Our Multiple Thanksgivings

Yesterday, we had the first of two Thanksgiving family gatherings. Ordinarily we have one, but travel and work kept some from being able to attend on Thursday- hence we split it into two. Daughter two hosted almost everyone yesterday, and did a bang-up job with dinner. We had beef tenderloin  (grilled to perfection by her husband), mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans (my offering), mac and cheese, rolls, pumpkin and apple pies. It was nice to be able to sit back in her recliner and do nothing  (for a change.)  Feeding a crew of 13-14 at one time is never easy. 

Later this week, I am having daughter one and her brood (5) for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner:  turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, something green, salad, rolls and pumpkin pie, plus a pineapple-upside down cake. There will be no sitting in the recliner that day, at least until dinner is over and the kitchen is clean. One grandchild is a vegetarian now, so my dressing will not have the usual sausage added to it. I may sneak it in on Christmas; that is, if I can restrain myself from making sausage biscuits before Christmas. I am down to my last container of the locally made sausage I am pleased to be gifted every year. (Thanks, Billy and Sandra!)

Commercial Christmas decorating starts tomorrow, then we start again on Friday and go straight through until December 1st, with only one day off during that stretch. I admit that it nearly wore me out last year, so with another year under my belt, I hope to be able to keep up the pace. Wish me luck! If I die with my knife or clippers in my hand, I'll be happy. 

Molly the grand dog has come for an extended visit (8 days), and Sammy the visiting cat will get the shock of his life if he enters the back yard through the fence. Molly doesn't know  she is an animal.  When she encounters another one of any species, her hackles go up, her teeth are bared and much snarling and growling ensue. I suggested a class to get her socialized with other animals, but there is little time for that in the already crammed schedules of her owners. At least when she is here, she can go into the fenced back yard at any time and we don't have to worry about her encountering another animal, unless some hapless squirrel wanders onto the deck in search of acorns.  The squirrels are responsible for giving Molly the best exercise of her life, and if she lived here full-time, I suspect we would have deep grooves on the decks, since she follows the same path nearly every time when chasing them.

I probably won't post again before Thanksgiving, so let me say Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. Please take the time to think about the people and events that you are grateful for in this life, and thank our Creator for them. 

Last Week at Barclay Villa

The rear entrance; the doors that the bride exits for an outdoor ceremony. 

The main reception hall.

The stairs to the gallery above, which is usually set
with tables as well as the main floor. 

Ready for the food to be added...

A lavish tree!

Barclay Villa was the scene of last week's wedding, and a beautiful day it was, although a bit on the cool side. The Villa is fully decorated for Christmas, which may seem a bit odd for November 3rd, but I suppose they have lots of weddings and parties this month and next, and they have to decorate when they have time for it.

Note:  Mel and I didn't do any of the Christmas decor and I did none of the work in the photos here.

A Great Quote

"Well Past the Last Exit to Relevance" is the best line I have heard in months, and it was said by Brian Williams in regard to Donald, or His Trumpness.

I have to thank a friend on Facebook who made me aware of that, since I didn't see it first hand, but I did see the video and heard it. I don't use this word often, but it was
AWESOME!!

The Bank and the Case of the Bounced Checks

Last month, a company gave me two checks that bounced. After depositing the first check, I didn't use that account for a while, and wrote no checks on that money - so all was good - even though the check was returned for insufficient funds. 

Three weeks later, I received the second check, and assuming (incorrectly) that this check couldn't possibly bounce, I paid four bills from that account. When that check bounced, I incurred $35 per each of the four checks I wrote, for a total of $140 charge.

I went to the bank and explained what happened, and made a deposit from another account to cover the service charges and reimburse the bank for the checks (which they had covered.) The company that issued the checks has reimbursed me for those charges, so it was fine, or so I thought.

Several days later I received my bank statement and found another service charge for $12. I had no idea what it was for - but I was told that it is a charge they levy because of the bad check I received, and not only did I get this one, but next month, there will be an additional $12 for the second bad check. 

The problem as I see it is greed. The two bad checks I received were written on an account with the same bank. Undoubtedly they are levying fines on the account of the person who wrote those checks - and also levying a service charge on me - simply because I was stupid enough to trust that the checks would be good. Am I being clear?  Let me repeat:  They are charging the account of the person who wrote the checks and also charging me, an innocent party, with an additional $24, after already charging me $140. I call that criminal, and yet, they can get away with it. 

Will I be that stupid ever again?    NO WAY. When I get a check in the future, I will ask the bank if it is good before I deposit it. In fact, I will cash it and then deposit the cash in my account. That way, they will not be able to hold me accountable if that check is bad. At least I think they won't - but who knows? Maybe that put that in their latest fine (read tiny) print too.

