Cordelia's Mom, Still

Well, That’s Maybe Not Good

Posted on August 4, 2020 by cordeliasmom2012

It’s shocking, I know.

In all of my 68 years on this earth, I have never registered to vote.

Why not, you ask?

Because there has never been a candidate I cared enough about to vote for nor a candidate I hated enough to vote against. Besides, it has always seemed that no matter who was in office, my financial situation never changed. Ah, the joy of being part of the forgotten Middle Class here in America.

So, what’s different now, you ask?

Now, there is a politician who makes me so fearful for the future that I plan to vote against him, no matter who else might be running. At this point, I would vote for Alfred E. Neuman if he decided to run again. In the upcoming Presidential election, old Alfred might have a good chance of beating the incumbent. Heck, I think even I would be a better choice. Maybe I should throw my hat in the ring again. Sadly, I failed to gain any office in 2014 and 2016; maybe three’s the charm.

Anyway.

It’s now possible to register online as a voter, at least here in New York State, and since mail-in ballots will be available for the upcoming Presidential election, I really had no excuse not to join the voting fray. Being totally non-political and fairly apathetic about government in general, I opted to register as an independent voter. I’m sure both major parties, and at least some of the minor parties, will be fighting over my vote.

The form was completed, and I clicked “submit” …. immediately (in fact, nearly simultaneously), the skies opened up with a torrential downpour! I’m not sure if that was meant as a warning from one side or the other, but it sure was freaky. At least there wasn’t thunder and lightning.

Or maybe it was just the powers that be indicating that they’re angry, too. Not my place to say.

A lot can happen between now and November. I just hope nothing precludes my ability to cast my very first vote in a Presidential election. That would be disappointing.

And annoying.

Potholes are also annoying. But they seem to have become a way of life, like, well, clueless, corrupt politicians – or maybe because of clueless, corrupt politicians. How ’bout we all get together and change that?

You may leave supportive comments and hate mail below. I may or may not respond.

(BTW, for the head photo, I considered taking a picture of me sticking a paperclip or fork into an electric outlet and then titling it, “Prepare to be Shocked” – but that really would not have been a good thing, as clumsy as I am.)

__________

I love to hear from my readers. You may comment on this post, comment on my Facebook or Twitter pages, or email me at cordeliasmom2012@yahoo.com
__________
Images by Cordelia’s Mom/TeddyRosalieStudio

Posted in That's Life | Tagged candidates, election, politics, Presidential election, register to vote, voting | 43 Comments

The Chair

Posted on July 31, 2020 by cordeliasmom2012

OMG, it’s humungous!

The chair, that is.

The folding outdoor chair I ordered (ALPS Mountaineering King Kong Chair) is much bigger than I expected. Even though I am a very large woman, I think I could fit two of me into that seat!

Which is surprising, because the photos on the Amazon website showed athletic young people sitting on these chairs, and no one seemed to have an excessive amount of unsat-on-seat around them.

And, with an 800 lb. weight limit, even I don’t have to worry that it might collapse under me. (I’m nowhere near that limit, but let’s just say that I was a little concerned about the width and weight limit of those ordinary lawn chairs you buy at grocery stores, pharmacies or big box stores.)

Fortunately, while folded up in its canvas bag, the chair just fits sideways into the back of my SUV. I’m assuming it will also fit in the trunk of my husband’s large sedan, as we sometimes take his car instead of mine for nature outings. If it won’t fit in the trunk, I’m sure it will fit in the back seat.

The only drawback is that, at nearly 14 lbs., it’s a bit heavy to cart around. I’ll keep it in my car and simply take it out to set up wherever I’m parked, so the carrying weight won’t be problematic. However, anyone planning to hike up a long, steep trail while toting this particular chair might want to think twice about doing so. Of course, the chair does have those two nice cup-holders, so after hiking up that trail, one could then relax with a nice cool drink from the cooler that was also dragged up there. Not me, of course. I keep any coolers in the car, along with everything else that might be needed to set up a sitting area all of 10 feet away from my parking spot.

