September 11, 2009
Waiting Room Ruminations
Waiting for something to happen in a hospital, or doctor’s office for that matter, seems to be woven into the fabric of our lives. Wake up and live and sooner or later you will find yourself waiting for some service for yourself or, as it is today, for someone I have brought to the hospital. In this case it is a 90 year old woman who, when it comes to this kind of situation, has the patience of a flea. The waiting alone is tiring for her. It’s tiring for me. I’m on her side.
The waiting room, as you can see is a converted regular hospital patient’s room. The conversion process consisted of little more than removing the bed and installing a water dispenser and a tract rack holding all kinds of relevant information for people waiting there. The staff must fill it each day. I have never seen an empty slot.
I never use of these toilets but that as soon as I am inside, someone knocks urgently on the door. For hours no one seems to need the facility but as soon as I enter, it becomes universally necessary. You ever notice that?
See and download the full gallery on posterous
In fairness, I have to say that the staff in this institution are as friendly, helpful and competent as any I have encountered anywhere. I am not at all certain that any magic powder could be sprinkled on these situations that would eliminate waiting for something to happen. It is, however, in the nature of the human beast to resist waiting.
As you will notice on the red sign, the staff do take waiting seriously.
For a closer look – - -
As a small distraction, there is usually a trivia question (and answer) provided for the entertainment of those sentenced to wait. Is it just me, or is there a touch of irony in the juxtaposition of the red sigh and the hand lettered question? I, of course, missed the question, obviously thinking more time was spent waiting in doctor’s offices, but the correct answer was “Talking on the phone”. I believe some independent research is called for in the matter.
Don’t you think some wall paper would be nice? A plant? Thank God there was no TV.
September 7, 2009
THE FACE OF HAPPINESS
I know this guy doesn’t look like it, but he is a happy man. He just finished stacking the last of next winter’s wood. It’s a shame it’s only 1:30 – much too early for a celebratory cocktail.
Sent from my iPhone
September 6, 2009
A Failure to be Funny
The following line was part of a joke that recently came to me. It isn’t the first time this, and similar pieces have come to me in recent months. I have been quiet about how offensive such things are to me but I grow tired of liberal silence over such excesses while the right wing floods us with it’s prepackaged propaganda everywhere you turn. Here is a line that appeared in the “joke”.
”Ted Kennedy is a fat, good-for-nothing, left wing liberal drunk who doesn’t know how to drive” I grow tired of the constant right wing harping on the excesses and failures of this man who was arguably one of the most significant political figures of our time. We are all turned off by some of his failures but I am turned on by what he has accomplished. Little is ever said by the right wing about Kennedy’s accomplishments. No politician in recent history has done as much to make congress work as Ted Kennedy. When I am regularly reminded of the ancient Chappaquiddick incident, I have to wonder if any of these people know how long ago that was? It was a disaster. Kennedy, however, went on beyond that (something not many could have accomplished) to become a truly great man. There are few if any great men or women who do not have regrettable pages in their pasts. That these people became notable is a testimony to character that is rare in public life. The man just died. Dragging up every detail of his failures to the exclusion of his successes is a lying and deceitful tactic. If you don’t agree with liberal policies, and many do not, then talk about alternatives and show how they will work. Drawing caricatures and then making fun of them as though they represent anything real is dishonest and brings nothing to the table that might somehow produce something good for the people of this country. Don’t say it was just a joke. It happens all too often to be just a joke. It offends me. It should offend you. I want to believe that at some level, it does. I’m Jerry HendersonSeptember 4, 2009
Winter Beach in Maine
Winter’s beach is never the same. At high tide it is almost nonexistent. At low tide it is everywhere pushing the ocean to the horizon. Channels of streams coming on to the beach are constantly moving. Bars move, disappear and reappear. You will notice the absent crowds of people. It’s a minimalist landscape, and it is full to the brim. Enjoy.
August 31, 2009
Electro Love
We’ve had four power outages within the past 8 hours. Just blips deep enough to cause the clocks to reset to zeros and begin their annoying blinking. None of that is of much consequence except that the clock on my stove must be set for the oven to work. The oven must work in order to make a pan of biscuits. No biscuits soon, however. It’s not the right weather yet, but you take my point.
Because I understand a little bit about how electricity works, I always wonder what is behind such outages. This recent series seems to have been either due to yesterday’s drenching rain and where shorts were instantly reset by automatic resetting breakers or something like that. Or it could have been planned “maintenance” of some kind. Usually, the more traumatic kinds of outages like some poor sod shearing off a pole taking an unfamiliar curve too fast, last much longer. Even so, an outage – any kind of outage, brings up once more my increasing dependence on electricity. I am not sure this is a good thing, but it is damned convenient and comforting. I don’t want to do without it. I can remember visiting relatives in the countryside who did not have electricity. Yes! We sat around basking in the semi light of an oil lamp. Cold outhouse seats, wood burning cook stoves, ( I’ve actually owned one of those ) and washing your face in the morning in a cold basin on a rail on the back porch. Just throw the used water in the yard. Electricity, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways, darling, my love. Plug it in, turn it on and stay tuned – - – I’m Jerry HenedersonAugust 28, 2009
Long Wharf – Portland ME
It was a beautiful day for the Casco Bay Tour. Highly recommended. Another 180˚ Auto Stitch job from my iPhone which got hot in the sunshine and quit on me. The phone is white and I have a black case on it. White reflects, black absorbs. Lesson learned. We had a wonderful time.
No comment. No observation. No rant. Just reporting.
Jerry Henderson
August 27, 2009
The Fading Glories of Summer
From the deck a nearly 180˚ view of the gardens in front of the house. Some colors are fading and changing, but that is, in it’s own way, part of the beauty of the seasonal shift that seems always to be with us here.
This was done with an iPhone app called Auto Stitch. It is like magic watching it do it’s thing in the phone and then to be sent out over several channels. It’s only a simple 2 megapixel camera with nearly no refinements but for it to do this I can forgive some shortcomings.
The observant will notice that there are a couple of wood piles beyond. Anyone passing by is welcomed to stack a few sticks and then to come by and warm by the heat they produce later on in the year.
The air is wonderfully dry and cool this evening and is the “why” behind the summer infusion of visitors to our state. Alas, as soon as the frost arrives, those of the chicken hearted clan flee to Florida for the winter months. To be sure, there are moments somewhere around March when I would do likewise. Those times when the cold seems to be invading my bones, I would give a lot to feel the sweat rolling down the small of my back as I hauled one more load of wood into the shed to be stacked.
This kind of gossip is clearly not without substance as the Weather Bug promises 45˚ tonight with some wind. It’s August you guys!
Oh well, that’s the way it goes here near the 45th parallel.
Be well and stay tuned – - – - Jerry Henderson
