days_unfolding

I think that I want the "I Closed My Book to Be Here" t-shirt to wear to the "Walking Book Club". But I'm having a hard time deciding on a color. I'm leaning towards "Army Green," which I'm thinking of as "Garden Green". But I'm open to suggestions :) I have a gazillion navy blue shirts.

I wound up watching some swimming to wind down instead of going to bed when I said that I was going to. I also want to watch diving, gymnastics, and equestrian events, but it's hard to find time to watch.

Hmm. This would be really nice for my gardening stuff. Or for hats, scarves, and gloves.

Hmm. The Heart of Yoga is holding an online Sangha at 10:00 Central Europe Time. I’m feeling called to check it out, so I would have to stay up very late tomorrow night.

Woke up at 8:30 AM. Fed the cats. Worked on the kitchen table.

I’m having problems getting the mattress downstairs. I’ll offer an extra $25 if the guy can help me get it down there.

Hmm. Someone is offering three free spider plants. I like spider plants, but I’m kind of busy today. Never mind. All are pending pick up.

People on Facebook are saying to use a vinegar rinse and wool dryer balls for fluffy towels. I’ll try it.

I’m slowly getting stuff in its rightful place. Brought the rake and snow shovel to the storage shed. Brought out some recycling. Soaked a litter box. I’m tired though.

White Flower Farm has a nifty shade collection that includes a hosta and some ferns. I’m considering it for next year. They also have some peonies that I’d like to plant in the Fall.

Me: I’ll feed you [the cats] after the guy comes to help me with the dresser.

Mimi: No, now! Feed us right now!

I fed them. Sigh. I know who’s boss around here, and it isn’t me :)

I think that next year, I want to plant native plants or wildflowers near the street.

The guy helping me with the dresser hasn’t showed up. I’m looking into hiring low-cost professional movers on Thumbtack. I just want this done!

One of my dahlias has a full bud, and another one is working on a bud. How exciting!

Well, hell. I was weeding and using the scythe to chop down some wild mustard that has an enormous taproot, when my hand slipped and I cut myself. It’s bleeding like crazy. I guess that’s the end of my yard work for tonight. I need to contact the movers anyway. And I got a bunch of burrs in my hair as well :(

Okay, Thumbtack says that I’m booked for Tuesday. Excellent. I need to get more money though.

So now I’m back working on the kitchen table. Wow, Petalura has some neat travel clothes that would be perfect for Italy. They don’t have petite sizes though but do have capris. I really need somewhere to keep catalogs. I bought some cheap magazine holders.

I watched the replay of the women's all-around gymnastics final. I liked that it wasn't a foregone conclusion, but they had to fight for every score that they got. It's put me behind on the things that I need to get done (I have a lot to do this weekend), but I'm glad that I watched it.

Hmm. I'm thinking of going to bed and getting up early to get things done. I'm getting a lot of stuff that I want for the kitchen tomorrow. Plus I got my headphone jack (I think) and want to use the treadmill before it gets too hot. Oh, I forgot about the Yoga Sangha, but I think that I'll skip it. I can't do everything.

Feeling hammered this morning. I couldn’t fall asleep until late because I couldn’t shut my mind off. Then I woke up at 7. Did my usual morning routine and went back to sleep until 11:30. Had lunch.

I got the refunds for my returned Amazon items, so I ordered the Italian keyboard.

Still feeling tired, so I’m going back to sleep for an hour.

Got batteries into my new lantern, and it works.

Dropped off the posters to be laminated. Dropped off a bag of old sheets at the thrift store. Bought a tie-down and bungee cords at Home Depot. Remembered to get a salad and apples at the grocery store. Had some salad, and it was really good. I’ll have to get more Greek salad. That went down well.

I’m trying to decide what to do. I should clean out my car, but I kind of want to lie down. Maybe I could do both? Cleaned out the car. I have Bags of Junk from the Car^TM, but I want to nap before dealing with them. Oh, and I found the other tie-down that I had.

