December 31, 2013. Labadee, Haiti. Observations.

This ship is so big that people are not friendly.  On the elevators, no one speaks and when you do say hello, folks seem surprised.   Most people on cruise ships are chatty.  It must be because,  on this ship,  most people are with a group, just like us.

Labadee, where we are docked,  is an area of Haiti owned by the cruise line, so on shore, everything is new and pristine.   The young of our group are off on shore being active, snorkeling, riding zip lines or visiting the beach.   It is a busy scene, watching from our balcony.

This ship has great food at multiple restaurants which are included with the price of the cruise.  In addition, several specialty restaurants are available where you pay extra money.  There must be at least six of these fancy restaurants.   I am surprised that people spend more money to eat when they have already paid for it.   Yesterday, Ken and I walked the ship,  visiting and inspecting all the fancy restaurants.  We did not wish to stumble into a restaurant where we had to pay.   Why would we do this?

Ken and I fit very well in our cabin.  Our clothes are put away and the Internet access has been established.  We like the balcony.  Dave and Irene booked a very expensive suite for themselves, which has proved very useful.  It is big enough to fit us all together for cocktails.   Then we wander off to dinner.  Good planning on their part.   This ship has been steady.  Not a sign of a rocking.    So far, it has been a lovely cruise, all thanks to Dave and Irene getting married in 1953.

December 30, 2013. The Allure of the Sea. Announcements.

It was exciting.   Dave and Irene were hosting a cocktail party in their suite on board ship.   For the first time on this Anniversary Cruise, everyone was together and pleased to all be in one place.  The family had gathered from Vancouver,  Korea, Montreal, Mississippi and Hamilton, to join the celebration.  I proposed a toast to the oldest Buckley members, Dave and Irene.   Then we toasted Alana, the youngest Buckley.

Brendan next made the most important announcement.   He and Marnie were expecting a baby.   Everyone was thrilled even though Norm thinks he is too young to be a grandparent.    Brendan is Norm's son.   Dave and Irene will now be a great grandparent.  It was a wonderful announcement.

The Royal Caribbean ship, The Allure of the Sea, is huge.   It is the largest cruise ship afloat.  And it is beautiful.   Dave and Irene chose this ship because of all the activities available for the young people.   They will do them all, I am sure, from zip line to rock climbing to surf riding.  Each evening we will gather in Dave and Irene's suite to catch up with the events of the day.  It is an exciting time for all.

December 29, 2013. Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Beginnings.

The beginning of anything is always an adventure.   You never really know what will happen, once you have started out.    Mary Frances was knitting a scarf for her Mother for Christmas and I watched her as she added stitch after stitch for the first row.   She was excited to be launching a new project, knowing full well that some time during the knitting, she will be weary with the knitting.

Today, Ken and I feel the same.   Our trip has been planned over the course of almost a year and now we are beginning to take the first step, the equivalent of adding those first stitches for Mary Frances.   The difference between Mary Frances and us is that after she has completed the scarf, she will have a product that Christina will wear.  At the end of our five months of travel, we will have a memory and perhaps some pictures.   But we will have visited many places in the world that we have only read about, so we are excited to be taking the first stitch.  

One anxiety of this trip is the access to the Internet.  On a ship it can be difficult and I am told expensive.   Ken already needs a drug store.  All the comforts of home will not be at our fingertips, but we will manage, one way or another, I feel sure.   And we are beginning our journey.

December 28, 2013. Fort Lauderdale, Florida. A Travel Day.

You never know what will happen when you are traveling.   In order to get from Jackson to Fort Lauderdale,  we were required to fly to Houston, wait two hours,  then board another plane for our destination.    But the plane in Houston did not appear on time.   For us, it was not a real problem as we board our cruise tomorrow, so other than being weary,  we were fine.    Ken and I just read and watched the people....and waited.

Not for other travelers.    A big group was flying in order to embark on a cruise, which was leaving at 4:00 today.     The original schedule had us arriving in Fort Lauderdale at 12:30.   We finally left an hour late which was fine for the cruisers, but when we had Fort Lauderdale in sight, the plane began to circle, and circle, and circle.    Finally we landed.  We checked into our motel at 3:15, so it is my guess these anxious travelers would make their cruise departure.    But they were worried!!

The first day of travel is always difficult, and I am not sure why.     I know that you must get through the first day, have a good night sleep, then enjoy the rest of the journey.   But even seasoned travelers like us finds the first day tedious and trying, even though you have no anxiety.    We just get through the day.

December 27, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. The Cruise-a-Thon.

Andrew has christened our five month journey a Cruise-A-Thon.    It seems to be an apt name.    We hope we have packed the right clothes because we certainly have filled our new bigger bags.   When I was carrying my bag downstairs I was wishing we had used our old very small bag, as my bag is heavy.   It seems that you will fill the space of any bag.

People have asked how we planned such a long and complicated trip and our response is always the same.   The trip just grew, bit by bit.   We certainly did not intend to take five cruises and be gone for five months.  Once we decided try to avoid flying, the journey stretched out and we looked for how to get from where we were to where we wanted to be.   Blame Dave and Irene, who started the whole thing by inviting us on the 60th Anniversary Cruise with the whole Buckley family, leaving and ending in Fort Lauderdale.    One thing led to another.  Now here we almost ready to leave.

Tomorrow morning we fly to Florida to board the Caribbean Cruise on the 29th, along with all the Buckley Family.  After that cruise, we spend two weeks in resorts in Florida with Dave and Irene.   Ken and I then take the Panama Canal Cruise, ending up in Los Angeles.    A quick flight to San Francisco and four days there, we board the Cunard Queen Elizabeth for Auckland, New Zealand.   A two week private tour ends up with ten days with Gill in Christchurch.  We wanted to cruise home from Sydney, so to get there we are taking another cruise of New Zealand and Australia followed by ten days in Sydney.  The final step is the 28 cruise back to Vancouver where we will stay a week, staying right down town with no car.

The total is three short flights, five cruises and no rental cars,  traveling almost as was done in the 19th Century.   Tomorrow we will begin.

December 26, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Fried Chicken.

Today, Ken and I ate the best fried chicken we have ever tasted, all while sitting in the truck by the side of a road.   Our plan was to get to Edwards, then have lunch, as we had an appointment to look at another farm property at 2:00.    When we got to Edwards, we discovered that they have no restaurants, but we discovered a service station with a sign for fried chicken so we went in.

For $8.00 we bought 5 pieces of chicken which included  two rolls.    We found a spot beside the rural road and ate our fried chicken.  Now perhaps we were hungry but the chicken tasted better the more we ate.    That chicken tasted delicious.  It was a bit spicy and very tender and juicy.   Of course, we were a mess.  I dropped pieces of fried chicken all over my skirt but I didn't care a bit.  That chicken was worth all the stains.

So just north of Highway 20,  at exit 19 on highway 22, you can find this small service station making the best fried chicken in the world.   Some days you just get lucky, even if you must eat in the truck.

December 25, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Christmas Day.

Our Christmas Day was perfect.   We arrived at Andrew and Christina's home just after they had finished opening presents, so we walked in with a big bag of goodies for each girl and a smaller bag for the adults.   It took the girls an hour to go through their new belongings.   They were delighted with each object but the ones they liked the best were the two pieces of art.    While we drank coffee and admired our own gifts and stockings from Santa,  the girls were glowing, surrounded by their gifts.

Christina made breakfast casserole which we ate while watching the Disney Parade.   I like parades.  Phone conversations with David and Suzanne and the girls in San Antonio made us wish we were all together, but they were happy to be heading west to ski.   Molly received a video for Christmas, so we all watched together.  Ken and I took a walk while Molly rested.   Then just after 4:30, Linda, along with Peter and Bethany and their two children arrived for dinner.   Beef tenderloin, mashed potatoes, green beans and brussel sprouts were served and was delicious.  After a break and conversation,  we ate a dessert of bread pudding and ice cream, made by Christina.

I have read and heard that families have difficulty over holidays.   It has never happened  to me.   Our Christmas times have always been happy and fun, with never a harsh word.   As I am 76 and am aware of at least 72 different Christmas Days, I can say with assurance that Christmas Days have always been a delight to me.  Perhaps I was lucky with my families both past and present.

December 24, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Christmas.

The churches are smart to have the Christmas Eve Service at 4:00,  and they are even smarter when the preacher speaks for five minutes and the whole service lasts 45 minutes.   The church was packed.  Late arrivals were forced to sit in the choir stalls.    One of the nicest part of the service was to hear the chirping of the little children, all over the huge church.  

All the Creath and Dickie families sat together, in one long row.  It was the same for all the families, who had gathered together from all parts of the country to worship on Christmas Eve.   We sang eight carols and two separate solos pieces.  It was lovely and festive and reverent.    The children were attentive and well behaved and everyone was surprised to discover that at 4:45 we were walking out.

