Friday, Dec. 7

Pearl Harbor Day. We flew our flags in remembrance of the day.

Up at 6:30 to get ready for water aerobics. This was the last day for aerobics until Jan. 9. Sixteen of us enjoyed the wonderfully warm pool.

Back home afterward, I had a couple of cups of coffee, and then headed upstairs to get ready for the day. In the meantime, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house, where she made Italian Cream Cheese balls.

Downstairs, I did this and that around the house, and then threw the bedspread from the spare bedroom in the washing machine, because I discovered that one of the cats had upchucked on it. That's when I discovered that the washer had died.

The machine is 32 years old, but drats, did it have to quit at this busiest time of the year? Searching for new appliances knocked a big hole in our afternoon, but it had to be done.

Before we went shopping, Hubbie called the two stores in town that carry washers and dryers to find out if either of them delivered, installed, and took the old appliances away. Only one store, the home improvement store, did these things, and it wasn't the one that we've patronized for years.

But we went to our familiar store, anyway, anticipating that the salesman would match the home improvement store after we told him what they were willing to do. He wouldn't. So we went to the other store, where the salesman fell over himself to please us.

We got several discounts, and an extended one-year-no-interest payment plan (though the current plan is for six months). The only complaint we have is that the appliances won't be delivered until the 18th. On the positive side, it gives us longer to clean out the laundry room. And I won't have to worry about it until after we have company on the 16th. Also, we feel good that we shopped locally, and bought products that are made entirely in America. But until the 18th, we'll have to do our laundry at Mother's house.

By the time we finished the transaction, it was 3 p.m. Before we headed home, I wanted to stop by the WDCS and pick up a few things, including apple juice and red hots for making jelly. I saw the recipe in the Holiday Open House booklet I recently picked up at the Extension Services office. Hope I can get around to trying it tomorrow.

I had no problem finding apple juice at the WDCS, but there were no red hots. There weren't any at the everything's a dollar store, either. So we traveled back across town to a grocery store. Took a while to find them there, and before I did, I was convinced this store didn't have them either. But finally spied them crammed into a narrow space between two other products.

Hurried home after that, because it was time to fix supper. Mother, who had gone to the couch after lunch, was still napping, even though it was nearly 4 p.m. She got up a few minutes later.

I decided to make macaroni and cheese for supper, to have with leftover squash and speckled butter beans from last night. Wouldn't you know, though, I discovered I had no macaroni. So we had noodles and cheese instead.

After supper, Hubbie accompanied Mother to her house, and later we went to the college where I swim to attend a combined choral group from the community and college present a Christmas concert.

Upon arrival at the college, though, we found that there were no parking spaces anywhere near the fine arts building, because there was a high school basketball tournament going on at the gym. We finally found one open space way across campus near the theater and student union. Fortunately, the campus is small, so a five-minute brisk walk delivered us to the concert venue. I hadn't planned on an aerobic workout in conjunction with a concert tonight, but I guess it did my heart good.

The concert was good for the most part. There was one woman, though, that was ever so slightly, and loudly, off key. One of the men belted out a sour note, too.

What surprised the audience and the performers alike was when one of the young women singers, standing in high heels on the third level of the risers, suddlenly fainted.
A couple of the women on either side of her scrambled to help her up, and supported her as they led her off the stage. Her boyfriend rushed forward, picked her up, and rushed outside with her. Later, they returned, but the young woman didn't rejoin the group onstage.

We were home from the concert around 9 p.m., and finished the evening watching TV.

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Well, the second shipment of what we thought would be the 14-piece set of storage containers arrived. It was 14 pieces alright, but of glass rather than plastic. It's a nice set, but not what Hubbie thought he ordered. Oh, well.