Happy Saturday morning; this one celebrating the days after Thanksgiving.

“From the age of 65 on, Marcia and I have moved around a lot. Mostly we would just stretch, but occasionally one of us would actually get up to go to the fridge.” ~ Jarod Kintz (paraphrased)

I heard several health “experts” blather away on the TV on the subject of managing calorie intake during the holidays. The idea is: exercise! Don’t immediately exercise and all is lost and everyone will turn into a Jabba the Hutt. Exercise and the women will turn into a Jane Fonda (circa age 70), and the guys into a Richard Simmons or Mickey Rourke (circa age 70). Me? I ran to Costco and bought a 4-pound tray of grapes – now am covering all bases.

Maybe best grab some coffee and think things through a bit more.

Water, Water, Water everywhere – The other day we received our water bill. While at Northern Comfort I wouldn’t see the actual bill, just a total, and then dutifully authorize a bank payment.

This time it was the real thing; $246.21. But, what really shocked me was the actual breakdown.

Our “water” portion of the bill was a paltry $35.67. To then dispose of $35.67 of the water purchased/used cost $195.70 on sewer charges (for those of you immersed into ‘detail’ and ‘facts’, that is 5.5 times the cost of the water itself).

Then, for good measure there is a $14.84 charge for water I did not authorize and have nothing to do with. That bit falls under a “stormwater” column. Maybe I should ask the folk at the Water bureau to please bill any of these folk for this stuff; there are plenty to choose from and all are experts in water: god Veruna (Hindu), Freyr (Viking), and Tó Neinilii (Navajo) just to name a few.

Condo update (still ongoing) – For yours truly and for Marcia there is still plenty to do; some painting, some plastering, kitchen floor prep work, etc. But by and large all is under control. The next major ‘bit’ will be the kitchen install mid-December.

This has meant that (especially for Marcia) thoughts have turned to something titled “décor.”

Remember our ancient piano which was turned into a buffet table? Well, the ‘harp’ and pedals are now a small, glass topped, side table.

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Next on the list was Marcia’s cherry wood settee. Although not quite an antique, it is somewhat ancient. That meant that the springs were sprung – sitting on it was like snuggling up to a mountain of melons.  Then there was the straw and the horsehair. All of this meant that the thing was relegated to a place of honor, far removed from where people would actually come near to it.

That is about to change. New fabric was purchased (seen draped over the back) and a day spent removing what began to look like a ton of tacks and brads.

Finally we set out to secure a proper and professional upholsterer to re-do the springs complete with 8-point tie downs and make the requisite ‘welt’ trim. DSCF1323Our first selection caused a bit of shock when we rolled up to the place. It was such a disaster that we broke out laughing. The next place was very professional – other than the fact that the owner reminded me of the Seinfeld “Soup Nazi” character.

Here’s to hoping for a huge success in the settee restoration endeavor. Marcia has high hopes.

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Grandparent’s Day (an update) – As these photos show, it was an event that had all the kids in the school sparkle. It’s amazing just how thrilled and proud they are to show off all that they do and all that they’ve learned.

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Fini – Thanksgiving day could not have been better (other than having the Briones gang around). The sound of little feet racing around has changed dramatically. As proof, the “picture of the week” is of the oldest and the youngest at play. The girls were out of sight; they were upstairs with the large doll-house.

Tonight the little community of St. Bernard is kicking off the season with the arrival of Santa, horse-drawn carriage rides, a large model train display, and much hot chocolate. Guess where I’ll be.  😀

Make it a great week everyone. Stay safe.

Cheers.

Dirk

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