By Lula Anderson
Spring has Sprung—complete with spring snow and the early flowers peeping through it. The robins seem to be fatter and redder this year. I guess they had a good winter. Our lovely Spring snowstorm heralded the start of Holy Week. My car starter didn't work, so I had to try and chisel my way into my car on Sunday morning to get it started. I could not get the ice broken around the door, then it was frozen shut. I finally got in to get it running. After 15 minutes, I tried to get the passenger door open, and that only took 5 minutes. I got enough cleared so I could see, then went to church. I was exhausted before the day began. But what a day it turned out to be. The sun came out and it was beautiful! A great start to the week. Remember, Thursday night is Maundy Thursday, which commemorates the Washing of the Feet and the Last Supper or the start of the Eucharist. Friday is the most solemn day of the Christian calendar leading up to the start of the Ecclesiastical year which is Easter Sunday. Happy Easter to all.
WAJPL Golden Agers will be holding their meeting on April 1rst at 1 pm at the Senior meeting room. As always, covered dish refreshments. On April 15th, the meeting will feature author Peter Wheelwright who wrote The Door- Man, a mix of fact and fiction. The Door-man follows three generations of interwoven families who share a deep wound from Gilboa's last days. Please join us. The annual Spring luncheon will be held on Thursday May 16. The group will be holding craft classes again starting June 18th and running for 10 weeks. Stained glass, ceramics, painting and maybe a few more selections. If you are handy and have a skill to share, let us know. Email Vicky and Albin at mtsunflower@aol.com.
Primary Elections will be held on April 2.
April 6th is an All you Can Eat breakfast at the Ashland Fire house to benefit Greene County EMS week. 7:30 - 11:30 $12.00.
Dinner Church is April 19th starting at 6 pm at the Ashland Church.
NYS Burn Ban has started on March 15th and runs through May 15th. NO OUTDOOR BURNING. We know it looks wet out there, but the brush and under is dry and will smolder for days. Remember Smokey the Bear—Only YOU can prevent forest fires.
Orthodox Easter is not until May 5 this year, but I always think of my sister, Louise, whose birthday was March 28. She raised lambs for the Greek celebration of Easter, and every week Archie would call and check on their progress.
The bears are out of hibernation. Don't leave out bird feeders or garbage. Remember, no food left in cars as they will break in and get it.
Prayers for Mike Laterza, Katherine Howard, John O'Brian who is in rehab. Sympathy to the family of Pastor Phyllis Skidmore.
AS I REMEMBER IT
I'm still going through papers, papers and more papers, what to keep, what to throw out. Don't you just love the ones that say, "this page left intentionally blank" ? Seriously? You need a piece of paper that says it's supposed to be blank. Anyway, I found a booklet that was given to me on one of my birthdays—1931 Remember When. Being the year that I was born, I thought I'd share with you. In March of 1931, congress made "The Star-Spangled Banner" the US National Anthem. In May, the Empire State building opened and in August, Babe Ruth hit his 600th home run. Hangover and upset stomach relief as Alka-Seltzer went on sale, just in time for the U.S. Supreme Court to rule that the Dry Law was constitutional. The comic strip DICK TRACY made its debut and Navada legalized gambling. Life expectancy at the time was 59.7 years. I found out that James Earl Jones, Robert Duvall, Olympia Dukakis and William Shatner are all my age .
Could you imagine spending $6,796 on a new house or $640 for a new car. Of course, the average income was only $1858/year. Tuition to Harvard was $400/year, a movie ticket a quarter and gas 10 cents a gallon. It cost a whole 2 cents to mail a letter. Could you imagine going into a grocery store and buying sugar for 55 cents for 10 pounds, milk for 50 cents/ gallon, coffee was 33 cents/pound, bacon 25 cents and eggs 16 cents/ dozen. Hamburger 11 cents a pound and bread 8 cents a loaf. Now I go in with a one-hundred-dollar bill and come out with one bag of groceries.
Although that was the year I was born, I think about the wages I made while working and what I contributed to Social Security and pensions and realize that's why I have a hard time making ends meet. Yes, salaries and minimum wage are rising, but those on a fixed income cannot possibly keep up with the prices. Maybe I'll see if I can get some cheap eggs.
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