There
are
a lot of Halloween
scenes to be
seen and photographed.
I
saw that our neighbors, the
Rodrigues, who have two little boys, have an inflatable pumpkin
outdoors.
I just got these from Henry Schwartz!!
Does a clean house indicate that
there is a broken computer in it?
Why
is it that no matter what color of bubble bath you use the bubbles are
always white?
Is
there ever a day when mattresses are NOT on sale?
Why
do people constantly return to the refrigerator with the hopes that
something new to eat will have materialized?
On
electric toasters, why do they engrave the message 'one slice'?
How
many pieces of bread do they think people are really gonna try to stuff
in that slot?
Why
do people keep running over a string a dozen times with their vacuum
cleaner, then reach down, pick it up, examine it, then put it down to
give their vacuum one more chance?
Why
is it that no plastic garbage bag will open from the end you first try?
How
do those dead bugs get into closed light fixtures?
Why
do we wash BATH towels? Aren't we clean when we use them?
If not then what was the purpose of the bath?
Considering
all the lint you get in your dryer, if you kept drying your clothes
would they eventually just disappear?
When we are in the supermarket and someone rams our ankle with a
shopping cart then apologizes for doing so, why do we say' Its all
right'? It isn't all right, so why don't we say, 'That hurt, you
stupid idiot'?
Why is it that when you're walking up the stairs and you get to the top
you always think there's still one more step?
Why is it that whenever you attempt to catch something that's falling
off the table you always manage to knock something else over?
Is it true that the only difference between a yard sale and a trash
pickup is how close to the road the stuff is placed?
In
winter, why do we try to keep the house as warm as it was in summer
when we complained about the heat?
Why
do women always ask questions that have no right answers?
Why
do old men wear their pants higher than younger men?
This morning the
car insurance bill arrived. So,
before I forgot it, it wrote a check and we mailed it at the Post
Office. Fortunately when we stopped at IGA for bananas,
as we often do, we stopped at the Times News office and
fell into the midst of a
celebration that was taking place. There was a balloon at Linda
Kohler's computer and cake was served. She had achieved full time
status. At the same time, Sharon was promoted to an
editorship. Sharon, of course, baked a cake!!
It
certainly
has been our experience that when
we are in that office,
the atmosphere is very congenial. In fact they are all
very
good friends. It is a feeling of mutual respect that we all
share. They are all very professional.
I got this great Beagle shot from
Henry Schwartz.
I
have to admit they are definitely are not rocket
scientists, but for loving, they can't be beat!
I
see the Historical Society had new cellar doors installed this
afternoon. Bob Brozisia was busy out there most of the afternoon. It is
a
first class job.
This
is the Society's new cellar door
This
afternoon our trip to the
cardiologist
went
very well.
Since this is the
beginning of the 6th year
of Queen's congestive heart
failure, I told the doctor that she passed another milestone in her
favor. I told the doctor that the average lifespan of a patient may be 5
years but that average included the poor soul that drops dead in the
Doctor;'s office and the patient who may live15 years. He laughed.
He explained
the
results of my
stress test in detail
to both of us.
Apparently I am not at death's door. Ha!! He said the abnormal EKG was
probably a condition I was born with and if it hasn't caused me any
problems by now in all likelihood it will not now. The
"scarring"
that worried me was probably an indication of a benign
problem.The blood
pressure was good
and I lost 6 pounds since I saw him. He was happy with my
numbers. Needless to say I am greatly relieved.
Dr. Kolecki says
heredity is definitely on
Queen's side!!
He said we both were amazing.Queen is fine and he won't change
anything. If it isn't busted, don't fix it. He is happy with
both of us. We will sleep better tonight!!
For supper this evening, Queen had Landis chip steak
sandwiches and sliced tomatoes. Queen was looking for something quick
as
well as easy It was an excellent meal. Tonight we have to go the
the Palmerton
Memorial Park's annual meeting at 7 pm. They have to be sure
enough members are present to have an official yearly annual meeting.
George Ashman is looking for "warm bodies" to provide a
legal Quorum.
