days_unfolding

Crud. I forgot to renew my car registration. I’ll need to get up early one day next week and go to the DMV.

I think that I found a Halloween decoration that I want—an animated singing skeleton. I’ll sleep on it, but I think that I want it. And maybe I could put out a Bluetooth speaker and play wails. And maybe wear a witch costume? And “park” some witches’ brooms?

I wound up staying up late messing around on the Internet. I had some problems falling asleep because I hurt. Woke up at 10:30 AM.

I’m telling Bella that I can pet Gracie if I want. She says, “No. I was your first dog. I deserve all the pets!” Gracie likes the new Milkbones.

It’s been a three-ring circus here, but I fed us all. Nap time.

Had a nice nap. Ate lunch. Got my groceries so I brought some in.

Checked the refill on some of my meds and it’ll be on November 4th.

Showered. I have a big, ugly bruise on my left knee from the fall yesterday. I think that I’m going to work upstairs until my hair dries. Then I’ll clean off the porch. Started laundry. My stomach is upset, so I’m going to lie down for a little while. Slept for three hours. I feel shaky. And I have IBS symptoms.

Got the front stairs mostly cleaned off. There are a few big boxes that I need to get tomorrow.

I forgot to mention that I finished the Cary Grant book a few days ago. I want to see To Catch a Thief, Indiscreet, and Bringing Up Baby.

Fed us all. Put away some stuff I bought. Started reading a bio of Rock Hudson. I think that I’ll go back to sleep. I’m going to sleep in my clothes so that I can get up and just do stuff.

Crap crap crap. I saw that it's supposed to go below freezing tonight, so I brought in the rosemary and Italian parsley--and Oliver got out. I tried opening the front door, and he came on the porch, and I was able to touch him but couldn't grab him, and he ran back down the stairs. I hope that he doesn't freeze his little butt off.

Now I am going to bed after I pay my car registration. (I realized that the registration was for the car that I'm not driving now, so I can get it by mail.)

For some reason, I was remembering that my mom’s friends Art and Pete dared me to eat a Gaines Burger (in the 60s and 70s, it was a moist dog food shaped like a hamburger patty). And I ate it!

I saw a Facebook post about someone wanting to be a “grocery buddy”. One of the people responding said that she had cancer and a 15-year-old son and her husband left for Tennessee. I’m wondering if I should help her. I also found the address of a local Little Free Pantry. Damn government shutdown.

Overslept and woke up at 8:30 AM. I really want to take a nap at lunch, but I have a meeting at which I'm taking minutes after lunch, so I'll take my shower instead. (I worry about oversleeping my nap.) Maybe I could nap after work.

My shower was attended by Oliver, Lily, Bella, and Gracie, so it was a full house. Gracie sniffed my butt right before I got into the shower. Dogs gotta dog.

I had non-stop meetings, so I didn't get a chance to contact the garage guy about the garage door.

My glasses fell out of my pocket and Gracie destroyed them. Again. I guess that I need to get really cheap glasses (no Transition lenses) for inside the house. That way, if Gracie destroys them, it won’t cost me megabucks. I can wear more expensive glasses outside. I ordered a pair of really cheap glasses for inside (plus I had points, so most of the cost was expedited shipping) plus a pair of “outside” glasses. I wanted to get two pairs of the cheap glasses, but they didn’t have a way to do that! I’ll order another pair later. Now it’s nap time.

Crashed out hard and slept for three hours. The dogs crashed out too. Usually they stir when I wake up, but I shut off the alarm and looked at my phone, and they didn’t stir until I sat all the way up.

My left arm really hurts. I think that it's tendinitis. I thought about going to the doctor, but I've had it before, and they'll just tell me not to use it and to take over-the-counter pain meds. I did find some Aspercreme that doesn't have a child-proof cap, and that seems to help a little.

Fed us all. (Oliver says, "About time!") Now I'm going back to bed.

I woke up at 6, hit Snooze for a while until Gracie thought that was enough, and took the dogs out. I decided to go back to sleep for a while. Woke up at 7:45. Checked my calendar, and I have meetings before and after lunch, so I need to take my shower now.

I asked my boss if I could take Wednesday off because I have a hair appointment in the afternoon, and she said, "Yes".

Things are heating up at work. I hope that I get everything done. Somehow I wound up with the most slides for a Zoom meeting that we're having next week.

I was NOT amused that someone (probably Gracie) chewed through the strap of my purse! I knotted it up and left, but I'll need a new purse.

Choir went well. I stayed late to try out for a solo part. There were two people who were really, really good, so they should get parts. As for me, I'll see.

I decided that I needed Ben Gay or equivalent more than I needed my smoothie, so I went straight to the grocery store after choir. I got Icy Hot with lidocaine, which should cover all the bases. My arm is driving me crazy. The result of the massage didn't last long. I also decided that I wanted bagels for breakfast. I might get the smoothie on Wednesday, when I'll be off.

I'm feeling stronger though than I did last week. Nothing from the doctor, although someone called from her office on Friday but didn't leave a message.

