WELCOME 2024, out with the OLD, in with the NEW

Very quiet in the Bait and Tackle shop so far this week?  Looks like all those who post here have, "just settled down for a long Winter's Nap"?    Sounds like a good idea to me, but lots to do around here today.  Daughter Shelley is coming over this morning to put away all the Christmas decorations, and wrap the little tree in its box until next year.

Mary Page - Hoping that Chip is over his recent illness, and that things are back to normal in your household?  Glad you had a chance to connect with so many of your great-grands at Debi's house!

Jenny - Sorry you and Bob have one of the many respiratory illnesses that are circulating this year.   Hope you're both feeling better? Be sure to post any new photos of your family!

Joanne - Everyone here is getting excited about the 49er's!   Looks like it's going to be their turn at the Super Bowl this year?  I'm sure you have your predictions, and I would love to hear what they are?   I haven't had a chance to go to the Garden Center yet . . . too much damp drizzly weather.  I'll likely put it off until next week.
Happy Belated Birthday to you!

Jackie - thanks for being the first to wish us a Happy New Year "Out with the old and in with the new" reminds me of the poem by Robert Service, that I usually post every year.  I'll remember to do that this afternoon!

The way the line ups are right now, it's anybody's guess who will get to the SuperBowl.  So much hinges on how the better teams do against their lesser opponents this weekend. The Cowboys play the Commanders, and I WILL NOT COUNT that as an automatic win for Cowboys,they seem to beat the better teams and lose to the lesser ones.  I think the Bills might do well; but there are so many teams who might get lucky, or play better!!  I'll wait to do predictions after this week has finished.  I suppose AJ is watching Hockey.  I only know that my Dallas Stars lost at home again, bah.  I hope your weather improves. We are doing the "Texas Weather thing", vacillating back & forth from 60's to 40's.
One never knows to grab a coat, or strip down to your walking shorts!
I seem to run so "cold" lately, I usually have on three shirts: tank top, T-Shirt and flannel shirt or sweatshirt. Makes more laundry to do, but keeps me warm.  Best wishes to you both!  I had another one of those light bulb moments:  for some reason the song "Night and Day" popped into my head and I started wondering who would be considered as having the best version of it? Vocal rendition?  Let's all the music lovers here put in their 2 cents.  I'm actually still undecided (but first thought is Sinatra).

I am not particularly fond of Frank Sinatra. He has done some songs I really like, but this isn't one. The same for Big Band sounds. I do like the more bluesy/jazzy sounds. I remember a female singer with a nice bluesy/sultry touch but I can't remember who it was. Been a long time ago. Billy Holiday did a nice rendition, but I don't think she is who I am remembering.

Joanne, I spent most of the afternoon listening to and watching dozens of versions of  Night and Day , on YouTube.  I'm convinced that every vocalist we've ever heard of - both male and female - recorded that beautiful song.  That includes the song writer himself, Cole Porter. 

It was a pleasure to listen to all those voices from years gone by, but I couldn't make up my mind as to which one I liked best?  Pick a famous or favorite  singer from the past, go to YouTube, and I'm sure it will be there. 

MarsGal - Billy Holiday's version was on You Tube, as well as Ella Fitzgerald, Carly Simon, and many other women.  Also at least a dozen or more men.  Cole Porter's version was clear and easy to hear every word. He had a great voice!  The only problem with it was that the lead-in to the vocal was way too long.  There were also quite a few of Fred Astaire singing the words and dancing with Ginger.
(I'm thinking I should have posted this on the  "Just Plain Old Music" discussion.)

I did not much like Frank Sinatra, but Oh!  Could he ever sing!  And Bing Crosby.
 We did not have all these bands and groups teenagers have today, but those two were wonderful!

Thank you for asking after Chip, Marilynn.  He is still sick.
 Worries me to death.  I am not doing particularly well, myself;
 so we are a pair, we are!  Becky went home to Kansas City last night.  Debi is sick, and saw a doctor today;  but her daughter's husband had a heart attack today, so she has their two little girls for the night and will have to try to get them to their very separate schools tomorrow.  Sometimes it really gets piled on, does it not!  This, too, will pass.  Hope you all manage to keep away from all the sickness out there!  You each matter to me.  A lot!

FWIW --- Those rubber coated gloves mentioned above --- Go to Amazon and do a "Search" for "rubber coated gloves". Loads of them there.

Amazon has a great pair from Pine Tree Tools, and I had bought a pair of those, which I also like, but didn't want to mess them up for simply opening jars and stuff, so bought the $1 ones  and like them almost as well.  The Pine Tree ones have the rubber-like coating, black, all fingers and palm.  I think they were $7.98 when I purchased.  That's also a good choice as the wrist and tops of the fingers are stretchy, and fit really snugly.

