days_unfolding

I ordered a martingale collar (recommended by the dog training folks) and a double-handled leash for Bella.

Woke up at 7:30 AM. Ordered groceries for delivery.

shadowcat said that A Complete Unknown is now on Hulu, so I want to make time to see it. Also, I want to see A Real Pain. Maybe on Sunday? Or maybe one of them tonight? I used to have a Friday night ritual where I watched movies. I liked it. Or maybe after raking on Saturday. I'll be too tired to do more stuff around here. No, the Mozart Requiem concert is on Saturday. I need to figure out what to wear.

Bella cracks me up when I feed the cats. She comes to me for petting as a distraction because otherwise, she might lose control and eat the cats' food. LOL.

The groceries were delivered earlier than I expected, so they sat out for a while. But now I have soda and food.

It’s warm out, and Bella didn’t want to come in, but she did so grudgingly.

Overslept my nap. I'm tired.

I'm definitely going to go to the Hands Off! rally on Saturday, 4/5, but there's also one for trans rights on Monday, 3/31. It's two hours during lunchtime, and I'll be working, so I'm not sure how that would work. I couldn't work late because I have choir. I need to get some poster board and markers. At Dollar Tree? Actually, Hands Off! has printable signs. The problem is that I agree with most of them. Hard to make a decision. Oh, there's one with everything. I think that I found my sign.

The cats knocked down my trackball and the ball part is missing. What did they do with it? I'm glad that Oliver is happy but sad that it took Mimi dying to make him happy. He just stole my pen!

Oh, it occurred to me the other day that I'll have to get someone to let Bella out at lunchtime on the days that I have my in-person staff meeting at the end of April. I'll look on Wag first.

Goofball Bella was rolling on her back outside. She clearly loves the weather.

I'm actually feeling warm with my hoodie upstairs, so I took it off.

Oh man, am I stiff. I definitely need to go to yoga tomorrow.

Lily's stomach clock is good. I feed the dog and cats after I take Bella out after work at 5:30 PM. Lily was on my lap, purring and head-butting me at 4:45. Lily has gotten so big that I do a doubletake, thinking that she's Mimi (although she still is smaller than Mimi).

Speaking of Mimi, I haven't gotten a call about her ashes. I'll need to call on Monday and find out what's going on.

I really want to learn Forex trading (don't worry; I won't risk money for a long time after paper trading), so I made a list of books to get. I asked ChatGPT how to learn it and it gave me some recommendations. I also asked about Web site building, but that might wait until retirement.

Hmm. Daily OM has an event that kind of interests me and it isn't too expensive: Expert-Led Fascia Stretches to Eliminate Sitting Damage

Hey! I can get a Senior Membership to the Urbana pool and gym. They have free Folk [Music] in the Park, and a beginner’s Pickleball League! And I think that choir will be over for the summer, so I will have more nights free. They have a rail trail ride if I get back up to speed on bicycling.

I think that I’m going to go to bed early to get up early and rake. I have yoga and the concert tomorrow too, so I need to get up really early. Crap, now they're saying rain tomorrow. I'm still getting up early.

I woke up at 6:30 AM. Fed the cats and myself.

I gave up on a book which seemed to be a bad ripoff of The Lymond Chronicles, and started reading Kara Swisher’s book about the tech industry, which is much more lively. She is the same age as I am and was an early adopter of the internet.

Had a brief nap.

It just occurred to me that because I’m a grad student, I might already have access to the gym. I need to check. Okay, it looks like I didn't pay any fees, so no. It's closed during Spring Break this week.

I’m thinking about what to do today. Work on decluttering and organizing my clothes. Go for a walk. And start on taxes.

I got the filing cabinet, but I have to wait until Thursday for the assembler to get here.

I have a headache, so I’m lying down again.

Ugh. One of my Amazon items says that it was delivered, but it’s not in the box. I asked for a replacement.

I'm looking at bookcases. I'm wondering when I should order them. I won't be able to put them up until after I go through boxes, but I'll need them up in order to empty boxes. A conundrum.

I ordered a kitchen garbage can with compartments for both trash and recycling.

I’m feeling really tired, so I think that I’ll work on taxes. Well, crud. My printer isn't working on my personal laptop, and Comerica Bank said that they would send out statements on March 15th. That seems a little late. I might get started on the taxes anyway and just not submit them. Well, I got stymied on the question about making money in another state. I inherited my mom's bank account. I just emailed the trust about it. I guess that I'll go organize clothes then. Well, I took a nap.

Zara came over to say “Hi”. She still is enamored of the puffy comforter. She is proving that cats sleep 20 of 24 hours.

In the warm bathroom, I put up the shower curtain liner and the shower curtain with elephants that I got for my mom. I transferred my shower stuff so that I can shower in the warm bathroom. I bought some gray towels to go with the elephants.

I’m not feeling like tackling anything major. Maybe I could work on organizing the cabinet in the cold bathroom. No, I started laundry and got on chat with HP about the printer issues. The rep was annoying, but he fixed my problem.

