Week of Sunday March 3rd to Saturday March 9th, 2024

 SUNDAY the 3rd:  Church was very good this morning.  The sanctuary was FULL, very full.  When it was over, Peggy asked for a ride home.  I suggested to her that instead of having our meal together at my house at six p.m. that we could have it earlier in about an hour.  She called David and he agreed.  So, when I got home, I put the meatloaf in the oven and started the other items.  The meal consisted of meat loaf with a tomato-based sauce to put over it, yellow (saffron) rice, cold pea salad and butter bean salad, and garlic toast.  We had coconut cream pie for dessert.  Everything was delicious.  They stayed a while after the meal, and we talked.  Also, they were talking about going to WalMart to look for a DVD player and I suggested that they take the one from my living room.  It has not been hooked up for years, since I hooked up the ROKU television.   They took it, and I am hoping it works for them.  After they left, I cleaned up the kitchen and started the dishwasher, and laid down on the couch to rest.  Pam called and we talked for a while. She had just heard about Ginny Kirkpatrick's passing away.

passing away.  It's hard to believe that she is gone, she was always so full of life and also she was full of Jesus!  The funeral is Wednesday at the church. I did not know her very well, but I will probably go, to show support for her husband, George.

I watched the first two episodes of the second season of THE GILDED AGE.  

MONDAY the 4th:  I spent the morning at home.  I did some paperwork relative to PRINCIPAL and was able to reach the woman from Freedom Chuch who I am paired up with in the mentorship program.  I called Peg to tell her about the glitch in last Thursday's FREEDOM GROUP that I facilitated since she was away.  The ladies in the group were missing several pages of Lesson Four in their notebooks.  I was able to reach Connie by phone, but she was busy working with Hildy, and she will call me back.  After lunch, I ran a couple of errands and then went to the Y for the first meeting of WALK WITH EASE.  I took this class before, probably a year ago, but got sick and missed a couple and then went away and missed one or two, so I decided to do it again.  Brianna is leading it, and she is doing a good job.  They are doing something new at the Y.  Since it opened about five and a half years ago, walkers have walked clockwise around the circular track.  Now they will be changing the direction every week.  Brianna said it is healthier to NOT always walk in the same direction and she tried to get her old boss to make the change, but he refused. She said that now there is a new boss and he agreed with her.  It was kind of funny that there were a couple of men walking the wrong way (against traffic).  I told one of them that he was walking the wrong way, but he ignored me!  I was resting on the couch in the afternoon when Peg called.  She wants she, David and I to have Easter dinner in a certain restaurant.  I guess it is not the one we went to last year, which had mostly breakfast items.  I agreed. In the evening, I talked with Connie on the phone.  

I messaged Jan to see if she might want a ride to Life Group tomorrow.  Her cast is moving around and hurting her a lot, so she needs to call Excelsior in the morning.  I told her I will drive her.  She is going to call first thing in the morning and try to get an appointment and let me know when she has one.  I may have to skip Life Group in order to transport her.  r

TUESDAY:  Jan tried to reach her doctor early this morning and a nurse or whoever said she would call her back, but that was not happening.  I gave her my cell phone number and went to Life Group.  Peggy was at the church, so I told her my dilemma:  I hardly slept at all last night and told Jan I would help her with transportation.  Peggy said she could take Jan to EXCELSIOR, either before or after her medical appointment.  After Life Group (some moments were very sad since she graduated with Cindi), the ladies were talking about where to go for lunch, but I thought it would be best if I did not join them.  I went home and called Jan and she had not received the returned call.  After lunch, I took a nap.  I must have slept a full hour or a little bit more-enough to get me through the rest of the day.  Calling hours for Ginny Kirkpatrick were in the evening, but my energy was very low, and I figured I should choose between going to calling hours or staying home and making cookies for the funeral meal tomorrow.   I decided to stay home and make cookies, since I will be at the funeral tomorrow.  I made a batch of peanut butter cookies which turned out very good.   I returned a phone call to Elaine who had left a message about going to see the play CINDERELLA at the Palace.  It does not interest me, but I have a coupon for twelve dollars off and I told her she can have it if she can find someone else to accompany her.  

