How to Keep the Economy from Declining

It’s simple, folks. Just spend a whole lot of money you don’t have…yet. And I should add here, that you must believe the money will be there when the bills come in. Got that? That’s very important.

Last week I ordered some adjustable, pull-out drawers for the lower portion of my kitchen cabinets. I hate getting on my hands and knees just to pull something out from the back of the bottom shelf. These shelves are not cheap.

Then I contracted to have the ductwork of my condo’s heating system cleaned. The complex is 27 years old and my furnace ductwork had NEVER been cleaned. More importantly, the circulating fan had never been cleaned. The ducts weren’t too bad, but the fan was caked with greasy dust…you know the kind…like over your stove exhaust hood if you don’t clean it often. Just imagine 27 years worth of that! The dryer vent was also done. Now, this vent has about 12 feet of flex hose and who knows when that was last cleaned. The fluffy crud that came out of that was disgusting! After seeing all the crap that had never been taken care of, I’m glad I spent the money. At least I know my air is clean and healthy, the furnace will operate more efficiently, and the dryer is not going to burn down the house!

And for my finale, I went shopping for a small freezer. Found one! As much as I hate Sears, they had exactly what I wanted at the right price. A 5.1 cu. ft. freezer is perfect to take the overload from the refrigerator freezer. It also accommodates the wire baskets I had. So now everything is neatly contained and I can open my ‘fridge freezer door without fear of being attacked! ☺

That was all last week. For the next month I’m leaving my wallet and credit cards at home if I have to leave the house. And when leaving the house, it would be nice if the weather was mild enough for me to take my bicycle instead of my car…that happens to be my plan for tomorrow if it doesn’t rain.

For the next month, whenever I get the urge to buy something, I will ask myself this question: Do I absolutely need it right now? If the answer is no…. ☺

This has nothing to do with the economy…
And, lastly, I took a ride down to the river, to that special place opposite the eagles’ nest. It didn’t look like the eagles are making their home there. Much of the nest was damaged in the late October snowstorm, but they had been rebuilding. The eggs should be laid by now and I should have been able to see the female in the nest (it’s pretty shallow this year) and the male should have been in a nearby tree. Nothing.

Left in the Dust

In this morning’s Hartford Courant, Robert Thorson (professor of geology at the University of Connecticut’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences) wrote about the old technology he grew up with, and still uses, and today’s technology that does the same thing only differently and faster.

He wrote about using an “old fashioned” transit to map a given parcel of land as opposed to his son, and his son’s generation, who can do the same thing with their wristwatch. Pretty amazing.

He acknowledged the precision of the wristwatch GPS along side his transit. He also acknowledges that today’s generation would probably never use his generation’s tools.

But what he said toward the end of his column really resonated with me, and I quote: “That’s when I learned I had become, at age 60, old. The spark struck me that my students would probably never use the tool I showed them. Rather, they saw it as an out-of-date curiosity akin to a vintage record player. Conversely, it struck me that I had no desire to use the new-fangled watch like my son’s. …We live in different worlds now. And I’m okay with that.”

At age 75 I find myself looking at today’s computer software capability, iphones and tablets with a sense of awe. My cell phone makes calls and takes calls. That’s it. Nothing else because that’s the way I want it. Since I am no longer in the desktop publishing business, I don’t need fancy software. And I’m okay with that.

Tablets, however, are another matter. I am sorely tempted! It sure would be nice to have a Nook or Kindle or iPad at my elbow as I read the newspaper or watch TV so I could search for additional information about “whatever.” One thing I will always be is “curious.” And it would be nice if I could satisfy that curiosity right then and there…not wait until I can get to my computer (by then I’d have forgotten what I was curious about ☺). And, just think, the instant I think of something I want to impart to family or friends…the ability to immediately send an email.

I don’t think I would be interested in reading a book or magazine on a tablet. I want to hold that book. I want to feel the paper between my fingers as I turn the pages. I want to put it in a bookcase, to be referenced at a later date if necessary.

