Brophy - the Building and the Cat

My first job for 'The State' was to train employees how to work with the Mentally Retarded clients at a state institution. Three weeks after I started, I was training new employees how to work with the Developmentally Disabled(DD) clients. Better term for sure, but that should have been a clue of how things would go working for the state - same job, different name.

Not that I was really qualified to train anyone, let alone discuss the challenges new employees would face working with a DD population. I took a Civil Service test and came out #3 - so I was hired. Fortunately for me, we did not have any on-going staff development for the first 6 months after I started due to a disagreement between my supervisor and the institution administration. So I read manuals and books and talked to everyone about what I should know.

The first class offered was new employee orientation - some of these 'new' employees had been there for 2 years! - but I was to sit in our the training to fulfill requirements and learn how training was done. Two hours in, one of the instructors was unavailable and I was told I had to train the class. That class was "Life/Sex Education" - a class to acquaint new employees with how the clients at the institution dealt with sexual issues. The crux of the class was the clients were adults and should be treated as such, especially when they used all the different slang for body parts and functions. Yep, trial by fire!

Settling in, I discovered I enjoyed the job. It was very trying and a little intimidating, but the time I had when I first started helped. Truly learning as I went along, I had my own office and developed friendships and was treated with respect - mostly. Some people thought I was silly and not serious, but I found that my trainees remembered what I was showing them if I could wrap it up in a funny bow.

This all leads to Brophy. Brophy was the name of the building I worked in. The building was over 100 years old and had all the charm an institution could muster, which was very little. Still, I came in one weekend, painted my office, brought in some old chairs and wallpapered one wall with the brightest wall paper I could find. It was very comfortable and a refuge from the rest of the world. I got in a little trouble with our union painters, but they reasoned that they did not want to paint our offices anyway and let it go.

After one of my classes, some of the employees came in and told me of a little kitten caught in a bush outside. I was amazed they came to me and did not handle it, but they knew I loved cats and would be the one to save the kitten. So I went outside the front of Brophy building and extracted a little black kitten from the rose bush - now I knew the real reason why they came for me. Scratched from the bush, I brought the little kitten inside. I knew I did not need another cat at home, and we already had an office cat, but my boss (a new boss, not the one who did not get along with the administration) said for me to keep him in my office.

My new assistant would play with anything that moved, answered my phone (hard to explain the 'mew') and followed me when he was allowed out of the room in between classes and cried when I was not there with him and he could hear my voice. I tried many different names for him, but he always paid attention when the name of the building was mentioned. So, he became Brophy.

Fairly soon after Brophy took up residence, I was transferred. What was supposed to be a 'temporary' reassignment became a permanent move to another department within the state. Brophy now had to come home with me and get acquainted with the cats in my house. The minute he was put down, he jumped on everyone and basically told them he was in charge. That went well, except for one little girl kitty in the house who told him otherwise. He avoided her for all the time they were together.

Brophy had a personality and was very smart and opinionated. He was accepting of anything I did to him, but he told me about it anyway. He rode well in the car, he loved going to our cabin, and he hated leaving that cabin, showing his displeasure by defecating in his box - every time!

Last week he lost his year-long battle with kidney disease. For this past year, he let me inject him with fluids, he let me give him the medicine and he made sure to sit on my lap every night. But last week I came home and he was unable to control his bowels and bladder and I knew it was time for him to go. He looked at me with those big yellow-green eyes, the same way he looked at me the day I saved him from the bush as the vet gave him his release.

A fine cat.

I got a Job

Again, have not posted in a while, but I have a good excuse. I got a job. I was not looking for a job, but now I have one. As my new boss says 'you are way over-qualified' to which I reply 'Don't hold that against me.' Good start. Still, innocently enough, I saw one of those tear-off ad papers posted in one of our local diners that said: "I need someone to work out of my home to help me with my business. Must know Excel, Word and PowerPoint..." I showed my husband the posting and said: "I can do that." He replied: "Yes, you can, if you want to." So I took one of the tear-offs and researched the number through Google and she was legitimate - East Coast Marketing Director for a major US manufacturer of floor care products.

