Week 3 - Snow and Tragedy

You've gotta love a week that begins with a Monday holiday but this is the last one for months. Luckily I enjoyed it to the fullest.

Darla came over for lunch, which was all things chicken since I'd made soup and chicken salad from the rotisserie chicken plus some carrot/raisin salad to round it out. We chatted for hours and after she left, I placed a big seed order before heading to the library for knitting. It was a lovely day.

A storm was due on Wednesday so working on campus was optional. I went to Bomgaar's for birdseed and suet after work on Tuesdasy, refilled the feeders before bed and was ready to hunker down. I woke up to snow, which turned to freezing rain then back to snow. I had arranged for Tim and his sons to clear my snow, which they did late on Wednesday even though we'd be getting more snow overnight. He took care of the heavy wet stuff and I shoveled another light 2" first thing on Thursday. All done.

I had taken Friday afternoon off to head to Lincoln to celebrate Rene's birthday and I was on cake duty so made a white cake over lunch on Thursday then put it together after work - white cake with lemon curd between the layers and coconut frosting. Then it was off to book club, where we were discussing my choice - The Perfume Thief. It was a great discussion and my cousin Helen came for the first time.

Friday was fun. I worked in the morning then met Anne and Rene at Cook's Cafe. It's my favorite place for breakfast (best sausage links!) but lunch was nothing special. We went back to Rene's for cake and an afternoon of chatting and knitting. I left ~5:00 and remembered as I headed north that I could hit St. Theresa's Thrift Shop, which is only open on Fridays and Saturdays so I haven't been in years. I scored a bunch of fun yarn in grab bags - some for me, some for my sister and some to donate back. I stashed it all while I had a beer and snack supper plus another bit of cake. It was a wonderful day.

After morning chats Saturday morning with Carolyn and Deanne while sitting in the sun knitting, I was off to Fremont for spinning. Andrea and I did our usual Fremont run, ending at Aldi. I had hoped we could get sushi but Andrea had plans so I got frozen fish and chips from Aldi, which gave me horrible indigestion since I'd eaten nothing but meat, veggies and fruit for the previous 2 weeks except for Friday. I was struggling to fall asleep after getting up to get a Tums when the phone rang at 10:00 pm. It wasn't good news.

Anne was calling to let me know that Rene's son, who had lived with her until she moved into her new house a few months ago, had shot and killed his neighbor. OMG! We didn't know much but talked for awhile and then, needless to say, I had big trouble getting to sleep after that.

I had a low energy day on Sunday for sure. I talked to my sister in the morning and then made a list. I was totally distracted with worry for Rene but did manage to plug away at some chores between knitting and watching podcasts. I finished this pair of socks that had been on the needles for years. Literally.

Talk about ups and downs! The week started out so well but ended badly. I will be worrying about Rene, who has been so happy lately between retirement and her new house, for a long time. Nothing good will come of this. So sad.

Week 2 - Practicing my Wintering

It was a good week for my first full week of the new year. The weather started out warm - 50 degrees on Monday! - and my diet went well.

Work was busy with meetings, finishing some reports that have been in draft for months, doing monthly Foundation reporting and starting data for the space survey. One wrinkle was finding out that our building had no water when we got to work on Wednesday. They had thought it would be a quick fix but the water was out all day, which meant going to another building to use the bathroom and to get water for tea. I did drop Dodie's Christmas present on one of my pee runs but worked through lunch and left early, stopping at HyVee for a rotisserie chicken on the way home. I give myself points for not eating it until I got home because I was pretty darn hungry after 3 600 calorie days and it smelled great. By the way, the water wasn't fixed until late Friday.

After 25 years of working at UNL, I'm at maximum vacation balance for the very first time. This meant I had to take 6 hours of vacation in January in order to get the full accrual at the end of the month. I started by taking 2 hours on Friday for an early Fremont run with Andrea. It was the Estate Dispersal Store weekend so we added that to our usual route and ended with sushi for supper at Ninja. It was delish. My last stop was to get some magnesium to help with my toe cramps. We failed at our first because my card Walgreen's card had gone inactive from lack of use and there was a big line so we just left, succeeding at Dollar General down the street. Sheesh! With all my errands done, I was ready for a weekend of wintering.

