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The cough was harsh and bothered me all day. The anti-cough meds made me fuzzy all day. I started to get organized and pack. I will have to pack on Sunday night as my flight is early, and I need to drop off the rental car, Air Kia, take the shuttle, check a bag, and then reach my gate by 6:20. Yikes! Just one early flight on this trip, Dec 30, Monday. Deborah will take the glassware that Linda, my sister, sent me for Christmas and ship it to Oregon for me. Deborah will send it later this week, as I will not be home until late Sunday, Jan 5, 2025. It is about an hour’s trip to the car rental place, meaning I will be there at about 4:20. I will drop the car off and find a shuttle. While worried about the timing, I can’t be the first person to do this. Besides missing the flight, the worst case is that I have to roll my bag onto the plane. I have already contacted Clint to be picked up at about 9ish in Boston. From there, we will find my hotel and I will align with the plans for the Hill and Weis clans.

Though ill, I spent most of my day with Deborah, who made it delightful. I decided to stay in my room for the morning and hung the sign to stop cleaning the room early. I was up before 8, waking as usual with the first light of sunrise. My unconscious mind seems to love first light–I think I could sleep through a few. Dad Wild, gone for years now, used to say he would rise every morning to see the sunrise; there were only so many left for him to see. Dad wanted to see as many as he could.

Dear reader, join me early on one of these sunrises. Lift a cup of Fair Trade coffee, so-called liberal coffee, to another sunrise, and maybe there will be a tear for those who went before us. Remember, there are only so many for you to see. Wipe the tears, and then start your day ready to see what another day on this Earth brings you.

I wrote until about 11ish with interruptions to update my accounts in Quicken, transfer money to my checking account, and pay my travel bills, most of which were charged to my Alaska Air Visa. And while I do not have income from a job, the interest and dividend income have taken a bit of the bite of the trip. I also spent all the Nike bonus money (about 10% of my annual salary) on these trips.

I am slowly getting used to a fixed income and have started to reduce some of my less critical spending, though I did buy two board games (but they are exceptions; Devine Right and Burnering Banners are Fantasy hex-style war games). I also used miles for these flights, costing me $35 for flight insurance and $35 for my bags on three flights. I have poor seats but use the money I saved on the flight to buy nice dinners, better hotels, and decent rental cars.

The coughing subsided for a while, and I finished the blog at about 11 and then dressed. I wanted to walk and move as breathing was easier if I stood and moved. Sitting or, worse, lying down causes the post-nasal trip to run right into my lungs. Ugh! Walmart, a store I never visit (preferring Costco if I am looking for large or cheaper things), was a short walk away. The air is warm today, and there are only a few spots of snow here and there. It was a nice walk, though I had to walk through some grass as no sidewalk adjoined the buildings.

The place is enormous, and the electronics deals looked excellent (when did giant-screen TVs become less than $400?). The food looked higher priced, but soon, I was directed to walk to the far side of the store to row G. The scheme of letters, logic, and sequence was unlike anything I had experienced before. I passed ‘H’ often in my search for ‘G.’ I found the painkillers in a set of shelves marked G for reasons that escaped me (I decided not to ponder these Walwart mysteries), got a very cheap bottle of ibuprofen, located travel sizes, and renewed my supply of toothpaste. Check-out was without smiles and a do-it-yourself (DIY) experience with only one checker available in the ten-plus usual lines should you wish to skip DIY and use a more human process. I followed the procedure and found that ‘tap’ was not a technology embraced by Walmart. Hmmm. I pocketed my items thanks to the watcher of DIY and finally got a smile.

Deborah was delayed, and she did not appear until after 1. She had Air Mini, and we headed to the Michigan Central Train Station (MC), now remodeled as a retail space open for the holidays. But first, we had Eggs Benedict at Dogwood in Pontiac and had the same waiter. I forgot her name; the joke was that she stole my hat to make us return for brunch. I drank only water (having three cups of coffee to make the day less fuzzy) and refilled my glass so many times I consumed a pitcher full of water! The brunch was outstanding. With my hat recovered, we headed to Detroit.

