Wednesday, April 2

Up at 6:30 this morning to get ready for water aerobics. Cloudy day, with threats of storms later, but this morning was mild enough to only need a fleece outfit topped with a fleece hoodie. The pool was warm, too, which I enjoyed. Twenty-two of us attended today.

Back home, I packed a lunch for the three of us to have at the museum at noon for the first day of the film festival.

Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house around 9:30, and she peeled and quartered onions to include with pork loins in the slow cooker. I browned the meat, and added the onions, carrots, spices, and broths and turned the cooker to low to simmer while we were gone to the museum.

Then I went upstairs to shower and dress. At 11:30, we headed to the museum, and had our lunch shortly before noon.

About 20 people showed up for the screening of four short films. Two of the offerings revolved around the theme of losing parents. The first focused on the estrangement of a father and son. When the son learns the son has only weeks to live, he decides to visit him. Their conversation is short and to the point.

The second one has the main character going to his parents' home to pack up after their death, but finds a stranger living there. What happens next is perplexing.

One film focuses on a lonely elderly woman who offers the cable guy food and drink simply to get him to stay and visit.

The best film was about a Hispanic man who is deaf and languageless (the film's term, not mine), and how his tutor finally breaks through to him. True story and very poignant. This feature is to be repeated on Saturday.

Before we returned home afterward, we went to the river to see if the circus was still setting up. The tents were already erected, but we saw a cage of several tigers, and elephants standing under an awning, as well as camels, a couple of large horses, and several ponies. Show times for the circus are 4:30 and 7:30. The weather may hold for the earlier performance, but storms could crop up for the later one. I wouldn't want to be in the big top during a storm.

Back home, we watched Monday night's episode of "Dancing With the Star." Then, for supper, we had servings of the pork roast with sides of the carrots and onions, and leftover potatoes and squashes, along with individual cups of applesauce.

Mother was ready to go home shortly afterward, so Hubbie accompanied her. Then, around 6:30, Hubbie and I went downtown to see a screening of a film about a small dying town that champions its varsity basketball team, though it is suffering brutal losses. The team struggles to compete, just as the town struggles to survive.

Today, at the museum, Hubbie and I both bought Red Eye passes, so that we can see as many films as we want for the one-time charge of $15. If storms are too severe for tomorrow night's screening, though, the event might be canceled until a later date. I know I will not be leaving home, if the weather becomes too threatening.

Tuesday, April 1

April Fool's Day. I played no jokes on anyone, and no one played one on me.

Slept late, until 8:30, though Hubbie got up at 7:30. I meant to do my exercises right after breakfast, but after Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house around 10 a.m., she was ready to go to work in the kitchen, so I gathered ingredients for making baked beans.

She diced onions and bell peppers, and cut up turkey bacon. I sauteed both, and added them to cans of rinsed pinto beans. Mother added the rest of the ingredients, as I read them to her, then I added spices. Got the beans in the oven at 10:30.

Mother went to her jigsaw puzzle afterward, and I finally did my exercises. It was nearly noon by the time I finished, so we went ahead and had lunch, and then I went upstairs to shower and dress.

Hubbie ran errands this afternoon, and Mother and I went outdoors to enjoy this first really warm, sunshiny day of spring. Mother sat in a lawn chair and soaked up the sun, while I went around the yard photographing spring flowers. Back inside later, I uploaded some of the photos to my social network page.

Didn't accomplish anything else for the rest of the afternoon until time to go to a Friends of the Library executive board meeting at the college at 5 p.m. The board hasn't been able to meet in a few months, thanks to inclement winter weather.

So an e-mail from the board president noted: "Just reminding everyone that we'll meet at 5 p.m., 1 APR. No joke." That's the closest I got to any recognition of April Fool's Day. Not that I'm complaining. Some folks get carried away with practical jokes, and I'm not a fan.

At the meeting, we discussed an upcoming book sale, in conjunction with a college-sponsored festival. We will set up the sale on the Thursday before the festival, which begins on Friday. Thursday evening, we will host a Friends of the Library champagne reception. This gives Friends of the Library an opportunity to peruse the books before they are offered to the public.

Also discussed was the purchase of PCs and flat screen monitors for the library, since the old computers are just not adequate to student needs anymore. Friends of the Library has an adequate treasury to fund what has been requested, so naturally we approved.

Tonight, I noticed that the Literacy Council director, who is a member of the FOL board looked pregnant, but I didn't want to say anything. Later, following the meeting, she announced to the library director that she is indeed expecting at the end of July. She said that she and her husband, who have been married for a long time, have been trying to start a family, so naturally she is thrilled that she is now expecting. I'm happy for her.

The meeting ended at 5:45, so I was home by 6 p.m. Mother and Hubbie had already had their supper...hot dog, baked beans, and coleslaw for Mother, and barbecue and sides for Hubbie. Hubbie heated helpings of the meal for me.

