Happy Thanksgiving.

November 26, 2009 by geetwo

When I woke up this morning and realized that my plans for Thanksgiving had been waylaid, I decided instead to sit down and write something inspiring for the holiday. Unfortunately, I’m not feeling very inspired so intead, I’m going to cut and paste my column for this week into this space. You can see it at the newspaper web site but you’ll have to pay. The story is not actually inspiring but it does sort of finish a post I started on here a few weeks ago about an old lady we met.   In that version, I was trying to be coy about her name and where she lived because she lived alone and I didn’t want anyone who might see that post to get any ideas. 

                                    A thanksgiving story.    

Thanksgiving is this week and as is my habit,  I thought I might produce a column about this  family holiday but unfortunately, I’ve already done this so many times over the past eight or nine years that I’ve milked about all the drama out of Turkey Day  that I can. So if you wanted some of that “over the river and through the woods” reminiscing, I guess you’re out of luck. There won’t be any of the good feeling that surrounds this time of year out of these words.      

But all is not lost. Fortunately, one of my hobbies is being an amateur observer of the Human Condition. I developed this hobby for a couple of reasons; the first of which was my lack of exposure to human diversity. If you read this column very often, then you know of my small town upbringing in Southern Indiana where diversity in my circle of friends was scarce. This is not to say Loogootee, Indiana  was not diverse; some of my acquaintances were male and others were female. Some of them were Catholic and some of them weren’t. Some were Cincinnati Reds fans while others followed the St. Louis Cardinals. We even had one poor soul who was a Pittsburgh Pirates fan. I wasn’t  completely ignorant of the diversity in our populace.

Another reason for my hobby became apparent when I first began to write this column;   it didn’t take long to realize that my personal story was not going to be very interesting nor would it take very many issues of the paper to tell it. I needed even more diversity in my life. Thus was born my new hobby; that of meeting new people and discovering what their life was like. I suppose, were I not a journalist, you could consider me just plain nosy but I like to think of it on a higher plane; a scientist in search of a sociological answer.

I have also discovered, along with talking to new friends, that there are many life stories to be learned by reconnecting with former co-workers, relatives  and old friends from my younger days. This has been enabled with the aid of e-mail, cell phone and social networking technology.  I even found that it is semi-easy to talk, in one technology or another, to long lost, old girlfriends and find out how the last fifty years of life have treated them. This wasn’t a clandestine effort; my wife, Susie gave me her blessing as long as I didn’t overdo it. Since I did not have a lot of girlfriends in my youth, this wasn’t a tough edict to follow.

When I wasn’t busy reconnecting, I was meeting new people. Last week, Susie and I attended a pitch-in salad luncheon with a gathering of other retired folks at a Senior Center in Indianapolis. For you young folks who are still reading this, old people do this kind of thing all the time. We like to eat.

Diversity was not readily apparent at the lunch. Almost everyone was about our age and after talking to some of them, I found that most had similar backgrounds; job, marriage and children, usually in that order. I was about to give up on interesting stories that day until I met an elderly lady who had one to tell.

I first noticed her when a small sedan came creeping into the parking lot. I watched from the front window of the building as a tiny lady opened the door with some effort and scooted her way slowly out of the vehicle. Bent over with the tell-tale signs of osteoporosis, she made her way to the back door of the car where she tugged at the handle, finally got the door open and extracted a green shopping bag and a well worn cane  from the back seat. 

My decades old boy scout training urged me to help her across the parking lot so I went out and  took her arm. She made her way up the ADA approved incline, cane in one hand and her shopping bag in the other and for once, I appreciated the need for that legislation. That’s not always so;there are times when I see cars with handicapped stickers parked in ADA approved spots and perfectly healthy people climbing out of them; that’s when my conservative soul flares up. 

Susie and I introduced ourselves to her as we helped her negotiate the heavy front door and she responded with a grin. 

“My name is Agnes and I’m 95 years old.”  She told us with a note of pride in her voice, sounding a lot like me when I tell people I’m 69 years old and in all those years, have only been to King’s Island 3 times.  “I didn’t expect to be here today but I made it.” She continued.

