Sunday Stealing - Halloween version

ghost: what would you like on your tombstone? I don't plan on having one - maybe just a lovely tree.
dracula: are you afraid of aging? or death? Not really - maybe just the process.
nosferatu: what, as a child, did you imagine went bump in the night? I don't remember anything.
godzilla: what do you do when you are angry? are you ever destructive? I used to occasionally throw things.  Now I just shout obscenities.
the blob: do you collect anything? if so, what & why? Over the years, I have collected owls, penguins, and flamingoes.  Now, I'm working on getting rid of thing.
zombie: when was the last time you trusted your gut? was it successful? I think when I decided to put some of John's ashes at the base of a new tree in the Sculpture Fields.
mothra: what is something dangerous that attracts or fascinates you? I'm not into anything dangerous.
king kong: what are some questionable choices you've made lately? I'm sure there have been some, but nothing comes to mind.
alien: what is your strangest feature? My feet (yuck!)
cthulhu: do you like the ocean? why or why not? I LOVE the ocean.
nessie: have you ever felt invisible to people -- the feeling of not existing? I'd like to be invisible sometime, just to eavesdrop.
mutant spider: what is one of your biggest fears? Being totally dependent on others.
werewolf: if you could change into any nonhuman animal and back at will, what animal would you change into and why? A pet belonging to any of my daughters.
golem: if you could make up an imaginary friend, what would they be like and why? Three others to play bridge with.
leprechaun: what is your "pot of gold" (or white whale, if you'd rather) My wonderful family.
sharktopus: what is something you've done that was ridiculous or a bad decision? Can't think of one specifically.
robot: what is a habit you do without thinking? I can knit socks without thinking much about it.

Logistics

The roofers are still banging - but it's not been loud enough for me to resort to ear plugs (yet!).  They still have the parking lot blocked off, but...  This morning, I had no problem getting to my car to go to the Y.  I had placed an order at Walmart for pickup, and hadn't decided how I was going to go about getting it into my apartment.  When I got home, the no-parking-sign for my parking lot was still up, but the barrier was down.  So I pulled up outside my usual door, and took the groceries and my swim bag in and just left them inside the door.  Then I moved my car back to a place near the front of the building, came in, and picked up my stuff (in two trips) to take to the apartment.

Explanation:  My apartment is on the first floor, but the first and second floors were additions added to the rear of the building, on the slope below the larger building.  There are only six apartments on each hallway, and each floor is stepped down, so there is no-one above or below each floor.  This makes the "main" floor, with the main entrance, dining room, etc., on the 3rd floor.  The main part of the building is quite long with something like 24 apartments on the 4th and 5th floors and about 15 apartments plus the Memory Wing on the 3rd floor. 

Glorious autumn!

It was a lovely fall day here.  The music of the day, though, was of men stomping around over my head, with accompaniment by lots of banging.  It's definitely music, though, because they're putting on a new roof.  This means no more leaking in my shower, and that I should be able to put my car back where I want it before too long.  We're supposed to have beautiful weather all week, so maybe that means no weather delays in the roofing.
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I have to give an attaboy to our Senator Bob Corker.  I never voted for him, and seldom agree with him on policy.  But  he has made Tennessee proud in the last few weeks, with his honesty, patriotism, and honor.

Everyday Miscellany

I haven't been writing much - things have been definitely quiet (not that that's a bad thing), and it would just be monotonous.

The big event of the past week was the beginning of new roofing happening here at The Terrace.  It's been badly needed, so it's a good thing.  However, things do get messed up.  Friday, when I got home from swimming, the parking area nearest my door had been roped off, with no parking inside. Finding a new place to put my car, that was even remotely convenient to a door to the building, was a challenge.  I finally found a place fairly near the front door.  And there my car remains.

We're supposed to get a lot of rain overnight and all day tomorrow.  I'm going to play hooky tomorrow and just stay home all day.  It's would be farther to get to my car in the rain. I'm not comfortable driving in the rain under the best of circumstances - and certainly not in the dark.

My bridge partner is out of town for two weeks, so I'm not going to play duplicate tomorrow night.

I'm getting a lot of knitting done.  I'm about 2/3 of the way through with a summer-weight sweater for myself, and then I'm going to start on some baby sweaters.

I'm even getting some reading done.  I've just finished a new Joanna Brady book (thanks, Kate), and am currently about half-way through an Ivan Doig book I hadn't read before, The Bartender.

Jean is doing well after her accident.  The stitches have been removed and hopefully the scar will fade with time.

