days_unfolding

Woke up with my alarm at 6 AM. Bella was being annoying this morning. She kept on going back to where I think that she found the possums and barking. If that was the right spot, the mother had moved them. (Now I think that she saw the groundhog.) I kept trying to get her out of there and she kept on going back. I finally, finally convinced her to come in.

At least, I'm clean now.

Dropped my check for the flights and one-half the registration fee off. Now it’s nap time. Oliver was on my lap and he and Bella were squabbling, and I was trying to keep the peace. Then Oliver nipped me, and I escorted him out of the bedroom. Then I realized that I was so spaced out that I didn’t put The Club on the car, so I went out and did so. NOW it’s nap time.

Now a storm is rolling in. It's a big, nasty storm. It's making me nervous. There's a tornado warning northwest of here.

I found out when the Allerton Camp for Adults is taking place this fall (October 9 - 12). But it'll take two vacation days, and I'm using up my vacation days for the Sardinia trip, so I might not be able to do it. But now I know when I can go to Pere Marquette State Park to see the fall leaves. (Note to self: weekend of October 24th) I'll book the HipCamp soon. Hmm, I should try to make a camping meal at home before going camping. I want to do a dry run of everything.

I really want to nap tonight. I'm still having dizzy spells. I'll get the recycling out and lie down.

The tree people wanted to take the tree down tomorrow, but I said that it was a holiday for me, so I'd rather have it done on Monday.

Oh cool. Music of the Baroque is still offering concerts on demand. There are at least three concerts in which I'm interested. I had been chucking their mailings out because I thought that they had ended on demand. (They're in the Chicago area.)

Chico's sent me a coupon, and they have some great dresses, some of which have petites! I usually can't wear maxi dresses because I need petites. I found two dresses that I want: "Rio" dress and Metallic dress.

Got the recycling out. Go me. (They probably won’t pick it up tomorrow because of the holiday but just in case….)

I took Bella out on a leash. She was not happy. She did bounce back enough to pick up a stick, but she did not do her business.

Fed us all. Nap time. Couldn’t sleep. I’ll go post, feed the beasts, take Bella out, and go to bed for the night. Oh, and buy the Chico’s dresses and book the HipCamp for October. Bella is fast asleep though. I hate to disturb her. She jumped on the bed, and I’ve been snuggling with her. Very cozy. I found a petite travel outfit on Magellans that I like.

Okay, I've got the cat food dishes soaking and bought the clothes. I'll wend my way towards bed. Hey, I can sleep in tomorrow!

Got most of the recycling out. Went and got Mimi’s carrier from the U of I vet; I saved around $70 doing that. And now I have three carriers for three cats.

Got up at 7 AM. It’s cold, wet, and miserable out. Even the dog was less than thrilled.

I need to get someone to clean the gutters.

Bella ate Lily's food. Twice. Aargh. Bella is running around with her squeaky ball. She loves that thing. The pup is tired though. Oliver and Lily got kitty racetrack out of their system, I hope. Oliver is in Mimi's window looking at the birds. Lily is sitting on the rocking chair in the front window. I deem that "Lily's chair". Now Oliver is tunneling under the blanket on the guest room bed. Lily digs her claws in my leg when she goes on my lap. Ouch. Points to Oliver; he doesn't do that. Now Lily is checking out the mattress in the guest room. LOL. Oliver is tunneling under the blanket in the guest room, and Lily is jumping on top of him. Those two keep me entertained. A guy came by with two dogs when I was in the yard with Bella, and she hid behind me. That makes me wonder how she's going to do in the dog training class. The Dynamic Duo managed to 1) knock my soda onto me and 2) unplug my work laptop. Now Lily is on top of the fish tank.

I told work to load me up with meetings, but it hasn't been too bad.

I'm freaking tired.

I need to close my purse right now. I need to have the house cleaned, but I can do it myself. I'm getting pretty good at picking up the kitchen before I go to bed. Though hmm. The U of I music venue is having the Mozart Requiem on the 29th. I love the Mozart Requiem. Okay, I bought a ticket.

I asked my dad how to keep my energy up, and he said, “Lose weight”. All right then.

