the road that they walked on was paved in gold

I didn't get enough sleep last night, but I rallied and met Caroline for breakfast. We went to Snooze, which is a little hilarious bc it's a Denver chain, but it was tasty. Then we went to an art museum that was surprisingly excellent - the rich people in Kansas City did a great job going to Europe after the war and buying cloisters to ship back. More seriously, I really liked the museum, and it was free, so I would happily go back.

Then we had a snack at the museum, came back to the hotel, and parted ways to chill for awhile. We had an early dinner at Jack Stack, where the barbecue is excellent (although they already only had patio seating at 5pm and it was 100 degrees, so even though we were in the shade, we didn't linger). Then we had a final drink at the hotel before parting ways - Caroline is driving back to Colorado early tomorrow, and so she went to bed early tonight.

I stayed in the bar and finished the book I was reading, which was a fun endeavor that probably didn't help my headache. And now I must sleep - goodnight!

i could show you love

No blog tonight - Caroline and I spent the morning going to some Amish grocery stores (with some light rain as a v. welcome accompaniment). Then we grabbed takeout salads from Outlaw, ate them at my place, and packed up to go to Kansas City. We drove separately since she's leaving from here, but we got here in time to check in, hang out in the hotel bar, and then have dinner down the street. And after we parted ways, I did some more writing-related work in the bar before retiring to my room and writing just a tiny bit more.

And now, I really need to sleep if I'm going to be in it to win it in the morning - goodnight!

everybody's taking what they can but they can't decide

I had a really nice day of #smalltownlife. When I woke up this morning, I went downstairs to get some cold brew and also chatted with Caroline about the day ahead. We started the morning off with a "walking tour" of my town (basically my usual walking route, with maybe an extra block or two, and way more talking since I told her stories the entire way instead of keeping quiet). Then we came back, freshened up / relaxed / etc, and I took care of a couple of tings.

Then, we put together the first half of an apricot jello salad - one of Caroline's requests was jello salad, and so I accommodated her request. We made the jello/fruit layer and cooked the initial part of the topping layer, and it came together much better than my first attempt in California (probably because my grandmother's recipe was a little unclear, but my mom's recipe gave me a few extra hints).

As the jello chilled, I had a random call with someone I used to work with - Caroline and I were discussing her yesterday on my balcony when she happened to text me out of nowhere and ask if I was available to chat about some roles she's interviewing for. So I had a video chat with her today - it was great to see her, and also I ended the call with a headache from thinking too much about my old world. I remain, as ever, glad that I left, even though I loved a lot of people there.

Then, I made some brunch-type foods - scrambled eggs with bacon/mushrooms/onions, which we ate with avocado and toast. After we ate, we did a bit more relaxing, and then we went to the museum and wandered around for an hour. The taxidermy is getting ever creepier as it continues to age, but they've put a lot of work into expanding new exhibits, so it was fun to walk around for awhile. Then we drove around for a bit - nothing particularly exciting, although I did show Caroline a dirt road that I used to get back to an old cemetery, which she found impressive.

A bit later, we went to my parents' house (with a drive-by of the Round Barn) to share some apricot salad with them and show Caroline the back porch where I took so many conference calls during the pandemic. The apricot salad lived up to my dad's exacting apricot salad expectations (although I maybe had slightly too much cool whip), and we had a lovely chat while sitting outside. Then Caroline and I had dinner at the Mexican place, followed by watering [censored]'s trees and spending some time chilling on my balcony (chilling made less pleasant because we have extensive Canadian smoke today).

And now, I really need to sleep since we have further adventures planned tomorrow - goodnight!

we are all just prisoners here of our own device

I had a pretty busy day today, especially since I didn't want to do anything and yet was forced to do all the things. When I got up this morning, I wrote for an hour, which felt great. Then I cleaned all the things I hadn't gotten around to cleaning yesterday (including mopping the kitchen and main bathroom, which felt like a real victory). I also took a shower, ate lunch with [censored] (leftover pasta, which was still excellent), and did a quick bit of stuff for the mural festival.

And then, at two p.m., my friend Caroline arrived. She's my first friend (other than Katie, who knows what this area is all about) to visit Iowa since Adit, who came in 2010 (and 2020, although he didn't come to my town then) and is my only other non-Iowa friend to come here. Caroline wanted to do a classic roadtrip, and so she drove here from Colorado, with more stops in Nebraska than I personally would have made, but to each their own. She's here for the next couple of days, so we spent today in a v. lowkey way - mostly on my balcony with rosé, although we did drive to the grocery store (before the rosé started).