Parking was a challenge, and we did a few loops. We finally parked within sight of the Michigan Central Train Station (MC) in a space that Deborah backed into. Air Mini fits well in the extra-large slot. We walked a few blocks through an impromptu sidewalk soup kitchen with items to buy, still being set up (it was gone when we returned). I tipped my hat to the various folks, and that got smiles. Most people want to be seen.

We were amazed at how nice MC looked now, being an infamous, wrecked, and ruined building for years. It was once the emblem of Detroit’s failure. The Ford Motor Motor Company had remodeled and restored the first floors to a lovely retail space, repaired the facade, and plans to use the renewed building as the center for its Corktown (as this area is called) campus.

We stopped to take pictures outside and found a whole group doing this. We soon exchanged places with someone who took photos and then exchanged phones to take pictures of the next group. There were many smiles and photos. Soon, we joined a fast-moving line to enter. They had reached maximum capacity, but the traffic was moving fast, and soon, we were inside.

The building reminds me of Union Stations in Chicago and Washington, DC, except for no trains. The place looked terrific, and we took endless pictures, as did many. I bought a card and pen (the plastic pen for Liam, Deborah’s son, who loves trains) from the MC store. We also looked at the smaller shops interspersed with relics and documents from the MC. Bits of broken tile and stone, certificates, and even ticket stubs all brought back the days of trains. I did not see any blueprint versions for me to buy.

It was after 4 when we stepped outside. From there, we saw the Ambassador Bridge, which leads to Canada. Yes, you could see Canada from there! There was a slight wind, but we were happy to get out of the warm station and air out in the cool breeze. It was too early for dinner, though Slows Bar-B-Q was there to tempt us. But we decided instead to walk in Rochester with all the lights. Soon, Air Mini was escaping Detroit’s potholes (strangely mostly found on ramps with the streets and highways in good repair) and soon parked in a parking garage (all the street parking taken and also a challenge with all the traffic) in Rochester.

We walked the streets and decided on Kruse And Muer On Main for dinner. Next door, there is a tarot shop, and I made the faux pas of suggesting their pendulum and boards are covered in Magician books on how to make them do anything you want. This is part of the Magician’s Mentalism tricks I know–I have the book by the same name. This offended the store clerk, and I left sad that I was just thinking out loud when I saw the equipment and did not mean to be offensive. I was considering getting some of the equipment to do the trick but did not think of a New Age or Tarot store as a place to get them–they must know the reading can be faked without effort, even if you let someone else hold the string to the bobble. Sigh.

We found a lovely new bookstore and sandwich shop with an eclectic collection of new books for sale. We wandered through their choices for some time and sat in some over-stuffed chairs for a while. They had recommendations and the ‘like this, then try this’ selection, including some kids’ books. I was tempted by a few books, but I am still reading my Analog Magazines and have some gaming stuff to read. I resisted.

We got our text after forty minutes to return to Kruse And Muer On Main for our table. We were informed there was a two-hour limit to the table. This would be unheard of in some countries (Belgium, for example), but here in the USA, that is the new norm; I was happy we were allowed two hours! Deborah wanted to try the fish and chips while I went with the seafood bake. I never ordered seafood in Michigan until this trip, except for freshwater items, and it has markedly improved. Our meals were terrific, and the service friendly, if not a bit fast-moving. The place was busy. Our shared dessert was an average Apple crisp as the bread pudding was out; at least the apples were fresh and still crunchy. Still an excellent meal. 

My cough was worse, and the rest of the night was me drinking water as we chatted and Deborah leaving me around ten. I was soon asleep in room 303, Benadryl, helping. After midnight, I returned to the awake world. I did not know how my bladder could refill so fast. I repeated the waking and provided hydration three more times, seemingly minutes apart (I suspect I unknowingly nodded off between each trip to the restroom). I finally slept with no more coughing fits or refills.

Thanks for reading.

I was slow and tired from endless nasal drips and nose running. The cold meds and the few hours of sleep made me fuzzy, and Deborah said that even the ‘energizer bunny’ must recharge. When I travel, I am often called that as I want to do everything all the time. I have also stocked the room with some baked goods and Dunken Donuts pods.

