days_unfolding

I stayed up late enough that Bella fell asleep in the kitchen. Tired pup. Oh wait a minute. Her eyes opened.

I’m looking for a pair of leather shoes for travel. Comfortable walking shoes. Bingo. Penny loafers on sale on Amazon. Actually, I found some Clark's shoes, which I like, so I'm going to return the others. One of them is a two-tone brown shoe!

Got up at 6:30 AM. Threw myself together and dropped the car off to be fixed. Ubered back.

Do I want to tour the Allerton gardens this Saturday? I have wanted to do so. They're also having a volunteer orientation, but i think that I should wait to do that. They have orientations quarterly. The next gardens walk is right after I get back from the conference in June, and I don't think that I'll feel up to it then. Oh, but I have flower arranging there on Sunday. Do I want to go there two days in a row? I could have lunch there afterward. It would get me out of bed early, and I bet that the gardens are pretty this time of year. It's early though. I'd have to leave around 9 AM. No, I think that I won't go this time. I'm looking at July. Or I could just walk through the gardens by myself after flower arranging.

Crud. I didn't register in time for pickleball.

I love love love my new Zenni glasses. I’m tempted to buy another pair.

My car is ready, but I’m going to wait until the late afternoon to pick it up. I need a nap! Couldn’t sleep.

It’s raining. The mower guy said that he would be there tomorrow. He also said that he'd give me an estimate on cleaning my gutters then too.

Bella did not want to come in. I finally grabbed a stick and pulled her up on the porch with it, and opened the door and threw the stick in. It worked.

Got the car.

So. Freaking. Tired. Napped and slept until 3 AM.

I bought a Baggalini purse because I need to get the zipper pocket fixed on my Italian purse, and I need a purse meanwhile.

Woke up before my alarm at 6 AM, but my stomach was upset. Took Bella out for 45 minutes, but she wouldn’t poop. I brought her in and she promptly pooped on the kitchen floor. Sigh. She gets distracted by the outside world. Bella was being obnoxious this morning: grabbing my clothes, bugging the cats, etc. Meanwhile, my stomach was still upset. I did get a shower, but then I called the car place and told them that I would bring the car in on Monday and emailed work and told them that I would be out this morning. I’m going to lie down.

I checked out Windy City Express (a local fast food place) online because I thought that it had deep-dish pizza. No pizza, but I can get an Italian beef. Maybe I’ll run over later if my stomach settles. Okay, I found a deep-dish place in the area. Maybe I'll order some tomorrow. Hmm, I'm craving pizza now.

Bella tried to eat Oliver’s food and knocked his bowl over. Honestly, I want to put her in time-out.

I woke up at noon. My stomach is a little better, but I have IBS soreness. I’ll work this afternoon. I had some food.

I got my Roam suitcases! I haven't opened the boxes yet. And a ton of books. I need to open the book envelopes and boxes and squirrel them away because Bella likes to shred books. I have investment shelves on my bookcases upstairs.

Here’s the larger of the two suitcases. They roll like a dream.

My boss okayed my time off in August, so I'll book the Sardinia trip this weekend. How exciting!

I'm feeling like crying for no good reason. Oops, I didn't take my meds this morning.

I bought a cooling blanket for the summer. I guess that I won't get my ceiling fan in the bedroom fixed because Bella is scared of ceiling fans. Sigh.

Bella has been eating the dead flowers off of the hibiscus. This is why I buy dog-safe plants. Although technically irises aren't dog-safe, but a dog would have to eat a lot of them to get really sick. So far, she's leaving them alone.

Yay. I fed the beasties, and Bella pooped outside. Some people going for a walk said “Hello” to her and were petting her through the fence. Bella got excited and started running around the yard. Now I get to eat :)

I’m feeling tired. Maybe I’ll start booking the Sardinia trip tonight because that’s something that I can do quietly.

My dad says that he checks his investments daily at market close. That will be a bit of work, but he says that it doesn’t take long.

I listed my old suitcases on Buy Nothing, and some people are interested.

I’m going to go upstairs and start booking my trip! Done! I booked the flights and hotels. The flights are freaking expensive. (Hey,dadi, I'll wave to you because I'm flying through Munich on the way in.) So is the hotel in the Costa Smeralda, but that's the resort area with beach access. The hotel in Cagliari is quite reasonable, but I got a single room with a twin bed. I contacted the Italian school. I still need to book the train from the Costa Smeralda to Cagliari.

I'm going to feed the hordes and go to bed early. I have a lot of planting to do tomorrow plus clean the kitchen.