Sunday Stealing

Have you ever eaten at restaurant and you realized you forgot your money? Nope
True or false-you can pat your head and rub your tummy at the same time. Of course.
Do you prefer to drink out of cans or bottles? Neither - I'd rather drink out of a glass, with ice.
Do your socks match today? Almost always.
What was the last book you read? Would you recommend it? The latest by J. A. Jance.  She writes a good police procedural.
Are you currently borrowing something from someone? No
Write an extremely random statement. I don't do "random" very well.
Are there any major holidays you don’t celebrate? I don't make a big deal out of holidays.
What is one thing you will never understand? Why people can't get along.
Have you ever stepped on a bee? Hasn't everybody?
What helps you wake up in the morning? I'm a morning person - I just wake up.
What did you have for breakfast this morning? Cereal, banana, with milk.
What is your favorite thing in your room? Computer? TV? Knitting?
Who was your first kiss with? Probably Edward.
Do you worry about small things? Never sweat the small stuff!

First "real" day of Fall

Glad we're getting some cooler temperatures.  Ours changed dramatically last night when a cold front came through.  We got an inch of rain here overnight, and today is clear and crisp - highs to be only in the 60s!  I got to wear a jacket this morning.

I had placed a pickup order at Walmart for this morning, so got that on the way home from the Y/coffee.  That's the greatest thing since sliced bread!  Y'all know how I hate shopping, so being able to order what I want online and then just pick it up outside the store is fabulous for me!

I Skyped with Jean last night.  She looks (and feels) so much better.  Her eyes are still black, and the color is moving down her face, but the swelling is down considerably.  I may have said - the cut across her forehead was about 4" long, in a V-shape from the outside of one eyebrow to the outside of the other - really awful looking - lots of stitches.  Since a plastic surgeon did the repair, it should heal fairly well, though.

We did a little better at duplicate tonight - came in third out of 9 pairs, and earned a quarter of a master point.

Friday Miscellany

• It's finally cooling off, with lower humidity.  It almost feels like fall.
• And speaking of "fall", Jean had a monster one yesterday.  No concussion, but a huge laceration across her forehead.  Fortunately, after the ambulance ride, a plastic surgeon stitched her up in the ER. The black eyes are a lovely addition.  Poor baby!
• The new owners of The Terrace have contracted with roofers, and they're due to start work on Monday. They brought shingles in this afternoon on a fork lift outside my apartments.  They moved most of my stuff out of the way, but managed to knock off the bluebird house. I'll have to ask the makers for some repairs.
• Margaret is going to the ballgame in Knoxville tomorrow and coming by here for supper on her way home.  It looks like we're going to meet up with Missy and Renna.  Crazy!

Hurricane Nate

Four inches of rain,
But no severe winds, so far.
This is a good thing.

Conversation starters

If you didn’t have to sleep, what would you do with the extra time? Probably waste it the same way I do now.
What’s your favorite piece of clothing you own / owned? I'd wear "soft clothes" all the time, if I could.
What hobby would you get into if time and money weren’t an issue? Travelling first class.
What would your perfect room look like? About like my cave does now - maybe a little bit larger, with reachable shelving for my knitting and computer stuff.
How often do you play sports? ROFLMAO!!!
What fictional place would you most like to go? I can't think of one.  There are too many real places I'd like to go.
What job would you be terrible at? Anything connected with sports.
When was the last time you climbed a tree? I guess I might have done that maybe 70+ years ago.
If you could turn any activity into an Olympic sport, what would you have a good chance at winning medal for? Sitting.
What skill would you like to master? I'd like to be a better bridge player.
What would be the most amazing adventure to go on? Getting to all the places I've wanted to see - or just travel around the world.
If you had unlimited funds to build a house that you would live in for the rest of your life, what would the finished house be like? It would be one with a full-time staff and driver.
What state or country do you never want to go back to? I've never had a bad trip, but there are still places I'd like to see.
What songs have you completely memorized? Lots of them.
What do you consider to be your best find? Probably finding John.
Are you usually early or late? Almost pathologically early.
What pets did you have while you were growing up? My family had a couple of dachshunds, and a terrier mix over the year.
When people come to you for help, what do they usually want help with? Knitting.
What takes up too much of your time? Computer, knitting, TV (but not TOO much).
What do you wish you knew more about? There's always something new to learn.
What would be your first question after waking up from being cryogenically frozen for 100 years? I wonder why I did this.

Who'd have thought it?

Who'd have thought that I'd be buying new furniture at this stage of life.  Oh,  well - one never knows.

My new love seat/bed was delivered this morning.  They had said between 10 and 1, and they were here shortly after 9:30.  It fits fine in the space and looks good.  I must admit I haven't even sat in it or tried to open it yet.  I need to get some double-bed sheets for it, and then I'll be ready for company.

Good and bad

I played duplicate last night - we came in last out of 5 tables - terrible cards, played worse.   