I rose just before 8 when the sunrise started. I rise usually with or before the sun. With the winter solstice just passed, it is still late, around 8. I am not looking forward to Monday as that is a 4AM drive to DTW to fly to Boston early. I tried to avoid the awful early flights, but there were few choices to Boston. I will be in New England for a week. Sunday will be my last full day in Michigan.

I wrote for a while in room 303 but soon showered (I got warm), shaved, and dressed. I then headed downstairs to the lobby and had breakfast. It consisted of the usual industrial scrambled eggs, sausage (pork or turkey), and food service sausage gravy with hot biscuits. The biscuits were frozen, as I used to make them, too—excellent—and the gravy came in large cans. I ate that while I wrote for a few hours. I have thought about serving the same breakfast before church; church with brunch sounds like a good idea. It’s not likely to happen…but it’s a fun dream…I travel too much now to do that every Sunday.

I waited in the lobby for Deborah to head to lunch, nodded off, and then watched the young people try to wash the glass doors. Like in many hotels, the doors open by detecting motion. The doors open to a small entranceway to stop the cold wind from blowing in. The first door opens, you step in, it closes, and the other opens as the other one closes, giving you access to the lobby without flooding the lobby with cold or warm air or snow or rain.

I watched as someone first had to be told how to wash the glass with spray and a squeegee (yes, I looked up the spelling as squeeze means something else). The Marx Brothers or Carol Burnett might have invented this routine. Once they got it started, they were left to clean all the windows. Then, the person tried to clean the windows. Every time the person moved, the door opened. I watched as the squeegee person attempted to time it and quickly spray and clean it, but the door detected and even opened again when partially closed! Then, after what must have been ten minutes of just standing there and waving the squeegee to discover the perfect timing, another person shows up and demonstrates, on a non-moving glass, how to correctly squeegee–you must go all the way to the bottom of the glass in one movement with plenty of spray. Our leaner of the mysteries then recleans all the windows.

Soon, three and four people were discussing cleaning the glass. A better squeegee was produced, and finally, they realized you could not clean the moving glass doors together. A key was produced after a moment of search, and the door movements were disabled. The outer door was cleaned inside. It was reenabled, and the inner door was locked to be squeegee-ed. Now Deborah showed up, and this caused chaos if you could call this process anything less than chaos. The gal was found with the key and unlocked the door to let Deborah in, waving to us from behind between the two glass doors (though she could leave).

Escaping the comedy show, Deborah and I headed to Pontiac, Michigan, and Dogwood for lunch, one of Deborah’s favorite places. There, I had a lovely steak salad and a wrap for Deborah. I left my hat there (I called them, and they have it, and I will get in on Saturday). After that, Deborah spent a pleasant afternoon together.

In the late afternoon, we traveled to Deborah’s house after picking up my laundry. We used Deborah’s older but working laundry, 1980s Maytag, made in Michigan, washer and dryer, but there are parts available and instructions on how to fix them, Deborah told me. They worked fast and handled my two loads without issue.

While we waited, Deborah played the board game Pandemic with me. I taught her how to play and helped direct the play as it is a cooperative game. Deborah soon got it and made better suggestions than I did for a few moves. That is the absolute pleasure of cooperative games as you realize that 1+1=2+, the sum is greater than the parts–to coin a phrase. We played the basic version with four Epidemic cards evenly scattered through the draw deck. We got quite a few outbreaks, but with two players, the game is kinder as the acceleration caused by the mechanic is slower to escalate sudden-death losing conditions. Also, this is the first version and does not have lousy event cards or interlocking damaging mechanics like Cthulu Pandemic (my favorite version). We cured all the diseases in time to win the game but did not have time to eradicate the viruses, which still gave us a win.

Deborah ordered dinner for Panera Bread, and her sons, Donovan and Liam, picked it up. I met Donovan for the first time. I had tuna fish and a cup of soup, which was strange, and I did not finish it. Potato soup with stringy cheese was not interesting to me, and it was messy. I finished my laundry and borrowed some hangers. Soon, I returned to the hotel, saying goodnight to Deborah a bit early.