. . . But Rick, where's the fun in that?  I'm tired of shopping from Amazon.  Lots more fun to go to the big Woolworth's Garden Center, and look at all the gloves, and try them on before buying. Also tons of other interesting things to see there, like flower pots, birdbaths, indoor and outdoor  plants, and lots of other stuff that will get my attention and give me a break from this old house. I'm already starting to get The Winter Blues!    

Mary Page - Sorry there are so many Winter illnesses in your family right now - plus Chip still not being back to normal.  Your granddaughter's husband must  be quite young to have a heart attack?  I hope you keep us posted on how he is doing, and Debi and Chip too.  Also hope that you are okay, and feeling better by the time you read this message?

Joanne - I just saw your last message, as I was writing this one. It's nice to take a break from Amazon, so I plan to have a nice Winter outing tomorrow or Saturday!   

"Woolworth's Garden Center" --- That's great if you have one.     Off to bed now

Gosh, Woolworth's! Are they any relation to the F.W. Woolworth five and dime stores? I did a look-up but didn't find the garden center. But...

What I did find was a whole history of F. W. Woolworth which I thought finally died in the late nineties. Well, no they didn't. They just closed their dime stores and changed their name to Foot Locker. Foot Locker?

More business history at work here. Remember Kinney's Shoes? I remember the warehouse near here was taken over by Foot Locker. I had no idea that Foot Locker was actually a subsidiary brand that Kinney started. I thought Kinney went out of business. But no, Kinney changed its name to Foot Locker then got sold to Woolworth. Woolworth owns or owned subsidiary companies in several overseas countries, but I am not sure how many are still in operation except for in Poland.

And how many are there in Poland?

Mars and Rick -  Okay, I did a little research, and found that the Woolworth's Nursery and Garden Centers, changed their name a few years ago to  Summer Winds Nursery.   Old habits die hard, which is why I still refer to it as Woolworths.    There is one left in San Jose, still named Woolworth's. (according to online site.)  Whatever it's called, the store  nearest to me in the City of Campbell, is where I shop.  A huge nursery with everything you could ever need or want for your yard.  I was hoping to go today, but it's still drippy and cold, so I won't go unless the sun comes out and things dry out.

I did notice that, besides Poland, the stores are still called Woolworths, in the country of South Africa. 🤔  Can't help wondering if Elon Musk bought the chain, or maybe bought rights to the name?  Maybe they still have the old fashioned  Woolworth dime stores in SA?  I'd love to step into one of those again some day.  Especially the lunch counter! 

MARILYNE, John is 46 and will be 47 in June.  Remember, I am 94.  My oldest GREAT grandchild is 30 years old, and the youngest is 2 years old.
So 46 is about right for a grandson. 

He was picking Ava up from her gymnastics class when he had the heart attack.  An ambulance was called, came immediately and rushed him to hospital.  They took him right into surgery, where they saved his life.  They said only minutes more, and it would have been too late.  His sisters have flown in, Kathryn, his wife & my granddaughter, flew in (she has a job with Johnson & Johnson which takes her all over the country) and all is being taken care of and arranged. 

In the meantime, Chip improves slowly.  I am not on the get well list.  We bumble along as best we can.  It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood.  All sunshine and blue skies, with the Chesapeake Bay gleaming like a new dollar bill.

I didn't notice a number Rick, but they just opened one last year in Poland, don't know if it is the first or in addition to others. The Woolworth's in Mexico, BTW, were bought out in 1007 by the Mexican executives and are managed by a holding company called Grupo Comercial Control and operate under the name Woolworth Mexicana.

Marilyne, it appears that the Woolworth's in South Africa is not related to W. F. Woolworth except the use of the name. F. W. Woolworth went to court to get an injunction again the company for using its name (this was in 1931?). It lost. The South Africa Woolworths has been involved in a number of court cases against it for copying text and designs of other companies. They appear to use the Marks and Spenser model of for store design, layout and branding.

Believe it or not, there is a virtual museum you can read online or download to print. https://www.woolworthsmuseum.co.uk/aboutwoolies.html

Sadly the demise of our ( UK ) 100 years history, Woolworths,( or Woolies, as it was affectionally known as ) happened in January 2009...They were once a fixture of our UK high streets..It was a loved store...After i left school 1966, i once briefly worked there on the haberdashery counter...Link...

https://woolworthsreunited.com/30s/nixsix.html

I remember a Woolworth's Five & Dime (we called them then "five and ten cent stores."  I cannot name a particular place, as they were all over, and so was I.  I have absolutely no memory of them changing in any way, but it sounds as though they surely did!