Here is where it got more interesting. When I called and told her that I had researched her and was interested in applying, she said, 'Oh good, I am looking for someone mature to fill the position.' How old is my voice?

So when I was "interviewed," I think I was already hired. Maybe she ran a search on me? She wanted to know when I can start, told me what I would do the first day, said she would give me a key to her house, and its a shame she has to tell the young lady waiting in the living room that she hired me.

So I am her Administrative Assistant, but she gave me the title of Assistant Manager. I have a key to her house, my own office in the lower level of the house, and I get a raise after three months and can go to possibly full-time in 6 months - if I want it. Right now I work 20 hours per week and I am tired. I am so out of the habit of working outside the house!

The hard part is the company my husband was working for folded and he is not working. I know he resents that the first job that I applied to hired me, but that was not my intention - to hurt his pride. Still, my boss has come through and is paying my husband a decent wage to fix and paint one of her rental properties. Did I mention the lady has some bucks? Huge property with her own pond, goats, sheep, road, as well as approximately 10 rental properties. The house I work in was owned and designed by an architect and it is only 15 minutes from my house. I thought everyone around here had modest houses - seems the fancy places are hidden in the woods behind Lake Wallenpaupack. Learn something new all the time.

I have to stop now. We have another tornado warning tonight. A tornado blew through last night and left a lot of damage just north of us, so better to be cautious.

Cannot rush this stuff!

I cannot believe it has been 2+ plus months since I posted anything here. Good thing I am not getting paid for this. Then again, if I were, I might write more. Truth is, I did write about a month ago, but my system or the Internet or the site or something 'dumped' an hour's worth of material to the vast wasteland somewhere. Frustration and all that, so I never got the itch to post anything else and figured out other things to do in the meantime.

The summer season is here in the mountains. The first couple of drownings occurred in the Upper Delaware and one of the lakes. DWI's are up - ah, Summer! These occurrences have become a regular part of the main tourist season. Still, up until last week we had frost at night. I guess a few warm days and nights brings out the crazy in people. It also brings the requisite flies and mosquitoes to annoy us and we expect all this.

We painted our living room - finally. A warm antique white. Looks very cottage-y and clean. Next stop in the painting tour is the office. Funny thing about a spring clean-up - you find things! The worst/best was discovering the hiding place for the infamous blue disc to reboot our old PC. I am sure when I put it there, I thought it would be someplace where I would not lose it. Mission accomplished! Now a new conundrum - restore the old PC or donate it. It looks so big next to the new laptop, which is faster and does more. But the old PC was a workhorse for graphic applications and printing stuff. My husband wants to boot up the old thing and have the option of taking the laptop with him when he does sales calls or whatever. Esthetically, I do not miss the thing on the desk, but he is probably right. Your thoughts?

I also found out why the poor old thing crashed - the hard drive got over-heated. I have come to this conclusion after reading an article from the NY Times. Could have saved it by putting the hard drive in the freezer - who knew? I know it overheated from excess dust (isn't all dust 'excess?') from our covered kitty litter boxes which are on the other side of our office, behind a heavy curtain, on the other side of our washing machine and dryer. Read a previous post regarding my thoughts on a dust-free litter - there is no such thing!

So now I will cook our dinner - something I know I have control over, barring anything unforeseen. Of course, if it were 'foreseen' you could stop it - like giant oil leaks - or maybe not.

"Accept the Chocolate"

My husband and I had a lovely day yesterday celebrating our anniversary (see previous blog entry). We had a nice lunch, then poked around in hardware stores and the outlets in Tannersville, just looking and planning what we could do with our house this spring and summer. We would have liked to have taken a nice drive and had a sumptuous feast at a restaurant with a nice view of the mountains or the lake, but it was rainy and grey, so we went to a chain restaurant that played music that I do not particularly like. It was one of those days where every time we decided we should go ahead and get or order or do something, the item was sold out - unavailable - on order - 'should have been here yesterday,' etc.


