HAPPY 2010!~

The weather today is about the same as yesterday. Every day lately, as I drive past the Susquehanna, I can't help noticing that a lot of the water is frozen. There are large chunks of broken ice all over the place. Uncle Frankie showed up for a while yesterday. As soon as he left he went someplace on a big trip. I'm still reading the book by Cardinal Dulles. At the rate of at least fifty pages each day it goes pretty fast. It most certainly isn't easy to understand though. I made a bit of a mistake recently. Somehow I got the impression that I was supposed to go to a meeting tonight in Pittston. The next meeting is next Wednesday night. Tomorrow is New Year's Eve. As virtually always, I shall end up just hanging around lamenting the fact that it will be impossible for me to get any sleep with all that constant noise. I've forgotten the exact date but Fr. Hugh McGroarty's ninetieth birthday is this week. Everyone was congratulating him this morning. He's from St. John the Evangelist Church in Pittston. They gave him a really nice big party.

TIME FLIES

This morning's weather has been bitter cold & exceptionally windy. I can handle it though because there's no precipitation. It's a good thing my parents made sure they got all their really big food shopping over with yesterday. I'm still reading that book by Avery Cardinal Dulles. Although I've tried to keep up with developments in the Catholic world it's still way over my head. A lot of things he covers aren't even the least bit familiar to me. Tomorrow night I have to go to a meeting in Pittston, at O.L. Mt. Carmel. The things I've been learning in that book may come in handy there. The new year fast approaches. A while ago when I got my last haircut, Rose said she was stunned about how fast time flies. We're now already pert near finished with the first decade of the twenty first century. I have no plans for New Year's Eve. I've never been much of a party animal anyway so I don't care.

SAME MOVIES

Christmas went quite well & now we're all planning to get started on the new year. One of my Christmas presents was a gift card for Barnes & Noble. I made sure I went there yesterday. Practically as soon as I got there I noticed a copy of Avery Cardinal Dulles' "Church & Society" so I got it. I started reading it right away. Uncle Frankie came over a few times over the weekend. Fran left early. Steve, Sam, Michael & I spent a little while on Saturday helping her to move an old dresser out to the garage. On Saturday I lectored at 5:00 Mass to cover for Cheryl's daughter. This morning was Fr. Marchetti's last Mass at our parishes. Now we're in the same mess we were in six months ago when Fr. Walsh left us. On Saturday night I saw "The Maltese Falcon" & "A Man For All Seasons" yet again too. I got my annual Christmas card from Grace, Daren's mother. Daren died in September 2005. Birthday greetings go out to Kimbley. She & I worked together at Citicorp in Melville & Farmingdale. She seems to be doing well these days.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Christmas Eve is tomorrow. I can't come to the library so I have to send all my greetings out today. I only get two Christmas cards through the mail each year. All my other Christmas greetings come by way of the internet. Conveniently I even know a woman named Mistletoe. She lives in Finland. This morning when I first left it was very cold but the weather & visibility were good. As I got out of Mass at St. John's in Pittston I noticed that there was an extremely slight snowfall. There's no Mass today at either of the churches I normally attend. My parents got yet another gigantic order at the store yesterday. Christmas shopping literally never seems to end when there's a big crowd showing up. I recently got a merry Christmas e mail from Sen. John Thune, who represents South Dakota. I've never even been there so I'm more than a little confused about his reasoning.

BEATLE PAUL'S "LET EM IN":

quisque me ad cenam vocarit, valeat.    Please visit me at: http://eastelmhurst.blogspot.com http://www.xanga.com/itsmethelion

Posted via email from redhotrabbit's posterous

CHEERS

My father's appointment with his doctors yesterday went well. He should be back to normal slowly starting from today on, just in time to take my mother shopping yet again. Larry & Rose called him last night to say hello. Last night I went to confession at St. Joseph's. It was a penance service & a large crowd showed up. The priest I got was Fr. Rafferty. There were four other priests there, including Fr. Marchetti. I've been watching reruns of "Cheers" lately on a regular basis. There are entirely too many specials on about Christmas. By now it's gotten so boring I can't be bothered with them anymore. I've been practicing my guitar lately too. Most of the time I end up fixating on the A & A minor scales & arpeggios. One of these days I shall have to get the latest issue of "Acoustic Guitar" magazine. The bad weather seems to have died down lately but it's been awfully cold & windy.

SNOW

I watched "Into Great Silence" & "It Happened One Night" on Saturday night. I've seen them each a couple of times before. Unfortunately I ended up staying up until around midnight because "Into Great Silence" is so long. Christmas beckons. It's only four days away. Mary Anne & family won't be coming in unless the weather's nice enough. They called on the phone a few times over the weekend. Aunt Lauren & my mother went shopping yet again on Saturday. My father has a doctor's appointment at 1:30 this afternoon. Uncle Frankie's supposed to take him. He'll be allowed, in a couple of days, to get back to his normal routine. There was a big snowstorm on Saturday night but it didn't amount to much compared to what we were threatened with. I spent around five minutes outside shoveling yesterday. I pushed the snow off the cars' windows too. On Saturday, at Mass, Fr. Marchetti said he's leaving the parish next month because of health trouble. He's only been here since the summer.

CARMELITE MEETING:

The Carmelite meeting was short this morning.  Two new ladies were there. Several regulars couldn't show up. quisque me ad cenam vocarit, valeat.    Please visit me at: http://eastelmhurst.blogspot.com http://www.xanga.com/itsmethelion

Posted via email from redhotrabbit's posterous

OLD MOVIES

It's ice cold today. My mother & Aunt Lauren got the shopping trip over with yesterday. I went to the Carmelite meeting this morning. Another new woman showed up. Barbara wasn't available because of the dangerous weather. We're threatened with a blizzard & she lives in Scranton. Last night I stayed up until 10:30 watching "A Man For All Seasons" & "The Maltese Falcon". I don't usually like to stay up late but I managed to get away with it. I've seen each of them a few times by now. I don't have to lector tomorrow because I recently switched with Linnae. She's taking my turn. That's good because the weather might get me too crazy. I've heard that New York is expecting well over a foot of snow. My guitar playing continues. I'm hoping to get a little better each week from now on.

TRAFFIC

The weather's been getting bitter lately. This morning it was only nineteen degrees outside. Fortunately I found a pair of very thick gloves. They're forecasting lots of snow for New York. Yesterday I got both my Christmas cards out. I only end up having to send two each year. Everybody else gets an internet merry Christmas. This morning I took some mail to the post office for my parents. My mother went shopping with Aunt Lauren early this morning. I noticed this morning, on Eighth Street, that the traffic around here is an absolute nightmare these days. Tomorrow is the lay Carmelite meeting in Wilkes_Barre. We meet on the third Saturday morning of each month at 9:00 a.m. at the Little Flower Manor on S. Meade Street. It's time yet again for our weekly Friday dance.

O.L.P.H.

Last night's meeting went quite well. Lynn Marie, Jonathan & Neil were there. Fr. Jackson & Ada weren't available. There was a little bit of trouble on the way. William Street was closed down overnight. It was either for the demolition of one of the local churches or a busted water pipe. I barely made it past the roadblocks but everybody else got stuck. Yesterday I got a nice surprise in the mail. O.L.P.H., my old school in Lindenhurst, has started a kind of alumni association. With the help of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, they're getting really well organized. Lots of Catholic dioceses are doing it for their schools. I hope the Brooklyn Diocese will have one so I can sign up on St. Gabriel's list. At first my mother said she intended to go shopping tomorrow with Aunt Lauren but she went yesterday with Uncle Frankie.

SHOPPING

Yesterday the sky was awfully cloudy. It looked as if it may have snowed but it never did. Today's very cold too. I made sure I dug up a pair of gloves this morning. Tonight I have to go to the meeting at O.L. Mt. Carmel in Pittston. Those meetings have always struck me as so especially interesting. I ran into Ada yesterday & she said she's not going to be available. She has to go to a Republican meeting. I hope everyone else will be able to show up. Oral Roberts has died. A lot of really big names have died this year. He was one of the much more prominent characters. My mother said yesterday that she wants to go food shopping with Aunt Lauren this Friday. Maybe they'll be going to Wegmann's. I've never been there but I've heard a lot about it, here & in Buffalo. I'm still practicing my guitar. Scales & arpeggios just don't ever seem to get any more interesting.

GLENN MILLER

Christmas beckons, getting closer by the second. My father has been feeling a little better each day so far. He got me to cut the frayed edges from the U.S. flag outside this morning. Over the weekend it got so violently windy that the flag got ripped. I heard on the news a while ago that Sunday's weather was the worst that New Jersey's had in quite a long time. Since then it's been very nice around here though. This Saturday morning I have to go back to Wilkes_Barre for a Carmelite meeting. Nothing much has been happening lately. I've been keeping up with my reading & guitar playing. My old friend Jim has just reminded me, on Facebook, that today marks the sixty-fifth anniversary of the disappearance, during World War II, of jazz musician Glenn Miller. Miller was a major in the Army Air Corps. I finished all the red licorice yesterday. It's not my favorite kind but it's certainly nice enough.

PIZZA

The weather yesterday was absolutely miserable. Cheryl called on Saturday, right before I was supposed to leave for 5:00 Mass, to ask me to lector for her yesterday at 10:30. There was an ice storm that lasted all day & night. I didn't bother to go to the Holy Name Society because it was so bad. Mary Anne had a nasty time getting home. I don't like to miss them but it was too much. Aunt Lauren & Uncle Jim showed up yesterday. Today is John's birthday. He's an old friend from high school. We're on each other's Facebook lists. My father's been recuperating fairly well so far but it's frustrating because he can't do too much of anything. Uncle Frankie went out on Saturday & got him some pizza. Today's the Feast of St. John of the Cross. He's one of the important of all Carmelites. Along with St. Teresa of Avila, he founded the Discalced Carmelites in sixteenth century Spain.