Then, the coughing and breathing issues started. I was concerned about midnight when I had some unpleasant coughing, but Benadryl made it all disappear. Obviously, an allergic reaction going wrong. I was able to sleep after midnight. Ugh!

Thanks for reading!

A cough started today, and it got terrible. I have little sleep, but I am feeling better Friday morning. Thursday’s story will be short and cover a few things as I am tired and still coughing here and there.

I rose early and started coughing more than usual. Deborah told me that the mold makes her cough when the winter freeze breaks, and I thought that may be the issue. It has been years and years since I have been in Michigan for winter. It manifests as a post-nasal drip that is causing my lungs to react. Ugh!

I started to pack early as it was a hotel change day. Off to the greater Detroit area again. I had four loads of stuff for the car, including things that needed a frig. I have to do a repack for my trip to New Hampshire next week and wash my clothing. I am also mostly out of clean clothing. I brought lots of clothing for this trip, but I knew one day would be for doing laundry. Deborah has offered a quiet day at her house while we play board games and do laundry.

I checked out of the Hilton with Air Kia, which is now loaded. I headed to Lansing from East Lansing and discovered that the gaming store, Hoplites, opens in the afternoon. I will miss them. I head to Summit near the Capital and am shocked that the Peanut Store is not open on Boxing Day, but the gaming store is open at 10!

The staff at Summit is not the same as last time, but soon, I was searching for those unique items I found at their store. And I was not disappointed, and spent over $30 on two items I had not seen for sale before. Excellent.

I have breakfast one last time for this trip at Homewood Suites by Hilton, and the cough worsens. Maybe a cold and not alergies. Ugh! I call Leta; she has a terrible cold but agrees to have lunch before I head out.

I walk to the old theater and see a store inside the building, now an incubator for small stores, and buy a lovely card from the store. I chatted with the store owner about her uranium glass on display. The glass creates alpha particles when exposed to light, but those are stopped by a single sheet of paper. It’s not a risk, but it makes some folks nervous, especially if you have a Geiger counter (I do). I have a sugar bowl, creamer, and some absinthe glasses from the odd-colored green glass (which glows in UV).

The place reeks of mold, and soon, I am not improved by the exposure. I leave and breathe better. I took Air Kia to Panera Bread near the Lansing Mall and met Leta soon. Leta is much worse than me. We both have chicken soup, and Leta insists she buy lunch. I give, a sad moment, the wedding bands, engagement rings, and some other jewelry from Susie for Barb, Susie’s sister. It was a moment I dreaded, but I am happy to send the jewelry to their next life as family items. I also gave Leta the information on one last insurance policy on Susie, which we discovered needs some basic information to pay off. It was a pleasant lunch, and we discussed my plan to be back in April for a few days if we can make that work–the planning is in light pencil.

With my cough not improving, I head to Flint to reach the Greater Detroit Area. In the fast driving of Michigan, it is wise to take highways that head in the wrong direction to get the right road, as 80+ makes up for the extra driving. I stopped once to prove hydration and reach the Holiday Express in less than 90 minutes. My room, now 303, is much like my last one but strangely cold, and I head to Meijer’s (the local grocery and everything store) and get some cold products. This is added to the collection I got at Wallgreens in Lansing, stopping there before lunch with Leta.

I discovered the heat is set to AC, which explains the 64F while set to 70F. F**k. I push the heat button, and the room soon becomes toasty. That was unexpected!

I drop by Deborah’s house, and we keep our distance. Deborah is ill from her medical test. The dogs, Trixie and Zelda, are happy to see me. I bring the food and booze left over from my cooking at Café 207 for Christmas Dinner. We chatted, but I agreed to head back to the hotel and see about the cough.

I take some meds, walk next door, and try Grand Tavern and its bar. There, I have two Spanish Coffees and steak bites (served in a lovely gravy and with toasted bread), and I feel less good. I get to my room, shower to get warm, cough the night away, and can’t sleep until 3AM, about midnight in Oregon. F**k. I finally take some painkillers, and that works, oddly, with my allergy meds. Hmmm. It might not be a cold after all. Just a bad reaction to mold. F**k. Sleep comes, and I wake at 5, 6, 7, and rise before 8.

