days_unfolding

I’ve decided on my first healthy meal. Overnight oats for breakfast, lentil soup for lunch, and Basil Corn Tomato Bake for dinner with Grilled Pineapple Frozen Yogurt for dessert. I need to look at more of the OSF recipes for more meals. OSF has a Citrus Shrimp Quinoa that sounds interesting. Making Portobello Mushroom “burgers” on the grill also sounds good.

I kind of want a “Life Happens. Cats Help.” T-shirt.

Brenda is going to bring a cardboard scratching post. That will be great for Lily, who likes to scratch boxes. (And both she and Oliver try to scratch my legs—ouch!) I need to measure to see if my folding desk or her desk would fit in the second bedroom. Her day bed should fit.

Oliver and Lily were both in the basement. Oliver came up but Lily decided to stay downstairs. I fed Oliver some dry food on the kitchen table, and Gracie kept on jumping up like a Jack-in-the-Box and barking. I wound up giving her and Bella some Munchie Bones, which settled her down.

Woke up at 8 AM. I’m still tired, so I think that I want a nap at lunchtime.

I ordered some calamine lotion for my mosquito bites. Itch, itch, itch.

Gracie is barking at the cats. A quiet morning at home.

It’s even hotter than yesterday (“dangerous heat”), so I’m keeping the dogs in until late. Bella is snoozing near me and groaning.

Had a nice nap after the dogs stopped wrestling.

Ordered dry cat and dog food. Also, ordered more Munchie Bones to distract the dogs.

It’s still crazy hot and humid out. I think that I’ll let the dogs out around 6 or 7 PM when the temperature is going down. Hmm, the air quality is “poor” also.

I need to bring some garbage bags for clothes donations into the second bedroom so that I can sort clothes while Zara eats. I think that this will be a big cull because I don’t wear the clothes in the closet there. (And I have new clothes to hang. I’ll probably enlist Brenda’s help in getting my clothes organized.)

I really need to get over to the gym to join and work on my legs so that I don’t lose ground from physical therapy. Also, I need to walk, and there’s the place where I can walk in air conditioning, although I could walk in the mall a few blocks from me. Maybe I’ll do that too.

I let the dogs out. Oliver and Lily are happy to have some dog-free time. Had a nice nap with Oliver.

I was going to go to the store to get oatmeal, but I’m thinking of going before work tomorrow instead.

Showered. Got the recycling out. Fed the fur faces. Ate dinner.

Time to wash some clothes and head towards bed.

I found a plant watering reminder on etsy for the roses. I found another one that is better for daily watering.

Overslept until 9:40 AM. Crud, money that I transferred didn’t post, so I needed to reschedule Gracie’s vet appointment. At least then I can nap over lunch.

Hmm. It’s kind of hot out, so maybe I should wait to let the dogs out.

Had a nice nap.

The dogs are not happy that I’m not letting them out, but when I see a heat index of over 100F/38C, I start to worry. I’ll let them out in the late afternoon.

My stomach is kind of upset again. I’ll lie down for a little while after work. Or maybe I’ll go lie down now. Let the dogs out. Had a nice nap. Threw some clothes on and watered the plants. Filled the garbage can, but I need to roll it to the curb when the dogs aren’t out.

I was Googling former colleagues. It's interesting what happened to them.

Ate dinner. Bella is a napkin thief. Fed the dogs and cats except for Zara. (I need to go get her dish and soak it.)

Rolled the garbage to the street. Damn, it’s humid. I had thought about going for walks at night, but it isn’t looking appealing. Finally got my act together to send Brenda some info about the house.

My stomach is still a little upset, so I should go to bed sooner rather than later. (Hear that, self?)

I forgot to mention yesterday that Gracie was nose-to-nose with Oliver, and she didn’t bug him (though she was barking at him later). Gracie seems to be maturing. Yay.

I tried turning on the washer. It worked, so something is wrong with the dryer. I want to pull the washer and dryer out to make sure that the dryer is plugged in. (It would be really annoying to pay a service charge only to have them tell me that the dryer is unplugged!)Otherwise, I’ll get it fixed. I need to get some more laundry baskets to get the clothes off of the washer and dryer, and Dollar Tree has them.

I’m still feeling a little sick. I’m trying to decide whether to call in sick to work and my dental appointment. Done—I’m going back to bed. I did screw up though. I’m “on call,” which means to assign a working group to tickets, and I forgot to tell my backup that I was out. She was nice about it though.

I’m wondering if dehydration is causing my stomach issues. I’ll try to chug water.

Good. No rain predicted on the weekend so far, so I can get yard work done.

I’m back at work in the afternoon. The people at my job tend to take ½ sick days and try to log in in the afternoon, so I do too. I’ve had lunch and feel better.

Therapy went okay, but I logged on a little late because I was working on a program and lost track of time. We’re going to up my frequency of sessions because a friend might be staying with me, and she wants to help me work out any issues. She’s also sending me a link to a book called “Unfuck Your Boundaries”.

