days_unfolding

Crap. I forgot to check my dad’s “stoplight system” for whether to invest or not. (It’s based on some Wall Street Journal stats.) I don’t want to go back upstairs and log on though. I need to put a note on my computer to do that. Hmm, it just occurred to me to note the stoplight readings on my email calendar. That would be a good way to view trends. I did remember to do it tonight. (It's a yellow light - hold.)

Woke up at 6:30 AM. Discovered that my phone didn’t charge and my Apple Watch needed charging too. Got the good charger. Took Bella out, but it was raining pretty hard, and she noped out. I’m going to go back to sleep for a while. Hmm, the Dynamic Duo (Oliver and Lily) are in here now. Good, they just left. Had a nice nap.

At work now. The Dynamic Duo are being very dynamic and are running around.

ChatGPT can be useful. I want a paragraph in my will stating that my friends can take one personal item each to remember me by, and it gave me a nice paragraph in legalese.

Speaking of my will and my trust, the big question is whether I include the house in the trust or not. I want the proceeds of the sale of the house to go into the trust, which makes me think that it should be included in the trust, but I'll probably sell the house before I pass away to go into a retirement community, which makes me think that it should not be in the trust. Dad said in a roundabout way to put the house in the trust because it keeps someone from suing me and getting the house. He said that if I’m the trustee, I can sell it whenever.

I somehow wound up with not one but two doctor's appointments on Friday afternoon (psychiatrist and eye doctor). My boss said that I could take the afternoon as sick time. Have I mentioned lately that I work with great people?

I forgot to feed the critters this morning. I suck.

I put the YMCA's "Gentle Yoga" class on my calendar, starting next week. That'll give me time to find my yoga clothes, mat, etc. Their Pilates classes are at an inconvenient time. And their Aqua Fit evening classes are at the same time as yoga. (I don't do exercise in the morning. If I get up on time and shower, I'm ahead of the game. Though hmm, the Deep Water Total Body Workout on Wednesday mornings sounds like a good class. Maybe I should try it and see if I can get up. They have the class on Fridays and Mondays too.)

I've been weeding a little while I'm out with Bella. Some weeds are going to need the weeding tool, but I've been able to knock off some easy weeds to pull up. I've got the bed for the tickseed cleared, but need to pull up the landscaping cloth underneath before I plant them. I want to order some begonias for the back of the house, which gets part sun and part shade. Hard to find plants for that exposure that are also dog-safe. Pulled up the landscaping cloth and planted tickseeds. I’m wondering if I should leave the sunflowers in their pots. They would require a big hole to plant them. Now I’m thinking about putting them on the patio. Maybe I could plant Black-Eyed Susans where I was going to plant them. Prairie Gardens has them. I also want to go to another big garden shop in the area this weekend. The ASPCA Web site says that begonias are toxic for dogs. The search continues….

Bella played tug of war with the landscaping cloth that I pulled up. I finally gave up on throwing it out. I’ll have to go outside without her to get it. (I got it when I took out the recycling.)

I read an article on places to retire in if you want to travel, but I think that I'm pretty well located. I can hop on a bus (or train) to Chicago and fly out of O'Hare Airport, which has nonstop flights to a lot of places. But Urbana is cheaper to live in than Chicago.

I've decided to replace the living room furniture (loveseat and chair) with new washable pieces. And I'll put my mom’s white chair, which is in good shape, in the library room and buy a cheap footstool for it. Though actually, I have a rattan footstool, I think. And I found a small trunk table on Wayfair to use as an end table. I can put a throw in it for cozy reading. I’ve thought again about getting a grandfather clock for the library room. The trick is finding a nice used one for not a lot of money and getting it over here.

The Swedish Death Cleaning book was talking about “curating” your stuff. That’s an interesting way to look at it.

I’m resting for a moment before taking out the recycling (done). I can’t rest long because I have Italian homework to do and I need to order some fencing from Lowe’s (done) and groceries.

