Week 51 - Quiet Before Christmas

It was a quiet week. With all my Christmas prep done - packages shipped, trees up and jam made - and no plans in the evenings, there wasn't much going on. I did manage a few errands at least.

I'd needed an oil change for awhile but had failed when I was in Lincoln so I made an appointment at Walker Tire in Wahoo. I dropped my car before knitting and Andrea drove me home afterwards. She then picked me up just before noon the next day so I could pick it up. It's nice to have friends.

I went to the bank to get gift cards for the library staff over lunch on Wednesday then picked up my grab and go at Mocha C's, which always feels like a treat. I taught a class Wednesday after lunch and had a perfectly normal evening of knitting and TV. So I don't know why I woke up in a funk on Thursday. 

I felt like I could cry or go cranky so chose the latter and was just in a mood all morning. Looking for a pick me up, I decided then and there to take Friday off. I had no plans but would use my Labor Day banked holiday since Trump had declared the 24th a federal holiday so I didn't need it over break. 

With that decision made, I called Andrea to see if she'd be willing to stop on her way to work to open my package from Dottie, which had sock yarn used as packing material. Surely sock yarn would improve my mood! She came over and not only pulled out some fun sock yarn but a bag of granny square centers that I'd asked my sister to make for me for an afghan I had started in the summer. Well, Fentons do nothing by halves and when I counted them at lunch, there were 472! I had already made 100 and so only needed 264 more. Guess what I spent Friday doing. : )

I had a relaxing weekend, just managing to do a few chores between all the crocheting. It felt odd to have so little to do so close to Christmas but it's a weird year so I shouldn't be surprised. I need to make sure I get some things done this winter and don't continue in this pre-Christmas mode. Wish me luck.

Week 50 - Yet Another Accident

I started the week shipping my last package to the coast. With packages all on their way, the heat was off so it was time to finish my Christmas prep and take advantage of some warm weather too.

I took Tuesday afternoon off to finish the garage because we were having another freakish warm spell. It was in the mid 60's the second week in December! I finished clearing the boxes of Corelle from the garage on Tuesday and then had lunch with Lorri in the park on Wednesday before heading to Lincoln for an appointment with my shoulder doctor.

The pain I've been experiencing is not my rotator cuff! I was so happy to hear that and left the office with some exercises to do. Yay! I had a couple of hours to kill before meeting Anne and Rene at the gym for swimming so tracked down some candied pineapple for Lorri's Christmas cookies. Swimming was great but alas, I had an accident in my own driveway when I got home.

I had pulled an upholstered chair from the garage and had arranged for it to be picked up with my trash the next week. It was an old chair that I'd used in my rental when I first moved to Wahoo but it had been in my garage since I bought my house 21 years ago. It was probably ~100 years old so was super sturdy. I had put it by the side of the garage on the driveway and somehow my wheel well caught the arm of the chair as I drove into the garage. Because the chair was so substantial, it was unscathed but my car had a big dent that prevented my passenger door from opening and the wall of the garage was shoved back at the bottom with a big dent in the siding. Seriously? This is the 3rd accident I've had in this car, two with inanimate objects! That's more accidents than I've had in the previous 40 years of driving. Grrr....

Needless to say, I didn't sleep well that night and was exhausted at work and then at book club Thursday night. I slept better that night and was ready for the weekend. It was raw and cold on Friday but I ran out for Chinese food for lunch anyway. I had hopes that that would be my only foray outside all weekend.

I neatized on Saturday, shoveled the driveway and then attempted to put up my Christmas tree after dinner. But, of course, my lights were hinky. First only half of them lit then they failed completely. Despite the cold and late hour, I went out to Family Dollar at 8:30 and bought a box of lights. By the time I got them and the beads on the tree, I was tired and went to bed, leaving it for the next day.

On Sunday I was inspired to put up the small bottle brush tree in the front room along with candles in the windows. I pulled the dusty tree from under the basement stairs and in digging around in my Christmas stuff, I found 3 strands of light - 1 still in the box. Sheesh! After the front tree was all set up and looking pretty, I made a batch of strawberry/banana jam (it may be my best jam ever) before tackling the back tree. I decided I needed more lights so undecorated it and started over. I thoroughly enjoyed decorating my tree while watching It's a Wonderful Life, which is my annual tradition. I ended the night with a glass of eggnog, happy that my Christmas preparation was done and I'd actually be able to relax until Christmas. Nice.

Week 49 - Shelves and Packages

Since Dottie's package of hats had taken 8 days to get from Indiana via priority mail, I was determined to get my packages shipped out asap so that was my goal for the week. If that's all I got done, I'd be happy so I charged ahead.

Before I talk about packages, let me show you my shelves! Cody came first thing Monday and he and his partner had the shelves done by lunch. They are absolute perfection and I'm super happy. I cannot wait to get out there and start filling them up. There's pegboard too to hang my garden tools. But now the packages....

Carolyn's package was scheduled for pick up on Monday and between lunch and after work, I had Ginny's ready and scheduled for pick up on Tuesday. Gotta love the USPS schedule a pick up service! 

Tuesday was monthly reports so the morning flew and then I got my grab and go lunch, as usual. I had training scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday so went online after lunch to look up my learners and send them the handouts for the training. When I couldn't find the class listed, I went to the calendar view and found that not only was it that day but it should have already started. I jumped onto the zoom, explained the calendar mix up to my lone student and got started. But not having planned to teach, I was at my coffee table and my laptop wasn't plugged in. Towards the end of the class, it said it had 14% power and I thought that would be enough to finish but NO! It turned off right after that warning and it took 10 minutes to get plugged in, rebooted and back on the zoom. Sheesh! My student was very understanding but what an afternoon! I was too tired to cook dinner so enjoyed the first beer from my advent calendar, which I'd opened up early enough to have it well chilled by day's end, along with cheese and crackers and called it dinner. It was perfect after a trying day.

This is the year of the advent calendar. In addition to beer, I have cheese, chocolate, jam, cat treats and sock yarn. I open all the food ones first thing in the morning so I can chill the beer. I eat the chocolate while I open the others and I save the sock yarn until I move my computer to the coffee table, where the basket of yarn bags lives, for my 10:00 team zoom. It's a fun way to start the day. I'm waiting for a 12 days of Christmas swap package to come so starting the 13th, I'll have that to open too. If it get here by then. I'm hopeful.

On Wednesday, I was joining Anne and Rene for water aerobics at the gym they both joined. They were giving away $500 worth of services for new members so Anne used all of hers to get 33 gift passes for me. How cool is that! The teacher is one we loved from Campus Rec and while I wasn't sure about going to the gym, Rene had already been so called to answer my questions, which allayed my fears. It was great to be in the pool again and it felt completely safe. Since I had nothing ready for dinner and wasn't inspired by anything I drove by in Lincoln, I decided to go to the Eagles Club in Wahoo for burger night, which I've never done despite living in Wahoo for 24 years. Well, no one had a mask on so I went across the street to Dollar General rather than waiting at the bar for my to go order. The burger and fries were OK but nothing special. Done with that.