LECTORING

Mary Anne, Fran & my mother went food shopping this morning. They want to do a lot of baking for Christmas. My father is still hanging around trying to recuperate from his arm. His behavior is restricted. He can't do half the things he's used to. I've gotten plum sick & tired by now of all the telephone calls. Hypersensitivity to sound is quite a handicap in my world. Although the weather was quite bitter when I first left very early this morning it's not even the least bit bad now. Christmas is now less than two weeks away. All the TV specials, carols on the radio & controversy are enough to get anyone crazy. So far I have no plans for this weekend except that I have to lector later at Mass. Instead of milk lately I've been putting Nestle's coffee mate in my coffee. A lot of people don't enjoy different flavors but I do. To my chagrin I noticed yesterday that I have a pimple on my nose. It's very annoying.

MILESTONE BIRTHDAY

It's very cold & windy today but at least it's not snowing or icy. My father's hospital stay, as of early this afternoon, is over. All went well except that he won't be able to do much of anything for another two weeks. My mother's never had a driver's license so they'll be driving me nuts for a while. Mary Anne showed up alone without Steve or the kids. Uncle Frankie's been very helpful. The phone rang all day & all night long yesterday. We heard from many relatives. Aunt Lauren showed up. Linnae called to ask if I'd be willing to cover for her tomorrow at 5:00 Mass. Today the Ronald hits a milestone birthday. He's sixty. The visiting priest showed up again this morning for Mass. I got my first Christmas card of the year on Wednesday. It was from Carole & Bob. She was my supervisor when I first started working at Citicorp in Farmingdale & Melville.

FROM RUSSIA WITH LITERATURE:

Yesterday I read some more of "The Possessed" quisque me ad cenam vocarit, valeat.    Please visit me at: http://eastelmhurst.blogspot.com http://www.xanga.com/itsmethelion

Posted via email from redhotrabbit's posterous

HEART TROUBLES

On Tuesday night I got yet another call from the Red Cross. They want me to donate blood again next week. Yesterday I got a call from somebody taking a survey about Obamacare. My father's heart operation went really well this morning. He got either a fibrulator or a de_fibrulator. My mother, Uncle Frankie & I went the V.A. Hospital in Wilkes_Barre with him this morning. Uncle Frankie & I got breakfast in the cafeteria. My mother just got coffee. Hospital food is a little on the bland side. It was a long boring day. At least now it's all over with though. He'll be home tomorrow in the early afternoon. Cousin Java called from Florida yesterday to ask about him. Mary Anne, Steve & the kids are supposed to show up this afternoon. Tomorrow's my cousin the Ronald'sixtieth birthday. He's a decade older than I.

CHEERS

It snowed last night. The weather wasn't very bad but it left a lot of snow & slush on the ground & cars. There was a two hour delay before the schools could let students show up. Hardly anyone showed up at St. Joseph's. Besides me there were only five other people & a visiting priest. The women in the pews all showed up much later than they usually do. Lately I've been watching a lot of reruns of "Cheers". That's always been a favorite of mine. Besides that I usually only watch "Jeopardy" these days. I really like "Who Wants to Be A Millionaire" too. Oddly I've only seen a few minutes at a time of "The Office" every once in a while. I've never seen a single entire episode. I'm still playing my guitar regularly each day. Today is the thirtieth anniversary of the death of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen. He can still be seen in reruns of "Life Is Worth Living". Books by & about him are still being published. He was more popular than Uncle Miltie in the 1950's.

BEATLE DEATH ANNIVERSARY

Today is the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. Mary ended up doing the lectoring. Sean's & Shannon's baby boy, Maxfield Kenneth, was born yesterday in the State of Washington. Today is Tina's birthday. She's Gary & Maria's daughter. Tonight is also the twenty ninth anniversary of the shooting death of Beatle John. The founder of the Fab Four was murdered by Mark David Chapman outside the Dakota apartment building in Manhattan. For some stupid reason, the driver of an eighteen wheel truck got the bad idea to try to get onto Eighth Street this morning by way of Wyoming Avenue. He kept people stranded at the intersection, made a complete fool of himself, & drove everybody else nuts for quite a long time. After a while the guy right in front of me turned right & got onto Sixth Street. So did I. I'm still playing my guitar. The scales & arpeggios get a bit stale after a while but things like that are unavoidably necessary.

PEARL HARBOR

Starting on Saturday afternoon it snowed. I was afraid I might not have made it to 5:00 Mass because my windshield wiper, on the driver's side, broke loose for a while. It was easy to fix though. Cheryl called on Saturday to see if I could cover for her daughter in a few weeks. This morning I went to 7:30 Mass at St. Rocco's in Pittston. Usually whenever neither of my parishes is available on a weekday I go to 8:00 Mass at St. John's but today I got a change of pace. When I went to Exeter's Unimart on the way home I ran into Gino & stopped to say hello. We hung around for a few bitter cold minutes. Today's Joe's birthday. He & his brother George were in my class at O.L.P.H. & St. John's. Joe & I are on each other's Facebook friends lists now. I've been practicing my guitar quite a lot lately. It gets easier each day as I keep it up. Today's the sixty eighth anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii.

SNOW

Yesterday was a little on the confusing side for me. On Thursday, at St. John's Church in Pittston, I found an ad for a book sale to benefit the Pittston Library. I didn't bother to pay enough attention to the details so I got the idea that Barnes & Noble people would be at the library. When I got there the librarian told me that the sale was at Barnes & Noble at the Hub in Wilkes_Barre. This morning before 7:30 Mass at O.L. Mt. Carmel I noticed that someone was inside the little store next to the gas station. When I went inside to get a paper after Mass the woman who was there said she & her husband are the new owners. It only closed down for a short time. This is my second day in a row without a headache. Those cluster migraines get me crazy. They've been threatening us with snow lately. I'm not looking forward to it. I shall be lectoring at 5:00 Mass today. That's not exactly news for me. Today's Amanda's birthday. She's my cousin Alan's daughter in law in Michigan.

GUITAR

Today was the first time in a while that I didn't end up getting a headache very early in the morning. At least that's some good news. For a few days I shall try not to do very much reading. Sometimes if someone reads too much it can give him violent headaches. I can practice my guitar more to make up for it. My parents called Uncle Frankie yesterday to see if he wanted to go shopping with them. They spent a few hours at Target. All the liberal politically correct garbage has, of course, started already. Every day we hear people saying the infinitely ugly, unacceptable "Happy holidays" instead of the much more worthy "Merry Christmas". This afternoon there will be a book sale, sponsored by Barnes & Noble, at the Pittston Library. It will last from 2:00 until 7:00. Of course, it's time for yet another Friday dance.

LECTOR SCHEDULE

Starting late yesterday it was absolutely pouring out. It lasted until early this morning. The last time I went out it was really nice. Oddly that was the first time all season I wore a hat. Yet again I got a headache in the middle of the night. Excedrin got rid of it this morning though. I got a call from Mary last night. She noticed that there was some confusion on our schedule. It said something different from what the bulletin said about who was supposed to lector this weekend. At first I thought I'd made a mistake when I noticed the same thing but she agreed that there was a misprint. We got it all straightened out. Last night there should have been a meeting at O.L. Mt. Carmel church but it was cancelled in advance because of something that was going on at the parish.

KIWIS

Now that December's here the weather's been getting a little on the cold side. Unfortunately winter approaches. It's now only nineteen days away. I got yet another headache at around 1:00 this morning. I took an Excedrin for it & it went away very soon. Somehow I keep getting headaches lately. Uncle Frankie came over for a while yesterday. He wanted to see something in Sunday's paper. My parents were gone grocery shopping when he first showed up. I'm still practicing my guitar each day. Yesterday I ate a kiwi. I've eaten a few pieces of kiwi before, every once in a while. This was the very first time, though, that I've ever picked one up & just eaten it from out of nowhere without someone's having previously sliced it up as part of a meal or something. Dave showed up for a while this morning. He was driving his mother's car. She's out of the hospital. I have to lector at 5:00 Mass on Saturday. Hunting season around here started on Monday. That's about a week later than it starts in New York.

HAPPY DECEMBER

I got yet another headache in the middle of the night. The last one was on the right. This one's on the left. It went away a little while ago. Bad things always seem to happen to me when the weather changes. It's very cold & rainy today. I completely forgot my wallet when I left to go to Mass. I was afraid I might get stopped by a policeman on the way home but nothing ever happened. My parents both were going nuts this morning trying to remember the names of all the Lennon Sisters from Lawrence Welk's old show. Today Dianne Lennon turns seventy years old. December is now upon us. Christmas is only a little over three weeks away. It gets me crazy that all the carols & decorations get started so soon because it takes a lot away from the way things are really supposed to be. Don't even get me started on all the liberal crap we shall be expected to put up with. I'm still reading "The Possessed".

BEATLE DEATH ANNIVERSARY

Yesterday was a bit quieter than the past few days. Unfortunately I woke up with a fairly violent headache. Pills didn't work. The weather's very bad today. I woke up to an annoying rainstorm. It's been cold, windy & foggy all day so far. I went to Pittston, to Child Jesus Church, for the 10:00 a.m. Mass yesterday. It was the first time I'd been there in a while. I spoke to my nephew Michael a little while ago on Facebook. He said he enjoyed that concert Saturday night. My parents started putting up the Christmas decorations early this morning. To do that they were forced to take down all the Thanksgiving decorations. Yesterday was the eighth anniversary of the death of Beatle George. The History Channel showed a special about the Beatles. Even though I've already seen those kinds of shows at least a billion times over by now, it was really interesting. Yesterday was Gino & Michelle's twelfth anniversary & her parents' fortieth.