It was a bit expensive for a folding chair, but I’m very pleased with my purchase. I expect it to last a long, long time.

Happy Weekend, folks. If the weather is nice where you are, try to get outdoors for some fresh air. And take photos. It will give you something to post about next week.

__________

I love to hear from my readers. You may comment on this post, comment on my Facebook or Twitter pages, or email me at cordeliasmom2012@yahoo.com
__________
Image is from Amazon.com page advertising chair – click on photo for link

Posted in Road Trips & Cars, That's Life | Tagged camp chair, folding chair, King Kong chair, lawn chair | 22 Comments

The New Normal

Posted on July 24, 2020 by cordeliasmom2012

We’ve all adjusted, some more than others.

New York State is fighting to keep the COVID-19 pandemic from resurging here; other states are now experiencing what we did back in March and April. My sympathies are with those states, but I would like to say: Keep your sick citizens in your own state. Please!

Slowly, I’ve begun to venture out into the world again. Sure, I’ve been back to work for more than a month, but that was no huge adjustment as there are only 4 people in my firm and we all have offices with doors we can shut. There’s very, very little contact between us, and we all wear masks in the common hallways and kitchen area.

As my regular readers know, hubby and I have begun taking day trips on nice days, just to get some fresher air. Going to parks, driving country roads, and strolling along woodsy trails is becoming our preferred outing. Last weekend, however, we realized that we don’t have any serviceable folding lawn chairs to take along so we can sit awhile. At least I don’t. Hubby is thin; we have a very nice chair for him. But I’m of the larger persuasion (especially after 3 months lockdown), and while I can still fit into our remaining sturdy folding chair, it’s not as comfortable as it was a few years ago.

There is no outdoor/camping equipment left in any of our local stores. Apparently, everyone else is doing the same things we are. Understandable, but annoying, when I can’t get what I want right now.

Searching online, I found what appeared to be my ideal chair. It was available (more or less) through Amazon and Walmart. I prefer to buy large (no pun intended) items from a store which has a local brick-and-mortar presence, for ease of returns. So, Walmart it was!

The website said our local Walmart had 5 of my chairs in stock right now, so I opted for ship-to-store, figuring I could pick up the item the next day.

The next day, I got an email saying the order was cancelled because the item was no longer in stock, nor available. Say what? I didn’t believe that email, and the following day was my regular day off, so I decided to drive to the store and see for myself.

Having not gone out much over the last few months, I was not prepared for the precautions being taken at the store entrances. I parked in my usual far-away spot, only to learn that I had to walk all the way to the entrance at the other end of the store, then walk to the camping area at the end where I had parked, then walk all the way back to the registers, and then walk the length of the store to my car.

I had to do this twice, because I had to go to two different Walmarts (didn’t learn my lesson at the first store, silly me).

Anyway, I eventually located the outdoor/camping gear, and sure enough, pretty much everything was gone. That aisle at both stores were as empty as the toilet paper aisles were back in March. Heading disappointedly back toward the front of the second store, I spied – on the very top shelf and all by itself – one lone folding camp chair. I checked the label for dimensions and weight limit – good to go! I grabbed it and trotted (more or less) to the registers.

In my exuberance, I proudly placed my intended purchase on the conveyor belt, whereupon the customer in front of me turned around, glared, and quietly admonished, “Social distancing!” I apologized. She went on her way. The store clerk rolled her eyes. I found it necessary to point out that I was wearing not only a mask, but also gloves.

Shopping is not much fun any more.

On the way out of the store, a young couple was standing and chatting in the only permitted exit. No one could get around them. Eventually, a store employee came over and asked them to please move aside. They both turned to me and apologized, and of course, I told them no problem. I figured it was some form of balancing by the powers that be.

(BTW, of the people involved in these scenarios, some were white, some were black, and some were hispanic. Not one person found it necessary to bring race into play; we were simply all either doing our shopping or doing our job, as the case may be. I’ve found, at least in our area, that most people just go about their business and let everyone else go about their business, and everyone just treats everyone else as someone they’ve briefly met and probably will never see again. Really, isn’t that the way it should be?)

