Attendance was small at our last meeting, but our joy of being together was huge.

Birthday wishes were sung by the Hilltown Seniors to Barbara Hindenlang, Doris Skinner, Alyce Gibbs, Kathy Walls, and Jean Wright.

Anniversaries celebrated were John and Millie Rossman, married for 59 years; Bill and Linda Carman, married for 51 years; and Mike and Sharon Vincent, celebrating the big 50.

It was reported that Bob and Ruth Snyder had a chimney fire that resulted in extensive repairs. They will be out of their home for at least three months. At the present time, they are bunking in with Bob's sister, Katie.

Trips

Shirley reported on some trips that she has set up. On April 5, we are going to the Culinary Institute and the Vanderbilt Mansion.

Cost is $50 for members and $70 for non-members. The bus will leave the Berne Community Center (note the new name) at 8:45 a.m. and Westerlo Town Hall at 9 a.m. We are being served, Antipasti Misti, Petto DiPollo Alla Salvia, and Torino Di Cioccolato for dessert.

I hope while we are there we can meet up with Brandon Fortuin, a graduate of Berne-Knox-Westerlo who is studying there. At the mansion we will be touring the grounds. Hopefully some blossoms out for picture taking. Reservations by March 15, call Shirley Slingerland at 797-3467

Also, on June 14, we are going to the Mac-Hayden Theater to see “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.” Beforehand, we will be visiting the Whitestone Restaurant. We thoroughly enjoyed that last year. The cost is $50 for members and $70 for non-members. Bus will leave Berne at 10 a.m. and Westerlo at 10:15 a.m. Reservations must be made by May 24 by calling Shirley at (518) 797-3467.

Guest speaker

We had Randy Bashwinger as a guest speaker. Randy is the highway superintendent for the town of Berne. The "boys" of the highway department take notice of activities along their daily work day, especially in the winter time. Randy is forming a "Neighbors helping Neighbors" program.

He had spoken to me about it and was wondering if our group would be interested. At the meeting, we decided we had to make up two lists: one for the volunteers and one for the people who would like assistance. The assistance part would be making a phone call and checking on the person, helping with shoveling, doing chores around the house, taking them shopping or to doctors’ appointments.

There are a variety of things to do to help your neighbor that would only take an hour of your time. This program would involve all the four Hilltowns. This a regional project that has been talked about for years. So now the lists have begun.

If you are interested in volunteering or would like assistance, you can go on Facebook to the Town of Berne Highway Department or to Randy Bashwinger’s Facebook page. Those with needs may call me, Linda Carman at (518) 872-2448. Later on, more contacts will be listed.

Also Willard Osterhout is looking for pictures of any military personnel, active, in active, or  deceased to be put in a book. He would like pictures in uniforms.

Future events

Also coming events are:

— March 9, the Meal Site is sponsoring a trip to Cooperstown. The cost is $13.50 with dinner on your own. They would like you to join them for a meal, as people who participate will have first choice;

— Feb. 25 is the Helderberg Lutheran Church’s breakfast;

— The book club is not meeting until March; and

— The seniors are going to participate in the Altamont Fair. I still need some vintage handkerchiefs. Also some crafts to display in the craft building;

The Altamont Fair is celebrating a special year and any vintage pictures that your family has could you please share them with us. And stories! I know we would spend all day there’ we’d go back to the car and have lunch that mom made and go off again.

Remember there is a fountain of youth. It is your mind,  your talents, the creativity you bring to your life, and the people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age.

 

Location:

“Oh, hello. Just a trim, please. Yes, I know that Mr. Mark isn’t in today, but that’s OK. I’m sure you’ll do a lovely job.”

By the way, have you noticed that “stylists” are only referred to as “Miss,” “Ms.,” or “Mister” in salons that cater to old ladies? Everybody else has adopted the new “we’re all good friends here” attitude. Honorifics seem to imply some sort of class system, so we don’t use them anymore. Except in the South, of course, where most of the rules are different.

I nearly choked the first time someone referred to me as “Miss Phyllis.” I felt as if I should be holding my lace fan up to my face like my dear friend Scarlett. But back to the present.

“How would I like it? Oh, I don’t know; I think I’d like to look elegant but casual. Perhaps a cross between James Dean and Leona Helmsley. You know, the lady who was so mean and used to own all those hotels, but always looked gorgeous?

“Do I use any ‘product’ on my hair? You mean soap, or that goo that makes it all stand on end? My grandmother had some amazing stuff; it was called Jo-Cur (no pun intended that I’m aware of). It was thick, and slimy, and tinted either green or lavender. When you combed that through before you put in the spoolies, you came out looking like Little Orphan Annie. It took a while to dry, of course.

“If you couldn’t afford to go to the hairdresser (yes, that’s what we used to call them), you lay down on the floor with your head over the heating grate, and dried it that way. The grates could get really hot, and I always worried a bit about the coal dust, but that was what there was, so we used it.

“No, I don’t usually use ‘product.’ I get in the shower, soap up, rinse, and get out. Usually I comb it.”

She now she gets a sort of hopeless, pitying look on her face, as though she knows that, if I keep on going like this, all of my hair will probably fall out anyways.

What I’d really like is one of those dramatic asymmetrical cuts that Vidal Sassoon made so popular. You know, the ones that were up over the ear on one side, and fell straight down to the chin on the other, except you need to have hair like Sophia Loren to carry it off. I have Twiggy’s hair, and Ethel Merman’s body.

And another question: Why are you asking me how to give a haircut? Don’t you already know? Don’t they teach you all about the best styles for round faces, or skimpy hair, or bald spots? Do some people really want a particular style even if it looks lousy on them? (I suppose so, having been downtown a couple of times and seeing what passes for chic.)

“Thank you so much.” Now my hair is all poofy and curled and gorgeous, and I would go somewhere to show it off except that first I have to take a shower to get rid of all those itchy little snippets.

Coming up

Moving right along, in case you want to sue your barber, you can make an appointment to see a lawyer for free at the Knox town hall. There is no charge, and no income questions. Two appointments are available each month for any Hilltowns senior. The service is for civil law matters only: no divorces, custody, or criminal issues. Call Pat Lightbody at 872-9400 to schedule your visit.