Anne had picked up the last thing I needed for my sister's package and had handed them over at the gym so I was ready to prep another package. I watched The Grocery Girls over lunch (shrimp, pickles and more advent cheese on crackers) on Thursday while I wrapped, taught all afternoon and then packed everything up and scheduled a pick up for Friday. 3 packages down, 2 to go. I finally did some cooking and made comfort food - corned beef casserole and broccoli - for supper. Delish!

Friday flew by, which is always nice, and I finished a pair of socks that I needed to ship and almost finished another project before bedtime. I finished it first thing Saturday morning and since it was sunny and windy, I soaked it and put it out on the line to dry. It dried so fast that I was able to wrap it up and get package #4 ready, which I handed to the mailman that afternoon. Just one more package to go!

I spent all afternoon Saturday out in the garage and had all the boxes of Corelle that were on the floor and had gotten wet once upon a time so weren't actually boxes anymore, unloaded onto the shelves. I was exhausted and filthy but had made great progress. I came inside for a shower and tea, thinking I might go back out again on Sunday. Well, the weather turned sooner than forecast so it was a good thing I'd done so much because being outside Sunday wasn't an option. 

Since it was a dull, gray, brutally chilly day, I made another batch of jam - blackberry peach. The blackberries were wild ones I'd picked at the side of the highway so were loaded with seeds. For the first time in my decades of jam making, I put them through a sieve to remove the seeds, which was a chore. But now I had another jar of jam for my aunt's package. That was my last package to ship and it would go out Monday, after which I was hoping I could relax and get some Christmas decorating done. My tree was still in the laundry room waiting to be put up so I had hopes for the coming week.

I hope you got all your mailing done. With everyone shipping this year, things are taking much longer (none of the packages I'd shipped Priority had arrived by the end of the week!) so get them mailed. I hope you are not stressing about the holidays. With all the stress already in our lives, who needs that? Stay safe and try to find some joy in your holiday preparations.

Week 48 - A Happy Thanksgiving

It was another week of wacky weather but with only 3 working days and one of those not very worky, the week was a winner.

It was so raw and cold at the beginning of the week that we cancelled Monday Night Knitting. Yeah, that chilly. On Tuesday, Cody, my friend's husband, couldn't do any deck building so came over the measure my garage for the shelves, gave me a quote and said he'd be back the next day. That was perfect because I was going to be gone all day on Wednesday. He even broke up the green toilet, which I'd failed to find a home for despite posting it for free on Facebook Marketplace, and it was in the trash ready to be gone from my life. Nice.

After an early zoom meeting Wednesday morning, I taped a check to the garage wall and headed to campus. Cindy, Lana and I were meeting at Starbuck's at 10:00 then heading into the office to wrap Mary's advent calendar. I'd come up with that idea because Mary is so generous with us every Christmas but the office lunch and white elephant swap wasn't happening this year This year she'd have 24 presents to open and could think of her staff every day. Everyone had chipped in presents so we had to corral and wrap them.

Lana had the time wrong so missed out on yummy peppermint mochas but it was fun to be together again. We wrapped everything up and split up around noon. I picked up my favorite salad at Panera and then headed to Anne's to eat before dropping the presents at Mary's. While I was eating, Ben called to say we only had to work until 3:00, which was nice but I was barely working anyway. After handing over her gifts and the hats I'd made and Anne's mittens, I had a nice chat with Mary (I hadn't seen her since March after all) and left her house right after 3:00. Perfect! And I was excited to go home to my new shelves.

Well, so much for that. There was no sign of Cody and no shelves. I emailed his wife and she said he thought he had told me that he would only come if it rained, which it hadn't. Damn! Oh well. I went inside for dinner and to make pumpkin pie.

Anne was coming over for Thanksgiving but I'd only bought a single turkey breast so it wouldn't have to cook for long. I did a quick clean - bathroom and floors mostly - and had everything ready for dinner at 1:00. The turkey was baked over homemade stuffing, I baked sweet potatoes, one of which exploded in the oven, and Brussels sprouts were the green veg. Anne had requested plain mashed potatoes so I made those too. We ate in the sunshine of the back room then chatted while knitting the afternoon away. I cleaned everything up after Anne left. It was a lovely Thanksgiving despite the pandemic. And I had 3 more days off.

I chatted with Carolyn Friday morning and then the goal for the day was to put together the sock yarn advent calendars I'd planned for Andrea and Lori. Originally I'd planned to do all 24 days but I'd realized 12 days was all I'd manage. By day's end I had them all individually wrapped and ready to go.

Saturday was another warm day so Lori and Andrea were going to come over for a late lunch of Chinese food on my deck. Late because it was warm for the end of November but still only in the 50's so we'd need sun to be warm enough. Lori spent longer walking her dog at the lake than she'd planned so it was nearly 3:00 when she arrived, which meant we only had an hour before the sun went behind the garage, which made it instantly too cold to be outside. But we had fun and it felt like a gift to be seeing friends in person outside. I'll take it!

Aside from chores, Sunday was the start of wrapping and packing. First up was Carolyn's package because it had the longest distance to go. I got it all done and scheduled a pick up for Monday so was pretty pleased with myself. With that done, I got my jam making supplies out and made a batch of orange marmalade with the Seville oranges I'd bought from British Food Depot. It fit exactly into jars with none left but what I licked off the ladle. That tasted great. I will definitely be keeping a jar for myself.

The Thanksgiving break had gone by in a flash but was wonderful and Christmas break is only a month away. With lots to do before then, I'm sure December will fly. I hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving too.

Week 47 - Finished Christmas Shopping

So my dread over impending darkness and cold a few weeks ago was premature because things were going just fine and we even had another warm day so I took an afternoon off. I know winter is coming but so far, November isn't that bad.

After the news about my knee, I started a rotation on Monday in hopes that I could drop a few pounds before my December advent calendars start. I did fine on the 600 calorie days, which was encouraging. 

On Tuesday afternoon I had my last medical appointment of the season - the eye doctor. I took 5 pairs of glasses home and posted them on Facebook for my friends to help me choose. Well, everyone had a different opinion so I went with the ones that were most like what I've been wearing for the past 2 years. Bigger than my old ones but then all the frames seem huge these days. The 80's are back!

Thursday was warm so I took the afternoon off and started with lunch in the park with Lorri. Then I headed home for the main event - finishing clearing the shallow wall of my garage. I was out there for the rest of the afternoon and got it done. My friend's husband said he would be willing to build shelves for me after it got too cold for his deck building business so I emailed Amanda to have him call me. Yay!