We are down and back.The annual PMPA meeting was
interesting. As anyone might suspect revenues were down this year due
to the cool rainy weather. Don Browne, one of their financial Gurus,
suggested a new rate structure designed to keep the weather out
of their financial equation as much as possible.
As with every thing else expenses
have gone up, < i.e. my car insurance bill today was a good
example, it went UP> so, a rate increase will be necessary. Don
would soften that with a hefty discount offered for the early purchase
for season tickets, perhaps up to a 20% savings. That would make it
attractive to
join early.
At the annual meeting, all members are allowed to
vote, so the proposal passed. They were discussing the lousy attendance
and they all laughed
when I told them I would be there even if Hell froze over!!
These pictures were
taken last
week-end by a guest photographer, son
George, when he was out with his camera.They are gorgeous !
!
This
is a picture of the church at the end of Columbia Avenue
Wednesday,
October 27, 2004 7:30 AM 43 deg at Slatington E.S. and 41.9 in the bus
stop
There
was a beautiful sky this morning in the east. I have some pictures of
it I put in below.
Gradually I am starting to get the
hang of working with this new
software.
This
morning we
went for our walk. As
usual, the walk goes up to 1st Street across and down to 5th Street and
back. It takes us at least 20 minutes to walk it but it is
good to be able to do it and we know we need the exercise. Both
Drs.Kolecki,and Nicholson want us to keep active. We both know
that neither of us alone would be nearly as dutiful in
doing it.
I just got this
from Henry Schwartz. I love it!
David received a parrot for his
birthday.
This parrot was fully grown with a
bad attitude and worse vocabulary. Every other word was an
expletive (curse word). Those that weren't expletives were, to
say the least rude.
David tried hard to change the
bird's attitude and was constantly saying polite words, playing soft
music, anything he could think of to try and set a good example.
Nothing worked.
He yelled at the bird and the bird
got worse. He shook the bird and the bird got more angry and more
rude. Finally, in a moment of desperation, David put the parrot
in the freezer.
For a few moments he heard the
bird squawking, kicking, and screaming, then suddenly there was
quiet. David was frightened that he might have hurt the bird and
quickly opened the freezer door.
The parrot calmly stepped out onto
David's extended arm and said: "I'm sorry that I might have offended
you with my language and action and I ask your forgiveness. I
will endeavor to correct my behavior."
David was astonished at the bird's
change in attitude and was about to ask what had made such a dramatic
change when the parrot continued:
"May I ask what the chicken did?"
I
am very appreciative for so much of this good stuff my friends send me
!!
This
morning when I came down for breakfast Queen
showed me that we finely caught our pesky mouse. Sometimes, we
would not see any "evidence for a week or more, but then an occasional
"visit"could be detected. Son George theorized it lived behind the
washer and dryer and didn't come out often. Well Queen used Belva's
bait, congealed bacon fat on the trap. That got him. He was
passing up peanut butter as well as sharp cheese.
I had
been
asked by George Ashman to
speak with a
young lady who works at Spillane's store about photographing an
antique
milk bottle she had in her possession. This morning she brought it to
work with her and I went and took some pictures. I must say they are in
no league with Joel Kern's photography. Joel is an ace photographer
with the "Times News". I have been impressed with some of his work. It
sure helps when one knows what they are doing.
After I got home
we started a second onslaught at
the leaves. Queen used the electric blower and I the gas blower. Many
of them were up at the end of the property from the last session. It
wasn't bad corralling the others in the yard. Then I took Queen's
advise and placed a tarp on the swale at the end of the property
and blew and raked most of them onto that. Then I went down below
and pulled the tarp down to the street. Then we raked and blew them
into the gutter for tomorrow's pick up. We worked at it hard and
really gave it a good shot for over an hour.
Then I told Queen that is it. My boiler is
rapidly losing stream. She wanted to do more but I said no. When I
quit we
both will stop!! This is just the second installment. The big
maple tree in the cemetery is just starting to turn yellow.<Gee >
One thing we both
have come to learn. If we don't go
for
our walks and do any hard physical labor in the morning, we
won't be able to do it later! As she tells me, "just be glad we
can do what we can do". She has the most wonderful positive attitude!!!!
This evening some of the trick or
treat kids were out. Here are a few
of
them.
