41 thoughts on “Our Daily Thread 1-30-19”

  1. Morning, all.
    Question for Jo – in your newsletter, you asked for prayers for “boy anxious about going finish.” Can you explain? Thanks.

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  5. Linda, Jo has explained that in the past, so I’ll answer, and she can add to my answer if necessary. “Going finish” is their term for leaving the field (perhaps going to another, or else returning to their home country). They aren’t going on deputation, but leaving for good, and so the boy has to say goodbye to his friends and his way of life there.

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  6. Morning! It is 19 degrees here too Chas! Not much snow melted yesterday but our high is to be in the mid forties today…I’m guessing some of that snowpack on our roads will melt a bit. I have a friend in Chicago and he said it is 19 below with a negative 44 windchill…brrrrr. Kare knows about those type of temps!

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  9. Nancy- 19° in Colorado is normal, isn’t it? But where Chas is, it’s well below normal.

    We’re at -12 with a -30 windchill. I’m nice and comfy with a space heater blowing on me. This part of the house is farthest from the furnace, so the air from the duct work doesn’t come out as warm.

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  10. I actually wore snow pants for chores this morning, nice and comfy. Pretty certain seventeen year old son did not wear snow pants on his bike. I did get him a battery operated hand warmer for Christmas this year, and very warm biking gloves and he bought himself a new rabbit fur hat which he never wears. And he has lots of other warm gear, lying about his room. And other seventeen went out to do her chores in a skirt. She has been wearing a skirt for month now though she usually wears leggings or something under it. I don’t think she did today. But when it is summer, she will wear her winter coat, a scarf, rabbit fur hat, and gloves. And I will talk with her about heat stroke much as I talk to her now about frost bite.

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  11. Thank you for those prayers, Michelle (and RKessler, too — I saw your post saying you were also praying for us Midwesterners).

    Currently, we are sitting at -26°, with a “feels-like” temp of -42. I wonder what 1st Arrow’s got. He’s three hours north of us.

    Tonight we’re supposed to be at minus 32 to minus 40, with wind chill readings at 55 to 60 below zero. Brutal.

    Yesterday my daughter went down to the mailbox to get our mail. It had probably been sitting in the metal box 4-5 hours. When she brought it in and I tried opening the envelopes, the mail was so cold, it hurt my fingertips to even hold it. I decided to let it sit and get to room temperature before finally opening it.

    We are so relieved that 4th Arrow doesn’t have to work tonight. She works at a burger/frozen custard place — is anyone really going to go out for frozen custard or ice cream in weather like this?! — and was scheduled to work tonight from 4:30 to 9:30, but last night around 8:00 pm, when they closed early, they decided they would not open at all today.

    Hubby had called 4th Arrow’s manager on Monday to ask about their policy on minors calling in to miss work because of the extreme cold. He was kind of like, well, if everyone just decided they didn’t have to work because of whatever reason…

    Hubby wasn’t talking about “whatever reason” — he was sincerely concerned about her safety under such conditions. Last Saturday, while not as cold as it is now (temperatures were slightly above to slightly below zero), she had to work for 10 hours. There’s a fair possibility that her car might not start after all that time (and she wouldn’t be allowed to leave periodically during her shift to start it up and let it run a bit, to decrease the chances of it not starting at all after a long shift). She did have trouble getting her car started once at the end of a shift when the weather was warmer, and hubby had to come get her.

    If she was scheduled to work the closing shift — store closes at 10:00, and closing tasks tend to go until about 11:00 — and her car wouldn’t start, then what? There’s a restaurant in that area that closes at midnight, so she could walk there to call us for a ride, but that’s a danger to a young woman, or even two together, walking alone at that time of night, any time of year.

    So we try to arrange to give her a ride to and from work when conditions are bad. But there’s danger in that, too, because if they close early (which they did last night), they don’t allow employees to wait in the building. She would have to walk across a big parking lot where the wind is whipping to get to a place where she could wait for us to drive 20 minutes to pick her up.