Caroline also got to hang out with [censored] briefly in the period between when [censored] finished working and had to drive to Cedar Rapids. Then, I made dinner - my go-too Barefoot Contessa salmon teriyaki with roasted broccoli, which was as delicious as it always was. And then we continued to hang out until the sun was almost gone, at which point Caroline retreated to her room and I retreated to my chaise to do some stuff for the mural event.

But now, I've spent too much time on screens, and it's time for bed - goodnight!

shivers and cold champagne

I'm exhausted, but I got a ton of stuff done this weekend, so at least there's that. I probably shouldn't have done quite so much since I'm still recovering from my bizarre kitchen accident, but my headache is mostly gone, so I'm ready to get on with things. And, more saliently, my friend Caroline is coming to visit tomorrow, so I wanted to get some house stuff done before then.

Today, [censored] and I got the dining room set up (yes, I've owned the house for 21 months, but no, the dining room wasn't a priority until now). The dining room has thus far been a place where things go to be forgotten, but I cleaned up the table that Uncle Brian gave us when he moved out of Des Moines, and it looks pretty good after sitting in [censored]'s garage for a v. long time. I cut some felt pads to put on the feet to protect my new floor, and [censored] carried it into position. We also moved my bar cabinet into its proper location, which meant I could put glassware and alcohol into it, which was v. exciting. And I planted some new seeds in my smart garden. So, this was a v. worthwhile endeavor.

I also did a bunch of other random house stuff, planted some tings that had been slowly dying in my garage (we'll see if they resurrect themselves), and generally took care of a bunch of items on my to-do list. And I made dinner, since there is no takeout to be had in my county on a Sunday night - since I went to Des Moines for groceries last week, I bought some swiss chard, and I turned it into pasta with italian sausage and chard and parmesan. The sausage wasn't actually Italian since I realized too late that I'd thawed out some regular sausage - but I doctored it up with fennel and other Italian seasonings and it turned out great.

And now, I really need to sleep so that I can get a million things done tomorrow before Caroline arrives - goodnight!

you check out guitar george, he knows all the chords

I did not get nearly enough done today, but I am still alive, so I'll take it. I had a meeting in town this morning, and I stopped by to talk to Nancy after, so at least that all went smoothly. But the combo brought my headache back, which started to worry me since I have had a headache most of the time since hitting my head the other night.

So I ate some lunch to see if that would help, and when it did not, I went to the walk-in clinic. It took almost two hours to be seen, but I was in an exam room the whole time, so at least I wasn't exposed to whoever else showed up at the clinic. And the person who saw me checked v. carefully in my scalp for bruises, gave me some neurological tests, and determined that I'm fine but may have a mild concussion. She told me to try to stay off screens and take it easy with thinking too much, which checks out since those activities make my headache worse. Of course, I don't need my arm twisted to get excited about not answering email for a bit, but still, this is going to cramp my style.

Then I came home, took care of a couple of tings, messed around, did some laundry, and made burrito bowls for dinner. And now, I desperately need to sleep - goodnight!

hey romeo, let's go down to mexico

I'm exhausted because I didn't sleep well last night and I woke up with a headache - but I don't have much of a headache now, so I don't think my head's encounter with the kitchen cabinet caused any long-term issues. I do seem to have more of an aversion to looking at screens right now than I usually do, but maybe that's just boredom, idk.

Anyway, when I woke up, I drank a bunch of cold brew and cranked through several hours of tasks that I needed to get done. Then I showered, ate a sandwich, and made a ridiculously fast trip to Des Moines. I have a friend visiting next week and I needed to stock up on some supplies for that, and since I hadn't done a Costco run since April, I was in dire need of the tings I get there. I didn't tell my northern relatives that I was in town because it was 94 degrees out (literally, not figuratively) and there's no easy way to buy groceries and then have dinner in that kind of heat.

But it did encourage me to crank through my errands as quickly as possible, since I didn't want to let anything sit in the car (although I did take two coolers and put a lot of stuff in them that I normally wouldn't). I went to two Targets, Lowes, Costco, and Whole Foods, as well as a bookstore in Indianola and a gas station, and I was only gone from home 5.5 hours, so I'd say I was close to maximally efficient.