Worked on the kitchen.

I haven’t been mentioning that I might have a friend stay with me because I didn’t want to put pressure on her. But we had a long talk tonight, and I think that this is going to work. She wants to store some stuff at my place, so I need to measure the part of my basement that doesn’t have stuff in it and let her know how much space I have available.

I think that I’ll go to bed early though (famous last words) to sleep off the ick that I’ve been having.

Hmm. I don’t have the trellis yet, and I was going to plant my roses tomorrow. I guess that I’ll plant the bush roses and wait to plant my climbing one.

I read an article about Roanoke, VA, and checked out condos there. It would be nice to live near the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Everyone is fed. I’m going to sleep in a few minutes.

Well, heck. Now the forecasters are saying thunderstorms tomorrow.

I’m waiting for the dogs to stop wrestling to go to sleep. Gracie is a maniac.

Woke up at 7 AM. I’m feeling tired. The forecasters are saying rain at 11:00 and 12:00. Suckage.

I’ve got synchronized petting going (Bella and Lily).

Napped and woke up after an hour. Fed us all. I have stomach cramps, so I’m going to lie back down for a little while.

Was about to take a shower, but I was feeling weak and shaky, so I’m eating something.

Showered. I’m wearing my “nice” top and jeans due to goop on my other pair of jeans. I thought about skipping mowing, but I think that I need to do it. I just want to put my face on. I think that I’ll submit a grocery order tonight.

Lily is fussing over me because she thinks that it’s feeding time.

I’ve been mowing. I went inside to use the washroom, and now they’re saying rain in 16 minutes. I should go back outside and empty grass from the mower at the very least. It rained a very little. I stopped mowing though.

I’m trying to decide whether I want to eat. The cats do! Fed everyone except Zara, whom I’ll feed after I eat. My stomach is upset. My knee is killing me. I’m falling apart….

Overslept and got up at 8:30 AM. I’m having stomach cramps.

Overslept my nap at lunchtime. Amazon keeps pushing back a delivery of some stuff (dog food and hose), and I want to let the dogs out but am waiting for the delivery of the package. Sigh.

I screwed up at work and want to retire.

Holy cow. It’s currently 85F/29C. It’s jumped from spring to summer. I have my fan on upstairs.

Oliver walked on both my laptop keyboard and my keyboard plugged into the docking station for extra added bonus points :) Gracie is lying on her back with her belly and front paws in the air.

What the heck. I’m not getting incoming calls on my cell phone. I’ll try to get it fixed this weekend.

Got the dog food and hose. Let the dogs out. It’s starting to rain, so I don’t know how long they’ll stay out. Installed an emergency broadcast app on my phone in case of tornadoes.

Got the Urbana Park District summer catalog. No golf, but they have pickleball, so I need to look for a partner. Maybe I’ll try the AARP group that I belong to first.

Convinced the Dynamic Duo (Bella and Gracie) to come in and eat dinner. Rain helped.

It keeps raining and I’m tired. I was going to run some errands, but I think that I’ll go to bed early and get up early to run them instead. Watched The Pitt. Finished Season 1.

I broke down and subscribed to the Wall Street Journal online because they have enough articles that interest me. And their newsletters! I subscribed to around 10 of them. They had a deal for $2 a week for a year. Then it gets expensive, but then I can decide if it's worth the cost.

Overslept until 8 AM. Took a fast shower.

My dental appointment went okay; the implant is healing well. We made an appointment for the impression for the crown after July 1 because that's a new fiscal year for my insurance.

I told Lily not to walk on my computer. Lily: I walk on anything and everything. Because I am a cat! Oliver keeps on sitting on my laptop. The joys of working with pets around.

Napped and overslept. Gracie has been out for three hours and still doesn't want to come in. Sigh.

My dad is saying that it seems likely that there will be a recession or depression this year. (I asked him what evidence he's seeing because I'm me and a lot like him.) I got some books on recessions.

Drat. The flight credit that I used for a trip to New York was today, but I managed to cancel it for a credit. I want to take a trip to New York in December.

Gracie finally decided to come in and everyone's fed.

I think that I want to take another nap after work. Overslept by only 20 minutes. Now I let the dogs out and are feeding myself and the critters. I keep having stomach cramps, ugh. Lily is fussing over me.

I’m thinking of just going to bed after my nighttime tasks and getting up early to do my French homework.

Fed us all. Bella started eating Gracie’s food after eating her own food, but I managed to distract her. Now it’s posting time.

I finally got into my Schwab account. Yes, I took a beating. But I bought more oil-related stocks because my dad says that they work well as a hedge. (They go up when other stocks go down and vice versa,)

I feel like the “ichy, watery eyes” of a cold med commercial.

