Is Kelly Lucky Or What (Especially At Christmas)

We were married on New Year’s Day, a Monday, a new beginning in many ways. Since then, I’ve described myself as the luckiest man on earth, and that remains true.

 

I am lucky to have Kelly, but here’s a modest reminder of how lucky she is to have me, a man who likes having someone to do things for.

 

 

One night, after a long day of shopping the flea markets, she set up this lovely display of her plates on our bedroom wall. She was unhappy to leave “a hole” where one more plate should go, but she was nearly falling over for want of sleep. I’ve lived with her long enough to know that once she gets to that point, she is useless for anything but sleep. As I tucked her in, she whispered, “If you loved me you would put up one more plate….” And then she was out.

I figured it couldn’t be that hard. Kelly had put up 11 plates already, and only broke two, so I could probably manage. But she was out of plates, and out of the wire racks to hang one with. So I did the next best thing, what any man in love would do to prove his devotion. I went downstairs to the cupboard and found the exactly right shaped and patterned paper plate to fill in for the time being, until we could make another trip to the thrift stores.

 

When Kelly awoke the next morning, she noticed the plate first thing, and showered me with affection. She was so excited, so pleased, that she took photos to share with her friends in Blogland. She is still so happy with my act of kindness, these many months later, that she refuses my offer to put up a real plate in place of the paper one. She's sentimental that way.

 

While installing Christmas decorations a few weeks ago, we found a small pink tree that our daughter Carrie left behind. With her permission, I set it up for Kelly in our sitting room, because I know she loves pink Christmas trees and I know how much she loves the twinkle lights. Few things bring Kelly as much joy as sock monkeys, so I thought “what better for this little tree than her favorite sock monkey,” this pink little guy with the big smile. Kelly came in and saw the tree, then saw the toy on top, and she squealed with delight. More kisses came my way, I’ll tell you that.

 

Kelly’s new favorite place to sit is right under this tree, with the monkey man watching. While there has been talk of having to take down all the trees and decorations in the rest of the house here in a couple of days, she has not mentioned taking down the pink tree. It just means too much to her. She's sentimental that way.

 

On the porch, we have a white tree, another flea market find, which Kelly says she has always wanted. The ornaments are all pretty, but they are plastic, because they are exposed to the sun and wind and rain. The topper on this tree, a colorful keepsake from one of our many trips to Wendy’s, a family favorite, has become a tradition for us, and a reminder of what really matters.

 

This disposable display is highlighted by a used paper cup. The neighbors might call it trash, but to us it represents the true meaning of holiday celebrations. Ultimately, everything we have is disposable, and all the gifts and foods and trappings of Christmas mean little. Some people may have a perfect Martha Stewart magazine-cover Christmas, but neglect each other. What matters, what really lasts, is our family, each person, each individual. The love and kindness that we share, the bonds we form that will never be broken, that is what Christmas really means, and the humble little tree on our humble little porch helps us to never forget.

 

Here, Aubrey shows that she has learned the lesson, too. Awwww….

 

So I ask you. Is Kelly lucky or what?

Red And Yellow And Orange, Oh My

 

We live in a fabulous neighborhood, filled with old homes and old trees and, well, old people. The streets are especially beautiful during these brief days in October when leafs first turn from green to red and yellow and orange.

Kelly and I got a rare hour together one afternoon last week, so we made a photo expedition through our streets. I haven’t been on a lot of photo expeditions, but the ones where you get to hold hands are the best.

You can see some of the photos Kelly took here, and some I took two years ago right about here. We live in a fabulous neighborhood.

 

If you live in a place where the leafs have not all fallen or turned brown, take an hour, take someone’s hand and take a walk. And take your camera.

It's 95 Degrees Right Now, So Here Are Photos Of Our Ice Storm

Rummaging through some photos the other day, I found shots of our ice storm five years ago. It was a major weather event, with ice encasing everything for days and days.

Many people in our area were without electricity for 10 days or more. We were lucky.

Although our weather head was knocked off like everyone else, the wires didn’t lose connection. We lost Internet access for about six hours, but otherwise didn’t suffer much. They showed video of our house on the news because we had lights on at night and none of the neighbors did. It was weird.

Our neighbor wasn’t as lucky, so we ran long extension cords between our kitchens so they could cook and keep at least part of the house warm.

The long, sharp cracks of the wood splitting was nearly constant and always haunting, especially deep in the night. The ice from the limbs shattering against the ground were thousands of anguished voices, protesting against the cold.

Everyone dragged fallen limbs to the curb, where city work crews eventually got it all cleared away. One enterprising person near our house put a sign on his pile, "Wood For Sale."

In unsheltered places, the wind blew the mist in different directions, so the icicles that formed pointed in different directions.

After being trapped indoors for many days, we were happy to see the sunshine. Most of the trees in our neighborhood survived, but they all still show their scars. 

Trees In Your Way

Trees in your way? That’s what this billboard near my house asks. Part of the sign is covered, I assume intentionally, by tall trees, making the point that trees are just pretty much in the way.

It seems wrong that we should chop down trees merely because they block our view, because there are lots of better reasons for chopping down trees than that.

Don’t get me wrong. I like trees. I’m a big fan of trees, because we can build and make so many useful things out of them, everything from houses to paper to money. And making money is what trees need to do to survive.

Because I love trees, I argue against my students and other faculty where I’ve worked who say that we should limit our use of paper, that we should print front and back to use as little paper as possible. My misguided, un-American peers and students somehow think that by not using paper, they are protecting trees.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

The only way to protect trees, the only way to make sure we will always have enough trees is to make sure that enough people are making enough money from trees. That’s why they say there are more trees in the US now than there were when the Pilgrims came here centuries ago, and the numbers are increasing. It's simple supply and demand.

Like corn or wheat, trees are a renewable cash crop. As long as people are making money from them, there will always be enough trees, enough for you and for me, for the birdies and the squirrels.

So do your part: save a tree. Go and print a bunch of long, single-sided documents. Our economy needs all the help it can get.