MRB's Talking Fingers

  It is hard for me to realize that March is almost finished... at least in our part of this world. We did get a taste of Spring somewhat early but that’s gone now. The temperatures have been in the mid 50*F and we are now told to prepare for a coming snow ‘blizzard’ after the expected balmy weekend. I give up! I have enough to tend to without worrying about what kind of weather is coming or going. If you have read my last blog (dated March 10 th ), you will know that I planned to let you know how many photos will make a ‘truckload’. I still don’t know, but I now have some idea because I’ve been busy with the first ‘haul’. But first, I want to give a ‘big’ thank you to our own NOTH owner and computer repairman, TC. With just one email to answer my question about the difficulties I had in installing the new photo scanner that I purchased. He carefully wrote the instructions, step-by-step, in what I should do to solve the problem. I carefully read and followed his instruction, and in...

  I’ve been at it again… trying my best to remember to do the things that I must do, and enjoy the things that I like to do. My goal is… never have a boring day! There are so many possibilities, no matter what our abilities are. If we are still breathing, we should be able to talk, eat, and sleep! That’s a good start! The past year has been filled with challenges, no matter where we live. As some signs along our highway state… ‘WE’RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER; WE WILL GET THROUGH IT!” I hope it is working for my readers too. In our home, there have been the usual duties… shop for groceries, attend medical appointments, do the laundry, tidy our living area, and make the necessary phone calls. There are extra activities that are more fun… bake a cake, work on a jigsaw puzzle, paint a fence, do some handwork like knitting or crocheting, pursue a hobby outdoors or in the shop, enjoy some armchair travelling (either on TV or your own collection of photographs), learn something new, even on a...

  Following graduation, the class of nurses went their separate ways, to find their first job as a Registered Nurse (known as an RN), continue their education, or to finally marry the love of their life (which was not allowed during training days). They were now members of the Hospital Alumnae, and made concerted efforts to travel back to attend the annual Alumnae Banquet. Traditionally, each class planned their own class reunion every five years, which included attending the Alumnae Banquet. The first class reunion, five years after graduation, was filled with stories and photos of career jobs and weddings. At the tenth year reunion, there were photos of babies and young children, along with new jobs and travel experiences. The ‘sisterhood’ was deep and the weekends were filled with planned events, dining wherever possible, late night chatting in hotel rooms, but there was very little sleep. There was great sadness in the class when it was learned that the hospital was closed and ...

Is it my turn to write a blog this week? It has been a busy time in my “office”, phone conversations, text messages, and email ‘letters’, updating my contact list, and remembering to save all the info that I’ve been receiving. My title this week may be a bit confusing, so let me fill in some blanks. This story started many years ago, on a sunny day in the late summer. A large group of young ladies, most who had just graduated from high school, had received notice of the anticipated event, including the date, time and location. Some lived in the designated city, and others had to make travel arrangements. It would be the first day of a life-changing three-year commitment, commonly called ‘Nursing School’. Introductions were made by the “house Mother” over a cup of tea in the Lounge, then a tour of the building to familiarize the facilities, and then an orientation packet, including room assignments, were handed out to just over one hundred first-year students. The residence was a ten-st...

I decided, because of past events that have recently popped up in my memory, to share this blog that I wrote in the A-Z Alphabet Challenge a couple of years ago. I guess this is my "Throwback Thursday" story... _____________________________________________________ I would like to introduce you to a guy I met many years ago. He was a lot older than me, but the first time I laid eyes on him, I knew I wanted to get to know him better. He was gorgeous, and to me, he looked like a giant with a great smile and sparkling gray eyes. He said his given name was Gustav but everyone called him Gus. He and Brownie, his horse, had come to our neighborhood four years earlier, looking for work. He met his wife on a neighboring farm, but that didn't bother me. She was a nice lady, and she would stand and smile when he told me many stories, some about his first home in North Dakota, and his father’s decision to move to Canada. He said he wasn't really a cowboy; he was called a cattle d...

  Last week, I posted a list of books that I “rediscovered” on the shelves of our personal library, books that I know I’ve read but I can’t remember the contents or what I liked about a book. I must have liked it or I wouldn’t have kept it. This week, I want to tell you about the lasting impact that several books have had on my life. The first book that I daily enjoy reading and re-reading, starting in print and now on my Kindle, is ‘The Voice’ (‘ a modern language, dynamic equivalent English translation of the Bible developed by Thomas Nelson (a subsidiary of News Corp) and the Ecclesia Bible Society. The original New Testament was released in January 2011, the revised and updated New Testament was released in November 2011, and the full Bible was released in April 2012 (copied from Wikipedia). My departure from reading my leather-bound King James Version started in the early 1960s when I was introduced to the paraphrased version called ‘The Living Bible’. I appreciated the absenc...

  We’ve said our final farewell to 2020… such a memorable year! Have you kept an updated journal, did as much as possible for yourself, and followed the rules as best you could? Have you remembered to have a thankful heart when you wake up every morning? We don’t have a big house, but during of weeks of ‘isolation’, I started to visit the room at the end of the hall that isn’t used very much, except to stash items that I won’t often need or even look at. It is our ‘Library’, initially intended to be my office. It’s a nice room, has a couple of comfortable chairs and a TV that isn’t hooked up now. The closet was “converted” to a small desk, but not big enough to accommodate the stuff that I like to have within my reach when I’m using my computer. During our times of “isolation", and trying to entertain myself during the day, I decided to try and tidy our collection of books and music. Even though I now prefer to read on my tablet, Kobo reader, or computer because of the challenges ...