Napped. Ate dinner. I'm feeling hammered. I'm going to study Italian while I wake up. It looks like I finished the 500 words, and it's just drilling me on the ones with which I have problems. Far out! I have another set to start on. Done with Italian. I think that I'll work on the exercise nook a little and do dishes.

I watched the Olympic swimming replay. It was exciting. It inspired me to look at the swimming lessons for the fall, but registration is not until late August.

I'm going back to bed now.

Just remembered that I needed to subscribe to Peacock for the Olympics (done)! I'm looking forward to them.

Crap. I need to go up to Michigan soon because the city of Southfield is complaining about my mom’s car parked on the grass. I’ll talk to the trust about booking a trip for me.

Hmm. I could put an air mattress in my mom’s house, but I don’t know what I’ll do about food. I suppose that I could haul my microwave up there. No, the carpet and flooring installation are supposed to go in soon. And the dumpster is still there, so I’ll need to find another place for my mom’s car.

I’m feeling dizzy this morning (and overslept), so I emailed in sick 1/2 day. I drank some water, which helped. Fed the cats and myself, and am lying back down. I overslept my alarm, and jumped online for my first meeting. Speaking of which, the person with whom I primarily work had SEVEN meetings today! That's crazy-making!

Finally got through my work email. There was a notice about a paid internship in Florence, Italy. Do you think that I could convince them that I'm still in library school? :)

I’m lying down for a while. Then I need to throw myself together and return the Daily Look clothes. Then I need to study Italian and send an email to the trust. I overslept my nap slightly. I’ll go to Michael’s tomorrow to mail the clothes.

Just ordered a “Cat Ladies for Harris” sticker :)

Started laundry. Hung a picture.

Tried to turn on the upstairs TV with the replacement remote, but it didn't work. Ordered another replacement remote, then discovered that someone on eBay was selling the original remote. Tried to cancel the first order, but there seems to be no way to do it. I emailed the store to try to cancel the order. The remote that I ordered from Amazon is going back.

Studied Italian. Scanned and sent a bill to the trust. I need to get to bed early to run an errand before work and also attend a Jenny Craig coaching session.

Added: Oh, and I got my Jenny Craig order today.

Hmm. I was pondering replacing the refrigerator with one with water and ice in the door, but how hard is it to get water from the sink? It would cost around $1000.

Got up at 7 AM, fed the cats and myself, and napped. Had lunch. I think that I want one more short nap before throwing myself together and mowing. Meanwhile, the grass is drying from the storm yesterday. Couldn’t sleep. Showered. I have a headache, so I’m going to lie down for a while. Thought that I heard someone knocking, but no one was there.

One of my smoke detectors is chirping. I ordered some batteries for it.

Got the side of the house mowed. It was where the longest grass was.

I’m tired. I’m trying to figure out what to do, and I’m thinking of low-energy stuff like laundry. Had dinner.

Finished the book The Boys in the Boat. It was good. I’m looking forward to the next Olympics. Maybe I’ll watch rowing. I’ll have to get my TV set up and get Sling again.

Got clothes in the dryer. Using the big, heavy mower as a push mower, which I need to do to cut long grass, really takes it out of me. I'm thinking of going to bed at 8:30 PM.

I did get up in time to watch the last two groups of the skating. Holy cow. Kamila Valieva fell multiple times and wound up in fourth place. Her coach chewed her out. Talk about kicking someone when they were down. Alexandra Trusova, who landed five quads, couldn't believe that she was second, and she threw a fit. The coaches were trying to calm her down. And Anna Shcherbakova, who won gold, was standing by herself wondering what to do. Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto was third.

And here comes the snow. It's coming down at a pretty good clip. I've decided to save money and try to dig myself out. I do have the cash for my mower guy in case that the snow gets too deep, however.

