Sunday, July 31, 2022

In Memory of Martha

She was always smiling and laughing. I loved right next door to her in the dorm during our sophomore year at Florida State University. After a lot of distress and concern, we learned we were accepted in to nursing school at the same time. We spent a lot of time together over the next two years. I met her boyfriend David who would eventually become her husband. I had lost touch with Martha after we graduated but had kept in contact with her room mate Linda, who was also in nursing school. Yesterday - out of the blue - I was thinking of Martha and googled her. And to my disbelief and sadness there was an obituary notice.  Martha passed away just last month. So I rummaged through the old photos and found the graduation photos of us on that very happy day. She and I were having a conversation and then we shared a big smile. That’s how I remember Martha. Those days seem just like yesterday as everyone always says. I put a note on the funeral home website and added the photos for David to know Martha will be remembered. She always was - but much too soon for this. Rest In Peace sweet Martha. 








Saturday, July 30, 2022

Mega Millions Loser

I really didn’t want to win a billion dollars. One million would be good enough. But neither happened last night when the mega millions numbers were shown on tv. We have never bought lottery tickets. But for whatever reason - a billion, pandemic, stock market - we thought to give it a try knowing full well it was a waste of money. Never having done this I looked up where the places were that sold tickets. And there were three seven elevens within three blocks in our neighborhood. We went to the first one and got ten dollars worth. Then we drove to a second one and got one more mega million and five two dollar scratch offs. In the end we “won” four dollars on a scratch off and I think four dollars on the mega million because we got one power ball number. So that’s maybe an eight dollars win compared to twenty two dollars wasted. You can also register your scratch offs for “second chance” on the lottery website - which I never knew existed. Apparently you can also buy your tickets on line. Anyway, I was able to enter the numbers for three scratchers, but the fourth kept coming up “invalid.” So I started a chat to see if I could find out what the problem was. They said they couldn’t handle technical issues and I would need to call. It’s just not worth the hassle. So the second chance drawing is next week. Let’s see how lucky we will be! I can already tell you. 


























Friday, July 29, 2022

National Gallery of Art Exhibit

We hadn’t been to the National Gallery of Art for quite some time. When it is very hot outside the air conditioned space is a great reprieve. Additionally the east building just reopened after many months of renovation to the skylights. And on a brilliant sunny day the results were obvious! With the reopening came a couple of new exhibits. One of them was “The Woman in White.” As usual the main reason for our going to the art museum was to find some options for the weekly photo challenge I participate in. But along the way we stopped by the exhibit. We didn’t spend enough time in it and breezed through quickly. That means that we will need to return again. Lucky for us that is always an easy option. Just get in the car, drive for about 20-25 minutes, park on the national mall, and walk over. When we lived on Capitol Hill it was a lot easier, but at least everything is still quite accessible to us now that we live in northern Virginia. And it makes for a lovely morning walk. 


















Thursday, July 28, 2022

Five-BN Games

I use my iPad for a lot of things - so much so that I no longer have a traditional lap top anymore. I love to paint and create digital art on it and have been doing that since the iPad first came out more than ten years ago? One thing I also like to do is play games with my husband. It’s a mindless way to spend about thirty minutes most evenings before we settle in to watching tv. When it’s nice outside we sit on the west facing balcony and play. Otherwise it’s on the couch. It started out with Big Fish games. Since Big Fish doesn’t make them anymore I’ve searched for other adventure/hidden objects and recently came across FIVE-BN games. They are a lot more difficult than others in that these are “free” and I’m too cheap to buy hints. So we end up watching a lot of adds. But the games are also more difficult. So whenever we see a clue that we know we will need later on I always try to remember to take a photo of it so the image is available to help solve the problem. Now my iPhone is getting filled with dopey game images that need to be deleted as soon as I remember to do it. I’ve always liked visual content and my husband is such a good sport about going through this exercise. It does help keeping your mind sharp. And we all can use a bit of that. 




















