days_unfolding

Okay, I ordered a space heater that's supposed to be small but mighty. And portable. We'll see how it works.

Mimi is telling me that it’s tough being a cat.

I'm feeling warmer upstairs today, although I'm making some tea.

I ordered a used copy of Roses for Dummies, written by the same guy who wrote my lawn care book. He seems to be a pretty good author. Oh, I forgot mention that there are daffodils blooming in the back yard. I want to get some irises to plant in the front garden in front of the roses-to-be so that I have a multi-season garden. I also ordered used copies of Flowering Bulbs for Dummies and Trees and Shrubs for Dummies. Hmm, now I'm wondering if the front garden should be just an iris garden, and I would put roses somewhere else. Oh! a place that I looked at has daylilies too! I like daylilies! No, I think that I want an iris garden near my bedroom. Maybe I could mix in some daylilies to make it two seasons? I could expand the tiny garden area near the porch for the roses. Or maybe an iris garden and a separate daylily garden in front, with roses elsewhere? Hmm, irises are poisonous to dogs, but rarely fatal. Daylilies are poisonous to cats, but my cats don't go outside. There is a cat in the neighborhood that goes in my yard though. Very friendly cat. Maybe I should just have a dog run in the back yard and keep a dog out of the front yard. But the dog will want to run around. Maybe the whole back yard could be for the dog.

Okay, I think that I figured it out. Rose garden near my bedroom because roses have thorns. Iris garden by the front porch. I'll expand both garden beds and put in edging. No daylilies. I found a really great iris company.

I'm looking at hostas, but they are poisonous to dogs.

I need to take a picture of the daffodils in the back yard because I think that I want to dig them up and give them away. Hmm, I need to get on the local Freecycle and Buy Nothing groups.

I found some instructions on how to remove grass around trees and add mulch. I read that mowing near trees isn't good for them. I'm looking at used electric weed wackers on Facebook Marketplace.

Ugh. I'm going to have to hire someone to till the garden areas. A tiller weighs from 100-200 pounds, which is too heavy for me.

Oh, I forgot to mention that I registered yesterday for my conference in Minneapolis in May. I'm taking the train over there, which should be interesting.

Okay. Made some phone calls. Zara's meds are being shipped to me (at the right address). The Daily Look box is getting picked up tomorrow and getting reshipped to me. I called about the CPAP, and I'll ship it to them via UPS this weekend.

Both cats are completely crashed out, but I expect Zara to get up for food in an hour or two.

The estate sale guy called, and I will be getting almost $7000. I asked if they could send the check overnight mail, and they said that they would have to get back to me on that. I'd like to have it before I go back to Michigan.

I talked to my advisor and came up with some strategies for getting help with my classes. She also suggested garage sales and estate sales for me to get bookcases. I looked on Facebook Marketplace, and found a couple who makes bookcases to order for cheaper than Wayfair charges for flimsier bookcases. I'd have to get someone to move them for me though.

I looked up to see Zara giving me the "I want food" stare (done). And oh ho, someone tried to get into the catnip. I put it on a top shelf.

I had a session with the TA for my programming class. It was very helpful. She also is willing to do code reviews of our assignments, and she looked at mine and found some errors that I made. We also had a group study session.

I got the recycling out, which involved flattening several boxes and getting them outside. No one picked up my garbage yesterday.

I need to work on my program, but I'm tired, so I'm going to go to bed early and get up early to work on it.

I’m going to cancel my massage. I’m low on funds, plus I want to talk to the estate sale person. They’ll probably charge a cancellation fee, but so be it.

Huh. Took a nap and woke up before my alarm, but I feel like going back to bed.

I canceled the appointment. They said that if they can’t fill that appointment, they will charge one-half the service cost. Fair. The funny thing is that I do have a sore throat. I think that I’ll have some Ramen. And hmm, I forgot to get more frozen yogurt yesterday. I’m dehydrated and getting a headache. I’m going to lie down with Zara for a little while. Couldn’t sleep.

I’m having IBS symptoms, and I don’t want to be stuck at the storage unit without a bathroom, so I’m going to stay home. I have plenty to do around here.

Showered. Hung up the “Do not let the cats out” sign. Found a spot for cleaning supplies and light bulbs. Got my cube-shaped acrylic organizers, and things do look neater in there. I think that I want to replace my plastic baskets with acrylic when I have the money.

Went through another bag of clothes. I think that I’m going to wind up with too many clothes and will need to take another pass at them.

I started working on homework. Now I’m waiting for the estate sale person to call. She seems to call later and later each day. Call. I really want to lie down.

That was weird. Her call went directly to voicemail. Okay. They did over $4500 today. There still is a lot of stuff left. Jake, the guy with whom I was working to set up the sale, will be in touch Monday or Tuesday.

Lay down. Couldn’t sleep. Back to homework. Made an arrangement with a TA to discuss some things from class during his Office Hours tomorrow. I think that's as far as I'll get with my algorithms homework tonight, and I want to work on the program tomorrow morning when I'm fresh. Plus Zara wants food. So I think that I'll go through another bag of clothes.

Sigh. I’m trying to explain to Zara that I won’t feed her on the bed. She needs to come down to the floor. I don’t want food crumbs on the bed. She is being stubborn. And Mimi wants attention.

I soaked the dishes and cleaned up the kitchen. Emailed the pet sitter. I'm going to finish the dishes and scoop the litter boxes and get ready for bed.

I keep looking at the kitchen, which looks lovely.

I’m looking at pegboard to organize my tools. I need to clear out the room in the basement though. The organization in the bathroom is paying off. I need a way to organize shoes in there because I keep the shoes that I wear the most in there.

Mimi is rubbing against the railings on the stairs. “I claim this in the name of cat.” There is a cat head sticking out meowing at me. She also filed herself in my "to file" basket. Goof.

Where can I grow blueberries in the yard?

I need to pick up some catnip at PetSmart on the weekend. I’m my cats’ dealer :) There was something that I needed to get at Lowe’s, but I don’t remember what. I remember; I need to get a plug for the bathtub. And bubble bath or a bath bomb. And I need to drop donations at Goodwill and go to the storage unit. And go to the UPS Store for Amazon returns and shredding. And Comcast to return the router. I need to make a list.

I got on Nextdoor for my neighborhood. Someone was advertising yard work, but I think that I should save money and do it myself. But I also was wondering if I could get a housekeeper to clean the kitchen and the bathrooms, so I don’t know. I’m a little tight on cash right now, which is affecting my perception.

I talked to the trust. They can have my taxes prepared for me for $300 from the trust, which I decided to do. They're connecting me with a tax specialist.

I can rent a tiller from Home Depot for $46 per day. I think that I'll put in my vegetable garden myself and pretty it up later. Actually, Gardener's Supply sells edging. Sweat equity :) I also checked how much a sprinkler system would cost. Probably not any time soon. I also found out that you can rent an aerator from Home Depot! That's the way to go for the lawn!

Today I got a plethora of Amazon boxes. I agreed that they all could arrive the same day, but I thought that would reduce the number of boxes. Nope. I got cat toys (I left them in Michigan and kicked myself because they weren’t cheap), a colander (I’m all about pasta), a tea kettle that I’m going to return because they got mine clean, command hooks to hang the “Please don’t let the cats out” sign, a level for hanging pictures, more picture-hanging hardware, and a toothbrush holder. And I’m probably forgetting something.

Because the cats are sleeping, I think that I’ll take my nap now and process a clothes bag later. I also need to process my long list of Amazon returns and flatten boxes.

The estate sale people said that they did $7500 in sales today, and it isn’t even the weekend yet! Awesome!

Oops, Zara is up and wants food (done).

Tried to nap but just dozed lightly. I decided that I was hungry. Just as well because I need to go get some tape for my returns. Hmm, but I want to go to bed early. Meijer opens at 6 AM, so I could go get tape in the morning. Lowe’s is open early too.

I’m pondering where to put old towels that I use as rags.

I ordered a set of bath bombs for slightly more than one costs at Bath and Body Works on Amazon. So I’ll have some nice baths to come.

Well heck. If I want early crops like lettuce and peas, I’d need to plant them around the end of the month. I’m not going to have the garden set up by then. I could grow green beans in the summer.

I'm going to go to sleep. After I finish petting Mimi, who has decided that when I sit down at a computer, it's petting time.