Cooperative Extension has free water test kits available. No outside labs or special fussing; you can do the test at home. The main number at Co-op is 765-3500.

The Hilltown Seniors are sponsoring a trip to the Culinary Institute of America and the Vanderbilt Mansion on April 5. The cost is $50 for members, and $70 for non-members. The trip includes a lunch of antipasto, Italian roasted chicken (Petto di Pollo Alla Salvia), glazed carrots, chocolate lava cake (Tortino di Cioccolato), and coffee or tea at the renowned Caterina de' Medici restaurant. Shirley Slingerland is taking reservations at 797-3467.

The Hilltown Seniors next meeting will be March 11 at the Berne Reformed Church on Helderberg Trail. Lunch will be corned beef and cabbage, at a subsidized cost of $5 per person. Call Shirley at 797-3467 to register.

March 9 the Helderberg Senior Services will be taking off for the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. The only charge is admission to the museum, for $13.50 per person. We will stop for lunch, which you can purchase on you own if you choose, or brown bag it from home.

Hilltowns Community Resource Center has lovely lunches at noon every second and fourth Thursday of the month. There is no charge; only your free-will offering. Lunch is followed by an hour of Bingo. The next lunches will be on Feb. 23 (ham and scalloped potatoes!), and March 9. The Resource Center is located at the Reformed Church at 566 Route 143 in downtown Westerlo. Call Mary Beth at 797-5256 fro more info. They also have a food pantry on site; donate or take what you need.

Pastor Wendy Cook reminds us that the next pancake breakfast will begin at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 25 at the Evangelical Lutheran Church on Helderberg Trail in Berne. No set cost; give what you can offer.

The senior shopping bus will make its next trips to Walmart and Whole Foods on Feb. 22 and March 8.  Call CDTA at 437-5161 two days in advance to arrange for pickup.

February is American Heart Month, and National Therapeutic Recreation Month . The week of the 19th - 25th is Brotherhood / Sisterhood Week, National FFA Week, and National Invasive Species Awareness Week. Chocolate Mint Day and Introduce A Girl to Engineering Day are the 19th. Iwo Jima Landing Day is the 19th, and Iwo Jima Flag-raising Day is the 23 rd.  Love Your Pet Day is the 20th.  Museum Advocacy Day is the 21st, and World Thinking Day and George Washington's Birthday are the 22nd.  The 23rd is Diesel Engine Day, and World Bartender Day is the 24th. We end the week with International Sword Swallowers Day on the 25th.

Menu

The menu for next week at the Helderberg senior lunch program is:

— Monday, Feb. 20, closed for President’s Day;

— Tuesday, Feb. 21, baked fish with lemon herb sauce, stewed tomatoes, cranberry juice rice, rye bread, and applesauce cake; and

— Friday, Feb. 24, cheeseburger with Swiss cheese on a wheat hamburger bun, seasoned oven roasted potatoes, Brussel sprouts, and oatmeal cookie and pears.

Doors open at 11 a.m. and lunch is served promptly at noon. We also have transportation to and from lunch. Just tell Linda Hodges when you call with your reservation.

Does your Bacon-lovers’ group, Mohawk basket-makers’ club, or Sanskrit Poetry society need an easy place to meet? Why not meet at the Senior Center? Come have lunch, and then get together with your friends! There’s plenty of space, and the center is open for all of us. We already have games, dominoes, and cards after lunch on Mondays and Tuesdays, so join us.

Please call Linda Hodges 24 hours in advance to 872-0940 to reserve lunch, or email her at: , or sign up when you come in. Tell us how many are coming, your name, and your telephone number. If you’d just like to come and help out, call Linda, send an email to , and put “volunteer” in the subject line. Lunches are provided by Helderberg Senior Services, the Albany County Department of Aging, and Senior Services of Albany. The Town of Berne Community and Senior Services Center is located at 1360 Helderberg Trail (Route 443) in Berne.

 

Location:

I remember when my smug, ninth-grade self began taking French in school, and what a silly language it was to me. In translation, the French would “make” a walk, instead of “taking” a walk. But wait a minute. Who do we “take” the walk from? Did somebody else own it before I took it?

“Making” a meal I understand, but how does covering a piece of furniture with cloth equal “making” a bed?  We “play” games, and kids “play,” and some folks “play” the horses, so is everything that’s fun “play?”

Playing football doesn’t look like a lot of fun to me, unless you’re a masochist who enjoys getting beaten up, and, if gambling away money you can’t really afford to lose is considered “play,” then we have a somewhat warped value system if you ask me.

We “do” the dishes, but why does that mean the same thing as “wash?” We don’t “do” our hands when we wash them, and if a lady “does” her face, it means she’s “putting on” makeup.  Putting on? Like making fun of?

It would be more accurate to say “applying” makeup, except “applying” also means to submit an application. I never had to ask anyone (except my mother) about permission to wear makeup.

We can “have” a cold, or a good dog, but we don’t “have” tired, we “are” tired. But I have a meal, I “am” not a meal. Some of the things we can have are invisible, like an attitude, or an idea, but others are real, concrete things, like sofas.

We use the sofa to “take” a nap, but that has the same problems as taking a walk. I can “do” my hair, or apparently anything else that implies a physical change or activity, but we seldom “do” our beds.

The spelling is just as bad. Eenuf is spelled enough, and det is debt. Even the rules are not always ryt (right). I before E, except after C, except in words like weird, where the rules don’t apply. “Sounding like A’ is OK, but look at the words that supposedly sound like A: neighbor (nayber) or weigh (way). Who decided that “eigh” should be pronounced “ay?”

We could blame it all on the fact that this country was built by immigrants, both legal and illegal, who each brought their own contributions to our linguistic mish-mosh. What do you expect when you take a perfectly good language like Mohawk, or Algonquin, and start adding “Thees,” “Thous” and “prithees” brought my folks from Merrie Olde England or “Geseundheits” from Dusseldorf?

What a mess! It’s no wonder that new Americans have such an awful time trying to learn the polyglot goulash we call American English.