Christina's Mother Linda took us all out to dinner at their favorite Japanese restaurant.    She had pre ordered so when we all arrived and sat down, the food just started coming..and coming...and coming.   The food was delicious and we ate it all, much to my surprise.   Our group consisted of 7 adults and 5 children although Kate and Mary Frances are almost adults.   The choice of restaurants was excellent.  Very few people dine out on Japanese food on Christmas Eve, so we had the restaurant to ourselves.

When we got home, Molly scurried around setting up cookies and a note for Santa.   After we left, Christina will read The Night Before Christmas, then Molly would be keen to sleep, as she knows that Santa does not come until children go to sleep.    Our Christmas Eve was delightful.

December 23, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Baking.

Yesterday, Wendy and I congratulated ourselves for doing no baking in Christmas, 2013.   For many years, we made ourselves slaves to the kitchen.    Now that we are old, we depend on our daughters in law.

It seemed like a good idea at the time, to exchange a dozen cookies to each of us in Picnic Group.   We actually did it for several years.   As there were 14 friends in the group, we each must bake thirteen dozen cookies, then wrap them individually in a package of 12 of your special cookies, then give a gift to each other.   The first year was the most fun, as you received 13 different types of cookies.    The second year was tedious and the third year we voted it down,  perhaps because of Gill.

Gill did not really enjoy baking but she was a good sport and baked her cookies and set them out on racks to cool.  Fourteen dozen cookies is a lot of cookies.    An hour later, she discovered her very sick dog, and no cookies.   Her Airedale had eaten every chocolate chip cookie, them proceeded to defecate and vomit all over her house.   Not only was she required to clean up her house, but she was required to bake 14 dozen cookies, all over again.  She was not pleased.

The rest of us, of course, thought it funny.  but we all agreed on no more cookie exchange!!  Our Christmas tasks  got a lot easier.

December 22, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Jambalaya.

The jambalaya was delicious, as was the company.   In Jackson, you live just close enough to New Orleans that you catch the flavors in the local cooking, and the Jambalaya prepared by Nelson was the best we have ever eaten.   I could have eaten three servings.

Katy and Nelson invited the Dickie family for a Christmas celebration.   It was delightful and delicious. We snacked on Bree and cranberries wrapped in pastry while we drank milk punch, a delightful Mississippi speciality.    All children sat together with the adults at the dining table.    We were all in a festive mode.

We ate our jambalaya, salad and bread on Christmas dishes which made me nostalgic for my dishes, but I said not a word but just enjoyed the moment.    Christina made brownies for dessert and served it with candy cane ice cream.  I might point out that Andrew ate so much jambalaya that he could not finish his brownie, so he took it home!!

Mississippi folks are gracious and hospitable and being entertained in their homes are a delight.   On the way home at 10:00, all seven of us in the car felt sustained in body and soul.   There is nothing better than spending time with friends in their gracious home.   We are fortunate.

December 21, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Storms.

This place has it's share of storms.  Right now, we are under a tornado watch.   It has been warm today and very windy.  This afternoon, a tree blew down across the electrical lines, right in front of the condo property, which immediately shut off the electricity.   We were leaving to have dinner with the family and by the time we returned at 8:30 the electricity had been restored.

The electrical company does an excellent job of informing us of the problem and the time periods, all done on Ken's cell phone.  Within 5 minutes of the lack of power, we were told what had happened and when the repairs would be completed.    Updates come regularly too.  It is impressive to receive those text messages.

Now it is raining very hard and the storm warnings are still in effect.  Thunder and lightning are everywhere.  Of course, as we have no TV or radio in the condo, we are out of touch.  We assume the rain will be stopped by morning.  Kate and Mary Frances are singing in the main church services, combining with the senior choir for both services, so Ken and I will go and be proud of our granddaughters.  My Mother would be pleased too.  Then we will take them home.   I will not wear my boots, which have candy cane stripes, to church and I hate wearing wet shoes!!  Grumble grumble.

December 20, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. A Cajun Christmas Tree.

It is sitting on the counter, right beside the bar in our condo, lending a festive note to the whole room.   This Cajun Christmas Tree was given to us by Greta Barbour and John just tonight.   I had never heard of such a thing, but here it is, lighting up the Christmas season, right in my own home.

We twelve dined together at Spice Avenue, an Indian Restaurant in Jackson.   During dinner, this Cajun Christmas Tress was presented to us, appearing out of a large  red bag.   John is from Louisiana, so must know about Cajun Culture.    Our Christmas gift is a large empty whiskey bottle.  Stuffed inside the bottle and also wrapped around it,  is a string of Christmas lights.   Poking out of the top of the bottle is a small branch of pine tree, with Christmas ornaments hanging from the branch.   When you plug in the lights, the whole thing sparkles with lights.  It is a Cajun Christmas Tree and it is beautiful.