I wish we had a good alternative to a bank. They are getting on my nerves with all their new charges for this and that; items they never used to charge for - and certainly not to an innocent person  (such as I) who had no idea the checks would be bad. I told the bank representative that  they were making it very hard for me to keep that account, since I don't keep large amounts in it and their constant barrage of niggling charges are making it dwindle down to almost nothing. 

In the 30 years I have had an account with this bank (my business account) I was given a grand total of four bad checks; two of them within the last 30 days. Surely they see that I am not a threat to their daily income, so I am being unfairly punished. I am within an inch of closing that account, and some new idiocy next month will cause me to go over the line I drew in the sand. I'm sure they won't lose sleep over it, but if they are treating other long-term account holders like they are me - they ought to care - since losing a lot of us would make a deadly dent in their profit and loss statements. Do you hear me banks?

As of Tomorrow....

It won't matter at all, but at the moment, I am frustrated.

A friend asked me to help distribute political signs to some precincts in the areas near my home, and I agreed to do it, even though (as I told her) no political sign in the street, road or polling place ever made anyone decide for whom to vote. Plus, the signs are unsightly and in my opinion, they should be outlawed. But I wanted to help, and so I said yes. 

I called the person who was responsible for passing out the signs this morning and gave him the names/numbers of six precincts where I would be willing to put signs, and he said that was good. I promised to be there by 1pm. 

Arriving at 1:05pm (after having a little trouble locating his office), he couldn't find those signs. When he checked a list, he discovered that the precinct signs I had signed up for had already been picked up by someone else - before I called  that morning. 

Wouldn't you suppose that he would have checked the numbers while I was on the phone and let me know not to bother coming??? I guess that would have been too easy. 

He did save me a lot of miles on the car and at the cost of gas, I should be happy about that, but I am frustrated. When people volunteer to do something for the good of someone or some group, their time should be used wisely. Mine wasn't and I am not pleased. 

Random Musings

I delivered flowers to this church recently, and through the eyes of my co-deliverer, I discovered this view. I've been in this church many times and never thought to look up. It looks sorta like I imagine Noah's Ark inside. 

Sammy, my "frequent visitor" cat, had not been around since the last time he was chased off the deck by my daughter's dog two weeks ago. Sammy was brave enough to surprise me on this, my birthday morning, with a chance visit. He was rewarded with a dish of salmon, which disappeared quickly. He then went upstairs for a quick nap, but didn't stay much longer. I hope he will come back soon. I really enjoy having him around  (especially since he is house-trained and I don't have to have a litter pan.) And BTW, his owner is fine with it. 

Another birthday has come and there are just 3 more hours until it is over. I don't relish being 72, but I do love living. I am blessed with enough good health that I am still able to work. I think when I am forced to retire, I will wither up and blow away. Being around fresh flowers; smelling and touching, designing and using my creativity keeps me going. I thank God daily for the talent that allows me to do it and the health that makes it possible, and for the business owners who tolerate and hire me!! Long may they prosper!

On Sunday, my son and his family, and my younger daughter and her family came to visit and took all ten of us out to lunch. On Monday, my older daughter came with her family and I treated them to a good meal. Today, mr. kenju took me out to a nice lunch and I did a little shopping for some fall clothing  (although I need to get out my warm clothes before I buy anything else.) The weather has turned cool in the wake of the storm Sandy, although Sandy left no damage here in our area, for which we are very grateful. I offer my condolences to those who were in the path of the storm and had damage or power-outages and I give thanks for the tireless workers who are trying to get everything back to normal as soon as possible.

Quotes of Note

We establish no religion in this country. We command no worship. We mandate no belief, nor will we ever. Church and state are and must remain separate. 

Ronald Reagan, 40th US President (1911-2004) 

***

In the cellars of the night, when the mind starts moving around old trunks of bad times, the pain of this and the shame of that, the memory of a small boldness is a hand to hold. 

John Leonard, critic (1939-2008) 

***

The tragedy in the lives of most of us is that we go through life walking down a high-walled land with people of our own kind, the same economic situation, the same national background and education and religious outlook. And beyond those walls, all humanity lies, unknown and unseen, and untouched by our restricted and impoverished lives. 

Florence Luscomb, architect and suffragist (1887-1985) 

*****

What is the use of a fine house if you haven't got a tolerable planet to put it on.

-Henry David Thoreau, naturalist and author (1817-1862) 

***

The worst kind of people are those who confuse kindness for weakness. 

Werner Makowski, banker (b. 1929)