Too Much Time To Think

 These months of the pandemic have left me with sometimes too much time to think. 

I got to feeling bad about how I was procrastinating during the pandemic.  There was so much that I could have been doing. Making more veteran's quilts.  Making more quilts for your guild's charity project.  Clearing and cleaning the clutter in my home. Reflecting I realize I have always been a procrastinator since I was a child.

Now I understand why my mother always talked me out of projects I wanted to do.  She understood me and that although I loved doing things, I loved starting them more than finishing them. And it hasn't changed in 60 years.

I remember thinking when I retired I would start a small traveling sewing machine repair business.  For the older women who have machines in cabinets and it wasn't a simple matter to take them in for repairs or cleaning.  After all, I am mechanically inclined, thanks to growing up around a Dad who had a lawnmower repair shop in our backyard. 

I thought I would have a van that I could drive to the homes and could do the repairs.  No taking it to a shop and waiting for a week or two to get it back. But getting the training was the hitch.  I didn't want to fix new machines.  What would be warranty work and you would have to be factory certified.  I learned that from Dad selling Allis Chalmers tractors. After a little trying to see where I could get the training to work on vintage machine, that dream quietly slipped away.

I've thought of buying my parents home when the time came and then realized if I couldn't keep up with my own small home I would never keep up with theirs.

Most recently I was considering, after I turn 70, of selling my house and moving into a condo or apartment. After all "they" say at 70 you should decide on your final home.  I toyed with the thought, went and look at some possibilities.  But when I mentioned my thought to my brother, he just gave me a "What???". And that got me thinking again.  Why would I go from not having to pay a mortgage or rent to doing that again. Wouldn't it be easier to make some improvements to my current home. And then find someone to help me with the yard and snow work.

After all I have taken pretty good care of it.  Each year or every few years doing another project. Roof, siding, windows, new kitchen, new driveway. So maybe I'll do a little bit more work and be happy where I'm at.

Not sure anyone reads this anymore.  I guess it's just a journal to get all these swirling thoughts out of my head to make room for more.

Winter Snows

 I don't know why but I am always surprised by how peaceful the city gets when it snows.

The snow seems to absorb all the street noise.  The barking dogs are taken in and the boy street racers put up their cars and motorcycles until the spring. No more being kept awake until 3 and 4 am listening to them racing up and down Cedar street.

Sometimes it gets so still that you'd think you were a hundred miles away from civilization. But then, in the morning, you see the tracks of the dog walkers. And hear the shovels and snowblowers put to their work. But it is nice to have these few months of peace and quiet.

Some of the Changes

 We all have experienced lots of changes this year.  No big family gatherings like Memorial Day, 4th of July, Halloween and birthdays, especially Mom's 92nd.  It was kind of sad to not get together to celebrate Mom's birthday.

And that was necessitated by Mom's move this fall. After 62 years in the home that she and Dad bought, she decided it was time to move.  She has been hearing lots about a new senior housing being built in Portland. This new facility is half apartments and half assisted living.

She had said for years that the house and huge yard were getting too much to worry about. And she was terribly lonesome living on her own.  But when we wanted to actually look at a smaller house or apartment, she decided she was fine where she was.

But when she heard of some of the people who had looked at The Brook, she knew hopefully she would know some of the other people who were moving in. There would always be someone to visit with or if she wasn't in the mood, she would just stay in her apartment. Mike had been keeping track of the progress during the building.  Of course Covid slowed it all down.  It was supposed to open in May but was delayed until September.  She signed up and decided to make the move.

But even the day of the move she wasn't sure she would go through with it.  TB and covid tests were needed before the move  It was interesting the items she decided to take. And she wasn't sure she could fit all the furniture the boys were moving into her 2 bedroom apartment, but was pleasantly surprised to find there was room to spare.

A huge benefit was that Mike got a job at The Brook as their maintenance guy.  It is supposed to be just part-time although some tenants are higher maintenance than others. But I means he is able to keep track of mom and check on her.

So far there are just 6 people are living there, but each week more people are touring. Hopefully after the first of the year more will be moving in.  She is still able to get her daily walks in outside and will walk the halls once the snow flies. 

