Learning Something Every Day.

 Learning Something Every Day.

 

So, today the filter in Patty’s fridge got changed. It might not have THOUGHT it was going to get changed, but it did! Whoever put that sucker in there last time put some torque on it! But it came out finally. She called me later to tell me that the fridge was making ice again like it is supposed to. But that was only one of the things that had bothered her lately. Yesterday the guy she talked to at the oxygen place asked if he could wait until today to come see about her oxygen concentrator. He was supposed to come about eight this morning—and did not. By one o’clock today she had had all the beeping noise she could stand. She called, and the young woman who usually brings her oxygen came and brought her a new machine. Some conversation ensued about the guy who did not even bother to put her on his calendar, too. Have a feeling he is going to hear about that. Anyway, Patty is still hurting rather badly and we talked about calling her doctor. She is putting it off. Understandable. Some doctors just send you to the pain clinic if it is something that they are pretty sure they can’t handle. It seems that it takes a special situation for a doctor to be able to prescribe anything that actually works for pain.

 

Visited for a bit with neighbors today and fobbed off a few branches of rosemary on one. Walked around the yard and looked at my plants. Have a tiny little squash making in the front flower bed and some zinnias that are making heads for blooms. Also walked down in the east lots to see if the Bachelor Buttons are ready to head for collecting seeds. Think the next seed exchange is on the 22^nd of this month, but that is when Jennifer plans to be here. May ask someone to come get the seeds from my “Love in a Mist” flowers to share. Just have to find someone who can stop by to pick them up.

 

Back when my teaching included having students learn to transcribe dictation from doctors whose pronunciation of words into English made for frustrations that included at least one student who threw her keyboard—multiple times—it seemed to me that the tendency to hire foreign doctors, nurses, and assorted workers from foreign (meaning non-native speaking English) countries would eventually cause more and more trouble. How many of us have called our banks or some other entity only to have someone talk to us in a manner that seems to have no relation to the English language? Fast speaking or mumbled speech is one thing, but the tendency to accent and emphasize either end of a word makes that word incomprehensible to some of us. Just to be clear, this ol’ gal does not really speak “English,” but a language known as “Texan.” This is not the same as Southern English where they drink “ahhced tay” or any other cool drink other than Dr Pepper. Even New Jersey English is understandable, and the folks from California can be persuaded to speak more slowly so that the grandmothers of the world can catch their drift. But you just put someone on the phone straight out of some foreign countries where their letter V becomes B and “sh” becomes “cah.” Anyway, not going to take this too far lest the old woman be accused of being a Luddite (look that word up), but it does not seem reasonable to replace real Americans working in important jobs (such as banking, communications, or finance) with folks from other nations who can’t speak English. Yes, folks from Mexico or India will work more cheaply, but somehow that does not make me feel any better when trying to deal with someone on a phone. End of rant.

 

Guess we are not necessarily going to get any rain tonight, but will hope that the cooler temps stick around anyway. Just not ready for the summer heat and having to stay inside most of the day to survive. We can ask our Father in heaven for His blessing on this land, and maybe that will include decently cooler days than what we might otherwise expect.

 

May Israel be blessed to recover or rescue ALL of the hostages, and may its government be stable in the face of all the problems caused by other nations.

 

Rest well, my friends. You are loved.