Memorial Day Weekend

    This weekend is often called the official start of summer. We've had summer weather already, and I hope it continues. I like warm days that aren't muggy. We've been watching lots of basketball games. The Pacers lost three games to the Celtics, and the Fever won their first game on their trip to the West Coast. This is the first time in many years that I'm unaware of what is happening at the 500 race. I know that rain interrupted the race, but it's sunny now, so it may have restarted and near the finish (as of 5:30 p.m.) I'll turn on the local news shows at 6 p.m. to get all the local news.

[Update]: We watched the second half of the race! When I turned on NBC at 6 p.m., the race was halfway at 100 laps. Because of the rain delay, the TV black-out was lifted! It was an exciting finish and a back-to-back win for Josef Newgarden.

    On Friday afternoon, we joined with many Johnson County citizens for the strawberry festival on the square in downtown Franklin. 

Crosses for all military personnel 
from World War I to the present day

Welcome to the Strawberry Festival

Strawberries, ice cream, whipped cream
on top of a piece of cake.

My Everyday Life - May 19-25, 2024

It Has Been A Good Day

    Today started with waffles for breakfast. The waffle iron was a wedding present that still works fine. I usually bake enough for another day.

    Ray attended church with me. Since our interim pastor died unexpectedly in late April, we have guest pastors each Sunday. We also attended a short congregational meeting after the service. Then, it was time for the luncheon in the Fellowship Hall. Plans for the luncheon were announced several months ago. The luncheon was a fundraiser for a proposed renovation of the West Wing. Members were invited to donate items for a silent auction, and there were many and varied items to bid on. The tables were tastefully decorated, and we were served a ham sandwich with salad. A cup of fresh fruit and cupcakes completed the meal. 

This is half of the room with some auction 
items displayed on the back table.

    When the silent auction ended, the guest speaker, Hal Blank, spoke about Grace On Wings, the nation's only charity air ambulance based at Greenwood's Airport. If you’re interested in learning more, please visit their website.

    When we returned home, we had a few hours before the seventh playoff game between the Indianapolis Pacers and the New York Knickerbockers in Madison Square Garden. The Pacers got off to a fast start, but several Knicks players were unavailable. The Knicks closed the gap to six points in the second half, but the Pacers responded and eventually won 130-109. This is the first time in ten years that the Pacers have been in the playoffs and will meet the Boston Celtics for the Conference Championship beginning on Tuesday. We'll be watching!

    We're also watching the WNBA Fever games and hope they can get a win soon.

My Everyday Life - May 12-18

    

    Thinking about today's events, I hope you agree that the beautiful luncheon and the Pacers' great win made this a "Good Day."

May I Rant a Little?

    The newest technology is incredible; sometimes, the desire to connect with someone or get an answer works. But over the last two days, I believe artificial intelligence needs an upgrade. For example, I tried to call the pharmacy to check on the status of a prescription. I went around in circles while on the phone and on the website. I finally chose the option to speak to a pharmacist and was transferred. However, the pharmacy never answered. After many minutes, I gave up. Later that day, I stopped at the pharmacy, and a sign on the door said they were closed for the day. Why couldn't they have told me that instead of transferring my call and making me wait? There is a shortage of pharmacy staff, and this isn't the first time I've stopped at a pharmacy only to learn it wasn't open.

    I had a similar experience when contacting the provider to purchase ink for our printer. Again, I was chatting with a virtual assistant. Since I had an unusual request, I needed to speak to someone live, not a virtual person. I searched their website for a phone number, and when I talked to an agent, they helped me. 

    Thanks for letting me vent my frustrations about these two incidents. 

    I was busy helping with a funeral meal last week for the family of our interim pastor, who died unexpectedly. He passed on a Saturday evening. The congregational leaders led a service of prayer and singing on Sunday morning. I happened to see an email on that Sunday morning as I was about to leave for church with information about Pastor Henrickson's death, and I didn't go to church but watched the online service. 

    We're late to the game but have watched the Pacers' playoff games. Yesterday's game was almost unbelievable. Can they get a win in New York? 

My Everyday Life - May 5-11

    To the mothers on this list, I hope your day was blessed with lots of love. 

 

The End of the Primary Season

    It's been a fun week! It's also been warm, with warmer-than-average temperatures. May is off to a great start. After 10 years without playing in the postseason, the Pacers won the first round this year and are advancing to play the Knicks in the second round. They defeated the Milwaukee Bucks in six games, 4-2.

    We filled out our absentee ballots and mailed them a few days ago. I'm sure we have never received the number of political ads that have filled our mailbox. It's been 20 years since Indiana had an open primary for governor, and with six Republicans on the ballot, there's a lot of advertising. The airwaves are replete with ads for and against the candidates and are spending millions of dollars. The primary is on Tuesday, and we won't have to listen to all the ads for a while. I'm sure they will begin soon for the fall general election.

My Everyday Life - April 28-May4

    That's all for now. I hope everyone has a lovely week. Enjoy all that May has in store for you.