News paper's obits

I truly do like reading the news paper. When I was a child, my dad used to sit at the kitchen table and read the news paper while my mother cooked dinner. He would say, "Listen to this." and then he would proceed to read to us from the paper. We had to be quiet and listen. He read the Op Ed page and then remarked on what he had just read. He would agree or disagree and give reasons why. These comments were often accompanied by vituperative remarks. He read news articles, sports, obituaries and finally the Funnies. He had names for the Comic page personalities and discussed them as if they were real people. He called Detective Dan Dunn, Damn Dumb and had names for Dick Tracey, B.O. Plenty and many others. I was tuned into politics and civic matters and critiquing at a very early age. I don't ever recall him reading to us out of story books or books of poetry, that was Mother's job but he sure kept us up on current events.There were times when I resented having him insist that we listen to everything he chose to read to us. It took me about 30 years to realize that he was educating us and instilling values in his own way. Perhaps unaware that he was doing that.

I am saddened by the fact that so many news papers are closing their doors. Large papers that have been in business for more than a century. Gannett, who I don't really care for, are gradually cutting back and asking their employees to take unpaid weeks off to keep from being laid off. The Courier ,which they own, is so small and getting smaller each day, that it will come as no surprise if they close down. I could only imagine what my dad would have to say about the inch high comic strips that you need magnifiers to read! I complain about the paper, non stop, but I would still rather read the hard copy than read the news on the computer. I read both.

I used to teach my classes about the news paper. I would have the paper in hand and show them each part of the paper and give them the skills to find what information they were seeking. With one class, when it came time in my presentation to teach them where to find the obituaries, one student was shocked! He said, " You mean they have a whole page or two of dead people's names? Why would anyone want to read about dead people?" That led to a lively discussion with the rest of the classmates joining in. We finally convinced him that it was a necessary service.

I enjoy reading the columnists, sometimes it gets me fired up and other days it calms me down. I have my favorites and I have my un-favorites! One of my favorites is Garrison Keillor. A few weeks ago he wrote a eulogy type column about his brother that was particularly poignant.

I never fail to read the obituary page. I wonder how many lies are told about the deceased that no one would dare dispute. " He was loved by everyone and always had a smile and a good word to say." I can hear some of the people reading the obit saying, "Yeah, right!" I love to read the parenthetical names that they publish along with the deceased person's given name. I think my favorite may be (Chilli Dog), or how about (Popcorn),(Chunky), (Mama Cup Cake,) (Slats), (Rat) and many, many more! Be careful what you nick name your child! Those names live on!. In the memorial section, the other day, I read a message that said,"Bro,people still can't keep yo' name out they mouth." Very touching, I thought.

I know the economy has some impact on the newspaper because there are fewer advertisers but I do hope that if and when the recovery comes we can get back to bigger and better news papers. We live here in Louisville because of the impact television had on magazines and advertising, I hope papers don't suffer the same fate.

Even so, after all is said and done I still dislike Gannett and it's progeny, but I would selfishly hate to witness its demise. I still want a paper in my hands! Ciao

Good Samaritan

You are all familiar with the Biblical story of the good Samaritan. In one of the "Parables of Jesus", the only one of the several passersby to help or come to the aid of a Jew who had been robbed, beaten and left to die in a roadside ditch, was a man from Samaria. This admirable act of kindness was particularly note worthy because the Jews and Samaritans were generally enemies. When Jesus urged his followeres to 'love thy neighbor', he was asked, "Who is our neighbor?" He used the parable of the Samaritan and the Jew and forced his questioner to admit that the Samaritan was truly a neighbor of the man who was in the ditch. So people who go out of their way to perform acts of kindness are figuratively considered Good Samaritans.

