say goodbye to hollywood

I had a nice day - the weather is in that perfect in-between phase where it's nice and sunny but not too hot / not too cold, so after I made my coffee this morning, I took a bit of a walk around town. Some areas of town were hit hard by toilet paper this week, since it's homecoming and the kids indulged in a lot of tp-ing around the county, but I'm mostly unscathed. And I got back from my walk just in time to do some journaling while drinking more coffee, before showering, eating some huevos rancheros, and then driving to the next town over.

When I got there, I spent some quality time considering the endless question of countertops - I am struggling to decide how much I want to invest in a house that I will never get my money out of, vs. acknowledging that I intend to have it for the long haul and also cook all the time, and therefore want it to be nice. So, I discussed countertop samples with my supplier for awhile, which was quite helpful. Then, I went to Walmart to grab a few tings, came home, did some work, and took a nap.

Eventually, [censored] and I went to our parents' house for supper, where my dad had barbecued some really excellent chicken and my mom prepped baked potatoes and cheesy veggies to go with it. So, supper was v. tasty, and it was nice to hang out for awhile. When we got back to town, I abandoned [censored] so I could do some stuff for my online writing class + continue brainstorming my book. A v. interesting idea is cooking, but we'll see what comes out....

And now I really need to sleep - goodnight!

but my hand's been broken one too many times

My morning mostly consisted of getting ready and then going to look at flooring again. I'm choosing flooring options for the kitchen/dining room remodel, and redoing the floors in the main floor bathroom at the same time, so I have some incentive to get it right since it's basically the first surface guests see (after the garage, which is basically the main point of entry, and there's no changing that unless I buy the convenience store next door and turn it into a parking lot for my guests so that they can easily come in the front door).

As it turns out, I'm glad I took another look - using the best sample from the previous batch of samples, I chose two different samples to test out, and I think I like both of them better than the previous winner. I also got three samples for the bathroom, all of which seem like they would work just fine. So, hopefully I can decide this weekend so that I can get the stuff ordered and confirm installation. As usual, the woman who runs the business was a bit of a riot, but I felt good about my options, so I'll take it.

Then I came home and did a bunch of stuff around the house. I was supposed to start my online fantasy writing class this afternoon, but I got a call from my dad three minutes before it started saying that their delivery guy had left some wine for me at their house (and forged their delivery signature), but then called my dad to tell him it was there. Since my parents were both out of the house, I decided not to leave my wine to spoil in the sun - in this case, salvaging the wine was more important than showing up to class. Besides, I can watch the recording of the lecture (it's billed as 'flex online' so you can watch whenever, although live participation is encouraged), and also see what I'm getting into before the next lecture, which actually feels just fine with me.

Since I was already out and about, I ran to the grocery store and got some potatoes, and then came home, cleaned my kitchen, and baked one of those potatoes to go with some pulled pork that I had in the freezer. Eventually, [censored] showed up, so we chatted for a bit. And now I really need to sleep - goodnight!

but i ain't never crossed a man that didn't deserve it

Today wasn't quite as productive as I'd hoped - writing is a weird and sometimes stupid process, and I am far enough out of practice with the weirdness of it that I can't always tell when I'm procrastinating vs. when a break is necessary because something is percolating. However, I did mess around with fountain pens for a good chunk of the morning, which *feels* like it's writing related. I haven't used fountain pens in a couple of months at least, and over a certain span of time they eventually dry out and need to be cleaned before they can be reinked. So, I cleaned out some pens, reinked a couple, and am delighted to be back in the pen game (yes, I am a nerd).

At some point in the afternoon, I did a v. light workout, and I also spent some quality time on my balcony with my notebook and one of my freshly-inked pens. Fall is starting to set in, and while it wasn't cold outside, I still felt happy to have a blanket while I wrote. An idea is percolating that is either going to be amazing or terrible, and I'm still feeling my way through it - we'll see what I come up with.

Eventually, I had to put on real clothes so that I could go into town for a meeting of my secret society - it was the first meeting of the year, which meant dinner, which meant I had an extra incentive to show up. My mom saved me a seat next to a woman who is just as obsessed (if not moreso) with the royal family as I am, so we discussed the queen's funeral while things got underway. The supper was pretty tasty (mashed potatoes, roast beef, green beans, fruit, etc), and the social part was good - I've known most of the women forever, so it was fun to see everybody. And my mom and I both won some of the raffle decorations at the end, so #yayme.

Then I came home, messed around online, and wrote for another hour-ish. And now I should go to bed so that I can do a million (or at least ten) things tomorrow - goodnight!

so i woke up with entropy defined

I woke up this morning not feeling great, and I still don't feel great - but my covid test was negative, so I'm hoping that my stuffiness/congestion doesn't turn into anything else. When I got up, I made coffee, talked to [censored] for a bit, and then wrote off and on in several different sessions throughout the day. I'm doing some deeper plotting / ideation, which is turning over some interesting potential avenues of exploration, and I want to keep nurturing that early, fragile world of the story so that I can better uncover it.