    Of course, she could go someplace in a co-worker’s car, but you know 17-year-olds… they’re invincible, and nothing bad is going to happen to them. Daughter would rather be independent than ask anyone for help.

    Anyway, the manager told hubby that daughter could call in to miss work, but the policy would stand that she’d get docked points.

    Better to be docked points than to risk life and limb. Although she would want to go in, no matter what weather we have, so that’s one thing we won’t have to haggle over.

    I have an idea that manager got a lot of calls this week about the bad weather coming, as there are many young employees. So we are grateful and relieved that the place is closed today. That was the prudent thing to do.

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  12. We have a fat tire biker that bikes down our road. We saw him the other day and were amazed anyone would want to do that in the cold. We do have a runner that runs, too, no matter the weather. No thanks.

    -31 real temp here this morning with 60+ wind chill. Staying home today and tomorrow. So grateful we can. I remember well my husband having to get to and from work and sometimes working outside in very cold temps.

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  14. Six, I would think if she called as soon as they decide to close, that you would be there before the cleaning duties are finished. Do yall have block heaters? That would fix the other issue.

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  16. RKessler, they aren’t allowed to make any phone calls during their work hours. She can only call when she’s finished with all her duties. 😦

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  17. Do you mean engine block heaters, RK? She doesn’t have any place to plug it in at work, as she has to park in a parking lot used for a variety of stores in the area, like Target, Hobby Lobby, etc.

    Is that what you mean?

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  18. I would think all of my water pipes would be frozen in those temps.

    I remember delivering papers in zero temps, but they never told us anything about wind chill, so it was not that cold. Dress warm, cover every centimeter of skin, don’t sweat.

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  19. Hubby has snow pants that he wears to clear the snow when it’s really cold, as it was last night. When he comes back in, he hangs them on the outside of the shower, which is clear glass and faces the door. Today, every time I go into the bathroom, I’m startled, thinking there is a man standing there.

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  20. We’re at 55 degrees here. Rain is coming starting tomorrow morning for several days, off and on.

    Be safe everyone, those conditions sound potentially dangerous.

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  22. Sorry, but, actually, it’s kind of scary — to me, anyway, when I walk out to the garage and see my husband’s outer winter clothing hanging on an open cabinet drawer. It does for a brief moment look like there’s a person hanging there.

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  23. I have snow boots I wore on the beach at Hilton Head two years ago. Does that count for anything extreme?

    I am so sorry to hear about that extreme weather many of you are suffering. It sounds frightful to me. I really can not imagine what it is like. It has felt rather cold here. I think it was in the twenties last night.

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  24. I have spent the morning rescheduling Art’s appointments so he can get me to my appointments. I still an hardly believe it will be happening. I would say I will believe it when I see it, but with cataracts I can’t use that cliche.

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  25. My 12:17 should read “…open cabinet door.”

    It would seem I can’t get the simplest statements written correctly these days.

    I should just stay in bed all day. I was sick yesterday, and I’m not doing anyone much good being up and around today.

    Please excuse my grouchiness. I’m tired of illness and bone-chilling outdoor temperatures. I need fresh air, but can’t bear to be out in it.

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  26. I’m glad you can get in for those cataract surgeries earlier rather than later, Janice. It was good to read that, and I’m sure even more joyous for you to get that report! 🙂 Praying all goes well with all you and Art are having done / are doing in this upcoming months.

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  27. Thank you, 6 Arrows. This is the doctor’s office where I take Karen so it is to their benefit to take care of me soon so she will have a ride there for her appointments. I can tell Karen already feels some relief since I got scheduled, but her health, sadly, seems to continue to decline.

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  29. Last night crews came about 11:00 (I ended up getting back up) and again at almost 1:00 to blow snow–very loud when they were right outside our window. They’ve used snow plows and other means that aren’t noisy like that when they have taken care of snow during daylight hours, and we got half an inch or less yesterday (meaning that it didn’t really “have to” get removed at all). Don’t know if they figured that if they had to be awake, we should too, or what!