I had made plans with Andrea for an Omaha run after work on Friday so when I woke up early after yet another bad night's sleep, I started work at 6:30. I worked through lunch so was free as a bird at 2:30. I was determined to finish my Christmas shopping but we were thwarted at Trader Joe's, which had a huge line to get in. Next stop was World Market, where I scored plenty of presents, and after a quick run through at Five Below (got a fabulous tinsel wreath for my front door), we hit Baker's for groceries. It was a very productive trip and I declared that I was done Christmas shopping. Yay!

I had realized early in the week that I couldn't possibly knit enough hats so had called my sister Dottie, who crochets for the homeless, and she immediately mailed 20 crocheted hats. That still left me needing more so I kept knitting all weekend. By the end of the weekend, I was up to 17 hats with 1 more half done. With the 2 I had on the needles that I planned to finish and a few I'd made earlier in the year, Dottie's would get me to 50. Lori dropped the 2 she made off on Sunday afternoon. All good.

My other goal for the weekend was to put together my new coffee table so it'd be ready for Anne on Thanksgiving. It took 2+ hours to put together and I had a big blister on my palm from the many, many screws but it was done. And perfect. Lori saw it when she dropped her hats and she agreed.

So, another good week. Done with Christmas shopping, saw 2 friends in person and was on track to finish the hats. Dottie's package hadn't arrived yet and she threw away the receipt with the tracking number so I'd just have to be patient. Not my strong suit but I have faith in the USPS. That said, I am planning to wrap and ship super early now that my shopping is done. Faith but why risk it?

Week 46 - Health and Hats

As quarantine weeks go, this was a busy one. I got lots done and had some fun, even starting thinking about Christmas. Early, I know, but it felt right this year.

I started Monday morning at the dentist. I'd scheduled it back in April when Covid was new so I'd asked for the first appointment of the week thinking that would be safer. It was a rude awakening to be up, dressed and out the door before 8:00. Then I ended the day with an appointment with my knee doc. Alas, I need a new knee. It didn't surprise me but I had held out hope that I could have a quick fix. Time to lose some weight and I'm thinking early March for surgery.

When I left Nebraska Ortho, I headed to Cindy's to pick up a plastic set of drawers she had for me and we chatted on her porch. It was cold but worth it. I zoom with her 5 days a week but in person is SO much better. From there, I headed to Baker's Chocolates in Greenwood to pick up some candy for Christmas. That got me thinking Christmas for sure.

We had snow on Tuesday, so I delayed my regular grab and go until Wednesday. We woke up to beautiful ice glazing on Wednesday but it melted quickly. I had lots of zooms at work and ended Friday with a blind side meeting that left me super pissed off. Good thing I had fun plans after work.

I drove to Lincoln and met Darla at Menard's to buy my Christmas trees. I had called to make sure they had them already and Darla and I had fun shopping outside in the cold. A super nice clerk helped us and I got 2 trees and a wreath. It was great to see Darla then I stopped at HyVee for a few groceries, which felt like a treat since I've done most of my grocery shopping at Aldi since March. I had planned to get their Chinese special for supper but the line was too long so I was starving as I headed home. Andrea had called to offer me some pasties so I stopped to pick them up on the way home. She gave me some fresh out of the oven along with a bottle of wine that she thought I needed after I'd vented to her after my horrible zoom. That's a good friend!

I started Saturday knitting hats. I had told Mary I'd knit some hats for her charity project and had hoped some of my knitting friends would help but I'd only gotten an offer of 2 and Mary needed 50 so I got busy. I knitted all morning and then on and off all weekend. I had 7 hats done and an 8th half done by the end of the day Sunday. I also set up my deck tree, which always makes me happy, did a bunch of laundry, neatized the back room and put the hassock at the curb with a free sign.

Good week, right? I was starting Christmas early this year but it just felt right somehow. And I got to see 2 friends IN PERSON, which is always a treat. Despite the dumpster fire that 2020 is, life is still good. 

Week 45 - Warmth and Friendship

The weather was going to be freakishly warm so I hopped in and scheduled 3 afternoons off. I would have taken all 5 but was teaching 2 days so 3 would have to do. I had big plans for getting things done.

I did manage to make a huge dent in my garage on Monday afternoon, after making cupcakes for my cousin's birthday. Now I'd missed it by a couple of weeks but it hadn't been warm enough to get together outside so I hadn't done anything. Banana cupcakes with cream cheese frosting were first on my to do list but I got them done right away and was tackling the garage just after lunch. My goal was to clear the entire wall on the shallow side of the garage so I can have shelves built. I cleared all the way back to some plastic shelves before I ran out of light and energy. It was a productive day and ended with the extra cupcakes at Monday Night Knitting. Nice.

So it was a good thing I got so much done on Monday because the lunch with my cousin turned into all afternoon. I picked up my usual grab and go x2 and we sat in the sun on my deck until almost 5:00. I don't spend enough time with Helen and this was wonderful. It was also a good distraction from the election from hell. I had a beer with dinner then switched to Skrewball but didn't watch any election coverage until just before bed. As I suspected, there was no clear winner so I went to bed, falling asleep pretty quickly after the whiskey.

I taught Wednesday and Thursday afternoons so those 2 days both flew by and I was able to grab a cup of tea on the deck during a post training break. I was watching the news but nothing else because the election was still up in the air but looking better for Biden with each passing day. I had Friday afternoon off too so the work week was over in a flash.

Earlier in the week, Rene had said we had a trifecta of nice weather, a recipe she wanted to try and my fire pit but when I told her I'd taken the afternoon off, it was moved up to lunch. Rene and Anne, who takes every Friday afternoon off since she's at the max in her vacation bank, came up for 12:30, which gave me just enough time to set the table and brush off the cushions. Rene brought a delicious cottage pie and I had even more cupcakes (Helen only took 2 home rather than the entire tray I'd perpared for her) so we enjoyed a delicious meal and good conversation all afternoon while knitting in the sun. Lovely!

The weather held over the weekend so I went straight outside and did the last of my pre-winter yard work. I had emptied one compost bin over lunch one day so started clearing my veg beds into that and dumped all my containers into my big wheel barrow and put all the pots and hoses away. I was thrilled to come in to the news that Biden had won. YAY!!! He will bring a return to civility in our government and hopefully that will trickle down to the country. I celebrated with yummy pasta with wine for dinner.

It was getting colder and windier on Sunday but I took advantage of that to wash the enormous load of my handknitted socks that had been piling up in my hamper. I also did the last must do pre-winter task and cut down the perennials in my parking (the strip between the sidewalk and street for those not from the Midwest) which act as a snow fence if I leave them up. I got that done and went inside to do a few chores to prepare for the coming week.

What a nice week. I had lots of social interactions, which may be the last for a LONG time since we're not supposed to have people in our houses, and got plenty done. I even posted some things from the garage clear out on Facebook Marketplace because gone is good. I'd call that week a win!

 

Week 44 - Snow before Halloween

It started snowing late Sunday and was still snowing Monday morning. A small part of me had been looking forward to the first snowy day when I didn't have to worry about shovelling my driveway and getting to work on time. Now this snow was only ~3" and had started melting by the end of the day Monday but still. You gotta enjoy what you can these days.