THANKSGIVING WEEKEND

Mary Anne, Steve & the kids went home around 9:30 this morning. They made sure they left very early because Michael has tickets to see a band, Brand New, at 6:00. I don't bother to keep up with new music so it's all completely out of my league. Before they left we all took some boxes upstairs from the basement & put them in the back of the house. Sam's been reading Thoreau's "Walden". We were all watching a bunch of James Bond movies yesterday & last night on the SyFy Channel. For a while Steve was thinking of taking the kids out to a movie but it never happened. I ate entirely too much all weekend. Last night I even ate a few chestnuts. I can't remember the last time I even ate a chestnut. They're very plain. Today is Alyssa's birthday. She's Mike & Terri's daughter. Tomorrow will be Gino & Michelle's twelfth wedding anniversary. The first Sunday of Advent is this weekend. I don't have to lector at Mass this weekend so I shall just show up.

BLACK FRIDAY

Today is Black Friday. Do as big of a Friday dance as you want, maybe a turkey trot. Just think twice about going shopping. I absolutely dread the crowds people have to put up with at these times. Thanksgiving worked out quite well yesterday. Uncle Frankie & Fran both showed up. Mary Anne & family were here too. Today's my cousin Michelle's birthday. She's a bit younger than I. We ate quite a large meal yesterday, complete with dessert. As always I made the coffee. It was just entirely too fattening. Steve & I took a walk over the bridge yesterday although we didn't cross it completely. Nobody's ever liked that bridge. He wanted to see how all the construction work has been coming along for the new one. Amazingly that was the first time I've ever walked on it. As always, Steve, the boys & I've been playing guitar. All the kids are doing quite well. Steve & Mary Anne went out at 7:00 this morning to go shopping. My cousin Mary Ellen sent me a really nice card reminding me of all the nice times we used to have in Buffalo on Thanksgiving.

THANKSGIVING BECKONS

The weather's been a bit colder lately than I like it. Because of the rain & dampness, yesterday was miserable & today's pretty dreary so far too. I've been playing my guitar regularly, usually just a lot of scales & arpeggios lately. Last night I sort of figured out how to play a variation of "Liar Liar" by the Castaways. Today I got the exact sheet music on the Ultimate Guitar site. It always pays to cheat a little. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. As always there will be quite a crowd. Mary Anne & family will be coming in tomorrow because of all the traffic we shall be expecting tonight. I absolutely dread times like Black Friday. If there's any shopping to be done, I'm hoping to pass the buck with driving. I'm still reading "The Possessed". Recently I've gotten back into the habit of watching "Jeopardy". Somehow I stopped watching it for a while. I've also gotten into the habit of watching reruns of an old favorite of mine, "Cheers".

SHAKESPEARE

Thanksgiving is now only two days away. Mary Anne & family are supposed to show up either late tomorrow or Thursday. Once again, I shan't be going to Buffalo. I miss those days. Because of my insanely good long term memory, I have total recall of all sorts of obscure details from all those trips. I'm still reading "The Possessed". Surprisingly I can get through all the small print fairly easy. Dostoyevsky's books are overwhelmingly long & didactic. On Monday I watched Joseph Pearce's show about Shakespeare. It's a good refresher course on the Bard of Avon. I've been practicing the guitar too. My fingers get quite a workout each day. Uncle Frankie showed up for a while yesterday. As far as I know there's nothing going on with him lately. Yesterday I got yet another fund raising letter from St. John the Baptist. It's good to see that Wally Lace is still in charge.

JFK

The weekend went by quite well. I finished reading "Northanger Abbey" & started re_reading "The Possessed". I lectored at 10:30 Mass yesterday. On the way home from Mass I went over to Uncle Frankie's. Fran cooked a really nice meal. My parents got there a little while after I did. Gary called last night. A couple of hours later Larry & Rose called too. THe called my father to see how he is. Somehow I didn't end up getting a chance to talk to Larry & Rose but I spent around fifteen minutes on the phone with Gary. Yesterday was the forty sixth anniversary of the JFK assassination. That was the moment that set the 1960's into gear, like the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand & his wife Sofia brought on World War I. My nephew Michael's been picking my brain about philosohy yet again. He's taking an ethics class at Hofstra now. I took one at S.U.N.Y. Farmingdale a while ago. Marlene Groner taught the class I took. The weather today is cold but very nice. Yesterday was the forty sixth anniversary of JFK's assassination.

PA. DRIVERS

Yesterday I read more of "Northanger Abbey" & more of the essays & other things in that book about "The Waste Land". This morning I went to the Carmelite meeting in Wilkes_Barre. There were a half dozen of us in attendance. Besides attending to the usual details, we made preparations for upcoming events & decided to send a gift to Sr. Catherine, who is now convalescing in Cincinnati, Ohio. As I was going home on Wyoming Avenue, I was forced to bluff my way through the usual gang of Pa. idiots. A woman drove right in front of me from the southbound lane to get to the opposite side of the street to pull into a parking lot. A guy in a truck drove right into my lane from that lane, into oncoming traffic, for at least a few seconds. We say happy birthday today to Sarah in Michigan. She's cousin Leonard's granddaughter. Tomorrow I shall have to lector at 10:30 Mass. That's usually pretty easy for me.

CONSTRUCTION

I sent messages to some O.L.P.H. classmates on Facebook yesterday. So far only George has sent me an answer. He remembers me well. Uncle Frankie showed up for a while again yesterday. I'm still reading "Northanger Abbey" & "The Waste Land". Tomorrow morning I have to go to Wilkes_Barre for the Carmelite meeting. It's at 9:00 a.m. every third Saturday of the month at the Little Flower Manor on South Meade Street. Last night, fairly late, it started pouring out. I was already in bed by then but I couldn't help hearing all the violent noise. We really needed the rain. I was very surprised to see this morning that there was no construction work going on over in Pittston. Maybe they don't work on Fridays around here. I was very happy to see, in the Citizen's Voice this morning, that Oprah Winfrey will no longer be on TV starting in 2011. It can't possibly be soon enough for me.

LINDENHURST FRIENDS

Uncle Frankie came over for a while. Yesterday I mistakenly said he didn't show up on Tuesday but he did. I must have forgotten. Mark, from my high school class at St. John the Baptist in West Islip, has joined my Facebook friends list. Ordinarily this wouldn't have been terribly newsworthy but I was checking out his friends list & couldn't help noticing that he's in touch with people from our class at O.L.P.H in Lindenhurst. Until now I'd never been able to track down people who were only in my class in O.L.P.H. I went to that school during the seventh & eighth grades. Construction work every day in Pittston is still getting me crazy. It's only bad during the day. Last night I went to the meeting at O.L. Mt. Carmel on William Street. Everyone except Lynn Marie showed up. Oddly I couldn't help overhearing the church's band playing "Kashimir" from Led Zeppelin's "Physical Graffiti" album.

WEATHER

Tonight I have to go to another O.L. Mt. Carmel meeting in Pittston. Sometimes it's cancelled but so far I haven't heard anything. We haven't seen Uncle Frankie for a couple of days. He's probably really busy with something. Yesterday I read around fifty pages of "Northanger Abbey". It gets easier each time I read it. Jane Austen's always been a favorite of mine. A couple of days ago I saw another episode of Joseph Pearce's show about Shakespeare. The episode was about "King Lear" & its relevance to today's world. The weather's a bit colder today than it's been lately. There was ice on my windows this morning. I just overheard someone say that it's really nice out now. There's a never ending barrage of construction work all over the place these days. Ths Saturday I shall have to go to another Lay Carmelite meeting.

JANE AUSTEN

Autumn continues to bring us above average temperatures & much nicer weather than I'm used to for November. All this week I shall be going to Pittston for 8:00 a.m. Mass at St. John's. I still don't know anybody who shows up but by now I'm getting used to all the familiar faces. So far nothing much of note has been going on over there. I'm still practicing my guitar. Lately I've been trying to get the hang of the scales in the mixolydian mode. It only seems difficult at first but each scale inevitably follows a set pattern anyway so it's more confusing than physically difficult. I've just started re_reading Jane Austen's "Northanger Abbey". I've already read it quite a few times. I'm still reading all those other things too. Gas prices have been going down very slowly lately. At least that's a little bit of temporary good news.

ITALIAN

I made a couple of big mistakes over the weekend. I thought the ziti dinner was at O.L. Mt. Carmel. It was really at St. Anthony's In Exeter. I wasn't really determined to show up anyway. I also thought O.L. Mt. Carmel's blood drive was today. It was yesterday so I missed it. Lately I've been practicing a lot with Acoustic Guitar magazine. It provides me with quite a lot more variety than just a few Beatle & Eric Clapton books. Uncle Frankie visited for a while yesterday. I overheard him & my parents say that Mary Anne & Michael both speak Italian really well. With all my Italian connections I shall have to follow their lead & brush up on my command of the language. On my way home from Pittston this morning I noticed that part of Main Street was blocked off to traffic. It was the part that starts right at the Valero gas station. Today's cousin Luigi's birthday. There are two cousin Luigis on Facebook. They both have my last name.

NO GAME

The weather this morning has been very cold, dreary & rainy. I found out yesterday that New York's weather, & southeastern Pa's, was worse. It was raining violently. Lately I've been practicing my guitar more after quite an unfortunate lull. Last night there was another football game but my father & Uncle Frankie didn't bother to show up because it's playoff time & their favorite team didn't make it this year. Today would have been my cousin Karen's fifty third birthday. It's her first birthday since her death. Tomorrow's yet another milestone birthday for a classmate of mine. We now shall give a major doffing of the hat to Mike upon his fiftieth. We were in the same class in high school. On Monday, although I don't have an official appointment, I shall be giving blood in Pittston.