At some point I talked to Alyssa again, and I also took a nap, both of which were good. And I had a hilarious / concerning / bizarre FedEx experience. I got a text saying my package was delivered, but I knew it actually hadn't been. So I checked the photo that was sent as proof of delivery, and for some reason they delivered it to a (hopefully abandoned) house that had a ton of trash piled in front of it. I say hopefully abandoned because I hope no one actually lives there, but in this town all things are possible. I couldn't discern my box in the piles of trash, but the photo was a bit concerning. So, I decided to drive around and look for the house and/or the FedEx driver - but then [censored] texted me to say that my package was at home, since the FedEx driver either realized their mistake or was auto-pinged that they had delivered in the wrong GPS location. All's well that ends well, I guess, and I'm glad that my new pillowcases are in my house instead of in a pile of debris somewhere else.

Eventually, I had to get ready for dinner (after [censored] v. graciously helped me attach the back to my second adirondack chair). I met up with Hannah about an hour away - we had not seen each other in ages, since I saw basically no one while I was home last year and also haven't made much of an effort since moving back. She seemed to be in good form, and it's nice to know that I'll probably see her more regularly going forward. I probably should have canceled given that I don't feel perfect - but in this case, I thought that she would be hurt / not believe my reasons if I canceled on dinner. So hopefully I don't get sick, and also hopefully I don't get her sick, but we shall see.

And now, I really need to sleep - goodnight!

there's no hand on the lever

I didn't get nearly enough sleep last night, because after I blogged I stupidly stayed up until after two reading spoilers for the new game of thrones series (which I have no intention of even watching). This was dumb, but I did come up with an (entirely unrelated) idea for my book as I was falling asleep, so if that somehow spurred some creativity, I'll take it.

So, this morning started later than planned, but I made some coffee and then wrote about my new idea and played around with it a bit. Then I did some tidying in my office before having a training session with Alyssa. After, I ran some errands (and, as usual in small town life, ran into the mom of a former classmate and also ran into a former classmate, so had to exchange some pleasantries). Then I came home, put together some ottomans for my Adirondack chairs that came today, and took a bit of a nap.

My evening was also chill - I made yet another version of a chicken burrito bowl in my instant pot, and this one was finally a winner (didn't burn, had a good flavor profile, rice was cooked but not mushy, chicken was still moist). [Censored] stuck around tonight and so got some benefit from my experimentation...and feeding some to [censored] means I won't have to eat it for every meal this week.

Then I cleaned up, took out my trash, and did some more writing. And I read a bit of BIRD BY BIRD - it's a writing book that I've read before, but it's also required reading for the class I'm taking, and I can always benefit from reading it again and being reminded that writing sucks a lot for just about everyone....but it's worth it.

And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

in anticipation for precipitation stack chips for the rainy day

I spent a lot of today cooking, which was good for feeding myself and others, but bad for other forms of productivity. When I got up, I made some coffee to get myself going, and then I made a frittata with bacon, onions, mushrooms, hash browns, and cheddar. It was pretty much perfect, if I do say so myself. Then I messed around for a couple of hours before making a couple of batches of chocolate chip chewies. The first batch was perfect, but the second batch was bizarre - I used some expired flour, but I'm still baffled why the chocolate chips all seemed to sink to the bottom of the dough. This meant that the top of the cookie didn't look like a chocolate chip cookie, and the bottom is all chocolate and doesn't really form into a crust. Bizarre.

sssanyway, I then took a shower, cut up the first batch of cookies, and packed them up so that [censored] and I could take them to a visitation for [censored]'s friend's grandma, who died last week. I didn't know her, but I know [censored]'s friend, and the friend's mom was one of my favorite teachers back in the day (as well as being in high school with my dad). So, it was nice to go to visitation - I saw a couple of other former teachers there, and it was nice to catch up with the family even though it was under sad circumstances.

Then I came home, roasted some tomatoes, and wrote for an hour or so while they were cooking. I took them out to my parents' place, along with some unusually bland mozzarella, and [censored] and I ate dinner with them. I then spent the rest of the night cleaning the kitchen, hanging out, and doing a tiny bit of writing before deciding to throw in the towel.

And now I really need to sleep - goodnight!

just a quiet prayer for congo square

I have nothing noteworthy to report - I slept in, then made coffee before getting ready. I also made a perfect omelette - I sauteed some onions and mushrooms, and then I made the omelette and filled it with the veggies + some leftover cream cheese/goat cheese/herb/garlic mixture that I'd made for yesterday's chicken. It was an inspired idea, if I do say so myself - the cheese took it to the next level.

After that, nothing could compete. I did a bunch of stuff in my office this afternoon, but I'm still not as organized as I would like. I contemplated my kitchen decor, but haven't made some final decisions. And I meant to be productive tonight, but instead I went and picked up pizzas, and then [censored] and I got sucked into several hours of Family Guy. C'est la vie, I guess.

And now, it's time for bed - goodnight!

midnight train going anywhere

I got several tings done today, but [censored] and I just spent three hours dealing with my bed, which was a project that I thought would take twenty minutes. In trying to put my adjustable platform bed onto my Denver bed frame, we discovered that the issue a repair guy claimed was fixed last fall was, in fact, not fixed, and is a total problem for me using it with my bed frame. Because [censored] is v. mechanically gifted, [censored] believes he understands how to solve the problem, but it requires a part that I may have thrown away because there was no obvious use for it after the repair guy claimed it was fixed. So, we'll see if I can find the part tomorrow or if the company will send me the part.

