The Roomba Dance

Roomba and rumba are two different things. Rumba is a dance, but Roomba is a robotic vacuum cleaner that I have drooled over since it was first produced. Being able to flip a switch to make a robot clean the floor is intoxicating to me (my idea of living HIGH). The price was astronomical and is still too expensive for this miser. John saw the box on the shelf at Aldi’s supermarket and said we should try their knock-off. We knew from looking at the box that it was a dusting tool, not a vacuum. Still, I reasoned that having a gadget remove dust under tables and chairs would be a fun thing.

On a day when dog Sadie wasn’t here, I prepared to run it. That’s when the dance began – a dance with music from the kitchen speaker. There were many crumbs on the floor, so I whipped around with the dust buster to remove the big stuff. The dust buster didn’t work well, and I found it was clogged with Christmas tree needles and hair. Clearing that was a slow dance. I turned on the robot and set it loose. If you watch the video, note that two of the percussion sounds were produced by the robot as it hit legs of a table and chair. This was interactive cleaning at its best.

The idea behind the robot was brilliant. It moved in a straight line until it ran into something and changed directions. That’s when I began a really fast dance. To keep it from going into the living room, I jumped over it and stood in the doorway. It lumbered back toward the stools, and I jerked them out of the way. Oops! It got caught among the kitchen chairs, which I shuffled away. Its profile was so low that it went under the platform holding up the table. Great! Thinking ahead, I pulled up wires going to the lamp and chargers. I sprang in the doorway to the hall, guiding the robot back to the kitchen. Thankfully the robot cut itself off, not a minute too soon. It may have used up its charge, or a tiny pebble may have locked one wheel. My frenetic Roomba dance was over for the day. I found I have a limited amount of energy for this labor-saving device.

Decline Documented

I privately lamented the loss of my brain due to a bad cold. I searched for words and hit a blank wall. Mixed up dates were the new norm. I failed to put necessary items on the shopping list. I knew you by face/name, but I couldn’t remember when I last talked to you. Like the flaky taste buds, the brain seemed to work every other day. I played a game on my phone that I win 99% of the time, and I couldn’t get past the initial moves. Hours later I could win steadily. I wasn’t overly concerned until the sock incident. Now this post could be the first recording of Alzheimer’s disease for me, although I spelled that name correctly without help.

Yesterday I looked for a pair of socks I knew I had worn. They were not near shoes, not on the bed, not in the laundry basket, not in the bathroom, and not anywhere logical. My eyes happened to land on the wastebasket, filled with tissues. There, tucked carefully to one side, were my socks. I have thrown socks away when they were beyond redemption, but I remembered when and why. You might try to comfort me that it was the middle of the night, but I know my brain was AWOL. Away! Gone! Recording turned off!!

I am on high alert to notice these periods of blankness, and I’ll forgive my family for watching me closely.

Amusement While Walking (AWW)

Neighbor Beth wished us a Happy New Year from the open window of her car. It was unusually warm for a winter’s day. Five degrees warmer, and we would have eaten on the porch! The next person to pass said a pleasant good morning through his open window. We responded in kind. John, ever attentive to car tags (license plates), saw the orange color as the car rolled past and called out, “A NEW YORKER!”

The man heard him. Suddenly his head emerged from the window and turned around completely to face us. “IT’S A RENTAL!!!!” We erupted in laughter as the head disappeared and a hand came out to wave enthusiastically. We waved back, hoping to prove to all that it was a friendly interchange. [For anyone who doesn’t know, John was born in Brooklyn and raised in Queens. He lived most of his live on Long Island.]

When to Declare Yourself Cured

I discovered that declaring yourself free of a bad cold is not as easy as it sounds. What do you do with the lingering cough and constant need of tissues? Craving extra sleep at night AND a nap in the afternoon are not indicators that all is well. I couldn’t answer the question, “Why am I able to taste food only every other day?” Senses that come and go made no sense. Tasteless comments about food were becoming old.

I’m here to tell you that, after much home research, I now have the answer. Well, it works for me. The definitive test involves a vaporizing rub. Your brand might be Vick’s, but mine is a miser’s knockoff. Take the cap off, get your nose as close as possible without infecting the contents, and take a deep sniff. If you can smell it, you are good to go. I still cannot smell it; therefore, I am not cured. The active ingredients are Camphor, Eucalyptus Oil, and Menthol. If you cannot register any of those odoriferous ingredients, you should not be mingling with other human beings. Unfortunately, my family is stuck with me, and they have nowhere else to go.