FRIDAY THE 13TH & BROKEN ARM

Yesterday I went to Barnes & Noble at the Wilkes_Barre Hub for a while. On my way home I made sure I stopped at a local Sunoco station for gas & at Price Chopper for pumpkin pie. I also read T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land". It's considered a classic among twentieth century poems. Having been a bit lazy lately about practicing my guitar I took advantage of the latest issue of "Acoustic Guitar" magazine. It always has a lot of really good songs & music in general in it. I went to Rose Chairge's barber shop slightly before 10:00 this morning for a haircut. As I reminded her, I noticed recently in my schedule book that my last haircut was on June 5. Nothing much is on TV these days but lately I've been watching reruns of "Cheers". It's always been quite a very favorite of mine, better than anything new I've seen.

COLD WEATHER

Uncle Frankie came over yesterday. It was just a typical visit. It was a really nice quiet Veteran's Day. It just occurred to me that Labor Day is another source of confusion for me. I seem to get the three of them mixed up. Somehow I didn't notice any parades or celebrations. Today is my cousin Java's birthday in Florida. It's also cousin Loredana's birthday in Italy. She's just a distant relative & we've never gotten a chance to meet in person, only on Facebook. Thanksgiving is now exactly two weeks away. I miss the trips to Buffalo but it's really nice around here too. Lately the weather's been getting colder than it's been so far. I've never liked cold weather but I don't mind it as long as the rain & snow don't get out of control. I still go to St. John's each morning. I found out this morning that their bus ride yesterday was a trip to a show.

MEMORIAL OR VETERANS' DAY?

Father Marchetti will be gone for a while so I shall be going to Mass at St. John's in Pittston until further notice. This morning I overheard Fr. McGroarty & some other people in church talking about some bus ride they intend to take today. Today is Veteran's Day, or is it Memorial Day? I've always gotten them confused. It's just a naturally bad habit I appear to have. I've always made the same mistake with Sidney Poitier & Harry Belafonte, & Doris Day & Debbie Reynolds. I recently noticed that this past Monday was the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. At my age it seems as if it were only yesterday. I was working at Citicorp Retail Services in Farmingdale in those days. I still haven't gotten a haircut but I've been thinking of getting one in time for Thanksgiving.

HOLIDAY TOMORROW

Uncle Frankie came over for a while yesterday. He & my father spent a lot of time arguing over dollar coins, including the Eisenhower dollar , Susan B. Anthony's & the Indian woman's. He even called me on the phone, a little while after he left, to explain something about them. Tomorrow will be Veteran's Day. Banks will be closed but the library only closes down for very big occasions. My scratchy throat lingers but at least I'm not violently ill like other people. A happy twentieth birthday is in order to cousin Mary Ellen's son Scott today. He's the youngest of her four kids. The weather today, although it's colder than I like it, is still unusually warm for November. It watched a half hour of the show "House" a few nights ago. It turned out to be a horrendously left wing show. Aren't they all though?

BLOOD DRIVE

The ziti party worked out quite well. Fran couldn't make it but my parents & Uncle Frankie were there. I showed up at around noon & helped the kids with the cake. Howard sent me to Price Chopper to get some ice & soda too. Besides ziti & cake, they served bread & butter & salad. They also served coffee, tea, soda, beer & wine. It lasted until around 5:00. It was as nice as St. Joseph's ham party. Last night I got yet another call from the blood drive people. The woman asked me to make an appointment for next Monday at O.L. Mt. Carmel in Pittston but I'm going to be there anyway. It's the closest one in this area. Veteran's Day is this Wednesday. There will be parades & decorations for the big occasion. I'm not a veteran.

ZITI

My father & Uncle Frankie both missed their big game last night. They were too run down to go out in the bitter cold weather. The cousins are all in a twitter rambling on about the Yankees & Phillies. Lately the weather has been consistently colder than average. For the past few mornings in a row my windows have been covered with ice. This morning, as usual, I got a copy of the Wanderer in the vestibule at O.L. Mt. Carmel. It has a lot of really interesting articles in it. Tomorrow's the annual pasta dinner at O.L. Sorrows. It's ziti. O.L. Mt. Carmel will be having theirs next Sunday. Uncle Frankie will be going with us tomorrow but Fran won't be available.

WORLD SERIES

The weekend has arrived. Late yesterday afternoon there was an icy cold rainstorm & today so far it's been very cold so we shall have to do a shivering Friday dance. Surprisingly I don't have to lector at either Mass this weekend. Uncle Frankie is still recuperating from his recent operation so he will have to be a bit inconspicuous for a while. My father may not go to the football game tonight. I just noticed that the Yankees have beaten the Phillies in this year's World Series, four games to two. We all know now who will have quite an interesting bunch of hairstyles for the next Fourth of July. Yesterday I finished the book about St. Therese & started a book by St. John of the Cross.

OPERATION

Last night we all went out for pizza at Tony's. It's on Main Street on the way home from Pittston. Fr. Jackson, Neil, Jonathan, Ada, Lynn & I were there. Never having gone there before I didn't know what to expect. It was a nice place. We got six pies. They were round. Usually pizzerias in this area only have square pies. While we were waiting in the church's parish center some musicians were practicing Christmas carols. They showed up with guitars & other instruments. The weather's been fairly nice lately although the mornings are usually icy. Fran came over last night for a while. Uncle Frankie's operation yesterday worked out fairly well. He's been recuperating quite nicely.

WORLD SERIES

Tonight there's supposed to be yet another meeting at O.L. Mt. Carmel. We are supposed to go out to get something to eat. We shall never go to the Victory Pig on a Wednesday again because of all the crowd & traffic. Although someone took a picture of me yesterday as I was getting ready to vote, I didn't see one in the Citizen's Voice today. Maybe it ended up in the Times Leader. The World Series goes on & virtually everyone except me is interested in it. The New Yorkers & Pennsylvanians among my cousins are waiting to find out who will have to get a skinhead hairdo next July. The weather's very nice again today but there was ice on my windshield again this morning. As usual the ice remover worked quite well on it. Fran called last night at around 9:30. For the past few days I've been reading a very good Carmelite book about St. Therese of Lisieux & her little way.

ELECTION DAY

Yesterday I went to Barnes & Noble again. I needed another can of de_icer for my car so I wanted to make sure I took advantage of the trip to see if there was a car care store in the area. Other than Sears in the mall, there doesn't seem to be one. I ended up going to AA in Exeter, on Wyoming Avenue, to get what I needed. Today is Election Day so I made sure I stopped into the election booth to vote. People were handing out flyers outside the door so it appears electioneering isn't considered unethical around here. From what I know of Luzerne County politicians' reputation, neither is anything else. When I got inside the room, Howard asked if I should be willing, unlike everybody else so far, to pose for a picture for the Citizen's Voice. I said yes. Today's Steve's birthday. He's one of my old friends from Lindenhurst, now living in California.

IRISH FOOD

The Halloween weekend went quite well. There were absolutely no trick_or_treaters whatsover. It must have been because of the rain & wind. Aunt Lauren & Uncle Jim showed up for their annual visit with their grandson Benjamin, Michelle's son. He was dressed in his little policeman costume. He'd rather be a fireman than a policeman when he grows up because policemen get tazed too much. On Saturday Fran showed up with pizza & chicken wings for Halloween. Uncle Frankie came over yesterday for the first time in a while. He ate with us. We had corned beef & cabbage. Last night I showed up at a Holy Name Society meeting. Jerry made hot dogs & sauerkraut. Today is Sean's birthday. He's Kristi's fiance. She's my goddaughter over in a suburb of Buffalo.

BLOOD DRIVE

The weather's been quite cloudy today so far but it's still fairly nice. After I got out of Mass at O.L. Mt.Carmel this morning, I tried to go to the stationery next door to get a Citizen's Voice. The gas station attendant told me that they'd recently gone out of business though. Our coffee trouble continue. I accidentally said that the coffee last week was from Price Chopper but it was Choc Full o' Nuts. The pot is always freaking out. Today we have to wish a very happy birthday to Jim, an old Lindenhurst friend now living in California, & Earl, an old Jackson Heights friend, now living in Puerto Rico. A couple of days ago I got a call from the Red Cross people asking me to show up in a few days for a blood drive way over in Wilkes_Barre but yesterday I got a card from them advertising for one right over in O.L. Mt. Carmel church in Pittston on Nov. 15. I should rather go there.

NEW LECTOR BOOK

The weather's still very nice, unseasonably warm. Today is Tony, Jr's. birthday. He's my cousin Karen's son so we say happy birthday to him. We shall have to do a major Friday dance in his honor. At O.L. Sorrows this morning in the sacristy, Fr. Marchetti left a bunch of new workbooks out for the lectors. The new book starts at the end of this month. Yet another Election Day is coming up on Tuesday. It's hard for anybody to keep track of all the things he has to know for a given election.

END OF MONTH

Happy birthdays go out to John from my class in high school, & to Gary's son Java. Because I've never liked sports I didn't bother to stay up for last night's big game. I noticed this morning that the Phillies beat the Yankees. Last night was the end of the St. Jude novena. It all worked out really well with reasonably good attendance each night. The weather was miserable for a few days but started getting better late yesterday. The month is dwindling down now. It was the month of Lindenhurst's Oktoberfest on Wellwood Avenue & St. John's homecoming game in West Islip.

