days_unfolding

Well, I went to bed, only to feel a cat jump on the bed. Oliver had been hiding. Then Bella jumped on the bed. I turned the light on and removed Oliver.

Woke up at 7:30 AM. Bella is watching Squirrel TV. Aww. Lily grabbed my hand and rubbed her head against it.

My back hurts. Fed us all. Now I’m going to lie down for a little while.

Had my singing lesson. It went well. I’m working on the song “Silver Springs” by Fleetwood Mac and it’s hard. She thought that it would help me with jumps in sight reading because the song jumps around.

It occurred to me that I haven’t gotten the new web cam for piano, so I need to check on it. Also, my mom’s computer is running Windows 10, so I need to update it. I found the web cam, but I’m missing an Amazon box or bag with the leashes from yesterday. Okay, found them based on the picture that they took. We’re good. Bella is playing with the boxes and packing paper.

Had lunch. I’m going to take a nap because I didn’t have a full one this morning. Couldn’t sleep. It’s actually a little cold in here. I need to turn down the a/c.

It’s going to be an expensive week for me. Monday, the tree guy is coming. Tuesday is Zara’s dental appointment. I’ll have to get up early both days too.

I bought a bunch of compression bags for my Italy trip because I’ll need to get 12 days of clothes in my medium suitcase. I will hand-wash clothes, but still….

Started cleaning. I told Bella her new name was MessMaker. (She pulled a paper napkin off of the table and was shredding it.) Ow. One of my arthritic toes is complaining. It occurred to me to go upstairs to order a white bath mat while the acetaminophen kicked in. Fuuuuuck, it's hot upstairs. It's like a sauna. I bought the mat though and a swimsuit that was on clearance. There was something else that I wanted, but I don't remember what. Oh, I think that it was to transfer money. I can do that down here.

I was wondering where the toilet bowl brush was when Bella trotted by with it in her mouth. It took a bit of a struggle to get it away from her.

Fed us all. Watered the outside plants. My back hurts.

The large bathroom is clean except for scrubbing the floor. I’ll post, pay a bill (done), get ready for bed, start laundry, and scrub the floor so that it can dry overnight. Then I’ll go to bed. Oh, and submit a grocery order (done).

On eBay, I ordered a small wheeled cooler for camping. It wasn't too expensive.

Woke up at 6:30 AM, but went back to sleep for a half-hour.

There is a heat warning for this weekend through Monday. I'm planning to stay inside and clean in the air-conditioned comfort, except for watering the plants. It'll be shorts weather.

Lily is sleeping in the window upstairs. Very cute. I really want a nap. Bella is sleeping in today. Now Lily is head-bonking me :)

I downloaded the AllTrails app on my phone. There are some trails nearby that interest me. Bella and I need to build up our stamina! I ordered a second set of a collar and leash to keep in the car in case something happens to the primary one.

Napped over lunch and overslept slightly. I think that I want a nap after work, although I need to water the plants outside.

Crud. The arthritis in my hands is flaring up. I would stop working for a while, but I'm "backup on-call" for our ticketing system, and the people with whom I work is the primary on-call, so I need to stay put. I left a half-hour early and am going to lie down. I took some acetaminophen earlier.

I would like a pair of the Orthofeet Water Friendly sandals. I can’t decide between black and leopard though. (I really would like blue, but it’s sold out.)

I got confused about what days it has been between being out sick and the holiday yesterday. I thought that I missed my singing lesson, but that’s on Sunday.

Bella wants to snuggle and get petted. I told her that my hand hurts, but she thinks that I should still pet her. These are the Dog Rules. Tried to nap but couldn’t sleep. I want to watch TV, but Bella is snoozing. I watched three episodes of The Big Bang Theory. And my hand no longer hurts.

Fed us all and watered the outside plants. I’ll need to water them every day while the heat wave is going on. It was nice taking Bella out at 8 PM and it was still light.

Now it’s 9:30 PM. I’m going to post, feed the critters, and go to bed.

I woke up at 2 AM to clean. Told the housecleaner that I was sick, and went back to sleep until 8:30 AM. I'm still having IBS issues.

