Author Archives: Lenora Good

An economic fix to gender wage disparity

Weather in the Tries: 
Not as warm as last week, a chance or two of showers, hi 50s to low 60s with los in the lo-mid 40s. IF I trust the weekly forecast. It takes a tad bit to accurately forecast in March.

An economic fix to gender wage disparity:
Ever since I entered the workforce way back when, there has been a wage disparity between what men are paid and what women, who do the same job, make. And it hasn’t been in the female’s favor. Think I’m joking? Remember Carly Fiorina? When HP offered her the top job, she got a few thousand dollars less than her predecessor. There were “good” reasons, the company was making less, yadda, yadda, yadda, but I don’t think there is a single man on the face of this old globe that would have accepted such a deal. They would have upped the ante, demanded more.

Women have always been paid less than men for the same job. And there are always “good” reasons. Some I remember hearing: “You have a husband; you really don’t need this job.” “He  as a family, your husband outranks him. You’ll get the next open slot,” that one was when I was in the Military. We had to take a test for the promotion. I beat the socks off “Him” but I was a female, who outperformed the chosen male, ahhhhh. Some of the “We’ll spend all the time training you and you’ll just get married (and quit)/have a child (and quilt)/miss work every month for a couple days(and cost us more for health insurance)/always have excuses why you can’t work overtime”/and the list goes on. 

Of course, the biggest concern on making wages the same, is the cost. And yet, I argue, they will save money by making the pay the same. Hundreds of thousands, billions of dollars. And the fix is simple. I just don’t understand why businesses haven’t already figured this out. Why those high paid economists have come up with it. Why leave it to a numbers dyslexic person to figure it out. The solution is so simple, and it is staring us in the face.

Pay men the same as women.  There, isn’t that simple? Just think of the mind-boggling amounts of money that would be saved! (as an aside, there is an easy way of telling when traditionally held women’s jobs become well-paid enough for men to consider becoming teachers or nurses, etc. Yeah, when those women finally get some recognition, and some decent pay, suddenly, men realize they love children and teaching, or they truly are caregivers at heart. Yep, pay the men the same as women. Works for me!

Photo of the Week:

One of my friends, Roseann Ferris, had a very interesting, dare I say, “exciting”? life. While in college, she met and married the love of her life, an Iranian student. She followed him to Iran a year after he left. She stayed behind to finish her degree. Needless to say, when she followed him a year after their wedding, she went through some strange portal into a completely different culture where she knew nothing, including the language. Five years later, she was fluent in the language, and passed as Iranian from the north. And then the Shaw was deposed, and she lived through the Revolution until, finally, she and her husband, escaped to America. I haven’t yet read this iteration, but I read the earlier ones, and it is quite a story. Told from the perspective of an American who had every intention of making Iran her new home country. Both the paperback, and the electronic version are available where you normally buy books. Strongly urge you to buy a copy and read it. Here is the cover:

And here is Rosann, giving a talk just before reading a few pages from the book at her Book Launch, in Somer’s Middle Eastern bakery next door to my home 😉

I’m eager to read this final version. The earlier ones were fascinating. For a good read check your favorite bookseller.

from the desk of the big chihuahua;
not much going on. my human goes between the computer and sewing machine and reading a book. sometimes she comes in to lie down with me and let me snuggle for a while. never long enough as far as i’m concerned. but i takes all the bedsnuggles possible. they’re the bestest.

Picture of Peace, Business Cards, and 

Weather in the Tries:
Didn’t we, as kidlets, learn something about March Winds? March winds bring April showers and April showers bring May flowers. And what do May flowers bring? Pilgrims!! /Bwahahahaha/ As you can tell, my Grump has packed up and gone somewhere else! We’ve had a few days of sunshine, and a couple more coming. Winds on Wednesday will issue in clouds, and probably rain showers on Saturday. Highs will range from 75 to 56, with lows mostly in the 40s with a dip to 39.

Picture of Peace:
I subscribe to the Story Sparks newsletter by author, Jane Kirkpatrick. I have had the pleasure of meeting and corresponding with Jane of more than a few occasions. She is one of the most generous of authors I have had the pleasure of meeting. In her March Newsletter, she had a copy of a prize-winning poster by a thirteen-year-old Slovenia student, Anja Rosen, a Primary student from Ravne na Koroskem. Her poster earned her the grand prize in the Lions International Peace Poster Contest. Brava, Anja!! Your poster is delightful.

https://www.lionsclubs.org/en/blog/Slovenia-teen-wins-grand-prize-in-Lions-International-peace-poster-contest

Follow-up on my new cards:
Alas, I am not getting the beautiful blue cards I fell in love with. I have use VistaPrint.com for various projects since Madame Dorion was published. I’ve never had a problem with them, until now. And you must know, they were more than helpful in correcting the problem. They replaced the first cards and when the second order arrived, it, too, was not correct, and they quickly refunded my cost. I still give them high grades, but not with the silvered foil print.