I'm going to hang clothes up to dry and go to bed.

Got the AirTags for my keys set up. I copied my GoPro files to my new laptop. I’m in the process of backing the files up. The videos are taking forever to back up to the cloud, so I’m copying them to an external hard drive.

Got up around 8 AM. Fed myself and the cats. Now I’m taking a nap. Had a nice nap.

I’m mulling over what to do about my car’s registration. It expires this month, but if I renewed it online, it would go to the Urbana house. So I’ll get it done when I’m there for the meetings. I could take Mom’s car, but it isn’t starting, and her registration might have expired in September. I need to check. Yeah, it expired, and I didn't see a renewal notice in her email. I'll need to go to the DMV here and see if I can get a temporary registration for it. First, I need to figure out why it's not starting.

Crud. I thought that I ordered more shampoo and conditioner, but I can’t find the order in my email. Need to order more to come while I’m gone, I guess. Oh yay, Amazon has it for overnight delivery.

Got my manicure done. It was a shellac manicure and it dried quickly. I wanted a rose or mauve color, but they didn’t have it, so I wound up with pale pink again. Oh well, it’ll look nice with my tan. Got money for the pet sitter.

Took another nap. Oh fuck. I forgot to go swimming. Got the combo lock for the gym set. I couldn’t find the mesh bags for my gym shoes, but I washed them with my towels and sheets anyway.

One of the AirTags just earned its keep. I couldn't find my car keys and figured they dropped somewhere. I had it play a sound and tracked it. Speaking of AirTags, I wound up with three extra because I couldn't find them (it turned out they hadn't come yet) and ordered more. But now it occurred to me that I want one on my bike. I just bought a bike mount for it. And now it occurred to me that I want them on both cars. I just watched a video on how to remove the speaker and hide one in your car.

Packaged up some Amazon returns. I'll run them to the UPS Store on Monday. The pet sitter is coming to pick up the key on Tuesday.

Scrubbed the sink (with rubber gloves on). I’m soaking the dish drainer.

Started tackling my bedroom. Put a bunch of clothes away. Took some coats downstairs. Now I'm wondering if I should wear my black leather coat on the flight. I'm thinking of wearing a navy tunic with jeans on the Detroit to Chicago flight. I'll be more dressed up for the Chicago - LA and LA - Kauai flights. Used a laundry basket to corral stuff to pack. Found my Skecher's shoes because my gym shoes are drying in the basement.

I need to get up early and do more stuff. But I think that my sheets are dry now, so I can go to sleep.

Woke up a little before my alarm at 7 AM. I'm feeling less hammered. I'm thinking of skipping yoga though, even though it probably would help my aching muscles, because I have a therapy appointment at 7 PM. Plus I should start emptying the car.

Got my school computer setup set up. Yay! And I even have time for a short nap!

Talked to the garbage people. They missed my PayPal payment at first, but now they have it and they will bring the garbage can on Thursday or Friday. Yay.

Classes went well and I even enjoyed them.

I rejoined the gym membership perk of BCBS. I was looking for a gym that I could go to after talking to my mom, and there is only one 24-hour fitness place on the weekends, and it's a place with which I've had a bad experience (Anytime Fitness). Bummer. I suppose that I could use the exercise bike here and do bodyweight exercises.

Had my therapy session. She was really positive about my yoga classes and possibly joining Toastmasters after I go to Michigan. She wants me to do exercises about my boundaries and I find it hard. Oh, and we changed the time of our sessions to avoid it being right after yoga.

I love my new retro alarm clock. It's even cooler IRL.

I had Aldi's fish and chips for dinner and it was really good. It even was worth trying to turn the fish and fries with a small fork. I have tongs, but they're--you guessed it--in one of the many boxes. Tomorrow night is for massive unpacking action.

I looked at furniture on Facebook Marketplace, but I'm not finding much that I like. I looked for places with installment payments, but I didn't find much that I liked there either. So it's save up money time. There are a lot of things on Overstock.com that I do like. Purchasing Power does have some stuff that I like. But I fell in love with a coffee table/end table set for $3400! No.

I'm tired.

I'm feeling better today, although I still have a bit of a headache. And it's sunny and warm out. The cats are being manic.

The headache got worse, so I lay down for a while. I'll make up the time tonight.

I was in a Python class today. It's review for me, but I was also able to compare Python to things in Java. I'm accumulating a body of knowledge!

Ugh. My headache is coming back again, but I really need to get cat food and Zara's meds (done). Now I'm back online to make up the time for my nap (done). My headache went away.

I spent some time reading about Anthony Bourdain because Mom said that CNN was going to show a movie about him. I liked Parts Unknown.

I'm wondering if COVID cases have gone down enough to start going to the gym again. I'd like access to some of their machines. I need a leg press machine to help my wobbly knees. And I love rowing machines. And do they have a step climber?