YANKEE GAME

The weather has been very bad since yesterday. It's extremely cold, damp & raining. Today's the Feast of Sts. Simon & Jude, the last day of the novena at St. Mary Help of Christians. I managed to show up there each day, usually at 7:00 p.m. Tonight's the last night. They always get the same people each year. The World Series also starts tonight. I don't happen to enjoy sports but most people do. Around here there are a lot of Yankee fans. Frank, an old friend from 92 Street, is going to the game. I thought he'd be too much of a Met fan for that. Maybe he's like Java & the Ronald. I still haven't gotten a haircut. One of these days I shall most certainly have to get it over with. Halloween is only three days away. Then we shall have to face up to the dreaded November.

ELECTION DAY NEX TUESDAY

The St. Jude novena continues. I showed up again last night. Tomorrow, the feast day, is the last of it. Halloween very fast approaches. Decorations & candy are everywhere by now. So far the coffee pot seems to be working fairly well each day. It only appears to flip out when I use the Maxwell House in the big blue container instead of the Price Chopper brand in the brown can. I still have that annoying cough but at least it's manageable. My father's cold is way out of control. The weather today is much colder than yesterday & I've heard threats of rain. Next Tuesday is Election Day around here. The Pa. Pro_Life Federation has a lot of flyers to pass out explaining exactly whom we can count on to fight all the dangerous characters on the left.

NICE PARTY

Today we wish an especially happy birthday to Cathy. She & her family are old friends from Lindenhurst. They now live in California. The weather lately has been unusually nice. Halloween, when I was a kid, was bitter cold compared to this. I lectored at Mass on Saturday at 5:00. Yesterday was the big ham party at St. Joseph's. Somehow I made the mistake of thinking it was time for the ziti party at O.L. Sorrows. That's in another two weeks. My mother went but my father wasn't available to she got him a take_out meal. Uncle Frankie & Fran were both there too. They served ham with pineapples, potatoes, green beans, coffee, dessert among other things. There were a lot of people there. The St. Jude novena is still in progress. It will last until his feast day.

PARTY

The weather is fine for a nice Friday dance this week. If my father & Uncle Frankie intend to show up at their weekly game tonight it will be much better than last week. The Friday dance will be much easier too. I spoke to Fr. Marchetti & Howard after Mass this morning. Fr. Marchetti intends to make certain changes for some things at Sunday Mass from now on. I have to lector at 5:00 tomorrow. The novena to St. Jude in Pittston is still going on & so far I've gotten there each night. Our big annual Holy Name Society pasta party is upon us once again. It's this Sunday. All the inevitable characters can be counted on to show up. Are the illegal aliens behind all those recent murders & molestations of little girls & young ladies, including Somer Thompson & Morgan Dana Harrington? In spite of what the liberals want us to believe, that's what quite a lot of people have been saying these days.

BLOOD DRIVE

The weather's been really nice lately. I hope it stays this way until at least after the party on Sunday. It should be a really nice time. My father & Uncle Frankie are both still ill but they'll both be able to show up. I still have a slight cough. I went to the St. Jude novena yet again last night. I took a different route home than the one I usually take from there. It's one I usually get to by way of another road anyway. Yesterday I ended up having to go to Price Chopper, in the Midway, for 1% milk, orange juice, bread, Pop_Tarts & cake. Gas prices have been going up quite a lot lately. They seem always to go back & forth these days on a regular basis. Yesterday I got my usual notice from the Red Cross' local chapter. They will be conducting a blood drive during the beginning & they've asked me to show up. I also got a call from a guy representing an organization that works with leukemia patients. He asked me to donate money.

CONTACT LENSES

The St. Jude novena went well last night. It wasn't terribly crowded & the traffic each way wasn't any trouble. This morning Ada explained, immediately before 9:00 Mass started at St. Joseph's, that Lynn's not available tonight so our meeting at O.L. Mt. Carmel has been cancelled. The next meeting is scheduled for November 4. Lynn tried to call me last night but the line was busy. My cough occasionally gets out of control but it's not so bad compared to the trouble many people are in with the flu these days. I absolutely live on cough drops. Today we say happy birthday to Tammy. She's Rich's wife, & the Ronald's daughter_in_law. Mark's son Nicolas' birthday was this month too. It's the same as Beatle John's. He's now a teenager. Mary Anne called last night. Sam got contact lenses.

PARTY SUNDAY

I went to the first night of the annual St. Jude novena last night. It started at 7:00. There was about an average crowd there. It struck me as quite impressive that I can still recognize very many of the faces of people there even though I only see them once a year. The Holy Name Society's annual pasta dinner is this coming Sunday. I asked Howard this morning about how I'd be required to pay for the tickets. He told me to pay either Steve or Bob on Sunday at the door. Uncle Frankie showed up for a while yesterday when I wasn't around. He & my father have both been ill lately. My cough persists but at least it hasn't gotten any worse so far. My mother recently got a call from her friend Dotty in Lindenhurst. Dotty's been very ill lately too.

ST. JUDE NOVENA

The weather's been exceptionally cold lately but at least the violent rainstorms are over. This morning was the first time I noticed significant ice on the cars' windows. I'm so happy to have found that can of Prestone ice remover. It works well on my windows. The weekend was entirely uneventful. Uncle Frankie's still ill. My cold is about the same as it's been ever since I first got it. I went to 10:30 Mass yesterday at O.L. Sorrows. Today the annual novena to St. Jude Thaddeus starts at St. Mary Help of Christians Church on Main St. in Pittston. Each day I try to read more of that book by Umberto Eco. Lately the coffee pot has been making pathetically weak coffee. That's a big disappointment especially in the morning.

PLUM MISERABLE WEATHER

My father & Uncle Frankie made it to their big game last night. I'm most certainly so happy I didn't have to go with them. Fran called while they were gone. I went to Wilkes_Barre for the Carmelite meeting this morning. It's a fairly easy trip for me so I didn't have any trouble getting there on time. Our leader, Barbara, though, who lives over in Lackawanna County, was around a half hour late because of the weather. She called last night & told everybody she'd be showing up so we expected to see her. Elena showed up. It was only her second meeting. For the past few days it's been icy cold, bitter & raining constantly. Because I don't have to lector this weekend I shall most probably go to Mass tomorrow at 10:30. For some insane reason "I Love Lucy" is always on for five hours a day lately.

CARMELITE MEETING TOMORROW

So far there hasn't been any snow in this immediate area but there was an absolutely miserable rainstorm yesterday & last night. I haven't gotten much of a chance lately to take advantage of the de_icer but it will come in quite handy very soon. It's still pretty bad today. If my father & Uncle Frankie go to a game tonight it will hurt quite a lot. Everyone should do his Friday dance indoors. I don't have to lector until next weekend. Tomorrow I have to go to another lay Carmelite meeting. As far as I know there's nothing significant on our agenda this month. My cold is still fairly mild so far although it's very annoying. I'm still reading those books. Things like that are really good for keeping my mind busy. Richie put yet another picture of us old folks on Facebook. This one has the Ronald & his brother Java, Elaine, Mark & his brother Frank, Larry & his brother Gary, & me, with our grandmother. It's yet another blast from our past in 1962.

ST. TERESA OF AVILA

The weather is getting progressively colder each day. I even heard someone say over at St. John's this morning that it's supposed to start snowing sometime later today. It's Msgr. Bendick's sixty_eighth birthday over there too. Eddy & KrissyKrissyKrissy, around an hour south of here, say that it's already started to snow over there, & that it's sticking to the ground. Today is the Feast of St. Teresa of Avila, the famous fifteenth century Spanish Carmelite mystic. She & St. John of the Cross co_founded the Discalced Carmelites. This Saturday morning I shall have to go to Wilkes_Barre for another Carmelite meeting. It's on South Meade Street at 9:00 a.m. every third Saturday of the month. A new woman joined us last month. I hope she shows up again. To my chagrin I'm still pigging out lately on entirely too much Halloween candy.

DOCTOR'S APPOINTMENT

The weather's still very cold for much of the day. Cathleen, over in California, says she's been ill lately but I don't know if they have as much trouble with the flu over there as we do here. I ate quite a lot of Halloween candy yesterday unfortunately. That's not a good habit to get into. My father got up really early this morning to take Uncle Frankie to the V.A. hospital for a doctor's appointment. Yesterday I watched a Biography Channel show about "The Facts Of Life". As a general rule I absolutely can't stand Norman Lear. It's because of characters of his ilk that we're in the mess we're in these days. I've always really enjoyed quite a few of his TV shows though. That was one of his best. I'm still reading the book by Umberto Eco. It gets a little easier to figure out each day.

COLD & DARK

"I Love Lucy" is still on for a full four hours each weeknight now. Nothing currently on TV is any good anyway. My cough is still annoying but I take cough drops & a Nyquil_ish syrup for it. I've been reading the book by Umberto Eco each day lately. It has enough obscure references in it to keep me quite confused for quite a while. I just noticed a Facebook post, on cousin Rich's site, that has a picture of my grandmother(long dead) & cousins Elaine, the Ronald (Rich's father), Gary, Mark & me. It was taken in 1962. The cousins all still look about the same. The only difference is that now we're very much older than we were back then. Although it's still fairly warm for October around here it's been getting a little chillier lately. Yesterday I just noticed on the news that Minnesota got a blizzard.

HAPPY COLUMBUS DAY

The weekend went well. I didn't have to lector this weekend. Yesterday, immediately after 10:30 Mass, I made sure I took advantage of my coupon & went to the TGI Friday's across the street from the Wyoming Valley Mall. Rebecca was my waitress. I got a Jack Daniel's Burger with French fries & raspberry iced tea. I got a refill for the tea. Because it was my first time at that specific franchise of theirs I got a free spinach dip with nacho chips. I just noticed, on the menu, that they have a liquor license. Uncle Frankie came over for supper yesterday so when I got home I ended up having to eat yet another entire meal. There was a meeting for the Holy Name Society last night too. Jerry made chile. Having already gotten my full of food all day long, though, I made sure I only drank a beer & left after it was over. Today is Columbus Day. As a long_time Knight of Columbus I am so happy about this. As always the Prometheans in the P.C. crowd are grinding & gnashing their teeth about it.

