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A View From the Field |
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March, 2022 March 31 Well, it's over. I have to say this March went faster than almost any I can remember, which is a good thing. Now it's the middle of the night and I'm tired. Everything got skewed today, again.
I got enough sleep, even though it started late, and I actually got up not long after noon, but I diddled around and ate late and then I wasn't hungry, so the dinner I planned never happened. I did make rice, but not my pork chops. Maybe tomorrow? If I can eat early enough and lightly enough, I should be able to do that.
It's not only that, though. My knees are killing me whenever I have to stand for more than around two minutes and that makes it hard to cook or do anything else. Eventually it will warm up and I'll get over it, but for the time being, wow. Oh, and that doesn't say anything about my hips and shoulders and hands... Sigh.
The weather was windy. The wind was from the north as high as 28 mph with gusts up to 41 mph. The temperature was steady at about 31º. It was dark and dreary, and there was snow between 10:30 and 1 PM. Enough, already.
Grayson got to sit on me once, and while he asked two or three more times, I was doing something else and he couldn't. Now he's asleep beside my feet.
So that's all there is. I don't remember a March that has passed so quickly, and I'm just as glad. It's always a month I hate.
Now it's a cold, cloudy night in the field, and of course we won't get to see any of the northern lights.
March 30 I was in bed by 12;30, and I hope to do that again. I didn't get up until 10:30, so I got a good night's sleep. I finally got my hair washed, too, and it feels so good to be clean. The other task was the bulletin, and even though it was late, I got it out with only a couple of omissions. It doesn't matter a lot during Lent, because all my proofreaders are in church anyway.
Between when I was up around 7 AM and when I got up at 10:30, they canceled all the dire predictions of winter weather. We did have some snow this morning, but not too much - maybe two inches at most - but no ice and no 10-15" like Accuweather (which isn't) was predicting. The high temperature was 35º and during the afternoon the wind shifted around from the south to the northeast. It's blowing at 21 mph with 29 mph gusts now. Of course it was dark and dreary.
Grayson asked to sit on me four times and got to three times. Twice he left on his own and the other time, i started sneezing. He doesn't mind when I shout or stomp or anything, but he runs away when I sneeze. I don't know why.
So that was my day and now it's a cold, cloudy night in the field. There may be a little more snow, but most of it went way south of us.
March 29 Late again, nothing again, nothing to report.
The weather turned cloudy overnight, although it was bright-cloudy all day. The high temperature was 35º and the wind was from the south, mostly in the 15-25 mph range, although in the last couple of hours it's picked up and the gusts are up to 39 mph. The Winter Weather Advisory has begun, for snow and sleet, and after that expires tomorrow, there is a Winter Storm Advisory for snow through Thursday. It just won't give up.
Grayson got to sit on me once today. He may have come back, but I'm not sure about that, since sometimes it isn't possible to tell the difference between his voice and some of the strange sounds that come out of the radio.
Now it's a warmish, windy night in the field, but the glop is coming. Ugh.
March 28 I don't seem to be able to string two productive days together anymore. i diddled around until it was stupidly late before I went to bed and while i guess I got enough sleep, I didn't feel like doing anything. It was too cold in the bathroom to take a shower, so I just sat.
The weather has calmed down finally. It was clear almost all day and the high temperature was 23º (see, I've said it's not spring here yet). That was after the wind died down. It was still strong - 15-30 mph - this morning, but it has died down to nearly nothing now and shifted around to the southwest. That doesn't bode well, and the forecast is for snow or a "wintry mix" (shudder!) on Wednesday. It will warm up some, though. Winter just will not let go its grip on the Keweenaw.
Grayson got to sleep on my lap twice today. He seems to have gotten the idea that if he comes up beside me and mews, I will lift him onto my lap. Well - sometimes that works and sometimes it doesn't.
So now it's late again but they were playing Beethoven's 5th Piano Concerto, which I like, so I wanted to hear it. Now I can - maybe - go to bed.
The camera was down for most of the day. I had to reboot the system last night and I didn't want to wait until it came up. I guess i'll have to do that from now on, because the new version of Kabcam seems to have a hard time connecting to the camera after a reboot. I don't know why. Sorry about that. I see I'm going to have to adjust the start-stop times again. We're gaining daylight at nearly 3½ minutes a day now - yay!
Now it's a clear, dark night in the field and maybe if I could look out, there might be a northern light ot two.
March 27 So I was a bit later than lately last night, but I got a solid 9 hours. When I got up, the wi-fi range extender had lost its mind and I had no internet connection at the north end, so I got dressed, put the wash in the dryer and got our breakfast.
I took my time getting to it, but I actually got started on the taxes today. At least, I got started on the ledger. I got the contents of my check register entered, anyway. I think everything is OK, but I downloaded what the bank thinks was my in and out for last year, just in case. There were a few places where I had a hard time reading the figures. I don't write very legibly anymore. It's hard to tell if I have everything entered correctly. The ledger is set up on a monthly basis and the bank usually deposits my pension before the first of the month. I have balanced things in the past, but it's a horrible job and I'm not sure it's worthwhile.
Then I started getting the credit card statements together. That was a trip. I had to go through a pile of stuff twice before I found them all, then I had to open them and sort them. I was missing one - I thought it was two, but I found the other one - and had to download it from the bank. Now everything is properly sorted, but the next step is to go out to Amazon and pull apart the orders to put the right amounts into the right categories. Mostly it's not important, except that there are medical things that I need to keep separate. It's a good thing they keep all orders online, because they don't include invoices in their packages anymore and I don't know how I would be able to get the figures otherwise. That's the worst part of this chore, and I really should do it on a monthly basis, but I hate the whole thing so much that I put it off until I have to. With any kind of luck, i should be ready to begin the tax prep thing by Tuesday. Ugh. The service I use helps a lot, but I still get clutched up when I have to start entering figures. What if I'm wrong about something the IRS already knows? Oh, and if the IRS already knows it, why do I have to enter it at all? Ugh.
The weather was cold and windy. The high temperature was 19º and the wind was from the north as high as 29 mph with gusts up to 38 mph. It was mostly cloudy in the morning and partly cloudy in the afternoon. We had an interesting sunset that the camera couldn't see, because it doesn't record shades very well. I looked out right around sunset and some of the clouds were a lovely shade of mauve. All the camera saw was the orange and yellow. The wind was blowing the ice around and I think there was some open water for a while. And we didn't have more than a few flakes of snow in the morning.
Grayson got his favorite canned food, which he ate up, and when I went out to get my dinner, he wanted more. Too bad. He got to sit on my lap and get his tummy rubbed after breakfast and I think he wanted to come back right before I went to get dinner - at least he was yelling at me. I wanted to get up and go away, though, so he didn't get to sit again.
