need something after that you'll have to brave the mall, or like Erma Bombeck, hit the hardware store.

All the big items have been bought and most of them shipped. I always liked each child to get a book, a toy, a piece of clothing and something to eat. For years, I gave my son socks and underwear in his Christmas stocking. He finally complained that he had more than enough socks. Nowadays he probably could have resold them on E-bay. Anyway, the next year, instead of the six-pack, I got him one pair of argyle socks. Every year since then I have bought him some outrageously patterned socks. (Except I don't remember sending him any this year. I'll have to wait until after Christmas to be certain.) One year, he put them on as soon as they were unwrapped. He ended up with tye-dye legs because the color bled onto his skin.

The word for the day December 17, 2008 is "salutation" — Pronunciation: \,sal-yə-'tā-shən\
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
1 a: an expression of greeting, goodwill, or courtesy by word, gesture, or ceremony. b plural : regards. 2: the word or phrase of greeting (as Gentlemen or Dear Sir or Madam) that conventionally comes immediately before the body of a letter.

Our quote for the day is from Author unknown. From the Sanskrit, “The Salutation of the Dawn.”—Masterpieces of Religious Verse, ed. James Dalton Morrison, p. 301 (1948). Attributed in some sources to Klidsa, Hindu dramatist and lyric poet of the fifth century, A.D:

Listen to the Exhortation of the Dawn!
Look to this Day!
For it is Life, the very Life of Life.
In its brief course lie all the
Verities and Realities of your Existence;
The Bliss of Growth,
The Glory of Action,
The Splendor of Beauty;
For Yesterday is but a Dream,
And To-morrow is only a Vision:
But To-day well lived makes
Every Yesterday a Dream of Happiness,
And every To-morrow a Vision of Hope.
Look well therefore to this Day!
Such is the Salutation of the Dawn!

o<\\\\\\\;^)

HIBERNATION

2008-12-16T05:15:00.004-06:00

"Be careful driving this morning, as there may be slick spots," my husband admonished me this morning as I rolled out of bed to get ready for work.

"I'll look out to see what things are like first thing," I answered. The photo below is the result. Last night, we were expecting flurries. Looks like it may be more like one to three inches now before the snow has finished.

The snow is still coming down as a sort of freezing mist. My favorite weather—NOT! Of course anything below 50F is not good weather. As I write it is 10F and likely not to get above 20F. However the wind has died down so no wind chill nor much drifting—we'll take the good with the bad.

Friday is my last day of work this year. The company is shutting the plant down until January 5. Plays havoc with vacation. Of course, I was not planning on taking a long vacation next summer, but it would be nice to have the days to take when I want to.

Oh, well, I still want to get up to the Kansas City area before Christmas. Or maybe my sister will feel like driving down for a day or two. We have a book to discuss.

The word of the day for December 16, 2008 is "hibernation" — Pronunciation: \'hī-bər-,nāt\ Function: intransitive verb
Inflected Form(s): hi·ber·nat·ed; hi·ber·nat·ing
Etymology: Latin hibernatus, past participle of hibernare to pass the winter, from hibernus of winter; akin to Latin hiems winter, Greek cheimōn
Date: circa 1802
1 : to pass the winter in a torpid or resting state. 2 : to be or become inactive or dormant.
— hi·ber·na·tion \,hī-bər-'nā-shən\ noun
— hi·ber·na·tor \'hī-bər-,nā-tər\ noun

Our quote for the day is from G.C. (Georg Christoph) Lichtenberg (1742–1799), German physicist, philosopher. “Notebook F,” aph. 44, Aphorisms (written 1765-1799), trans. by R.J. Hollingdale (1990):

The Greeks possessed a knowledge of human nature we seem hardly able to attain to without passing through the strengthening hibernation of a new barbarism.

o<\\\\;^)

-

BRACED

2008-12-14T09:06:00.001-06:00

All the presents wrapped: check. Crates of presents sent thither and yon: check. Decorations up, both in and out: check. Plans for Christmas Day in hand: ooops!

