Of haircuts and marathons

As I work my way through scanning all of Pop's weekly letters, I'm struck that they were actually weekly.  How did he have that much news to fill up a whole letter every seven days?  Part of the answer is all the references to "triple plays" – Spag's, haircut and the dump.  But their lives were actually quite full.  I'm up to (or down to) 1984, and here's a snapshot – I think David and Paula make every single letter, with references to David splitting wood, weeding, raking and games of pinochle which Mom and Paula won so often that on September 4, 1984, the letter finally read: "I have been required by two very firm gals that David and I won – and I really mean won." 

All this by way of introduction that I got a haircut last week.  Why doesn't that sound as interesting or as funny as when Pop said it?  Anyway, a new barbershop opened up the street this summer, so after two months after my last cut, I decided to try it out.  I'll be going back, but I have to wonder at the courage of starting a barbershop in the middle of a pandemic. Or is it desperation?  Tough times.

We finished our two weeks of quarantine after Thanksgiving and tested negative on our results when we returned.  We each had colds so we were worried, especially when we heard that Sankar and Margaret were feeling a little under the weather.  (Included here is a holdover photo of Rochester Thanksgiving Zoom, which has several interesting items including a possibility that Oliver has a beard!) 

Speaking of Covid, I remember being on a Zoom call with friends back in May when one of them asked if we actually knew of anyone who was sick.  Everyone on the call answered in the negative.  Well, now we have three people we know who have tested positive, one fine now, another at home battling the darn thing and a third back in the hospital for the second time.  With a number of medical pros in the family, it seems a good time to remember the work you do and the risks you take every day for the rest of us.  Thank you.  We should say it every day, and again – thank you.

Had a number of calls with Joe and Leonor and they are busy getting prepared for Christmas.  It seems that Thomas is fully ready, having already woken up one day assuming it was Christmas.  We also understand that Thomas is not a big fan of the big fella with the white beard with the red suit.  Can't blame him, cause if you stop and think about it…… (uh-oh, guess that qualifies me for the naughty list this year.)

Annie has found an apartment a few blocks away from Margaret and Andrew for the month of January, when their lease expires in Virginia.  She and Sankar then are coming back up this way, with a place they've rented in Newport, Vermont, not far from several ski places, and the Canadian border for that matter. Taking advantage of the proximity, Andrew and Margaret just spent the weekend out in Shenandoah with them again.

Out in Illinois, Bill and Jen have moved into their new house so they're closer to Andrew and Lur geographically.  

Mary checked in with Timmy this week, and he was on the road, back in southern California in a new car – a Toyota Rav IV.  All is well.  I took my Rav-IV in for a scheduled maintenance, and they found evidence of mice living in the liner, too close to the air bags.  Another repair, but I think insurance will cover a lot of it.

Among other news, Mary and I completed the Honolulu Marathon this week. No lie.  Of course, it was virtual, and of course it took us eight days of walking, but we did finish and we'll be getting medals to prove it.  If you're interested, you can still enter to "race" - https://www.honolulumarathon.org/home/2020-virtual-events.  The picture of me here was taken on our Honolulu marathon course.

And with thoughts of beaches, sending along our wishes of staying healthy to all of you.  Love from up here.

 

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving

Dateline Rileyville Virginia. First weekly letter written from here.
Maybe the last.

But not because we don't like it. We love it. Annie and Sankar found a
place overlooking the Shenandoah River, just a short drive from the
park. And we converged on them for Thanksgiving. And they're great
hosts, allowing us to totally disrupt their home and routine. I think
their kitties (Peta and Puli) may have been even more discombobulated.
Margaret, Andrew and Simon left their bubble in DC to join us, and Joe
and Leonor joined us via Zoom.

Here's a Thanksgiving quiz, with help from super sleuthing and social
media. At least two Dickson families did take-out, and another ate
outside. One had ham and another had lamb. More had turkey, but one
isolated dinner opted for turkey breast. One had chocolate cream pie.
Did anyone have frozen fruit salad? Or shop online? How many went to
a distillery? A new tradition? (We did, but not actually on
Thanksgiving.)

One more new tradition here - not one football game. No one seemed to
mind. We did miss the dog show and the Macy's Day Parade.

Here, we did try out a number of new dishes as we expanded from the
usual offerings to incorporate some new vegan takes on squash, cakes,
rolls, and rice. It did mean twice as much food, but we more than
managed to make a dent on the first day, and the fridge was full of
leftovers for the remainder of the visit. And full disclosure, some
of the vegan dishes were better than their animal-based counterparts.

I bet we weren't alone in taking walks every day, or eating leftovers.
We did hike up on Saturday to Mary's Rock in the Shenandoah Park. It
was hard, and it helped us burn off at least one piece of pecan pie.

A word about Simon. A cutie, but we're biased. Easy and rewarding to
get him to smile and/or laugh. I gave him the nickname "last man
standing" since he wore out six adults, but only kind of. He's a 15
minute kind of a guy, and will let you know when he's ready to move on
to the next activity. Did I mention he was teething? Still, so much
fun.

And a word about this part of the country. We had to be patient and
look hard, but we did eventually see one Biden-Harris sign. Not too
many masks either.

Sunday, we headed over to DC for Simon's christening, joined by Jeff
the godfather and Melodie. Annie's the godmother. Andrew's parents
came down to join us. And Simon wore a christening outfit that Mary
wore, passed on to Joe, Margaret and Annie. Now to a third generation.
Then we retreated to Andrew and Margaret's for a distanced outdoor
celebration that included opening a bottle of port from the Douro
Valley, 2016 edition.

Down in Brazil, Leonor started a new tradition, a Thanksgiving tree,
with leaves reading what we're thankful for. And that's all of you,
even if you're far away.

Love from down here

Stay safe

Today, we finished winterizing the homestead. Porch furniture in the garage attic, wood pile and kindling buckets stocked, picnic table and Adirondack chairs put away.  We did this the day after talking to Margaret and hearing they are still getting tomatoes from their garden.  I know, we chose to live here.

