SUNDAY FUNDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2022

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2022

WARM-UP

It did warm up - into the 80s for two days - and now it's cold again!!!  

I have three plants that I put on my patio that has enjoyed a couple of days of spring that are now back inside.  I have a cherry tomato plant that I got last September that lost some branches but is still alive and Swiss Chard plants that I use for cuttings for salad.  The third is ivy.  I don’t have a green thumb (my thumb is just normal) - but I enjoy seeing things grow and flourish!!

I have a sliding glass door to my patio - and the recent sunshine pointed out that I hadn’t cleaned that window in over a year.  “Let the sunshine in!!”

*****

MEMORIES

My fifth-grade teacher was Mr. Quimby. (Later I learned it was Bill Quimby, but you never called a teacher anything other than Mr.. Mrs,. or Miss)

I was already the tallest and biggest student in fifth grade.  On both sides of my family, there were tall people.  My Uncle Leo was about 6’5”.  

One day, Mr. Quimby called me to his desk during a quiet study time and had an envelope with a student membership at the YMCA.  I didn’t really know what to do with it and (of course) took it home to my parents.  The local YMCA in Cedar Rapids was just past downtown and farther than I would go on my bike and my parents were too busy to take me.

I did go once.  There was a desk to sign in - but nobody told me what to do and where to go.  (This was in those days before the abundance of fitness places).  I wandered into the weight room not knowing what to do, tried a few things, and wasn’t too excited about exercise.  

There was a pool, but YMCA pools (or at least this YMCA pool) banned swimming suits.  I did go swimming in the nude, and didn’t like that - and got dressed and waited for my dad to pick me up and didn’t go again.

Later I learned that Bill Quimby was a referee in the National Football League. I rationalize that he saw a big kid that with some exercise and work could be an athlete - and I blew it off.  Oh well, my loss. 

***

HUMOR:

One of my wife’s third-graders was wearing a Fitbit watch, which prompted my wife to ask, “Are you tracking your steps?” “No,” said the little girl. “I wear this for Mommy so she can show Daddy when he gets home.” 

(Are you coming to the concert next Saturday, March 5th at Georgetown High School - starts at 7:30?  Fun music from movies - Star Wars, James Bond, and more)

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PUZZLER:  (From Car Talk)

A hiker climbed Guadalupe Mountain (the highest peak in Texas).  He started at 7:00 am on a Monday, with his backpack, bedroll, and all his supplies.  He reached the top at 7:00 pm.  On Tuesday, he started down at 7:00 a.m. and reached the bottom at 7:00 pm.  There is one path (and he didn’t divert himself from that path).  

Is there any time that he was exactly at the same spot on Monday and Tuesday at the same time? 

(Answer at bottom)

MUSIC MEMORIES

What were you doing in 1959?  Here are the top tunes of this week in 1959

STAGGER LEE –•– Lloyd Price (ABC-Paramount)

16 CANDLES –•– The Crests (Coed)

DONNA –•– Ritchie Valens (Del-Fi)

SMOKE GETS IN YOUR EYES –•– The Platters (Mercury)

THE ALL AMERICAN BOY –•– Bill Parsons (Bobby Bare) (Fraternity)

MY HAPPINESS –•– Connie Francis (MGM)

LONELY TEARDROPS –•– Jackie Wilson (Brunswick)

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How about the top tunes of this week in 1964

I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND –•– The Beatles (Capitol)

SHE LOVES YOU –•– The Beatles (Swan)

DAWN (Go Away) –•– The Four Seasons (Philips)

YOU DON’T OWN ME –•– Lesley Gore (Mercury)

JAVA –•– Al Hirt (RCA Victor)

UM, UM, UM, UM, UM, UM –•– Major Lance (Okeh)

I don’t remember Um, Um, Um …

****

And, in 1969:

EVERYDAY PEOPLE –•– Sly and the Family Stone (Epic)

CRIMSON AND CLOVER –•– Tommy James and the Shondells (Roulette)

BUILD ME UP BUTTERCUP –•– The Foundations (Uni)

TOUCH ME –•– The Doors (Elektra)

CAN I CHANGE MY MIND –•– Tyrone Davis (Dakar)

****

And, finally in 1974:

THE WAY WE WERE –•– Barbra Streisand (Columbia)

SEASONS IN THE SUN –•– Terry Jacks (Bell)

UNTIL YOU COME BACK TO ME –•– Aretha Franklin (Atlantic)

SPIDERS & SNAKES –•– Jim Stafford (MGM)

LOVE’S THEME –•– The Love Unlimited Orchestra (20th Century)

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What’s happening this week:

NATIONAL CHILI DAY - February 24, 2022 - National Today

How do you like your chili?  With beans, with ground beef, hot and spicy, mild?