But, I really need some cards and Good Friend Barb recommended FedEx Printing. I needed a new card. I quickly scanned my photos, found one, but couldn’t get it and the type to both transfer to the FedEx link. Good Friend Barb to the rescue. Again. So here are my new cards. I will pick some up tomorrow (Monday) morning, and the majority of my order will arrive the following Monday. So here they are, and yes, the email is active. I’ll let you know when my new  Death Doula website is live.

Photo of the Week:

This photo was taken on the Oregon Coast, I think along Bandon Beach. I loved going there.

from the desk of the big chihuahua;
we have sunshine. i am doing my happy dance. that’s kinda hard when i’m in a harness. but my human lets me read more messages when we’re outside and doesn’t hurry me so much. after all, i have a lot of friends out there. i need to read their notes and leave my response. dogs are like that you know. this desert dog is loving this warmer weather and hopes you are, too.

Quote of the Week:

“Our life is March weather, savage and serene in one hour.” 
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Videos of the Week:
The first is a short science fiction video on youtube.com: The 100 Year Journey to Proxima Centauri B (Sci-Fi Documentary) 18:54 minutes.

Second video is an old one, Johnny Carson with Jonathon Winters as his guest who tells us why he wasn’t a fit in the Marines. It too is pretty short.

Didn’t we vote to stay on one time???

Weather in the Tries:
OMG! We’re only going to have ONE night of 32F temps, and all our daytime highs will be high 50s and even high 60s. Oh, be still my beating heart! Uh, no, don’t be still, but, well, you surely know what I mean, doncha?

Didn’t we vote to stay on one time???
I think we did, unfortunately, we voted to stay on Daylight Savings Time, which means it must be approved by congress, and you know they aren’t going to approve any such thing. According to the medical stuff I’ve read (and understood), we’d be better off if we stayed on Standard time, and THAT doesn’t require congressional approval.

The older I get the grumpier I get in the week following the time shift. So, Auntie Lenora is Aunt Grump this week. Deal with it!

And, I’m late again in posting. Deal with that, too;-) That’s because I spent yesterday afternoon napping with the Big Chihuahua and making and pinning the quilt sandwich of that loooooong and skinny quilt. I am going to start quilting it today, I hope.  

Today I have my “Let’s get to know each other” interview with End of Life WA. Perhaps, with enough coffee, Aunt Grump will take a hike before then. Do ya think?

Business Cards:
Follow up on my cards came, and they were beautiful, except where the “Dea” of Death wasn’t silvered. I randomly checked through all 500 cards, and it was missing on the several I checked. I called Vista and they immediately said they would replace them, and that I could keep the ones I have and use them in the meantime. Nice people to deal with!

Way Back When:
I had a long arm quilting machine. When I sold my house, I had to give it up as it took up too much room. As I recall, there were two rollers in the front, the quilt backing was loaded on one, the quilt top on the other, and the batt was pulled up between them. I had my batt in long tub on the floor, and wouldn’t cut it until the quilting was finished. Everything was rolled onto one roller at the back of the machine. So, I was watching a randomly picked quilting show on YouTube the other day, and the quilter showed how she makes her sandwich. She went to her favorite hardware/lumber store (a quilter’s best friend after the fabric store), bought some pre-finished 1”x2” and taped her fabric for a sandwich to them, rolled them, and voila! Looked like a great idea, so I went to my favorite store, bought an 8’ piece of same, and they were kind enough to cut it for me.

Came home, cut my fabric and batt, got it rolled, and yesterday, I unrolled it in segments, sprayed adhesive on it, pinned it, and rolled the the sandwich into a single roll that will sit in my lap as I run it through the sewing machine. I’ll re-roll it, and repeat until it’s quilted. However, one should NEVER work on a quilt when one is grumpy, so it may take a day or two until I get to it. When you quilt and are grumpy or angry, bad things happen to the quilt and you spend a whole lot of time picking stitches out and do-overs. 

