7 December 2023
Happy Hanukkah! Also, it’s Remember Pearl Harbor Day. It’s also the first day this “winter” I’ve turned the heat on in the house. It was 53°F this morning outside 73°F inside. I’ve set the thermostat for 78°F to take the edge off the chill.
It’s also the first morning this week I haven’t needed to be somewhere before 9 am. I do have a dental appointment this afternoon but my morning is free. I don’t know what to do with myself. I’ll resist the urge to clean house.
Actually, I feel pretty decent this morning. My energy level is better than yesterday. I still have the neuropathy and am unsteady on my feet.
My cousin Jimmie pointed out yesterday that her Dad (my Great Uncle James) had foot drop and he had a unique way to treat it. According to Jimmie, he attached a tap to his toe and looped a shoelace around the tap and then tied the shoelace to the top of his boot to keep the toe elevated. Uncle James was always inventive.
Hunukkah is a festival celebrating the re-control of Jerusalem from the Seleucid Empire by Maccabean Jews and the rededication of the temple in Jerusalem. Not that I knew that as a White Anglo-Saxon Protestant growing up in Mississippi (even so, I had to look up Seleucid Empire today).
As far as Remember Pearl Harbor, I was seven years in the future. My Mother had not even met my Dad and much later, I remember listening to a recording of FDR’s speech to a joint session of Congress asking for a declaration of war. I still get chills when I view the video.
I miss my morning walks, particularly since the weather is so pleasant for walking. My neighbor Chris and I usually walk the neighborhood looking at the holiday decorations but this time we’ll probably drive around the neighborhood and maybe expand it to surrounding area since we are driving.
I find most of the decorations garish but there are some that are well done. Of course, my taste isn’t everyone’s. I gave up decorating for the holidays years ago. I had quite a collection of bubble lights and ornaments collected from my travels. I put out an appeal in the neighborhood for anyone interested and Nicole down the street took them all. I think her favorite ornament was ruby red slippers from the Wizard of Oz. I did like putting up a tree and smell the balsam tree sap but the cleanup was getting a bit much. I never liked artificial trees.
This was my holiday card one year. I think I made some comment alluding to Rocky peeing on the tree. I love the expression on his face – like he had been caught in the act of something.
It’s official! The holiday season has begun!
Stay tuned!
