days_unfolding

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.

Woke up at 8 AM. It’s starting to rain. They are predicting snow in Chicago this week, but not here. Bella is squeaking her squeaky ball. Got us all fed.

I spent a bunch of time finding my new moisturizer in my suitcase, but I finally found it. I’m ready for my voice lesson early.

Had a really great singing lesson. My teacher is awesome. Zara fell asleep while I was singing. Aww.

There was a groundhog in the neighbor’s yard. Bella was defending us against him or her :)

Had lunch. Now it’s nap time. Overslept my nap by an hour. Bella and I are both yawning. A smoke alarm is chirping, so I need to see if I have batteries for it.

Wrote the travel agent to get my Mexico cruise under my Holland America ID. Oliver and Lily are upstairs with me.

It's strange how different the household is without Mimi. I'm sorry to say that it's better because Oliver and Lily really wanted to come upstairs where I am during the day. Oliver isn't trying as hard to get out too. Lily is showing me her belly. Now she’s on my lap and purring. Oliver likes to lie in Mimi’s spot on the chair.

I need to get the quarantine aquarium set up and cycled. And I need to figure out what to do about the water in the aquarium while I’m gone. I might have to stage buckets with heated water upstairs. The pet sitter unplugged my fish tank, probably because she thought that it was bothering Mimi. That's not good.

I bought grass seed and topsoil repair and fertilizer from Lowe's for delivery tomorrow.

I have my Italian ready for Tuesday. I hate to tell my teacher that Mimi died. She loved Mimi.

Need to feed the beasties. I’m way dehydrated, so I’m swilling carbonated water. Lily is licking out the can for Bella’s food. We’re all fed now.

Hmm. I need to run a misdelivered Amazon box to my neighbors (done). Then I’m thinking of going to bed early. I don’t know why I’m so tired, but I am. Lack of sunshine today is probably part of it.

Bought some collapsible walking sticks to take on the trip. There are some walking tours, so they might help. (And yes, it's before the boycott starting at midnight, but if I think of something that I absolutely need to have for the trip, I might have to break the boycott.)

Overslept but got up in plenty of time for my shower. Oliver was walking on top of the shower, peering in and meowing :)

Yay. The vet will take Bella for boarding. Sigh of relief.

Now I'm thinking of waiting post-Trump to have solar installed. There is more likely to be tax credits.

We have a Friday "watercooler" Zoom call. Were were talking about Little Sleepies pajamas, among other things, and they have an "around the world'" one that I'd like to get for spring. But I'll wait until I get back.

The pet waste people cleaned up the yard and did a good job. Now I need to pick up after Bella until I board her. It's kind of tough at night. Maybe I'll take my phone and note where she pooped so that I can clean it up in the daylight. Oh, the joys of dog ownership: so much revolves around poop.

I think that I'm going to be too tired to pull an all-nighter to clean, so I'll go to Plan B and get up at 5 AM to clean. Music is a must! Tonight, maybe I could open some boxes and enter info for the pets' microchips and pack and other low-key stuff. Oh, and scan my music for my singing lesson.

Hmm. I should get some protein bars for my flight. I'm probably going to DoorDash when I get to Miami, but the flight is three-and-a-half hours. And I need something to eat in the morning.

It's kind of quiet and peaceful upstairs in the afternoon sun, listening to the burble of the aquarium.

My dad said to hold off on construction because if there is a recession, you should be able to get good deals. I hadn't thought of that aspect of it. He thinks that we should know if there will be a recession by the end of the summer. But I really want the fence replaced, which requires the garage to be finished so that I know where to end the fence. Hmm.

Oh! I can get Google's User Interface design course for free from the University. All I need is the time, which I don't have. Maybe a little later down the road.

I'm getting involved in new and interesting areas at work (involving with different areas of the system on which we work). That is making me happy.

I was feeling like I perked up a little but now I'm yawning.