I napped again for an hour and a half. Then I took Bella out and fed the beasts. Now I'm at work. Oliver and Lily have been chasing each other and unplugged the docking station for my work computer. Sigh. They love my mom's wingback chair, so I'm looking for a new one for the library. I found a new one, but I would like to get a used one but have found nothing so far. I found a new one that I like with a footstool, but it's $500. Yikes.

Getting both Oliver and Lily was a great idea though. They keep each other entertained.

It might rain both Saturday AND Sunday. Terrific (NOT!)

I never mentioned that the door to the basement and back door is not shutting, I guess because the wood has swelled. It occurred to me to get a hook and eye for each side to close it to keep the cats out. I ordered them from Lowe's and also ordered a cordless drill because the one that I have doesn't have all the pieces. I received the hook and eye packages, but the drill will get here on Saturday. Now the door is working. I only live here.

My glasses fell off of the table, and I stepped on them. Sigh. I need to order another pair of glasses for around the house that are tight for bending over. My other glasses are more fragile and slip. I tried Glasses USA, thinking that they would be cheaper than Zenni, but not really.

Oliver and Lily have finally settled down.

I attended a Webinar about the relationship between physical activity and the immune system. It's inspiring me to get more exercise. I registered for a yoga class this Saturday and will take Bella for a walk.

Bella, Oliver, and Lily were attending my shower. Lily was trying to take a nap with all the chaos swirling around her. She's tough.

I'm feeling like crying for no good reason. I'm feeling overwhelmed. I think that I'm having a delayed reaction over how the trip worked out. Plus I have a dental appointment this afternoon, and I almost forgot about it.

I'm using my new Holland America glass for soda. Now I can wash the other one!

Note to self: check supply of 9-volt batteries

The dental appointment went well. I got two fillings and a CT scan of my mouth. They were very efficient. I'm hungry but I'm waiting for the numbness to wear off. I’m taking advantage of the wait by making pizza.

I have been bringing out recycling when I take Bella out, so all I have to do is roll the bin and flatten cardboard boxes and take the boxes out (done).

The pizza is knocking me out, so I'm going to go to bed and get up early to walk Bella.

The Room Service meal got there quickly and was very good. It’s an option if I get tired of the cafeteria. This is a two-week trip!

My pet sitter is back to asking about the garbage cans. This is good. She did say that Mimi wasn’t eating, but I think that she’s stressed from the vet visit.

Another reason not to do the shore excursion today is that we start the transit of the Panama Canal at 6:30 AM tomorrow, and I want to be up. It’s the main reason that I booked this trip!

I do like the looks of Cartagena though. I looked it up and the Internet says that it’s dangerous, so not a retirement spot. Plus I’m pretty dug in in Urbana.

I’m planning my day, such as it is. I want to wash some shorts and a t-shirt in the sink. I want to gather the laundry that I want them to wash (jeans and pants). I probably will stop by the Future Cruises desk. I want to zero out my cruise tab. (They make it too easy to charge stuff to your room.) And I want to try the pool.

Laundry taken care of. Now I want to take a nap, but they’re having a crew safety drill with a lot of announcements. I abandoned my nap until things settle down. The laundry fairies whisked away my laundry. I’m a little nervous that I won’t see it again, but the workers here seem to have their act together.

Paid my tab. Future Cruises wasn’t open yet. Le sigh. Now I’m killing some time before lunch.

Lunch was good. The Sweet Shop guy asked what my name was :)

I need to figure out what exercises to do because I don’t want to become a hunched-over Little Old Lady. Pilates? Yoga? Posture exercises?

I was wondering how many days we’ve been on the cruise. Their app says Day 5. They have a mat in the elevators telling which day of the week that it is (Tuesday). Easy to lose track!

Nap time, finally. Wow, I zonked out.

It just occurred to me that I haven’t called to check on Bella (dog) and Oliver (cat). (They’re being boarded at a vet.) I’ll do so Thursday or Friday. I’m sure that they’re fine. Oliver is probably running the place!

I talked with the Future Cruises person. The price that she quoted was higher, but she said that she could send the booking to Vacations to Go for their discount. So win win. I get both discounts from Holland America and Vacations to Go.

