Beneath the Wraps

          I remember taking Jenna to the library and checking out books.   We would read together.   She would look at books on her own.   She looked forward to any reading contest or book clubs.   She enjoyed traveling through books and acquiring knowledge.   Reading was a positive thing.           Fast forward to the school years that required certain books to analyze in order to receive a good grade.   Reading was no longer fun.   We had to dissect each sentence and look for symbolic meaning.   Why can ’ t we just enjoy books for the sake of entertainment or learn about subjects that really do interest us instead of something that the educational system came up with?           Jenna ’ s frustration leads her to say, “ why do you suppose the author chose the word ‘ the ’ ?   What does that mean? What can we learn about the author i...

               I know that there will be many who may not relate to this post – at all.  Some people are okay with Pop-Tarts while others are not.  I know my uncle hates them.  Compares them to cardboard with jam.  This morning I think cardboard would have been preferable to the flour/water solution that seem to be the only present ingredients in today ’ s Pop-Tart.         It ’ s not as though Pop-Tarts had been a staple in my home as I was growing up, but I do remember there being available.   Back in the day, they came in strawberry, blueberry and cherry.   They weren ’ t frosted.   We would butter them the way you butter toast.   Dad had showed us that if we butter the backside as opposed to the raised side, the butter would distribute evenly and not slide off.     When frosting was introduced, I wasn't particularly fond of it and would often by unfrosted k...

               When Jenna was seven years old I had signed her up for an acting class.  The show to be preformed was “You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown”.  A few hours before taking her to the “audition” she painted red dots all over her face and told me she couldn’t possibly go because she had the measles.  I don’t know what she had against Charlie Brown at the time, but I know the entire “Peanuts” gang were not high on her list of shows to watch.  Pretending she was one of them seemed against her nature.           That first night of class the script was passed out.   Three boys and four girls read the script according to how the instructor had assigned them before she changed what parts to read for.   Lucy and Linus were cast that night but she was still getting a feel for who the other children would play and who would be double cast (as there are just six characters). ...

               Ever since we had acquired other services (such as Netflix and YouTube) in which we can each set up our own account,  Jenna would set up her account and do her best to safeguard it so that ONLY the shows/vids she watches will be documented.  No imposters welcome on her account.  Only Roland would often pick shows to watch regardless on whatever account he lands on.  I at least have the decency to use the guest account when I have not created one for myself or someone else has created for me.               I do understand why she gets annoyed as Roland’s feed does include some less than wholesome activity – not that he has watched it all.   Sometimes a program may look interesting and may already be documented before it’s realized that there wasn’t enough interest in the program to continue – but once it’s been looked at, it may remain in the ...

  My first post this month and I still seem to be running on empty.  I was intrigued by my brother ’ s post (found here ) and often wish that I was as profound and gifted with words as he is.  I absolutely love his comparisons and thoughtfulness.  I recently gave a thought on light and had meant to include rainbows in my thought but had forgotten to.   It wouldn ’ t have been as good as how Steven had put it.   I suppose I could use real names now.   He isn ’ t Corey nor am I LaTiesha.   The photos I have used are pictures of how we look though our names were changed for various reasons (some of which I explain in the very first post on New Years Day 2012) The news has said that the mask mandate will lift come March 31.   I noticed many have already decided to enforce the lift as Roland and I had gone to Costco today and I saw more patrons without masks than with them.   All of the workers were wearing masks.   I didn ’ t notice...

             I think it was Friday night when our bishop posted that the COVID cases are high in the ward and advised members who had/have symptoms to stay home.   I thought that church was cancelled but learned that I had misread.   Still, I wondered why it hadn’t been cancelled all together.   Our numbers were few.           I counted 36 people in the chapel and perhaps 20 more in the overflow – I don’t know why the accordion doors hadn’t been closed so that those who chose to sit that far back wouldn’t have the option.   It isn’t as though there were any screaming youth to take out.   In fact, there were only six youth in total.   Only two of them were primary age.           Roland had been called to teach Sunday School for the youth ages 12-14 but ended up with both classes making his class total a grand total of all four yout...