I woke up at 3:30 AM and used the washroom and checked LJ and DW. I’m going back to sleep. No, I couldn’t for quite a while. I couldn’t breathe through my nose, so I was breathing through my mouth, but that triggered coughing and tears rolling down my face. I kept on changing positions until I found one where I could breathe through my nose. It was after 5 AM at that point. Slept until 8 and I emailed in sick.

Yep, my bank transfers to Schwab are working. My dad said to invest the money in a municipal money fund until I’m ready to invest it for real.

Gracie didn’t want to come inside, not even for a donut. It took a half-hour to get her in here. I was getting annoyed. Bella ran back out a couple of times too.

I need to feed the dogs (done) and myself (done).

Oliver is on the ledge above my bedroom door. Then he slowly made is way towards me, getting attention from the dogs. I tried to get the dogs to leave, but no. Oliver made it over to me, but he wanted to play whappy paws with claws out. I removed him. Then I went to use the washroom. I have been leaking urine when I cough or sneeze, so I got a pad on. The dogs followed me out, so I ran back and shut the door with no dogs or cats. Now I can finally sleep. I started coughing and felt like I was going to throw up but didn’t. I got up and am making some Ramen.

I’m wondering if I should take a shower to break up the congestion. I took a DayQuil and did take a shower. It helped. Now I want to order more NyQuil and DayQuil. I also ordered some cough drops. Got them. I’m going to eat a little and try a nap.

I’ve been getting irritated about all the obits about Scott Adams. He wasn’t a very nice guy. On the other hand, he died relatively young (only five years older than I am now), and I’m probably cranky because I don’t feel well.

I did get a couple hours of sleep. Bella came in with me but napped. Now I let the dogs out. It’s feeding time for the critters (done). Ate dinner. Took NyQuil and my nighttime meds. Bedtime soon.

I need to call the hand doctor’s office tomorrow morning. I don’t think that they want me to come in with a cold.

Canceled a bunch of subscriptions on PayPal. I think that all I have left is Netflix, which I want to keep. Oh, and I should resubscribe to Hulu.

I checked into my cruise, but the boarding documents won't be available for a few days. I also bought the Have It All package, which includes WiFi, drinks, and one specialty dining meal.

Bought a ring that looks like hugging arms, and it'll have "Mom" engraved on the inside.

Now I really need to go to bed. I have a boatload (so to speak) of stuff to get done this weekend.

Gracie is trying to play dog play with me on the bed, and I told her to go play with Bella. That’s why I have two dogs. Now she’s snoozing with her head on my leg.

Woke up a little before 6 AM. I explained to the dogs that the cats get fed first. They don’t think that’s fair. Fed us all. My stomach hurts. I’m going back to bed. The dogs are wrestling on the bed and not leaving me any room. The snow has started.

Woke up a little before 11 AM. I’m feeling cold. It’s 15F/-10C out. So yeah, cold. I’ll take a shower in a few minutes. After lunch.

BuddhaStoneShop had a bracelet that I liked for only the shipping cost, so I got it. They also had a ring in the shape of a cat for shipping cost, so I got that too. And a Tree of Life bracelet. And a Yin-Yang necklace. They’re probably getting money from part of the shipping cost, but still, it’s cheap.

Oliver was warming my lap and purring.

I’m IBSing. But I’m staying home today so I guess that it’s okay.

Ate lunch.

Finished the book on James I. I just ordered a book on Charles I to continue my investigation into the Stuarts.

Oliver is knocking stuff down and being annoying.

The Precip app says 3.3 inches of snow so far, to make a total of 6.5. It’s like living in a snow globe. I saw a map on Facebook with the words “Stay home” over our band of snow. Will do.

I think that I’ll have one more nap. Slept for about an hour. I’m feeling cold and trying to warm up before my shower. It seems like the dogs and cats are sleeping. At least, they aren’t in the kitchen.

Opened packages while I and my clothes were warming up. I got the file folder wall holders for sheet music. I need to dig out my drill.

Hmm. UNICEF Market has a lot of rings that I like.

The dogs are barking at who-knows-what.

I think that I’ll have some soup.

Final snow total: 5.7, for a total of 8.4. Now we’re into the cold part of the weekend (currently 0F/-18C). I'm going to pull out another blanket and go to sleep. I hope that Gracie won't chew holes in the blanket. Oh, and I need to set the faucets to dripping.

I filled out a Lost and Found form for my blazer that I left on the ship. I’ll see if I get it back.

I didn’t see Zara and was swamped by the feeling that she had died. But she’s okay. I looked at other older cats on the local Humane Society’s website and did see an older black cat that I liked. But I don’t really need another pet.

Woke up a little before my alarm at 7 AM. It's gloomy out again.

Work has been an absolute zoo. I'm not sure what to pick up first.

I had a mammogram scheduled, but they had to cancel because they didn't get the films from the other hospital.