I had thought that Lloyd and I would run up to see our daughter yesterday. There is still a box intended for her and her husband, and some books to trade with my sister whose home is on the way. I don't want to have the box delivered as it includes a pair of glass candlesticks that once belonged to my paternal grandparents. These are not a Christmas present. They just didn't go home with Cyb last time she was here. It seemed logical, as they were already boxed up, to include them with the Christmas presents.

Claudia, Lloyd's elder daughter, is going to visit with her mother in Arkansas, thus will not be coming down for Christmas. She was here at Thanksgiving so her other relatives will be happy to see her this month. Tim, our son, is still in Oregon. He won't be back for Christmas. (He claims he's allergic to Kansas. I think he's allergic to Oklahoma from whence we get most of the dust and pollen.) Cyb's brother-in-law is to be back for Christmas, so she and her husband will be spending time with them. My sister went to Iowa for Thanksgiving, so we have invited her down for the day. However with the weather so unsettled this time of year, that probably won't happen either. I'm just going to put one of those Hormel tenderloins in the crockpot and whoever comes will get fed something. At least I don't intend to have Beanie-Weenies on toast as my parents did the first Christmas the three of us kids were out of the house.

In our Christmas cards this year, I sent an actual letter (gasp!) Going through my address list, I realized that a number of people only hear from us at Christmas time. Many of them had not heard of Lloyd's medical problems, nor that the company I work for had been sold. (I'm doing the same job with the usual suspects, just the logo on the shirts have changed.)

Yesterday a fellow who used to work with Lloyd answered my letter with a note of support. Also two dear friends—Betty, who used to cut Lloyd's hair, and her sister, Joyce, who makes the best sweet potato pies in the world—stopped by to chat for about a half-hour. As I hadn't seen either of them for some time we did quite a bit of catching up. I now also have their e-dresses and phone numbers in case of need. Such an uplift for any season.

Our word of the day for December 14, 2008 is "braced" Pronunciation: \ˈbrāst\
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): brace; braced; brac·ing
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French bracer to embrace, from brace
Date: 14th century
transitive verb 1 archaic : to fasten tightly : bind. 2 a: to prepare for use by making taut b: prepare , steel [brace yourself for the shock]. c: invigorate , freshen. 3: to turn (a sail yard) by means of a brace. 4 a: to furnish or support with a brace [heavily braced against the wind]. b: to make stronger : reinforce. 5: to put or plant firmly [braces his foot in the stirrup]. 6: to waylay especially with demands or questions.
intransitive verb 1: to take heart —used with up. 2: to get ready (as for an attack).

Our quote for the day is from Edwin Markham (1852–1940), U.S. poet. "Lincoln, the Man of the People" (l. 30–35) [Our Holidays in Poetry. Mildred P. Harrington and Josephine H. Thomas, comps. (1929) The H. W. Wilson Company]:

Sprung from the West,
He drank the valorous youth of a new world.
The strength of virgin forests braced his mind,
The hush of spacious prairies stilled his soul.
His words were oaks in acorns; and his thoughts
Were roots that firmly gript the granite truth.

o<\;^)

-

INVEIGLE

2008-12-11T09:12:00.006-06:00

My sister is ill. She has the "code'n d'node." Consequently she will not be coming to visit us this weekend. This means, of course, that I will have to find another box to send Christmas presents to the KC area. I was hoping to inveigle her into carrying the packages back with her and—as they are for my daughter's and my granddaughter's houses as well as my sister's—distributing them at the other end.

I suppose I could mail them all in one box. I do have one box that large. The question then would be who would be the recipient. I could send it to Erin as most of the presents will be going to her children, but she is so busy that I dislike begging her to interrupt her day to deliver the rest. Cyb would probably deliver the presents without much prodding, but she has never appreciated delayed gratification. I usually address their gifts to her husband as he can resist her wiles (Can't we open them now? No one would know. Please? Pretty please with strawberries?) I could send them to my sister but as I say, she is under the weather. Even though she will probably be well by the time the gifts get there, she doesn't need the hassle.

