It may be recalled that when I began this Retrospective
I outlined the sad and serious set of circumstances that began the
year,
namely the death of Marge's mother and one of her
brothers, all within an eight-day period.
As we progressed through the year a degree of normalcy
returned, until September, when we suffered other sad occurrences.
Marge was diagnosed with serious heart blockages,
resulting in a hospital stay and an extreme change in lifestyle
habits.
Fortunately the operation was a success, but from now
on Marge limits the kinds of foods she eats, and has had to slow down
considerably.
As if that weren't enough, within a few days after
Marge's return from the hospital she received a call from her employer
that
she was being forced to retire, after more than 15
years' employment there. Yes, the firm, thanks to lousy management
was
in bad straits given the lackluster U.S. economy, but
our overall household income would soon drop precipitously.
To partially ward-off the problems facing us I became a
volunteer for several political candidates, the primary one,
Barack Obama was re-elected (with the more hopeful
signs that we would be able to preserve our income from Social
Security, presently under attack from the opposition
party).
I continued to shoot stereos, but at a less accelerated
pace, and in October we drove to Barryville for its annual Pumpkin
Festival.
Marshall