Once home, I excitedly opened the canvas bag holding my folded up chair, only to discover that it was broken! Now I have to take it back. I think I’ll ask hubby to do that; he’s much better at walking around than I am these days.

Back to Amazon. The preferred chair was no longer available there, either. But I did find a giant folding chair (King Kong!) with an extra wide seat – and a weight limit of 800 lbs! Even I am nowhere near that limit, thank heavens. It will arrive on Tuesday. I can hardly wait.

Meanwhile, if we go out this weekend, I’ll have to use the smaller chair we already have. Hopefully, I won’t embarrass myself by getting stuck in it, or having it collapse under me. That would definitely not be a good thing.

Happy Weekend to all of you. Stay safe and health out there.

__________

I love to hear from my readers. You may comment on this post, comment on my Facebook or Twitter pages, or email me at cordeliasmom2012@yahoo.com
__________
Image by Cordelia’s Mom/TeddyRosalieStudio

Posted in Covid-19, Health, Photography, Road Trips & Cars, That's Life | Tagged coronavirus, Covid-19, pandemic, shopping, social distancing | 16 Comments

July Saturday

Posted on July 19, 2020 by cordeliasmom2012

The July temperatures had come down into the high-80’s(F), and it was sunny and dry. An excellent day for a drive away from the ‘burbs.

So, off we headed to Chestnut Ridge Park in Orchard Park, NY.

We debated taking Puppy Cody along, but we hadn’t been to Chestnut Ridge since before the COVID-19 pandemic and weren’t sure how crowded it might be. Cody doesn’t like a lot of strangers around. We also had forgotten to take folding chairs, so our visit was not as long as it could have been.

Pretty much everyone who visits Chestnut Ridge starts at the top of the hill where the toboggan slide is. From there, you have an excellent view of the Buffalo, NY skyline. Despite the fact that we have been going to the park since our courting days more than 40 years ago, the view never gets old:

We were disappointed that the porch swings had all been taken down, probably because no one wanted the duty of sanitizing them. There was a single picnic table outside the lodge building, which made for a nice, stable mount for the camera.

There was a haze over Buffalo, and my camera only as a 35X zoom – and bear in mind that the distance between that Chestnut Ridge hill and downtown Buffalo is approximately 17 miles. Considering all that, I think the close-up turned out well:

I wasn’t quick enough, or skilled enough, to catch a photo of the hawk swooping over the lodge. Perhaps next time.

After the requisite visit to the toboggan hill, we drove through the park. It was surprisingly empty. Even the largest shelters were not being used. The people we saw were mostly jogging, strolling, or simply driving through:

And the deeper into the park we went, the less people there were. Just the way I like it.

(LOL. The second photo was actually taken from the same spot; it’s just a view in the other direction, which looks emptier.)

Despite the heavy woods in the deeper paths, we saw no furry animals. Looking down at the ground, however, I spotted this very tiny baby toad. It was only about half an inch long, so I had to use the macro setting on the camera. The silly thing kept hopping into and under the grass, which made any photo difficult, but I did my best:

Then I happened to look up into bush next to where I as standing, and I saw this teeny leaf beetle (I would be surprised if if measured even a quarter-inch long). The camera was already set to macro, which made the shot so much easier:

As I mentioned, we had failed to take folding chairs and by now my legs were getting tired. We had already driven through the entire park, so we headed home, stopping on the way to pick up some excellent take-out food. We had debated eating in the restaurant’s patio, but decided we’re still not quite ready for that.

Once home, we discovered a potential invasion from the neighbors:

Nothing like a couple of guard-Unicorns! Looks like they’re almost on top of the fence, doesn’t it? But, in fact, they’re at least 50 feet away. It’s amazing what the right angle and a zoom lens can do.

If that’s the worst we can expect from our neighbors, I count my blessings on having moved onto the street. Our house may be old, decrepit and stinky, but at least coming home after a nice drive isn’t likely to turn into some kind of police drama like it did in the old neighborhood.