Chili is a great meal for our cooler days!!!  

NATIONAL CLAM CHOWDER DAY - February 25, 2022 - National Today

And 

NATIONAL NEW ENGLAND CLAM CHOWDER DAY - February 25, 2022 - National Today

Do you like Clam Chowder (Dennis and Avis - do you have a favorite)? There are different varieties - New England and Manhattan are maybe the two best known.

LETTER TO AN ELDER DAY - February 26, 2022 - National Today

I’ve been working with seniors at Wesleyan Homes. Many would love to get a letter (even if you barely know them or even if you don’t).

(This is going to be longer - but worth the read:)

“A single handwritten letter has the power to change someone’s day, week, month, or even life. It’s a powerful way to communicate and build relationships. Everyone deserves to feel loved, and Letter to an Elder Day was first celebrated by Love For Our Elders’ volunteers in 2020 to encourage letter writing and intergenerational connections after the holiday season, which can be particularly lonely for elders.

Love For Our Elders began with a young boy and his grandpa. When Jacob Cramer lost his grandfather, he began to volunteer at a local senior living community as a way of honoring his memory. He was lovingly referred to as “Bingo Boy” because of his entertaining and lively way of calling the community’s bingo game (a much-heated affair he’s sure to tell you). During his time volunteering, he discovered that many of the residents rarely received messages or visitors from family and friends and that loneliness was a chronic and ever-present problem.

So he decided to start writing letters of love to senior communities; quickly, his moniker changed from Bingo Boy to Letter Boy. He found grace and love in his relationships with his friends in the senior community and eventually decided that he could take his letter-writing efforts nationally. Jacob created a nonprofit that urged people to write letters to elders (or anyone else in need who are older than they are) and facilitated the delivery to seniors around the world.

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So, maybe you can send handwritten letters to your elderly relatives, former neighbors, friends of the family, or even just to strangers to share your love with them!!!

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NO BRAINER DAY - February 27, 2022 - National Today

No Brainer Day is celebrated annually on February 27. Adrienne Sioux Koopersmith is believed to have founded the holiday in the U.S. to encourage people to keep things simple and resolve situations calmly without stress. The holiday, also known as International No Brainer Day, is the day for you to do all those “no brainer” tasks and activities. If a project requires thinking, study, or analysis of any kind, then it is not a chore to do today. Leave that for another day. It’s a no-brainer!

NATIONAL PUBLIC SLEEPING DAY - February 28, 2022 - National Today

Okay - even if you have to sleep in public - find a quiet comfortable place and relax!!!  There are places where I have slept (like trains and planes) that aren’t very comfortable but I needed to sleep!!!

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And, I’ll throw in another day - I have a friend, Sandy, who is NOT celebrating her 17th birthday this week.  Her next birthday will be on February 29, 2024 (yes, her official birthday is on “Leap Day” - so her physical age is 68 (really 70) but technically she has only had 17 birthdays!!.  Do you know of others who have a birthday on February 29?  Wish them a happy birthday next Monday.

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WRAP-UP

This is the last Sunday in February - the two months of 2022 are almost over.  March is coming - spring is coming!!!

Enjoy life, share love because “Love Wins”!!!

Karen
February 24, 2022

PUZZLER ANSWER

YES

We don’t know anything about speed, breaks, lunch, etc.  But, let’s think of it this way.  

A hiker starts at the bottom at 7:00 a.m. at the same time a hiker starts at the top at 7:00 a.m.  They both reach the other endpoint at 7:00 that evening.  If there is only one path, at some point during that day, the person going up would meet the person coming down.