I wonder if John knows that we are from the home of the Cajuns?   The Acadians were kicked out of Nova Scotia in 1755.  Some of them ended up in Louisiana as Cajuns.   The food served by Acadians in Nova Scotia is bland, for example, rappie pie, but the Cajun food in Louisiana is flavorful and delicious.  I wonder what happened?   And I wonder if you could see a Cajun Christmas Tree in Nova Scotia?   Probably not.  Too long ago.  But we love our Cajun Christmas Tree.   Thank you John and Greta Barbour.

December 19, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Bops.

It is a Jackson institution.   They serve frozen custard and is delicious.    I have no clue how it differs from ice cream so we call it ice cream although on their sign it says "frozen custard".    Of course, they have all the fancy sundaes with weird names such as  'dirt and worms',  and 'gummy bugs' but is really just good old fashioned ice cream sundaes, all gussied up.

This evening, Andrew and Mary Frances went to see The Hobbit.  We five were left home so after dinner, I suggested that we have dessert at Bops.  Molly was thrilled.   She had already put on a pair of cosy pajamas, but it took her a nano second to dress to be ready to get our ice cream. Kate had two final exams today. which she had finished just at 5:30.  A treat was in order for her too as the exam this afternoon was science/physics and was not easy.   Christina drove, and on the way we enjoyed all the Christmas lights, although Molly is not pleased with white lights.    "These are not my favorite", she said time and time again.

It is always interesting to me just how much pleasure is derived from a small event such as driving for ice cream.    We listened to Christmas music all the way there and back.   As it was only 60 degrees, we elected to order at the drive through and eat in the car, so all the way home, we nibbled on our ice cream.  And a good time was had by all.

December 18, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Packing.

I thought long and hard about what I need to take in my suitcase and I made the decisions.   Being away for five months is a long time but my system is to launder regularly.   Normally, we take one weeks clothing in our bag and keep wearing the same clothes, week after week.  This works well for a month but not for five.  Also we will be in settings that require fancy clothes.    I know we will be in summer in New Zealand, but I expect their summers will be similar to Nova Scotia summers, so we will need warmer clothes.   Going through the Panama Canal and through the tropics on the boat means I need warm weather clothes.   It means taking more clothes.

 In my mind, I knew what clothes to bring.   I brought clothes from the farm and from Texas, but what I did not know was whether or not they would fit in my case....until now.    This morning, I sorted through my clothes.   I was ruthless, putting back in the drawers any duplicates, then folded and stacked the clothes I was taking.   Much to my great surprise, everything fit.   Success.

Yesterday, Ken and I bought new very small overnight cases for our medications.   Our old rolling cases don't fit in overheads well so we bought small cases that look just like our bigger ones. except very small.   Although they are small, they hold all our medicines plus space left over to be used for overnight stuff.   They will work well when we tour New Zealand with our own driver.

For the first time ever, Ken packed his new medication case early.  Whoopee.   With our new bigger bag and our new small bag we are ready to hit the high seas.    December 28 we leave Jackson, to return May 30.   Even though I am using a bigger bag, I think I will be sick of looking at those clothes.  Now I am packed, ten days early and I will relax and enjoy Christmas.   My job is done.

December 17, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. The Escape.

It is a good car, but we never drive it.   We bought the Escape used in Texas, when we were flying to visit the family and renting a car.   It has been a great vehicle.   Our practice was to leave it at David and Suzanne's house, then use it when we flew into town.  One year shortly after Andrew and Christina moved to Jackson, we drove from Texas to Mississippi and we left the car at their house.  It has been there ever since because we started driving the truck from Maryland after I retired, so we drive to Texas in the truck.

Finally, today, we have gotten Mississippi license plates for the Escape.  It took us all of ten minutes and $35.   Now the new tags must be put on the old Escape and then we are legal.   The Escape has been driven 150,000 miles.   Ken does not wish to drive north again so we will once again fly.   We will keep the Escape in Mississippi to drive when we are here.   We must figure out what to do with the truck.   When we leave for our five month journey, the truck will stay with Andrew and Christina, so they will have four vehicles at the house.   Life is complicated but at least now we have one car with a Mississippi license and one with a Texas license.  The vehicles are both legal.

December 16, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. G.E.

We were both impressed with the service.   I called a G.E.  toll free number I found in the Yellow Pages at 9:30 this morning, and by 3:00 the appliance was repaired.   Pretty good service I would say.

