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Saturday

April 18, 2020

We seem to be sleeping later every day. Paula and I got up almost 9 am. So i was pretty much doing my usual crosswords, jigsaws and reading. “True Grit” is going pretty quickly.

The story is told by Mattie, a 14 year old girl whose father was murdered. So she is on a mission to find and punish the murderer. She hires Rooster Cogburn to help in the capture of the man. Rooster Cogburn is a US Deputy Marshal (this is the character played by John Wayne in the movie. Also, john Wayne received an Academy Award for his performance. Glen Campbell also co-starred.)

Enough on that. We noticed some water leaking out of our furnace/AC unit. Found that the water was coming from a gallon of emergency drinking water that we had purchased a while ago. It seems some junk was sitting on top of the plastic gallon and sprung a leak.

So we pulled out the gallon of water and put it in the sink. So in the process of drying up the spot where the water was, it seemed that it was an excellent time to get rid of some of the junk that had been stashed there over the years.

So I suggested to Paula that I get a shopping cart from down in the garage and load it up with junk that we no longer use or need.

We found some old floor tiles 2 packages of 5 tiles each. They didn’t match any of the flooring in our unit. Why did Mary save them? Beats me. Gone. There was an old step ladder that we haven’t ever used. Gone. We found about four umbrellas. Gone. None of which seemed to work very well.

I don’t understand why there were so many umbrellas stashed away. I hardly ever rains in SoCal. As it is, we have 2 or 3 umbrellas in the back of the Nissan.

So I loaded up the cart and took it down to throw in the dumpster. Much better.

By the time we get to the end of this confinement, we ought to have this joint clean as a whistle.

Stay safe,

Joe

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Friday

April 17, 2020

It seems that I have missed a couple of days. I just didn’t have much to say. It seems though that people are having trouble remembering what day it is. It it wasn’t for my iPad and iPhone I wouldn’t know either.

So let’s begin. I went out to Albertson’s for a few things. We had run out of milk. Paula had been drinking milk some evenings instead of wine. I was also going to try and find some TP.

Here’s my list:

  • Milk
  • Tangelos
  • TP
  • Kleenex
  • Liquid hand soap
  • Hydrogen Peroxide
  • Box of white wine

Got the milk. Bought two half gallons of 1%. Got the TP. I had been told by Dan that they put out the TP first thing in the AM. Then when it’s gone, it’s gone. Going earlier improved your chances. So I scored a 6 pack of rolls. No choice. You get whatever they’ve got. Got the tangelos.

No on the Kleenex, hand soap or H2O2. Got the wine. Plenty of booze. Beer and wine are not in short supply.

So I finished the book about crossword puzzles. I am in awe of some of the people that are stars on the crossword puzzle tournament. I started reading “True Grit” by Charles Portis. This is the basis for the John Wayne movie of the same name. So far the movie is pretty faithful to the book. By the way, the kindle version was only $2. Such a deal.

On another subject, masks. Masks are required for visits to the grocery store. When we shopped on Tuesday, I wore a home made mask. Today I used a folded bandanna.

What many folks don’t realize the masks are intended to keep you from spreading your germs. Not for protecting you from getting someone else’s germs. Ie. Coughing in the vicinity of another person.

The first mask had problems in that it redirected my exhaling on to my eye glasses causing the glasses to fog. I also had trouble sipping my iced coffee.

Today, my bandanna was less problematic in that regard. Besides, when not in the immediate vicinity of other people, I let the bandanna slip a bit. I will be happy when we are done with the mask requirement, PITA.

By the way, the grocery store was not very crowded.

Later,

Joe

Categories: Books, Corona, Uncategorized
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Tuesday

April 14, 2020

So today is our day to go out and do our grocery shopping. But first, we had to meet Paula’s pusher (I mean her Avon Lady). Paula had ordered a bunch of stuff to make her more beautiful. Then she wondered out loud. “Why am I putting on lipstick when noone can see it under my mask?”. Good question.

Today, we were required to wear face masks. I really hate the mask. The one that I got is too tight and it causes me to sniffle. Plus, I can’t drink my iced coffee. And, the elastic over my ears hurt. I can’t wear the mask and wear my hearing aids at the same time. One or the other but not both. So I have trouble hearing Paula. Next time I will go back to the bandanna.

So it’s been six days since we went out to do grocery shopping. Store is pretty much the same. Some shelves empty, some fully stocked. They seem to be catching up with some of the can goods/soups.

Fresh fruit and vegetable doing fine. So too are the meat department. We got some fish, some chicken and some ground beef to do meat loaf.

Still no TP. We did get a package of napkins though. They’re trying to get people to go one way in each aisle with signs like this:

Good luck with that.

While we were waiting in the line for the checkout, I ordered take-out from Crazy Fish. Crazy Fish is a local restaurant that specializes in selling fish. Go figure. Paula ordered Asian Salad with broiled Salmon. I had my usual fish tacos. Don’t laugh. They are pretty tasty. You can have your choice of broiled fish or broiled breaded fish. Support your local businesses.