Yesterday, on a short walk over to the lake, I saw a neighbor who I hadn't seen in almost a year. I asked how he was holding up, and he answered, "Better than last week."  I wondered what had happened and then it dawned on me he was talking about the election.  Hard to believe it was just last week.  Seems like a lifetime ago.

Mr. Coronavirus is putting a kink in our plans.  We have reverted to isolation and quasi-lockdown, with a little instigation from children and our mayor.  We had been hoping to head south for Thanksgiving, and that is still our plan at this moment.  We thought we'd schedule a test, and contrary to what we've heard all summer long about anyone being able to get a test, we had a heck of a time trying to get one.  It ain't cheap either.  But it could be worse.  Stay safe out there everyone.

One reason to go south is to visit Annie and Sankar in their new digs, in a small town in Virginia, Rileyville.  They sent photos of their view, and as you can imagine since they're so close to the Shenandoah Mountains, it's pretty spectacular.  Did I mention they have a guest bedroom?  We talked to them, and they are in the process of unpacking and trying to work from home at the same time.

The other reason is to attend Simon's baptism, scheduled for the Sunday after Thanksgiving.  Speaking of Simon, Andrew has a new job – with NIH, taking advantage of his graduate work in public health. So far, after one week, he likes the change of pace.

The other Andrew out in Illinois passed along I think the photo of the year, of Elliot having leaf fun. Surely there's a magazine out there that will want this one.  Bill and Jen have closed on their house in Dundee and are doing some work on it before moving in.  Andrew passed along a story that had Auden going to the hospital to get a plastic bead removed from her ear.  Sounded a little frightening.

Meanwhile, down in the southern hemisphere, Joe and Leonor and the boys are enjoying warmer weather, swimming outside, as they move into the warm, rainy season.   

We talked to John and Marilyn, and after reviewing the election and mask-wearing (or not, in Florida, it seems, except for J & M), we exchanged recommendations on Netflix and other shows.  Queen's Gambit was ours, and we're now watching one called Messiah.

Last letter, I mentioned that I picked up again on my scanning old weekly letter project.  Here's one item (out of many)  I got a kick out of and thought I'd share to see if anyone remembered this from 1986: "I then stopped in Marlborough to pick up Matthew and Jeffrey for a visit here.  On the drive home, I heard a whispering conversation and finally asked what was going on.  What was going on was a discovery by Jeffrey that 'Pop has hair in his ears.'" 

Grandma's blocks on the cupboard now read "John Tech Hero."  I bought a new printer and then spent a few hours on the phone with HP support to get the wireless feature working for Mary's computer.  Thus, the pat on the back.

Other than that, we've had the occasional Zoom meetings and phone calls and just happy to hear from people.  These are tough times, and they don't look like they're going to get better. The other night we heard on the news a Yale professor who said we won't be back to normal until the end of 2022. Even discounting for his error in choosing Yale, we still didn't feel like doing all this for another year, another month, another week.  But, as I said before, it could be a lot worse.

And with that, hope you all are holding up.  Love from up north.

Halloween!

Halloween!  Halloween!  Our first Halloween in Mexico, we opened the door to the perimeter security wall to kids (and their parents) screaming "Halloween!  Halloween!"  We made the mistake of letting them choose what they wanted from the basket of candy, and we ran out after about 15 minutes.  No surprise, especially when we looked out on to the street and saw busses lined up in the residential neighborhood with families getting out to shake down any house for free food.  I guess some things just don't translate. 

Anyway, Happy Halloween.  And, with everything else, this year will be different, except for the fact that we have not had one trick-or-treater ever, and I'm pretty sure we'll keep our record intact.  It doesn't stop us from buying candy though, just in case.  Just in case we want to gorge out a little tomorrow.  Nothing like a sugar high, even for seniors.

On second thought, this year we may just have a couple of tricksters, as Annie and Sankar are coming up for dinner. They are packing out, and ready to move down to Virginia this week. Just in time since they're not too crazy about cold weather – it snowed here on Friday.  I should mention that we joined them for a pumpkin tour of Naumkeag, a house museum with beautiful gardens in Stockbridge.

Halloween elsewhere? Check out these few photos here of the next generation vainly trying to make things seem normal.  Simon was a hot dog, and it looks like Matthew is in full holiday mood with Donald and Everett having Halloween cupcakes. 

Down in Brazil, they're trying to let Halloween sneak by.  Hasn't really hit that far south yet.  Thomas started back up at school this week, following a two-week quarantine since they returned from Portugal.  Baby John is eating solids, as is Simon, and both seem ecstatic about all the new tastes from the photos.

We had a wonderful long weekend down in DC, with Margaret, Andrew and Simon, who is getting so big.  He's at a great age, sitting up, sleeping well and laughing on cue. 

Illinois Andrew sent a few pictures of Billy's children, who are getting so big. Myles is in 4^th grade – can it be?  Auden second and Elliot in pre-K.  They by the way will moving into their new house in Dundee this coming week.  Lur's parents continue to struggle. 

Speaking of packing out, Timmy left Pittsfield for a new adventure out in Washington state.  He pulled out of here one early, cold morning with a very full pick-up truck. We checked in with him through the week and one night caught him stranded in a ditch in Montana, having hit some black ice.  A tow and two new tires later, he was on his way. His birthday is coming up.  Happy birthday Tim!

And there were a few others.  Billy, Claire, Kathleen.  Happy birthdays!

We officially left fall this week, with the closing of Arrowhead (no more tours) and the end of my Pilgrim class (phew.)  What to do?  Plenty of projects have been awaiting, including, I hope, back to scanning the old, original Pops Weekly Letters.

We hear Peter is in the middle of Zoom trial.  That must be weird, and difficult. 

We've been trying out a new diet around here, since Mary had her heart operation and wants to get cholesterol and other numbers down a little.  Meat, dairy, sugar and alcohol are on a "rare to never" list. Some of it is even rubbing off on me.

Did someone say elections? We don't see many ads up here, but then again, we don't have television, except for streaming. Not too many lawn signs either.  A quick geographic tour of the family leads me to believer the same is true for most of you, with the exception of Claire in Michigan, and John and Marilyn in Florida.    

And with that, we'll sign off with wishes for your health and happiness.  Love from up here.