Our dishwasher here in the condo is a basic bottom of the line model.  It was here when we moved in.  I don't like it but it gets the dishes clean, after you first rinse the dishes.   When we arrived in Mississippi before Thanksgiving, I discovered that the dishwasher switch would not advance, so after every cycle, I advanced it by hand.   Then it quit.  Ken fiddled with the switch and then it worked...once.  Last evening, it died.

I was pleased because now we could buy a good dishwasher.  But we will be gone for five months so we did want to buy a new dishwasher and let it set unused.  We decided to see if the repair was cheap.

G.E.has a service company and when I called them this morning, the system was efficient.   They told me the repairman would be at our condo between 1 and 5.  He got to us at 1:30 and by 3:00 he was walking out the door.   It cost us half the cost of a new dishwasher, so we were pleased.   However, we still own an inferior dishwasher.   Next time it breaks, we will quickly buy a new unit at Lowes, before we talk ourselves into saving money. Every decision in life comes with a trade off, apparently.

December 15, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Decisions.

Making decisions is difficult.  Weighing the options available and selecting the path that is best is not without anxiety.    My philosophy has always been to allow a child to make as many decisions as possible as they grow up, with the hope that when the child is an adult, the early experience will lead to better decision making.  

Once I was driving to a company wide meeting in a car with four fellow managers.   During the drive of four hours, one of the managers talked on the phone 16 times to her children.   There was no crisis.   My friend was not allowing her children to make decisions about anything.   There were calls about the color of the shower curtain in her apartment, and questions about courses, all questions that should have been handled and decided by the child.  These children were all in college or graduate school.   I did not endear myself to my friend by suggesting that she was harming the kids down the road.   Her response was to say somewhat superciliously, "We are a close family so we like to keep in touch".  Pure bull.  It was all about her.

Kate and Mary Frances, who are 16 and 13, were asked by me,  to select the restaurants each Sunday for Brunch.    They did an excellent job, looking up on the Internet for restaurants, then reading the reviews.  Today they chose a restaurant that was new to all of us, which I thought brave.   It was a new  Spanish restaurant, called Babano, where they served tapas.   The girls selected the restaurant and made the reservations.   Now the girls are skilled at what I do best, which is selecting a restaurant, then making reservations.   It is a most useful skill!!

December 14, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Projections.

Tonight we were supposed to be taking the Mills and Dickie families out to dinner to a Mexican restaurant, but John was ill, as are two of the children.   At first we cancelled, but after three questions from Andrew as to whether or not we were really staying home, Ken and I decided to go out to dinner with just the family, but change the restaurant.    Instead of the Mexican restaurant, we decided to got to Anjou, arguably the best restaurant in town.

The waitress asked what we were celebrating, as we seemed to be in a festive mode.   I answered that we were celebrating Kate's visit to Mississippi College yesterday, so we did.  She sat at the head of the table.   Andrew commented that ten years ago, we wouldn't have believed that we would be thinking about Kate attending a school in Mississippi.  They were all happily ensconced in Maryland, attending a small Episcopal school.  Trying to project ten years into the future is always difficult, if not impossible.

We are all pleased to be here in Mississippi.   Kate will soon turn 17 and she does not need to shovel  snow.   Mary Frances wishes she had snow to shovel, but not Andrew.   Trying to figure out the future is impossible but Ken and I still try to project for a ten year cycle.    My need to plan ahead requires me to try to figure out what will happen next, then make our decisions according to our projections.  But as you can see, it does not always work out.  Sometimes the future turns out better than you expected it would be.  Tonights dinner was delicious and delightful.

December 13, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Children.

Children do the oddest things.   Right after Thanksgiving,  we bought the Christmas tree at Andrew and Christina's home and we all helped decorate it.   First Christina put on the lights, then the ladies put on the decorations, with the fragile objects at the top, where Molly can not reach them.  We had a jolly, festive time.  Ever since then, Molly has been rearranging the decorations.     I have no clue why she does it, but she must have a grand plan.  I have noted that she has taken the decorations from the front of the tree around to the back.  She is the only person who can squeeze in behind the tree, but bit by bit, she is taking her favorites to a place where no one else can get them.

This evening after dinner,  Christina, Andrew, Mary Frances, Ken and I were sitting chatting in the living room.  Kate was baby sitting down the street.  Molly was singing Christmas Carols at the top of her lungs, one after another, totally oblivious that we could hear.   She does know every verse of every carol.   When I finally got up to get my purse to leave, I discovered that she was busily moving decorations around the tree, except now she was returning them to the front.  She must have a reason for her actions but she is not telling.  Children do the oddest things, but to them it seems normal.   But to a grandmother, it is interesting.