Maybe we should start over.  “Hello” in Mohawk is spelled “Shé:kon,” and pronounced “Say-goon.”

Coming up

February is North American Inclusion Month, National Bird Feeding Month, Grapefruit Month , and Worldwide Renaissance of the Heart Month. This week is International Friendship Week, National Secondhand Wardrobe Week, and Random Acts of Kindness Week. Lincoln's Birthday and Oglethorpe Day are all on the 12th.  The 13th is Clean Out Your Computer Day and World Radio Day.

Extraterrestrial Visitor Day, Ferris Wheel Day, and Valentine’s Day are the 14th.  Lupercalia, National Gum Drop Day, and National Hippo Day (I thought that was for Christmas!) are the 15th, and National Almond Day is the 16th.  The 17th is National PTA Founders Day, World Human Spirit Day, and Champion Crab Races Day. We end the week with Cow Milked While Flying In An Airplane Day, and Eat Ice Cream for Breakfast Day.

The senior shopping bus will make its next trips to Wal-Mart and Whole Foods on Feb. 22 and March 8, 2017. Call CDTA at 437-5161 two days in advance to arrange for pickup.

The Hilltown Seniors will meet again on Saturday, Feb. 11 at 10:30 a.m. at the Berne Senior Center. The meeting will be followed by the usual scrumptious potluck lunch, so be sure to bring your plate and silverware! There is also an upcoming trip to the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park on April 5. Lunch will be at the Caterina DeMedici Restaurant, and cost is $50 for members and $70 for non-members. Call Shirley Slingerland at 797-3467 to sign up.

The Rensselaerville Senior Citizens’ Club meets the second Tuesday of each month at noon for lunch at the Medusa firehouse (28 Route 351, Medusa). Bring a dish to share, and eating utensils; coffee and tea are provided. The cost is one dollar.

Hilltown Community Resource Center will continue their lunches on the second and fourth Thursdays of the month through the end of April. A freewill donation may be made at the door. The entree for Feb. 23 will be ham and scalloped potatoes.

The Valentine’s Day party at the Berne Senior Center is coming on Tuesday, Feb. 14, and we are having shrimp scampi. Add a box of chocolates for your snuggle-bunny, and you have the holiday sewed up.

Menu

— Monday, Feb. 13, chicken with peach sauce, broccoli, brown rice, wheat bread, tapioca pudding, and milk;

— Tuesday, Feb. 14, Valentine’s party! Shrimp scampi, spinach, wheat bread, apple crisp, and milk; and

— Friday, Feb. 17, grilled muenster cheese sandwich on wheat bread, tomato soup, coleslaw, apple juice brownie, and milk.

Doors open at 11 a.m. and lunch is served promptly at noon.  We also have transportation to and from lunch! Just tell Linda Hodges when you call with your reservation.

Does your writers’ group, bearded dragon fanciers club, or cat costumers society need an easy place to meet? Why not meet at the Senior Center? Come have lunch, and then get together with your friends! There’s plenty of space, and the center is open for all of us. We already have games, dominoes, and cards after lunch on Mondays and Tuesdays, so join us.

Please call Linda Hodges 24 hours in advance to 872-0940 to reserve lunch, or email her at: , or sign up when you come in. Tell us how many are coming, your name, and your telephone number. If you’d just like to come and help out, call Linda, send an email to , and put “volunteer” in the subject line. Lunches are provided by Helderberg Senior Services, the Albany County Department of Aging, and Senior Services of Albany. The town of Berne Community and Senior Services Center is located at 1360 Helderberg Trail (Route 443) in Berne.

There is a word in Yiddish for complaining and generally giving someone a hard time when you are displeased. That word is “kvetch,” which is a letter combination that you may need to practice. Kvetch can be either the action itself, or the person doing the kvetching.

A really good Kvetch is the one who can return an item to the store, and come out with more than they took into exchange. I mention this because I am, myself, moderately adept at kvetching, which I consider to be an appropriate response to any situation in which I feel I have been shortchanged, or treated in a manner that makes no sense.

The first lesson in being a kvetch is: “If you have a question, ask it!” There is no good reason to put up with nonsense as long as the person with whom you disagree is not carrying a gun, in which case the proper response is “yes, of course” to whatever they say.

This morning was a case in point. I opened a new pail of kitty litter and found a free can of cat food. Yippee! There was also a coupon for “buy one, get one free,” but the coupon expired today. This irked me, so I looked up the phone number of the cat food company, and called it.

They had rather shot themselves in the foot this time, since I was happy with the free can until I saw the outdated coupon. Now I feel that I have been deprived of something to which I was entitled. In my humble opinion, this is not the world’s best marketing strategy. I called the media/press office, but had to leave a message on a machine.

The gentleman who answered the customer-service number was named “Larry.” Larry  did not sound as though English was his first language, although his English was far superior to my ability to converse in anything else.

Larry was very polite, and assured me that the company would replace the coupon, and send me a few others to compensate for my trouble. He took my contact information, and made sure to ask my permission (twice) for the company to contact me for feedback.

To follow up on the issue, he asked me to provide the UPC and other numbers from the package  of kitty litter. We are talking about a 35-pound pail here, not some little five-pound box. In the interests of fair play, I trundled all the way out to the garage, where I discovered that the expiration date on the kitty litter wasn’t until August 2018.

Why on earth would you put a coupon that expires Jan. 31, 2017, in a product that can be sold until 2018? I would think that this would annoy people more than it would make them want to buy more of that cat food, although the free can (also dated August 2018) did soften the blow.

Larry advised me that, in cases like this, the company would assume that the seller of the litter was at fault. I asked how you could blame someone who was playing by all the rules, and selling the litter within it’s “good” time period. (I would also like to know how kitty litter could possibly go “bad.”)

I asked what kind of marketing strategy was in play here. Did the company think that people only buy things after they run out, so everything gets used immediately? Not out here in the country, we don’t; we know Mother Nature and her minions a bit better than that.

Larry didn’t know what the company reasoning was, although he did inform me that most promotions have expiration dates. He offered to pass my questions along to his supervisor, who would route them to the appropriate department. I agreed, and will keep you posted.

