Volunteering

For the past four years I have volunteered at the 9 Health Fair when it is held at Spirit of Christ Catholic Community in Arvada. Arriving between six and seven in the morning, we are treated to a breakfast of bagels, cream cheese, fruit, oatmeal, burritos, juice and peanut butter. After eating and socializing the volunteers head for their stations.

The first two years I held the title of  "Ambassador" and went around replacing people who needed a break, directing people to the different stations, and answering questions. Another friend told me that an Ambassador is someone who "tells the people where to go!" When I was an Ambassador I was given a blue t-shirt with the logo of the fair.

This year I did not get a t-shirt but I did see many volunteers wearing red t-shirts.  Last year, someone did not show up in the Diabetic area and I was asked to work in the area. I thought it was Karma that I ended up in that department because for a few years I have been fighting my doctor; he says I am diabetic and I say I am not. Though, I do try to stay away from carbs, sugar and by eating high fiber food. I also know that exercise is important yet I slack off on exercising!

My job yesterday was to find out if people were high risk of being diabetic and I was surprised that of the twenty persons who took the test, seventeen were high risk. Age, being a man, close relatives that had diabetes, and weight are factors that can contribute to the disease. After the people finished with me I sent them over to speak with a dietitian or a retired nurse. I enjoy speaking with people and can get into interesting conversations and that helps the time pass quickly. At one point, someone entered the room and asked, "Does anybody here speak Spanish?" I let the volunteer know that I did and I followed her to the registration area. It made me feel good to help the lady who could not speak  English.

Around noon when we closed up shop we were treated to lunch of cheese, ham, fruit, sandwiches, chips, miniature candy bars and apple or orange juice. This year it did not seem as busy as past years and there were gaps between people entering the room and I kept thinking I should have taken a book to read! I will remember that for next year.

"Being healthy and fit

isn't a fad or trend,

it's a life style."

Internet Quote

Sin Street Social Club

Some of the Young At Heart group of Spirit of Christ Catholic Community attended a play at the Arvada Center on April 7, 2019. We wondered what kind of play it would be with a name like Sin Street Social Club. The beginning has a nun praying so I thought, it can't be too bad! It had some risqué parts but most of it was crazy and fun. Most of the "naughty" parts were left to our imagination, though words like whore, prostitute, cad, syphilis and sex were used! In a brochure about the play I found this paragraph: Many characters throughout the play engage in debauchery, drunkenness and are quite open with their sexuality, some using it as their business. There is a spectrum of uncouth behavior in the play...

I enjoyed the play and found myself laughing in certain parts, yet, as I looked at some of the faces in the audience it did not look as if they were appreciating the play. It is a comedy of love and sex and I was surprised to learn that a play, The Rover, had been written by a women named Aphra Behn in 1677. The modern day writer, Jessica Austgen, moved the story to 1916 and Mardi Gras and named it Sin Street Social Club.

The Black Box Theater is a three-sided auditorium and the characters make sure that they face and speak to all three sides of the room. I would think that it is more difficult than having to act on a stage facing the front.

I was able to get a few of the persons in our group together for a picture, though many escaped and are not in the picture. Out of  the fifty persons from our group that attended the play. The ones pictured below will make it into my blog!

At The End Of A String

Every year, for the past seventeen years, Arvada has held a Kite Festival. I remember it being held in a small park, then it moved to a larger area and for the past few years it has been held at Stenger Soccer Fields. The space works well but the parking is terrible. This year I arrived about an hour after the gates opened and already there was no place to park. I managed to squeeze in between a trash can and a porta-potty and was able to watch a few kites. The fun part of watching the kites soar up into the sky, or not, is being able to walk up and down the fields. This year I stayed in one spot.

I could see that on the west end of the fields there were tents and bouncers of different shapes for the children. Who know what was being sold in the tents because I never made it to that side. One year, before the Festival became so popular, I was given a t-shirt that I like to wear when I attend the festival.

