KateP's musings

I decided to get two extra-large coffees from DD so that I can stay up as long as I can to accomplish something other than putting food in my gut. As soon as NCIS is over I have some letters to attend to.   I hope to work on it as long as possible.   As it is I had to block a guy who contacted me at least three times today. I decided to call Sis late this afternoon since I hadn’t heard from her all day not even by text. I had a feeling she was pissed at me for something.   However that wasn’t the case.   She had been working on her insurance project today and yesterday.   She was also getting ready for an online meeting. I was very unsuccessful at getting a hold of the Infusion center for the Corvid19 prescreening questions they are supposed to ask before my arrival.   Well I guess they will have to ask them at the door. My infusion is from 8 to 10.   I am debating whether or not to take my laptop to work on the letters and to do the crossword puzz...

After President Trumps announcement of travel restrictions to Europe and Governor Lamont’s State of Emergency Declaration more and more activities, schools, and companies are either closing, canceling, moving classes to online, and limiting interaction between people. The annual St Patrick’s Day parade was cancelled in Milford.   They are releasing updates for businesses, and schools in the town. As of right now our office is open unless someone gets the virus.   I am also stating that if we feel sick we go home.   I am under impression that it will be like being on recess.   I much as said so to Supervisor.   I spoke to a couple of people who seem to think that in the next few days or by the start of next week we will be closed. I called the nursing home to see if I will be indeed running bingo the rest of the month.   Apparently, there was a text or message from the state about volunteers not going to the nursing homes and community centers...

I had gotten up early to the kitties and to rain.  I did my normal routine before I fed the kittens and then had my coffee.  Once they were fed I went back to bed.  Eventually the kitties joined me for part of the day.  The Sun eventually came out for the afternoon and got warm.  It changed again at night. I did get up again for a breakfast and threw out some old stuff in the refrigerator.  I am sure  there is much more to throw out but my reasons for doing it was for the grocery list.  I was planning on going today but I see some new coupons and stuff on sale for tomorrow.   In the afternoon I did some odds and ends between laundry, cleaning out the litter boxes and a little bit of vacuuming.  I am not going to do that much cleaning since Livia is coming on Monday.  I hope.  At least that’s what we planned for last week when she didn’t come. This weekend is a fairly busy weekend for other places.  For example Wo...

Spent a lovely afternoon at the Mercy Center to hear a friends poetry reading as well as music and art.  Each of them experienced life threatening events and learned how to deal with it through different aspects of art.  It really was a lovely way to spend a rainy afternoon. The only downside was I had been sneezing and sniffling through the entire day and I just was beginning to feel miserable.  It all started before I left for bingo.  I am thinking that the pollen and the rain started it all for me.   I left the house just after 8:30 my plans to attend an early mass went out the window and so I headed to Dunkin donuts for breakfast.  I went to the nursing home and had breakfast and then went in and hung around.  I was there before everyone came in.  AFter awhile people came in and so I spent time chatting.  Time sort of just got away from us and then we got ready for bingo.  We did start on time and finished on time...

I can’t believe it is Saturday night.  Today went by awfully quick.  It all started around 6 when I got out of bed and did some surfing on the net.  I spent the morning doing laundry and then around noon time I got ready for the fashion show. We met a little after 1 at Carriage Green Assisted Living complex .  Dr. T was already in her first costume and she looked great.  Eventually the rest of the girls arrived and we set up.  The administrator helped set up the chairs while we got instructions and made some changes to the script.  My sole job was to make sure the girls were ready and to cue the MC.  We started at 2 pm and we were finished by 2:30.  Afterwards we had refreshments including ice cream...woohoo.  Overall we had a huge success and we probably will be doing more things for this place.  This might mean we will no longer be doing activities for WRHH.   Sadly some of the girls chose not to participat...

Well greetings and Happy Easter.   I hope all of you had a wonderful day.   I did despite the lack of sleep I had.   I got up by 8 and did some surfing and then got ready for bingo.   I was going to make DD run but the line was far too long.   It was nearly 9:30 when I arrived at the nursing home. Robin the newest Recreation staff member was on duty today and it was good to see her.   We chatted for a bit and then started to get ready.   We started bingo early (or at least tried) so that I could leave earlier or on time for church.   We also had Communion Distributed as well.   So we ended up playing for 45 minutes.   I left by 11 and got to the church by quarter after. When I arrived I sat with Nelson and Liz.   She was getting ready and then she sat with us.   She was serving communion and not the lectern today.      I really should remember and know my catholic teachings better.   I was expec...