Interestingly, they could have avoided the entire issue, since there is no federal requirement that kitty litter have an expiration date. As a matter of fact, the Food and Drug Administration has no requirements whatsoever regarding expiration dates for food or cosmetic products.

The FDA website states: “With the exception of infant formula, the laws that the Food and Drug Administration administers do not preclude the sale of food that is past the expiration date indicated on the label. FDA does not require food firms to place “expired by,” “use by,” or “best before” dates on food products. This information is entirely at the discretion of the manufacturer.” Who knew?

This does not in any was absolve the manufacturer from liability if the product causes a problem, or makes someone sick. “A product that is dangerous to consumers would be subject to potential action by FDA to remove it from commerce regardless of any date printed on a label,” the website says.

All this does make me wonder if one could avoid paying full price for most things simply by kvetching? It takes no more time than coupon clipping, and frequently yields better results. Maybe I should start a “Rent a Kvetch” service? I already have free coupons for fruit juice bars and hand lotion.

Coming up

February is Barley Month, Dog Training Education Month, International Expect Success Month, and Library Lovers Month. The week of the 5th to the 11th is Children's Authors & Illustrators Week,

Dump Your Significant Jerk Week (always the week before Valentine’s Day), Freelance Writers Appreciation Week, and National School Counseling Week. The 5th is Popcorn Day, Shower With A Friend Day, and Super Bowl 51. Lame Duck Day and Girl Scout Cookie Day are the 6th. The 7th is Ballet Day, Bean Day, International Day of Black Women in The Arts, and Laura Ingalls Wilder Day.

Opera Day is the 8th, and National Stop Bullying Day and National Bagel Day are on the 9th. All The News That's Fit To Print Day is the 10th, and the 11th is Don't Cry Over Spilled Milk Day, Satisfied Staying Single Day, and Make A Friend's Day.

The senior lunch bunch would like to extend our sincere thanks to the town of Knox for its generous contribution to our programming, to the town of Berne for providing the senior center and its upkeep, and to the BKW school for the wonderful and efficient youth volunteers who give us so much help.  The lunch contributions we receive go directly to the food vendor, so the support from all these friends makes the entire program possible. Thank you all.

The senior shopping bus will make its next trips to Walmart and Whole Foods on Feb. 8 and 22, 2017.  Call CDTA at 437-5161 two days in advance to arrange for pickup.

The Hilltown Seniors will meet again on Saturday, Feb. 11 at 10:30 a.m. at the Berne Senior Center.

February birthdays will be celebrated at lunch on Tuesday, Feb. 7, and there will be a Valentine's Day party on Tuesday, Feb. 14. The menu for Valentine’s Day is shrimp scampi, so guys, you could take your sweetie out for an elegant Valentine’s meal and not have to tip the waiter.

Menu

Come in out of the cold and have a hot lunch with friends and neighbors; the menu for next week’s lunches is:

— Monday, Feb. 6, lasagna roll-up, marinara sauce, romaine lettuce with tomatoes and carrots,  Italian dressing, Italian wheat bread, pears, and milk;

— Tuesday, Feb. 7, meatloaf with tomato gravy, seasoned oven roasted potatoes, cauliflower, wheat bread, birthday cake, and milk; and

— Friday, Feb. 10, mac and cheese, stewed tomatoes, wheat bread, baked apples, and milk.

Doors open at 11 a.m., and lunch is served promptly at noon. We also have transportation to and from lunch. Just tell Linda Hodges when you call with your reservation.

Does your aardvark club, reminiscences group, or old-time radio buffs club need an easy place to meet? Why not meet at the senior center? Come have lunch, and then get together with your friends. There’s plenty of space, and the center is open for all of us. We already have games, dominoes, and cards after lunch on Mondays and Tuesdays, so join us.

Please call Linda Hodges 24 hours in advance to 872-0940 to reserve lunch, or email her at: , or sign up when you come in. Tell us how many are coming, your name, and your telephone number.  If you’d just like to come and help out, call Linda, send an email to , and put “volunteer” in the subject line.

Lunches are provided by Helderberg Senior Services, the Albany County Department of Aging, and Senior Services of Albany. The town of Berne Community and Senior Services Center is located at 1360 Helderberg Trail (Route 443) in Berne.

Location:

Being sick makes me stupid. Now that flu season is here in full force, accompanied by the other horsemen of headache, sniffles, and fever, we all have time to reflect upon these seasonal gifts.

When I was a kid, my mother had a special box of toys and games that were only for “sick days.” The intent was to keep me amused instead of whining; a distraction. It worked really well.

I looked forward to being sick, as long as I wasn’t throwing up. As a matter of fact, this probably led Mom to the test of whether I had a fever, used to determine if I was “really” sick. To this day, if I’m feeling crappy, I’m never sure whether I’m “really” sick, or just sick of working. I don’t  trust my own judgement, about 90 percent of the time, because I suspect myself of malingering.

As a result, I have developed what I call the television system of illness calculation. If I can watch a PBS documentary on the life of some obscure 18th Century VIP, I’m probably not very sick. The intellectual energy and concentration required is just as great (if not greater) than the energy required to balance the checkbook or calculate something in the office.

If I can’t handle PBS, but “Law and Order” or “CSI” still appeals, I’m somewhat sick. If all I can stand are reruns of “Bewitched” or “Happy Days,” I should call the doctor for an appointment. If even cartoons, or any TV at all is too much, I should probably be in the hospital.

This system is used in conjunction with the aforementioned thermometer-based criteria but, as I get older, that seems to be less reliable; my temperature is often below 98.6, and they never gave me any rules for that.

Of course, even being in the hospital has its redeeming features. Outside of the disease load carried in every breath you inhale, the service is pretty good. There is practically no hotel on Earth that will send someone in to fluff your pillows or give you a sponge bath.

The food is variable, and never has enough salt, but somebody else cooks it and brings it right to your bed, and you don’t have to dress for dinner. Usually, insurance even pays for most of it, so it can be cheaper than the Ritz-Carlton.

