MORNING ROLL CALL DECEMBER 2025

[DaveMcK]

MORNING ROLL CALL DECEMBER 2025

Top of the morning to everyone on this First day of DECEMBER 2025 

Happy Birthday to all of our DECEMBER Birthday members.

[LisaS961881]

  LaDolceVita,

      I am a little teary as I write this - I am so very sorry.  Yes, every day is a gift - and if I might add - we are bettered for having been loved by them.

      ~ Lisa 

[MsStretch]

To @Winter2025VA , if you see this, I tried to respond to your PM, but got this message:

---

You have reached the limit for number of private messages that you can send for now. Please try again later.

Will try again later, but I've been having problems with this forum lately. *sighs*

[MsStretch]

Wow, am I out of the loop.  Darn (disappearing) notifications.

 @LaDolceVita and @LisaS961881 , bless you both for giving love and compassion to your beloved companions in their time of need.  It is always so hard to watch them decline, but rest assured that they know you love them. 🥰 Love the Will Rogers quote, but I want to add cats. 😻

@DaveMcK , thinking of Mary and wishing for a speedy recovery and return home.  Of course, it must be a relief to both of you to know that you are only a few steps away.

[LisaS961881]

    MsStretch,

         Of course we include our kitties too! 😽

….one of my favorite quotes about cats is an obscure one:

     Cats are the visible soul of the home as the time spent with them is never wasted.

                                     ~ Jean Cocteau

 ….when I first read this quote, I had to pause and savor it, and then I just smiled.  🙋…..   And I love the fact that Jean Cocteau said this because his film “La Belle et La Bete” (Beauty and the Beast) is one of my favorite foreign films - it is enchanting! 

     Everyone enjoy the day - Life is good! 🐈‍🐴🛶🐶☀️🏊☕️🙏

     ~ Lisa  

[DaveMcK]

My wife Mary is in the hospital recovering from major back surgery

 She will end up with  a 10" scare on her back. She should be able to transfer to a rehab center which is part of our  full service retirement complex. I will be able to walk over to visit her from our independent living condo. 

Cannot wait for her to return home. 

[GailL1]

@DaveMcK, I wish her a speedy recovery and hopefully one that has more relief than acute pain during the recovery.

Can you manage to be without her for this interim period?  Are you pretty much self-sufficient or do we need to send a chief cook and clothes washer your way to help out.  

Get the place all nice and clean for her return.  She will be happy 🤓

[DaveMcK]

We have housekeeping twice a month at our independent living complex.

We also have a dinning room where we can get breakfast and dinner. We also have our own clothes washer and dryer. 

[DaveMcK]

Even as married college students we promised our folks that we would share fixing meals,  laundry and cleaning the apartment. We still do that now.

[LisaS961881]

   Dave,

     My thoughts and prayers are with you both.

     I hope that Mary’s transfer to the rehab center comes sooner than expected, so that you are only steps away from her instead of having to deal with the cumbersome process of traveling to and from the hospital. 

     ….and thank you for being at the helm of The Morning Roll Call, as well as for “Do You Remember”.  They are both my favorite places to visit and I am so appreciative of the time that you spend maintaining them. 🌈

     Again, you have my prayers, and I do believe in the power of prayer. 

     ~ Lisa 🙏

[LaDolceVita]

Hi folks,  I am struggling with another 12 year old dog.  His heart is in trouble and it is all I can do to keep up with him.   New medication is working thankfully. This heat makes heart conditions worse.  Please include Moose in your prayers. He is115 lbs of black lab love and affection.

[LisaS961881]

…..I will be thinking and praying for you and Moose.  

It is always very upsetting for me when dogs, cats and young children have some type of physical trauma or problem because we can’t really explain to them why they are feeling this way,  The best we can do is be there for them and comfort them while their body is changing - so that, while they might have moments of confusion, they will always know that they are loved.

I have a 21 year old cat who gradually lost her hearing and is now totally deaf.  Because she can’t understand why I am no longer answering her when she meows for me, you can bet that each and every time she does, I run to where she is,  Even after all these months, she still sometimes panics if she can’t find me.  

I have always adopted senior cats and dogs, and wanted to leave you with a quote I heard when I was involved in animal rescue …..

     If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die, I want to go where they went.

                                   -Will Rogers

[MsStretch]

@LisaS961881 , 4:30?!  Wow!  Sometimes, that's when I'm going to sleep.