I'd seen a meme on Facebook explaining wintering as hunkering down and staying cozy. Count me in! After chatting with Carolyn and Deanne, I spent the rest of the day Saturday knitting in the sun and streaming The Recruit, which is worth watching. I was working on some complicated socks that had been on the needles for years in hopes of finishing them at last. I was also working on a fun project - temperature socks. I chose 12 colors of sock yarn - 1 for below zero, 1 for each 10 degrees up to 100 and another for over 100. I knit 4 rows of the color that corresponds to the previous day's high temperature and at the end of the year, I'll have 12 socks. I'm using the same yarn for cuffs, heels and toes on all of them. Here is my yarn and the start of my first sock. This is going to be fun.

I didn't do much more on Sunday but did do some cooking, having started my 1200 week after losing 10 pounds the first week. Nice. I made chicken salad and carrot salad plus put the bones in the crockpot to make broth. Monday was MLK Day and Darla was coming over so we'd have plenty of healthy food to choose from.

I can see more wintering weekends in my future and that works for me. I hope you're enjoying some cozy home time and are finding something good to stream.

Week 1 - Brand New Year

Monday was the last day of break and I'd had a lovely one but there were a couple of things on my list yet to do. I started with a lovely chat with Cornelia, did my normal Sunday chores and then at the very end of the day, I made a batch of peach jam. With those last 2 things done, my break was over. 

It's always nice that my first work day of the new year is filled with monthly reports, which take most of the day and are a nice way to ease back into work., 

Wednesday was a campus day and I started it by dropping off a box of yarn I'd sold (51 lots that filled a huge Chewy box) at the UPS store that's below the garage I parked in because I had to leave for a podiatrist appointment about my hammer toe. Not only was that a total waste of time (he doesn't do hammer toe surgery, which would have been nice to know when I scheduled the appointment) but he was creepy as all get out. He'd been recommended by a friend but I was immediately creeped out by him and when he put my shoes and socks on at the end of the exam, despite my saying I could do it myself, the creep factor sky rocketed. Never going to him again. Ick!

Thursday was a busy day with finally some sunshine and my last grab and go lunch for awhile then I went to lunch with my cousin on Friday and like that the four day work week was done.

I had no weekend plans but was starting a rotation - the diet I lost all the weigh with 5 years ago (and have since gained back) - on Sunday so ate some treats on Saturday. I got BK for lunch, took my tree down that afternoon and went to DQ for a sundae that evening. After those treats, I was ready to buckle down with a 600 calorie day on Sunday. I kept busy knitting Cindy's birthday mittens and repotting the amaryllis that I brought up from the laundry room in addition to prepping some healthy food to stay on track on my diet.

So not a bad first week of the year. Back to work, sold some yarn, had lunch with my cousin and made some fun mittens. I'm hopeful that I can drop some pandemic pounds to start the year and find more joy in my knitting and everything else. I hope 2023 brings joy for you too.

2023 - Just One Word

I was already to pick a word for 2023 that was all about productivity and getting things done, especially because this will be the last full year I work before retiring in 2024. But then I read a Facebook post by one of my old water aerobics buddies that made me think. Here's what she posted - "Please tell me any *fun* new year’s resolutions you’re setting. Nothing related to productivity, accountability, or self-improvement, just ones that will bring more joy. I need ideas!"

Perfect, right? I'm always making to do lists and give myself points for crossing things off but then there's another list and more things to do. It's constant and while it does tend to keep me accountable, is that what I want to focus on this year??? Nope. So with Jackie's post steering me a different direction, I've decided that my word for 2023 should be:

Are you with me? Can't we all use a little more joy in 2023? I'll be looking for joy in everything I do. Even crossing things of endless to do lists. : )

P.S. I found this Joy graphic here.

Week 53 - A Wonderful Break

The week between Christmas and New Year's, which I've recently heard called Betwixtmas (love that!), has got to be the best week of the year. And much as I miss going back to Rhode Island for Christmas, being home for the entire break is pure joy. Being a homebody, I love having days and days with no commitments so I can enjoy myself. And while I do make a to do list, it wasn't horribly onerous, which is how I like it.

I spent Monday morning knitting in the sun. Bliss! After talking to my sister and oldest friend, I did get my butt in gear to do a few chores before my friend Lorri came over that afternoon for tea. I continued the celebration by eating the last of the drumstick blizzard I'd bought this summer and stuck in my freezer while streaming Kindred, which was good. How's that for a lovely first day of Betwixtmas?