In a way, I don’t understand why people are so anxious to leave. The fact that I can sit up, or drag myself down a hallway with an IV bag on a pole, has very little to do with my ability to climb the stairs to the bathroom, or cook an entire meal. I remember one time when I was immensely grateful to find that potato chips would stay in my stomach, because that took care of the food issue.

If television doesn’t work for you as a standard, feel free to substitute gluing versus driving framing nails by hand, or playing Chopsticks versus Toccata and Fugue in D Minor.

In any case, I wish you a healthy start to the new year, or at least someone sympathetic (who can cook) to take pity on you and fluff your pillows.

Coming up

January is Bath Safety Month, Be Kind to Food Servers Month, California Dried Plum Digestive Month , International Quality of Life Month, and National Volunteer Blood Donor Month .  The coming week is Elvis' Birthday Celebration Week, National Folic Acid Awareness Week, Universal Letter Writing Week, and Cuckoo Dancing Week. The 8th is Argyle Day, National English Toffee Day, and Asarah B'Tevet.  The 9th is Law Enforcement Appreciation Day, and National Cassoulet Day.

League of Nations Day and National Cut Your Energy Costs Day are on the 10th, and the 11th is Learn Your Name in Morse Code Day. National Hot Tea Day is the 12th; followed by Blame Someone Else Day, Public Radio Broadcasting Day, and Rubber Duckie Day on the 13th. The 14th is Eagle Day, and Dress Up Your Pet Day.

The senior shopping bus will wend its way to Walmart and Whole Foods on Jan. 11 and 25. Call CDTA at 437-5161 two days in advance to arrange for pickup.

You can also get free transportation to and from lunch. Just tell Linda Hodges when you call with your reservation.

The Hilltown Seniors monthly meeting will be Jan. 14 at 10:30 a.m. at the Berne Senior Center. Remember to bring your own place setting for the potluck lunch.

Does your Pinochle gang, Scrabble fans, or quilting circle need an easy place to get together? Why not meet at the senior center? Come have lunch with us, and then have fun with your friends. There’s plenty of space, and the center is open for all of us. We already have games, dominoes, and cards after lunch on Mondays and Tuesdays, so join us.

Menu

Doors open at 11 a.m. at the Berne Senior and Community Center, and lunch is served promptly at noon.

— Monday, Jan. 9, baked ziti, Italian blend vegetables, Italian bread, chocolate pudding, and milk;

— Tuesday, Jan. 10, baked fish with herb sauce, stewed tomatoes, cranberry juice, rice,  rye bread, applesauce cake, and milk; and

— Friday, Jan. 13, cheeseburger with Swiss cheese, seasoned oven roasted potatoes, Brussels sprouts, wheat hamburger bun, oatmeal cookie, pears, and milk.

Please call Linda Hodges 24 hours in advance to 872-0940 to reserve lunch, or email her at: , or sign up when you come in. Tell us how many are coming, your name, and your telephone number. If you’d just like to come and help out, give Mary Moller a call at (418) 861-6253, or email her at , and put “volunteer” in the subject line. The senior and community center is located at 1360 Helderberg Trail in Berne.

— Photo from Linda Hodges 
One of Santa's elves, who looks a lot like Linda Hodges, chairwoman of Helderberg Senior Services, was spotted driving the Berne Senior van to make pick-ups on Dec. 23 for another delicious lunch at the Berne Community and Senior Center. Lunch is served Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays at noon.

Happy New Year! What high hopes! What determination! What impossible expectations!

Somewhere in that emotional stew lies real life. There are so many “easy” answers to our dilemmas, but most of them are either simplistic or just plain wrong.

Yes, you can start your year over again at any point; you can start your day, or your life over. The whole point of many baptism and initiation rituals is to mark a separation point between the me-that-was and the me-that-will-be. To give us a new, clean sheet to write on.

This is noble, and wonderful, and I imagine that, for some rare people, it really does wipe out the past. What I suspect is that those ceremonies give us a point from which we can see the real possibility of change. We deliberately loosen our ties to the past, and decide to re-frame our view of it. By changing how I look at it, I can change the size and weight of my historical baggage.

Most of the time it’s a process, not an epiphany. I am not Saul on the road to Tarsus, or Buddha under the Bodhi tree. Nor am I that LSD-inspired kid in the sixties who looked at the flower, said “This is the answer!” and then ate it.

Everyday life is less clear; sometimes it’s absolutely murky. Events and attitudes from the past sneak out and bite us in the hand just as we are reaching for something new. We are, to some extent, the product of our experiences.

The problem, and the blessing, of the past is that it is the past. Every task completed or goal achieved may not be accompanied by the roar of the crowd like a high-school touchdown. But neither will every person we meet beat us down like a mentally-damaged parent. Not everyone needs to climb on the backs of their fellow beings.

Shades of gray aren’t any good as guideposts, but I get to choose what my markers will be. The impact of events or emotions does not have to be permanent.

Going forward, no one is actively trying to kill me like they were in ’Nam, or Iraq. No one is likely to carry me off the field on their shoulders, either.

I may resent the fact that I’m no longer precocious, and that I can’t blame everything on my childhood, but the future doesn’t have to be an endless film loop of my past. I can decide, on a moment-to-moment basis, how much of that baggage I want to drag around.

Do I get to jettison the whole shebang and start over with no memories and no regrets? Barring a major head injury, probably not. But I can step out into each new phase conscious of the past, but not ruled by it.

It’s still there, but it is the past. I can’t change it. I can change how I look at it, but it is over. The only direction I can go is forward, and, with a little luck and a tailwind, I can make the future different.

Happy New Year!
 

Coming up

January is National Polka Music Month, Oatmeal Month, National Hot Tea Month, National Mail Order Gardening Month, National Braille Literacy Month, and the beginning of Carnival Season.  The week of the 1st -7th is Celebration of Life Week, Diet Resolution Week, and Someday We'll Laugh About This Week.  Copyright Law Day, Ellis Island Day, Polar Bear Plunge or Swim Day, and World Day of Peace are all on the 1st.

