Thursday Thirteen #326

Thirteen websites I visit all the time. I admit I borrowed this idea from Kwizgiver.

1. Facebook. It's how I stay in touch with people and how I inflict my Cubbie/Rizzo love on them.

2. MLB.com. Because it's baseball season.

3. MLBTR.com. Because it's baseball season.

4. Chase.com. Yes, I bank with the monolith. They have a real monopoly on ATMs here in Chicagoland. (Yes, I still use cash.)

5. Twitter. I refuse to call it X. It's where I live tweet with my TCM buddies when my favorite movies are being shown, and get my latest New York Yankees news and rumors. (I must know what's up with my forever Captain, Anthony Rizzo.)

6. TCM.com. Sometimes I want to know my favorite channel's lineup far in advance.

 

7. Amazon.com. Everything is there. Really. They have literally everything.

8. Goodreads.com. I keep track of what I've read and get ideas for what to read next.

9. Letterboxd.com. It's like Goodreads, but for movies.

10. My local pizza place. They often offer coupons online and I'm a pizza slut. Go ahead, judge me. I won't change.

11. USPS tracking. This one annoys my oldest friend because she says it encourages me to worry about something I have no control over. She's right, of course. But I won't change.

12. Petco.com. My big tuxedo, Roy Hobbs, likes the Purina Pro Plan Salmon and it sells out quickly. I order it online and pick it up at my local store.

13. Blogger. How else can I keep up with you lovely people?

Please join us for THURSDAY THIRTEEN. Click here to play along, and to see other interesting compilations of 13 things.

  

Dollar Tree Find

I found this little metal prayer box at Dollar Tree. It contains a tiny pad of paper and a pen, and printed on the inside lid is a passage from Proverbs: "She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future." It's such a perfect little gift that I bought two.

I gave the first one to Joanna on Monday. We celebrated her birthday at a French/Latin fusion cafe that was new to both of us. I was happy to fuss over her because she's had a tough run lately. She's been self-employed for the last 15 years and has been investing and reinvesting in her business rather than her retirement. Now here she is, turning 70, with no savings. 

Her clients have been giving her grief. One has been having her do revision after revision outside the scope of their agreement, so it's costing her money. Her other client is refusing to implement Joanna's suggestions, and then complains that her efforts haven't worked and now won't renew the contract. She's been in love with Sid since 2019, but his health and cognition are failing and she knows she's in the midst of a long goodbye. So I was happy to buy her a chicken salad sandwich on a very fancy plate.

The cool thing about Joanna, though, is that with all this going on she is worried about my adjustment to life in retirement. It's kind of a fact of life that no one worries about me. Or, as John says, "Everyone turns to you." So Joanna being concerned that I not have to walk too far in the rain, or that I'm drinking enough water, or that I'm incorporating my yoga into my at-home morning routine ... I admit it: I like being fussed over every now and then.

I'm going to send the other prayer box to my oldest friend, with a note explaining how she should write her worries on the little pad and tuck them away, leaving them to the Lord. It's perfect for her. But she will just toss this package to the side along with the other three she's waiting to open until she's miserable. I can't tell you how much this still annoys me. But the gift should be about the recipient, not the giver, and this is (I'll say it again) perfect for her. Somehow I have to trust that the positive vibes I'm sending her way will reach her.

Sunday Stealing

Magical Journal Prompts 

1. What’s the best beach or lake day you can remember? I'm breaking rules and answering about a river. My uncle had a cabin on Rock River in Fort Atkinson, WI. I was having trouble with my then-boyfriend and escaped up there. I remember a lovely, peaceful day, drinking santgria in the sun. 

2. Describe your ideal picnic lunch. Cold fried chicken, potato salad, watermelon, Coke. 

3. What flowers are in your bouquet? I like carnations. It makes me sad to watch flowers die, so hardy carnations are my favorite. They come in so many colors and last so long. 