Horoscopes


I do read my horoscope, several versions. Do I 'believe' in them? Not really. The 'fortunes' they predict are vague at best and get recycled around year by year. I think of them as fun references, especially when the prediction seems to be real. My horoscope yesterday said 'everything you may wish to purchase may not be available, for example, you may wish to buy a vanilla ice cream and all the shop will have available will be chocolate,' or something like that. Darn if that did not appear to be true yesterday! So our mantra became "Accept the Chocolate!"

Salespeople in the stores looked at us funny when we said that to each other after every disappointment, but, then again, we are used to salespeople looking at us funny. Nice to know we can give some variety to their day, I guess.


There was a time that these little 'ant bites' would bother the life out of me. So many things were discombobulated yesterday I could have gotten very cranky, but I have tried to develop an attitude that eventually things will come to fruition. Snow will melt and Spring will come. Mice will stop annoying us in the Winter to be supplanted by mosquitoes and flies in the Summer. Wait, that was not very positive, was it? Anyway, we can get around the annoyances and handle whatever happens. "Accept the Chocolate!"

Ike



This is Ike, laying on top of Sunny (who is not happy about this situation). He was trying to find a replacement for Checkers after she died and started to lay next to - or on top of- anyone who came near him, just like he used to do with Checkers. I put this picture up because it is the last picture I took of Ike. He joined Checkers on February 9, passing peacefully in his sleep laying next to his Daddy. He was 18 years old. R.I.P.

Anniversaries

We are coming up on our fourth anniversary here at this house in the Poconos. We moved in April 1, 2006 and a part of us is amazed that we do not miss more of the things that were a part of our everyday life in NJ. This coming Monday is also the 29th anniversary of our first meeting at the St Patrick's parade in Philadelphia. My, how time seems to escape us, but I know we have not circumvented it. I look at pictures of us in our youth and realize that in many cases, the years have not been kind. But I look in my husbands eyes and the young man I married is still there - I hope he sees the same thing in mine.

But as the snow is finally melting and we see our lawn again, I was pondering what I miss about NJ. Bagels! Nobody up here makes bagels like they do around our old home turf. Some are close, but it must be something with the water or whatever. Yet I know there are many people who will insist that NYC has the best bagels - it is all what you know and grow up with, I imagine. There was one bagel place near where I grew up that made the bagels every night for the next day's deliveries to local restaurants and, if you went there after 2 am, they would sell you a fresh baked bagel right out of the oven - great after a night of clubbing, etc. Now one of my friends in NJ makes a point of bringing me bagels when she sees me; takes pity on the poor soul who cannot get a good bagel!

Another thing is pizza. For some reason the favorite version of pizza in this area appears to be what is called 'Old Forge Pizza,' named after the town the other side of Scranton that calls itself the 'Pizza Capital of the World.' Please! American cheese has no business being in the cheese mix used on top of a pizza unless you are making it at home for a child! Crispy crust, mozzarella cheese, fresh sauce (not ladled from a can), oil dripping down your arm - that is a pizza and it is something we just cannot seem to find up here. Again, must be this cool, clean water in the mountains!

But in the scheme of things, I guess I miss the ocean the most. We never lived more than an hour from the beach in NJ (by the way, people who grew up near the NJ shore tended not to call it 'The Shore' until it became the jargon used by the tourists. We went to the Beach!), and when we needed to clear our heads and get perspective on life, we would drive to the ocean and just sit and look. The ocean never changes and yet is constantly changing. Very zen. We are not hurting badly for the ocean view, we have our beautiful mountains, but about twice each year, I need to look again. Just to be sure that life continues, the air is still salty and the breezes can chill you to the bone. I tend not to go during tourist season - learned that from growing up near the shore area - but usually about mid-winter and autumn, I convince my friend to go to the beach, to sit and just look.

I also miss just walking around the corner to the store or a restaurant. I miss that particularly during a heavy, snowy winter. Used to be if I did not feel like cooking, we could just walk around the corner for Chinese, Fried Chicken, Pizza, Bagels - selections were practically endless. Most times we could not decide which kind restaurant to order from - too many choices. I admit that we eat healthier now.