The 2nd is Happy Mew Year for Cats Day, National Buffet Day, and National Science Fiction Day.  National Chocolate Covered Cherry Day is the 3rd, and the 4th is Dimpled Chad Day, Trivia Day, and the Earth at Perihelion.  Epiphany or Twelfth Night is the 6th. January 7th is Fruitcake Toss Day, Harlem Globetrotter's Day,  International Programmers' Day, and National Tempura Day.

If you’re running low on shrimp or veggies for tempura day, the senior shopping bus’s next trips are scheduled for Jan. 11 and 25.  Call CDTA at 437-5161 two days in advance to arrange for pickup.

We also have transportation to and from lunch! Just tell Linda Hodges when you call with your reservation.

Does your book club, Canasta group, or quilting circle need an easy place to meet? Why not meet at the Senior Center? Come have lunch with us, and then get together with your friends! There’s plenty of space, and the center is open for all of us. We already have games, dominoes, and cards after lunch on Mondays and Tuesdays, so join us!

Menu

Doors open at 11 a.m. at the Berne Senior and Community Center, and lunch is served promptly at noon.

Monday, Jan. 2, closed;

Tuesday, Jan. 3, chili con carne, spinach, corn bread, apple crisp, and milk; and

Friday, Jan. 6, griller muenster cheese on wheat bread, tomato soup, coleslaw, apple juice, brownie, and milk.

Please call Linda Hodges 24 hours in advance to 872-0940 to reserve lunch, or email her at: , or sign up when you come in.Tell us how many are coming, your name, and your telephone number. If you’d just like to come and help out, give Mary Moller a call at 861-6253, or email her at , and put “volunteer” in the subject line. The senior and community center is located at 1360 Helderberg Trail in Berne.

Overflowing generosity is evident in the hat and mitten tree decorated by Hilltown Seniors and the donations for the Rock road Food Pantry.

Another year is coming to a close. We have so much to be thankful in our group of seniors. Every month, we meet at the senior center for fellowship and good food and we plan activities and travel.

This year, we visited Washington, D.C., Lancaster, went to dinner theaters, took a train ride, and went on sightseeing tours that included wine-tasting and shopping. And we always had room for ice cream.

At the end of the year, we have 82 members. We try to schedule as best we can things to do for all ages. We had an Olympics contest, made jewelry for Mother’s Day, and made a memories book.

This year, we ended with a Christmas party held at Rock Road Chapel in Knox. I would like to thank Karen Stark for her tremendous help as a church member and senior member. I would also like to thank Alyce Gibbs, Shirley Slingerland, and Sharon Vincent (who all said, “We aren't doing this again!”) But, girls, it was so much fun!

Linda had a short Christmas program and we were entertained by the “Bell Ringers” directed by Staci Wright and Dennis and Mary White and Bill Dibble with songs.  We would also like to thank Stewart’s for the donation of make-your-own sundaes. And also, to Bonnie Conklin’s Connections class for the cute table decorations.

Members were asked to bring mittens and hats for our mitten tree. The tree was overflowing and we also filled four grocery bags; these were taken to the Berne-Knox-Westerlo School for distribution.

Also, members were asked to bring goods for the Rock Road Food Pantry. Again the response was overwhelming. ’Tis the season and I am so proud of the Hilltowns Seniors for helping others.

When eggnog’s

 generously filling

Each and every

 Christmas mug  

And siblings tour

 miles and miles

To greet you with a hug

There’s scarce else

 I’ll be wishing

Than this simple little prayer

Of peace and calm

 and blessings much

On Christmas Day this year.

Merry, merry Christmas and a healthy and happy New Year!

Was Saint Sylvester a drunk? New Year’s is his holiday in some parts of the world, and we know almost nothing about him, except that he was elected Pope in 314 and was supposedly a good friend of the Holy Roman Emperor Constantine.

The story about Constantine leading Sylvester’s horse is reputed to be the basis for the Pope’s claim to authority over secular leaders at the time. Seems pretty thin to me, but any justification is better than none.

Alcohol does seem to figure fairly prominently in many areas. Germans eat doughnuts (yes, that is how it ought to be spelled) filled with alcoholic or plain jam, and go from house to house asking for “Speckdicken,” which are pancakes made with molasses and filled with summer sausage and bacon.

Pigs also seem to be a popular theme; do you think “high on the hog” is some sort of bad pun? New Year’s in Scotland is called “Hogmanay,” and involves visiting and gifts. The aforementioned Germans consume a marzipan pig for luck.

Other pig-celebrators come from the United States South, where the traditional New Year’s dinner is black-eyed peas, smoked pork, greens, and cornbread. The entire tortured justification is that the peas swell up, signifying prosperity; the greens represent money, and the cornbread is golden.

This sounds like a badly-written ad campaign to me, but what harm does it do? I have eaten this meal on New Year’s, and I personally am very grateful that it became tradition before some enterprising coastal dweller decided that octopus or dogfish should be the meal of the fortunate.  I wonder, should those 4 a.m. breakfasts of bacon and eggs after the bars close count as celebrations?

Among serious drinkers, New Year’s is referred to as “amateur night.”  It’s the time when all the people who don’t have any practice driving using the center stripe as a guide come out to try their lack of skill.

Maybe it would save some lives if along with First Night we held a demolition derby? All the drunks could be strapped into cars with roll bars and harnesses, and run around on a padded track.

Fireworks are very popular, at least in places where you’re not likely to get frostbite. New York and other northern cities hire professionals to go out there and freeze for our entertainment.

“Auld Lang Syne” was Guy Lombardo’s big band signature tune at midnight in the Waldorf-Astoria ballroom, and was aired on radio and then television from 1928 to 1976. (Dick Clark was the new kid on the block.)

In Mexico, you are supposed to eat a grape on each stroke of the clock at midnight, and make wishes for the year to come. My favorite tradition, also from Mexico, is writing down all the bad things and unhappy events of the previous year on a piece of paper, and then throwing the paper into a fire to reduce them, and all they symbolize, to ash. Having cleared out the old year, you are ready to start the new with a clean slate.

If you think I sound a little cynical, you’re probably right. I’ve already done all those other things (except the grapes), and no longer feel the need to try so hard to act festive.