It was a nice week at work - busy but not stressfully so - so it flew by. I had some fun zooms too, with Van for tea one afternoon and later in the week with the old coffee group - Lana, Cindy and even Dawn from Virginia. It was lovely.

A warm front was coming through starting on the weekend and I desperately needed produce so wanted to go to Super Saver in Lincoln, which has the best produce department. You would think from how much I belabored when to go and what to do that I was making a major life decision. Sheesh! Luckily, Cindy mentioned that she was going to go to Sam's Club Saturday morning so I asked if she wanted to get Starbuck's and sit outside somewhere and chat. Yes! With that appointment to anchor my day, I headed south.

Cindy and I got our drinks (I tried the pumpkin foam cold brew - yum!) and found a park to sit in. It was still a bit chilly but we found a sheltered location in the sun and chatted until noon. It was perfect. I had to go to campus to check out a new location for one of the cat feeders and hadn't been there in months. Come to find out the weekend feeder had already moved it - nice! - so I headed to my office to check it out. The windows had been replaced but my cubie was still in pieces. As usual, it was creepy being in the dark, empty building. I hit the ladies, checked on my cats and then picked up my favorite salad at Panera. I stopped at my favorite Goodwill for finding yarn on the way to Anne's and we happily sat on her deck all afternoon, knitting and chatting. I left when we lost the sun and stopped at Super Saver for a huge stockup and was home by 7:00. It was Halloween but I was skipping it this year. Despite that, it was a banner day!

I have had a round topped steamer trunk in my basement for years, which I recently emptied with a plan to get rid of it. Well Andrea knew I wanted it gone and told me that her niece's one act play group was looking for trunks so we'd made plans for her to come help me get it out of the basement on Sunday. Well it was way deep in the basement, which meant I had to move some furniture and crap to get it out. I went down to see how much work it would be and ended up just moving it myself. It was awkward but not heavy and I even managed to get it up the stairs myself. I figured it would be easier to go right to Andea's sister so emailed her and she said she'd send her husband over with the truck. Done! Now I have an empty wall to put up a bookcase and get some craft stuff organized.

That was the start of my Sunday and after my weekly chat with my sister, my friend Lori came over and we chatted for a bit. She was in my house but wore a mask. Now that's a good friend.

Great weekend, right? I didn't get any cooking done but I have a freezer full of possibilities and my produce drawers were jam packed so I'd survive. I'll end this post with a pic of my happy geraniums, which I'll be enjoying all winter. Orange, of course.

Week 43 - Bringing in Plants

The highlight of the week, if you could call it that, was the hard freeze on Thursday night. It was the end of warm weather and meant I had some work to do. But first the week.

We were getting some much needed rain on Tuesday so I only went to Mocha C's for the weekly grab and go lunch I look forward to, skipping The Warehouse and D's Boutique. I had sorted stocking stuffers and was hoping I could find some for Carolyn, whose basket was a bit skimpy, at D's. Well, it's a good thing I didn't go in there because by the end of the week she was closed because she had Covid. Dodged a bullet there and it's not like Christmas is tomorrow so I'm not stressed. Yet.

Thursday was a good day. UNL's 2nd annual State of Diversity was that morning and was being done on Zoom. So no buffet breakfast like last year but it was a good program and they had zoom breakout sessions that worked perfectly. I even managed to get some knitting time in during the speakers.

The hard freeze was due that night so at the end of the day, I picked all the veg that was left outside - eggplants, peppers, tomatoes and a big bunch of chard. Then I brought in all the plants I wanted to overwinter. I just put them on a rug by the TV until I'd deal with them on the weekend.

The weekend was filled with friends. On Saturday I talked to 2 friends and my sister then pulled the plant stands out of the garage and washed them down in the tub and put them out in the sun on the driveway to dry before heading inside to start some chores. On Sunday I repotted a few of the plants and got them all situated on the plant stands in front of the slider (south window) and the dining room (west window) where they'll live all winter. I also talked to my cousin, my boss and Anne plus zoomed with Dawn in Virginia. How's that for being social while never leaving my house?

I enjoyed apple crisp almost every night after being inspired earlier in the week when faced with nothing for dessert. I made half a batch of apple crisp topping and then every night I prepped one apple and made a single serving of apple crisp in my toaster oven. Because apple crisp is never crisp if you reheat it so this way I got fresh apple crisp in the time it took me to peel one apple. I even used my wonderful 70's Pyrex gratin dishes. Perfect! I can see more of this in my future.

Between dealing with all my plants and talking with family and friends, I finished several knitting projects and managed to fit in just enough chores to be ready for the upcoming week. So another pandemic week was in the books and I survived just fine. I might have even thrived a bit. : )

Week 42 - End of Fun?

It was yet another week of working from home and staying safe. I had some socially distanced fun on the weekend, which is always good, but also had a mini meltdown.

The week started out well. I had my annual physcial and mammogram on Tuesday, which messed up my grab and go lunch but I just got it Thursday instead. I trained a few people on reporting on Wednesday afternoon and then had a wonderful zoom session with Paul of The Ripples Project fame. As usual, I was totally energized by Paul. I had some computer problems first thing Friday but after that was resolved, I ended the day crossing allocations off my to do list. Nice way to end the work week.

As the end of the week approached, I was looking forward to my spinning meeting at Nan's cabin on the river. The weather was supposed to be warm and sunny, which was a nice treat for mid October. The weather was perfect and we had a great time, after which I headed to the Dollar Tree. I was inspired by a podcast I'd been watching on YouTube - On a Dime, in case you're interested - and wanted to scope out some baskets and bins for organizing. I found a few and then went to Aldi to pick up some groceries. While I was in Aldi, it was like someone flipped a switch and the cold front came through. The sun was gone and the wind was from the north and raw. It came through exactly when it was forecast and it felt like a death nell for fun.

I'm not sure exactly what triggered it but earlier in the week I had started worrying about no longer being able to see people safely outside. I kind of went into panic mode and started obsessing about what it would be like when I would be alone in my house day after day without being able to see people. I was also worried about the cold, dark corner where my desk is and being stuck there working all winter. I vented to anyone who would listen and was a bit of a mess. Until I came up with a plan.

My desk is in the corner of my L shaped kitchen and back room, where the sun streams through my south facing sliding door all winter. I needed to find some way that I could work in the back room while still maintaining it as the TV room. After much thought, I headed to Amazon and found the perfect solution to my problem - this coffee table! It would allow me to work from my couch, which would be in the sun but wouldn't have the glare I get when sitting in my chair. And the pop up table top would be the perfect height for my laptop. I'd have to get rid of my oversized ottoman but that matched a chair I'd trashed years ago and was pretty grubby so it was time. I hit add to cart on the coffee table and immediately chilled out. Damn skippy! It was exactly what I needed to calm down.