Anyhow, here is a picture of the long skinny quilt on 3 rollers. In this case, the backing is plain muslin, but if it was printed, it would be rolled with the print on the down/outside, and you’d see it on the roll. Note, it is wider than the batt, which is also rolled and flattened, and then the top, which is rolled so the print is on the top as it’s unrolled. For you quilters out there, it is a neat trick, and I wish I could give credit to the quilter who showed it, but it came up randomly and I wasn’t paying attention. Bad me. Truly. I do enjoy giving credit when and where it’s due.

Photo of the Week:
rolled fabric. exciting, huh?


from the desk of the big chihuahua–
i don’t know why my human is so grumpy or sleepy, but i love it when she’s sleepy enough for afternoon snuggles and naps. she gets grumpy now and then, but seldom at me. it is getting warmer outside, the cold will surely be gone soon. then it will nice for longer walks. if you want to go walking, and you come to visit, my human will go with you and take me. walks are fun.

Quote of the Week:

“Dear daylight savings, I asked for more sleep. Not more sun.”

–unknown

Soundtrack of the Week:

Dune Part Two by Hans Zimmer.
We’re going to the movie this week.

A Sneak Preview of my New Business Cards

Weather in the Tries:
I do believe Spring is riding her pogo stick to get here. We have a few nights on the agenda to get below freezing, but not seriously. And our days will all be high 40s and 50s. With cold winds.

A Sneak Preview of my New Business Cards:
But first a follow-up on the quilt sandwich. It is quilted and the edging is almost finished. And I have approval on the fabric for the 100-inch long by 10-inch width quilt which is next up. No, they don’t have a pet snake that likes to stretch out to sleep, they have a cat who likes to sit on the top of the wood headboard of their bed and look outside, and they don’t want the headboard scratched. Then up will be a set of 4 placemats and my Winter Gifts will be finished! And I can get back to the mountains for my friend. That’s going to be fun to work on. I’ve got a start. It will be easy, once all the pieces are sewn and the picture decided on. 

Friend Micki saw my quilt, Stars Falling on New Mexico Mountains, and wanted one like it only different, she wants Mt. Shasta and her three sister mountains. I can hardly wait to get to it. I will try to remember to take pix during the process in case you ever want to try it 😉

Stars Falling on New Mexico Mountains, about 53″ x 19″

I don’t think I told you about going to a networking evening with people who work with Seniors (as in old farts and fartesses, not high schoolers). In talking with some of them, I realized I really do need to get busy, so I have ordered a set of business cards from Vista Print they should be here Wednesday. I found some on a foil background and can hardly wait to get the cards and my new alias email set up. I had it, then wanted to edit, and hit delete instead of edit and now I have to wait until Wednesday to set it up. Stupid computer, I’m allowed three alias emails, it counts the ones set up, not the ones deleted. Really looking forward to our March meeting.

Please don’t try the email in the card until at least Thursday.

I volunteered with End of Life Washington, and hope to begin training soon. Also, I volunteered with Heartlinks Hospiceto be an Eleventh-Hour volunteer, who will be called when a client is “actively” dying, to go and sit with him until life ceases. I will begin training with them soon. I think the phrase, “actively dying,” is beyond a little odd, but extremely accurate. The first time I heard the phrase was when the hospice nurse came to check onmy Favorite Uncle (also my only uncle) and she used that term. His body was shutting down, including his thermostat. 

He reached his left hand across his body and picked something out of a nonexistent bowl and moved it to his left side and dropped it in another nonexistent bowl. Eventually he stopped doing that, and slept a bit. I sat with him for 30 some hours, and kept a diary of what he did. Turned it into my poem, Marking the Hours. Which is the title poem of my book, Marking the Hours. Sometimes he was lucid, mostly mumbling. I wish I knew then what I know now.

Found a fun piece of music on YouTube, Hunnu Guren – Batzorig Vaanchig & Auli. It’s throat singing from Mongolia and Bagpipe and Drum music from Latvia. Not the HU, but fun, and gorgeous scenery. Right now as I write this, I am listening to Hauser play his cello. From The HU to Hauser. Do I have eclectic taste in music or what?

from the desk of the big chihuahua:
my human is going to go away today. i just know it. she’s talking about pizza and beer and bookgroup. if i could reach the lock on either door, i’d go outside on my own, but i have to wait for her and then walk in a harness. she won’t let me run free, says something about me being owl bait, and she says she doesn’t want an owl. she wants me. i’m not afraid of no stinkin’ owl. but, why take chances/ that’s supposed to be a question mark but i don’t know how to get it, after all, i’m just a dog.