Anyway, I need to feed the beasts and crash.

Hmm. I saw an ad for gardeners that do weeding. I wonder how much they'd charge to get the brush by the side of the garage cleaned up.

Got up at 7:30 AM. Got the dogs out and showered.

Picked up my hearing aids at Costco. Everything sounds loud. Hearing aid technology has improved since I last had them though. The hearing aid guys told me to go walk around at first--I think that the guy who fits hearing aids wasn't there--so I walked around and saw a TV that I like for the living room (once I get it organized).

My ears are itching, but I want to keep the hearing aids on to get used to them.

Lily is snoozing while waiting for me to feed her. She’s so cute.

Shit shit shit shit. My glasses are missing. I don’t see them in the usual dog places though. And I looked for another pair of new Zenni glasses but didn’t find them either. Shit.

I took the hearing aids out. My ears were itching like crazy. I put them to charge (I don't have to buy batteries!) in the small bathroom and shut the door so that the cats don't play with the hearing aids. I think that it's better than putting them in my bedroom because the dogs sleep there, and I could just see one of them gulping one down.

Fuck. I took the dogs out. A dog walked by while we were sitting on the bench, and Gracie pulled me down, and I got a splinter under my thumbnail from the bench. I've had it. I want to go to sleep and hope that tomorrow will be a better day.

Shit shit shit. Oliver got out and ran under the porch, where I can’t get him. I guess that he’s going to spend the night outside. I hope that he’ll come in when he’s hungry.

I’m achy and feel like crying.

Gracie woke me up at 7:30 AM. I took the dogs out, and no sign of Oliver. Bella got stuck under the porch, so I brought Gracie in and got her out. I opened the door to get some soda, and Oliver came in! Gracie jumped on him though. I got scratched trying to get Gracie off of him. He ran upstairs. But at least, he’s home. Whew.

Gracie is nonstop barking at Oliver. She’s giving me a headache.

Fed us all. Nap time. I think that Oliver is upstairs sleeping. He might have had a rough night. No, he’s napping on top of the refrigerator.

The arthritis in my toes and fingers is bothering me. Getting old kind of sucks.

Had lunch. I’m taking nap #2. Put my linen pants and top in the dryer to dewrinkle. Scanned another song and sent them to my singing teacher.

Gracie is barking at Oliver again. Sigh.

Showered and got myself together. Fed us all. Now I’m at the theater for the symphony concert. The concert was all right. None of it was music that I’d want to hear again. I got drowsy during the third piece, but I think that was because I was dehydrated.

Stopped at the grocery store on the way back. I wanted hot dogs to use as rewards for Bella and Gracie. I also picked up some bread and cake. Ate some of the bread and cake. Now I’ll post and feed the cats and Gracie.

Oliver is now showing zero interest in going outside. Yay.

Woke up a little after 7 AM and fell back asleep until 8:30. The dogs are wrestling on the bed.

“Storms continuing though 3 PM.” Okay, it’s an inside day. While I was out with the dogs, it started raining pretty hard, so I brought them in. They don’t usually do their business in the rain. Here comes a full-blown thunderstorm.

Gracie is upset that Oliver won’t play with her. She’s emitting ear-piercing barks.

I got intrigued with Coldplay due to the kiss-cam brouhaha. I discovered that I like their music. I gather that makes me uncool, but I don’t care. Bought a couple of albums.

The Dynamic Duo are wrestling. I might need to kick one of them out. I bought them some tug-of war ropes and a Kong toy, but they prefer to play tug with random things. Bella has a plastic bottle that she’s ripping apart, and Gracie wants it.

Napped. Woke up after an hour but went back to sleep for another hour.

Someone on Facebook suggested putting affirmations in a digital photo frame. I asked ChatGPT to create some for anxiety and stress, but it put them all in one graphic, which isn’t what I wanted, but I’ll work with them later. I should look for digital photo frames on Mercari (done). I also want one about getting things done for the kitchen.

Oliver wants some food, but I told him that it was too early to feed him. He’s cuddling next to me. Had lunch. I’m going to take another short nap.

More thunderstorms are coming. I might not get out today.

I ordered some more pairs of underwear and socks for my trip. One thing that I need to do after I shower is to try clothes on and pack. I need to make a list of stuff to buy.

Showered. I’m trying to decide what to do. I need to try on clothes and to feed the critters, but it’s not supposed to rain for the next two hours. On the other hand, no rain on Monday.

Tried on clothes. I like the blue striped linen dress and the black striped shirtdress. They were both a little wrinkled, so I put them in the dryer. The blue dress is still wrinkled, so I need to try out my clothes presser. Bought ballet flats to go with them. I also had a Columbia dress that was very cool (temperature-wise), so I looked for another one. One of my Chico's dresses is missing. I know that I got it, so it's here someplace.

Fed us all and took the dogs out. Gracie somehow got her leash off--her collar was still on--and she went through the gap in the fence and took off down the street. I couldn't figure out where she went, but she came back to see Bella, so I ran over and put the leash on her. When I was getting her in the yard, it was Bella's turn to take off. She came back though, and I let her in the yard. Yikes. The collars with AirTags and my phone number can't come too soon.

