I just opened the blog and realized that my post from last week didn't post--I guess the only people who saw it are our four missionaries (and Sarah) where I do a cut and paste and send it to them.  Sorry...  the rest of you will get a double dose this week.

October 22, 2017

We have now been here five months.  It seems hard to believe.  But it is all good.

Friday I made a visit to the podiatrist to pick up my orthodics for my shoes.  The office is in an older building that might have been apartments originally.  Now there are business offices on the bottom floors.  I noticed an old fashioned mail chute in the lobby.  You can put mail in on any floor and in theory it zips right down to the first floor for the mailman to pick up (sort of like a tiny laundry chute).  I asked the doorman and he said most people are afraid something important might get stuck so they come to the first floor to put it in the box.

Last week I was in the Celestial Room of the temple when a patron noticed my name tag.  She immediately asked, "Are you Rachel Dike's grandma?"  I was so surprised!  She explained that she had been Rachel's Mia Maid leader prior to moving to New York.  I had to laugh--the question wasn't "Are you Chad Dike's mom?" or "Are you Ann Marie Dike's mother-in-law?"  but "Are you Rachel Dike's grandma?"  I asked why she asked such a random question.  She explained that a few weeks previously some friends from Mesa had visited and they told her that Sister Brown was Chad's mom.  I immediately remembered visiting with the Miners at the clothing counter.  They were in the same ward a couple of years ago.  They asked about every one of the Dike kids by name.  I was impressed!  They raved about Ann Marie and I concurred and added some extra comments.  It really is a small world in the church. 

When people from out of town come to the clothing rental I always visit with them a minute to learn where they are from.  Many have interesting stories.  One day there were three Delta Airline pilots on a lay over.  Frequently patrons are visiting from European countries or other foreign countries.

Last Sunday we stopped by the pedestal of the Columbus Statue in Columbus Circle.  It is really a nice tribute.  I hope it never goes away--but there is some negative social pressure to have it removed.  If that really happens, a community out on Long Island wants it.  They have a lot of people of Italian descent living there and they still honor him.

We have been plagued with lots of headaches.  Spencer sees and ENT doctor next week about his ongoing vertigo and headaches.  My allergies turned into a cold and my headaches are out of control.  But I keep reminding myself "This, too, shall pass!"  Then today I missed church in order to go to Urgent Care for a urinary tract infection.  I started the antibiotic about noon, so I hope to have it kick in by tomorrow.

Here a couple more pictures from Walter Rane.  Hope  you enjoy them.

From Spencer:
When I'm on the front desk, I'm always intrigued with peoples' ethnicity, so I often ask.  For example, if their name is Garcia, I just start chatting with them in Spanish.  They love it.  If the name is foreign to me, I ask where that name originates.  They are never offended.  They come from all over the world.  We have a brother who is from Sri Lanka, down below India.  New York must be one of the most diverse places in the world (even diverse hair styles--I mean just plain odd!).
 President Bench, our temple president, has been counseling some ordinance workers about their extreme hair styles to make them more presentable.  They either moderate them or we don't see them around as temple workers anymore. 

 

It is also remarkable that when people travel here on business, they will take time to make it to the temple.  Many times they will ask how do we get to clothing and/or where do I change, etc.  Some patrons come from other nearby states as you would expect.  I love it!

I hope all is going well with each of you.  We count on the assurance that our families are being "watched over" in our absence.  I'm grateful when I hear that brothers and sisters of family are looking out for one another.

 Love to all of you!  Spencer and Jeanine