So, I'm glad there's a fix, but I had embarked on this project so that I wouldn't have bed frame pieces all over my room - and now the bed frame is put together, but the adjustable base is against the wall instead. Two steps forward, etc. I feel like I have been moving for months, which is pretty much true, but at least I'm making a little tiny bit of progress.

sssanyway. I did some other stuff today, including emptying a giant box of stuff in the garage. And I made a v. tasty dinner - I prepped some chicken breasts stuffed with cream cheese/bacon/herbs and wrapped in prosciutto, and then I took them out to my parents' house, where I baked them while making baked potatoes and roasting broccoli. It was all v. tasty, if I do say so myself. And now, I need to make my bed so that I can go to sleep - goodnight!

you check out guitar george, he knows all the chords

I had quite a nice day today, although it was cold enough to feel like fall is going to kick in in earnest. I picked up my mom around 10:30, and we went to one of the Amish greenhouses in the area to buy some mums. Of course, I couldn't resist picking up a couple of succulents as well, but further acquisitions were prevented by the fact that the greenhouse is mostly cleared out at this point in the season. Their mum selection, however, was top notch, and the guy was quite friendly (even though we clearly interrupted his coffee time), so it was a worthwhile adventure.

Then, we proceeded on to the next town over, where my mom treated me and my sister to lunch in honor of our September birthdays. Despite living here now, I hadn't seen my sister in ages, mostly because she doesn't drive very far and I have been entirely focused on getting settled in. But lunch was nice, and I remain a fan of getting potato chips with ranch dressing there, so it was #worthit.

After lunch, my mom and I ran some errands at Walmart and Fareway - I discovered that Fareway now sells a few flavors of Spindrift sparkling water, which I previously mostly got at Whole Foods in Des Moines, so this was a major victory. Combined with the discovery that my local grocery store now occasionally sells corn tortillas, my menu options are looking up. It's still hard to get fresh herbs (so the thing I wanted to make that requires sage leaves will not have fresh ones, and we'll see how it works with dried ones), and chicken is weirdly challenging (clearly people here do not eat nearly as much organic, air-chilled, boneless, skinless chicken breast as in my old life), but all in all I'm making it work. I also got to meet my mom's old home ec teacher at the grocery store, which was lovely.

Then we came home, and I dropped my mom and her stuff off before coming to my house and putting away my groceries. I then ran a couple of other quick errands, came home, took care of tings, ate some leftover chicken tacos (still excellent), and then hung out with [censored] after he arrived from [censored]. And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

the things we do to the people that we love

I had a pretty low key day, but I got a lot of random tasks done. This included some writing, which went well and generated some interesting breakthroughs. It also included some online shopping, such as ordering blinds for my bedroom and office - since I live near the busiest intersection in town, I can't really get away without blinds, but I took down the not-my-style curtains when I painted and haven't put anything else up yet. And it included researching a variety of house goods, doing some writing research, eating some leftovers, etc.

But now, despite giving you an incredibly boring post, I should sign off and go to bed without trying to make this more interesting - goodnight!

it took forever and a day to miss the mark

If I get as much sleep tonight as I got last night, I might be on my way toward recovering from last week's trip + yesterday's binge of the Queen's funeral. Today was pretty good, all in all - I made some tea, took a shower, ate some yogurt, and read some more of my (long) book on the Scythians while sitting on my balcony. Today was nearly 100 degrees, but my balcony is shaded throughout the day, so it was still pleasant in the morning. And the Scythians remain interesting - I can't tell you why I feel the need to read it when the book I'm writing is set in rural Iowa, but I feel some sense that there is a connection. Or, if nothing else, it makes me want to go back to Ukraine when the war is over and see the Scythian treasures that are apparently in a museum in Kiev - it's rather astonishing how much gold (very finely crafted gold with elaborate images of animals, warriors, etc) ended up in burial mounds stretching from Ukraine to Siberia, and I would like to see it in person. We shall see, we shall see.

sssanyway, at some point I had lunch, and then I went to check out flooring for my kitchen remodel. This was a fairly successful endeavor, since I got penciled in for an installation date in early December, and I got to bring home several samples (I was told I could keep them for a week, likely because the proprietor told me early on that everyone around here wants barn board styles and I was clearly drawn to not-barn-board samples). I also got some gossip of dubious provenance, which is my favorite. So, all in all, it was #worthit, and hopefully I can finalize the last major decisions for the kitchen this week.

Then I grabbed some groceries, came home, did some house stuff, and made a batch of pickled onions to go with my supper. Supper was a new-to-me recipe for chicken tacos - I made it in the instant pot, and it was super easy and extremely tasty. It would have taken five minutes to throw together if I hadn't staged the prep photos in case I instagram it, and then it took ~10min to come up to pressure, ~20min to cook/release pressure, and another ten or so minutes to shred the chicken and add some black beans to it. The chicken tacos almost tasted barbecued, since the sauce was a mix of chipotle peppers and honey, but I really liked it - so it will likely be a go-to recipe when I'm cooking in my instant pot in the garage throughout November.

