Gloating on a Snowy Day

I'm gloating. If you were here you would know it without me telling you. You would read the smug look on my face and ask "Why are you gloating?" Then I would point outside and you would say "So? It's snowing. Why are you gloating?"

Then I would try without success to take the humble approach as I explain that my Christmas lights are up.

You see, I am a procrastinator. I have good intentions but even though I could get something done ahead of time it doesn't happen until I have reached the countdown phase. I remember one year, when I was still working. The kids asked me if we were going to put up the Christmas tree before Christmas. I don't remember sarcasm. There was more a sense of panic in their voices. (I finally got the tree up about a week before The Day.)

Now that I am retired I always put our Christmas lights up outside on the weekend after Thanksgiving. Of course in Pennsylvania the weather can be nasty and cold. Which brings me to why I am gloating.

Two weeks ago the weather was mild and warm. Larry suggested we put the lights up since the weather would be nice. Much to his surprise, I was thinking the same thing. And then came the double suprise. I did it! I put the lights up two weeks early. When the weather was nice...and everyone else was busy cleaning out their garage, or taking a walk on a lovely day.

Today, when I would normally be stuck on the portico roof over the front door winding strands of lights around the railing I am inside. Gloating. It is snowing outside and my lights are done!

Thanksgiving Traditions

Thanksgiving. No matter how you say it, it is hard to change the meaning or the intent of the day. It is a special time. And in every family it is celebrated a little differently. Some opt for the best china and silver while others go for the buffet, paper plates and plastic ware. For most, it means a day with family even if it is just your spouse and kids.

When I was growing up our Thanksgiving celebration resembled the Saturday Evening Post cover with the family gathered around the table, dressed in their best clothes, dad carving the perfectly roasted turkey while we all watched. I assumed everyone celebrated it the same way. Then my brother-in-law joined the family. He came from a different background and was always amazed at the rituals of our celebrations. Our holidays were peppered with customs and conventions. “TRA-DI-TION!” he would declare playfully!

I like rituals and routines. They are a family’s way of making a special day really special. When we moved away my husband and I had to set up a few of our own routines for holidays. And without a lot of family nearby, we became much more relaxed about most holidays. But we still had our special Tra-di-tions!

 One custom has completely escaped me. Black Friday. I am not a big shopper and I’ve never wanted to head out for the big deal of the day. I did go one time, 30 years ago. A friend and I spent the day fighting crowds in the mall and we had fun! We got a couple of good deals. But I’ve never felt the need to do it again. But for those who love to stand in line and hit the stores at midnight, I say ‘Have at it’! I will be warm and snug in my bed in a tryptophan induced dream state.

This year the competition to open earlier than anyone else has hit a ridiculous level. I wonder if anyone is actually eating turkey anymore, or are they just grabbing a cheeseburger at Wendy’s while they hold their place in line? Is there a new tradition for family assignments? Whereas one person used to set the table, while another mashed the potatoes, perhaps now one holds the place in line while someone else runs to Dunkin’ Donuts for the hot chocolate and cream filled confections.

My only problem with all this is what about the employees of those retailers vying for the ‘first-to-open’ trophy? A paycheck is a wonderful thing, but so is a day with family. Even better is a day OFF work. The ‘consumer’ season is upon us and those employees are going to be working their weary heads off over the next four weeks.

Some employees are finally saying enough is enough. Many even picketed outside the store. Unfortunately, that still meant they had to give up part of their day that should rightfully be off. I recognize the necessity of some professions who take care of us. And I appreciate the sacrifice those people make. But for retailers the day of thanks has become the day of greed. Instead of giving thanks for, and rewarding good employees, they have found new ways to walk all over them and take advantage of their need for a paycheck.

I don’t worry about what the world is coming to. Times change. They always have. My kids don’t do things the way I did. I didn’t do things the way my mom did. She didn’t do things the way her mom did. That’s ok.

As inventions change the way we live, our lifestyles will change. I don’t worry about the world my kids will inherit. They will adapt and think little of it. All I can do is make sure my family knows and remembers the most important elements…the basic foundations that make their life a valuable and memorable experience. But I do hope that at some point businesses remember happy employees are a good thing, and something to be thankful for. Trust me. If the stores don’t open until 12:00am, Friday morning, the people will still come.

 

 

 

Deal's Orchard

While I was in Iowa, Janice and I took the kids to Deal's Orchard in Jefferson, Iowa. They had been there earlier in the fall when things were at their peak but when the kids had a day off from school we went again. It is a family run farm that mainly grows apples, but also pumpkins, corn and Christmas trees.

A few years ago, we went there and did the corn maze. Their corn maze is awesome. It covers several acres, and has a Question/Answer hunt hidden in it. It is designed with a theme in mind. This year it was about pumpkins. They give you a map with an aerial view of the maze. On the back are questions about pumpkins. The questions are actually designed to get you to explore all the maze to find the answers, not just run through it.

The maze was just about over this year. The corn was thinned, and trampled, but it was fun to go through it anyway.

The answer to "the largest pumpkin grown". Glad I didn't have to pick it!



Peeking through the stalks

Bundled up and having fun!

We made it!

After the maze, we headed for the kids area.

First of all there is a huge jumping pillow--similar concept to a bouncy house, but much bigger, and without walls. It is built right into the ground. The kids had a ball.