4. Silly ways to pass the time during a snowstorm. Games are good. I remember a snowy day with my nephew when he was very young, playing Yahtzee and Clue (which is really silly with two people but he was little and it kept him amused).

5. The most beautiful house you’ve ever visited. I don't know that it's the most beautiful, but I really enjoyed touring the Peyton Randolph House in Colonial Williamsburg. It gives you a very good idea of how well-to-do Americans lived at our nation's inception. George and Martha Washington and Thomas Jefferson all hung out here. The Randolph family prided themselves on being good and benevolent owners because they taught their slaves reading and math. However, there was also no missing the difference between the glorious big house and the humble slave quarters. Once the children became of age, the Randolphs had no problem selling them, thereby tearing families apart. It gave me a sobering lesson about slavery's effects and how the slave owners deluded themselves about what they were doing.

6. Best place you ever dined. Last winter I had a completely awesome slice of prime rib, a baked potato and a bowl of onion soup. I remember it well because the restaurant itself was so deceptive. Lots of dark paneling and a neon Old Style sign over the bar. The tables were too close together and waitresses call you "honey." Very old-school Chicago. When you come in, you have no idea you're about to enjoy a genuinely sublime meal.

7. How many layers to your ice cream sandwich. Three. Cookie/ice cream/cookie.

8. Pretty things which are faux patent leather. When I was a little girl I had a black patent leather purse with a gold clasp that I carried to church. I kept cough drops and Kleenex and a comb and my quarter for the offering plate in there. I loved it, but it cracked and got icky pretty quick. 

9. What is the best way to eat chocolate. I can't think of a bad way to each chocolate.

10. Describe your unicorn’s special magic. I have a unicorn? Well, maybe I will if the Cubs sign Shohei Ohtani in the offseason, but right now, to my knowledge, I am unicorn free.

11. All the fruits in your fruit salad. Watermelon, bananas, apples, grapes, raisins. (Are grapes and raisins redundant? I'd like both because of the different textures.)

12. Describe the soil, grass, trees, flowers and rocks in your magical forest. The soil is rich, the grass is green, the trees are leafy, the flowers are colorful and the rocks are big enough for me to perch upon when I come here to read.

13. The lyrics which move you the most are: "I'm ready to grow young again," The Boss, No Surrender.

14. What are the best sauces in the world? I like marinara sauce, barbecue sauce and mild sauce -- though not together, of course.

15. Write a haiku about nature.

Don’t be so bossy

I don't perform on demand

I don’t like haiku

Saturday 9

 Cheeseburger in Paradise (1978)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here. (This is my favorite Buffett song, quintessential Jimmy.)

1) In this song, Jimmy briefly attempts a healthier diet, which included sunflower seeds, carrot juice, zucchini and bulgur wheat. Do you pay attention to your daily consumption of vitamins, minerals, dietary fiber, etc.? I have a history of gut trouble, so I try to make more fiber-wise choices. I also have to look out for oxalate content because of my predispositition to kidney stones. As an old broad, I just can't eat like I did in my 20s.

2) Jimmy sings that he'd like french fries with his burger. Do you prefer to dip your fries or drizzle the ketchup over them? I dip.

3) Which cheese would make yours a cheeseburger in paradise: American, cheddar, Swiss, bleu, Muenster, or Monterrey Jack? I like the visual of yellow cheese on my burger, so I'll have cheddar or American, please.

 
4) Buffett fans call themselves Parrotheads. Concert attire for a well-dressed Parrothead often includes a Hawaiian shirt and a foam fin hat. What will you be wearing tonight? I'm doing this Friday night, but I can predict what I'll be wearing Saturday night: my pjs. I've got a busy week coming up and am keeping my Saturday and Sunday clear for chores and lazing about.

