What started out as a sore throat has now blossomed into a head & chest cold, which means I'm suffering. I hate colds and suffer mightily when I get them. I haven't been sick in a few years and am not doing well with this. I worry about chest colds because of my asthma and bronchial history, but what the hell can you do?
I stayed in the boat house all week, which has been really nice. The lights that Justin put in are fantastic--I just need to remember to turn them on, I'm so used to having it be dark in there. I've had a great time sitting on the porch into the night, reading. There's been no one else in camp so it's hog heaven for me. About to change, I think--people will come this weekend and into the 4th of July, then it's anybody's guess who'll be in camp when. We have a Yahoo calendar but people don't seem to use it much.
It was hot earlier in the week, which is why I stayed at camp. My house is relatively cool in the heat because of the cool breeze from the forest at the back, but the boat house is soooo much nicer. Dogs don't seem to care where we sleep. One night Tess was sleeping on my legs and I had a dream that I had to kick someone, so kicked Tess into the air and onto the floor. Poor girl! She was fine, though probably confused. Makes me wonder just exactly WHAT goes on while I'm sleeping.
Finished The great Gatsby for book group (which is Sunday). Yes, it's well written and the language is great. But I still have this thing about too many words in sentences. After finishing that I read a Jane Hamilton book and was curious as to why I enjoyed it so much more than Gatsby. More concise language, I guess. Anyway, now I'm reading Fay Weldon's latest, which is pretty strange for her. But good.
I dipped in the water yesterday and it was cold but not miserable. Yes, it took my breath away briefly, but felt good. I visited with the Nadals on the b.house porch Sunday eve--they swam just before they arrived and said it wasn't bad. Hmmmm.
We had our first "Culture Club" dinner on Sunday. I don't like calling it Culture Club, but Joe is wed to that name so Culture Club it is. Linda made tortiere, which was delicious. It was a light lunch, which suited us all. We're taking turns cooking and it's my turn at the end of July. What will I make? It's not like Chicken War: we're not scoring or judging, thank goodness. It's just a supper club.
Book group meets on Sunday at Linda's. Martha's last day with us. She's moving to Montana, a place I've always wanted to see. Well, there are a lot of places I'd like to see. Sometimes I envision myself traveling across the country with just a dog to keep me company. I re-read Travels with Charley a few years ago and it really got me motivated to think about a trip like that. But if I did that, I wouldn't be HERE!
Didn't really do much during the week, just came to work, went home, ate, went to the boat house and read until bedtime. It is good to wean myself from the television like that. Although I can't imagine NOT having a TV, I know I am too dependent on it. I did record a nice Jackson Browne concert recently, which was good to watch and listen to. His music certainly can be depressing, and it brings back lots of memories to me. I've seen him in concert a few times, the last time in Burlington with Kevin & Julie.
Fred went home this week (to his Plattsburgh home) and I talked to him after he got home. He sounded well but still was figuring out what he can and cannot do. I saw him yesterday afternoon when we were both at the dentist's office. Nice to have him out and about--he's walking with a walker right now, hopes to be at Silver Lake next week.
I'm scheduled to have my new stove installed on Tuesday but am skeptical about it. Things never seem to turn out quite right for me. I sent pictures of my current set-up, as requested, but the guy I sent them to never got them (or something), so I sent them for the 3rd time today and hope they reached the right person. They won't do an installation until they know what they're facing.
Not much else going on. Looks like a relatively quiet weekend for me. I hope. I need to lie on my couch and sleep. and breathe.
Friday, June 28, 2013
Monday, June 24, 2013
Sun Rain Sun Rain Sun
Weather was pretty crappy over the weekend, with lots of rain and a little bit of clear weather. We didn't get to see the "supermoon" because it was too cloudy. I kept an eye on it last night, but it was just a glow behind the clouds.