The Storms of February, 2010

We thought we were pretty lucky this winter. We had some snowfalls of 6 to 8 inches, one time a foot of snow was recorded, but Philadelphia and Washington, DC, etc. always seemed to get it worse. We were almost through February and it would be a downhill slide into the warmth of Spring. Stupid Groundhog! I had a feeling when Punxitawny Phil saw his shadow that there would be trouble. We got socked the last week of February, setting snowfall records for our area, as well as Scranton and Wilkes Barre. Yes, I know - Philadelphia set new records for the season. We set new records for largest one day amounts in February, as well as records for most accumulations for February - all in one week.

The good news is my car is in the garage - the bad news is my car is probably going to stay in the garage for about another two weeks. Five foot drifts would test the will of anyone going anywhere if they do not have to. We have my husband's car, which we parked down by the end of the driveway before the snow hit - wise move. After the snowfall, getting to the car was another matter. Neat foot path - we may drive the car up to the house in a couple of weeks too.

I am thinking more about Spring than I normally do, but what I am really looking forward to this year is painting our living room. It has taken us 4 years to figure out what color we would like and it is - beige! A cop-out to be sure, but we have paneling all through this house and, as I have said before, we are afraid to pull it down for fear of what is behind it. For example, if there is no drywall, then we have to put that up first, then paint or whatever. So the idea of what color to paint, or wallpaper over the paneling becomes a major conundrum. So we are going the easy way out with a pale beige so at least this tired paneling is covered and if we have to paint again, we are not trying to cover a bolder color. Four years - cannot rush these things.

We also need some other things looked after around the house. After all this snow - oh, yes, the total is about 3 feet and it is snowing as I type this - I am sure there will be many surprises awaiting us under this white covering. I would like to have some electrical problems resolved, as well as some steps added to the walk behind our house. And the garden again - this year we hope to grow more than squash, or at least I hope to grow other produce. There is always hope...

Reflections on Joy

I am not sure why I have been thinking about the concept of 'Joy' lately; maybe because we had so much sorrow over the Christmas with the sickness and consequent death of two of our cats; or maybe it is the doldrums of winter. Our winter has not been that bad, so something triggered this pondering of feelings.

Joy, to me, is something more than happy or even happiness. Joy is something that is accomplished, or anticipated. For example, the Biblical concept of Joy was experienced upon the birth of Jesus, as that was anticipated and desired. Not to compare ordinary life with the Joy involved in the Savior, but a feeling of Joy stays with you and does not come around often.

My earliest memory of feeling Joy was when I was 4 years old (yes, I remember back that far - it is last week I have a problem with). My father brought home - what looked to me then - a huge two-wheel bike that someone had cast off. He fixed it up, painted it, and never put training wheels on it because he said it was time for me to ride a two-wheeler. So I excitedly went with him onto our dead-end street and got on the bike that he had fixed up for me. The basket on the front was bigger than me! My feet barely reached the peddles! But I was going to ride, because my father said I could. He held on to help me get on, then pushed - yes, pushed - me up the road. Fell on the front curb, but I did not cry (wanted to). Back up on the bike, then he pushed and yelled for me to peddle - peddling might of worked, but now there was this telephone pole in front of me - hit that! Try again, but now that my mother has realized what was going on, my father runs beside me and gets me to peddle, gives with a little push (enough of the pushing!) and I go into the neighbor's hedge. At least that was softer... Two more times into the hedge and now my father is threatening to put the bike away until next year - a whole year? So, one more time and I avoided the hedge, the pole, the curb and I was riding! Turning and stopping - not so much (my father had to catch me) - but I was riding! Joy!

The next time I remember Joy was the day my brother was coming home from Viet Nam. The anticipation, the praying, the watching my mother age before my eyes while he was there, were all resolved when he walked off that plane. Damaged in so many ways, as we found out years later, but at that moment - Joy!

Our wedding day, in spite of the threat of rain and a rampaging mother because of a messed-up catering order, proved to be a day of exhaustion and abject Joy.

The last time I have felt real Joy was for my 50th birthday party. I was happy to live to that point, happy to have my husband healthy and next to me, happy to have my friends share my happiness. Things got all screwed-up when I went back to work the following Tuesday, but that night I experienced Joy. I hope those people who were there that night saw that - they really have not seen it from me since.

