It's a Habit

Inspirational song: A Girl Like You (Smithereens)

I was halfway to giving myself permission to skip writing tonight. I honestly thought I would. I've felt pretty crummy today, and I was sure once the chaos goblins went home that I would just go to bed. Oddly, once the house was quiet, with less shrieking and discordant piano-banging, I started to feel a little better. A painkiller helped with the unusually strong body aches. Skipping dinner and just having a carbonated drink made some of the roiling, frothing noises in my intestines quiet somewhat. I don't want to step out and go dancing or anything (not that I would in 1 degree weather), but I also am not shaking and feeling like crying anymore.

I don't have much I feel like discussing. I just wanted to decompress in the column inches where I usually do such things. Now that I let my thumbs have their before-bed stretches, I think I can take my night time pills and shut off the lights. I'll throw up a picture of little girl's post-bath ponytail, and call it good.

Bog Standard Kids

Inspirational song: Alfie (Dionne Warwick)

The bitter cold is well and truly here. It was still so cold at noon, I was worried just watching the kids walk from the car to the porch that it could hurt them. Yes, I spent two long winters in North Dakota. I know this isn't as bad as that. But these are just little kids. I'm allowed to want to protect them.

As babysitting days go, this one was relatively smooth. No major issues. Nobody fell or pinched fingers or had a major head bonk. None of the typical shenanigans. When it was lunchtime, everyone ate. When dessert came out (the last of Wednesday's chocolate cream pie), they celebrated. After letting them play out that burst of sugar energy, I took Dmitri back to chill out and watch Bluey until he fell asleep. They were sweet, and as normal as two happy kids can be.

My only disappointment of the day was later, when I was making myself a grilled cheese sandwich for dinner. I was standing by the stove, watching cheese melt, when Alfred jumped up on the stove to look at my sandwich too. I said, "Hey! What are you doing? Why are you here? What's it all about... Alfie?" And then I scooped him up and put him back on the floor. I looked at my husband, and saw that he was completely unfazed by what I'd said. I asked, "Did that really go over your head?" He had no idea that I was quoting a song, and just blinked and shook his head when I played a YouTube version of Alfie. I feel so old and dorky now.

Chill Time

Inspirational song: Royals (Postmodern Jukebox ft. Puddles Pity Party)

Hard-core snuggle weather has arrived. It has been a battle keeping the boys off of my lap. I took photos of them an hour apart, with a loop around the room to water plants in between. They were in essentially the same spots, pinning me down, stealing the warmth I radiated. The next several days will be much the same.

Saoirse and I went for a drive before the icky cold moved in. There is a house out in the  county on about 90 acres up for sale, and I've been having I'm-suddenly-wealthy daydreams about it. My puppy and I drove past it while I sighed heavily and wished I could stop there. So far no piles of cash have shown up at my door, so it's just a fantasy. Sure would be fun to give that dog all those acres to run on, though.

I will need to finish protecting my plants from bitter cold before bed. I'll close the curtains behind the Ikea shelves and my dresser. I've already pulled bathroom plants away from where they touched the window. Let's hope they don't all protest four days with minimal light. They have to choose: light or warmth. 

Vampire

Inspirational song: Joy to the World (Three Dog Night)

Is there anyone in the continental US who isn't expecting brutal cold over the next several days? It's going to be particularly awful here for the next four or five, with Sunday into Monday being stay home and snuggle with dog weather. We are practicing for it now. I have had an 80 pound lap blanket off and on this evening. It mostly goes well, until a slight noise outside sets off her perimeter alarms, and she leaps off of me to go on guard duty. By the time it's mild enough for her to patrol the back yard again, she is going to be so bored that she starts wearing holes in the floor.

Drove down to see the rheumatologist this morning. I unburdened my soul at her, telling her how l have been way more tired, sore, weak, and forgetful lately. She said the way I described it sounds like fibromyalgia is the most likely candidate for which layer of illness is intensifying. She had a couple of things to rule out (like vitamin deficiencies), so she sent me to the very friendly vampire down the hall. He drained something like seven vials of blood from my arm, making me wonder how on earth I was going to make it home (a 45 minute drive, before coffee or any breakfast to boot). I made it here, but I don't know how.

As always when someone steals my vital fluids, I was extra loopy all day. I feel all disconnected and buzzy, and I need to sleep a lot. I haven't been willing to do a whole lot of anything since this morning. I sure hope I'm not forgetting something important I needed to accomplish right away.