Then it was on to the Corn Box. I grew up with a sandbox, but this is really cool. It may not stack and pile as well as sand, but with all the toys in it, who cared? Samantha and Warren didn't. Great fun.

We tried the scooters...I wasn't sure I could stand back up after I got on and bent my knees to my chin, but I managed.

We raced ducks in the water trough using hand pumps to push the water through.

Warren tried out the tricycle track.

But the slide is one of the best. It is a huge tile or corrugated drainage hose built into a hillside. The braver ones would use sleding disks to sit on and go down, but Warren and Samantha just had fun sliding through the hose to the bottom and then climbing back up the hill.

There are goats to pet. Cats to make friends with. Pumpkins to buy. And a final jump on the pillow.
It was a great way to spend a day. Even one as chilly as that day.

Before I close, I have to add in one more photo. I was chastised after my Halloween post because I forgot to include a picture of that John Deere Tractor Costume. So here it is. Warren is already a charter member of the Future Farmers of America. This picture proves it!

Good Friends

Tonight, as I write this I look out my window at the darkness below. It makes me a little sad. Behind my house is a ravine and at the other edge of that ravine, below my house, is another house, identical to mine. Until today, Diane and Trip lived there. They have become special friends of mine.

Four years ago, Larry was working in the garage when he came in the house and called up to me to come meet someone. It was Diane. She was new to the neighborhood and was taking a walk. As she came to our house she saw Maggie outside. (Maggie has made me more friends than I can count!) She stopped and introduced herself to Larry and then came in to meet me.

We sat at the kitchen table for over an hour and a friendship was born. She finally realized she'd better head home since her husband, Trip, would be wondering where she was. Diane and I quickly discovered we had several things in common. Until recently she had a dog like Maggie, but she was forced to give him up because of her husband's health issues. We were both Empty Nesters. We lived in the same model home, (a 4 bedroom home, but with only 2 adults living there!) We were both Christians. Neither of us had children or grandkids living nearby. Both of us have moved a lot. She has moved 11 times; I have moved 8. We are both pretty independent.

Over the years we became good friends, but I think we became even better neighbors. There wasn't anything we wouldn't do for each other, at the drop of a hat. Give me a ride to the airport? Sure. Let the dog out? Of course. Trip was fighting a respiratory condition that was very serious. Eventually he got a lung transplant, but before that there were situations. One day she called me. She was out of town visiting a daughter. Trip had been suddenly admitted to the hospital the night before. Could I go to the house, pick up some essentials and take them to the hospital? I was glad to help out. Truthfully, when a friend calls you for little things like that, it is a privilege to be asked.

Diane and I were not 'soul mate' type friends. I love to read. She can't sit still long enough to get past page 1. She is in constant motion, working on 5 projects at a time (on a slow day). I have a hard time getting a room painted. Ah, yes. Painting.... There was the time Diane said 'are you STILL painting that room? You've been working on it all week!' Yes, I had been and yes, I still was. I am not the best painter and I couldn't seem to get all the spots adequately covered. Diane dropped what she was doing, showed up, and spent the afternoon finishing the detail work and fixing my mistakes. Room--Done! Diane liked doing things for people. She kept tabs on people who moved into her part of the neighborhood, provided meals for people she found through her church, invited neighbors to a casual dinner.

During the summer the trees in the ravine blocked my view of her house, but from November to May, I had a clear shot. I jokingly referred to my ability to spy on her. My kitchen and family room overlooked her house. "Oh, Trip just pulled in," I'd tell her as we chatted on the phone and I watched a car pull in the drive. "I didn't know you were gone this weekend," I would text her. "Your house is dark." She had a good view of my house, too. But mine was better. (I wonder if she has warned the new owners of their 'nosy neighbor'!)

Diane and I didn't hang out. We texted more than we talked. "In W. Va. be home in another hour"  "welcome back"... "going to Bunco?" "can't make it" "Sorry".... It was casual, but we kept in touch.

One text was not casual. Trip had gotten his lung transplant, only it was a surprise to me. The text woke me up early one morning. When Larry is on the road I sleep with my phone near me. I don't hear emails that come in overnight, but the text alert is distinctive. I grabbed the phone and read "Out of surgery. In recovery. all went well." Then I noticed the text I'd slept through, sent 5 hours earlier. "Lung available. going in now." WOW. I texted her back. "I didn't know he'd even been approved!!!" ..."He made the list 9 days ago." Double WOW. Today, as we said farewell it was so special to see Trip standing there, talking, making plans for the future, with no oxygen tank in sight.

Communication methods have changed. Sometimes it seems we have lost the fine art of conversation. But with a friend like this I don't think we have lost anything at all. We keep in touch. It may be small comments, rather than deep discussions, but the connection is there. And I will miss her.

There is a bright spot. For people like us, people who move a lot, there are a few friends that you hold onto. Diane has friends all over the country. Diane will stay on my list of friends, as well. The best part is she will be in Charlotte, NC. I drive through there a couple of times a year on my way to and from Florida. I have one friend in Fayetteville, NC, and one in Hilton Head, SC. I see them each year as I travel south. I now have 3 places to stop and stay on my way through. How lucky is that?

Good friends are rare. John Lennon's song "In My Life" speaks of how people come in and out of our lives. For people like us that move alot, we've had our share of friends. Some stay with you longer than others. I hope Diane is one that hangs around.