Before I discovered this over-the-cold test, I went out with John and grandson David, hunting a waterfall. We drove to the other side of Asheville to Old Fort to see Catawba Falls. The parking lot was upgraded only a year or so ago, and the trail is now open to the public. The walk was easy until we came to a major stream across the path. People were taking two routes – one involved a huge step and scooting on one’s bum across a slanted boulder before walking on fallen trees. The other route involved good balance, where you needed to leap nimbly across rounded stones that were not very close together. John told David to go on, that he would stay with me while David explored. Despite being there for a long time, I took only one photo to show my watery stopping place. The trail shows in the upper part of the picture. The logs people walked on are on the right, and the leaping stones are across the middle. Just on the other side of those stones was a cascade where the water fell several feet. On a summer day one might risk stepping in water up to the ankle, but I deemed it too cold to risk having wet feet for an hour or so.

I picked one photo to keep from David’s collection showing Catawba Falls. It was lovely, and I’m sure it had a wonderful sound in person. I’m content with having heard a video of it on line.

Being not cured of a cold, I overrode David’s request to go to a German restaurant in Black Mountain. I wouldn’t have been able to taste the food. We went to “FRESH – Wood-fired Pizza” that son John $pencer and Rose took me to for a birthday present. With the generous help of red pepper flakes, I was guaranteed to taste the pizza. Now back to serious, recuperative naps.

Well Enough to Write about It

Due to one horrendous head cold, the new year did not start for me until Epiphany (January 6). It all began with a bit of chest congestion, resulting in discrete coughs at the New Year’s Eve party. It fooled nobody.

My head filled up with fluid, which I do not have to describe. You’ve all been there. Eyeballs seemed twice their usual size and squeezed out tears that ran down my face. That pressure, of course, caused the brain to go totally stupid for days on end. The periods of waking were scattered throughout daylight and darkness. Explosive sneezes, properly focused, could have tunneled through a North Carolina mountain. Amplified coughs would have made an excellent fog horn on the coast. My lungs produced sounds like an out-of-tune calliope. I could have played a very sad tune with them.

John was smart. (Say in a posh English accent), “He went to his club for the duration.” The train club in Tennessee was already on the calendar, but he was fortunate to miss the worst of my debilitation.

There was measurable progress when I moved the tissue box from my lap and would venture five feet away from it. The brain was what I missed most. It finally went from the speed of stupid to merely “slow”. When I considered myself almost well, I lost cream cheese I took out of the refrigerator. I left Greek yogurt in the laundry room, rescued by John.

Grandson David did what he could to help, but he was working most of the time. It was son John $pencer who took care of me and kept the household running during the worst of this monster cold. He cooked for himself and David, and he kept the kitchen clean. Marvelous! I have only one photo to show for it. $ made himself and me a breakfast burrito that was hearty, attractive, and good for us. He knew I couldn’t taste it at all, but it did clear my sinuses for a while!

I lost a week, but that’s not all I lost! I now weigh less than at the beginning of Fat Season (Thanksgiving through January 1). Don’t get excited; it was ounces, not pounds. Considering I usually gain five pounds in that period, I’m way (weigh) ahead of the game this year.

The day I figured I would survive, I saw a lovely bow in the sky. There was neither rain nor snow where I was standing, but the sun shone on clouds to make a rainbow or snowbow.

Sweet Moment of 2019

Our dear neighbors came to see in the new year with us. We enjoy the easy conversation and teasing when this group gets together. I laughed when I looked at the quick snaps. Although the photographic quality was poor, I could mentally draw a line through the room separating the men and women. Everyone joined in, so that arbitrary line did not separate us.

This was the first year that neighbor Logan (9) stayed up until midnight with us. He was absorbed in his new tablet and seemed to delight in sharing it with grandson David. We appreciated David’s spending a great deal of time with him. The camera caught a sweet moment to end the year.

A Christmas Thought

I’ve heard the Gospel accounts of the birth of Jesus all my life. Amazingly, almost every year something shines out of the story to catch my attention. This year I thought of how God called two groups to see his son. The rich and the poor had special invitations for a birthday shower. The poor group of shepherds were terrified of the heavenly host, but they immediately went to Bethlehem to see the baby the night he was born. I’m assuming the Persian kings were rich enough to be globe-trotters of the day, and God got their attention with a celestial incident. My conclusion: God wanted everyone to know of his extraordinary act to rescue mankind. Both Jews (shepherds) and Gentiles (the magi) received notice.

What gifts did they bring to the party? Most people know the wise men brought gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The shepherds gave their hearts – they left the stable, glorifying and praising God, telling everyone they met what had happened.

God’s message remains the same. He’s dying to let us know that he loves each of us with an everlasting love.