I'm going to be super busy this weekend because I'll need to clean and pack. I'm going to try to get the house cleaned by Saturday night. I need to go get money for the pet sitter tonight. The forecasters are predicting rain at 5 PM. Note to self: go to the library to pick up books on Saturday. And my brow appointment is at 4:20 PM at Ulta.

I could get a pallet of white stepping stones from Home Depot, but I need to figure out how many I'd need.

Oh, I made a major screwup at work. I'm ready to retire now. Sigh. I'm feeling at the end of my rope.

I talked to the trust person in the bank. They said that all my assets outside of the trust, including the car, must be under $100,000 to avoid probate. Otherwise, all assets must be in the name of the trust. I will need to file a trustee's deed for the house. She recommended that I consult with an attorney.

I'm stymied at work because the statistics that I've been posting to the Web pages have errors. I'm glad that I don't have to fix the errors.

I keep forgetting to mention that I want a sprinkler system put in outside because I want to overseed the whole lawn in the fall, and that will be a lot of watering.

I received my blueberry bushes!

Just remembered that I need a laptop sleeve for my work computer because I'm going to try to bring it with me as well as my personal laptop. (My backpack will be heavy, but oh well.) It's too late to order from Amazon before my trip, so I placed an order with Best Buy for pickup. It's ready for pickup, but I'll go tomorrow because my appointment at Ulta is nearby.

I feel like crying, but I think that I forgot to take my meds this morning. Sigh.

It's freaking humid out. I wish that it would rain and clear the air. Oh, the forecasters say that it's raining, but it isn't raining hard.

Now it’s pouring. We ran into a neighbor. She said that someone else also lives with the neighbor whom I talked to yesterday, but I’ve never seen her. She asked when I’m getting the puppy. Bella noped out over the rain. I put the plants on the porch outside to benefit from the rain. I’m going to put them out back this weekend so that they can benefit from any rain next week.

I don’t really feel like running errands in the heavy rain, so plan B is to go to bed really early and get up early to go to the bank tomorrow before it closes.

I need to feed the cats and myself (done). I fed Bella before I took her outside.

Bella is very wet.

I was going to work on the kitchen a little until it got a little later to go to sleep, but my stomach is upset. I did find out how to add bleach to my washer for the white towels, but I want to wait until I'm nude after a shower to add bleach in case it splashes. (I don't particularly want bleach on me, but I could wash it off.) I need a measuring cup for the bleach though, so I'll order one from Walmart along with more pads for my spin mopper (done).

Now I'm going to post and go to bed.

Added: The orientation for the dog training class is next week, while I'll be out of town. I just emailed the registrar about it. I'm getting the feeling that my taking the class is jinxed. (I had to drop out of the one in the spring because my car was broken into.)

Ow. My teeth are sore. I took some acetaminophen, but I think that I need to go to bed soon.

Hmm. There probably are a couple of spots in the yard where the puppy could wiggle through the fence. I’ll need to take her out on a leash. Or probably a harness rather than a collar because she’ll be wiggly.

Woke up at 4:30 AM but went back to sleep for an hour.

It’s 8:00 AM, and I’ve got myself together. Now I wait for the tree guy.

The tree guy came right on time. He said that it would cost around $4000 to get the tree down (ouch, but I was expecting something like that) and they can do the work at the end of June or early July. He also will take down the saplings that are growing by the fence, which is nice. I approved their quote.

I found instructions on how to lay stepping stones in grass, and it seems doable. I have big plans for the yard. I want to put ornamental grasses in the shade garden and move the Astilbe, Coral Bells (one of which is blooming!), and ferns farther out. But that will be next year. Hmm. Lowe's is sold out of stepping stones in the color that I want. I might have to wait to place the stones until next year too.

Oh awesome. The housekeeper will come by around 8 AM on Friday to do an estimate, and she can start at 3 if we agree. I've decided that I have to use my old pet sitter because I need the time to clean. I guess that I'll have to endure a week of messages about why I suck.

Got my hair cut. One step closer to being ready to leave next week.

Crazy busy at work. I complained politely to my boss, and she said that we'll get through it. She's canceling out on the conference next week because she doesn't think that she can catch up (she was out last week) and then be out again.

My pet sitter said okay to pet sitting next week. So things are falling into place.

I'm tired. I'd nap tonight, but I have a singing lesson. I guess that I'll go to bed early and get up early (after I get the garbage out).

Bella really wants a nap. If I go near the bedroom, she comes running in.

Oh shit. The box that was sitting outside is the new laptop! Luckily, it wasn’t too hot today. I need to clear off the table so that I can set it up.

I had my singing lesson. I started in the spirit of, “Oh hell, one more thing to do,” but I enjoyed it when I got into it. My singing teacher is so nice and helpful. I want to work hard on sight reading this summer to prepare for choir in the fall. Oh, and my Web cam for piano broke, so I ordered a new one.

Okay. I need to get the garbage out (done). Did dishes (recyclables). Started the dishwasher. I’m taking a break, and then I’ll need to put a clean litter box in Zara’s room.

Oh, I have to bring in an Amazon bag that probably has my new envelopes. I want to mail my ticket request for the Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra this weekend before I go.

Oh, I need to fill out the forms for boarding Oliver. Too many moving parts.

I’m going to need to go to Costco on Saturday to get more dog food. They say two-day delivery “if you order by noon,” so that won’t work. There is also a big box that probably is dry food that I didn’t order. I don’t know why I got it.

It occurred to me to look for a tour of Lithuania. After finding a bunch that covered all the Baltic States, I finally found one that covered only Lithuania. (I know the other Baltic states are lovely, but Lithuania is my heritage.) I should look for one in Poland because that's the other half of my heritage. Found one!

Out with Bella. My shade plants are growing like crazy. My herbs are doing well too. And a couple of the tickseed plants have tiny blossoms!

Cats: About time that you came back in and fed us. Ack! Oliver ran into Zara’s room again. I finally got him out by going into the room and waiting for him to make a tactical error. He went into the bedroom but left of his own volition. Lily is in here. That’s okay; she’ll leave me alone. Nap time!

Hmm, the shelter from where I adopted Bella has a husky who likes cats and other dogs (and humans—he’s like Velcro), but he’s BIG. I was looking for a dog that’s a comparable size to Bella. I’m weakening on getting a puppy. Would Bella get along better with a puppy? But the next transport is the Friday that I’m flying back from the conference, so that won’t work. I found a four-month-old puppy that caught my eye.

I kind of want a path with pavers and solar lamps, but that would cost $$$.

Aargh. Bella got into my cleaning rags and is ripping them apart.

Napped. Apparently Oliver was in here, but he snuggled up next to me.

Worked on the kitchen. Filled out the order form for the Symphony. However, my envelopes aren’t sticking well, so I ordered more from Amazon.

Showered. I’m trying to glue the tooth back. I can’t get the glue to work. I’ll need to call the dentist tomorrow and see if they can squeeze me in to reglue it.

I've been working on the kitchen, but have a headache, so I went upstairs to try to contact a housekeeper (I found someone who also does pet sitting and organizing! I hope that she's interested!) and post. I'm wondering if I should go to sleep early, but I should make more progress on the kitchen. Bella is not happy that I'm cleaning off the floor. I think that I'll take my nighttime meds and work while I'm waiting for them to kick in.

Bella heard something and woke up and barked and growled. I got up and turned on the porch light but didn’t see anyone. The car looks okay.

Woke up at 5 AM. Took Bella out and lay down for a half-hour afterward.

My Italian lesson went well. My teacher said that my brain was working well today. I need to work on pronunciation. Maybe I could read News in Slow Italian and play the audio to check my pronunciation. Am I still subscribed to News in Slow Italian? An article I read about improving foreign language pronunciation said that it’s a good idea. I think that there also was an app that taught foreign languages using songs. That should help too. I downloaded an app called LingoClip. You listen to music and fill in the missing words in the lyrics. I found another site that will play a foreign language song and give you the lyrics in the language and a translation.

I think that I might want to add a small bequest to my Italian teacher in my will. I’ll have to see if there’s an issue with sending money overseas.

