If March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb, I think

December comes in like a wildebeest and goes out like a woolly mammoth.

I can’t remember a year with so many storms so close together. Driving

over to Port Orchard for Thanksgiving was a real bear. And I have only one

thing to say to all the drivers out there. Please, please, PLEASE – TURN

ON YOUR HEADLIGHTS. Even if you can see without them, in this gray

rainy weather you are much easier to see with them on.

PPP

We had 30 people for turkey dinner, with a record 4 generations. I

have lots of pictures, so please drop by the library if you wish to be bored to

death by someone else’s relatives. All three babies came, and we were able

to bring Mom home from the nursing home for the day. The way her face

lit up when she saw all those people just about broke my heart.

We also had a special visitor. When I was 12, we had an exchange

student from Peru. Lourdes was able to come for Thanksgiving, her first visit

back in 36 years. She looked just the same. (Wish I could say I did.) It was

wonderful seeing her and hearing about her family. We have kept in touch all

these years. That year she spent with us created many special memories on

both sides.

We had such a good day that we got Mom back after her curfew. It is

a bit embarrassing to have someone call and tell you that your

77-year-old mother and her wheelchair are AWOL.

PPP

My Christmas ornaments are done. I think that’s a record. I’m

usually frantically trying to dry paint on Christmas Eve. I made 45 this

year. My shopping is about half done. I did some mail order, and made my

first foray into online, which was WAY too easy. Shopping at 4 a.m. in

your jammies – what a concept.

But I plan on doing the rest right here at home in the Valley. Iron

Age has some beautiful items for the gardener on your list. Pufferbellies

looks like Santa’s Workshop, and the Dragonfly resembles nothing so much as

a giant jewel box to explore. The antique stores are always fun. Peepers,

Potters & Petts has gorgeous items for your home. So does Friendship in

Bloom. And if there is a man on your list, drop in to see Don at D&M. A nice set

of jumper cables may be just what Santa ordered.

Even if you don’t have any more presents to buy, go shopping for

yourself. A brisk walk, all those beautiful stores, then pastries and coffee

at George’s; or a specialty burger at Twede’s. How can you beat that for

a holiday? And you won’t have to go near that awful traffic in Issaquah

and points West.

PPP

I went and cashed in my rebate checks again the other day. You

know the ones. Send two proofs of purchase and a cash register receipt and

they will send you a check for 50 cents. It’s a clear 17-cent profit, after postage.

I hang on to them until I have at least $5 worth. (I feel really dumb

cashing a check for 35 cents.) You really feel rich walking into the bank with a

stack of checks an inch thick. The fact that you couldn’t buy lunch at

McDonald’s with the cash is beside the point.

PPP

I have a question to ask. Why on earth does anyone in Western

Washington need studded tires? I have never heard that they did any good on

wet pavement. They tear up the roads terribly. And they are exceedingly

annoying to listen to when you are riding in a car with them on. I have lived all

my life in Washington, and I have never had studded tires. It is true that at

this time, my Explorer has four-wheel drive; but I have had vehicles

without it for many years.

I was driving into Seattle a while back, and the grooves on the

bridge made steering unnecessary. It was worse than some unpaved roads I

have been on.

I can see where studs might be necessary in areas where there is a

lot of ice and snow, but we certainly don’t qualify. Good quality all-weather

tires are just as good as studs, and they don’t tear up the roads. OK. OK. I

am off my soapbox now.

PPP

Thought for the Week: If you wisely invest in beauty, it will

remain with you all the days of your life. –Frank Lloyd Wright

Please submit items for

North Bend Nuggets to

Pat Simpson at P.O. Box 857,

North Bend, WA 98045,

or by e-mail to patsimps@hotmail.com,

or drop them by the library.