New Month New Laws

Every October new law and new statutes start in CT.  Some I understand, some I don’t, and of course there are those I know will raise people’s hackles. 

The first one that pops out to me is  the smoking age has been raised to 21.  THat hasn’t stopped anyone before.  There will be a 40 cent tax on the pre-filled E-cigarettes and a 10 cent on all other e cigarette products.  My hope is that anyone who is vaping reconsiders this real fast especially with the recent health scare and issues.

The state sales tax will now be applied to digital purchases such as Spotify,  and probably netflix, or any other thing.  I don’t usually use spotify but I use Pandora or accu-radio.  I also don’t know if that will apply to places such as Wal*Mart or any online shopping sites.

There are a whole bunch of laws that involve persons personal and private space, healthcare, and making some laws already in place stronger. 

I put a call in to the furnace guy this morning.  He hasn’t called to set up a time to put the new thermostat in.  So his lady/wife/assistant tentatively put it for tomorrow afternoon.  I hope he comes before I have to leave for Ladies guild meeting. (geesh I almost forgot about that.)

I didn’t make it to exercise class this morning.  I Had a great sleep overall.  Sky slept beside me almost the entire night.  Of course he woke me up this morning.  I did check on Tiger a couple of times.  She was downstairs.

Their new food arrived yesterday.  I am afraid I have a gluttony of food again.  I will have to figure something out soon.  I still use the fancy feast that came a week or two ago.  I really shouldn’t but I don’t want to waste it and they seem to eat it. 

Needless to say didn’t make it to class this morning but will this evening.  I do have to go in the morning and the rest of the week.  I am tracking the food and trying not to over do it but I still seem to go over the caloric goal.

It was a gloomy day (one that could go with the theme of October) it's supposed to  rain on and off today.  ITs in the mid sixties and I am glad I brought my rain jacket.  I probably won’t be going out today.

The President of the University announced the current provost will be stepping down soon. There will be a search starting very soon.  The provost sent an explanation email following the announcement.  I want to say many changes coming up.

Tonight I have my work out with A and then probably do some cardio and get my steps in and then come home and have dinner and settle in for episode 2 of NCIS.  I am pretty sure its going to get mixed reviews from many fans. 

The Last Farewell...RIP Mr President.

Today was  the funeral for President George HW Bush.  IT was held at the National Cathedral in DC.  According to one of the news reports I heard you had to be invited to this funeral.  That makes sense in ways that I can’t begin to imagine. All Living Past Presidents were to be in attendance I believe.  I heard or read that the Bush Family and President Trump have put aside their differences for today (that’s a no brainer Mr. Trump).

There were   many dignitaries from around the world.  There were members of President Bush Sr.’s cabinet in attendance (some of them have shared memories in interviews on the news radios, and of course on CNN) and members of the Carrier with President Bush’s name  on were his pallbearers.  USA Today printed up an Itinerary.

One of my coworkers asked why the banks and Post office closed for the President’s funeral.   She made the comment no other Presidents were garnered this honor. I had to look it up. Especially when I told her because it announced as a day of mourning.  I am guessing it is at the discretion of the sitting President.

I confess I had it on in the background.  I saw the videos of the past Presidents in the church, the procession from the rotunda.  I couldn’t help but get emotional. I did during the memorial Service too. Its loss, and sadness,  I would do it for anyone.

Work was good I got to spend it mostly on Scanning since the banks and post office were closed.  A few people came to see if I was feeling better from the Pink eye. I even apologized to HV when she stopped by.  Clearly she wasn’t the one who said anything but the person who did has been avoiding me today. Except to remind me to wipe everything down.  Told her i got it covered. Shakes head.

Late this afternoon I heard from OB/GYN regarding the bone density and I have what is known as Osteopenia.  One step before Osteoporosis and she recommended i have calcium supplements and VItamin D.   Will update Health Blog with this information. I also will share with Alex.

OH man i should have been following discussions on Meetup.  For the Finding friends group. There seems to be someone who doesn’t like the wednesday night set up or location  and if we do other things and Why always in North Haven. Great. Have this feeling there might be a power struggle coming along.  I will need to let Gillion handle this. I will be leaving work around 5:15 to join them.

WHen I get home I will need to feed kitties and empty the garbage and get ready for tomorrow’s activities.  I know I won’t be doing cards. I want to finish the organizing project first.

Election Day 2018

My hope was to get there at 6 a.m.  I didn’t but I did manage to vote and ran into friends and former classmates I haven’t seen in a while and i managed to chat with Judge Beverly Streit-Kefalas, and Ted B, husband to Cindy Wolfe Boynton who is running for office.  I probably will see the others tonight at HQ.