Quote of the Week:

“It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade.”
― Charles Dickens, Great Expectations from Filling the Jars

me again, the short legged kid. this is what we get outside right now. don’t know this dickens guy, but he nailed it. oh, a funny happened to my human yesterday. a zombie leaf attacked her face. now she knows how it feels. but she wasn’t scared, just called it a star farker and kept on our walk. is star farker a nice word/ she says it a lot, so it must be.

Yes, your coffee break is late today:

Weather in the Tries:
Tuesday night it will get down to 31F, and on Wednesday it will be windy, but the wind will blow in a high of 59F. Today is forecast to be partly cloudy, but the sun is shining, and I think partly cloudy is just fine. Over on the Dark Side of the state, we’d call this a cloudy day with sun breaks.

Yes, your coffee break is late today:
Thanks for noticing. I got busy with a quilt sandwich, then I had to go to a meeting with another Death Doula, and we (make that She, because she did all the work, I just came to help) presented to community people we are here, and what we can do. It went very well, and we’re going to do it monthly. Open discussion, not a hard and fast agenda.

What, some of you may be asking, is a quilt sandwich? Not to be eaten, for sure. It’s the quilt backing taped to a table or floor, then the batting, then the top fabric, the lots of pins to hold it all together. In this case, I had to get some pens that I could draw lines with but would either wash out, or iron out. I bought both kinds so I could play and see which I liked best. I opted to use the iron out ones (heat dissolvable) but in reading the directions, I did get a wee chuckle. If, after the lines have disappeared, if the quilt is stored at 32F temperatures or lower, they may return. The ink can be HAND WASHED out but not machine washed. For a small quilt, I can understand that, but hand washing a large quilt? I have one response: Bwahahahahahahaha!

The reason I needed ink instead of chalk, which I really like, is because I had to safety pin the layers together once the design was drawn and I didn’t want the chalk to be rubbed off while pinning or sewing. I tried to pin so they wouldn’t be in the way while quilting. I also try to pin so I can easily unpin as necessary while quilting. Today I plan on quilting the quilt, then I get to tie all the quilt threads and hide them in the quilt. That won’t all happen today. Then the edge needs to be sewn on and voila! I’ll have a house warming gift for a friend.

It’s a repeat of the Fibonacci quilt I made earlier. Hopefully it will quilt a bit neater than the other. No, I’m not a perfectionist, but I am astigmatic, and if I had the first quilt on my wall, I’d see all the wee mistrakes in it. One of the quilters I admire tremendously (because of the quote) said words to the effect of, “If you can’t see it by riding past it on a galloping horse, it’s fine.”

The Amish, who are expert quilters, put a mistrake in every quilt they make because they believe only God is perfect. So, yes, I see the mistrake in my wee quilt, but I never claimed to be perfect.

Photo of the Week:

from the desk of the brave dog:
oh, i am too happy puppy dancing to write anything this morning. the sun is out, the sun is out. the air is still a tad chilly, but the sun is out. this brave desert dog is soooo happy.

Quote of the Week:

“If January is the month of change,
February is the month of lasting change.
January is for dreamers…
February is for Doers.”
~ Marc Parent

An odd week, this:

Weather in the Tries:
IF, and that is both an operative word and a very large word, but IF my phone is correct, it will not get down to 32 this coming week. The lowest will be 33 all the way up to 36, and the days will mostly be in the 50s. With three days of sunshine on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday!!!

Maybe next year I’ll auction my shadow off—if I get more money to see my shadow and have 6 more weeks for the skiers to ski, or if the most money comes from the summer people… And all money will go to charity. What do you think? Should I auction my shadow off to the highest bidders???

An odd week, this:
This past week has been a bit odd. I got a couple more books read and have about decided that Lois McMaster Bujold gets one more chance to worm her way back into my Kindle. What? You may be wondering did this fantastically marvelous SF/F writer do to upset me? Well, grab a cuppa, Bunky, ‘cause I’ll tell you.

Housemate Dan got me hooked on her Vorkosigan Series. There are 16 books in the series. The first two I read got me into the characters, who darn well should have been in the next few books, if not all. Well, in Book 2, she killed one of my favorite, okay, my favorite, supporting character. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know that when you get stuck you kill off your darlings. Well, dammit, he was MY darling, and I’m not telling you who it was. Then, in Book 4, which I finished yesterday, NOT EVEN A MENTION of the series people. Not even a wee mention in passing of anyone in the series. Okay, I admit, book 4 was okay, but it was a real let down, because I expected someone to show up and recruit the kids. 

