model citizen zero discipline

I had a pretty nice 4th of July weekend, all things considered - and I think I got quite a bit done, but I'm having trouble remembering it all now. Yesterday I did quite a bit of journaling/writing in the morning, and I also inspected the house that I bought next door - my empire is expanding, but as with all empire-expansions, there will be quite a bit of work to do to rebuild to my standards. I felt pretty good about it all, especially since we verified that the air conditioning is in good working order - until [censored] pointed out a dead bat next to the water heater, which was not a welcome discovery since I hate bats. But the house has a lot of potential despite that, so we shall persevere.

I must have done more things yesterday afternoon of varying types, quantities, and qualities, but they escape me now. And then I sliced up some peaches, took them out to Mom's, and grilled bratwurst and hot dogs to go with her potato salad and baked beans. It was all quite tasty, and we also admired her continued progress in her gardens (although progress was stalled last week due to the insane heat). And then [censored] and I came home and I ended up going to bed quite early.

Today was more of the same - I got up fairly early, took care of some personal business tasks with reasonable efficiency, and did some writing. Then I showered, and then I took [censored] to the shop, where I poked around for a bit to see what I could see. When I got home, I watered plants, tidied up my office, ate lunch, scrolled for awhile, and then spent the afternoon writing / reading on my balcony until it got too hot.

It was too hot to sit, but it wasn't too hot to walk, so I walked downtown to check out the recycling bins (the cardboard bin was full, much to my chagrin). Then I came home and made dinner - this chicken orzo pasta casserole with mushrooms, onions, cherry tomatoes, mozzarella, and parmesan that [censored] and I find to be quite delicious. While it was cooking, I helped [censored] move a countertop for the garage, and then I tidied up the kitchen so that I wouldn't have to clean after dinner.

Dinner turned out super tasty, and [censored] and I enjoyed it while solving a mystery together - I had run into someone earlier in the week who knew me very well but whom I couldn't remember, and it had been bugging me for days. With the vague description I was able to provide + a single clue (one great-grandchild's name), we were finally able to solve it, with a lot of digging around obituaries, facebook profiles, and one person's wedding photo album that they had helpfully shared publicly. Feeling very accomplished after solving this extremely difficult puzzle, I came upstairs and messed around until now. But I think I should go to bed early so that I can hit the ground running tomorrow - goodnight!

heavy foot

I woke up yesterday morning in Cedar Rapids, and I could have kept the streak going of not stepping foot outside while I was in the city, but I decided that I wanted Starbucks more than I wanted to be able to claim that I had taken the trip entirely indoors. So I got ready, said farewell to [censored], and went to Starbucks, where I fueled myself with cold brew and did a tiny bit of work before hitting the road.

My drive was uneventful, and faster than usual since Iowa raised the speed limit to 60 mph on July 1st. I think that this is likely to result in chaos as people figure out which road signs have been updated and which haven't, but so far I haven't been in any accidents, so yay me. When I got home, I immediately stepped into meetings from 12 to about 5, which was not the best welcome back that I've ever had - but it set me up to be able to go into the weekend without thinking too much about work.

After I was done working, I did various things around the house, and then I picked up Mexican food for me and [censored] since I didn't feel like cooking. We both tried new things, and both of us thought that they were too bland compared to our old things, but at least we didn't starve.

Today was great, mostly since I didn't have to work. So I took care of various things, loaded my car to drop stuff off at the second hand store, and went to Indianola to run a variety of errands. Then I came home, unloaded groceries, and took Mom to Lucas (yes this is backtracking) to check out the last of this season's plants at the greenhouse. We basically struck out, but it was a nice drive. 

I then spent the evening working on cleaning my garage fridges, journaling a bit, watching more than I expected of a Savannah Bananas game, etc. And now I must sleep - goodnight!

may be vader someday later

I have had an extremely eventful couple of days, but you shall only get the highlights that I may wish to look up and fact check later.