Oh Christ. Mimi has deteriorated. The pet sitter thinks that she needs to be put down. The vet says that it looks like cancer but we could have her transferred to the U of I, which is what I asked for. If the scan shows cancer, I will have no issues with euthanasia, but she deteriorated so fast that I’d like to know what’s going on. The pet sitter totally disagrees with me.

I feel like crying.

She’s at the U of I now. I gave them my debit card number. I might even have a drink.

Needless to say, I don’t feel like going swimming tonight. I do need to eat something though, although I’m not very hungry. Pizza. I want pizza.

The U of I vet called. I agreed to have her hospitalized until they can do a scan. They said that it might be a bad ear infection or it might be cancer. They said that she would need nursing care, so I need to call Good Friends (where Bella and Oliver are being boarded). It’s a vet hospital. Only time will tell what’s right, but I’d hate to euthanize her over a bad ear infection.

No pizza, so I’m having pasta as the next best thing. And pineapple sorbet for dessert, which was awesome.

The guy at the bar where I get soda remembered my name :) He asked where I was from. I just tell people “Chicago” because most people have heard of Chicago. He asked if I was traveling by myself.

I need to get to bed early because I want to get up at 4 for the Panama Canal transit.

I came back to my room to find my laundry on my bed. The service here has been top-notch.

Got the flannel sheets and flannel duvet cover on the bed. They’re so soft! Zara came in partway through but decided that she didn’t like what was going on. Later, I came in to go to bed, and she was happily curled up on top of the comforter with the flannel cover. Now she's glued to it except when she wants food :)

I had problems falling asleep. I got up once because I realized that I scheduled my piano lesson at the same time as Dial-A-Carol. I ate oatmeal and finally fell asleep. And overslept, sigh. I have to find the box with the "Sonic Boom" alarm.

Yeah, I think that staying home over Winter Break is a good idea. Hard to believe that I work Monday, and then I'll be off!

Very quiet at work. My boss told me to "feel better" when I went out sick yesterday, which was nice.

I'm about done with Walmart delivery. They dumped my groceries by the gate, and I had to go across my lawn with slippers on. How hard is it to put them on my porch?

I just emailed the real estate guy about the closing date on Mom's house. He said "sometime this week".

Ugh. My back and shoulder hurt. I shouldn’t be this sore shortly after a massage. Showered, so at least I'm clean.

Went down to get the mail and found a Jenny Craig order. I need to cancel them, but at least I'll have a stash. I'm now thinking of doing a bunch of cooking and freezing stuff next week, when I'll have time. I'm getting a bunch of emails from Costco, but no card yet. I plan to bring the cars up to Costco for gas because, why not? And maybe I could get new windshield wipers for the Honda there. And investigate moving my prescriptions, although it's convenient having them down the street. Maybe not.

I think that getting a used aquarium is the right idea. I priced new ones and geesh. Expensive. And I'm getting only a 20-gallon tank! Though I also want a 55-gallon tank for the library room. Actually, I found a used 50-gallon tank that I like, but I'd need movers to move it. And I need someone to check that the floor is stressed for it.

I've decided that I don't like the prescription face cream that I've been using. (It was making my skin flake.) I'm trying something new from Dermstore, and we'll see how I like it. But the shipment is delayed.

I forgot to say that I'm proud of myself. I had been having problems with the sound on the laptop that I had on the digital piano. I bought two computer speakers to try to fix it, but they didn't help. Eventually, I got rid of the laptop and swapped in my mom's laptop. So I still had the speakers, but didn't need them, so I gave them away on Buy Nothing! It's a drop in the bucket, but still, I'm pleased with myself.

Hmm. I had been thinking of getting a used grandfather clock for the library room, but now I'm thinking that I should move the Buddha in there and put a wall clock (with chimes) above it. Also cheaper. Though I wanted a "Namaste" hanging above the Buddha. And maybe, above the aquarium-to-be, I want one of those maps where you can rub off the paper on the country if you have visited it.

I got my Beaches calendar for by my computer. December is Maui. Excellent. I just need a nail with which to hang it. I need to make a list of things to get done over break.

