October 30, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Bo.

Bo G. was a good friend to Andrew. They fished together, often in their kayaks. He is also married to our Internal Medicine doctor, who specializes in Geriatrics. And they both are member of First Presbaterian church, which Chritina and the family attend. So I know Bo from many direction. In addition to all our connections, he has also been attentive to me since Andrew's death, which I have appreciated. We go out to lunch at least once each time I in Mississippi. He texts me regularly to make sure that I am OK. And every year on the date of Andrews birthday, he phones me. Bo is a good fellow. On Friday we went out to lunch. We ate at Anjou, the lovely French restaurant near the Renaissance. His office is close by so it is convenient. I took a Lyft there and Bo drove me home. Bo is an attorney who specializes in marital disputes. He tells me that he does not get involved emotionally with the process. He just tries to do the best for his cliets. Last Spring when we met for lunch, he had just moved to a new partnership. He reported on Friday that he made an excellent choice so he is pleased with his practice. Also last time we discussed the pros and cons of owning country property. He and Cathy were trying to decide whether or not they should buy a big property in the country. The property had been in the family for many years and it was going to be divided. On Friday, he was pleased to report that they are proud owners of 180 acres of land, mostly hard wood. And for hunting purposes, he has acess to the other 800 acres of family land. So we celebrated. And then he drove me home. And thus ended a delightful lunch with Bo.

October 29, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Winter.

In the middle of the night on Tuesday I woke up feeling cold. I put another quilt on the bed and went back to sleep. I kept the quilt on the bed Wennesday night too. On Thursday, when Kashina changes my sheets, I asked her to put the flannel sheets on the bed. She put the extra quilt in the closet, thinking that the flannel sheets would keep me warm. But I retrieved it in the middle of the night, which is how I stayed warm. When I got up at 8:00 this morning, the house was cold so I did what I should have done yesterday, which was turn on the heat in all three thermostats. The living room was 59 and the bedroom 62 so I went back to bed to let the house warm up, which it did in thirty minutes. Kashina warned me that I needed to turn on the heat but I thought I would be fine. But I was not. Now winter has arrived in Mississippi. Today the temperature was 52 high and all this week it will be 46 during the night. But I am set. My house is warm and cosy except for the bedroom which I keep a bit chilly. Once I turn on the heat, I hate to switch back to airconditioning, until Spring arrives, so I hope we do not have any very hot days. But for the moment, Winter has arrived to my house and I have turned on the heat. Along with my flannel sheets I am ready for the Winter.

October 28, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. BLT.

Does anyone know who made the first BLT? I certainly do not know. But whoever it was, it was a genius idea. Christina shops for me before I arrive home after a long stay away. She buys bread and milk, cheese and fruit and anything that catches her fancy. This time she bought 2 packages of cooked bacon. She always buys tomatoes and lettuce. All I need to do is heat up half of the package and eat it. Perfect for me who does not cook. I have been home here in Mississippi for four weeks and during that time, I have eated four bacon, lettuce and tomatoe sandwiches. They were delicious. Today at noon I ate my main meal but when it got to be 8:00, I decided I needed to eat something. The house was chilly so I needed to warm up so ater poking around in the fridge, I decided on a BLT. I toasted the bread just a bit. Next I heated the bacon and sliced the tomatoe. Then I put them all together, using mayonaise on the toast. I use lots of lettuce so my sandwich is thick. Finally I watch TV while eating my delicious meal. Tonight I watched football. There is nothing better than enjoying a BLT for supper. Gold star to Christina for providing all the ingredients. Actually, Kashina shopped for me to get more tomatoes and lettuce when I ran out. I certainly enjoyed those four sandwiches.

October 27, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Regina.

