Maintenance

 

            The approach of winter calls for preparation, most of which is pretty obvious.

 

·      Get the furnace checked.

 

·      Remove leaves and pine needles from the gutters – something I pay a guy to do as I no longer climb tall ladders.

 

·      Put screens in the garage and make sure storm windows are in place.

 

·      Get the leaves out of the window wells (not yet done).

 

·      Deal, somehow, with the abundant leaves in the gardens.

 

·      Drive orange rods into the ground in front of the garden near the driveway so gravel is not plowed into the flowers.

 

·      Stack firewood in a dry place (probably more for cozy evenings than for home heating).

 

·      Make sure the freezer and pantry are stocked in case we are snowed in.

 

·      Put snow tires on the car (probably can wait until December, though snow is in the forecast for Sunday).

 

·      Check phone numbers of friends who we might need for various kinds of support.

 

·      Make sure my snow boots, with cleats, are ready and waiting by the front door.

 

·      Locate heavy wool socks, mittens, and that great winter collar thing.

 

This is on top of regular maintenance. Deb, a builder who did a major remodel for us, gave us a booklet describing routine home maintenance. It was ten pages long.

 

            Several years ago, a teacher commented that after a certain age (she was maybe 50), much of our daily effort is devoted to personal maintenance. In this spirit, have you noticed how much human maintenance is required now that we are in our winter years? I’m talking about the vitamins and supplements that we take, the medical and dental appointments we need to make and keep, and the walks we are supposed to take (not easy in sleet or sub-zero temperatures, so do what we can now). Stretching. Drinking more water than you ever drank before. Staying out of the sun. Doing whatever we can to support our brains. (Isn’t it convenient that google came along just as my memory starts to go. Can’t remember the name of the city 15 miles north of where we live? J.F.G.I.

 

            And it might be a good time for a bit of relationship maintenance. Kim and I are going to be fairly isolated for a few months (not counting medical appointments), so it would be nice if we got along. And I need to do a better job with my telephone friends, and in responding to email from friends. We don’t expect a lot of company up here in the winter, so phone and email are important.