What is this peculiar sensation?

Mark the calendar!  I feel relaxed.  Wow.  I can't remember when last I had this feeling.  How can I replicate it, bottle it, maybe sell it like a magic elixir on eBay?  What is the recipe for feeling this relaxed? 

• No spa massages or lovers' trysts were involved.  I did spend five dollars in quarters to experience the good vibrations of the self-serve car-wash wand and brush.  The Buick Skylark may have had an orgasm.  Just removing the petrified bird poop and snow slush to achieve a clean car was a peak experience.  Engaging in work that makes an obvious difference is very satisfying.

• Relaxation does not derive from an absence of labor.  I worked at the library Saturday reading book reviews and taking photos to document the appearance of the building prior to the upcoming renovation and expansion.  Work, yes.  On the clock, yes.  Delightful, completely.  I took 141 photos to document the building from every angle possible without a helicopter.  Then I spent four hours in intense Photoshopping to edit the photos down to sixty useful records.  All time spent "in the flow" to the best I can understand Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.

• Sunshine and sixty-something temperatures helped enormously.  Pulled on Janie's big boots for a second effort at creek clean-up, wading in the shallow water and collecting ugly litter.  Hauled three bags full to the dumpster.  Wade in the water...

• Tried something new without allergy anxiety.  Just pulled the onions out of my lamb kebab sandwich from Fadi's. 

• Took Dad an old-fashioned root beer float from Sonic.  Tasted so good, but Dad's coughing and choking informed me that was his last root beer float.  We laughed together and shared family news.  He was completely sharp and in the moment.  Then suddenly he was talking about the little boys playing leapfrog behind his bed.

• Spotted Eeyore the tailless squirrel near my condo.  Could there be a whole gang of tailless squirrels?  How big can Eeyore's territory be?  Don't get around much anymore.

• Fooled around with the design for this blog.  This was play without expectations for an outcome.  In the big scheme of things it doesn't matter if there's an Itty Bitty Blog Roll. 

• Walked, vented, and lunched with a friend. Ritual and habit bring their own stress reduction.

• None of my problems are solved, but it's O.K.  All is good.

© 2011 Nancy L. Ruder

PLEZ CNOKE IF AN RNSR IS NOT REQID.

A friend gave me a bottle of homebrew porter, a beer, along with these instructions:

If you want to drink @ room temp. be careful upon opening so you don't lose any.

Alas, I was too busy wondering about porter and trespassers w to be properly careful.  After I cleaned up the little mess, I found the porter to taste sort of like A and W Root Beer.  This reminded me of the time Judy Anderson brought root beer lifesavers for Blue Bird treats when we went on a field trip to Lincoln General Hospital in second grade, except that they weren't really Lifesavers, but some different brand, but we each got a whole roll to eat in the station wagon.  And before I could say "trespassers w" the porter was consumed without making much impression on my tastebuds.

I can remember useless information about Blue Bird meetings better than I can remember my own name sometimes.  I grew up under the name of Porter.  The door knocker on our blue front door had P O R T E R engraved on it.  We were the only family in the neighborhood with a door knocker, a point of some pride.  The Porter family was the original owner of the house.  Although, of course, a bank owned the house and the Porters just lived there.  Much as I argued for having a new knocker with our name engraved on it, my parents just left us living under the name of Porter.  Since my family owned the house for fifty-two years, I still believe a new door knocker could have been justified.

 My sister painted this picture.  See the gold door knocker?

It is Owl who has the door knocker* in the 100 Aker Wood, but Piglet who lives under the name Trespassers w.  This is useful information, so I had to look it up, along with the not-Lifesavers root beer candy which was made by Reed's.



Without crossword puzzles, I would remember nothing about beer, other than to pick some up after a rough day at work.  The crossword spaces are usually for three, five, or seven letters:

ale
lager
stout
pilsner 

As a non-native Texan, I know Shiner Bock.  Now with porter, I'm set for four and six letter beer clues.

*  Owl also has a bell-pull that is really Eeyore's tail, so PLES RING IF AN RNSER IS REQUIRD.  I saw Eeyore, the tailless squirrel, down by the creek twice during our ice storm.  My Eeyore father is a little happier today, and I should probably take him some root beer.
© 2011 Nancy L. Ruder

Fruit bear boats

The children are playing restaurant in the kitchen, asking all the adults for their orders. We have revamped the play kitchen so all the pretend food is soft fabric. I love having this center just a tad more quiet at the end of a long day.

A small herd of waitstaff encircles and enquires what I would like. An idea pops out of my mouth before it hits my brain--a bacon, lettuce, tomato sandwich on toasted whole wheat with a root beer float. How good that would taste.

The five year-olds don't seem to know the joy of an A&W root beer float. They want to know how to make a "fruit bear boat".

"What do I owe you?," I ask the kindergarten cashier. "Fifty," he says, and then hands me a promotional Your Name Here credit card. "This is good for your next eleven thousand eighty," he says like a proud start-up entrepreneur.

"Thanks," I say. It's a good deal. Unlimited free fruit bear boats for pretty much the rest of my life.

© 2009 Nancy L. Ruder

A & Why root beer in Wymore?

Headed south from Beatrice, Nebraska on Highway 77 a strange, powerful, and mysterious force took over. I was still in control of my vehicle, but all I could think about was A&W root beer. Did that ever happen to you???

It's been years since I even had a root beer float. What was going on? By the Gage County town of Wymore I thought I might die if I didn't have an A&W.

Thank heaven Wymore has a local convenience store selling bottles of root beer, along with other more essential items. Wymore was a hub for Welsh immigrants who arrived in Nebraska to build railroads in the 1880s.

A & W was a drive-in with car-hops in the 1960s. I'm not sure, but I think the Lincoln A & W was on south 48th Street. In 1963 A & W drive-ins welcomed the arrival of the Burger Family. Papa Burger, Mama Burger, Teen Burger with bacon and cheese, and Baby Burger arrived on the tray hooked onto your car window. Root beers and floats arrived in heavy glass mugs or strange conical waxed paper containers.

For only a summer or two the A & W drive-in was our family spot. Moving up from a Baby Burger to a Teen or Mama Burger was a sign of maturity. Being able to resist the rare siren song of a root beer on a road trip would be superhuman.

© 2008 Nancy L. Ruder