SWINE FLU

Uncle Frankie is back in circulation. My parents say he showed up for a while yesterday. He & my father made it to the game last night even though the weather was bad. The stationery next door to O.L. Mt. Carmel is opened again but when I went there this morning to get the Citizen's Voice the girl said she didn't have it. I went to Turkey Hill in Exeter & got it & a full tank of gas. Tomorrow is Frank's birthday. He's an old friend from 92 Street & St. Gabriel's. He's two years older than I. His sister Madeline & I were in the same class. The swine flue still hovers over us. Places have notices about safety precautions. I just noticed at church lately, that the Diocese of Scranton has all sorts of new directives to avoid risk. There are posters on doors in the churches. Columbus Day is coming up on Monday. I suppose we shall have to be ready for all the inevitable subversive left wing protests.

LOUSY WEATHER

My car has been working quite smoothly since I got the new battery put in yesterday. Uncle Frankie has been ill lately. That's why he hasn't shown up in quite a while. Today would have been Beatle John's sixty ninth birthday. Even though he's been dead for practically thirty years the infamous Swain of Liverpool still stirs up lots of controversy. It's been bitter cold & raining all day today. Our Friday dance won't be even the least bit enjoyable this time around. I don't know whether this week's football game is tonight or tomorrow but I don't envy anyone who has to show up tonight. It's snowing in Colorado but at least I've found out that it's very nice in California & Virginia. I'm still reading the book by Umberto Eco & the one by Bill Donohue. I shall soon get back to the Carmelite books too.

BIG CAR TROUBLES

Yesterday went quite well. It was rather an uneventful day until I tried to leave O.L. Mt. Carmel last night. Ada was the only one who wasn't available for the meeting. She went to a G.O.P. fund raiser. Fr. Jackson, Lynn, Jonathan & Neil were there. We talked about angels. Lynn gave us a copy of an old speech, by Pope John Paul II, about angels. There was a band, in the auditorium, practicing for an upcoming event. They were too loud. At around 8:30 we ended up deciding that it was time to leave. Everyone went out into the parking lot together. I was the first to try to go home. When I tried to start my car I noticed that the battery was dead. I got the other people to jump it for me with their cables. When I got up this morning my father & I went to Sears in Wilkes_Barre to get a new battery. The mechanic who was supposed to do the job wasn't available. He was about two hours late. It all ended fairly well. It was just too annoying.

BARNES & NOBLE

The weather is like March now for most of each day. It's frequently a little too windy though. It rained all night last night. Unfortunately my cough is still here. Other than that this would be a perfect time. Tonight I have to go to the meeting in Pittston. Yesterday I went to Barnes & Noble over in Wilkes_Barre. As usual, it was the one by the mall. There's always trouble construction & traffic congestion all over the place these days so the trip each way was more than slightly annoying. I'm now reading Umberto Eco's "Foucault's Pendulum" & Bill Donohue's "Secular Sabotage: How Liberals Are Destroying Religion and Culture in America". Today is my cousin Patrizia's birthday. We've never met in person but we're in touch on Facebook.

ATE CANDY

My annoying cough continues. I've been trying all sorts of things to tone it down. Tomorrow I have to go back to the next meeting at O.L. Mt. Carmel in Pittston. Ada was just telling me this morning that she won't be able to make it because she has to go to a G.O.P. fund raiser. She said that we shall be getting some new people. Uncle Frankie showed up yesterday when I wasn't around. He left some candy bars that he got while visiting Fran over the weekend. I made sure I ate one. It's some obscure company I've never even heard of before. Today is Gary's birthday. He & I have never met in person but we're on each other's friends lists on Facebook. He's a DJ over in Missouri on Alice 95.5 It's also Gerard's birthday. He's an old friend from St. Gabriel's, now on my Facebook friends list.

LECTORED YESTERDAY

The game was on Saturday morning but only Uncle Frankie went. My father was too tired & their friend Tony wasn't available. I'm still practicing my guitar on quite a regular basis. Because I no longer have a variety of sheet music to choose from it can get quite predictable. My persistent cough is also truly beginning to get more than a little annoying. I made sure I drank some tea with honey on Saturday. That seemed to have helped a little bit. I've always really liked tea but somehow I've not been in the habit of drinking it over the course of the past many years. The weather these days is unpredictable. Over the course of any single day it can be both bitter cold & exceptionally warm within hours. We also have frequent rainstorms & showers. Yesterday I lectored at 10:30 Mass. All went well.

COUGH CALMED DOWN

I went to 7:30 Mass at O.L. Mt. Carmel in Pittston this morning. There was a pea soup fog. It was worse when I first left. By the time I was on my way home it was much better & only very bad in certain spots. Uncle Frankie showed up for a while yesterday. I made a mistake. The big game isn't until this afternoon. It's often on Saturdays. Mary Anne called yesterday with all the latest about her family. When I got up this morning I couldn't help noticing that my throat isn't as violently out of control as it was yesterday. I made sure I got some Hall's cough drops yesterday. I have to lector tomorrow at 10:30 Mass. With any luck my throat will sound at least a bit better by then. Slowly but surely I'm finishing the candy I got from Vinnie. It includes raisins & pretzels too.

ILL LATELY

The cold weather is now truly upon us. I always seem to need a heavy sweater & coat these days. Dave says he's losing customers because of it & because of old age. Uncle Frankie came over for a while yesterday. As far as I know he & my father are going to their weekly game tonight. The annual St. Therese novena is now over for this year. Yesterday was the last day. There was a Mass with a visiting priest. I woke up yesterday with a violent headache & was afraid I might not make it to the last day but I got there. There was a party afterward but I didn't stick around. I think my annual allergy has turned into a bit of a cold. I'm extremely run down & hoarse. I don't have a headache anymore but I always cough. We have to say the first happy Friday of October & dance the first Friday dance of the month. This Sunday there will most probably be a nice Octoberfest over on Wellwood Avenue in Lindenhurst. We say happy birthday to Brian in California today. He's an old friend.

DREARY FEAST DAY

Today is the first day of October. I took out the garbage & put a bunch of leaves in front of the house this morning. Frequently the leaves smell extremely seriously gross but today they weren't quite so bad somehow. I woke up this morning to a very dreary day with lots of clouds. The cold autumn weather seems to have made its appearance. I also have a seriously annoying headache. It's the Feast of St. Therese of Lisieux, The famous Little Flower of the Carmelites. Later today will be the last day of the novena. Yesterday when I went to the church, I couldn't help noticing that the Unimart gas station nearby was selling gas for only $2.38.9, the lowest I've seen in quite a while. Of course I couldn't resist that price so I made sure I filled my tank. The bridge work is still going on. So far it hasn't interfered with anything I've been doing so I don't mind. Even when they're not working on the main part of the bridge, where people have to drive, they always seem to be doing something on the part that's by the river.

SWINE FLU

My hair gets progressively more annoying with each passing day. So does my persistent cough. Like Steve, I seem to get stuck with quite an attack of allergies each year at around this time. October begins tomorrow with the Feast of St. Therese of Lisieux, the Little Flower. I've been showing up at her annual novena over at the Maronite church on Loomis St. in Wilkes_Barre. It ends tomorrow. I made sure I got something really nice each day of the bake sale. Lately there's been quite a panic going on over here about the upcoming swine flu epidemic we've been expecting. Eventually we shall all have to get shots. The weather recently alternates among cold, warm, & rainy each day. As usual these days the bridge on Eighth Street is still under construction & traffic is an absolute nightmare because of it.

HECTIC WEEKEND!

Saturday went quite well. For my father's birthday, everyone showed up. Mary Anne, Steve, Sam & Bridget got in early in the day. Uncle Frankie, Fran & Lisa showed up later. I didn't get to go to the St. Therese novena over the weekend but it was still quite an interesting time anyway. The food, as always, was both plentiful & fattening. Yesterday was weird though. Bob & I agreed to go to the K of C's pro_life rally in Forty Fort & Swoyersville. We parked our vehicles separately, one at each church. The churches are quite a distance apart. He left early without me & I was stuck with no car to get home. I ended up having to mooch a ride to the other church. When I got home Steve, Sam & I went for the Old Forge pizza I ordered quite a few months ago. Then Steve, Sam & I went to Jitty Joe's for ice cream. He wasn't so good at directions, especially in the rain, as he seemed to have thought so he made a few wrong turns on the way. Today is Eddie's birthday. He's cousin Larry's son. He gets a happy birthday. As always they're working on the 8th Street bridge this weekend. It will be closed down for hours at a time each day.

IT WAS FORTY YEARS AGO TODAY!

Bridget called last night. Mary Anne & family are supposed to arrive sometime today for the big weekend. My father & Uncle Frankie went to yet another football game again last night. At least the night was much nicer than most games. Usually it rains when they try to go. I went back to Wilkes_Barre again yesterday for the St. Therese novena. I just found out that tomorrow is the Bloomsburg Fair. I used to think Bloomsburg was an entire county but it's just a town somewhere south of here. Today is Henry's birthday. He & I used to work together at the mail room in S.U.N.Y. Farmingdale in 1980. We also worked together at Melville's post office in 2004. Tomorrow will be Mike's birthday. He & I were in the same class in high school. Monday is Eddie's birthday. He's cousin Larry's son. Exactly forty years ago on this very day, the Beatles released their classic, legendary "Abbey Road" album.

