Portland, Oregon

Portland, Oregon

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Life Goes On

 It's beautiful but enough is enough. Since we don't often get snow I paid little attention when the forecast said snow, as they seem to be wrong more often than right.

Today we'll use the last egg. I've ordered groceries from Safeway's home delivery service but it will be Thursday afternoon before they're delivered. Their schedule was full until that time. Given Bob's love affair with Costco we'll not run out of paper goods. We have enough on hand to stock a neighborhood grocery store.

Bob is cold all the time but there's something about snow and ice that draws him out into it. At first it worked to threaten him with a broken hip but eventually he ignored that. He is busy all day opening the door, closing it, and saying "It's still cold out there." Consequently our heat seldom cuts off.

Once he's had all he can stand of that, he makes up excuses to go to the car. Yesterday he decided the windshield wipers needed washing solution added. Since we can't get to the trash area he's storing bags of garbage in the back. Saturday he hiked up to the mailboxes and came back with a bag full of junk mail, not a single piece of it important, and said "It's really slick out there."  Yesterday he again went to the mail box, which was not smart since it was a holiday, and again said "It's really slick out there." God give me patience.
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I have ordered something called the Congressional Directory 2017. It's a spiral bound directory of the members of Congress. I've ordered these in the past and found them to be a very handy tool. I fill mine with sticky notes of information and refer to it often. It's pricey at $35, but money well spent in my opinion.
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Looking for a way to be involved, but living in a blue state where I agree with how the senators and representatives vote, I was feeling a little left out. I have decided instead of writing letters of protest I will write letters of appreciation and encouragement.

I will also be writing to a select group of senators and representatives not from my state but ones I appreciate their work. One will be Senator Diane Feinstein who will be on the front line investigating Russia. She's such a treasure, so professional, and wise. Hard to believe she is 83 years old. She has such a rich life story. Google what she says when you want to know the truth about the Russia investigation.

Another will be Senator Al Franken. He's done a tremendous job on the confirmation hearings. He's a sharp guy. I value his opinions.

Senator Kamala Harris is newly elected to the Senate.  She's walking right into the fire. She's a bright young woman and on paper sounds like a good possibility for a presidential candidate if she can survive today's politics. She has a fascinating  life story.
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Remember this:

"At this point, without further investigation, it is just as wrong to say Trump is "illegitimate" as to say he won "fair and square."

Matthew Dowd

12 comments:

  1. I have to say, I'm always looking out the window when it snows. I come from a family of weather-obsessed people who are always prepared, but the first time H and I weathered a big storm, we were young and unprepared. Of course, because we were young, it didn't bother us as much as it would now. We're much better these days. We grew some common sense along the way. Experiencing how quickly things become uncomfortable when you lose power or start running out of food, toilet paper :) or fuel for the Coleman stove motivated us to prepare a little more thoroughly for possible events, but you can always get caught by a surprise. With all this crazy weather we get these days, it's hard for some people to prepare, because we're getting bad storms in places that never had them before. People in Atlanta are not prepared for snow and ice, and they don't know how to drive in it. People in NJ are not used to hurricanes. We live. We learn.

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  2. Letters of appreciation is a good idea!

    Gosh, I feel for you trying to get Bob inside! It's not smart to be walking around out there especially since I doubt you have proper foot gear, if your rarely get snow. Sports shoes and leather soled shoes are the worst.

    I live in snow country so I always stock up on grocery items in the fall and if I don't use them by spring I start using them. This year I haven't missed a week getting to the store so I'm well stocked.

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  3. I like your idea of writing letters of support and congratulations. Now I wish the bad guys could find out that people are getting positive letters.

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  4. Feinstein and Harris are my people. Voted for both and will continue to do so.

    Snow in Portland area, heh? Our daughter went to college in McMinnville and snow was rare but did occur a time or two while she was there. We will be returning to the area in late June for a conference.

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  5. We seem to have switched weather patterns. Our temperatures are in the mid 40's all this week. We have rain every day. We are supposed to be covered with a nice pile of snow this time of year, in Michigan--after all, our State is shaped like a mitten. ;-)

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  6. Good final point. He is our duly elected president. But perhaps with an asterisk.

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  7. I'm having to use some of your techniques with Louis Dean now! He's wanting to build a cover for the 31 foot deck at the camper. I've agreed to that. The awning is torn an not fit for repairs and a new one is costly. However, Louis Dean usually goes for over kill. He was talking tonight about building a cover for the camper AND the deck. I put my foot down on that one! He will NOT be getting on top of the camper! Statistics show that once you fall after 80 years of age.....you are more likely to fall again. And one fall can change your life completely! Not worth it!

    Your snow pictures are beautiful!

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  8. Snow: pretty from your widow, but deadly for those of us who are older. One fall can change everything. I think you have done all you can to convince him to not go out.

    So glad you have a grocery delivery service! We don't have that in our neighborhood up north. But we should! We certainly have enough seniors living in the area.

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  9. Diane Feinstein is 83?!?!?!?!?!? I'm in shock. I would have guessed 70, tops. I like her and Al Franken, too. I admire your deep interest and involvement in politics. We watched President Obama's final press conference this afternoon and felt sad he'S leaving. He has such tact, which will be missed. Your description of Bob's reaction to the snow made me chuckle. We received another 4" of snow today. I do love a fresh snowfall.

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    1. She will be up for election again in 2018 and has said she will decide about a year out whether she will run again. She says she's in good health and still able to work hard. Her criteria will be whether she feels she's still effective, not her age.

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  10. I'm glad I did a quick proofread before hitting Send, because autocorrect had written Al Frankenstein.

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  11. I understand Bob's fascination with the snow. I'm not quite his age but I no longer bounce either. Still I can't stay inside when it is so pretty out. My inner child wants out and yet I have two permanent ailments from having taken a couple of ice spills so I understand your concerns also. Hopefully it will melt soon for both our sakes.

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