SYNAPSES SHORTCIRCUITING

More so than usual, I fear. It's only bound to get worse, too. Conversations are becoming almost impossible since she jumps around so from one subject to another. I can follow, just about, being used to it by now, but when she tells a story (am basing this on when I was last over there) there's always a point I notice where listeners suddenly sit up and become uber-attentive, and you can see them desperately trying to concentrate, to make a connection, however tenuous, between, say, Peg's insistence that Walter, her producer, was "murdered" years ago by an anti-Jewish faction and his tapes made by Holocaust survivors "stolen"--and, oh, the subject of French toast at the Holiday Inn at Newark Airport, which has been segued into with no warning.

Take yesterday's phone call. Or, Why I Like To Be Around When Peg's Giving Interviews:

"Hi. It's me. Well, we watched two new movies. One about that man who can't talk or walk." [Peg's an Academy member, so gets sent all the Oscar nominations every year]

"'The Theory of Everything'. About Stephen Hawking. Did you like it?"

"Not bad. Sort of sad. And the other one, about the Enigma machine." 

"The Imitation Game."

"Was it? Kind of silly. I used to listen to your father talk with Vivi and--what's his name?"

"Ditmar."

"Ditmar--all about the Enigma. About all the homosexuals."

"How would they know, they were in Norway." 

"Oh, they talked about it all the time. In Norwegian of course, so I didn't understand ALL of it [NOTE: Peg speaks no Norwegian except perhaps 'Thank you for dinner'] but oh, they'd go on and on about it."

"Right. So-- when do the Kourys arrive? They're due today, right?"

"I wanted baked beans. Just felt like some, you know? Real ones, not just opening a can, so we made some but I don't think I cooked them long enough, they're hard as rocks."

"Really old ones will never soften. Were they old?"

"No, we just got them. Dominick was quite handsome when he was younger, you know, he showed me a photo. Very dark hair. Lots of it, and curly. 

"Mother, did the Kourys arrive? And did Bonnie make up the beds?"

"They're bringing a leg of lamb."

"I know. You said."

 "Vivi used to get quite heated about it all. They all did."
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Anyway the Kourys did not come, according to Bonnie, seems they started out from New Jersey at 6:00 AM but the roads were so lethal they had to turn back, then Paul slipped trying to get Jackie out of the car (she had a massive stroke at 40) and did something to his back--anyway it was decided to wait until the better weather arrives, whenever that may be. 2096.

Here's something weird. Every single time I sit down to do a post, almost without fail, all I have to do is type "Peg" or "Mother" and my phone rings. It's like she KNOWS. (God forbid)