Instant Hot Water

In our continuing effort to conserve water and energy, H installed a hot water circulating pump in the bathrooms and kitchen. When the pump is working, we get nearly instantaneous hot water from the faucet/shower head so that we don't have to run the water for a minute or more waiting for it to get hot. At first he had it set on a timer to run for several hours in the morning. Then he figured out how to use a remote control to turn the pump on and off. Now, when we turn it on, we wait for 1-2 minutes before turning on the tap, and we get our hot water.

In order to remember to turn it back off when we are done, we have devised a system. After turning on, we turn the remote control upside down, and when we turn it off, we flip it to the right side up, as seen in this photo.

Annual Voyager Christmas

Last year the Voyager Christmas party did not conflict with any of my concerts, and, for the second year in a row, it did not this year, either! Our instructions are always to bring a consumable White Elephant gift, and this year, the gift in the highest demand was a gift certificate to the Laemmle Theater.  We did not walk out with that gift certificate, but we did manage to snag one from the Cheese Cave. We also came home with a gift from someone (who remains mysterious) that was not consumable. At least I shall not try to eat it. It is a Mr. 7 Hands tool which requires 2 AA batteries (sold separately).

Fleur de Lis Chapel

Yesterday Lynn and I played in a wedding at the Fleur de Lis Chapel in Upland on 18th St. I had never heard of this place, but it is a lovely venue for a wedding. From the website I learned, 

"The Chapel is recognized as a California State Historic building.  It was constructed in 1910 as the Saint Mark's Episcopal Church on the north-east corner of Euclid Avenue at "F" Street in Upland.

When the congregation eventually left for a larger home, the entire building was given to the Chaffey Communities Cultural Center and was transported to its current location in 1966 in three sections."

Friday Photo

In honor of the holiday season and that classic Christmas movie, here is Claremont's own tribute to It's a Wonderful Life. You can think about this movie every time you pass this house on 8th St. between Harvard and College.

Sinterklaas

It's December! And yesterday (or today) in some European low countries, that means that St. Nick, or Sinterklaas visited children and filled their shoes with goodies last night. The kindergarteners at Vista have been learning about December holidays for many years now, and yesterday Sinterklaas visited Rooms 1 and 2 and left some candy in their shoes.

Not Spam

I just think it's funny that the mail that ends up in my spam folder is now starting out with "Please click 'Not Spam' above if delivered to your Spam folder.

Really?

Signals

It's the season for catalogs, and a few weeks ago I received the Signals catalog, the public television store. I haven't gotten this or Wireless (NPR) for a few years, so I was happy to peruse the offerings. I really enjoy the funny sayings on the various shirts, mugs and whatnot, and I thought it would be fun to list some of my favorites here.

Enjoy!

Earth without Art is just "Eh"
Who says nothing is impossible? I've been doing nothing all day!
I'm not short. I'm fun size!
Yes, it's true. I'm not on Facebook.
Libraries are my candy store.
E = Fb - The Musical Theory of Relativity
The library. It's like taking your brain to the gym.
I dream of a society where a chicken can cross the road without its motives questioned.
Sarcasm is the mind's natural defense against stupidity.
I have a degree in Philosophy. Why do you want fries with that?
Irony. The opposite of wrinkly.
Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
There. Their. They're not the same.
The Hokey Pokey Clinic: A place to turn yourself around.

Sweet Tooth

It would be helpful to me if I had read the latest Ian McEwan book, Sweet Tooth, for a book club. Discussing this book would help me distill my thoughts about it. I am a fan of McEwan's writing (Atonement and Saturday), but I am unsure whether I liked this book or not. I certainly enjoy McEwan's prose - it's easy to read, and his observations are spot on.

I was under the impression that this was an espionage tale, but I had a hard time reconciling the plot and what I think of as spying. There are certainly secrets involved, but nothing like what I imagined what it would be when I heard that it was about MI5.

I wonder if the novel at the center of the story is a commentary on Cormac McCarthy's The Road.

If you want a better review of this book, try the LA Times review or this one from The Guardian.

I do know that you need to read it to the very end to understand the whole of it.

Alternative Christmas

For the first time this year, I heard about the newest alternative to Black Friday and Cyber Monday - it's Giving Tuesday.

During Advent at CUCC, we provide the opportunity for easy giving for some of our favorite local and international charities. Today we kicked off Alternative Christmas by having representatives from these charities available to talk about their good works. After deciding which worthwhile charity will receive your hard-earned dollars, you fill out a form and make out one check. Voila! You have not only helped make the world a better place, but you can make these donations in honor of someone you love. If you missed Giving Tuesday and today's CUCC Alternative Christmas, it is not too late to donate something to your favorite group, and CUCC is accepting donations for the event for the next two Sundays in church, or the church office during the week.

I like to think globally and act locally, so I support Heifer, International, Habitat for Humanity, All Our Children International, and our very own ECC (Early Childhood Center at CUCC).

Another local organization that reaches the children of the Claremont USD (though not represented at our Alternative Christmas) is the Claremont Educational Foundation which provides funds for all schools in the district for a variety of things which the school budget just cannot cover.

Holiday Parties Begin!

I know the holidays have started. I went to my first party of the season this afternoon at Claremont Yoga. We were promised food, wine, tea, chair massages and henna, and they were delivered. Since I only go to one class a week, I do not know everyone who comes to the various other classes, and I was surprised to see people I know from other places at this party. I shouldn't really be surprised. It's a small town.

I had henna done on my right hand, and if I follow the directions well, after this flakes off, the reddish/orange color of this design should last 7-10 days.