I have been getting a few updates from the Volunteers at the polls via text and just from what I saw there were a lot of people out.  I hope it goes well. OF course I want my candidates to win the election and I am thinking they will they worked hard. I am nervous about the Governor seat.  I will be totally surprised if the Independent Candidate wins over any of them but it's unlikely (so was President Trump’s win or so I thought).

One thing i am grateful for?  Is these stupid political ads will be done (I hope) for now.  I understand Politics can be dirty but how can anyone actually say “I approve this message”?  What are they thinking during the conversations about where to place ads? I did hear a little of a conversation about ad placement on FB.  It seemed non combative but I wonder what goes through the minds of the candidates when they start approving stuff that is very negative.

I was asking about PACs (I don’t trust them) and JB explained it a bit and  I skimmed over the article on wikipedia but I need to really sit down and read it to understand it better.

I was late getting to the office so I jumped in to work and reviewed stuff with DG most of what she worked on yesterday was fine or so I thought.  GA brought something to me and it was something that went in the wrong place. So I spoke with DG about it and vented to Supervisor about it. After that i just made sure I was patient with DG and reminded her to look at the lists printed and or wait for me to be around.     

I spent the rest of the time scanning.  We finally got more numbers to scan the batches.  So the daily stuff can be done. I had to do that near the end of the day as the treasury batch I worked on was a little bigger than previous ones.

Mid afternoon AC sends me an email asking me to focus on the daily stuff (we got inundated) so I stopped in the middle of the treasury batch with a note to continue in between.  My hope was to get it done before I left today.

Dear Mom September 2, 2014

Dear Mom,

It has been a really great day.  I left here at a decent hour and didn’t notice any problems.  I got the parking lot and headed to the office.  I stopped at Janet’s and Mama Joanie’s desk and we hugged and talked about the events of this past week.  Actually everyone was great they welcomed me back with hugs and condolences.  They asked various questions that I was able to answer.  I was relieved my office neat and organized.  They even went through old stuff (junk mail that I hadn’t been able to get to)  The mail volume was light despite it being the day after a holiday but Mondays mail is usually light anyway.    I managed to get it all opened and sorted but need to deliver it tomorrow.  I am thinking before I work on the boundless amount of return mail that I work on the small pile of re-address mail before it gets too large again.  I have to fill in the data from the days I wasn’t here and then pass it on to SR. 

At Lunchtime I headed up to Chapel Street to meet with Debra.  On the way there was some activity over at Omni Hotel.  President Clinton was  campaigning for Governor Malloy.  There Police detail, Secret Service guy, and state troopers too.  There was one car that had the License plate USA 123 (and it was a CT license plate) that was my first big hint.  You couldn’t really hang around the hotel very much either.

I had a good session with Debra.  We talked about the funeral and how it felt.  She was telling me that both Jim and Liz were impressed with how I was handling the whole situation.  Debra was confident that I would be okay.  Oh and our meeting time will be changed again this semester.  We will be meeting on Friday afternoons after work.  I am glad because then I don’t  have to use my personal time or miss lunch.  Okay so I don’t usually miss lunch anyway.  That will be starting in a couple of weeks.

Today the hospital bed was taken away.  However, they really were lousy about doing it.  They gave me a time period of when they would be there and so I made arrangements with Liz to be here to let them in.  they didn’t come until I got home.  Liz couldn’t wait any longer.  They didn’t have the common courtesy to call and say they were running late.  I let the guy have it.  I told him that I didn’t appreciate him not calling and Liz was doing me a favor being here.  Well he looked at me like I had two heads.  I told him he had 20 minutes to get the work done and get it out of the house.  I also said don’t give me a dirty look or I would call the BBB.  I was already annoyed with the receptionist because she was obnoxious when I called to see what time they were coming.

While Liz was here she had to make calls to the insurance companies and to the RRR board to get all medical bills taken care of.  She talked with Lawyer Bob and he told her that she was the Executor and had to do certain things.  So that’s what she is doing   She went into a little more detail but my brain is turning to mush.

We received more sympathy/condolence cards today.  They were from Nieghbors, friends, and family members, and of course former bosses.  We even got one from the Vitas staff. 

Well I am going to go watch the Double feature of NCIS and then get to bed.  I don’t know if I will make it through the second episode as I am very tired.

Love you Mom,

Kate

Dear Friends

October 20, 2013



Dear Friends:

Well it is after 9:30 and I am heading to bed.  I haven’t been all that productive tonight.    I spent the time watching TV, eating a dish of ice cream and folding clothes from the dryer.  I saw the Downton Abby Special on PBS tonight as recapping and  then previews for the 4th Season.  I am sure We will be watching it when it airs in January .

Mom made stew for dinner tonight.  It was slightly delayed because we got a call from a cousin of ours.  He lives in Ansonia I think.  He lost his Mom and brother within a few years of each other. 