TWO BIRTHDAYS

The weather turned out very nice yesterday. So far it's a bit cold but nice today. My father spoke to Leonard & the Michigan kin yesterday. They say Alan has been doing reasonably well so far since his big operation. I made sure I went to the St. Therese novena on Loomis St. yesterday. The faces were very familiar even though I only get to see those people once a year. I shall be going back later today too. There was lots of very slow moving traffic congestion on the way there yesterday. Uncle Frankie came over for a while yesterday. It was just a typical visit. Today we have to wish a very happy birthday to both my father & Mary. She lives in the State of Washington. Mary Anne & family are supposed to come in tomorrow for a big party. My big fortieth party, at Katie Daly's in Massapequa, was exactly a decade ago today. Bob called last night. It was just a typical call with no new twists about anything.

ST. THERESE NOVENA

Uncle Frankie showed up for a while yesterday, but I wasn't around at the time. The weather this morning, when I first left, was more than a smidge on the depressing side. After a little while, though, it seemed to have gotten much better. The annual St. Therese novena, at the Maronite church in Wilkes_Barre, started yesterday. Unfortunately I missed the first day. I found out about it while watching TV. I'll be showing up for most of the remaining days though. I try to go each year. Mary Anne & her family will be showing up on Saturday for the big birthday party. It promises to be a really nice time. I'm still reading those Carmelite books & practicing my guitar. One of these days I shall have to get an oil change for my car. It runs well but I don't want to take any big chances with it.

OLD AGE

Uncle Frankie came over for a while yesterday. He said, a couple of days ago, that we have coyotes in the area. To my chagrin I've never noticed one. Maybe I just haven't recognized any. My parents went shopping yet again. It was quite a dreary day yesterday & has been so far today too. There's not been much rain to show for it but it's annoying. I've heard that it's warm outside now. My cousin Alan is in the hospital. We've all been praying that things work out really well for him. Lately I've been noticing that many of my old friends from my younger days are now grandparents, including Madeline. According to Jo Anne, Madeline has been living in Italy for a while by now. Lately I've been adding lots of people from my high school class to my Facebook friends list. I've yet to get a haircut. Maybe I shall be able to hold out for quite a while. My guitar playing consistently progresses.

LA DI DA DE LA DI DA TIS AUTUMN

Uncle Frankie showed up for a while yesterday. He & my parents went shopping for a while. He ate with us too. They must have gone to one of those Sam's Club type of places. Anne, from New York, called my mother yesterday. This morning, on my way home from Pittston, I made sure I stopped at Turkey Hill in Exeter for a tank of gas. The prices have been going down a little lately. A little at a time, I've been eating some of the candy Vinnie gave me for a present. It's very nice. My guitar playing has been coming along fairly well lately. Because of my limited resources I still stick to things like scales & sixties oldies. The weather's been very nice lately but I have to wear slightly heavier clothes each day. At least there's been no rain or anything like that.

WELCOME AUTUMN

Fran & Lisa showed up yesterday with some birthday presents & pumpkin cake for me. Unfortunately I wasn't there at the time so I got everything only after they left. I was at the Latin Mass in Pittston when they showed up. They have a new priest there, recently ordained. They (Fran & Lisa) got me a Beatles' coffee mug & matching alarm clock. Each one had an image from the "Anthology" series on it. Alas the summer of 2009, like my youth, is now but a mere memory. Today officially marks the very first day of fall. The weather's a bit cool for my taste but it's been especially nice lately. I'm still reading those Carmelite books. I've just started one about Bl. Titus Brandsma. He was murdered by the Nazis at Dachau in the Holocaust in 1942. I've still been having all those extremely seriously weird dreams lately, like the ones I had a few weeks ago. Of course, old faithful Cheryl called on Saturday. I ended up getting stuck having to lector for her again at 5:00 Mass. What else is new?

NATIONAL TALK LIKE A PIRATE DAY

Today I was forced through an unusually long dragged out Carmelite meeting. A new woman, Elena, showed up. Yvonne & Judy were both there for their annual visit & it lingered until around 12:45. The average meeting lasts until only around 11:00 but we were forced to take care of a lot of extra things. My father & Uncle Frankie went to their generally weekly football game last night. They left at around 5:00. For once it didn't get rained out. Today we must wish a very happy birthday to Terri, cousin Mike's wife, over in New Jersey. It's also National Talk Like A Pirate Day. Shiver me timbers & blow me down, don'cha know? It's even the Feast of San Gennaro too. My relatives are all excited about the onslaught of new young'uns over the course of the coming year.

BIG CARMELITE MEETING TOMORROW

I still haven't gotten a haircut. It's getting a little out of control but I can handle it so far. In keeping with all the significant famous deaths this year, Mary Travers of Peter, Paul & Mary died. Henry Gibson, the poet laureate of "Rowan & Martin's Laugh_In" also died. I remember them both from when I was a kid. Peter, Paul & Mary spent a lot of time on public TV in recent decades. Today's my first Friday since I turned fifty. I should dance very carefully from now on. Once at O.L.P.H. Msgr. Hamilton wanted someone to do something. He deliberately went out of his way to pick me because he wanted to get someone under fifty. Now I don't have that distinction anymore. Tomorrow I have to go to the Carmelite meeting at the Little Flower Manor on Mead St. in Wilkes_Barre. It's at 9:00 a.m. every third Saturday of the month. I just heard from one of our regulars here that tomorrow will be the New Year for the Jews. For the rest of us, it will be the Feast of San Gennaro as well as National Talk Like a Pirate Day. The weather yesterday was mostly very nice & it's really nice today too.

SECOND HALF OF THE CENTURY BEGINS

My big birthday went quite well yesterday. My parents, Aunt Lauren & Uncle Frankie were all there. We ate quite a nice meal with dessert & coffee. I got cards. Besides the candy that Vinnie sent in the morning, Mary Anne & family sent me a nice plant. Mary Anne, Fran, Rose & Michael all called. Larry & Rose got the idea that my birthday was Tuesday. They originally tried to call me then but couldn't get through. He was at work last night so only she called. Today we have to wish a rousing happy birthday to my old pal Miz Kitti. She's exactly a year & a day younger than I. We worked together, for many years, at Citicorp Retail Services in Melville. Starting late yesterday it rained very violently. The weather was miserable until early this morning. It seems to be getting a bit nicer now though. The second half of my century appears to have gotten off to quite a droll start so far.

THE BIG DAY ARRIVES!!

Technically it's still summer but it often feels like autumn, especially this morning. Uncle Frankie showed up for a while yesterday. One of the topics of conversation was about how New Yorkers have to pay so much more for driver's licenses than we do. Ha!Ha! Tonight's meeting at O.L. Mt. Carmel, in Pittston, is cancelled because Lynn's not available. The Hoyt Library opened for business as of Monday so it shouldn't be so crowded around here anymore. Today's the day I turn fifty. Now I get to see what it's like to be one of those people I'd always gawked at as a kid. Everybody's been rubbing it in. This morning I got a bunch of really nice candies in the mail from my cousin Vinnie in North Carolina. Maybe we shall be going to N.Y. to see Mary Anne & family over the weekend but I'm not positive. I still haven't gotten my much needed haircut.

THREE PREGNANCIES

The weather's been awfully nice lately but autumn still encroaches upon us. That's a combination of good news & bad for me. Uncle Frankie showed up for a while yesterday. Unfortunately the phone rang off the hook all yesterday & last night. Aunt Lauren & Mary Anne, among others, both called. Tomorrow will be my fiftieth birthday. So far I still don't feel anywhere near that old. It's such an ominously large number. I really don't have any plans for the big day. Besides me & KrissyKrissyKrissy, birthday kudos this month for kin also go out to: Tyler, Shannon, George III, my father, Eddie & Jessica. Today's the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows, the patronal feast day of my parish. Shannon's also pregnant, making three new babies. She's the Ronald's daughter in law. I suppose I shall have to get a haircut eventually. I watched that show about Shakespeare on EWTN yesterday. Joseph Pearce is the host.

TWO PREGNANCIES

The weather was extremely bad this weekend. Saturday was rainy & dreary all day. Yesterday I lectored at 10:30 Mass. It was the first weekend of the new schedule at O.L. Sorrows. Fr. Marchetti is back from his vacation. So is our librarian. Last night was our first meeting of the new year for the Holy Name Society. There was a lot of the usual arguing that goes into meetings like that. Fr. Marchetti showed up. Among other things they decided that this year's spaghetti dinner will be around the beginning of November. At the end we ate steak & cheese sandwiches. I also ate one pepper too many. I ate a dark green pepper that turned out to be extremely seriously hot. It took me quite a while to get rid of the hot kick it left in my mouth. I also drank a beer. This weekend, on "Entertainment Tonight" Mary Hart entertained Beatles Paul & Ringo as well as John Lennon's & George Harrison's widows. Everyone is talking about the Fab Four again because of all their new activity. My cousin Elaine recently sent out a very nice e mail. Her daughter Stacy & her daughter_in_law Wendy are both pregnant.

SAD ANNIVERSARY

Uncle Frankie showed up yesterday. He & my father are supposed to go to a game tonight but it will be cancelled if it rains. My car needed anti_freeze today. That was lots of fun in the rain. I got a card yesterday from Grace, Daren's mother. Sunday was the fourth anniversary of Daren's death & everyone misses her. It was the first card I got this year for my birthday. I recently started re_reading "The Way Of Perfection" by St. Teresa of Avila & "The Living Flame Of Love" by St. John of the Cross. Today is a very sad anniversary. On this day Moslem terrorists, entirely unprovoked, attacked the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, & flight 93, murdering almost 3,000 people. I lived in Lindenhurst back in those days. It affected many people I knew. Mike, from my class in high school, just joined my Facebook friends list. He's interested in all sorts of artsy_fartsy intellectual stuff. Conveniently, so am I. We appear to have a lot of disagreements though, about many things. On this day in 1971 I moved from Jackson Heights to Lindenhurst. It turned out to be quite a significant jolt for me.