I wasn't as efficient as [censored], however, since [censored] made a temporary repair to my cabinet door that makes the break almost unnoticeable. This is v. nice since now I won't necessarily think of how I cracked it with my head every time I look at it. I did order an actual replacement door today, but [censored]'s skills are once again unparalleled.

So I got home around seven, unloaded everything from my car, loaded [censored] into it, and drove to town for Mexican food since it was too late to cook anything. It was just as delicious as always, and suspiciously (but happily) fast, and the conversations we were overhearing were pretty entertaining. So, that was a nice way to end the night.

Then we came home, watched some comedy stuff on TV, and I retreated to my room to do one or two minor tasks. And now it's time for bed - goodnight!

you say goodbye, and i say hello

I have nothing to report tonight - I'm pretty sure I don't have a concussion, but I also feel completely overdone on screens. I was pretty good about staying off screens today and taking it easy after last night's mishap, but there was some stuff I felt like I had to do tonight, and I somehow just spent four hours on my laptop. Oops.

So I had a headache most of the day, but it's getting better. I also made lunch, which was revisiting my trauma since I made the spaghetti that I intended to make last night, using the onion I'd cut and then thrown in the fridge after I started bleeding/fainting everywhere. So [censored] and I ate that, and it was v. tasty.

I did some light reading this afternoon and also talked to Katie (who was the second person to check on me, after my mother, who came by this morning). Then I ran over to Gloria's to give her something that she'd asked me to do for her (related to Garden Club, which I'm not even in). I hung out with her for awhile, then came home, changed, and went into town with [censored] for dinner since I didn't feel like cooking. We made a last-minute switch and went to the steakhouse instead of Mexican, which we never go to - and I would say we'll revert to Mexican again, because the steak was good but not amazing and a little overpriced (especially for here).

Then we came home, and I worked on my balcony until it was too dark to work, and then I moved inside and kept working. And now I really need to sleep - goodnight!

my heart keeps beating like a hammer

Today was great until it took a sudden violent turn at the end. I spent most of the day doing stuff for the mural festival - I worked on my balcony when I got up, then took a quick shower, scarfed down a sandwich, and went into town to meet with Nancy. We got several things done before moving on to the bigger committee meeting, which went well - there are a million things to do, but I think it will all happen. And I'm quite excited about it, so the work will hopefully be worth it.

So when I got home, I did a bunch more work on it this afternoon. Sometime around five, I took a break to eat some popcorn, do some laundry, clean my kitchen, and take care of various tings. I decided that I wanted to make spaghetti all'amatriciana for dinner, which is one of my favorites. But as I was slicing a red onion to start the dish, my knife slipped on the last cut and sliced open my left index finger.

This, needless to say, hurt. I immediately put pressure on it and held it under running cold water, but it was bleeding. And then, to add insult to injury (or injury to injury?), I started to feel woozy from the blood. I felt clammy and dizzy, and I knew things were about to get worse. I managed to mostly sit down on the floor of the kitchen before I fainted...

...and I came to a short time later (judging by my music, I can't have been out more than a minute). It was like waking up in the middle of a crime scene - the water was still running, and my dress had fresh blood where I'd stopped holding pressure on my finger, and there were drops of blood on the floor. Worse, though, was that I vaguely remember hitting my head on the cabinet behind me as I passed out - and I woke up to discover that I had broken the cabinet door completely in half.

Needless to say, this was a shock. I turned off the running water, and also turned off the water I was boiling for pasta, and retreated to my room to lie down and keep putting pressure on my finger. Out of an abundance of caution, I called [censored] to tell him what had happened - although I felt better in a few minutes and was able to put away the knife and onion, but couldn't repair the shattered door.

sssanyway. The aftermath is this: my finger is mostly fine. It didn't even bleed through the first bandage I put on it, so I'd say the cut is not a big deal. I did switch the bandage because I think the first one was too tight, and while the cut looks a little gnarly, it's not bleeding, and it doesn't even really hurt.

So, needless to say, I feel ridiculous that I fainted from it -- but also, yay me for realizing that I can't handle blood long ago, or else I would have been tempted to go to medical school, and that would have been an expensive mistake.