December 12, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Unexpected Gift.

Someone knocked on my door.   This is an unusual event at our condominium in Mississippi.   We seldom entertain here and we know few people in the complex.   When I went to the door,  I found a young lady holding a red box.     Our units step back from one another, so although this woman lives three doors down from us, we only see her walking to her car.  And of course, we are seldom here.

She told me that she had just baked cookies and she brought me this red box to say Merry Christmas.    She lives with two other young ladies who are trainees at Ballet Magnificat, where Kate, Mary Frances and Molly take ballet lessons.  These three ladies are trying to find jobs as dancers.   I have chatted with two of the young ladies, but never at any length.  Now she has given me a box of cookies.   There is something delightful about an unexpected gift.  I was charmed by her gesture.

Ken and I were just leaving to see the family, and I took the cookies with me.  We ate those cookies with our tea.   Our problem, as Molly could clearly see, that we had eight cookies and seven people.    Finally, the one cookie left was divided into three, for the three girls.   It was an unexpected gift but much appreciated by all.

December 11, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Planning.

It will be necessary for each of us to take a carry on onto the plane to Florida to begin our five month journey.  In that carry on case will be our medications.  Sad but true.    Most insurance companies will authorize 90 days of medications at a time, but as we will be away a full five moths, we need two batches.   They do have an over ride program but it must be authorized by the doctors and you are only allowed two a year.  Irritating but understandable.

The Walgreen's Pharmacy in Jackson is excellent.  Efficient,  polite and enthusiastic.  In the past, we obtained our medicines from the mails from a company called Medco but it was difficult to get the medicines at the right time, so Ken investigated other options and we chose Walgreen.   Their computers can be accessed from any of the pharmacies so we can obtain medicines in Texas too.  It is very easy and we are pleased with their service.

Monday morning I spoke to the pharmacist and asked her to work on obtaining two 90 day batches of my medicine and eye drops.  Today I picked them up.   She talked with the insurance company multiple times, on some I am paying full price, but at least I am ready to go and stay healthy.  Not easy, but she did it.  Now she is working on Ken's list, which is much longer than mine.  Good luck to her.

December 10, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Another Book.

The Art Forger is another book worth reading.  B.A. Shapiro wrote the book.   It took me a long time to warm up to the book, perhaps because I did not like the protagonist.   What I did enjoy was learning  about forging art, which I expected to read, but what I did not expect to be reading  was a detective story thriller.    The main character is an artist and continues doing dumb things until, finally, all is resolved.

For the first half of the book, I continued reading reluctantly but then I decided that I was taking the book too seriously.  The book spoofs the art world and the experts along with the Boston Police Department.   I could not figure out what the author was saying.  Once I realized that it was really a detective story, I relaxed and read very quickly to the end.    Eventually, I got to like Clair, the main character, but not much.  How ever, I understand that artists have a different way of looking at the world than me, so I forgave her and enjoyed the book.  The information on the world of art forgers is invaluable and interesting.  Actually, well worth the price of admission.

December 9, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. The Doctors.

Our Doctors have all been transferred to Jackson.  This is the site of the Medical School, so there is a large contingent of specialists and sub specialists right here in Jackson.  Both Ken and I said a fond farewell to our Bethesda Physicians, who have cared for us so competently, and we have gotten to know a whole bunch of new Doctors, all of whom look about 16.

As we are not in Jackson all year, during the times that we do live here,  we spend our time visiting doctor's offices.    Ken and I are not good at waiting so we try to get the first appointment of the day, but then we are into morning traffic.  This morning my eye appointment was at 8:30, right at the peak of traffic.  We have decided to forget the early appointments and just take a book.  In June, 2014, my next appointment with the good eye doctor is set for 10:00.  Everything is relative of course.   The traffic is never terrible in Jackson, but you become accustomed to the lack of congestion.

The Eye Doctor, who looks 16, is excellent.   He is happy to see me every six months although people with glaucoma should be seen every four months.   He realizes that it is silly for me to see other doctors in other places so he accepts me coming every six months.    He is no match for my background in sales.   My check up with him today went well.  I see 20/20 without glasses and my pressures are 12 in each eyes.  My diligence with the five drops a day is working.  We are pleased with our Mississippi physicians.

December 8, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. The Party.

The house was beautifully decorated for Christmas, both inside and out.    We arrived to find cousins dressed like elves, ready to check coats.   Their red and green outfits, which included a hat,  made it easy to fine them.   The presence of the young girls made you know that this party had been well organized.    The eggnog, served by the twins was excellent.

Music was everywhere.  A five piece band was playing all evening in the dining room, which turned into the dancing room.  They accompanied John and Mary Jane as they sang.  In the living room, a young man played Christmas music on a key board.  Nothing was left to chance, with everything in place for a successful party.   The food was plentiful and interesting.

But the best part of the evening was talking to the people.  When we arrived,  I knew half a dozen people and as the house was full,  I had many folks to select to whom I should chat.   John's Mother and I talked for ages.  I had met her before but never at length.  And we met a couple who we will meet for lunch next week.   I spent the whole evening talking to new people, most from Mississippi.  I loved it.   Thankfully, Andrew and Christina drove.   For us, getting home at 11:00 is a late night, so we were weary and happy to be home.  It was a lovely party.

December 7, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Anticipation.

This evening, Ken and I have been invited to a Mississippi Christmas Party, to be held in the home of the Greaves Family in Madison County.   I am full of anticipation.   Firstly, we have never attended a Christmas Party in Mississippi.   Secondly, many of the guest will be new to us, which always brings pleasure.

The five siblings give a big party together at their family home every few years.   Mrs. Greaves, who is 86,  still lives there, along with the oldest son and his wife.  The home is big and it is old so seeing it decorated for Christmas will be a delight, I am sure.   All five grown children invited friends so no telling how many people will be there.  I know we were to bring our dancing slippers.  When Christina asked about dress, she was told by Eleanor that  "you could wear whatever you wish but in Mississippi we do like to dress up."   One thing I will look for is what people are wearing.

I have always held my anticipation of future pleasures in check, knowing that often events are disappointing.  I never promise a good time in my mind but when all is well, I am delighted so enjoy it thoroughly.  It is perverse I know but it has worked.  But tonight, I see no down side.  I will wander and look and talk and enjoy so at the moment, two hours before party time, I am looking forward with pleasure to attending my first Mississippi Christmas Party.

December 6, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Birthdays.

Lethargy is it's own reward.   If you don't do anything to get a ball rolling, the ball will never start down the hill and nothing will happen.   Then you won't need to do anything except watch the world go by.   It is the same in the world of social events.    If you wait for someone else to plan and execute an event,  nothing might happen, so I have learned to take the bull by the horns and just plan.    This is especially true for birthdays.   I leave nothing to chance.    If I want folks to celebrate my birthday, I plan an event, even though I do not tell anyone it is my birthday.     It is my own surprise party for them.

Today is my birthday.  I am 76 years old today.  In 2017 I will be 80 and we will plan another Big O party.  But tonight, I invited my Mississippi family along with the Sutherland Family to join us for dinner at a Mexican restaurant in Ridgeland.  The Sutherlands feel like family to us anyway.   The dinner was fun and festive and everyone enjoyed the celebration.   It would have been easy to just stay home quietly and enjoy each others company, but instead we shared the joy and everyone left for home very happy.  Gathering people together is valuable on many levels.  The seven children loved being part of the birthday and the adults were just pleased to be together.    Most of all, I enjoyed being with loving family and friends.  That is worth making the effort of planning the dinner party, all for myself.

December 5, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Yazoo County.

Up and down we drove, on dirt roads and paved.    We saw many farms, with large fields of cotton and corn, also an abundance of animals.   The area we drove was between Highways 55 and 49.   The land is lovely, with just enough elevation to be interesting.   We liked the looks of the area.  Fortunately we did not see anything for sale that looked appealing.  Ken and I did what we do best, which was just poke around rural Yazoo County.

Our long term plan is the buy country property in Mississippi, but first, the farm in Pennsylvania must sell, so we are in the first stage of the process.    We are so ignorant of the counties in Mississippi that we can not effectively read the for sale signs or the MLS.    The Realtor recommended to us by Katie, told us to focus our thoughts on Yazoo County.  John recommended Rankin County too, so our next drive will be to Rankin County, which is just to the east of where we live.

Trying to become knowledgeable about an area is interesting.   Lots of folks have asked us over the years how we ever found our Pennsylvania farm or the Texas ranch.   The answer is that we did exactly what we are doing now, which is to scope out the area, and determine what is affordable.   Our preference is to be one hour from our condo with the maximum being a two hour drive.  The process has begun.

Yazoo City has a very nice restaurant right down town called Tom's Place.   I ordered shrimp and cheese grits.   I am becoming southern!!