 

5) For someone with such an easygoing and laidback vibe, Jimmy is a very busy man. His business ventures include liquors, restaurants and hotels. He's also published eight books. All this in addition to making music! On a scale of 1 to 10 -- with 1 being lazy and 10 being highly motivated -- how would you rate yourself this morning? 1. But that's only because I don't think the scale registers negative numbers. I'm a slug.

 

6) Jimmy has some very famous fans. Paul McCartney asked him to play at one of his parties, and Barack Obama invited him to perform at a fundraiser. If you could invite anyone -- anyone at all! -- to play at your party, who would you ask? Sir Paul would be nice, certainly. Strumming and singing and telling stories. Sigh. That would be a dream come true for me.

7) Jimmy was born on Christmas Day. Does your birthday fall on a major holiday? If yes, do you mind "sharing" your special day? My birthday often falls on Thanksgiving. When I was a kid and through my 20s, I hated it. But now it just seems convenient.

8) In 1978, the year this song was popular, the Susan B. Anthony Dollar was first minted. The initial design was not a hit with the public because vending machines could not accept it. What's the last thing you bought from a vending machine? I used a $20 in the self-pay kiosk at Target. I had to wait forever for the machine to spit out my $12.22 in change. I don't think many customers use cash in those kiosks ... and now I know why.

9) Random question -- If today's your birthday, your zodiac sign is Virgo. When did you last check your horoscope? I used to check it every morning on the train as I read the paper while riding the rails to work. But now that I'm retired, I don't check it all anymore.

Well, that's a relief!

Yesterday I spent two hours at an ophthalmology center having (I believe) four different tests. I wasn't looking forward to it. Back in June, when I got my new glasses, the optometrist thought she saw evidence of glaucoma and recommended a more detailed exam. It took me this long to get an appointment at this ophthalmology center. 

It's been weighing on me. I'm at an age when my original parts are wearing out and breaking down.

The ophthalmologist didn't rule out glaucoma, but he said he couldn't diagnose it, either. Since I don't have high pressure on my optic nerve, he thinks what he's seeing is just the results of decades of near sightedness. But, since glaucoma can sometimes exist alongside normal eye pressure, he wants to see me again every six months for a year. He told me that he sees nothing -- nothing at all -- that leads him to believe surgery should even be considered, and if in six or a year my condition warrants it, he would likely prescribe eye drops.

I like this approach. We are being careful and vigilant, but we aren't jumping to act.

I also appreciate that the eye center is going to communicate with both the optometrist and my primary care physician. 

I am fortunate that I live in a metropolitan area where this care is available (though the 90 day wait for a new-patient appointment was worrisome) and I'm grateful that Medicare and my Medicare supplement plan make it affordable. I'm glad that 48 years of payroll deductions are paying off!

Photo by CDC on Unsplash

Thursday Thirteen #325

 

In Memory of Jimmy Buffett. Yes, I was sad when I heard Jimmy Buffett died this past weekend. Not only because I enjoyed his music, but because we loved the same places: Chicago's Wrigley Field (where he performed multiple concerts and sang "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" and The National Anthem) and Key West. If you watch the parade Conchs held in his honor Sunday, you'll see a Cub W flag. Warms my heart. He was one of us.

 

And so this week I celebrate him with a countdown of my 13 favorite Jimmy Buffett songs. Thank you, Jimmy. Putting this list together was fun, and fun is important.

 13. Mele Kalikimaka. Hawaiian for Merry Christmas. It makes me smile because my friend Kathleen loves to sing along with it. This was her late father's favorite Christmas record. Jimmy created happy memories. (And let's say a prayer for our fellow citizens in Maui.)

12. Barefoot Children. There's something magic about summer storms. I love that line, "The sound of the weather is Heaven's ragtime band." If my dad were here, he'd grumble and say I talk like someone without a yard who doesn't have to pick up the leaves and big branches after a storm. My late father was in no way a Parrothead.