And then, I wrapped up the night with some laundry, some procrastination and more reading about the Scythians. And now it's time for bed - goodnight!

rule britannia

I succeeded in getting up at 4:30am to watch Queen Elizabeth's funeral. Of course, this means I didn't succeed in doing much of anything else today. The first part of the funeral at Westminster Abbey, including the processions before and after, lasted a couple of hours, and then I took a nap before the second part of the ceremony at Windsor. It was all pretty moving, from the precision and pageantry that went into the whole day (and the ten days leading up to it), to the human grief behind the formalities.

I've lost some interest in the royals the last few years - partially because I haven't been writing romances, and so haven't been doing any research into British history, and partially because it's increasingly clear that the family is determined to continue repeating generational traumas and self-inflicted wounds that have been going on since George I showed up from Hanover in the early 1700s after (allegedly) murdering his wife's lover, (actually) imprisoning his wife for the rest of her life, and becoming estranged from his son, who would be George II. Whether they're Hanovers, Saxe-Coburg-Gothas, or Windsors, they've had a nearly unbroken chain of animosity, infidelity, and bad family decisions going back over three hundred years.

I suppose that drama makes for good tv / clickbait, and also I clearly know too much about it. But it will be interesting to see where the monarchy goes from here. Queen Elizabeth managed to stay above the fray of all of that, and her father was a hero during WWII, so it's been 80+ years since the monarch him/herself was a scandal. She managed to overcome all the messes with her children and grandchildren - but I don't know if Charles will be so lucky. And unfortunately for Charles, he's inheriting when he's 70+ years old and everyone has had seventy years to form an opinion about him; this is very different from Elizabeth inheriting at 25, and then being so silent in so many ways that the nation could project its idea of the monarchy upon her.

So...I'm less interested in the monarchy now, but I still watched the funeral, and I'm still glad I did. It's the end of an era, and it was interesting to see it live rather than catching the soundbites later.

After that, I took a couple of naps, ate some leftover chili, did some house tasks, etc. I also talked to Alyssa, who was in good form. And I got takeout pizza for dinner, since I don't have many groceries, which is a situation I shall rectify tomorrow.

And now, I need to catch up on the sleep I missed last night - goodnight!

home on the range

I have nothing of interest to report - I spent the day settling in after my trip, which was boring but necessary. I did make some tasty eggs for brunch and chili for dinner (I feel like winter is coming, even though we had a tornado watch tonight and it's going to be in the 90s this week).

But now, I need to sleep - as you might expect, I'm planning to get up and watch the queen's funeral, but for some reason they didn't plan it at a time conducive to the Central Time Zone, so I'll have to get up before dawn (which is not my favorite time unless I stay up for it). So we'll see how that goes - goodnight!

these days i miss strangers more than i, more than i miss my friends

I am back in ye olde Iowa after a long and fruitful trip to my former haunts. Today was a slow but steady slog toward the airport and then home - I had plenty of time to get ready while drinking free hotel coffee (surprisingly good!), and then I got to the airport early enough to have my beloved Cantina Grill before boarding my plane. The flight was uneventful, with a bit of uneasy turbulence, and we landed on time.

Then I picked up my car and drove home - the first thirty minutes were in a total downpour, which was made slightly more annoying by the fact that it's barely rained here in months and chose today to rain all over me (and over the local celebration that I missed, but which I'm sure was made less fun by rain). When I got home, I talked briefly to [censored], and then we went out to our parents' house for dinner. The bratwurst were tasty, as usual, and Stinky (the local skunk) was v. polite and left when we needed him to, so everything worked out.

And now, I need to get a million hours of sleep and then start detoxing from all the wine / gluten / lack of sleep I've had the past week - goodnight!

hypnotized by you if i should linger

I had a v. nice last day in Denver, although I should perhaps have rearranged my schedule to go home a day earlier given that I didn't have much to do today. My brunch plans unfortunately fell through, so I spent the morning writing in the lobby (and wrote a v. weird scene that I wasn't expecting, which was kind of fun). Then I took myself out for lunch - I went to Hapa Sushi, which I enjoyed, but it really doesn't compare to getting any sort of Japanese food in SF, so it wasn't as good as I sometimes remember it being. Then, I walked around Cherry Creek for a bit and stopped into some home stores to browse products that I might want to order for my house in Iowa.

But at some point I had no interest in browsing, and no interest in buying anything, so I came back to my hotel, relaxed for awhile, and then did a couple of hours of work at the hotel bar. Then, I got an uber to tonight's plan, which made it utterly worth staying in Denver today - Katie and I had a v. lovely dinner at Bar Dough. We were supposed to have dinner at Fifth String, but they had a plumbing problem and canceled our reservation. So, Katie and I split a bottle of rosé and two gluten free pizzas (one of which was notably better than the other) and caught up for as long as we could sit there. I miss seeing her as much as I did when I lived here, but luckily I can always lure her into a chat about gossip from our hometown, so I'm sure we'll talk as much as we usually do.

