criminey Pete

 I sometimes am just, I can't describe it

    First.  I had a plan to go out and do some yardwork.

    Help comes in today and I had a rough night sleeping.  Instead of going out in a daze, I slept in my chair until 11,

    Ok....still have several hours to get in yard work.

    Showered, went to the store, stopped for a coffee.  I know!  I can't sleep so why the hell did I get a coffee?

    When I mentioned I had trouble sleeping because of the caffeine but was getting a coffee anyway, friend Amy said they had decaf cold  brew!!!  Who knew?  Next time I will get half and half.

    Of course I had to finish my coffee and unpack the groceries.

    Then I had a call concerning my bill at NW Medicine.

    So I called them.  

    Except, the area code was 855 and I automatically hit 815,  I started to leave a message when a very nice lady came on the line and said...."Stop.  Don't say anymore.  You are not calling NW Medicine."  I said I was terribly sorry and she was very nice, telling me she did not want me to leave any personal information.

    I thanked her again and redialed, using 855.

    I got a message that the number was discontinued.

    I went on line, looked up the number again and discovered I transposed the last 2 numbers.  (I know!!  How many times have I done that!  I don't do numbers well!)

    On the third attempt I finally got the right number, only to be put on hold for about 10 minutes.  I then talked to an agent who checked my account and said everything was paid up and possibly the payments and reminders just crossed in space.

    While waiting, I looked through my pad of notes and found this.....7 cold slippers, 6 ND burning, 5 cold, 3 snow.

    I was puzzled by my own notes.  After pondering and pontificating and delaying doing anything constructive outside, I realized the notes referred to F B memories.  7 years ago on whatever date I made the notes it was cold and slippery, 6 years ago Notre Dame burned in Paris, 5 years ago it was cold and 3 years ago we had snow.

    By. then it was  4:30.  I had nothing left to cause me to delay going outside.

    Oh...wait!  I can play with Beth in the basement!!!!!

    Which I did.  

    I finally went outside at 5 a d sorted through debris I had in the car, potted 3 plants and then went in to make supper.    But Jackie wasn't hungry, so I put off food for 45 minutes.

    I swept the garage, filled the bird feeders, filled the bird seed containers, carried the newly potted plants to the patio and then went to make  supper.

    After supper I  sort of tilled one raised garden, cut back the roses in planters.....one of which looks very much alive and the other looks very much dead, and put everything away.

    None of that was on my list of things to do today except tilling the raised garden.  

    But at least I did something today. 

    Now maybe tomorrow I will get today's tasks done.

Peace and Love

    

home again, home again

I picked up Julia from the airport today 

    Somehow I missed the sign for the international terminal and had to make a little detour.

    She was only out on the curb for about 15 minutes, which isn't too bad.  When I drive, it helps to have someone aboard to read the signs!

    I saw the sign that said arrivals/departures but that was for terminals 1,2 and 3.  I needed 5. I missed that one.

    But all is well that ends well.

    At least I didn't get back on the tollway without her.  That is good.

    She flew business, using her miles.  In business you get 2 checked bags at 70 pounds each.  She filled both to the limit.  And her carry on weighed at least 30 pounds.

    Want was in it?

    Chocolate for me, wine for me, tissues, more chocolate, chocolate for Jackie, chocolate for Emily.....a lot of chocolate and several bottles of wine.

    And no export taxes on any of it!

    Beth was glad to see her.  Of course, Beth got a toy too!  

    But I am tired.  And for some reason, for the second day in a row we did not have supper, although I have to cook the hamburger I thawed for supper tomorrow.  

    It was a pretty nice day.  Great weather and  safe travels,  Can't ask for more than that.

    Well, you can....but I am not going to  press it.

    Big thanks to Kimberley for staying with Jackie.We appreciate that.

Peace and Love

work ahead

 I think I will be busy soon

    This arrived today.