My cousin, Helen, was supposed to come over to hang out on Tuesday but cancelled so I adulted up and got productive. The last thing to do to finish up the spare room clear out was to go through the gift dresser (yes, I have an entire dresser full of things I've bought for future gifting) and that's what I started with. I was able to cull enough that the overflow tote was empty too and everything was organized. Quite a few things came into my "I'm gonna use this myself" life and that lead to a clear out of the kitchen cupboards, my messy food corner and then the fridge. Talk about productivity! But I wasn't done. When I finished upstairs, I went down to the craft room and sewed the cutest little project bag with some fabric from the vintage stash my sister gave me for Christmas. Isn't it adorable? Love that 70's vibe.

Wednesday started early with my only weekday commitment - 8:00 a.m. breakfast with Cindy and Lana at Cook's Cafe, which has the best sausage links in Lincoln. We had a lovely time but were done so early that I had to rethink my itinerary for the day. I ended up going south to Aldi and Trader Joe's before hitting a few other places (mostly for food - a bagel, some donuts) and a single Goodwill, where I found some fun knitting stuff - project bags, a needle case full of double pointed needles and a few other things. And since I'd had such good luck there, I stopped at the Senior Center thrift shop in Wahoo and scored a few more things, including a vintage 8x8 pan with a cover, which will be useful for brownies. After unpacking all my finds, I made a cup of tea to have with my donuts and read an actual book. Yes, reading an actual book (as opposed to an ebook on my ipad) was on my to do list for break. It was lovely. 

I read even longer on Thursday after chatting with 2 friends and doing some baking. It was warmer than usual on Friday so I did laundry and hung it outside and even planted some hyacinth bulbs I found in a pot from last spring. It felt great to be outside. After puttering some inside, I read again. This was prime break relaxation sprinkled with bits of productivity. Perfect! But break was almost over.

I'm not one to celebrate New Year's and so started the 31st submitting all my receipts to my flexible spending accounts then made homemade pizza for lunch and did the floors. I was hot so went outside to cool off and ended up puttering for half an hour in just a t-shirt. I did nothing to celebrate and was in bed well before midnight. Call me old I guess.

In pre-pandemic days, I did a knitters' tea on New Year's Day but I had no interest in having a house full of people (hello omicron!) so just had 3 friends over and didn't go all out with my 3 tiered server full of treats. I made a peach pie and opened a box of truffles to go with the scones and clotted cream Lori was bringing, which was plenty. We knitted and chatted the afternoon away while drinking tea and eating snacks. It was low key but a lovely start to 2023.

I had one more day left of break but was absolutely happy with my week off. It was wonderful to get up each day and do whatever I wanted, sleep when I wanted, eat when I was hungry. If this is what retirement is like, sign me up! Just a year and 5 months to go. Anyway, I hope 2023 brings joy to us all. Happy New Year!

Week 52 - Chill Before Christmas

It was Christmas week with all that entails but there were 4 works day yet and a cold blast to get through beforehand. Brutal cold that had everyone scrambling, myself included.

First thing Monday, I cleared my desk and made a list of all the outstanding projects to do before break, which felt like a good place to start. It wasn't a huge list and with campus already deserted, I hoped it would last the week. I got a grab and go for lunch and made raisin bars to take to knitting, which ended up being cancelled when Andrea and I were the only 2 going so we decided to stay home.

With brutal cold forecast for later in the week, I ran errands at lunch on Tuesday with the intention of not leaving the house again until Christmas Day. I dropped some donations, bought kitty litter and changed the boxes, and then did everything I'd need to outside - trash, recycling and compost. It was going to be cold on Wednesday but nothing compared to Thursday. By the end of the day Wednesday, UNL had announced that campus would be closed on Thursday, our last day before break, but anyone who could work remotely was expected to work. That felt like punishment but what can you do? At least we only had to work until 2:00.

The high temperature on Thursday was -6 and the wind chill made it feel like -40. It was so cold that the cats wouldn't even go out but the sun was out so I sat at my computer all morning, warm and toasty. At least we only got an inch of snow, unlike east of us. At 2:00, I hung up from my last zoom and shut my laptop. After a nice cup of tea, I finished my wrapping, went though all my knitting to sort what I'd work on over break, talked to Lori and had a nice dinner. The worst day of the cold snap was over and I was free as a bird for the next 11 days. Yay! 