The other aftermath is that I have a slight headache, but I really don't think I hurt my head -- it's more likely that I have a headache because I ate a measly frozen enchilada sometime after passing out, which was not enough food to compensate for the pasta I would have made. I don't seem to have any tenderness or bruising, and I think I just hit the cabinet at the right kung fu angle with my pony tail (and the door is a solid frame with a thinner panel inset, and it was the panel that broke). I must have been sitting down when I hit it, since otherwise I would have hit my head on the counter. So, I think I'll live to fight another day (and if I don't live to fight another day, I want [censored] to get everything - and I also want [censored] to have to explain to a judge why his name is [censored]).

Unfortunately, though, I'll need a new cabinet door, which is a shame since my kitchen is so lovely and it will be not-lovely for several weeks. But there are worse problems in the world.

And now, it's time for bed (and [censored] is here tonight, so I have backup if it turns out my headache gets worse). Goodnight!

the songmaker says it ain't so bad

I have nothing to report, since I spent the day writing, despairing about writing, napping, and working on mural festival stuff. I also took a walk, which was nice even though I waited almost too long and it was getting hot at 11am. I had a nice video chat with Veronica, and it helped unlock some of the writing stuff. I enjoyed some balcony time. I watered trees and took out trash and only saw one skeleton while doing that. And I stayed up way too late writing stuff for the mural festival, but hopefully I'll survive.

And now it's time for bed - goodnight!

the zipping white light beams disregard the bombs and satellites

I have nothing to report today, other than to say Happy Father's Day to my dad! I spent the morning being a little slothful, but I made up for it in the afternoon/evening - I did several hours of stuff for the mural festival, did some brainstorming, read a bit about ancient Amazons, etc. And I went out and spent some time with my parents, which was nice.

And now, on that entirely too brief note, it's time for bed - goodnight!

baby pull me closer in the backseat of your rover

No blog tonight - I'm falling asleep while staring at my laptop, and I think it's time to call it. I took a walk around town this morning before it got too hot, and I spent most of the rest of the day cleaning. And [censored] and I met our parents for dinner, which was nice even if the prime rib was overcooked.

And now, it's bedtime - goodnight!

back door cracked, we don't need a key

I had a reasonably productive day today. I got up this morning, did a bit of work, and showered before having a coaching call related to some writing / strengths class I took. There was only one other person in the session besides the coach, so I'm glad I dialed in for it because it turned into a semi-private coaching session that was way better than I was expecting.

Then, I did a bit more work, ate some leftover pulled pork for lunch (it was excellent), and went to an eye appointment. This was 25mi north of my house, which wasn't too bad. The doctor was nice, and I mostly liked the people there, but I had a slightly confusing experience when ordering contacts/glasses...and was annoyed when I got a call after I'd already driven most of the way home that the woman forgot to measure my eye distances and so I needed to come back to do that for my glasses. Of course, I couldn't make it back before they closed even if I wanted to. So, I'll have to deal with that another time.

When I got home, I discovered that [censored] had v. graciously installed the front doorbell camera, but thanks to an incompatibility/bug (caused by my former employer), [censored] couldn't add it to the app. I tried to do it too, and ultimately had to do what [censored] had found as the only workaround on the forums - uninstall all the other devices, and then install the doorbell as the first object in the 'home'. Luckily the workaround worked, and it's great to have a video doorbell for the front door. And, [censored] is a genius and figured out how to get the doorbell to work with Marvin's original doorbell chime, which plays fun things like the William Tell Overture or La Cucaracha, so that's a delight.

To celebrate, we went to La Bota for dinner, and then came home and talked about sheep. And then I sat on my balcony to decompress for a bit before coming inside, painting my nails, and messing around online. And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

loan out a billion, i get back a trillion

I'm v. tired - I didn't go to bed early enough last night, and I set my alarm for 7:30am (a travesty) specifically so that I could put a pork butt in the oven to roast all day. Roasting all day is usually not recommended when it's 90 degrees out, but the oven temperature was only 250 degrees, and I wanted pulled pork more than I wanted to be comfortable.

So, I got up, got the pork out of the fridge and let it warm up for 45min while talking to [censored], and then slid it into the oven. While it roasted, I spent several hours working on writing-related stuff on my balcony, which was great. Then I had a sandwich, relaxed a bit, did some mural festival stuff, took a shower, and went to the grocery store.