    I was in the back of the yard emptying my compost bin , then drove around the house and spotted it as I cam in from the front yard.

    Our van was parked in the driveway.

    Jim, who delivered it, was next door and I told him I would have moved the van.  He said he just wiggled around it.

    Now the fun begins.

    I love the smell of oak mulch.  So earthy and, well, oaky!  This is what 3 yards looks like.  

    It will be a few days before I start work on it.  

    Tomorrow I head to O'Hare to get Julia.  

    I know I won't take 88 because there is work on the road by DeKalb and it is one lane each direction.  With all the truck traffic that could mean a huge delay. Plus I'm not crazy about driving in a construction zone.  Call me weird, I just don't like it.

    I have a compost bin in the back of the yard.  I throw most of my food waste in it, except cheese and meat products.  In the spring I harvest the compost and put it in my raised gardens.

    Two years ago as I was sifting the compost to weed out large debris, I had the idea of building a little frame, maybe 18 inches by 2 feet.  I would spread screen wire over it and make it easier to sift.

    I remembered that last year, thinking I had all summer and winter to build a frame.

    Well, no frame.  I end up holding the screen wire by the edges and getting stuck by loose screen wire.

    But this year.....I will again plan on building a screen sifter!

    Maybe I will use my power miter box one more time before I sell it.

    Time will tell.

Peace and Love

fini!!

 I finished mowing today

    I wasn't as cold as yesterday, but I did make a hot cup of herbal tea when I came in after mowing.

    Tomorrow I need to put my new push mower together.  Jackie got me a battery powered mower because I can't get the rider between my raised gardens.  In hindsight, I should have moved the planters farther apart when I built them.   But hindsight solves every problem.

    I grilled for supper.  Unfortunately. I did not cover the grill when I was done and it is now raining. Both the grill and the cover are wet.

    Last night when I went to bed I had a gnawing feeling that I did not shut the garage door at Julia's house.  I know I did.  But that part of my brain that sometimes malfunctions kept telling me I did not.

    So after I went to Emily's today to test my vacuum, I went to Julia's and found that yes, I had closed the door.  And it seems the battery on the vac is dead as it won't recharge.

    That has always been a problem with me.  I leave someplace and then am never sure the door is closed.  Tonight when I got meat out of the freezer I made sure the door was closed, but double checked it when I went to get tea towels for Jackie.

    When I was getting meat, I found a package of frozen raspberries.  I had gone to the store yesterday to buy some fresh, but the packs they had did not look good.  

    I brought the frozen one up and looked at the use by  date:   July 23.  The package had been opened.  

    So I tossed them.  Well, actually put them in my compost bucket. 

    The problem is I buy food and  put it in the freezer and then forget it is there.  

    Most of the time I date the items I stick in the freezer.  But that doesn't mean I remember they are in there. I guess I just need to be more aware of what I buy and then be sure to use it.  

    I hate wasting food.  It's bad for the environment and bad for my wallet!

    That's all I have.

Peace and Love

chill, baby, chill

 I almost mowed the yard today

    I was about 3/4 done but got incredibly cold.

    It was 55 degrees, but there was no sun and a little wind so it felt more like -76.  

    Hopefully I will finish tomorrow.  But I do get distracted with other things, so nothing is for sure.

    For the first time in I don't know how long, we did not have takeout food on a Saturday night.   I made scrambled eggs and bacon.  Actually, we may have not had take out last weekend either.

    Yes, I splurged on eggs!  And bacon!  I am not a great cook, but it turned out ok.  At least we have not gotten sick yet, but the night is still young.

    I got off the mower 3 hours ago and I am still chilled.  I just took towels out of the dryer and wrapped a couple of warm ones around me.  That felt good.

    Another first.... Jackie said she was warm while I was freezing!  That almost never happens.

    Nice way to end the day....putting out the W!  Always love a Cub win.

Peace and Love

I think it is time to give up on this one.  I have never med a Jade plant that I couldn't kill.

