“Everywhere she walked
the color shouted
and sang around her…
In October any wonderful,
Unexpected thing might
Be expected.”
“The Witch of Blackbird Pond”
By Elizabeth George Spearr

Hubby and I saw some beautiful color once again along Route 3 in Weymouth. The apple and pear trees in our back yard are losing their leaves. The roses along the side of the house are barely surviving. We have one or two buds on each bush. The buds all opened with the temps about 70. They look so pretty. We thought we’d lose them with the cold temps last weekend, but we didn’t. Hubby brought down the glass insert for the storm door. We should give the screen a good washing and brushing.

***
Pope’s Hill had a special evening on Wed., Oct. 26. It was the first evening that John Schneiderman took over as president of the association. Our first speaker was Annissa Essaibi-George. As I listened to Annissa, I wondered how she could do all she does. First of all, she is a teacher. I think I heard her say at East Boston High. She has been part of the Dorchester Day Parade Committee. She also hosted the Little Miss Dorchester Day Contest. On top of that, she is married and the mother of four boys. She told us she was the third name on the ballot for city councillor at large.

The next speaker was Officer Lenny Lilly. He proudly showed off his new business cards. (“I ordered them two years ago,” he said.) His number, so that you may call him, is 617-343-4524. He mentioned that someone broke into a vehicle and stole tools on Manor Street. Someone smashed a car window in the Planet Fitness parking area. The audience was sorry to hear that some kids stole some of the local team’s sports equipment that was stored at the Victory Road Park. One woman spoke about the night her car’s side mirror was ripped off, as were other cars’ mirrors on her street. The police seized 22 grams of “crack.” One member of the audience mentioned that a group of residents meets on the third Thursday of the month with Capt. Sexton.

The next speaker was Eric Prentiss, an administrative assistant in the Public Works Dept. He urged residents to call 311 with any local problems. He astounded the audience by telling us that the city of Boston has 2,000 miles of roads within its boundaries. He mentioned that snowmelters were rented by the city last year because of the horrendous amount of snow. It was also announced that the Adams Street Library will host a talk on Mon., Nov. 23, about reducing the amount of plastic. I think we’ll be there.

It was too bad that the weather was terribly rainy the night of the Pope’s Hill meeting, so the attendance was smaller than usual. Pres. John announced that the Leahy-Holloran Community Center will, once again, host its Thanksgiving dinner for seniors. It will be held on Thurs., Nov. 19, at 5 p.m., at the center. Seniors must register with Latoya at 617-635-5150 so that the center will know how many to expect for dinner. This is always a delightful evening for seniors. There are crossword puzzles with a Halloween theme plus Bingo for the disabled, who arrive early. So make your phone calls, seniors. You will be pleased. Pres. John told us that the Pope’s Hill area would be pleased to be part of the Mayor’s Christmas Trolley Tour.

***
On Fri., Oct. 30, Hubby and I were in the car with daughter Sue at 7 a.m. We were headed to Quincy where Sue would drop us off for a day at Foxwoods. Eileen Collins and Marilyn Ferrara pulled in with us. Eileen suggested that Hubby and I go her car so that Sue could go back to bed. She, Hubby, and I had all stayed up until probably 11:30 p.m. to watch the Patriots’ game the previous evening. The parking area filled in quickly, so our Cavalier bus was able to leave a few minutes early. The trip to Foxwoods in Connecticut was beautiful. Because that state is farther south than ours, there were still some wonderful red trees to see. I must mention, however, that Hubby and I didn’t stay awake for much of the ride to the casino; we slept, thanks to staying up so late for the Patriots’ game.

After we left the bus, Hubby and I hurried to Dunkin’ Donuts. We needed some hot coffee to wake us up. The non-smoking section of the casino was near Dunkie’s, so we headed for there. Many of our pals hurried to the Bingo room. (That is too much thinking for our tired minds.) Hubby found a poker machine for me and started roaming around the area. Because he was wearing a navy blue sweater and carrying a small notebook, people thought he was an employee and kept asking him for help in fixing their machines. He told each person to stay with the machine and he would find an employee to help them. I played the $10 given to me by the casino for quite a while but that money finally disappeared. I took out $10 of my own money and tried to win some money back with that. I didn’t win, so I decided to stop gambling. Hubby had lost a little more than I did, so he decided to stop, too.

We found the Buffet Luncheon easily and it was pretty tasty. The casino offered many veggies for making terrific salads. Hubby chose his favorite, fried chicken. I had some meatballs. They offered at least two no-sugar–added desserts, so I was happy. Because it was only a little after 2 p.m. when we finished our lunch, we decided that we would go back to the bus depot where we watched many people boarding their buses for home. Our bus pulled into Gate 1 at 3:45 p.m. and we started back to Boston a few minutes before 4 p.m. There was still plenty of sunlight so we were able to see some beautiful trees on the way. Our bus arrived in Quincy just at 6 p.m.

There were many very nice people on our bus: Eileen Collins and Marilyn Ferrara were sitting across from us. Our new friends, Francois DiFolco and his wife Marie Louise, were just behind us. So was Clare DiRosario, and my pals Peggy McDonough and Barbara Sullivan. Also on the bus were Mary Joyce, Mary McFadden, Kitty O’Toole, Mary Gorman, Mike Shannon, and our long-time friend, Doc Walsh. It was a beautiful day to get outside. I am sorry I didn’t get all the names of those on the bus.

***
Here are a few TV suggestions: The seldom-shown finale of “ M*A”S’H’ will be shown on Wed., Nov. 11, Patriots Day, probably from 7 to 8 p.m. on Ch. 292, on Boston Cable. On Fri., Nov. 20, Turner Classic Movies (Ch. 213, on Boston Cable) will show Maureen O’Hara movies from 8 a.m. on. I love her movies.

***
We laughed at this bumper sticker: “My son and my money go to Arizona State.”