Regina and I met in August, 1989, in my office in Bethesda, Maryland. She walked into the office looking for a job. My habit was to interview anyone, even if I had no openings. The staff knows that so the receptionist called me up front. Regina and I talked in my office and I took notes. I asker her why she was moving to Maryland from New York and she told me that she was moving in order to allow her daughter to attend good schools. In many ways she was not a desirable employee. She attended school in Brooklyn and her speech patterns were terrible, but I am looking for a spark in the eyes and I found that in Regina. She told me that both she and her husband were looking for a job in Maryland. When one of them got a job, both would quit their New York job and move. Then the other would get a job too. I told her that I had no openings at the time. And we shook hands. Three weeks later, one administrative person asked to transfer to an office closer to home so I called Regina and hired her. She gave two weeks notice, rented an apartment and moved. She started working with me on October 9, 1989. Truth be told, she is still working with me. She just mailed my blog for 2020. She prints and binds my blog for me. And every morning she sends me a good morning greeting. If I do not respond, she checks with me later in the day to be sure I am well. She has been a wonderful worker over the years. Even though she was not well educated, she is smart and not afraid to take on difficult tasks. And she worked hard to get better. I wished I had made a video. Regina was at the front desk at 8:00 in the morning. She was answering the phones before the receptionish arrived at 9:00. This occured in the early months of her employment. Peppy, one of my good agents was also an early bird and she was listening Regins answering the phone so Peppy sat down and suggested that Regina should listen to her, Peppy, answer the phone. As Regina wanted to get better, she listened to Peppy. Then Peppy had Regina say exactly what Peppy said, all in the same gracious tone of voice. And Peppy stayed listening to Regina speak exactly as directed. I started laughing and kept laughing as Regina continued to sound just like Peppy on the phone. Never again did Regina sound as if she was from Brooklyn. She answered the phone exactly as Peppy directed. And that is why Regina got so good at her job. She tried to get better. She is a special person to me. And I will be pleased to receive my bound blog.

October 26, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. My Life of Luxury.

I am a lady of leisure, says son David. In addition, I am living a life of luxury. This dawned on me just today. At 7:30, Kashina arrived. While I was in the shower, she prepared my breakfast. In addition, she changed my 3 large water containers, took the trash out to the road and started the laundry. Then she drove me to get a pedicur at 9:30. While there, Kashina went to the grocery store for me, using the list I provided. She came back to pick me up and we returned home for a short time while she folded the laundry and I looked at e mails. At 11:30, Kashina took me to Amerigo so I could have lunch with friend Lisa. As always, we enjoyed ourselves. Then Lisa brought me home. It was then when I decided that I was living the life of Riley. On the way home from the pedicure, we drove to the bank so I could take out cash. I use cash now in restaurants. It avoids me using the credit cards. I only use my cards when ordering on line. Here is another example of my luxurious life. Son David keeps enough money in my account so I can withdraw funds. I live on my income except for large projects at the houses or for major excursions when I must transfer funds from investments. Christina tracks my accounts and pays my bills. And son David tells me that unless I do something stupid, such as buying another property, I should have enough money to last the rest of my life. So I do not worry about money which is indeed a luxury. This new sense of luxury is new to me. Ken and I worked hard from our beginnings. We scraped and saved. Now I am reaping the benefits of that hard work and careful investments. I must say, I am enjoying my life of leisure.

October 25, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. The World Series.

I have always wondered why it is called The World Series? The only two countries involed are Canada and the United States. If there was a playoff between Japan and the US perhaps it could be The World Series. Never the less, The World Series 2021 will start tomorrow evening when Houston will play Atlants in Houston. I look forward to some good games but I am hoping for Houston. After all, I am almost a Texan. For many years, I watched very little baseball on TV and I certainly did not follow the teams. But I always watched The World Series. My Father liked baseball so the World Series games were always on the radio. When the Salvation Army held national meetings in Toronto, he always escaped a meeting to attend a baseball game, which did not please my Mother. He used to say that he had spiritual indigestion, so he stole away for a game. Also in elementary school, two teachers allowed us to listen to the series games on the radio during the day. Both of the teachers were men and both loved baseball. Between my Father and Mr. Clarke and Mr. Bowering, I learned to love The World Series. And I still do. Now I am looking forward to a good series. Atlanta won the fewest games of any of the other teams that got into the playoffs. But in baseball, anything cam happen. So here we go.

October 24, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Football.

Much to my surprise, I enjoyed watching part of a football game tonight. The game was held in California and it was pouring rain the whole game. I was so interested watching the game in the horrible weather that I got to like it. No other sport would continue playing in that terrible weather. But those players seemed to enjoy it. I stopped watching football a few years ago. The penalties were constant. Almost every play ended up with a penalty flag. I know they were trying to protect the players with the new rules but the games dragged on and on. The injuries were horrible too. Every game players were being carted off which was not pretty to watch. And finally, the leage got political which was irritating. I watch a game to see the expertise of the players, not to be lectured to by these rich players. So I banned football from watching, which I know hurts only me. I did not even watch college football. I became a purist. But no more. This evening I actually enjoyed watching the football game, which was won by the Colts. I loved the terrible weather. The penalty flags were not so frequent. And even in the heavy rain, I saw some great plays. Also the Sunday evening commentators are the best which gave me added pleasure. I will see if I watch any more games this year. But for tonight, I had fun.

October 23, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. The Overhead Light.