Yeah, I need to get to bed early. My patience with the critters is fraying. (Bella ate Lily’s food. I gave Lily more food, but Oliver, who had had a full bowl of food, tried to eat it. Meanwhile, Bella was looking for a chance to eat more of the food. And I was getting cranky.) I think that I need sleep.

Woke up with my alarm at 6 AM. The Echo Dot alarm did not sound, sigh. The critters think that this is too early to get up.

Ugh. Zara was out roaming around, and Bella lunged for her. I grabbed Bella. Sigh. Zara took off for her room. I took the puppy out. Now I’m thawing and then will gather the recycling.

Got the recycling out. I’m going to thaw for a moment, soak the cat dishes, and let Oliver out of kitty jail. (I’ll never convince him that I do that for his own protection.)

I read online that Neil Gaiman based his Sandman series on Tanith Lee's Tales of a Flat Earth series, so I went looking for the Tanith Lee books. The public library does not have them. The university library does have them, but the first book is checked out. I'm leery of buying it until I see if I like it or not. (I have too many books, so I'm trying to be choosy about what I keep.) And it sucks that Gaiman didn't give her credit and make her books circulate more! Though I'll probably set up a Little Free Library in the Spring, so I could recycle it there if I don't want to keep it. Oh okay, I got it for the Kindle.

We have some dedicated bicyclists for neighbors. I saw two separate people out riding their bikes. And it's cold out (31F/-1C, although that IS balmy compared to the weather that we've been having). Bella was fascinated by the bicyclists. She didn't bark but watched them intently.

I've been redesigning the yard in my head while I'm out with Bella. I want a six-foot-tall white picket fence to replace the current fence. There is a raised bed and trees by the side of where the driveway to the garage-to-be will be. I think that I want to take the trees and raised bed out (they're "junk trees'") and plant redbuds and holly bushes along the side of the driveway. Bark mulch underneath them. And I want a crabapple for the main part of the back yard and roses along the side of the garage. I probably want a path from the back door to the garage, but I'm not sure yet what to put in. I’m thinking a concrete sidewalk because its purpose is a way to unload stuff from the car, not to be pretty.

Bella did not want to come in when I took her outside after our nap. There was a garbage truck! And the outdoor cat went by the neighbor's house! Lots of interesting things to see. And it felt downright warm in the sun! Oh, it WAS warm, 37F/3C.

The doctor's office called to reschedule my appointment for next week.

When I paid my AT&T bill, they had an offer for one month of Hulu free, so I took the deal and added Max to it. I want to watch TV sometimes cuddling with the dog.

I had a nice chat with my neighbor who lives right next door to me. Bella barked at him for some reason, but he didn't seem to mind. I told him that the dog was new, and he said that he had cats, and I said that I had them too! He said that he liked my Harris/Walz yard sign, and we agreed that we weren't looking forward to the next four years. I like living in Urbana.

I'm thinking that I want to get the fish tank and plants set up, but I might wait to get fish until after my trip. I'd hate to get the fish and then leave them to the pet sitter or automatic feeder. I want to know more about how their rhythm is.

I'm also thinking that I should try to meet more people. I was going to wait until I got the house together, but meeting people would provide me with the motivation to get the house together. My therapist thought that was a good idea.

Because it's warmish, and it's supposed to get cold this weekend, I'll get the garbage out tonight. Nope.

Played a fun game of feeding the fur kids. I need to go get Bella out of the bedroom and take her outside. There was a person on a scooter walking two dogs. They stopped in front of the house for the dogs to sniff. Bella barked once and then retreated by my side for me to protect her.

I’m trying to figure out where Bella’s collar went. I have her harness, but I’m not sure where the collar is, but I know that it arrived. And I should get collars for Oliver and Lily. I need to spend this long weekend getting stuff organized. I think that I’ll start in one corner and do a 360-degree thing.

