Looking Glass

I did not realize it has been this long since I have posted to my blog. I have been trying to keep busy outside of the house. Since my weekend of the "Scenery Change," I have done the following...purchased a basketball in order to have a purpose outside the house in getting exercise and sunshine, and have actually shot some hoops, (smile here), went to a Seattle Mariner baseball game with my good, guy friend, took him on that drive to see the amazing view of Mt. Rainier, have gone to dinner with the guy I met at poker night and played cribbage with him a few times, have been attending Toastmaster's meetings quite regularly, judged about three district Speech & Evaluation contests, went to a local town to hear a friend speak at a Toastmaster's presentation with one of my club members, then she & I took a long drive to my ole town to view some property of interest, to her. I cleaned out my filing cabinet & reorganized some paperwork, (still a work in progres...

I just signed up to be a volunteer with an area Habitat for Humanity Organization. I hope they call upon me to help with a project.

Well, I blew this joint this weekend. I headed on a two hour drive to my girlfriend's place, north of Seattle. She lives in a small community, of which I drove through farmland, with fewer animals lining the fences as I had seen on my jaunt. Nice location, though. She had a couple of other friends join us for wine, music and a meal. Very relaxing. So relaxing, I fell asleep before eight o'clock, after she put in a movie..."Julie-Julia", with Meryl Streep. This was not the movie's fault. I think the wine, a great meal of halibut and warmth, just put me in a vegetative state. I felt bad, and in the morning, my first words to her were, "I am sorry I wasn't a party in a jar." Don't ask me where that came from. I am usually bigger than a jar. A barrel at least. But it was nice to visit and get acquainted with some of her other friends. I met her 35 year old son for the first time, in the four I have known her. She just moved to this location in Februa...

I attended a funeral today of a great gentleman, from that old community where I lived for so long. I had known him for years, and he and his wife ended up being my clients for the last several years. His wife passed last August, ending their 62 + year marriage. Myself, and his caregivers, were concerned from the get go, about his health and willingness to maintain life without her. He did surprisingly well for several months, but the last two have been hard on him. I think depression played a role. He would have been 96 tomorrow. This was not your normal, old, retired guy. He retired from Boeing 26 years ago, and has been an active, overachieving community member, ever since. Heck, he was on the community center board with me in 2009 for a time, he was 93 or so then. Bless him for the notoriety he brought to multiple groups, organizations and the local chamber and our town as a whole. His volunteerism outshines anyone I can think of. So, on my hour drive to the church, I was thi...

In my part of the state today, it poured rain for a big percentage of the day. I have noticed more caregivers and clients getting restless and frustrated with the chilly weather and sogginess of it all. The gray skies seem endless, sometimes. It does make the attitude a bit down trodden. I had to do quite a bit of driving for my job today. I went to three new clients' homes and discussed the agency services with them. I do enjoy the people, they make the job valuable and interesting. My drive took me to a locale where I had been driving in the snow a month ago, the island 18 miles from my office. (I even posted about it on February 24th).  Last time, I had been one of a few vehicles driving on the snowy roads there. That day, it had been like trespassing in a pristine land, with the snow falling, the whiteness covering the roads, trees and underbrush. The crispness of snowfall enhanced the natural beauty of that island. Today, it was the opposite. The sky was gray and like an il...

In relation to my post; "All a Flurry" from 2/2011, I did meet one of my friends' guy friends last weekend. My co worker hosted a poker party, and invited me, as her guy, friend would be attending. It was fun. Simple change was the betting factor. I have accumulated a lot of change, and lost some of it there. I teased the other 8 people and said I was happy to contribute to their causes. I had a great time, laughing with new people. I went to a wine tasting venue at a local winery with the gent, to a nice dinner with him, then out with another friend to a birthday party and to a local dance club. Some kind of dance club! (He is bound and determined to open my envelope.) In reflection thinking of these minor, time passing events this weekend, I have mentally admitted to a life of small circumstances in measurement to some people. There are those who have had such adventures, such different lifestyles and merry go rounds of drama. My life has been very plain in comparison...

So, like many people on our planet, I am having some difficulty keeping a decent balance in my checkbook. I have used plastic for needed items more than I have in a long time. I am not talking of splurge items either. I am talking of food, gas and essentials. I have not had my nails done since last summer. It has been, since before Christmas, that I visited my favorite salon for a haircut and a bit of color highlights. I have not seen my counselor for almost three months. I purchased one pair of jeans and one top in November, on sale, of course.(The jeans were around $30 and the top was $19). I used a credit card around Christmas for some small items. I just discovered that my credit score is 10 points under qualifying for the same damn loan I qualified for, two months ago. The use of plastic has hurt me. (frown here.) My lovely drive to my potential new town turns out to be a bit of a bust...in some ways. I still learned of the area and saw an amazing view of Mt. Rainier. There are pe...