Monday I woke up, wrote, worked, and then ran into town to attend a campaign event for Rob Sand. Unclear if he has any real shot at governor, but I think he's the most likely one to be able to do it (although he should be a shoe-in given how Iowa is dropping on all measures of budgets, economic growth, education, water quality, etc after ten years of one party rule - doesn't matter which party it is, bad outcomes start happening if one party is in charge for too long). He had a decent turnout and I enjoyed visiting with various people there, so I'm glad I went. Then I came home, worked more, talked to Katie, wrote some more, etc. 

Tuesday started with a doctor's appointment, which went great. Then I bought another house, as one does. Then I went home and slogged all day, with a break in the late afternoon to pick up the key (singular) to my new property. And then I went to the museum to screen a documentary someone made about the walldogs and the mural festival, which was really awesome. It brought back some good memories, and it was fun to watch it with Nancy, Brenda, and Bonita (+ Cindy and Jeannie, who were volunteering at the museum that day). Then I spent the evening mostly relaxing bc I was spent.

Today was a whirlwind - I got up, made cold brew, packed some clothes, watered all my outdoor stuff, etc. Then I had four hours straight of meetings, and then I grabbed my bag and a pack of salami and some leftover pizza and hit the road. I met [censored] in Cedar Rapids, which involved three hours of driving (slightly less since they raised the speed limit), and I took calls during two of them. 

So by the time I got here I was fried, but I checked into the hotel, met [censored], and we grabbed an early dinner in the hotel restaurant. If I play my cards right I might not step outside in Cedar Rapids on this trip - I parked in a garage, took the skywalk over, ate in the hotel, and our concert was in an arena attached to the hotel. So it was about as convenient as it can possibly be if you ignore the three hour drive on both sides. 

The concert was Weird Al Yankovic, who is an excellent performer. The opener was Puddles Pity Party, and I didn't know what to expect, but he was surprisingly hilarious - a 6'8" clown who has some recurring Kevin Costner bits, which you definitely had to be there for but were great. And Weird Al was awesome - he played a lot of favorites, and the overall production was great. 

And now, after the very onerous walk down the hall from the arena to the elevator (I got less than 5000 steps today and I think most of them were tending my garden and packing), it's time for bed - goodnight!

angels of the silences

I had a pretty quiet weekend. Yesterday started off well, and I did some decent writing - but I took a break to go to Dad's shop to inspect various tings with Mom and [censored], which bummed me out a bit. [Censored] is doing all the (literal) heavy lifting on cleaning things out, which makes sense since I don't know what most of it is (and the stuff I do know has very little value, like dad's old grill sitting in the weeds). He had someone come yesterday to consider buying some random stuff related to directional drilling, since only a driller would need those particular items - and that seemed to go well, although the guy blew a tire on the way home and [censored] had to go rescue him since he was pulling one of our trailers when it happened.

So anyway, while [censored] was dealing with selling things, I slipped into a bit of a funk, helped along by a very cloudy day. It's too bad since it was the last cool day for the foreseeable future, but whatever. Then we picked up pizza to take to Mom's, and I got to admire the progress she's made on her gardens, so that was great.

Today was better, oddly, since it involved a funeral. I got up around 6:30 and wrote this morning, which felt great. Then I did some gardening - I desperately needed to do some Florida weaving on my tomatoes and tomatillos since they're already out of control. I accomplished that in due form, and also watered everything since it's insanely hot. By the time I was done I had less than thirty minutes to eat something and shower, but I managed to get ready (almost) on time.

This afternoon, Mom, [censored] and I went to Kirksville for Aunt Judy's visitation. She was my dad's aunt, and she was always a hoot - I really liked her, although I hadn't seen her in years. She has suffered from dementia quite badly and hasn't really been very verbal for a couple of years, so in many ways this is a blessing. But her daughters invited us to the lunch they had before the visitation, so we went down early to see them. Debbie sat with us, which meant we got to catch up somewhat properly, and we got a chance to chat with Denise as well. And we got to eat some delicious cheesecake that they made using Judy's recipe, so that was pretty special.

