Bud’s the first of our little group to retire. Worked for Gagne’s & Sons Heating and Cooling for what? Thirty plus years, I guess. That’s dirty work, repairing furnaces and the like. Plus, you get called out at all hours, day and night. Weekends, too, don’t matter the weather. And unless you’re doing an annual cleaning, the people you’re dealing with are usually real upset. I mean, it’s ten degrees out, and no heat. They’re all bundled up, seein’ their breath inside the house, and Bud’s gotta be the one who tells ‘em their furnance is shot. No fun. Once he hit sixty-five, Bud was outta there. When he started talkin’ about retiring, I says …

I remember when I first brought the subject up to Charlie. Boy, I hadn’t seen that level of enthusiasm since I told him we were goin’ on the Cabbage Soup Diet. “Geez Louise, Ida. Tell me you’re not serious.” “I am, Charlie, and I’m not takin’ no for an answer. We need to get our papers in order and discuss what we each want if something happens.” “Nothin’s gonna happen.” “Charlie, something happens every time you go out with the boys. Need I remind you of the time…” “No, no, I don’t need remindin’!” “Well, this is what I want for my birthday. Along with all the other stuff you were gonna get me!” That …

Celeste, Rita, Betty, Dot, Shirley and me got together for our girls night out last week, per usual. Betty was hostin’ and she whipped up a batch of her Marvelous Marcel Bars. Oh, to die for! I mean, what’s not to like about something that’s made with not only an entire bag of chocolate chips, but a bag of peanut butter chips, too. After wolfin’ down one with a white wine chaser, Shirley goes, “Thanks, Betty. I needed that.” “Tough day?” I ask. “Not one of Mini’s better ones.” Mini is Shirley’s mom. Lives in the mother-in-law apartment Junior attached to he and Shirley’s house. Shirley’s one of five and the only girl, so you …

Saturday night we went to the bean supper down to the Congo Church. If you’ve never been to one (and that is a sad state of affairs), you usually sit family-style at big round tables. Well, at our table was a couple who’d obviously had an argument before the shindig, and had not left it in the car. All through dinner, they kept sniping at each other. Wow! Is that ever uncomfortable. There’s a big difference between sniping and some gentle ribbing. What is that difference, you might ask? Well, I’d say, it’s about whether you (the person doin’ it) are motivated by love or wanting to make the other person feel as miserable as …

A few weeks ago, my niece Caitlin called me up and asked if she could come over. “Needed my advice about something.” I could tell she was upset. “Sure, dear, I’m here. Come on over. I’ll heat up some water for tea, and have my Certified Maine Life Guide Magic Moose Antlers at the ready!” “Thanks, Aunt Ida.” Poor Caitlin said this with a little hitch in her voice, like she was tryin’ not to cry. Charlie looks up from his paper. “What’s up?” “Oh, that was Caitlin. She’s comin’ over in about an hour for some girl talk.” “Trouble in paradise?” “That’s what I’m guessing.” Charlie downs the rest of his coffee, and gets …

I’ve heard that rich people find it kind of tacky to talk about money. But for the rest of us, well, we gotta. I’m not saying you need to be hashin’ it over morning, noon and night, but you and your spouse do need to be on the same page in this department. Otherwise, it can be the one thing that does you in. I learned this the hard way when Charlie and me first got married. Neither of us were makin’ much money. I was workin’ down to the A&P, of course, and Charlie was at the mill. He’s a foreman there now, but he started out at the bottom doin’ odd jobs. We …

Over the weekend, we went to a great Valentine’s Day Brunch at Betty and Pat’s. It was the usual suspects: Celeste and Bud, Rita and Smitty, Betty and Pat, Dot and Tommy, Shirley and Junior and me and Charlie. The food, I must say, was out of this world! I mean, what’s not to like about a meal that includes bacon and mimosas? Afterwards, we’re sittin’ around the livin’ room, enjoyin’ the wood stove and swappin’ stories, you know, like only old friends do. And because it was Valentine’s Day, these stories had a kind of lovey-dovey theme to ‘em. Junior told the one where he and Shirley were neckin’ up to Makeout Point, and …

I was talkin’ to my sister, Irene, the other day. “What do you have planned for this weekend, ‘Renee?” “Nothing!” she replies, a big smile on her face. “Jimbo’s off snowmobilin’ up to Presque Isle, so I have the whole weekend to myself.” “Oh, that sounds heavenly! What’re you gonna do?” “A whole bunch of nothin,’ Ida. Binge watch “The Good Wife,” maybe. Give myself a facial and mani-pedi, if I have the energy. Catch up on my Oprah magazines.” “You’re killin’ me! And on the menu?” “Haute cuisine. Popcorn and Junior Mints. That’s as far as I got.” “That’s a good start. And let me just say for the record, I am totally jealous!” …

I was out walking Scamp the other day and run into Pearl Plaisted dead-heading geraniums in her yard. “Ida!” she says, “I haven’t seen you all summer. Why don’t you come in for some iced tea, dear?” “Sounds good!” I reply. “It’s some hot out, huh?” Pearl seemed a little stuck in the “half way up” position, so I give her an assist, and into the house we go. “Hank,” she yells, “you decent? Ida’s here.” Scamp loves going over to Hank and Pearl’s place ‘cause that means he gets to terrorize their cat Tiki, named after some football player, I guess. Sitting on the screened in porch, we got to talking about the big …

I run into Bucky Dumont down to the A&P on Friday. He’s the fella with the horses who gives sleigh rides during our Down Home Holiday Festival. I was doing a little shopping after work, and he was “picking up a few things for the Mrs.” Sure enough, there in his shopping cart were milk, sugar, and a dozen eggs. “How ‘bout that case of Pabst, Bucky. She ask you to pick that up?” “Nope. Them’s what I call my “office supplies!” I’ve seen Bucky’s “office.” It’s that shed off the barn where he fixes his farm equipment and maintains the horse tack. Oh, he’s got it all decked out: ole pot bellied stove, TV, …