11. Son of a Son of a Sailor. "Read dozens of books about heroes and crooks and I learned much from both of their styles." Love that because Jimmy the Beach Bum was also Jimmy the Author, Jimmy the Environmentalist, and Jimmy the Businessman. There were many facets to this Renaissance man.

10. Changes in Latitude, Changes in Attitude. "If we couldn't laugh we'd just all go insane." I am grateful that I find most things funny. To the extent that I am, indeed, sane, I credit my sense of humor.

9. Boat Drinks. "20º and the hockey game's on." Sometimes in the dead of winter -- on those days when 20º feels warm! -- it helps to order a tall drink in a funny glass filled with rum and coconut.

8. Grapefruit - Juicy Fruit. I love songs that sound happy but have melancholy lyrics. This one reminds me of when I was in a long-distance relationship. The agony of parting and knowing we wouldn't be together again for weeks. "It's so damn lonely when you're on a plane alone ..."

7. Wonderful Christmastime. I heard this the first time in the Margaritaville gift shop in Key West. I was far from home and my mom had recently died, but it was sunny and I had Sir Paul and Jimmy Buffett and my dear friend Henry so I could still have Christmas.

6. Pencil Thin Mustache. I adore the romance and honky tonk nostalgia, and movie geek in me loves the shout outs to Erroll Flynn, Boston Blackie and Andy Devine.

5. Why Don't We Get Drunk and Screw? "I really do appreciate the fact that you're sitting here." What a great closing time pick up line! This song cracks me up, and it takes me back to a more innocent time when this was considered naughty.

4. Come Monday. Jimmy didn't do many straight up love songs, but this is a good one. It's so authentic and relatable. (It helps that I don't much care for Los Angeles and glitter rock and roll, either.)

3. Fins. This is how it felt when I was cute and partying at the bars. "Can't you feel them circling, honey? Can't you feel schooling around? You've got fins to the left, fins to the right, and you're the only bait in town." 

2. Margaritaville. Of course. But why do I love this one? Because it's more than a celebration of Key West life. It's the story of a man who has had his heart broken, which is a painful and confusing experience for all of us.

1. Cheeseburger in Paradise. Because it's freaking awesome. It just is. I love that when my nephew was a little boy he chose to perform this on his first karaoke night while on vacation. Blood will tell.

Please join us for THURSDAY THIRTEEN. Click here to play along, and to see other interesting compilations of 13 things.

WWW.WEDNESDAY

WWW. WEDNESDAY asks three questions to prompt you to speak bookishly. To participate, and to see how other book lovers responded, click here. 

PS I can no longer participate in WWW.WEDNESDAY via that link because her blog won't accept Blogger comments. I mention this only to save you the frustration I experienced trying to link up.

1. What are you currently reading? The Big Fella: Babe Ruth and the World He Created by Jane Leavy. This year I've been reading about people I've heard about all my life but really knew little about: Winston Churchill, Aristotle Onassis, Dwight Eisenhower ... Now, since I'm all baseball all the time right at the moment (the Cubs are on the verge of clinching a playoff berth), I'm turning to The Babe. All I really know about him is that he called his shot at my beloved Wrigley Field, he loved hot dogs and hookers, and he was the first baseball superstar and the game's greatest player ever.

A couple years ago I read Leavy's book about Mickey Mantle and found it both clear-eyed and affectionate, so I have high hopes for this one. After all, The Babe is still the gold standard, the player even Shohei Ohtani is measured against. It's time I learned who he really was. 

2. What did you recently finish reading? Murder at an Irish Wedding by Carlene O'Connor. Kilbane, the Irish village at the center of this series, is the site of a destination wedding. A famous fashion model, daughter of wealthy and prominent parents, is the bride. Not only is the village abuzz, a magazine photographer is snapping away for the Irish Enquirer. To complicate matters, someone gets dead. Our heroine, Kilbane resident and amateur sleuth Siobhan O'Sullivan, can't resist investigating.

