Floored again

This is where I started.

Quincy supervising.
I think he was barking orders. Or yawning.



G got into the act pulling nails.
We used to do a lot of home improvement projects together,
so to have him participate for a few hours
on two different days
was wonderful.

And I have to tell you about the gloves he has on.
I bought them at a craft fair in Melbourne
during a business trip to Australia years ago.
The gloves really delight me,
because they are gardening gloves
with Christmas trees on them.
Which makes no sense if you live in Illinois,
but makes perfect sense if you live in Australia.
Mostly I save them to use each year when we get our Christmas tree.


We are making progress!
The neat stacks at the back of the garage have been denailed
and now have to be sorted by size.
Soon I'll have enough room
to clear the boards out of my friend Ginny's garage
and let her have her parking spot back.

Busy

Bee

Bee

Bee

Bee

Bee

Bee

Bee

Bee

Me.

Memory Wade - er, Walk

Stock picture from last year's Memory Walk
It was such a deluge yesterday
that I decided to pass on trying to get our team to pose for a picture.

Chicago experienced record-breaking rainfall over the weekend as a result of Hurricane (now Tropical Storm) Ike.

And yesterday was the annual Memory Walk to raise awareness and funds for Alzheimer's disease and other dementias, starting at Montrose Harbor at the lakefront. In nice weather, it's a beautiful spot. Even in bad weather it's a beautiful spot.

Pouring rain. Blowing rain. Umbrellas inside out. Huge puddles - no - small ponds to walk around on waterlogged grass or wade through. Oh, my gosh. But at least it wasn't cold. And there was a huge turnout in spite of the weather. I guess for those dealing with dementia on a day to day basis, walking in the wind and rain isn't such a hardship.

I walked with members of my support group, and we dedicated our team's fundraising to the memory of our friend and fellow caregiver Pat.

And this year we invited Pat's son and daughter-in-law and two granddaughters to walk with us. The girls each brought a friend.

Here are some stats:

• Every 71 seconds, someone is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease
  or other dementia
  
• Alzheimer's is the 6th leading cause of death in the U.S.
• Caring for someone with dementia is a risk factor for mortality
  

There are Memory Walks being held all over the country this fall. If you feel so inclined, find one and make a donation. Or, if you'd like to donate to our team's fundraising efforts, email me at ginniej27ATgmailDOTcom, and I'll send you the link. But no pressure!

Misdeeds

We have our dominoes routine.

Most mornings after breakfast,
we break out the box of dominoes and play a few games.

Lots of trash talk.

And I keep score.

When we're done, the dominoes go back in the box,
and the score pad and pen go on top
before the lid goes on.


Not to be disturbed until the next round begins.

So.

Imagine my shock one morning
when I opened the box and found this:


Someone had tampered with the score pad.

And not just a little.

What had been a 5 to 2 score
when we finished the day before
had suddenly become 105 to 2.

Is nothing sacred anymore?
And is there no subtlety?

I especially like the two exclamation points.

Reduce, reuse...

I'm not a big fan of picking out purses and wallets,

so I tend to put a lot of mileage on before I replace them.

I think I let this wallet go a little too far, though.
It is not supposed to be trimmed in whitish leather.
Or have little threads trailing from it.
And the snap fastener is not supposed to have a hole in it.


So here is my new one -
and I just noticed in the picture
there is still a bit of glue residue
from the 99-cent Goodwill price sticker.

Reuse, and help Goodwill at the same time.

What's not to like?

Gustav, Chicago style

Gustav made its way to our area on Thursday,
and we had a very steady downpour all day and into the night.

Close to four inches.

We needed it.

OK

One more email from my brother, late this afternoon.
(He seems to have lost his Cajun accent. Maybe it got blowd away.)

We're ok. The eye is passing to the south of us,
but we're still getting 75-90 mph gusts. No power.
Many trees down. Lots of sticks to be picked up - any helpers?
R and K are safe but also without power.
The worst has past them already and should pass us soon.
We're sitting under our friends' very large carport,
huddled against the wall to avoid the worst gusts,
watching the storm. Thanks for all the prayers.*
Love,

* Ditto.