I am writing this in the lobby, and I am feeling better. My nose is running, and I have a tickle in my throat that makes me cough, but I do not feel I have a cold. Just allergies.

Thanks for reading.

 

 

 

 

 

I tried to sleep a bit more, but a cough had started—the usual stress cough I remember from working. I know I need to slow down, but today was not a day for rest. In my room, I had some Danish and pad coffee that tasted more like colored water. I was dressed in a dress shirt and green sweater vest, as I had to cook.

I wrote the blog in my room and then downstairs at about 9. With the staff already putting away breakfast, I grabbed two bananas and coffee. I was not in a rush as Christmas Dinner would be in the afternoon. I wrote until about 11 and called Mom Wild to remind her of the plans. She remembered some of it and was excited to make this strange Christmas work. I also spoke to Linda and Jesse; they are not positive for COVID-19 so far but feel off.

I found a glass cutting board and dull cheap knives. I managed to chop 1/2 an onion and talked to Deborah on the phone while processing the garlic into bits. A poor plan, and soon, I stabbed my finger with the knife. But, the knife’s point was so dull it did not break my skin. Ringing off, I completed some of the prep for Christmas dinner in my room, now known as Café 207.

I called Mom Wild every hour; she managed a slow process and felt good. Excellent. I cleaned up the kitchen and hand-washed some dishes we needed. I have only a limited supply as the Café could not handle more than four people and was best at two customers.

Soon, Air Kia picked me up and got me to Mom Wild’s place. While the de-icing product had worked overnight, some ice had formed from icicles falling. I got out the snow shovel, cleared the path, and re-treated it with de-icer. Mom uses a pet-friendly product. Mom finished getting ready.

The walker with me in front, holding it from going too fast, got Mom Wild down her ramp and to Air Kia. I learned that the walker fits sideways as the Kia Sportage is a compact SUV. It has handled all of this well, and I enjoy driving it; as I have said before, here in fast-driving Michigan, it easily rolls to 90+ without problems. Later, talking to the Smith Family for the holidays, David said he would not pick a Kia Sportage for winter driving, but I said this one was handled well and was not even an AWD version. Also, the base price was so low that I could buy three new ones for the cost of one newish Volvo. I suspect used ones are cheap enough to get a six-pack of all the colors for that price.

Hmmm. I can hear Mariah asking why I would purchase cheap Kias when I could get some late-model muscle cars.

We arrived, and soon Mom Wild was happy in Café 207, surprised by how nice and large my room was at Homewood Suites by Hilton. I chopped some Italian parsley and fresh basil and started the cooking. The stove top is slow, but I could make that work. The water took a long time to boil, and the onions and garlic were fried in butter. My salt and pepper was the only little package I found in the room. Good enough.

I added the tomato sauce to frying onion and garlic and turned down the pan to cook. Bowtie pasta was boiled slowly but still hot enough to cook. I added vodka to the sauce. I stood back as a spark would ignite the evaporating alcohol; it was best for me not to lose my eyebrows or set my sweater on fire for the holidays, though it would make it a memorable Christmas! I added heavy cream and more vodka to the pan, which balanced the tomato and cream flavors and brought out the other flavors. No flashes as this is an electric stove top (gas burners will usually ignite this). Soon, the pasta was done. I put Trader Joe’s bag-of-expensive-greens in bowls and offered two types of dressing (ranch and goddess–purchased as I liked the name).

I have not drained pasta with just a lid in years. I managed without loss of pasta or burns. I used a slotted spoon supplied in the kitchen to serve the pasta and the sauce. The sauce is plain, but many folks find the more modern sauces too complex. Mom Wild wanted nothing spicy, and thus, I went this way.

While I cooked, Mom had a shot of Bailey’s, and Christmas Story was on the screen in the room. Next, we opened a German, not-too-sweet Reisling to go with dinner. Mom Wild would not go with a heavy red that usually goes with pasta. I asked for a sweet white that Mom would love, and this was the recommendation from their wine guy: Trader Joe’s. It was perfect.