    But this is a good test of our new, insulated windows, and so far it has stayed toasty in here. I’ve been out in -40 windchill (and worse), and it isn’t something I want to deal with today. Our mail comes ridiculously late here, and I checked it about 5:00 and my husband checked it two hours later and it still wasn’t there, so we may well wait till tomorrow and have yesterday’s and today’s there.

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  30. Thanks, Cheryl, for the explanation. Yes, the boy is leaving the country as his parents take on a new ministry in the states. His dad is our vice principal. When he is upset, I ask, would you like to go see your dad?

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  31. Oh, I guess Linda said, “…a man standing there.” A different image than a man hanging there, which is what picture has been in my mind on numerous occasions.

    This has been quite the day.

    Although, I will say that it looks pretty out with the sun shining on the snow. Earlier this month we had gray skies and brown grass.

    I will need to focus on the beauty of the day, because that is a gift God’s given for me to enjoy right now from inside our home.

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  32. 6, When I was a teen I just about ran into a pair of hip boots my dad had hanging from a rafter. I was so startled and first thought it was someone hanging there. Not funny.

    Employers like that, 6, are good ones to remind your children why they need a good education so they never need to work for someone like that in the future.

    One of my daughters worked for a short time for a manager who insisted they always had to find their own replacements. It was not that big an issue for my daughter. However, a friend’s daughter had a fever in the triple digits. Her mother informed the manager that it is the manager’s job to get the help they need. This girl was very responsible and this mother was not a helicopter parent, generally speaking.

    The only toboggan I have ever known is the kind that you ride with several other people down the hill. So fun unless you are in the front and hit a tree. Yes, I have been there. I was never hurt in one, thankfully.

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  33. 6 Arrows – Wouldn’t she at least be allowed to tell the manager that she needs to give you a quick call to pick her up earlier than usual? That shouldn’t be a big deal. Is she even allowed to use the bathroom?

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  34. My first job was McDonald’s, busiest in the state. The official (handbook) policy was that if you were sick, you were to call in (don’t infect customers!) and to do so at least two hours before the scheduled start of the shift.

    But our store was very negative toward anyone ever calling in sick, especially if it was on a Saturday (because they figured their mostly teenage help woke up wanting to do something other than work, and so they called in sick), so I was diligent about going every time I was scheduled, figuring I would eventually need to call in sick, but my track record would speak for itself. I also was known for saying “yes” to any and all extra shifts if they were during hours I was available (not Sunday or overnight), so they eventually cut my scheduled hours in half to give me more freedom to do substitute work, which really bothered me–some weeks I got as few as nine hours work, and I was available full-time.

    I woke up early one Saturday morning in dreadful pain from cramps. Three hours before my shift I knew I needed to stay home. (That was in the days before I knew ibuprofen was helpful; my sister simply threw up any pain medication she took, so it was years before I tried any, and only rarely did I ever need any, anyway.) I called in and told them I was sick, and the manager told me I had to come in. (I was 19 and had graduated from high school, and had never been a party girl anyway. I wasn’t one of their irresponsible high schoolers.) I said again that I was sick and that time I was told to come in or I’d be suspended. I told them I had worked there eight months and never called in sick, and I was in great pain today. I heard another voice in the background saying, “Let me talk to her” and I thought “OK, good, someone else–they’ll understand and listen.” The other manager came on the phone and said, “You have two choices. You can come in or you’ll be suspended for a week without pay.” I said, “I have worked there for eight months and never missed a shift” and he said, “We’ve had too many people call in sick today already, so those are your choices–come in or be suspended.”

    I figured that my mom would not be sympathetic with me going a week without income (I was making little enough as it was!), and I was afraid of having a suspension on my employment record. It struck me as unjust that they had had other people call in sick already, without suspension, but the person who regularly covered for other people wasn’t allowed to call in sick herself! I had to ride my bike about a mile, and I was in pain, but I managed it. But my managers had betrayed me, and I was in pain and I felt hurt from their treatment, and I knew I was leaving as soon as I could get the money for a car and get another job–I didn’t want to work for a place that would do that. (Had anyone told me “With eight months at a job where the average turnover is three months, you can now apply again at some of those places where you applied last year and they turned you down,” I’d have done it–but I didn’t consider that.)