The forecasters are predicting snow AGAIN on Thursday. Do I need to change my vet appointment yet again?

I might wind up in Rantoul instead of Champaign due to rental costs, so I've started looking into amenities there. There's a vet who sounds good. There's also a 24-hour gym, but I'd rather use the one in Champaign, which has a pool, ice rink, climbing wall, and gym machines. It's not cheap, but I can get a payroll deduction.

I'm going to get to bed early to help keep my headache at bay.

Got up and got going in time for my doctor's appointment. Nothing of note except my doctor was really encouraging me to go to the gym.

Dropped some stuff at storage. Dropped some stuff at the thrift shop. Stopped by the gym and got a keypad code, so now I can go anytime 24/7. Went to Walmart. Dropped off plastic bags from the car. Bought oatmeal, turnovers, and milk. Decided that I had a taste for chicken salad for lunch, but I didn't have the recipe. Decided to make a grocery list when I get home and go back tomorrow in the hopes that I'll feel less sore and can stop at the gym first. Right now, I feel like I was in a car crash.

Got my little Cinque Terre book and am really enjoying it. Must go there.

Took a long nap, and now I'm feeling less sore. Excellent.

Just realized that I forgot to do some Italian homework, so I need to get it done before the lesson. Well no, my teacher had to cancel the lesson.

Went back to sleep "for a little while" and woke up at 2 AM. Must have needed the sleep. Fed the poor hungry girls. Just realized that I forgot to pick up Zara's meds. Had a bite to eat. Now I'm going to go back to sleep.

My phone suddenly charged up to 100 percent charged. So I guess that the problem is the charger and not the phone. Good. I'll stop by AT&T (assuming that I feel well enough to go out) tomorrow.

My fever has broken. Zara is hanging out on my lap. It's a better day.

I tried to take a nap after breakfast, but couldn't sleep. So I called Mom today instead of tomorrow because I wasn't sure what my phone situation would be. She's a little under the weather too. She was concerned about me, and she decided that I should have some chicken soup and watch The Crown.

I think that the wiring in here is part of the problem with charging the phone. I've had some other weird things happen, such as the microwave starting a while after plugging it in. I also pressed a reset button on one outlet and had the Google Home Mini (which is on a different outlet) restart. I plugged the charger into the power strip for my computer, and it's been chugging along charging.

I had some chicken soup. I think that I'll take a shower and then watch The Crown. I'm feeling a little more perky. Maybe I'll get some stuff done--at least, some gift-wrapping and card-writing. I asked Mom if I'd be sending germs along with my cards, but she said that she didn't think so, and to just wash my hands beforehand.

The gym that I like is reopening under new management. I hadn't canceled my Blue Cross Blue Shield gym membership, so I guess that I'll keep it going.

I ordered the kitchen island/cart that my mom is giving me for Christmas. It should arrive early next week.

I took a shower and got the stink off, and put on clean pajamas. I feel reborn.

I'm doing low-energy stuff around here (emptying the dryer and putting clothes in the dryer, dishes, Christmas cards, and the like). I hope that tomorrow I'll feel up for cleaning.

Looked up some addresses for Christmas cards. I no longer keep a personal address book because of the Internet, but it's getting harder to find addresses for free. No, I don't want to pay for a background check to get an address.

Watched an episode of The Crown. Made grilled cheese and tomato soup; we'll see how well I digest it. I think that it's time to crash.

Zara did let me have the pillow last night. Thank you, Zara. I was nice and cozy in my sweats and three blankets. I woke up with Zara snuggled against my legs.

I bought turnovers off of the discount rack last night, so I had one for breakfast. I fed the girls. Now I think that a nap is in order.

I keep getting a phishing e-mail about my NetFlix account. It almost got me again, but I checked the e-mail address that it came from. I wonder why they want my NetFlix login, but I guess that they want the credit card associated with the account. The third season of The Crown will be starting in a couple of weeks.

I e-mailed the gym about using the card from my health insurance, but haven't heard back yet. If I can't use the card, I'm going to cancel it. I can use the gym at work, but it's open more limited hours than the gym that I want to use. I need to get my cholesterol down.

Zara freaks out when I go near her when she's in the basket near my bed. I grabbed the phone cord near her and she scratched me. Ouch. I think that she thinks that I'm Mimi for a second.

Hmm. I intended to put the new registration tag on my car, but now it's dark. I'm not planning to go anywhere though.

I've following my dad's guidelines to eat what you have a taste for because it's your body telling you what it needs. I put some peas in my Ramen. (Yes, I know that Ramen isn't good for you.) I ate some apple slices for dessert. I have a taste for eggs, but I really need to make Home Chef tonight.

I lay down for another nap (I think that I didn't take my meds this morning, and that's why I'm so tired), and slept for 4.5 hours. Oops.

I need to feed the cats. No Home Chef tonight. I think that I'll make pizza. Nope, I just had a bowl of soup and some apple slices. Dishes and bed.