Mom is still working on her report/speech for tomorrow.  As I suspected I will be taking her to the meeting.  I will then come back here and get ready for a “pizza party at Democratic Headquarters where we will be with Congresswoman DeLauro.   She is very special.

Well I am going to get going and crash.  Have a great Sunday….

Kate

Candidates say thank you

Just as I walked through the door tonight Mom got a phone call from Justin R (a fellow Democrat and campaign manager for State Rep Kim Rose) informing her that she was on the front page of the Milford edition of Patch.com. We rushed upstairs and got on the computer and There it was. I have posted a link to my Facebook page (so that others may see it).




WE had creamed turkey over mashed potatoes and broccoli as a side dish. I told Mom I could taste salt in it and she insisted there wasn’t any salt on the turkey but it was in the potatoes. It was the second of two dismissals and I was annoyed. My response was “ok”.



The rest of the day went okay. I got approval (sort of) from JudyF to go in early to work on the re-address mail. The daily stuff was mostly done (will have to get the lobby mail tomorrow). I told JanetN so that she would not feel slighted or whatever and it turns out she also has permission to come in early as well. I am getting her some coffee too.



OT went well. I did about 19 batches and it came out to 345 pages. LaVonT was helping out scanning and JanetN stayed for an hour. Yeah it’s still not that impressive huh? I didn’t think so either. I am sure the ladies will probably say I can only do what I can and every little bit helps. I think some times even they have problems with the counts too.



I emailed Jamie today and asked when his confirmation is and this evening he wrote back telling me it is on March 4, 2013. I am so relieved. I didn’t want it to be the same time as the trip. I told him I was planning on going to Italy (tentatively) in April.



Aw I just looked at my online calendars and they really need to be updated. I will be doing that tonight. I am going to bed by 10 though.



Hope you all had a great afternoon and evening!

Today is the Day

In about eight 8 hours the 35th Annual Meet and Greet will have commenced. There is up to 30 people expected to be in this house. Mom is downstairs preparing to cook the “famous” corned beef she serves to the guests and candidates. There is probably still a lot to do before then.




I have been awake since five but didn’t get up until maybe seven. I have a few things to do before leaving for the day. I am folding some clothes and will get the bed made. I have to still iron what I am wearing for the day as well.



I have the kid’s birthday party to go to before the meet and greet and I am looking forward to that. My only concern is the weather. It is cloudy and windy and a little rain is predicted for the morning. I am hoping it doesn’t change and continue to rain all day. The weather forecast is calling for temperatures in the mid 60’s and cloudy. I will let you know if it changed.



Fore warning you all my next entry will probably be a critique of the day’s events. Who came, who was rude and didn’t bother to come after saying they would. Who argued etc. My biggest pet peeves are people saying they will come and don’t.



Okay got to go. Have a great morning.

You would never Know

You would never know today was Columbus Day or a federal holiday. Traffic was pretty steady for some (mine was okay). Some banks were open. I still had my regular volume of mail. There was nearly 470 pieces of mail. The rest of the time I scanned EOB’s. I did it for about an hour in the morning and then after I finished the mail. We have been given permission to work OT for every night and possibly on Saturday. I will be taking advantage of that this week. I put in an hour tonight.




We got an update from AC regarding G today. It seems that she is having a few set backs in her legs and her back. She can’t seem to stand straight or walk as well as she was hoping. I feel terrible because I haven’t called her and I don’t know when a good time is. I don’t feel comfortable doing it from work. By the time I get home I am too tired and I don’t know if or when she is sleeping.



I met with Debra and talked about the week’s events and activities. They include my aggravations, and disappointments, and happy moments (which seem to be almost invisible lately). We will be meeting at our regularly scheduled time on Friday.



After the session I stopped at Marketa on Temple Street. It is a little market/deli and I got my dinner. A steak and cheese sub w/onions, tomato, lettuce and mayo. I also got a root beer and the whole thing came to $10.40. It was still very hot when I ate it at Headquarters. I also wore it too.



As I was walking back to my car I noticed another restaurant had closed its Doors. It was the Greek Restaurant Atlas. I have only been there maybe twice. I am gathering it was too rich for anyone to get stuff there or the service was terrible. I mentioned both restaurants on my Facebook page.



I don’t remember what time I got to Campaign Headquarters but the first thing I did was make sure I turned off my headlights. I went in and chatted with M^T for a few moments and got to eat dinner. I made phone calls until quarter of 8. I got to see the first family of Milford (Mayor Ben Blake and his always cute son Carter). They were picking up more lawn signs. It was good to see them as always.



It was nearly 8 when I got home. Mom was watching TV and already had her dinner. I told her about the OT opportunity and that I will be taking it for the entire week as well as Saturday (if it is offered).