I stayed in the boat house both Sat. and Sunday nights, reminding myself of what a wonderful place it is, and how much I enjoy being there. We don't know who will be coming to camp this year--so far no one has really said they're coming, even around our August meeting weekend. I just go my own way but it would be nice to know if anyone will be in camp at any time.
Friday was a busy day at work, which was great, then I went grocery shopping & home. Stopped at P&J's but the door was locked (turned out Jim was there, just in the bathroom and hadn't meant to lock the door--oh well). Saturday I had a nice time by myself, traveling around a bit. In the morning I went to Jay to a nursery I hadn't been to before. It was really nice, with great plants but not much left. I bought a few annuals, went home & planted them right away (Fred would be proud). The trip through Jay was really pretty and the dogs & I had a good trip. In the afternoon I went to the dump, taking stuff from the boat house (there's still more to go), which felt great. Got rid of a lot of things but still have my brother's chainsaw to dispose of. It doesn't run and has been stored under the table in the b.house for the last 9 years. I suppose I could just put it back under the table for 9 more years.
I saw my cousin and her children Sat. night, which was a nice visit. Her daughter has an 11-week-old miniature schnauzer named Gatsby who is as cute as a puppy can be. Tess was very entertained and they vied for the "most submissive dog" award. I think it was a tie.
I finished reading The great Gatsby (coincidence that Carla named her dog that, no?). I didn't think it was that great and am enjoying a Jane Hamilton book more than I liked Gatsby. Even though the child dies, as all children in Hamilton's books seem to. Anyway, I enjoyed sitting on the boat house porch reading--long after dark, even, thanks to Justin's electrical magic in the b.house. We now have outlets galore, an outside light and a light on the porch. This is great but will take some getting used to--I forgot to turn on the outside light once when I went out after dark. I'll learn, I'm educable and trainable.
I had Sunday dinner with what Joe is calling "The Culture Club," the same group that participated in the Chicken Wars of 2 years ago. It's a nice neighborhood gathering. We're taking turns cooking a Sunday dinner, served at 1. Linda made tortiere, which was very good and not too filling. I think that's the key: make something that's not too filling so we don't all roll out of there in a daze.
Jim & Judy stopped by my house while I was out, leaving me a note, so I invited them for drinks at the boat house last night. They came and we had a really nice visit. They're great, leaving today for home but will be back next weekend for the summer.
The dogs do well at the boat house, don't seem to run off the way they do at home. They go for walks in the woods but I don't think they go far. Treasure has adapted to this summer routine and seems to like being at camp. Tess, of course, likes to go ANYWHERE. I'll go back down there tonight--it's hot and humid, perfect boat house weather. I haven't been swimming yet, though Jim & Judy swam and reported that it wasn't too cold. Our boat house dock is still sort of underwater because the lake is high, so there's been no dock sitting yet. I suppose it's time for me to start getting some exercise by swimming.
I have all 8 cords of firewood at my house now, which is nice but it's in 2 huge mounds and needs to be stacked. Augh. I was going to get to work on that on Saturday but the black flies were still fierce, then it rained. ANY excuse will do. I'm hoping to rearrange the older wood that's in the shed now to make room for new wood. My new stove is due to be installed next week, which is very exciting. YAY!
I'll go to the dentist on Thursday to have a crown repaired. $$$ but what can we do. I just noticed that it's broken last week, have no idea how long it's been like that. No pain, no problem, just a broken crown. Let's hope it's a simple replacement.
Not much going on today--just looking forward to getting back to the boat house. I get up really early when I stay there and enjoy the time before leaving for work. Dogs are soooo cheerful!
I stayed in the boat house both Sat. and Sunday nights, reminding myself of what a wonderful place it is, and how much I enjoy being there. We don't know who will be coming to camp this year--so far no one has really said they're coming, even around our August meeting weekend. I just go my own way but it would be nice to know if anyone will be in camp at any time.