I was eyeing the treadmill. I think that the first errand on my list is to get the small Smart TV for in front of my treadmill. I'll watch The Golden Girls and The Big Bang Theory while exercising!

I found the “Sonic Boom” clock! Good because I need to get up early tomorrow because the house cleaner is coming tomorrow morning. I also found my hatchet, which should go in the basement.

Now I’m eating dinner and putting the Jenny Craig meals away (done).

Hmm. Holland America is trying to upsell me on dining. They have a steakhouse and an Italian restaurant. I need to think about it.

I'm back from Dial-A-Carol. This apparently was Pros night. There was a group that was singing in four-part harmony and sounded fantastic! (One of looked embarrassed when she saw me listening, but I don't know why.) And there was a young woman who must have been a singing major. (In fact, I think that she might have been at the carols concert?) I was somewhere in the middle. I'm usually on tune if I know the song, but I don't sound as polished. I just bought the sheet music and a couple of CDs of "traditional" Christmas music. I'll work on them during break. Driving home, I felt full of love for Champaign-Urbana because there are so many fun things to do here.

I'm sitting for a moment with Mimi, and then I need to tidy up the kitchen and bathrooms for the house cleaner. Oh, I think that I'll post because I'm here. No one needs the blow-by-blow of my tidying :)

It's looking like Florida largely dodged a bullet, though for those who did lose relatives, it still is a tragedy.

The app that the State of Illinois wants me to use wants me to log my weight. Well, my scale is broken so no dice. I ordered a new one from Amazon using my Flexible Spending Account (an account that uses pre-tax dollars for medical expenses) funds. I didn't want one from the FSA store because 1) it's expensive, and 2) that's the one that broke.

It's kind of been a zoo of a day at work. Lots of meetings.

Ran out to drop off my paperwork to join the University gym.

Got some recycling out. (I didn't get it picked up yesterday because I was asleep.)

Did some work that I meant to do last night.

Ow, my neck hurts. I'm feeling the effects of no yoga. I need to do chair yoga.

I canceled my renter's insurance from the old place. I'm going through my automatic payments and canceling a lot of them.

I want to lie down and stretch out my neck. Plus, I'm yawning (although I don't know why because I got a ton of sleep last night).

I got the assembly items staged where they need to go. I went to get money for the assembly guy, but the ATM machine was out of cash. I’ll have to duck out of work to get it (done).

The guy has come and gone. He assembled the over-the-toilet rack, the porch furniture, and the two cube organizers, I love the porch furniture; it's my new fave place to sit down.

And the guy charged me less than I expected!

I'm wondering if I should get someone from Home Depot in to look at the large closet in the library room, where most of my clothes will live, to design built-in closet hardware. I need to winnow the clothes down first.

Hmm. Home Chef now has a meal service for food that is heat and eat. I looked at their "calorie-conscious" food, and it looks good, but they don't have enough of them. Hmm. Maybe I could order them and eat Lean Cuisine for lunch? Maybe I should try Factor's "calorie smart" food. I liked Factor, although I wasn't getting the diet food. The big problem with using a pre-packaged diet food is lack of variety. Okay, Fresh Meal Plan allows you to order “a la carte” and has a lot of “lean and mean” meals. We have a winner! And I found a salad delivery service.

Mimi meowed and jumped at the same time, so it was like, "MeOWowOW" Silly cat :)

Took a longish nap. Got the recycling out. Made dinner because I didn’t eat before my nap. Zara wants food.

I got the new-to-me carry-on bag. I like it.

I missed my workout today. Not off to a good start. Studied Italian.

Oh great. Excessive heat warning for today though Tuesday.

Wayfair is having a “clear-out” sale. Hmm.

I have a taste for Lean Cuisine pizza, so I'm coming up with a grocery list to include it.

The exercise coach is driving me crazy. She asks me if I have time to meet, I suggest a time, and then she vanishes to reappear the next day, asking me if I have time to meet that day. Etc.

I got one of my weeding tools. We’ll see how it works.

