My Trusted Friend

 

Farewell, my trusted friend

Somewhere during my junior year of college I decided I would look to leave the Northeast for graduate school. After looking  at all of my options and the onerous task of applying -- typing all of the essays individually on the typewriter above -- I accepted an offer from Vanderbilt University in Nashville. It was a different era and there wasn't a lot of flying around the country to visit my choices. Vanderbilt offered me a fellowship and in August 1972 I got on a plane at Bradley Airport, outside of Hartford and got off in Nashville. I had two things with me. I had my suitcase and my typewriter for a carryon. It was that precious to me and if it was lost I couldn't afford to replace it. I also couldn't do my school work without a typewriter. 

Years passed and the world changed and I've gone through more computers at home and at work than I can remember. But I never had the heart to give away my beloved Smith Corona, even if it sat in the front closet for 32 years. It had taken me through dozens of papers and many late nights where we heard the campus bells chime two and three o'clock in the morning. 

On Tuesday night I was scrolling through my local Buy Nothing Group. I'd offered a bag of bubble wrap and I was hoping someone had wanted it. I saw a post looking for an electric typewriter. The poster thought it was a "unicorn," i.e., practically an impossibility. I wrote back immediately and after several messages, my old friend went to a new home this afternoon. My new friend wanted a typewriter -- not a computer -- for her children to learn to type. I can't think of a better destiny for my typewriter friend. 

For those unfamiliar with Buy Nothing Groups, they're groups on Facebook -- there is an app, too -- for neighbors to give and get things. It's great for finding things you'd need/like and recycling all kinds of things. This week I've sent my typewriter, the bag of bubble wrap and a book to new homes. Besides the benefit of recycling, it's made my big New York world a lot smaller.  

I'm feeling a little melancholy tonight. It's thankfully not often I say goodbye to a friend of 50+ years. I know my friend will be loved and won't be stuck in the corner of the closet any longer, but it's a tough farewell. 

As ever, thanks for visiting and have a great weekend. 

Pink Saturday Counts the Steps

I love  the flowers I see on my walks

I know I've been posting a lot of photographs of flowers, but in the last -- I hope -- days of winter we all enjoy seeing flowers. I don't take pictures only of flowers. I do a lot of window shopping, look out for the neighborhood dogs and try to  include a sunset or two. 

I'm going to use this post for an update on my Journey of 1000 Miles. We've had a mile winter and that's given me the opportunity to walk outside every day. Including my miles for March I'm over the 200 mile mark. This puts me right on track for 1000 miles by the end of the year. 

I'm taking nothing for granted and the hot, hot days of the summer are the most challenging for me to get my steps in. I know everyone doesn't like daylight savings, but I especially like the longer days and taking a walk in the early evening. I made use of the longer light today and added a mile tonight. 

That said, I expect to be off my mileage this week. I'm having a minor medical procedure on Wednesday. It is realistically minor, but I'm sure I'm not going to be doing miles in the immediate days following. My only restrictions are swimming and gym activity, so I'm optimistic that I'll be back to walking quickly. 

Is anyone else counting steps or miles for the year? If so, how are you doing?

That's our Pink Saturday post for this week. I hope the flowers have given you a smile. 

As ever, thanks for visiting and wishes for a great week.  

We're Running a Little Late for National Croissant Day

 

A great way to start the day!

I've done a lot of posts about my favorite coffee shops around New York City and far beyond. Though I've cut down my coffee consumption -- not by choice, but by medical "strong suggestion" -- I still drink and enjoy coffee every day. It might seem that I'm drinking coffee in a different cafe every day, but most of the time my coffee is made at home. 

Earlier this week one of my neighbors brought me a croissant, which was so sweet and  thoughtful. I looked at the coffee "dripping" and my croissant waiting for me, and I thought that it's been quite awhile, if ever, since I shared my at-home coffee routine.

I limit myself to one cup in the morning at home. This gives me the option to have a cup of coffee if I choose with friends later in the day -- though not too late in the day. I use a Melitta filter, which is a drip system. It's simple to use and makes an excellent cup of coffee. I've used it for forty plus years and hope to keep using it for a long time. 

I've used larger coffee makers and have one for times when I have people over and want to make more than a few cups at a time. I've also used the "pod" system at work. It was very exciting at first, but I found all the different types of coffee tasted the same after awhile. 

If you're a coffee drinker, what's your preferred way of making coffee? And what's your favorite treat to go with your coffee? I love croissants and just for information, National Croissant Day was January 30. 

I'll be back tomorrow with the Pink Saturday post for the week, and I hope you'll stop back, too. 

As ever, thanks for visiting and have a sweet Sunday.  

Pink and (Blue) Saturday

 

This Pink Saturday we're going window shopping on Madison Avenue

I love window shopping and Madison Avenue is my favorite street to browse. Last week I had an errand in the neighborhood and while I walked to my destination pink (and blue) called out to me. I knew I had my photographs for this week's Pink Saturday. 

We're back at my favorite florist. Lots of pink flowers and a few with shades of blue. 

I found this pink scooter at one of my favorite window shopping stores, Pink Chicken.

The mate to our pink sheep, surrounded in blue. 

I'm a fan of blue pottery and glass and this display caught my eye. But I knew it was No Spending February. I didn't even set foot in the store, so I wouldn't be tempted. 