I'm looking at flights to San Diego for the Mexico cruise. I might have to go on Christmas Eve because I think that the bus isn't scheduled on Christmas. Or I might have to take the train, but I think that my suitcase might be too big for it? Oh, I can check luggage to Chicago. It would take me about an hour to get to O'Hare from the train station. I need to figure out something to do in San Diego before the cruise. The zoo? They have a great zoo. San Diego city tour? I'll need to find a hotel too. Found a hotel that I like.

My shade garden has shipped. I’ll need to get after the garden that I will put it in this weekend.

Bella: Pet me! Pet me! Pet me! She found a piece of styrofoam somewhere and was shredding it. I guess that I need to get out the broom. Had some Girl Scout cookies. Bella: Aren’t you going to give me some? Me: Nope!

Headache. I’m going to lie down for a little while. But the doggo wanted a belly rub. I’m sharing my bed with a can of tuna that Bella brought in. I only live here :)

Slept until 10:30 PM. I must have needed it.

Oliver knocked over Mimi’s dry food again. Sigh. He and Bella are eating it in a moment of feline-canine cooperation. Oy. I think that I'm going to leave the kitchen a mess, put clothes in the dryer, and go back to bed. Oops, I need to order soda.

I’ve decided to go run errands on Sunday because I have to get myself together for my singing lesson at 11AM. I can pop out afterwards.

Overslept a couple of hours. It’s colder this morning. Started laundry. Bella grabbed a pair of my underwear, and I had a tough time getting it away from her.

I probably shouldn’t take a nap but I’m going to anyway.

Okay, the boycott is over. Ordered cat food and protein bars from Amazon, although I’m not thrilled with giving Bezos more money. I need to think about it when I get back.

Overslept my nap. I think that I needed the sleep though.

I’m going through Amazon boxes, most of which will be going on the trip. I’m getting a headache though, so I need to eat something.

Now I think that I need to take a shower to try some clothes on. Oops, I need to put clothes in the dryer first.

Bella is whining because Oliver went out of reach. Now she got some Amazon packing paper and is trailing it behind her.

I decided that I wanted one more box of cat food, so I submitted a Walmart order. (I’ll figure out the ethics of my spending when I get back.)

Got the clothes in the dryer with “help” from Oliver. Now I’m going to lie down for a while to get rid of the headache. Bella takes any opportunity for a nap. I read somewhere that dogs sleep more than humans, but she feels obligated to stay up when I’m up.

Overslept my nap slightly. Showered. Had my meeting with the life coach, which was just a quick check-in.

Huh. I need to eat dinner and feed the beasties. But I'm tired. Maybe I'll do some packing and crash early. Oh! I have a cleaner for Tuesday, which takes some work off of me. Awesome.

I need to scan some music for my lesson tomorrow and go to bed.

I forgot to do laundry today. I guess that I start work in my pajamas. I can sleep a little later in that case.

I’ve been using the electric toothbrush and WaterPik. I wind up dousing the mirror with the WaterPik, but my teeth do feel squeaky clean.

Woke up at 7:30 AM. The puppy was sleepy but got up. Now she has her squeaky ball. I’m trying to wake up and warm up.

Submitted a Walmart order. My membership in Walmart+ has really paid off.

Oliver was up on the “kitty highway“ above the cabinets. Bella was looking at him like, what are you doing up there? Now she’s chasing the youngsters. It’s a zoo here. I told her that I was told that she was chill. She’s not acting like it :)

Got the clothes in the dryer.

Hmm. There is a “new to CU” mixer in February. Also, Hospice Hearts (the organization that takes care of pets when their owner is sick or dies) is looking for volunteers. I might join. I could do pet transport and work adoption events on the weekend. Hmm, I wonder if I should foster a dog? That would get Bella a friend but I could give it back :) But the dog would need to like cats. Maybe not.

Oy vey. Oliver ate some of Lily's wet food. I gave her some dry food, and he knocked into it and spilled it. I threw my hands up. At least, she got SOME food in her.

