First Is Better Than Last But Last Is Better Than Nothing

Have you wondered why most people run the Turkey Trot?  I'll tell you why.  It's the gloating.  Don’t act surprised.  You know people don’t drag themselves to the Turkey Trot because they want to wheeze, gasp for air and become too tired to even wipe the snot from their nose because they think it’s good for them.  Or because it will give them an excuse to eat more.  Heck no.  They do it because they want to be able to gloat that THEY did it and YOU did not. 

Dean and Angus and I ran our first ever Turkey Trot Thanksgiving morning.  And by that I mean we ran until we got to any snow-covered pavement where we would slow down to a brisk walk.  Don’t let this photo fool you. It was a balmy 50 or so degrees so there were lots and lots many a few one or two places where the snow had melted off the pavement.  Anyway, walking on the snow parts was a safety issue.  I’d already slipped on the ice at home and introduced my right hip to the sidewalk so I was “running” injured.  Otherwise I’m sure we could have kept up our swift pace and finished the 2.8 miles right alongside those three sweaty guys who lapped us twice.  And just so we’re clear, I ran it because I knew it would be good for me.  I would never dream of gloating. 

Friday night the mild temperatures continued as we participated in another first for us – the Sheridan Christmas Stroll – where all the townsfolk who don’t have the fortitude or get-up-and-go to run the Turkey Trot stroll up and down Main Street and support the local businesses by eating cookies ... 

 drinking hot chocolate .....

riding the trolley ...

 and the train ...

visiting with Santa and shopping  – all to the accompaniment of Christmas music.

  Our evening ended with a burst of color in the sky ...

and a stroll back to the car ...

where somebody started a snowball fight which ended when an errant snowball found Myra’s face and she saw her own burst of color.

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First Is Better Than Last But Last Is Better Than Nothing

Amazons Like Young Girls

I’m gonna make this short and sweet because I know all of you are busy entering your Black Friday shopping locations into your GPS and mapping out your strategy in order to get the best possible deals you can as you attempt to complete your Christmas shopping all in one longer-every-year day.  

STOP!  There is another option. You can still get a deal AND you can do it while you eat that third piece of pie as you watch Bob Hope sing White Christmas.  Or is it Bing Crosby?  Anyway, before you throw down that turkey leg and drive off with whipped cream lipstick, take a breath, click here and read this. 

 Oh, right.  I know.  You’re busy doing your Black Friday stretches, squats and bicep curls in preparation for the shopping battle.  Let me give you the highlight. 

Hesitating on a purchase shows your willingness to go elsewhere and may get a retailer to sweeten the pot. Web research firm Baymard Institute found that 68% of online shopping carts are abandoned after initial click-throughs. Retailers are desperate to convert those carts into sales, so in many cases they’ll offer a better deal to get you to buy, says Phillips.

Coupon site Rather-be-shopping.com found 17 well-known retailers(including Bed, Bath & Beyond, Macy’s, and Williams-Sonoma) that offered coupons (ranging from 20% off to free shipping) to customers who left their carts.

Don’t want to pay full price on those towels from Pottery Barn? Log in to your Pottery Barn account and put them in your cart. Within a few days, you may get an email offering them at a lower price.

Don’t believe me?  Abby bought a comforter from Amazon.  She left hers in her cart for a while because she wanted to discuss it with Jorge first.   When she went back to her cart to purchase it, the comforter price had dropped $10.00 from its original price! After she got the comforter, she liked it so much I decided to replace my own I’m-too-embarrassed-to-tell-you-how-old-my-dust-mite-infested-comforter-is with the same one.  I went to Amazon and the comforter had gone back up to its original price.  I waited a few days and it finally dropped $8.00 and I bought it.  Even though it was still $2.00 more than Abby had paid I was so excited to think this shopping cart price change thing actually worked for me that I sent my final confirmation e-mail to Abby. 

 She responded “I win.” What?!  That's not what I was expecting.  It turns out she had decided to purchase a second comforter and had apparently left hers in the cart longer than I did and it had dropped $14.00 from the original price in her cart! 

So if you have a few days to wait, and you would rather shop from the comfort of your home as you sip a glass of wine, give this a try.  And if it you think it isn’t working for you…………..well……………have another glass of wine and wait a little longer.  It will.  Or ask Abby to put it in her cart.  I think Amazon likes her better.

Happy Thanksgiving and Safe Shopping!

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Amazons Like Young Girls

Eternal Vacation

Here's what I've learned about retirement so far:

• Everybody who goes to the Y in the morning is old.  I don't mean the nobody-in-their-right-mind-should-even-be-awake-yet time of the morning.  I mean the slept-in-had-a-cup-of-coffee-and-read-the-paper time of the morning.  

• Old people at the Y love to play pickle ball.  They are crazy for pickle ball.  There are benches of old geezers sitting in the gym just waiting for their turn to play pickle ball.  

• Until three short weeks ago I did not even know what pickle ball was.

• I do not want to play pickle ball now.  

• When I play pickle ball I will know I am really old.

• Having more time doesn't mean I clean more often.

• Everybody who goes to the dog park during the daytime is old.

• The dog park is to old geezers what the bar scene is to the young.

• I'm good at wasting time.

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Eternal Vacation

Johnny Traveled With a Suitcase

For months this is how I imagined I would commemorate today – our first official day of retirement in our new home..............................................

As dusk turns to night, Dean and I somberly walk toward a fire ring made of rocks I’d stolen borrowed from his heap gently cared-for-collection.  Flames gently dance in the cool air, giving off diamond-like sparks which are reflected in the sadness of our eyes.  Angus sits quietly between us as we join hands.  We look at each other.  I speak a few heart-felt words and, as we wipe away a tear, I gently toss the duffel that has been with us through the last two years of back and forth between Casper and Sheridan onto the fire.  Chemical fumes engulf us, we choke.  We clutch at each other.  Angus nearly falls into the fire in mid-sneeze and his fur begins to smolder.   Sadness turns to panic as Dean throws dirt on Angus and I run for the hose. 

Screeeeeech……rewind……………. 

As dusk turns to night, Dean and I somberly walk toward a fire ring made of rocks I’d stolen borrowed from his heap gently cared-for-collection.  Flames gently dance in the cool air, giving off diamond-like sparks which are reflected in the sadness of our eyes.  Angus sits quietly between us as we join hands.  We look at each other.  I speak a few heart-felt words and, as we laugh out loud, I hurl the duffel that has been with us through the last two years of back and forth from Casper to Sheridan onto the dirt next to the fire ring.  We stomp on it like crazed old people.  Angus begins barking and jumping around us.  We whoop and cheer as we kick it around the yard.  Angus grabs the duffel with his jaws and begins running all through the yard, stopping now and then to shake it like a stuffed bunny.  We cheer him on excitedly.  He leaps across the fire ring, the duffel catches fire and as he circles through the yard chemical fumes fill the area and engulf us.  We choke.  We clutch at each other.  Angus nearly falls into the fire in mid-sneeze and his fur begins to smolder.   Sadness turns to panic as Dean throws dirt on Angus and I run for the hose.

Screeeeeech……rewind…………….  

It's good to be home.

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Johnny Traveled With a Suitcase