Friday was a busy day at work, which was great, then I went grocery shopping & home. Stopped at P&J's but the door was locked (turned out Jim was there, just in the bathroom and hadn't meant to lock the door--oh well). Saturday I had a nice time by myself, traveling around a bit. In the morning I went to Jay to a nursery I hadn't been to before. It was really nice, with great plants but not much left. I bought a few annuals, went home & planted them right away (Fred would be proud). The trip through Jay was really pretty and the dogs & I had a good trip. In the afternoon I went to the dump, taking stuff from the boat house (there's still more to go), which felt great. Got rid of a lot of things but still have my brother's chainsaw to dispose of. It doesn't run and has been stored under the table in the b.house for the last 9 years. I suppose I could just put it back under the table for 9 more years.
I saw my cousin and her children Sat. night, which was a nice visit. Her daughter has an 11-week-old miniature schnauzer named Gatsby who is as cute as a puppy can be. Tess was very entertained and they vied for the "most submissive dog" award. I think it was a tie.
I finished reading The great Gatsby (coincidence that Carla named her dog that, no?). I didn't think it was that great and am enjoying a Jane Hamilton book more than I liked Gatsby. Even though the child dies, as all children in Hamilton's books seem to. Anyway, I enjoyed sitting on the boat house porch reading--long after dark, even, thanks to Justin's electrical magic in the b.house. We now have outlets galore, an outside light and a light on the porch. This is great but will take some getting used to--I forgot to turn on the outside light once when I went out after dark. I'll learn, I'm educable and trainable.
I had Sunday dinner with what Joe is calling "The Culture Club," the same group that participated in the Chicken Wars of 2 years ago. It's a nice neighborhood gathering. We're taking turns cooking a Sunday dinner, served at 1. Linda made tortiere, which was very good and not too filling. I think that's the key: make something that's not too filling so we don't all roll out of there in a daze.
Jim & Judy stopped by my house while I was out, leaving me a note, so I invited them for drinks at the boat house last night. They came and we had a really nice visit. They're great, leaving today for home but will be back next weekend for the summer.
The dogs do well at the boat house, don't seem to run off the way they do at home. They go for walks in the woods but I don't think they go far. Treasure has adapted to this summer routine and seems to like being at camp. Tess, of course, likes to go ANYWHERE. I'll go back down there tonight--it's hot and humid, perfect boat house weather. I haven't been swimming yet, though Jim & Judy swam and reported that it wasn't too cold. Our boat house dock is still sort of underwater because the lake is high, so there's been no dock sitting yet. I suppose it's time for me to start getting some exercise by swimming.
I have all 8 cords of firewood at my house now, which is nice but it's in 2 huge mounds and needs to be stacked. Augh. I was going to get to work on that on Saturday but the black flies were still fierce, then it rained. ANY excuse will do. I'm hoping to rearrange the older wood that's in the shed now to make room for new wood. My new stove is due to be installed next week, which is very exciting. YAY!
I'll go to the dentist on Thursday to have a crown repaired. $$$ but what can we do. I just noticed that it's broken last week, have no idea how long it's been like that. No pain, no problem, just a broken crown. Let's hope it's a simple replacement.
Not much going on today--just looking forward to getting back to the boat house. I get up really early when I stay there and enjoy the time before leaving for work. Dogs are soooo cheerful!
Friday, June 14, 2013
Sunny day at last
Ahhhh, sunshine. It's been a dreary several days, cold and rainy. But today and tomorrow we'll see sunshine. Feels great. The black flies are still bad but they don't seem to be quite as thick--I spent some time outside last night without being swarmed & bitten too much. I'm hoping the rain has taken care of the pine pollen situation--every year we are covered in greasy yellow powder that's blown about from the pine trees. So far it hasn't been bad, though it's been around. We may be through the worst of it. yeah, right. well, maybe.