I had to send some emails to the 4th District members and again I had problems with one of them. I sent an email to the person and hopefully it will be resolved soon. I received a response from one other person so I am expecting more later.



I heard from one of the new woman’s club members. She will go and get some supplies for the meeting. I have yet to call JWalker, Roberta, and JanetR but it is now too late and I am too tired.



Now that it is 10 I think I will try and get some sleep. I am starting to fade quickly. I was going to try and stay up long enough to watch HTLJ but I just can’t. The spirit is willing but the Body hit the sack an hour ago.



I hope your Columbus Day was a pleasant one!

I think I may be getting my wish

The 31 year tradition is over. This may be the last one and those words came from Mom after we learned about the numbers of people who were invited and confirmed and who basically showed up.




Tessa told us she sent out 300 invitations/flyers in the mail. They were to those who were in the fourth district that were families with children in the school system, Single mothers with teenagers all that could come and meet the candidates. Of the 300 people 28 confirmed (RSVP) and said they would be here. Guess what? This was the list:



Three of our neighbors from the street came

One of my neighbor’s sisters and two friends of hers.

1 friend of Mom’s from Bridges

Six Candidates

Four other 4th District Members

Kevin Lembo the state Treasurer

One woman I didn’t recognize

My friends Mike and Roberta came in support.



Tessa was thoroughly disgusted. She says and I agree with her that the people in this town are apathetic. They are not informed and could have learned so much from today if they bothered. I also consider it The Height of Rudeness that all these people who said they would come didn’t. MAN UP and say I am not coming and Please don’t invite me next time.



Mom just went to bed. She was exhausted. Tessa and Sylvia and I tried to get her to sit down and just let us do it. I made sure I started clearing dishes as soon as they started to pile up. We had one load of dishes going and they will be finished soon but I will bring up the boxes for these dishes before I go to work tomorrow.





There is enough food here for leftovers for the next week. We had the corned beef. Chips and crackers and cheese, Two types of frittata , various salads, An Assortment of desserts, wine, soda, and apple cider.



Instead of the candidates speaking it was mingling and talking amongst them. Sylvia had expressed the concern that would be too long. Well that’s too bad. That’s part of the “meet and greet” usually.



Well we will see how it goes next year. I really hope that this is the last year for us to do this. Let some one else pick it up if necessary.



In the mean time I need to get to bed. I have a long day ahead of me. I have work. my session with Debra and my evening out with Dave.



G’Night.

Thirty one year Tradition

In eight hours a thirty-one year tradition will commence. My hope is it will be the last one ever in this house! Every freaking year Mom and I get in to it over something really fucking stupid. Yesterday was no exception. She wanted me to vacuum the “Welcome mat outside on the porch. I was saying I was going to us the Oreck on the rug. She misunderstood me and thought I was talking about up in my room. We stood there for five god-damn minutes until she realized when I said outside. When she went on to say “I have too much to do to think about stuff….I told her she needs to listen next time. I also said she needs to not take her anxiety out on me. That’s when shit hit the fans.. I got so frustrated that I threatened to call off the event. She told me not to bother helping her that she can’t depend on me for anything. Gee I feel the same way about her. So let her do what she wanted. Do you know that a couple of hours later she was rude to me and tells me I don’t appreciate you just sitting around watching TV while I am getting ready for this thing? Ah Excuse you told not to bother!




So I went and vacuumed the rug outside and did the things she asked. The rest of the afternoon progressed with little or no problems we did more shopping and cleaning. Mom did more baking for this (I don’t know why she bothers if she is expecting 18 people).



Okay that rant is out now on to the tradition. For the last 31 years Mom has had a meet and greet for every candidate from municipal to state level and on occasion even on the federal level. She would gather residents from our district via a voters list and send out invitations and for most of the summer start preparing for this event. She would co-ordinate with the candidates what is the best date for them. Sometimes that would be a pain too.



When the time arrived we would have some extra help with any last minute preparations. The people would arrive and mingle and chat and then we would start with introductions and five minute speeches from the candidates and then question and answers. Some times there would be unnecessary arguments breaking out. I have been told you can’t control those things like that in meet and greets. I REALLY Beg to differ! You don’t go into a person’s home and start arguments and disrespect people in their homes. Every year that I have been involved I usually post or gripe how people who claimed they would show up and not (we have had that happen a few times) or they don’t respond to the written invitation. It really burns me when that happens. We have a neighbor who would complain to me if a discussion is going on too long or she was too hungry or if people brought their kids etc. I just would look at her and say something along the lines cut it out. If you haven’t guessed yet these things make me crazy at times. I think there have been a few times I missed them (I fled to Allentown one year).



This morning I have to get some chairs out from the cellar before going off to Bingo and on the way home I need to get soda (again we have cider and wine). I have to make my bed but I can do that later. My desk has literally a mound of stuff on it and it won’t be moved anytime soon.