 

I admit I didn't like this one (Book #2) as much as I did the premier effort. The mystery itself just wasn't as tight this time around and Siobhan acts foolish more than once. But I was charmed nevertheless. Siobhan's young siblings are a delight and I learned a lot about how Irish lore has influenced our weddings here. For example, the period immediately after the wedding is called a honeymoon because the bridal couple supposed to spend a month drinking honeyed ale. 

 

3. What will read next? I don't know.

 

 

No Joy in Mudville

 

He was in the dugout tonight with his teammates and he continues his post-concussion rehab in the Yankee Stadium facilities but, with a month to go, the specialists just don't think Anthony Rizzo will be ready to take the field again before the season is over.

I know from my friend Henry that brain injuries require diligent aftercare. I am glad they are being careful with him now. Now. I am still beyond pissed that it took the Yankees medical staff two fucking months to diagnose this.

I don't know how much of my impotent rage is tied to Henry. But I am not okay with this. Not by the longest shot. 

Sunday Stealing

STORYWORTH

1. Did you ever have a commercial you really liked? I don't have diabetes but that happy woman makes me want to take "once daily Jardiance at each day's start." Really, I heard myself singing about "the little pill with the big story to tell" the other morning while I was feeding my cats.

2. How did you learn to ride a bicycle? My first big girl bike was a pink and white Schwinn. I wish I remembered more about learning to ride it because it was my dad who taught me, and I don't have lots of good dad memories.

    

3.How did you celebrate your 21st birthday? The other secretaries took me to Pago Pago, a nearby Tiki bar, for lunch. I ordered my first legal drink: a Singapore Sling. It makes me a little sad that I can no longer remember any of their names. 

We went to the Jackson location; they're all gone now.

4. What fascinated you as a child? The Beatles. They still do. They're the soundtrack of my life.

    

5. What was one of your favorite playground games? Freeze tag.

    

6. What things matter most to you in life? Every day I try to do good. That matters most to me. I find that when I concentrate on living my faith, other things fall into place.

    

7. If you had to go back in time and start a brand new career, what would it be? I enjoy using my writing skills for causes I believe in. I wish I had become a full-time writer for a not-for-profit.

    

8. What do people get wrong about you? Everybody thinks I'm tough. Maybe because I say "fuck" all the time. I'm more sensitive than most people realize.

    

9. Do you believe that people can change? Why or why not? Yes. I know I've changed. That's what the therapy is for.

    

10. What is some of the best advice your mother ever gave you? Whenever we went clothes shopping together she'd remind me, "If it has to be dry cleaned it's like it costs double."

    

11. If you could see into the future, what would you want to find out? How long it stretches before me.That's the thing about saving for retirement: you don't know how long retirement is going to last.

    

12. How has your life turned out differently than you imagined it would? In some ways.

    

13. What is the longest project you have ever worked on? Me! I'm still a work in progress.

    

14. What have been some of your favorite restaurants through the years? My favorites have been restaurants that serve breakfast all day. I love sitting alone in a booth with my book while eating eggs and wheat toast.

    

15. What is one of the best shows you've ever been to? Wings Over America, the first time I saw him.

   

    

Saturday 9

Saturday 9: Workin' for a Livin' (1982)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) Huey begins the song by telling us some workdays feel like they will never end. How was last week for you? Did it drag or did it fly by? I was rather busy last week and over the weekend so I appreciated the nice, even, predictable pace of this week.  

2) He sings that his car payment is due. Think about your personal finances. Do you pay most of your bills manually or do you more often take advantage of automated bill pay? My only automated bills are the ones that businesses/organizations insist be automated, like my health insurance premiums. The rest I prefer to pay manually. I'm kind of a control freak.

