The Holiday Season is Upon Us!

 Fall has arrived in the Upstate! The mornings are cool and crisp, but by noon the sky is clear, the sun is shining, and we've warmed up. It really is a nice time of year! 

As you might guess from the photos, every day is a s#!tshow with our "government," or lack thereof! We are constantly bombarded with one act of desecration after another, leading to the destruction of systems that have held us together over the years, centuries. I can't help but feel that the destruction of the East Wing of the White House was a gut punch, with NO regard for history or tradition, and so clearly showing his/their total lack of regard for anything that can't be easily converted to money. It's the ultimate middle finger to the country, the people, the history, and all in which we once took pride. That will be his legacy!

As I look back over the last month, it's been quite busy. One of the nicest moments was a visit by former Crescent/Bluffton neighbors, Becky and Jim, along with Becky's sister Cathy. We had such a wonderful catch-up, and it was so good to see them. Our connection goes way back to when their granddaughters were much younger. When they visited Becky and Jim, they always wanted to play with Rosie. They would visit us, and we would stop in to say hello when we were on our walks. I can still see Rosie having zoomies of excitement when Becky opened the door and the girls were there!! They eventually got their own doggie, and I have to think Rosie had something to do with that! They were delightful, as are Becky and Jim. I was so fortunate to have such good neighbors, and even more so that they would stop in for a visit. 

I don't think I've mentioned that I joined the Trivia Club. It's a fun group of people, and we have a good rapport. Once or twice a year, teams from each community meet for a "Trivia Bowl." This was my first experience, and, unfortunately, we did poorly. We determined that the questions were computer-generated, while we've been practicing with Trivial Pursuit questions. When I got home, I started checking out randomly generated trivia questions and had about 15 pages of questions for our next meeting. That got a very positive response from the team, and now I'm in charge of creating the questions!!

The photo of the young lady in the red shirt is of Jennifer, our activity director. She is a delightful, caring young lady who goes above and beyond (she's also on Rosie's morning check-in list!). In the second group photo, the lady on the left (holding her hands together) is Trudy, our 94-year-old question reader/MC, and she does a great job. She's also part of my dining group. The event was held at Laural Crest in Columbia, and it was located right by the river. It really was a beautiful spot.

Presbyterian College is just s few miles down the road, and I recently attended my first event there, arranged through our community. It was a choral program, which included the full chorus, joined by a high school chorus for several songs, a select choir, and a final program by a local celeb, who sang a John Denver medley. The real pleasure of it was that it was organized through the community; we were driven there and back, with no fuss or worry! That makes everything a little more appealing when you don't have to sweat the details!

This month, we commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Clinton Presbyterian Community, and it was a huge occasion - lots of pretty decorations, an abundance of good food, two musical groups, Presbyterian community leadership, local dignitaries, as well as those who had a previous affiliation with the community. Lots of effort went into putting it together, and it was a nice evening. Many of the people in the photos are our daily staff, who put up with us day in and day out! They really are a lovely group of people, many of whom have worked here for 10,20,30. and even 40 years!! And they still manage to have a positive, helpful attitude! That's pretty amazing.

You might guess that I would participate in the No Kings protest! I was disappointed in myself for thinking I might not go, when a neighbor stopped me on my walk to say that she and her husband had just signed up for the one in Newberry. I went straight home and did the same! I knew I would be miserable at home, knowing I should be there! The organizer said about 100 people had signed up, but about 145 or so showed up. We had enough to fully cover four corners of a busy intersection. I think most passers-by didn't know what to think. My guess is it's the first time they've seen anything like it. A few others knew what to do - toot that horn, yell, thumbs up! Most of the responses were positive, with only a few jackasses.

Yes, Elvis was in the building! From time to time, Presbyterian College students visit. This time, they had a Halloween Game night, complete with cookies, candy, punch, etc. Many came in Halloween costumes, but needless to say, Elvis was a standout. He had "thank you very much" down pat and even sang a few songs. He definitely put everyone in a good mood. 

A different group of PC students will be coming over tomorrow night for Trivia night. They've done this once before since I've been here, and we have two mixed teams (half PC students and half CPC residents)....and Trudy is the MC! It's lots of fun.

Halloween is a big deal around here. The photos to the left are of a staff pumpkin decorating competition, and I was so impressed with the creativity and cleverness. We can only vote for one, and I don't know how I'm going to trim it down from my top three! We are also going to have two trick-or-treat visits. A pre-school class will be coming one day, and on another day, the children of staff will be visiting. I'm looking forward to that. 

Along with the Halloween theme, I participated in a pumpkin decorating event. You can see that I'm not nearly as talented as our staff! I also won the candy corn guessing game (guess the number of candy corns in a carafe). I'm really bad a guesstimating anything and was totally shocked to win. I won the candy corn, a soft little blanket (perfect for Rosie), and a Halloween glass with a top and straw. Needless to say, my Halloween is made!

Chef Mark has really taken my vegetarian request to heart! The food tastes better than the photos show. He's done a homemade black bean burger, a delicious panini, something like an arepas with black bean, sweet potato, and guac. In the Italian vein, he's done stuffed shells,

eggplant parm, and a tortellini dish. The one that totally floored me was the Vegetarian Quinoa Taco Salad. The minute I saw quinoa on the flyer, I thought it was doomed. He had planned for 24, and 22 were ordered! He's also done two dishes just for me. Tamieka, our Executive Director, said that several residents had commented positively about the dishes, so I'm very hopeful. Sometime this coming week, I've planned to meet again with the head dietitian and Chef Mark to see where we can go from here. Mark has been the real key to everything, and I've made an effort to see that he gets the recognition he deserves, along with a nice bottle of wine! Keep your fingers crossed that all continues to move forward.

My primary concern this week has been Rosie. On Monday, she was very lethargic and wouldn't eat anything. She wouldn't even take treats from her favorite people! She finally ate late in the day when I hand-fed her. On Tuesday, she was doing a lot of panting and coughing - not severe panting that comes with anxiety, but panting when there should not have been a need. She seemed better on Wednesday, but I had an appointment with the vet, and took her for my own peace of mind. Earlier, they said she had a heart murmur, which I wasn't aware of. They took X-rays and did blood work, which I haven't heard back from yet. The X-rays showed that her heart is slightly enlarged, and she appeared to have something happening in her throat. She was given two medications, which I am trying to get into her with only partial success! You see that little speck by the food bowl? That is 1/4 of a pill. The other blob is a pill that has been wrapped in cheese and mixed with her food! She is like a cat - if she smells it or it has a bitter taste, she will spit it out. If she becomes too suspicious, she will virtually stop eating, so I have to be careful how much I mess with her usual foods. I went to Petco today and bought several things that I hope will disguise the pills well enough to get close to the dosage she needs. She does seem to feel better and is her usual perky self. It's very hard to see her  not feeling well.

With all of that going on, I've managed to see my Nurse Practitioner again after having blood work and a mammogram. All is well. The clinic here provided flu shots. I also attended a farewell gathering for the minister at First Presbyterian Church, who is married to JLynne, one of our favorites here at CPC.  It was primarily for people of the church, but two of us from here were invited, and I felt honored and pleased to be included. She is one of Rosie's favorite people (and mine!), and we will surely miss her. 

I'm sure I've forgotten something, but I'll catch you up next time. In the meantime, I hope all is well with you, and please let me know what you've been up to.  Love and hugs 💖