I hope you've enjoyed our fun window shopping experience. Yesterday was a busy Saturday with synagogue programs and today I spent at leisure. I caught up on at home activities and took a long walk in Riverside Park. The day started out sunny and perfect for walking, but the sun "retired" and the wind came off the Hudson River. It's not quite spring yet in New York City. 

As ever, thanks for visiting and good wishes for the week ahead. 

In the Days When There Were Telegrams

 

These were a few of the telegrams that were delivered to my parents 

March 2, 1947 on their wedding day

The telegram is one more item that has slipped into history. I don't think I've thought about them for decades and probably wouldn't have thought of them if I hadn't found this collection during one of my decluttering days. But for those who weren't able to attend my parents' wedding seventy-six years ago yesterday a telegram was the way to be part of the festivities. 

Western Union was founded in 1851 in Rochester, NY and until the 1980's took the lead in the telegraph business. They pioneered the telex and wire money transfers. By the 1980s the communications industry had changed and the telegram was becoming history. Like so many other companies Western Union changed focus, in their case to the more profitable money transfers. In 2006 the communications operations ended, and it was farewell to the telegram and the telex. I, for one, never noticed. 

But in 1947 the telegram was the way of communication across the miles. Even when I was growing up in the 1960s long distance phone calls were carefully planned and email, cell phones and text messages were the stuff of science fiction. Dick Tracy, the comic book detective did talk into his watch, which was a  two way radio, but it was still only found in the pages of comic books for decades. 

 

My mother's wedding portrait, 1947 

In the days when telegrams were delivered

A toast to my parents on what would have been their 76th anniversary and to the telegram, which kept people connected for over a century. 

Early on in blogging I did a series on items that have disappeared (or are disappearing) from our lives. I think it may be time to resume it. Are there any items that you miss that are no longer part of our every day?

As ever, thanks for visiting and have a great Saturday. 

The Apple Falls Not Far from the Tree

This week's Target grocery specials 

 

On Sunday morning I was sitting at the computer, coffee cup at my side. I opened the weekly sale email from Target and "flipped" to the grocery items. As I sat looking at the ads I was reminded of the many Sunday mornings I had sat with my mother as she flipped through the inserts from the Sunday newspaper. There are so many moments I'm reminded of my mother, but this one reminded me of my legacy from my mother, one of the most savy grocery shoppers I've ever known. 

My total for February 2022 was $185.00 and my total for February 2023 was $279.00. Yes, there's inflation and my big grocery trip of the month was in February this year, not January, as in 2022. The third reason was due to Buttercup error, something my mother was very unlikely to have done. 

I've belonged to a grocery delivery service since 2019. I used it about once a month before March 2020, when it became a grocery lifeline and I scheduled weekly deliveries. In the last year I've scheduled every other week deliveries. The service selects products -- a lot of organic produce -- unless I edit the cart. Usually my order is about $30.00, but I forgot that this was a delivery week until I got a notice that I had a sixty dollar charge on my credit card. Some of the delivery was exactly what I needed, but I doubt if I would have ordered a big beautiful bunch of leeks. I'm thinking potato and leek soup is on the menu for the weekend. 

I've also completed No Spending February. I had a forty dollar "allowance" for gifts, Valentines and a get well present and exceeded it by five dollars. But despite a lot of on-line temptation I didn't buy anything. Of course, as my sneaker shopping friend, Cheryl, pointed out I was buying new sneakers on March 1. Actually I was exchanging the sneakers I bought in January, so technically I still haven't violated No Spending. 

I found this year's No Spending and Grocery February once again very useful. It put a brake on impulse spending and I was much more conscious about grocery purchases and using up what I had in the cabinets and freezer. I also very much appreciated buying a dozen eggs today for $2.98.

Happy wishes for March, Buttercupland friends. 

As ever, thanks for visiting and have a good rest of the week.  

Pink Roses for Pink Saturday

Pink roses -- and sunflowers -- for Pink Saturday

I've been doing a lot of walking this week -- 25+ miles --  and in my wanderings around Manhattan I made sure to pass one of my favorite florists just because I love seeing their displays. When I saw this perfect bouquet of pink roses I knew I had my photograph for Pink Saturday. When I looked at the photograph earlier today I also realized I had my sunflower photograph, too. 

I'm posting sunflowers, the flower of Ukraine, for a sad commemoration. Yesterday was the one year anniversary of the beginning of the war in Ukraine. One year later there are seven million Ukrainian refugees, millions more people are internally displaced in Ukraine and over 8,000 civilians have been killed. But Ukraine fights on and there has been twelve months of heroic resistance. May a million sunflowers bloom in a peaceful Ukraine!

A selfie reflected in the flower shop window

 

I loved the tulips displayed on the sidewalk. About a minute later it started to hail -- just another bit of the wacky weather this winter -- and the tulips were moved under the awning.  

After weeks of almost spring it was winter today and of course I went out without boots. It hadn't crossed my mind that it would really be cold enough to wear boots. Silly me with cold toes this afternoon. But I happily got a few errands done and even thought ahead to get the book for next month's book club. We're reading Isabel Allende's A Long Petal of the Sea. It looks interesting, but challenging and I'm glad I picked up the book early. More than once I've been desperately trying to get my reading finished the morning of book club. Does that happen to anyone else in a book club?

As ever, thanks for visiting and have a great week.