days_unfolding

Hell. I feel like going to sleep and getting up early. I need a snack though (done). I DO have to get up early because of my Italian lesson. I didn’t go to the grocery store. Tomorrow.

I’m looking into French lessons as well.

I’m explaining to Oliver and Lily that they are not starving to death. They are not convinced.

It’s hot.

I brought a garbage bag into the bedroom to clean it up. Oliver is reaching under the door and pulling it out. This is a zoo :)

I got my electric bill and need to start turning off the porch light at night. Expensive to leave it on.

I’m pleased with myself. There is a book called No New Things, which I want to read, but I requested it from the library.

I’m having problems falling asleep. Suckage. Finally did. Got up a little after 6 AM.

I'm ready for my Italian lesson. Had the lesson. My teacher was sad about Mimi. We talked about the cruise for a while. Oliver and Lily showed up to say "Hi". We won't have a lesson for another three weeks because I'm gone next week and my teacher is gone the following week.

I'm really stressing about my check. Silence from the trust.

I have to hand it to Ameren. They replaced my gas meter and asked me to call them to have the gas turned back on. (They had been trying to set a time with me, but I kept forgetting to call them.) They had someone come out right away. Hot water for showers!

I have stomach cramps, plus I have to gather garbage, plus I’m tired, so I’m not going to the store tonight. I need to eat up some of the food that I have stashed. I listed my pet ramp that I bought for Bella to get into my car for sale on Facebook. (She didn't need it. She can get into my car perfectly well. She just didn't want to go in there.) I hope that someone will buy it. I'm trying to think of other things to sell.

Got the garbage out. I’m going to have some Ramen noodles and go to bed.

One might ask, why were you studying Italian when you hadn't been to Italy yet? I was thinking of an answer to that, which led me to my relationship with foreign languages in general.

I grew up around foreign languages. My dad immigrated from Lithuania when he was a kid, and the older generation all spoke Lithuanian, which I did not know. My mom's family was from Poland, second generation, and a lot of the older relatives spoke Polish, which I don't speak either. Sometimes it was awkward, when I would hear "blah blah blah Adrienne blah blah blah," and I would sit there with a stupid smile on my face :) But hearing foreign languages is kind of soothing to me? I know that people complain about people speaking foreign languages around them, but I don't feel that way at all. Do I kick myself for not learning Lithuanian and Polish when I was a kid? You bet.

My school started foreign languages in middle school, around 12ish years old for folks not in the US. The choices were French or Spanish, and I took French. Thus began a long love affair with French. I took it from middle school into high school, and placed in Advanced Honors French at university. There I kept it up until I was taking classes with the people who were majoring in French, which I wasn't, so I dropped out. Why didn't you minor in French, Adrienne?

I still think in French occasionally. (I remember being mortified in high school when I found myself trying to translate French into French, not realizing what a good sign that was.) And it's there somewhere. One of the most annoying things about learning Italian is that when I think of how to say something in Italian, my mind pops up with the French first, and I think that the French is right. But the problem with living in the US is that you don't get a chance to use it. One of many reasons that I love the Internet is that it allows me to take language lessons over it. And when I go back and review my French, I suspect that I'll relearn it quite quickly. Last fall, I had a teacher for Italian and French who taught in Italian and French with very little English (just when I needed a word defined), and the French was much easier.

I also took a two-semester class in Chinese over a summer at the end of my university days because I needed some extra credit hours and it sounded cool. Well. Chinese is HARD. Hardest "B" I ever got. Plus I was sick of Chinese by the end of the summer. I remember none of it except "ni hao" (hello).

So, Italian. My mom loved Italy, and she was taking an informal Italian class at a nearby school. I did something similar, thinking that we could practice bad Italian together. I didn't like the class, but it got me interested in Italian. I bought Rosetta Stone in Italian, and worked with that a little, only to find that I didn't like it as a language-learning method. Then I saw an Internet ad for online tutoring, and I thought that I'd try Italian. I did that for a few months, but then my teacher needed to take some time off. In the meantime, I saw an post about a group Italian class that someone was having, so I joined it. I did the class for a few months and liked the teacher, but we were having problems finding a time that was good for everyone, so we switched to private lessons. That was working well, but then my teacher decided to go back to school for a Master's Degree, so he stopped teaching.

Somewhere in there, I fell in love with the language.

So, I was looking for an Italian teacher again. I chose someone who also taught French, thinking that it would be good to have someone who did both. This was the teacher who taught in Italian and French, which was good, but her idea of teaching was to march through the grammar book. I can teach myself grammar mostly on my own, but I really need conversation practice. Plus we had problems scheduling the Italian lessons, so I took more French lessons from her than Italian. Then I dropped out when I was moving and taking my programming classes. I intended to start back up with her, but decided that I didn't like the way that she was teaching.