Took a nap after work and slept through until morning. Started laundry. The pairs ice skating is on, so I'll watch it after I post.

I pried myself out of bed in time to get ready for Italian. Fed the cats and myself. Zara is purring and letting me know she approves of being fed. I think that she's saying the cat equivalent of "My mommy. I think I'll keep her."

Started laundry.

Italian went well. I'm understanding more of it and figuring out how to say things better. I told my teacher about watching the ice dancing, and he asked if I did sports, and I said that I swam and did horseback riding when I was younger. Then we talked about my future move.

Napped (and I sure needed it). Overslept. I will not make it to Aldi, but I'll go to Walmart, to which I need to go anyway to get cat litter. Actually, I don't want to miss the ice dancing, so I'll just run out and get my flat-rate shipping box tonight after the skating.

The ice dancing was sublime as usual. Nathan Chen was in the audience. It's interesting how most of the pairs were ranked in the same order in the final marks as they were in the rhythm dance.

I think that I want to take ice skating lessons when I move to Champaign. I saw a video of a man who learned to skate in his 80s, so there's hope :)

Ran out to get the box. My screen door is frozen shut, so I had to go in the back way. Now I'm making pizza.

I got my eBay package ready to mail tomorrow. I discovered you can print eBay shipping labels and have the cost taken out of the payment. Awesome. They will be my first choice for selling books then.

Holy cow, my item on eBay sold. I need to run out on Monday and mail it. Only $25, but that will pay for a book on Berlin. Or a German lesson.

It's pouring out. I need to go to the grocery store and the post office to pick up a mailing box, but I'm a wimp, so I'll go tomorrow.

The earliest that I'll hear from iCAN is on February 15th, and it could be up to May. I hope it won't take that long.

The cats crack me up. I worked a little late and saw them running back and forth in front of my office door to see if I was getting up yet to feed them. Clearly my priorities are wrong!

I studied German and Italian flashcards. I need to start putting the stars on my calendar again.

Tonight is my usual night for the Wondrium photography classes, but I'm putting them on hiatus during the Olympics because I'm watching a ton of television. Maybe I'll work with Canva instead. I'd like to become an expert in it, and create and sell templates.

Score! I previously found an Udemy class on German pronunciation, but it was too expensive. I was looking at Canva classes tonight and checked the German course, and it was on sale! Bought it! I also bought the Canva course too.

I was looking at Udemy to get ideas for courses to create. Ideas: Writing on Medium (once I have some success at it), Saving Money on Travel, and Creating a Budget. I'd like to write about software too because that's what I'm trained to do.

I just spent a bunch of time looking up librarians on Medium and following them.

Zara has decided that the box that I have almost emptied is HER box. I'll never get the last stuff out of there. I rescued some old posters that I don't know what to do with but are too cool to get rid of. (They are drawings of Paris.)

The short program (rhythm dance) for the ice dancing is at 5 AM. Ugh. I don't think that I can stay up that late because I got up at 8 AM today. But it's even less likely that I'll get up that early. And I need to go to the grocery store tomorrow because it's going to snow on Sunday (only one to three inches though).

Okay, I'm going to go play with Canva. Maybe I'll see if I can stay up until 5 AM and crash if I fade out. I have plenty of stuff to do. And I need to practice German for my lesson tomorrow at midnight. So now I can't stop yawning....

Oh good. After the men's skating tonight, there isn't any skating until the 12th. I need to get a lot done in the meantime.

I studied a little German before I went back to bed.

You can order anything online. I was going to send my mom a check for some money that I borrowed, but couldn't find my stamps. I ordered stamps online to be shipped to me. They're year-of-the-tiger stamps, which should be fun. I'll be happy when I get to Champaign and have a post office that's open later and with self-service machines.

I'm saving boxes for my move next summer, and one had crinkly paper in it. Mimi is having a great time playing with the paper.

