My daughters, Ellen and Katey, will be visiting from Texas, March fifth through the eleventh. Our eagerly-awaited four-day road trip will take us through Everglades National Park to Miami Beach and Biscayne National Park.
We have planned two boat tours, a day at the beach, a visit to the Miccosukee Indian Village, and a walk across the saltwater marsh that I once enjoyed nearly forty years ago. We look forward to encounters with alligators, dolphins, and colorful tropical birds. Local seafood, Cuban cuisine, barbeque, and matzo ball soup are also on our itinerary.
I will share stories and photos of our trip when we return.
Ongoing Effects of Hurricane Ian & Other Disasters
I think the internet is finally fixed! Monday the technician tightened a loose wire at the central box! Our internet, TV, and house phones were off for five days, the third such outage since the hurricane shook things up. Robert is out $250 for a modem the internet provider had recommended. It didn’t solve the problem, and Robert returned it, but they said they had never received it and refused to refund the money.
I got up one morning last week and discovered that a tree had fallen from the wooded lot behind us onto the power company right-of-way behind our house… five months after the hurricane!
It cost $1, 200 to get this large oak tree cut up and removed. The new roof, wall repairs, and previous tree removal are covered by homeowner’s insurance, but not this tree!
What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world
and loses his own soul?
Bible, New International Version, Mark 8:36
No good deed goes unpunished!
Oscar Wilde
Karma
A corrupt quartet
sought profit from others’ loss,
but karma stepped in!
Inflicting loss on others,
without gain, they sold their souls.
On Saturday afternoon, I was shopping at Publix supermarket when a woman, who apparently spoke little English, came up from behind me. Saying “Please,” she pointed and gestured for me to reach a product on a high shelf for her. Two times I tried, and she shook her head, but the third time I handed her the item, and she said,”Thank you.” When I went to the checkout a few minutes later, I discovered that my wallet was missing.
Suddenly, I realized the significance of my encounter with the woman and told a manager what had happened. Publix security cameras clearly showed a man acting as a lookout, a woman distracting me by asking me for help, and another woman removing my wallet from my tote bag in five seconds! The theft was recorded at 3:59. At 4:15, before I even missed my wallet, the security camera at the Walmart across a four-lane highway recorded the thieves trying to use my credit cards to pay for $504.94 worth of drinks and other groceries.There must have been a fourth person filling the cart at Walmart while the other three were robbing me.
All the cards they tried to use were declined because the credit card companies’ records show that I rarely spend more than $100 at the grocery store. All the four thieves got for their trouble was $8 in cash and incriminating videos in two stores. I hope they are caught and can never again do this to anyone else!
The wallet contained my drivers license, voter registration card, insurance and credit cards, checkbook, and my $450 car key fob. I will never again put my key fob, check book, and every card I possess in my wallet. I will never again leave my wallet in a tote bag, but will carry it in a small cross-body purse or a fanny pack. You are never too old to learn to do things differently!
A Publix Manager said that in the seven years he had been at the store, no customer had ever been robbed. Lucky me…I am the first! After I waited for two hours at Publix for the police, The manager gave me my groceries for free, and one of the Publix employees took me home and brought Robert back to pick up the car. I soon had to return to the store to fill out a police report. Finally, late that night, I got a chance to cancel my cards and order new ones.
The next three days were spent at Motor Vehicles (twice) who wanted proof of residence, the bank (twice), who needed my driver’s license, and the bureau of elections. I had to change my checking account and online banking and call Social Security and insurance companies about changes in my direct deposit. I contacted Medicare, AAA, AARP…The details are endless, but I am gaining on them. Though everyone has been unbelievably helpful, it has been an ordeal!
I don’t know how I could have managed without Robert’s help! While I was waiting at Motor Vehicles and the bank, I wrote a Valentine poem for Robert and later made it into a card.
Yesterday, we went to the car dealership to replace my key fob and reprogram Robert’s. When we returned, there were eight roofers on our roof installing new shingles. Robert and I were nervous about the shingles we had selected, but we are very happy with the finished roof! The next thing we have to do is hire someone to repair the numerous hairline cracks in our walls that appeared in the weeks after Hurricane Ian…
Robert followed up his recent pacemaker surgery with a cardiologist last week. Many tests are scheduled, some this week, some after Robert’s daughter visits in a couple of weeks. Then my daughters are coming in March, and we are planning a road trip. I will post the photos!
No need to worry. I promise you, I will not be bored anytime soon!
“Another Year Together” was written for the holiday card I put in Robert’s Christmas stocking this year. We have had a very personally challenging 2022: sickness, surgeries, extensive dental work, unexpected expenses, and family visits cancelled by weather and illness. The whole world has had a challenging year: wars, violence, storms, fires, floods, famine, supply chain issues, inflation and financial distress, a continuing Covid 19 pandemic compounded by widespread outbreaks of several other viruses…and on and on and on..
Robert and I have met the challenges of 2022, including Hurricane Ian. Although we are a little tireder and a little older, we have survived! We have also savored the pleasures of everyday life and the blessings that came our way. Our hopes are high for a better 2023, both for ourselves and for everyone worldwide.