I got a little too close to the mailbox.

I just love our redbud!

Found some gold bars in the yard today

TGIF

When you are retired, everyday is a Friday 

    Or a Monday.  Or Saturday.  You pick.

    When Julia moved she told us to make sure Beth gets fed and let out early.

    Well, we woke up at 9:15 today!  Beth was still asleep!

    But I got all the morning things done, getting Jackie up, getting Beth breakfast, reading the paper, getting ready for the day and doing a load of laundry.

    Jackie packed up the rest of Easter and read the directions for lemon cookies, which I made.

    After laundry, dishes, picking up we headed for DeKalb, where we used the Portillo's Perk app to score a free roast beef sandwich.  We also needed to go to Target for a couple of things because the local WM does not carry them , for some reason.

    I stopped for a Starbucks and we got Beth a puppy chino.  But she was bashful and would not show her face to the people in the drive up window.  So when she was done, I took her out of the car and showed her to the folks in Sycamore.

    I went to use my vacuum and it does not work.  I don't know why, obviously.  It was in the charger,  the filter is clean, but I suspect the battery is dead.  So, can I order a new battery?  Or is it the charging unit??  Should I just buy a new vac?  I really like this one, but it's a Dyson and fairly expensive.  On the other hand, I need a vacuum.

    We have a corded one which I will have to use for now.  But it is heavy and awkward.  My ancient body prefers the lighter one without a cord I can (and have) trip over.

    Not sure my neighbor will be talking to me.  He is a Brewers fan and I think he went to the game tonight.  After the grand slam and a solo homer gave the Cubs a 9-0 lead I texted him and asked if he was enjoying the game.

    I have not heard back.

    And Julia sent me some pictures of the group at Charlie's in Vevey.  It looks like a beautiful night, with beautiful people, in a beautiful place.

    Sigh....... I miss the mountains and the lake.  And the people.

    Someday, maybe again.

Peace and Love

whoops

 Funny how my train falls off the tracks

    I have been doing really well.  Counter was rid of clutter, laundry caught up.....it was all under control.

    keep getting a "change oil" message on the van whenever I start it.  So this afternoon I drove to the dealer and got the oil changed.

    The bad news came before the good news. 

    They would not rotate the tires because the front ones were worse than the back ones, and. the better tires should be on the back.  It was recommended to consider new tires.

    The van has a little over 27,000 miles on it.  And it needs new tires.  

    Car makers put the cheapest tires on new cars to hold down the cost.  But the consumer pays for it in the long run.

    The plus was the oil change was less than I thought.

    Anyway, got home, fed the dog, made supper, watched a couple of tv shows and at 8:30 got set to do this little epistle.

    But I realized I needed to do dishes first.  In the middle of doing dishes I had to take a whizz. I noticed the toilet seat was loose, so I tightened that.  At some point I remembered I had jeans to take out of the drier.  Jackie likes hers hung.  Which is fine with me.

    Noticed one of the pant hangers had "Dickow" written on it, which made me laugh.  When I went to college I wrote my name on all my stuff.....records, notebooks, pant hangers.  I have been using this pant hanger since 1966.  I have been with it longer than I have been married to Jackie.

    I still had not done the dishes.

    Then I had to take Jackie her night meds.

    And let th dog out.

    And then do the dishes.

    Which means it was 9:30 before I actually sat down to do this.  I have an icepack on my back because it is a little sore and I am sipping a decaf tea, which now is cold.

    At 9:36 Jackie was ready to go to prepare for bed.  I noticed I had not taken. the bed down and that I need to do a load of laundry.

    I decided nix on the laundry.

    It is now a little after 10 and I think I am back on track.  

    Which is doing this, that I started at 8:30.

    Next stop?  Who knows.

    But the things I said I would do tomorrow seem to be growing in number.  What is the word?  Mañana?

    Manana, baby

Peace and Love