Magic Family

My maternal grandfather was a magician during the vaudeville era.

My mother was a magician who performed shows for charities.

My uncle was a missionary who performed magic as part of his lessons until he realized his audience thought he was using demons to help him.

My middle brother performed his magic shows on a cruise ship.

I participated in my first magic show about age seven when Mom did a show at the Masonic Lodge and I did one trick as part of her show.

I did my second show at age 11 when my 6th grade class used Captain Kangaroo as the theme for a variety show.

I did my third show as a high school freshman when my school performed a variety show with a Down on the Farm theme. Somehow the guys could not produce the egg they saw me place in a cloth bag. It took a female to do that.

That was my last show.

I still own the gear for a couple of tricks. I should take them to the local magic store one of these days to pass on to a new magician.

TTYL,

Linda

God vs. Santa

When our daughter was little, the Deaconess at our church told me this story. One child told his brother that Santa wasn’t real. A sister immediately followed up by say neither was the Easter Bunny. The child immediately went to his mother and demanded, “Did you lie to me about God, too?”

That was the year I asked our five-year old daughter if she wanted to help me be Santa for her Dad.

I wish I had this idea back then as well. Spend Christmas Day baking cupcakes. Load them and the kids in the car and head out to where lonely people are. Have the kids offer each one a cupcake saying, “We are celebrating Jesus’s birthday; would you like a piece of His cake?”

Another family developed a rule to minimizing the focus on gift getting. “Something you want; something you need; something to wear; and something to read.” If the something you need is a new toothbrush and the something to wear is new pajamas then the whole family could brush and change and settle down to read together. What a lovely feeling that gives me.

TTYL,

Linda

Christmas? Songs

Thanks to a blogger I read I have the song Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer stuck in my head.

That got me started thinking about the songs we teach our kids in December.

I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus

Rocking Around the Christmas Tree

All I want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth

Frosty the Snowman

Here Comes Santa Claus

The last one ends with “Let’s give thanks to the Lord above that Santa Claus comes tonight.”

Wait! We’re supposed to thank God for Santa Claus?

What does any of this have to do with the birth of Jesus?

The only children’s song I could come up with that actually relates to Christ’s Mass is Away in a Manger.

Surely, we can do better than that.

TTYL

Linda

Trillium Woods

This is where we live.

In the center is the flag pole.

To the left, past those parked cars in the east entrance to our underground parking. Our assigned parking space is the second one in from that door.

To the right of the flag pole is main doors with a drop off area under the extended roof. We never have to actually be out in the weather whether we are driving or someone is picking us up.

To the right of that is the offices on the main floor and the main dining room and the pub on the second floor.

Left of the flag pole is the cafe on the main floor and the library on the second floor.

Far left of that, on the top floor, those four windows are in our living room with our balcony left of them.

The tower to the right of our apartment is a stairwell.

Right of the tower and the next four windows is elevator #4; the one we use the most, in what’s called building four. Buildings three through one are more apartments going on south us. Build one is so far on down the hall it is sometimes called living in Iowa. The complex is between 57th and 59th streets so building one is actually a full block away from us even though is still under the same roof.

To the right of the offices, out of the picture, are the activity rooms: art and games, with around the corner being the exercise rooms, and pool.

To the right of the activity rooms is where building five is under construction; it reaches all the way to 59th street. Some year, building six will be built west of it.

Above the pool is the auditorium.

On down the hallway from the auditorium is the Birches Care Center with short term care, rehab, and memory care floors.

There is pretty much everything you could ever need in this complex.

Except a grocery store. We actually have to leave to leave get groceries.

TTYL,

Linda