I Conquered the Peaches!

     Not sure how many of you remember a blog a few years ago, about my first attempt at making peach preserves. It was an absolute disaster and it has taken years for the trauma to fade enough for me to attempt it again. I am so excited to announce that, I managed to turn half a bushel of peaches into preserves, and I canned the other half into quart jars, and, it was a success!
    
     We've had a lot going on this summer, and time has been at a premium, however, there's been so much stress between working both of my jobs, and my mother's declining health, that, I just keep canning things. It keeps me and my hands busy, and uses some of the frenetic energy I seem to have pent up.
     I read an article the other day (my work internet defaults to MSN, when I attempt to use another window, which is all day. And so, I end up scrolling through the news and articles and learning things like: pretty much every single thing you eat will cause cancer and terrible health issues and ultimately kill you. I cannot think of one food item that wasn't covered on the list.)
     Anyhow. I read this article that indicated that being negative around other people makes them miserable too. So, I've been canning and baking and freezing pretty much everything. Because, honestly, nobody wants to hear how stressed anybody is. Unless they are being paid to listen to how stressed you are. And in which case, they will give you lots of advice as to how to deal with the stress that you don't want to hear, because you just want to vent, and so, I saved the therapy money and just canned a small fortune in fruits and sugar.
     And now I need to find the time to clean out what is supposed to become my pantry because I really cannot have 90 pints of preserves in my kitchen indefinitely. 

     Since the last blog, I've started a weekend job with a nursing agency. It didn't take too long to get back into the swing of things, and, except for the patient who died on my first day on the job (NOT because of me, by the way...just to clarify) it's been a good job. I took some time off from it though, to help out with my mother's health issues. We found out unexpectedly that she has end stage cancer, and she has declined considerably over the last month.
     My mother has always been a fiercely private and independent person, and it's been rough to watch this person who is nothing like my mother, as she works through each day in increasing confusion while she slowly fades.
     My kids have been incredible, while I've spent so much time driving back and forth to my jobs, the hospital, meetings, making funeral plans, and now, heading to visit her as often as possible. I missed most of George's soccer games this summer, and have spent more time away from my kids then not. Except for the occasional "I really really miss you Mom" from the kids, they have been a huge help around the house while I've been gallivanting all over the country side between work and family issues.
    
      This summer hasn't been all bad! I had a work trip to New York City last month. I was offered the option of driving or taking a train. I'm a fairly confident driver, but, I have no desire to ever drive the insanity that is NYC. So, I took the train. The eight hours flew by, and eventually it rolled into the city. A man sitting across the aisle looked at my suitcase and my heavy tote, full of all the training materials I would need and asked me how I planned to get to my hotel. With a strong Brooklyn accent, he pointed out that taxi's would be overpriced and impossible to find, I would never get all my bags onto the subway, even if I could figure it out, and, a bus would probably not be a good idea. I was further advised that walking with all that would probably be impossible for any real distance.
     Pondering this, I downloaded the Uber app onto my phone as the city flashed by, and quickly set up an account, and requested a driver like I knew what I was doing. Disembarking from the train, I jogged up out of the bowels of Central Station and out the doors, to find a long line of frantic impatient people standing at a taxi kiosk, and, my Uber driver sliding up to the curb right on time. The driver hopped out, stashed my bags in his trunk, and the proceeded to give me the most terrifying drive of my life, as, we hurtled through the city and narrowly avoided several deadly collisions and pedestrian casualties.
     During my stay, it was like having a magic button on my phone. No matter what the time of day or destination, all I had to do was push the button, and within minutes a vehicle would appear, and, for a few dollars, I could go pretty much anywhere I wanted. Daily, I watched seasoned New Yorkers impatiently wave down indifferent taxis that rarely stopped to pick them up. In frustration they would stand nearly in the middle of the road, begging the taxis to stop to no avail. I was a little surprised they hadn't all figured out how to download the magic button onto their phones, instead of spending all this time in the middle of the road jumping up and down in rage as taxi after taxi zoomed by them.
     I wish I could say that I was sophisticated and cultured and that I caught a show, or perused a museum, or that I played tourist and hit up all the landmarks. I had the perfect opportunity for all sorts of experiences only NYC has to offer. In all honestly though, when I wasn't teaching, or marveling over the magic of Uber, I was tucked into my hotel room and sleeping. So exciting! My cousin from New Jersey and her son did come into the city on my last night there, and we went out to dinner, but, I was still in bed by 10pm.
     As I boarded the train to go home, I was followed by a man who smelled strongly of alcohol, and who, in a heavily accented voice, informed me he had decided to share a seat with me. He happily admitted that he had begun drinking shortly after dawn, that he was from Russia. That he had lived in NYC for many years. That he was visiting his sister in Rochester. He quizzed me about every single movie he had ever seen in the entirety of his 57 years (I felt like quite the failure, and clearly disappointed him, when I admitted that I had not seen any of them. He must have named hundreds of them. For seven straight hours.) During this time, he also managed to offend every single ethnicity riding in that train car, and, one by one, I cringed as people stood up with a huff and tried to find different seating. I was asked if I had any sisters, and if they were as fat or ugly as I was, and, I watched as he made trip after trip to the dining car for more beer.
     The ride home was a lot longer than the ride to NYC had been.

     During my trip, Kaila bought a new car! Her previous car cost her lots and lots of money in parts and repairs, and was up and running for exactly 4 hours before it died on the side of the road on New Year Eve, and it never ran again. It was so good to get my vehicle back again and not have to share it with my equally busy teen!

     Also of note this summer: Lexi and Joe have discovered Harry Potter. I realize that Harry Potter has an almost cult following, and that the next words will offend those faithful followers, but - I hate Harry Potter. I do not ever want to hear about Harry Potter ever again. It is pretty much all they talk about, think about or read. And when they are finished reading Harry Potter - they read it all over again. What sort of spell is in those books? The obsession is incredible.

     Speaking of books: I bought a Kindle. I swore I would never own one, and, wasn't entirely enthused about it when I did decide to order it. The kids excitedly huddled around me while I picked one out on Amazon, and then again while I picked a cover for it. As a solid through and through lover of an actual book in my hand, I had actually felt a sort of revulsion for Kindles. It was actually a member of our Book Club who unknowingly talked me into it. We were sitting near each other at an end of year concert at the kids' school, and she excitedly told me about this book she had just read, and highly recommended it. She mentioned the Overdrive App, and how often she used it to take out e library books, and honestly, I decided on the spot to finally buy a Kindle.
     I cannot stress enough how much I still love a solid real book in my hands, and they will always be my first choice. However, I am absolutely sold on the Kindle and it pretty much goes everywhere with me. I throw it in my purse most days on my way to work, and read on my lunch breaks. Or wherever I happen to be. It's so much easier than toting around a book when space is at a premium, and it was invaluable on my trip to NYC. It's darn near as magical as Uber.

     Okay, that's enough for now. This blog isn't one of the most amusing I've ever written, but, if every day was a carnival, they wouldn't be special, right?