I was pondering on how to set up Mimi when I'm gone in March. I might take the gate down so that she can get water if something happens with the pet sitter. Better to deal with Oliver than no water. Yeah, I worry.

Bella is being manic. She’s been squishing Oliver, which he doesn’t like. I told her to cut it out and that I wouldn’t like it either. I’m worried because he’s crying out and she could hurt him.

Napped over lunch. The puppy is still dozing.

The ladder is here. It's tall enough that I should be able to change light bulbs in the living room. And the light in the cold bathroom, which is why I bought it. The critters are like, what is THAT? I also got the binder for my piano music. I forgot to get sheet protectors, so I ordered some from Amazon. And I got my Google Home speaker, so I'm going to set it up and play Bach while I excavate the kitchen.

Mimi has been picking at her food. I wonder if I could ask the vet for an appetite stimulant. She must have heard my thought because she went over to nose at the food.

Bella lay down in the yard to chew on a big stick, so she clearly thinks that it's warm. I talked her into coming inside though.

Hmm. I saw susandennis' post mentioning yoga pants with pockets, and I thought, oh that would be good. But I wear petites. But I found some on Amazon. Excellent.

I want to get Bella one of those round fluffy faux fur beds, but they're kind of expensive. They have them on Amazon though. I would like one myself! They sell small ones for cats too, but I was going to get the cats heated beds. But Oliver would like one because he's been sleeping on the folded faux fur rug from the bedroom.

Now Mimi is seriously eating. Good. And drinking.

Fed the poochka. Now I’m working on the cats (done).

Hmm. I want some white plastic baskets to organize pet stuff. I need to go to Dollar Tree and see what they have.

Got my Google Home speaker set up. It’s a lot easier than Echo Dot. The sound is better too. I decided to play classic rock.

I’ve got 2/3rds of the kitchen floor done. (Yes, it was trashed.) I also soaked and filled a litter box and scooped litter boxes. I need to take out the garbage and recycling. I’m planning to get up early to do more and drag the recycling to the curb.

I’m also planning to fill the fish tank and turn on the heater and filter. Then I’ll post and go to bed. I got a lot done tonight though. The music helped. My goal is to clean the kitchen and bathrooms this weekend. Oh, I forgot to mention that I got the hamper today too. I want to get it set up this weekend too.

Oh crap. The water bucket is in the bathroom with Oliver. I guess that I’ll fill the tank in the morning.

Did dishes. Fed the cats. I had a hard time keeping Bella from eating Lily’s food. And Bella and Oliver charged into Zara’s room. I have to hand it to Zara. Bella kind of got in Zara's face, and Zara went Wap! Wap! Wap! across Bella’s nose. That was gutsy.

More crap. Bella completely chewed up one of my shoes. And now she’s going into the cats’ litter box and digging. She scattered litter all over the floor. I’m feeling annoyed with her and Oliver. I need to get to bed and sleep it off.

Bella has found a way to play with Oliver. They play a little rough, but no one is getting hurt so okay. She also wants to play with Lily, but Lily is having none of it, which is just as well because Lily is so delicate. Lily has no fear of telling Bella to back off though. She's like the tiny cat that ROARED! She seems to have grown some too, but I think that she’ll be smaller than Oliver.

I requested to sign up for the 3D Italian Campus, but haven't heard back yet. It sounds like a very well organized course, and I can practice with my Italian teacher. The point, though, is to do a lesson every day.

I had two cats and a dog watching me get ready for bed. Apparently, I need supervision.

Bella: The best toys are found toys. Me: Ummm.…I’m going to sign her up for the obedience training class and we’ll shop for some toys afterwards.

I'm leaving Zara's door open except when she's eating because I hope to get her integrated into the rest of the family. She has seen Bella several times but is unsure of her.

Got up on time but decided to spend the day in pajamas. I'm very sleepy. It's a good morning, though, when I had a purring Lily and purring Mimi on my lap.

Went to enroll Bella in a training class, only to discover that her medical record says only "adult vaccines". Texted the shelter, asking for a list. Oh crud, it looks like the class is full. The next class runs into my trip. I need to look into other classes. The Dog Training Club of Champaign-Urbana has Spring session classes starting on March 30th. I could do that. I'm kind of curious about "nose" training classes too because Bella tracks steps in the yard.