I had a good week, not too much going on. I called the stove people today because I hadn't heard from them since sending them pictures and details of my current set-up. I was afraid they'd backed out of the deal once they saw what a mess it is. No, they still have my order in (YAY!!) and we set up a date for installation (1st week of July). I'm looking forward to it with both excitement and dread--it's like having someone go through your underwear drawer or bank records. It feels very personal, and I suppose what I really fear is having the mess that is my house & stove set up exposed to someone who would know what a mess it truly is. We sort of built the house around the wood stove--the space where it sits is specific to the dimensions and placement of that stove. Yikes. The new stove is roughly the same size, but oriented differently, and has a 6" stovepipe instead of the 8" pipe I currently have. Of course. Well, I warned the stove man on the phone that it would be a mess and he said he'd note that on the invoice & install order.
So that's one drama addressed. I also called the contractor who's doing the energy assessment of my house. He thinks he can come next week. Another person looking at my underwear. This visit will be really icky--all the secrets of my house exposed. Well it's a good thing to have done, so I just have to buck up and get through it.
I visited with friends a bit this week, and am having dinner tonight with Linda & Erd. and another friend. We're having organic chicken, cooked by Linda. She's a great cook so it will be delicious I'm sure. Tomorrow I'm having dinner with the same friend and some other people. Which means I won't get to have dinner with Jenica & Justin, who are due to arrive in Hawkeye tomorrow. Oh well, I'll get to visit with them anyway. They're coming ostensibly to start wiring the boat house, which is pretty exciting for those of us who've been reading by candlelight all these years.
Looks as if I'll need to make another dump run tomorrow--I went once this week but that was other people's garbage and some trash I'd unearthed in cleaning the living room last weekend. I dusted, swept, vacuumed, and put things away. What a difference a little bit of cleaning makes!
I had dinner with the Holts and Bill on Sunday, which was nice. Rush has decided to run for the Senate seat that just opened up in NJ. Very exciting. He said we probably won't see him until October, after the special election, which follows August's primary. He's got some tough competition, but when Rush wants something he's pretty good at arranging it. I may go there to campaign for him, as I did before.
Dogs are fine. Treasure's paw pad is healing all right, though it will look very odd when the scar tissue is fully formed. People will be too busy focusing on her (too) long ears to notice, I'm sure. Both dogs have been pretty good at sticking around this week, maybe because of the rain. Not, for sure, because they know that's what they should do. Tomorrow Tess will be tethered on the deck, as I'm sure the bog will be full of people.
So let's see...stove, house, dogs, friends--guess that's about it.
I had a good week, not too much going on. I called the stove people today because I hadn't heard from them since sending them pictures and details of my current set-up. I was afraid they'd backed out of the deal once they saw what a mess it is. No, they still have my order in (YAY!!) and we set up a date for installation (1st week of July). I'm looking forward to it with both excitement and dread--it's like having someone go through your underwear drawer or bank records. It feels very personal, and I suppose what I really fear is having the mess that is my house & stove set up exposed to someone who would know what a mess it truly is. We sort of built the house around the wood stove--the space where it sits is specific to the dimensions and placement of that stove. Yikes. The new stove is roughly the same size, but oriented differently, and has a 6" stovepipe instead of the 8" pipe I currently have. Of course. Well, I warned the stove man on the phone that it would be a mess and he said he'd note that on the invoice & install order.
So that's one drama addressed. I also called the contractor who's doing the energy assessment of my house. He thinks he can come next week. Another person looking at my underwear. This visit will be really icky--all the secrets of my house exposed. Well it's a good thing to have done, so I just have to buck up and get through it.
I visited with friends a bit this week, and am having dinner tonight with Linda & Erd. and another friend. We're having organic chicken, cooked by Linda. She's a great cook so it will be delicious I'm sure. Tomorrow I'm having dinner with the same friend and some other people. Which means I won't get to have dinner with Jenica & Justin, who are due to arrive in Hawkeye tomorrow. Oh well, I'll get to visit with them anyway. They're coming ostensibly to start wiring the boat house, which is pretty exciting for those of us who've been reading by candlelight all these years.