So I'm in search for teacher #4. I hope that the teacher that Mimmo found will work out well. I intend to tell her to make me speak the language a lot. And also that I want to learn "practical Italian", so I can get myself in trouble wandering around Italy. And if we're reviewing grammar, let me do most of the work as homework.

I might need to learn Lithuanian someday because I'm eligible for a Lithuanian passport, which would give me an EU passport, which would make spending an extended length of time in Europe easier.

Woke up at 7:30 AM. Yay.

At work. Mimi wants to get some snuggles in before it gets too hot. I'm being smart and wearing shorts today. We were talking yesterday about the heat; my boss was wondering if she would make it through the presentation due to the heat, but she rallied. Eeek. Now Italy has the heat too. I'm keeping an eye on the weather in Rome to see what the weather is like at different times of year.

Today isn't quite as hot. But Tuesday is supposed to be 98F/36C! Ack!

I want to get gym clothes together this weekend and maybe go to a local gym. Hmm. I'm looking for a padlock, but it'll get here on Sunday from Amazon. Bah. I guess that I could go to Lowe's and get one. Hmm. One of the weightlifting books that I was looking at is for dumbbells, and I have some dumbbells somewhere. I need to get organized, no question. Hmm, the journal says "Your mind will quit a thousand times before your body will". True.

Overslept my nap at lunch. I've got the shakes and need to eat something (done).

Work is up and down. It's quiet today after a crazy day yesterday.

I found a French tutor who looks promising (Note to self: Amandine K. I could do a lunchtime lesson on Fridays.) Yes, I want to study both Italian and French.

The cats have discovered that lying on the stairs keeps them cooler. I want to work on boxes, but it is hot in here. I’m drinking decaf soda so that I’ll go to bed early and get up early while it’s still cool.

Hmm. I think that I’ll work in the “music room” (which is going to be a library because I want to move the piano into the living room) because I can turn on the ceiling fan in there.

I did tackle the music room. I’m dripping sweat despite the fan, but I was also listening to CDs and singing and dancing. And I was listening to Bonnie Raitt singing about “walking the floor all night long" (“I sho do…want you/I sho do…need you/I sho do…wish for you/I sho do…walk the floor all night long.” Know the feeling, Bonnie :)) I was singing surprisingly well given that I haven’t had lessons in a while. I think that the exercise in Italy did me good. I haven’t found the gym bags yet though.

I was reading about Naples. Mimmo thinks that I should study Italian there instead of in Venice because Venice has too many distractions. So there.

Mimi is loooooonely. And shedding big gobs of fur. I need to get the brush out.

I’m hungry.

Okay, I think that I’ve done enough for one night and I'm getting a headache. I’m going to take a cool shower and go to bed.

Got my French homework printed off and stashed in my backpack. Got my clothes together for both days of flights. I'm getting my second wind, but I still think that I'll pack my clothes in the AM.

Intel is going to be providing foundry services to NVIDIA. I'm trying to scrape together cash to invest. Okay, transferred some money. Bought shares.

Getting up before dawn sucks. I ate breakfast and fed the cats, but I decided to go back to sleep and pack tonight. I’ll go swimming in Kauai.

The handyman came to put up the screens right after I woke up. I had a new frontier of weirdness; I took a shower while he was in the house. I trust him though. He spent the rest of the morning changing some door locks. He said that the cost of the aluminum framing on the roof will be about $4500. Sigh.

I really like my new Hawaiian hoodie. It’s a coral reef and very nice-looking. So of course, I got some food on it. Aargh.

I found out how to use the fabric AirTag holders, so now they’re securely fastened in my suitcase and small carryon bag. I’m missing a couple of them, but I have one for the backpack. They aren’t expensive, so I can order more.

It’s really cold out. I think that I’ll wear the wool trench coat tomorrow because I’ll be waiting outside for the shuttle car.

I have hot and cold running meetings, so I'm going to go to the UPS Store tomorrow before work.

I talked to the life coach, and she was her usual helpful self. I now have a list of things to do when I get back, but the TaskRabbit ones, I can do from Hawaii. We also talked about my getting a spa treatment, and I found a place that I like. I need to figure out when to go there.

Talked to my weight-loss coach, who is still like nails on a chalkboard. She wants to turn everything into an end goal, and I'm more about the process. And I have been losing weight, so I wish that she'd back off.

Mover guy called me back. He asked if the move could be later if I need it delivered later, and I said no. He said that he’d look into a “container move” and will get back to me tomorrow morning.

I got everything done that I wanted to get done for work. The pet sitter stopped by and got the key. I dashed off some things for my goal-setting class.

Had my Dare to Dream class. Put my stuff for the UPS Store in the car for tomorrow morning. I’m freezing cold so I went upstairs. Packed my main suitcase. Now I'm boiling hot, so I came downstairs to print stuff off. I just need to pack my little "jump bag," and I'll be ready to go.

Checked in and printed off my boarding pass. Printed off maps. The spa is just a short distance away from my hotel. The only thing is that with the time change, I won't be able to call them from here tomorrow morning. The time that I'd need to call them is the time that I'm being picked up. I might be able to call from my hotel in Chicago. Otherwise, I'll have to wait until I get there. Okay, my travel documents are printed off. Printed off cat instructions.

The landlord leaving stuff at my rental house can't get into the garage. I didn't know what to tell him.

I'm going to go finish off packing my little jump bag, pack my meds, clear off the mail on the table, and then go to sleep. I should get a decent night's rest.

Found a really nice tan leather blazer in a bag of stuff from Stitch Fix. Went on the Internet to find ideas of how to wear it and bought a white sweater and green jeans. Actually, I think that I’m going to wear it on the Detroit-Chicago flight with blue jeans and a white sweater.

Woke up at 8 AM. I’m trying to convince myself not to go back to sleep because I need to practice guitar and voice.

I bought a cashmere sweater and skirt in burgundy from Quince. Actually, I bet that it would look good with the tan blazer. Or better yet, the pink leather blazer!

Bought some music flashcards. Practiced guitar.

We almost finished the crawl space. I have some papers that I need to go through, and there is some stuff way back in the space. Also, there is a ton of stuff that needs to be shredded, and I discovered that the UPS Store will do that. So I need to gather the shred stuff in boxes before I go there for my Amazon returns tomorrow.

I was sneezing from the dust in the crawl space until the organizer recommended that I wear a mask. It helped.

Had lunch and fed the hordes. Now I'm practicing voice.

Music theory and voice went really well. Guitar was a fiasco. Ah well. I’m kind of muttering,”I do this for fun?” I did buy a system of learning guitar chords that I’ll try when I get back. My teacher wants me to learn “Leaving on a Jet Plane,” but I’m stymied by the C chord.

I’m really tired. I think that I’ll get my laundry started, pack up some stuff in my backpack, set up the AirTags in my suitcases, and go to bed. I need to do some cleaning in the morning.

Mimi has been complaining up a storm, probably because she didn’t get her snuggles this afternoon. She wants me to go lie down. Now she’s snacking.

Got the laundry started. Filled a litter box. Gathered stuff to wash the bathroom floor in the morning. Packed up most of the things to go in my backpack. I couldn't get the AirTag containers that attach to fabric open, so I just tucked the AirTags in pockets of my luggage.

I just remembered that I have French homework. Le sigh. I can't remember what sections of the book we were in though, so I guess that I won't do it.

Time to crash and get up early to clean.

I got to the hair salon way early. The stylist texted me and said that she had a cancellation, and could I come earlier? I said, “Sure, I’m outside.” I got a really cute bob haircut, chin length. She blow-dried it straight, and it made me wonder if I should get a styling brush and bring my blow-dryer to Kauai. I made another appointment with her in December. I bought a combo blow-dryer and styling brush in one. It’ll be smaller in my suitcase.

Did my music theory homework. Practiced guitar and voice. I just pulled a muscle in my back and think that I need to lie down. I'll email my teachers. Mimi couldn’t care less that my back hurts. I’m warm and that’s what matters. Had a nice nap, but my back still hurts. My nice music teacher asked me if I want to reschedule.

Hmm. I need to take out the recycling and do laundry, but my back still hurts. There was something that I needed to do online, but I don't remember what it was. I need to pack, but the same issue applies, Maybe I should just go to bed early. Zara wants food. Mimi is complaining too. Maybe I could study French. Oh, I need to pick out my BistroMD meals (done).

Hmm. shadowkat on DW mentioned that her mom is at a retirement place called The Cypress at Hilton Head. I looked at some of their videos and kind of like the place. It's something to keep in mind as I get older. They have skilled nursing care there. Maybe I should plan a trip to Hilton Head in the future.

Oh, I can work on my vision statement (done?). Oh, I need to do my French homework too (done). I signed up for the LingQ app to learn Italian and French vocabulary. I think that I'll go to bed now.

Google Fi says that the voicemails are gone. Damn it. They said to ask my current carrier if they could be ported over, but I think that they would have ported it if they could.

Overslept this morning, but got up in time for work.

Yay. A cleaner accepted my job for Friday.

Ow. I don't know why I keep getting headaches. I ate, which usually takes care of it, but not this time. Now it went away. I'm feeling sleepy. The headache kept coming back though.

I'm mulling over my Paris-trip-to-be. I think that I want to go in the fall. Fall would suit Paris. And I could look chic in blazers :)

I canceled my State Farm insurance because I have the new insurance. I sent an invoice for the exterior painting to the trust for payment, but so far, it hasn't been paid. Sigh. This is why I didn't want to go through them to pay bills. They didn't realize that they could click a link to pay. It's paid, and the guy is coming tomorrow.

Hmm. The boxes and tape that I ordered from U-Haul haven't come yet (now done).

French went very well. I'm amazed at how much I remember.

Ran out to mail the Daily Look stuff back and pick up a prescription. The prescription had been put back, so I need to come back tomorrow. Bought some makeup. While I was out, I had the impulse to eat at my favorite restaurant, but I didn’t. Go me.

I got the waterproof case for the iPhone and put it on the phone. And I also got the waterproof pouch and stuff to do laundry in the hotel room. I also got the black and white tweed blazer, a black top, and black pants, so I have clothes for the flight. I got the fake fur coat, and wow, is it gorgeous.

I got a pair of pumps, but they had a narrow toe, so they won't be very comfortable. I scoured the Internet for pumps with a wide toe and low heel, and finally found some and ordered them.

I also got the shredder.

Got the garbage and recycling out. Soaked a litter box. I need to go to bed soon because the guys will be here tomorrow morning to power wash and prep for painting.

Cats: Good, you’re up. Feed us. (Well, feed me. I could care less if you feed the other one.) I heard some hissing before I fed them.

Hmm. The organizer said that the foyer closet was full of photos, but I looked, and there was a bunch of books and maps and stationery. I was going to get a TaskRabbit person to pack the Christmas ornaments and photos, but I don’t have enough to fill her time. Once I get my clothes for Hawaii packed, she could pack my summer clothes. Hmm, she could pack the Buddha and the dragon from the TV room and some bowls. Hmm, what happened to my packing paper. Okay, I found it. She could pack up the clothes from the crawl space too if I get the stuff out from front of it. Or maybe she could do it. I booked her for Sunday.

Did dishes. Scooped litter boxes. Took a picture of the phone number on the dumpster and moved stuff out of the way so that they can pick it up. Called about the dumpster, and they're going to pick it up tomorrow. The real estate agent came by to talk about power washing and cleaning the gutters. Mower guy is here.

It looks like we have Italian on Sunday and French on Monday. That'll work. I don't want them back-to-back because my brain will implode, plus I have music lessons on Sunday.

The photography teacher talked a lot about Adobe Lightroom, so I bought a tutorial on it, and Photoshop for that matter. Oh, she recommended getting an external drive for photos, so I need to look into that (done--I got a pretty blue-purple one). Wow, the cost of storage has gone way down.

I'm trying to figure out when I can get the living room rug cleaned because I want to take it. I should get the rest of them cleaned for that matter.

I lay down at lunch, but couldn't sleep, not surprisingly, given how much sleep I got last night. So I decided to get up and set up the Apple Watch. Well, it required an update to iOS on my phone, and it's churning through it.

I need to check the account balance on Mom's account because we're churning through it with the organizing, dumpsters, landscaping, etc.

I screwed up one of my knees again. Why is it happening now that I've lost some weight?

The Apple Watch is now set up. Damn, you can do a lot on it. I now understand what "closing the rings" means.

I got the invoice for powerwashing and gutter cleaning. I paid it in full because I know that they'll do it. (See: check account balance!)

The mistake that I made at work turned out to be No Big Deal. Good.

DailyLook is sending me a nastygram, so I need to be sure to try the clothes on. And probably cancel it because I don't really need more clothes from them.

Hmm. I can sell the Sense 2 for $50 for someone else to sell or can try to sell it myself and get more. I'm learning towards the first option to get it out of my hair. I have a lot of stuff to deal with!