I'm not quite sure why, but whatever the weather was, it did a real number on my joints. I hurt all over, and when I went to get my breakfast, I could hardly walk at all for the pain in my knees. The result of that was that I sat much too long and ended up having an accident when I finally did get up. My knees do feel better, but i still hurt. I think it's a spring thing and it happens every year, but every year it gets a little worse.
I did everything in the office while sitting down. I reorganized the floor around my desk and the computer desk and I actually washed the computer desk. It's much neater now and much cleaner. I always thought it would be cleaner up here in then north, and to be fair, there isn't that film of oily grime that gets all over everything in the city. However, I get a whole lot of grit, probably mostly from the driveway and every so often I have to clean things up. So I actually did quite a bit today. Amazing, since I certainly didn't feel like it. I also cleared away some of the clutter on the desk so that I can set out my yarn swift and wind balls of yarn.
So that was my day. I actually did something! Now it's late on a very cold, windy night in the field.
March 26 i wasn't as late last night, because I was exhausted, and I got 10 hours' sleep, so I was late getting up and it's Saturday, so I didn't do anything. I was thinking about taking a bath tonight, but now I'm tired and my knees are really bad, so that isn't going to happen.
The weather was wintry. The temperature has gone down - the high was 24º. but that was only for a little while and it was around 20º, plus or minus a degree, for most of the day. The wind was blasting. it was from the north; the highest was 30 mph with 44 mph gusts. It snowed lightly - no accumulation - until around 3:30 PM. It was cloudy and dark. Somewhere off to our west, it's clear, but I don't know how much of that we'll see.
Grayson spent most of the afternoon asleep on my lap. It was nice to have a warm, purry pillow on my lap and he seemed happy about it, too.
I finally got the load of bottoms washed, but I doubt I'll get them into the dryer until tomorrow. My knees are too sore. I have one pair of sweatpants clean, but I'm wearing my last pair of clean compression hose. When I have an accident, things tend to run down my legs...
Now it's a very cold, windy night in the field.
March 25 Oh, I did it again. I sat until I was so tired I couldn't keep my eyes open, and then I sat some more. Of course, I slept well - I was too tired to to anything else. I didn't do anything today, again.
Ron came and replaced two light bulbs that had burned out and turned off the lights. We had a nice conversation. He is such a nice person. He even offered to bring in the groceries, but if he had, I would have had to put them away. They're safest outside, although I did bring in a couple of bags tonight. I needed lettuce and I needed to find my avocados, so I can have avocado toast tomorrow - yum! I'll get everything inside eventually.
The weather started out clear and sunny and the high temperature got to 42º. It was clear until around 4 PM, when the clouds moved in and it was very dark and threatening by sunset. The wind was in the 15 mph range from the north until it clouded up, and now it's gusty, up to 35 mph. We're going to have another 2" to 4" of snow over the next day or do. The grand total is now 300.5", The only thing now is that the ice on the harbor is beginning to break up and occasionally there is some open water, which is a welcome sight.
Grayson got to sit on my lap twice (I had to pee in between) and he wanted to come again, but I was tired. He greeted Ron and demanded to be petted, and all the while we were talking, he was right around us. I think he's the most sociable cat I've ever had.
So now it's getting late again and I'm tired again. Maybe I can get to bed at a more reasonable hour tonight. It's a dark, windy night in the field and it will probably snow.
March 24 By the time I had wound down, it was stupidly late, but I slept well and I think it was around noon when I got up (or maybe 1 PM - I don't remember). I didn't do anything except make rice.
The weather started out cloudy but by 10 AM it was clearing up and the afternoon was clear and blue. The high temperature was 36º, but it was about steady all day - and above freezing. The wind was mostly from the northeast, but it was very light. When I got up, there was a wide patch of open water in front of the house, but by 4 PM the wind (or the current) had pushed it closed again. It looks to me like the ice has actually mostly broken up into little chunks. I Wouldn't want to try to walk on it. See? Spring will come.
Grayson ate well and got to sleep on my lap for a long time - until I had an accident, and I think he smelled it. I was starting to cast on my sock and the end of the yarn got onto the floor (just the opposite of where it should be) and he grabbed it, so I got out his rope and we played for a bit, but he wasn't really interested. The yarn was something new, I think.
I did finally get the sock cast on, but I sort of screwed up the count, because in the middle of it, I got a call from another department at AT&T. I think finally I may have made them understand what my complaint is about and they were going to turn it over to the IT department to see if they can find out what has been happening, since nobody seemed to have heard anything about a problem like mine. AT&T doesn't like me, maybe? There are other phone companies. Grr. The woman I talked to seemed to think I might hear back in a couple of days ,which will be next week sometime. I'll be interested to hear their excuse.
I would have been earlier, but my radio station played just the second movement of Schubert's "Death and the Maiden" quartet (I hate when they do that) and that reminded me that I haven't heard it for a while, so I found it on YouTUbe and listened to the whole thing, again with the Alban Berg Quartet. The video is way over-produced, but the playing is just excellent. Unfortunately, they retired in 2008. I hope there are some younger chamber music groups coming up to take the place of the old guys, but I haven't heard many recordings of them. Anyway, that reminded me of the "Trout" Quintet, so I listened to that, too, although I wasn't as impressed by the playing. I think I have the recording here, but I find it interesting and enlightening to watch the players. The "Trout" had some strange miking that made the piano overpower the strings, though. Next time, I'll have to try to choose a different group. I know the piano part of that is amazing, but so are the string parts. Geez, I'm turning into a music critic1
So now it's a cold, clear night in the field and it's bedtime for sure.
March 23 I think I was a bit earlier last night, but I don't remember now - it's late. I was up briefly around 3:30 and when I looked out the window in the bathroom, there was light and it was coming from the basement. Oh, darn. The guys didn't turn off the lights! I didn't know it before because until the snow started to melt, the window in the basement was covered. I talked to Ron today and when he can, he will come and turn it off for me.
I didn't do much today except I had another conversation with someone from AT&T - and it was the wrong department. I didn't think that woman the other day understood what I was trying to tell her, and I was right. So that is still going on.
I finally got to talk to Mary Ann tonight, and it's been so long since we've talked that we talked for almost 4 hours, until my phone battery began to die. It was good to talk to her.
Ron couldn't come today because of the weather. It continued to snow until around 7 PM - we had a total of 1.55" of liquid precip in the form of very heavy, wet snow. Ron couldn't use the blower because the snow was so wet and chunky and even the guys with the plow truck had a hard time getting through it. We guess there was 4" to 6" of new snow, but it was so heavy it packed down. The high temperature was 35º and it was nearly steady. The wind was mostly from the southeast with gusts up to 25 mph, although it gusted to 32 mph around noon. It was cloudy and dull and nasty. Hopefully, it will melt soon. I don't know how Ron got home.