We wish you courage for your journey, strength to meet the challenges you encounter, hope in your heart, and peace of mind. We wish you fair weather and good fortune. May you be inspired, creative, and productive. May you be surrounded by the love of family and friends.
Photo by Zefong Li from Unsplash.Hayride. Photo by Randy Fath from Unsplash.
Harvest & Heritage
How warmly now the summer sun does shine
on bees at work in clover fields so fair!
Sweet ripened fruit hangs heavy on the vine.
Perfume of roses lingers in the air.
How softly ripples wheat in summer breeze!
Bright roadside flowers nourish butterflies.
In orchards, apples ripen on the trees.
Abundant food the garden plot supplies.
As birds fly south, the leaves turn red and gold.
In autumn, nature’s bounties harvesting,
we labor to prepare for winter’s cold
and save some seeds for planting in the spring.
At harvest, we give thanks for all good things:
our life and strength and gifts that nature brings.
Photo by Max Gorin from Unsplash.Photo by Marek Studinsky from Unsplash.Photo by Jakob Owens from Unsplash.
Restoring Our Connection to Nature
Hydrophonic gardening on a balcony. Photo by Lettuce Grow from Unsplash.
On small family farms like the dairy farm where my mother grew up and in home gardens that were the pride of my grandmother and my father, there is a profound connection to nature. People work in cooperation with nature to provide for themselves and their families.
In the time of large corporate farms, most people do not live on small family farms and raise all of the food they eat. Many people may have lost the connection to the land and to the changing seasons.
Whatever our work, wherever we live, we are a part of the cycles of nature. We can help to preserve and renew the environment. We may not be able to do everything, but there are things each one of us can do to renew our connection to the natural world.
Nearly every culture has celebrations incorporating light. Bonfires, torches, lamps, candles, fireworks…all light the way to our best selves and a better world. Diwali is a beautiful and joyous festival, but what seems extraordinary to me is its universal message…nine simple words with the power to transform the individual and the world:
Photo by Sophie Dale from UnsplashPhoto by Kenny Krosky from Unsplash
Quoting Mom
So often these days,
I find myself quoting Mom…
proverbs, quips, sayings…
Mom had a real treasure trove
of wisdom she shared with me.
“Treat other people
as you want to be treated.”
That one is golden!
It was Mom who taught me that
reliable guide to life.
Mom was unfailing
in her caring and concern.
She gave great advice,
but, in matters of romance,
was a woman of her time.
Mom’s take on romance
was antiquated sexist
nonsense, best ignored.
Mom’s true advice to follow
was, “Think for yourself, Honey!”
After thirty years,
Dad found a younger woman.
Mom kissed a few frogs;
Prince Charming never came, but
Mom found her inner Princess!
My mother, Marian Nicholson, on her ninetieth birthday!
Antiquated Sexist Nonsense
“It’s a man’s world,” was the mid-twentieth-century consensus.
My mother passed several of the following outdated gems along to me:
Always let boys win if you want them to like you.
Act helpless. Let a boy be your hero and lift heavy objects for you.
Play “dumb.” Laugh at all of his jokes. Always agree with him.
Pretend to enjoy doing all the things he likes to do.
Don’t chase after boys. Make them chase after you!
Play hard to get. Never be the first to say, “I love you.”
Hide your passions. You don’t want him to think you’re “easy.”
If you “give in” to a boy, he’ll “dump” you and “kiss and tell.”
Go to college to find a husband, even though you know
you will be a homemaker after you marry.
A woman must never make more money than her husband…
His delicate pride can’t handle it.
Let a man think he’s boss…
Use “feminine wiles” to get what you want.
The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach…
Cook all of his favorite dishes.
Men are like little boys…They like to be told
how handsome, strong, and smart they are.
Make a habit of paying exaggerated compliments to men…
It builds their fragile egos.
Men are unable to control their impulses.
Women must be the guardians of morality.
If a woman wears a short skirt and gets assaulted, it’s her fault.
Sex is something a wife must endure for the sake of her husband.
Fortunately, I never fell for any of this antiquated sexist nonsense!
Sorry, Mom, but I don’t believe in playing games.
I was paying attention when you taught me to be honest and to
“Do unto others as I would have them do unto me.”
With respect to this poem’s dubious advice, I quote Mom,
“You might as well laugh as cry!”
Photo by Jason Briscoe from Unsplash
*Cautionary note: Some of the antiquated advice in this poem may appear to work in the short term, but some of it could come back to bite you later! Authentic relationships tend to be based on honesty and mutual respect. How long would you be willing to pretend you are enjoying a food you actually detest? How would you feel if you found out that someone was playing you? Better to be real!
This is my attempt at a Halloween Sonnet suggested by Ingrid at experimentsinfiction. Ingrid is sponsoring a Halloween Sonnet Festival. Sonnets are not my forte, but I thought it would be fun to participate. Thank you, Ingrid, for a bit of Halloween fun. 🙂
Thank you to all of those who kindly responded to that test post from WordPress! ❤ It was intended to track down an email of a post that WordPress sent me. The test post was not supposed to be visible. I am sorry for the inconvenience.
Gulf Coast Poet 