I am happy. I love my husband, our Pocono home, our cats. I feel a thrill watching the moon, the stars, the sunsets and sunrises. The mountain and lake views we experience take my breath away. I am not complaining, I am just reflecting. I hope you do as well.

Ready for Winter

NOW we are ready for winter. Almost half-way through the season and the house is much more comfortable. The nice young men from the county weatherization program did a wonderful job finding the air leaks, the poor fits on doors and windows, insulation. Cute young men - if I were younger, thinner, single - who am I kidding here?

Some embarrassment occurs when strangers start fussing about your house, at least for me. Finding dust bunnies, cobwebs, grease spots - I swear I went around this house looking for those issues before they arrived. The guys were nice about it; they said that the blower they used to test for leaks knocks stuff out of the smallest corners, etc. I can imagine some of the things they have seen. Our most memorable incident for them was finding a dead snake in our fireplace. The one guy said "I don't want to upset you, but we found this snake..." To which I said, "Another one!" He was expecting the 'girly' response; I know he will be talking about that to the 'guys.'

What really impressed me is these guys were working very hard, squeezing into tight areas, moving heavy equipment, including a refrigerator that did not fit into the door very well - and they never cursed once! Not even a sincere "darn!" We had snacks and coffee and donuts for them, but they insisted on eating their lunch outside in their truck each day. We told them to come inside, etc., but I have a theory - they were talking about us and getting any cursing/cussing out of their system during that break.

It was really cold each day they were here, so of course they had to keep the outside doors open to weatherstrip them. We had snow, so of course they were outside putting a new storm window up. It was slippery, so that would be the perfect time to bring in a new refrigerator (nice one, too). The only damage we sustained was a latch on our back storm door when the refrigerator caught it. Not bad.

So now that is all accomplished, the weather has broken and we have had 40 degree temperatures today with no wind. My husband and I took advantage of the warmer weather and did some additional weatherization, such as covering our exhaust fan and fixing some plastic we had on the windows. I wish we were as efficient as those young men were - what would take them 1/2 hour at most takes us two hours to complete.

Winter will be back soon, so I am sure this will show how well the improvements function.

New Decade

As I am writing this, the weatherbug on my computer says it is 8 degrees outside. Now the windchill is probably minus 10 - yippee, winter in the Poconos! We are getting used to this - we may not like it, but this is not an unexpected event. This weather is why they sell insulated underwear and warm sweaters and coats. The usual - dress in layers, warm the car, stay out of the direct wind - oh, and the wind is whipping out there at a constant 20 MPH, with gusts up to 50 MPH. Good thing we used bungee cords and wire ties on the Christmas decorations! And we gave up on the inflatable balloon things - seen too many of them laying deflated on the ground because to inflate them is to invite them to travel - maybe to the next county!

It is nights like these that shows how little insulation is in the walls of this house built circa 1930. Back then they probably heated with coal, which was cheap , and an air-tight house was not necessary. I feel the breeze coming in in places that I thought we had covered already.

This week we are going to be visited by the county home energy program for three days to winterize our house. They are supposed to blow in insulation, wrap windows, replace some storms doors, and give us a new refrigerator (the one that came with this house is an energy beast - I wish they gave new ranges too.)

Being under-employed can work out sometimes, as we meet the income guidelines for this free service. Yay/Boo. Still, I am so looking forward to this and I wish we could have had this done before the cold hit. We had to wait for PA to pass their budget, then we had to wait for the materials to be ordered. Still, I am not complaining - really. We wanted to do this on our own, but if someone offers their expertise, who are we to say no?

This cold makes me very happy that we cleared a spot in our garage for one of the cars. Not real warm in there, but out of the wind. Of course it is my car, not my husband's - my car is more finicky about the cold, being a Toyota. Wish we could put both cars in our 'supposed' two car garage, but the one bay is really too narrow. Never noticed the difference until we fixed the doors. Guess we need an even smaller car? We could pull the car in, just cannot open the doors (oh, shucks). We needed workspace anyway; to stand out in the cold, but out of the wind.