I didn’t close the door fast enough when I went for my nap, and Oliver burrowed under the covers. Okay. Then he bit me on the thigh, and I forceably escorted him out of the bedroom. Ouch.

Had a nice nap. The puppy crashed out too. I took her out afterward, but she clearly wanted to go back to sleep. Received my three-prong-to-two prong adapter plugs.

I read tommx on DW's post on Bach's "Air on a G String," and I haven't heard it for a while, so I listened to it. Bach is my favorite composer, and I loved it. It occurred to me that I should listen to Bach when I first wake up; it would help me wake up. Hmm, if I set up my Echo Dot, could I get it to play a preselected piece when I wake up? That would be cool. Maybe I should listen to Bach while I clean and organize too. There hasn't been enough music in my life. Well, not enough recorded music.

I was thinking about my reaction to various composers of classical music. I love every instrumental piece by Bach, but his choral music leaves me flat, although I listen to the Mass in B Minor occasionally. Mozart is pretty but generally leaves me cold, but I love the Requiem and can listen to it over and over. I watched the Marriage of Figaro though, and the embellishments drove me crazy. (There would be one sentence on the subtitles, and they'd sing for 10 minutes!) I don't know a lot of Mozart's work though, so maybe there are pieces that I would like. I do like the "Clarinet Concerto". I went to play the Clarinet Concerto, and Amazon Music played instead Massenet:" Méditation de Thaïs," which I also love. I should listen to more Massenet.

Because I'm not going to go to the dog training session on Sunday after all, I just ordered some Kong dog chew toys from Amazon. I hope that Bella likes them.

I’m kind of rolling my eyes over how many doors and gates I need to close when the hordes are eating. They are no respecters of each other’s food. All the hordes are fed. I haven’t been fed yet, but I’m the low creature on the totem pole :)

I thought that Bella was acting like she wanted to poop, so I took her out even though she had been out not too long ago, and I was right. I’m learning to read her.

Oh My God! Peace agreement in Gaza! About fucking time! I am so happy to hear that!!!!

I subscribed to online access to The New Yorker to get access to an article that I’ve wanted to read for a while. (It was about a woman who had postpartum psychosis and killed her kids. No, not Andrea Yates.) That linked to an article about a guy whose brother died in the Lockerbie bombing, and he has been trying for years to solve the case. Both articles were very good.

I think that I’ll go to sleep early and get up early to get the recycling out and to scrub the aquarium heater.

The puppy is crashed out cold and is snoring a little.

Oh, I should set up the Echo Dot. I need to find it first.

Aargh!! I spent a ton of time getting Alexa set up and trying to get it to play Bach to wake me up tomorrow morning, only for it to say that “music alarms are not supported for this device”. Did I say “aargh”? Google Home is easier to use, but I don’t know where my Home device is. A Google Home Speaker would have better sound. I ordered an open box one on Mercari for half-price. Oh, it looked like I needed an Echo Spot. Okay, I ordered one and will use the Google Home to play music while I’m organizing. I could bring it or the Echo Dot upstairs to remind me to take my meds.

I pulled out Mimi’s wet food dish, which had a little food left in it. Oliver was eating the food, but some of it got on my hands, and Lily was licking it off of me. And my heart filled with love for this cute little cat. I never thought that I’d meet another cat whom I loved as much as Harlee (although Zara comes close), but I might wind up loving Lily as as much.

Got my home insurance taken care of. Now it's bedtime.

Woke up at 7 AM. Fed the girls and myself. Now I’m going to nap.

Crud. Someone else bought the mixer. I should have bought it. I’ll keep combing eBay for another one. I bought another one. It was a little more expensive but had free shipping, so it’s about the same.

Got some Zara snuggles, which is good for what ails me. Had a nice nap.

Suckage. I haven’t gotten the Zoom link for the writing webinar. I guess that I’ll take a shower in a few minutes. I’m going to work on the clothes in the library room and might need to try on clothes. My plan is to go drop off the broken laptop tomorrow, so I want to have some bags of stuff to drop off at the thrift store too.