It was so bad in Laurium that they canceled church tonight, which caused some confusion in the bulletin production department. Pastor is preaching a series during Lent, so he wanted to be sure he got the next sermon in the series, which will push everything back a week. Hopefully, we won't have another postponement.
Grayson got a nice lap sit, and he just came and told me I had been talking to Mary Ann long enough.
So that's all there was and now it's a cold, breezy and probably raw and nasty night in the field, but the snow may have stopped. Or not.
March 22 It was another one of those nights when I was too tired - and too sore - to go to bed. Once I did, I slept well, with the usual wakeups and the two spam phone calls I got before I got up. I diddled around, of course, but not too long.
I didn't do anything. I am still tired and my knees and feet are still sore, so I relaxed.
It didn't start snowing until around 2 PM, quite a while after the Winter Storm Warning started, but it's been snowing fairly hard ever since and it looks to continue all day tomorrow. The high temperature was 33º, plus or minus a degree, so the snow is wet and heavy. The wind is from the south with gusts up to 24 mph. Of course it was dull and gray. There was one picture from the camera, at 7:48 AM that was absolutely amazing - the rising sun was apparently shining on the clouds over in the west and turning them rosy red, almost like a sunSET! I will try to post a picture, but it takes so much fiddling I don't want to do it tonight. We always have one of these things around St. Patrick's Day, although this one is a bit late. Hopefully, it's the last blast of Winter before it gives in to Spring.
Grayson got to sit on mommy for quite a while and he was so happy. Actually he was happy before then. When I got up, he was turned upside down against the back wall and door of the porch, sound asleep, with the sweetest smile on his face. Mommy's home. Grayson is happy.
So now it's a cold, snowy night in the field - ugh! - and it's time for bed, as soon as the Handel is over.
March 21 - J.S. Bach's Birthday I made it into bed by 12:30, which was amazing, considering when I started. I was up several times, and in the middle of t night I changed out of my flannel nightie when I woke up all wet. It was better after that. I got up around 10 AM. I suppose I should turn down the heat at the north end, but how warm it gets there depends not only on the temperature outside, but the wind, too, and I'm not sure about that. In-floor heat responds very slowly and I'm tired of cold.
Anyway, I left just about when I wanted to, although Grayson didn't want me to go and I had to make him get off my lap. Poor kitty. Our road is still partly snow (or ice) covered, but it's drivable and parts of it are bare or full of puddles. The big hill faces north, though, and it takes warmer temperatures than we've had to get it to melt. They've scraped it down enough that it should melt easily, though.
US-41 is clear and dry, except for a few places where the tilt of the road has let the melt water from the banks drip over it. I was able to drive at my summer speeds, which felt pretty good after some of the weather I've been in.
There were no handicap places in front of the hospital when I got there - the first time that's ever happened. I was able to park on the other side of the driveway, though, and that's not too bad a walk, although my right knee was acting up all day, enough that I wondered if it would hold me. I got my blood work and went up to the doctor's office - and sat. She was an hour late, which I think is another first since I've been here. In the meantime, I got the light colored sock just about ready for the toe, and I discovered that my potassium is down and my creatinine is up, which is not what I hoped to see. I suppose it has to do with what I've been eating - or not eating. I must try to do better.
I had a nice conversation with the doctor, although she mumbles a lot and with the mask, I had a hard time understanding her sometimes. She said to come back in a year. Yay! One more appointment I don't have to go to.
So I was later than I wanted to be getting to Pat's, and all the handicap parking places were taken there, too. It was all right, because I got one that was just about the same distance from the doors - and then my knee acted up again. Sigh. And I had a small accident before I could get to the restroom, which was another thing I did not want to happen.
I needed so much food - I had no lettuce, no frozen veggies (neither doe Schwan's), no bread and only a little OJ and eggs. Now i have lots, but I'm poor. Well, Social Security day is Wednesday, so I'm OK, I guess. Prices have gone up a whole lot, for sure, but I will eat well, which is important to me.
I got home around 6:30 and I nearly collapsed before I got all the bags out of the car and onto the platform, and except for the frozen stuff and the meat, it's all still there. I will try to haul it in tomorrow, but I was just too tired tonight.
The weather was OK. There were high clouds, but there was enough sunshine that I needed to wear my sunglasses. The high temperature here was 37º, and there was only a light wind from the east, except for right around the time I got to the hospital and had to walk outside. The forecast for the next two days is dire, but we'll see what comes of that. it's March, after all, when winter and spring start to battle it out, and around here, that won't end until sometime in April.
Grayson wanted to sit on me after breakfast and he didn't want to get off when I had to go. When I came home, he was sitting in the middle of the hallway, upright and looking at me through his eyebrows - his "And what have you been doing?" face. When he saw me shuffling back and forth, he went away, but when I came in and went in the powder room, he laid down beside me and went to sleep, so I guess it's OK. He was really interested in the wrappings of my sandwich, too, even though it was empty.
So that was my day and now I must go to bed. I'm exhausted. It's a cold, cloudy night in the field.
March 20 - Spring Equinox Well, that's what the calendar says, anyway. Not very many signs of it here.
I was late and I got up late and everything was late, but I did a few things. I got the wash folded and the underwear put away. The socks and tees are in a washbasket in the closet.
And I got my hair washed. I've been using the biotin shampoo and conditioner for several months now, and I can't say I notice that my hair is any thicker, but there is a definite improvement in the amount in my hairbrush, so I guess it's doing something. One of the things I talked to my new health care provider about is whether taking biotin by mouth would interact with any of the - too many - prescription meds I'm taking. It might help.
Tomorrow is oncology and I may ask them about both hair and diarrhea. Everything else seems so good, maybe I can start working on some of the smaller things that bug me - although the diarrhea isn't a small thing. Talk about a literal pain in the butt...
Oh, yes, and I cut my fingernails. They grow like I wish my hair would and every couple of weeks I have to chop them off so I can type and use the phone. As to the phone, when my fingernails get a couple of millimeters long, they get in the way and make it hard to use the touch screen, My hands may look uglier, but at least I can function better. There is a groove in several keys on the desktop keyboard anyway.
The weather was beautiful again today. There was no fog and it was clear and sunny all day and the high temperature was 44º. There was almost no wind. When I got to the office this evening, the temperature in here was 73º! First time for that since last October. Tomorrow is supposed to be colder and cloudy, but it depends upon whose forecast you believe whether we're going to have possible freezing rain or not. It better be not.