Alternatively, I could schlep the presents up to KC myself. If the weather weren't so chancy right now, I probably would. Maybe if the weather is nice the weekend after next, Lloyd and I will run up for the afternoon just to see everyone before Christmas Day. But I'll still send the presents now—JUST IN CASE.

The word of the day for December 11, 2008 is "inveigle" — Pronunciation: \in-'vā-gəl sometimes -'vē-\
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): in·vei·gled; in·vei·gling \-g(ə-)liŋ\
Etymology: Anglo-French enveegler, aveogler, avogler to blind, hoodwink, from avogle, enveugle blind, from Medieval Latin ab oculis, literally, lacking eyes
Date: 1539
1 : to win over by wiles : entice. 2 : to acquire by ingenuity or flattery : wangle [inveigled her way into a promotion].

Our quote for the day is from the Bible, Proverbs i. 10:

My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.

;^)

-

MODERATION

2008-12-10T07:36:00.005-06:00

I made it home yesterday noon. It had been snowing for several hours while I worked, but the wind was blowing pretty hard. The roads were becoming snow-packed. We got an inch and a half of snow. I know that doesn't sound like much to those of you who usually get feet of snow or whatever that is in metric. Also we in the Great Plains tend to measure snowfall horizontally as that is how it falls. Yet, once that first flake drops, the drivers around here forget what little courtesy and good sense they ever had. I suppose they think they can blame their bad driving on the weather.

The thing is that driving on ice and packed snow calls for reduced speed, gentle changes in acceleration, deceleration and direction. People who have four-wheel drive SUVs in countryside so flat they had to build a hill for the Soap Box Derby races do not understand the concept of subtle as it applies to driving. As I made my way home, I passed at least four cars in the ditch, two of them the 4WD SUVs. So I called my supervisor and told him I wouldn't be back until morning.

The cleaner came, as Tuesday is his day at our house, apologising for being late. He had had to detour around an epic accident. I hit him gently with the adages: Better late than never, Haste makes waste and Better safe than sorry. I finished wrapping presents for family while he worked, and I got all but a few of my Christmas cards addressed. I discussed moving the defunct (and extremely heavy) television out to the garage. He will do this as soon as the streets are clear again as his son will be coming out to help him. I may ask them to put the other extremely heavy tv in the living room on skid pads while they are at it. Then I can move that set away from the wall more easily when it's time to spring clean.

The word of the day for December 10, 2008 is "moderation" — Pronunciation: \,mä-də-'rāt\
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): mod·er·at·ed; mod·er·at·ing
Date: 15th century
transitive verb 1 : to lessen the intensity or extremeness of [the sun moderated the chill]. 2 : to preside over or act as chairman of.
intransitive verb 1 : to act as a moderator. 2 : to become less violent, severe, or intense [the wind began to moderate] .
— mod·er·a·tion \,mä-də-'rā-shən\ noun

Our quote for the day is from Euripides (480 or 485–406 B.C.), Medea. 636:
Moderation, the noblest gift of Heaven.

;^)

GRUMBLE

2008-12-09T10:11:00.003-06:00

This is just a rant, which you are allowed to skip until I'm feeling less sorry about the world in general.

Our plotters are down at work, and it is snowing sideways outside. This is not as much a non sequitur as it seems. I'm contemplating not coming back to work after lunch. It's usually a fifteen minute round trip, so my supervisor has given me blanket permission to use ETO (Earned Time Off: combined sick-leave and vacation) when the weather is bad.

I suppose that I could stay, work through lunch and take off early. Unfortunately, I've tried that. Lloyd won't eat and take his meds unless someone is there. I've even tried calling home in an attempt to get him to feed himself. He just waits until I get home and complains that I'm trying to starve him and the dog.

I suppose that, as this is cleaning day, I could stay here and call after the cleaner gets there at noon. He would be happy to nuke a hamburger for Lloyd and throw a handful of kibble into the dog's dish. Hmmm. I don't like to be home while the cleaner is there, anyway. Sort of a fifth wheel situation.