Hmm. Hibiscus is safe for pets. I’d love a container or two of them. But I’d have to winter it over indoors. I wonder if I could suspend a grow light from the basement ceiling? I’d like bougainvillea also. Hmm, it's mildly toxic to dogs. (I do have to worry because Bella eats plants.) On Lowe's site, I found a long grow light with a fixture to hang it from and a timer. That would work.

Now I’m thinking of a retractable awning for my patio-to-be so that I can grow plants on the patio. But I want it to be rainproof. Hmm.

I think that I cracked the dog code. Bella was refusing to come in the kitchen. I couldn’t figure it out, but then it occurred to me that it might be that the ceiling fan was on? I turned it off, and then she came in.

Got up at 7 AM with my alarm. Took an ice-cold shower, which sucked. I need to clear some stuff off of the basement stairs, and then I'll call Ameren to fix the hot-water heater. Lily, Oliver, and Bella attended my shower. Lily is a climber; she was at the top of the shelves in the laundry area of the bathroom.

It’s another gray and rainy day. I’m looking forward to my lunchtime nap.

I got a little money from my check. Placed a grocery order, including cat food and cat litter, and a Costco order for dog food.

Another thing to do in retirement: make printables in Canva and sell them on etsy.

I attended a webinar about the non-financial aspects of retirement, and the speaker gave a list of thought-provoking questions. It was very interesting. I took tons of notes. He said that people spend a lot of time thinking about money and where to live, but not the other aspects. I requested What Color Is Your Parachute in Retirement? from the library. I was able to get Purposeful Retirement for free with Kindle Unlimited, so I'll read it now.

Holy cow! I received a ton of plants for my garden. One set was the coral bells for my shade garden, but I think that the rest is tickseed? Maybe bee balm?

Tried to nap but couldn’t sleep. I think that the excitement about my garden kept me awake. I need to expand a garden bed, so I need to charge the tiller.

Got my food. Yay. I no longer have to eat Ramen and canned food. (That reminds me that I should replenish my stash though.) And the cats have food and litter. I need to get more litter when I get more money though. (All the boxes need to be changed out, and I have three jugs of litter.)

The Ameren guy came by and turned the pilot light on the water heater back on and told me how to light it myself in case it goes out again. The furnace is working.

Geesh. The rain is coming down in buckets. I don't think that I'll be able to plant my new plants today.

Hmm. There were a series of attempted vehicle thefts on campus that sound a lot like what happened to my car. They are targeting Kia and Hyundai cars.

Took Bella out, but it was pouring, so she noped out onto the porch.

Someone working on the slides for the presentation at work tomorrow told me of a change that I needed to make. I had to wait until he unlocked the file though, so I left work early with the plan that I would log on tonight. Meant to sleep for two hours but slept four.

The dog and cats were hungry and in my face. Fed us all. (I eat last so that they’re more likely to let me be.)

Found a new social group to try: the Illinois Club.

Oh crud. I forgot to buy napkins.

Okay, tweaked my slides and practiced the presentation. Wow, I'm going to be talking a lot!

I think that I'll post, take Bella out one more time, and go back to sleep.

Overslept until 8 AM. Oh well.

My Italian teacher was nice about skipping next week. (We have an in-person meeting, and I'll be driving to it during the Italian time.)

The travel Meetup people also have a Yosemite trip that I might do sometime. I never went there when I lived in California!

Oliver is playing with his beloved little plastic ball. He carries it around in his mouth!

Got my groceries.

I saved a link to a hydration pack for larger people. That might be good for wandering around Italy. (I haven't forgotten almost passing out in Florence.) And the Sardinia trip will be in August.

The car repair people called. They want me to bring the car by so that the painter can match the color of the car. I said tomorrow morning. No, I'm going to take my shower during lunch and come by in the late afternoon. Crud, on the way back, I discovered that the stereo isn't getting any power. I called the repair shop, and they'll look at it when they put the new lock on. Hell, is this ever going to get over with?

The next "official" protest being held by the group that I joined is on May 1st. Crud, that's a work day.

I'm having a tough time finding someone to let Bella out at lunchtime during my meetings next week. I'm looking into doggie day care as an alternative. Called a place and they're sending over a release form.

I'm thinking of shelling out for a Roam hardside suitcase. They're pricey, but are supposedly well made. My Hartmann case has gotten stained, which is the disadvantage of softside luggage.