What fun to watch the Dads and some Mothers trying to show their children how to fly a kite. I noticed that the smaller kids could care less and it was the parents that were having fun. One mother and son stood about ten feet from each other. She held the string and he held the kite. They stood and looked at each other. "What do we do next?" I heard the boy say. "Throw it up in the air," the mother answered. He threw it up and the kite fell to the ground. At this point I said, "When he throws it up, you run while pulling the string." She switched places with her son but he did not have any idea of what to do as he held the ball of string. This surprised me because I thought everyone knew how to fly a kite! I do not know if they every got their kite up in the air because I turned my attention to the kites already up.

I love kites. I remember my brother making his own and I had to go find rags to cut them into strips and tie them together to be used for the tail. "The tail is very important," my brother would tell me.
After reading The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, I liked kites even more. They are beautiful as they zig-zag in the blue sky. Some stay up for a long time while others come crashing down to be picked up for another try.

"I see children as kites.

You spend a life time trying

to get then off the ground,

you run with them until 

you're breathless, they crash, 

you add a longer tail,

you patch and comfort,

adjust and teach. You

watch them lifted by the wind 

and assure them

that someday they'll fly."

Erma Bombeck

Seeing a Friend from the Sixties

My friend and I worked together. It's been a long  time ago but I do remember that she and her sister were married to policemen and my friend's husband was shot while on duty. They had two daughters who were about the age of my children and we would often do things together. I remember going on picnics in the mountains! My friend moved away from Colorado and settled in California and we lost track of each other.

Friday evening at our church's fish fry, I saw a lady sitting across from me. I walked over to her and asked her if she was my friend's sister. She hesitated and said my name with a question. Even though she belongs to my church I had never seen her at any of our functions.

We had an interesting time catching up and I found out my friend still lives in California and is doing fine. I asked for her number, but her sister did not have it on her and will give it to me later. Wow, what an amazing encounter to see someone from my past. Her husband did not recognize me but said he remembered my name. One thing for sure, my friend's sister still looks good!

Once I get my friend's phone number, Facebook, or e-mail it will be interesting to catch up on all that has transpired since I last saw her.

"It's always hard when

you've known a person

a long time and then

you have to recognize

that you have nothing

left in common but 

your memories."

Eva Heller

A Pleasant Surprise

Friday evening, around six-forty-five, I put on my pajamas and was ready to enjoy a good movie. Now that I had Netflix, I could choose to watch from comedy, drama, foreign, or whatever appealed to me. My phone rang and a friend said, "Get ready and join us the Arvada Center." As I was about to tell her I was busy, she said, "The show Trav'lin is showing and we have an extra ticket."

As many times as I drive along Wadsworth and pass the Arvada Center, I see what is showing on the marquee and wish I could see some of the shows listed. Trav'lin is one that has appealed to me ever since it was advertised but tickets are quite pricey so I never gave it another thought about going to see it. A free ticket to see a musical made me respond with "see you at the theater!"

Off came my pajamas, a quick washing of my face, put on some make up, slipped on some clothes and I was in my car ready to meet my friends. I am fortunate that I do not live far from the theater and that my friends had thought of me to join them!

Trav'lin turned out to me a fun play about how love can be messy. Three couples struggle in keeping their romance moving forward with many ups and downs. The lyrics sung by talented actors were wonderful and the voices powerful. The sets slid in and out silently showing us a beauty parlor, park scene, and dance hall. It amazes me how the sets can be minimal, yet convey what is going on in the lives of the characters.

Sitting near us were five persons with notebooks and watching the show intently. At intermission I went over and spoke with one young lady and asked her why they were taking notes. She told me they are the understudies who will take over whenever needed. She had two roles she had rehearsed and I was flabbergasted that she had to learn two parts. I wondered, first, on what  memory she must have and, second, did she ever get the parts confused.

 I thoroughly enjoyed the play and my thanks go to my friends for the invite!

"Life is messy.

    Love is messier."

Internet Quote

April Fool's Dinner

At my age, I do not believe anyone can fool me! Tonight, one of my friends brought a cake and no matter how the cake was sliced, the knife would not cut the white cake with colorful sprinkles. When we found out it was a roll of toilet paper nicely frosted  we knew we had been fooled!

Five friends decided to meet for dinner on April 1, 2019. To go along with our Gin and Tonic drinks a large tray with lots of goodies was prepared. The tablecloth was turned backwards and a meat loaf cake was made and mashed potatoes were used for the frosting. On top of the "cake," mixed vegetables were sprinkled. For dessert I made banana bread, whipped cream and peach halves to make it look like eggs on toast.

Not only was our food disguised but we all dressed as we thought fools would dress. A prisoner Christmas, a cute bunny, a cat lady, a red nosed hostess with a shirt on backwards, and a Hawaiian lady with sunglasses and a fern. At one point, we all put our red noses to take a picture!

What fun acting crazy and enjoying each other's company on April Fool's Day!

And then we were given an envelope that had April Fool's Day written on it and when we opened our envelopes here were these tiny little donuts with a note telling us they were donut seeds.  I don't know what the others did with their seeds put I planted mine and will now wait for those donuts to pop up!

I Feel Cheated

For two weeks I have been glued to my television watching a Novela (Soap Opera). It is a Turkish love story by the name of Lovebird. The men are handsome and the women beautiful. I got to know all of the characters and some I liked, some I hated, but the story kept my interest. The 72nd episode ended with the handsome doctor waiting for his love at the train station. When I flipped to get episode 73 it wasn't there.

I got on my computer and asked when season two would begin. The message I got was: Due to low amount of viewers, there would be no second season!  "No," I cried, "I need to know what happens to all those people I got to know so well." I continued my search and found out the Novela was written from a three book story called The Autobiography of a Turkish Girl translated by Sir Wyndliam Deedes. Searching further, I found the books on the Internet and read the ending to see if the two lovers ended up together. There was no satisfaction because the ending seemed to have no connection with what I had been watching. I needed closure!

Next step was to call the Jefferson County Library and they were able to find  a copy and will get it to me in the near future. The Internet let me know that there were three books but the librarian said she could only find one book. I then looked the book up on Amazon and they have copies ranging from eight dollars to $56 but I do not know if it was the story I wanted. I can not believe that I may never know what happened to those characters that became like family!

Slowly, I am getting over my disappointment. Here it is, the day after, and my thoughts keep returning to the story.  I even watched the last episode again to see if there was a clue as to how the story really ends. I could put my own ending or how I wish the story would end, yet I want to know what actually happened.  The feeling is like losing many loved ones at the same time. I suppose I will have to go through the mourning steps; denial, anger, depression and finally acceptance!

"Soap operas have the same

hypnotic power as witnessing

clothes turning in a washing

machine -- if you don't look

away quickly, you'll be 

watching until the end."

 Steward Stafford

Addendum to my blog:  After waiting over three weeks for a copy of the book, I called the library and inquired if the book had been ordered. "Colorado did not have a book, but we found one in Missouri and when it comes in we will let you know."  On April 6, 2029, I received a notice that the book was in. I picked up the book and it is faded, held together with pink string, has yellowed pages and it looks as if is falling apart. Don't judge a book by its cover, I thought, maybe now I will find out what happened to all those characters I left behind in the seventy-two episodes!

I will be done

 with what happens to everyone

as I take a look

in this tattered book.

E. Moscoso

 After reading about 160 pages of the Autobiography of a Turkish Girl I finally got closure. The two lovers never connected again but the ending shows he received her diary. He would read that she  emphatically said she hated him and never wanted to see him again. She also wrote she would never love again because he was her only love.

I will return the tattered book to the library now that I know what happened to the two beautiful  people with their special love! I no longer have to wonder what happened when he was left waiting for her at the train station!