I cleared my work table, which can roll, and set it with plates and some silverware. I pushed the table before the couch and served from the pans. Mom was surprised by how well Café 207 was ready to serve customers. Mom Wild enjoyed her pasta with some sauce and her salad. I had seconds and enjoyed the goddess salad dressing, a mix of ranch and Italian. I had vanilla ice cream from Trader Joe’s for dessert, but I up the ante by drizzling some coffee liqueur on the scoops. It was delicious.

Mom watched as I cleared the table and got the dishes in the dishwasher (yes, there is a small dishwasher in my room). I rolled the table back and put my laptop back on it. My office is back!

Next, we opened Christmas presents from Linda, Meg, and Jesse. I got some nice glasses and an apron (I should have opened the presents first, I was told later) to make dinner with. Mom got many other gifts, including an electronic photo frame with Linda, Jesse, and me, adding photos online to be displayed. I will mail the glass gifts to my house.

I took the leftover pasta and sauce and delivered it to the desk woman, who was happy to enjoy it for Christmas. Later, I would find the cleaned pan outside of Room 207. Perfect. Three satisfied customers for my only night running Café 207.

We loaded the Air Kia and soon returned to Mom’s house after dark. There were tears, as every ‘Hello’ also means a ‘Goodbye.’ I delivered her gifts and a poinsettia from Leta to her house. With many hugs and a promise to return in April, I soon returned to the Hilton via the gas station, as the gas warning light was on. You don’t know how good these are in rentals, so I filled up with $3.07 gas, as it was the only place open on Christmas Day.

Even with the cough, which only bothers me when I am sitting or in bed, I decided to have a Christmas swim. I got about fifteen minutes in and found it more challenging to hold my breath for a swim the length of the pool underwater (meaning my lungs were a bit inflamed by the coughing–I have to be careful not to give myself bronchitis with the coughing). Still, I enjoyed it and soon talked to Deborah as I finished my swim. We planned my return to her area on Boxing Day (December 26).

My cough is allergies, for those who are wondering. The post-nasal drip trips the coughing, and I can cough myself into illness. My usual doctor’s treatment is to stop the coughing and not anything else. I will try to do that with some of the typical over-the-counter products.

I shower to get warm and to help control the cough. I get out another blanket as room 207 seems cold. I crawl into my bed and try to sleep. At 9:30, I rise again and watch this year’s new Doctor Who special, “Joy To The World,” written by Steve Moffat, who, when not rushed, produces some of the best scripts, I think, for Doctor Who. I also think he is a mixed bag when the showrunner, as he gets rushed and sloppy. I enjoyed the mix of the Christmas story, the usual running of the Doctor, and the Timey-winey stuff. Recommended.

I still had trouble getting warm and stopping the coughing, but a painkiller to reduce the inflammation and Benadryl to stop the allergies and help me sleep worked. I woke a few times, once to prove that I was keeping hydrated, but I woke too early. It was a hotel change day, and soon, I was starting my day just after 6.

And that is when Thursday’s story starts, so I will stop there. Thanks for reading!

I did not set the alarm and was surprised to rise at 7:45, but soon, I was moving again, not always certain now that I am over sixty and on a three-week trip, and made coffee in the little machine (a pad of coffee for this one). Not knowing what would comprise the hotel’s complimentary breakfast, I bought chocolate croissants and had one with industrial coffee to start my day. At 9, I cleaned up, shaved, dressed, grabbed the Apple, and headed to the lobby. The place was busy with many kids getting breakfast with mom or dad. I overheard one mom say they would get breakfast while dad slept as he drove hours to get them there. I later saw that the pool was busy. Excellent!

I wrote for a while, and Grammarly was strangely aggressive and reworded my work. I allowed it to make some changes and then regretted it as I re-read my text later.  The AI-based editing product made more changes than I realized; many were nonsensical but grammatically correct. I spent an extra 45 minutes restoring my text; I will be more careful in the future.

Today, I only planned to have dinner and attend Grace United Methodist Church’s 7PM Christmas Eve service with Leta, Susie’s mother. Mom Wild (Barb Wild) said she wanted to join us the day before. So I would need to pick her up at about 4:30 and then reach Leta at 5 to get three at Longhorn Steakhouse (oddly, the same chain I had dinner with Zorida in Texas).