Grayson was beginning to get annoyed by the time I finally fed him, because his favorite kibble bowl was empty as well as his canned food bowl. He was happier after I filled both bowls. He got his very favorite canned food today, so he was happy. He was around - he mewed at me from someplace around my feet - but I think it was too warm for a lap sit.
So that's all there is and it's a clear, cold night in the field. And spring has finally come! Can summer be far behind?
March 19 Too late, not enough sleep. Didn't do anything. The usual.
Well - I did do one thing. I got the last two loads of clothes into a washbasket and halfway to the bathroom. It may be a couple of days before I can fold, but at least I'll be able to get underwear.
The weather was rather interesting. I was up fairly early for a few minutes, and we had thick fog. By the time I got up for good, it had mostly burned off and the afternoon was clear and sunny. The high temperature was 37º and there was a north wind in the 15 mph range for most of the day.
I might add that the camera software is now working correctly, so I can look back at the day's weather, and it's just in time to capture the equinox sunset at due west. I also noticed that it's possible to get a glitter path on ice, even snow-covered ice. The harbor ice is looking like it has a few puddles on it = or it did last week - but it's still frozen solid enough for the fisherfolk, but late this afternoon, there was a lovely glitter path on it. Winter never gives up its grip quickly around here.
Grayson seems to be OK. I guess yesterday he was telling me he doesn't want any more fish. Okay, duly noted. He got to sit on me for quite a while after dinner and get his head and throat rubbed, which is what he likes best, so he purred nicely.
Now it's fairly early for me, but I have to get back on a human schedule for next week. it's a clear, cold night in the field.
March 18 Late, but not excessively so, but I caught up on my sleep, so I was late. The only thing I did was cast on the second dark sock, but I think I'll work on the light one for a while and see if I can finish one of those, too.
I finally had some conversations with the author of my camera software and we may have my archiving problem solved. We'll see. I didn't get it fixed until after it shut down for the night, so I'll have to wait until tomorrow to see if it works. i' ve really missed that feature. I wish people would be more careful when they make changes to their apps and I wish they would document better. From what I could see in the settings window, I would never have thought that feature worked like that.
The weather was so-so again. It was bright-cloudy until late in the day. The high temperature was 35º and the wind was under 10 mph, mostly from the east. it looks like I'll have a reasonable day to go to town on Monday.
Both of our plow truck owners were out on the road today and I guess it's not in bad shape. Ron said he barely made it home yesterday. That hill gets gnarly around this time of year, whether you're going up or down. I guess it's not too bad now, though. There is a forecast of snow on Wednesday, but we'll see about that.
Grayson is all right, I guess, but he has finally decided he does not like fish, so he hasn't eaten all his canned food. When I went out to get my dinner, he sat down about two feet from the bowl and stared at it until I laughed at him.
After several good days, I had an accident tonight and there was no way to avoid it, because it came upon me in about a minute. It gets old. However, I have to say that not taking the Imodium hasn't seemed to make any difference at all. Now I'm wondering if the generic I'm taking is the real thing...
Now it's a cold, partly cloudy night in the field.
March 17 If you celebrate St. Patrick's Day, I hope you had a good one. There is a little Irish in my background - maybe 1/16th or so - but they were Orangemen. Since I actively hate orange, I don't observe.
I was late. I'm not quite sure how it happened, but I guess it had something to do with reading and Solitaire. I only got about 6 hours' sleep, so I'm tired. Particularly, my eyes are tired.
I finished the first dark sock, and I think I remember why I stopped doing the round toe. The last six or so rows are fiddly and hard to hold onto, although it's better with the circular needle. I'm happy with the results, though, so it will be another tweak I add to my socks from now on.
The weather was nondescript again. The high temperature was 47º, but it was overnight and it was just about steady at 41º during the day. The wind went from 15-25 mph from the north to nothing. It was cloudy and dull.
Grayson didn't even ask to sit on me today. I guess it's warm enough that I'm too hot.
I finally got an answer from the guy who wrote the camera software, but it appears that it's going to take some sleuthing to figure out what the problem with the archive is. i did what he asked me, but it was late in the day and I need to give it more time. I just restarted it, too, so we'll see what happens tomorrow.
The other outstanding item is, I complained to the FCC about AT&T. By mid-day yesterday, I still had not received any notice of my March bill, and it's due on Saturday. Then, yesterday morning, there was an email saying hey, it's 3/16 and you have an outstanding balance. This happened at the end of last year and it pissed me off then, but now it's happened again. Late in the evening, they finally did inform me that my bill was ready, but I'd already made my complaint. So today, while I was in the kitchen, I got a call from somebody. Caller ID didn't work (not that I was in a position to see it), and the message the woman left was so fuzzy I couldn't understand a lot of it. She requested that I call her back - and it's not a toll-free number!!! Sheesh. Then i got an email with the same information - and the same long distance number. So I replied, pointing out my problems. I will call the number - I can't tell you how I enjoy having the cellphone with free long distance! - but I'm not going to sit still for their anemic excuses. This is the same AT&T we had to deal with back in the '60s and '70s and I do not like it. My cell service is with Verizon, and I'm very tempted to at least talk to them about my land line. I know, they're big, too, but I've just about had it with Ma Bell.
So that got my blood moving.
Now it's a warmish, cloudy night in the field and I need to go to bed and let the almost-full moon shine in on me.
March 16 I played games, and just about the time i was going to go to bed, something occurred to me that meant I had to fire up the laptop, and you know where that leads...
So I was late getting up. I decided to work on a sock, so I knitted a row on the dark sock and then I counted rows - and I had one row too many. Not a big deal, but I should have counted before I knitted. I started the toe and this time I'm going to try a different toe, more rounded, like my feet. A few days ago, I wrote down how to do it, but of course I can't find what I wrote, so I had to figure it out all over again. I think it should make the socks fit better, but we'll see. When I started on the sock journey, I was doing that kind of toe, but for some reason, I stopped. I have round-toed feet, so I should have round-toed socks.
I didn't do much, but it was something. I got my sock darned, so I can wear them. I finished the load of underwear and socks that I started yesterday, and I got the bulletins out. Things are quiet enough during Lent that the bulletins are easy. I washed a bunch of socks with the underwear, because they needed to be bleached. Well - not chlorine bleach, of course. I had been washing them with my yucky, accident soiled bottoms and they were getting pretty dingy. They looked better to me today, but I had to open up the drying rack to dry them. I don't put my wool socks in the dryer except by accident. Anyway, that's done. All I have to do now is put the load of tops and the load of undies away. Ugh.