Then I came back to my hotel and did a whole lot of nothing, which means I should go to bed so I can get up and pack in time to head to the airport. And now it's time for bed - goodnight!

i had visions, i was in them, i was looking into the mirror

I had an excellent day in the mile high city, although I still have no regrets that I've decamped for lower altitudes. When I woke up this morning, I decided to give into to caution and get a covid test, since I was notified via my phone that I'd been exposed (on my birthday, of course, which is par for the course for 9/11 - never forget). So I used Uber Eats to order covid tests from a Walgreens, which arrived in record time. I was negative, as I expected/hoped, but at least I didn't feel like I was knowingly putting people I was seeing at risk.

sssanyway, after testing, I got some coffee and did a bit of work in the lobby. Then, I met up with Aunt B and Uncle B at Cherry Cricket, which is a bit of an institution in Cherry Creek - I'd never made it here because I rarely went out to eat in Cherry Creek before the pandemic, and I never went out here after. But we were able to grab a table on their nicely renovated patio, and we caught up over burgers and fries. We also walked around some home goods stores in the area, and it was a really nice couple of hours to catch up (and to give Aunt B an update on the family china that she foisted upon me, which is safely ensconced in my basement but may not be on display anytime soon - or at least until I buy some sort of china cabinet to store it in).

After we parted ways, I took a long nap, and then spent the afternoon working in the bar. I got some good ideas for my book, which were reinforced by Aunt B showing me some videos of her bees (editor's note: Aunt B stands for Aunt Becky, not Aunt Beekeeper, but both are valid), so I spent some time playing around with that and also ordering some books on folklore. And there's nothing I like better than writing in a hotel bar, so this was v. good for me.

Eventually, I put the laptop away and walked around the block (literally) to meet Kelly at Quality Italian. I kind of half ghosted Kelly when I left Denver, since we're no longer coworkers and so she didn't get an official notice of my departure. But the half ghosting was unintentional, and we made up for it with a long and leisurely dinner. Quality Italian's name sounds like it is an old school pasta joint in a strip mall, but it's actually quality - we had an excellent meal, including shrimp cocktail, and I had a steak and brussels sprouts to avoid overly gluten-ing myself (although I couldn't resist the bread, which was #worthit). Kelly had a lobster rigatoni where the lobster was seared at the table, which was a delight. And the waiter offered us tastes of the wine we were choosing, which basically netted us an extra half glass each, which felt like I was back in the game in terms of scoring free alcohol.

So, needless to say, this was all delightful. We caught up on all sorts of life and work topics, and continued the convo over a final drink at my hotel bar, and are now seriously considering a work trip to Europe together next year. And that, of course, would be right up my alley, so we shall see.

But now, I need to unwind and go to bed - goodnight!

send my love to your new lover

I had a really nice day in my former city....it was exactly as lazy as I wanted it to be. I stayed in bed for a bit, and then I went to a nearby Starbucks to indulge in some cold brew and patio time with my laptop. The people watching was especially bougie, since people were talking about real estate deals and trust funds, but I minded my own business.

Eventually, I came back to my hotel, showered, and took an Uber to Katie's, where we ordered poke bowls delivered and had a quick but v necessary catch up. I also visited the peace lily that I foisted upon her when I left town, and it seems to be doing v well, so that was a joy to witness.

Then I had some coffee, came back to my hotel, took a nap, and then wrote at the bar before dinner. At some point, Andy and Nina met me at my hotel - we had originally planned to have dinner elsewhere, but when they found out I was staying in Cherry Creek, they took it as an opportunity to go out here. We had a drink at my hotel (which is almost too hip), then grabbed dinner at a Chinese place where I almost certainly had gluten in the dumplings, but they were definitely #worthit. We did get gluten free noodles with duck, and they were excellent too. And after a bottle + an extra glass of wine there, we went to a dive bar to continue the conversation. We also played a game to guess the ridiculous baby name that a distant acquaintance had given their child, and I'm delighted to say we got it (and I successfully guessed Lyon for part of it), but I can't share the whole thing bc it would be too early searchable and I don't want to get into any drama. But all in all, it was a delightful evening.

And now, I need to sleep - goodnight!

about damn time

No long blog tonight - I woke up this morning and had a quick breakfast with the Shedletskys, and then I drove to the airport. My travel was perfectly smooth today, but it still took a good chunk of the day - which I used to nap a bit and also to finish STOLEN FOCUS (which was excellent and depressing).

When I got to my hotel in Denver, I had an hour to settle in before having dinner with my friend Caroline, who graciously came into the city and also graciously had dinner at a French place even though she's French. And now, I'm going to read a big and hopefully go to bed at a reasonable hour - goodnight!

fill up the engine, we can drive real far

This is my last day in the city of sin, and I feel like I've made the most of my time here. Today was a low-key way to live my best life...I got almost nine hours of sleep, had coffee while getting ready, and then drove to the Marina for brunch. That was a bittersweet excursion since Terry and I lived there for years and obviously don't any longer, and covid had changed things to the point that you now order on an app from your table to avoid all human contact. But still, it was a nice place to spend the morning.

Then, I went to my favorite spa in the city to get a v long massage. I didn't enjoy it as much as I've enjoyed some massages, but I think it was good for my body (even if I overheated). After it was done, I took a shower, got ready, and drove south ...

... where I had a sleepover with the Shedletsky family. I arrived early, so we had many hours to catch up and entertain each other, which was great. And Shedletsky made an excellent tri tip and potatoes au gratin, and Bride of Shedletsky made an amazing flourless chocolate cake, and a good time was had by all.