Oliver was sleeping on me, which was nice until he dug his claws in my leg :) I forgot to mention that the ship's doctor asked about the marks on my leg. Well, that's from my asshole cat....

My piano teacher really wants me to attend class. I told her that my left thumb and index finger was tingling, and she said that maybe playing piano might help. Okay. Zara will be pleased at least. No, I’m feeling dizzy and want to lie down, so I’m skipping class. I’m also skipping taking the recycling out.

Bella has started to cough. Terrific. I’ll ask the vet if they can treat her without my bringing her in. I'm a "frequent flyer," so they tend to be good to me.

The local high school is having their Thanksgiving dinner again, so I’m going to go next week.

I couldn’t decide when to do Dial-A-Carol. I’m not feeling decisive today.

It was a three-ring circus feeding the cats and dogs. I think that I need a canine behaviorist for Gracie because she will not stop chasing and barking at the cats. Oliver will swat her, but Lily just gets upset. I finally put Gracie in time-out in the bedroom. When I yell at Gracie, Bella gets upset and says, “I’m sorry.” I told her that nothing was wrong with her.

Nap time. My throat hurts. Had a nice nap. I think that I’m getting a cold. I’m going to feed the pets, take the dogs out, and go back to sleep.

I ordered some Emergen-C and DayQuil from Walmart. I need to be present for delivery though.

I ordered a knee brace and a cane with a seat.

Woke up with my alarm at 6 AM. I couldn’t remember why I was getting up so early for the longest time. Oh yeah, the in-person meeting. My stomach is upset, but I have to go, so that’s that.

The meeting went okay. My grand boss got a little teary because it’s her last annual meeting, and my glasses fogged up a little too. I did get a major dizzy spell during the morning and had to sit down and put my head down.

I loved the pants that I wore to the meeting, so I ordered a pair in navy.

Another dizzy spell. Sigh. I want to lie down.

Um. I got a like on Coffee Meets Bagel from a guy in Gainesboro, TN. I don’t think that will work geographically.

I stupidly left my Kizik shoes out, and one got chewed. Sigh. I ordered a new pair for my trip.

Napped and slept until 9 PM. Got the garbage out.

The BBC had an article about bacteria on your toothbrush. Ugh. They suggested soaking it in mouthwash.

It’s a zoo here. Gracie is barking at Oliver. Oliver is hissing. Lily has gotten out of the fray and went upstairs. Bella ate Gracie’s food. Fed us all.

Now I need to log on and modify a file for our training exercise tomorrow (done).

I was looking for a straw and found my spare set of Zenni glasses. (My housekeeping style is "There appears to have been a struggle".) Now I need to start laundry because I want to wear the jeans tomorrow that I have on. And go to bed.

I’m thinking of staying out one more day; I’m still having dizzy spells. Yeah, I emailed in sick.

I’ve been thinking about 9/11 for the past few days, probably because of the New York City trip that I had planned. Never forget. It was a very big deal when I lived in California because one of the flights was headed towards the Bay Area. There’s a memorial there that I never saw. I remember my mom leaving a message because I was still asleep: “You will find a lot has happened when you get up.” Hard to believe that it’s been 25 years.

I’m reading Byron Katie’s book Loving What Is. The basic idea is that our thoughts about an event cause suffering, not the event itself. I think that it will help. She has worksheets on her Web site. I want to download them on my tablet and work with them.

I think that Bella is a little annoyed with Gracie’s play fighting. She’s keeping her at bay.

Napped. Woke up a little after 12 PM. Rescheduled my COVID and flu shots for Saturday after my singing lesson. Ate lunch.

I want to lie back down, but the doggos are wrestling.

I need to pick out a song to work on in my singing lesson.

Napped. Threw myself together. Went and picked up my groceries. Made dinner.

Now I need to post and feed the critters one more time. I'm really tired.

I woke up with a really upset stomach that got worse, so I called in sick to my dental appointment and work. I need to feed the critters and go back to bed.

I had an unexpected $2000 dental bill. It turns out that my insurance is refusing to pay for my bridge because one of the teeth was previously missing. I’m not sure if it’s worth pursuing with the insurance. They have been working with them for a while. Dad said yes, call them.

I changed my Walmart pickup order to tomorrow.

Went back to sleep. Woke up around 2:30 PM. Ate lunch. Lily is telling me that it’s feeding time, but it’s still early. Whoa. I bent over to pick up my glasses, which Lily knocked on the floor, and had a dizzy spell.

Went back to sleep. Woke up a little before 8 PM. It’s humid out.

I’ve been reading Elizabeth Gilbert’s book about her partner, who died of cancer. It’s rough in parts—her partner went back to her addictions before she died—but she had a great love and found her truth. It’s got me thinking how to get more spirit in my life.

Oh crap. There was another shooting. Political discourse in this country has gone down the tubes.