And on another postive note, I used the baskets I had bought at Dollar Tree to completely organize my summer Birkenstocks in the bottom of my closet and sorted a pile of shoes to donate. One night during the week, I went through all of my gift socks, sorting them into zippies by size and pulling some for Christmas gifts. I am not spending as much time as I should organizing my house but I did do a bit and since I ended the week on a happy note with my meltdown solved by a coffee table, I'll call it a good week.

Week 41 - Socially Distanced Fun

The week started with Cindy not in our morning zoom meeting. I got her on our private zoom as soon as the team one was done and she had just gotten back from a Covid test. OMG! It all ended well (just a cold) but threw a wrench in the works for a few things.

We were supposed to be having wine on Lana's deck on Wednesday after work and Cindy would be giving me the book club books her husband had picked up because he works in the same building as the Library Commission. Well, with her test not due back for 3 days and book club being Thursday night, I had to scramble. They didn't have more of the same books so I did a search on email and found a book I'd wanted to read in 2004, which they did have 8 copies of. Now I just had to make arrangements to get those books.

Well, when our wine on Lana's deck was cancelled, I suggested to Anne that we do dinner on her deck to take advantage of the last of the nice weather. She was fine with that and Rene was too so I asked a favor. Rene is retired so has all the time in the world and was willing to run downtown and pick up the books. Yay! That meant that I didn't have to take vacation time to get to Lincoln before 5:00. Not only that but Rene was getting a taco salad (dinner was bring your own) so I asked her to get one for me too. It's good to have friends! We had a lovely dinner on the deck, which I fear may be the last one until next spring.

I was rocking safe social distanced socializing this week. Masks were now required at the library so we all wore them for knitting on Monday night and then for book club on Thursday. That was 3 social events on weeknights - so fun! And the work week had gone well too. I taught my reporting classes on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons so it flew. On Friday, I ran errands at lunch and picked up Chinese food, which I haven't eaten in ages. Friday afternoon was filled with the final design of a new form for Benefits so didn't drag. And I had more fun to look forward to on Saturday.

It was the weekend that the Estate Dispersal Store was open (only one per month) so Andrea and I were meeting Lori in Fremont Saturday morning. I had requested Bruegger's Bagels because I'd been wanting one and cannot get to a store without taking vacation time. Lori, who lives in Omaha, obliged. Again, it's good to have friends. Andrea and I wanted to hit the Restore before bagels so Lori met us there (it was her first time there) and then we sat in a park and had a lovely bagel breakfast. The weather was perfect and there was even a yard sale across the street, where I found the cutest, nesting snack set from the 70's. Someday I'll be able to have people over and use it. After that, we all found fun stuff at the estate store then went to Goodwill. Lori left us after that and Andrea and I went to Aldi and HyVee for groceries. It had been a gorgeous day full of fun shopping with friends. That's the best part of life, right?

After a dinner of HyVee rotisserie chicken, which totally hit the spot, I decided to head to the farm store to buy the bird seed I needed, which would mean I could stay in on Sunday. Well, they were having a 17% off everything sale that day only (I lucked out by not procrastinating) so I got bird seed, a small galvanized bucket to store it on the deck this winter, a stack of suet cakes and a few other things, including stocking stuffers and yet another pumpkin. Score! It topped off a perfect day.

Alas, I couldn't fall asleep (maybe the caffeinated frapuccino I'd had that afternoon?) so was tired Sunday. I always talk to my sister but also had plans to talk with Carolyn since we didn't get our usual Saturday morning chat. The morning was filled with happy chatting and then I got busy neatizing and doing the bare minimum of chores. That was the plan anyway until I knocked a jar of homemade pickle relish onto the floor, where it shattered and made a sticky mess. Clearly I now had to clean the floor, which desperately needed it anyway. I was on final step of the long process (wiping up relish, sweeping, vacuuming and then washing) when the phone rang. I had been bemoaning the lack of a plan for what to do while the floor dried but now I could chat with Sharyn. Yay! I washed myself out the back door and sat on the deck chatting away. We didn't hang up until 7:00 my time. 

All in all, it had been another lovely day in a week full of lovely other things. During this pandemic, I have been cherishing the safe socializing I manage to do and am fully aware that I have a relatively stress free life when compared to so many. I am grateful for a good job I can do from home and a wonderful support system of friends, both near and far. Despite it all, life is good.

Week 40 - Finally Some Masks!

So, it was back to reality after a nice time with Connie. You would think that the glow of getting away and out of my house would have left me with some residual good vibes but no. The vibes didn't even last through the 8.5 hour drive home. Oh well. At least I had Chubby's truffles to share at knitting.

I went to Mocha C's on Tuesday ready to tell them off for not wearing masks and inform them that I wouldn't be returning until they did. Well, knock me over with a feather! Every person behind the counter was wearing a mask, at which I heaved a big sigh of relief. I so look forward to the little things these days and my Tuesday grab and go lunch is one of them. More masks in Wahoo is the one good thing that came out of the super spreader wedding that lead to so many cases in town. How's that for cup half full?

After the debate from hell, which left me struggling to fall asleep, I was tired on Thursday. I'd been messaging back and forth with the owner of Hoot & Sadie's about the cutest little bookcase/hutch that was only 21" wide but tall. It was the perfect thing to organize my knitting supplies and I'd moved furniture to make room for it. But when I called to say I'd be picking it up later, she said she'd sold it when the store opened at 1:00. I never did formally tell her to hold it so it was my bad but I was very disappointed. She seemed to feel bad too. I went in after work to pick up some lamps that Lori had bought  At least I'd get some fun from that.

Lori came to get the lamps at lunch on Friday and we walked at the lake with her dog. It was a lovely interlude in the day and got me outside. Despite the weather being cooler, I've continued to hole up in the house, which is not good. There's no reason I can't get outside at lunch or right after work. I just don't. Clearly it's time to rethink that.

And despite being holed up, my house was a pit. I'd been tired all week after being at Connie's so had done the bare minimum to get through the week. I spent the weekend getting my house back in order. I started in the back room and kitchen on Saturday, finishing in the late afternoon. I really needed some groceries and wanted to head south to Lincoln but was trying to figure out a route that would include going to Anne's, which wasn't really working. I gave up but at 4:30 realized that there was no requirement that I visit Anne just because I'd be in Lincoln. I left the house at 4:30, did some thrifting then got groceries at Aldi and was back home by 7:00. Nice. After a supper of chips, dip and beer, I headed to bed. I had more to do Sunday.

My front room was especially getting me down, with the table piled high with stocking stuffers and various crap from as far back as my Rhode Island trip. There was also yarn EVERYWHERE! I got the table cleared, the stocking stuffers organized in baskets (I'm doing fine for my sisters but Carolyn's is looking skimpy) and then sorted yarn. I pulled yarn to donate to Project Warm that we're doing at spinning and swatched a bunch of yarns that I suspected might be non-superwash wool and would shrink. Those went into the laundry basket to go in with my next hot load. 

With that done, I called it a good weekend. My house was neat but not clean but I'd deal with that later. And the week had been fine, with work just the right amount of busy, so it was all good. Just another week during the pandemic. I have it easier than many so am thankful to be happy and healthy. I hope you are too.

Week 39 - Hangin' with Connie

It was a short work week because I was heading to Connie's. I couldn't wait to see her new house and just hang out but first had to get through 2 work days. I'm happy to say they were uneventful. And I ended Tuesday watching a lecture by Doris Kearns Goodwin via zoom.

I loaded up the car and left my house on schedule at 8:00. I was taking the scenic route but was proud that I'd resisted going via Scottsbluff to hit Brown Sheep's factory store. So Goodwill in Norfolk was as fun as it got. I stopped there then hit DQ in O'Neill for a Mocha MooLatte. After a stop for gas, I powered through and with gaining an hour, I was at Connie's by supper time. After a tour of her house, we ate the sausage and peppers I'd brought and chatted the night away. It was great to see her and her new house is wonderful.

We had no specific plans beyond Connie's birthday dinner on her friend's patio on Friday so headed to Spearfish. After the grocery store, we had a nice Italian lunch outside at Nonna's on the main drag and hit the health food store. After we put the groceries away and had some tea, we headed to Belle Valley Ancient Grains - a local organic flour miller. We waited while they milled our flour then went home for a salmon supper and watching Greyhound. Tom Hanks was great, as usual, but a war movie? What was I thinking?

Friday was Connie's birthday so we drove back to Spearfish to get Connie's free birthday coffee at Starbuck's and pick up some eggs from her friend. With that done, after a stop at the little craft shop, we drove up the canyon. It's my happy place and was even prettier with all the fall foliage. And while we weren't prepared for wading, we still put our feet in the water at Roughlock Falls. It was breathtakingly cold but worth it. We went over the mountain to Lead and had fun in a couple of shops. I finally bought some stocking stuffers, which took some of the heat off Christmas. After a quick stop for truffles at The Chubby Chipmunk, we went home to do the last supper prep.

Dinner was at Francie's but we were bringing the food. She was providing the grill and patio. We had steaks, caprese salad and naan with ice cream for dessert. I'd heard a lot about Francie and she didn't disappoint. Connie broke out some special whisky and we had wine with dinner. It was all lovely.

Between the canyon and dinner, we had a bit of time to kill so I suggested we start moving rocks. The woman who Connie bought the house from had torn out all her plants and rocked all the beds. Ick! So we started with the front bed and schlepped 3 wheel barrow's full of rocks to her alley. After her son delivered a desk he'd refinished on Saturday morning, we went right back outside and moved some more. We then planted some bulbs and set up a little harvest display with pumpkins and gourds we'd bought. After our good start, Connie vowed to keep moving rocks until that bed was done. Exhausted from all that, we had a little Mary Poppins fest with Saving Mr. Banks, dinner (I made carbonara) then the original Mary Poppins. My visit was pretty much over. It had been quick but so wonderful. We laughed and laughed. I was sorry to be leaving.

As I usually do, I got up early and had the car loaded before Connie was even awake. We had breakfast and I hit the road. I lose an hour going home so took the speedy route - driving 80 mph all the way across South Dakota on I-90. It's boring but quick. The last 2 hours is a slog on a 2 lane highway from Sioux City to Wahoo but it somehow feels faster. It actually took the same amount of time - 8.5 hours - and I was home by 6:00.

It had been a great trip and I fear it was the last one for a LONG time. I pondered that as I unpacked and did the bare minimum to get ready for the work week. I'll do my best to savor the fun we had. I wish Connie lived closer but at least we get quality time when I visit and she lives in a gorgeous area that I never would have gotten to know had she not moved there. Lucky me to have such a good friend, even if she is far away.

Week 38 - Enjoying Responsible Fun

The week started with not being able to remote into my work computer. Come to find out, someone had unplugged it when they swiped the power strip. Allan moved it to a less obvious spot and I was back in business. While this may not have been an auspicious start, the work week went fine. Is it a bad thing that the highlights of my work week were a spider scaring the crap out of me when it ran across my desk and the zoom tea break I had with Lana and Cindy on Wednesday? At least nothing blew up work wise.

Thursday night was dinner in Ashland with Amanda. We got take out from BW's (tot-chos!) and ate on her deck. I'd made pineapple upside down cake for Amanda's birthday It was a lovely evening. Helen came over for lunch on my deck on Friday. All this socializing outside with friends felt great.

Saturday was spinning at Nan's cabin on the Platte River. Her cabin is on stilts so we sat underneath it spread apart in chairs and I pulled up a zoom so a few people could participate remotely. It was a lot of fun. From there, Andrea and I went to Omaha for some shopping and dinner at Lori's. I brought eggplant parm that I'd made with eggplant from my garden. Friends and food - does it get better than that?

Sunday was chores and my cousin Kelley's wedding. The zoom was scheduled for 7:00 our time (the wedding was in California) so I figured I'd be done by 8:00. Nope. After the ceremony, Kelley and Gabe went out to take pictures and said they'd be back in an hour so all the cousins stayed on the zoom and caught up. When they were done with pictures, I thought they'd come back to chat but they did cake and their first dance. I was surprised but I guess they were trying to have as normal a weeding as they could. I never got to chat with Kelley at all and said goodnight after 10:00 and went to bed.

So in our covid world, this was a banner week. I saw so many people (safely) and got to enjoy time outside. I fell like I need to do all the visiting while the weather allows it to store up some fun for when it's too cold to be outside. It's coming so store up some of your own fun for the lean times ahead. : )

Week 37 - And Now Cold

The headline for the week was definitely the weather. After 100+ feel like temps on Sunday, it was down to 38 with the wind chill by Tuesday. So I went from AC to heat in 48 hours. Sheesh!

The week started with a non-holiday. In order to shorten the fall semester so students could be done at Thanksgiving, UNL had taken away Labor Day as a holiday. We banked the holiday and since I didn't have any plans, it wasn't worth taking the day off so I didn't. There was no knitting either so what drippy start to the week.

I spent the cold week inside, knitting, streaming and quilting. Sound familiar? The rain was lovely though. It rained steadily Tuesday and Wednesday then drizzled on and off on Thursday and Friday. Andrea had gone out-of-town at the last minute and had agreed to water plants for a friend so I inherited that job. Luckily I only watered on Monday and then checked things Thursday so that was easy. The work week was uneventful. I had more meetings than usual, including 4 on Friday, so the days didn't drag. 

When the meds didn't help my shoulder, I decided it must be something with my position at my desk so folded up a small, felted afghan and just raising my butt that little bit helped my shoulder immediately. As soon as that felt better, I did something to my knee. My real one. I was shifting in bed on Thursday morning and something when ka-chunk, leaving me with a painful joint that was bent. Not as bent as my other knee was before replacement but painful. I could only hope that whatever went out of whack would correct itself. Damn! It's always something.