Then, when I got home, there was a high-pitched noise in my apartment.  Turned out it was coming from one of my toilets - it was running constantly - and whining.  I knew I couldn't get maintenance at that hour (9:30), and I couldn't get to the valve to turn it off.  I finally pushed my emergency button and a couple of the CNAs came to find out what was wrong.  Bless them - they turned it off for me.  At least I do have another toilet to use.  But I put in a work order for maintenance to come fix it.  Sighhhhh.  (And it's fixed now.)

Sunday Stealing

1. You are walking down the road and you look down. There is a bug. Do you step on it? Not unless it's attacking me.
2. What is one fantasy that you want to come true more than any other? That our society and government are not so polarized and that all factions can respect one another and work together.
3. Someone knocks on your door. Do you look out the window to see who it is before you open it? Do you open it regardless of who it is? I usually just open it.
4. Have you ever eaten Play Doh? No
5. What was your favorite Saturday morning cartoon as a child and why? No television when I was a child.  My favorite radio program that I remember was "Let's Pretend".
6. Are you a “people watcher”? Absolutely!
7. I have a bowl of fruit. There are apples, oranges & pears. You help yourself to one - which one do you choose? Depends.  If the apples are Gala or Honey Crisp, I'd pick an apple.  Otherwise probably a pear.
8. What is your biggest pet peeve in the blogging world? Don't have one.
9. What is one religion that you could just never see yourself joining? Any dogmatic religion.
10. What word do you use far too often? S--t!
11. How long do you spend in the shower? As long as I want.
12. If you were to write a personal ad about yourself, what would it say? Good sense of humor, easy to get along with.
13. Your favorite flavor of soup is….? "freezer sludge soup"
14. You are sitting on a bench in the park and a bug walks in front of your feet…. do you squash him?  (I am assuming this is a different bug from question #1) Different bug, same answer.

Miscellany

"It's very hard to dispel ignorance if you retain arrogance."
Sam Wilson, Episode #4, The Vietnam War (PBS)
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We are all familiar with  a Herd of cows, ​A Flock of chickens, a School of fish​ ​and a Gaggle of geese.​

​However, less widely​ known is​ ​A Pride of lions,​ ​A Murder of​​ crows​,​ ​R​ooks, or ​ravens,​ An Exaltation of larks or doves​ ​and, presumably because they look so ​wise, ​A Parliament of owls.
Now consider a group of Baboons.

​Baboons are the loudest, most dangerous, most​ ​obnoxious, most viciously aggressive and least​ ​intelligent of all primates.

And what is the proper collective noun for a
​ group of baboons?​

Believe it or not...
​........​ A Congress!

Too good not to share

Trivia - on expressions

A SHOT OF WHISKEY

In the old west a .45 cartridge for a six-gun cost 12 cents, so did a glass of whiskey. If a cowhand was low on cash he would often give the bartender a cartridge in exchange for a drink. This became known as a "shot" of whiskey.
 
THE WHOLE NINE YARDS

American fighter planes in WW2 had machine guns that were fed by a belt of cartridges. The average plane held belts that were 27 feet (9 yards) long. If the pilot used up all his ammo he was said to have given it the whole nine yards.
 
BUYING THE FARM

This is synonymous with dying. During WW1 soldiers were given life insurance policies worth $5,000. This was about the price of an average farm so if you died you "bought the farm" for your survivors.

IRON CLAD CONTRACT

This came about from the ironclad ships of the Civil War. It meant something so strong it could not be broken.
 
PASSING THE BUCK/THE BUCK STOPS HERE

Most men in the early west carried a jack knife made by the Buck knife company. When playing poker it as common to place one of these Buck knives in front of the dealer so that everyone knew who he was. When it was time for a new dealer the deck of cards and the knife were given to the new dealer If this person didn't want to deal he would "pass the buck" to the next player. If that player accepted then "the buck stopped there".

RIFF RAF

The Mississippi River was the main way of traveling from north to south. Riverboats carried passengers and freight but they were expensive so most people used rafts. Everything had the right of way over rafts which were considered cheap. The steering oar on the rafts was called a "riff" and this transposed into riff-raff, meaning low class.

COBWEB

The Old English word for "spider" was "cob".

SHIP STATE ROOM

Traveling by steamboat was considered the height of comfort. Passenger cabins on the boats were not numbered. Instead they were named after states. To this day cabins on ships are called staterooms.
 
SLEEP TIGHT
Early beds were made with a wooden frame. Ropes were tied across the frame in a criss-cross pattern. A straw mattress was then put on top of the ropes. Over time the ropes stretched, causing the bed to sag. The owner would then tighten the ropes to get a better night's sleep.