I was reading an article about "timeless" items French women over 50 have in their wardrobes, and I bought some used clothes on eBay to match. Except for pumps. I don't do heels. Actually, I found some pumps with a low heel that I might try. Ankle boots were listed too, and I have some. I think that I've figured out my clothes for the Kauai flight: black knit top, black yoga pants, black-and-white tweed blazer that I just bought, black ankle boots, and a black-and-white fake fur coat that I just bought. Hmm, maybe a trench coat would be better than the fake fur coat (done--I bought a wool trench coat). I also have a black and silver sweater that I could wear on one of the plane flights. Maybe I could wear it over a black t-shirt so that I can just take it off when I get to Kauai. I booked a haircut for a week from Sunday.

Yikes, I need to book a shuttle to and from the airport. And the pet sitter.

My Apple Watch told me to get up and walk around, and I did get up and walked up and down the stairs. Checked on Mimi, who was waiting for me to come lie down, but she came downstairs (hoping for food, no doubt).

Fed the girls and myself. Now I’m lying down to stretch my knee out. I brought my camera book because I don’t think that I can sleep. Hmm, I should bring my camera upstairs to look at it. Okay, I understand the camera a lot more. And my knee got a nice rest.

I got the recycling out, and my knee has been complaining. I’ve been walking around going “Fffffff!” I’m taking a break before I get the garbage and rubbing my knee. I got the garbage out.

Tried on my Daily Look clothes. They seem to forget that I'm a petite. But! They had a pink vegan leather blazer that I totally love! I kept a green blazer too. I'm wondering if I should try a box for petites. I'll try them after I get back from Kauai. Or maybe from Kauai.

It's getting late, and I'm trying to get more sleep, plus I want to get to work early because I need to leave early to meet the guy who is taking stuff to and from storage. So I need to go to sleep.

I found a subscription site for virtual rowing workouts. Yeah, I think that I should get it and a tablet. I’m just looking for a good price on a tablet. Yeah, I found one on eBay for a good price. It has some scratches on the back, but that’s okay.

I was trying to take a picture of Mimi’s face with the iPhone, so she turned around with her butt towards me. Cats! Okay, I got a decent picture of her.

Overslept but managed to get myself together before 8:30 AM. Go me. And it’s after 8:30 and the guys aren’t here. Sigh. They’re here. They wanted me to move my car. The cats want nothing to do with this and ran off and hid.

And it's Friday. I don't know where the weeks go.

We got into a lively conversation about electric cars and solar panels at a "watercooler" meeting at work. Now I'm wondering if I should get an electric car as my next car and keep one of the gas cars for road trips. I'm trying to log into Consumer Reports to learn more about electric cars and hybrids, but I'm having problems logging in. I finally got into Consumer Reports (I don't buy a car without it) and there are no all-electric cars with lots of cargo room. So a hybrid it is. The Honda CR-V hybrid gets good ratings. I'm also considering the Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid, but it's currently being tested.

I have to say that the house looks neater without the ivy and with the trees trimmed.

However, the parts that had ivy look dirty. I was wondering if it needed tuckpointing, but the real estate guy thinks that it just needs power washing. He’s going to stop by to do an estimate. Well, I guess not. I'll get back in touch with him on Monday.

I attended a webinar about social connections. I thought that it would be more a meeting about how to meet people, but it was more about social anxiety and getting out of your comfort zone. I had started an online class about social anxiety, but I thought that would be more useful after I get back to Urbana. I started one about stress, anxiety, and worry. Depression would be useful too. Hmm, their screening questionnaire said that I didn't score high on anxiety and worry. But I do tend to get overwhelmed, which is related. I'm feeling less so now that we have a game plan and that things are moving along.

Now I'm looking at Apple watches on Reebelo. I don't need one. Cut it out, Adrienne. But the new ones have fall detection, which is a good thing for someone living alone and an SOS button! Hmm. Might be worth considering as I get older. It’s cooler than one of those buttons.

Oh cool. The hotel that I'm staying at in Chicago the night before the Kauai flight has a complimentary airport shuttle. That will help.

It looks like I fucked up at work. I made changes, but it looks like they didn't stick. Oh well.

I figured out the rowing machine. It has a tablet/phone holder instead of a counter. You need to log into an app to get stats. But it also needs to be plugged in (I just ordered a long extension cord) and it has Bluetooth. Once I get it plugged in, then I can pair it with the app. This is complicated :)

Did dishes and scrubbed the sink with Soft Scrub. I got the Soft Scrub on my clothes, so I rinsed it off and dumped my shirt in the laundry. I found that some clothes that I had in the laundry were wet. There are more leaks down there. Sigh.

The tablet has an estimated delivery of Sunday! Cool.

I’m thinking that I should go to bed and get up early. I got up fairly early this morning. But I need to do some things before my French lesson and the organizer. Okay, I’m prepared for my French lesson.

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.