Hopefully, by lunchtime, the wind will die down a little and the roads will be reasonably dry. I'll come back to work to find the repair guy has fixed the plotters. There will be a new RFA (Request for Assistance) on my desk that I can do with my eyes closed. Jimmy the Cleaner will move the dead TV out to the garage workbench. I'll be able to bring my table back up-stairs. Life will stop being normal again. Santa will come to our house in the fullness of time.

The word for the day for December 9, 2008 is "grumble" — Pronunciation: \'grəm-bəl\
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): grum·bled; grum·bling \-b(ə-)liŋ\
Etymology: probably from Middle French grommeler, ultimately from Middle Dutch grommen; akin to Old High German grimm grim
Date: 1580
intransitive verb 1 : to mutter in discontent. 2 : growl , rumble transitive verb : to express with grumbling

Our quote for the day is from Monty Python’s Flying Circus. Mr. Frisbee III (Eric Idle), in Monty Python’s Life of Brian (film), written and conceived by John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin (1979):

Some things in life are bad.
They can really make you mad.
Other things just make you swear and curse.
When you’re chewing on life’s gristle
Don’t grumble, give a whistle,
And this’ll help turn things out for the best ...
And ... always look on the bright side of life.

;^)

PREPARATION

2008-12-07T16:14:00.005-06:00

This has been a busy weekend. I brought our fiber-optic Christmas tree up from the basement, but instead of putting it on an end table in the living room where Speedy would want to investigate, I decided to put it in the bedroom. We spend more time in there anyway. Unfortunately, the only place to put it where the dog won't get at it is on top of the highboy. As you can see, it is not a good fit. Still, I'm not going to move it. The lights are nice in the evening.

I put up the Santa face on the door and a lighted pine garland on the mirror. They were in the same plastic crate as the tree. Our Christmas guest towels and the Santa tea towel and pot holders were also in the box, so they are also on display.

I wrapped presents while doing laundry. Noticing that several items had been overlooked, I braved the crowds for reality shopping. So a couple/three presents still need wrapping. The Christmas card list was easy to update this year. Mail merge addressed most of the envelopes for cards: there's always someone whose address I need to track down. I'll have the majority of them ready for dropping off at the post office tomorrow.

The word of the day for December 7, 2008 is "preparation" — Pronunciation: \ˌpre-pə-ˈrā-shən\ Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English preparacion, from Middle French preparation, from Latin praeparation-, praeparatio, from praeparare to prepare
Date: 14th century
1: the action or process of making something ready for use or service or of getting ready for some occasion, test, or duty. 2: a state of being prepared : readiness. 3: a preparatory act or measure. 4: something that is prepared ; specifically : a medicinal substance made ready for use [a preparation for colds].

Our quote for the day is from Doris Lessing (b. 1919), British novelist. "The Chronicler", in The Marriages Between Zones Three, Four, and Five, p. 141, Knopf (1980):

This is certainly not the place for a discourse about what festivals are for. Discussions on this theme were plentiful during that phase of preparation and on the whole were fruitless. My experience is that discussion is fruitless. What sets forth and demonstrates is the sight of events in action, is living through these events and understanding them.

;^)

SIMULACRUM

2008-12-04T14:59:00.006-06:00

Finally I have a photo of Speedy's new friend, Pooter. This pup lives a couple of blocks from us, cater-corner from the park. For the past few months, if I took the camera, Pooter was inside. If I didn't take the camera, there he was. I was beginning to think either the dog or his owners had some mystical power to know when whether we had the camera or not.

Pooter is either pure-bred Jack Russell terrier, or is closer to the breed standard than Speedy anyway, as Speedy's left ear stands up, while both of Pooter's bend over. They look like they could be from the same litter.

Speedy does not like the coat that he is wearing. I think it has something to do with machismo. Yet the wind has been so fierce, I thought he might like to keep his hair tacked on. I was wrong. While he was playing with Pooter, Speedy managed to baptise my foot. He certainly didn't get a treat for that trick!