 

3) Huey Lewis achieved a perfect score on the math portion of the SAT. Did you take SATs and/or ACTs? Were your results anything to brag about? (If they were, go ahead and let us know!) I clearly remember taking one of them -- I believe it was the ACTs but I wouldn't swear to it in a court of law. It was a Saturday morning in the biology lab, which had the most godawful orange plastic chairs. I got bored during the math section because I understood less than nothing about the questions and chose my answers by doing a design with the dots. Since I was planning to go to community college, which had to take me because I lived in district, I didn't take any of it seriously. 

4) In his role as District Attorney for Essex County, MA, Huey's grandfather Hugh Cregg prosecuted high-profile murder cases. Do you enjoy watching or reading courtroom dramas? Very much. Especially the original Law & Order. 

Season 6: My favorite cast

5) Huey no longer performs because he has an inner-ear disorder that prevents him from holding a vocal pitch. Of your five senses -- hearing, sight, smell, touch and taste -- which is the strongest? Well, I wear glasses and I always have closed captioning on when I watch movies, so we can eliminate hearing and sight. I'll go with smell. When I had covid, not being able to smell really creeped me out.

6) He is a fan of fly fishing. Did you do any fishing this summer? Nope. Which would make this summer like every other summer of recent memory.

Since this Monday is Labor Day, the holiday established to celebrate the American worker … 

7) Approx. 10% of Americans are self employed. Have you ever been your own boss? Yes. I was a freelance writer in 2003-04. I took my last job in 2004 for the insurance and 401(k).

8) According to Monster.com, 50% of workers have left a job to get away from a boss. Are you one of the 50%? Oh, yes. I've had bad bosses, but one genuine psycho. She told me that she believed in reincarnation and we clashed now because we were enemies in a past life. I guess I tried to run her over with my chariot or something. We'd better work this out now, she warned, or we'd be fighting one another for eternity. I could not get away from her fast enough after that.

9) Farmers feel the impact of extreme weather events. Have you ever had a job that required you to be outdoors most of the time? Nope.

BTW, this is my first Labor Day as a retiree. I admit it feels funny. Not unpleasant, of course, but weird.

Me and Roger

Just had my meet'n'greet with Roger, the new minister. I feel good about it.

Our lead minister left, and not by choice, back in 2021. There was a ton of drama attendant to it. Church employees felt misunderstood, overworked and underpaid. There was undoubtedly fiscal mismanagement (though it was inadvertent and not criminal). Some parishioners felt ignored. Others, on the other hand, considered him their spiritual leader, cared about him deeply, and were sad to see him go.

Our interim minister didn't stay in her lane. She tried to make changes when change wasn't what we needed. We needed placidity. 

So our congregation has been a mess for nearly two years.

I don't go to church for drama. I don't even go for community. I go to church because I want to feel closer to God. I want to put my faith on its feet and do good in the world. It's hard to do that when we're surrounded by upset and upheaval.

I liked what Roger had to say this evening. I appreciated how chill his manner was. He laid out his vision for the congregation. He was straightforward about the fiscal hole we're in but promised to keep the lines of communication open. I hope he will be motivating to me spiritually.

But I'll be grateful if I can just feel a sense of sanctuary within my church again. I think Roger will provide that.

Photo by Stephen Radford on Unsplash

August Happiness Challenge -- Day 31

My 2023 happiness icon

Today's Happiness: "Love you, Gal."

I ended up on the phone with Reg. The first time in more than 9 months. He stopped communicating with me directly and was just all-around pissy and self-centered. He was also furious that I didn't come to Key West for Christmas. I wanted to but I had been misled about Henry's hospitalization. Here's the post about that painful blow up.

Anyway, Henry called me tonight and impulsively handed the phone to Reg. He started chatting with me amiably, as though we talk all the time and nothing bad has happened. He ended with, "Love you, Gal."

I don't know how healthy any of this is. I don't know that I can honestly say I love him. But I am glad the big freeze between us has thawed. I do love Henry as much as ever, and knowing I can speak directly to Reg if something goes wrong comforts me. Peace is lovely.