When I got home, the pork butt was coming up to temperature faster than I expected (it only took nine hours, and I thought it would be closer to ten), so I got ambitious and made potatoes au gratin instead of roasting mini potatoes like I'd planned. Just as I put them into the oven, I ended up making impromptu plans with my mom for my parents to come over for dinner. Luckily, there were enough potatoes for four, although they turned out amazingly well and I think we all could have been greedy and had some more. I also harvested the lettuce from my Smart Garden and made a v. tasty salad, and the pork, once it was pulled, was excellent. So all in all, it was a nice dinner, even if we had to sit lined up at the counter since I still don't have anything nice going on in my dining room.

After my parents left, I cleaned up a bit, and then relaxed on my balcony. [Censored] joined me for a bit, but i ran out of steam, and so I decided to call it a night. And now I'm actually going to go to bed - goodnight!

this sweetness will not be concerned with me

I should have gone to bed an hour ago, but I was slowly decompressing from the day. I was much busier / more focused than usual - I didn't write, which is unfortunate, but I feel like I did literally everything else. Most of it is related to the mural festival - I'm feeling behind and want to get ahead of some stuff, and so I spent a few hours on that today.

I also chatted with my friend Tanya, watched a video about newsletter improvements (which I didn't get much out of, but it had its moments), ate a sandwich, and spent a tiny bit of time on my balcony (which was too hot and also too noisy from a neighbor sparrow). Then I got a quote on my hvac / minisplit situation from a local guy. And then I did more mural stuff, ate leftover burrito bowl for dinner, and ran into town for a meeting of my secret society.

When I finally got home, I did some tasks in a v. lazy/unfocused manner, messed around on the internet, and rubbed spices on a pork butt that I'm roasting tomorrow. And now, I really need to sleep - goodnight!

want to fly to a place where it's just you and me

I wasn't as productive as yesterday, but that tends to happen since my productivity ebbs and flows. Still, today was pretty good overall - I got a lot of sleep, then did some market research this morning. I'm trying to figure out exactly what subgenre I think I'm writing, since that dictates some things that I may want to include or avoid. I haven't had to make this decision in quite this way before - when I decided to write historical romance, I knew pretty quickly that I wanted to write Regencies, and that was that. With this book, it could be high fantasy, or urban fantasy, or romantic fantasy, or paranormal romance, or maybe even YA, or fantasy/scifi, or something else. All of them have slightly different reader expectations, niches, etc., and the fact that I don't know what I'm writing is starting to cause me some angst.

So, I did some market research, then ate lunch with [censored], and then watched some writing videos to try to triangulate on what's blocking me. I also did a bit of mural stuff, ran to the grocery store, and wrote a bit in the late afternoon. I made spaghetti for me and [censored], using Grandma Barb's famous spaghetti sauce recipe - note that we don't have a Grandma Barb, but the random spaghetti sauce recipe I found online is a real winner.

Then, after eating, I wrote for an hour while sitting on my balcony. I also read for a bit - I started a nonfiction book about the history of fabric/textiles (called THE GOLDEN THREAD), since for some reason I think textiles might play a role in my book that I don't understand yet. And now, I need to sleep - goodnight!

i was the last one you thought you'd see there

I didn't blog yesterday because I decompressed from the wedding by playing six hours of Zelda instead #noregrets.

When I woke up yesterday, I didn't feel all that great - and in this modern age, that means the inevitable wondering if it's allergies or covid. But I rallied long enough for [censored] and I to have breakfast - we, somewhat oddly, went to the Hy-Vee deli (note: Hy-Vee is the main grocery chain in Iowa, like Safeway). This was a good mood since the food was surprisingly good, and I was also able to get my beloved venti cold brew from the in-store Starbucks for the drive home.

The drive was entirely uneventful, and thus v. boring and hard to stay awake for. But I made it home, took a (negative) covid test, and promptly spent the rest of the day playing Zelda. It was a good way to relax, and it emptied my thoughts, and now I'm so over-played on Zelda that I can put it away for a few days and get other stuff done.

So, today, I was surprisingly productive for a Monday - usually I have some Monday scaries to continue my Sunday scaries, but since I didn't allow Sunday scaries into my Zelda marathon, there were no Monday scaries to get started with. I spent some time organizing myself and my life, did some writing tasks, did a bunch of Walldogs stuff, etc. I also had lunch with [censored], and I made us burrito bowls for dinner, which were delish. And I took a walk this afternoon, since it was quite nice and my body suddenly rebelled over the fact that it had been staring at a screen all day.

