“It snowed and snowed the whole world over;
Snow swept the world from end to end.”
“Dr. Zhivago”
By Boris Pasternak
The storm last Friday into Saturday did not disrupt things too much. It did, however, make walking a little bit scary because it snowed for so long. We thank our neighbors Maureen and Janie for helping us so much. Louie, our outdoor cat, has been sleeping in the cardboard tomato box that Hubby made for him a few months ago when it was so cold. When Louie comes out of the box to eat, his fur is warm, so we know the box is doing a good job.
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We have a beautiful amaryllis bulb that pal Loretta gave us. We must get the bulb into its growing medium in the next few days. I found something that I wrote about amaryllis 22 years ago in the Reporter. Former radio gardening expert Paul Parent had mentioned how he always bought his amaryllis bulbs directly from Holland because Dutch bulbs were the biggest and the best quality. If there is growing medium in the box accompanying the bulb, we use that, he said. If it is a bare amaryllis, we pot it in soil, and leave the top inch bare. There was some controversy over the planting of narcissus bulbs at that time I wrote this. He took half of the narcissus bulbs and planted them on marble chips in water, the recommended way, and planted the other half in soil with marble chips on top, giving the second half the appearance of the usual method of planting. He discovered that the ones planted in soil with chips on top were shorter but they were sturdier and lasted longer than those planted in just chips and water.
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On Jan. 15, Hubby, daughter Sue, pal Eileen Burke, and I checked with the Irish Cultural Centre in Canton before we began our journey for the monthly luncheon of the Irish Pastoral Centre. The woman who answered told Hubby that the grounds were being shoveled and sanded as she spoke. There were not many cars on our side of the Expressway, but the other side of the road was jammed. That was the day that picketers completely halted traffic going into the city. Perhaps the picketers psyched out all the traffic around the city.
We arrived at the Centre in relatively quick time. Hubby drove us three gals as close to the front door as he could. The volunteers were already there. Our friend Tess was going around the hall, writing name tags for the guests. Our names are now checked off when we pay for the luncheon so that the Pastoral Centre can check to see if we have called to make reservations for the luncheon. Thank goodness, our pal Eileen calls for the three of us when she makes her own reservation.
Soon our friends began to come in: Barbara Ridge, Ronnie Stanley, Peg O’Connor, Ann Connolly, pal Eileen, Hubby, and daughter Sue joined me. Kathi Sullivan was getting her assignments ready. Among other things, she does the first reading at the noon Mass each month. We were happy to see Fr. John McCarthy as he put on his vestments. Not every seat was filled as he began Mass. Father told us that he had been fortunate to be home in Ireland for three weeks. (I believe he lives in Limerick.) Audrey, who is filling in as the Senior Coordinator for the Pastoral Centre, announced that the next luncheon would be on Feb. 19.
Then it was time to call the individual tables to the buffet. That day the meal was chicken pot pie, with slices of sweet potatoes along with a salad. We had our choice of coffee or tea. Out came Kathi with her trays of miniature sweets, one tray for each table. After the guests had finished their meal, they stood up and began dancing to the music of Mossie Coughlin. Daughter Sue especially loved watching the dancers do the “Gay Gordon.” The dancers were really enjoying themselves. It was a lovely afternoon.
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I was so delighted to hear directly from Susan (Hughes) Ahern that she can now be called “Nana.” She and Papa Frank Hughes became grandparents when daughter Lauren and her husband, Kevin Thomson, of Searsport, Maine, welcomed Finnbar Scott Thomson on Jan. 20, at 11:07 p.m. Susan’s husband, Michael Ahern, is also delighted to be a grandfather. He and Susan are residents of Plymouth, MA. Frank and his wife Wendy, of Clinton, MA, are thrilled to be grandparents. Kevin’s proud and delighted parents are Scott and Roberta Thomson of Sudbury, MA. Finn weighed in at six pounds, eight ounces and is twenty inches long. Susan, with her other daughter Caitlin, who is also pregnant, drove to Belfast, Maine, to be on hand for Finn’s arrival. There is a great photo on line of Papa Frank holding his handsome new grandson. Their many friends in Pope’s Hill send their best to the entire family.
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I, of course, was concerned about the blizzard that was scheduled for Monday evening into Tuesday with some 24 inches of snow to come with it. I also heard that there could be another storm on Friday. I remember the Blizzard of ’78. There was so much snow on our little street that our big Ford Galaxy Wagon was completely covered. We had to fish around in the snow until we found the car’s radio antenna. We tied son Paul’s bright red scarf on the top of the radio antenna so the snowplow drivers would know that there was a big car under the huge mounds of snow. There was a little elderly woman who lived across the street from us. All over the radio there were advisories that neighbors should check with the elderly to make sure they were okay after the blizzard stopped. All our little lady wanted was a pie from the store. The first day after the blizzard stopped, our athletic neighbors, Dolores and Mark, put on their skis and set out to ski up Morrissey Blvd. On their way out, they asked if we needed anything. We asked them to get us a Globe if there were any to be had. They skied up the boulevard and got us a copy of the newspaper at the Globe building.
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Among the new catalogs that have arrived since Christmas, I found this humorous saying, which spurs me to get back on my diet after all the holiday goodies “Thou shall not weigh more than thy refrigerator!”