VERY SICK

Today we say happy birthday to KrissyKrissyKrissy. Unfortunately I've just found out that Robin, in Chicago, has just lost her job. Yesterday I played my guitar for quite a while again. Last night Skylab flew through the sky around here at around 8:10. My father & I made sure we hung around outside & watched the two vehicles going through the air. They were just two little bright white things. It was nothing spectacular. The night was entirely too cold for me. The weather's been very cool so far today too. All day yesterday I felt weak & ill. Last night I couldn't sleep & got a very bad headache all night. It lasted until early this morning & I still don't feel all that well. It was like a mini_me version of the flu. Uncle Frankie showed up for a while yesterday.

09_09_09

Nothing much has happened lately. Uncle Frankie came over for a while yesterday. Having recently read Chekhov's "Ivanov" I also finished his "The Seagull" yesterday. I practiced my guitar a lot too. That's been getting more & more interesting for me lately. Scales & arpeggios keep me occupied & confused quite a lot of the time. Fr. Marchetti & the librarian are both on vacation this week. Things are a little different without either of them around. Circumstances always change fairly drastically whenever a significant character isn't available. I ate a Whopper from Burger King yesterday. I'm not such a fan of those kinds of places but sometimes I have something from there. KrissyKrissyKrissy's birthday is tomorrow. Today is O9_09_09. It's the day when the Beatles' record company will be releasing a new game based on their music & re_mastered CD's of their albums. It's been advertised all over the place lately.

BIG LABOR DAY WEEKEND

My fiftieth birthday now encroaches upon us, getting closer with each day. It's now exactly eight days away. I'm still practicing with my Beatle book & guitar magazine. Scales & arpeggios are as interesting as they are annoying. I didn't get any headaches this year. I've been through some pretty painful Labor Days though. There have been some when I've gotten bad migraines. My parents wanted to go to the annual Triduum at the Oblates' Seminary but they didn't make it. I went on Sunday & yesterday. They didn't have a bishop this year. Father Leo McKernan was their visiting priest. Brother Patrick officially became a postulant yesterday. Uncle Frankie came over yesterday with his usual chocolate candy. He was ill for a while but seems to be doing well since then. Fran came in for a day. I should most probably get a haircut very soon. I just noticed, on my calendar, that my last one was during the first week of June. Because of Obama's health care reforms there was a big broadcast of LBJ's telephone conversations, forty five years ago this month, with Al Gore Sr. among others about health care & the 1964 election. It was interesting but it was also quite annoying because it took so long.

VERY STRANGE DREAMS

Uncle Frankie came over yesterday. He & my father went to one of their big football games. I finished the Friendly's ice cream last night. Every day I still play my guitar. I recently got a copy of "Acoustic Guitar" magazine at Barnes & Noble. It's the first guitar magazine I've gotten in quite a while. I used to get them on quite a regular basis. This issue has Pete Seeger's "Turn Turn Turn" in it. It also has "Guantanamera", "Mary Had A Little Lamb" & something by Jerry Garcia. The past couple of nights I've had the strangest dreams. I never sleep much so I should suppose I can take it for granted that weird dreams at least prove to my satisfaction that I can get some sleep every once in a while. Last night I saw "Chariots of Fire". I've always wanted to see it so I watched it on a DVD. It turned out to be as good as its reputation. Aunt Lauren showed up for a while yesterday on her way home from work. She hardly ever shows up so this was a nice bit of a surprise.

LABOR DAY WEEKEND

My parents most certainly spent quite a long time shopping yesterday. They went someplace else too. Uncle Frankie came over to see my father about today's football game. He hung around waiting for them for a few minutes & left. He came back later when they were home. This morning, after 9:00 Mass, Ada gave me a bunch of political literature she wants me to put on my Facebook account. They're all ads for the pro_life politicians. The weather was a little warmer this morning than it's been on recent mornings. This Monday is Labor Day. I shall not be able to come to the library on Monday because only stores are opened on days like Labor Day. Today I may end up finishing the last of that banana split ice cream from Friendly's. Now that Bishop Martino's gone from the Scranton Diocese, the controversy continues. Justin Cardinal Rigali, of Philadelphia, is temporarily in charge of the diocese until a replacement can be found. Today we have to do quite a rousing Friday dance.

MEETING LAST NIGHT

I'm still playing my guitar every day. I've even been getting really good at some of my favorite songs. The weather these days continues to be very cold in the morning but nice for the rest of the day. Uncle Frankie showed up for a while yesterday. Last night was the big meeting at O.L. Mt. Carmel in Pittston. I got gas at the station right next door to the parish as I was waiting for it all to start. Fr. Jackson showed up. The meeting was about music so I made sure I took a lot of my CD's with me. We ended up listening to a couple of them for a few minutes. Ada, Lynn, Neil & Jonathan were all there. There won't be a meeting on the 16th because Lynn won't be available. Labor Day is coming up on Monday. There will be lots of traffic & crowds but it usually turns out to be quite a nice time. My parents got the quart of free ice cream from Friendly's yesterday. They ended up getting the banana split flavor. Once again I got kicked out of Wyoming & I'm now in W. Pittston. The traffic around here is unbelievable. It's all stop & go. I've recently met yet another foreign cousin on Facebook. Her name is Gisela. Her last name's the same as mine. She lives in Argentina & speaks Spanish.

NEW MONTH

Things are much quieter now after all the excitement of the weekend party. Today's a very sad anniversary. My grandmother died on this day in 1978. That's why my parents both went to 9:00 Mass this morning. Yesterday I saw that show about Shakespeare, with Joseph Pearce. Today is the first day of September. Labor Day is only a week away. It's the beginning of what's always struck me as the hard part of the year. The weather starts getting cold & the sun starts going down earlier each night. It was unusually cold this morning. I was forced to wear a sweater because it was only around fifty degrees when I first left. It's usually around sixty by then. I read some more of a play from that Chekhov book again yesterday. Unfortunately I just found out from my Italian cousin Doriana that her mother recently died. I shall have to pray for her.

NICE PARTY

The local kids are back in school as of this morning. When I was a kid we never went back until after Labor Day. Snow days around here really add up. That might be one of the reasons for the early start. Bishop Martino has resigned & is supposed to retire very soon. The party this past weekend worked out really well. Uncle Frankie, Fran & Lisa showed up. So did Mary Anne, Steve & kids. The New Yorkers are doing really well lately. The kids have been very active these days. There were three cakes at the party. One was chocolate. One had white icing. One was very colorful. Michael really liked it as a kid. Friday's big game was cancelled because of hte rain so my father & Uncle Frankie couldn't go. They missed Saturday's game because of the party. I asked the kids to promise to send me more profile pictures. We spent a lot of time on Saturday taking down the tent in the yard & putting things away. On Saturday Uncle Frankie, Steve, Bridget, Sam & I went for ice cream at everyone's favorite ice cream place, Jitty Joe's in Moosic.

BUSY WEEKEND

It's been rainy ever since yesterday. So far this morning it hasn't rained but it's still very cloudy cool & dreary. My father & Uncle Frankie went to their game yesterday so I guess it wasn't quite all that bad by their standards. My parents have been cooking & shopping constantly lately because of the big weekend up ahead of us. Mary Anne, Steve & the kids were supposed to show up last night but because of the rain & problems with their schedules they promised to leave at around 7:00 a.m. today. Assuming they did what they said they should have already arrived by now. Originally I was on the schedule to lector at 5:00 today but because we're supposed to eat at around 5:00 I ended up having to call Lucy Anne to get her to cover for me. I tried, at first, to track down Mary. She didn't answer the phone though. I'm still reading Chekhov & playing my guitar. Tomorrow's Lexi's birthday. She's Jamie & Amanda's daughter over in Michigan. She'll be thirteen.

COOL WEATHER

Coverage of Ted Kennedy's death continues to make the headlines lately. The news broadcasts, & shows in general, that cover it all are especially interestng for me. It's Jo Anne's big milestone birthday. Today's Friday dance could be in her honor. She turns fifty today. My turn is in a couple of weeks & Earl's is on Halloween. It's also my net friend Margret Simo's birthday. She's thirty. Mary Anne & family will be showing up over the weekend. I think they're supposed to come in sometime either late today or tonight. The big birthday party is this weekend. Tomorrow I have to lector at 5:00 Mass. The weather so far this morning has been unusually cool. Lately it's been exceptionally hot. Uncle Frankie came over for a while this morning. He & my father will perhaps end up being forced to miss out on their big game because of the rain. It's only a slight shower so far but it may end up getting worse over the course of the day. I got kicked out of Wyoming's library so now I'm in West Pittston's on Exeter Avenue. I've been practicing my guitar a lot & reading that book of plays every day.

BRIDGE TROUBLES

Yesterday & last night all the news was about the Kennedys. Since I've always been plum obsessed with the 1960's anyway, it's been interesting for me. I've read all sorts of biographies about LBJ, RFK & other people & events from that era. Last night at 9:00 VH1 showed the Beatles' "Anthology" but I already have that on VHS tapes so I didn't bother to watch any more than the first fifteen minutes of it. This morning at around 7:30 they closed down the Wyoming Bridge on Eighth Street. I finished "Don Quijote" yesterday & started reading a book of Chekhov's plays. Tomorrow's Jo Anne's birthday. She's one of my oldest friends from Queens. We all get to/have to turn fifty this year. It's an odd feeling. Tomorrow's also Margret's birthday. She & I have never met in person. She's yet another character I know only from the internet. The weather's a little cooler so far today than it's been most days lately. I played my guitar some more last night too. Cousin Gino & his wife Michelle just adopted their two sons so they're quite happy now.