I’m lying down to stretch out my back. At this rate, I won’t be able to go to Zumba tomorrow. Wound up oversleeping my alarm.

I decided that it was too hot to mow. The weeding tool doesn’t work well, sigh. I got some garbage out and am chilling now.

Worked more on the library. Now I’m pissed off. Remember that guy who packed up all my stuff? Well, he shoved a statue of an angel that I hand-carried from California into a bag, and it’s broken. I’ll try to glue it, but I don’t know.

Crap. The class that I'm enrolled in is on campus. I don't know that I want to do that.

I booked an assembly guy. I was about to book a handyman when I realized that I don't know where the screws for the doors went.

Someone wants my extra plastic hangers. Yay. Worked on another box (I can see the progress!) but my back hurts. I have two more bags to go to the thrift shop.

Studied Italian. My back still hurts. But I got a lot done today.

I ordered the sunburst mirror for my bedroom. I'm determined to get that room "finished".

I overslept and woke up just before work.

I ordered the Apple Watch from Target. I should get it on Friday.

I enrolled in the swimming class. It's for beginners, and I probably remember some of the strokes, but the next class up requires you to be able to swim the length of the pool, and I probably can't do that because I'm out of shape. I'll hand them my paperwork to get access to the gym (and pool!) next week because classes start next week. I also enrolled in the yoga class for fall. An ex-boyfriend of mine said on Facebook that he’s getting exhausted just reading my posts. I need to get a hot body for dating! (Not him—He’s happily married, I like his wife, and he’s “old business“.)

I signed up with an exercise coach. We'll see how this works. Also, the uni is offering free attendance at group classes next week, and I might try Core Conditioning, Zumba, and Flow Yoga. Well, Zumba and Core Conditioning are back to back, so I need to choose one. I think that I’ll try Zumba because I’ve always been curious about it, and I have an idea what a “Core Conditioning “ class would be like. Hmm, maybe I need to get my paperwork over to the gym this week then. I'll go there tomorrow before yoga because I'll be dressed anyway.

Hmm. Someone in my plant group said that a local grocery store is offering orchids with fading flowers for $2.99. Worth a look, but I'd rather go tomorrow because I have to leave the house for yoga anyway.

Hot damn. I used a Target coupon, and I ordered two cube bookcases for the upstairs for only $12.89! I want to get a guy in here next week to assemble some items. Crud, one of them went through as a driveup order. I guess that I'll go there tomorrow after yoga.

Ugh. The imaging department at the hospital where my doctor works was calling me to make an appointment for an ultrasound. I called them and told them that I wanted them to look at my previous mammograms to compare, and they said that they never received the films from Lincoln. So I called Lincoln, and they said that they never had any requests for the films, but they'll send them now. Why I had to be in the middle, I don't know. Sigh.

Hmm. I also want to get a guy in here to take the bags of yard waste. (The garbage people won't take them.) I need to rebag them because they've gotten rained on. I should have ordered extra bags from Walmart, so I guess that I'll submit a new order and order cat litter as well to make the minimum amount.

I've started carrying the boxes of photos upstairs. They will be the last organizing task that I will work on. There are a bunch of them. (Mom had them in 1.5 dressers.) They would be a good winter task.

I bought a few gardening tools that should make my life easier. One was a weed-puller, one was a drill-type thing for planting, and one was an expensive weed-killing tool from Sharper Image that got mixed reviews, but I'll try it and see if it works. That reminds me that I need to order my bulb plants soon. And I need to get someone to look at my water and get the outside spigot turned on (in time to turn it back off, but I'll need to water what I plant).

Hmm. Someone in Bloomington-Normal is selling an antique oak cabinet that would work, but it isn’t as pretty as the one on Amazon. But it’s cheaper: $55. Need to think about this. No, I think that I want the Lotus one on Amazon. It’s more in keeping with the look that I’m trying to go for. No, someone said that the doors don't hang properly on the Lotus one. I created a poll about what I should get.

