My Novels

Thursday, October 06, 2011

Fall is here...at last!

Greetings! Yours truly updated my photo to the right, taken around noon today on my back porch. That's an almost-60 woman looking back at you, so try to take that into consideration.

And at long last, I'm writing a post. I wish I had an excuse for not posting, but nothing extraordinary has been happening. And I can't complain, because being content is a nice way to live! However, it's somewhat uneventful and doesn't create material to blog about. As a writer, I could embellish and be creative - but this blog is not creative writing, it's about my life. Thus, my life has been in a peaceful phase.

Oh sure, there's some ups and downs. The down hit on Sunday afternoon when I discovered my car was having trouble with the power steering. Kept hearing a noise when I turned, and then Monday morning there was fluid all over the carport. NOT good news. However, I quickly made arrangements to have my brother-in-law drop by with power steering fluid, then follow me to the nearest mechanic shop. Left the car there overnight, had it fixed by the next afternoon and walked to the shop to pick up the car. I'm just glad the long walks every day with my dogs keep me fit enough to tackle a trek if necessary. Highly recommended, you never know when walking will be necessary. I do have AAA, but this situation was resolved without calling them. I had offers to take me to pick up car, but I wanted to walk. Glad I can still do that!

Today was a memorable day in that I applied for late husband's SSI benefits -- as an unmarried widow about to turn 60 (Dec. 3rd) I'm eligible for that. It's a bit reduced but I'd rather get it started, and save what I can. Oddly enough, though I've been looking forward to this time for five years, on the way to the SSI office, I nearly burst into tears. I was just overwhelmed with thoughts of husband, and wished he'd lived to file for the benefits himself -- or at least knew I was doing this on his behalf. He worked from the time he was 16, off and on, until he died at age 58. It's really his SSI, but I know he'd be glad for me to have it. That's just the way he was, always concerned about my well-being in every way.

The appointment went well, and I should receive my first direct deposit in January. Just the act of filing was a great relief for me, since I felt it was something I had to do on my husband's behalf. I guess that seems strange, but that is how I feel.

As for all the political wrangling lately about SSI benefits (not entitlements, BENEFITS that were paid for from each paycheck!) I fear the younger generations will NOT get it at all. By then, it'll probably be non-existent and everyone's retirement riding on the gambling casino we call "the stock market." Lord have mercy on the younger generations' souls, because to be at the mercy of the market...for your retirement, sounds like a nightmare to me.

What else? Well I've been enjoying the wonderful Fall weather, going for long walks with the dogs. And engaging in a few other fun activities, like the live concert at our local county fair last Saturday night by "The Kentucky Headhunters." It was great, and my sister & brother-in-law went with me, then spent the night.

Saturday we went to Tuscaloosa, to visit their son/my nephew; he's in law school at Alabama University. We also rode through the tornado-damaged areas of the city, and I have to say, there's been great progress made in clean-up/rebuilding. I was curious to see how their efforts compared to our local city, and I'd guess we're about the same in regards to progress.

Here's some photos brother-in-law took at "The Kentucky Headhunter" concert with his cellphone--not great quality (I forgot my camera!):





What else. The dogs, as usual, keep me entertained...when they aren't snoozing on the sofa:



The stray cats still have to be fed -- this is Goldie & Mister/Mister complaining about a late feeding:



Sometimes this tiny black cat shows up, a feral and won't allow me close enough to even see if it's male or female. I feed it on the other side of the fence, since the other strays seem to intimidate Blackie:



My PC desktop failed a couple weeks ago, so I had to buy a new computer. I got a Dell from Walmart, and so far, I LOVE it. Don't know if my love is for Dell or Windows 7; I dreaded the learning curve, but trust me, it was easy as pie. Windows 7 is much more simple, and seems very intuitive -- knows what I want even before I do (that might be scary!).

I am disappointed in Roku though, because it seems to have failed also -- in less than a year after purchasing. Either that, or my wireless router is failing. Haven't tracked down the real problem just yet, so have been watching Netflix streaming on my computer screen. As Rosanna Rosanna Dana used to say: "It's always something!" Amen.

And I guess that is all for now. Maybe when winter sets in, I'll be inspired to stay indoors and write more? Who knows? The autumn weather is too gorgeous to stay indoors, and soon...leaf raking time will be here. I do plan to have a couple of damaged trees (due to the tornado) cut down next week, so there will definitely be less leaves to rake this year.

For now, I'll leave you with this great video of "The Kentucky Headhunters" -- one of their biggest hits and one of my all-time favorites: