Happy Birthday, Mom

Zara has rediscovered the joy of hiding under a table with a tablecloth at the top of the stairs. When she was a young cat, she used to hide there and jump out at us, and we would pretend to be surprised. Now she just likes it as a place to hide.

Zara was scratching at the door when I was getting dressed after my shower. I opened the door and she ran away. I found her sitting pointedly by her food bowl downstairs. Okay, I get the message :)

Today is my mom's birthday. Sigh.

I think that I will get the refurbished iPhone (14). I like the "Pro" version, which is more expensive but has a lot of features that I like.

I've got an appointment next week with a realtor.

I emailed my professor for the programming classes next spring and heard back. She said that I shouldn't have any problems registering for classes, but to contact her if I have any issues.

The box with the stepper got here early. I managed to get it in the front door. Tomorrow (which I'm taking off of work), I'll clear a path for the guys who are coming on Friday to bring it downstairs.

I'm looking at a trip to Paris in 2025. My dad loves Paris, and it would be great to discuss my trip with him. Road Scholar has an "independent" trip that goes to a lot of the museums but also has free time. I'd need to brush up on my French. Road Scholar doesn't have the dates for 2025 up yet. All their single rooms for 2024 are sold out, so I need to register as soon as the dates go up. They said that they'd email me when the 2025 dates go up.

I should apply for Global Entry while I'm here because it would be easier to get to the airport here. Oh crud, it takes four to six months to get an appointment for an interview. I guess that I'll have to go up to Chicago. And I need to apply NOW.

I'm going to make appointments with an Italian teacher (booked a lesson) and French teacher (contacted the teacher, who said that she was booked up).

Okay, I bought the iPhone after checking the company out (it wasn't on eBay, but was a separate company called Reebelo), and they seem legit. I also bought an extra charger from Amazon.

I lay down for a while but didn't sleep. I got some snuggles with Mimi. It's cold and rainy outside, and I'm wearing short sleeves, so I'm going to put on my extra warm pajamas.

I checked on a Website, and I can get $166 for my Pixel 6 Pro. I'll take it once I get the iPhone set up.

Oh crud. My Kia Soul is on a recall list. But it has to do with fires, so it's important. At least the Kia dealer here is cool.

I filled out the Global Entry application, and was checking some errors that it thought that I had in the addresses, and now I'm getting a server error. Shit. I'll post and try again in a few minutes like they suggested. They should have most of it saved if I have to quit out.

Poetry in Motion

I was looking at a book of poetry by someone who was with me in the writing group at my high school, and an idea for a poem is percolating in my head. I'll have to squeeze out time to write, but I have so much to do today. How do people who write creatively for a living get things done? Okay, ideas kept flowing and I have a draft that I like.

Passages

I might have walked right past you
Not knowing
The map of your face
The cup of your heart

I might have walked right past you
Not knowing
The strings of your hands
The sparks of your years

I might have walked right past you
And not knowing
Walked with my head down
Staring at the sidewalk

©2023 Adrienne Radzvickas

I think that it's not bad given that I haven't written poetry in years. Writing was on my list of things to do in retirement, but maybe I can start earlier? I'm also going to look into getting a book of poetry prompts. Maybe try to write a poem a week? I came up with ideas for another poem as I was falling asleep for my nap. Actually, I have a book of poetry prompts on the Kindle. I bought Mary Oliver's book on poetry. I found a poetry critique group that meets in Champaign. It would be a good way to meet people too. I drafted another poem, but I'm not sure that I'm done with it yet.

I had my session with the life coach. She was impressed by how much I'm getting done. She asked if I was doing stuff for me, and I mentioned the singing and guitar and Italian lessons. I also mentioned the diet, and she was impressed.

Took a short nap. Talked to my weight loss coach. She still is talking about the water even though I don't want to talk about the water. Sigh. I lost another pound, maybe more because I weighed myself in the afternoon with clothes on.

Brought this week's food in the house. Paid my next installment on my Italy bill. Worked on clearing a path for the guys to bring the stepper downstairs. Placed a Meijer order for garbage bags and soda.

I'm getting a headache, so I need to eat and lie down for a little while. I dozed a little while, but pieces of poetry bubbled up. My creative mind is most active when I'm falling asleep. I also found that with writing programs. I now have a poetry notebook that I keep by my bed to write down ideas.

Paid some bills. I'm running out of steam, so I'm going to go to bed and get up early.