Monday November 17, 2014

Monday November 17, 2014 I had to set the alarm this morning because our electrician, Phil Dougherty, is coming at 0830. I got all my calisthenics and rowing done before he arrived. Phil installed a new light in the entry. He also provided suggestions for improving lightning in the kitchen and living room. Nancy arrived from MVP and she was in agreement with the suggestions. We must now find time to pick out several new fixtures. Our condo is wired kind of funny. We thought several outlets in the living room were not working. Phil checked the outlet and said they had power. We plugged lamps to these outlets and found they can all be turned on from one switch. Why didn’t I figure that out? We have a heater in our main bathroom floor. We found out how to program the heater. We still don’t know if we need a heated floor. After Phil left I walked over to Panera for coffee and my morning paper. Coffee at Panera is now part of my weekday ritual. It was so cold Nancy said she was in for the day. I wanted to do the same but I had to get my 30 in today. I got my wool coat out and went on a three mile walk. It was like a February day. The temperature today has not been above 23 and it has snowed all day. The snow on the ground allowed me to see deer tracks. I think after deer season I will put some carrots in the back yard. Took a short nap and then headed downstairs to clean my desk. We need an electric heater in our ground floor office to be comfortable. We have not spent Christmas with Missy in several years so this year we will get a hotel near LA. Nancy bought the tickets today. We will have enough time to all see the Scott Team. We will leave December 22 and come home January 6. This and that: Saturday night we had a great FaceTime talk with Debbie. Technology has really improved our lives. I remember in the late 40s my Grandmother Hughes every month would want to talk to my Uncle Fred in Philly. It took about two hours to make the connection. Of course in the 40s we had no TV, no dial phones or gas heat. We burned coal to keep the house warm. Little Bobby Scott had to put coal in the furnace about every two hours. In the morning we only had some embers left so I had to refill the furnace and take out the ashes. I mentioned on the 15th that it was the first day of deer season. I checked my Great Grandfather’s log for Nov 15 and he mentioned the start of deer season. GGF on the 15th, 1938 finished hauling chicken manure, 26 loads. He moved stones for Robinson and shut up the chickens. Life was simple in 38.