I looked into apartments in Berlin out of curiosity, and wow. Expensive. How can anyone afford to live there? Though the apartments that you can get to from English-language sites are pricey. I wonder if there's a Craigslist for Berlin? Yes. And it has some more reasonable apartments.

I'm going to stay home tonight except for getting the mail. And I'll get stuff done when I'm not watching skating. Which reminds me I need to do laundry. I wound up watching the snowboarding.

Got the mail, and now I have all three German books (yay). It's sleeting out. Started laundry.

I missed the very beginning of the skating because they started it earlier than they said that they were going to, but I saw Nathan Chen win gold. I might watch the interview with him after the news, but what can he say besides, "I'm glad I won and I'm glad it's over."

Italian went well, but there are words that I have a tough time pronouncing. OTOH, there are words in English that I have a tough time pronouncing too. My writing and reading are much better than speaking. Even in my native language.

Overslept my nap. Cleaned snow off of the car. Wow, that was a task. (My Italian teacher said "Mamma Mia!" about our snowstorm. That about sums it up.) There also was a glaze of ice on the stairs, so I spread ice melt. I don't want to miss the skating, so I'll drop off the rent check later.

Took the garbage out during the commercials for the skating. Almost forgot.

Dropped off the rent check and got the mail. I received the book about Germany. And a new set of computer headphones because I stepped on the old ones :)

I submitted my iCAN application. Wish me luck.

I didn't have time to set up the veggie lasagna, so I guess that I'll do it tomorrow. There's more skating tomorrow, but it should be shorter. I also didn't have time to write my Medium article. I'll be busy tomorrow.

My getting up at 2 AM confused the cats. You were asleep and now you're awake, so it must be feeding time, right? I told Zara that if she ate now, she won't eat her breakfast, but she is not convinced.

And it's snowing again. It's been so quiet, and I realized that there are no trains or cars.

I got an idea for an article, "What I've learned from studying foreign languages". Now I need to figure out what I've learned!

I priced flights from Chicago to Berlin and Munich to Chicago. Not too expensive. (I'd take the train from Berlin to Munich.)

I got Culture Smart Italy and Culture Smart Germany on Chirp. I also looked at The Plant-Based Solution, but it has recipes, so I bought a print copy used on Amazon.

Still snowing when I woke up. Still really quiet. The cats are curled up in round balls. They do not approve of this weather. I kind of agree.

I know on what I want to write an article in LinkedIn (I typed KinkedIn, which is the alternative site :)) but I need to ask my colleague because it's based on a meeting that she ran. She said okay. Okay, I learned how to write an article on LinkedIn. It's very similar to Medium.

I have another goal: teaching a class on library systems administration (or about library systems) at Library Juice Academy. I don't have enough experience yet, but I'll keep that in mind as a goal.

It just occurred to me that after I get my programming certificate, I could write an inventory tool that works with our library system. The possibilities are endless!

The snow has stopped. Now to wait for my mower guy to dig me out....

I bought a poster map of Germany. I learned a lot of Italy's geography by having a map above my computer. And I requested a trial lesson from the German teacher, eep!

There's a lot of discussion about the future of LJ given its Russian state owners. I'm on Dreamwidth as days_unfolding also. Feel free to add me.

Hmm. I'm running out of steam due to my weird sleep schedule last night. I think that I'll go to bed early tonight, although not quite yet so that I don't wake up at 2 AM again. I should make some Italian flash cards and clean the bathroom. Or do some decluttering.

I did do some decluttering. But I turned the Olympics on to see what was going on and learned that the team men's short program skating was on, so I watched. Nathan Chen turned out an incredible performance. Then I watched mogul(?) skiing, which I've never seen before. Then they had the team ice dancing, which was great fun. (If I could skate, I'd like to do ice dancing, but you probably need to be an extrovert :)) Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue also pulled off an impressive performance. Now they say that there's more skating after the news. So much for getting to sleep early. The news said to stay off of the roads. You think?