I went up to the Detention Center this morning at 10:00. The Captain was out sick but I was able to drop off the Walmart gift cards to the Sheriff. We had a good conversation. He expressed his appreciation for all we are doing for the Detainees and the Center.
We had a long conversation about transporting released Detainees. He recommended I attempt to find a third-party transportation company. It is possible that volunteers could sign up to be an Uber driver and only Uber released Detainees. That way Uber would carry the insurance liability risk. I will look into how difficult it is to become an Uber driver. The Sheriff agrees that the risk for volunteers is too high and that he would not recommend we do that.
I did ask him if there were other things we could do for the Detainees. He didn’t have anything at the top of his mind but he promised to consider it and see what they could come up with.
When I got home I worked on my Christmas cards. It took me a couple of hours but I got them all done. I cut back the list of people I send cards to. I wonder if the people I cut out will miss them? I doubt it! I have to go to Emporia tomorrow so will drop them in the mailbox while I am in town.
After I got the cards done I made sugar cookies. I only made a single batch as we don’t eat as many as we used to. I was grateful I only had to deal with a single batch as I was tired of them by the time I got them rolled out, cut and baked and then frosted. I haven’t tried one yet but they look edible.
I still need to finish cleaning up the kitchen. I needed to sit and take a break for a hot minute before I finished cleaning up. I sure do make a mess when I make something like sugar cookies. I found some chocolate splatters from yesterday that I had missed when I cleaned up yesterday.
I still need to make peppernuts and New Year’s Cookies and then I think my Christmas baking will be done. I may need to make a second batch of fudge and peanut brittle to have enough to take to my brothers but I will see how much is left over after Saturday. I am going to see my Aunt in Wichita next week and I want to take her some treats too.
Phil worked on the addition this afternoon. He got the trim up around the bathroom door. It still needs painted but then I think the only thing left is to finish the shower and to get heat/air back there. We are so close to having it done. It sure is easier to cook with the stuff on the racks. I can find what I need so much easier. I still need to delete some stuff though as some of the shelves are too crowded.
Phil got the new window shades hung in the addition. I really like them and think I will order some just like them for other rooms in the house. The cheap blinds get so dirty and they are hard to clean. Some of the blinds have broken slates and need replaced.
Phil told me about a friend of his who had to spend a couple weeks in the Detention Center. His friend happened to be there the week of Thanksgiving and got to partake in the pizza and cookie party. His friend had told Phil that there was a guy in the Detention Center that had been there for over four years and how excited he was to get pizza. The friend said the pizza really lightened things up for a bit.
The lady that took my bag of outerwear came over this afternoon. I had left a pair of gloves and two keys in the pocket of the coat. Have no idea where the keys go. It was extremely considerate of her to return them. I didn’t recognize the lady – I should have asked her to tell me her name.
Tomorrow early afternoon I am meeting a family that needs to get some end of life plans in place. I have a feeling they have too many assets for me to help them. I have given them my estate attorney’s name and number and am thinking they have already called him. I will see what I can help them with and go from there. When people have larger estates I think they need professional help and refer them out for estate planning. I can help with funeral plans, DPOA, etc.
Friday I have to go back to go back to Emporia to pick up a cake. I need to stop and get a few groceries. I usually make bourbon slush (or as my mother used to call it Hop Skip and Go Naked punch). I forgot to get the ingredients to make it.
Looking forward to Saturday and having all the kids come home for the day. I am almost ready for Christmas!
I ordered a coat rack for the back room today. We will be using the back door to take the dogs for walks and with cold weather upon us it would be handy to leave coats by the back door.
I also ordered a few long sleeve shirts. I cleaned out my closet and realized I needed a few more winter shirts. I have room for them now that I cleaned things out.
It has been a good week and I feel like I have gotten a lot done. Still have several things on my to-do list but am making good progress. It will be good to be in service to a family tomorrow and help them with some end of life plans. That is never an easy thing to do, especially under stress, but hoping it will lightened their load later.
Grateful the sugar cookies are baked and frosted, grateful the gift cards are at the Detention Center, and grateful more progress was made on the addition today.