And now, I need to sleep - goodnight!

blame it all on my roots, i showed up in boots

Today was my niece Allie's wedding, which is why I'm in a hotel in Cedar Rapids. I got up this morning, threw a bunch of stuff into the car, showered, etc. and headed to Cedar Rapids. When I got here, I met up with [censored], and we had a v. delicious lunch at a burger and sandwich place nearby. Then, we got ready, and I tried to remember how to put on eye shadow after many months of not getting dressed up for anything.

Then, we drove to the wedding venue just in time for family photos, followed by (of course) the wedding. Allie looked gorgeous, and we all like her new husband, and the venue was pretty, so it was all lovely. Dinner was barbecue, and it was pretty perfect. And [censored] and I knew the photographer because she is from our town and did family photos for us a couple of years ago, so we had a couple of sidebar convos with her that were hilarious.

Eventually, my side of the family bailed (my parents drove home, but [censored] and I stayed up here in case we stayed at the wedding later). And now, it's time to sleep so I can get back to my house tomorrow - goodnight! 

the sidewalks shimmer just like diamonds

My day was too full of doing stuff with other people - definitely a good problem to have, although I'm itching to write and didn't get enough of it done this week. I woke up this morning, showered, walked to city hall to pay my water bill, and stopped by the lumber yard to talk briefly to the owner. Then, I came home and greeted Drewbaby, who was down here for the day to do a morning work meeting. We chatted for a bit, and then went into town to have lunch with my parents and my Aunt Dee. This is a confusing development for blog readers and local gossips alike, because Drewbaby is my cousin and Aunt Dee is my aunt, but they are not related to each other (Drewbaby is my dad's brother's son, and Aunt Dee is my mom's sister).

After we had lunch, I drove Drewbaby around for just a bit, and then we said our farewells. I did a couple of hours of tings (and also took a nap), watered [censored]'s [censored], etc. And then I went back into town, picked up Mexican takeout, and took it to my parents' house. Aunt Dee is here to go to my niece's wedding tomorrow, so we hung out this evening, which was really nice.

Then I came home, painted my nails in preparation for said wedding, and watched a couple of writing / productivity videos to pass the time while they dried. And now I need to sleep so I can get out of here tomorrow - goodnight!

you were just like me with someone disappointed in you

I was pretty productive today despite staying up way too late last night playing Zelda, but I've already washed my face and taken my contacts out in an attempt to avoid a similar late night tonight. Today was good, though - I wrote for three hours this morning, and then I took a quick shower, ate a quick lunch of leftovers, and went to the hospital to get my allergy shots. This time, the one on my right arm swelled up - nothing dangerous, just not comfy. But I'm doing allergy shots because I have a bad reaction to allergens, so this is to be expected.

While I was there, I did some mural festival stuff on my laptop for the thirty minutes I had to sit around. Then I ran out to my parents' house to take care of a couple of tings, came home and tidied up, watered [censored]'s [censored], made some cold brew, etc. I was supposed to have tonight to myself, but I got persuaded to go to a city council meeting (not for my town - for a town that's even smaller than my town) to talk about the mural festival. That discussion went well, I think, so it was worth going (and I didn't have to drive, since Nancy picked me up).

After I got dropped off, I spent an hour on my balcony taking care of some mural emails while drinking an aperol spritz in protest of the fact that I'm not currently in a Mediterranean country like I want to be. Then I made some scrambled eggs and toast for a late dinner, started to fall asleep, rallied, and did some writing business stuff until now. And now I'm tapped out and need to sleep since this is a busier-than-usual weekend - goodnight!

when you first come in the game, they try to play you

I have nothing of note to report today - I had a multihour meeting about the mural festival this morning, and I do not like having my mornings impeded upon, so that messed up my flow. I mean, the meeting was good (although there is a lot to do), but still, I wish these things could happen in the afternoon instead.

sssanyway. When I got home, I made a tuna salad sandwich, did a tiny bit of house stuff, and took a nap to recover from the indignity of having to leave the house before I wanted to. I did do some writing in the late afternoon, and again until it got too dark to be on my balcony (with a break for leftover pasta somewhere in there). And then, when I was done writing, I played Zelda for a few hours (longer than I intended, since I started at nine p.m. and thought I would just play for an hour...but it was more like 3.5). Zelda isn't the most useful thing I could do with my time, but it clears my head better than a lot of other time wasters, so no regrets tonight.