Mother was ready to go home after watching "Wheel of Fortune," so Hubbie accompanied her. Then he and I watched the second season of the series, "Bones," on a DVD we borrowed from the library.

We expected Sis to come for a few day's visit either tonight or tomorrow, but she is being delayed until Friday. She'll miss the film festival showing for tomorrow and Thursday, but there will be plenty remaining on Saturday and Sunday.

Monday, March 31

Another month gone. April coming up. March was such a weird weather month that we crossed more events off the calendar than we attended. April's calendar is filling up with interesting things to do, so I hope the weather cooperates.

Hubbie and I got very little sleep last night, thanks to the phone ringing at 4 a.m. One of Hubbie's relatives needed help, but he could have waited until later in the morning to call, since there was nothing we could do at that hour, anyway.

Neither of us could go back to sleep after that, so we tossed and turned until 5:30, then got up. After breakfast, I debated whether or not I wanted to go to water aerobics, but finally decided I needed the exercise, so I got ready and went.

It was a mild morning, though cool enough for a jacket. The pool was nice and warm, and 22 of us attended, including a few that had been away for a while. We were glad to see them back. One lady celebrated her 81st birthday today, so we sang the birthday song for her.There are a few ladies who are under 60 years old, but most of us are in our 60s, 70s, and 80s.

Back home afterward, I enjoyed a couple of cups of coffee, then got ready for the day. Didn't do much except yawn for the rest of the morning. Around 9:30, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house, and she worked on her jigsaw puzzle. It's a doozy of a puzzle, so even with my help, it's moving slowly.

After a lunch of pimento cheese sandwiches and chips, Mother went back to her puzzle, and Hubbie and I ran errands.

Our first stop was the college to drop off several boxes of books for the book sale. The library staff member seemed excited to get these volumes, and I'm glad to have them off my shelves. I probably donated over a hundred books, which doesn't seem to have made a very big dent in my library.

I can't seem to resist picking up books here and there and will probably bring an armload home from the sale. Someone needs to tie my hands behind my back! I probably can't live long enough to read all the books I have, but it's not about reading every last one of them, it's about having plenty to choose from in various genre, so I can dive into whatever takes my fancy at the moment.

I also have classic literature, volumes of poetry, volumes of plays, journalism and photography reference books, books about flowers and crafts, coffee table books featuring masterpiece artists, collections of Christmas books, etc.

And then, of course, there is a library of books on my e-reader. I'll never go for want of something to read.

From the college, we went to the post office to mail coupons to Granddaughter, to the bank, to a grocery store to pick up a prescription, and to the WDCS for a few groceries.

Back home, I had little energy to do much, but I helped Mother with her puzzle for a while, read today's newspapers, and read my novel until I nodded off.

Later, for supper, I heated leftover steamed veggies, cornbread, and biscuits. Mother was ready to go home shortly afterward, and Hubbie accompanied her. Then he and I watched TV for the evening...at least we watched what we didn't nod off in the middle of.

Sunday, March 30

Up at 8 a.m., but skipped my exercises after breakfast, as usual on Sunday. Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house around 9:30, and she did her usual routine of filling her pill carrier, and clipping coupons for Granddaughter.

Then she joined me in the kitchen to begin preparations for lunch. She sliced onions, and yellow and zucchini squashes. Hubbie washed and halved small potatoes. I put the veggies in the steamer to cook until lunchtime. Served the veggies with a choice of cornbread or biscuits.

After lunch, Mother went to her jigsaw puzzle. I made a birthday card for a great-granddaughter, then helped Mother with her puzzle for a while, since she was having trouble with the border. Then I read the Sunday newspaper, and went upstairs to sort more books for the college library book sale. Hubbie spent the afternoon watching NCAA basketball games.

Around 4:30, Mother was ready to go home, so Hubbie accompanied her. Then we watched a basketball game until around 6:30, when, a minute or so before the game ended, the power went out.
A police car, siren blaring, went by a few minutes later.

Since there was still light enough upstairs in the office, I finished sorting books, which Hubbie boxed and took out to the garage to be loaded in the van tomorrow for transport to the library.

When the power didn't come back on after 30 minutes, we decided to go see what had happened. About a mile down the road, the police car, blue lights flashing, was parked on the side of the road. The ditches on both sides of the road were blackened. A power line lay across the road. Curious onlookers were parked here and there along the shoulders. No sign of an accident that we could tell. So we pulled into a nearby driveway and Hubby chatted with the home owner. He had earlier heard a strange noise and went out to inspect. The power line had ignited the dry grass. The fire department doused the fire. But no one knows what caused the line to snap. A utility truck pulled up just as we were ready to head back home. It was 8:30 before power was restored.

It's always something in our neighborhood.

Since it took so long for the power to be restored, I abandoned my idea of having leftover bagel pizzas for supper, and instead, we had PB&J sandwiches, chips, and sliced apple by the light of a kerosene lamp.

Later, when the lights came back on, we resumed watching TV until time for bed. Busy week coming up.