And now I need to sleep so I can leave in the morning - goodnight!

never forget

I had an excellent birthday in the city of sin. Despite last night's blog post ending abruptly, I was actually pretty sedate yesterday - I guess we're all growing up, or something. After seeing Jess yesterday afternoon, I came back to my hotel, freshened up briefly, and then went to ABV for a pre-dinner drink. ABV was one of my old haunts in my youth, and it's still got it - I had a Mumbai Mule that was quite tasty. Claudia and Sam joined for the pre-dinner drink, which was a nice way to get the party started. 

Then we walked to Burma Love, which I chose specifically because I now live hundreds of miles from the nearest Burmese restaurant. We met up with Adit, Priyanka, Chandlord, and John, and the seven of us had a decadent and delicious dinner. It of course devolved into the usual shenanigans (i.e. everyone got to ask me a question; we wanted to do a candle ceremony, but there were no candles, and the birthday dessert that was brought out to me had a rather dangerous sparkler in it instead of candles). Then we adjourned to Elixir, where we drank alcoholic slushies (mountain = irish coffee; beach = spicy margarita) and felt like we were going to get run over in our parklet every time the MUNI went by. I must say, I like the proliferation of parklets (booths outside in former parking spots, created tanks to covid), but this particular parklet felt like we were going to die (especially after John and I accidentally broke the plastic divider, ha).

Side note: San Francisco feels like it's finally coming back to life. The handful of trips I've taken here since the pandemic have been strange and sad and apocalyptic, since no one was out and everything was closing early. But Friday, Saturday, and today were all busy and bustling and wonderful. The first two bars we tried to go to before Elixir were either too noisy or had lines out the door and around the block; Friday was also surprisingly busy and back to normal. It's too early to say what the future holds, but this is closer to the San Francisco I remember, and my heart was happy to feel it.

After Elixir, the final crew (me, Chandlord, the cat, and Dirty John) went to the Hideout and had a final cocktail while ensconced upstairs. Then it was last call, and we got overly-expensive ubers to get ourselves out of the Mission. As usual, family dinner was a success, and as usual, I remain happy/surprised/delighted/confused that I've been friends with most of these people for twenty-three years and counting.

So, this morning was better than it could have been - last night's alcohol consumption was pretty relaxed, and my physical health this morning was wrecked more by lack of sleep than by tequila. So, I was lazy this morning before eventually rallying to have brunch with Chandlord, since we haven't had 1:1 time in ages. We went to True Laurel, which was incredible (I've had some great meals this weekend, and Burma Love and Beretta held their own, but this may have been the best) - I had a fantastic deconstructed pork fried rice that I'll probably dream about. We also got to catch up on work and life in ways that are harder in big groups, which was much overdue. And I got to see Chandlord's remodeled bathroom, which gave me some ideas...

Then I came back to my hotel, took a long nap, and talked to my parents. And then I had a late afternoon snack with Katrina, who came to Japantown for me - I had ended our hangout Friday rather abruptly, so we continued the convo today. We hung out in one of the pedestrian areas of Japantown, then had some shishito peppers and seaweed salad (for her) and buns with pork and sweet/sour chicken (for me), and it was v. lovely.

Then, I spent approx ten minutes switching out of sweats into a dress and also putting on eyeshadow, and then I met up with Veronica for dinner at Gardenias. Today was v. much a #girlsdayout since I purposefully chose to hang out with some of my favorite girlfriends, and dinner was exactly what I need. V and I hung out over dinner, then came back to the Kabuki for one last drink before she headed home. And then I switched back into sweats, came back to the bar, and nursed a final ginger beer while writing this.

And now, my birthday is nearing its close - but it's the best one I've had in quite some time, and I'm happy that I got to spend it here. And now, I should sleep - goodnight!

beach or mountain

It's officially my birthday as I write this (9/11, never forget), but this is about the day before my birthday. I had a relatively sedate start - I got up in time to meet my friend Kristen in Burlingame for a suburb-appropriate brunch slot at Crepevine. It was great to catch up with her, as always, and it was worth the trek south.

Then I came back to my hotel, took a nap, and met up with Jess at the Ferry Building (where I ate some tacos that I almost threw up immediately after because I watched a homeless guy drink a root beer float out of the trash). I also took another nap after paint with her....

... But I can't tell you more because I'm falling asleep, so you'll have to remember it in time for me to type it all up another time. Goodnight!

one to get up, one to get down

I'm v tired but also delighted, so I'll take that trade-off. Yesterday I flew to San Francisco, with the sole intent of giving myself a slightly bougie, slightly debauched, mostly relaxing birthday weekend. Yesterday was unfortunately none of those things (except bougie) - my flights were on time and yet I spent two hours trying to get out of SFO after touchdown, which was an hour and thirty minutes more than I had planned. So, I didn't get nearly enough sleep last night, which made my sad.

But I got up in time for a mani/pedi appointment at my favorite nail place, and they also waxed my eyebrows... so, I was aesthetically helped to get into my city persona. Then I went to Philz to complete my city reboot (although I order Philz beans to Iowa, so it's not an exclusive SF-persona thing anymore).