After I finally stopped playing, I switched some laundry out, took out my contacts, and spent twenty minutes drafting something for the mural festival that I wanted to send out tonight. And now, I'm definitely going to bed (because my Nintendo Switch is charging in the other room, not because I suddenly have all sorts of willpower). Goodnight!

wake me up inside

I have nothing of note to report today - I spent most of it working on stuff for the mural festival, which is not writing, but still has to get done. I did get up earlyish (for me) and get ready since someone came to give me a quote on putting in some new HVAC systems this summer - tl;dr: HVAC is expensive but I should probably do some tings before my 35-year-old furnace fails and other tings before I broil to death in my sleep.

Then I went into town (the other town) and had a long meeting related to the mural festival. After that was done, I came home, ate some popcorn, considered my to-do list, and promptly decided to get some groceries rather than tackling those problems. In the evening, I made a v. tasty pasta - it was a mashup of a couple of recipes I found online, and was basically an aglio and olio pasta (aka garlic and olive oil) that I added jarred kalamata olives, sundried tomatoes, and artichoke hearts to (along with some feta + some basil from my smart garden). My parents had invited me out for supper, but I declined because [censored] isn't here this week and so I can indulge my inner need for funky, pungent flavors, and this pasta fit the bill.

Along with making supper, I also did some laundry, talked to both parents and [censored], watered [censored]'s [censored], etc. And then I spent the last three or so hours doing mural festival stuff to get ahead of my to-do list (which I am behind on, so maybe I shouldn't claim I'm getting ahead). And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

domo arigato mr roboto

I didn't get enough done today, but I blame a headache and the heat. I did sit on my balcony and write this morning, so I'll take that. And [censored] and I hung out with our parents this afternoon (since none of us could handle being outside anyway), so that was nice. And I ended the day by making salmon teriyaki with rice and roasted broccoli, which was as delicious as it always is.

Then, I did a bit of work, but I decided to take the rest of the night off and play some Zelda, which was a good call. Of course, now it's late and I need to go to bed immediately, but it was a fun distraction. Goodnight!

cut me down where the water meets the sea

It continues to be oppressively hot here, which continues to be a welcome change from the dreariness of an Iowa winter. I spent the morning and early afternoon on my balcony, and I got a lot of good writing / working done, so I'm happy about that. At some point, it got too hot to be outside, so I took a nap, and then I worked in my basement for a couple of hours. This required changing into sweats, since my basement is 15 degrees colder than my bedroom and 25 degree colder than outside. But it was good to take inventory of my food supplies and rearrange things so that I can start organizing other stuff down there tomorrow.

Then, I took a shower and went to my parents' house, where mom and dad made delish barbecued chicken with twice baked potatoes. After that, [censored] and I came home, and we chatted for a bit before I absconded upstairs to work on my book a tiny bit more.

And now, I need to sleep - goodnight!

turn the car around

My day followed its usual pattern - I was pretty productive in the morning and relatively unproductive in the afternoon, with another burst of productivity around 5pm when my body started to realize it was running out of time to get tings done. But all in all, everything was good.

I had expected to work until it was time to eat leftovers, but [censored] had to drop off a [censored] in [censored], so I decided at the last minute to go along so we could eat in Garden Grove. This was the right call - even though it made eating much later than usual, my burger was delicious (even if I gluten'd myself by eating cheese curds and fried onions), and I enjoy their 'southern Iowa lemonade' (with Templeton rye) much better than the margaritas at our usual Mexican place.

So, [censored] and I had a v. nice dinner, then came home and chatted a bit more, and now I need to sleep immediately if I'm going to get anything done tomorrow. Goodnight!

cause the rain never came and washed them away

I had a lovely day, and I was productive for a good chunk of it, which was a nice development. I got up, poured some cold brew, and wrote on my balcony for three hours straight, and it felt great. Then, I ate lunch (leftover tacos) while chatting with [censored], and then I took a quick shower and went to the hospital for an appointment. Allergy shots are finally commencing after nearly a month of miscommunication, and I got my first shots today. It was easy and fairly painless, but I have to sit and wait for 30mins after to make sure I don't have a reaction, so it's a bit tedious. But I didn't have a reaction, and I was in and out as quickly as I could have been, so I'm glad that we're starting.

Then I came home and did some more work in the afternoon, while also monitoring the storm outside - we got a bit of rain, which was great. And eventually I made supper for me and [censored] - I made burrito bowls, which were v. tasty. We also watched several episodes of Friends, which is still funny, although I should probably watch the other millions shows I've always intended to watch.

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