I am sure Mom is going to ‘remind’ me that I need to help serve and not just hang around. Once things are done I will help as much as possible but usually Mom does the clean up stuff by herself but with her energy level barely there I may have to do it this time. She was already in pain yesterday.

It's On

Happy News! I called Jim earlier this evening and we are on! He says Monday sounds great. I am so excited. The only thing was he wasn’t feeling well tonight. It sounded like he had sinus/allergies plaguing him. I am leaving here by 9 am Monday. I should be in Allentown by Noon. Mom is probably going to send me down with food of some sort for him.




Mom suggested I get the car all cleaned out and gassed up for the trip. I would use my GPS but it is broken. I may have to break down and get a new one this time.



I am definitely going to do room cleaning tomorrow and Saturday. I hope to get the car cleaned out Saturday as well. I want to be ready by Monday morning.



Work went well. I had to train Janet the basics of the mail so that she can do it while I am away. I don’t know if I did that well or not but I was almost done with the today’s mail by the time we started it. I will teach her the lockbox stuff first thing tomorrow. I still have to do the lobby mail and perhaps I will do that stuff first. I have three days worth of the return mail to do. I told Janet to leave the ones that will come while I am out until I get back.



Telka sent out an email asking us if we wanted to march n the parade on Saturday. I told her I couldn’t. I had to get ready for the trip.



I also sent out the email from Phil to the 4th District. I don’t know if there had been any responses yet. They have to provide a list of names we can depend on for support in the November elections.



Tessa also sent out an email that Senator Dick Blumenthal will be at the St Patrick’s Day parade and invited everyone to stop by and say hi. Well I certainly can’t do that if I said I couldn’t do the march for the Woman’s Club.



I am starting to get tired. My back is bothering me a little bit and so is my side. I took the final Ibuprofen for the night. Albeit a little later then I should have so it may have just kicked in.



The computer seems to be working just fine. I have been revising the birthday list again. Once I figure out the instructions of using the thumb drive (for the umpteenth time) U will be using it more often.







Mom has one or two morning meetings and then the literary club meeting tomorrow night. I asked her how many more are left for this year (2010-2011) and she said the next one will be in May and then again in August to start off the next season. She would rather they meet monthly instead of every other month. She really enjoys them.



Okay now I am rambling and babbling so I better get to sleep. I will see you all later. Have a great night and I send hugs to you.

Nothing is ever Easy

Good news the big UPS envelope was my American Express Card for Costco.  Bad news they are a pain in the ass to get my card activated.  I was going to do it on line but Mom's name and stuff is on the sight and I don't want to change it on her.  I tried to call and at first my phone disconnected.  I tried a second time and had to speak to someone who was condecending to say the least.  I didn't have this problem before!  They wanted to know who the primary card is..ah duh?  I explained my name is on it but it is linked to Mom's card.  I got so frustrated I hung up.

I am also aggravated because the pains in the side seem to be acting up big time tonight.  Read it here.  Right now its fine but then in a while if I move or breath deeply it will hurt.

No news on the Computer front really.

Mom went to the reception for Congresswoman DeLauro this evening then she went to the DTC.  I joked that Congress would not appreciate the whole CT Congressional delegation being sick and sharing with the rest of the members.  Mom didn't think it was funny.  I did.

A beauitiful First Day of August

It really was a beautiful day for being the first day of August. I am not even sure what the temperature was but it was nice and comfortable. It was so much so that I stayed in bed longer than usual for Sunday morning.

When I finally did get up I got online and checked my forums and some emails. I didn’t see much that needed all the attention so I quickly got ready for bingo. I made it in pretty good time.

I got the coffee started and chatted with some of the residents then eventually both Chris and Natalie came in. Natalie did work and Chris helped me set up and serve the coffee and get residents ready to play.

We had 12 or 13 residents play this week and only a few of them won this time. We play about 6 games and I usually go from 15 cents to 30 cents. I told Natalie about it and she suggested that we only play for 15 cents because they are going through too much money. I don’t know how this will work but its going to have to be done.

After the games I went to visit Dan K for about 10 minutes. He looked good but tells me he will have to be there for a few more weeks. WE also talked about traveling and being with family. His goal is to be going on the trip in November with Mike and Roberta.

After my visit I left for Liz’s. By the time I left Mediplex it was far too late for church so I called them and Nelson said the kids were there so I drove over and spent a half hour with them. Liz and Audrey were reading a book while the boys were playing on their bikes. After a while Audrey (who hadn’t given me a kiss hello) went to the store with Nelson and the boys continued to play until Liz stopped them (Dave and Mike were really not paying attention to anything she asked) and Dave or was it Mike were having temper tantrums. I left around 1 and Liz and Jason went down to spent quiet time.