They were right about it being really windy today. Something (dust?) was making me sneeze. The sunflowers have been knocked over, but I left them on the ground until the wind dies down.

Great. I overslept my nap and was late to a meeting, I'm having problems with a database, and a crown came out already. I ordered some dental glue from Walgreens because the one that I'm getting from Amazon won't get here until tomorrow.) I just want to scream. This week sucks so far. Okay, a colleague probably figured out the problems with my database. (I'm testing it. It worked.) The glue has been delivered, but I'm going to wait until post-dinner to reglue it.

I still haven’t heard from the vet about Zara. I just said that I wanted to reschedule the appointment for tomorrow, but they are closed now. It’s 7 PM, and they’ve been closed for an hour, so I don’t think that I’ll hear from them tonight.

Fed us all and watered the plants in the garden. Listened to a song in Italian. Got the garbage out. Zara is hiding in the closet. I don’t know if she’s trying to keep cool. I should turn the ceiling fan on for her. Man, I’m boiling hot. Need to sit and cool off. Listened to another (depressing) song in Italian. In English we would call that a torch song.

Got my tooth back on without glue. It then came off. Now I put it on with glue. My tooth is screaming. I turned the ceiling fan on while I sat in the kitchen (I shut Bella in the bedroom because she wouldn’t stop bothering Oliver) and Oliver took off like a bat out of hell out of here. Apparently he’s scared of it as well as Bella. The tooth came out again. I'll wait until I get the better glue from Amazon. Bella is doing well in time-out.

I need to go upstairs and do some more work, although I need to get up on time because I have a 9:00 meeting tomorrow. All's well that ends well with work. My mini-project was successful, and now I'm back on track. So I'll get to bed.

I wound up getting my second wind and staying up late. Plan B is to log onto work at the usual time and work an extra 45 minutes in the evening.

Woke up at 6:30 AM. Took Bella out but decided that I wanted to get another half-hour of sleep, so I brought her in early.

Crazy cats are crazy and are chasing each other.

I'm looking at adult tricycles to use to run errands. There are stores that are not too far away to which I could bike. I found one that I like, and they sell it at a local bike shop, so they could put it together. Not sure how I'd get it home though. I could take side streets.

I got an email for the Amalfi Coast trip. Apparently you can customize where you stay and at what hotels. I don't need four-star accommodations. It sounds promising.

I've decided to grow snapdragons in my back part-sun garden bed. Lowe's has them. I was going to have them delivered, but that will double the cost of them, so I'll go by Lowe's this weekend. Actually, my eye doctor appointment this afternoon is nearby, so I'll pop in afterward.

I've run into a snag. My therapist is changing practices. She wants a LOCAL Emergency Contact Person, and I don't have one. I emailed her asking what to do. I really need to meet more people here. She said that she'll put a note to contact the local EMS if needed.

I'm mulling over volunteering at the local Humane Society. The good news is that I love working with cats; the bad news is that I love cats and don't want to end up with another one. Oliver and Lily get along so well that I don't want to rock the boat. Also, I have volunteered to take my dad and Sue's cat if they no longer can take care of him. He's a real cutie. (BTW, I'm adding the local Humane Society to my will. The proceeds from the sale of my car or cars will go to them. That should buy a lot of cat food.)

The appointment with the psychiatrist went quickly. She’s going to keep me on the increased meds and will see me in three months.

Bella is excited that I left and came back! She is happy! Silly pooch :)

I was wondering if the NokBox has a lock, and apparently there's a spot for a small combination lock. I want to put the logins for my bank accounts in it, but I don't want them available if someone breaks in. So I'll work on my list.

Created my list of bank accounts. It wasn't as bad as I thought last night. And almost finished my list of credit cards. But I need to get myself together for the eye doctor appointment.

The eye doctor appointment ran long. We were waiting a long time for the (virtual) doctor. My prescription didn’t change much and I have it in hand. Bought an expensive pair of glasses.

Went to Lowe’s and cleaned them out of snapdragons. Also bought a fern.

Bella is fussing over me again. So is Oliver, but he wants food.

Fed us all. Took a nap and slept until 1 AM.