The word of the day for December 4, 2008 is "simulacrum" — Pronunciation: \,sim-yə-'la-krəm, -'lā-\
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural sim·u·la·cra \-krə\ also sim·u·la·crums
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin, from simulare
Date: 15th century
1 : image , representation [a reasonable simulacrum of reality — Martin Mayer]. 2 : an insubstantial form or semblance of something : trace.

Our quote for the day is from Alasdair Chalmers MacIntyre (b. 1929), British American philosopher. After Virtue, p. 2:

The hypothesis I wish to advance is that ... the language of morality is in ... grave disorder.... What we possess, if this is true, are the fragments of a conceptual scheme, parts of which now lack those contexts from which their significance derived. We possess indeed simulacra of morality, we continue to use many of the key expressions. But we have—very largely if not entirely—lost our comprehension, both theoretical and practical, of morality.

:^)

VISITATION

2008-11-29T13:21:00.006-06:00

Thanksgiving Day, Lloyd's elder daughter came with her son to visit us. She's the sort of guest to have: asks politely how she can help and knows where things are so she can do so. Her son is 33, but has developmental problems. Although his muscular abilities are poor, he gets around on his own and can dress, feed and toilet himself. However, he communicates with a limited number of signs and vocalizations. As little as that is, it is amazing to me what a wealth of expression that is. My amazement is multiplied when I remember that learned men told his mother that he would not live past the age of three, that he would never walk, that he has cerebral palsy, autism, whatever the diagnosis du jour is for what we used to call "spastic retardation".

We had a lovely time. She and I caught up with what is going on in one another's life. She had time to talk to Lloyd. We set up Lloyd's Christmas present—a new Sony LCD tv replacing his eighteen-year-old 36" Sony. I wanted to wait until Christmas Day to give it to him, but the old one went south last Monday. We spent all day Friday watching movies: The Spiderwick Chronicles, The Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Mad Money. I won't critique the movies. We had seen them all before, enjoying them enough to watch them again. It was all, "Pass the popcorn."

Claudia called just now to tell us that she was home, making what is, for us, a six-hour drive in just under four and a half hours. Of course, we stop—as my mother used to say—at every rest stop and tree. We stop at the rest areas to buy snacks and use the hygienic facilities. We get the dog out for a run. We take our time. She gets in the car and drives. She doesn't stop for stock or stone. She only stops for gas when the engine is sucking fumes.

The word of the day for November 29, 2008 is "visitation" — Pronunciation: \ˌvi-zə-ˈtā-shən\
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
1: an instance of visiting: as a: an official visit (as for inspection) b: [2]wake [3] c: temporary custody of a child granted to a noncustodial parent [visitation rights] 2 a: a special dispensation of divine favor or wrath. b: a severe trial : affliction. 3 capitalized : the visit of the Virgin Mary to Elizabeth recounted in Luke and celebrated July 2 by a Christian feast.

Our quote for the day is from John Milton (1608–1674), British poet. Paradise Lost (l. Bk. IX, l. 20–24):

If answerable style I can obtaine
Of my Celestial Patroness, who deignes
Her nightly visitation unimplor’d,
And dictates to me slumbring, or inspires
Easie my unpremeditated Verse:

;^)

TRADITION

2008-11-26T11:23:00.004-06:00

I spent yesterday putting Christmas lights on our spruce tree. The tree is now thirty years old. The first year in this house, we decided to have a live tree for Christmas. We bought a two foot tall, blue spruce. It was so cute sitting on the end table in front of the living room window. After we opened presents, the kid and I pulled off the decorations. During the football game half-time, Lloyd dug a hole in the yard and we planted that tree.

About two years later, the tree was about four feet tall, so I put a string of lights on it. The year after that, someone came by during the day while my husband and I were at work and stole the top third of the tree—and the lights, too. For the next years, we had a bush, but we put lights on it anyway. Eventually, one of the top branches turned up to form a leader. The tree is now approximately twenty-five feet tall. I can't reach the top, even standing on the top step of the ladder and using the long pole with a hook on the end.

