credit cards or cash?

 I keep finding pennies and yes I still pick them up and used them. 

One cashier intended NOT to give me the pennies part of my change and I insisted on getting it , because I grew up when pennies meant something. (penny candy for one) Cashiers these days really aren't trained how to handle real money. They just want to shove a black box at us for a credit card, not realizing or caring that the place has had to raise prices because credit card companies charge stores for each time a customer uses one.

Also, why is there no constancy about those credit card boxes. Tap here. 

WHERE? 

one box says - over here on the left side of the keypad. Another box wants you to tap the screen. Another box wants you to keep your card flat on the screen for a while, until the cashier does something on their register while others want you to quickly tap and lift it off. I just shake my grey hair head and pretend that all that stuff is confusing to me.

 (actually it is confusing to everybody, but I have a senior excuse  )

First day of college

People on FB are talking about their first day at college, so here's mine: 

We drove across the state to the college in daylight with the car packed to the gills with everything I thought I needed plus everything my parents thought I needed, plus everything my grandmother thought I needed. The parents sat in front of the car. There was a tiny bit of room left in the back seat for me and my legs. 

I was fine. I was excited. It was wonderful to get away from all my siblings.  

They helped me unload and set up my room. (my half of the room.) Then my mom tried to tell me things / give me advice. My dad stopped her saying, "If she hasn't learned everything she needs to know by now, you trying to tell her everything in the next 10 minutes won't cover it," and he gently turned her away and they got in the car and left.  

I was FREE! No longer responsible for three other kids. Free to be just me. (If only I could figure out who/ what 'me' was.)

Macy's thinks I'm dead

 In years of yore, I was the person who applied for our credit cards and I was the one who used them to purchase things. Now, the application did have a space to put husband's name as well as mine, so yes I filled that part out. I'm a rule follower.  

So the time came when my husband died.  

Some of my credit cards continued to recognize me as a valid user of said card, but not Macys. I don't know how a department store learned that my husband was dead, but Macys also declared ME dead and refused the validity of my card. So -- I destroyed the card and only used my generic Visa there. Every time I buy something the poor cashier (as required) asks me if I want to apply for a store card and every time I have to tell them that Macys thinks I'm dead. Truly they do. When they first took the card from me and I tried to reapply as a single card owner, the powers that be refused my application because their credit check said I was dead. I think that somehow my social security number was mixed up with his in their files and therefore if the computer says that I'm dead, that's it.

Typing toddlers

 When I had a toddler - who wanted to pound on my keyboard when I was writing, my husband brought home a used keyboard from my workplace and so I set the toddler up beside me., on the floor, 'typing' on her own keyboard while I sat at the real keyboard, writing.  

And everyone was happy.

Just a few physical complaints today

  Every day I take a one mile walk (as measured by my iPhone. )

Every summer I spend days in the pool swimming 12 laps - backstroke and side stroke.  

And yet. Two days ago I finally got into the pool to begin my summer swimming. Only swam 6 laps. And yesterday I couldn't' walk anywhere without a cane. (usually it's just an outside thing and I walk inside my house just fine.) (usually it's just one leg, but yesterday and today it's both legs - and not just a muscle problem because of swimming. I've never had a problem with swimming before, ever.) The rules have changed again. grrrrr.

on the plus side - the pool was warmer than usual - nice.

And don't get me started about spiders in my car. What is it about me that they are sneaky and bite me? Am I a tasty treat to them? Plus - I can't find them but occasionally do see webs. They must be tiny, tiny, tiny.

Handy things for shorter people

 When we moved, I took several things along with me that my mother in law had used to extend her reach. 

A Grabber. 

A folding three step stool. 

A folding five step ladder with extended piping above it so you can hang onto it and balance while reaching for high things.

All of which I use constantly.

Disappointed my child, again

And there's this memory:  

There's something about going through college with your best friend and marrying right after graduation. 

Although, one of my children was very disappointed with us. "all of my friends have several parents and lots of brothers and sisters and half brothers and sisters and.... and you're still married to the same person?" 

Well, that's another way I failed my child.