Yes, I’m sorely tempted. Most electronic technology has passed me by…and I’m okay with that. But, damn, I sure would love to have one of those tablets! ☺

Who Do I Write For (or For Whom Do I Write)?

A poet friend sent around an email today asking this question. Following is my answer...which was pretty complete by the end of the third paragraph plus the last two. The rest of it was filler, explanation as it were. A lot of it echoed what I have already written in my last two posts about my end of year thoughts and my great, adventurous bike ride on the canal path. BUT, I'm posting my complete answer to Glyn...just because I wrote it and I love words...especially my own.JJJ

Glyn, that’s an interesting question and I’m glad you asked it at this moment in time. Following is probably a lot more than you ever cared to know. J

When I was writing, I wrote poetry for myself, and my memoirs for my children and grandchildren…much like you, wanting them to know, when I’m gone, just what it was that drove me.

Notice I wrote, “when I was writing?” I haven’t written a thing since the beginning of August 2011. There has been no inspiration or desire to write…anything. How do I feel about that? I have no problem with it, because I know that, if I am to continue writing anything in the future, my Muse will return and it will all be natural, not forced.

So what have I been doing? Let’s see: there was the wet, hot August culminating with Tropical Storm Irene, which caused minor flooding in my basement. Followed by Tropical Storm Lee, which caused minor-minor flooding in my basement. Picture me outside in the pouring rain, in a bathing suit, bailing out the window well at 5:30 in the morning…and the newspaper delivery guy shows up. So that takes care of floods.

In late September I took my usual vacation on Cape Cod. It continued to be monsoon-like and very warm. My new fireplace mantle and surround had been built and now it was my job to stain it. Since I had never done anything like this before, it was very stressful and scary. But I did it and I did a very good job!

October saw another vacation of sorts…five days in the Washington, D.C. area volunteering at the Next to New Sale at Sidwell Friends school. I work in the linens department until the sale begins…then I’m over in bicycles. It’s a lot of work, long days, but rewarding. I get to meet so many great people, both staff and customers.

Wasn’t home too many days from DC than our freak snowstorm hit and left the state of Connecticut out of power for as many as 10 days. I was fortunate to get power back after only 37 hours. My condo complex is on the same power line as the nursing homes up on the main drag or the sewer plant. Either way, I don’t care. Thirty-seven hours was long enough. Long enough for me to realize my next stove will be gas!

A week and a half after the snowstorm, when fallen trees and debris littered the landscape, I decided to ride my bike the 4.5 miles on the canal bike path just to see how bad it was. It was bad. I had to haul my bike over, under around and through some of the most incredible obstacles…at one point getting pinned among the branches by my bike, which was now up side down. Ah, but all is well that ends well. As I said in my end-of-year blog, “What doesn’t kill me only makes me look forward to another adventure!).”

And then it came to pass, the cooking bug bit me. I was thinking of making some tuna-noodle casserole, but, for some reason, did not want to use canned cream of mushroom soup. Well, then, I’ll make my own! Mushrooms just happened to be on sale so I went for it. I didn’t stop at cream of mushroom. I made cream of broccoli w/cheddar cheese (regular and gluten free), cream of asparagus (gluten free), home made spaghetti sauce (twice), and have added salads with my own newly created home-made salad dressing, and avocados to my diet.

In the meantime, I had my sewing machine cleaned and fixed. It hadn’t been used in almost 30 years, but I kept lugging it from domicile to domicile thinking some day I’d use it. I guess the day has come! I have plans to recover the seat of a bench I bought while on the Cape, as well as make a slip cover for a hassock that needs to be covered up. I have no idea how to do either of those projects, but I’ll figure it out.

Do you get the picture? Suddenly my creative self has chosen other methods of creativity. How long it will last, I have no idea.

Glyn, your suggestion of “becoming” something or someone else is the second time that theme has crossed my consciousness in the past week. Perhaps that is the direction in which I need to go in order to find my Muse. In the meantime, I’m letting my life flow to see what interesting place I might land on next. Aren’t you glad you asked? J