Looks as if I'll need to make another dump run tomorrow--I went once this week but that was other people's garbage and some trash I'd unearthed in cleaning the living room last weekend. I dusted, swept, vacuumed, and put things away. What a difference a little bit of cleaning makes!
I had dinner with the Holts and Bill on Sunday, which was nice. Rush has decided to run for the Senate seat that just opened up in NJ. Very exciting. He said we probably won't see him until October, after the special election, which follows August's primary. He's got some tough competition, but when Rush wants something he's pretty good at arranging it. I may go there to campaign for him, as I did before.
Dogs are fine. Treasure's paw pad is healing all right, though it will look very odd when the scar tissue is fully formed. People will be too busy focusing on her (too) long ears to notice, I'm sure. Both dogs have been pretty good at sticking around this week, maybe because of the rain. Not, for sure, because they know that's what they should do. Tomorrow Tess will be tethered on the deck, as I'm sure the bog will be full of people.
So let's see...stove, house, dogs, friends--guess that's about it.
Friday, June 07, 2013
Commitments
Yesterday I put down a deposit on a new, wonderful wood stove. It's on sale, $870 off, but still (by my standards) very expensive. And I have to pay hundreds to have it delivered and installed. Yikes. I've become very nervous about making financial commitments. I've got a few money things going on right now, which worries me a bit. I've ordered 8 cords of firewood ($600), I'm having a home energy assessment done (well, that's free) with a goal of taking out a loan to make improvements to my non-existent insulation, and now the stove. Wouldn't it be great if we didn't have to spend money? I just got paid today and have barely pennies left after paying bills.
One of my favorite television characters was "Pat," from the old days of Saturday Night Live. Pat was asexual, you couldn't tell the gender by appearance. Pat's friends were always looking for clues, trying to trick Pat into revealing his/her gender. One of my favorites was when Pat said "Oh I feel awful. It's that time of month." So their ears perked up--"What time of month?" "Billllllllllls" That's how I feel. Billllllls.
It's rainy and looks to be that way for a while. We're getting part of the tropical storm that's in the South. Well, Elizabeth, don't complain--it's getting your plants watered and filling your well (my sump pump has been running, always a cheerful sound for me). I don't mind the rain but it would be nice to see some sun. The rain keeps the black flies at bay, but makes it hard to get anything done outside.
What's up for my weekend? Well, it's time for my summer social life to kick in. Tonight I go grocery shopping, tomorrow J&M are hosting a Belmont Stakes party, Sunday is dinner with Bill and the Holts, next week is the Blue Heron boys. I look forward to all of this.
I have to take pictures of my current stove set-up & send them to the stove dealer so they will know what sort of installation they're looking at. I was going to do it last night but the stove is currently being used as a table to store things, and there's detritus surrounding it on the floor. Is it DE-tri-tus or de-TRI-tus? My father always said the latter, but most people use the former. My father would be nearly 101 if he were still alive. I think of him often--of all the people in my siblings' and my lives who was an incredibly powerful influence, he's at the top.
I've been visiting Fred in rehab quite a bit. He has way too many visitors but I like to think he's happy to have attention from me. So far he hasn't kicked me out. I was there last night with some other lake people and didn't stay long. He's doing very well, is making great progress I think. He hopes to be at Pinewood within a couple of weeks. Everyone is eager to help him when he gets there--many, many offers are coming in. He won't know what he needs until he gets there, or whether he'll be driving much, or what. His main concern seems to be being able to get to the dock. Oh we do like Silver Lake.
There are some loons on the lake, though I haven't heard of any sightings. People are hearing them at both ends of the lake. I haven't heard them lately but the rain is pretty noisy. One of my friends found a dead loon on shore near Linda's camp. Linda, always doing the right thing, with Joe's help loaded the stinking, headless carcass into her car and drove it to the Wildlife Rehab Center so they could figure out why it died. Why was it headless? And missing the banded leg? Ah, sweet mystery of life.
