Jane Pinson Was a Nurse to All

I'm having trouble with the blog program acting "squirrely" so spacing is rather strange.         (Click on any photo to enlarge it.)

Jane Pinson
August 7, 1943 – August 25, 2021

Jane’s voice still echoes, Her laughter still brings cheer,
Her knowledge still brings comfort, Her caring still brings hope,
Her life still inspires, Her light still shines,
And always will…

Jane and Gene Pinson moved net door to my house in Savanna Club, our retirement community, in Port St. Lucie, Florida in 2013.  They are from Harper's Ferry, which is 100 miles north of my home in Virginia.  Little did I know what good friends they would become.  

Jane was a nurse who worked in the ER in Arlington, VA.  She was a nurse through and through and she helped many people with health issues.  She was just one of those people you could always count on, in sickness and in health.

We clicked from the day we met, even though we didn't do everything together.  We did have our routines:  She rode with me on my golf cart to Craft Club and Women's Club.  I rode with Gene and Jane to all the shows in Savanna Club.  She sent me lot of meals  "just because."  I especially enjoyed her beans and cornbread!

When I was in Virginia this summer, I heard she was ill and  I was very concerned.  I'd never known Jane to be sick.  With trips in and out of the hospital and rehab, things didn't seem to get much better.  Then they discovered cancer, although they didn't know for sure where it originated.  Then, when she tested positive for Covid-19, it was a shock.  That was likely the factor that caused her death.  She left this earth to join Jesus in heaven on August 25, 2019.  Oh, how I miss her!

December 18, 2014
One of our first activities together was Golf Cart Caroling in Savanna Club.  It turned cold that evening – in the 50s so we dressed warm.  Gene drove my golf cart, his first experience driving one.  Yes, they got one for themselves later.

January 11, 2015 
Vicky Peterson, MaryMay Angelil, Jane Pinson, Norma Pennie, and Denise Calise.

I won a catered dinner at Women’s Club and had my four neighbors over to share it.  We had a great time with many laughs, aided by our tasty beverages!  That was an outstanding evening!!!!!

     


February 5, 2015
Can you imagine turning 15 women loose with hammers and nails in a small craft room?  The noise level was so high they could hear us in the lobby of the clubhouse but we were so busy that we hardly noticed.  The birdhouses were cut out.... all we had to do was nail them together, paint, and decorate them.  Right!!!!  I haven't laughed that hard in ages and that was mostly at my own ineptitude.    When Jane took hers home she was crushed because Gene told her it was pitiful!

 
December 31, 2017
This was our first New Year's together.

December 31, 2018
Gary Suter, MaryMay Angelil, Jane and Gene Pinson.  Mary had a hip replacement on December 21st.

 
January 1, 2021
Jane and Gene Pinson with MaryMay and Gary Suter  (note name change for MaryMay.)
The Covid-19 Pandemic wiped out our lives during 2020.  There was no New Year's Party so we had one in our driveway.

September 19, 2021 
The wedding day for MaryMay Angelil and Gary Suter

  

Jane happened to be in West Virginia so she came down to our wedding!  In her typical helping, "shy" fashion, she appointed herself as the photographer and she did a good job.

 
February 21, 2021  One of our first events at Savanna Club during the Covid 19 Pandemic.  We had an outdoor concert with lots of fresh air and social distancing.

April 26, 2021 
Our last outing together at Kyle G's on the Ocean in Jensen Beach, Florida.  Gene Pinson, Gary and MaryMay Suter, Denise Calise, Tony Francavilla (MaryMay's neighbor on her house.  Little did we know this would be our last time together.  Denise and Tony moved shortly thereafter and Jane went to her hearafter.

Jane Pinson was one of those angels on earth who brought such joy and caring to my life.  She was a nurse, through and through.  I will never forget her and will always miss her.

This describes Jane’s spirit and how she lived her life: 

“If you lie down at night, knowing in your heart that you made someone’s day just a little bit better, you know you had a good day.”

