A Week of Contrasts

Monday was nice with 60˚ but Tuesday was even better when we had a 150 year old record shattered with 77˚. After that the weather changed dramatically to rain and much colder for several days.

The weather might have been nice on Tuesday, but that's also the day when my external hard drive crashed. I should have known to have a backup but now I'm paying the consequences. I've had the HD inspected by an IT tech but he couldn't retrieve any data. Now the HD is on its way to an out-of-state facility hoping that they'll be able to save my files. I should know in a couple of days whether they are successful.

My driver license is up for renewal in March and with the state now having a new identification card which is valid for driving and voting the renewal process is more complicated. We gathered the required documentation and stopped at the DMV office on Thursday afternoon. Fortunately, the wait time was minimal but I soon learned that one of my documents didn't meet the requirements. The required documents include a birth certificate, marriage license, Social Security card and two that show current address. I was not able to find my original marriage certificate but had a copy that the agent rejected calling it a "souvenir" and was not able to finish the process of getting a new license. The next morning I called the County Clerk in Fort Wayne to request a copy. I was told it would take a day or two before they could process my request because of a backlog. Yesterday Ray was looking in another box and discovered the original certificate and tomorrow I'm heading back to the DMV hoping they'll accept it and not call it a souvenir.

On a rainy Saturday morning we headed out to watch Jayden play soccer in a game his team lost 6-2 the first loss of the season. He was returning to playing after missing the previous week due to a strep infection. The players rotate in and out frequently playing at different positions. His team has won one game and tied several others.

Playing goalie isn't easy--two goals were scored against him

He and his teammate play defense (notice basketball game in background)

Jayden has one soccer game left and now he'd like to play Little League baseball for the first time later this spring.

A Different Race Experience

This past week was filled with a variety of experiences. Not all of them were new or unusual, but kept us busy as we wait for warmer weather.

It's unusual to have Valentine's Day and Ash Wednesday coincide. I wondered how often this happens and found this information:

This year Ash Wednesday and Valentine’s Day are overlapping for the first time since 1945.

The two dates have also overlapped in 1923 and 1934 and will coincide again in 2024 and 2029.

Again this year, the women of the congregation served supper on Ash Wednesday. For the meal we had a variety of casseroles, other side dishes and desserts. We have two services on Wednesday evenings during Lent: 5:00 and 7:00 with supper served by different groups at 6:00. The weather was a bit damp but not pouring and we estimate serving about 65 people.

On Friday morning Ray woke up telling me he had lost part of an upper wisdom tooth. He has a regular dental appointment in about 10 days, but felt he couldn't wait because he was having some pain and knew that the tooth needed pulling. It wasn't serving any purpose because there was no underlying tooth. Ray called the dentist's office and learned they aren't open on Fridays! He then called several places without finding anyone in their office or who had an opening. We left for the gym and, when we returned home several hours later, he began searching again and found a dental office that is open 24 hours a day. Fortunately, the office was not far away and a few minutes later he was on his way. He returned home with his tooth in plastic. The tooth had some gold from a crown that he didn't even remember he had.

Overnight the temperature dropped to the mid 20s but we were up early Saturday morning. After a quick breakfast we headed to pick up t-shirts for our church team. The team volunteered to man a water stop at the Polar Bear run early Saturday morning. We met the team at the water stop and handed them their t-shirts and caps. The caps were a surprise.

Not able to model T-shirts, the caps identified us as Polar Bear volunteers

Someone brought donuts but then we got busy and started filling cups with water. For me this was a new experience. I've been in many races taking water from volunteers, but have never been the one handing out cups of water.

Ready for the racers

The first racers came by about 8:40 and then a second race came by less than an hour later. We quickly cleaned up and by 10 a.m. we were heading home. Everyone enjoyed the experience but we all wished it had been a bit warmer. Even wearing gloves we all had cold and hurting fingers, but they warmed up quickly when it was over. 

The race promoter is giving our group $150 designated toward Pack Away Hunger for our goal to raise $1,000 for next November's packing event. There's another big race in September and we hope to get the group back together for this event. The weather will definitely be an improvement on this past weekend. I guarantee it!

A night out!

Last evening was very special. I was fortunate to receive two tickets to Shen Yun which features classical Chinese dance and music. The Shen Yun company was in Indianapolis for several shows over two days. Many of the dancers and performers were born in China but Shen Yun is not allowed to perform in China.

The ancient classical Chinese dance and music form almost became extinct but in 2006 a group of artists in New York formed Shen Yun and now share their culture which has grown to five dance companies traveling around the world.

Program Cover

A young Chinese lady, speaking Chinese, and a young English-speaking gentleman served as Masters of Ceremonies and announced each program. The program included a folk dance, Chinese dance stories, ethnic dances, classical Chinese dances, a soprano solo and a solo on the two-stringed instrument, the erhu. The elegant costuming and acrobatic and beautifully executed dances made each  selection on the program very special and unique. 

Shen Yun invented a system that allows performers to travel back and forth between the stage and the animated backdrop. It is obviously very technical but the backdrop changed many times adding to the beauty of the show. The animated images on the backdrop appear to be lifelike extensions of the performers. Believe me, it was awesome.

Several numbers on the program were humorous; some more serious and all were beautiful. Of course, no photography was allowed which I assumed beforehand and didn't bring a camera. Readers who may be interested in seeing a 30-second YouTube video should search for "Shen Yun 2018."

In addition to doing most of the usual things this past week, I and several others served a luncheon on Friday to 20 friends and family of a church member who died last Sunday. Before leaving for Shen Yun, we watched our favorite three basketball lose: Butler, Oklahoma and Purdue.

The weatherman had predicted freezing rain overnight so this morning we didn't know what to expect. We got dressed, had breakfast and started for the car. Stepping off the sidewalk I realized there was a thin layer of ice on the asphalt and figured I probably would fall if I tried to walk across the parking lot to our car. We returned to our apartment and I watched "Worship Anew" a half-hour program instead of going to church. The theme was appropriate for the day: The Transfiguration of our Lord.

Hello February!

We aren't sure of the number of Super Bowl games we have watched. Maybe it is all 52. I definitely remember the first one in 1967 because Bart was born the next day. I can't recall if we watched the game in the succeeding 5 or 6 years but a few years after we settled in Greenwood we were invited by one of Ray's co-workers to a viewing party. That began a long tradition that continues to this day. The group grew to four families but eventually the children had lives of their own and the adults continued enjoying getting together and reminiscing once a year. All things change eventually and our group broke up when two couples moved out of state. The two remaining couples still get together annually. For Super Bowl LII, we were invited to the home of Bill & Karen, Bargersville, and enjoyed some great food and the first half of the game. We were home in time to see the Philadelphia Eagles win in an exciting finish.

Here's a photo of Ray and me at the Super Bowl party. When I got home I realized the overhead lighting was causing lots of shadows on our faces. I still have a lot to learn (but probably not many years to learn it all).

Taken on Feb. 4, 2018

Last week I mentioned that Jayden's soccer team tied two games in succession but last Saturday they played very well and won 6-0. I wasn't able to be there but Ray enjoyed watching along with lots of family members and friends of the family.

For at least 10 years, or more, I've enjoyed the hobby of digital scrapbooking. There's always something new to learn. Currently, I'm taking a 10-week class on making "clusters." The sample below is from the second week of this class.