How is it possible that I am still doing laundry at 9:30 at night?   I freaking started at 10 am and kept it going.   The only time I couldn’t move it along was while I was at church.   I don’t think I had that many loads to start with. When Mom came home from the store it was about 2.    Ethel called a short time later and told Mom she was taking the 1:45 from 125 th Street.   So Mom needed to pick her up after 3.   She ended up having to miss the Good Friday services.   We both left at the same time. While Mom went to pick up Ethel I headed to church.   There were a lot of people at this service.   I sat in front of the church.   I met the organist’s parents.   I knew Nancy C for many years through the Prayer group at OLOV.   She was my organ teacher for a short time.   The service was long.   It usually is and I usually get tired of all the standing.   My eyes felt a little weird and my ...

Good evening everyone this week is whizzing by fast.   I actually started to write this entry on Monday but with work, family gatherings, and doctor’s appointments I just got wore out. Earlier this week my nephew John and his lady friend Heather came home for a visit.   I got to see them for a grand total of ten minutes.   They came home late but I was having dinner at his family home waiting for him.   Upside got to spend time with my sister and BIL and my SIL.   Mom went over tonight for a quick visit.   She says they are going to the City to spend time with Diane and Rogier.   They will be leaving Friday to return to Tacoma. Work has been busy.   It is month end and if you have been following the blogs you know it gets very hectic and at times stressful especially during this Adjustment period with the new system.   I know I have been getting a lot done.   We have a long weekend coming up so it should be nice. A few o...

Top of the Day to you and yours!     May today bring you all the luck of the Irish.   It be a windy and cloudy day it be. The sun keeps hiding behind the clouds.   According to the famous weather page it is 37 degrees but feels colder.   I am going ot have some tea to get this chill out of me. Mom got up before me today.   When she had her coffee I showed her the new pictures of Master James Christopher.   We talked about her day in NY and how the play was (and of course she said it was great).   I told her about the Lawn guy(s) coming and what they did.   I told her of my time in Newington.   I had a great time.   I was a little early to Debbie’s house but it gave me an opportunity to make some calls.   We were on the road a short time later and with little to no problems. Our companions all came after 7:30 and for the next several hours chatted (as best we could) ate (once our orders taken).   A couple of th...

Whoa…I leave bright and early this morning to a very crowded street (filled with the snow) and tonight the street is much wider.  Thank you Mallico Construction.  Neighbor Don was not pleased.  I bet he is now.  I had a great day at work.  I stayed until 6 and then came home.  I will be going in early tomorrow.  It also depends on the weather.  I have heard several conflicting reports about this weekend.  I have gone on record as saying Enough no more snow. I talked with Mom today she was barely awake.  She isn’t feeling completely well yet.  We both feel she may be catching a cold.  She really doesn’t need this on top of every thing else that’s been going on. I had a good session with Debra.  WE talked about the storm and how we dealt with it.  What my weekend plans will be etc.  I also expressed some concern about Mom.  Now that is in mid to late 80’s her health isn’t the greatest.  On some level it h...

As I sit here trying to decompress from Manic Monday I can actually say it was a pretty good day. There were over three hundred pieces of mail from the Post office and very little had to be sent back. There were a few things that have to be readdressed but that can be done tomorrow. I still have to finish the pile of lockbox and then sort and deliver but again that can be done tomorrow as I plan on getting into work early. Today I did a phone survey/interview from a fellow co-worker Kelly P who works in Registration. It was a five question survey on how to make the work place better. I mentioned not having bulk mailings such as the CT medical society (or things of that nature sent to the office but the MD’s homes). When changes are implanted and asked to be relayed to staff members it should be done. I also made mention that peoples attitudes need to be looked at. I let a few people know including Elia V who is a union steward/organizer. She said not to worry about what was said a...

It is early Saturday morning and I have already gotten my lab work done for the physical on Wednesday. It didn’t take long either. I did get a chance to see Dr. Spanolios to tell him about Bob. He felt terrible because he couldn’t remember him and wasn’t sure if he was a patient of his. I have a little time before going to the grocery store to sell the Cancer Bracelets. I will be there until 3 and then I am going to church with Mom this afternoon. In the mean time I am going to write some thank you notes. The first one I thought of was to Mayor Ben Blake of Milford. If you recall he presented a Proclamation for my birthday and called that day Kate Phelan Day. So I have to thank him for it. He really is a great guy and smart. He has a wonderful family too. I was on Facebook this morning its pretty active among my “friends”. State Rep Kim Rose is inviting everyone to her home for a tag sale while she is door knocking. Justin R has now a Facebook page for James Maroney who is run...