One of my favorite television characters was "Pat," from the old days of Saturday Night Live. Pat was asexual, you couldn't tell the gender by appearance. Pat's friends were always looking for clues, trying to trick Pat into revealing his/her gender. One of my favorites was when Pat said "Oh I feel awful. It's that time of month." So their ears perked up--"What time of month?" "Billllllllllls" That's how I feel. Billllllls.
It's rainy and looks to be that way for a while. We're getting part of the tropical storm that's in the South. Well, Elizabeth, don't complain--it's getting your plants watered and filling your well (my sump pump has been running, always a cheerful sound for me). I don't mind the rain but it would be nice to see some sun. The rain keeps the black flies at bay, but makes it hard to get anything done outside.
What's up for my weekend? Well, it's time for my summer social life to kick in. Tonight I go grocery shopping, tomorrow J&M are hosting a Belmont Stakes party, Sunday is dinner with Bill and the Holts, next week is the Blue Heron boys. I look forward to all of this.
I have to take pictures of my current stove set-up & send them to the stove dealer so they will know what sort of installation they're looking at. I was going to do it last night but the stove is currently being used as a table to store things, and there's detritus surrounding it on the floor. Is it DE-tri-tus or de-TRI-tus? My father always said the latter, but most people use the former. My father would be nearly 101 if he were still alive. I think of him often--of all the people in my siblings' and my lives who was an incredibly powerful influence, he's at the top.
I've been visiting Fred in rehab quite a bit. He has way too many visitors but I like to think he's happy to have attention from me. So far he hasn't kicked me out. I was there last night with some other lake people and didn't stay long. He's doing very well, is making great progress I think. He hopes to be at Pinewood within a couple of weeks. Everyone is eager to help him when he gets there--many, many offers are coming in. He won't know what he needs until he gets there, or whether he'll be driving much, or what. His main concern seems to be being able to get to the dock. Oh we do like Silver Lake.
There are some loons on the lake, though I haven't heard of any sightings. People are hearing them at both ends of the lake. I haven't heard them lately but the rain is pretty noisy. One of my friends found a dead loon on shore near Linda's camp. Linda, always doing the right thing, with Joe's help loaded the stinking, headless carcass into her car and drove it to the Wildlife Rehab Center so they could figure out why it died. Why was it headless? And missing the banded leg? Ah, sweet mystery of life.
Tuesday, June 04, 2013
001
This was the view from our hotel room in Alexandria Bay a couple of weeks ago. I spent one night there with a friend, staying for a regional meeting the next day. There was a huge storm that night and the next morning some of the chairs were in the swimming pool. My friend got stuck in the elevator when the power went out. Yikes. It was only out for a few seconds but she said it was dark, very dark.
007
Not a good picture of a red eft. Or newt. Or whatever you want to call it. This camera doesn't take good close-up shots.
Sheep laurel
The sheep laurel was in bloom last week. Now the Labrador tea is blooming. I like seeing the sheep laurel. The blossoms are like miniature mountain laurel blossoms, only pink. So I guess they're not really so much like mountain laurel blossoms after all. But they're still pretty.
They look like aliens
This is fern fiddleheads in the bog--last week. They're bigger now, but here I think they look like a colony of alien creatures.
High Peaks from Keene Valley
This is the view from the Keene Valley landfill (convenience station). I know someone whose church has sunrise services here. It really is a beautiful spot.
Monday, June 03, 2013
What happened to me?
It's been a busy time for the past couple of weeks, too busy for me to sit down to write. And I've been at home a lot, where I have dial access and can't easily post to the blog. So I'm back.