We chatted with our friend Dan in the dairy section. He is hanging in there it’s a tough job.

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Monday

April 13, 2020

Well this is getting old. Two more weeks until May 1 and even then probably unlikely that we will be set free.

This morning was our day to have our cleaning lady (Alicia) come to clean for us. We struggled with the decision of should we cancel. Alicia is a Mexican lady who cleans for us every other Monday. She has been cleaning for us since we arrived here in San Pedro in 2012. She was originally hired by Mary before we arrived.

We decided to not cancel. She probably needs the money and we could use her to clean our bathrooms and kitchen. She comes every other Monday at 8 AM. Cleans for about 2.5 hours.

Next topic: Blizzard of 1978. Paula found these pictures of the day after the blizzard. Pictures have already been posted on Facebook. This is the story behind the pictures.

In February 1978, I was working for Digital Equipment Corp in the Mill in Maynard, MA. My job was to code disk diagnostics for VAX computers. On the day of the storm, I was work at 8 AM. Then at 9 AM, my boss told everyone to go home lest we get stuck for the next few days.

My job was in Maynard, MA. Paula was living with two roommates in an apartment in Brookline. And I was living in a house in Newton.

So just before I left my office, I called my then girl friend Paula. (At that point in our relationship, we had been dating for about four months.) Paula’s roommate Joan answered and told me that Paula had worked night shift and was sleeping. Wake her up I told Joan. Tell her that if she wants to see me for the next few days…

I told Paula that I would be in front of her apartment building in about 30 minutes to pick her up. And so it was, I picked her up and spent the next few days happily snowed in. Paula didn’t need to go to work for about 3-4 days.

The pictures are of us digging out my car from 3-4 feet of snow.

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Sunday

April 12, 2020

Another day, another…Just more crossword puzzles and jigsaw puzzles and reading. We watched the Easter Service for Oceanview Baptist online and talked with our son Neil and his wife on the phone. That’s about it.

Cloudy today but no rain so far.

So I thought I would write about the books that I am reading. I have 3 or 4 that I am working on.

I was reading a book by Paul Klugman. Paul is a columnist for the New York Times and usually writes about Economics. The book is titled “Arguing with Zombies“. I got the book for free from the LA Public Library. Libraries have started lending ebooks now. They download the book to your Kindle reader. You get the book for three weeks before it gets deleted.

If the book is on a best seller list, you will have to wait. The app puts you on the hold list. Just like a conventional library.

So I got about half way through the book before the time ran out. I was having trouble remembering stuff about various things like monetary policy and the like.

At the same time, I have been reading a book titled, “The Ones We’ve Been Waiting For” by Charlotte Alter. This is a book about a new generation of political leaders that are up and coming in US Congress. I bought this book, not from the library.

Next up is a book titled, “Thinking Inside the Box” by Adrienne Raphel. This is a history of crossword puzzles. Also, it includes an interview with Will Shortz, the editor for the NY Times crossword. Lots of interesting history.

That’s enough for now. Stay safe and hang in there. This won’t last forever (I hope)

TTFN

Joe

Categories: Books, Corona
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Saturday

April 11, 2020

No recipes today. Not my turn.

The rain has stopped and the sun is shining. Still, a bit chilly (57F). But, that doesn’t matter much, because we’re not going anywhere today.

It’s painful to see the gas prices under $3 a gallon knowing full well that you’re not going anywhere. I don’t remember when I last bought gas. Maybe a month ago.

One of the effects of the pandemic is clean air and empty freeways. Here is a picture of downtown Los Angeles taken yesterday.

Los Angeles 4-11-2020

Paula is continuing her deep dive into the picture archives. Here are a couple of pictures from a 1987ish visit to Edaville Railroad in Carver, Massachusetts on Cape Cod.

All Aboard!

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Friday

April 10, 2020

Here we sit in our lockdown. Not going anywhere. Today is my turn to cook. So I decided to do beef stew. We’re getting lazy. It was almost 9 am when we got out of bed.

Luckily for us we thought of this when we last went shopping. Bought the stew beef, carrots, potatoes, celery and beef stock. Paula dug out the crock pot and I began work.

Our crockpot is over forty years old. We received it as a wedding present. Still works.

Not long ago, we discovered a product called crockpot liners made by Reynolds. You can find them in the supermarket food storage section. Makes clean up easier.

Every time I do this, I make it a bit different. Today’s version has carrots, celery, onion, potatoes and beef. Well it wouldn’t be beef stew without the beef. If you want details on the recipe, drop me A line.

Peel and cut up the carrots. Dice the onion and celery. Add to pot. I like to cut the beef down to smaller pieces than the butcher provides. Add to zip lock bag along with 1/2 c of flour. Brown in frying pan. Add the flour. Add to the pot. Add some beef stock. Turn it on and forget about it.

I can’t emphasize the last step enough. There have been times that I did all the prep work and forgot to turn it on. Oh crap.

