?`s and ANNEswers

Ten minutes to write. Less time to read.

Bundling

Posted on August 7, 2014

I have finally succumbed to the concept of “bundling,” that process by which you have one provider for as many of your communication needs as possible. In theory, the service for your cell phone, landline (for those who are still tethered), tablet, Internet, and television are all brought to you by the same company, whether it’s AT&T or Comcast or some other giant.

Currently, Earl and I pay separate bills to AT&T, Verizon, and Comcast.  I have never minded doing this, partly on the theory that if these services are bundled and one goes out they all go out.  It’s the same reasoning that I prefer a fax that is separate from a printer that is separate from a photo processor.

But money talks, and we can no longer afford the old way when it’s costing an extra one hundred dollars a month. So next Tuesday, someone from AT&T is showing up to put our three HD televisions, two computers, one tablet, and various phones on its grid.  It will take less than an afternoon’s work.

I already know there will be a learning curve, since we’re getting new remotes and all the channels have different numbers.  The real question is “How long will it take the humans to switch over?”

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Small Town

Posted on August 6, 2014

John Mellencamp once sang fondly of life in a small town.  But there are some things he forgot to mention.

You know you live in a small town when the guy in the Ford truck runs into the gas station for a soda and leaves his vehicle open and running.  When you feel you need to dress better for the super market because it’s a sure thing you’ll meet someone you know.  When people come to a full stop at a stop sign and expect the other person to go first.

You live in a small town when the clerk at the dry cleaners or the video store or the bank knows you by name and you spend a minute to chat. When there are few sidewalks and fewer people on foot. When the summer landscape is dotted with veggie and fruit stands and you ask the farmer if the corn was picked that morning.  If it wasn’t, you buy something else.

You live in a small town when parking on the main street is free. When the dime store really is a dime store and not some Dollar General or Dollar Plus franchise.  When you drive almost an hour to shop at a mall with brand name stores in it. Or when you visit the Big City and the traffic, the noise, and the impersonal interactions make you glad you live in a small town.

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Solo

Posted on August 5, 2014

Today I mall walked, but not with my usual companions.  S had out-of-town family visiting and C had a back problem that wouldn’t be helped by some loops in the mall.  So I went by myself.

But not exactly alone.  I brought my antiquated iPod, the one I rarely use anymore. I hit the “Shuffle” button and got reacquainted with Simon and Garfunkel, James Taylor, Rod Steward, and others my age.  I don’t know what they listen to when they mall walk, but I enjoyed their companionship immensely.  Even the late Pete Seeger came along, and we all overcame together.

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Staying Home

Posted on August 4, 2014

This has been a year of travel for me:  Costa Rica in March, the Boston Marathon in April, a visit with a friend in May, a visit in Chicago with another friend in early June, upstate New York the end of June, Fargo the end of July, etc.  All the while Earl kept the proverbial home fires burning.

But now I’m staying put for six weeks, and – truthfully – I’m looking forward to it. I’m hoping to get into a rhythm regarding exercise, piano practice, gardening, reading, and even cooking without having part of my brain thinking about getting to the airport. Or finding the hotel.

My Mother was quite a world traveler. She had once been a flight attendant in the days they were called stewardesses and continued that love of travel into her seventies, long after she relinquished her TWA wings. The lure of a trip was strong to the end. But, as she was returning from some adventure, she was wont to say, “I love to go, but I love to come home.”

We didn’t agree on a lot, my mother and I, but that pretty much sums it for me too.

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Farmer’s Forum

Posted on August 3, 2014

Waiting for my son to finish his daily run (He’s training for the Chicago Marathon), I studied the “Farmer’s Forum,” a weekly supplement to the local newspaper.  I might just as well have been reading Greek.

It’s not that farmers use a different alphabet or speak in a foreign tongue; it’s that my experience with serious farming is almost non-existent. I don’t understand tractor talk or livestock breeds or the size of acreage and parcels.  I did understand, however, that a fourth of the paper was dedicated to advertising farms that were up for auction.  I stopped counting the number of different auction firms at ten.

Reading the “Farmer’s Forum” provided no answers. Rather it made me aware that while Fargo itself seems to be prospering, something is happening beyond its city limits.  It felt almost sinister, as if a way of life is slowly disappearing.

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Gentrification

Posted on August 2, 2014

I’ve been visiting Fargo, ND, for over a decade.

When my son and I went there for the first time, it was to find a house.  He’d accepted a position at a local university and needed to move his possessions before the fall semester started.  He clearly wanted to live in the older part of Fargo, rather than in some mall-encrusted suburb.  So my memories over the years are seen through the prism of this decision.

Back then downtown Fargo looked rusty.  There were empty storefronts on the main street and streetlights that needed attention, as did the Hotel Donaldson.  The most noticeable landmark was the Fargo Theater where a wood-carved statue of Marge from the movie was on display.  (Actually the movie “Fargo” was shot in other locations such as Minneapolis, MN, and Bathgate, ND, with no filming in the film’s namesake.) Still the town had latent charm: an old fashioned train depot, a couple great bars, and Sammie’s pizzeria.

Fast forward ten years. There are few empty storefronts.  Instead there are trendy restaurants, a great running gear store, coffee shops, and galleries. Somehow a complete revamping of the main street lighting was funded.  And the HoDo, as the hotel is referred to locally, has been refurbished. I’ve stayed there and can attest that the experience was stellar.

