Telephone, ACLU, Bush, Conway, and Knitting

LIFE

Life was not good this morning in Harmony Cottage. The morning began with me deep into my reading and Old Husband at the dining table working word puzzles. The phone rang. It was on a table near my chair so I glance over, do not recognize the number, and glance back at my reading. Old Husband goes into panic mode so I answer. It was a wrong number.

All would have been well if I could then have gone back to my reading but no, that wasn't going to happen. "Who was it" he said, "Wrong number" I said, "Who did they want" he said, "I don't remember" I said, "What do you mean you don't remember," he said, you get the point.

The phone has now been moved to a table next to the dining table where he sits. He has a phone next to his chair in his room. I have resigned phone duty.

I may send him to live with our sister-in-law. She's just like Old Husband when the phone rings. They couldn't live together because they'd both dive for the phone, butt heads, and knock each other out.

Reminds me of the days as a child when we had party lines. On our party line was an old woman who wheezed something awful. She might not have had enough breath to talk but she had enough to make it to the phone every time a call was for us. We could hear her wheezing while we talked.

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POLITICS

The ACLU Is Taking Its Trump Fight From The Courtroom To The Streets

I smiled when I read this article about the ACLU. In my past life as an Evangelical Christian I was taught the ACLU was one of those nasty liberal organizations. Years pass, life happens, and since January 20, 2017 I've become a donating member of the ACLU. Who would have thought it?

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Former President George W. Bush Speaks Out

Thanks President Bush for speaking out. We need your voice.

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Kellyanne Conway's Oval Office Photo

I try not to be disrespectful but this one just struck me as too funny. Pete Souza served eight years as the official White House photographer for President Obama, and took millions of photos to be archived for history. He was a master at being in the room and not seen by anyone. I can only imagine what he thought when he looked at these photos. If President Trump has an official photographer perhaps someone should speak to Kellyanne about making herself scarce when photos are being taken. No doubt these will make it to the archives as well.

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KNITTING

Yesterday I wrote about my concerns knitting this yarn using #1 needles. Not wanting to rip out I had decided to push on to completion. That did not work out well. That night I was in much pain through my shoulders and upper arms. 

Morning came and rip went the sock. I dropped the stitch count to 56 stitches and am now using #2 needles. I have such a hard time making myself knit socks with anything but #1 needles. I'm learning though, yes I am.

Our Niece, Obama, Perez, and Wild Socks

I encourage you to read this blog post.

IGNORANT

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LIFE

I want to introduce you to our niece. When she was eight it was discovered she needed a kidney transplant, her mom was a good match and donated her kidney. A few years later that kidney failed and the hunt was on again for another kidney. For years she was on dialysis at home, done during the night while she slept. About three years ago she received another kidney and it seems to be functioning well.

She's had a lot of things against her, she's hearing impaired, wears glasses, has awful teeth, has thyroid problems, and she's mentally challenged. The public schools where she lives have provided wonderful services for her. She was allowed to 'graduate,' and after graduation she was able to continue attending school in 'life skills' classes. That's over now. She's aged out of those services.

A lot of things are changing for her. She's also aged out of using the children's hospital, and the doctors she's known since she was eight. I think she's 23 now. She's receiving some monthly SSI benefits. Health insurance is a very important topic at her house.

She will never be able to live independently, never drive a car, or be responsible for taking her medications.

She's home now with no place to go. She's bored. Neighborhood girls that grew up with her have gone off to college or gotten jobs. 

Recently a new grocery store was built near them. That store has a program for special people like our niece. She now has a job. She sacks groceries four hours a day, four days a week. Oh my goodness, has that ever done a world of good for this young woman. It's been a tremendous confidence builder. Her self image is greatly improved. Last week a woman shopper tipped her $20. Restored my faith that there are still good, caring, thoughtful Americans.

President Trump, and Republican members of Congress, don't even think of taking away this young woman's benefits. She's not a lazy American, nor a leech on society.

Oops, that turned political. Sorry about that.

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GOOD DAYS

An interesting blog post.

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POLITICS

Obama is back from vacation

I miss the Obamas.

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Tom Perez elected leader of the Democratic Party

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What Does Steve Bannon Want?

I found this article very interesting.

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KNITTING

I started this sock some time ago but set it aside. Occasionally I find myself in a dilemma, such was the case today. Not all sock yarns are created equal. Some are thin, some are thick. This one is thick. It's lofty. My go to size needle for knitting socks is #1. I should have used a larger needle with this yarn. This is the first sock. I looked at it and debated ripping it out but I hate to give up that knitting and ribbing. 

If I can stand it to the finish it will make wonderful socks. I prefer knitting socks at a tight gauge because they wear longer. I tried bamboo needles but the yarn did not slide well so Hiya Hiya Sharps here we come.

That Time of Year

Christmas is over, now what? This seems to be an 'in between' time of year for me. I take down the holiday decorations but can't think of anything to put in the center of the table for the month of January. The weather is usually dark and rainy here in the Pacific Northwest. Daughter left this morning so it's time for me to decide how I'm going to occupy my time until spring arrives. I think I'm going to fill the time with books and knitting.

I took a giant leap of faith and ordered the new wireless Apple AirPods. I've been eagerly waiting for Apple to release them. I think they will arrive mid February. They are pricey at $159. I am totally sick of earbuds with cords. There's not many styles of those things I can wear but the ones from Apple work great for me. I do think they look a little weird stuck in your ear but that's not of great importance to me. 

Daughter gave me some Audible book credits so I'm set for ordering new books. My audible library is quite large so I'm going to spend some time making notes and lists in a regular notebook in hopes it will make my reading/listening selections easier.

I finished knitting a pair of socks during the holidays. Daughter loves all the yarn stores here in Portland so I accompanied her thinking I did not need anything. As usual I came home with threes skeins of sock yarn. I took a knitting break for the summer and have had a hard time getting back in the groove but knitting goes well with audible books.

Bob is having blood pressure problems again. I was able to get in touch with the new cardiologist on Friday before Christmas. He is so nice and I'm so pleased to have him on Bob's medical team. He told me to take his blood pressure in the morning. If the top number is over 100 he is to take his morning meds. He's to skip them if the top number is under 100. Before bedtime we take it again and that tells us if he's to take a particular pill or skip it. We will be seeing him mid January and I will take along a log of his BP readings.

Perhaps I'll have something more exciting for my next post but don't count on it.