 

 

 

 

Hoodwinked

How many times has hoodwinked appeared in a weekly letter?  Read on.

What is about a sunny, warm day in October that beats any day the rest of the year?  Probably the light filtering through the yellow leaves on the beech trees.  Or the crunch of the leaves under your feet.  For some reason, today on my walk through the woods, that noise sent me off thinking of Cunningham Road, retracing the steps to the path that shot off from the Kites' driveway and snaked around to a lookout over Camp Denison.  Funny how memory works.

It is hard to imagine that just a few weeks ago, Mary was swimming in the lake, and we were taking our kayaks out there. Not so, now.  We have moved back to the wait until next year phase.  Even had a few fires in the fireplace.

Big news for us this week was Leonor's safe return to Brazil, after a couple of months away. She had to wait until everyone had a negative Covid test, after Thomas had tested positive last time around. It must have been a false positive, since she, baby John and everyone in her family tested negative.  And then, a couple of days before they left Portugal, Thomas was negative as well.  One good thing that came out of it is that Thomas thinks he's a superhero name Corona-boy.  Anyway, glad that everyone's home, safe and healthy.  With a story they will tell well into their 90s.

Tomorrow, Mary and I head to DC for a weekend with Margaret, Andrew and Simon. Simon just passed his six months, and is moving into the solid food discovery phase.  He's not so sure about some of the foods, and his facial expressions are so, well, expressive.  Anyway, looking forward to the visit.

Annie and Sankar are winding down their Berkshires stay.  They have found their next adventure, near Laurel Canyon in Virginia.  They have a nice rental, with, dare I let the cat out of the bag, a spare bedroom!  They came up a couple of times this weekend, after hiking up Mt. Greylock and then joining us for a fajita dinner with Pittsfield folks.

I admit to being a bit of late arrival, and it's only recently that I began to understand a new term – influencer.  For me, since I am on Twitter, quite frequently, I admit to being influenced by Johanna, Jeffrey, and occasionally Annie – three of the five people I follow on Twitter.  They pretty much keep me up on everything I need – national politics, local DC politics and overall angst in the air.

Speaking of angst, we here in the Berkshires made national news when a local farmer put up a Biden Harris sign using hay bales in their field.  Apparently, this political sign offended a local resident that he decided it was appropriate to burn it down, unaware of nearby propane tanks.  Fortunately, the propane was spared, and in our quiet way, we reenacted the scene with Grandma's blocks. (Above photo.) I think she would approve.

One thing for certain about this electoral season – I will be glad when it's over no matter who wins.  I will stop getting so many emails and text messages asking for money.  Relentless.

We had some foundation work, and there's a story there that you will have to ask Mary about.  Let's just say that I got hoodwinked.

Andrew surprised me with this photo, also above, one day.  Took me a minute to figure it out, thrown off because it was the baseball playoffs and it looked like he could be relief pitcher on any of the major league teams. 

Looking over Pop's Weekly Letter, I am struck by how many times Pop mentions getting a haircut.  So, in that tradition, both Mary and I got haircuts since the last letter.  And, for me at this late stage in my life, it was the first time I had my hair cut by an African American barber.  Not really worth a mention, except that I wondered why it took so long.

What's in your Netflix queue?  We have been watching and recommend a British crime show called Broadchurch.  Besides being quite good, it reinforces my belief that there are only five actors in the UK.  One of the leads was Queen Elizabeth in the Crown; Phoebe whatshername from Fleabag and a few others.

So, what's new with you?  Birthdays, yes.  Happy birthday, Janet, and Auden.  Happy anniversary Sean and Erin.

That's it from up here, love and stay safe.

 

Autumn leaves

Today is Johanna's birthday.  I remember many weekly letters where Pop tells the story of a fishing trip in the Adirondacks with David when they heard the news of her birth, and headed home.  Happy day,  birthday girl!

It's official.  Fall is here.  And so far, it is glorious.  Certainly better than California. But, we're not gloating here; in fact, feeling pretty bad for friends out west, and we've spoken to a number of them.

Fortunately, Annie is not there, at the moment.  She extended her stay here in the Berkshires for another month, and has found a new place in Virginia for a few months. Neither she nor Sankar have to be physically at work for a while, so they're footloose and nomadic and taking advantage of the opportunity to check out places to live, far and wide.

They came over for brunch and a hike recently to Pittsfield State Forest, a wonderful benefit for having them close by.  They also have been checking on their radishes, kohlrabi and spinach they planted in the garden.

Speaking of the garden, does anyone need plum tomatoes?  I think we planted too many.  Pretty much everything else is gone, though we did plant some fall lettuce which is almost ready to be harvested.

For various reasons, Leonor is staying in Portugal for a little longer, but hopes to rejoin Joe in Brazil soon. We see a lot of photos of the beach, and I'm sure Joe wishes he were there too. She applied for a job at the Embassy there and got it, so she's now going through all the lengthy clearance procedures.  Here's one form – list every foreigner you've had contact with for the past 5 years.  It'll take some time.

Simon had his 6-month birthday recently – hard to believe. He's at day care and is now sitting up.  Margaret and Andrew are back at work, and like many young parents, balancing all those competing demands. 

Mary's brother Timmy flew out and back from Portland to check on potential places to rent; he found one and is planning on moving out there in a few weeks.

While he was there, Mary and I headed east for a weekend with foreign service friends in Exeter NH.  These were the two couples that we hiked the Camino de Santiago last year.  So, we relived those days without masks by taking walks around that lovely town and along the beach, with masks.

Lest I forget, Paula also had a birthday which included a visit with their grandchildren.  We see pictures of Donald and Everett in their respective school/day care sites. 

This letter's photos include one of Peter and Janet's house, recently painted by Sean and Erin (looks fantastic!), Claire at an outdoor restaurant (check out the disinfectant wipes) and Mary swimming in the lake with her wetsuit. We've had our first frosts, but she's out there a few days each week. 

As she heads out to the cold water, I am lying in bed, reading the on-line paper, or books on the Pilgrims for the class I'm teaching now, or fretting about my tours at the Herman Melville home. 

