Tag Archives: sunny_side

The suitcase I lug across country is heavy

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The suitcase I lug across the country and back every 4 to 6 weeks is bulky and heavy. This past week, as my buddy Catherine was throwing that big thing into the back of her car to take me to the airport, she said, “I think this thing is heavier this time.” It wasn’t; actually, it only weighed 39 lbs. this time. Usually, it’s 42. One time, years ago, when I was checking in, I put my bag up on the scale at the ticket counter. I said to the woman, “I don’t know why I’m doing this – it always weighs 42 pounds. It doesn’t matter what I put in it or take out of it, it always weighs 42 pounds.” She said, “Well, let’s just check,” and we put it onto the scale. It weighed 41 pounds. We stared at each other. Finally, she said, “So, what did you forget?” And, I must say, it was plenty to fret about for the next 3-plus hours as I flew to Dallas.

I tend to pack for all the things that might happen, as well as for those that probably won’t, although, at this time of year in Dallas and Tulsa, chances are I won’t need my boots or a turtleneck anything of any sort. I will, however, need some sort of mosquito repellent, since I just noticed that itchy thing I’ve been clawing at on my leg is a mosquito bite. Clearly, the mosquitoes did not read the same thing I read on the internet about how much they hate vitamin B-1.

So, I don’t know what I forgot this time that weighs 3 pounds and haven’t spent any time going, “Damn! where’s my proton weapon? I ALWAYS pack that thing,,,” And, since I can’t find whatever it is that I’m missing, the only logical conclusion is that it was my cares & woes. Lucky me. JS

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Important Embedded Thread

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Hey, anybody know where I can buy some of those dishtowels that have been crocheted on the end by little old ladies so that you can hang them on your fridge handle?

Usually, they have a button sewn on there or some ties of some sort.I really like them and the dishtowel lies nice and flat against the front of the fridge, as opposed to getting stuck in the door if we just hang a towel through the handle.

We used to have about a thousand of those that Stef’s Mum made, but then Sarah cleaned out our kitchen drawers one time when I was gone and those went away. I’m not saying she swiped them; I think she didn’t understand how much we like them and she chunked them. Now, we have only one and it is quite threadbare.

Anyway, if anybody’s mother or grandmother is still making those, I’d like to buy some. Just let me know. JS

M.H.: I googled Dish Towel, Crochet Top and got a bunch of hits. Some were instructions on how to make them (You Tube videos even); some were places that sell them.

S.T.: Try etsy.

Jody: Thanks for the suggestions, everyone! Just bought 2 of these at the Roseburg Sr. Ctr. for five bucks each. Larry, the most enthusiastic, gigantic man you might ever meet, called his sister (who makes these – their Mom taught her how to do this) and his brother-in-law brought them up to the center just as I arrived there. Larry swears he can get more of them – all he has to do is light a fire under his sister, and five bucks per towel ought to do it. So, anyway, for now, at least, I have a source (the sister) and a dealer, too (Larry.)

S.P.: God I haven’t thought of those in years my grandmother also had those!!

D,H.: I love those towels. No grandma I knew had them, but I got one at a art fair once and used it until it just dissolved into dust. Wahhhh! Going to a local senior center is a fabulous idea.

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Saying good-bye to Bruce

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We said good-bye to Bruce yesterday, the 1996 Subaru Legacy Outback, who’s been just sitting there for a long, long time. He has now gone to help raise some $$$ for Saving Grace Animal Shelter in Roseburg.

One of Bruce’s tires had gone flat, so we found a bicycle pump that would work and pumped it back up which, we figured, involved about a thousand pumps from each of us. Then, a quick trip to the DMV to do some paperwork, a trip out to Saving Grace to do more paperwork, then we cleaned Bruce out and drove him to the donation drop-off.

It is amazing how much crap we carry around in our cars – have you ever noticed? My friend Christ Czarnecki calls her truck her “purse.”

Anyway, it’s all done and we are glad Bruce will have a new home and that he will help raise some money for such a good organization. And, it’s one more car we don’t have to insure or worry about. Hooray for us! JS

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WHAT’S ELDON UP TO?

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A couple of people on my FB feed are now wondering, WHAT’S ELDON UP TO?

Well, he and Joanie were gone the other day so Eldon could play golf with their grandson, something he enjoys IMMENSELY.

Yesterday, he came over and brought us a late lunch, some pasta thing Joanie had made, which was so filling we didn’t have to bother with dinner.

He’s such a dear man. It’s always good to see him. JS

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Eldon on Thanksgiving

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Our 84 yr. old neighbor, Eldon, is a very active man, always working on his house or yard, and plays golf like I think we all wish we could. He loves it that we keep our yard nice and that we don’t back down from big tasks.