Bella, Oliver, and Lily attended my shower. Lily walked around on the shower stall and then jumped in. I thought that she might want to leave, so I opened the door and Oliver walked in. Then Bella walked in. I got Bella to leave but had to remove Lily, protesting. Oliver decided to leave on his own steam. Partway through my shower, both Oliver and Lily were standing on the shower stall batting at each other. Those two are a laugh riot!

Flaming headache.

Apparently my cleaner was texting me to confirm for tomorrow and I missed the messages. I hope that we're still on. We are.

Received the ferns for my garden. They are bare roots plants, which Bella likes to dig up and play with. I'll need to plant them this weekend, rain or not, and dig deeper to hide them.

Hmm. I haven't gotten the itineraries from the Meetup travel people yet. I'm pondering going over to Paris an extra couple of days early to wander around and follow ChatGPT's tours.

I went on the BBC’s app, and they were streaming the debate in Canada, so I left it on while I was cleaning up the kitchen. It was interesting. They brought up some of the same issues being discussed in the US. They are taking Trump's wish to annex Canada seriously. The discussion about healthcare was interesting. They were saying that their system was getting more privatized, and I was wondering why. There also was a discussion about Canada's role in supporting the Ukraine now that the US is no longer doing so. The polite Canadians were talking over each other! Anyway, I learned something and also got stuff done on the house.

I got a bad case of the shakes and did something to my knee. I'm going to go to sleep and get up very early to finish tidying. I'll set a wakeup call to make sure that I'll get up.

Woke up at 7:30 AM. Fed us all. Oliver sez, “About time!”

It’s in the nature of little plastic cat ball toys to get stepped on, but Oliver loves them. I need to order more.

Napped. I was trying to decide whether to work on the yard or the house, but I think that I should work on the house because my cleaner is coming this week. Bella did not want to come in, so there’s a vote for yard work.

Bella keeps whining and I don’t know why. Because Oliver doesn’t want to play with her? I gave her a Munchie Bone.

I’m looking at shirt dresses as sunshine_two recommended. I found a linen one that I like, but I’d need a steamer. I just saw the cutest dress. It’s not linen, but is it cute. Hmm, the link no longer works.

I’m looking at dates for my Sardinia trip. Leaving on August 19th, I think. Language lessons the following week.

Hmm. I’m wondering if I should get a community garden plot. I won't be able to put my raised beds in until after the garage is built.

Wrote up an itinerary for the Sardinia trip. Looked though the clothes that I saved and have a plan.

Napped and slept until 9 PM. I suck. Fed us all.

Received The Club. So yay.

I need to get to bed. I need to pick up the car tomorrow, plus I need soda.

Hmm, if I want to go to La Maddalena (an island off of Sardinia), I'd have to take an expensive one-hour cab ride to the ferry each way. But I'd really like to go there. I need to create a Sardinia document with my findings in one place.

I was outside, and Zara was sitting with her back in the window. I tapped on it, and she kept on meowing at me. So now I’m sitting with her in her room. She heard Oliver and went away and hid. So I’m keeping her door closed at night. (I was keeping it open in case she wanted to wander around.)

Overslept this morning and got up at 7. I went to the car repair place and signed the paperwork. Now I wait. The Honda is still running smoothly though.

Man, I'm tired. I'm wondering if I'll be up for raking tonight. It's a beautiful day for it though. (I dropped out of choir for this semester because I've missed a lot and I'm worn out. I'll pick it up in the fall.)

I was wondering where Oliver and Lily went, but now they're upstairs with me. They seem to have a napping spot of which I'm not aware.

Ow. The toes on my left foot are aching. Arthritis? Now the joints in my hands are hurting too. I had something like this happen several years ago. Aargh.

Ugh. It’s cold out and windy. The forecasters are predicting a freeze tonight, so I need to cover the plants. No raking today. After I eat dinner, I’ll do some dishes, take my nighttime meds, maybe watch an episode of The Big Bang Theory, and get to bed early. I have Italian tomorrow morning.

There was a discussion on Facebook about what clothes are made in the USA. I’m actually glad that I have too many clothes. Speaking of which, I went into the library room (Zara’s room) to visit with Zara, but Oliver and Lily busted in a couple of times, so Zara wouldn’t come out. I started sorting clothes and filled a bag to go to the thrift store. And I found my white jeans that I had been looking for. I’ll try to sit with Zara again before I go to sleep, when I feed her again. Practiced piano. I need to get more money from the trust before I can schedule more lessons, but I should practice anyway. There’s going to be a recital, and I want to do “Danny Boy”. I’m slowly picking up the threads of my life.