Jackie - Our Woolworth Stores here in the US, closed a decade before yours in the UK.  Last one here, closed in 1997.  As I recall, there was no big news ahead of time?  They were just  suddenly empty, with no advance notice or closing sales.  It was a beloved chain here too,  recognizable in all small towns and big cities, with that big red and white storefront.  I also had my first job at Woolworths, working in the Infants and Children's Department.

Mary Page - I don't think they ever changed, they just disappeared.  I especially remember the lunch counter . . . they had the best grilled cheese sandwiches!  Also Woolworth's was the only store that sold Tangee Lipstick.  You probably remember it?  It looked colorless when you first applied it, but then changed to a soft pink.
There's hoping John and Chip, are both doing well today?  Also all those family members who are suffering with colds and flu's.  Hope you're staying healthy? 

I used to love to wander through the Woolworth's store. Shopping downtown Mechanicsburg, PA was a must at Christmas for me when I was a teen. Besides, Woolworths, there was a shop (Biddle's) that was all about sewing, and handwork. Your could get all manner of cloth, sewing patterns, embroidery and needlepoint, etc. there in a narrow little shop. It occupied the ground floor and the basement area, apartments above. The Ritter's Hardware store usually had something I could get for Dad, and there was the little gift shop that I never failed to check into for knick-knacks and wonderful cards and gift books. Sue and I, and sometimes friends, frequently walked into town. I only took about 20 minute. Uh, oh! I'm getting lost in Memory Lane. What fun!

MarsGal...
...you are not the only one getting lost in memory lane..I also remember as a very young child the shops that were once near to our local Woolworth's that have now long gone such as, a, Rainbows, a Williams Brothers,  A Victor Values...

We had three 5 & 10s downtown (Grants, Woolworth, And, I believe the other was Grand. - all gone now. At least one replaced by another similar store, and now I have no idea what's there. So much change in the "Downtown" area.

Just to close out our discussion on Woolworths, and the other five and ten cent stores from long ago, here's a song that was popular in 1931, during the Depression years.  I wasn't born for three more years, but I can remember my Dad singing this to me when I was very young, along with many other pop songs from that era.   Here it is by Bing Crosby, recorded in '31.   I Found a Million Dollar Baby, in the Five and Ten Cent Store. 

Marilyne, here's a tidbit about that song.  We used to go to the Cafeteria where they had an Organist who played anything you requested.  She was a genius.  Anyway, anytime we'd go, I'd request "I Found A Million Dollar Baby".and she really could do wonders to that song.  Got to where she'd see us come in and would play it!  Her name was Ms. Inez.  She passed several years ago, but was a Dallas fixture.  Used to play at baseball games, had a Talent Show for young people at one of our major theatre venues (I participated in that, but as I have posted before, my boyfriend at the time beat me out on piano. I was simply a singer).

Marilyne, here's my totals for the football picks wins and losses:

Wins:  Dallas over Washington
       New Orleans over Atlanta
       Detroit over Minnesota
       Tampa Bay or Carolina
       Seattle over Arizona
       Green Bay over Chicago
I had several matchups that I've not gotten final scores for, but I sure didn't pick New York Giants to beat Philadelphia.  The game that is playing right now (8:05) I am picking Buffalo over Miami.  We'll see how that turns out.

MARILYNE, I remember that song well!

Good evening.

I am still among the living but holding on with all my might😩😩

I finally got the OK today that my spine / neck surgery will be done this coming Wednesday the 10th.  I had my physical last Thursday and the way I was feeling I was quite concerned that they would even consider doing it.  They said they would call me Monday, today to let me know and thankfully they did all is OK. 

I hope that I will soon be feeling better and will be able to join in here more often.  I miss you all and your daily going's on🥰🥰🥰

Good luck on Wednesday. We'll see you back here soon.

Jenny - I'm so glad that you're having the surgery at last, but sad that it's taken so long for it to finally happen.  Now we will all be hoping that this time, it will be successful, and you will be able to resume your normal life again.   Prayers and good, positive feelings going out to you!  Let us know as soon as you're able to post.   

Jenny, Sue and I wish you the best outcome from your surgery.

Well, I am astonished. Except for one on Lake Superior, three on lake Michigan and the Drummond ferry at St. Mary's River, there is not a single ship moving on the lakes this morning. They are all at port or at anchored close to the coast. In fact, there isn't anything moving on the St. Lawrence between Lake Ontario and just a little below Quebec. With a little investigation, I found the National Weather Service page with readings from the buoys in the region. Looks like a lot of gale warnings out for the whole region. https://www.weather.gov/greatlakes/

The forecast for here shows very cold weather has arrived here and will stay that way for at least the next 10 days.