After coffee, I had an extended lunch/writing brainstorm session with my writing friends - Barbara invited us to her backyard, and Anne, Grace, and Veronica were all able to make it. We had a lot to discuss, and unfortunately I could only stay four hours, which wasn't enough ...

But then I sped to the city of sin, checked into my hotel, spent ten minutes freshening up, and then took an Uber to Beretta to have dinner with Katrina. We had a v long, leisurely catch up over a v tasty squid ink risotto and a gluten free mushroom pizza, both of which were excellent. The company was excellent too, and we walked around briefly after with the intent of hanging out...

But then I hit a new point of exhaustion, probably because I was tired after twelve hours of nonstop people/driving, and also because I was cold (I stupidly wore open toed shoes - the heatwave in the city is definitely over because we needed heat lamps at dinner). So, we parted ways and I came back to my hotel and took a v ill advised nap for thirty minutes, which usually doesn't make me rally at night.

But now it's time for bed - goodnight!

spin that record baby

I should, I suppose, go to bed - I had a v. productive day and I want to keep it up, but it's also twenty minutes until midnight. But today was good - I established care at my new dentist, who is the childlike replacement for the previous very old dentist at that practice (I am, perhaps, misrepresenting both of their ages). The hygienist and the dentist both commented, separately, that they could see the resemblance between me and [censored], which I am assuming is because neither of us ever get cavities and not because we actually look alike. But the visit was good and I left with my teeth sparkling, which I promptly ruined by getting my first Starbucks in a few weeks at the grocery store in that town just because I could.

I also dropped some samples back off to the person who is helping to design my kitchen, and then I stopped at their branch in a different town to price exterior doors (since my exterior doors are in various states of decay). Then I went to my town's city hall to settle some confusion over my garbage bill - after forgetting to charge me for garbage at all for a few months, they started charging me for a dumpster instead of a bin. But it was all settled quickly (by someone I'm cousins with, although that's not particularly relevant), and we'll see if my bill is correct next month. I also dropped some extra moving boxes off at Lorena's house, where I politely declined an offer of meatballs that apparently were not very good, based on Lorena's review of them.

Then I came home, ate a late lunch, took care of a lot of tings, and talked to Alyssa. Eventually, I picked up takeout Mexican food and took it out to my parents' house, where we had a lovely dinner (and a bit of an early birthday for me, since I won't be here this weekend for the actual day). And then I came back to my house, organized some tings related to my trip, took care of other tings, etc.

And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

don't you worry don't you worry child

I had a relatively productive day, all in all - I took care of a bunch of online/paperwork stuff that had been lingering on my desk, which was v. necessary. I also unpacked approximately fourteen boxes of books and shoved them all into my library cabinet - I had to double stack everything and the cabinet is overflowing, but at least my box count is down and I'm getting closer to unearthing the rest of my office.

Part of this is motivated by some upcoming travel - I couldn't get to my suitcases or a lot of my clothing, and I also hadn't seen most of my underwire bras in a month. This wasn't something I actually missed, but I suppose summer is ending and winter is coming, and if I'm going to leave the house looking a little less feral, I should have real clothes for those engagements. I did successfully find my bras and almost all my other clothing, and I also found my hair trimming scissors just in time to keep my bangs from overwhelming me. And I did four loads of laundry to freshen up some of the stuff I found, and unpacked several suitcases / totes into my dresser and closet. I am reminded that I have far too much stuff, but that's a problem for Future Sara.

At some point, I ate a salad, and I also did a touch of writing while sitting on my balcony - I'm easing back into the story after basically giving myself August off to settle in, and the easing in is always the hardest part. But I started a new scene that I'm intrigued by, so we'll see where it takes me.

And now, I need to get to bed - goodnight!

cover up the sun

I had a good day - I did some journaling/planning, continued reading the book I started last night (STOLEN FOCUS, still excellent), ate some tings, and put together an adirondack chair for my balcony. The chair is v. nice, and I ate my lunchtime salad in it - so far, I'm a fan. And it's a good thing I'm a fan, since I had to attach the back to the chair when it was already on the balcony, and I won't be able to take it off the balcony unless I disassemble it (or use my dad's telehandler lift to get it from the second story).

I then spent the late afternoon making supper - I started with my gram's apple crisp recipe, using apples I pilfered from the Round Barn. It turned out excellently, if I do say so myself. I also prepped the stuff for mongolian beef + a new recipe for roasted carrots/broccoli with a Chinese-inspired sauce, and then I took all the ingredients out to my parents' house and cooked it. Dinner was quite tasty, and I didn't burn myself while searing meat in hot oil, so I'll take it as a win.

Then I came home, cleaned my kitchen, did some online tasks, etc. And now it's time for bed - goodnight!

the god of ocean tides

I have nothing interesting to report today. I slept in because I stayed up way too late last night, and then I decided to make a frittata to use up some stuff in the fridge. Fall feels like it's sneaking in, and I was in the mood for hot coffee and a lazy brunch, so that is what I did (and [censored] benefitted from those urges).

