Happy New Year

NORTHERN NEWS
by Maxine Deeter
We are still getting used to the idea that it is 2014.  How many checks have you written so far with the 2013 date on them?  Fortunately, we don’t write many checks anymore with on-line bill pay, etc.
Many folks welcomed in the New Year with a get-together at the Community Center on New Year’s Eve.  Mostly the main form of entertainment was visiting with friends.  A few folks indulged in karaoke and/or Wii dancing.  Oh, it’s easier to tell what kind of dancing that is when you see it in print. 
Have someone tell you what kind of dancing is going to be done and you might be like me, shaking my head, “We gonna dance, you say?”  Yea, I’m showing my untechno side in this case.  I don’t have kids at home anymore, ergo, no Wii in residence at our old folks’ home.
Attendees brought along snacks to share.  Good way to get rid of all those left over Christmas goodies. 
If that weren’t enough, a “breakfast” was scheduled for 9:30 p.m.  Eatin’ actually commenced a little earlier than that.  The menu was buttermilk pancakes, hash browns, bacon and eggs cooked to order. 
Manning the grills were brothers Lane and Kendall Fuller and Larry Christensen of Old La Sal.  Sure, you just plan on starting your new diet on January 2. 
The party was scheduled to shut down prior to the New Year hustling in.  I can’t tell you if that is true or not as I headed back to the “home” earlier than that.  When I awoke the next morning, 2014 had made its way into town.
All local gatherings of late sound like they are taking place in a TB Ward.  Lots of hacking and coughing going on. The winter gamboozie is making the rounds.  We seem to be a sharing bunch here in Sierra La Sal.  If that’s not enough to keep you uncomfortable, there is also a stomach bug causing havoc.  Don’t you just love winter!
There are lots of kids and oldsters who got electronic for Christmas.  I was visited by my grandchildren, whose tablets and phones were emitting a “blopping” sound.  Sounds like someone popping a bubble gum bubble.  Okay, true confession time.  “Hi, I’m Maxine and I’m a recovering “Flow Free” addict.” 
My grandson introduced me to it a couple of years ago.  It’s a simple enough game – you just draw lines connecting the various colored dots without any crossing of paths.  Like many things in life, you get easily sucked in thinking this is fun and easy.  But each game gets progressively more difficult until you are pulling your hair out trying to draw those paths without crossing. 
Yikes, it’ll drive you nuts.  Go ahead, the app is free.  Go to your apps store and download it.  I dare you!  Hee, hee, once you are addicted, this “free” game allows you to purchase hints and solutions.  Go nuts.
One thing I’ve never mastered which is leaving me out of the know in the world today is Facebook.  I’d rather read a book.  But, most news these days comes via Facebook.  Heck, even the Pope has his own page.  Just for folks like me, some of the younger, more savvy ladies of La Sal will be hosting a Facebook training on February 13 at 7 p.m.  I bet someone can even help you download the “blop” app!  Yes, there will be food.  Really, did you need to ask.
January 21 is the next scheduled meeting of the La Sal Literary Guild.  This month’s read is “Out of Africa”.  It was a little hard getting into the book, but if you happen to have time on you hands while in sick mode, it is actually a good read.  Come join in the discussion whether you’ve read the book or not.  Food?  Of course.
We might have been singing “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas” but it was not to be.  No, we had a lovely “brown” holiday.  I admit, it’s been a magnificent mud season.  Nothing more fun than kids home on holiday break tracking mud in the house.  Yes, I’m actually praying for snow. 
Wishing you a prosperous new year from Sierra La Sal.