The weather was about the same as yesterday. The high temperature was 54º and the wind went up and down and back and forth. It was cloudy but not particularly dull. I know it's difficult in the spring, but all the forecasts have been way, way wrong for the past two days. Makes it hard to decide what to wear and what to do. It is nice to have a warm house, finally.
Grayson seems to feel better today. He did get to sit on my lap, but not for very long. It was too warm for him. He has been mostly somewhere around me.
So that's all there is and it's a sort of warmish, cloudy night in the field.
March 15 Does anyone mark the Ides of March anymore? It was a big thing when I was young.
I was late, of course, because when I got to the north end, I had to pick up the phone...
So I got up late and didn't do anything. I have decided to try to make it through until Monday and only go to town once. Gas is so expensive, the fewer trips I can make, the better. It takes me a bit over 4 gallons to get to Calumet and back, and that works out to about $20 a trip at today's prices. My tight budget can't stand too many of those.
Spring is trying to come to the Keweenaw. The high temperature got up to 54º (!!). When I think that only about 3 days ago it was 13º... Anyway, for most of the day the wind was very light, except for a couple of hours when it came out of the northwest with gusts up to 30 mph. i don't know what that was; probably some sort of fast-moving front. We even had some sunshine this afternoon, although there were some high clouds. I should have stuck my nose outside, but I didn't.
The interesting thing was that with the sunshine and warm temps, for the first time in a long time, the great room was warmer than the office. It's quite tolerable in here - until I get hungry - at 68º, which is a real relief. With the way the snow drifted, there are bare boards in front of the office patio doors, although the warmth didn't make much of a dent in the 4' drifts down by the kitchen. We've had so much snow, it will take quite a few warm days before we can see much melting. At least it's coming...
I've forgotten to mention that for two or three nights, after I turn out the lights, I have been seeing a fuzzy moon over the harbor. The fuzz is caused by the thin layer of clouds, of course, but even so, it's nice to see it up there.
I don't think Grayson felt very good today. I could see a bit of his inner eyelid, the first time I've ever seen that. He wanted to sit on me, but it was too warm for him. The other curious thing is that for the last few days, I've been able to hear him purring when I pet him, so his purr is a lot louder than it used to be. I don't know what that means.
So it was a quiet day and now it's a warmish (48º at 11 PM EDT!!) sort of cloudy night in the field.
March 14 - Pi Day
3.1415926536 I memorized that back in the day before calculators.
When I wish I could bake a pie. I've never made a pie. I think I know how to make pie crust - with lard, of course! - because I watched my mother do it from the time I was a baby, and she made the best pie crust, but I've never done it, because if I made a pie, I'd have to eat it, and I have to watch my intake. But I get hungry for pie with mama's crust - not crumbly, but layered, like phyllo, and oh, sooooo good!
Sorry.
I was late, but not too late, and I slept well, although I had very sore legs and feet. I forgot the phone, so I fired up the laptop, and after a glitch I don't like, it worked fine, so I did my surfing - minus the emails - and played Bookworm instead of Solitaire. Eventually, I stopped all that nonsense and took a shower and washed my hair, which feels very good, even though I had an accident. I don't know what it is, somehow every time I get clean, i end up having an accident. Sigh. So even though I was up at the north end, I wasn't completely doing nothing.
The weather was lovely. The high temperature was only 29º, but the north wind was under 15 mph. It was cloudy in the morning, but it cleared up in the afternoon and there was a whole lot of sunshine that heated up the house just wonderfully. It even got to 70º in the office with no space heater.
Grayson got to sit on my lap, which he liked Otherwise, he mostly slept.
The warm temperatures and the sunshine gave me a desire to do something. I couldn't do much because both knees kept going out from under me, fortunately not both at the same time. I brought in the package with my incontinent pads and my channa masala (now, that's a combination!), and I rustled around and found the rest of the yarn from the sock that has a hole in it. Those socks are supposed to be special - they have jojoba oil infused in the yarn, which makes them very soft, but they seem to be irresistible to clothes moths, and this is the second hole I've had in them. Tomorrow I can darn them. I hate darning, but otherwise, they're about my favorite wool socks, so I'll do it. I made a bit of progress sorting things out in the office (not much), because I have a lot of yarn that needs to be wound into balls. I have to get some stuff off the desk before I can do that. If it stays warmer and we have a little sunshine, maybe I can come out of my funk and do some of the things that need doing.
So now it's a maybe clear, cold night in the field and maybe I can go to bed now?
March 13 I'm still on standard time, and I probably will always be. My body does not take kindly to things like time changes. So I was very late but not as late as the clock said. I was late getting up and I didn't do anything but my surfing.
The weather has calmed down considerably and it's warmed up a bit again. The high temperature was 25º and while there was some wind, it was in the 15-25 mph range. It's now under 10 mph, which should make it warmer at the north end. I think there were a few snow flurries - it was hazy down the harbor when I got up - but I don't think there was any accumulation. It was cloudy and dull.
Grayson was a bit agitated with me by the time he got his dinner, especially when I dropped my washcloth into his water bowl. Since it was full, there was water all over the floor, but it's dry enough in here that I'm sure it dried out quickly. I have a hard time picking it up, so I usually only do it when it's half full. Then I wash it and put it down empty and pour the water into it. One learns to cope.
So that was my day and now it's a very cold, cloudy night in the field and I must go back to bed.
March 12 So really late last night. I will keep trying. And I didn't do anything much today, either.
It was a frigid day. The high temperature was only 13º and the wind chill never got over 5º. The wind died down overnight, but it was still gusting up to 33 mph this morning. Then between 6 and 7 PM, it went calm and now it's still very light - from the west. I don't think there was any snow, but it was cloudy and dull. Without the wind, it was more comfortable around here, but it's still cold.
Grayson got to sleep on my lap this afternoon, although it almost cost me an accident (it didn't), and he spent most of the afternoon asleep by my feet. I think he's cold, too.
So that's all there was. It's a frigid, cloudy night in the field.
March 11 Late again. Sigh. I haven't been nearly as late as I had been for the past months, but it's later than I wanted to be. It won't happen tonight, but I'll keep trying.
It was so cold around here today that I didn't do anything much at all. I did get one of the bags of trash out of the house, and I got a jug of something that is supposed to remove pet odors from the wash. It's supposed to work on cat pee, but I am hoping it will help with my pee, too. I was going to work on that tomorrow, but then I had an accident. Besides, it's getting to be time to wash underwear. So we'll see how that works out.
It was cold in here because it was cold - and snowy and windy - outside. The high temperature was 20º, but there was a strong northwest wind that put the wind chill down around 0º. Then in the afternoon, the wind shifted to the north and got up to 32 mph with 46 mph gusts. Oh, yes, and it snowed more or less hard almost all day. It was hairy out there, but it was lake effect, because in between the snow, we even had a little sunshine.