For the past few years I've been saying no more decorations. Lloyd doesn't have the stamina for it anymore. The kids are gone. I don't decorate nearly as much inside the house. Still the neighbors say every year how much they enjoy seeing the lighted tree. So the lights are up once again, and I've added some commercial spiral trees to add some color between the spruce and the porch.

The word of the day for November 26, 2008 is "tradition" — Pronunciation: \trə-ˈdi-shən\ Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English tradicioun, from Middle French & Latin; Middle French tradicion, from Latin tradition-, traditio action of handing over, tradition — more at treason
Date: 14th century
1 a: an inherited, established, or customary pattern of thought, action, or behavior (as a religious practice or a social custom). b: a belief or story or a body of beliefs or stories relating to the past that are commonly accepted as historical though not verifiable. 2: the handing down of information, beliefs, and customs by word of mouth or by example from one generation to another without written instruction. 3: cultural continuity in social attitudes, customs, and institutions. 4: characteristic manner, method, or style [in the best liberal tradition].

Our quote of the day if from Gilbert Keith Chesterton (1874–1936), British author. “The Ethics of England,” ch. 4, Orthodoxy (1909):

Tradition means giving votes to the most obscure of all classes—our ancestors. It is the democracy of the dead. Tradition refuses to submit to the small and arrogant oligarchy of those who merely happen to be walking around.

;^)

PITEOUS

2008-11-23T11:09:00.003-06:00

I had one more load of laundry to finish this morning. In the process of running up and down stairs, bringing up clean, folded laundry to put away, I noticed Speedy standing at his dog door. He looked back over his shoulder with this really pleading face. "I have to go out, but nobody will open the flap for me."

"I'm on to you," I said. "You were running in and out of the house all yesterday afternoon. Just because it's cloudy outside today doesn't mean the flap won't open."

"Like I said, NOBODY will open the flap." and the eyes turned up the pathos of doghood to way past woeful.

Since my hands were empty at the moment, I pushed the flap until the magnets let loose. He put his nose under and went on out to find a squirrrel or cat to annoy. I went down for more laundry. Before I got back upstairs, I heard the clickety-click of his paws on the dining room floor. Probably won't be the last time for this performance, either.

After I got settled down to write, Speedy took his lookout position. He suddenly started barking like the mailman was outside. The doorbell rang, so I went to answer the door. The young couple who just moved into the neighborhood had a Jack Russell on a leash. They said he was a stray and wanted to know if he was ours. "We have a flight in a couple of hours," they said. "But we didn't want him to just be loose on the street."

"Nope, but there's a family down two blocks who have a Russell that looks similar to that. You might try there." I hope those are the dog's owners. Still, a Jack Russell gets a premium price at the Humane Society, so even if they turn him in, he'll probably have a good home within a week.

The word of the day for November 23, 2008 is "piteous" — Pronunciation: \ˈpi-tē-əs\
Function: adjective.
Date: 14th century.
: of a kind to move to pity or compassion
— pit·e·ous·ly adverb
— pit·e·ous·ness noun
Our quote for the day is from William Shakespeare (1564–1616), British dramatist, poet. Prospero, in The Tempest, act 1, sc. 2, l. 13-5:

Be collected.
No more amazement.
Tell your piteous heart
There’s no harm done.

;^)

MEANDER

2008-11-22T10:48:00.005-06:00

This is going to ramble a bit. I took Speedy for his walk this morning. It is very chilly out, but I had forgotten to put on my headband. My sinuses would now be blocked if I hadn't taken meds immediately on getting back. That'll teach me. Now I feel sleepy.

After we had been back in a while, I heard Speedy moaning and messing with the dog door flap. Usually that means he wants me to let him out. He has no problem getting in, but heretofore, he would wait until someone (me) came along to lift the flap. This morning, he decided not to wait. By the time I got to the kitchen, he was down by the fence; I left him to do as he pleased. After about fifteen minutes, he hit the doorflap and came flying in through the living room to jump on the couch and look out through the window. I don't know what that was all about, probably a squirrel that ran across the cable from the utility pole in back to either our spruce or on across the street. He has settled down now and has lain down on the sofa back with a big sigh.