Crap. I forgot to check my dad’s “stoplight system” for whether to invest or not. (It’s based on some Wall Street Journal stats.) I don’t want to go back upstairs and log on though. I need to put a note on my computer to do that. Hmm, it just occurred to me to note the stoplight readings on my email calendar. That would be a good way to view trends. I did remember to do it tonight. (It's a yellow light - hold.)

Woke up at 6:30 AM. Discovered that my phone didn’t charge and my Apple Watch needed charging too. Got the good charger. Took Bella out, but it was raining pretty hard, and she noped out. I’m going to go back to sleep for a while. Hmm, the Dynamic Duo (Oliver and Lily) are in here now. Good, they just left. Had a nice nap.

At work now. The Dynamic Duo are being very dynamic and are running around.

ChatGPT can be useful. I want a paragraph in my will stating that my friends can take one personal item each to remember me by, and it gave me a nice paragraph in legalese.

Speaking of my will and my trust, the big question is whether I include the house in the trust or not. I want the proceeds of the sale of the house to go into the trust, which makes me think that it should be included in the trust, but I'll probably sell the house before I pass away to go into a retirement community, which makes me think that it should not be in the trust. Dad said in a roundabout way to put the house in the trust because it keeps someone from suing me and getting the house. He said that if I’m the trustee, I can sell it whenever.

I somehow wound up with not one but two doctor's appointments on Friday afternoon (psychiatrist and eye doctor). My boss said that I could take the afternoon as sick time. Have I mentioned lately that I work with great people?

I forgot to feed the critters this morning. I suck.

I put the YMCA's "Gentle Yoga" class on my calendar, starting next week. That'll give me time to find my yoga clothes, mat, etc. Their Pilates classes are at an inconvenient time. And their Aqua Fit evening classes are at the same time as yoga. (I don't do exercise in the morning. If I get up on time and shower, I'm ahead of the game. Though hmm, the Deep Water Total Body Workout on Wednesday mornings sounds like a good class. Maybe I should try it and see if I can get up. They have the class on Fridays and Mondays too.)

I've been weeding a little while I'm out with Bella. Some weeds are going to need the weeding tool, but I've been able to knock off some easy weeds to pull up. I've got the bed for the tickseed cleared, but need to pull up the landscaping cloth underneath before I plant them. I want to order some begonias for the back of the house, which gets part sun and part shade. Hard to find plants for that exposure that are also dog-safe. Pulled up the landscaping cloth and planted tickseeds. I’m wondering if I should leave the sunflowers in their pots. They would require a big hole to plant them. Now I’m thinking about putting them on the patio. Maybe I could plant Black-Eyed Susans where I was going to plant them. Prairie Gardens has them. I also want to go to another big garden shop in the area this weekend. The ASPCA Web site says that begonias are toxic for dogs. The search continues….

Bella played tug of war with the landscaping cloth that I pulled up. I finally gave up on throwing it out. I’ll have to go outside without her to get it. (I got it when I took out the recycling.)

I read an article on places to retire in if you want to travel, but I think that I'm pretty well located. I can hop on a bus (or train) to Chicago and fly out of O'Hare Airport, which has nonstop flights to a lot of places. But Urbana is cheaper to live in than Chicago.

I've decided to replace the living room furniture (loveseat and chair) with new washable pieces. And I'll put my mom’s white chair, which is in good shape, in the library room and buy a cheap footstool for it. Though actually, I have a rattan footstool, I think. And I found a small trunk table on Wayfair to use as an end table. I can put a throw in it for cozy reading. I’ve thought again about getting a grandfather clock for the library room. The trick is finding a nice used one for not a lot of money and getting it over here.

The Swedish Death Cleaning book was talking about “curating” your stuff. That’s an interesting way to look at it.

I’m resting for a moment before taking out the recycling (done). I can’t rest long because I have Italian homework to do and I need to order some fencing from Lowe’s (done) and groceries.

Woke up at 7 AM. I want to go back to sleep, but I need to take Bella out. Fed us all. It’s gray and gloomy and raining lightly.