Watched an episode of The Big Bang Theory. Now I'm going to post, feed the cats, take Bella out, and go to bed. Oh, and cover my plants while I'm outside. I should let Bella in first because I could just see her grabbing the dropcloth with which to cover the plants and running with it.

Hmm. It occurred to me that I could plan a quieter, gentler trip to Italy. Maybe I could go to Sardinia, stay in Cagliari, poke around, and go to the beach. I’m doing some research. I found a hotel that I like. Maybe I could do Italian language lessons? I think that there is a language school there? Language school I'm trying to find out how I'd get there. It looks like I'd need to fly to Rome and then take another flight to Sardinia. Excellent. The language school is a 10 minute bus ride from the hotel. I found a guidebook to Sardinia too. The weather is still good in Sardinia in September. I found a good flight too. (Apparently the more direct route is to fly to another European city, in this case Munich, and then get a flight from that city to Sardinia. I saw another route that had four flights! No!) I found a store that sells linen clothes that I’d like to check out.

Got up at 6:30 AM. The Kia is still here, so I need to stay up. Maybe I’ll start work early.

I found a place that sells astilbe (the bare-root plants that Bella has been digging up) in pots. Not cheap though.

I rescheduled my massage appointment to later this month. My membership renewal is upcoming, so I didn’t know if the massage would be paid for. Plus, I can just come home after the protest. I need to figure out where I can park for the protest. Okay, I have a plan.

They picked up the Kia. Apparently, I was supposed to leave the keys in the car, but they didn't tell me that.

I talked to the people who have Mimi's ashes, and I made arrangements to take 1/2 a vacation day on Wednesday to go get them in Bloomington (about an hour from here).

Got my food delivered.

Overslept my nap. I am so freaking tired.

Here comes a storm. Urgh, the weather will be lousy for the protest tomorrow.

Hmm. Holland America wants to "help" me book my flights. I wonder if they would book it earlier than the cruise starts.

I took Bella outside, and she wanted to come in right away after she peed. I told her that she wouldn’t like it out! It’s pouring now. And there’s thunder and lightning.

Someone on Facebook posted a protest sign, “You know things are bad when librarians start protesting”. Totally stealing that.

Apparently, the car repair place called for me to come sign an authorization. I didn’t get the message until after they closed though, so I’ll go on Monday morning.

Napped and woke up at 11:30 PM. Oliver had snuck in and was biting my leg. He was hungry. All right then. Bella was playing in the mud outside. :(

I’m too groggy to make my protest sign now, so I’ll get up early to do it.

Ugh. Bella got a big smear of mud on my jeans. And I want to wash them to wear tomorrow.

I was trying to fall asleep when I heard someone outside. Bella heard the person too and made some sounds like a mix between a bark and a yip. I went to the door, turned the porch light on, and looked, but didn’t see anyone. I left the porch light on.

I was having problems sleeping, so I got up again and made some oatmeal.

Got up with my alarm at 7 AM. I stepped into cat vomit on the stairs when I went up to work, sigh.

I took Psychology Today's depression screener and it came back as "Some signs of clinical depression".

The Bermuda cruise isn't quite as cheap as I thought because I forgot the single supplement fee. Still not really expensive though. I need to make a decision about going to Italy instead. (Italy won't be a relaxing trip, but go-go-go. I need to decide if I'm up for it.)

The cats are being subdued today. I wonder what's wrong :)

Son of a bitch! Someone smashed my car window last night. Bella and I heard some people outside late last night, and I bet they had something to do with it. I didn’t have anything valuable in the car at least. I was going to take Bella to dog training class when I discovered it, but I need to call the insurance company. At least, I can get most of the money for the class if I drop right now. And it’s supposed to rain. I have a plastic drop cloth that I could tape onto the window. Did I say son of a bitch? Called in the claim. They said that if I drive the car over to the glass place tomorrow, they can vacuum up the glass and put some sort of shield over the window. The appointment to replace the glass is next Tuesday.

I want to get my garage built sooner rather than later.

Oh, and there was another tornado warning while I was dealing with the car.

Gathered my recycling, but I'm waiting for the rain to stop before taking it out. So I'm posting :) I want to get to bed early and get up early to call the glass place and go over there.

Woke up at 8AM. The pets are being manic. Fed us all. Found a place to board Bella and Oliver for the trip. It’s another animal hospital, so they want to see them first.