It was slightly warmer on Friday with a high of 7. At least it was above zero. I had a totally relaxing day, which was a nice way to start break. I had everything I needed for the Christmas lasagna so had no plan to leave the house but on Saturday I decided I had to make my cousin's apricot jello mold so had to go to the market for lemon jello. Since I was going out, I got Chinese food, which I'd been craving, for lunch. I spent the afternoon cooking - lasagna, puppy chow (aka muddy buddies) and the jello mold. I was ready for Christmas and in an unusual mode for me, I did all the dishes before I went to bed.

Christmas morning meant stockings and I had a great time opening all 3 - from Carolyn and my sisters. Dottie's box was heavy because it was full of vintage fabric below the gifts. Then it was time to head to Anne's, decked out in my newest Christmas socks. I got there at noon and put the lasagna in to bake. Rene joined us and we had a nice lunch of lasagna, salad and garlic bread followed by Anne's Christmas cookies and the jello mold, which was a hit. We had a fire going and watched a movie while eating the puppy chow. I cannot resist it so ate way too much until Anne moved it out of my reach. Oh well, it's Christmas, right? Anne gave me a can of the totally sold out limited edition Figgy Pudding Spam, which she paid way too much for on Amazon. Love it! I haven't opened it yet and will have to find just the right occasion.

So it was my 3rd Christmas not in Rhode Island but it was another nice one at Anne's. I had another 8 days of break and had every intention of enjoying every minute of it. I had a few things on my to do list but nothing too onerous. I hope you all had a lovely Christmas.

Week 51 - Last Full Week

It was a busy week, both at work and at home, and the last full work week before break. Needless to say, it flew by.

I started the work week with 3 zoom meetings on Monday morning. Then I got the long overdue unemployment bill so that started a flurry of allocations, which take a chunk of time. I had zoom meetings on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday on top of our 3X/week team meetings. I think everyone was trying to finish things before Christmas and lots of people would be burning vacation time next week so this week was crammed full. And I jam packed my Wednesday on campus too.

We were having another party but this one was for our door decorating contest. Cindy, Lana and I were on deck for it all again. We were doing Christmas cookies and a hot chocolate bar for most of our building. I was in charge of cookies so had recruited bakers and made 2 kinds myself on Tuesday - brownies at lunch and Scandinavian almond bars after work. I loaded up the car for another busy day on campus.

We set up the conference room in the morning then I went to lunch with Dodie at our new place - Bison Witches. The door party, which started at 3:00, was a success and after we cleaned everything up, I had to bolt because I'd scheduled a shingles shot at CVS at 5:00. $215 and a sore arm later, I headed home for the 3 hour Survivor Finale. It wa a long but fun and productive day.

We had more weather but this week it was RAIN! We're 9" short on rain this year and I can count the rain we've had since May on 1 hand so it was wonderful to hear the rain on the roof when I woke up Tuesday. It rained most of the day and we got >1/2", which we desperately needed. I had book club Thursday night, which was rescheduled because of weather last week, and we had a great discussion. The next book is my pick - The Perfume Thief by Timoth Schaffert, who teaches at UNL. I've read most of his books and am looking forward to reading this one, which takes place in Paris.

I was busy right up until the end of the day Friday and when I zoomed with Cindy, she started working on me to go with her to a funeral. Our friend Nora's mother in law had died and since Cindy is related to her, she was going and wanted company. Betty had been to a couple of my July 4th cookouts back when I hosted them and Cindy laid the guilt on thick so by the end of the day, I'd agreed to go. It was in Cedar Bluffs (a small town 15 miles north of Wahoo) at 11:00 and the deal was that I'd go if we could go to Fremont afterwards for an Aldi run. 

After my Saturday morning chats with friends, I found some corduroys to wear and Cindy picked me up. Nora was happy to see us and we chatted with her during the lunch afterwards in the church hall then headed to Fremont. Before Aldi, we hit Thriftology and they were having a $5 bag sale so I filled a bag with all kinds of goodies, including a Christmas gift for my sister for Christmas 2023. Score! Then we did our Aldi run before Cindy dropped me back home. Despite her guilting me into going, I was glad that I did.

I didn't have many chores to do and did a quick clean up first thing in case Lorri stopped after church (she didn't) so had the entire afternoon to relax, a.k.a. stream and knit. The upcoming week was a short one and Lacey had made Wednesday on campus optional so I was in for the duration. We had some frigid weather coming so I was happy to be home with a fully stock larder ready for Christmas. Less than 4 days to go and before the ever blissful winter break. I'm so ready! Here's a picture of my little tinsel tree in my front window. Happy holidays!