I checked out goop because Coldplay --> Gwyneth Paltrow --> goop. I was surprised that I found some blush and reef-safe sunscreen that I liked. The prices were similar to those for high-end makeup.

Bought a strapless bra from Underoutfit because some of the dresses have narrow straps. I also bought some "cooling thigh protectors".

My tooth is hurting. I think that I want to go to bed and get up early. I'm feeling cranky. Actually, I should do an hour of work on the kitchen and then go to sleep.

Ugh. Feeling arthritis-y. Need to go to sleep.

Got up at 6:30 AM. Bella did her business quickly, so I decided to go back to sleep for an hour and shower at lunch. I overslept work an hour. Suckage.

Today is Friday, right? This week has been a blur.

I found a propane heater in case the power goes out in winter, but I need to think about how much money I want to spend on something that might never happen. (I could use it for camping though. Speaking of camping, I have the down sleeping bag for if the power goes out, but that won't help the critters.) On the other hand, this area has a danger of ice storms because we’re far enough south that snow can turn to freezing rain. And hmm, the food supplies would help being snowed in.

Fed everyone and took Bella and Gracie outside. It’s hot out (90F/32C). I think that I need to stop feeding Gracie kibble because it seems to give her loose stools. I'd have to feed her another can of wet food. Showered and put on shorts and a t-shirt and sandals.

Hmm. I should order some tubs in which to keep emergency supplies, but I should wait until I get them to see what size I need.

Medium doesn't allow you to make money off of AI-generated text, so I need to rewrite the blog entries. In that case, I might have to wait until retirement. We'll see. I am so busy right now. Maybe I could work on some in my hotel room at night during my trip. Or at the airport.

I have a strong urge to go back to Hawaii, to Maui, but it won't happen anytime soon. Plus, I want to wait until Lahaina is rebuilt. I wonder how long that will take. Maybe I should check out Molokai? That would be a nice sleepy place for "R&R". You have to take a commuter airline from Oahu or Maui to Molokai. I found a flight that I like. Hmm, should I go to Molokai next year? It would have to be a short trip because I will be taking a lot of time for my European trip in the fall. I was going to go see my dad though. Hum. I have three weeks of vacation and two personal holidays right now. I'll take two weeks in Italy and a day or two in January at the end of my cruise. I need to figure out how much time I'll take for the European trip (how many extra days I want to stay in Paris and Istanbul). I have airfare that I need to use up before mid-June. (Too bad that I already booked the flights for the cruise. But part of it was from the flight that I didn't take earlier this year after the full cruise.)

Oh. I forgot to mention that I bought a second travel vest the other day because I wear mine all the time for the pockets. They're very useful. I have a burgundy one and the new one is black.

Hmm. Do I want to go work downstairs now? It's 93F/34C and kind of miserable upstairs. Luckily, I'm not doing anything that requires two monitors.

Oh no. David Gergen died. I liked him on CNN. He was a presidential advisor that became a political commentator.

Bella is so jealous. If Oliver or Gracie jumps on my lap, Bella jumps on my lap (well, as much of her that will fit), chases them off, and kisses me. "I am YOUR DOG! And don't forget it!"

Zara didn’t eat most of her food (which is concerning), so I gave her food to Oliver and Lily. First Bella jumped up with her paws on the counter. I made her get down. Then Gracie jumped up. I made her get down. Then they both jumped up in unison, and I cracked up. I told them that they were dorks. I got Oliver and Lily to sort of share by moving the dish around so that Lily could get some food.

I ordered some dog DNA tests for Bella and Gracie. The results should be interesting.

One of the things that I need to do this weekend is find the chicken wire so that I can plug the gaps in the fence and let Gracie run around. She’s small enough that she could get out, and I don’t trust her to come back like Bella does.

I’ve added seeing the giant rubber duck that one_raido wrote about to my bucket list. Waukegan this year would be doable except that I’ll be in Italy. Sorry not sorry. I’ll have to bookmark its Web site. They should bring it to Chicago (if they haven’t already).

I started going through Amazon boxes. My emergency supplies are starting to arrive. Some will also work for camping, such as wipes to use in lieu of a shower. I got my weather radio and have set it up for alerts in my bedroom.

Note to self: go through my travel chargers this weekend and order anything that I need. Also check on my travel adapters and transfer them to my medium suitcase. I have my travel pillow and sleep mask, but I ordered a second sleep mask in case I lose one on the plane like I did on my last trip to Italy. Pack my swimsuits (or do I want to go swimming before I leave?)

Oh good. I’m yawning. I want to get to bed early so that I can get out early to do some weeding and planting.

Shit. Zara isn't eating at all. I'm really worried. The vet gave me some appetite enhancers, but I was going to crush the pills and mix them in her food. I wonder if she would take one mixed with a Churu. I also ordered some pill pockets, but I remember in the past that she would eat the pill pocket and spit out the pill. I'll call the vet on Monday if I can't get her to eat.

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.

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!