IT NEVER FAILS
It seems that with age I am more observent and sensitive to everything around me, more aware of what people say and how they say it, if their voice is soft, loud or shrill and how they treat other people. When I was younger I just accepted things and people the way they were. Shouldn't that be the way it is now? Am I getting too critical?

When I sat down to write this post I just wanted to blog about a few things that annoy me - nothing too serious but what an opening paragraph!!



It never fails - when I go out to eat with "the girls" and the bill comes - I'm usually the one that collects the money from each girl and what do you know - "SHE" only has a $20.00 bill. Can't she take a minute before she leaves the house to make sure she has an assortment of bills.



It never fails - at the conclusion of a monthly book club that I belong to, the leader announces the name of the book to be reviewed and the date of the next meeting and what do you know - most of the "girls" do not have paper or pen. It's a simple thing to do, just keep paper and pen in your handbag. They have everything under the sun in there, why not the essential paper and pen.



It never fails - I call to let someone know that I will be picking them up at 1:00. When I get there she says to me, "Give me 10 more minutes."



It never fails - someone is in the middle of a story and some else pops in with an entirely different subject. (Ronni from Times Goes By knows that's one of my favorite gripes) They are not even courteous enough to look like they are interested or even listening, they are just waiting to get their licks in! I love blogging because no ones interrupts me!

I realize all this is small potatoes. Is it me, is it the weather, my age or am I just being grouchy today?

posted by millie garfield @ 4:52 PM | Permalink | I LOVE COMMENTS >> 15 comments

 
Meeting Ronni
When I found out that Ronni of Time Goes By was going to be in the Boston area I made plans to meet her at a restaurant about an hour away from where I live. I still drive (even at night) but was not familiar with that area and rather than create a stressful situation I called "The Ride." This service provides door-to-door transportation to eligible people who can not use public transit (subways buses and trains because of a physical, cognitive or mental disability. Somehow I qualify!!
"The Ride" will take you anywhere within their service area.

This is what transpired when I called requesting a ride:

Reservationst: Your customer ID number, what day do you want to travel, when do you want to arrive, where do you want to go and will you have a guest.

When I told her I wanted to go to Joe's Bar and Grill - she said hold on - she had to check the map because no one had ever requested a ride to a bar and grill! Then she asked if I would be traveling with a guest. I said "No." By this time she was laughing, laughing and laughing and I was laughing with her.

The final question was, "What time do you want to return? I said, " I don't need a ride back." By this time she's hysterical, and I was too. She probably thought I was going to have a romantic rendezvous or a blind date!

Her final words to me were: "Have fun and be good."



Last Friday "The Ride" picked me up and drove me to the restaurant. When I walked in it didn't take but I minute when I spotted Ronni and Steve and as a bonus Halley Suitt was there too. I had seen pictures of her and immediately knew who she was.

Even though I had never meet Ronni in person it was just like we were old friends that were meeting for lunch. That's the way it is with bloggers. By the time we meet we know each other very well.

For those of you who read Time Goes By you can just imagine the conversation - we talked about our blogging friends, politics, TV, cooking, baking and even Mah Jongg.

It was a very special day for me even though I did not have a romantic rendezvous!

Read Ronni's post about it, Meeting Thoroughly Modern Millie, on her blog.

posted by millie garfield @ 7:35 PM | Permalink | I LOVE COMMENTS >> 16 comments

 
NO MORE PANCAKES
For years I have had a date with "the girls" for supper at the local pancake house. It was a five minute ride from where we lived and on a Tuesday nights it was, "buy one, get one free." The food was always good and the waitress knew our preferences. one girl wanted water no ice, one wanted water with ice, one wanted her coffee right away and one girl wanted the coffee with the pancakes.


Flickr photo by marmalade mel

Going to the Pancake House was like going to a special event, like going to a wedding or a family reunion. Customers came from the local area so we all knew each other. Tuesday nights drew the biggest crowd because of the two for one special.

I had heard rumors that the restaurant was going to close and sure enough when I got home from Florida the rumor was confirmed. The resturant was closed and a pizza place was going to go up in its place. The building was demolished and the area looks like a bomb hit it!

I don't know who did the market research on opening up a pizza restaurant in that spot but it doesn't make any sense to me because there is an Italian restaurant a stones throw from this location that specializes in pizza!!

We feel like a group of displaced people who are looking for a Tueday night place. The people that we saw every Tuesday night are now scattered - no one seemed to have found "a place." It's like when a neighborhood changes, it's just never the same.

NEWS FLASH

Just heard that a restaurant not to far from where I live has closed its doors and what do you know , The Internation House of Pancakes is going to open in its place!!! I don't know if they will be tearing down the building or adapt the exsisting buillding for their IHOP or how long this will take.

All this doesn't make any sense to me - They tear down one pancake house and then they put up another one a short distance away.

Go Figure!!

posted by millie garfield @ 6:03 PM | Permalink | I LOVE COMMENTS >> 10 comments

 
THE BEACH


As far back as I can remember I have loved the beach. On a hot summer day our destination was Revere Beach which was about a thirty minute ride by streetcar. My mother would pack a lunch and all the things that we would need for a day in the sun. One of the things she took along was a blanket, those were the days before the invention of the beach chair.

In order to make sure that we would have a seat on the street car we would walk an extra block to stand a better chance of getting a seat. It was no fun if you had to stand in a hot and crowded streetcar, most of the time we got a seat.
As we got close to the beach and could see the water a loud cheer would be heard from the passengers, me included.

We had arrived!!



I remember many things about the beach experience but i"ll just relate one that I remember very vividly. In those days the men wore wool bathing suits. My father loved the sun and did not like being so covered up by his suit so he dropped the top part of the suit, along came a policeman and told him in no uncertain terms to cover up!

At the end of the day we walked the length of the boardwalk until we came to what was called "the carbarn." It was always fun getting to the car barn because on the way we would stop for either a hot dog, soft serve ice cream or caramel corn. Sometimes I would have a ride on the Flying Horses" the Whip or go into the Haunted House."



As a teenager I went to Revere Beach with my girlfriends. The meeting place was called "Punks Corner." In order to get to the beach, we still had to travel in that hot street car. No air conditioning yet!

Than came the time that one of my friends had a car and DROVE. Off we went to Fishermans Beach in Swampscott. That beach had no amusement park or refreshment stands but the fellows we meet were worth the trip. We always had a great time at Fishermans!!



There were times I would spend weekends at the Cape with my friends. Beautiful sandy beachs and what made it really special was the water was "WARM."

There is a lot more I could write about the beach but I'm going to skip ahead to the present day. No more going to the beach, not even in Florida. It's a lot easier to walk over to the pool! No packing up the car, no looking for a place to park, no sand to bring home, there are no man-o-wars and the water is not freezing!



On occasion I still enjoy walking on the beach, collecting sea shells and trying to get a picture of a seagull but give me the pool anytime!!

posted by millie garfield @ 4:48 PM | Permalink | I LOVE COMMENTS >> 16 comments