Porch Party Beginnings

During the Pandemic our retirement community (VMRC) here in Harrisonburg, Virginia was locked down tight.   All meals and newspapers were delivered to our doors.

 

People who lived alone were really alone.  Betty Brunk, a retired social worker. was going stir-crazy.  So, she started the Porch Party. 

Every afternoon at around 2:00 they (anyone who chose to go) went down to the front porch for an hour or so  - this is every day - unless it's 40 degrees or less.

Yes, they sat out in their ski jackets, scarves, gloves, blankets and their MASKS! 

 

I go down most every weekday.  Sometimes 6 show up, sometimes 12, and we watch and chat with the visitors, workers, residents and deliveries come and go.

By summertime we' requested a fan and more chairs.  (They nixed the heater idea.)  If we run out of chairs, people sit on their walkers.

We laugh, we talk, we learn, we care and sometimes we "just set a spell".  I've become the designee for checking Mr. Google .  The other day they had me look up:  "Why are they called BING cherries?" We liked the answer.*

We sit with different people most every evening at dinner.  Sometimes these dinner "dates" are set up ahead, sometimes we run into someone in the hallway, and sometimes we sit down and the hostess brings us a surprise couple or 2 women or 2 men.

 * p.s.  One of the things we learned was:

 The Bing cherry is named after Seth Lewelling's Manchurian orchard foreman and friend, Bing.    It was cultivated in 1875 in Oregon. 
p.s. Bing was  7 feet tall.

Oh, No, My Nose!

WARNING:  This post isn't for the squeamish so proceed accordingly because I don't want anyone to get their nose bent out of shape.

It was a normal Day-Before-the-Trip-Back-to-Virginia.  Everything went smoothly, bags and food were packed and I even took a nap.  OK, ..... time to pack the car!

Gary backed into the carport and started loading while I continued to bring more things out.

 

I stepped into the front door but something went dreadfully wrong.  I tripped (perhaps on the threshold) and fell flat on my face.

What a shock!!!  I could feel blood gushing and running down both sides of my neck and I was swallowing blood.  Gary brought towels and called our nurse next door, Jane Pinson.  She was an ER nurse for years and knew what to do.  Gary took me to the ER and Jane and Gene followed.

At first I was able to smile for the camera but that was only the beginning.

My nose was broken and I needed stitches.  But the killer is the bruising and it had just begun.  I knew I was going to be one ugly person for a while.  But, didn't realize HOW extreme that was going to be.

  

 

 

This was about an hour after it happened.

It's always good to look on the bright side -- in this case, the masks saved me a lot of embarrassment. 

We are going for the wedding of my nephew, Levi May, on June 26th and  I do hope the bruising will be gone by then.

If an accident has to happen to you, I hope you'll be lucky enough to have a nurse and an ER nearby. 

Healing is a wonderful blessing!  My new mantra is,  "Step carefully, be mindful of my steps, go slowly......and......

 .....don't let my nose get bent out of shape!"

Wacky, Weird Wardrobes for the Pandemic

Our fashions have been affected by the Pandemic, mostly moving toward more comfortable clothes, which might be described as being wacky and/or weird. 

WORKING FROM HOME WARDROBE

Many, many people worked from home using programs such as Zoom, Facetime, Facebook, and many more.  It was interesting to see the various backgrounds behind the TV show participants. (I did wonder if they had to do their own hair and make-up.)

A famous fun moment was when Will Reeves, son of Christopher Reeves (Superman) was broadcasting from his home on ABC's Good Morning America. 

What Will didn't realize was that his underwear showed in the bottom left of the photo.  Fun, fun, fun!

Quite a few TV shows had people broadcasting from their homes and I'd venture to guess that MANY of them had shorts or sweats on the bottom half of their outfits.

The haute couture of the year 2020 looked something this:  

We'll be woeful when we have to wear dress pants that have zippers and belts!  Even jeans will feel confining after these sweats and shorts.  Yay for elastic!

MASK MADNESS

I'm slowly accumulating a mask wardrobe to accessorize every outfit.  Of course, when I get a full selection, we'll stop using them.  