Wednesday,
October 28, 2004 7:20 AM 39.1 deg at Slatington E.S. and 41.0 in the
bus
stop
It looks like a nice day on hand this morning. I sat on a plastic chair
up at the glider area. It was cool but not cold.I want to
arrange some different method of sitting in that area. We went for
our walk, of course with my camera, and here are a few of those
pictures.
The other day we went for
our
morning
walk and saw Frank Johannes and he told us our neighbor in this
house 
will
be the retired Postman George Grohotolski.
He sold his house at 7th
and
Columbia and moved elsewhere in town.
Then according to Frank they moved to Schnecksville, Pa. Frank said he
missed Palmerton so is he will be moving into this house. At
least, that is
the latest rumor!!
We did our shopping this morning and
it wasn't at
all crowded. We got
some salmon at Giant and some other stuff on sale. Then back to town
to Country Harvest and finally IGA. We got home about 12:30.
These are the maples in the
cemetery.
This
afternoon we took Butternut for his afternoon walk down
Columbia Avenue to 4th street and back. He seems much improved in
his obedience with his walking. On the way down he sniffs and pees on
every tree he sees. But on the way back for the most part he follows
along beside me at my heel.
In the neighborhood
many of the trees have already
lost their leaves. Now the maple trees are beginning to turn mostly
yellows. They are just beautiful although they are not quite at their
peak.
Tonight for supper
Queen had a skillet tuna
casserole. That is always a hit here. Along with some sliced tomatoes
and cottage cheese it was superb. She saved half of it for another
meal. Coffee and cookies finished the meal.
Friday, October
29, 2004 7:32 AM 44.5 at Slatington
E.S. and 46.2 in the bus stop
I went up to the
"park bench" this morning. I have
to sit on a plastic garden chair until I come up with a better method.
One of the reasons I like that place so much is that a whole lot of
ideas come to me from that vantage point. It was nice sitting under the
maple tree. It is starting to turn yellow but is virtually still
in
full leaf. Life is full of beauty if we but look for it.
This morning my
blood glucose is 138 and my weight
195. I feel excellent this morning. We went for our walk this morning
and although it is not a sunny day it was quite comfortable walking
with
my Queen
As you all
know by
now I have my own opinion about the forthcoming
election. The dynamics of this one have taken on a whole new definition
of nasty.
All of a sudden Mr. Kerry can clearly see that the
president is negligent and derelict in not guarding many tons of
explosives that Saddam had stashed over the years and are now
suddenly declared missing. As one follows the story it is beginning to
look like The New York Times and CBS news are attempting another "Dan
Rather" on the president, using information
months old, reported long ago and its veracity questioned
even by the Times farther down in the story. Their headlines
not withstanding..
60 minutes was going to do a "Gotcha" story on
Sunday night also. What a coincidence!!
Has anyone bothered to wonder why the
networks
of
CNN, ABC, and CBS are being beaten so badly by the new kid on the
block, Fox? Viewers have consistently been silently voting
with
their channel knobs. Those other networks consider themselves the
only people who know the truth. They know what is best for us, at least,
as they see it. If that is so, why are there so few viewers of their
stuff? Some of the Nielson polls say that on many news programs,
Fox outperformed
all the others combined?
It is apparent that In the quiet of one's own living room,
folks
obviously don't believe them. Nielson ratings mean big bucks to those
people. It is their lifeblood. Somehow, the other networks stories are
simply not believed. It is not simply media bias but outright
chicanery. As with the Rather episode with manufactured
evidence, nothing is beneath them. All Mr.Kerry seems to be able to do
is to tell us
how
bad George W is doing and that he can do it better.
HOW? Nothing concrete is offered just platitudes and fluffery which is
all B.S. It appears now that his assertion concerning the missing
munitions is a last desperate attempt to demean the President!!
Mr.
Kerry is about as hollow as a cheap chocolate Easter egg!! To
quote Mr Chaney's remark at a Washington, Pa. rally."No matter how
much lipstick you put on a pig, it is still a pig!!"
Well it is time to end this week's page.
Please love one another,
Mom and Bob [Queen and Bobby]
