Fun, In Spite of Losing

The gang came here to play Mah Jongg today. It's the first time I've hosted since the new floor was put in and the hall was painted. I enjoyed the day even though I didn't win any of the games. Everyone had a good time. We celebrated a 70th birthday also for one of the gals. My new round table was a hit as was my applesauce cake.

A Weekend Without A Phone

My house phone has been out of order for the past few days. No messages waiting. No phone calls coming in or going out. Finally after three days the phone company came today and found the problem. It seems that one of my phones was causing all of the phones to be inoperable. We've disconnected that phone and now the other two phones seem to be working. Thank goodness that we have cell phones to use as a back up. How else could I have called the phone company?

"Juno"

I would describe the movie as a good movie. However, if this movie is typical of the teenage culture today, it is very disheartening. I'm glad that I'm no longer a teen. Life as a teen in the 50's and 60's was quite different for most of us. Today's teens aren't as lucky as we were in many ways. They may have more material things and more opportunities than we had, but they're subjected to so much they're just not ready for. I'm almost at a loss for words about the way I feel about what teens have to go through today.

Lunch and A Movie

Today our Red Hat group is meeting for lunch and a movie. My guess is that everyone will opt to see "Juno" which is the first movie to start after lunch. I've heard good reviews about the movie. If the group chooses this movie, it'll be the one I see also. The other movie which I'd like to see is "The Bucket List". Unfortunately, that one starts later in the afternoon. A friend is bringing a book for me to read when we meet today. It's called "The Kite Runner". I'm going to read the book this weekend and hopefully be able to catch that movie next week. My friends have given the book and the movie a great review.

A Jealous Cat

Whenever I'm occupied with one of my hobbies, my cat gets jealous. I was sitting with a quilt on my lap the other day adding more stitches to the design. Sandy tried to get on my lap. When I wouldn't let him do so he cried. Finally, I decided to put the quilt aside for a few minutes and let the cat sit on my lap so he could be petted. After a few minutes of this he was satisfied and went on the bed to take a nap. This wasn't the first time I was interrupted from an activity by him. If I read the paper, he wants to sit on my lap also. If I'm talking on the phone he gets up on my lap and demands attention by meowing. He prefers me to be unoccupied so that I'm at his beck and call when he wants attention. This can be annoying at times but most of the time it makes me laugh. I have a jealous cat who is also spoiled. He is really quite entertaining. I'm his favorite entertainment as well.

The Herd That Lives Above Me

Gallop, gallop, gallop. Stump, stump, stump. Jump, jump, jump. Run, run, run. That's what I hear every day from about 3:45 pm until the herd retires for the night. There are three people who live upstairs. One is an adult who walks like an elephant. The other two are elementary school girls who haven't been taught that you don't run, jump, stump, or gallop when you live upstairs from a neighbor. This poses a problem for me because I can either ignore the noise which I have been doing for years, or I can ask that they settle down and thereby cause hard feelings. The fact that there is a huge patio box outside my front door and 2 bicycles under the stairs is equally annoying. Oh, to live in a single family house with no neighbors above or below me. What a fine arrangement it would be to have neighbors who lived far enough away so as not to disturb the peace. My dream is to live in a house at the shore where the only noise I hear at this time of night is the ocean waves breaking on the sandy beach. When children and other people are heard during the day enjoying the sun and the water, voices in the distance, talking and laughing. Where the running, galloping, stumping and jumping are done on the silent sand or on a sidewalk or a boardwalk, not above my head. That is my plan for when "my ship comes in" until then I'll turn up the tv or the music and hope for the best.

Roses For Kathie

Today is my cousin's birthday. I sent her a card and my mother sent her a dozen long-stemmed roses today. I'm so excited about the thought of her receiving them today. I wish that I could be a fly on the wall in her home. The flowers are not expected so they will be a pleasant surprise for her on her 64th birthday. She had a stroke a few years ago and doesn't get out that much. Today the temperature was 66 degrees. What a perfect spring like day to get flowers. I hope that the red roses make her day. Happy Birthday, Kathie! May you have many more.

Mom's Back Home

Mom is back in her own home. I took her back yesterday. Her cold has gotten better. I helped her out by doing a few cleaning jobs for her and fixing meals. I returned home this afternoon. Sandy was happy to see me. We took a short nap this afternoon and watched "Pride and Prejudice" on PBS this evening. That story is my favorite of the Jane Austen stories. I love the role of Darcy played by Colin Firth in this version. He is so handsome and the character he plays is very appealing. I looked forward to the ending of the story next weekend.

Celine

Tonight we watched a Celine Dionne special on TV. It was such a refreshing change from the ordinary/normal Friday night shows. I wish it would be possible to have more shows of this type by Celine and other performers. When Variety shows were popular on TV, I always watched them. I think we've had enough of cops, lawyers, reality shows, violence and other shows of their type. Please, please, please give us more variety shows with musical guests who are good performers and sing well. I'm sure that there is an audience out there for that type of entertainment again. The audience would include young and old alike. Music touches people of all ages.