When he first met Stef, she had just moved into this house and was taking down a dying GIGANTIC oak tree in the front yard, pulling the rotting roots out with ropes attached to the bumper of her Volvo. “I’ve never seen a woman take on the projects that Stef has,” he told me. Of course, necessity is the mother of invention, and, when you’re raising 3 kids on your own, there’s very little money left over to hire someone to fall a tree for you so, with the help of friends, she took that big thing down without professional help. Eldon was impressed.

He and I are buddies. It distresses him, I think, to know that I am sick or hurt. When he came over the other day, my new knee still had the price tag on it, it was so new. Eldon looked at me. “So, how long you think you’ll be down?” he asked, “a week, maybe?”

I shook my ahead. “Not sure, Eldon,” I said, “It’s a whole new knee.”

He looked down at my leg all covered in bandages and ice packs. “Okay,” he said, “ten days, then.” I think it makes his world feel safer to know that we are on the road to recovery and not getting out of his sight for too long. He is a very dear man.

So, on this Thanksgiving, as I think back through all the memories of the Thanksgivings of my life and remember who and what I am thankful for, I want to say that I am also thankful for the older friends in my life – people like Eldon and Joanie, like my friend Marjorie who just left us – people who are kind enough to lend their wisdom and experience to me as I bumble and hobble along on this journey.

If you have older people still in your life, give thanks for them on this Thanksgiving Day, and give them a hug for me, too. JS

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Goodness in my life all afternoon

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Goodness in my life all afternoon. Stef came home and made me some lunch, then Bob Jarrett came over to figure out what was wrong with my laptop. We spent the afternoon yapping about music, performers, families, communities and other things important to us all. As we were talking, Eldon arrived with some pieces of cake Joanie had made to share, kissing me on the forehead before he headed out.

With the computer fixed, Bob rearranged me on the sofa with all my ice machines and various accoutrements for healing, then headed home. Stef has one more night to work until 8pm so they can have Wed. off, and she won’t be home until later, so I’m sitting here typing, watching Toby watch for Stef out the front window. All of us who love her watch for her with this same dedication, knowing our lives are always better when Stef shows up. JS

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Eldon to the rescue (again)

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Eldon, our 84 yr. old neighbor, always manages to yank my large ass out of the fire at least once a year. He just did it again while ago.

The city sends a big truck around through the neighborhoods in the fall to suck up the leaves we have raked to the curb. This usually happens the week of Thanksgiving and again the week of Christmas, so I certainly didn’t expect to see it today but, THERE IT WAS, just a couple of houses down from us, sucking and grinding away. I grabbed a rake and was furiously raking piles and piles and PILES of leaves toward the curb, trying to talk myself into being moderately satisfied if they only managed to pick up half of the four tons of leaves covering the yard today.

Beneath the growling noise of their machinery, suddenly, there was another noise. I looked up and here came Eldon across the street with his leaf blower blasting into action. Between the two of us and, adding to what Stef had raked to the curb the other day, we managed to get it all out into the street before the truck drove up. Of course, a strong wind or rain storm will coat the yard again with more leaves but, for the moment, we are feeling under control.

Eldon is such a dear man. I love this guy. And, he loves being the hero, I’m sure of it. Sometimes, I think he stands at their picture window just watching for an opportunity to race out and save me with some sort of equipment he loves to use. I’ve not spent a lot of time in my life being a damsel in distress, but rescuing me from havoc and doom seems to bring Eldon quite a bit of joy. Luckily, I don’t ever disappoint him. And, then, I get to hug his neck. JS

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Birthday 2015

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How nice to awaken to so many sweet birthday greetings! Another trip around the sun has only scorched me a little, but, then, the natural collagen layer in our skin tends to diminish as we age. That, I know.

My birthday, as far as I can tell at this moment, will consist of errands to be run and packing to be done since I am flying out on Thursday to Tulsa and then on to Lubbock to do some rolfing in both places.

I am having my right knee replaced on 11/20/15 in Portland, so I won’t be making a rolfing trip in December since I will be rehabbing the bejabbers out of my leg during that time. Experience has shown me that the harder I work at that the better my new knee will work in the long run.

Went to meet my new PCP doc yesterday for my clearance physical and we hit it off great, not the least of which is because SHE’S FROM DALLAS! She pronounced my EKG as “stellar” for a geezer of my age. I told her that, deep down, I have a good heart. It’s the surface Jody who gets me in trouble. Thanks, everyone. JS

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What would I do with $600,000

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I saw a sign that read, “I’m in the mood to receive a check for $600,000.”

Yes. After taxes, even. I’d buy an adult tricycle and cruise around the neighborhood and Toby would trot along beside me. We would both smile in the sunshine. Our vitamin D levels would soar. Stef would take our picture and post it on Facebook. We would win a contest for “Cuteness.” I love it when my imagination runs away with me. JS

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