Sharri I love your comments! There is nothing quite like sitting on the grass at your parents feet as they sit on wooden pews, drawing and colouring in books your thoughtful mother brought for you. And there is the strong smell of canvas tent and dirt and grass, all mixed in with the drone of the preachers, as they take their turn at the makeshift pulpit. Later you move to the mess tent, equally huge, full of rows upon row of tables and benches. Each table is set, family style, for about sixteen people. The wonderful smell of beef stew, baking bread, apple pie and coffee wafts over our heads. Then pretty young woman, with their hair up in discrete buns, dressed in colourful long dresses, come and place big steaming bowls of help yourself stew, and baskets of bread and bowls of slabs of butter, here and there along the long table. Others fill your, coffee mugs. All the while, under it all, the pungent smell of canvas revival tent.
I said I wasn't going to talk about books I am reading...and I won't. But I do want to put down here a small line from one of my current ones. I read about 4-6 books at once, which makes complete sense. One isn't always in the mood for politics, or murder mayhem or soppy romance. So I have a choice depending on my mood. This morning I am reading a Rosamand Pilcher and she wrote:
"Perhaps that was worst of all, not having someone to remember things with."
And that says it all. After a time you do move on and the pain of losing your closest person in the world lessens somewhat. But having someone to remember your life with and your new adventures later, is what I miss the most. So well put I thought.
I remember a few years ago a Price family reunion was organized. I knew I had to go. There were a number of the old guard that this would be a final chance to see them.
I never 'made' Bill do anything with me. If he wanted to go to that show, that party, that event, I was delighted. If he didn't, I would be disappointed, but I always respected his choice and didn't apply pressure to change his mind. Until this particular gathering.
One thing Bill loved, and I mean loved, was gossip and dissecting things after, especially if it involved people. He wasn't going to go to this particular reunion. And for the first time I put the pressure on for him to come. And for exactly the reason Pilcher mentioned. And that is exactly what I told Bill. I told him that I would want to dissect and gossip about the whole event after but I needed someone else to be with me so that could happen. And he changed his mind! He came along happily and boy did we dissect later! hahaha!!! That's half the fun of going! The other half is the food....especially my family. Groaning laden tables of homemade goodies!
I went out yesterday! A rarity I must say. Monte and I loaded the truck up with recycling and took it to the local depot. Monte warned me that the five or six people that work there are garbage nazis! There are like ten different bins for ten different types of plastics. I got a big lecture on which one was which then promptly threw the bubble wrap into the wrong bin. She was not happy. I had to stand on my head to get them back out. I am a garbage dyslexic.
From there we ended up at the river quay, watching a very swollen river glide by eating the beyond burger and onion rings we had swung through A&W for. The onion rings were amazing and so plentiful. Actually so plentiful that when I was finished them I couldn't go beyond one bite of the burger. (no pun intended) Just then who should walk by but our Peter, out for his daily stroll to kingdom come and back. We were so happy to see him!
He climbed into the truck and, bless him, finished off my burger and Monte's onion rings. I love having a couple of people around that eat my unfinished food...I feel way less guilty about wasting! And there was no way I was eating that burger, no matter how good it was!
Then last night the boys went and picked up pizza at a new place. Apparently, the pizza is different. More flat breadish. I didn't want any, I made myself a salad.
I am pretty proud of Monte. We had a discussion about vegetarianism. Peter is vegetarian and we see the personal food sacrifices he makes and that really makes being a vegetarian undesirable....to some of us. So I mentioned to him that just cut back, don't totally eliminate. That Greta person said that if everyone didn't eat meat just for one day a week it would change the world. Cutting back is way less daunting than eliminating.
That seemed to appeal to him so he also had ordered a beyond burger at lunch and his pizza was totally sans meat last night. I am going to encourage him to keep that up. And if anyone else wants to join us on this 'save the planet' or 'save ourselves from another pandemic', feel free to join in!!
Well thats it peeps. I am now going to go on a rant about Covid so please just skip it, unless you would like to contribute. I would love that. hp1104@google.com. Stay safe and noodle. TTYL
COVID MADE ME DO IT
Covid is being overused as an excuse...for anything and everything.
I have noticed that mask wearing and covid has crept into tv dramas.
Last night I watched Law and Order, SUV. The girl in it had been particularly loose and free with herself and unknown partners. Upon being questioned she trotted out Covid....how the quarantining was lonely and getting her down and she needed the contact. So while the rest of us were doing the right thing...she indulged herself in loose behaviour and excused it. She did live with three other people.
Canada Post...biggest covid self-excuser of all. One month it took some of my xmas cards to arrive at their destination, here in BC. Come on! I know covid slowed things up somewhat, but jeez!, it's not like they didn't know this was going to happen and had time to prepare for it.
Restaurants...another big covid whiner. Aryn was telling me that when she and Bradley walked around on New Years Eve, every restaurant was full. When they talked to a few of the people that worked at them, they all said that the people inside drank while they dined and then at eight o'clock, the new cut off time, bought several more bottles to hold them over until 12. They continued to have a great time and drank their wine. Any leftovers were corked and sent home with them. But the head of the restaurant association was right there on the news super whining that covid was causing them all to go bankrupt. If you are going bankrupt, look to yourself and bad planning, don't just blame covid.
Unhappy or mental kids...I feel, my opinion only, if your kid is reacting super badly mentally to covid, you aren't doing your job as a parent. Children are reflectors...of your example. If your normally well adjusted kid is suddenly mentally freaked because of covid, you have needed to talk them down and make them feel safe. Thats your job as a parent. Of course I know there are kids out there that are going to react negatively no matter what you say or do, but they are certainly in the minority and you can work extra hard with them to make them feel like this is an adventure, not something to fear.
I take this from both my mother and my sister. My sister had a daughter that was really reacting to 911. And my sister swung into action and had many conversations with her and talked about it and allowed her daughter to grieve, but at the same time understand. Our mom would have done the same thing. Actually she did. When I was young the threat of an atomic war was very real...way scarier than covid. But parents reassured and explained until we could live with the threat.
Okay, I can hear some of you, if you read this against my advice, gnashing your teeth over my comments here. Thats okay. Covid has created a fertile environment for conversation and 'agree to disagree' arguments. Feel free to email me and set me straight. I will listen and prolly include your opinions next week...without names if you prefer.
hp1104@gmail.com
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