Ran into Pearl Plaisted at the A&P end of last week. She was doing a little pre-holiday shopping. “Hi there, Pearl,” I says, as I’m ringing her out. “I see you’re gonna to be making some pies for Thanksgiving.” “Yup! Desserts are my department. My daughter Sally cooks the main meal. Oh, and I’m responsible for the homemade cranberry sauce.” “Yum! I bet that’s good. Where’s your side kick?” I ask, referring to her husband. “Haven’t you heard? Hank’s in the hospital.” “He is?” “Pneumonia.” “No! How long’s he been in?” “Since last Wednesday.” “That’s terrible!” “Well, he’d been feeling punky for a couple of weeks. Then, he’s in the bedroom, taking a nap, when …

November is National Family Caregivers Month, but for a lot of us, caregiving is a year round sort of thing. Caregivers are everywhere. There are paid caregivers, of course: nurses, social workers, childcare workers, the folks that work down to the senior center, to name a few. Family caregivers, however, are for the most part, unpaid: friends or family members who selflessly give of their time and energy to take care of people who need it. It’s your friend with small children, a sick husband or aging parents. Maybe you know someone who’s helping out a friend or even an acquaintance with a cancer diagnosis or Parkinson’s who doesn’t have any family to help. Heck, …

All of a sudden, I’m hearing this commotion in the bathroom. Sounds like Charlie’s trying to find something. “Hey, Ida!” “Yeah?” “You seen my nose hair clipper?” “Your what?” “You know, that thing I use to trim my nose hair.” “Where is it usually?” “Top drawer.” Nose hair clipper. I can kind of see it in my mind, this heavy, pewter-colored thing, looks kind of like a medieval torture device. “You mean that industrial strength roto-rooter I bought you a few years back?” “Yeah, that. Can’t find it.” Oh, no, I’m thinking. I can picture the thing now, in a plastic tray nestled between five or six lipsticks, all in crap colors, make you look …

It’s unbelievable how fast time flies as I get older. It seems like it was just Labor Day. We had such a beautiful fall, and I enjoyed every minute of it. But already Halloween is behind us, and Turkey Day is just around the corner. So, I guess we are officially in the holiday season. I mean, Christmas stuff is already in some stores. I say it every year, but it bears repeating: there ought to be a law against that. It’s like mums in August, just too soon. Pumpkins and Santa should not share shelf space. And then you add Tom Turkey into the mix. It’s unnatural! I’ve been pondering this, and I think …