For the last two weeks the overhead light it the bedroom would not work.. I assumed it was burned out. When I was speaking to Chantes about the roof, I mentioned it to him and he assured me that he would replace it the next time he was there. Fortunately I did not ask him to come to change the bulb even though I am unable to change it myself. I just used another light that does not give much light. Ken and I never liked the lights in the TV room and our bedroom so the year Ken was ill, Chantes installed a light fixture in the TV room and the bedrrom. They both work great except now the bedroom light was burned out. Yesterday when I walked into the bedroom and tried to turn on the overhead light, which of course, it did not light up, I stopped to look at the switch. I had just turned off the dining room light, which has a dimmer switch and I discovered that there was a dimmer switch on the bedroom switch too. I never knew it existed but there it was. When I pushed the little part of the switch to the top, the light went on. For the past two weeks the light would not work because I must have inadvertantly pushed the dimmer switch to the bottom. Foolish me. Ken often said of me that I was seldom in doubt, but often in error. This is another one of those events that keep me humble. I knew what was the matter with that light. But I was wrong. Now my light works fine and I laugh at myself every time I turn on that light. Now I ask myself why it took me two weeks to take another look? I have no answer but at least I eventually took another look. But it is interesting.

October 22, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Kashina.

Kashina has helped us for almost four years. She helped Ken the last year of his life. At that time, she worked all day, sometimes 7 days a week. We got to know her well. Fortunately, she was staying here overnight because Ken had an appointment with the physical therapist in Jackson and he needed to start his day early, so she was here when Ken died. At that time, all she did was look after Ken and take him to his appointments. But after Ken died, in the middle of the night, I decided to hire Kashina two days a week. I realized that without a helper, I was stuck at home. She started working for me two eight hour days. And she helped me around the house too. She drove me to my appointments and drove me with errands. The first year I asked he to take me on excursions in Mississippi but she does not really enjoy these meanderings, so I stopped asking her. Then she asked if she could work three short days a week, arriving at 7:30 and leaving at 12:30. This was fine with me so that is what she does now. She does my laundry, changes the bed, empties the dishwasher and takes out the trash. She drives my car to appointments and she does the grocery shopping. In general, she helps me do anything I ned her to do. This year she has been cooking too. I ordered lots of vegetables that are frozen so each week she cooks two of the frozen packages of veretables, which I eat on throughout the week. On Tuesday she also cooked two hamburg patties. I never actually ask her to cook from scratch but she helps me by cooking these boxes and then leaves them in the fridge so I can just dish out a bit at a time. What Kashina does in her life is to help. She is limited with her interests but she is certainly helpful to me. And I appreciate all her efforts.

October 21, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Curling.

When watching TV, I never watch commercials. Instead, I check my other favorite channels to see what is being shown. Sometimes I spot something that was better than what I was watching. For instance, when I was watching a baseball game the other evening, I spotted a biography of the blind and deaf lady, Helen Keller. It was more interesting than the game especially as the baseball lasted longer than the movie. Tonight, while watching the Dodgers and the Braves, I found Curling Night in America, a match being played by the ladies of Denmark and America. I watched till the end except during the commercials, when I checked back to the game. The curling was more interesting than the game. The American ladies won by one point. Ken and I got interested in curling when we were in Nova Scotia one March many years ago. Early in the week, we spotted the Brier, held each year in Canada to crown the Canadian men's curling champion. Ken had curled once as a kid but that was all we knew about curling except that we knew that lots of Canadians curled. We worked hard all week to figure out the rules and the dialogue. The announcers never gave any information, assuming that you knew everything you needed to know. But we persevered and learned. And we got hooked on curling. Now I love watching curling. Unfortunately, watching curling in the US is difficult. It is not popular. But tonight I got lucky and I watched every minute of the match. It was more exciting than the baseball game.

October 20, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. The Baseball Playoffs.

The most fun was the first week of the playoffs with 10 teams competing to get into the World Series. I had so many games to watch that I had trouble finding the time. Then we quickly got down to four teams in two series. Those games have been splendid. The thing I like about watching baseball is that the game is never over until the end of the 9th inning. Anything can happen to change the outcome of the game. In a soccer game, when a team is up three goals, the game is for the most part over. But not in Baseball. Last evening, in the 8th inning and the score tied 2 all between Boston and Houston, Houston went on a tear and scored 9 runs. And they won the game. Finally, the Houston bats came alive. Today, Houston won again and now are up 2 to 1 in games. Now they all return to Houston to play game 6. For a while it looked as if Boston would win the series. But no more. The National Leage championship has been equally competitive. The Dodgers were down by 3 runs but ended up winning the game by a big score. You never know what will happen next. It has been an exciting playoffs and I have enjoyed every minute.

