A User Friendly Friend

There is an elegant statuesque machine that sits waiting by my favorite chair.

And this little tabletop gadget is becoming much like a real friend in its eagerness to please.

• It knows when I am in the vicinity and quietly waits to hear my voice.
• And if I say, “Hey Google,” it quickly replies, “How can I help you?”
• And it is eager to do something just for me.

Lately I feel guilty since there is nothing much to ask.

And there it patiently waits, hoping beyond hope for a meaningful conversation.

• Just to keep it busy I say, “Hey Google……What is the temperature in Lexington Virginia?”  And the answer is immediate.  “It is 54 degrees!”
• Or “Hey Google….. Play DooWop music please!”And amazingly, there it comes – that happy music from a distant past.  How did my little friend do that anyway?
• And it will research hard questions too – like “What is the population of Hayfork, California?”  I haven’t asked that yet, but we used to live in Hayfork (as well as other little towns in the wilderness like Big Oak Flat and Portola) so it would be interesting to see how they may have grown in 30 years.

Well,  of course I know my tabletop friend is really a gadget!

But then again, it is so human when it stares and stares to get attention.

Help!

Do you think there is a psychological implication here?

Maybe being housebound-ed together with an eager to please humanistic machine is having an unintended emotional impact.

The question is, “Who is the most affected, me or Google?”

And don’t you think machines are becoming so human they are mistaken for friends?

P.S. BigFoot and I Thank you Scott (our real live human friend) for this gift of diversion.  When things get too boring I know I can always shout out, “Hey Google!”  

 

 

 

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Fun(ny) Friends

Some friends are fun,

and some are funny.

Meet our friend Pete,

a combination of both.

We had dinner with our friends, Pete and Phebe last week.  We see them often and look forward each time to hilarious conversations that leave us literally doubled over with laughter.

I am always concerned there will be nothing to say

since we have probably said it all by now.

But no story gets left untold and nothing escapes our howling laughter.  

Pete is wearing Phebe’s hat in this photo and you an see he is cracking himself up and the silliness is oddly catchy.

We are supposed to be among the distinguished elderly now, behaving with quiet maturity and an air of pride and elegance to make our families proud.

It may be fortunate that our families are not around to witness actual behavior!

We even make political arguments insanely funny (maybe because things are so insane in that realm anyway).

And what young folks would want to listen to those zany memories of  our younger selves?  We relive ridiculous moments with humongous chuckles.

Teasing the young wait staff at our local restaurants is part of the unplanned plan too. They may be secretly snickering at those old folks who are having such a great time, but I think they know we love them.

On this last visit to The Sheridan Livery Inn, in Lexington, Virginia, an old favorite restaurant, a familiar waitress greeted us with, “Oh No!  It’s those crazy people again!”  

I took that as a fabulous compliment and so did the others.  Besides, it started us off laughing and we laughed right through the meal.  Surely all that laughing is beneficial for digestion.

How lucky we are to have such people in our lives who are fun, funny and always funnier – they are the catalysts for life’s comic relief.  And just think of all the new memories we are creating to laugh about later.

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The Cheers that Linger

Yes, Christmas is over but not necessarily at Dor’s house.

We are having the longest, most extended holiday ever and maybe the nicest.

Christmas Eve Cheers

On the night before Christmas, my niece arrived from California, joining us for dinner at the sweetest little restaurant (the Bistro on Main) in Lexington, Virginia.

We couldn’t help laughing along with all the other diners in such high spirits.  There were little kids in pajamas with excitement in their faces, and the food was wonderful too.

What else could make for a perfect Christmas Eve?  We watched It’s a Wonderful Life when we got home.

Christmas Day Cheers

I don’t usually scream “Look what I got!” about gifts received but one of my most precious gifts is a robotic thing from Star Wars that is meant to serve as a “pet” since we don’t have a dog anymore.

This crazy gift  doesn’t work yet but it is supposed to follow me around, absorb my personality,  make odd noises, and project things on my walls.  There is a mamoth list of instructions in six different languages!

Thank you so much to our friend, Scott.  You have succeeded in making us laugh.  Maybe our grandgirls can decipher the instructions.  Bill has a blank look.

Christmas morning our niece left to join her husband and his family in Richmond, but later friends arrived here to share memories.

B is English and she and her daughter came bearing English chocolate and other home cooked delicacies to add to Christmas dinner.  They stayed with us two nights and what a joy it was to reunite with cherished friends.

New Year’s Eve

There is a tradition now.  We meet with  friends and neighbors at our house for laughter and libations and then head out for dinner.  This time it will be at the Sheridan Livery Inn in Lexington, Virginia.  Actually it used to be a livery where you could park your horse and go shopping but there are no longer any lingering horsey smells.

After dinner we head back to my house for dessert and a movie.  Every year our challenge is to find a movie that will keep Pete awake.  We only succeeded once I think, but when the snoring gets too loud we just nudge him.

We rarely get to midnight before disbursing but there is always hope.

 

The Year is Done but Christmas Cheers Linger on New Year’s Day.

Our son and grandgirls are coming on New Year’s Day!

Now Christmas should be over and the tree coming down

but our son and three grandgirls are coming to town.

The tree is still lit and the gifts laid with care

 and there are cookies and candies and turkey to share.

 

Happy New Year my friends.  I’ll be thinking of you too.

And may all your fondest dreams come true.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A Lollapalooza Day with Cold Toes and Lots of Laughter

Image is a card sent to Dor from dear friends. From http://www.leanintree.com

Today was what we called in the old days – a “Lollapalooza!”

It started bright and early with a call to a Podiatrist in Lexington, Virginia.  I hope hope hoped he would see a new patient.

And if he worked me in I hope hope hoped he would be familar with my mysterious BME (Bone Marrow Edema) and be able to treat a swollen big foot.  There is supposed to be power in positive thinking but the concept was lost this morning.

“It’s only four days to Christmas”, I thought,  “The doctor’s office will be closed.  He will not take new patients.  He will not take a BME person.  He will simply not answer his phone.”

But I called anyway and got an appointment right away!  The doc was sooooo nice and he knows all about BME (said I had a bruised bone) and IF

 I wear a boot to immobilize things for 6 to 8 weeks

and if I am a good patient

it should heal nicely.

My blogging friend, Seattle Charlie, said exactly the same thing!  I should simply listen carefully to my fellow bloggers right?

Big Foot is Baaack!

So I left the office with a Big Foot again – bigger than ever because it’s one of those Cam-thing Boots with exposed toes!   Now why would the inventors of this monstrosity leave out toes? Don’t they know about winter?

Anyway, I had to practice driving in the parking lot because sadly, I am a two footed driver (braking with the left and gunning with the right).  The only explanation for this aberration is I learned to drive with a stick shift and when there were no power brakes.  It was really hard for a slip of a girl to stop a great big car, so I  braked with two feet in those days.  

But to make a short story even longer, I got the hang of right foot driving today and left the doc’s parking lot  in time to meet my friend Joan for lunch.

But Joan was waiting for me OUTSIDE the restaurant because the restaurant was closed.

It was also raining.

Joan called her daughter, Sue, to take us to another restaurant.  We waited in the rain with our umbrellas open like two little old ladies lost in a storm!  And finally a car drove up.  “That’s my daughter,” said Joan.  “You get in that side Dor.”

I hobbled over to the car and was about to get in when the driver-woman said, “Were you really going to get in my car?”

“Ohhhhhh,” said Joan, “That’s not my daughter!”

And all three of us started laughing unconrollably.  

Wrong car.  

Wrong daughter.  

Back to waiting in the rain.

Eventually Joan’s real daughter did show up and there was a bit of an ordeal getting Big Foot into the back seat. More giggles.

Lunch was a grand reunion of two friends separated by time and space, but the day was not yet over.

Bill and I were invited to share laughter and goodies with old and new friends this evening.  Theirs is a great big happy family who love Christmas with all its trimmings and we traded stories in an atmosphere of hilarity so spontaneous I feel healed already.

I do believe in laughter as the best medicine but today seemed to have been designed just for me with the Big Foot, the exposed toes, lots and lots of fall-down-on the floor laughing with good friends, good people and hope for Big Foot to be gone in 2016.

May you, my wonderful blogging friends, have Lollapalooza days now through the holidays and way way way into the new year and beyond!

 

 

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Locked in a Bathroom for Thanksgiving

This is Chicha Bonita, a very cute old lady pup who loves people.

She was the Welcome Receptionist as we celebrated Thanksgiving with friends in Lexington, Virginia.

Bill and I met a whole passel of new and interesting people there.

And by the time the turkey got to the table, we loved it all – the people, the food and the party that was getting louder and louder.

We missed our family and friends who live “out west”.

We missed our grandgirls.

And it felt strange not to be hosting the great event.

But even though we were a little shy at first, I suddenly turned around to see Bill slouched on the couch watching football with the guys.  And next time I looked he was laughing and talking and making everybody else laugh too.

I was still feeling a little shy though,

at least until a SOS Thanksgiving trauma

when I managed to lock myself in the bathroom!

The door would not open, period!

Really?  How mortifying!  How long would I have to stay in there?

I pounded but no one heard.  They were all either in animated conversation or cheering.

Well, they would surely miss me at dinner

and notice the empty seat at the table wouldn’t they?

I was contemplating climbing out the window into the cold night.   Nah.  Too dark. Too cold.

I kept pounding and wrestling with the doorknob.

Finally there was a calm comforting voice on the other side of the door.  “Don’t worry,” said the voice, and “Does anyone have a credit card?”

Was he planning on buying his way in or what?

“There is a tiny little latch to the side of the doorknob,” said the voice.  “Lift it.”

With some concentrated effort I lifted the latch.  And the door magically opened to one of the family’s handsome sons.