  The fog continues to envelope our county.   Each morning seems to be more dense than the morning prior.   Usually Emily (better known as Alexa Echo) gives an warning from Amazon about the weather conditions and air quality.   Funny, she never mentions the air quality during fire season when it is much harder to breathe than anything the Oregon air currently offers.   Usually I will look across the street and see my neighbors’ houses and some of the trees behind them.   But now it appears I am looking at the houses through a dirty screen.   And everything is white.   And the back hill is a frosty overgrowth which hasn’t been mowed since last year.

 Roland has always played mind games with telemarketers, scammers and what have you.  He keeps them on the line pretending to be interested by asking a bunch of irrelevant questions to show his interest although the caller isn't prepared to answer said questions and begins to feel inadequate about product, service or whatever it is.  Eventually they hang up.  Sometimes Roland is the one who hangs up. I am in awe about his approach the last few times.  What a work of beauty.  Most often the caller number will show along with location of said number.  Roland will pick up and say,: "Salt Lake City (or whatever area happens to be calling) you're on the air.  Go ahead."  The caller hangs up immediately!  I LOVE it!!!!

           Last year when I walked Bonnie, I took my cell phone or camera but have not done that for the past four months or so.   I can’t seem to find all the camera chargers and corresponding batteries and the cell phone I have weighs too much and is too big to keep in pocket and Bonnie is so strong that I’m afraid of dropping it.   Thus I have missed out on some spectacular views   I suppose I could just recharge one of my older flip phones.   Picture may not be the best quality, but I’m not using it for anything other than to look up numbers that are not on my current phone.          As I watched the clouds surrounding the hills rise to the top I thought about how nature changes within seconds.   Snow melts.   Rivers dry out.   Moisture evaporates.   Clouds move across the sky.   Always different than it was before.   ALWAYS.

                This morning I took Bonnie for a longer walk than usual – or rather she walked me.  I don’t know why she thinks she has to move at freeway speed.  I know it isn’t comfortable for her to have her collar choking her as I am leaning against the leash trying to slow her down.  She never learns.  For the most part she has pulled either me or Jenna along.              I don’t know what triggered my memory of Houdini or entering him in the pet contest at Cinco de Mayo celebration that Kearns does every year – or at least each year we had lived there.   We had this hairy dog who loved his boys and would often “escape” to look for them – sometimes ending up at the elementary school or pound.             There were several categories in which we could have entered Houdini.   He would have blown all other dogs out of the water ...

               I HATE  scams.  I hate that criminals are preying on the weakness of others.  I keep an email account open just for junk – it’s not an account I have used often but some businesses require an email and so I give them one.  It would take me forever to wade through it if I thought there was anything serious about any of them that I would take the time to look more closely rather than scan, but since the holidays I’ve just been deleting without looking – which is kind of sad but definitely faster.               It used to be that I could click on all in one sweep just by checking the junk box and all would be checked.  But they won’t all delete if there are red flags.  Those I have to do separately.  I get scams from hackers claiming to be Lowes, Paypal, Bank of America, Home Depot .  . .  mostly Lowes.  I have to scroll through to mark off each red fl...

                The last three times I was with Roland when he had driven to the VA it seemed like a big ordeal.  Instead of going the usual way which leads directly to the hospital, the back roads were required in order to keep all traffic moving in one direction  - only one way in and one way out.    Along the way we would see masked workers who would come up to the car, ask questions, take temperatures – I think they may have even offered testing but I’m not sure.     https://kcby.com/news/local/roseburg-va-health-care-system-holds-veteran-influenza-clinics You had to be healthy to get a pink slip (see here ) which was the ticket into the hospital.   If you were not healthy, no pink slip for you!   I’m at a hospital . . . that’s where sick people come to be treated.   Isn’t it?           Yesterday we learned we could have gone in the normal route as ...