October 19, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. A Bone Scan.

A bone scan is different from a PET scan. The technology is totally different. There are similarities. First they inject dye into your vein. With a PET scan, you wait for an hour before taking the scan. With a bone scan, you are dealing with nuclear medicine. Radio active dye is put in your vein. You then must chill our for three hours until the dye reaches the bones. Then they take pictures of your bones. The actual scan take 30 minutes. They take three pictures. And then you are done. I needed to have a bone scan because during my PET scan, some dye bled into two areas of my body, where I have never before seen cancer: my sternum and the top of my femur. My results from the bone scan were not great. On the scan, two bright glowing areas could be seen in the sternum and the femur. Up intil now, I have had no cancer in my long bones but now I do. So I will be back on Ibrance and hope it works again. For some reason, My Oncologist wants to see me in two weeks but without furthur scans I can not imagine why she wants to see me. I will try to talk her out of it tomorrow. These high tech scans are remarkable. But I like them better when they give me good resulta!!

October 18, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Wind Chimes.

My wind chimes are getting a workout. I hope the neighbors enjoy the sound of them clanging all night long. They sound pretty and I like them. When we first moved into this house, Ken discovered a set of wind chimes in the front patio. The problem was their positioning. They were attached to the corner of the garage wnere it ws shielded by the house and the garage so the chimes never rang, because there was no wind. He moved the wind chimes into the back yard and hung them on the corner of the patio. Along the shore, the breezes blow constantly, so our wind chimes always sound beautiful. However, not everyone likes the sound of wind chimes. One day at the outdoor farmers market aross the street in Mexico, Wendy, Ken and I spotted a man selling wind chimes. One set was large with a deep sound, which both Ken and I loved. I suggested they take a set home for their back yard. I learned that Wendy does not enjoy the sound of wind chimes. Turns out that a neighbor at the cottage had a wind chime, which Wendy would hear from her bedroom, which she did not enjoy. One winter, the chimes fell down and Wendy was pleased to see that the wind chimes had been broken. So no wind chimes for them in Ancaster or the cottage. My wind chimes sing all the time, which I like. Often I hear them in the middle of the night. But I always wonder if my neighbors like the sound too. I am kind of afraid to ask because I have no intention of taking them down. I love the sound of wind chimes and am happy when the wind blows so I can hear them chime. I hope they like it too.

October 17, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. 68th Anniversary.

I recall when a 50th wedding anniversary was unusual. Today, my brother and sister-in-law, Dave and Irene, celebrated their 68th anniversary today. To celebrate they went out to lunch with all the family. They went to a lovely restaurant in Burlington, overlooking Lake Ontario. Pretty special. Dave and Irene were married in Vancouver, British Columbia on October 17, 1953. It turnrf out that they were young but not foolish. They managed their affairs well and their three children have become fine, successful adults. I was at their wedding although I almost missed it. My parents and I moved to Toronto in July, 1953. May sister stayed in Vancouver because she was in the wedding. Mother and Father intended to take the train back to Vancouver for the wedding, but the initial idea was to leave me home because travelling is expensice. But at the last minute, I was allowed to attend, which meant another train journey across Canada, which I loved. I remember the wedding well. I even remember what I wore, a gray suit. But the most important part of the wedding was that Dave and Irene tied the knot and never untied it. In addition, Ken and I have been friends with Dave and Irene all these years. At no time have we had any moment of unpleasantness. Being a part of their family life has been a great blessing to me. So my hat is off to Dave and Irene for celebrating their 68th wedding anniversary. It is quite an achievement.

October 16, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Home Owners Association.

I have never liked Home Owners Associations. They seem to be difficult to deal with, especially when they have committees responsible for architecture and landscaping. Ken and I have avoided purchasing in areas with a home owners association. When we lived in the condo in Chevy Chase, the association did a good job and we had no trouble dealing with them. David and Suzanne have had oodles of trouble with their associations. Even now, they are unable to do anthing with their front yard because their committee will not approve the plans, even though the plan is identical to the neighbors. So I do not like these associations. Now I live in Roses Bluff, a neighborhood with a home owners association. We were given a big booklet with all the rules, which we did not read. The day after I returned from the summer, I received an e mail telling me three violations on my property, which did not please me. Number one was the large recycle bin was left outside the garage door. Garbage bins may not be visible from the street. I keep them in the garage and I have no idea who left it outside. I had already put it in the garage the day after I returned. The second violation was with the garage doors. I had mildew on the bottom of the doors and I was required to power wash the doors. Who knew this was a violation. My yard man power washed it this week so now it is perfect. The third violation was with the roof. After the tree fell on the garage, it ripped shingles from the roof so Chantes covered the hole with a blue tarp. He will reroof the whole house but he was waiting until the Fall. Now I am on his list. In the meantime, the association must wait for him to find the time. I will do my best to move him along. But in the meantime, I am irritated with these busy bodies poking around finding fault. I guess these people mean well but I want them to get a job. I do not like these associations.