Oliver and Bella seem especially tired today. I wonder what they’ve been up to. They’re both asleep, and I’m kind of stuck here because I don’t want to wake them.

I cleaned off the heater for the fish tank, but it's getting late, so I'll fill the tank tomorrow. Paid bills. Now I think that it's bedtime.

I’ve been filling out a profile for Stitch, which a site for 50+ people that you can use to make friends. But they want a picture of me holding a code, and I’m in my pajamas, so no.

A pair of my glasses is missing. I can’t figure out what I did with them. I guess that I need to order another pair.

The bookcases have arrived. I wrestled four of them inside, and I’ll get the other three later (done). Wow, they're heavy.

I think that I finally appeased the person with all the requests at work. More work is piling up.

Zara likes lying in front of the window with the a/c in it, I guess because of a breeze. I turned the a/c on for her, and she ran. She doesn’t trust anything that makes noise!

Ugh. I drove to tai chi and realized that I forgot my tai chi shoes when I got there. So I drove back home. I put the shoes in the car where I should keep them. (I keep my yoga bag in the car.) Just as well because I’m getting a headache. I’ll lie down for a while.

Someone having a garage sale is selling a yard swing that I like, but other people are interested. That gave me the idea to look at swings with canopies on Wayfair. A lot of them aren’t cheap, but there are a few bargains. I also looked on Facebook Marketplace but didn’t see anything that I liked.

Got the recycling out. Bought a rack for the weight plates for my dumbbells and a basket to put my exercise mat and Pilates trainer in.

Fuck. I can't find my (physical) Italian flashcards that I wrote up. Clearly they're off somewhere wearing my missing glasses.

Studied Italian. And now I need to crash. The evenings go by quickly.

Woke up at 7:30 AM, decided that was too early, and slept until 11.

I have a bunch of Jenny Craig waffles, but I need sugar-free syrup. I’ll have to get some later.

I’m in a wrangle with the Italian teacher about payment. She gave me the wrong PayPal username. And she’s not responding to What’s App.

I’m lying down for a nap. Zara is in her happy place, snuggled up to me. Aww.

I guess that the thermostat for the a/c is working because the a/c is turning off and on.

Sigh. I’m having another IBS flair up.

The kitchen is a mess. I need to work on it this weekend. I definitely feel more full when I eat vegetables at lunch though.

Studied Italian. It's hot out (90F/32C) and hot upstairs.

Ordered sugar-free syrup from Walmart and some soda and toilet paper. Walmart was trying to distract me with French crullers, which I love, but I didn’t add any to my delivery order. (Go me!) I’m trying to appease myself with a nice, juicy apple.

I took my measurements, and they were sobering though.

It got late, so I decided to go and replace the license plates on my car. I can’t get the rear screws off of my car to replace the license plate. They’re rusted shut. A friend on Facebook said to take it to a service station, but there aren’t many that actually do service.

Then I started cutting down the trees that have sprouted with the scythe. Some of they are going to require a hatchet, so I ordered one from Amazon.

Then my neighbor stopped by and said that she was going to borrow a pickup truck to bring some yard waste to the dump, and she said that she could take my bags too. That is very nice of her. We exchanged phone numbers.

Looked at Facebook, and that’s how I learned about the assassination attempt on Donald Trump. Watched CNN for a while. On CNN: “When you shoot one of the choices in an election, you are shooting democracy.” Well put. I’m no fan of Trump, but this isn’t the way to defeat him.

Got my Walmart delivery order. Took a nap until midnight. Ate a Jenny Craig snack. I’m going to go back to sleep now.

British-American writer Jhumpa Lahiri fell in love with the Italian language and moved to Rome. She's my role model :) I have In altre parole (In other words) in both English and Italian. It's about her relationship to the Italian language. She apparently wrote two more books in Italian, which I just bought.

Oh. I forgot to mention yesterday that I joined some decluttering groups on Facebook. People share tips and celebrate their wins. And I requested to join the local Buy Nothing group so that I can give stuff away. I also joined Freecycle.