SHOWBOAT

These were floating theaters built on a barge that was pushed by a steamboat. These played small town along the Mississippi River.  Unlike the boat shown in the movie "Showboat" these did not have an engine. They were gaudy and attention grabbing which is why we say someone who is being the life of the party is "showboating".
 
OVER A BARREL

In the days before CPR a downing victim would be  placed face down over a barrel and the barrel would be rolled back and forth in a effort to empty the lungs of water. It was rarely effective. If you are over a barrel you are in deep trouble.
  
BARGE IN

Heavy freight was moved along the Mississippi in large barges pushed by steamboats. These were hard to control and would sometimes swing into piers or other boats. People would say they "barged in".

HOGWASH

Steamboats carried both people and animals. Since pigs smelled so bad they would be washed before being put on board. The mud and other filth that was washed off was considered useless "hog wash".

CURFEW

The word "curfew" comes from the French phrase "couvre-feu", which means  "cover the fire". It was used to describe the time of blowing out all lamps and candles. It was later adopted into Middle English as "curfeu",  which later became the modern "curfew". In the early American colonies homes had no real fireplaces so a fire was built in the center of the room. In order to make sure a fire did not get out of control during the night it was required that, by an agreed upon time, all fires would be covered with a clay pot called a "curfew".
  
BARRELS OF OIL

When the first oil wells were drilled they had made no provision for storing the liquid so they used water barrels. That is why, to this day, we speak of barrels of oil rather than gallons.

HOT OFF THE PRESS
As the paper goes through the rotary printing press friction causes it to heat up. Therefore, if you grab the paper right off the press it is hot The expression means to get immediate information.

no wonder English is hard to understand as a second language.

Addendum from Flo Jean

 AND AS EVERY FALL

WE DO NOT KNOW THE REASON

BUT WE DON'T WEAR WHITE

Autumn?

The days are shorter.

But the temps are near ninety.

Summer slow to leave.

Orthopedics

I saw the orthopedist this morning - all looks okay on x-rays of the new knee.  Exercise more and lose weight - usual stuff.  Except - he's going to retire at the end of October. He made some recommendations for a new doc, gave me all my x-rays, and will send copies of his office notes if requested.  I still see a rheumatologist, so I guess I'll hold off on starting with a new orthopedist for a while. We'll see how that works out.

End of summer life

It's been really quiet around here.  We had a birthday party after swimming for one our group.  She's just turned 90! And she is very faithful about coming to class.  We all sort of wish she weren't still driving, but she's a role model in any case.  I finally got back to duplicate this evening.  My partner and I tied for second - Wow!

Sunday Stealing

Have you ever??

1. Have you ever had chicken pox? Yes, I was 6 weeks old.
2. Have you ever shopped in Home Depot? Yes, but I prefer Lowe's.
3. Have you ever spied on your neighbors? Seen what was going on in the neighborhood, but not what I'd call "spying".
4. Have you ever ridden in a limo? Yes, Randy got us one to take us back to the car after our trip on the St. Lawrence River.
5. Have you ever had a pet fish? The girls had the giant goldfish, Cinderella.
6. Have you ever lied about your age? No.
7. Have you ever fired a gun? Only a BB gun.
8. Have you ever been ice skating? Yes, I think, only one time.
9. Have you ever played golf? Yes, I was never good at it.
10. Have you ever hidden on Halloween because you had no candy for trick or treaters? No
11. Have you ever made a prank call? No
12. Have you ever gotten a tattoo? Only as markers for my radiation treatment for breast cancer.
13. Have you ever had a massage? Oh, yes! and I do miss having them regularly.
14. Have you ever locked your keys in the car? Unfortunately, yes.
15. Have you ever ridden a horse? Yes.  I think the last time was in 1969.
16. Have you ever been to the circus? Yes, but it's been many, many years.
17. Have you ever been to Europe? Yes.
18. Have you ever built a fire? Yes, probably when I was a Girl Scout.
19. Have you ever been skydiving? Not bloody likely!
20. Have you ever bought something at a garage sale? I don't think I've ever been to one.
21. Have you ever walked in on someone having sex? No
22. Have you ever faked an injury to get out of something? No
23. Have you ever been to a nude beach? No
24. Have you ever received a speeding ticket? Yes.
25. Have you ever run a marathon? Again, not bloody likely!

Something new

We actually saw sunshine today - first since Monday.  And, I did something I never expected to do - I bought a piece of furniture.  The girls had suggested I might think about replacing the loveseat in my living room with a loveseat-sized sofa bed.  I guess I should have thought of that myself.  Anyway, my dear friend, Vicki, shopped for one for me ( you know how I would have hated to do that myself) and picked one out today.  I've given them my information, and it's to be delivered in about three weeks.  Painless, except when the credit card bill comes.  LOL