October 15, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. My Great Day.

My Lyft driver, Chris, is a very nice fellow. He offered to drive my car to a car wash. Kashina will not drive through a car wash but she told me that I needed to get the car washed. Her solution was to have someone come and wash it in the driveway. When I told Christ, he offered to take the car to the car wash. He would not charge me so I suggested I take him out for lunch. Today was the day. Chris picked me up at 11:30 and we took the car to be washed. The place is close, so for $7.my car is now clean. Then we ate lunch at my favorite Chine restaurant. We had a good time. After school, Molly was invited to a birthday party. Christina drove several girls from school to the party. Last evening, she suggested that she would pick up an early dinner and visit with me, which we did. Christina does lots and lots of helpful chores for me so she was going to get some of those things when she was visiting. She brought hamburgers and french fries from Fine& Dandy. So we devoured those delicious burgers and fries at our early dinner. And we visited. And Christina helped. She left in time to pick Molly up at 7:30. Christina just sent out a save the day e mail for the Christmas party and she ordered my Christmas cards with the picture of the Texas girls. I enjoyed my dinner and Christina's company and help. To top off my great day I watched Houston win the first game of the leage championship series over Boston. The game was exciting, which pleased me and of course, I always cheer for Houston. My day was complete when Houston won. Today I had a great day for sure.

October 14, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Eleanor.

This morning Eleanor came to have coffee with me at my house. She offered to bring coffee but I urged her not to do that because I have plenty of coffee. When I was getting ready to make my breakfast today, I only ate a small yogurt because in my heart of hearts, I just knew that Eleanor would bring a pastry, and she did. I was serving nuts only, while we drank our coffee but Eleanor brought not only a pastry but also a cup of fancy coffee. Southern hospitality in action. We have not seen each other since my return so I was delighted to talk with her. The best part of our conversation was when she told me that she has started to seriously draw, which is a precurser to painting. I was thrilled. Eleanor is a wonderful painter. One of her pieces hangs over my desk in the living room. But she has not been painting. I have tried not to be a nuisance but I have explored with her why she was not painting. I was determined not to bring it up this time. But Eleanor spoke first to tell me that she had been drawing. She even showed me two pictures she has done. I was beside myself with glee. Of course I needed to hear an update on the four children and husband Jim, and she wanted to know about Nova Scotia. But the best part of our morning was when she gave me the good news about her progress. In addition, she is teaching an art class for 6 thirteen year old girls, all but one cousins. But she has found the time in her day to get back to her art. She is pleased to be back working, and so am I.

October 13, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. The Dentist.

Yesterday I was at the dentist. In the middle of my proceedure I was wondering why on earth I ever decided to make the appointment. Water was dripping down my neck and water was being drained from my mouth which I did not like. I tried to think of all the reasons why I do not like going to the dentist. Then I remembered how much better going to the dentist is now rather than sixty years ago. And I cheered up. Dentists do not really hurt you any more. They just make you uncomfortable. Ten years ago I put crowns on my front teeth. But I retired before I had done the last tooth so I ignored it. The problem was that there was a small opening between the last crown and the uncrowned tooth, where food got stuck in that space. Every time I had finished eating, I needed to remove the food between the teeth either with dental floss or with a piece of paper. When I was at the dentist to replace a filling in the Fall, I decided to ask the dentist about my crown which was never done. I made a date in the Fall to get rid of my need to remove the food between my teeth. Now the time had come and I was wishing that I had left it alone. Now I have a temporary crown. In two weeks I return to finish the job. Then I will be really finished. And I hope to stay away from dentists for ever. Even in Mexico I have not been able to have my teeth cleaned because of Ibrance and Covid. Perhaps I could have them done this year when I hope I am not on Ibrance and the risk of Covid infection will decreased. Dentists do not give any pain but they certainly make you uncomfortable, perhaps because you can not talk. Now that makes me unfomfortable.

October 12, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. The Eye Doctor.