All the books are stand alone, so I will try #5 and see what happens. 

Photos of the Week:
I was lying down with the Brave Dog the other day—something he demands at least once a day—and while I was reading, he was under the blanket until he got too warm then he squirmed until he was playing people in the bed. And, no, his nose isn’t sore, it’s the way his tongue cleans it, and the light in the room.

We also had snow the other day. Not much, but enough that the Brave Dog, the Big Chihuahua, said, “Walk? In that stuff? Not just no, but uh-uh, not me no!” Sometimes he really hates it when his people is bigger than he is, and had other ideas.

from the desk of the big chihuahua:
my human says there should be no snow this next week, and we are scheduled to have three days of sunshine. that does, of course, mean there is nothing wrong with her phone weather forecast. sunshine! oh, this desert dog is soooo happy.

Sunny Day Quotes:
“Even on a cloudy day, the sun is shining somewhere.” –@WillingToTakeActions

my human says if it’s cloudy you only have to go up thirty-five thousand feet. all you need is a big extension ladder. I don’t know how many feet that is, i’ve got four and she has two, and i’ve never seen an extension ladder, don’t know what it is.

Death Cafe and Other Notes

Weather in the Tries:
Well, the high’s will be between low 50s and 40s ranging from 41 to 53 in no particular order. The lows will be from 30 to 38 in no particular order. I do truly wish that butterfly in Beijing would face the other way when he waggles his wings. I’m ready for some warm. I think my wee beast is, too. 

Death Café and Other Notes:

As you probably remember, I usually write this blog during the weekend and schedule it Sunday night for publication early Monday. I’ve mentioned the Discussion Cafes before, as I attend the Reflection Café twice during the month and beginning this morning, I’ll attend the Death Café. As my new friend and fellow Death Doula writes: “About this Death Café: This is not a grief therapy group. It is a friendly and interesting group of people discussing death, dying, and end of life concerns. Bring an open mind, an open heart, and your curiosity.” Now you know as much as I do, but I’ll learn more this morning (Sunday) and will share tomorrow morning.

Am back from the Death Café. Very interesting. A lot of people, of which I am old enough to be the grandparent of most of them. We sat at tables shoved together, and talked as a group, then because we were so many, eventually started talking in smaller groups. Someone brought a deck of Morbid Curiosity Cards. Some cards have trivia on them, some ask questions. One of the questions asked something like, if you were at a funeral and someone flirted with you, would you flirt back? I said, “Yes. After all, I’m not dead.” Then I thought a minute and amended it to, “Yes, as long as it wasn’t the funeral of my spouse or partner.” I’m not sure what caught the people more by surprise, that I said I would, or my age. The deck reminded me a lot of Cards Against Humanity. One of the few card games I enjoy playing. Alas, I’ve been all over the wonderful world web, and can’t find the deck of Morbid Curiosity cards.

I found it. I was searching for Morbid Curiosity, finally added ‘game’ and voila! If you’re interested, go here. And, like Cards Against Humanity, Morbid Curiosity has younger siblings to expand the game ~ Memento Mori and Postmortem. I can see where these cards could come in handy for people who aren’t sure what to ask, when to ask, how to ask. Great conversation starters.

Spring is definitely on its way. The days are warmer, the nights, while still cool, aren’t as cold. And I’m beginning to wake earlier. Which I think is funny, because my room has blackout curtains, and I don’t get light through them, but I am waking earlier than I was in Nov, Dec, and Jan. I’m sure it has something to do with hibernating. Yes?

If you missed my poetry reading on the 6th, this link will take you to it. I’m about 30 minutes in for about 15 minutes.

Photo of the Week:
This is a true wee quilt. I think it measures about 8×9 inches. The background fabric is multicolored, and then I cut some scraps up and ‘sprinkled’ them to resemble a photo I took a couple years ago at my adopted Li’l Brothers’ home. The red was a red rhododendron seen between two trees. The sun shone on it, and it was bright red. The trees kept a lot of things in shadow, but the rhodie was gorgeous. The sprinkles were covered with black netting, and stitched about every eighth to quarter inch. 

from the desk of the brave dog:
it’s still cold out, no matter what my human says. but not as cold as it was. and the sun is once again shining in our sky. can you see me do my happy dance? now, if the rain will stay away, or only come at night. i think if the rain came while i’m snuggly with my human at night, and was gone when we get up, that would be fine. now that i have access to a computer, maybe i can figure out who to write with that suggestion. my human says we need rain, but not during the day, just at night.