“Oh?” I said politely. “Did you have something else to do??” 

“No. No. I didn’t mean just today.” She said, shaking her head. “I thought I would have been dead a long time ago but I’m not and I don’t know why. All my friends are.”  

“I guess you’re just lucky.” I said.

“I don’t know if I am or not. My life, such that it is, is pretty boring. All in all, dying doesn’t look all that bad because I don’t have anyone left to talk to.”

“Well, you’re here.”

“Only because it’s a nice day. I don’t drive if it’s not.”

As our conversation went on, I learned that she had few relatives and that her son, who lives in central Indiana,   had brought her to Indianapolis a few years ago from Northern Ohio. She had spent her whole life in the Cleveland area but after her husband died,  her son wanted to keep an eye on her so he sat her up in a small condominium where she doesn’t know anyone. I never learned how often she sees her son’s family but I had the feeling it wasn’t very often. 

Susie and I helped with fixing her lunch and the 3 of us talked for a while. I tried to think of some way to help with the lady’s loneliness but couldn’t come up with anything because we had no experience in this. Susie and I, with her being from a big family, will never run out of relatives.

We Americans like our stories to be wrapped up with happy endings in 30 or 60 minute segments but it won’t happen with this lady. Her story is not a TV drama. It’s  real life and not particularly in need of some kind of action. This morning, I thought about inviting her to our Thanksgiving celebration but I don’t know her last name or even where she lives. I hope she spends the day with the family she has left and we should all do the same. Gather whatever family you have around you and thank your lucky stars you have them.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Did somebody say chicken and noodles???

November 26, 2009 by geetwo

I’m sitting here staring at my keyboard because I woke up later than I had planned. My original idea for this morning had been to drive to Loogootee, In where a good part of what is left of my family lives.  Part of my plan was to visit with my cousin Bernita’s family because one of her daughters, a lady with the nickname of Annie Bob, is apparently in the savant class when it comes to making chicken and noodles.  Since I consider myself a world class C&N eater, I was hoping to scarf down some of them while also taking the opportunity to meet some of the once or twice removed cousins in person.

Since I have another engagement with Susie’s family this afternoon at three, the trip south would have to have been a whirlwind endeavor of an early start, a few hours on the road and some quick hellos and goodbyes. My sleeping late wiped out all of that. Oh well, maybe next year.

better get your tickets.

November 24, 2009 by geetwo

No wonder the auto industry is broke.

November 18, 2009 by geetwo

There is a story in today’s Indianapolis Star about GM spinoff Delphi defaulting on pensions. This forced the government and its it Pension Benefit Guarantee to take over the payments.  Michelle Wilkes, a 56 year old retiree, has started a campaign from her Carmel, Indiana home to force Washington to guarantee her monthly 3900 dollars instead of the 2800 she is now getting from the Pension Benefit Guarantee agency. 

First of all, I don’t understand why someone  should expect to retire at age 55.  Also, I wish I had a 2800 dollar a month pension. I don’t get a pension at all, electing to save my own  money for old age.  Of course, it doesn’t come anywhere near 2800 dollars a month but then again, none of the companies that I worked for went bankrupt either. 

All this means is that I find myself and a few non-pension dollars of my taxes going to help support this Carmel, Indiana lady and who knows how many others.   

The story also touched on the 60 billion dollar government bailout of GM and how some of that money went to support UAW pensions. Since I am trying not to let things upset me in my old age, I just glossed over that part. It was too confusing anyway.

Another list.

November 18, 2009 by geetwo

Forbes Magazine has produced a list of the United States, ranked in order of healthiness. Indiana did not finish very well, more than likely due to the number of smokers in our fair state. Vermont turned out to be the healthiest state which upset me no end. I have a bone to pick with that state but have not yet had the opportunity to do so. 