Bella is barking at Oliver. Sigh. Now it’s nap time. Overslept my nap until 2PM. Remembered to charge my razor to shave my legs. Bought a “Shock Clock” alarm clock, which is a band that you wear on your wrist, to help me get up for the flight. (My bus is at 7 AM.) Bella is trying to bug Oliver.

Ye gods, I am tired. Is this still an after-effect of the RSV shot? That’s awfully long. Lily was sleeping in my laundry basket. Bella was chasing Oliver, but Lily slept right through the chaos. I guess that she’s used to it.

Showered and shaved my legs. The razor didn’t do a great job, so I’ll have to wait until I get a new razor. Huh. I didn’t see the new razor in my Amazon orders so I ordered one.

Had my massage. Apparently, I was a giant stress ball with tight muscles, so parts of it were quite painful. And I also felt like crying partway through it, but I didn’t. My therapist would be pleased at all the self-care.

I think that I want to order a poke bowl for dinner (ordered). Lily is curled up on my lap. The poke bowl was gooood. I gobbled it right up. I was thinking of my mom because I introduced her to DoorDash when we were cleaning out my aunt's house.

I bought some Ostrich Ferns for the shade garden. They look lush.

Mimi is complaining that I didn't come snuggle with her earlier today, which is true. But all is forgiven now that I'm upstairs with her.

I think that I am going to fix up the Kia Soul and try to wait until after Trump is gone to buy a new car. The car is running well; it just needs some cosmetic fixes.

I’m still feeling tired, so I think that I’ll go to sleep early. I have a singing lesson at 11 AM tomorrow.

Bella brought her bone into bed with her, so I guess that I’m sleeping with a bone :) I didn’t want her chewing it while I slept, so I took it away for the night. I’ll give it back in the morning.

Woke up at 6:30 AM. The puppy is still asleep.

Bella chased the rabbit that lives here out of the yard.

The critters are being manic. I haven’t fed the cats yet. Now we’re all fed. Oliver was chasing Zara, so I kicked him out and closed the door to her room. The puppy thinks that nap time after breakfast is a great tradition.

They’re predicting snow showers for the next hour.

Napped. Bella doesn’t like it when I cough. Can’t help it, sweetie. Spent some quality time with a purring Lily. She is such a sweetheart.

Bella came into the kitchen with one of the boots that I wore outside in her mouth. I hastily rescued it.

Hmm. I’m thinking of putting Hospice Hearts, a rescue for pets whose owners are ill or have passed away, in my will, with the stipulation that whatever pets that I have go there. I also wonder if I could donate the Kia to them when I’m ready to get rid of it. Okay, it looks like they don’t take car donations but the Humane Society does.

It occurred to me that if I got solar and an electric car, I could drive around town for free. Electric cars are so expensive though. Maybe a hybrid. I was looking at cars online while my hair dries, and I like the Toyota RAV4 plug-in hybrid. (Actually, I really liked the Toyota Venza, but that's more car than I need.) However, Subaru is coming out with a Forester hybrid mid-year. I also like the 2025 Mazda CX-70 plug-in hybrid. Also the Mitsubishi Outlander Plug-In Hybrid, although it might be more car than I need. No, Consumer Reports has panned it. I have some test driving to do.

I bought a dog-training app. I still want to do the training class too if I get my money in time.

Bella got into the leftover linguini that I left on the counter. Pasta dog. I guess the moral of the story is to put stuff away. Though I’m not sure what to do with half a package of linguine.

Oliver and Bella were playing! Awesome!

Bella ate Lily’s food again. I need to find a better spot to feed her, away from the canine garbage disposal.

Used the power snow shovel to clear the sidewalks. I’m inside to thaw and rest. Then I’ll shovel (old-school) by the gate and move my recycling and garbage bins by the house (done).

There’s a gap in the fence that Bella might be able to squeeze through. I always go outside with her, but I should get some chicken wire to fix it. Or a post.

Bella was playing with my shoe. I guess that my shoes go in the closet.

I want to go to bed early, but I also want clean pajamas, which I just put in the washer. I guess that I’ll get to bed around 10 PM. I’m making some dinner now.

Bella is not telling me when she needs to poop. She was next to me during dinner, and then I went to put clothes in the dryer, and she pooped in the bathroom.

I mostly cleaned up the gravel that Bella scattered in the living room. It’s not perfect, but the bulk of it is gone. Oliver “helped” by lying in the bag that I was collecting the litter in.

I figured out which company that I want for home insurance. Now I just need the check from the trust.

I need to feed the beasties and go to bed. Oh, and collect my shoes from the bathroom.