Rainy Quotes:


 “Anyone who says sunshine brings happiness 
has never danced in the rain.”
 ~ unknown

“nobody in their right mind would be in the rain
let alone dance in it.” ~ sammy brave dog

Yes, I Didn’t See My Shadow

Weather in the Tries:
Cold is relative. When it’s low humidity cold isn’t so bad, when the humidity is high, cold is miserable! This coming week, temps during the day will be high 40s ~ low 50s. The ice is gone from our pond, and the lows at night will be mid to high 30s. No freezing on the agenda. At least not for this week!

Yes, I Didn’t See My Shadow:
Writing this on 2 Feb 24, yes, Groundhog Day, one of the bestest holidays ever! I took the Big Chihuahua for a walk shortly after the sun came up, and I am pleased to say, I did not see my shadow. I did not see the Brave Dog’s shadow. I did not see a shadow at all. Yaaaaayyyyyy. Winter is about over!!

The reason this is a forecast primarily for those in the PNW is because I don’t know how far my forecasting capabilities go. I figure Phil’s is good for the East Coast people, and I’m good for the PNW, possibly all the West Coast. Perhaps the Continental Divide is our dividing line? What do you think? At least Phil and I agree this year. 

Photo of the Week:

Near the summit of the Umtanum Pass. The pass was socked in except for this area. On our way to get Favorite Grandson so we could all spend Lucamas together. That’s our name for celebrating his birthday and our Christmas. It was the first time all of us were able to be together for a few days in a long time. Favorite Daughter really needed to spend time with her Favorite Son. 

from the desk of the brave dog:
my human and i got a real walk in today. it was chilly, but the sun shone down on is and that was good. then my humans left me for a long, long time. i didn’t know if they were ever coming home and my food bowl was empty. they finally came home and fed me then housemate dan took me for a nice walk.

what i really want to tell you is that my human will be the featured poet on tuesday night at the cobalt café. sign up here–https://poetrysuperhighway.com/cobalt/list.html if you want to come. she says it will be fun, but i’ll probably be in the bed keeping it warm for her. that’s one of my jobs. i also keep the humpfulumpuses off the furniture, the hippos out of the parking slots, and the giraffes and the alligators out of our pond. by the time i’m through with all my chores, i’m pretty tuckered and need a nap.

Quote of the Week:

“No day is so bad it can’t be fixed with a nap.” ~ Carrie Snow

Love in the Dungeon, encore

Weather in the Tries:
Yaaaayyy!!! the days of the coming week will be high 40s and low 50s! WaaHoo! And the nights above freezing. Oh, be still my heart. Well, it can’t be all goodness, I suppose. We do have 3 days with rain on the agenda. Some desert this is turning out to be! I don’t mind the rain all that much, but my short legged friend doesn’t like it at all.

Love in the Dungeon, encore:
It must be the coming of Valentine’s Day, but I’ve been thinking of my days at Couch School in Portland, Oregon. Probably because I recently listened to a book, Lucky Supreme, that takes place in Portland, and the narrator pronounced Couch Street as Cowch Street. Uh, no. It really is Cooch Street. Anyhow, here is an encore read for you. Please enjoy it all over again for the first time.


Harvey Anderson, Lifeguard

or

Love in the Dungeon

                                                                        –by Lenora Rain-Lee Good

In 1951 I was about to enter third grade when Mother announced we were moving. Again. This time to an apartment in Northwest Portland, Oregon, where I entered Couch School. I learned many things while at Couch, the first being to pronounce it ‘kootch’ not ‘cowtch’ – even though it was spelled like something to sit on–after all, we didn’t sit on the school; we sat in the school.  

Couch School, built in 1914, was one of four elementary schools in Portland, Oregon to contain an official school-board-sanctioned dungeon in its basement—with an Olympic sized swimming pool, into which all students were forcedto descend for weekly swimming lessons.  Water terrified me.  I did not enjoy playing in water deeper than my ankles.  The lifeguard, rather than instilling confidence, instilled Terror, with a capital ‘T.’ I remained terrified of both the water and the lifeguard, and refused to learn how to swim.  People would walk on the moon before I would learn to swim! Had I been a gambler, you could have made book on that statement!