Tough life, but we all continue to be affected by this #%**!* virus and pray that you all are safe and healthy.

There, I got through the letter without even mentioning the debate the other night.

Love from up here.  

September, I'll Remember

Just about every month about this time, Mary and I look at each other and say, "I can't believe we're half way through……September."  The days, even in the era of Covid, go by quickly.  The weather sure feels like it though.  Cool nights, down in the 30s, and crisp, sunny days.  Still need the rain as the Mayor has instituted conservation guidelines for water.  It doesn't matter as much for our garden as it's days of production are largely over.  We have large bowls of plum tomatoes that we need to get the canning equipment out soon.

Mary continues to swim in the lake, though, venturing out the other morning when it was 39 degrees.  She insists the water is warmer and loves it. The bed, under the comforter, is even warmer.

Our Covid isolation days are slippng a little.  We spent a few days in the Northeast Kingdom.  Don't know where that is?  Northern Vermont, near the Canadian border.  We were with two public health friends, Charlie and Annie, who wore masks in the house.  And, we certainly did not come into contact with anyone up there. 

We even took an old people's day trip over to Plymouth to check out the living museum there.  I am going to be teaching a course on the 400^th anniversary of the Pilgrim landing this fall, so I thought I better get some background information.  It was very helpful and also nice to do something like we used to be able to do, even though everyone, including the Pilgrims and the Wampanoags were just slightly out of costume.  Did they have surgical masks in 1620?  One other sign of the times: the place used to be called Plimoth Plantation. This summer they changed the name to Plimoth-Patuxet. 

This week, Cliff and Sheila, our other socially isolated friends from Maine, have stopped in for a visit.  We have done some retiree outings, including to have lunch with Annie and Sankar, a trip to a local distillery to taste some gin and whiskey, and a few hikes.  Another sign of the times. The distillery is selling its own brand of hand sanitizer. I got some, along with a bottle of American whiskey.  Annie and Sankar had just come back from a weekend at the beach in Gloucester.

And, we had a visit from Gerry and Dennis, from Virginia, but they actually followed the rules and got tested before setting foot in our great state.

We talked to David and Paula, and they were finishing up some house projects, not the glamorous kind but painting bathrooms and foundation work.  They were expecting to see Matthew and Tina and the boys, one of whom starts school this week.  We also heard from Andrew who passed along his late summer Covid reflections listed below.  They continue to be in the throes of caring for Lur's parents.

Down in Florida, John and Marilyn continue to be well, hunkered down.  They said that Brian has started a new job and Sage is starting her senior year in high school…..in front of a computer.   

Over in Portugal, Leonor continues to be surrounded by family and friends, all willing helpers with two little boys, who seem to be having the time of their lives.  They will be heading back to Brazil before the end of the month.  Joe has been able to catch up on reading and running.  Must be lonely.

And back to DC, Margaret and Andrew had the unfortunate discovery of a flooded basement after a torrential rainstorm, and they had the unhappy task of mopping and shop-vaccing up the basement that they just refinished.  It sounds like nothing was ruined, luckily.

September is a season of travel.  Sean and Erin are back east, as evidenced by this photo.  Claire has returned to school, a bit warily and rightly so.  Colleen has moved from Pittsfield to Long Island, got a new job and a new house.  She doesn't waste time.  Billy and Jen have bought a house in Dundee so they will be moving soon, back closer to Andrew and Lur.  We see Janet is also back at school.  And Timmy is days away from his move back out west, this time to the state of Washington, far from the fires. 

And, here are Andrew's reflections:

" Some deep thoughts from this week. Too much free time?

-Wow! Update on the Carleton library children's book selection. Huge selection, no doubt courtesy of the Dickson boys. Good job, guys!

-You know fall is near for when you let the cat out, everything but the tail goes out.

-Your car gets three weeks to the gallon.

-Newspaper cartoons aren't funny anymore.

-I got two issues of the New Yorker in one day. Hmmm.

-Got a letter from Lawrenceville announcing they got hacked. Oh no, the Russians will find out how I did in French. I still blame it on Mr. Megna.

-Biggest challenge of the week: Reading labels at the grocery store with my glasses fogged up. Love my mask!

-Anybody want tomatoes?

-You know your dog is getting old when you are waking him up."

And with that, our love from up here. Stay healthy.  

So long, farewell

We've noticed a few trees turning color in our yard, and around the city.  It seems like this year the changing foliage is a little later, perhaps because of the heat wave, or perhaps because we haven't been driving around as much.  Our suspicions of a dry month were borne out when the city announced water restrictions this week.  Not California restrictions, but no watering between 7 am and 7pm and only on alternate days.  Two big rain days have helped.

We've had visitors.  The beds in our guest bedroom still have flannel sheets, to show you how few people have made their way up here this summer.  But Andrew, Margaret and Simon spent the past week here, working remotely, and the grandparents doing their best to babysit.  Or should I say the grandmother?  We figured out the time grandparenting was about 80-20 in Mary's favor, but the 20 that I had was ….. how shall I put it?  Pretty easy.  He's a good baby and easy to please.

Margaret and Andrew went down to Great Barrington to visit Annie and Sankar, and then they came up for a return call.  And so did Kathleen, on a day trip out from Boston.  Nice to see her and hear her news – Pat is fixing up the shed behind their house in Stonington to make it a rentable tiny house, and Mary Forte is doing census work.

And we had one other overnight visitor, a friend from Peru who was on his way to Vermont for a week of sailing on Lake Champlain. He had taken a test (negative) before he left the DC area. We're all pretty careful, and there's plenty of space.  No bro-hugging or air kisses either.

Leonor and the boys are in Portugal, surrounded by her family and friends.  Lots of cousins to play with.  Portugal figured all this illness out early on and has been largely spared our dystopia.  Photos show happy Thomas and baby John at the beach and in the yard.  We talked to Joe and he seems pretty lonely, maybe even bored. If you think you had a bad airport experience, ask Joe or Leonor about trying to fly out of Sao Paulo to Lisbon.  Old news, I think – Joe and Leonor sold their house in DC as they couldn't get a renter.

And we have a house next door for sale. Anyone interested?  Remote work?