The cats are telling me they missed a meal. They ground me. I’m making dinner and soaking the cats’ dishes. I’m telling Gracie not to chase the cats. The car keys fell out of my pocket and Bella grabbed them. I finally got them away from her. A quiet evening at home :)

I ordered some Bluetooth headphones and resubscribed to Audible to have books to listen to while I’m cleaning. Elizabeth Gilbert mentioned Pema Chodron and Thich Nant Hanh, both of whom I’ve listened to in the past.

Fed us all and took the dogs out. Now it’s time to post and go back to sleep.

Holy cow. A post on Facebook was about how they used ChatGPT to create their itinerary in Italy, so I asked ChatGPT to create a five-day NYC itinerary that included a list of places that I wanted to see. It delivered, including subway stops and walking directions. Wow. Some of them were what I figured (the Lower Manhattan day was what I had already figured), but there were some surprises. And they told me the best nights to see a play! I need to think about the play nights because I want to stick close to the hotel on the day that I get off the cruise ship so that I can check in, but I won't want to see a play that night because it'll be an early day, unless I can grab a nap. Do I want to take pictures with a GoPro of the cruise departure from Manhattan? Or maybe just use my phone with a tripod? Hey actually, I'd like to do the cruise around Manhattan on my first day. ChatGPT said that it would be better on the Greenwich Village/Chelsea day though.

Hmm, maybe I should do the WTC and lower Manhattan on the first day and make it an early night.

Overslept and woke up a little before 8 AM. I thought about napping at lunchtime and taking my shower after work, but I have a therapy session this afternoon (online). So I need to make myself presentable.

I got everything done at work that I wanted to get done before the long weekend. (I'm taking tomorrow off.)

I'm going around in circles with FedEx about the camera. I think that they delivered it to the pickup facility, but I'm not sure.

My stomach is doing flip-flops.

Crud, AAA had my old address in Lincoln, don't ask me why. The card said that it expired on August 15th. I logged on and changed my address, and it said that it actually expires in December. I asked for a new card. I'll have to wait to jump-start the Kia until I get it. Though I think that I can use my phone app as a card?

Okay, good, my retirement contribution went through.

I checked the weather in Bermuda, and it's raining every day, so I ordered a rain poncho. (I have a raincoat, but it's heavier.) I hope that I can have my beach day though.

Had my therapy session. Nothing much to report; I'm doing everything that I need to do. I just need to wait and see what happens with Gracie.

Yay. CVS has the COVID vaccine, and I made an appointment on the 5th. (I'm getting a flu shot as well.)

Fed us all. Opened up some packages. More used clothes. Some photography books. A tripod for my iPhone. My back hurts.

I'm thinking of going to bed soon and getting up early to do stuff. I don't feel like I have the energy to clean now.

Fed us all. It’s starting to get light. I need to clean up some poop in the bedroom. (I can’t blame Gracie because I was asleep for a long time.) Then I’ll go back to sleep for a while. The dogs promptly crashed out.

Woke up at 9 AM with Gracie licking my face. I caught Bella in the act of moving a cat dish around. Me to Oliver: “You got fed earlier.” Oliver to me: “That was then; this is meow.”

My stomach is upset, so I’m going to lie down. Bella snoozes until the last possible minute before I get up. I told her that she doesn’t have to get up when I get up, but she thinks that it’s her duty as The Dog to follow me around. Gracie is more independent.

I was trying to figure out where to put my new drying rack for clothes. I’d rather put it on the shaded side away from the street. The sunny side is right along the sidewalk. I’ll try it on the shadier side and see what happens. Also, the garage-to-be will clear the clothesline posts in the back yard.

Bella and Gracie were playing tug of war with a stick. Bella won twice. A neighbor said “Hi” to the dogs. Gracie was upset and barking because the guy left, and I told her that the world didn’t revolve around her. She is not convinced. Gracie: “My water dish is empty.” Me: “Your water dish would stay full longer if you didn’t play in the water.” Gracie: “This does not compute.”

Ugh. My stomach is still upset. I would stay in, but have a grocery pickup at Meijer at 4. Hmm, I really need to go to Costco today because I’m planning on staying up late working on the kitchen. But I’ve been feeling dizzy.

I was thinking that I had an easy choice to euthanize Mimi. A brain tumor is serious stuff. I have a feeling that I’ll have a tougher choice with Zara. She keeps losing weight, but her kidney numbers are good so far.

I received my InstaPot. I’m looking forward to learning how to use it.

Lily is fussing over me. I think that she’s hungry.

I took a shower and dressed, but I feel shaky. Ate a BistroMD cookie to try to help the shakes.

Went and got the pickup order. I ran in to get some diet root beer, only to find that they were out of bottles, so I got some cans. I found some good food prep containers and a muffin pan. Came home to find that the new pots and pans are here.

Bought a dog fountain for Bella and Gracie, although Gracie doesn’t like running water. (I read a sob story about a dog who got dehydrated, and that worried me.)