When I got home Mom was waiting for me to help put up the Mirror we had on the wall between our bedrooms. WE decided I would eat lunch first and then put it up. It took about a half hour. It is a little uneven but it works for us.

Mom got ready for the wake around 2:30 and I just relaxed for the few hours before going to State Senator Gayle Slosberg’s home for the BBQ and envelope stuffing afterwards. We met up with several dignitaries such as Former First Selectman Mitch Goldblatt and his lovely wife. The current Democratic Town Chairman of Orange (can’t remember her name). My friend Julie G’s Mom Stephanie was there too.

Stephanie and I caught up on our lives. I did tell her I wasn’t associating with our mutual friend Mary because of the emails she sent me back in December. We left there around 8 and came home.

Now I am just reading some emails and then going to bed.

Sonic is coming to Milford

Do you remember a few weeks ago I wrote about Krispy Cream Doughnut shop (the only one in Milford) closing? Well I had forgotten to say we are getting a Sonic Restaurant in its place.

I was talking to one of the couriers today and he says that Connecticut will be getting a total of seven restaurants. A family that owns Villa Capri Banquet Hall and the former owners of Yankee Silversmith Restaurant in Wallingford will be getting the franchise for the southern half of the state (locations in Hamden, Milford, and Wallingford). The Northern half of the state will be owned by another person. I am not sure where the locations are going to be. The few people I have heard speak of it have mixed feelings about the menu.

Around 11:30 we lost power in the building. Well at least our floor did and apparently some of the other floors did too. We spent the next two hours waiting for the UI to come and repair. If it had gone on longer then we would have been sent home. Some of us sat at our desk and slept. Some congregated at each other’s desks and had lunch. The power came back on at 1:30. From that point on I busted my ass to get the mail opened. I had it sorted but didn’t deliver it. I wasn’t able to get the bad addresses done I can do that Monday. I can safely say that most of us were disappointed that we were not able to go home. There will be a time when we will. Incidentally this was the first time in at least five years that we had a power failure.

I stayed for OT and had a nice chat with Annette and Joan about former co workers. We also were discussing Bruce M. He is unusual and extremely sensitive. He recently made people move the pencil sharpener from the desk where we log the batches out. It’s been in that spot for a very long time. To be honest he is making himself very unhappy and unpopular with people on our team.

I got home by 7 and had my dinner. Mom was at a fundraiser/event for Kevin Lembo. He is/was the Connecticut Healthcare Advocate. He is in the running for the Lt Governor Position. I guess it is usually up to the candidates who are running for Governor to pick but he is making a big push for it. Mom came home by 8:30.

Mom and I talked about the event and how beautiful the home is where it was being held (about 3 miles from here). We basically got caught up on the day’s events. I reminded Mom that Liz and Nelson will be picking us up at 4 for Cheryl’s party.

I am so tired right now that I am going to bed. I have to be up early to get the cat fed and to see my fur friend Charlie. I haven’t really spent time with him since is best friend Mitzi died back in February. Then I am going to work until 2 in the afternoon.

snow storms, plane crashes, farewell speeches

The snow apparently didn’t start until 4 or 5 am this morning. It made driving very slow. I had checked the traffic cams and they looked okay to me. That was until I got on the highway. From the West Haven area all the way through to New Haven it was slow. I don’t remember what time I got to the garage but it was so cold from there to the office. A young woman fell right in front of me in the crosswalk at College and George. I almost followed suit.

I got to the office and got my coat off and set up for the day. I went to Paula’s to pick up my breakfast (I had called from the car while driving in). I picked it up and then came back to my office. Jim the courier had come and gone. Donna counted the interoffice and I started on the charts.

I ate while checking the six charts in and I got them delivered. The rest of the day went well. The mail was delayed because of the weather but it was all done by 3. I even got to deliver the EOB requests that a handsomely dressed Elliot had pulled.

Renee Trotman returned to work today and I went and welcomed her back with my usual hugs and offer that if she needed anything to come and get me. She was appreciative but I suspect her close friends (Claudette, Alexis, Alita, and April) will be there to help.

When it was time to go home I went to fetch Carol H from the finance office to give her a ride home. She came to me earlier in the day to ask and I agreed. AT one point I thought it would be a little after because I wanted to get some more readdress stuff done but decided they could be done tomorrow.

Happily the snow had already stopped but the coldness was still there. It didn’t take us long to walk to the car and we barely noticed the coldness as we discussed what businesses had recently closed and which ones remained open. Apparently several in the shopping mall where the Christmas Tree shop have. We noticed there is a new Starbuck’s Coffee House by American Steak House in West Haven. I find that rather confusing as may of Starbuck’s stores is closing.

Mom was cooking dinner when I arrived. I could tell she was tired but she was making chicken and rice and it wouldn’t be finished cooking for awhile. I took the time to get online and watch TV. I got changed out of my work clothes.