I would like my niece to send me the URL for the post about the dog and the sweet potato, as it is really hilarious.

I tried to embed the video of the "Llama Song", which my sister sent to me as a remedy for earworm. The video portion is nearly as non-sensical as the song. Here's the address: http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/llama.

Hope you all have a good day.

The word of the day for November 22, 2008 is "meander" — Pronunciation: \mē-ˈan-dər\
Function: noun
Etymology: Latin maeander, from Greek maiandros, from Maiandros (now Menderes), river in Asia Minor
Date: 1576
1: a winding path or course ; especially : labyrinth. 2: a turn or winding of a stream.

Our quote for the day is from Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751–1816), School for Scandal. Act i. Sc. 1:

You shall see them on a beautiful quarto page, where a neat rivulet of text shall meander through a meadow of margin.

:>)

OBSCURELY

2008-11-16T09:37:00.005-06:00

Today I am indebted to Indigo (who has just received the Let Them Eat Cake award) for the quote for the day.

My son occasionally sends me the paragraphs that claim that people are able read, comprehend, take meaning from printed words that are garbled.That we really only need the initial and ending letter correct with the other letters in between in any order. [lkie tihs] He contends that spelling, punctuation and capital letters are irrelevant.

My contention is that correct spelling and proper grammar will garner more readers in the long run. He throws e.e. cummings in my face. I say, "Pooh!! Who reads e.e. cummings these days? Give me Robert Frost."

I would like to have my Eighth Grade Style Book back. I don't even know if they are in print anymore. However, I make do with the The Deluxe Transitive Vampire: A Handbook of Grammar for the Innocent, the Eager and the Doomed by Karen Elizabeth Gordon and Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss. Both are excellent grammars for those of us who want to be understood.

The word of the day for November 16, 2008 is "obscurely" — Pronunciation: \äb-ˈskyu̇r, əb-\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French oscur, obscur, from Latin obscurus
Date: 15th century
1 a: dark , dim. b: shrouded in or hidden by darkness. c: not clearly seen or easily distinguished. : faint [obscure markings]. 2: not readily understood or clearly expressed ; also : mysterious. 3: relatively unknown: as a: remote , secluded [an obscure village]. b: not prominent or famous [an obscure poet]. 4: constituting the unstressed vowel \\ə\\ or having unstressed \\ə\\ as its value.
— ob·scure·ly adverb

Our quote for the day is from Albert Camus:

Those who write clearly have readers, those who write obscurely have commentators.

;^)

VINDICATION

2008-11-15T12:42:00.003-06:00

Not that it has anything to do with today's WOTD — Happy birthday, Cathy.

A man from the Kansas Gas Service came out today to change out the meter. First he came inside to verify that everything that runs on gas was actually doing so. Then he had me shut off the furnace at the thermostat. He went outside to do the exchange. I went out to get photos.

Looks like this is a pretty old meter, he said.
I said, If they didn't change it out when it went dead 20 - 25 years ago, it's the original.
I'm having a bit of trouble getting the joints loose, so I'll just put a whole new unit on, pipes and all.

I left him to it. The wind is a tad brisk today with a wind chill of about 38 or 40 F. I on't envy his job at all. It only took him about 45 minutes to complete the job, after which, he came in to ensure all the pilot lights were lit and that nothing had been disconnected inadvertently.

It must have been nice having $12 bills these past months.
I'm on the "Even Pay" plan, so it has been more than $12 a month, and I am a bit ahead of them so far. Still, I agree that a nominal payment is better than the proverbial poke in the eye.
Well, then, that's all right and tight. They already want me to hurry to the next job. This is our busy season you know. Who would have thought it would get cold this time of year?

So our gas bills will be going up some. Perhaps that's worth having a working meter. Having a working meter is probably better than that estimate I was promised.

The word of the day for November 15, 2008 is "vindication" — Pronunciation: \ˌvin-də-ˈkā-shən\
Function: noun
Date: 1613
: an act of vindicating : the state of being vindicated ; specifically : justification against denial or censure : defense.