Having said all of that, I think everyone likes to be considered a Good Samaritan, it makes one feel so noble, sometimes even superior. How rewarding it is to be able to give assistance to someone in need. The person in the checkout lane in front of you that is short a dollar or two and you quickly say, " Here, let me help you out." or the person burdoned down with packages that you offer to help carry. One time I came out of Krogers and it was teeming rain, there was a woman standing in front of the store with a full baskart of groceries and no coat, hat or umbrella. She was trying to get up the courage to go out into the rain to get to her car at the far end of the parking lot. I had an umbrella, so I offered to watch her groceries while she used my umbrella to run to her car. She could then drive up to where I was standing, sheltered, and load her groceries into her trunk and then give me back my umbrella. She was overwhelmed with my random act of kindness and thanked me over and over. I got my reward by the pride I felt for having had the opportunity to help her. Good Samaritan on a tiny, tiny scale but nevertheless it made me feel good.

Lets talk about the other side of the Samaritan acts. Have you ever thought of the' person in the ditch?' How does it feel to be the recipient of the kind act? Especially if you are a pretty strong, self reliant person that has not often been in a position of need. It feels good to be the Samaritan and filled with pride but to be the person in the ditch and be filled with humility and humbleness is a whole different aspect.

Speaking of people in the ditch, one time Brian, Doc and I were out riding our bikes. We were trying to cross Breckenridge Lane at Sudbury. They have a light at that intersection now but did not have one at that time. The speed limit is 40mph on Breckenridge, so it was a very hairy position to be in. We watched closely and finally saw a break in the traffic and went full speed ahead to get across. I was in the lead and Brian behind me and we thought Doc was bringing up the rear. We cruised about a block and a half when suddenly Brian said,"Stop! where is Daddy?" He was not behind us and we could not see the intersection but we turned around and went speeding back to see what had happened. Doc had toe holders, or whatever they are called, on his pedals and his foot got trapped and he could not get his foot out and he fell into the ditch by the side of the road. We neither saw him or heard him when we went forward. It goes without saying that he was infuriated! We quickly helped him out of the toe traps and got him up and on his bike again but believe me he did not thank us as Samaritans! He was sure the whole thing was our fault because we did not look back as we were fleeing. He yelled for about five blocks before he simmered down and would listen to our comments. When we got home he took the toe things off and discarded them and thereafter referred to them as toe traps. He finally admitted that we were not at fault and we all lived to ride another day! Tough to be the guy' in the ditch' and get over the humiliation and be thankful. Ciao

Ramblings

I was wakened up very early this morning. My number is one number different than GE's so I have been getting their calls for years. It doesn't happen often but it is aggravating when it does happen because it is always very early in the morning or in the middle of the night. The calls are from employees calling to say they are not coming in to work. Today's call came at 5:15 AM. The guy was very apologetic but nevertheless, I was awake and could not go back to sleep. I am always tempted to respond to the caller and tell him work has been called off for the rest of the week, or maybe argue with him that he doesn't sound sick to me so come in anyway, or maybe suggest that his job has been eliminated but I'm not really into sick jokes so I just growl and hang up.

I took Fergus to the groomer and therefore, I went through the park and had a chance to see all of the trees in bloom. The tulip poplars, the Bradford Pears, the dogwoods and the forsythia and other flowering trees and bushes. It was raining so there were not as many runners or bikers and only a few golfers at the clubhouse. Tomorrow is the first day of Spring. Halleluia!

It is also time for March Madness. We are all hoping for U of L to win the whole shebang but any body can win in any given game so we will all be on the edge of our seats throughout the whole tournament. Barack Obama went out on a limb on ESPN's "Sports Center" and chose U of L to be in the championship game with UNC but he thinks UNC will win. I hope he is wrong about that but he did mention the fact that U of L is a great team and has a great defence.

We shall see! Ciao

Bumper Sticker World

In today's world people put their philosophic beliefs and their likes and dislikes on their bumpers for all to see. We know what school considers their kid an honor student, what basketball or football team they cheer for, who they are going to vote for, and other various and sundry things. Yesterday, I saw one that said, "If you ain't cheatin' you ain't trying." Another one said, "There's no alternative to being yourself." Now that last one gave me pause for thought. There is so much said about 'finding' yourself. I recall an old class mate of mine writing a note on her Christmas card to me and she was bringing me up to date on the status of all of her children. She said her daughter, Ann, was in California 'trying to find herself'. Peg, her mom, said she couldn't figure out why she would go looking for herself in California when she had never left Springfield, Ohio.