    I worked an hour or two of my shift, but my heart wasn’t in it and I was hurting. I would wait on a customer and turn to get their drink and cry while my back was turned, and fight the tears back and turn back to the customer. After some time I asked permission to go to the bathroom. Normally I didn’t ask–they usually said no, and there was no point in asking. But we didn’t have pockets on our uniform and I had no way to blow my nose and maybe my intestines were complaining, I don’t know. But my boss said a really quick “Yes!” and I realized he thought I needed to throw up. So I went to the bathroom, composed myself, and then went back and said to my boss, “I am sick. May I please go home?” and he said yes. Not wanting to ride my bike again, this time I called my mom and she came and got me and put my bike in the car.

    Every job I have worked since then, I have compared to that one and felt blessed. It wasn’t that McDonald’s as a corporation was bad, but that one had nasty management. And that day they lost any motivation for me to stay and work for such a company.

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  35. Yes, a hanging image would be scary.

    I’m waiting for a call back about a landslide restoration story I’m updating — funding found apparently to at least design the old road that had collapsed from our ocean cliffs in 2011. Costing $2 million to design but it’ll cost $30 million to build.

    We used to ride the snowy hills on toboggans at winter camp when I was in the Girls Scouts, lots of fun.

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  38. Kathaleena, 5:04, yikes, would that ever be scary, seeing boots hung up.

    My mind is visually-oriented, so when I heard, long after the fact, that my great-grandfather had hung himself in his barn, I right away imagined what that must have looked like to my grandmother, who, in her late teens or early twenties at the time, found his body.

    I also read Agatha Christie’s novel, And Then There Were None, as a teenager. If anyone’s read that book, you know why I’m mentioning it in this post.

    Speaking of “a man standing there,” I just remembered that it always looks like a man standing in the performance hall where I play in piano concerts. There’s a statue in one back corner of the room, and the position of the piano on the stage is such that, when seated at the piano, one can see that statue in the periphery.

    I never notice it while I’m performing, because the house lights are down, but when I’m practicing at the venue, in the hall by myself, it’s like there’s someone standing there in the back! Ignoring it, though, is good practice for ignoring the audience while I’m performing, for trying to focus my thoughts on the music, and not on what the audience’s thoughts might be.

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  39. Kizzie, 6:51, I’m not sure of answers to your questions, but I have to wonder whether they would allow any exceptions to the phone-use rule. They might say something like, “But then everyone will want to use their phones…”

    It wouldn’t hurt for her to ask, though.

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  40. Funny story from 4th Arrow’s early working days (she started last September):

    (I hope I haven’t told this story before. I don’t think I have, but bear with me if I have.)

    Our family went to eat at her workplace one time while she was working. We arrived a little before her shift was to end, so she could join us for the meal.

    Daughter was working at one of the cash registers, with her trainer standing nearby, assisting.

    My husband, unknown to the trainer (she didn’t know any of our family, either) went up to 4th Arrow and said, “Yes, we’d like four burgers made six different ways.” 😛

    Daughter responded, “Yeah, right.” 🙂

    You should have seen the shocked look on the trainer’s face when her trainee said that to us customers.

    Daughter explained, “That’s my dad.” 😀

    Yes, indeed, that’s him alright! LOL.

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  41. My daughter had a manager refuse her a raise because she didn’t smile enough at the McDonald’s counter. She was pleasant, but did not want to look or sound fake. The manager told her that she realized some families don’t smile a lot and used daughter’s father as an example. She said he didn’t smile when he came in to order! My husband laughed and said when the woman was at the counter he was usually trying to figure out what she was talking about. It was petty, IMO, and really out of order to mention the employee’s father.

    The funny thing is that my youngest daughter ended up playing piano for the manager at a wedding for her sister and one of our good friends. Then she ended up going to the same church with us and having more social contact. I don’t know if she remembers any of that or not.

    It was a good entry level job, in spite of some of less than desirable aspects.

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