Observations & Frustrations

Another gloomy day with light snow falling almost constantly. It hasn't amounted to much more than a dusting, and there hasn't been much wind, but I'm still waiting for the warmup I thought was happening this weekend. Jamie reminded me when I was grumbling about that this morning when he called, it HAS warmed up from a negative 12 degrees in the early morning to 12 degrees above zero this morning. He is a "cup half full" guy!

I can't really complain. I cleared 2.5 inches of light, fluffy snow off the deck this morning - that takes care of half of my daily physical therapy exercises - I'll manage more later in the day. I guess it's a good thing we get a little snow each day that gets me outside to exercise. Way better than having 8 - 10 inches of wet, heavy snow dumped on us all at once, for sure. That will probably happen, but I hope not right away.

I had a note from Marti Talbot with more sad news for her family. She wrote: My sad news is that my sister-in-law and Carolyn Hamilton's sister, Gwen Talbot, has passed away two days before Thanksgiving.  The family is traveling down this week for her services and to break up her apartment.

A sad time of year. --Marti Talbot

 

I didn't know Gwen, but I can certainly understand how hard it is on families to lose loved ones, and especially around the holidays when everyone should be happy and gathering to celebrate happy times. Condolences may be sent to Marti at 8 Courtney Rd., North Woodstock, NH 03262; or to Carolyn Hamilton at 8151 Green Mountain Rd., Boynton Beach, FL 33473.

 

It's interesting how times have changed in different ways than we usually think about. I had an appointment to get the oil changed in my car on Monday afternoon, and it was already snowing pretty steadily - the beginnings of this latest snowstorm. I only had to go to Danville, so I wasn't concerned, but it was also bitterly cold. While I was there, a woman stopped in to ask them to check her tire pressure because there was a low reading on one tire. Unfortunately, they couldn't help her because their air gauge (which is outside) was frozen and not working. The attendant went back to work and she hesitated at the door, looking a bit bewildered, obviously not knowing what to do next. I knew exactly what she was experiencing because I've had that happen with my car in cold weather, so I was able to assure her that if it doesn't actually look low, it's likely fine and the low reading would go away when the weather warmed up. She was obviously relieved and went on her way, I expect without incident. 

 

There are all sorts of "indicators" on cars these days - low air, low oil life, door ajar, etc., etc. Years ago we kept track of things like that visually, using common sense, and got along just fine. Now I can't even turn on the radio in my car without checking if it's on AM, FM, or finding that it is somehow locked because something else is operating. That happened to me recently. I must have pushed a wrong button or something because I couldn't get it to change stations. I had to pull into a rest area in order to get it operating - and I still don't know what happened or how I "fixed" it. I punched buttons and tried to think like a computer - and that never works for me. Sometimes it would be nice just to have a dial to select a station and another to control the volume. 

 

Then, on Wednesday I had an appointment for a hearing checkup in St. J. and got a call asking if I could come in earlier than planned - because schools were closing early due to snow in the forecast. When I got to St. Johnsbury, Main Street was strangely quiet  -  St. Johnsbury Academy hadn't even opened that day. That almost never happened when my kids were in school in St. Johnsbury. The Academy has lots of dorm kids and most local kids walked to school, so a few inches of snow didn't really bother anyone. Not anymore. Just about everyone drives their kids to school or the kids ride on busses that are apparently not very good in snowy conditions. I think the new conveniences we enjoy today are taking away our creativeness and ability to cope with whatever challenges arise. It's sad. 

 

Every now and then, it's good to express some of our frustrations and recharge. So Diane Rossi and I had pizza from the store in Cabot last night and discussed some of our frustrations. The Cabot store turns out a nice pizza and it was a good night to do enjoy "pizza and a beer." (Ours was non-alcoholic!) I usually have leftovers the following day for lunch, but today seemed more like a "hot soup" day, so I'm looking forward to pizza again tonight! I have a few Hallmark movies saved, and will probably watch one of those after I catch up on a bit of news. 

 

Hallmark Christmas movies moved me to finally put a wreath on my front door yesterday - not a traditional one with fresh greens because I thought it best not to wade into the snow to get the boughs like I usually do, but I found enough materials in my stash in the basement to make one that will do for this year.

 

 I am also enjoying the tree on my porch. There are no ornaments on it, and the lights are solar. Without much sunshine, they don't stay on very long - only until about 9 p.m., probably.  It's nice to have out there, anyway. There are two strings of lights and both were supposed to stay on, not blink, but after about an hour in the deep cold the first night out, one set began to blink. I suspect, like tire pressure indicators, it's affected by the cold. Anyway, I'm not going out there and try to change it! The tree already has a light covering of snow on it, blown onto the porch today after the wind shifted to the southeast, so it looks festive, even without ornaments or lights during the daytime.

 

Just a closing thought: I've had a couple of notes from strangers who have found this blog by accident, asking to be added to the mailing list. When this happens, I'm always very surprised and pleased. So, welcome, new readers - I'm happy that you find something interesting here. Joe's Pond is a special place with a wonderful community of both year around and seasonal folks who are treasured friends. It is always rewarding to hear from them and have their contributions for the blog. It keeps everyone in touch, no matter where they are or what they are doing. So, thank you, readers! You make my day!