My idea of a great New Year’s celebration is a nice dinner, a seat by the fire, and my memories of all the friends and blessings I’ve had all year. With hope and peace to everyone, I wish you the New Year of your fondest desires.

Coming up

December is National Impaired Driving Prevention Month (pay attention!).  This week begins with Christmas and Christmas Pudding Day on the 25th, and the week of Kwanzaa begins on the 26th. (Kwanzaa began in 1966, as the first African-American holiday. Kwanzaa comes from Swahili  “matunda ya kwanza” which means "first fruits of the harvest").

National Thank-you Note Day is the 26th, and Howdy Doody Day is the 27th.  Endangered Species Act Dayis the 28th, and National Chocolate Day occurs on the 29th.  December 30th is Bacon Day  (see? There are those pigs again!), and we end the week and the year with Universal Hour of Peace Day, and World Peace Meditation Day on the 31st.

Remember, there is no lunch on Monday, Dec. 26, or Monday, Jan. 2.

The senior shopping bus’s next trips are scheduled for Dec. 28 and Jan. 11.  Call CDTA at 437-5161 two days in advance to arrange for pickup.

Menu

Another thing to be grateful for is the Senior Lunch Program at the Berne Senior and Community Center. The doors open at 11 a.m., and lunch is served promptly at noon. We also have games, dominoes, and cards on Mondays and Tuesdays.

— Monday, Dec. 26, no lunch;

— Tuesday, Dec. 27, meatloaf with tomato gravy, seasoned oven roast potatoes, cauliflower, wheat bread,  pound cake with strawberries and whipped topping, and milk; and

— Friday, Dec. 30, mac and cheese, stewed tomatoes, wheat bread, baked apples, and milk.

Please call Linda Hodges 24 hours in advance to 872-0940 to reserve lunch, or email her at: , or sign up when you come in. Tell us how many are coming, your name, and your telephone number. If you’d just like to come and help out, give Mary Moller a call at 861-6253, or email her at , and put “volunteer” in the subject line.

Lunches are provided by Helderberg Senior Services, the Albany County Department of Aging, and Senior Services of Albany. The Town of Berne Community and Senior Services Center is located at 1360 Helderberg Trail (Route 443) in Berne.

Location:

To peoples and traditions planet-wide, it is the season of light. The Winter Solstice is the time when the sun is at its farthest distance from the equator, and the days begin to grow longer again.

The Druids and ancient Anglo-Saxons celebrated Yule, from which we get the tradition of the Yule log. The Druids called it Alban Arthan. The head Druid cut sacred mistletoe from the oak tree, and fires heralded the rebirth of the sun. Yule was derived from the Norse word Iul, meaning wheel: the wheel of the zodiac, and the wheel of life.

Many other religions mark this time as well. Jews have Hanukkah, the festival of lights, in remembrance of the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem in 167 BCE. After its recapture by the revolutionary Maccabees, one day’s sacred lamp oil lasted for eight days.

An eight-branched candelabra, called a menorah, is lit, one candle at a time, to commemorate the miracle. Customarily, women were relieved of their usual work, and given time to relax.

One of the holiday games is spinning a top decorated with Hebrew letters, an acronym for  “a great miracle happened here.”  Guesses are made on which letter will come up, and rewards given for certain letters. Because the holiday involves oil, fried foods are traditional: in the United States, potato pancakes, and in Israel, fried jelly rolls.

At this time, the story is told of the star in the east, which guided the wise men (Magi), Gaspar,  Melchior, and Balthazar to Bethlehem. The Encyclopedia Britannica states that "according to Western church tradition, Balthasar is often represented as a king of Arabia, Melchior as a king of Persia, and Gaspar as a king of India.”

The name “Christmas” comes from the Middle English “Christes masse,” the festival mass of Christ.   Roman Emperor Constantine, one of Christianity’s most famous converts, had a vision of a cross, with the words “in hoc vince” (in this sign you will conquer). This indicated to him that a unified theology would unify people, and he worked to synchronize pagan and Christian holidays.

The first known printed document listing Jesus’ birth as Dec. 25 was in an Almanac for Christians in Rome ( 354 CE).  In the Julian calendar of the time, this date was the same as the solstice celebrated by followers of sun-god Mithras.

At this time, many Romans were still celebrating the Saturnalia, when the sun enters the zodiac sign of Capricorn. Capricorn is said to be ruled by Saturn, and symbolized a long-lost time when the world was peaceful, fruitful, and happy.

Homes were decorated with evergreens, and all business was suspended. Servants and slaves were given a feast, and, on that day, the masters waited on the servants.

There are many other celebrations of light but, personally, I believe that the most important light is the one within, that can be shared with others.  Remember: “You are the light of the world... let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds….”  Many small lights will make the whole world a better place. Brighten the corner where you are.

Coming up

December is Aids Awareness Month and Spiritual Literacy Month. The 18th to the 24th is Gluten-free Baking Week. Answer The Telephone Like Buddy The Elf Day is Dec. 18, and it is also Arabic Language Day. The 20th is International Human Solidarity Day and the World Day of Prayer and Action for Children. Crossword Puzzle Day, Humbug Day, Short Girl Appreciation Day, World Peace Day, Winter Solstice, and Yule all fall on Dec. 21.  Hanukkah begins the 24th, which is also Christmas Eve and Egg Nog Day

And to replenish all those goodies eaten up this week, the senior shopping bus’s next trips are scheduled for Dec. 28 and Jan. 11.  Call CDTA at (518) 437-5161 two days in advance to arrange for pickup.

The bus trip to Cooperstown scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 17, has been canceled because of an expected snowstorm.

The Lunch Bunch Holiday Party is this coming Monday, Dec. 19. There will be cookies to decorate, a tree, and a guessing game with prizes!

Menu

Remember, there will be no lunch served on Monday, Dec. 26; the chefs and everyone else are getting a day off for the holidays.