Dear Debra: Friday was just not the best day for me. I over slept that morning; left my ID holder with my license, and work ID and a CC at home. I spilled not only my breakfast but my lunch on my shirt. I was a walking mess. I was exhausted by the time I left the office. I was spoiling for a fight with a driver in front of me. He just cut me off at the Union Avenue and Church Street South intersection. When I caught up with him at the bottom of Church Street South and Sargent Drive I took more pictures and he came to my car demanding to know what I was doing. I didn’t open the window I just looked at him and said having you arrested. What he did was reckless especially in the rain. I had no idea he was going to do that. He didn’t pursue it but I wasn’t going to back down. Despite my late start of the day (I did manage to get to work on time. I drove in to work and nearly clipped a co-workers car when she performed “right turn on red” with me nearly on top of her. I can onl...

I was wondering lately about summer camps. Now that summer is in full swing do you send your kids to summer camp? Where do you find them? I recently checked out this site and it looked like a really good resource of day camps and residential camps all over the country and specialized programs. There even some right at Yale University. I can probably expect to see young people around the campus as well this year. I did notice that some camps start in mid June. There are a lot of school systems that finish late don’t they? I have been to two residential camps (maybe three with my family). One was in Sharon CT (a Girl Scout camp from hell) and a Boy Scout camp in Winsted. My explorer post went to that one for a week every summer to learn things about the police department. The third one was for camping and they had activities. It was called World Fellowship in New Hampshire. Two of my cousins worked there during a few summers. Anyway, when I would visit the sites for the camps...

It is six in the evening. I have been home a while. We just finished dinner and it was pretty good. Mom made spaghetti and clams. It was exactly what I asked for and it was satisfying. While we were watching the news the weather report came on. It seems we are getting more “wintery weather”. Rain and snow mixed in during the night. There are high winds expected as well. As usual they are recommending people take care and don’t go out if you don’t have to. I don’t need to be asked twice. I heard from Dave today I finally got a hold of him. He was telling me Lyman Orchards in Middlebury is having a mini-winter carnival this weekend. He was wondering if we could do it on Sunday. We talked about it and I would like to go. The time frame would have to depend on the status of the quarantine at the Nursing home. Once we established that I would call him and let him know we started catching up. He has been working. He went to dinner at Savin Rock Roasting Company in West Haven. He...

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...

Several of us from the office went to Wicked Wolf for dinner. Some of us got appetizers along with our meal. Man did I eat a lot. I had coffee because it was so cold out. While we were there two men from a union from Hartford were noticing us. They were waiting for the rally to begin. It wasn’t supposed to start until about 6:30 7 pm. It was being hosted by this organization: http://local.we-r-1.org/weareone/events/show/16 . Almost every labor organization, community organization came out to this rally tonight. The meeting was held at the Church on the Green. We had several votes to take both for financial reasons and labor reasons. It went pretty fast. If you want to read more about it here and it will explain the reasons for the rally from the perspective of local labor. After the meeting we joined all the other unions including or sibling local 35. We marched across the New Haven Green and on to City Hall. For the next half hour we listened to chants, speeches, and froze my but...

As you are preparing to go to bed please remember in your thoughts and prayers nine people who were killed today in Manchester Connecticut . As you may know a man who was being dismissed on disciplinary matters shot and killed 8 others and turned the gun on himself. According to the New Haven Register he had been caught on video stealing beer and was given the option of resigning or being fired. It was a horrible ordeal and apparently made national news. I don’t feel anger I feel sadness because there were so many different stories coming out of this nightmare. Was he being racially harassed? Was he mentally ill (probably) and didn’t or couldn’t get the help he needed? People also need to feel safe in their work place and I hope this will be taken care of. My work place is safe for now. We just barely made our goal for the month in Accounts Receivable. We worked hard at it too. Gayle is very pleased but is showing signs (at least to me) of being tired. Susan has been very quiet in the ...

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...

Mom came home around 6 last night just as the sky grew dark. She told me it was a lot of fun watching the bidding for one door going for $3,000. She even had an opportunity to speak to the artist. Apparently the artist painted all the bridges from North Street down the Wepawaug River. It isn’t a big river and I don’t even know where it starts but I know it goes out to the Harbor by the Library. She said the dress code varied from well dressed to short and short. She says the Former Miss Connecticut Heidy Voight who was the mistress of ceremony introduced her as the Milford Living treasure and not as chairperson of Bridges. I told her that will probably be the way she will be introduced for the rest of her life. She argued that her “term” as living treasure would be up soon. Mom did tell me she saw a baby deer on the side of the road on New Haven Avenue. We both felt bad. That was about the time I told her I would have loved to see a deer in our back yard but it isn’t going to ...