Happy St Valentine's Day!

Today is Valentine's Day. I received two valentine cards via snail mail and several via email. Cards are always welcomed by me. My morning consisted of meeting a new doctor for the first time. I like him. Afterwards, when I arrived home, my sister came over and brought a box of candy for Valentine's Day. She also brought my mother and I a hoagie for lunch. Since we had already eaten lunch, we decided we'd have the hoagies for supper. I've already eaten my salami and provolone. After my sister left I spent some time reading. It has been a quiet day and a mostly uneventful day.

Driving A "Boat" In The Rain

My medium sized car is at my mother's house because I drove her up to my place in her car. She has a Mercury Marquis. I needed to take her to the doctor and also to go to the pharmacy to pick up her meds. I drove to the store today in a heavy rain. Driving her car was so foreign to me that it might as well have been a boat. I'm not use to driving a car which is longer than my own. The car is very comfortable. It is luxurious. I'm just not sure where it ends when I pull out of a parking space or am turning left with traffic approaching in the near distance. It also makes me nervous because it's not my car. How terrible I would feel if someone hit it or dinged it in a parking lot. Can't wait to get back into my Cougar even if it is less of a luxury than the Marquis.

"The Secret"

I'm reading a new book called "The Secret". It's basically a positive thinking book. The secret is the law of attraction. Whatever you think or imagine, you will bring into your life. I'm half way through the book. I'll report on it when I've completed it.

Les Miserables

The concert of Les Miserables is on PBS tonight. I saw this musical on Broadway twice. It's my favorite musical of all those I've ever seen. The concert is also excellent.

Where Are The Parents?

Tonight I attended 5:00pm mass at a local church. There was a family sitting behind me. Two of the boys about 9 years old talked to each other during the entire mass. The parents never once told them to be quiet. A young woman who sat next to me finally turned around to tell them to be quiet. The result of her admonishment lasted about 2 minutes. There was an older woman to my left who also turned around to look at them as I also did. I've noticed that the young people at this church "chat" in church more than they do at the church I belong to, which is why I travel a half hour to attend church rather than to go to the one around the corner. The older woman on my left said to me after mass, "I wanted to ask those boys why they came to church." She told me that she had taught in a Catholic School. I told her that I had attended one so I knew where she was coming from. I hope that the parents had a "chat" with them in the car on their way home.

"Easy Listening"

The "Easy Listening" music channel is my favorite music channel. The music is very relaxing as well as beautiful to listen to. Since my stereo and cd component are not hooked up, I rely on the music channels for my daily dose of music. I have music playing all day except for the brief time that I watch a tv show.

"The Perfect Stranger"

The movie was worth recommending to a friend to watch, especially if she is going through a hard time. It was about a woman who was invited to have dinner with Jesus. She was a non-believer in the beginning of the story. It was nice to watch her "tough" nature mellow toward the middle of the movie. The end of the movie was moving and brought tears to my eyes. It ended up being a spiritual experience for the character, Nikki, as well as for the viewer (me).

A Movie to Preview

A friend gave me a movie to watch. She said that I can preview it and let her know if it's all right to give it to another friend. The movie is called "The Perfect Stranger". Our mutual friend is going through a hard time now and I'm to let the first friend know if the movie is too sad or emotional for her to view. The movie is based on a novel called "Dinner With A Perfect Stranger". That will be my entertainment for the evening. I'll give my review and return the movie on Monday when we play MJ again. Oh, yes, I'll report on my findings after I view the movie.

No Coat Yesterday

Here I am talking about weather again. Yesterday the weatherman described the day as "May in February". In honor of that, friends and I left our coats in the car when we went to visit at another home to play Mah Jongg. It was ok. The sun didn't shine and it drizzled a bit. However, there was a "freedom" in not wearing a coat. I'm now waiting for the crocuses to start coming up.

An Interesting Election

It's about 2am and I've been watching the election results since 7pm. The results are in and there is a tie between the democratic candidates. I'm ok with that. I will probably vote democratic in the general election in November no matter who the candidate is at that time. I got an anti Hillary email from a cousin tonight. I found out that he is such a rabid republican that he stopped talking to his brother who is a democrat. I'm disappointed to hear about their falling out. Life is too short! I disagree with my brother's political views, but I feel that he is more important in my life than who our president will be. "Blood is thicker than water." I hope and pray that my cousins will reconcile. They're not "spring chickens" any more. My friends and family mean a lot to me. I'm not willing to give up any of them because of an election.

Good Job!

I've been watching the MSNBC broadcast since 7:00pm. They are doing an excellent job. They are being objective in their reporting tonight. Good Job Guys and Gals! I look forward to the final results for Super Tuesday. May the best person win in each party.