Our quote for the day is from Anna Julia Cooper (1859–1964), African American educator and feminist. A Voice from the South, part 1 (1892):

It is not the intelligent woman v. the ignorant woman; nor the white woman v. the black, the brown, and the red,—it is not even the cause of woman v. man. Nay, ‘tis woman’s strongest vindication for speaking that the world needs to hear her voice.

;^)

ESTIMATE

2008-11-10T14:32:00.007-06:00

I had to call the Kansas Natural Gas company the other day. We're on their "Even Pay" plan to help budget our money. Even so, at this time of year the payments usually go up when I turn on the furnace. So I scrutinized the bill and noticed that it showed no gas usage—at all. So I looked at last month's bill and the month before that—no usage—at all.

So, I talk with a person who calls herself "Tina."

"What's the deal here?" I ask.

Tina goes off-line for a few minutes while the computer pulls up our information. She comes back with,

"That's easy to explain. We noticed last December that your meter was dead, so we've just been using an average of the last three years to estimate this year's usage."
"You knew this last December?"
"Oh, yes, this sort of thing happens all the time."
Yes, I know. It happened at our house about 20 years ago and y'all fixed the meter within the month. When can we expect your crew out to fix the meter?"
"Well, I really have no idea. The schedule is all filled with new construction connections."
"Meanwhile, what happens next month when your meter will have been off for a whole year?"
"We have a formula that calculates your usage. It's really very accurate."
"You'll be hearing from me again."

I intend to call every week until they send someone out to fix the meter or until I talk to my furnace guy. Maybe I'll go all electric. Westar never lets their meters go dead.

The word for the day for November 10, 2008 is "estimate" — Pronunciation: \'es-tə-,māt\
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): es·ti·mat·ed; es·ti·mat·ing
Etymology: Latin aestimatus, past participle of aestimare to value, estimate
Date: circa 1532
1 archaic a: esteem. b: appraise. 2 a: to judge tentatively or approximately the value, worth, or significance of. b: to determine roughly the size, extent, or nature of. c: to produce a statement of the approximate cost of. 3: judge , conclude.

Our quote for today is from the Bible: New Testament, Luke 14:28:

For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it?

;^)

CATALOG

2008-11-08T15:05:00.004-06:00

We can certainly tell that the Christmas/gift-giving season is at hand. The poor mailman has been leaving from eight to twelve catalogs per day for the past month. This is up from four to six per day during the spring and summer. Apparently merchants think that if you buy one widget (because you needed that widget for a one-time operation) you need to buy three more widgets and all the widget related gear ever created. I don't think so. One year, I bought my daughter's roommate a bed for her cat. The next thing I know, I'm getting Drs. Foster and Smith, PetSmart, Petco, Petmeds and I don't know what else pet-oriented catalogs. Actually, these had tapered off, but now I've bought a few things for Speedy they've started up again.

I don't know why I need two catalogs per month per merchant after October 1st. If I work at it, I have most of my year-end gifts bought before then anyway. Catalogs after that get dumped as soon as I can strip my personal info and push the rest into the bin. Except for stocking stuffers, all that needs to be done now is wrapping and addressing. I'll stop at the Post Office before Thanksgiving to buy the holiday themed stamps and after to send boxed gifts and stamped cards. I expect a catalog from the Postal Service any day now.

The word of the day for November 8, 2008 is "catalog" — Pronuciation: \ˈka-tə-ˌlȯg, -ˌläg\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English cathaloge, cateloge, from Middle French catalogue, from Late Latin catalogus, from Greek katalogos, from katalegein to list, enumerate, from kata- + legein to gather, speak — more at legend
Date: 15th century
1: list , register. 2 a: a complete enumeration of items arranged systematically with descriptive details. b: a pamphlet or book that contains such a list. c: material in such a list.

Our quote for the day is (for all the librarians in my life) from Barbara Tuchman, Informal talk to library staff when 8,000 oak drawers were replaced with 800 black-bound dictionary catalogs:

For me, the card catalog has been a companion all my working life. To leave it is like leaving the house one was brought up in.

;^)