Ron has my mail and my packages, but he nearly got stuck going home, so he has parked his car up by US-41 (and he lives more than a mile down Woodland) and he and the guys with the plow truck will have to do some work before he can get down here again. This always happens when the wind is as strong as it has been, but it makes it hard for those who have to get out for work.
It was colder up by the north end because when I went to go to bed last night, i was having an accident and I forgot to close the door, which let all that cold air from the great room get in. I can't close it completely, of course, because Grayson's water bowl and his trays are in the bathroom, but I discovered a year or two ago that if I just leave it open enough so he can get in, it keeps most of the cold air out. However, when it gets like it was outside, it's cold in here no matter where. It was in the low 50s in the office when I got here.
It's supposed to warm up a lot next week - and rain, which will make the road, um, interesting - and I fervently hope this is the end of it. It's been long and cold and windy and snowy and I've about had it.
So has Grayson. He has been complaining all day and he spent a long time on my lap, on his back, getting a lovely tummy rub. I think it's the temperature, because he was much happier when it warmed up last week.
Well, we'll get over this and then I suppose we'll be complaining because it's too hot or too rainy or too dryor too buggy or... We're never satisfied. It bothers me, because the cold weather does a number on my knees and I have a hard time walking. It's enough to get me exercising again, except that it's too cold to do that. I need to cuddle up in my flannel nightie with my fleece jacket and my bed socks and sleep long and hard.
IT's a frigid, windy and possibly snowy night in the field.
March 10 Didn't manage it last night - in fact, I was even later. I even managed to roll over onto my left side without completely waking up. i must have come to a bit, because the body pillow and my covers were properly arranged, but I don't remember it. I didn't get enough sleep, though - not quite 8 hours - so maybe i can do it tonight. I know I'm really tired.
So I was late and then I played games again - tsk, tsk. However, I did something. I decreed that today was trash day. I didn't get it completely done, because the bags are still in the house, but I changed the bag in the bathroom and filled the bags - trash and recyclables - in the kitchen. I will get them out tomorrow, for sure. it's nice not to have stuff falling into my shoes in the bathroom and it's nice to have nothing on the counters but what should be there.
Oh, and I made rice. One discussion I had with Walter was about the Imodium, and we agreed that I would stop taking it for at least two weeks. Unless things get really bad, I will stay off it until I see him again, and we'll go from there. So I'm dependent on the rice and potatoes for a while. So far - it's only been this week - I don't notice any difference, but we'll see how it goes.
The weather was cold and the house is cold, so I had to go back to the fleece jackets. That turned out to be a source of giggles. I have so much trouble getting into them that I decided I would put the underneath garment - sweatshirt during the day and nightie at night - into the jacket before I put them on. Sheesh. By the time I got into my nightie, I was sweating, because I couldn't find the sleeves and then everything got wadded up between my shoulders in back. I had almost the same problem today with the sweatshirt, but since it's smaller, it wasn't quite as bad. It should be easier tonight, but I was laughing and swearing before I finally got dressed.
It was a cold day. The temperature got up to 21º at 1 PM and was about steady all afternoon. There was some wind this morning, which died down in the afternoon, and it came from everywhere between south and north. It was cloudy and it snowed this morning, but it cleared up in the afternoon and we had some lovely sunshine. It was clear at sunset.
Grayson hung around me all day and he got a nice lap sit after breakfast. I am beginning to wonder if part of his problem is that he knows I'm stressed and it worries him. Maybe I'm just guessing, but he sure has been clingy. Right now, he's asleep beside my feet. i haven't tried the long-handled litter scoop yet. Maybe tomorrow.
So now it's a clear, cold night in the field and i think I'm going to bed before the "Ode to Joy" starts.
March 9 well, it was 1:30 again. It's going to take time to get reprogrammed. And I diddled around too long today, but oh, well.
I finally managed to get the bulletins put together - and then Microsoft screwed me royally, but maybe they've gotten their act together. After having no problems - except that it wanted me to log in then wouldn't let me - tonight it had deleted all my contacts !!!! So I tried to log in and couldn't and fooled around for quite a while before I finally managed to get my password changed - I think. We'll see how it works tomorrow. I really need to get a new mail app, but the trouble is, I use my current one as an archiving spot and getting all that stuff out of there and stored in PDF files would be a royal pain. I need a new app anyway, because more and more pictures are not displaying in the messages I get and some of them are all pictures...We'll see how things go. Stay tuned.
The weather has gone wintry again. It snowed most of the day, although I don't think there was much accumulation. The high temperature was at midnight - 36º - and it slid down all day to 20º now. There was a strong northwest wind, in the 15 mph range, with gusts to 25 mph or so. It was dull and gray and it's cold in here again. Sigh.
Grayson was very clingy today and I don't know why. He got lifted onto my lap twice and he wanted to come again, but then I was eating. The second time, he decided to jump up on the printer, but my pill dispensers are there and one of them slid on the floor and now I will have to count my evening pills very carefully for the next four weeks. I don't blame him - I shouldn't put them there.
So that was my day and now I can try the early-to-bed thing again. It's a cold, dark, windy night in the field, but I don't think it's snowing now.
March 8 It's going to be a fight to get my schedule straight. I didn't manage very well last night, although it was only 1:30 when I got to bed. I need to get this thing under control.
So I didn't do anything today, although I didn't play games for too long. I have a lot of reading in my daily surfing these days. I've signed up for a bunch of newsletters, and while I enjoy them, it takes a while to read them. And then there are my funnies...
The weather was sort of nondescript. it was clear when I got up, but it clouded up later in the day and it was cloudy at sunset. The high temperature was 37º and for most of the day there was a strong southwest wind, with gusts up to 26 mph. It has shifted west and died down now.
Grayson got lifted up onto my lap twice and he seemed happy about it. He asked a couple more times, but I was doing something else and couldn't. He's gone someplace now. His kibble came today and with it was a long handled, metal litter scoop that I will have to try tomorrow. I think it's going to help me keep one tray clean. It's a thing I've noticed in all my cats: if you present them with two trays per cat(like they suggest), the cats will use one for the poop and the other to pee in. Grayson has two trays now, and he does. The pee gets like concrete and I'm not sure what to do about that, but at least maybe my new scoop will induce me to keep the other tray cleaner. Let's hope so. I feel sorry for the poor little guy, but it's so hard...
And that was my day. I'm going to try again to go up to the north end early and maybe this time I can get to bed at a reasonable houur.
It's a warmish (for March), cloudy night in the field.
