Wednesday, October 4, 2017

Mid week & freebie

Got a few things done yesterday but not all I'd planned. Went to post office with a packed envelope of papers to send to paralegal and a stack of bills ready to go out. Had solved the mystery of APS retirement vs New York Life retirement checks. Don't know how the paralegal missed it but I had too. The check stub from New York Life clearly reads APS pension plan/retirement check! So that one stub we had reading APS from December 2016 was just a summary of benefits paid that year. The paralegal kep putting it down in calculations as a $300+ check he received monthly. I suppose because who can imagine only getting $56/month as pension payment? But APS, which my husband remembered stood for Auto Parts Services (or did he say Systems?) - anyway that company went bankrupt soon after my father retired and it seems New York Life picked up the pieces of the pension plan. They must have done some investing because the most recent check stub shows that this year so far they have paid out more than $500.

I stopped by Dollar Tree on my way to my parents house and was able to pick up a few small boxes. I started by tagging a few things I know are going to various family members. Then I went into the "car room" and started going through a couple stacks of papers to see if they were something I needed to keep or trash. The only things not trash were some tax assessments on the house and paperwork for the covered gutter system Dad had installed a few years back. Next I cleaned out the desk drawers and filled boxes with adding machine tape (there's an adding machine somewhere in the house), scratch pads and post-it notes etc. When I ran out of small containers to box the stuff up, I put the other small office supplies in the long top drawer. Took a couple boxes back to Dad's bedroom and boxed up outwear Tee shirts, bagged clean but used undies & socks for thrift store.

Next I decided to gather up family photos. Thom and I had discussed seeing stacks of frames in the bottoms of the closets in my old bedroom and the car room. I began pulling out those in the car room. The majority of the frames were empty! Started boxing those up. Found my paternal grandparent's 50th anniversary album and the album I made my parents for their 50th and set those aside. The only photos I found in frames were a couple from my brother's wedding, a small collage with his boys, and a double frame with my son's graduation photo on one side and wedding photo of John and I on the other. Put the ones for my brother on the bed he'll use when visiting and mine in a bag to take home. I was especially looking for a photo of my mother taken when she was 16 for her piano recital. So beautiful. It used to be on the dresser in my old room but was moved at some point. Figured I'd find it in the closet there. Pulled out more empty frames! No clue to what Dad did with the photos that used to be in them. I wasn't feeling well - stomach pain again - and began to get upset over the missing photos. Why had he taken them out of their frames? What did he do with them? If he didn't want them, why didn't he ask me if I did? He's asked me about other stuff he wanted to remove - odd things. I would have said yes. Suddenly I was sweating and it was only 71 degrees in the house. I had planned to go to the bank to deposit a check and get funds, drop off my mortgage payment, and stop at the grocery store for a few things. Started having bad reflux with acid coming up in my throat and serious headache. Had to come home and go to bed. Pretty well ended my day, once again unable to do much more than sip water.

Today is better but then I slept in late because I was up and down all night. Deb, your suggestions about the buttermilk were right on target. And, as it turned out, my husband had made buttermilk pancakes for his breakfast and saved some batter for me. He was happy to make it for me when I got up and they were so good! I've only had buttermilk pie once when I was at a tearoom in Richmond but a dear friend who was with me had given me her recipe for it. Wanda said their mother used to make it often when they lived in West Virginia. Thanks to Deb's suggestion, I'm going to pull that recipe out and get busy.

We are supposed to pick up Sissy and John E. and go for Chinese buffet tonight. To be honest, I'd rather stay home and do liquids but if I don't go, my husband won't and everyone's plans are ruined. Guess I will make a show of craving wonton or egg drop soup and then get a little rice. Afraid to do anything heavy.

Finally, here is another Boho Baby zip:
Link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/oyunfytxgmruaua/ws_BohoBaby_29.zip?dl=0

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