Wednesday, July 27, 2022

Waterpik Daily Routine

We never used Waterpiks. We used toothbrushes. My parents ended up having their own teeth in to old age. My mom always made sure we had routine dental appointments. Every time I visit a dentist they tell me I am no stranger to the dental chair based on all of the crowns and filling I have. I pay earnest attention to my teeth because I had TMJ experimental surgery forty years ago. Going to an experience hygienist is most important because of the stress a routine checkup puts on my jaw. Last week I went to a new dentist and the experience was positive. The hygienist was very gentle and thorough and I didn’t have any residual pain afterwards. But even with all of my flossing and brushing and caring for my gums there is periodontal destruction on the upper back molars. So she recommended that I start to use a waterpik. So I got a handheld waterpik last week and have started to introduce that in to my daily routine. It does take some getting used to without making a mess. I do need to eventually have a crown but I’m holding off until it is essential especially since I don’t have any pain and continue a good job keeping things clean. So I hope the waterpik helps keep the bacteria load down. My husband is currently having several dental implants put in and that includes bone grafts and a lot of drawn out processes - something I absolutely don’t want to go through. After forty years my jaw is still functioning. I’vecbeen wearing a night guard all of this time but couldn’t survive without it. Thank goodness there are things to alleviate issues like this. I’ll just keep my fingers crossed until the next check up. Until then the waterpik will become my friend. 














Tuesday, July 26, 2022

Sixteen Year Anniversary

It’s hard to believe that we have lived in the DC region for sixteen years. This month marks the anniversary of our move from the Midwest to Capitol Hill. I remember it well. After thirty years in the ice and cold we decided to take the plunge. I gave myself four weeks off before starting a new job at the Library of Congress. We bought the 500 square foot condo a few months before we actually moved. But we didn’t buy it with the intention of moving. It was meant to be a second home that was located just down the street from our son and his family. But I searched for job options and it just kept steamrolling. Are we happy we moved? Before the pandemic I would say absolutely yes. Now, I’m not so sure. We miss our friends and colleagues and house and dog. It would never be the same if we went back, but we haven’t even visited in over two years. We almost feel like we are on an island since we moved to northern Virginia three years ago. My mom passed away at the beginning of the pandemic and our trips to Florida ceased since 1976. We haven’t really seen anyone - except a rare visit to our family who moved to central Virginia. At least we have each other and that has been the saving grace. Now we have a balcony that faces west and a safe environment to live in. We still drive in to town every week and have started taking day trips just to get out of the house. The evenings are the best because they really haven’t changed. We miss going to the library programs that we so enjoyed. Thank goodness for our relatively good health and the internet. 












Monday, July 25, 2022

52frames Common Object

I belong to a weekly photo challenge called 52Frames. Every week there is a specific subject that we need to take a photograph of and post it to the website by the Sunday night deadline. There are over 2,000 participants. Last week my photo entry was selected as a top 52 pick. That was the second time since I joined in October 2020. I never would have thought that was possible because I am not a trained photographer and my iPhone is my camera, and an old iPhone at that. Some of the subjects are more interesting than others. Last week was common object - not one that I particularly cared for. The only idea I could come up with was to use twenty years worth of eyewear. Don’t ask me why I have kept all of those glasses but there were six pair to use. I kept the ones I am wearing on so I could take the photo. So it tried arranging the glasses randomly, to look like a bug, and then a flower. I tried putting them in the sunlight, on the table top, and on the quartz counter top. There’s just so many ways to do it. Finally I had had enough of it and decided on the flower petals option after turning up the light and increasing the color interest. The subject this week is focal point. That could be just about anything. 














Sunday, July 24, 2022

Eufy Battery Arrived

We have had it for more than three years. Our Eufy iRobot vacuum cleaner has been a wonderful device. It scoots around and under the furniture and picks up dirt and dust that we wouldn’t be able to reach with our traditional machine. So when it started beeping out of no where we didn’t know why. The unit still charged up and worked, but the beeping sound and orange blinking light was weird. So I had a chat with the rep online and she said to take out the battery and put it back. If that didn’t help then the battery would probably need to be replaced. I didn’t really think about the battery as an issue because it’s not readily accessible - and that wasn’t mentioned in the instructions. Of course the first step of removing and replacing the battery didn’t work. So we decided to replace the battery. I also read several battery reviews and they all confirmed the same experience we were having. When the battery arrived we inserted it and recharged the unit. Not only did it stop beeping, the charging color turned to blue again and the run time lasted a lot longer than usual. It would have been a shame to dispose of the unit because it really does the trick in our 1000 square foot unit. These devices really are worth it.