Cats: we’re hungry! Feed us! Nothing subtle about Oliver. He gets in my face when he’s hungry. Fed us all.

The new copper pots look great! I want to clean the stove before taking a picture of them though. I think that I want a copper kettle too (ordered). I need to take apart the boxes that they came in.

I’m feeling dizzy. I was going to stay up all night cleaning, but I think that I need to lie down soon. I really wish that I’d stop being sick. I want to do dishes before I go to sleep though (done). I need to feed the beasts again, but then I'll go to sleep. I'm setting an alarm though.

Gracie woke me up at 5 AM. (I can’t remember when I went to sleep. 11?) I removed her from the bedroom and slept until 7:30. Much better.

My stomach is upset again. I don’t know why. I hope that food will help. Fed us all. Bella is busy stealing napkins.

I bought some reusable produce bags because I’ll need them when I start cooking. I also bought some reusable grocery bags.

I forgot to mention yesterday that the battery on the Kia is dead. I need to call AAA.

I checked, and Mint Mobile has an International Pass. Good.

Napped. I shut Gracie out because she’s more hyper, but Bella is always up for a nap.

Gracie met my neighbor and her friend. Gracie was thrilled by the attention. They pronounced her “cute”. They said that beagles like to run away, so now they know where she lives :)

I should return the stoneware to Costco, but I really want to stay home today and get stuff done. I could take the stoneware to Costco after my COVID shot. Or I could move my COVID shot to Tuesday. I moved my COVID shot to Friday.

My stomach is upset, so I’m going to lie down for a few minutes. Then I’ll shower. I’ll wear shorts because I’m going to be around the house.

Bella and Gracie were chasing Oliver. I told them that they can be little shits, but I was focusing on Bella because she’s teaching Gracie to chase him. I pushed her down and told her “No” repeatedly.

I guess that I feel a little better.

Hmm. I wonder if I’d save money replacing my hot water heater with a tankless one. I asked my dad about it.

I’m about to take a shower. Oliver jumped on my shoulders, claws extended, on his way to the top of the shower stall. I called him an asshole. Now he’s sleeping like a little angel. Not.

I’m getting IBS symptoms, so that’s probably what my upset stomach was about. I’m glad that I’m staying home.

I spent some time trying to figure out how to get my to-do list on my phone's Lock Screen. It didn’t work, but I think that I can create a graphic that says “Work on the House “ in Canva and use it as my Lock Screen. I’ll try it anyway. I got my Lock Screen to say “Work on the house!” with a link to my to-do list. Awesome.

I have a goal to save up the six months of money that you’re supposed to have in your emergency fund (a year would be better because I’m moving towards retirement). I have $1700 and I’m not touching it. Let’s hear it for automatic savings. It comes directly from my paycheck.

I’m getting back to the point that I look at things and say that they’re too expensive. This is good.

Oliver has another new annoying habit in that he’ll eat half his food, then abandon it to eat Lily’s food. I watch them eat though, so I tell him to stop it and move his food near him. (Don’t get me wrong; I love him, but I can love him AND think that he’s annoying.)

I'm still not feeling great, so I decided to open up some Amazon boxes (I got some Mason jars to prep salads or soups) and then I tackled my travel backpack. I got my charging cords organized, except for some usba to usbc cords that the dogs got into. (Now I'll have everything in my backpack and will zip it closed, so they can't get into anything.) I ordered the cords and a couple more US-to-Europe adapters. I had bought some Beats headphones (this was before my austerity kick), so I'm charging them. And I have a dongle to plug into the airplane seat's electronics to broadcast Bluetooth. I have no excuse to get bored on the plane.

I want to get up early in the hope that I'll feel better, so I need to go to sleep soon. I want to find my boombox first though (and feed the beasts).

I did think of a college town to check out for retirement: Clemson, South Carolina. It ticks all my boxes. I found a senior living community to check out. The place doesn't seem to allow pets, and I'm likely to still have Oliver and Lily when I would move there. So I started to look in Greenville, SC, and found a place that I like that allows pets. It sounds pretty perfect.

Booked a massage. My neck is killing me.

Woke up at 7 AM. Bella was too distracted by the outside world to do her business. She finally peed at least. Bella was being totally manic and she scratched me in the face. I gave her a Munchie Bone and she settled down. I’ve decided to take my shower at lunchtime because my clothes aren’t dry yet. So now I have time to kill.

Cool. I got The Economist's Guide to Investment Strategies for $4 on eBay. I'm going to have quite an investment library. And I received The Economist’s Guide to Analyzing Companies, which I will read first.

The arthritis in my toes is bugging me.

Had my therapy session. I told her that the increased meds were helping somewhat, but that I'm still tired. I looked tired. I asked how to force myself to clean up the kitchen, and we decided that I would make an appointment with a cleaner, and then I would clean up the dog debris in there before the appointment. She recommended that I get the security cameras put up and contact the garage people in the next two weeks.