It was just about then when I heard about the US Airs Jet crashed into the Hudson River. It was said that birds had gotten into the engine. Happily all 155 passengers and Flight crew got out safely. There were a couple of ferry boats that arrived to help those to safety and the combined forces of the NYFD, NYPD. Around 6 there was a news conference by Mayor Bloomberg and the Governor of NY. The Captain is being hailed as hero. The NTBA will be investigating the entire accident and the Mayor asked that speculations be stopped.







Tonight President George W Bush gave his farewell speech. All the networks carried it and of course there were the summaries and the critiques followed by every media person. I watched the 15 minute speech. He was thankful for his time as President; he was grateful for to a lot of people and summarized his presidency. I think I could hear his voice breaking at times. I am not absolutely sure. Mom didn’t watch it and I think it was better if she didn’t.

Mom is still watching TV and as I said earlier she made dinner but she has been very tired. She went to a meeting this morning and even the attendees had a hard time getting in. I can’t remember what else she did. She has a mammogram tomorrow.

Well I am getting really sleepy. I took some nighttime cold medicine tonight. I have had the sniffles all afternoon and every since Dolette gave me these Puffs Plus with Vick Rub or something in them.

I better hit the sack and get some more sleep. Something I got a lot of last night because I woke up fairly early again this morning…

Election Day 2008

Well it is after 9 and I am at work. I have been up since 5 I did some online stuff and did a whole bunch of sneezing then I got the hiccups. I eventually got the bed sloppily made and did some ironing and got ready for work. I even managed to watch “Trouble with Trebles” and Angel.

Mom got up around 6:30 and we talked about what to expect from the polling places she suggested that I go this morning but then the lines maybe long. The radio reported in some states and polling places the lines were either long or short. I finally told her I would have to do it tonight because my ID was on my desk at work. When I explained how it was there she understood of the situation

In celebration of bringing in over $24 million we had bagels for breakfast by Gayle and Kathy B. I managed to have two with the butter spread and I had two coffees and 1 tea. It was delicious (then again there isn’t much I don’t like)!

I had to call Mike and Tessa to find out exactly what poll standing was. I guess I woke Mike out of a sound sleep because he had been napping. I hate when I do that. I explained I would have to go vote first then stand for two hours. I don’t think I am staying too long at the headquarters. I am starting to get tired and it will be a long day.

The early afternoon brought clouds to New Haven. I was not looking forward to this because I don’t particularly care to be standing in the rain. They held off for the afternoon.

I sent an e-card to a fellow coworker who was having a tough time today. She was really annoyed and I believe at the point of looking for another job. Apparently some of the staff members of the cashiers/finance office were not invited to go out to lunch to say goodbye to Arcenia.

I may stop by Telka’s House to pick up extra healing shawls to take to a woman here at Yale New Haven Hospital for the patients who are at the cancer center. She did say that I could do it after she came home from Florida and I think that may be the way to go. I will be way too tired.

Well I have just a little more than an hour and half to go before I leave for the day and the lockbox is still not finished. Damn. I still have to separate the mail from downstairs too. I didn’t get online as much today as I did yesterday at least I hope I didn’t.

I have work to finish I best do it.

February 19, 2008

Well it’s after 9 in the morning and I have been here since 8. Everything is fine if it weren’t for the fact that my glasses are in the car (this time they are), my ID is at home on the desk (I believe), and I am worried about Mom.

Mom’s back seemed to be worse this morning then last night. I helped get the bath mats put in place (for her shower). She says she will call the doctor today in between her meetings (I am assuming the part of “in between meetings”).

It seems that Jodi Rell the current Governor of CT is approving a plan/bill to remove all billboards through out the state. According to this article it litters the landscape and detracts from the beauty of the state. Unfortunately, the latest Conservation billboards happen to have her picture on them. This has caused a great deal of concern and aggravation to many Outdoor Communication companies including my friend Bruce and John Barrett. John was interviewed on Cablevision 12 yesterday as well as the New Haven Register. He was on the front page yesterday. I get that some of these billboards can be inappropriate but as someone just mentioned they do provide a service for PSA’s (missing children etc).

I heard last night that former first lady Nancy Reagan was resting comfortably after falling in her home on Sunday. The doctors kept her for two nights to take tests and make sure she didn’t break her hip. She is supposed to be released sometime today.

Well an era of Communisms is coming to an end. Cuban President Fidel Castro is stepping down as President of Cuba. His brother who has been filling in will be the next President. Now as a child I vaguely remember Mr. Castro visiting the US, and mentioned through out the years but most of it has been in the articles over the past year or so since Castro’s health has failed.