Some of you probably saw on social media this photo of Peter who ventured out to Brooklyn to check up on Johanna.  Not sure they've seen each other since the start of all this.

We had a long chat with Andrew and Lur, after her father fell and landed back in the hospital for a few days.  He's doing better, but have not checked in a few days. They have some overnight help for a few days a week to give Lur a break.  I asked Lur which was harder – taking care of grandchildren or elderly parents. Not even close, she said – parents. 

Timmy is planning his next big move, heading out to Washington state in a few weeks to look for a place to live.  He's been packing and finding all kinds of things. He came over one night with a slowcooker full of ribs for everyone.

The garden has been not as good as past years, but still we manage to get enough for meals and to give away a little.  Looking forward to the plum tomatoes that are ripening as we speak. We had a bumper crop of peaches this year, and couldn't keep up.  Mary made some peach cobbler and then the squirrels finished off the last dozen or so.

One thing we do seem to be raising are groundhogs and deer.  They're taking over and don't seem to mind the mad man waving his arms and shouting at them.

David and I got a mailing from Mountain Springs offering a discount for fall stays.  I thought about it, dreamed about it, then put it on hold till next summer.

Happy September everyone.  A different kind of summer, and hope this finds everyone as well as can be expected.

Love from up here.

Questions

Who drives to the beach during a hurricane?  We did.  The remnants of a tropical storm, anyway.  For a while, it looked like a mistake that we would regret.  Mary had a follow-up appointment in Boston, and we decided to go the night before and ended up in Gloucester, where our friend Cliff's family has a beach house.  We probably should have waited and just gotten up early the next morning, but it was fine when we headed out.  Not so fine as we were driving, though.  We made it, obviously, and lived to tell the story of no visiblility, driving rain, passing trucks.  I kept saying better than snow.  Or was it?

Who knew of Gloucester?  I vaguely knew the name, but had no idea of its importance to early America and the fishing industry.  I was so ignorant that I actually bought lobster salad in Great Barrington to take to Gloucester.  Anyway, the storm made the for beautiful skies and weather the next couple of days.  So nice, in fact, that our plan to drive to Maine was canceled and we just stayed put and enjoyed three nights at the beach.  Almost like a vacation, unexpected, and who needs a vacation when you're retired.

What's a derecho? I knew that word in Mexico when I asked people which direction to go, and if I needed to go straight ahead, they would say, "derecho."  When used with weather, it means a storm that is so fierce that the rain comes straight at you, almost horizontal.  You may ask, why bring up this weather sidebar in the weekly letter?  Well, good question.  But Andrew and Lur experienced a derecho that went through the Midwest and left a lot of people without power.  Not Andrew and Lur, but her parents.  And, Andrew did a little reenacting of his favorite childhood job – pick up sticks.

What's up in our family? We've seen Annie and Sankar a couple of times.  It's hard to believe they're into their second month here already.  We have our reading times with Thomas in Brazil, and things in that country may be even more chaotic than here.  School and day care is opening, then it's shut down.  It looks like Leonor and the two boys are going to head to Portugal for a while, to spend time with her parents where it's a little safer, more reliable and more open.  And, we're making plans for a return visit by Margaret and Andrew and Simon up here before the end of the month.

Here's a question.  Which Dickson made the television news since our last letter?  Young Donald, practicing on the piano.  Move over Elton John.  (Please don't say, who's he.)

Another question.  What have you been doing with your extra time during coronavirus?  I know that Claire hasn't been lying on the couch, popping chocolates and watching reruns of Friends.  She started her own small business, Northern Knots, with her hobby, macramé.  You may have seen some of her work on Facebook, and she has her own site on Etsy, where you can buy her products (click here: Northern Knots Studio.)  And, news has reached this reporter that Claire has items for sale in a store in Grand Haven.  Look out Worlds of Wonder, here comes Claire.  (Worlds of Wonder, for all but four of us, was the name Grandma gave to her little crafts shop she started with a few friends in Wilton.  That later became the antique business in Pomfret.)

Other than that, we're staying busy, and still have time for naps most days.  Mary's back swimming, in lakes, I'm doing tours (with masks) at Arrowhead.  One highlight of the past week was an unknown car driving in the yard while we were sitting by our fire pit.  It turns out it was a high school student Mary tutored a few years back, a young Ghanaian who came by to say hi.  Just to check in with his former teacher.  Makes it all worthwhile.

And one final question: what's up with your family?

That's it from up here, stay safe and healthy, love.

Birthday central

Last year in the Poconos, we had a birthday party for Donald, Thomas, Everett and Mary, all in one. This year, we'll have to make do with a Happy Birthday shout-out to those four.  We did have a couple of birthday zoom parties, something that last year I would never have dreamed of.  Zoom that is.

And, we actually had an in-person party here, or should I admit that Mary actually had three parties on her birthday?  She may have even outdone Thomas who had one in-person party and two zoom parties. 

Timmy joined Annie and Sankar for an evening celebration of lobster rolls and cake and homemade ice cream (finally getting down a serviceable product) for Mary's in-person party.  Mary reminded Timmy that she used to go on the Sheila boat around Pontoosuc Lake with her friends for her birthdays.  Timmy didn't seem to remember any parties that he had, and then the aha moment hit everyone that perhaps the only girl just might have gotten a little special treatment.  In that vein, trying to remember any birthday parties I might have had.

We saw on Facebook a few parties in upstate New York for Donald and the construction of a playground in Matthew and Tina's backyard.  Looks like fun.  And hard work, with Oliver making the adjustments from on high.

Thomas had a party with friends on the Sunday before his actual birthday, and then "Tias" joined us for a zoom call with a candle blowing and unwrapping presents on his birthday.  Superheroes, construction pajamas and air guitars are what qualify for presents for three-year-olds. 

Changes and disruptions like long-distance birthdays are the easy ones under this pandemic. The Brazil clan learned that their pre-school will remain closed for the foreseeable future and Margaret and Andrew dealt with putting Simon in as safe a day care facility as possible while they both have returned to work.  Watching their turmoil over these decisions drives home the widespread impact of this pandemic. Saying it is historic and will be remembered for many years doesn't help the here-and-now disruptions. Just thankful that we as an extended clan continue to be healthy.  Knock on wood, or on the screen.

