The morning is warm. The air is still. It will be 80° for the high, but it will get down to the 60’s tonight. That’s perfect sleeping weather. I have a few chores: watering plants inside and out, filling the bird feeders and vacuuming the Henry fur which rises into the air when I walk down the hall. I also think I’ll manage some deck time.

When I was a kid, I had an orthodontist. Back then that was not so common as it is now. His name was Doctor Nice. His office was in Boston not so far from Kenmore Square. I remember his office. It was a converted house, an old house with high ceilings on Commonwealth Ave. In the huge waiting room was his nurse and her desk, a couple of couches and chairs. Where he worked on my teeth had windows looking out to Comm Ave. He was old, at least to me. He always wore a white jacket. It was a process when I had an appointment. Usually my appointments were in the mornings. My mother would find a babysitter for my sisters, usually a neighbor. We’d walk uptown and take a bus to Sullivan Square. From there we’d ride the subway to Kenmore then walk up the street. We reversed it on the way home. I remember waiting at Sullivan Square for the bus. We’d stop at the kiosk, and I’d get a snack. Once back in Stoneham, we’d stop at the restaurant where my mother would buy me a sandwich for lunch. I’d eat as we walked to school which was half over when I got there. I remember my school pictures that year. I didn’t even open my mouth. I have that picture somewhere.

Sundays were quiet when I was growing up. Everyone I knew had a Sunday dinner. It was the special meal of the week. I remember we always had mashed potatoes. The roast was sometimes beef and sometimes chicken. The vegetables changed. My favorites were baby peas and corn, not creamed corn, but corn nuggets. I always thought creamed corn was disgusting looking. The vegetables always came from a can.

Nala is bringing in acorns and pine cones. She chews them. I stepped on an acorn the other day, and it hurt. I cursed and yelled at Nala. I’m sure she had no idea why I was yelling.