John sent me this link to the King’s College Choir singing In the Bleak Midwinter. https://www.bing.com/search?q=youtube+in+the+bleak+midwinter&form=EDNTHT&mkt=en-us &httpsmsn=1&msnews=1&rec_search=1&plvar=0&refig=e4bc064a355a47bf8d8dda da745eebc7&PC=DCTS&sp=1&qs=SC&pq=youtube-in+the+bleak+mid+winter&sk=PR ES1&sc=8-31&cvid=e4bc064a355a47bf8d8ddada745eebc7&cc=US&setlang=en-US

Hiking from the Hostel

Rose and dog Sadie left in the morning for a Christmas visit with her family. By late afternoon we were in hostel mode. Son John $pencer bunked in with grandson David to give his room to Bob, a hiking friend of long standing. We had a leisurely breakfast before driving the two to Cataloochee to hike. Even though it was not prime grazing time, we saw a herd of elk resting in the valley.

I zoomed in to get this. The elk were across a large meadow.

The fellows let me take their picture after they strapped on their backpacks. They planned to hike back to a peak we can see from our living room window. It isn’t right in our back yard, but it is pretty close.

Bob and John ready to hike for a couple of days

Picturing Love

We went to the midnight service on Christmas Eve and the one on Christmas morning. If I had photos to share, they would show ordinary people gathered to worship God. We are common people loved by our extraordinary God. Sharing faith draws us together to love each other. What a celebration we have every year, because God sent his son to become one of us!

I hope our love shines through photos taken at home, beginning with Sadie, who had an immediate attachment to her new chew toy.

John and grandson David handed out gifts from under the tree. This was the best photo of the tree this year. Decorating the tree was a labor of love, one that I always leave entirely to John.

Son John $pencer held Sadie as Rose put treats in the dog’s main Christmas gift. That kept Sadie busy for the rest of the morning.

Family and neighbor friends watched the flaming of the Christmas pudding, a show we always enjoy. Our neighbors are very special, and we were blessed that half of our favorites could be with us. The others had family activities elsewhere.

John, Dawn, Jeff, and Connie watching the flame. Pumpkin roll waits patiently.

For the foodies: We had baked Brie with crackers, spinach dip with chips, a casserole of chicken and stuffing, frozen cranberry salad, glazed carrots, broccoli with Hollandaise sauce, homemade rolls (not tasty at all) Jell-o cottage cheese salad, Connie’s delicious pumpkin roll, and Christmas pudding with hard sauce.

Birthday

My 77^th birthday was one of the most delightful ever. First, there was the surprise party in New York with relatives and friends of long standing (not calling them old). Between that and my real birthday, I received lots of lovely cards, e-greetings, and phone calls. I was humbled by all the attention from around the world.

After church, I was given a fun story to write. Surely that counts as a gift. Ed and his wife were flying to Texas the next day to spend Christmas with relatives. Did he have a big family? Oh! My! Yes! He had 35 first cousins!! Those 35 were descended from 11 children, so Ed began life with 10 aunts and uncles. John and I wanted to know if he knew everyone’s name. You could see the wheels turning, so I suspect he could pull those names out, given time. He explained that every family member has a number. His dad was the seventh child, and Ed was his firstborn, so Ed’s number is 71. I think that is brilliant. If you know the number of the person you are talking to, you know exactly where s/he belongs in the family tree.

Rose and son John $pencer met us to go to a Thai restaurant north of Asheville. I last had Thai food three or four years ago, so I was excited about it. We shared an appetizer – spring rolls, crab Rangoon, and dumplings. John and grandson David chose orange sesame chicken, and Rose had a tofu dish. It didn’t matter what $ ordered, because he chose the hot version and probably couldn’t taste anything because of the searing heat. He turned all shades of red, while insisting he loved his food. I had pineapple curry with salmon that was only mildly spicy.

I asked $ to take a selfie of us, but we didn’t all fit in. $ overheard a family conversation at the next table, so when one of them offered to take a photo of all of us, he asked, “Are you also celebrating a birthday?” They were. It was a young woman on the far side of their table, so we waved and called greetings to each other.

At home, I quickly looked at messages. Having had the phone silenced during church and dinner, I was behind. Neighbor Shawn texted to ask if they could come over in the evening, and neighbor Marla said she and her mother would like to bring something to our house. That was the beginning of the best impromptu birthday party. Connie and Marla arrived wearing festive Santa hats.

Sadie was enthralled when Logan arrived. Their play was so active that both boy and dog were blurred in the photo. Shawn, our son $, and Bob were in the background.

I liked the picture of everyone at the table after we devoured the cake $ bought. It was marvelous to have this congenial group together. I couldn’t have dreamed of a better celebration.