Sep 6, 2010 by Naomi.

Games I play on my laptop computer are limited to solitaire and mahjong. The fun part comes when I call up a new game. I remember how much time it takes to shuffle a deck of cards and set up a game of solitare. My Toshiba is a whiz. It asks me if I want to replay a game or get a new one. Other ways my PC is a whiz is with SpellCheck. A mere flick of a key at the top of a new article and my misspelled words are highlighted. I am given choices for correction. My dear little machine is not intelligent enough to notice words like “there” when it should be “their” or the other way around. I write many articles for my websites and I want them to come out right. Write? You get the idea. It was not so many years past that I had to use a dictionary to be sure I had the correct word. Even a Thesaurus was a last resort to make certain the word conveyed the meaning I wanted. Makes a big difference if a hero shouts, bellows, or whispers. A heroine can shriek, scream, or coo. But that’s too much energy to expend when I just want to play all by myself on a holiday. Bring up solitare and move the cards if possible. No spelling required.

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Sep 6, 2010 by Naomi.

Liverwurst tastes every bit as good smeared on 12-grain bread as it does on rye crackers. I appreciated that fact sitting in my sun room having lunch. My red-collared black cat slithered under the cedar fence into the yard near the tin shed in the same small crack through which she disappeared this morning when I scolded her over my first cup of coffee. Thinking she might be going to the spot I’ve found her resting at other times, I was very still. A squirrel chattered on the shop roof and came down the walnut tree searching at the base for a nut previously buried. The cat pounced and followed the teasing squirrel when it raced high into the tree. Too heavy to go to the end of the branch the cat retreated with great care. It was not a steep descent but went downhill enough to be worrisome for the usually confident feline. I almost sighed with relief when she gave up the pursuit and retreated behind the tin shed. Not the spectacle of a labor day parade but a drama nonetheless. Drenching the liverwurst flavor from my taste buds with orange juice, I am pleased with the wildlife viewing I experience without leaving the comfort of my sun room.

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Sep 6, 2010 by Naomi.

Although the sky has cleared the sunshine does not warm my backyard. At less than 60 degrees the temperature is invigorating and I step briskly around the piles of branches still waiting to be cut into manageable lengths to fit my yard waste bin. Little wood gnomes aren’t coming in the dark to do the job for me. The visiting black cat with red collar was up in the hazel brush outside the kitchen when I drank morning coffee. She is an early riser that appears to come from the west side of Wade’s house. When I scolded her she quickly pushed through a narrow opening under the cedar fence into the shelter belt. The odor of a skunk wafted in the air but see it I did not. I turned on the water to saturate the ground around the big trees to keep them happy. Makes me feel good to think they are. I am going to dress warmer for a morning walk if this cool weather continues. The calendar indicates that summer is over so prepare!

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Sep 6, 2010 by Naomi.

The first Monday in September is set aside as a holiday. Labor Day became a federal holiday in 1894, when, following the deaths of a number of workers at the hands of the U.S. military and U.S. Marshals during the Pullman Strike, President Grover Cleveland put reconciliation with the labor movement as a top political priority. Because of a fear of conflict, legislation making Labor Day a national holiday was rushed through Congress unanimously and signed into law a mere six days after the end of the strike. By June 28 of 1894, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories. The day is celebrated by most Americans as the symbolic end of the summer. Parks and back yards abound in barbecues and games for families and communities. TV and bar parties celebrate the opening games of football leagues with friendly (or not so friendly) competition among viewers criticizing plays which may succeed or fail. I am not a fan of football so my TV is blank against what I view as a desperate sport in which men injure knees and spines that in the past seriously or partially debilitated them for life. Modern players are padded on shoulders and knees which does not always prevent injuries if one eats the turf under a ton of the opposite team in a tackle. I am not going to drive in search of a parade. I intend to enjoy the day contemplating the years I labored. I celebrate because I am no longer compelled to labor any day if I so choose.

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