Awww, so happy for the little opossum. I haven't seen any this year. 🫤 I miss the guys.  However, Trudy the turtle is back. I had to refresh the nail polish mark on her shell.  She loves to clean up the leftovers the cats may have left from breakfast.  However, the other day when I went out in the morning, not only was Willie Mae and Giorgio sitting there waiting, so was Trudy!  I actually have lower profile pet dishes that I use for her, makes it easier for her to get to.

[LisaS961881]

   MsStretch,

      I had to share this with you!  
      I just ran out to Tractor Supply Co.  because I was working in my garden and needed a few bags of mulch…

….and look what I found! ….can’t  wait to add her to my Halloween display!  

      ~ Lisa 🩵🙋🌈 🐢 🎃 

[DaveMcK]

Had several ornaments for my front yard. When we moved into the retirement center 5 years ago I gave them  to 2 of our daughters to divide up.

[MsStretch]

🤗 I love the turtle!  I may have to go check out our Tractor Supply and get a buddy for the kitty skeletons.  (Just like in real life.)

[LisaS961881]

   I smiled when I read about Trudy sitting there waiting for you!  I haven’t seen a box turtle in about ten years or so.  (I do wonder why, since my neighborhood borders a large wooded area.)

    When I was young, for years we had a turtle who visited our yard often.  When I would see him, I’d run into the house, and my Mom would prepare a buffet for him - some dog or cat food, melon, maybe peas, strawberries, or lettuce - and place these all on an envelope.  I would carefully walk outdoors balancing the envelope on both palms, and gently place it a few inches in front of our turtle.

     I loved watching that turtle eat!  If I had friends over, we would play Barbies or a board game nearby and watch him ever so slowly and thoughtfully nibble through his buffet!  When he was finished, he would rest a bit, then turn, walk down our back yard, and head back into the woods…..

   ~ Lisa 🐢🍓🥬

[MsStretch]

I realized that I hadn't gotten any email notices to posts on the Community for a couple of weeks and thought maybe everyone took a vacation. 🤔 Nope, I see a few new posts.

Stay cool and hydrated everyone. 🪭🥤

[LisaS961881]

 Hi MsStretch! 🙋

     This heat and humidity has curtailed my walks just a bit these past two days.  I’ve been getting up very early to walk outdoors while it is still cool - around 4:30 AM.

Glad I was out and about before the sun rose this morning because I had the chance to rescue a little opossum that had become entangled in the bird netting that I had placed over my Mountain Laurel.  The poor little guy simply let me cut the netting and untangle him, then waddled away. He seemed quite unfazed!

….and yes, I am remembering to stay hydrated - it helps! 🧊 🍹🌈🌻

~ Lisa 🐾

[DaveMcK]

I had some free time so I changed the month to July early.

[LisaS961881]

….I had to jump on my phone and send a quick howdy” to everyone.🙋🩵  I hope that you are all enjoying today.  We just saw the sweetest small town 4th of July parade!  Fire engines, flag waving, street vendors, and a marching band - the works! 🌭🚒 🎉.

    This great quote just popped into my mind - “The longer I live, the more beautiful life becomes.”

     (Frank Lloyd Wright)

~ Lisa 🏠⛱️🌻☀️🌈⚡️

[LisaS961881]

….This morning I feel that I must add an addendum to the post above.  Our group was having so much fun yesterday that we never checked the news or social media at all ….

     Then we all awoke to the heartbreaking news of the Texas floods and those missing girls, and felt a sense of remorse.  Our group, now retired, once had various careers working with children.

      While we were sitting around watching the graphic news broadcasts and being bombarded with images of the extent of the flooding, again I remembered Mr. Roger’s advice to “find the helpers”.

We actually scanned the reports and found many examples of altruism  - that there are already 450 “boots on the ground”, that a local Walmart donated a pair of shoes to someone who lost everything, that 167 people had been rescued by helicopter, and many, many stories of small (and large) acts of kindness!! 🙏

As I’ve mentioned before, having been evacuated during a severe flood, I was so extremely grateful and very humbled by the Red Cross volunteer providing me with clean water and a blanket…and I have never forgotten what it feels like to be on the other side of the news camera.

While none of us could realistically help in Texas, we all decided to rummage through our clothing for donations, and to try to give blood this week.  It’s not much, but every little bit counts.

