Surviving Hard Times

This morning I read a blog on http://www.blogher.com/ by The Accidental Housewife. She posed the question, "Could you survive the Great Depression?"


My immediate answer was, of course. After all, didn't I grow up in the '40's and '50's? I remember ration books and tokens. I remember my father's repairing our shoes by re-heeling them himself and sometimes we had to put paper or cardboard inside to protect our feet from the holes in the soles. To save money on our rare visits to the movies, my mother, brother and I would stop at the supermarket for candy and get to the movie before 5:00 pm when the price went up. Shortly after 5:00, my father would meet us there on his way home from work.


We didn't have much, but it was a good life. I learned how to "make do" and do without. With this background, I decided it would be easy for me to cut back and I would start today. I would stop all unnecessary spending, I would buy only "needs", not "wants". I would turn off the lights when I leave a room, open the windows on these cooler days. I CAN cut back.


Then I looked at my calendar and saw that I'm going to Pennsylvania tomorrow and I have a fundraiser on Sunday, and of course, Joan Rivers will be on QVC this weekend. I'll have to start cutting back next week, but, wait, I have to go to Wegmans for my weekly food shopping, and that always means a higher grocery bill. They have so much good stuff - specialty meats, pre-made soups, etc. Then there's Atlantic City.


It was then that I realized that I have been living a very spoiled lifestyle. It would be a big sacrifice for me to cut back. I'd have to let my hair grow and go gray. I'd have to clean my own house and wash my dishes and clothes by hand. I'd probably have to cook the food for the cats and tear up newspapers for their litter box. I might even have to drink tap water, and turn off all unused lights and geographical explorations.


I think instead of cutting back and trying to live on less, I'll keep getting my hair done, having my house cleaned, using the dishwasher and washing machine. The cats will be happy, I'll keep buying cat food and kitty litter. And I guess I'll go to Atlantic City by bus. After all, we need people to perform these services and I'll be keeping the unemployment rate down.


Now, how else can I help the economy?

Really Old Buildings

On my recent trip to France I saw a lot of very old buildings. The first one I saw was the Arc de Triomphe which was started by Napoleon in 1806 and completed in 1836. It is a beautiful work of art and engineering. But . . .



It doesn't compare with these arches at the outskirts of Paris.

These arches are remnants of the Roman empire. Now, that's old.

Senior Moments

Every Friday evening I play canasta with three other women in the community. Now, we're all fairly intelligent with no obvious signs of aging. But if you had seen us last week, you would not have believed it.

For the first hand, the dealer stopped dealing at 11 cards each instead of 14. One of the rules of the game is that if you get a red three, you get to lay it down and take another card. Well, this woman constantly forgot to take her free card, sometimes for two rounds.

Later in the evening, none of us could remember whose turn it was to deal or who dealt last. Then, we couldn't even remember whose turn it was, or even who went last. At one point, I, as the scorekeeper, gave the other team a score of 200 for a canasta, when it's standard to give 300.

In spite of all the mistakes and forgetfulness, we all had a good time, with a lot of laughs. I can't wait for next Friday, it should be even more fun.

Race for the Cure

This is the third year that my community has participated in the "Race for the Cure", and the first year that I have participated. Although, last year I attended a brunch and silent auction, does that count?

Obviously I didn't race, or even run. We walked. We had the option of walking either one mile or two miles along a route in the community. I started out planning on walking two miles and I was quite surprised when we came to the one mile breakoff point. I did walk two miles and probably could have done more, but that all that was planned.

Walking is so much easier when you have distractions, whether it's someone to talk to, or something to listen to. Hopefully, as the weather gets cooler I'll do more walking. I really enjoy it.

Historical Building

What struck me most on my recent tour of France was age. So many of the buildings, churches particularly, were hundreds of years old. On our second day, we visited the Basilica of St. Remi in Rheims. This church was started in the 11th century, but as is often the case with new construction, funds ran out and work stopped. Work was later started on a smaller, less grand, building.

After the French revolution, the Benedictine Monks were expelled from the Basilica and the Vandals of the Terror took over. The furniture was ransacked, the mosaics destroyed. In the early 19th century, some repairs were made. Then World War I caused much damage and parts of the building collapsed. Work was started to rebuild, but it took 40 years. On the 1st of October in 1958, the Basilica of St. Remi was finally available for worship. It is classified as on historical monument on Unesco's list of World Heritage.

While there are some new parts, it is still amazing that so much of it is the original building. Some of the original furnishings are in a museum, but there are also some in the church. The first picture is a statue of an Entombment from the 16th century.




The next three pictures are of some of the 48 engraved flagstones which were part of the decorated pavement of the abbot's house from the 14th century. They show various parts of the Old Testament. They are now on display on the wall.

I just find it amazing that they have lasted so long.

Truth in Advertising?

In the September issue of LADIES HOME JOURNAL, there was a five page interview/article on Barack and Michelle Obama. The editor said that they hoped to do a similar article on John and Cindy McCain for the October issue. I decided to wait to read about the Obama's until I received the October issue so that both interviews would be fresh in my mind and I could be objective.

Well, the October issue arrived but there was no interview with the McCain's, nor was there even an explanation as to why there was none. Instead, there was a short piece entitled, "What Makes a Great President", or how to vote with your heart.

Now, I know it's important to have a leader who is compassionate, who is cheerful and courageous, but it's more important to have a leader who knows the issues and how to govern. It's more important to study the issues and the candidate's stand. You should vote with your head, not your heart.

I wonder if LADIES HOME JOURNAL will ever publish an interview/article on the McCain's.

Airlines

I recently flew on Air France and it was a wonderful experience. This was my first overseas flight so the comparison with domestic airlines might be unfair.

My most recent experience with a domestic flight was also very positve. I cashed in miles in order to fly first class. On the domestic flight on Delta there was a bottle of water at my seat and shortly after take-off the flight attendant came around offering drinks, which they did frequently during the flight. I was also served a meal, even though the flight was only about three or four hours.

On Air France where I flew coach, I was also offered a choice of drink - water, wine, coffee, tea and a snack. I chose champagne. Since this was a seven hour flight, there was also a meal. We received a choice - meat or fish. Again, a choice of beverage with the meal. I chose wine. Later on, we also had another snack.

I do agree with the management of domestic airlines that they are in the business of transportation, not meal service. After all, I would prefer to arrive at my destination hungry, than not arrive at all.

The meal, drinks and snacks are not necessary to a pleasant flight, but they are a very nice touch.