I had a pretty exciting weekend after being holed up all week. I'd made plans to meet Lori at Penzey's in Omaha, get some lunch then knit on her patio. Any thoughts I had of going to Omaha early went out the window when I talked with Caorlyn for hours. I threw on clothes and got there just after noon to find Lori placing an order on her phone because Penzey's was pick up only. I did the same then we checked out the pizza restaurant in the alley beside Penzey's. I'd never noticed it but there it was and it was not only delicious but also vegan friendly, which made Lori happy. We ate outside in the alley (not pretty) then went to her house.

Lori's yard is gorgeous. She has a bed of 6' tall zinnias that were covered with butterflies and the sun came out just as we sat down. It was glorious to see the sun again and we knitted the afternoon away. When she left for 5:00 mass, I headed to Aldi for a big stock up then saw Five Below across the plaza so hit that for a few stocking stuffers. I was home before 7:00. It was a lovely day.

Lorri went to the first live church since March so stopped by afterwards, which felt so back to normal. An illusion, I know. Then though my knee was still problematic, I managed to pull all the driveway weeds, butt in the air for a couple of hours, which I split into 2 stints. I had just gone inside for a cup of tea when the phone rang. I had a nice, long chat with Sharyn, hanging up just in time to drive my weeds to the city burn pile and shower before eating dinner while watching 60 Minutes. Perfect. 

I ended the night downstairs quilting again. I had recently bought a bag of fabric scraps at Goodwill and found someone's tiny crumb quilting attempts mixed in so have been incorporating those in my squares. Why not? I had made 30 squares in the past 3 weeks and was still enjoying it. Here's a picture.

With fall weather finally here, I have high hopes of getting back into my yard in the evenings like I did this spring. My garage also needs attention big time. If I can manage to get one wall cleared, I'd like to have shelves built along that wall so I can get all the collapsed boxes of Corelle off the floor. Someday I want to get back to selling it - maybe on etsy instead of ebay. I also have tons of it in the basement that could go on those shelves, which would free up that space to be my yarn room. Oh the dreams! I live in hope.

Week 36 - Late Summer Heat

Unfortunately, the highlight of the week was blazing heat. Heat index over 100 heat. I could only hope it would be the last blast for this year. 

The heat wasn't arriving until Wednesday so I got busy doing everything outside at the start of the week. It started on Monday when I did something I'd not done since being home - I drove to Fremont at lunch to grocery shop. HyVee had one day specials that made it worth the drive, including a cheap Chinese meal I could have for lunch. On paper, it was an 18 mile drive so closer than Lincoln but with traffic, it took me a full 30 minutes door to door. That made for a long lunch but I got all my deals and was eating Chinese at my desk before 1:30. Oh well.

I met Lorri in the park for lunch on Tuesday and I got my grab and go, of course. It was monthly reports day plus I had 2 meetings so the day was over in a flash. And it was the last day of decent weather so I would be hunkering down for the rest of the week.

And that's what I did. I had refilled my 800's of ibuprofen so was taking that for my shoulder, which had been bothering me since my 13 hour day during year-end. I talked to Connie and planned a road trip to visit her for her birthday at the end of the month. I did venture to Lincoln late Friday for some thrifting and pizza at Anne's. We sorted yarn I'd bought on her deck and she kept 90% of it. Perfect. 

With the heat index going to be over 100, I had no plans to leave my house on the weekend. I gave thought to doing some cleaning but not much of that happened. I spent a bunch of time on the phone and zooming, knitted lots and did more quilting. I did get a bit of cleaning done but not the deep cleaning I needed to do. Oh well. The heat was due to break and go in the opposite direction with rain (much needed) and cold weather so I'd have another week inside coming up. Maybe I'd clean then? Don't count on it. : )

Week 35 - A New Obsession

With temps in the 90's all week, it was a good thing I had a new project that kept me busy inside. Yes, the crumb quilting continued and I was loving it more with each square I made.

So much quilting! At the beginning of the week, I was splitting my time between ironing scraps and making squares. At lunch and as soon as work was over, I ate something quickly and headed downstairs. I had the ironing finished by Tuesday night which meant I could concentrate completely on making more squares. Each one was prettier than the one before. I couldn't stop! And luckily hopping up and down between the sewing machine and the ironing board constantly was more exercise than I'd betting getting sitting and knitting.

The work week was completely uneventful, which worked for me. I had made a plan with Andrea to head to Fremont after work on Friday, intending to take some vacation time but when I woke up before dawn (darn cat!), I started work at 7:00 so I could save my vacation hours. I picked Andrea up at 3:30 and off we went. The weekend had begun!

The first stop was the quilt shop for rotary cutter blades and a square quilting ruler. I got the ruler and Andrea found the blades, which was a 5 pack and all they had, then we headed to their scrap bins. We sorted through the entire bin, filling 2 baggies each with scraps then hit the sale fat quarters, where I limited myself to 4. When I checked out, I was floored when the amount was more than $90. Come to find out, the blades, which I could have bought on Amazon for $10, were $43! So much for supporting local businesses. Oh well. After a stop at Goodwill and Aldi, we headed home.

My intent was to do some cleaning on the weekend but the weather broke and I ended up outside in the garden. I weeded between my raised beds and spread mulch, which had been sitting outside since last year because I'd bought the wrong color. With the plants more accessible, I picked a bunch of tomatoes and some Swiss chard. Nice. While it wasn't hot out, I was still sweaty so took a shower because I was meeting Van for supper in Waterloo.

Van was in Omaha with his mom, who was in the hospital, so we were meeting with his partner for dinner at a new place - The Rude Shrimp Company. It was 2 shipping containers outside and had all outdoor seating. We had to wait awhile but the food was great. Unfortunately we were wearing the only masks in the place and the tables were very close together. It was the most unsafe I'd felt since Covid started. Not worth it and I won't do that again. 

I spent all day Sunday quilting. I didn't do laundry, nor cleaning, nor cooking - just quilting. It's not like I'd go hungry and I don't dress for work these days but a bit more prepared for the work week would have been better. Oh well. You need to go with the flow when you're inspired. Here's a picture of my first blocks. There will be many more for sure.

Week 34 - Back to Nebraska

Despite having a totally relaxing vacation, I didn't feel ready to be back at work. Re-entry was a slog!

It took me more than a day to just catch up at work but by Tuesday lunch time, things were pretty much back to normal. Lorri had called to ask if I wanted to eat in the park, which we've done a few time over the summer. I unabashedly asked for any garden surplus she'd be willing to share, picked up my grab and go from Mocha C's and enjoyed catching up over lunch.  She brought me green beans (I'd specifically requested those so I could make 3 bean salad), a few tomatoes, a funky cucumber and half each of a water melon and cantaloupe. Nice.