March 7 I made it into bed by midnight, which was amazing. I slept fairly well, except i was up a lot, since I had fish for dinner. I got up around 10 AM and I was really good about not getting sidetracked, either before I got dressed or while I was doing my surfing. So I was able to stop at the post office and get my mail and have a bit of conversation with Ron.
I actually got to Laurium quite early, because the road was in much better shape than I expected. I'm pretty sure they salted, and since the sun was shining brightly again, the worst problem I had on the covered road was the puddles and patches of slush below the trees. It was mostly good to Phoenix and clear and dry from there south. The side of the piles is impressive. Also impressive and very beautiful were the deciduous trees, all of which had a coating of about a quarter inch of ice that glittered beautifully in the sunshine. I was sorry I couldn't take a picture, but the best places were where I couldn't just stop in the middle of the road and haul out the phone. So you'll have to take my word for it
The handover from the old health care provider to the new one had not gone smoothly, so I will have some calls to make tomorrow. However, i got the right tests and the results were great. My kidneys are doing well and my potassium is great. I may drop dead tomorrow, but my blood work is excellent.
I like the new guy a whole lot. I spent an hour and 40 minutes with him (much longer than was scheduled) and he wants to see me again in a month to continue the dialog. He seems to feel my requests for blood work and monitoring it myself are reasonable, and as his nurse said, he is very thorough. I think I've said this berore, but I hope he can help me find my way out of the world.
However, it was 5:30 before I finally got back to my car, and that was too late to shop. Besides, I was exhausted. I'll be back down in a couple of weeks. So I called the general store - aren't cell phones wonderful? - and had them put together my dire needs. Unfortunately, that meant I got there about 6 PM and that seems to be the busiest time for them. I'm glad to see them having so much traffic, though. I got home about 6:30. I am tired.
Oh, yeah, and the local price of gas is now $4.299, $1 more than the last time I was in town.
I found I was quite stressed on the way down and until I started talking to Walter (I'll be referring to him that way now), but by the time I left him I was fine, except that I had to pee. Of course, I couldn't get my shingls vax because I have the shingles now (I think), but I have until the end of May to get it.
The weather was lovely. It was sunny and the temperature was steady at around 28º. There was a moderate wind, in the 15 mph range, from the north. It sure was nice to see all that sunshine, and it warmed up the house very nicely.
Grayson was not happy, of course, even though he got a lap sit after breakfast. He sat in his disapproving stance (upright, with his front and back feet together and his head tilted down) while I brought in the groceries and when I went in the powder room, he sat down beside my bag and went to sleep. Poor kitty, he just doesn't trust it when I go away. He wanted to sit on me when I started eating my dinner, but when he couldn't he went away.
So that was my day. It turned out better than I guess I was afraid of and the only difficult part was that I didn't get to shop. I will be drawing down my last stash of bread, for sure, but everything else I can get at the general store.
Now it's a clear (or partly clear) night in the field and I'm tired.
March 6 Well, that didn't work, so i got up late and diddled around before I got the pill dispensers filled and took my bath. So I was late getting my meal and then Grayson came and cried at me until I lifted him onto my lap and cuddled him while I did my surfing. I finally got the south end pill dispensers filled, too. but I'm not going to be as early to bed as I hoped.
The weather is sort of settling down. It did something - it looked like snow - all night long, but it stopped around 10 AM. If you looked at the camera, the branch of the pine is way down over the patio door, so whatever came down, there was quite a lot of it and it's wet and heavy. Ron did the driveway, so I should be able to get out. The temperature was 33º all night, but it slid down during the day to 29º now. The wind swung around overnight and is now from the north, but it's under 10 mph. The next 10 days look quiet, with no snow expected. I hope they're right. And I hope the Road Commission has lots of stamp sand.
Grayson did his thing. He just came back and is now sitting under my feet. He was getting anxious by the time he got his dinner, but it's his favorite, so he sat right down and inhaled it.
And that's all there is. If I get to bed by midnight and I don't dawdle tomorrow, I should be able to get out shortly after 1 PM and stop at the post office on my way to town. When I get back is debatable, because I really must grocery shop.
Now it's a cold, cloudy night in the field.
March 5 So I lost track of time last night and I was much later than I wanted to be - not like I have been, but not what I wanted, either. Then when I got up, I lost it again, so everything has been compacted today.
So far our ice storm has been mostly a dud, I think. Something came down for most of the day, but I don't know what it was. The temperature hovered right around freezing, plus or minus a degree, so it could have been ice. The wind was from the south in the 10-25 mph range. It was dark and dreary, a good day to ignore the outdoors. We are in for the next wave overnight, and that might start out as rain or sleet and then turn to snow, which could be ugly. We'll have to see.
It has warmed up enough that I have been able to take off one layer of clothes, and tonight I am going to try to remember to open the blinds in the bedroom. I know they help keep the heat in, but I hate not being able to see out. I check what's going on down the harbor by looking in the mirror, which reflects one of the windows in the window seat, and that's not enough. Of course, I didn't do it when skies were clear and I could hav eseen a star or two...
Grayson was complaining before he finally got his canned food, and it was because he had eaten all the kibble, even the flavors he doesn't like so well, although he hadn't eaten what's on the floor. He was happy. He just got off a long sit on my lap. I think he went to sleep. I was wondering how I was going to type with him on my lap, but he can read my mind and he got a hug before he went away.
And that's it. Maybe I can do better tomorrow, and Monday I have to be up and about. Now it's a cold, cloudy night in the field and there is more precip on the way.
March 4 Oh, it's so easy to backslide! I got to playing Bookworm without even listening to the music, and I nearly lost it. I did finally stop, but it was 12:30 before I got to bed. Maybe I can do a bit better tonight, but I have to keep my fingers off Bookworm on the desktop (or laptop) and Solitaire (on the phone). We'll see how well I do.
I didn't do very well today. I knitted for a while, but I screwed up. I dropped stitches and I managed to do too many decreases, so I had a lot of fudging to do before I finally got things the way they should be. Maybe tomorrow I can make more progress, but this is a really boring project. it would be anyway, but since I've knitted it so many times before, it really turns me off. Only I'd really like the sweater to wear next winter. And then I had to play Solitaire, of course...
I was eating a light breakfast when Debbie called. She is fine, but busy, and she has decided she wants to come back the first week of July. She wanted to be sure that was all right with me. We had a nice conversation. I had been wondering how she was, since it's been a while since I've heard from her, but she has a crazy job and she's been tied up with it.
