The Folk Singer, Red Hats and Travel Purses

The monthly luncheons at the senior hall draw an eclectic group of entertainers. April's luncheon featured a guy who is a high school music teacher by day and in his spare time he moonlights as a folk singer/guitarist playing various venues around town. I like the teacher-entertainer combo because they all seem to enjoy talking about the history of the songs they sing. For example, from this month’s entertainer we learned things like the story behind why the Massachusetts Transportation Authority calls their electronic tickets ‘Charlie Cards.’ It comes from a 1948 tax protest song later made famous by the Kington Trio. The song tells a humorous tale that’s etched in the history of Boston and is about a guy named Charlie who was forever trapped on the subway because he couldn’t pay the five cents surcharge to leave the train. The teacher said one summer while on vacation he spent a day riding on the MBTA and singing that song. He’s got a quirky way of planning vacation destinations. He seeks out places that have been memorialized in folk songs where he does something similar to what he did on the subway in Boston. Listening to him talk in between songs reminded me of John Steinbeck’s Travels with Charley, a book that's been described as a search-of-America travelogue. What a colorful conglomerate of people and stories we have here in the USA! Travels with Charley, by the way, is one of my favorite books. It’s written in a style that I very much wish I could do. 

Tuesday afternoon I attended one of the two monthly Red Hat Society teas. I can’t say I always enjoy the teas but you have to take the boring with good (the monthly walk-abouts). The issue is most of my Red Hat sisters have known each other for eons. They go to the same churches, their kids went to the same school. Heck, they even went to the same school growing up and they still live in the same, small community. Lovely women but too often I’m out of the loop when they talk about people I don’t know. I hang in there because for years when I was caregiving Don the thought of rejoining the chapter I was a charter member of kept me believing there would be life after the caregiver rat race I was on came to an end. And I can’t tell you how many times I day-dreamed back in those days about starting another Red Hat Society chapter open strictly to caregivers and with a rule that we could all bring our care recipients if we couldn’t get a sitter for any given event. It’s funny how attached I became to an organization I was only involved in vicariously for over a decade. Now that I’m back in the chapter I’m reminded that nothing ever stays the same. The frequent trips that I could never go on that caused me to drop out of the fledgling chapter have evolved into morning walk-abouts. And teas are no longer home gathering where we’d alternate showing off our finest china and baking skills. Now, teas take place in a mall’s community room with a Starbucks near-by. 

Wednesday I met my youngest niece at the surgical center to wait with her as her husband went under the knife. I brought with me four baby sweaters and let her to pick one for her grandma box. My great-great niece is due on earth any minute. This niece has the most upbeat personality of anyone I know. Even when she gets vexed---which isn’t often---she’s got a way of spinning things that has everyone around her laughing. I want to be like her when I grow up.  After spending a couple of hours of quality time with her my funky mood lifted and I was able to erase the word ‘lonely’ off the blackboard in my brain. 

Today I went to an interesting lecture sponsored by the travel club I joined---don’t ask me why. I don’t travel and probably won’t take any of their trips any time soon since I spent my mad money on a new car. The organizers don’t care, they depend on people like me talking up the club when we get the opportunity. And I have done that, bringing two new members in who are far more likely to travel than me. Today’s lecture was on travel gear and I was impressed by the anti-thief purses, for one thing and the anti-microbial underwear for another. The underwear is quick drying and supposedly you wear it in the shower to wash it and you at the same time. Who knew! The purses were made with metal in the lining and straps so people can’t cut them open and run with the contents. I didn't know they even made things like that. We all were impressed with the amount of stuff the lecturer pulled out of the three different sized carry-ons she brought with her. I won an Eagle Creek pack-it system/door prize that will be the envy of all the street people should I ever find myself living out of a shopping cart.

All in all it’s been a great week and it’s not finished yet. Tomorrow my Movie and Lunch Club is seeing The Longest Ride. Bingo, the committee picked the one I was hoping to see! ©