Who Knew??

Topic for today: bed frame. Topic I have never given much (any) thought to: bed frame. Who knew?

Baby Rivers is moving and combining households and I inherited her brand new upholstered headboard - which came with a brand new bed frame. I was so excited to get the sleek and sophisticated, modern headboard and to say good by to my foofoo whatwasIthinking lala metal bed with its curls and swirls.

My old headboard and frame went on the truck to goodwill - new bed installed and I am thrilled! Not only do I feel like I have checked into an 18 pillow hotel - I got the best night's sleep I have had in ages. Same mattress, same box spring. The only difference was the frame.

I had no idea how much difference a good bed frame makes! Spread the word!

Goes Around, Comes Around!

When Baby Rivers was barely able to sit up, we noticed that she was a sorter. We saw that somehow she could see categories and manipulate her blocks and toys into logical groups. Maybe all babies do this - but we thought she was unusually bright.

Fast forward over thirty years: Yours truly is trying to help now grown up and beautiful BR move house. Not an easy task!

There is so much stuff. None of it makes sense to me. She noticed that I was sitting on the floor sorting things. I was making up categories and manipulating all sorts of diverse things into piles of "go togethers" that might make sense when she unpacked.

She thought I was unusually bright!

Happy Birthday From Mom- Pretty amazing!

From the year I left for college until the year she died, my mother always called me on my birthday. No matter where I was, no matter where she was. Sometimes I would send her flowers on this day with a card that reminded her that my birthday was also her "Mother's Day" for her because I was her first born. I was thinking about that today (my bd) when I decided to check my phone messages. Sometimes before you can hear your current messages, the mailbox lady says"the following message will be erased" and you have the option of resaving or deleting. Well, you guessed it: the message waiting to be erased was from MY MOM on the day before she died. (Play the na na na na music) - Of course I listened and resaved. Pretty cool that I got a birthday message from my mom. Just like always. Wow!

Put Your Car in Park!!

Today as I was driving home I noticed a woman driving with one hand and scooping something off the car floor with the other. I couldn't help the horrific memory that washed over me.

I was twelve years old and walking to the corner store. Ahead of me was a babysitter pushing a young child in a stroller.
At the corner a woman had stopped her car at the light and she took that moment to reach for something on the floor. Her foot slipped off the break and on to the gas and her car shot forward over the the baby and the stroller.

For hours and hours afterward we heard the agonized screams of that baby's father.
I can't imagine the torment the driver has suffered over this thoughtless tragedy. I know that for me the memory is as vivid as the actual experience.

The rule: if you are going to reach for anything in your car - stop, put the car in park and do what you need to do. NEVER EVER believe that you can just this one time reach over a pick up whatever has slid form the seat.

I know I have written about this before - but it all came back to me today once again.

My Share

The tax man, the tax man, we all love the tax man. I understand taxes. I support taxes. I support the idea that those with more should pay more. I believe in helping those in need. I like good roads and libraries and schools and programs that make life better for everyone. I just don't feel like paying taxes today. Poor planning on my part. My rental, my misunderstanding of how SS is taxed, and a bit more income than I anticipated have resulted in an astounding tax bill this year. Ouch!!

Only 17 Shopping Days...

Birthdays were big in my little town. Everyone knew everyone else and nobody was left out of the parties. Flossie Smith, the unmarried lady at the bank, sent cards to every kid in town, the upstreet woolworths supplied little paper baskets for mints and peanuts, and most parents copied Ann Van Arnam's smart idea of tying a birthday bow on the celebrant's chair. Cake mixes had just come along and moms were excited by this new luxury - my mom became a specialist at white cake with chocolate frosting sprinkled with walnuts. My best friend Mary and I shared the birthday month of March - with birthdays three days apart. Among my dusty warm memories: Mary's mother Ann walking me home after Mary's party and reminding me that I would never again have just one digit in my age...and to enjoy my last three days in one delightful digit.