However, I'm not rushing to stop wearing masks, even though I've had both vaccine shots.   There are still many dangers such as asymptomatic carriers and variant strains of Covid-19.

NEGLECTED WARDROBE ITEMS

My poor red hats are just hanging on my walls, waiting to start going out with my Red Hat sisters again.   I happen to belong to two Red Hat groups, so I get double duty out of my hats and clothes.

Collecting red and purple clothes has been fun, especially with all the thrift stores here in Florida.  But, they'll be in use before we know it.

We WILL be back to "normal" one of these days, won't we?  The term "normal" might look different from in the past.

Our wardrobes have been affected but we'll again be fashionistas one of these days.

New Title: Sailing with the Suters

I've sent this in an email to some of you. 

This blog was started in February of 2008.  

My friend-from-first-grade-and-college-roomate, Lois Brown Horne, went to Alaska for the Iditarod and blogged about her adventures.  I eagerly checked each day to see what was happening.

I was inspired and figured that if Lois could do it, then I should be able to make a blog, too.  

The RV trip Ed and I made out West starting in August of 2009 lent itself to blogging.  http://angeliladventures.blogspot.com/   

I've been rather sporadic at times but intend to do better.... I'll try, really!

Ed passed away in 2012.  I started seeing Gary Suter and we were married on September 19, 2020.

The time has come to change my blog name.  Thank you to those of you who gave suggestions.   

Be aware that my new blog title is:  Sailing with the Suters

The Pandemic: Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda

Oh, how I wish I had kept a journal of the Covid19 Pandemic of 2020 and more.  

Sometimes I scold myself:
I shoulda kept a journal of the Covid-19 year. 
I woulda done it had I kept my momentum going. 
I coulda done so with all the time I had on my hands

I found that as time went on, the more I stayed in, the less I accomplished, and the more lazy I got.  Many people I've been in touch with feel the same way.

Several people have observed that that can be a bit of depression.  I felt guilty for being so do-less  because the lock down didn't affect me all that much - I had food, water, and shelter and was able to grocery shop.

In spite of it all, Gary and I  had a lovely wedding and I have a new husband, whom I dearly love.  

To our surprise our minister turned out to be a photobomber.

(A photobomber is a person who moves into the frame of a photo as it is being taken as a prank.)

Have you noticed that you take things for granted?  I already know your answer to that question.  Staying at home for a whole year has made us long to go to a restaurant, a party, church, clubs, and other "normal" activities, especially with family.

I'm still a bit leery about going out because I'm quite frightened that I'll catch this horrible disease.  I know over 50+ people personally who suffered with it and at least 7 of those died.  Besides that, some of my friends who had the virus are dealing with long term lingering side effects. 

I feel especially bad for our children.  They've basically missed a whole year of school. Think about the importance of your friends when you're in school  Think about the proms and graduation ceremonies that were missed.  Think about the young athletes who were hoping a scout would pick them out.  That didn't happen without games being played.

Finally, there seems to be some progress.  Vaccines are being administered - I've had both of mine.This is one time it pays to be old! As of now, 26% of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of the vaccine.

Let's hope things continue to improve and we can go back to our "normal" lives.  

Although the term "normal" might have a different meaning. 

Country Concert in Spite of Covid

Savanna Club, my retirement community in Port St. Lucie, Florida had one of the first activities as we ease back from the isolation of the Corona Virus.   It took planning but social distancing was achieved  and we had a great afternoon at our Country Concert listening and just enjoying the lovely weather.

Chairs in front and golf carts behind.

People who brought their chairs, parked their golf carts on the side.

 I went with my next-door neighbors, Jane and Gene Pinson from Harper's Ferry, West Va.

 

Jane and MaryMay 

Gene (on the right) and his brother, Jimmy Pinson.  Jimmy lives here, too.

 

 MaryMay Suter with Jimmy Pinson.  Even with being covered up, I got a bad sunburn on my hands and my lower lip was a mess for weeks.

 

 The stage with the Burnt Biscuit Band

 

The people who live by the softball field area got a free concert!