In the evening, I talked with Jan and Marlene on the phone.  Jan is still in a lot of pain.  Marlene and I have cancelled or postponed out trip.  She will have that week off from work and we might take a day trip.

WEDNESDAY:  Peggy asked me to save seats for her and David near the back.  So, I found three good seats.  Ann Stimson came along and asked if she could sit with me, so she joined me, and then Lori joined us and then Elizabeth (who had called me earlier and said she could not make it).  And finally, Peg and David.  The funeral was very nice, and not very long and then there was a meal served in the small sanctuary.  Betty, Ann, Lori and I sat together, and Louise and Marsha joined us.  After the meal, I went home for a while to change clothes and rest a bit.  

While Ann and I were still alone in the row of seats, we talked a bit.  I don't know how we came around to the topic of the Dale Association, but we did.  I mentioned the day trip to the BUTTERFLY CONSERVATORY next month and she said she is interested in that. 

Peggy and David picked me up a little before five thirty and we went to HOT SHOTS in Cambria for seventy five cent wings.  I had a burger and onion rings (only eight dollars) and a couple of David's wings.  They treated me.  David suggested that we do it again next month, but I suggested that we try different places, and I told him about CHOPS in Gasport offering fifty cent wings on Tuesdays, and also suggested that maybe the SHORT STREET BAR has a wings special, too.  As well as fifty cent wings at CHOPS in Gasport.  I really do not like HOT SHOTS all that much, it was crowded and noisy tonight.  The prices are good, though.  

I spent the rest of the evening at home, watching episode 4 of season 2 of THE GILDED AGE.  I talked to Jan on the phone.  She needs to go to her bank and TOPS tomorrow, and is not allowed to drive, so I offered to take her.

THURSDAY THE 7th:  I had a rough night, not sleeping much.  I picked Jan up at about 10:40 and took her to her bank so she could do some banking and then to TOPS for a few items she needed. After I dropped Jan off, I went to SUBWAY and used a coupon for a six-inch sub.  The worker (not sure if it was a guy or a girl) was a bit unfriendly, but I could see that she was feeling rushed, since there were a couple of people in front of me.   I did not do much more during the day.  

FRIDAY:  I slept better last night, Thank you God!!!!!  I talked to Peggy on the phone and she told me that the restaurant she and David picked for Easter Sunday is ANTONIO'S which is in a hotel in Niagara Falls.  I looked up the menu and it sounds pretty good.  I got hungry for a hot dog, so I went to REIDs and had a white hot and an order of fries and then went to the library to return a couple of books and read todays newspaper.  Then I went to the Y for my walking class, which went well.  There were only five of us there.  I asked Breanna about the class that will fall on the same day as the eclipse.  She said the Y is having an "eclipse party" or something like that, and class will end in time to participate in it.  When I got home, Peggy was working upstairs.  She left while I was laying down.  In the evening, I watched the next episode THE GILDED AGE.  (episode 5).   I then decided to watch a PBS episode of THE AMERICAN EXPERIENCE which told the history of the Gilded Age.  It was very interesting.  I thought it was a two hour show, but it might be part one of a series.   

SATURDAY:  Lori and I met up at FREEDOM CHURCH and she drove to SALEM UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST in Tonawanda where they were offering a ham dinner for two dollars.  It was pretty good.  Then we went to a SAV-A-LOT so she could get groceries.  I waited in the car and read my book 

This book is excellent, it is a memoir.  It is so heartbreaking.   I spent the rest of the day at home.   I went through a bag of linens that Peggy found upstairs.  I wish I knew who did the needlework on these dresser scarves, etc.  I want to use a couple of them and perhaps make other items out of a few others.