Whipped

Inspirational song: A Taste of Honey (Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass)

Wild times at the weekly game night. Apparently Valerie was learning the joys of canned whipped cream. I don't think anyone taught her about whip-its. I would not encourage it. 

We had extra people, including one new player and one fiancé observer. Everyone was present, although one player wasn't feeling well and stayed out of the fray completely. It's just as well they weren't playing. We spent an hour and a half just getting introduced to the new character and forming a plan how and where to march forward. The evening was loud and chaotic and a perfect introduction to the new person. They need to know what they're getting into, and this was us in a nutshell.

Big things happened before game night too. We deep-cleaned the fridge, which was about a month overdue (based on how much cooking I did over the holidays). It's times like this I'm glad I signed up for the big curbside composting bin. Gallons of spoiled food are sitting in the alley, anticipating the arrival of the collection truck in about 8 hours. Should be a frozen chunk by then. We also cooked. I made the promised beef-okra-tomato-etc dinner, and the new housemate said she liked it. I made a ton, so my daughter took home enough leftovers for three meals. I made two incredibly rich chocolate cream pies, honoring the upcoming birthday of one of our players. I asked another if this can count for his too, since it fell in the middle of all that holiday cooking.

Before bed, I need to clean my kitchen for the third time today. Yay me.

There and Back Again

Inspirational song: On the Road Again (Willie Nelson)

I watched the sun rise (right in my face) this morning as we drove out to Aurora, a southeast suburb of Denver. I watched the sun set, again right in my eyes, as I drove back from the Denver Airport this evening. Sadly, these did not bookend a single trip, but two separate events. I was on the road far too much today.

I realized Saturday that my military ID was about to expire on Sunday. I need that thing on a regular basis, even this many years into his retirement, so I jumped online and took the first available appointment to renew it. That appointment was for 0840 this morning, at the naval reserve portion of Buckley air force slash space force base. (Don't judge me for my approximation--I don't know whether Buckley is officially an AFB or SFB or JB. I only learned about the navy and marine parts this morning.) We had to be on the road by 0630 to ensure we got there on time for my appointment, which meant waking at 0545. That is smack in the middle of the most restful, productive sleep hours I get, so I'm dragging my tail now. But the ID is cool. Way fancier than all the dependent IDs I had for the last almost-3 decades. The photo is even in color now.

We came back to town, and I tried to nap before Rotary. I got a few minutes of sleep, but not nearly enough for me to make any sense when I tried to talk to all my friends. God knows what I said in my delirium. I left the meeting and headed straight back to the east side of Denver, to pick up our housemate from the airport. We tried to keep up an active conversation the whole way, so that I would remain alert enough to drive. That was just unsustainable, because we were both so tired. I was so happy to finally be on my block, but I had to sit and wait for something like 20 cars to pass in either direction before I could properly back into my driveway and plug in the car. Every second I had to wait made me more desperate. 

Immediately upon arrival, I went straight back and changed out of street clothes, and collapsed into my chair. I was away all day, which meant my lap buddy Alfred has been glued to me since I sat down, making me feel guilty for his loneliness. What was I thinking, being gone so long?

It's Good, Isn't It

Inspirational song: Feed Me (Little Shop of Horrors)

One of my favorite anecdotes was my mom's close friend saying that when her son lived close by, her husband would call him up and instead of talking, he would rev the blender a few pulses. The son knew that meant "come over now for margaritas." 

Tonight I sent a Snapchat to my daughter that was just a closeup photo of the frozen okra I just bought, with the caption "Wednesday dinner?" She laughed about how that was all it took for her to know exactly what I wanted to cook, and to say yes, make enough for her to take home leftovers.

We will be having a second housemate off and on for the upcoming school semesters, while the new person completes some classes locally to improve her computer art and videography skills. She arrived today, with a supply of food, including fresh veggies that needed to be used soonish. I had been wanting to make one of our family favorite dishes (in addition to the one above that features okra), so I immediately jumped up to thaw out chicken. I went to the store for a new tub of sour cream, and then set about making the nebulously-named chicken and broccoli with cream sauce. (I know there are better names for it, but I always forget them when I am called upon to remember one.) New housemate was impressed with dinner. I think I have proved that she can trust me when I suggest new-to-her recipes.