Too Many Pictures?

A healthy balance in life is good.  However, “moderation in all things” may be good or bad (moderate indulgence in sin?)

Take my “OC photography” (as I joke about it), for example.  The truth is, I don’t let it take over my life, but actually do other things between picture taking.  By the way, practicing moderation and decorum (“appropriate, polite behavior in society”) is an essential part of my habit.

I smile, recalling my sweetheart Kay’s occasional, correct observation, “You take too many pictures.”  I see it as “practice makes perfect” and my way of letting go of things, reducing my stuff to digital storage.  My “OCP” also serves as a hedge against memory loss; (“where did I park my car?” for example).  If I can just learn to manage the iCloud ...

Kay's cookbooks in frontier home

Piano Lessons

Young and old — learning can always be fun.

My mother somehow knew the lessons would be good for me.  I lovingly recall my piano teacher as an older, “smoker” woman who encouraged me to prepare for my Church mission (prompted by Mother, I’m sure).  Mrs. Hardiman(?) on 9th Avenue had a unique method of teaching beginners.  She colored notes on simple music to match a color chart placed behind the keys.  It worked wonders for me (especially when I got to do the coloring), and I still remember the color scheme today.

I was also blessed to have a younger piano teacher after my mission; Mrs. Rogers gave me advanced lessons (without coloring) and was patient with my young-adult priorities.  As I relearn to play piano in my old age, I think in color along with the black and white.  It’s a blast ... from the past!  Besides, good music has always added color to our life, and I love it.

Today I go with our grandchildren to their first piano lesson, and I will get help with technical questions.  I have needed the 10-minute lesson for several months since restarting my practice last year as therapy.  So, it’s never too late to learn something new, such as a favorite, “Family History — I Am Doing It” (Children’s Songbook, page 94).  Young and old (like my number-one keyboard player Kay and I) are enjoying piano together.

Kay playing our grand upright piano

inherited from Grandmother Cannon

grandson jumping in, not waiting for piano lessons

“Aches & Pains”

First, I cite the title of a book I found while pondering my aging, aching body — searched the phrase “aches & pains” and got it on Wikipedia as first result: ... a self-help book (1999) by Irish writer Maeve Binchy, which looks interesting with humor.  That may be as far as I go with Binchy, unless I see Aches & Pains in a thrift store or on Kindle @ 99 cents.  However, it would be worth a search at the library I like to visit.

Secondly, I won’t burden you with details of my joint pain, digestive discomfort, headaches, or heartaches.  My running up stairs is usually exhilarating, but needs moderating now that I’m older.  And yes, I still miss my sweetheart Kay, my forever young bride who helps me endure the pains and celebrate our life together.  It’s good to know she is not far away.

Young people especially should be grateful for health and freedom.  In recent years, I’ve learned that we are not immortal as some youngsters think.  We pay a price for neglect and lack of proper care.  Eat healthy food; exercise your body, mind, and spirit.  Be safe.  Repent daily, be grateful, and keep smiling!

I thank Heavenly Father for my health and mobility.  Aches & pains are temporary.  My angel wife Kay & I are truly blessed.  Life is good ... forever, with love.

Kay visiting our older friend in North Ogden

reminder hanging in our frontier home

"... the best is yet to be ..." – so true!

Lessons Learned for 2020

Don’t hold a big phone above your face when lying down and falling asleep (ouch!)

Early in 2019, I relearned how to iron shirts on my mini board, but I missed the built-in ironing board we had in East Mill Creek that I bought at Salvation Army and installed in the laundry room wall.

Be careful not to lose balance in the dark when walking/moving around at home alone.

My iPhone works well for email; I learned to ask young people for help when I’m puzzled. 

Don’t hit your leg on steel bed-frame corners.

My separate apartment building is usually quiet, and the main building is the place to go for mingling with neighbors and dogs — very nice people, surprising pets, a baby grand, and plenty of stairs I run up and down.

I learned that my little apartment can maintain a comfortable temperature all year without running the furnace or air conditioner.  Winter sun brings me joy, then relief in summer as the sun goes north and the window opens at night.

Across the street, Farr Better Ice Cream has “scratch-and-dent” freezers with amazing discounts ... if you know where to look.  And people eat ice cream at Farr’s regardless of below-freezing weather.  I often notice it’s a social, old-style gathering place.

I discovered there is always something to learn in a few minutes at the Ogden FamilySearch Center as I pass through to The Junction (including Deseret Book), Even Stevens Sandwiches, or the thrift store on 23rd.

I seldom need a car, but will never let go of Kay’s cute Buick, a reliable little “truck” for helping neighbors and taking occasional, long 10-mile trips.  I also love to ride the bus and FrontRunner train nearby (half-fare for seniors).

Apparently there is no limit to the number of unique views of the Ogden Utah Temple and surrounding landscape that help me feel the Spirit ... and add to my photos for sharing.

My sweetheart Kay is really not far away, and we are not forgotten.

I learned how satisfying it is to be back home, “permanently” settled for 2020 and beyond.

“Nice, loud noise”

Last Saturday, a retail customer heard the product scanner beeping for each item she was buying.  I heard her remark, “Nice, loud noise!”  (Thought I was the only one who noticed ... with my inherited, sensitive hearing.)

The next morning, I was impressed with a different view as I wondered what could be nice about noise, then thought of welcome loud noises:

A newborn’s first cry (such as our five)

Thunder at the end of a drought here in the West

The roar of Niagara Falls upon our arrival as a young married couple

Kay playing her energetic “hurry-up” music on Grandmother’s piano in our frontier home — I would have recorded if I hadn’t been hurrying to get ready, get set, and go with her; (as I slow down in my old age, I need it more than ever!)  Now a nice memory, as I recall her smiling.

Loud fireworks over Lake St. Clair as Sister Cannon & I watched from the Ford mansion back yard with the DSO playing “Star Wars” theme fortissimo for the partying crowd at the end of an outdoor concert — thrilling!

Yes, my hearing disorder (as our oldest daughter diagnosed it) is selective.  Cars and trucks racing on the boulevard as I walk nearby annoy me.  Loud noise from car doors locking with a honk disturbs me.  A tiny dog barking in our front lobby makes me wince with pain.

Conversely, I still dream of having a high-end stereo system with powerful speakers for our favorites by Beethoven, Rachmaninoff, Smetana, Gershwin, and others — noisy to some, but heavenly to me.  (Warning: One’s hearing can be damaged by loud noise.)  For now, my bluetooth headphone paired with iPhone streaming music is sufficient for my need — nice and loud as I can joyfully stand it!

FH with Scripture Power

In our group “family home evening” (mainly older singles here) Monday, the discussion leader asked us, “When do you study the scriptures?”  One older married man from Nicaragua gets up at 5:00 every morning to start the day with study.  I confessed to having no strict schedule, as I prefer to study whenever I feel like it — “when I hunger for the word of the Lord, at least once a day.”  (It’s so easy with Library on iPhone ... and powerful with guidance from the Spirit.)

This year we are gaining additional insight into the family history of people who fled from Jerusalem in 600 B.C.  The parents and children faced serious challenges, some of which are not unlike those we see in families today.  As they obeyed God’s commands, they were blessed with success, for which we hope in 2020.

[A work in progress]