The new pope is from my hometown of Chicago! There are jokes on Facebook about a deep-dish* Eucharist :)

I watered my plants outside and took the new plants out of their boxes and watered them too. Opened some Amazon boxes and my investment books are coming in. Now I just need time to read them!

My digestive system is roiling. I need to get to bed early anyway because I need to drop the car off to be fixed tomorrow.

I think that I'm going to hire someone to walk Bella because I've been so drained. I found someone who also does cat sitting, which I will need when I go to a conference in June. Also I'm going to hire an organizer to keep me working on decluttering and organizing.

* Deep-dish pizza is a thing in Chicago. It's several inches high and filled with cheese, meat, and other items such as mushrooms. Jon Stewart derisively called it a "casserole," but it's quite good.

The lawn is shaggy and I need to mow this weekend. And I should seed the bare spots. And plant my seeds. And clean the house. Busy, busy. Actually, I should wait to plant things until after the conference to which I'm going in early May. Speaking of which, I emailed a plant store, asking if they could ship my plants a week later due to the conference to which I'm going, but I haven't heard back. I need to check my spam filter. Okay, they did email me and they're shipping it a week later. Yay.

Woke up at 7 AM. Today is a work from home day, which is nice. Lily went into the shower and Bella was barking at her.

i keep forgetting about AARP discounts for travel. I should compare their price when I book hotels for my trips.

The Medisafe app is working well for medication reminders. I always remember the nighttime doses, but in the morning, I get distracted.

The May 1st protest will be in the evening, so I can go. I need to make my sign this weekend.

I had to turn my fan on upstairs. Spring tends to go from cold directly to hot in Central Illinois.

Silence from the trust about my check. I'm getting annoyed.

Had a therapy session. My therapist thinks that I should get a lawyer to deal with the trust. She also is concerned that I'm still having depressive symptoms and wants me to talk to my psychiatrist. I went online to contact the psychiatrist, only to find that I have an appointment on Monday. That'll work.

I don’t know what to do. I should go pick up a library book, but I’m crazy tired. I’m dropping the Kia off to be fixed tomorrow and don’t know if I’ll have it on the weekend. I did get new wrenches though, so I should be able to connect the battery in the Honda though. Ugh. My stomach is upset.

Slept until 11 PM. Started laundry. I figured out what I'm going to wear tomorrow. I have another offsite meeting. My colleague is going to pick me up at the car repair place.

Oliver, get off of the keyboard!

Lily is really coming into her own. It’ll be interesting to see how things go when Oliver gets here.

I need to order cat food, but I’ll do so tomorrow.

Oops, I need to set up weekly pet waste cleanup.

Woke up at 6 AM. Lily is here and said, “Hi”.

I’m trying to decide whether to work or not. I have this week off, but in general, I’d like to save my vacation time for travel.

Ordered a new pair of Kiziks because Bella did something with my old ones. Ordered cat food and human food.

Zara is warily watching Lily, who is ignoring her. Fed Lily and Zara. Did dishes.

Hmm. I really want to go back to sleep. I decided to take today off and go back to work tomorrow. I sent a message to work telling them what happened and that I’m back. Called the vet where Oliver and Bella is being boarded and said that I would be by in the early afternoon to pick them up.

My boss could not have been kinder. She said that if I needed time to recover from the sad end to my trip, to take it, and that sick days cover mental health too. But I’m okay except for dreaming that I had a stroke.

My vet left a message with her condolences.

Got our groceries. Lily thinks that my food is her food, or at least, she hopes so.

Yeah, I needed a quiet day. In a few minutes, I’ll hop into the shower and then go pick up Oliver and Bella.

I’ve gotten set with the pet waste people.

Holy cow. I forgot a bottle of soda in the freezer. I took it out to thaw. It just exploded all over my cabinets and stand mixer. I wiped them down but need to go over them with spray cleaner. The bottle is now in the sink where I should have put it in the first place.

Lily was trying to catch the waterdrops on the shower. And she had to go in when I got out.

Bella and Oliver are home. There was an issue with my credit card, but we got it straightened out. Bella’s tail is on max wag. However, she ate (and pooped out) her collar. They gave her an x-ray and she’s okay. Don’t know what I’m going to do with that crazy dog though. Oliver and Bella were faves at the boarding place though. And Bella jumped into the car and gave me a kiss!

Uh-oh. Oliver and Lily had a little squabble. And Bella needs lots of reassurance, not surprisingly. So much for taking Bella for a nice long walk. (I’m not going to choir tonight. Actually there is no choir because of Spring Break.) She needs a collar or harness. I ordered both from Amazon.

The pupster is settling down.

My stomach hurts. I’m going to lie down. Slept with Bella and slept so deeply that I wasn’t sure if it was morning or night. The pup is still asleep. Oops, she just woke up. She just rolled over.