I ordered "Please close the gate" signs. We'll see if they help. It doesn't matter because I don't have a dog, but eventually I would like a dog. Right now, It's an annoyance.

I ordered a journal that is supposed to function like a life coach and also can help with anxiety. I signed up for three months to try it out. We'll see how it works.

Well, I wound up staying up late writing my post about foreign languages. I woke up at noon. So much for working on the upstairs, but I can try my new personal air conditioner and see how it works.

There’s a high of 82F/28C today. Humidity is at only 49%, which is good for the area during the summer. Good for mowing. I’ve decided to keep up with the mowing for this season. It’s too late to do much on the garden this year. But I want to get a mower next year.

Hmm. There’s a Dairy Queen in town. I’d like to go get hot dogs and a sundae. But I’m starting my diet soon.

I ran through my flash cards for the months in Italian, only to find that I do know most of them. My online flash cards are working.

I didn’t make it out to mow the lawn. I took my nap after breakfast and it got late. I’ll stay home tonight and get stuff done around here.

I was debating whether to take a shower or not, but I need to take out the garbage, so yes. And honestly, if I just did stuff instead of deciding whether to do them, I’d get more stuff done.

I’ve got the title to my mom’s car. Alleluia! Now I need to make an appointment at the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) in Urbana to register the car here. Then I’ll take the license plates and registration up to Michigan with me. I checked the DMV's Web site, and any car-related transactions are on a walk-in basis. So I just need to decide when to go. Going as they open would be ideal because there don't be much of a line.

Oh cool. The set of exercises that I have also has an app to remind you to do them.

I bought the standing desk from Wayfair. I read its reviews, which were glowing, and its sale was ending tonight. It's supposed to come mid-week. I asked for someone to come assemble it.

I checked into the requirements for me to get a Lithuanian (EU) passport, and I'll need to hire someone in Lithuania to shepherd the process. It might be a good idea to do so sooner rather than later in case I need to ask my dad something.

Studied Italian. Somehow it got late, so I need to crash soon.

I couldn’t find Zara anywhere. I was calling her and nothing. I lay down on the bed and she magically appeared. I think that she was in my closet. Goof :) Now she’s all lovey dovey.

Had some problems falling asleep last night until I got up and ate oatmeal. I’m tired.

I thought that today was Thursday, and I was freaking out over all that I have to get done. I have a whole extra day before I leave!

Work seems to be settling down. The presentation went okay.

Zara is acting normally again: eating, lying on the bed, and making a fuss over me. I get nervous when she acts strange because of her kidney disease, but the vet did say that it wasn't progressing.

I overslept my nap at lunch.

Dad thinks that I need to pull up the weeds in back by the roots. That will take forever. Once I put mulch down, it should be okay, but that will be a while. He said that his neighbor said that spraying weeds with vinegar kills them. I investigated and found that was true, but it has to be extra-strong vinegar. I found some on Amazon formulated as a weed killer. I'll get it when I get back.

Oh cool. American Airlines sent me an email saying "Prepare for your upcoming trip to Rome". It's really happening! Got my FlyKitt (jet lag kit) working. Some of its recommendations aren't possible: Eat dinner at 5 PM and depart at 5:10? It did say to bring some protein bars, so I'll need to go out and get some. Got the Mobile Passport Control app, but I need to fill it out.

Got the recycling out. Had a light dinner because I’m out of dinner food. Ran my errands: returned library books, got the money for the pet sitter, and went to Walmart for groceries and such. Got home, put stuff away, and ate the full dinner. I'm tired, but now I need to make up some time because I overslept my nap. And Mimi is trying to distract me :)

I'm done with work. Paid a bill. Bought a couple of Kindle books to read in the airport. (One was Bernie Taupin's book, which should be interesting.) Ordered some protein bars to arrive on Friday. Now I need to get to bed.