 

Overall, it was so nice to be out in the fresh air with wonderful friends.

Movie Party Outdoors

There's not much going on in Savanna Club, the 55+ community where I live in Florida, due to the Covid 19 Pandemic.  They did have a movie this Thursday evening and Sharon Jackson, my new friend, got me a ticket.  You have to make a reservation and get a ticket (free).  You check in and get an armband which entitles you to a free drink (lots of vodka!) and popcorn. 

They have a ginormous screen on the other side of the large pool and chairs are labeled with your name for social distancing.  I'd say there were about 75 people there.  The movie was "Cocoon," which is so good, but the sound stopped about halfway through.  That was OK because I was freezing, even with my ski coat, scarf, gloves, and newspaper and towel under me.

You can see the people standing down by the screen if you click to enlarge the photo.  We wore our masks except for drinking and eating.  They made Fountain of Youth drinks with a couple kinds of liquor, grape juice, and dipped the rim of the glass in purple sugar.  It was tasty but I'll bet they had to do lots of scrubbing to get the purple rings and spots off the white tabletops.

 

It was nice to see a few people for a change! We appreciate the effort our event coordinator is making with trying to have a few activities to let us out of our houses, while at the same time keep Covid safe..

I Got Shot!!

I got the first Covid-19 vaccine shot last Saturday and what an accomplishment that was! 

A neighbor gave me a number to call to register.  I was on the phone a long time as I was transferred to different numbers, and given numbers to try.  

They also sent me to some websites.  http://stlucie.floridahealth.gov/   
The health department number is - 772-462-3800 - the neighbor said let it ring and ring and ring.  Someone will (might) answer.

My determination grew along with my frustration.  I had registered online more than a week ago but one operator said people registered multiple times and it crashed the website so, all the people who thought they were registered on a waiting line - ARE NOT!!!

One operator said that there was a vaccine clinic planned for January 19-20 at the Civic Center, which is very close for us.  I had friends who tried to register for that one but got the message that there were no appointments available.  

Well, another option appeared.   I learned that they had a walk-in (not a drive-thru) for Saturday 9:00 - 4:00, which means no appointments.  This was at a health center on Midway Road in Ft. Pierce.  I figured we could try our luck on Saturday and if we didn't get in, we'd try for January 19 or 20.

Jane Raymond and I left at the o-O-dark-thirty time of 7:00 a.m., which we thought was plenty early since it didn't open till 9:00.      Ha!

  Some people went at 5 a.m. and you can see their coffee, blankets, etc.

The line was all along the side and across the back of the building and was getting longer all the time.   It ended up spilling out onto the sidewalk beside the building and kept growing by the minute.

Mind you, the photo above shows only one leg (1/3) of the line at 7:20!

Thank goodness I had a chair in my car so Jane and I took turns sitting.  Also, the weather was slightly cloudy and about 65-70 degrees.

We were getting pretty exhausted by about noon but decided that we already had over 5 hours invested so we'd stick it out.   Finally, they took our phone numbers and had us wait in our cars.  They called us when we could go in.  When we did get in, the shot took seconds but the paperwork before and after took time.

I figure I spent about 2 hours on the phone on Friday and we were waiting about 10 hours on Saturday.   Oh, well, what's a day, anyway?

The happy ending is that we did get our first Covid-19 shot!!!!

The better news is that we have an appointment for our 2nd shot in 28 days. 

Ringing in 2021

We've been isolated in our homes most of 2020 in order to avoid getting the super contagious Covid-19.  

We've welcomed the new year for the past 4 years with Jane and Gene Pinson. The Pinsons live next door to us in Savanna Club in Port St. Lucie, Florida.  AND, they are from Harper's Ferry, West Virginia (about 100 miles due north of our home in Harrisonburg, Virginia).

 I filed those photos of the last 4 years at a very safe place - so safe I can't even find them!  

 Anyhoo, we welcomed 2021 in with champagne while beating on pots and pans in our driveway.

.  Woo-hoo! 

 Happy 2021!