Took Bella out. She needs to sniff every square inch of the yard. I need to get someone to rake leaves. Fed Bella and the catlings are in process (done). Ordered cat food covers because I now have an odd number of cats. But Bella ate the extra food :)

Oliver and Lily are playing "Catch Me If You Can!" upstairs. I'm going to take Bella out one more time and then go to bed early. I'm still tired.

I’m losing my voice and am wondering if I should call in sick. Yeah, I did. It feels like someone rubbed my throat with steel wool.

The puppy is licking everything that she can reach :) Oliver (I’m assuming) knocked over the orchids. I gave Bella her ball. I’m not sure what she did with it. Fed the beasties. Bella is a “half-a-lap” dog.

I’m getting more money from the sale of Mom’s house than I thought, so I’m wondering if I should go solar. I found a solar calculator, but I need to find out how much energy I’m using. Okay, solar costs less than I thought. I might do it. It would cost me the equivalent of $1000 a year while I'm in the house. I'll have to check, but I think that's cheaper than my current energy bill. Yeah, it is. I also requested a quote on a heat pump. Why can't places email me quotes? Why do they have to call me? I'm not answering my phone. I DON'T LIKE PHONE CALLS!

Watched President Carter’s funeral until CNN’s feed started flaking out. Slept until 1 PM. Freaked out when I woke up because I forgot that I called in sick.

I need to remember to take the ball when I take Bella outside to play fetch with her.

The shelter from which I adopted Bella has a labradoodle who is deaf. He interests me, but I wonder how hard it would be to work with his deafness. And I have to wait until I get more money before adopting another pup. Actually, I did find an Australian cattle dog/blue heeler dog that sounds great, but the same applies. And they want a “family reference”. My dad is not going to help me get a dog, so I don’t know whom I would use.

Bella was ripping up the paper towels. In front of me! I rescued them.

Ack! They’re predicting more snow tonight. 3 to 4 inches. Must remember to charge the snow blower.

Bella and I played outside with the ball. She was having a blast. She was trotting around with it in her mouth. A passerby with a dog said that she was a pretty dog :) Bella was shy with the dog. She now has the ball with her in bed.

I looked up dog daycare per one_raido’s comment and also dog groomers because I could picture Bella getting muddy in the Spring.

Oh lord, she is squeaking the ball.

I was petting Bella and I stopped, so she got up off the bed and flumped into the dog bed. My little drama queen :)

Tried to go back to sleep but couldn’t sleep.

It occurred to me that I should get the TV in the bedroom set up after Bella wakes up. And I should move the pictures.

Cool. Bella’s collar shipped.

The puppy was whining because she wanted on my lap, but Lily is there. Life is tough.

Bella pooped in the bathroom while I was upstairs. I got it cleaned up and put the bag outside so that it doesn’t stink up the place. Then I took her outside, but she didn’t need to do anything. I gave her her ball, and she’s currently squeaking it. She really wants to eat the dry cat food. I told her that she has her own food, but it isn’t as tasty as forbidden fruit. Well, she had finished her food so mea culpa. I fed her.

I want to make some Ramen to soothe my throat (done and eaten). Had frozen yogurt for dessert and Lily wanted it.

I've got the cat dishes soaking. Zara and Oliver went nose to nose. Then Zara hissed, but still, progress. Oliver got upstairs in Mimi's lair, and that didn't go so well. I've since dumped him out. He's getting smarter about how I was keeping him out, using the gate itself to corral him.

I think that I want to go back to bed soon.

Hmm. I would like a cruise to Bermuda too. But I’ll wait and see how this cruise goes.

Oh, what a day.

Ugh. I've been constipated, and I had a GYN appointment today, so I took laxatives. So I wound up with both constipation and diarrhea. I went to my appointment and talked to the nurse about it, and she talked to the doctor, and they rescheduled it. Yay. I was worried about making a mess.

Then I had my haircut, and the hairdresser did her usual excellent job. She kept trying to upsell me though, and I kept on saying "No" politely.

Then I had a therapy appointment, which was good timing because I was feeling overwhelmed and almost in tears. She agreed that I should try to book an appointment with my former life coach to sort through all that I need to do. She also recommended that I do chair yoga. I'm also thinking about taking a hot bath this weekend.

Then I had a piano lesson. I told my teacher that I didn't get much time to practice (although I scrambled to do some practice today) and she said, "Okay, let's do a practice session." I really like her. She's good at finding pieces that stretch me. She also told me how to find a drum on my digital piano, and suggested that I practice to it. She also said that people who play piano are less likely to get dementia because of the mental workout, which is good news for me.

Then I got the recycling out. I reserved Ubers for San Juan after discovering that airport shuttles were too damn expensive. I wrote my pet sitter about the trip.

Now I'm going to crash. I'll put up my Halloween decorations at lunchtime tomorrow.

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