And I bought a wall-cleaning mop and some wall cleaner. There's an area with white paint at the top of the stairs upstairs that did not get painted, and it's dirty and needs washing. Well, it really could use some paint, but I'd need a roller with a really long handle to do it. I'll wash it and see how it looks. I want to hang pictures up there. I did find a long-handled paint roller at Lowe's, but I'll wash it first.

Stuff in my freezer has been melting. So I investigated. Apparently someone put the freezer down at the lowest setting. I tried to move the control, but it was frozen shut. So I got a pair of needle-nosed pliers (have I mentioned lately that I love my toolbox?) and tried again. This time, it moved, and I put it on the medium setting. We’ll see if that fixed it.

I had thought about mowing more of the lawn today, but I really don’t want to. I’m in the mood for decluttering. I’ll do some for a while and then exercise and then declutter some more. And work on Italian. I need to grab a piece of paper because I want to write sentences with my new words. And I need to take boxes out for recycling (done). I have some other recycling stuff, but they didn’t pick up the bins last week and they’re full. Oh, and I need to pay some bills.

I ordered some toenail fungus stuff and laser hair removal as a reward for losing weight. And I think that’s the end of my splurge, except maybe for the cabinet. Oh, wait a minute. I was going to get the cabinet for over the coat hooks. But I can’t get it in until the bookcases are built.

I walked on the treadmill and did legs and abs bodyweight exercises! Go me! It's good to exercise before I study Italian (done) because I need to sit and chill afterward.

I've decided to go to Michigan the week after Labor Day weekend so that I'll have Labor Day weekend here to get stuff done. I need to book my flight and hotel, but need to check with my boss about the day off.

I was looking at books about capsule wardrobes and color analysis, but that should wait until I lose the weight. I'll design an intentional wardrobe.

I woke up an hour early. Frittered some of the time away, but I still had time to go through a box of shoes and put them away and tried on two pairs of boots to find the ones that fit. I'm going to try to sell the other pair on eBay, but I have a weird shoe size (6.5 wide), so I'm not hopeful.

Had a nice nap at lunch and woke up before my alarm. I think that I'm catching up on my sleep.

Yay, the check from the trust is on its way. I'll have to pick a date to go back up there and book a flight. I've decided to fly instead of taking the train.

I'm having a hassle with the loan company servicing my mom's mortgage. They won't tell me the status of the account. They want the death certificate (which I've scanned) and driver's license, and proof that I'm a trustee of the estate. Well, the trust is the trustee of the estate, so maybe they'll tell them and not me. I'm tired of this kind of thing.

I’ve been very active on Facebook today. I posted this:

And these comments:

But then:

And these comments:

I had thought about napping, but was too agitated, when it occurred to me: duh. Go work out. You’re in the perfect mood for it. I did get a good workout on the treadmill, pounding the damn thing, without any need to read. But I'm postponing using the dumbbells until tomorrow. I get in these moods where I kind of litigate life, for a lot of good that it does me, and that's where I'm at. Maybe I should do some decluttering; this probably is a great decluttering mood too.

Huh. I wanted to order some under bed storage containers for my blankets, only to find that I already had some. And I want to do mass quantities of laundry this weekend; I found some clothes that need washing that I need to sort (how many plain black t-shirts does one person need?) and some to donate to the thrift store. And I want to wash my electric blanket, which has been hanging around since winter. I think that I’ll throw a load in as I go to bed.

Crud. I thought that I got paid today, but it's next week. I'm screwed. I'll have to figure something out. I had some money in savings that I can transfer. Yay. I'll have to be frugal though.

Overslept this morning, but had a nice nap at lunchtime.

Hmm, I think that I want to plant hellebore in the side "shade garden". It is toxic to dogs, but apparently dogs have to eat a lot of it to get poisoned, and the plant has an unpleasant taste.

Now I'm thinking of under-bed storage containers for my winter blankets because I don't have enough room for a blanket ladder. They'll stay cleaner too.

I need to get the basement room cleared out and get the stepper put back together. I need to start practicing for Positano, which is mostly hills and stairs. Hmm, I think that I want it upstairs in my "exercise area" after I bring the chairs down.

Took a nap and slept through until 5:30 AM.