We had a relatively quiet day.

Started out with a nice brisk walk, as usual. I hope to get out to terrace the little steep incline in back of the house soon. It is OK now but if we get rain, it will be slippery.

I cleaned the kitchen floor quickly. Last week, I did nothing because of my tests and it was filthy. Then we trucked Dick over to the Plymouth Clinic for his therapy. I think he is doing well. He goes through several different low impact exercises for 30 minutes. I am seeing that he seems steadier at the end than at the beginning. I guess that is good.

When we got home there was a message from Dr. Siddique's office. He had been called into an emergency and it was possible that we would have to cancel. She would call by 12:30 (when we would be leaving) to let us know. SO we proceeded with Dick's shower and washing stockings and all and just as I was dressing the callous on his foot they called and DID cancel. We now have our next appointment on May 2. So have two weeks off. Neither of us were disappointed. We both laid down for naps and I don't know about him but I slept for a hour and a half.

Then I did some other odd chores around here and vacuumed the den downstairs.

Tonight, Nancy Roehre picked me up just before 5 and we went out to shoot league pistol. That was fun. She is a joy and I am so glad that I have someone to shoot with. I do hope that after Bobbie finishes her year off, she will come out to shoot league at Rhine again. She is so good and would be impressed at how good Lil has become. Real competition. It would be such fun to have several of us gals shooting.

We were talking about the "green push" that is going on these days. The "footprint" that we leave behind when we die. She commented that our generation and previous generations were much better at wisely using things. We saved string and glass jars and scraps of fabric. We grew small gardens and preserved our produce for the winters. We still do a lot of that. Kate Herman said that when she lived in Kohler they called her Canning Katie because she canned produce for the winter. AND it was not a compliment. I, and Nancy too, said we are still trying to be frugal and use everything that is possible.

Beth and I were talking on our pre cemetery tour. She mentioned that a man is doing research on the suicide of a young woman who lived with her father and brothers in the late 1800's. I told her that I bet it was the young woman that my Grandpa, John Bowser, told my Mother about. The poor woman, according to Grandpa, lived with her brothers and father after the mother died and was mistreated. She walked down to Long Lake and drowned herself. Grandpa remembered them bringing that poor body up from the lake in a buckboard with her long dark hair streaming down the back. (Such a memory for Grandpa to carry in his heart. Maybe this is why he was so quick to respond when Aunt Gee came to him telling him that she was afraid of her husband some years later.) Anyway, they buried that woman "over the wall" of the church cemetery near Mauthe Lake. Thank God that the "church" got wise to that barbaric custom. Not only did that poor tortured soul get "confined to Hell". (Not really) But the family felt that way too. I loved what my Mother said to the sister of a suicide. "God will be gentle with him when he reaches the gates of heaven.' My wise gentle Mother.

Love

Mary