With the blog done, more coffee, and a banana consumed in the lobby, I was ready to head out. I returned the Apple to the room, slightly hidden (to avoid tempting any staff), put on my hat, scarf (Manchester United but Nike, which was more than ten years old as Nike lost ManU), and my coat. I drove to the college section of East Lansing, paid almost $3 in parking, and started to walk the area. The sidewalks were not always clean, and I slipped a few times, but never enough to be endangered. First, I headed to Curious Books, which had a copy, leather spine, full text, of Dicken’s The Old Curiosity Shop, which I had never read and thought ironic and perfect to send to myself in Oregon. I was not tempted by anything else, but running through the store and finding something different is always a pleasure. With the book and shipping purchased, I headed to El Azteco for lunch.

There, I got a table as the window seat was not cleaned, and soon, I had a small margarita with salt on the rocks, as they did not have hot drinks. I ordered the taco plate, two ground beef, and one shredded chicken tacos with rice and beans. I saw a gal come in and order two beers (and a small plate of something). Remembering that someone bought my beer yesterday, I paid for hers. She just smiled and went back to her food. But, at least, I had passed on the small holiday gift.

(the sign in the men’s room at the taco place)

Next, I walked to the local vape shop. The door was strange, with a sign that said to push hard, and I had to. The sales cleric, young, bearded, and with a colorful T-shirt, felt like a flashback to the 1960s-70s. They have a wall of bongs, but I was looking for Breeze Vape products for Mom Wild. There is a wall full of flavors, with ‘Mint’ being a good seller, I was told by the beatnik-like clerk. That being unhelpful, I called Linda, and she said tobacco flavor was the correct option, which is the last row and colored brown (I missed it in the flash of so many colors and tastes offered). The clerk was happy to get me two, sounding more like an accountant than an edgy 60s guy; Linda warned me they are hard to open and I should open one for Mom. They ran about $15 each and are self-contained.

I next went to CVS and was ripped off and overcharged. They also had the coffee liqueur product in the smaller bottle I was looking for yesterday (for $1 less, I think). I got some Diet Coke in tiny cans, some instant coffee, and a discounted coffee pod of Dunken Donuts coffee (a favorite). But when I went to check out, I paid full price. I needed a CVS card to get a reasonable price. F**k, but I was too annoyed to say anything on Christmas Eve, and the clerk did ask me twice if I wanted a CVS card. Thinking I should write a note to Michigan’s Attorney General about stores ripping people off in the city and near college students, I boarded Air Kia. Deborah later admonished me for even using the overpriced store (even the prescriptions co-payments are higher there she told me); I will try to be more frugal in the future (I am retired and have time).

I returned to the hotel and unloaded my precious CVS items. Mom calls and says she has nothing to eat (her freezer is stuffed with food that requires just a bit of time in the microwave). I get back on my coat and drive next door to Walmart. Now there is chaos: Walmart on the afternoon of Christmas Eve. I locate bread, old school whitebread, sliced medium cheddar, ham, and turkey cold cuts in a package. I also got a gift card for Longhorn Steakhouse, as Mom Wild said she was not going, but Linda and Jesse (my sister and her husband who reside in Laingsburg, a few miles away) can take her for dinner on another day. I informed Linda of the plans change and then took Air Kia to Mom Wild’s place. I was happy to remember the way to Park Lake Road.

The checker is challenged as the POS is slow at Walmart, which surprised me (being retired IT, fast connections for POS were always a focus, and I am bewildered by this failure at Walmart). She has issues with the previous customer who changed their mind on what cash to put on a gift card. This requires a slow restart and a near repeat of the same mistake. I smile at the checker when it is my time, and we do the gift card process, which is slow, but we manage it on the first try. She smiles back and tells me she has only a few hours left. I wish her luck and a Merry Christmas!

Mom Wild was not dressed and did not remember our previous discussion. I brought her the vape items and opened them for her. I gave her one to use and put one with her pills (also opened). I opened all the packages of cold cuts and put them in the frig, along with the bread. She was happy to get all of this.