 In this jaded age, Fred Rogers is often mocked and the subject of ridicule.  Yet, I am not ashamed to admit that the 65 year old me still appreciates Mr.Rogers and am glad he shared his mother’s advice to him all those years ago when he ran to her upset about what he had seen on a news broadcast.  As we sit here surrounded by leftovers from last night’s feast, ensconced safely in my home, we will look for the helpers and try to be helpers! ❤️

*** As an aside, my friends, all retired, yet unfamiliar with this forum, were taken aback that I just had to log in twice.  Once “in”,we were all - myself included - stunned that dozens of SPAM messages that filled the message board. (I went directly to the Front Porch yesterday, so maybe they were there then too, but I can’t say for certain.). When I explained that there are always multiple “glitches” daily on this board, my friends worried and felt that it might not be prudent for me to continue using this site being that it isn’t being monitored 24/7.

Sigh - I fully realize that this post, as well as myself, might be deleted on Monday, but it just wouldn’t feel right if I did not share this with all of you. In retrospect, I believe I have just become inured to all of the maintenance issues on this site, but now that bad actors are bombarding this site with SPAM, I would hope that AARP takes notice.

Hope everyone who reads this is safe and secure.

    ~ Lisa 

[Winter2025VA]

I have deleted my comment.

[LisaS961881]

Hi Nicole!

Geez -your PM is working? 🙏🎉☀️ I thought everyone was having the “glitch” I had - that little envelope thing had a “21”, but I clicked and clicked and nothing happens!😮. I had been able to get messages two weeks ago., but I did read somewhere here that several newbies are also having PM issues. 

So many glitches on this site, but it’s still a lovely place to visit!
🙋🩵

Thanks so much for your speedy response to my quick post!

~Lisa 🇺🇸

[LaDolceVita]

Hi folks, hot here in Ga too.   @DaveMcK   Perhaps you are out of this heat umbrella?  @LisaS961881 Yes Thomas Mann is the author of Magic Mountain, and I guess you have read it?  We used to have an excellent book thread here, with lots and lots of people contributing but all good things come to an end.  Nicole does a good job by her lonesome but the traffic is sluggish.   

[LisaS961881]

….When I read your, “two or three pages” comment, I flashed back to over 40 years ago when I read Magic Mountain.  My much younger self found it mesmerizing - dense and lyrical - and I usually read only two or three pages in a sitting - and often found myself pausing to turn back to previous pages and then just try to soak it all in.

💡📕 Your post made me realize that, forty-four years of life experiences later, this book deserves a re-read!

   While there might not be a book thread anymore, and very few people seem to actually post, it’s still a nice place to visit, and I’m glad I discovered it.

~ Lisa 🙏🌈

[LisaS961881]

   While I am relishing the additional “me” time that retirement provides, the additional volunteer opportunities I’ve discovered bring a special joy. There is just something so gratifying about giving back and working gratis. 🌈

[LaDolceVita]

@LisaS961881    Nicole had a book thread as well as a thread for movies and PBS shows.   Both of them generated some traffic, just never really took off like they deserved.  I love word of mouth about books and movies as opposed to reviews.  As for Dave's Front Porch I agree it feels good here and I too am glad you discovered it!

[MsStretch]

@LisaS961881 . NJ was one of the worse and hottest states hit according to the map. The heat index is what makes it so miserable.  I was just out with the fur kids and it is 87°.  It felt downright balmy.

Yes, @Winter2025VA , over here on the eastern side of VA, it's gonna be in the high 80s - low 90s, with a chance of storms every day, but that's normal... for July, not June. ☀️ Extreme weather - the new normal, unfortunately.

[MsStretch]

Supposedly, today is the last day of the unprecedented heat wave in the NE.  My upstairs window AC unit has turned into an expensive fan -- blowing air, just not AC cold.  I have a large wall unit downstairs that is under the spiral staircase and the downstairs is nice and cool, but we all know heat rises, so it doesn't do much good to cool upstairs, even through the open space.  Ah, well. 🥵

 @catwoman500 , glad you got power again.  Yeah, ACs pull a lot of power, so it would have been a real strain on your generator.  Even Dominion Electric was asking customers around here to try and conserve power, since it is even a strain on the utility companies.

@LaDolceVita , you are one busy woman.  Sorry to hear hubby is having a slow recovery.  I know it must be frustrating for both of you.  Glad you can both take advantage of swimming at the gym. 

. 

[LisaS961881]

….Heat wave here in New Jersey too!  ⛱️😟….It just dropped to 89 degrees and it’s 6:45 PM!  
  So glad it is almost over!

   ~ Lisa 🌈🙏☀️🌸🐈