I always have this irritanional idea that when I go to visit the Eye Doctor, my vision will get better. From a young child, whenever I had an appointment with the Eye Doctor, I would leave with better vision because I was prescribed stronger lens. All of a sudden I could see the board at school and I could see the leaves and not just the trees. This does not happen to me anymore but it still sticks in my brain that maybe this time my vision will get better. Then reality strikes. Yesterday I had an appointment with Dr. Kosko and I asked him if everyone feels the same as I do, that he will wave his wand and fix my vision. He just laughed but he did wish he could do just that. But he can not. My vision is not worse. My pressures are perfect and my range of vision has not changed. My retina in my right eye is still like damp wallpaper so sometimes I see well and sometimes I look through a gray haze. So my vision comes and goes. The good thing is that my vision is not getting any worse. Dr. Kosko said that this is just about the best he could do. I thanked him for all his efforts. I see him next March when I return from Mexico. Maybe by then he will have a magic wand.

October 11, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. A Clean House.

There is no better feeling in life than coming home to a clean house. Today I left at 9:15 for a doctor appointment. My cleaning lady was already hard at work when I left. I use a company , Bev's Cleaning Service, who provides me with Teresa, who is the only one I have used from that company. Teresa told me that her Mother did not know how to spell Theresa, so she has always been Teresa. She is a good lady, strong and hard working. And I like her. I loved arriving home to the clean house today. Last Monday, I arrived home from my scan to find that Teresa was still working. Normally she has gone by noon. But she wanted to see me and welcome me home, so she just kept working until I arrived. She also wanted to give me her good news. On her birthday, just last week, her boyfriend proposed. She was excited just telling me. Teresa is 41 and lives by herself and supports herself with her cleaning work. I knew she had a boyfriend, who is a policeman, but there was no talk about marriage. Then he proposed. She told me that she has never been so excited. She told me that she thought that she would never marry but now her wedding is set for February. She told me that she has been on Cloud 9 ever since. In addition to feeling good coming home to a clean house is another good feeling that comes from getting married to the person you love. For Teresa, it is better than a clean house. I felt special just being a part of her joy. Evidently some things never change.

October 10, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Baseball.

I should have known that Chantes loved baseball because he was born and raised in Cuba. But we had never discussed baseball before today. He came over to get a letter from the homeowners Association authorizing me to replace the roof. Then he must get a building permit. When he arrived, I was watching the baseball game between Boston and Tampa Bay, which was just going into extra innings with the score ties 4 each. So I asked him if he liked baseball and if he did, I urged him to go home and watch the end of the game. All of a sudden, he became animated. And he told me that he loves baseball and proceeded to tell me all the Cuban players now in the playoffs. In fact, he and his son Michael play on a baseball team. This Fall, his team played a tournament in Panama City. But he was must excited about the fact that I liked baseball too. And we talked baseball until he finally headed off to watch the end of the game. And he intended to watch the Houston game a bit later. He told me that he likes baseball over almost everything in his life. "It is my relaxation," he said. And he keeps track of all the Cuban players on all the teams. I only knew that two players on the Tampa team were rookies who came from Cuba, so I mentioned it. He of course thought I knew a lot of other Cuban players but I was lost after a few names. But we had a good conversation about baseball. Normally, Chantes is serious and we talk about specific tasks. But today, I saw another Chantes. Who knew?

October 9, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Baseball Heaven.

If you love to watch baseball, this week would send you to baseball heaven. Every day i could watch multiple games. And I loved them all. First were the wild card one game, loser goes home. I used to be a purist with baseball and playoffs. But no more. Those wild card games are exciting, especially when the Yankees get to go home. Next up were 8 tams trying to win their division, so four series of the best of 5 series makes for a lot of games. Every day I could watch part or all of all the games. By today, I am a bit jaded but I still watched part of most games. I love watching the spectacular plays. Baseball players are very skilled and I love to watch them in action. Lots of infield plays please me. Even the so called routine infield hit is difficult. And I like the strategy of watching the players move their positions, often with every pitch. But the thing I like best is that you can not tell what will happen in any one game or on any one team. For instance, the Tampa Bay Rays had the best record in baseball. I picked them to get through to the world series because I had seen them play during the year and they looked to be a good team. Their first game against Boston they looked unbeatable. But the second game, Boston eat them badly. Go figure. So I will follow all four series. Then we go to only two series of 7 games. And then the final 2 teams, playing for the so called World Series. I will enjoy them all. My memory is playing tricks. The Giants against the Dodgers? That was what I heard on the radio many years ago. Now I am watching them on TV. Great fun.

October 8, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Gumbo.