December 4, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. Sam Robson.

I know nothing about him, except I know he sings and as best as I can tell, he sings only hymns.    He can be heard on You Tube videos where he does acapella singing using multi track recordings.  Basically, he sings with himself, singing multiple  parts and harmonies.  And he sings hymns.  They are great.   Tonight I sang "It is Well With My Soul", and "Great is Thy Faithfulness".

Next I turned to a Bruce Chen video of the Three Tenors, singing "It Is Well With My Soul", performed in Bath.  He also gave the history of how the hymn was written.   It also was on You Tube.

Finally, on my screen was a David Dawes playing a cornet solo,  "Glorious Ventures".  He was in Salvation Army uniform, and the band was a Salvation Army Band but it did not tell me anything about David or the Band.  Maybe someone will tell me.  He is a good player.

I am often asked about my background.  People want to know what in my upbringing has taken.  My response is always the same, in that I still love the hymns of the church and Salvation Army Bands.   My life has always been grounded with firm Christian concepts, which of course has come from my upbringing in a Christian family, belonging to The Salvation Army.  Tonight,  I had a happy hour on the Internet, listening to the hymns of the church and to the Salvation Army...all on You Tube.  Wonderful technology.

December 3, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. The Post Office.

When I walked into the Ridgeland Post Office, the place was almost empty.   There were no long lines of people waiting to be served.   One customer was being served and one man behind the counter of about 50 was standing waiting to help me.   I was delighted and as I walked up to him I said "You are making my day.  I do not need to wait in line at the post office".     He did not smile.   But what he said  to me made me very sad for him.  He said, "I will make my day at 5:30 when I am off duty".

I had eight different types of transactions.   It was complicated.  The man was competent and even though I tried to lighted the experience, he was having no part of having fun on his job.    He was just putting in the hours until he could leave at 5:30.

The sad part is that if he would just enjoy the customers and have fun on his job, the time would move along much faster.   I did everything I could to make him smile or laugh but he never did.    He did his job and that was all he did.   He answered my queries with a yes or no.  Nothing more.  It was sad for him and irritating to me that he refused to make our mundane task turned into a pleasant event.    Most people in Mississippi are gracious and pleasant but not that man in the Post Office.  He just wanted to go home.

December 2, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi. The New Phone.

Driving home from shopping,  Ken's phone rang.   It had a strange ring but as the phone was in his pocket, we knew it was his.   The funny part was that Ken could not figure out how to answer the phone and take the call.  We just laughed and laughed.

Ken and I have been using old flip type phones.   Ken decided that he needed a smart phone that had all the gadgets.  Also we needed to upgrade our MiFi, and find out about international calling.   We visited a Verizon store.   Those visits always last four times as long as you anticipate it will be.    The young lady helping us was wonderful but we had lots of questions and so did she.    Finally, Ken bought a fancy phone, but not an iPhone.    He had been reading about other phones and had isolated the one he wanted.    And of course, we increased our minutes on the mifi, and bought a wireless charger.    But they needed to set the new phone up.

It was well past lunch time so I left the Verizon store to check out the Honey Baked Ham store right next door.  I hit pay day.  At that same store, they also make deli sandwiches, so I ordered us each a sandwich and told Ken what he had done.   The food was a big surprise.  Ken was so hungry that he would not wait for any instructions, which is why he could not answer the phone.  The rest of the afternoon he has spent figuring it out.  Now if you call him  301 509 2026, he will answer on his fancy new phone...maybe.

December 1, 2013. Ridgeland, Mississippi.. Decorating the Tree.

Mint was the restaurant chosen by Kate and Mary Frances for Brunch.    I gave them the task of selecting our Sunday brunch and today was their first choice.   It was excellent.   They serve New Orleans food and the first thing we ordered even before reading the menu was two orders of Beignet.   Heaven.

Christina put the lights on the tree while Molly rested and the adults watched football.   Then we were all ready to decorate the tree.   Kate put the fragile ornaments right near the top.   Molly likes to rearrange the decorations.    We had boxes of decorations.    We worked diligently and soon the tree looked full but we still had another box so we kept finding spots.  It was fun and festive.

First Christina sat down to watch the action.  Next Kate and Mary Frances disappeared.  Finally, only Molly and I were working on the tree and when Andrew made tea,  only Molly was working.   The tree is beautiful now but still needs garlands draped around the boughs.  And all the boxes are open, sitting on the dining table, ready for Christina to find a spot in their home.

It is beginning to feel a lot like Christmas in the Andrew Dickie Family home.