Starting again

 What to you do when the person who showed you how to set up a blog moves away?  And then for some reason, it no longer lets you add pictures.  Well. I guess a post with no pics can still work.  What a year 2020 has been.

I had been volunteering for McLaren Hospital in Lansing at their guest house, McRee House.  It was the ideal opportunity for me. Do a little dusting, water the house plants, bake cookies, all good.  Best was on my 2 eight hour days a month, I could take my sewing machine and set it up in the kitchen and sew.  It was often a topic with some of the guests and doctors.

In February or March that came to an end.  Then in July I got the opportunity to volunteer at the McLaren Pennsylvania campus in the surgical lounge.  Three weeks ago that also came to an end.  Maybe we will begin again after the first of the year.

Trying to get a baby quilt top ready for mom to quilt.  As the weather gets colder she will be restricted to inside walking  and will need something to keep her mind busy.

Hope you all had a good Thanksgiving.  Stay safe.

Afternoon in Rome

Well I guess this will be my final post.  I have not been able to upload any pictures from Rome or the rest of my trip.

Our last stop before lunch was the Colosseum.  I found myself looking at the structure and the number of bricks it took to make just one arch.  And my thoughts went to the slave who must have made the hundreds of millions of bricks to construct it.  It was a phenomenal feat.

For lunch we ate as a supper club that caters to bus trips at lunch time.  It was an old warehouse right on the river.  We had a nice lunch of salad, lasagna, tiramisu and wine.  They warned us to not drink too much wine as it was still going to get hot (100) and they didn't want anyone passing out.

After lunch we went to the Vatican museum and St. Peter's Cathedral and the Sistine Chapel.  It was wonderful to see all these things but you were like a salmon caught in a spawning stream.  You were just carried along with the crowd.  No stopping and studying.

Tomorrow I am on to a tour of the Coast of the Cinque Terra, then Provence which will be Marseilles, Cassis and Sanary-sur-Mer.

I don't know if it's worth while without the pictures.

Day 10 Rome (the morning)

Decided to break this up as well as it would be photo overload.

We arrived in Rome at 7 am.  This was going to be a full day.  We were off the ship by 6:30 am and back at 6:30 pm. Temps were high 90 to 100 degrees.  But the sites were not terribly crowded.  First we had a bus man's tour of some of the sites like the forum and Rome in general.

I believe this was the Arno valley we went through to get from the port to Rome which was a pretty long drive.  I remembered my father talking about being in the Arno region during the war and though of him often during this day.

 Just never know what you will see.

 This was the building and balcony that Mussolini made this speeches from.

 Need a trough, but use an old sarcophagus.

The first actual walk around of this tour was San Pietro in Vincoli (St. Peter in Chains). Which was built in the 1500's.

This was the relic in the basilica.  The chains that has held St. Peter while he was captive in Jerusalem and the chains that help him in Mamertime Prison in Rome, fused together when Pope Leo 1 was inspecting them.

 This was sculpted by Michael Angelo

This was Michael Angelo's Moses.

Then we were are on the march again.

Something that has always intrigued me wherever I have travel has been doors and door knobs/knockers.  Here were a few we saw during our walk.

Got grapes??

Since I am soo far out from this trip, over 1 year.  I think next posts will be mostly pictures. It will be the afternoon in Rome which was a visit to the Vatican, St Peter Basilica and Museum and the Sistine Chapel. After Rome was Florence/Pisa This was the day that I did the tour of the Coast of Cinque Terra and Portovenere.  Then was Provence where I toured Marseille, cassis and Sanary-sur-Mer and then finally it was back to Barcelona and back home.

Salerno to Pompeii (Part 3)

It was over 90 degrees when we arrived in Pompeii with almost no shade unless you could plaster yourself up against a wall.  Our bus load was broken into several smaller groups and each given a tour guide.  In the group that I was with we only saw one of the plaster casts of people killed in the eruptions. After reading articles in National Geographic for 50 years I was hoping to see more.

The guide pointed out that up there, where that church is,was the ground level before Pompeii was discovered.  So glad that someone's curiosity lead to this great discovery and that the work continues.

Returned to the ship about 5 pm and sailed at 6 pm