In Nova Scotia I eat a lot of seafood. And I love it. I eat mussels and scallops. And I eat lots of haddock, pan friend in butter with no batter and just salt and pepper. Delicious and simple. I eat Atlantic salmon too and fried clams. The fish is always fresh, right from the fisherman the same morning. Eating seafood in Nova Scotia is a special pleasure. But you can not order gumbo. Today at lunch with Lisa at Sal & Phils I ordered a cup of gumbo and half of a PoBoy oyster sandwich. They were both wonderful but I had forgotten how good gumbo really is. The gumbo was rich in flavor but not hot and it was full of good seafood. It was so good that I wished I had ordered a whole big bowl. One of the side benefits of living in Mississippi is that the New Orleans flavors spill over to us. So the food is generally good with a bit of New Orleans found in most dishes. My lunch today was right from New Orleans and was a welcome home to Mississippi for me. The gumbo was delicious. I had forgotten how much I missed it. Next time at Sal & Phils I will order a big bowl of gumbo. And I will eat it all.

October 7, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. My Book Stand.

Actually, it is a music stand but I use it to hold magazines and books when I am reading. Ken and I had given this pretty little music stand to Christina and Andrew, but when I struggled to hold my magaines, I asked Christina if I could borrow it back. She returned it to me and set it up beside my breakfast/reading chair. Now I use it every day. I bought the little music stand in 1973 in Kensington, MD. on Howard Avenue, the antique row. I was looking for an inexpensive old china cabinet to use at our first farm house in Pennsylvania. In the back corner of one of the stores, I spotted this little music stand. It was filthy. The base was covered with a thick green cream. The pole was black and the wood parts were so covered with dust that I could not tell the type of wood. But it was heavy. It was also $100. so I did not buy it. When I got home I described the little table to Ken and he suggested I return and buy it, which I did. When I brought it home and washed it down with soap and water in the backyard, I discovered that the base was iron, the pole was brass and the wood table and music stand was walnut. I had made a good purchase. I polished the brass which gleamed and I discovered that the only piece missing from the music stand was a bar that held a candle. It is still missing. But everything worked as built. The small round table can be adjusted up and down and the holder for the msic stand is on a bar that also can be moved up and down. For years, I used it as a music stand when I played my baritone. The rest of the time it just sat, looking pretty. Now my antique music stand is giving me good service as a book stand. Every day it plases me. Now my book does not shake when being held. I look normal beside my pretty little music stand. Eventually I will return it to Christina. But not yet.

October 6, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. My Water Glasses.

I like to have a glass of water beside each of my chairs. In Nova Scotia I use large plastic glasses given to us by Dave & Irene many years ago. We used them outside on the decks on Franklin Street. Then I took all 8 to Nova Scotia for the same purpose. But now I use three of the glasses beside each of my three chairs, one in the TV room, one beside the living room couch where I eat breakfast and read and one by my big chair in my bedroom where I read each night. I like using them, especially when my helper Anna keeps them full. Here in Mississippi I use beer steins as water glasses. I like using them because they hold lots of water and I never use them for beer. One comes from Ontario, blue mountain pottery that I bought for a song at a yard sale. Another is a stein I bought in Hershey, Pa. attending a real estate meeting. It is made of the same clay and glaze that was used many years ago in Pennsylvania. In the olden days, the potters put chaircoal in the kiln which gave the clay black flecks. I like the old fashioned look. The other comes from Austria and I have no idea where I got it but it is blue and heavy. Kashina fills my water steins first thing each day she works. One belongs beside my breakfast chair in the living room, one beside the couch where I read e mails and one beside my chair in the TV room. I like using these steins. I have owned them for many years. Now they get daily use. I like that.

October 5, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Ultra Sound.

When we first left Maryland, we needed a whole new set of doctors in Mississippi. Fortunately, the Mississippi Health System is excellent. Dr. Cotton is my cardiologist. At first, he wanted an Ultra Sound of my caroltid arteries every three months to be sure I was stable. Then we went to every six months. Next I convinced him to have one once a year, which we have been doing ever since. But a year ago, he moved me back to every six months. Evidently there were changes. So today I had another Ultra Sound. The good news is that they are easy and very high tech. All I do is stay still while the technitian makes pictures of my arteries while I listen to the swoosh as the blood can be heard pulsing around. I had my last one in March. This afternoon the nurse called to report. Dr.Cotton had reviewed the test. No change had occurred for the past year, which would be three tests and my blood flow in both artieries were good. The left carotid is occluded but the smaller collateral arteries are doing their job. So he recommends we return to taking the next ultra sound in one year, which pleases me. Now I have an appointment with Dr.Cotton near the end of November. This is all good news for me.