We hear Sean and Erin are finishing up their year in Texas and looking to head back east with big decisions on where to settle eventually.  Johanna nicely sent along a book on Hitler and Stalin to add to my stack on my bedside table, near my reading chair, in my office.  I think they're taking over, like a Covid invasion.  Johanna remains holed up in NYC, but says the publishing business is flourishing in this divisive climate - people buying books to try to make sense of what the heck is going on, or people buying books cause they're in lockdown and have run out of tv shows to binge. 

Out in Dundee, Billy and his clan ventured out for a visit to their grandparents, bringing some smiles to relieve the lengthy care that Lur is offering for her parents.  Claire, like many teachers, is awaiting decisions on how her school will reopen, with not a little trepidation.

A couple of leftover items from last time.  Margaret told us that Melodie and Jeffrey had come over for a socially distanced introduction to Simon. And, we here in Pittsfield have joined the ranks of the unplugged, cable that is. So far so good.  I remember a long time ago visiting Jeffrey and Melodie in their apartment on Capitol Hill and saw they had no cable TV and wondered how it could be done.  Especially now with no sports, it's pretty easy. When there's a live news event we want to watch, like yesterday's John Lewis funeral, we tuned in on the radio.  By the way, Mary reminds me I have already spent the savings from dropping cable for the next several years.

That's about it from up here.  Can't believe it's August already.  Enjoy the summer while we have it.  Love from up here

Where are you?

In any normal year, for the past five years or so, we'd be planning and shopping and texting and organizing and packing and making all the last minute arrangements for a departure to Pennsylvania, tomorrow, Thursday, the third weekend in July.  You know, who is preparing dinner what night, which musical-chair/cabin assignments need changing, who will arrive first to pick up the keys, where to drop off the dogs, checking out the weather forecasts.  All of the above.

Thanks a lot Covid.  Maybe next year.

Another reason to thank Covid is that today is tax day.  Did anyone hear a roar?

Well, we can thank Covid as well for Annie's presence in the Berkshires for a few months.  She and Sankar arrived on July 4 weekend and set up shop in a large house in Great Barrington, with lots of room for their two cats.  Yes, the cats fared well on the drive across country.  They have lots of stories, including a surprise haircut for Sankar, surprise at least to Daniel who did the honors in his gentlemen's establishment.  Claire, by the way, finished up her work at the Green Lake camp, and returned home to Dundee for a while.  We continue to see beautiful macramé projects that are keeping her occupied.

Margaret and Andrew and Simon made the trek north again, this time to help celebrate Annie's birthday and to help Mary in her heart recovery project by allowing her more time to play with Simon.  He's growing, he's smiling and engaging, and even sleeping almost through the night…. sometimes.   OK, a couple of times.  Maybe once.  At least I'm sleeping through the night.

Timmy joined us for Annie's birthday party, that we had outside, with an elongated picnic table, all healthy.  Until we all forgot that blowing out the candles on the ice cream cake may not have been approved by Dr. Fauci.  Oh well.  All for one…..

We've had some Zoom moments with Brazil, and Joe started back to work this week.  Upstairs.  It will be challenging for all, especially for Leonor as she juggles caring for Baby John and Thomas.  Thanks a lot Covid, again.  But, we do get a big kick out of our Zoom reading sessions with Thomas. 

Peter passed along a message he got from an old neighbor on Given Road in Cincinnati.  In this age of e-mail and instant messaging, it only took Peter Hagist nine years to respond to Peter's original query. Still, it was a blast from the past – how do you catch up on 60 years in one email? 

And from this week's old letters:  "Among the other highlights were two trips to the dump! This has got to be the only place in America where children cry because they are not going to the dump in the van." This was in a letter written on February 29, 1989 after an all-hands on deck weekend in Pomfret, before we caught a plane to start our assignment in Durban.

Saving the best news for last, Mary's heart valve replacement procedure went well. She spent the night in the hospital, and, since the hospital had just opened up for visitors I was able to spend a couple of hours with her in the recovery room. She's gone from groggy to tired, cautious to bouncy, and tomorrow will be two weeks since the surgery – a magical point on the timeline when the doctor said she could start swimming.  Guess where she will be first thing in the am?  On the medical front, she has reported feeling no angina tightness since the procedure, even after walking and light gardening.

Well, we'll miss seeing everyone at Mt. Springs, miss the loud talking-over conversations on the porches and the quieter chats as well, miss the board games and reading and swimming and fishing and walking along the path, miss the messes and the good food and group photos. 

That's it from up here.  Love

Rain

Rain.  I will never complain about rain again, and I welcome the last week where it seems to have rained every day.  I don't even mind the water in the basement.  We had such a dry stretch from May into June we had to water the gardens. Never done that so early. And, even that still didn't help our asparagus and strawberry output.  Measly.  We have lettuce though, and for the first time cabbage heads are forming.  So far, we've been able to keep the groundhogs and rabbits at bay, but I did see a hole inside the garden today.  Stay tuned.

Any fathers out there?  Was yours the best Father's Day ever?  It was here.  We zoomed with children and grandchildren, and our friends Charlie and Annie were here for a social distanced dinner. They just bought a place in Northhampton, so they will be dividing their time between North Carolina and Mass.  We have a new member of the fathers club – welcome aboard Andrew S.

We heard Daniel came home for the big day out in Dundee.  Claire is up at Green Lake, I think at the camp, but not with any campers.  Andrew and Lur have hired some people to help out caring for Lur's parents in the evenings.  They had to cancel their summer ritual of Green Lake this year.

Right now, Annie Dickson is somewhere east of Idaho and west of Illinois.  She and Sankar packed up their apartment, put their things in storage and loaded up the car last Thursday.  They have sent photos of two kitties exploring the car, hopefully not while on Rte 90 going 75 mph.  Anyway, they expect to be here shortly after the 4^th and move into their short-term lease in Great Barrington.  Can't wait.

Today's a big day in Washington.  Margaret went back to work, or at least went upstairs in their house to turn on the computer and log into work. Andrew has a few more weeks of leave, before he too starts back up, also working virtually from home.