The weather was nice. It was clear this morning, although it clouded up in the afternoon. The high temperature was 25º and there was a moderate north wind in the 15 mph range that has now gone calm. The forecast is dire. We now are under an Ice Storm Warning (!) - the first time I've ever seen that one - from 1 AM tomorrow through 7 AM Sunday morning. UGH!!! Of all the weather, I dislike ice the most. I hope things are all right on Monday.
Grayson was disappointed, because he wanted to sit on me while I was talking to Debbie and eating and he couldn't. So he went away mad or something.
So that was another quiet day and now it's a warmish (for March) cloudy night in the field, and we're waiting to get hammered again...
March 3 Well, I nearly lost it last night, so i was later than I intended, but it was only a bit after midnight. Maybe I can do better tonight. I slept fairly well, with a number of wakeups but only one light night sweat, and I didn't get up until after 10 AM. I did play a bit, but not for too long.
I didn't do much with all my time. I seem to have a large amount of reading material every day now, so my surfing takes a long time. I washed the load of bottoms (and a couple of tops) that was in the washer and they are probably dry by now. And I looked through my stash of lace yarn, although I didn't find anything to make me leap into action. While I was waking up, I knitted on the sleeve of the black sweater, but that is so boring, somehow more boring than socks. I am making progress, though. It's just that my arms are so long that the sleeves have to be very long. Lace is more fun.
The weather was very cold but sunny. The high temperature was only 20º and for most of the day, there was a 15 mph (or so) wind from the north. The wind is changing direction now, and I suspect that bodes a change int the weather, too, although Environment Canada doesn't think it will cloud up until noon tomorrow. After that - yeow! We are in for more snow over the weekend. It ain't over yet.
Grayson got his lap sit and he was so happy about it. It was while the sun was still shining in the south windows, so he cuddled on my lap in the sun while I rubbed his head. He wanted to come back while I was eating dinner, but of course, I couldn't let him do that.
And that's all there was. Now it's a clear, frigid night in the field.
March 2 I managed to get to bed a little after 11 PM, but I didn't have a good night. It was partly that I had fish for dinner and partly that I was hot and partly who-knows-what. I got up a bit after 9 AM and even though I diddled around a bit, I managed to get my bath - yay, clean hair!! - and do the bulletins. In Lent, there are two of them - Sunday and Wednesday - and it takes a bit longer, at least for the first Lenten one, but I got them out and hopefully they look OK.
We're having a discussion about the prayer list. I think there are more people on it than come to church on Sunday. A long time ago, I had to start doing it in 10-point type, then I had to do the back page in 10-point type and now there's almost no room left tor the occasional announcements that need to be printed. I'm reluctant to go to 9-point because it's so small old people like me may have a hard time reading it. I have requested that my proofreaders take a look at the back page and see what can be discarded or condensed, but it's a problem. We don't want to start putting a half-page in the bulletins or change the format of the first two pages, so it's a problem. I'll be interested to see if they come up with any suggestions. I'm sure everyone who has to create handouts for anything has the same problems. On the one hand, it's fun to ply my shoehorn and try to get everything in that needs to be there, but there comes a point when there just is no more room and we're about there.
The weather was two-faced. When I got up, it was snowing and had been for 3 hours or so, but it soon stopped and the next thing I knew, the sun was out and it was clear after sunset. I always hope to one day see the zodiacal light, and it should be possible when our skies are clear, but I never have. Anyway, again the high temperature, 27º occurred overnight and it was steady at about 23º all day. There was a moderate north wind, around 18 mph, all day. It was nice to see the sun, for sure, but at this time of year, it shines in the south windows and the door in such a way that I have a hard time seeing my screen, especially when there's a cat on my lap. I think, although I don't have the archive to prove it, that the sun has crept back into the camera view. Probably so - we're pretty close to the equinox.
Yes, I had a cat on my lap for quite a while this afternoon. Today he wanted his head rubbed and he was so happy. And then he went to sleep for a while before he got too hot. He wanted my dinner, too, but he didn't get any. Too much of the stuff I eat has onion or garlic in it for me to risk it, and besides, the portions aren't big enough for both of us. So he climbed up on the pile of bags beside my chair and sat there very comfortably until it was clear I'd finished eating.
So that was my day. Chalk up another nearly reasonable schedule. Now I have to try to get things straightened around so that I eat breakfast in the morning and dinner at a reasonable hour - and then I have to keep at it. It helps that I still feel cruddy and I need a lot of sleep, and maybe that will get me on a reasonable schedule. I know I feel better than I would if I was staying up all night - although that isn't saying much. I still have sinus headaches and a runny nose and last night, what I ate gave me gas pains for most of the night. Sigh.
Now it's a clear, very cold night in the field and I can go to bed soon.
March 1 Well, we finally got over that! I know we may be in for some more winter weather, but the worst is over.
I was in bed before 11 PM. I had a bad headache and the only thing to do was put it down on my pillow. I'm sorry to say I've finally gotten my winter virus (and no, it's not COVID. I've had it for 50 years), and I feel lousy. At least it seems to be getting my schedule a bit more normal. Now if I can just get the meals to line up...
I finally finished the purple shawl. It only took me 2 years, 3 months. What an awful project! I did learn a few things, though, about choosing what to knit. I guess it's pretty, but I didn't look at it very closely. It's big. I didn't work in the strings. I just couldn't. If I ever get around to blocking it (doubtful) I'll do it then. If I'm planning to block a shawl, I work in all the ends but don't cut them off, because the fabric around them stretches. One of my favorite is in the office now because I cut off something too closely and some stitches came undone.
The weather was sort of nondescript. Technically, the high temperature was 28º, but it was overnight. It was around 25º during the day. The wind was from the north around 15 mph. I don't think it snowed, and there was a bit of sunshine late in the afternoon. We had an even 90" of snow in February, which is a new monthly total, by a couple of inches. The total for the season to date is 268.5", which is well over our average 245" and it isn't over yet.
Grayson did his thing, although he was getting impatient with me before I finally got it together and fed him. He got his lap sit and today it was a tummy rub. He hasn't figured out this new thing where I pick him up, though. I want him to sit between my feet, so I can get one hand under his forelegs and the other behind his tush. It's more comfortable for him and easier for me, but he hasn't figured it out yet. I'm pretty sure he's gained a pound or two since Louie died and he isn't a featherweight anymore.
I slept last night, but I kept waking up with night sweats - a good indicator that I'm sick - and early this morning I had the potty dream for the first time in a long time. This one was really weird and included my mother. I hope it will be better tonight, but we'll see. I'll be a little later tonight, though. I'm still aiming for before 11 PM, but I won't make it. Maybe by midnight?
Now it's a very cold night in the field and spring will come!
Last updated 04/01/22 10:21 PM Copyright S. I. Smith, 2000-2022
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