Firsts

Moving to Tioga County Penna offered me some experiences I would not have had in my previous life in Denver or Colorado Springs. Here are three of the new:

I ate popcorn for supper on Sunday evening for the first time. Quite a few of my friends have popcorn for supper around here. Just popcorn. Everyone has a popcorn popper. At our Family Movie night last Saturday, we had popcorn and discussed the best way to pop corn. Some swear by the stove method – high heat and a paddle inside the pan to keep the corn moving. Some use the microwave because that way there is no mess. I use an air popper (recommended by the neighbor 4 hourses away - so that my “meal” does not have lots the trans fats I would have had if using the stove and butter.

Another first: When it snows my 90-year-old neighbor gets out his riding snow blower – I think he needs a drivers license for it – and cleans off my sidewalks and drive. He does this for every person in our block. If I had chosen a block for my home, I could not have done better. In the summer, when he has no snow to blow, he uses the driving snow blower to drive around the neighborhood. Our street does not have much traffic except 30 minutes before and after school when the buses go up our one-way street. Not only does my neighbor help the neighbors, he knows every person on the street. This first reminds me: I need to make a cake and take it to him.

My last first, is about communication. When important things happen I learned that word-of-mouth is faster than Twitter. One of my congregation members died on Sunday after alternating between hospital recovery center and home for months. She was beloved in the community and I knew many would want to know about the service. I emailed the congregation, assuming they would not know yet. HA! Even as the day and time for the funeral was still being set, people were keeping Friday afternoon open so they could attend. Our church holds 160 if every person is really friendly and squeezes together. Our Fellowship Hall, another 100 who use deodorant. I am hoping that is enough room.