5/5/2014

weekly update 5/5/2014

Back to boring. No tennis or used book sales this week.

I have been back in the pool, when it hasn't been raining (in Savannah, we got some heavy rain, wind & flooding because of the storms that swept across the Southeast, but nothing too bad). It sure is more enjoyable than walking!

I had received an “invitation” in the mail to have my hearing checked. It's been getting a little worse, I think, and the old hearing aids I've had for about 5 years weren't working at all. So I made an appointment and went to have my ears checked on Monday. I was hoping that the cost of hearing aids might have decreased a little (who am I kidding? that's gonna happen!), but I was surprised that these would cost $2,000 more than I paid last time. I didn't make a decision, but I'm probably going to opt to have them.

I am getting very close to another milestone birthday, and I still haven't heard from Social Security. I applied in February for my retirement payments to begin this year, but I haven't had any confirmation. In fact, when I check online or on the phone, all I am told is that “a determination has not been made in your case”. This isn't rocket science, so what can the hold up be? I'm getting nervous, so on Wednesday, I drove to the local office. I'd been there a week ago, and I knew that the office closes at noon, so I figured that if I went on Wednesday, at least I'd be out around noon. I killed myself to get up and out the door by 8:30, and drove through a pouring rain, to get there early. I was in and out in 20 minutes. The representative could tell me that I was approved, and that I would receive written confirmation in about 3 weeks, but she couldn't tell me what the payments would be. government! bah!

That same afternoon, I went to the Learning Center WWI lecture that I’ve enrolled in. And, since I'd been out a few times already, and was still dressed, I decided to go to bingo at the American Legion. I've driven past the sign several times since I've moved here, and Donna & I always thought we'd try it. Donna is in Maine now, but I thought I would check it out for both of us while she's away. It's killer bingo, not the old games I used to play at the community center where it cost nothing to play and the winners would have a loaf of day-old bread or expired half dozen cupcakes from Publix as a prize. Nope. I cost me about $20 to buy cards for the games, and more for a raffle ticket, plus soda. And, amazingly I won a game! I won for $50! I don't know if I'll go back - I'm so tight with my money I will probably pocket my good fortune and not risk losing next time.

But, that was about it. I didn't get out much after that. Thursday, I did meet Dave & Lisa at The Rail for a pint of Guinness, and then I joined them at Juarez for Mexican food after that. I rarely do that, but they'll be going back to Wales soon, and I'm running out of time to be with them. I did my regular DH tours on Friday, and I opened and closed BC on Sunday. Saturday I didn't leave the condo all day. I'm feeling like I'm on borrowed time now - it's been more than a year since I've driven into anything or had an accident, so it's looming just on the horizon that I'm going to crash soon. Ishy is coming this week, so I'm going to have be chauffeur, but it's not something I enjoy; in fact, I'm terrorized. But I am an American, and I live in the USA, so the most important thing I have is my independence, and I need to car to maintain that. But I try to minimize my situations.

But there wasn't a lot going on here this week, and no photos.