I spent the afternoon being lazy+ doing some house stuff, and [censored] v kindly helped me move my dresser into my bedroom so I could start unpacking some clothes. Eventually I lost interest, though, and I spent some quality time on my balcony reading a book and drinking a glass of wine. The book is STOLEN FOCUS, which is about our declining attention spans, and I'd forgotten all about it until the library hold I placed on it months ago suddenly delivered the book to my e-reader. It's pretty interesting so far, and I managed to read several chapters, so I feel v accomplished.

And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

if you've got the inclination i have got the crime

I did a bunch of house stuff today, which was a good use of time, but I'm starting to feel the itch to write more seriously / consistently. However, I'm still unpacking - so today I continued organizing and moving tings around the house. I also spent quite a bit of time prepping some cobb salads for the week - I love them, but they're a little labor intensive. But since I can't get one doordash'd to my house, occasionally I have to expend the effort to make them myself.

At some point, my mom showed up to check out the paint job in my bedroom (which does look great, I must say). Then I finished cleaning my kitchen, took a shower, and greeted [censored], who gave me a tour of [censored]. as evening rolled up, we went out to the parents' house for dinner, where we had brats and baked beans and potatoes like any good midwesterner. Tonight was the first night in months that I felt a little bit of a chill, and I'm not sure how I feel about that - but winter is inevitable, so I supposed I can't complain.

After supper, my niece and her fiancé came over to visit - I hadn't seen Allie and Chris for awhile (since Christmas, maybe??), so it was great that they were around this weekend. We ended up going to the old soda fountain in town (which is run by volunteers, and is a restoration of the old soda fountain I used to go to when I was a kid), and it was a delight to hang out. I got a coke float, which is not what my go-to order was at the soda fountain as a kid - I usually got cherry cokes, or lemon cokes, or vanilla shakes. But it was tasty and brought back memories, so I'll take it.

Then we came back to my place and gave them the tour of my gigantic bedrooms / tiny bathrooms. Allie declared that I'm too bougie for this town, which is probably true. And we Hanseled-and-Greteled them into doing some manual labor here - and by that I mean we lured children to an isolated house with the promise of treats/ice cream, and then got them to lift a [censored] for [censored]. But it all worked out and my homeowners policy won't have to pay for any injury claims, so I feel good about that.

And now, I really need to sleep so that I can continue my unpacking extravaganza tomorrow - goodnight!

simply the best

Today was full of house stuff. I spent the morning finishing the paint cleanup  - pulling up dropcloths (which I shook out over my balcony and then dropped into the yard so that I wouldn't be hauling piles of paint dust through the house), vacuuming, cleaning the paint sprayer, etc. The paint job looks great and I'm really happy with the color (Gray Timber Wolf, which seems on brand), so I'm looking forward to finally finishing my bedroom decor. The biggest upgrade right now is using my proper bedside tables rather than the cardboard boxes I've used for the past ten months - they served me well, but it's time for real furniture.

I spent the afternoon alternating between procrastinating, doing four loads of laundry, moving furniture and other things around upstairs, and generally hanging out. And then I took a break to watch the US Open and what would turn out to be Serena's last match. While I'm not into tennis, I think Serena is great, and it was really moving to see her push through and play so well (even if she ultimately came up short). And I cried some cathartic tears at the end, so that was a fun way to spend a Friday evening.

Less fun is that I forgot that I was going to cook some chicken today, and I didn't want it to spoil, so I just poached some chicken at 11:30pm. And since the loads of laundry were mostly bedding, I also had to make my bed to be able to sleep in it (although it's mostly made now, so at least I can go to sleep sometime soon). But now I think it's time to wind down and go to sleep - goodnight!

while my blood's still flowing and my heart's still beating like a hammer

I had a v. busy day and I'm happy with what I accomplished - we'll see how I feel about my progress tomorrow when I'm able to review it in daylight. When I woke up this morning, I immediately got to work on my bedroom - I wanted to spray the ceiling today, but I had a "hard stop" (as people say at work, although that vocabulary is slipping away from me) at 11:45, which added some time pressure. However, I managed to get it done - it took some additional prep time to seal the last bits of plastic, prep the sprayer, open all the paint, etc. But the spraying itself took less than an hour, and that was even with a major debacle with the spray tip guard that resulted in paint leaking where it shouldn't have leaked (but, as far as I can tell, no damage was done).

So, I sprayed the ceiling, wrapped up the paint and dunked the spray gun in water so that I wouldn't have to clean up immediately, and took a v. brief shower. I was five minutes late for my 'hard stop', but on time enough that I was able to do some [censored] with [censored]. Then, I ran some errands in Des Moines - this was perhaps not entirely necessary, but I need to buy a fridge and a stove, and the Labor Day sales are pretty good. So I did another round of touring Best Buy and Lowes to investigate tings and reexamine other tings, and it was pretty fruitful. I think I'm getting close to making some decisions, but we'll see.

Then I sped home, where I promptly did a bit of minor touching up of the ceiling paint and then removed all the tape and plastic from the walls and baseboards. Overall I think it looks pretty great and I don't think I have much touching up to do, but we'll see how it looks tomorrow. I still have to clean up all the drop cloths, vacuum, and put away all my painting supplies, but the project is close to done and I'm delighted that I'll be able to get my bedroom properly set up soon.

I rounded out the evening with some leftover fish/potatoes/green beans and a bit of procrastination. And now I need to sleep - goodnight!