Summer came, school emptied, and Mother and I moved. Again.  This time to a small apartment only two blocks from Couch, so I didn’t have to give up my friends.  By summer’s end, every kid I knew looked forward to returning to school, and structure, and learning–even me.  But I did not look forward to the swimming lessons.

Too soon, the dreaded day came.  Once again, I had to descend the dark brown stairs to the dank and smelly dungeon. Once again, I must face the dreaded lifeguard and her insistence that I learn to swim.  Barely holding back tears, I joined my eager classmates, descended the steps to the girl’s locker room, squirmed into my hideous flowered swimsuit, showered, and prepared to face the she-devil in the pool area.

To my delight, a new devil awaited my arrival.  There, by the pool, stood Harvey Anderson, Lifeguard.  In my young body hormones began to stir, albeit sluggishly.  I gazed upon the young Apollo, and fell in love.  If Harvey Anderson, Lifeguard had asked, I would have jumped into either end of the pool and walked the full length to emerge at the other end.  Fortunately, he didn’t ask.

But he did ask me to learn to swim, and with great patience he taught, and I learned.  I assume he taught my classmates, but don’t know that for a fact as I remained blissfully unaware of them.  I saw and heard only my beloved, my first love, Harvey Anderson, Lifeguard.

As weeks passed, I discovered he was single.  Now, this was a good news-bad news type of situation.  Yes, Harvey Anderson, Lifeguard was single, but I was no dummy. I knew I faced years of growth before he would even consider marrying me.  But, O Joy! Mother was single.  I began to plot.  How could I introduce Mother to Harvey Anderson, Lifeguard? Especially since Mother also feared the water.

Then, one day, my dearly beloved announced to the class he would teach a Thursday evening Beginning Swimming class for adults.  The solution to my problem.  Mother couldn’t swim.       

I begged, I wheedled, I whined, and I even shed some tears, until Mother, more fearful of water than I, agreed to take the classes. Harvey Anderson, wise to the teasing ways of his young students, locked the doors so we couldn’t come in and laugh at our floundering parents. Therefore, I missed the long-anticipated meeting of Mother and Harvey Anderson, Lifeguard. How transparent my childish machinations must have been to those adults, as they tolerated my feeble attempts at matchmaking.

Mother did learn to swim, but unlike me, she never enjoyed it.  Once I could swim, and knew Harvey Anderson, Lifeguard (I always think of him with full name and title. Yes, even today.) would save me should I need saving, I became a water child they had to run out of the pool at closing time.

To me, Mother had always been young and beautiful.  To me, Harvey Anderson, Lifeguard was handsome and old.  In reality, there were far more years between them, with Mother by far the eldest, than between Harvey and me.  When romance between them failed to bloom, my heart broke. Harvey Anderson, Lifeguard would not be my dad, and he was way too old to be my boyfriend, and way too young to be her husband.  I found solace in swimming and in visiting the library for more and ever more books.

Years later, Mother and I had many chuckles over this love lost. Harvey Anderson, Lifeguard moved from Couch, as did Mother and I.  Mother re-married, I grew up.  Mother grew old and died, and now I am also old, and lie alone in my bed at night surrounded by my beloved books, and wonder if Harvey Anderson, once a Lifeguard and a Heart Throb, ever thinks back to the time one of his students tried to marry him off to her mother and smiles.  I hope he smiles. 

About this memoir: Harvey Anderson, Lifeguard was originally published in a now defunct blog under the title Days at Couch. I did track down Harvey Anderson to send him a copy only to discover he had died a couple years before I wrote it. Couch School is still in Portland, but is now an office building. I wonder if the pool is maintained and used or if it was filled in and is now used for additional office space? Wouldn’t you like to work in an office building with a bona fide dungeon in the basement? and a pool? I would. Hmmm, I wonder if there are ghosts? or dragons?

Photo of the Week:
Fibonacci Sequence, pattern by Carolina Oneto https://carolinaoneto.com This is easy enough for a beginner, it is 32” square.

