”Arithmetic is where numbers fly like pigeons in and out of your head.”

My morning had such a late start it blended into the afternoon. I’m only now having my second cup of coffee. The day is cloudy bright. The breeze is slight. It is 50°, typical for this time of year. Having no need to go out, I am staying home in my comfy clothes. The dogs have been in and out but are now on the couch for their naps, the first naps of many.

When I was a kid, life was easy. School was my only obligation through I never saw it that way as I really liked school. I loved learning, except for arithmetic. It was my bugaboo. I used to hide my fingers under my desk for counting when I needed them to finish an arithmetic problem. I remember learning to carry a number. I’d put the number on top of the problem and say carry the one or whatever the number was so I’d remember. We had to memorize the times tables. That was easy. My favorites were one, five and ten.

I remember coloring turkeys during art. The nun passed out a single paper with the outline of a turkey. We had to color it. That may sound easy, but most of us had only see a turkey plucked, cleaned and ready for the oven. We had to guess the colors. I remember his tail. I made it look more like a peacock’s tail with tons of color. His body was brown. I signed my masterpiece and brought it home for the fridge, a Thanksgiving decoration.

I don’t remember exactly who it was, but I do remember the horror when she found out the stuffing went into the butt of the turkey, not the head. I remember the bags in the butt were filled with the neck, the heart, the liver and the gizzard. I didn’t learn until I was older that they are called the giblets. My mother baked the neck, and my father ate the meat on it. She never used the giblets for the gravy though I knew other people did. She cooked the heart and liver for the dog. My mother always cooked the stuffing in the bird. Everyone did back then. She made great stuffing and used Bell’s seasoning for the flavor. I remember we had to send some to my sister in Colorado as back then they didn’t sell it in the grocery stores.

One mouse last night, and I didn’t reset the traps. I’ll do that tonight. I did sweep today, and I do have plants to water. I could do so much more, but I won’t. I’ll save some for another day or for many days.

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