Some years ago, Susie and I were on our way to Acadia National Park and when I was deciding what route to take, I thought it would be nice to go through Vermont, having heard many stories about it’s picturesque landscape. As is my practice, I called ahead to a motel in a small town in VT. My trip calculations had us arriving there around four o’clock in the evening, a good time to stop after a long day of driving. 

I made a guaranteed reservation for that day and told the fellow to keep a light on for us even though I knew we’d be there long before dark. My trip calculations are normally faultless but not that day. Our route took us through the Adirondack mountains and Susie insisted on stopping at every little mountain overlook and scenic village in Upper New York State. 

By the time we arrived at our motel, it was nine o’clock and I was dog tired, wanting only to imbibe in a light refreshment and take a hot shower.

I checked in, with the clerk telling me we had gotten the last available room. When I went to sign my credit cartd slip, I noticed that the room charge had doubled from what was quoted to me earlier.

I protested mightilyand threatened to leave but to no avail. The gentleman explained that this was supposed to be a slow night but the leaves had begun to turn earlier than normal and all of Vermont was swamped with leaf admirers. There were no rooms to be had in probably the whole state. 

“Supply and demand.” He chuckled.

He had me but I swore I’d get my revenge someday. I was going to tell the world about the double dealing crooked Vermonters but I never did. Every time I started to write something, I sounded like some sore loser.  I gave up, vowing instead to bide my time until a good revenge idea popped up.

 We’ve been back to Acadia a couple of times since then but I avoided Vermont because I had not yet thought of a way to exact my revenge. 

Now it’s probably too late. The state is full of healthy people and while I feel pretty good, I doubt that I could take on any slim, non-smoking Vermonters; those Green Mountain boys would probably beat the crap out of me.

An opportunity for all of you.

November 17, 2009 by geetwo

My new book, ‘Good Times and Bad’, will be one of the books featured at the seventh annual Indiana Authors Book Fair on Dember 5th at the Historical Society headquarters in downtown Indianapolis.

If  you’re looking  to find a gift for that hard to buy for person, come on down. I’ll be there from noon until 4:00 pm .

The new phone books are in! The new phonebooks are in!

November 17, 2009 by geetwo

and I am somebody. I finally made the new phonebook and I’m on on my way to fame and fortune.  

I’m sure you all have been waiting breathlessly to see if anything new is going on in my life and now, you’re about to find out. I have recently been seduced by the roar  of the greasepaint and the smell of the crowd and  now find myself adding ‘thespian’ to my resume of skillsets.  

Through a series of coincidences, I recently became a member of the Buck Creek Players community theatre and was given a small part in their holiday play called ‘home for Christmas’.  Rehearsals have been going on for a week or so and are turning out to be great fun. I probably should have started this years ago when memorizing lines would have been a bit easier. Luckily, I don’t have very many.

My acting also has a long way to go; I am certainly not John Wayne yet nor even pee-wee herman, for that matter, but I try hard. 

I’d like to invite all of you out for a performance anytime the first three weekends in December.  It should be a good time. Except for me, everyone seems to know what they are doing.

Break a leg, everyone.

Is it just my imagination….

November 17, 2009 by geetwo

or are there hundreds more jewelry store commercials this time of year??

In case you missed it!!!!.

November 16, 2009 by geetwo

Okay. Enough’s enough.

November 15, 2009 by geetwo

I was in line at the grocery store this morning waiting to checkout and as is my habit, I began to peruse the trash magazines that dominate the checkout lane, stealing attention from the other impulse buys barring my way.  I looked over the headlines hoping to get the latest info on Angelina, Jon and Kate and possibly the balloon boy. Instead, One headline jumped out at me ‘Renee betrayed by Bradley!!’ . What the hell? Who are Renee and Bradley, anyway?

I have a neighbor named Renee and I used to run with a guy we called Bradley (That was his last name, not his first.) and I’m fairly certain these two don’t know one another. 

This penchant that the gossip rags have for only using first names drives me crazy.  How in the hell are us old folks supposed to keep up with who all these one name people are?? 

It’s time to quit doing that so stop it right now.