IMG_5056.jpeg

From the Paws of the Big Chihuahua:
the ice is melting, and the snow is disappearing. the days are warmer but the wind is still cold. this dog still likes naps, especially when my human snuggles with me. the sun comes out from hiding more often now. my human says winter won’t last much longer. maybe two more months. like what does that mean? how long is a month. and she says this year is a leap year. do I have to leap? how far? when? why? as long as I don’t have to leap into the ducks pond…

Quote of the Week:

Mathematics is the language of nature.” ~ Fibanocci 

(https://csuitemind.com/quotes/mathematics-is-the-language-of-nature )

Fridays with Thurber

Weather in the Tries:
It looks like our snow is about to go away. It’s still scheduled for today (Sunday) but tomorrow (Monday) has rain on the schedule and 39F. The rest of the week is high 30s and low 40s during the day, o’cast, but so far, no precip on the agenda. The nights will be freezing and higher. Monday morning: the snow is melting, the snow is melting;-)

Fridays with Thurber:
Years ago, when I first started watching MSNBC, one of my favorite commentators was Keith Olbermann. He could even make me enjoy sports news. But what I enjoyed most was the sharing of his visits with his father. On Fridays he would read his father a short story by James Thurber, and on Fridays, he would also read a short story by Thurber as the last item on his broadcast.

Then, Mr. Olbermann left MSNBC and moved on to bigger and better, and the newest better is his podcast, Countdown, where he still reads a Thurber short story on Fridays. The podcast for Jan 19, is his most favorite of all the Thurber stories, and I think it is now mine—The Macbeth Murder Mysteries. Please give the podcast a listen to. And if you like the podcast, be sure to Like and Subscribe.

More on Ice Dragons:
Well, the Ice Dragons imitated Icarus. I finally couldn’t up with put the constant below freezing draft on me, so covered the cardboard with a plastic bubble envelope, then lots of tape all around all four sides. The drafts stopped. Alas, the escape of the warmer, moister air from inside the apartment also stopped. The morning after adding the new envelopes and tape, I noticed the Ice Dragons had, like Icarus from so many years ago, fallen or slid, to the bottom of the window. By nighttime, they had faded away. Yes, I know. Icarus fell into the sea, but my Ice Dragons did the best they could.

I wrote a poem, Ice Dragons, Dancing, sent it, and last week’s photo off to Quill & Parchment online magazine, and I am so proud to tell you they will both be published in the February 2024 issue. When it’s published, I’ll let y’all know, and send a link.

Photo of the Week:

Ice Dragons imitating Icarus, fallen to bottom of window. By morning the next day, they had fallen to their eternity.

The new, improved, replacement window:
Due to a series of ‘perfect storm’ type delays, the guys came out with the new window on Thursday. It was snowing. They removed the old window, brought the new window down, and the perfect storm continued—it was too small. The guy who came out and measured missed by 3 inches. They removed the new window (it’s still snowing), wrapped the old window in plastic and put it back. They hope to have the new (and improved!) window in one or two weeks. I know this company does good work, because they made the windows for my house addition a long time ago, and they replaced all my windows in my condo. We don’t get much snow in the Tries, and I think it’s affecting everyone;-) The old window is still broken, and the plastic isn’t quite as good as a double paned window. But it does close the hole. 

everyone is entitled to my own opinion by Jeff Tiedrich:

I have been introduced to a new Substack, everyone is entitled to my own opinion. This is one of two I actually pay to read, the other is Sherman Alexie’s. 

This column, a pastor was arrested for saving homeless people from freezing. what the [fark] have we becomesays I can share it, so it’s hot linked. The language is adult, but so are you. Most of the time. There are some excellent comments, should you be interested. Every so often, someone will ask me why I left Christianity and became an Atheist/Secular Humanist/Buddhist. This article does a fair job of explaining why I now consider myself a Recovering Christian.

And now a word on Fani:
OMG, the OP and his cult members/followers are going after Fani Willis because she may have had an affair, may still be having an affair, with a member of her team whom she has known and been friends with for several years. Yeah? Really? This latest tangle of yarn by a CONVICTED RAPIST and his followers/members??? Ms Willis is an adult. Her friend is an adult. IF they had or have an affair it’s no one’s business besides themselves. I’ve said for years there are only two conditions for sex—consenting adults! Something the OP should learn. Except he’s too old to learn anything he doesn’t think of himself. 

From the Paws of the Frozen Chihuahua:
hello again. so glad you stopped by. please, will you cover me. i’m not really frozen, unless one of my humans make me go outside. then my mostly fat-free body starts to shiver and shake. my main human says i remind her of jerry lee lewis, then she laughs. i don’t know who he is, but heres his shakin’ song.  

Quote of the Week:
“My momma always said, ‘You and Elvis are pretty good, but y’all ain’t no Chuck Berry.” ~ Jerry Lee Lewis

Public Service Announcement:
Don’t forget my 15 minutes of fame is fast approaching, on 6 Feb at about 8pm PST.