Mom told me she was feeling good, but she was not dressed, and the chaos of getting ready was not something I could do to make it to Leta’s on time. I could only stay a short time. Mom was sad that I would leave, but I promised that on Christmas Day, we would meet, and we had no time constraints. I would take her to my room and cook dinner for us, and we could have a nice, if not a bit strange, Christmas together.

Tears followed, but I delivered her trash to the proper container and treated her icy walkway with an ice-melting compound I found near the door outside. This and the temperature increase should make Christmas Day a safe travel day for her. I poured her a Diet Coke, and that made her happy. She knows about her memory issues and asked me again to tell her what the plans were. She was retaining some of it. She was tearful to see me leave, but the promise of a better day on Christmas brought her hope.

I took a photo of where I had placed the vape and gift card and sent that to my sister. This will allow Linda to find them as needed. Mom asked me about selling her van and convertible Mini, and I agreed that they were assets that were not performing and should be sold. I’m not sure she will remember that, but I gave my honest answer and likely will again. I fear the absence of the van and mini will cause her to report them stolen, but maybe it will work out.

I returned to my room, changed into my red party vest and Santa tie, and soon was again in Air Kia, crossing from East Lansing to South Lansing. I put Leta’s address in CarPlay, but I am sure I could have found my way. Leta was ready with her watching for me, and I carried a heavy bag of food and useful items. Grace United Methodist Church supports the community with a reverse-Advent calendar gift; every day of Advent, you put a helpful item in the bag, such as food, personal product, etc. On Christmas Eve, you bring it to the church. I carried Leta’s bag into the cargo hold.

From there, it was a short trip to Longhorn Steak House. We were quickly seated in a booth; there would be a line when we left, and Chris was our waiter. Leta got the petite Flo’s filet, and I had the NY Strip. I also had a salad and a sweet potato with my meal. It was an excellent dinner, and Leta bought it as my Christmas present. It was perfect, and I like ‘opening’ gifts on Christmas Eve.

Leta could only eat half her steak but cut her own. She is still having trouble with her arm she broke–but manages to drive and live in her own home (though her daughter Barb often helps). For 96, she is a hope for all of us that we will be as well connected as Leta is to the world, family, and church when we are her age!

We took Air Kia to the church once dinner was done. We scored a handicapped parking spot at Grace UMC (Leta carried her parking pass), and soon, we delivered the goodies from the reverse-Advent process, and the area in the lobby was filled with bags.

Leta introduced me to many folks, some of whom I remember from different years and events. The service is about ninety minutes long, and the pastor was a dynamic speaker and mic’d to walk and move. We sang the usual songs; Grace UMC has a tradition of hiring students from MSU from their music department, and the music was excellent and familiar.

The pastor’s message (more than a homily and less than a sermon) was that God appeared as a child of a typical family, and the first human messengers were shepherds, generally an untrustworthy bunch. Thus, if you feel unworthy, please remember that the night crew of the lowest of the low were the first voices of the good news; you are worthy. The text says that people believed the shepherds, who were not considered valuable witnesses in court in those ancient days. Again, you are worthy.

After the service, there were more introductions, and I snagged a cookie. We loaded up two poinsettias, one in honor of Barb and one in memory of Susie (Leta’s daughters). We headed to Leta’s house and got the leftovers and one of the plants in her house without damage. There, we talked briefly, and then I headed out with a possible still-in-pencil visit for my birthday in mid-April 2025.

(I scored a plate of Leta’s wonderful cookies, too)

Soon, I was back in my hotel room and watched last year’s Doctor Who special #1. Christmas is often sad for me once the parties stop. I miss many people, and there are more each year to miss. I am also tired from driving and some of the emotions. I shower, get in my PJs, and read more SciFi in Analog.

I said good night to Deborah, who called. She had some drama of a gift that was too well hidden for her son. It was finally located in boxes that were moved ironically by the gift recipient; Liam, Deborah’s son, had moved the boxes earlier and managed to rehide his own gift. With the gift recovered, wrapping and preparing continued until late.

It was too late for a Christmas Eve swim. Soon, I was falling asleep. Likely, there were sugar plums to dream about.

Thanks for reading.