Being yourself is very complex, when you think about it. Which 'self ' are you? A number of years ago when Brian was a young child, I brought home my picture that had been taken at school. Everyone at school had remarked about what a good picture, of me, that it was. When I showed it to Brian he looked at it for a minute, looking very puzzled, and said, "Is this what you look like at school?" "Well, I guess so. Why ? He said, "You look so teachery!" He saw one of my 'selves' in that picture, not the 'Mama self' but the 'teacher self '.

I think we have many 'selves' depending on who we are at any given time. Are you the same 'self ' at work as you are at home? Are we just role playing in all of the different positions in our lives? I have many roles, who I am, when I am alone with myself,or being a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, teacher, neighbor, customer, patient, citizen, traveler, it goes on and on. I am a different self in all of these roles. I have not totally settled into being a widow. That is a new role for me, I knew how to be a spouse but I have not yet settled into the 'self' that I am required to be now. Maybe I should go to France or Indonesia or somewhere to see if I can find my "widow self ." I guess you need to be yourself depending on who you are at the moment. I know that your basic characteristics define who you are but I have known people that can be harsh and unrelenting in some instances and can be soft and loving in others, which one is the real self? Its beyond me! What would an alternative be to being yourself?

So,pondering the imponderables...I guess I'll just go on being myself... whoever that may be!
Betty Charters, Elizabeth Charters, Betty Fitzgerald, Mrs. James Fitzgerald, Grandma Fitzgerald, Great- Memaw Fitzgerald, Aunt Betty, Miz Fitz, Mrs. Um, Hey you, Just plain Betty or best of all Mama. Ciao

Fly the Friendly Skies

In 1997 Linda and I traveled to Ireland, Scotland, England, and Wales. We were with a group of people, college kids, old folks, young folks and a group from Louisiana, some middle schoolers in the Louisiana group and a few teachers and a professor. So we had women, both young and old, men, again, both young and old and kids aged 14 and older. A very mixed group and it was so much fun and very enlightening.

As we traveled through the various countries we were impressed with the difference in the cultures of the people. The Irish were super friendly and so, so funny! They were anxious to please us and went out of their way to be accommodating, We loved them and the scenery, the pubs the churches and of course the sheep. There are five sheep for every citizen in Ireland! Sheeps rule! The people of Wales were quite friendly also, but not quite as colorful as the Irish. The Scotish people were delightful, we visited famous battle fields, the Queen's summer home, beautiful cathedrals, a minute wedding chapel called St. Margaret's that would only seat about 50 guests, and beautiful fields of gorse, heather and poppys. England was so wonderful but the people are rather staid and serious. Shakespear's home, the beautiful cathedrals, the avant garde of Soho, the ambiance of Chester, (my favorite place) with Bobbies and the Hadrian Wall and the pomp and circumstance of the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace all so enthralling.

BUT the countries all had one thing in common that we found to be rather daunting! Each country had a good supply of public restrooms, that they call toilets, and they all had coin operated doors to enter these necessary rest stops! Our very diverse group resented this abomination! Particularly the young among us, and I must admit, I found it to be a little over the top too. Now, you all know that a group of Americans are not going to take this 'sitting down'. They simply put their coin in and then held the door open for their companions to have access to the facility! However, they spent a lot of time looking for relief stops that did not require a coin. They dubbed the coin operated 'toilets' Pay to Pee stops. Europe was not yet using Euros and it cost one to five pence to pee. So aliteration prevailed. In loud voices the teenagers would anounce, " Five pence to Pay to Pee here!" Outrageous!

Well, all of this is leading up to the news last Friday or Saturday that the Irish and British have decided to install coin operated 'toilets' on their airplanes!! I was so upset about the fact that our airlines were no longer serving peanuts and then lately have decided to charge for luggage, pillows, blankets and soft drinks that I expected great protests from the frequent flier but now, will out airlines have the nerve to ask us to Pay to Pee on airplanes?

May I suggest a couple of things? One , emmulating the astronaut that traveled cross country in her car to persue another woman's husband and wore diapers to cut down on the time spent traveling, or fly Southwest! No diapers needed! Yet. Ciao