After a couple reincarnations as a restaurant, the train depot is now a bicycle shop.  But Amtrak still stops there.  The old-time great bars haven’t been edged out, and Sammie’s is still on the corner making one pizza at a time.

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Mixed Message

Posted on August 1, 2014

I bought Cooking Light in the airport yesterday to while away the layover between planes.  Then, waiting for my lunch to arrive, I began flipping through it and became confused. True, there were wonderful photos of the summer recipes this issue features: peach and prosciutto canapés, grilled salad with sweet corn and crab, spiced chicken and couscous.

But what seemed to run counterpoint to healthy eating were the multiple page ads for various drugs. Perhaps the ad for over-the-counter fish oil opposite the table of contents should have been a clue, but I didn’t get it.  Nor did I pay much attention to the Omega 3 ad opposite four no-cook tomato soup recipes.

But immediately after page 39, there was a three-page advertisement for Xeljanz, a prescription medicine for adults with moderate to severe arthritis. Most of the text concerned the possible side effects. Then, following page 47, another three page ad promoted Belviq,  “an FDA-approved prescription weight-loss medication that, when used with diet and exercise, can help some overweight adults with a weight-related medical problem . . .”  Again, more information on side effects.

Opposite the stuffed heirloom tomato recipe, were two pages devoted to Premarin to help women whose hot flashes are interfering with their lives. And in the rest of the magazine were additional pages advocating more drugs to relieve constipation, acute depression, type 2 diabetes, COPD, vaginal pain, irregular heartbeat, and Crohn’s disease.

I understand people with these problems benefit from eating healthy meals, and I also get that pharmaceutical companies help underwrite the magazine with their big advertising dollars.  But there is a distinct disconnect for me between the editorial content and these ads, especially when much of the text is about the side effects. Couple that with the fact that one can buy ingredients for recipes without a prescription but can’t purchase any of these drugs  that way.

I wonder if I’m being used.

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Fargo

Posted on July 31, 2014

I’m going to Fargo, North Dakota, today.  It’s my annual pilgrimage to see my older son Kevin and immerse in his life.  I also go to upstate New York to see my younger son Keith and immerse in his.  And from time to time they come here, but it’s a journey no matter what. Nothing is easy in our family.

I love Fargo.  It’s the unheralded entrance to the Northern Plains.  It’s rustic.  It’s got wonderful restaurants for a town its size.  There are two universities and one college. There’s culture. There is also the Red River, windy and unmanageable, threatening overflow regardless of the season.  Keeping residents on their toes.

There were times when I’ve visited Kevin when the days were short and the snow was tall.  The skies were grey and unrelenting too. But in the past couple years, I’ve leaned toward summer visits.  He’s more relaxed since he’s on vacation from his academic schedule and there are no papers to grade. The weather is more enticing, so it just works better.

I can’t wait to get there.

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Vodka

Posted on July 30, 2014

As I aged – as in, my late forties – I decided vodka, especially Absolut, was my drink of choice.  Today it’s pretty much my only libation unless I’m at someone else’s home and wine or beer is served.  Then I accept what the host offers.

But this blog isn’t really about my cocktail preferences.  Rather it’s about other things vodka is good for. I found this list of vodka remedies somewhere, but I can’t give the author proper due because I didn’t capture the citation information.  So please, whoever provided this know that I acknowledge you.

Here goes.  Vodka is a good goo remover. Simply dip a paper towel in it and apply to the sticky stuff.  Or a label and its sticky stuff. Wait about a minute.  Job done.

Restore the beauty of chrome fixtures, porcelain, or glass by moistening a paper towel with vodka and rubbing them with it.  Use a spritzer bottle with a one to one ratio of water to vodka and mist the air. You have a wonderful room deodorizer. Also spritz the shower and curtain liner while you’re at it for a mold free and chemical free environment.

These suggestions led me to ponder if I should buy a small bottle of really cheap vodka so as not to waste the pricey stuff. I haven’t done this yet, but I think I shall based on the final tip I found.

To prevent bacteria growth that makes a floral bouquet wilt quickly, add a few drops of vodka every time you change the water.  The flowers stay lovelier longer.  Maybe they like a libation too.

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Garden Walk

Posted on July 28, 2014

Yesterday Earl and I went on a garden walk.  For the practical, it’s a way to raise money for some cause by asking people to pay ten dollars to visit various gardens owned by devoted gardeners.   For the person who loves digging in the dirt, it’s a way to view what can be done with unlimited resources and an avid passion for all things growing.

Earl and I fall somewhere in between. But the main reason we went on the tour was that our old house was one of the featured gardens.  So for us, the garden walk was a way of revisiting the past.

Never having been on such a tour before, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But my mind’s eye thought of symmetry, manicured trees, focal points, and unusual plantings because that’s what we strived for in our previous home.  I was disappointed, not only with our former residence’s appearance, but also with most of the homes on the tour.

There were eight of them.  And if I had to describe the theme for this year’s walk, I would say it was a cross between flowers fighting for space and lawns fighting for space with the flowers.  Hostas and black-eyes Susans and daisies all vied for center stage, while the lawns and trees were mostly ignored.  They were not dressed with mulch or pruned or even weeded.

I would say the actual event was well organized, down to the refreshments at one of the houses and to the flyers with descriptions of each home. At the same time, I hope next year’s committee finds examples that are truly about quality of landscape design and not  just about quantity of blooms.

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