I had 5 days off last week, which was fantastic. I cleaned 4 rooms in my house, generating 13 bags of trash. That's a record for me. I got the mud room in great shape (you can walk into and through it now), cleared the pantry of old food products (I don't have much left to eat--apparently all I had was old food), swept and cleaned the bedroom (sweeping...now there's something I don't do in that room very often: the dog hair was phenomenal), cleared out the library (a lot of the trash came from there, and I even weeded my cookbook collection), and I managed to find homes for most of the stuff I uncovered. Including my graduate school transcript. Did I throw it out? No, instead I put together a folder containing my "Rhode Island years." It felt funny, putting 9 years of my life in a thin folder, but I threw out plenty of stuff from that time in my life. Which was a good time.
I've been in touch with Fred regularly--he's in rehab right now, and doing well. I'll drop by this afternoon for a brief visit. He likes brief visits and short phone calls. He's having some trouble with the leg they operated on but is in good spirits. Too many visitors is his chief complaint.
I went to the dermatologist in Burlington, had a full body check for my own peace of mind. Some keratosis which was removed and a "suspicious" spot cut out for biopsy. I'm not worried, she didn't seem terribly concerned about it. It was a nice trip to Vermont on a pretty day. I stopped at Barnes & Noble and bought 2 nice puzzles for Annie and some magazines for Fred. He says all he can concentrate on right now is magazine articles so I tried to find some that would interest him. There are a LOT of magazines but few that seemed appropriate for Fred (that he didn't already have). I settled on Mother Jones, Northern Woodlands and The Atlantic. A curious set, I thought, but something no one else would think of getting him.
I had a productive weekend. I planted some cosmos seedlings and some nasturtium seedlings. I still have plenty of both left and need to come up with a place to put them. I've moved the cosmos to a new spot where it's easier to dig and plant so will probably expand that bed a bit and dump the dozens more plants that I have. I put the nasties in the same place as always, planted about 20 plants and still have that many left. I'd plant them at Fred's but he was emphatic about having NO ONE mess with his gardens.
We had book group yesterday at Linda's. Very nice time but one of us is moving to Montana to become the CEO of the state's Planned Parenthood. We'll miss her very much but it's an exciting move and we're very proud of her accomplishments. Linda fed us delicious Michigans and we were able to sit on the porch and listen to the lapping of waves. That was really pleasant.
It's been ungodly hot in Hawkeye but has now cooled off. I spent some time on the boat house porch--I opened the boat house last weekend and it's ready for occupancy now but needs some cleaning in the back room. Residual detritus from the autumnal attack of some varmint. I was able to spend some time reading on the deck at home which is one of my favorite things. How appropriate that I combined this with a visit to the dermatologist! "Do you use sunscreen?" Well, no, oh wait, I do when I go to the beach. That doesn't really count. I read 2 books and finished The art of fielding, which I really enjoyed. I read Tracy Chevalier's latest book and Gail Godwin's latest as well. Gail Godwin is one of those women writers whose books carried important messages and stories about women, written decades ago. Like Marge Piercy, Nancy Thayer, and others. I used to read voraciously and focused on women's fiction (which I guess I still do), which I think resulted in a feeling of empowerment and strength on my part.
I've had dinner with Linda & Erdvilas a few times--L is trying hard to cook Weight Watchers-friendly meals, though we've both gained a little weight in the past 2 weeks. I've only gained a pound but that's discouraging. I never seem to make the connection of late night snacking and weight gain while I'm eating during the evening...
I hope to stop at J & M's tonight because I haven't seen them in a long time. I didn't visit much with anyone except Linda while I was being so productive last week. I had dinner with a retired librarian friend on Friday night in Lake Placid. She isn't adjusting terribly well to retirement and needs more structure in her life. I had mixed feelings about retirement, looking forward to returning to work but enjoying immensely my time at home. It's such a final action, retirement, that I need to be sure for sure that it's what I want to do. Which is what I think most days.