In other news, we decided to watch a movie tonight. We decided on an oldie. “Support Your Local Sheriff” with James Garner.

Paula is continuing her deep dive into our picture archive. She has been putting the best pictures into albums and tossing the junk. I will be scanning some of my favorites to post on social media (blog, Facebook, etc,)

Stay safe

TTFN

Joe

Categories: Corona, Movies
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Thursday

April 9, 2020

Well here we are on Thursday. Just sitting at home trying to keep busy and not go stark-raving mad. I’m trying to do a blog post every day. First to keep myself busy and not get sick by heading out to shop or something.

It is raining here today in SoCal. It is a pleasant light, soaking rain. As I have said before, the seasons here in Cal are rain, mud, fire and earthquake. We are in the rainy season.

Rain in the planter outside our door.

The more it rains, the less likely their will be fires next summer.

So yesterday we had our Zoom Bible Study. One of our members offered to share face masks that she was making for free. So later in the day Bonnie dropped off a couple of masks for us.

We are feeling incredibly lucky here. We don’t have jobs to lose. We don’t have to go out to work in a grocery store or drive a truck.

Our Social Security payment arrived on Wednesday. It’s scheduled for the second Wednesday of every month. And in April, the 2nd Wednesday fell on April 8th, the earliest we could possibly receive it. May won’t be quite as early. And the stock market seems to be climbing out of the deep hole that it was in. (My retirement fund is in the market.)

We are both reasonably healthy. All of our major surgeries were done last year. I would hate to be looking at to reschedule something like knee surgery. Some of our minor medical appointments have been pushed back until May or June. Dentist is only doing emergencies. I was scheduled for optometry visit to get new eye glass prescription. That won’t happen until June, maybe. And, optometry department at Costco is closed until whenever.

One last thing. Regency Palms is on lock-down so no visits to see Mary. So far, there have no covel-19 incidents at RP. Some other nursing homes haven’t been so lucky. We’ve done FaceTime a couple of times with Mary. She doesn’t have a clue what FaceTime is. But we say hi and wave.

TTFN

Joe

Categories: Corona, San Pedro
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Wednesday

April 8, 2020

So a couple of blog posts ago, I wrote about wanting to get to the barber for a hair cut. I showed a picture of me taken at my wedding in 1978.

Paula found a couple of older pictures of me taken in 1973 at my brother Rich’s wedding. The first picture was taken at the wedding reception on board the Peter Stuyvesant at Anthony’s Pier Four in Boston. The Peter Stuyvesant was used by Anthony’s for receptions and the like. In sank during the Blizzard of 1978.

(L-R) Brother Stan, Tricia, Me

I call your attention to the hair and beard.

The second was taken at the after party at my Mom’s house in West Roxbury. The picture was my mother and her three sons.

(L-R) Me, Mom, Rich, Stan

In other news, the rain has finally stopped, but it is a bit chilly. That doesn’t matter much, because we’re not going anywhere.

We had our weekly Senior Bible study this morning on Zoom. It was nice to talk to some other human beings.

TTFN

Joe

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Tuesday

April 7, 2020

So everyone was saying “stay home”. Well it’s been six days since we last went to the supermarket. We were out of milk, cream and white wine. Getting critical. Got to get out of this place.

So we through caution to the wind and headed out to the store. Filled up with fruits and vegetables, meat and chicken. First off though we headed to the Starbucks.

We still aren’t allowed to sit and discuss shopping lists or other important stuff. So we just got our drinks and headed off to shop.

Albertson’s supply chain is catching up. They’re not at 100% but moving in that direction. Dan told us that they didn’t sell out of toilet paper until about 1:30 pm.

We talked with our friend Dan in the dairy aisle. He had planned to travel to Boston to see a Red Sox game and a Celtics game. Alas, it was not to be. Trip cancelled. He got us a quart container of half/half and slapped a 50% off label on the carton. It’s good to have friends in high places.

So news people are trying to tell everyone to shop for two weeks worth of groceries. Are you kidding me? I haven’t a clue where we would put all of that stuff or how to pay for it. As it was, our grocery bill was about $275.

Part of the cost was for a bottle of gin and a box of Pinot Giorgio. But still, it wasn’t top shelf gin.

Canned goods are slowly getting restocked including soups. I am happy to say that there is still no run on martini olives. Toilet paper is still in short supply.

What else? We’re still healthy. We will be hanging here at home until next Monday or so. We’ll be zooming with our senior Bible study group tomorrow. It will be good to talk with everyone. We will be having broiled salmon filets and asparagus for dinner tonight.

So on the way to the market the classical station on SiriusXM was playing Beethoven’s 6th symphony. I almost stayed until it was done. When we came out of the market they were playing Beethoven’s 9th. Woo-Hoo!!

We’ve got to take a trip over to Long Beach to drop of a package of adult underwear for Mary

Stay safe everyone. Wash your hands. I don’t want to hear about any of our friends getting sick.

TTFN,

Joe

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