Our choir is going to sing at a memorial service for a former choir member in December. I read his obituary and he sounds like someone I would have liked. I need to get to know more people in the area, but I’m purposefully waiting until I get the house more together.

I had a bite to eat and decided to take one more nap. Zara is snuggling with me.

It just occurred to me that I need to get Christmas cards. I bought some UNICEF cards that say “Peace on earth”.

Oceania called me again. They aren’t getting the hint that I don’t want to talk to them.

Took a shower and listened to “Alice’s Restaurant” in honor of Alice Brock, the Alice of the song, who passed away. Plus, it's almost Thanksgiving.

One bag of clothes to donate and a part of a bag of garbage done. It’s a start.

Took a nap and slept through until 1AM. Fed the cats. I’m waiting for Mimi to finish eating to go up and post. Then I’ll go to back to sleep. I hope that I’ll get up early to work on the library room.

Ack! It’s predicted to go down to 15F/-9.5C next weekend! It’ll be a good weekend to work on decluttering.

If I go to New York in December, I'd like to see the Statue of Liberty. I've never been there. (I can't forget Jon Stewart's monologue after 9/11 when he said that he used to see the World Trade Center from his house but now he sees the Statue of Liberty. This is going to be my post-9/11 trip among other things. And yes, I'm going to go to the 9/11 memorial.) I keep adding things that I'd like to do.

Stayed up too late and overslept this morning. I've got to quit doing that.

I've been playing a fun game of "guess where the cleaners put stuff". The most annoying ones are the doorstop for the bathroom door and the scale. I haven't found them yet.

Urgh. I definitely need to go to yoga today. My neck is killing me. (I need a riser for my laptops. I had one for work and one for home, but I don't know where they went.) I'm going to skip the Democratic volunteer session because I need the time. And I need to go get money for the pet sitter.

We're starting to study Javascript in class and it was confusing. I really need to buckle down this weekend and study. If I find a spot for my laptop at O'Hare, I'll use their WiFi and start reviewing CSS.

I've decided to get WiFi on the flight because it's only $8. Then I can work on studying.

My voice lesson was a blast! She thought that I sounded better than I previously did with more support. I said that I thought that the yoga exercises had something to do with it because my neck and shoulders are more relaxed. She said that we can work on the music from the choir when I get it. Today, I worked on Bonnie Raitt's song "One Part Be My Lover," which I dearly love. She also probably heard me loving the song too. It was great to see my teacher (I really like her, and she's the right teacher for me after some tries with other people) and great to sing!

I've packed and got stuff organized. I just need to use the power mop on the living room floor and go to bed. I won't get a full night's sleep, but okay.

Had a good Italian lesson. My teacher is taking two weeks off, so we will start again at the end of the month.

I was about to leave for the DMV when I realized that I'd need proof of insurance for my mom's car. I haven't been able to get into my account, so I had to call the insurance company. They wound up deleting my profile, but they sent me the ID cards. Getting the license plates at the DMV went fairly quickly, but they charged over $300 for them! Yikes! I also got money for the pet sitter and picked up a free bird feeder from a Buy Nothing person.

Paid a bill. Sent some paperwork to the trust. Got the kitchen partially organized and swept. Packed. Now I just need to put my suitcase and backpack in the car. I can’t seem to leave before 3 PM no matter how hard I try. Remembered to water the outdoor plants, which were looking unhappy.

I played the B-52’s Cosmic Thing at the beginning of the trip, and it made me smile. I haven’t listened to it in a long time. And Bonnie Raitt for the rest of the way. No one writes love songs with a mix of hope and resignation like she does. Very real. Some songs on Luck of the Draw had me in tears.

I made it to Southfield after an annoying number of "rolling roadblocks," as my ex, Erik, would put it. (Yes, long car trips bring out the best in me.) And then my GPS fell silent as I got here, so I had a hard time finding the hotel. But they're serving breakfast up until the civilized hour of 10 AM. I am such a night owl though. I was tired when I started the drive because I didn't get a ton of sleep last night, but as soon as night fell, I was wide awake.