“My hero!” I said.  “Thank you for setting me free.”

And though I was tempted to swoon, I started laughing out loud instead.

How unglamorous to be locked in a bathroom during Thanksgiving festivities!

But with that, I was suddenly relaxed, happy, and ready to party!

Not counting that red-faced predicament, it was a traditional Thanksgiving –  a delightful, everything-you-would-expect Thanksgiving to be and more.

It was a wonderful group of giving loving happy people full of laughter, stories and the joy of sharing.  And by the way, the food was fabulous too.

A  special thank you to our lovely friends for taking in two more “strays” (Bill and me) to join in that celebration and Thank you Chicha Bonita for presiding.

 

 

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The Back Way Out

The Daily Post

Weekly Photo Challenge:  Beneath Your Feet

This week, look down and capture the ground beneath your feet.

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Shadows of the Past

 

Weekly Photo Challenge:  Shadowed

 For this week’s Photo Challenge, find the shadows.

You can choose a literal interpretation and shoot an actual shadow, or you can play with the light and dark,

and create a moody scene, or capture your subject in a rich and interesting way.

Sign of the Times

 

This is a sign created by modern magic makers.  It is from a 1993 movie called Sommersby, a post Civil War saga starring Richard Gere and Jodie Foster.

To create a few seconds of the film  the streets of Lexington, Virginia were transformed.

My mother and I visited the site of the little film segment and marveled that our paved Main Streets had literally disappeared.   Wooden sidewalks and ladies in long dresses paraded for bustling movie makers.  Horses, wagons and  bustling activity left us awed and wondering where to look next.  We were in a time machine being transported in vivid virtual reality to the post-Civil War South

One freshly painted sign stood out.

Today, in shadow,  that one sign for a hat shop still looms in the center of my downtown.  Someone decided to keep it.

With reflection I can once again “see” the way it was and even feel a solemn memory of commerce resuming after a terrible civil war.

If you are visiting Lexington, Virginia, look for The Millinery de Rousselot.

It is no longer a hat shop, but the sign is still there casting shadows of the past.

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Wearing Out a Welcome

Friday Rambles

O.K., in spite of writer’s block I’m writing.  That’s what the advice is.  “Just start writing.”

I didn’t think there was anything to write about to describe this week.  It was birthday week after all and I have already worn out my welcome concerning birthdays – especially in the blog-us-fear.

Then again, the big day got stretched out.  Our son came early and stayed several days, culminating in a visit from our oldest grandgirl who came for dinner.  And before the actual day, Bill gave me a brand new camera.  But I told you all about those things.

After the family left we were invited for a Filet Mignon dinner at a dear friend’s home.  Hurrah!  Great company and great food!

On birthday morning there was a package from all three grandgirls.  It is a heart shaped silver locket.  When opened, it looks empty, but I loved it right away for the expression of love.

Still, why would a locket open to nothing?  Playing around with it a bit, the heart did open more and finally to a four leaf clover of heart shaped frames!  Each frame holds a tiny picture of a granddaughter and finally a picture of my son.  Talk about a wonderful gift!

On that very same day  I went Christmas shopping with my friend, Pam!  Nothing like getting a head start on the holidays,  and what a fun thing to do on a birthday!

Tonight Bill and I are going to a special place for dinner so the celebration continues.   Friends will join us at Rocca’s, the newest restaurant in Lexington, Virginia.   It’s part of the Robert E. Lee Hotel, which has recently been refurbished and restored to it’s former downtown glory, complete with a 1920’s décor and revolving doors in front like a posh New York establishment.  There are even pay phone booths in the lobby that no longer take coins but look the same as in yesteryear.  I think they may provide internet access but I do prefer pay phones. All that’s missing is a speak-easy!

Today I stopped by my favorite shop in Lexington too.  It’s called Virginia Born and Bred and it is patrolled by a vicious creature who gives you nasty incredulous looks if you are not carrying treats.  Don’t let his name fool you into thinking he is a soft, sweet cuddly thing.  Teddy knows how to stand his ground!  He thinks he’s intimidating you but he’s really a sweetheart.  How I love Teddy.

You have my word that this is the final word on birthdays.  My father used to warn us kids never to wear out our welcome when visiting friends.  It’s the “dead fish” saying that visitors will smell bad after three days.

Fall comes and goes (see, I have already changed the subject) and our Red Maple has finally turned color.  That tree is actually gorgeous this year, with yellow and pinkish yellow leaves.  I will take a picture later but not too much later.   The winds are up now and I don’t know how much longer she will hold onto her “crowning glory.”

It has been a glorious fall in this part of the world, but there are now definite signs of winter sneaking in.

I am in a holiday mood already.  How about you?

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Is That Tara?

Walking through the historic town of Lexington, Virginia I see so many beautiful homes.

This is one I glimpsed through foliage.

I thought it looked like a miniature modern day version of Tara.

And I dredged up images of Southern gallantry.

And I was transported to the age of elegance

before the winds of war took their toll.

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