TheBanyanTree: The End of the World as We Know It

[Margaret R. Kramer]

Ray got the tire off of his car and punched out the part which was rubbing
the wheel.  He didn’t road test the car, so I’m not sure if he’s going to
try to drive it to work on Monday or not.  He still needs to put plastic or
Plexiglas in the window, otherwise, he’ll have air conditioning in the
winter!

He hasn’t been breathing very well, and that worries me.  He gets winded
coming up the stairs at night.  We just finished making the bed and he had
to lie down, because he’s straining for air.  He sounds congested, but doesn
’t cough much.

Sounds like a trip to the doctor is in order, doesn’t it?  I’ll see if I can
get him to make an appointment before this blows up into an emergency room
visit, which costs time and money.  Ray is not very good at being ahead of
the curve as far as his health is concerned.  He keeps hoping it will go
away and by the time he’s ready to deal with it, usually his illness has
exploded  into something major.

Yesterday was a nice day – didn’t get to freezing, but was comfortable all
the same.  I didn’t have to wear my long black coat or a scarf.

Lots of stuff is going on in St. Paul this weekend.  The Winter Carnival is
in full swing.  Part of the Winter Carnival is looking a medallion that is
hidden somewhere in the city.  Each day the paper publishes clues and people
rush out to look for it.  I think the award is something like $10,000 if you
have a registered St. Paul Winter Carnival button or $5,000 if you don’t.

The medallion is usually hidden in a branch or a package or something.  I
never can figure out the clues until the last one when it literally points
to where the thing is.  But for some people, it’s almost like a cult, and
they get into it every year.  My father and sister used to look for it
sometimes.  I could only find it if it was laying right in the middle of the
sidewalk.  I’m not very good at that kind of stuff.

When Susan and I went for our run yesterday, we saw several people digging
around in the snow at Como Park.  Then when Ray and I were driving over to
Asher’s last night, we saw more people rooting around in Cherokee Park.
Gosh, those two parks are in totally different parts of the city, so
obviously, the clues aren’t very clear where the medallion is.  Well, maybe
I’ll just trip over it or something on a walk, and I’ll get $5,000 because I
don’t have a registered Winter Carnival button.

Besides the thrills and chills of the treasure hunt, the US Figure Skating
Championship is going on just down the road from us.  Ray and I watched on
TV last night a couple of 14 year olds spin and jump their way to standing
ovations.  They make skating look so effortless.  I can skate forward and
backward and I can stop myself if I crash against a wall.  Forget anything
about spinning and twirling or wearing a bathing suit like outfit.  But it’s
fun to watch and appreciate the dedication and hard work that goes into
skating at that level.

We celebrated Ashlin’s birthday at his house yesterday evening with both
sets of grandparents in attendance.  The boys received a Wii for Christmas
and I tried it out.  I’m not into video games, but this one was fun.  I did
a race car game against the older boy and I beat him!  I bet it was my years
of driving experience that propelled me to finish in first place.

It’s going to another nice day today.  Some snow will melt before we go back
into the deep freeze later this week.  I’ll keep my eye on Ray and his
lungs.  I’ll go workout and then maybe read or something in the afternoon.
Sounds like a plan.

Margaret R. Kramer
margaretkramer at comcast.net
margaret.kramer at polarispublications.com

I think in terms of the day's resolutions, not the year's.
~Henry Moore
No virus found in this outgoing message.
Checked by AVG Free Edition.
Version: 7.5.516 / Virus Database: 269.19.12/1245 - Release Date: 01/26/2008
3:45 PM