Anyway, I need to wind down and relax.

I have to get the upstairs cleaned up before Thursday because a guy is coming to assemble the standing desk in the morning. I hate this about myself, but I do better with a deadline.

Zara is being a cuddle bug this morning. Napped. Shut my alarm off and slept for another 45 minutes.

Did dishes while making my lunch. I need to submit a grocery order. Well. I had a bunch of dinners in the freezer in the basement. I just need lunches.

Lowe’s is open only until 8 PM. I’m not going to make it there tonight. I could go tomorrow after tai chi.

Got some mowing done. Go me.

I’m growing herbs in pots by one of the staircases up to my porch. (I’m on a corner lot, so there are stairs from both sides.) The tomatoes are producing small tomatoes.

I’d like a porch swing, but it would block the window and one of the stairs. I should get some chairs to put out there though. I found something that I like at Lowe’s in off white.

I’m trying to think of moving to Europe while I’m decluttering. Of course, if I did that, I’d have to cut my stuff down to the bare bones, but everything that I get rid of now is something that I won’t have to deal with later. That’s my motto right now.

I got some tape measures to take my measurements while I’m dieting. No word from Jenny Craig on when they’ll ship.

From an article in the Guardian about grieving parents as an only child: “There’s an acute sense of displacement that happens when you deal with this as an only child. On a practical level, there is physically no one else who can fill in the forms, take over the accounts, make the important funeral decisions and greet people at the wake. You have to, on some level, hold it together because there is no space for you to fall apart.” Yes. Exactly.

Someone on a Facebook decluttering group said that I should order bookcases now and put books on them as I unpack. Hmm. Target has the bookcases that I like (in walnut) on sale if I join Target Circle. I'd save $80 a bookcase, so it would be worth it. I'll go measure for them. Note to self: 72.0 Inches (H) x 30.6 Inches (W) x 13.6 Inches (D) Aargh. I joined Target Circle and went to order bookcases, but they aren't going into the cart for some reason. Okay, now they showed up. Ordered nine of them. I have to make room for them.

On Facebook, people were listing songs with great first lines. One person listed the song "Round Here". I knew that song and liked it, but wasn't sure who played it. It turned out to be Counting Crows. I bought a used CD with that one on it. I also bought the Natalie Merchant CD with "Carnival" on it.

Studied Italian. Somehow it got late, but buying the bookcases took a while. Need to go to sleep.

Up at 4 AM. I bought Jhumpa Lahiri’s book in Italian and Marie Kondo’s book. Complaining cat (Mimi) is complaining.

Mimmo posted a bunch of photos.

I’m reading Bernie Taupin’s book and it’s interesting. He’s discussing one of my fave songs (“Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters”). I sang the song.

Slept until 9 AM. Hmm, my back is twisted. My plan of action is to have lunch and get myself together to mow this morning. I’ll come in in the afternoon when it gets hot.

Started tackling the mail.

I’m trying to figure out what worked on the trip and what didn’t. I’m looking at a small leather backpack to take with me when we visit museums. The quick-dry underwear has got to go because it creeps down. The suitcase is good. So is the backpack.

Started tidying up the kitchen. I ordered the cleaning fluid for my spin mop, so I’ll be able to clean the floors.

Hmm. I really don’t feel like mowing. Hmm, it’s supposed to be cooler next weekend. I think that I’ll wait. Heat warning today into next week. Napped. Did some dishes.

Hmm, there is a way to donate unused foreign currency to charity.

I ordered a four-CD Elton John boxed set that I have, but I don’t know where it is. I need music badly.

Took a shower. Mimi wants food.

I’ve been doing diddly squat today, just reading Bernie Taupin’s bio. I should fire up my CD player and work on the bathroom. I’m sniffling; I have some sort of allergy going.

I opened the door to the basement, and Mimi nose-dived there again. I left her there until she started complaining.

I’m lying down again. Zara has her head on my pillow.

It’s the middle of the night Italy time and I’m tired. I want to ask a question of Mimmo and go to sleep.

It is freaking hot upstairs.