I had 5 days off last week, which was fantastic. I cleaned 4 rooms in my house, generating 13 bags of trash. That's a record for me. I got the mud room in great shape (you can walk into and through it now), cleared the pantry of old food products (I don't have much left to eat--apparently all I had was old food), swept and cleaned the bedroom (sweeping...now there's something I don't do in that room very often: the dog hair was phenomenal), cleared out the library (a lot of the trash came from there, and I even weeded my cookbook collection), and I managed to find homes for most of the stuff I uncovered. Including my graduate school transcript. Did I throw it out? No, instead I put together a folder containing my "Rhode Island years." It felt funny, putting 9 years of my life in a thin folder, but I threw out plenty of stuff from that time in my life. Which was a good time.
I've been in touch with Fred regularly--he's in rehab right now, and doing well. I'll drop by this afternoon for a brief visit. He likes brief visits and short phone calls. He's having some trouble with the leg they operated on but is in good spirits. Too many visitors is his chief complaint.
I went to the dermatologist in Burlington, had a full body check for my own peace of mind. Some keratosis which was removed and a "suspicious" spot cut out for biopsy. I'm not worried, she didn't seem terribly concerned about it. It was a nice trip to Vermont on a pretty day. I stopped at Barnes & Noble and bought 2 nice puzzles for Annie and some magazines for Fred. He says all he can concentrate on right now is magazine articles so I tried to find some that would interest him. There are a LOT of magazines but few that seemed appropriate for Fred (that he didn't already have). I settled on Mother Jones, Northern Woodlands and The Atlantic. A curious set, I thought, but something no one else would think of getting him.
I had a productive weekend. I planted some cosmos seedlings and some nasturtium seedlings. I still have plenty of both left and need to come up with a place to put them. I've moved the cosmos to a new spot where it's easier to dig and plant so will probably expand that bed a bit and dump the dozens more plants that I have. I put the nasties in the same place as always, planted about 20 plants and still have that many left. I'd plant them at Fred's but he was emphatic about having NO ONE mess with his gardens.
We had book group yesterday at Linda's. Very nice time but one of us is moving to Montana to become the CEO of the state's Planned Parenthood. We'll miss her very much but it's an exciting move and we're very proud of her accomplishments. Linda fed us delicious Michigans and we were able to sit on the porch and listen to the lapping of waves. That was really pleasant.
It's been ungodly hot in Hawkeye but has now cooled off. I spent some time on the boat house porch--I opened the boat house last weekend and it's ready for occupancy now but needs some cleaning in the back room. Residual detritus from the autumnal attack of some varmint. I was able to spend some time reading on the deck at home which is one of my favorite things. How appropriate that I combined this with a visit to the dermatologist! "Do you use sunscreen?" Well, no, oh wait, I do when I go to the beach. That doesn't really count. I read 2 books and finished The art of fielding, which I really enjoyed. I read Tracy Chevalier's latest book and Gail Godwin's latest as well. Gail Godwin is one of those women writers whose books carried important messages and stories about women, written decades ago. Like Marge Piercy, Nancy Thayer, and others. I used to read voraciously and focused on women's fiction (which I guess I still do), which I think resulted in a feeling of empowerment and strength on my part.
I've had dinner with Linda & Erdvilas a few times--L is trying hard to cook Weight Watchers-friendly meals, though we've both gained a little weight in the past 2 weeks. I've only gained a pound but that's discouraging. I never seem to make the connection of late night snacking and weight gain while I'm eating during the evening...
I hope to stop at J & M's tonight because I haven't seen them in a long time. I didn't visit much with anyone except Linda while I was being so productive last week. I had dinner with a retired librarian friend on Friday night in Lake Placid. She isn't adjusting terribly well to retirement and needs more structure in her life. I had mixed feelings about retirement, looking forward to returning to work but enjoying immensely my time at home. It's such a final action, retirement, that I need to be sure for sure that it's what I want to do. Which is what I think most days.
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