Monday, Dec. 19: Rosemary Chicken, sweet baked yams, California blend, wheat bread, mango chunks, and milk;

Tuesday, Dec. 20: pork roast with gravy, seasoned oven roasted red potatoes, carrots, wheat bread, warm sliced apples with cinnamon, and milk; and

Friday, Dec. 23: Lemon garlic fish, hash browned potatoes, mashed butternut squash, pineapple orange juice, rye bread, chocolate mousse, and milk.

Doors open at 11 a.m., and lunch is served promptly at noon. We also have transportation to and from lunch! Just tell Linda Hodges when you call with your reservation.

Does your book club, Canasta group, or quilting circle need an easy place to meet? Why not meet at the Senior Center? Come have lunch with us, and then get together with your friends! There’s plenty of space, and the center is open for all of us. We already have games, dominoes, and cards after lunch on Mondays and Tuesdays, so join us.

Please call Linda Hodges 24 hours in advance to (518)  872-0940 to reserve lunch, or email her at: , or sign up when you come in. Tell us how many are coming, your name, and your telephone number.  If you’d just like to come and help out, give Mary Moller a call at (518) 861-6253, or email her at , and put “volunteer” in the subject line.

Location:

Honestly, I don’t hate holiday letters in and of themselves. What I can’t stand is their “humble bragging,” designed to make the rest of us poor mortals feel like total schleps and idiots.

I strongly suspect that this is done on purpose, with a thin veneer of apparent politeness, rather like saying, “Oh my dear, your hair looks so nice that no one would ever know it’s a wig.”

You know the letters I mean. They go something like: “We were so pleased when Mary got that scholarship to the Sorbonne; of course she was already fluent in French thanks to Mrs. Trudeau’s tutoring her when she’s not on diplomatic missions. Jack has been nominated for another Nobel, but we really feel that the committee should give someone else a chance. We’ve enrolled the baby in the Philadelphia school, and, even though she’s only 10 months, she’s already beginning to do algebra.

“We had some trouble with the Jag back in April, and there was simply nowhere to get it fixed in Fiji; I told Jack that shipping it over for just three weeks was a bad idea. We had to rent a Bentley and driver to do any sightseeing at all. I must run now, because the Senator and his dear wife, Muffy, are coming for dinner, and he is so fussy about his caviar; I have to remind the caterer not to add any chopped onion.”

In my world, it looks more like: “John is teaching Zachary how to downshift; that will make it much easier for him to take those hills now that the brakes on the truck are starting to go. We ran into Harry the other day; he was in ’Nam with John, and says that now that the shelters are more familiar with PTSD, he hardly has any trouble at all when the flashbacks hit.

“Jan will be out of Women’s Detention in time for Christmas, and has been corresponding with this lovely gentleman who sells penny stocks. They will be meeting in person for the first time when she comes home. The big dinner is a lot of work, but since Ralphie managed to get that deer (he says it’s so much easier to get one at night if you put out the right bait), there will be plenty for all. My little bout with typhoid has left me a bit dragged out, but I’m sure I’ll be better soon, and everyone so looks forward to my Ambrosia.”

I never write holiday letters. My closest friends get a phone call every couple of years. I start out by feeling guilty that I haven’t kept in touch, but then what would I talk about when I do get in contact? My last trip to SuperMart? The cat throwing up on the rug again?  My success in talking my way out of a traffic ticket by pretending to be a sweet little old lady?  (We won’t discuss which part of that could be true.)

So, to all my friends and acquaintances, I really do wish you a wonderful holiday season, and the best of everything in the new year. Just don’t expect to hear from me.

Coming up

December is Universal Human Rights Month. The coming week is Christmas Bird Count Week, and Halcyon Days on the 14th - 28th (Always seven days before and seven days after the Winter Solstice). International Mountain Day and the birthday of UNICEF are on the 11th. Gingerbread House Day is the 12th, as is Poinsettia Day.

The 14th is Monkey Day and Yoga Day. Bill of Rights Day and Cat Herders Day are the 15th. The 16th brings Barbie and Barney Backlash Day, National Chocolate-covered Anything Day, and National Ugly Christmas Sweater Day. The week ends with Wright Brothers Day on the 17th.

The senior shopping bus’s next trips are scheduled for Dec. 14 and Dec. 28. Call CDTA at 437-5161 two days in advance to arrange for pickup.

The bus trip to Cooperstown is coming up on Saturday, Dec. 17, but you can still get on board if you hurry. We will see a production of “A Christmas Carol” at the Farmers Museum. The bus leaves at 10:30 a.m. Lunch will be at Mel’s 22 restaurant (buy your own), and then on to the performance at 2 p.m. Cost is $12.50 per person. Call Karen Schimmer at 872-2544 to reserve a seat.

Menu

The Lunch Bunch Holiday Party will be Monday, Dec. 19. There will be cookies to decorate, a tree, and a guessing game with prizes.

Monday, Dec. 12, sweet and sour chicken, Asian vegetables, rice, wheat bread, pineapple chunks, and milk;

Tuesday, Dec. 13, beef stroganoff, Brussels sprouts, egg noodles, wheat bread, glazed pear with vanilla ice cream, and milk; and

Friday, Dec. 16, potato crunch fish, baked sweet potatoes and apples, pineapple juice, rice pilaf, wheat bread, lemon cake, and milk.

Doors open at 11 a.m., and lunch is served promptly at noon. We also  have transportation to and from lunch. Just tell Linda Hodges when you call with your reservation

Does your book club, Mah Jongg group, or quilting circle need an easy place to meet? Why not meet at the senior center? Come have lunch with us, and then get together with your friends. There’s plenty of space, and the center is open for all of us. We already have games, dominoes, and cards after lunch on Mondays and Tuesdays, so join us.

Please call Linda Hodges 24 hours in advance to 872-0940 to reserve lunch, or email her at: , or sign up when you come in. Tell us how many are coming, your name, and your telephone number.  If you’d just like to come and help out, give Mary Moller a call at 861-6253, or email her at , and put “volunteer” in the subject line.

Lunches are provided by Helderberg Senior Services, the Albany County Department of Aging, and Senior Services of Albany. The Town of Berne Community and Senior Services Center is located at 1360 Helderberg Trail (Route 443) in Berne.

 

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