I spent the rest of the work week just getting through the days and then knitting at night. I was completely non-productive. I did try to walk at the lake at twilight on Wednesday but my ankle, which had been bothering me since Saturday, was still not right. I realized halfway across the dam that it might not be a good idea to be walking alone, without my phone (I forgot it) somewhere that would be hard to access if my ankle went out. I turned around, deciding that any further walks need to be in my neighborhood.

So, how's this for a slacker? I took 2 hours off on Friday so I could go to Lincoln. I needed to grocery shop and wanted to hit a couple of thrifts before meeting at Anne's house for dinner on the deck. I brought the 3 bean salad I'd made and Rene was picking up chicken strips at Russ'. It was a lovely evening and a nice end to my first week back. Well worth the 2 hours of vacation time and I had enough food to restock my cupboards and fridge.

With my errands and socializing done on Friday, I was ready for a low key weekend. I'd been such a slug all week that I still had some post-vacation stuff to do on top of all my regular chores. And that's what I did, along with some knitting and streaming. Then I got inspired.

I got an email from Pinterest with a crumb quilting pin, which has been on my radar for awhile because I love using things up and have plenty of fabric scraps. It made me think of the grab bag of scraps that Andrea had found at a quilt store and gifted to me earlier in the week. It was sitting right on the bar so I grabbed it and dug in. After watching a quick YouTube video to see crumb quilting in action, I headed down to my craft room and started quilting. OMG! This was SO much fun! I whipped up 3 squares with the scraps from Andrea's bag and then pulled together 2 bag of scraps that I'd gathered when I was organizing the basement and threw them in the wash. 

I went upstairs to watch some TV but instead of getting ready for bed when the show was over at 9:00, I went downstairs to start ironing the scraps, which were fresh out of the dryer. I ironed until after 11:00, at which point I forced myself to stop so I could get some sleep. I could so have kept going.

Many of the scraps brought back memories of past sewing projects - some as far back as high school. Yes, I have 40 year old scraps. It would take a bit more time to get them all ironed but I was super excited to keep making crumb blocks, which I'll share for sure. I know there will be lots more.

Week 33 - Our Beach Week

What can I say about this week at the beach? It was absolute perfection! Our goal for the week was social distancing together at the beach. And that's what we did. 

This is how almost every day went. We slept in, watched the morning shows in our jammies, eating breakfast at some point. We'd eventually get dressed and move out to the picnic table, where we played Boggle until lunch, after which we'd go somewhere. This included Wakefield in search of Scrabble (failed), the farm stand to buy sweet corn, the liquor store for Crabbies Hard Ginger Beer... you get the drift. Total relaxation by 2 long-time friends. John did go on bike rides twice, during which I sat on my butt and knitted. Nirvana!

We did get to the actual beach twice. Monday was a holiday in Rhode Island, which is the only state in the nation that still celebrates VJ Day (now called Victory Day) so we avoided the beach until Tuesday morning. While it would have been only a 5-10 minute walk, we opted to drive rather than schlep the chairs, blankets and umbrella. Despite it being a weekday, there were lots of people on the beach so we walked to the end where the beach transitions from sand to shingle (rocks) and put our blanket down there. Unfortunately that meant that we couldn't dig a hole for the umbrella, which left my pale skin exposed to the sun. I covered as best I could and when it got too hot, John and I went swimming. The waves were great and shortly after getting out, we headed back to the cottage. I was pink but not burned.

Did I mention our outdoor shower? We did have one inside but I only used it the first night. After that, I enjoyed showering in the great outdoors. It was especially nice at twilight. Just another bonus to beach living.

My friend Deanne, who was willing to brave a visit, came for dinner that night. John cooked chicken on the grill, which was yet another delicious meal he made. Because John did ALL the cooking and served up something delicious every time - filet with a shallot and red wine sauce, fresh swordfish and hamburgers. I made the sweet corn and sandwiches for lunch once so was Princess Merry all week. We did eat out a few times, always at outside tables except for once inside a restaurant and that was at far apart tables with every window open. I ate all my seafood faves, which is always a goal on RI trips but just a bit harder during Covid.

We had one other visit. John's aunt and uncle came for drinks at the picnic table one afternoon. We'd planned an alfresco dinner on Thursday at his cousin's but the weather didn't cooperate. It was only supposed to rain in the morning so we headed to Newport after lunch, thinking we'd get out and walk on the shore. Nope. We had time to hit The Christmas Tree Shop and Job Lot (both must shops on RI trips) but it was still raining as dinnertime approached so we just dropped in for stand up visit in their kitchen, masks all around, of course. At least John got to see his family. I hadn't even told mine that I was in town because I wasn't going to chance visiting them. My aunt is 98 so I wasn't taking the chance, much as I missed her and my cousins.

We hit the beach one last time on Friday, this time driving 20 miles to East Beach. It's always been my favorite beach but this year it hadn't been groomed so there was an abrupt drop off at the water's edge. I went swimming alone and we didn't stay long. John had bought fresh swordfish for our final dinner so we went home to enjoy our last night at the cottage.

I packed that night lest worry would keep me from sleeping and I had no trouble getting everything into my big suitcase and slept great the last night. We had to be out of the cottage by 10:00 but still managed to relax a bit between packing things up. Vivian, the woman in the next cottage, had befriended us so we gave her all our extra food. We packed the car and left right at 10:00. It had been a perfect week and I felt fully recovered from year end.

John was all over logistics and the plan was to drive his mom's car to the Kingston train station, where John parks it when he heads back to the city. He had scheduled a Lyft from there to the airport, where he'd rent a car to drive home and Deanne would pick me up to spend the day before my evening flight home. But when we got to the station, John saw that Lyft wasn't coming and there was no one available from Uber either. In desperation, he called his uncle and he came and got us. As we were waiting for him, a bus arrived that was going to the airport. Oops! Tommy dropped us off at the car rental garage, where Deanne was waiting for me and John could pick up his car. I was sad to say goodbye but it was back to reality.

Deanne and I went to lunch at Plant City, which is a vegan restaurant in Providence. The outside tables were packed cheek by jowl so we opted to eat inside. The tables were far apart and there were plexi-glass shields around each one. The server had a mask on every time she approached and we put ours on too. It felt perfectly safe and the food was delicious. I count Deanne as my oldest friend (we became friends in 6th grade) so we had no problem chatting the day away over tea at her hoplace use. She dropped me at the airport at 5:30 and I headed home.

Remember me saying I had no problems packing? Well my suitcase was 8 pounds over the limit so I stepped aside and repacked, pulling out the tote bag I'd packed for just this eventuality. Gotta love Southwest with their 2 free bags. Empty middle seats during Covid works too. Both of my flights were mostly empty with about 100 empty seats so I could sit far apart and I wiped everything down too. Again, I never felt unsafe at all. I had less than an hour layover in Chicago so it was quick and I walked into my house at midnight. 

It was good to be home and I spent Sunday unpacking and getting ready for my work week. What a wonderful trip it had been! I'm so glad I overcame my worries and went. With Christmas in RI already cancelled, I think it'll be a long time before I travel again.