October 4, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Scans.

Some time in my life I would like to stop getting scans. I know the technology is cutting edge and I know that the doctors and I learn much about my body which is valuable for treatment, but I do not like them. Today I had yet another PET scan. The young men who run the machines make my life pleasant and I enjoy their company. I have had so many scans that they all ask me about Nova Scotia when I return. But I would prefer not to meet them. The good aspect of the results today is that the cancer in my back ribs that can be seen in the last scan is gone. This is good. But the dye has infiltrated into my upper left leg and my sternum. It may be nothing so I am stopping Ibrance at this time. But now I must have a bone scan in two weeks to find of what is happening. I assume it is not a problem at least until after the latest bone scan. I have never had a bone scan so this should be interesting. Always, when you go to a doctor, another appointment must be made either with another test or to see another doctor. Another scan in two weeks. So here I go again.

October 3, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Things Break.

How does this happen? A week after my arrival in Nova Scotia, the water in the guest house stopped working. The cleaning lady used the water when she cleaned and all was well but when the Culligan man came to check the system, there was no water pressure. Frank the plumber fixed it by installing a new electronic control so all was well. When I asked Frank what had happened, he replied, "Things Break". And we laughed. When I returned to my Mississippi house, the AC in the bedroom was not working. By noon the next day, a new part was replaced and since then all has been well. It had been working when Peter stayed here in the summer when his daughter needed to isolate due to Covid. The young man who repaired the system had no explanation. "It could have been an electrical storm but it could have just broken all by itself," he said. The two ovens were working when I left. Ken had wanted to install new ovens when we moved in but I hated to replace what was not broken, so we left them in place. When Peter was here, the ovens did not work but I did nothing about it until I returned. Today, Chantes my handyman, checked it out. The main control panel is not working. "These ovens are very old," he said. "Time to replace them." So two new ovens have been ordered. In addition, on my counter is a brand new toaster oven, purchased by Chantes today. It will work until the ovens are installed. Lowes said the ovens should arrive in three weeks. It is all too true. Things just break for no apparent reason. Seems crazy.

October 2, 2021. Madison, Mississippi.. A Close Call.

I knew my time in Toronto would be tight. I had 90 munutes to get off one plane and get on the next. Toronto has a large airport and I needed to go through another security check, then clear customs before heading to my next flight. I was told that this would not be a problem. They were correct. I made my next flight but I was the last passenger to board. My problem turned out to be the system Air Canada uses to transport wheelchair passengers. They do not hire people to push the wheelchir folks. They use their Air Canada agents. In the large Toronto airport, they use a shuttle system so each segment is pushing me to the next spot wnen the next agent will take over. The problem was that Air Canada is short handed so I was required to wait three times for the next agent appeared. The last two ladies pushed me fast and I got on the plane before they closed the door. But it was a close call. Most airports hire people to push passengers like me. For that, they are paid minimum wage. And I give them a tip for transporting me. The only good aspects of the Air Canada system is that the agents refuse to take any money, so I save money. But I made up for it at DC Reagan airport. I was leaving on American airlines, which had their gates in the new terminal. Fortunately I had three hours because the poor man must have pushed me for forty minutes or more. He hugged me when I gave him his tip.

October 1, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. My Lost Slipper.

I have gotten smart. When I arrive home tired from a long journey, I do not force myself to empty every case. I merely find night medications and go to bed, knowing that tomorrow will be a better day. But even the day after a trip, I have discovered that my brain is not totally in gear so I try not to do anything serious but just go through routine tasks. Once at work I used the wrong day on my calendar and wondered why I was missing appointments. So now I take things easy on myself the day after a journey. Last evening I put on my slippers and nightshirt and went to bed. It was late. I went to sleep. In the middle of the night I went to the bathron, putting on my slippers. And I came back to bed and went to sleep. In the morning I could find only one slipper beside my bed. I looked everywhere. I thought I had kicked it under the bed but I could not find it. I searched in the bed. I even asked the air conditioning man to search under the bed for the slipper. No sign on the slipper. I looked everywhere, in the bathroom the dressing room and the bedroom. No slipper. My case was open on the other side of the bed so I was not able to totally remove the sheets and quilt, but after I finally put away the backpack and small case, I removed the bed clothes and lo and behold, my slipper was way on the wrong side of the bed. I must have gone back to bed wearing one slipper and during the night, the slipper came off and got pushed to the other side of the bed. Finally, the lost is found. And I am happy. Now tomorrow, my brain will be fully engaged...maybe.