Media Bias

When the media reports on the election results tomorrow, I hope that their biases don't show. The inside media doesn't like Hillary. They haven't hidden that fact. Whatever happened to objective reporting? I'd like them to report the results and to keep their personal feelings out of it while they're on the air. Dan Abrams is the only one who I've heard make this same argument. If MSNBC with Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann doesn't report objectively tomorrow, I will change to another channel. I don't care what their feelings for the candidates are, I only care about the facts. I'm surprised that the media is able to get away with their biases while on the air. They acted like high school kids when they reacted to Mc Cain's first successful primary speech. He read his speech after winning the primary instead of speaking extemporaneously. Now that he's won more votes than Romney, they're changing their tune. Keep your opinions to yourself would be my advice to them. Show a little class and objectivity in your reporting.

Who Will It Be?

Who will be the Democratic candidate who comes out on top tomorrow night? Will it be Barack Obama or will it be Hillary Clinton? If you listen to the "talking heads" you'd be convinced that it will be Obama. He is a very inspirational orator. He is a dreamer. I like the man. However, I'm not convinced that he'd be the better candidate. I'm still wondering what kind of "Change" he wants to make. What are his ideas for change? I like Hillary without Bill. He had his turn. She has spent the past 35 years working toward change in different areas. She may have dreams, but she is not a dreamer, she is a thinker and a doer. What are we to do tomorrow? Do we make a decision based on what our "hearts" tell us to do, or on what our "heads" tell us to do? In my experience, decisions of the heart are often wrong. Hearts can be broken. I'm going to make a decision with my head and hope that the heart will follow. I hope that everyone else who votes will do the same.

Super Tuesday

Tomorrow is being called Super Tuesday because of the number of states that are holding primary elections or caucuses. It's time to make a choice of who you'd like to win your party's nomination to run for President of the United States. I hope that everyone who votes will make up their own mind as to who their choice will be. Don't be influenced by spouses, children or celebrities when voting. Do your homework if you haven't done so already! Everyone should be an informed voter. It's not a popularity contest or a beauty pageant. Vote for someone of substance who will make our country great. Know which issues are most important to you. How does the candidate you support stand on those issues? Let's choose someone we can be proud to have represent the United States of America.

Believe In Yourself

The NY Giants were the underdogs going into today's Superbowl XLII. They won the game in spite of that. They believed in themselves and their team. This is another example of hard work and confidence in yourself paying off. Kids can learn from this example. Even us Seniors who still have dreams and aspirations can be bouyed by this example. Do the work and believe in yourself and you can and will attain your dream. Don't give up your dreams because time has passed and youth has escaped you. Always believe. If you don't, who will?

Giants Rock!

Congratulations Giants! I'm proud to be a fan. I couldn't watch the game because it was too exciting. I'm glad to find out that you pulled it off. Superbowl XLII Champs!

I Messed Up The Computer

Last Friday night I added upgrades to my computer. I started to add other things and somehow lost my browser which was replaced with Babylon. I tried to uninstall Babylon to no avail. So, instead of giving up and waiting to call my provider, I played with the computer. What a mess I've made of things. Basically because I had no idea what I was doing. That was the tabletop computer, luckily for me I also have a laptop which I haven't messed up. Why isn't it easier to undo or uninstall something which you've accidently changed? It really annoys me. Tomorrow I will call my internet provider to see if I can restore what I've lost. Hopefully, they'll make it easy for me to do.

A Sunday Morning Ritual

After mass, a Sunday morning ritual in my house is to watch the political pundits on three of the NBC shows. They have a representative amount of Republicans and Democrats on, discussing issues of the day. Recently, they've been discussing the presidential candidates. Very few of them seem to be able to give an objective opinion. I'm most impressed with Pat Buchanan because I feel that he is objective. He is a republican, has even run for office himself, and yet he seems to have an open mind when discussing democrats. He never gets nasty in his comments and he maintains good humor at all times. I wish that more of pundits had his ability to separate their feelings for a candidate, or a party, and give honest impartial opinions.

February Is Here!

Today is a cold, rainy day. The temps are high. They said if the rain had been snow we'd have about 10 inches by now. Okay! Enough about the weather.
We are beginning a new month and I'm wondering what exciting good things will happen this month. There is Groundhog Day. Will there be an early Spring? There is St. Valentine's Day and I have to send my valentine cards to family and close friends. President's Day will be a holiday for some people to have off from school or work. There are a few February birthdays which require cards which I've already gotten in the mail today. I wonder what unexpected events will happen this month? I will still play MJ and Pinochle with friends and hopefully get together with our small quilt group. The Red Hatters will go to the movies and out for Pizza. Maybe if I buy a lottery ticket, I'll have a good, unexpected winfall come my way. That would be an exciting thing to happen. Or, maybe I'll get to meet somone new from the dating website. I am "up" for good, happy things to happen this month.