Well I was just reading this blog and realized I have a to-do list I should post:

Call ARC (again)
Write letters-pen pals
Write letters to the kids (I really hope their Valentines cards were delivered)
Laundry
See Debra (which I will at the end of the day)

I know that I won’t be getting many of the letters done but I can get a few of them done at a time.

Oh and I just looked at the bank site and I got my Federal Income Tax refund! Whoohoo…

Well I best get back to work. I want all of this done before I leave today.

Senator Clinton Visits Yale Child Study Center

Hey all it’s almost 1 and I am working on the Medical Records “crap”. It’s been a rather productive day. The lock box seems high in volume but that’s okay. I plan on having it done today as opposed to tomorrow (if possible). I have been on line but not excessively (work related mostly and did check emails).

Senator Clinton and her campaign made a visit to the Child Study Center bright and early this morning for a round table discussion. We could see the activity from our back windows here (the windows face South Frontage Road) and the media was out there in full force it looked like. A few people such as Alita spotted Mrs. Clinton from the window. The whole thing ended by lunch time.

I talked with Mom this morning. She had a rough night. She has been sick all night again. I am not sure if the moving the bed and putting it together contributed but I am certain the rich food we had last night was a big factor.

Well I have to get going. I will be leaving for home shortly.

Well it is just ten and I am heading to bed. I was really anxious to get home from work but everyone else seemed to take their time. Despite the fact I left the office late I was able to make it home by 4:30.

Mom was watching TV in the back and making dinner for me. She made a daisy ham and vegetables. It was just starting to cook when I got home. Mom was still not feeling well.

Since dinner was still cooking I decided to go back to the card store down the street and get wrapping paper and a couple of Valentine cards for Jason and Audrey and they are so cute. When I got back home Liz and Nelson were here.

I don’t know what they were talking about when I came in but among some of the discussions going out to dinner last night was one of them. I was feeling uncomfortable. I was thinking Liz would be insulted that Mom didn’t invite them for dinner. Anyway they stopped by and gave her a card. They left a little after 5.

I spent the next hour wrapping Mom’s gift and watching TV. It was nearly 6 when dinner was ready and I had gotten into my pajamas. Mom and I watched the news.

After cleaning the kitchen I asked Mom if she wanted to open her gift tonight instead of tomorrow since she was going to NY to the Opera with Stella C. She said she would and she says she liked the hand mixer.

The rest of the night I watched more TV and started a letter to Linda B in GA. I wanted to stay up and watch the American Experience program but I am so tired.

I am so tired that I can’t even think straight. I am going to bed…

RIP Governor O'Neill

I was in high school when I first heard of Governor William O’Neill. He was LT Governor when the first woman Governor Ella T Grasso was just ending her reign as Connecticut’s Governor due to ill health. I don’t remember much of his terms as I was just finishing high school and going into college and watching my father’s health fail.

It seems according to this article he was respected by everyone. He was appointed the State Democratic Party Chairman by Ella Grasso before he became Lt Governor. He was a Korean War Vet and owned a tavern. He resided in East Hampton for many years. He will certainly have an impact on Connecticut History.

I found out this morning that my friend Jodie had her Myspace.com site hacked into and she will be opening another one. She was livid. Something tells me it was the girl she has been having problems with. One of her pals has been harassing her with emails, and calling her to talk to her. It was really stressing Jodie out. As a result the girl was kicked out of the group and any other groups she owned.

It is now after 1 and I have been home an hour. Bingo went very well. I had seventeen players and hardly any problems. I had to remind a few forgetful people about chatting during the games.

After the games and clean up I took the opportunity to speak to Claudia Murray. I hadn’t seen her in more than two weeks. I usually see every other week (aka every two weeks). We talked about the whole gift giving to supervisors etc. She told me she is back working in the school system.

When I got home Mom was looking in her recipe collection for her asparagus and tomato recipe. She was getting frustrated because she knew she had it and couldn’t find it. While I was sitting there eating my cereal she found it under shrimp.

The rest of the afternoon I did various things. I read emails updated some files and watched a few movies on TV. The emails included from the journaling lists such as responses to the "thankful thursday lists". I got a message from Jen Rier today as well as a couple of others from the Yahoo 360.

On one of the lists I think it is called onathimagen list an Australian member was sharing with us updates on teh Australian elections that were held there this week.

I also got an email notification that my profile at Reunion.com was looked at by three people. I updated my School/education document log and notes to indicate that.

Mom did her cooking for the rest of the day and around 3:30 was starting to get dinner ready. It would be leftovers but that’s okay. I am sure we will be eating around 5. We usually do that and watch the food shows.

I really have a long week. Well work wise should get a lot of mail tomorrow but I don’t have anything after work but from Tuesday until Saturday. I have something every night. My session with Debra; 4th District on Wednesday; The retirement party for Bettie Staton, and the Celebration Party at Hyatt Place on Friday.