I think that I want to go back to Home Depot and get the sunflowers. I have a spot for them. And I found a place online that has pansies. Now I’m thinking of gerber daisies because they’d go better with the sunflowers. Either Home Depot or Lowe’s had peonies, which I want for the front yard, but you couldn’t tell what color they were except when they were blooming. I need to expand the front garden bed for them. Breck’s has some nice ones. Also, one of the places had some dahlias that I liked, but I’d need more pots for them.

I think that I want to nap for another hour while my meds kick in.

I’m thinking that I want to stay home and plant things. I can go to the garden shops tomorrow (although I don’t know if Prairie Gardens will be open for the holiday?) Or maybe I’ll go to Home Depot and Lowe’s. I need to wake up so that I can shower. Maybe I’ll read about wills for a little while.

I didn’t get an answer whether Prairie Gardens is open tomorrow, but probably, given that they were open on New Year’s Day. Lowe’s and Home Depot will be open. Bella thinks that I shouldn’t read but do something useful like petting her!

I’m trying to figure out what I want for estate planning. I think that I’ll have a local lawyer draw up the paperwork after I do my research. I want a revocable living trust. I need a trustee to step in if I’m incapacitated, and I can get one from Schwab. I want my money to go to charity when I pass away, so I need to look back into that. My dad has someone who will pay the bills if he’s incapacitated, and I want that, so I need to ask him who he got and what their role is.

The good news: I found a rubber mallet to put together my new strawberry pot. The bad news: Oliver and Lily went down in the basement.

I still feel like going back to sleep, probably because it’s gloomy out, but I’m afraid that I won’t be able to sleep tonight if I take a nap.

Planted my dill and Japanese Spirea. Ordered pots for the two hibiscuses I bought. (The first one died. Apparently there was standing water in the container.) Planted petunias in my small strawberry pot. Planted ferns. Bella had a great time playing with the pots that they came in. While I was planting ferns, Bella was following along digging them up and destroying them. That earned her a trip indoors. Planted the remaining ferns. Weeded one of the iris beds, planted two new irises, and put up the fence. We’ll see how Bella interacts with it. Watered the plants.

The mower guy is planning to come tomorrow.

Bella completely ignored the garden bed with the fence. Exactly what I want her to do. If she keeps ignoring it, I'll buy more fencing.

Fed us all. I'm really tired. I'm going to email my dad, scoop cat boxes, and then go to bed.

Woke up at 6:30 AM.

I had an online seminar at work given by a committee for which I'm a liaison, so that took up at lot of my day. Otherwise, I've been discussing retirement with my dad. (I asked him how he decided when to retire.) My dad also thinks that I should "paper trade" his investment system until I get the money from the trust. I need to write the trust about wanting the money, but I've been dreading the explosion.

I was discussing with my dad things that I want to do in retirement, and learn photography is one of them. I ran across a photography tour of Yosemite, which would check two things off of my list---photography and seeing Yosemite.

My list: Mostly learning things. I wanted to learn how to do Web programming, but the classes at the U of I were too fast-paced, so I want to work on it at my pace, and maybe volunteer to do Web site work for non-profits. Also, work on programming for mobile devices. Learn more about economics. Work on my languages (Italian and French). The big thing that I want to do is spend a year studying Italian in Italy (and possibly French as well). Learn singing (I belong to a chorus), piano, and guitar. Garden. I don't have a plan for a part-time job but am open to one. Basically doing stuff that I'm already doing but with more time to do it. Oh, and start writing again (a mix of non-fiction and poetry). And I want to learn to write songs. I want to write humorous songs about getting older and post them on YouTube. And learn photography. I have a lot of resources about it, but haven't had the time to put into it.

My therapist said that Obamacare gets more expensive as you get older, and COBRA is expensive, so I should wait until I'm eligible for Medicare to retire (2.5 years). I need to learn more about it. I think that Fidelity has a webinar about Medicare that I'll look for.

Got the recycling out, including a ton of plant boxes that were on the porch. I have more boxes inside, but I’ll get them out next week. I strained my knee in taking out the recycling, sigh. I need replacement parts :)

I forgot to mention that I received more plants. The ferns for my shade garden look like happy little plants.