Meanwhile, down in Brazil, Joe has a week or so more of his baby leave.  Young John is putting on weight and he's just about the weight he would be if he went full term, which is today.  We had some fun reading times with Thomas, over Zoom.  Leonor looks strong, but tired.  Wish we could go there, but I think Brazil's leaders are trying to vie with the U.S. for biggest coronavirus fumble.

My weekly letter slow-going scanning project unearthed this tidbit from August 1988 – "It was a busy week – with one very emotional moment. When we watched David and Paula drive from here on Tuesday morning (they had spent the night here), we were happy, so happy, to see them off together for a new home – all together.  But it was surely sad, after all these fine years of picnics, pinochle, dinners, celebrations, etc, to know that one era was ending and another was starting…..."

What else? Mary is getting ready to head to Boston for her valve replacement procedure this week (Wednesday.)  She has been on the phone with doctors and nurses with last-minute details. She also has been sewing corona masks with whales on them to sell at the Arrowhead shop whenever they open up.  More importantly, she's back in the water, swimming in the lake, and smiling whenever she gets back home.

Down in Florida, John and Marilyn are just hunkered down, with strict following of social distancing.  John has taken up early morning swims in place of going to the gym to workout.  Tim has come over for dinner a few times.

We saw a good movie the other night (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) and are in the middle of season three of Ozark – why are my favorite shows about drug traffickers? We finished another one with gripping endings to every show – Dead to Me.

That's about it from here – Happy 4^th of July, everyone.  Love from up here.

 

June is busting out

One of the unexpected pleasures of Coronavirus has been my decision to use the time at home to scan old weekly letters.  Back when they actually were once a week, that means it's pretty slow going.  I've only done a couple of years this time around, to add to the ten years or so I had scanned back when we were living in Canada.

Anyway, I come across interesting tidbits.  Here's one from September 1989:
"We talked to five grandchildren last week! Actually, I am sorry to report that I hung up on one of the calls. I picked up the phone and heard this voice and figured it was a child playing with a phone… it was a child alright, it was Johanna and she was calling to tell us that she was about to move into Ann's old four poster bed."  Seemed an appropriate memory on this day of remembrance of a shocking June 15 back in 1978. There are many other memories, but I'll take the fancy bed with a canopy in Ann's room. I'll try to pick out a passage every now and then from the old letters.

There are other advantages to Coronavirus.  One is that Andrew and Margaret were able to take the time off and come spend a week with us in the glorious days of summer. They brought along a surprise – Simon!  He has kept us happily occupied with the excitement of naps, poops, eating, and even smiling. This is a good age, when the parents have started to figure out what calms him down.  The good news is he slept through the night a couple of times. That means they might come back!

They had the run of the place to themselves for a night last week while we made our way to Boston for Mary's angiogram. All went well, and fairly quick.  Back home by 4pm with a bout of nausea on the way home. Now, we're just waiting to hear when the valve replacement will be scheduled.

News from Brazil is Joe bought a car, so that he could make his way to and from work, whenever work starts up. No more Uber, and Leonor will have her own car to shuttle two boys around. Little John is gaining weight, which is good.  What's amazing is that he still hasn't reached his due date. And, here's a photo of Thomas at Zoom story time. They also decided to put their house on the market, as they couldn't lock in a renter.

And another positive Coronavirus outcome is that Annie has signed a lease in Great Barrington. She's due here in early July, but we haven't heard final confirmation of their travel plans.  Can't wait.
Last week, I handed out a stock tip on Mike's Lemonade.  Here's another one – weed whackers. I have been investing heavily in weed whackers and still can't find one that works, or at least works for me.  I spent an hour on Sunday trying to start my latest version, and I have two blisters to show for it. It still doesn't work.  Any ideas?

Opening up story – Daniel has gone back to work in Chicago, as things open up ever so cautiously.  Stay safe there buddy. In case you're wondering, here's the website of the business he's working for, with his photo on the tab – Meet the Team.  Lur and Andrew have decided to hire someone to come in for a few nights each week to help with her parents. Difficult decisions.  

Our garden is coming in, slowly, but, without much rain, we are having to water it every night.  We've had a couple of harvests of lettuce, and our first strawberry.  But, there is a mystery: what happened to the asparagus this year?  Hope it comes back next year. 

What else?  We've had a couple of dinners with Timmy over, and we've even ventured to have friends over to sit around the campfire.  Easing but not anywhere near where we'd hoped to have been – going to plays, concerts at Tanglewood, museums etc.  

Of course, the news is pretty depressing. What happened to our country?  I guess, our new normal for a while. Memo to the next generation: sorry about that.  

And sorry the news is so one-sided. Have to do a better job in getting your news. Last week, we were hacked, so I had to change the email for posting to the website.  I guess you could send me anything directly for posting.

Love from up here.  
   
  

Here's Johnny.....or rather John.... or rather Joao!

Welcome John (Joao) Fontoura Dickson.  Even if you arrived a month early.  You're still welcome.

Leonor and Joe saw the doctor last Friday, and she thought the baby was still set for a late June arrival.  But, Sunday, Leonor started having contractions, and when they were three minutes apart, they scrambled for the hospital.  When the baby's heartbeat slowed down, the doctor opted for a caesarian procedure, and 15 minutes after the epidural, baby John appeared.  

 
He's small, 2.2 kilograms (4.6 lbs) and he even lost a little weight in the first couple of days, which I'm told is normal.  After a small gain in weight, Leonor and baby John came home, on Friday.  Thomas greeted them with a poster and a kiss and a good start to the new normal in their house. He was so happy to see his mother!

I've said it before, but the world stops on news like this, even when things look so bleak outside, on the news.  We saw one cute picture of Joe and the baby that showed Joe reading to the baby until the baby fell asleep.  Joe was sleeping and the baby's eyes were open.  Must be a Dickson thing.

The whole experience brought back memories for Janet who remembered bringing Sean home to his toddler sister after a caesarian.  In pain, tired (exhausted) and just pushing through those first few hard weeks.  Her advice – get as much help as you can, Leonor.  Unfortunately, they had hoped that Leonor's mother would be able to come, but corona got in the way.

