Hello on Thursday Morning

Dear Friends,

I guess that I should read the calendar before stating that we have a totally
free day. Linda had two things on her calendar besides the birthday party for
dear old mom at the nursing home. She had a mid morning body maintenance
procedure as well as a 6 PM Book Club / Dinner meeting.

The birthday party (a day late because Linda and I were busy on Tuesday) for
Mom went well. We had a crowd which included my father, my mother's two sisters,
a cousin who drove them, my sister and her husband and one of their children,
two of my sister's friends, and Linda and I. Luckily they have a sitting room in
the nursing home where we all could fit in. My sister and Linda took a lot of
great pictures. Mom did shed some tears of joy.
After seeing my two aunts, I was convinced that those Castronova women are so
strong that there are going to live forever.

Social Calendar -- We have to straighten out the house a little since we have
the Aunt and Uncle of the bride to be for the Saturday wedding which we are
attending staying at our house this evening. They we be driving in from New
Jersey. They should arrive around the 7 PM hour.
I did give this couple the code for the garage the last time they were in
Pittsfield. I better send off an e-mail to remind them of the garage code.

Linda has an ITAM finance meeting at 11 AM. At 5 PM, we are going back to the
ITAM for a Pasta Fund Raiser for the incumbent Mayor of Pittsfield whom we are
supporting.


Weather -- Yesterday, the temperature never hit the 50 degree mark. I am glad
that I wasn't signed up to play golf. I am not a fan of playing golf in cold
weather. Yes, I do go ice-fishing but that sport is a cold weather sport.

Slugs -- I did a little research of the life cycle of a slug, and I found out
some interesting facts. I could not believe one of the facts. The slugs are
hermaphrodites --> They have both male and female organs. A banana slug can grow
to 6 inches long. The male genitalia can reach to a size of 32.5 inches. Yes,
those numbers are correct. The penis is 5 times the length of their body. Good
thing that us human males don't have these characteristics. Storage would be
quite a problem!

Sports -- My Red Sox gave many of the starters a day off. The Sox lost another
game as the season comes to an end this weekend.

Politics -- The President will be heading overseas to join his wife. They will
be trying to talk the Olympic Committee to bringing the Olympics to the United
States.

George McGovern, who won only Massachusetts and the District of Columbia in a
presidential election against Nixon, was speaking in the Albany area. One of
local televisions station got up close and personal. McGovern said that Vietnam
War was a no win situation, and that Afghanistan is a mirror image of Vietnam.
No matter how many American troops that you send in, you are not going to win
the war. He reminded us that we went to Vietnam to stop Communism, and now
Vietnam is a tourist destination. Did the United States accomplish their goal?
Now we are in countries to stop terrorism. It appears to me that we are in a
another war with a different goal, and I don't see an end to this conflict. I
still want our country to be fighting the war on terror, but without shedding
the blood of American men and women. Can I have it both ways?

Observation -- Nursing homes are pretty much the same no matter where you go.
My mother is in her third nursing home. We are at this one because it is cheaper
than the for profit one which she was at in Lee. Cheraper is still expensive.
I must say that the little contact that I have had with staff in this nursing
home is the best so far. Family members still have to be on top of situations
which affect their loved one.
I do wish that we could get Mom back in her own home.

I have to do a little plumbing today. I have some sink faucets that are
constantly dripping. I know what to do to solve the problem. The task, replacing
a spring and gasket, should take ten or 15 minutes per sink. I will tell you in
tomorrow's email whether I should have called plumber or not.
I better wait until Linda wakes up. The clanging of wrenches on pipes could
bring anyone out of a deep sleep.

Have a great Thursday!
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad