30 September 2026

What happened to September? What a busy month! 

Artist has been inspired to create! AND it has come to the attention of Manager that Artist has an abundance of paint! If there are less than 200 bottles of paint in her stash ALL of us in The Hermitage would be shocked!!! She got ALL of the paints and brushes out yesterday to refine a recent painting. Most of us stood in amazement, awe and stunned silence. HOLY COW!!! And the brushes! She put a cup of water on the table in preparation for her work, only to move a few things and over went the glass of water. Thankfully it was only 6 ounces. Kitchen Maid dashed to the scene with two hand towels, and the mop and cleaned things up. Seems she is constantly cleaning up after someone.

Chauffeur has been busy. She is still looking for a new ride, but not diligently. She is and has been for decades, annoyed by carriage shopping. She LOVES many carriages, but knows that they aren’t practical now and is going to have to settle on something else. She has had so many carriages over the decades and really would like to have some of them again, alas that’s not happening. So, she is still, mildly hunting. But not actively. Although we hear they are going to be on sale because of the time of the year. She did take several of us for a much needed drive the other day. Several of those in The Hermitage needed to clear their heads, hearts, and thoughts. They needed to regroup, and they did. She took them to Hemenway Park where they sat out in the grassy area and watched the herd of BigHorn grazing. They visited with others who were there. THEN the sprinklers came on and they all dashed for cover! HOLY COW!!! No signs, just a weird noise and water everywhere! In a way it was delightful and they needed the craziness!

Chef made a pot of loaded potato soup and everyone was delighted. It was delicious! She didn’t screw it up or anything! Everyone in The Hermitage is impressed! Now everyone is trying to get Baker on board with making some things. Cinnamon rolls sound delightful.

Correspondent and Writer have had some difficult days. They have sent several birthday cards to family and friends. She and Writer have been sending letters “across the pond” for about 10 years, to a woman who turned 91 in February. She is delightful and they have enjoyed the fascinating letters over the years. They were somewhat concerned when several weeks went by with nothing. It may have been a couple of months. They expressed concern to the oldest daughter, who said something will come. Well, the next day, the 14^th, it did, from this lovely woman’s daughter. She fell, called the ambulance, went to the hospital, had several strokes, is non-communicative, doesn’t know anyone, can’t walk, etc. They sent a letter back expressing sympathy, etc. They are saddened by this. Then, after several hours on the phone on the 25^th, to Medicare, UHC/AARP, Social Security, ETC., about how those in The Hermitage are being fined for not having Part D from April 1, 2021-March 31^st, 2023, they were fired up! They were told by ALL of the “people” they got to talk to, that, “Yes, we can see that you had HPN, BUT you need to prove it!” OH… MY… GOSH!!! So, together they fired off a rather informative, yet entertaining letter, with forms filled out and PROOF they had “drug” insurance. What a fiasco! They have also decided that they are NOT that impressed with sending text messages. They never have been really. They are NOT read by others with the intent in which they are sent. What they are thinking in their head, heart, etc., is NOT always what is read. They’ve also found that with the update on the phone, as they type, things come up and are included that they never intended to include! GEEZE!!!

Disciple has had another busy, trying, exciting, jubilant, and wild month. She helped with the Day of Service, commemorating 9/11. She was asked to speak in Sacrament meeting, and at a baptism, and guided the lesson on one Sunday. Along with her shift at the Temple on Thursdays, she has subbed a few shifts for others. She has had presidency meetings, correlation meetings, meetings with those in charge, and accompanied the Sister Missionaries on lessons. She has been to lunch with the sisters she works with in the Temple and participated in a painting activity, where we each did a rendition of The Sacred Grove. Yesterday she went to a care home with another friend to visit a 91 year old woman who reminded them SO much of Queen’s mother. It was a very difficult visit for several reasons. However, she sees the hand of God frequently in her life and is grateful. 

Gardener is thankful for the much needed rain. She has been mowing and trimming plants the heat scorched. She is getting ready to thin the iris if anyone wants some, she is more than willing to share. 

HOA Board Member has been dealing with things as well. One of which is a dead chicken. Said chicken was found by a homeowner on the outside of the HOA walls about two months ago. Yes, this has been going on for two months! Two of us have called animal control. Board Member told them EXACTLY where this dead chicken was (NE corner of …), that it looked to be a Rhode Island Red, was in a box about 16” square with long oval “windows”. She did NOT mention that the cardboard box had “McNuggets” written on it. She has learned a lot about animal laws and what you can and can’t do with dead animals. Apparently chickens are not very high on the list of animal concern, as people kill them and eat them. As of yesterday, the box with the chicken is gone. But not by animal control. It’s just MIA. 

Organizer has been busy too. She has gone through about a dozen boxes and found all sorts of things. Thankfully MOST things have been dealt with, and things are going in a positive direction. 

Pluviophile is doing the happy dance around The Hermitage, singing, and is in her glory. She loves when we get rain. It doesn’t happen often, but when it does, she is joyous. The amount of rain at The Hermitage was heavy at times, BUT not like the other side of town, which sent floods through the underground tunnels, washing out all of the homeless and their collectibles. 

Queen had two outings with friends. One was with three wonderful friends to see Practical Magic 2. To say she loved it would be an understatement. She laughed, cried, and several other emotions came out. Then she went to dinner with a long-time friend, and her oldest son and youngest grandson. Great restaurant, great conversation, and steak was perfect! 

All of us are SO blessed and grateful. We don’t know all the answers, and may never know, but we know where to look for guidance and direction. Bless you all! Smile. Enjoy time. We never know how much of it we have. Don’t save things for later. Do it now. Enjoy it now.