Other news – Annie's looking into moving back east, Great Barrington to be precise.  She and her partner, Sankar, have been told they're going to be working from home for a while, so why stay in the big city?  They're looking at furnished apartments around here, and we went to check out a nice one they found in Great Barrington.  Keeping our fingers crossed.  Maybe the first of July.

Annie's not the only one considering moving.  Timmy is thinking of a late fall move back to the west coast, Washington state, perhaps.

Simon's growing, and seems to have turned a little bit of a sleep corner.  And a smily corner.  Margaret and Andrew are also considering coming up here in June for a short time.  C'mon up!

There's a photo here of Andrew with a corona beard.  They are happy to have Daniel back home for a short while, to help out while Lur is taking care of her parents.  We know how all consuming that period is, with no easy answers.  

Here's a stock tip – Mike's Lemonade.  Whenever I talk to David, he seems to be refreshing himself after hours in the garden with a cold Mike's.  Around here, I see more Hard Iced Tea cans on the side of the road than the lemonade version, along with lottery scratch cards and donut cups. 

On the nature front, my annual battle with the groundhogs has started.  So far, no damage to the garden, but I am filling up holes with ammonia and moth balls as soon as I see a new one.  We borrowed a large have-a-heart trap from friends, and I looked outside last week and saw that it had sprung.  With a brown thing inside.  When I went closer, I noticed it had a white underbelly.  And a long snout.  An opossum.  I later told Mary that it looked dead, and, without any ridicule in her voice, she reminded me that's what they're known for.  After a Homer Simpson slam to the head, I read up and saw these creatures were by and large harmless. So I just opened the door and let him out.  He continued to play dead.  A little while later, I went out and he was gone.  Or was it a she?

Florida is gradually opening up, but John and Marilyn are being very cautious.  Marilyn hurt her back and is slowly recovering.  A few of us know what that's like.  Sorry.  

Mary had a doctor's appointment in Boston for a stress test for her heart valve situation.  The doctor told her he's looking at replacement surgery, sometime in the next 4-6 weeks.  We go back on Monday.  

One thing we found ourselves saying a few times this week – wish we could be there.  To help out, to just see you guys. 

 
Love from up here.  And, welcome again, John (Joao).  

   
 

John Dickson

Encore de la Paix

A new chapter - coronavirus diaries

The long-term forecast doesn't show a temperature below 32, or even 39, day or night.  Does it mean it's safe to plant in the garden?  The lettuce I put in there two weeks ago gives me the hairy eyeball eavh time I enter the garden – why did you do this to us, they seem to be saying when they look up at me.  Today, though, there's new growth, and they were nicer.  Wait til I pick them, and eat them.

Spring has finally sprung up here, and while I wouldn't say it's worth the wait, it sure is wonderful. 

Coronavirus means, we're spending more time at home, so we're actually way ahead of where we normally are – with beds mulched, flower boxes planted, garden roto-tilled, lawn mowed, etc. 

That got me to thinking.  With no travel and with no visitors, what else has changed?  I notice we have a little more money in the bank account (hard when so many people are suffering, but we have more than spent our stimulus funding on charitable giving, both near and far.)  Speaking of money, we haven't gone to the ATM in quite a while, still having the same cash in our wallets from weeks ago.  We pay for everything with plastic, and that means that our Visa bill is higher each month.

The other day, I noticed a sliver of soap in the dish.  It was smaller the next day, and gradually got even smaller in the course of a week.  With visitors, we never would have allowed that sliver to remain.  You may remember Grandma Dickson, in a depression-legacy practice, used to bond old soap slivers to new bars. 

Other changes – with no meetings or classes outside to attend, I end up not putting my hearing aids in until dinner time, and sometimes not even then – living in my own little cone of silence.  We talk an awful lot more about haircuts than normal.  The electric bill is higher, probably due to more time on the computer.  And, I've figured out how to borrow books from the library, for my Kindle reading pleasure.

In addition, the social distancing has had a nice side effect for us – we have managed to avoid the colds we usually get this time of year.  In fact, Mary remembers that from January to March she had a long, lingering cough that has gone away. 

And one more thing, Mary and I our both taking on tidying up, cleaning out projects.  She has been going through her sewing materials in the basement, which has led her to start making corona-masks, using African fabrics (photo included.)  My project is to take up the digitizing of Pop's Weekly Letters, that I had started way back in 2005, before I ran into a brick wall since it was so slow and long.  It still is, but there's always wonderful nuggets in them.  Here's one from September 1990:  "The quote of the week belongs to Sean, who after walking too long at the zoo said: ''My feet are getting crowded.'"

Enough about us. Please feel free to add your own corona diaries, as Janet did last week.

Ooops; I almost forgot one more big corona-related family news item.  We have pulled the plug on the Poconos this year.  Mountain Springs was nice enough to roll over our reservations to next year – July 15-18.  Janie, Rell and Susan Pratt are all ready to join us next year.

Out in Illinois, Lur and Andrew are totally given over to taking care of her parents.  Her father is home from the hospital, and Lur has been sleeping most nights at their home.  Daniel came home, and has been social distancing with his high school mates.  Nice photo included here.  And, I hope all of you have seen Claire's macramé projects on Facebook/Instagram.  Beautiful work.

David, like many of you, continues to keep up his walking regimes, and has also been attending to spring gardening prep.

In DC, Simon is growing well, and beginning to fall into a manageable sleep routine.  In Brazil, Thomas is working hard at potty training, and Leonor is into her final weeks of pregnancy, understandably tired.  Out in Oakland, Annie is entering a new job phase with an undetermined length of time for working from home, any home, any place.

One final comment about our next generations.  Most of you fit the demographic of "knowledge workers" and are coping reasonably well.  In our conversations, you seem to have adjusted to the new realities, better than one would have thought.  My only hope is that these are not permanent; that we can emerge and give you the lives that you all want, for you and your families.

A few birthdays – Elliot, Sean and Matthew – a few anniversaries – Peter and Janet, Andrew and Margaret.  Anyone else? 

That's a wrap – stay healthy, love from up here