Almost There

So it's almost Christmas 2016. When I checked my mailbox this PM, I found two phone bills, a Visa bill, a book, a January Public TV guide & FOUR requests for money from the Salvation Army. The first four are already paid, I always love my Public TV guides but I have to say I'm really, really annoyed with the Salvation Army.

I automatically toss the mailings from the Sally Ann without opening them nowadays. Why?? Because I regularly SEND money to them. I regularly email money so it saves stamps, the cost of processing checks & the costs of sending out tax receipts. It can all be done automatically. It saves money for helping people that need help. And I've always admired them for the work they do. But, FOUR mailings in ONE MONTH???? Who's paying for the Admin costs & postage??? How much of the money we donate actually goes to the people who need it???? I may have to rethink who I'm giving my money to. I really see no reason for all the begging letters & they really annoy me.

After three miserable, broke years, I now have enough money not only to live on but to buy a few extras like underwear & books. And I've been looking very hard at my single friends who're barely scraping by. It's so easy to miss the ones who need help & too many of them won't tell. Winter holidays that celebrate Family are especially hard on Seniors & single men because they don't have the friends & support systems that single women do. I'm planning on taking each of my buddies out for coffee & donuts if I can't find a little cafe that's open this year. My Ex & I used to meet all the folks who had nowhere to go at our favorite little cafe on Christmas & New Years. And we made a party of it while we ate ham & eggs & checked up on each other. I often think about how much fun we had every year & wish the cafe was still there.

On the Needles - I haven't managed to get back to my sweater yet but the Wonderful Wallaby has progressed nicely. It's amazing how fast a kid's sweater knits!!! The worsted acrylic is thicker than most of the other yarn I have too - so I had to frog it twice!! It was too big both times until I checked my gauge on CIRCULAR needles. As is often the case, I relax & my gauge gets looser on circs. So, this time, I'm knitting the size 6 to get the 8 that I want in the end. I don't think there's that much difference between a 6 & an 8 anyway except in length. Kids seem to be about the same size around but they grow taller & longer. And then, when this is done, my sweater is next.