After lunch, we went to visitation (across the driveway), and then snuck out instead of staying for the funeral. We had to go pick up the aforementioned trailer that the guy had borrowed yesterday to take the things he'd bought, and then since we had access to a trailer, [censored] and I picked up a 10' countertop for my garage project. Then we came home, and I spent the rest of the evening relaxing / journaling / trying not to overheat.

And now it's time to unwind and go to bed - goodnight!

she's a butcher with a smile

I had a v odd day. I got up early enough to write a bit before work, which was great, and then I had to slog in a v focused manner to get some stuff done before meeting with my boss (and Adit) after lunch. That meeting went well, and as soon as I was done, I went to Des Moines on secret business. The secret business was not accomplished as easily as I had anticipated, and it was compounded by needing to do some day job work in a parking lot, but c'est la vie.

As soon as I was done, I went to see Drewbaby and Sammie and Marcella. We hung out at their place while Marcella ate, and then we went downtown to check out the Des Moines art festival. It was surprisingly impressive - I only walked away with a ceramic piece, but there were many other things that I coveted. They apparently get 2500 applications a year and only take 250 artists, and the quality of everything was extremely high.

So it was fun to walk around, and Marcella was v well behaved until finally being over it right at the very end (acceptable). Then we went back to their house and I picked up my car and drove home. 

And now it's past my recent bedtime and I need my beauty sleep - goodnight!

empty nest

I have been slogging the last couple of days, so it's hard to dredge up interesting content for zee blog. It doesn't help that I'm still mildly congested two weeks after getting sick... I'm mostly cleared up, but every once in awhile I get a hacking cough, which is most unwelcome. 

But yesterday I took a break in the late afternoon to go into town and have a margarita with Brenda and Bonita (they are a generation older than me, but still a good time). And today I did some decent writing before work, and I spent some time on my balcony this afternoon, which almost made up for my 6:30-7:30pm work meeting. 

But beyond that I have nothing to report, and much sleep to catch up on - goodnight!

being clever never got me very far

I have reentered the work world, which is unfortunate since I would rather still be in the writing world - especially since I'm finally starting to feel better and could have used a week of non-congestion with which to write. However, I did get up early yesterday and today to write before work - tbd on how that goes tomorrow since I have not gone to bed yet, but we'll see.

So today I woke up early, wrote, showered, and then slogged until after six (with a break somewhere in the afternoon to water my gardens - I shall perhaps be inundated with tomatoes since all my seedlings survived the transplant shock). Then I threw together an easy supper of roasted chicken breasts, roasted potatoes, and roasted cherry tomatoes. [Censored] turned his into a caesar wrap, while I ate mine with copious amounts of storebought tzatziki and hummus, and I believe we were both quite pleased with our choices.

Sadly, I then made the choice to do day job work for the last hour and a half, which will make me feel a little better going into tomorrow, but does not make me particularly joyful tonight. So I'm going to go to bed and hope for a reset in my sleep - goodnight!

debi tirar mas fotos

I made it back to ye olde Iowa yesterday, after a relatively easy morning of travel - while checking my bag took longer than expected, everything else was smooth, and I had time to eat breakfast in the amex lounge and pick up some coffee before boarding. When I got to Des Moines, I wanted to go see Drewbaby's baby, but the fact that I'm still congested + was probably covered in strange plane germs made me think it wasn't a good idea.

So instead I grabbed a quick lunch at a Mediterranean place near the airport, then stocked up on groceries at fareway. When I got home, I unloaded my car, did various tings, and then [censored] and I picked up Mexican and took it out to Mom's to eat. She has made amazing progress on her gardens in the last couple of weeks, so that was fun to see. And then I came home and went to bed early to start recovering from my trip.

Today I was not really in it to win it - it was rainy and cloudy and strangely cold all day, and that affected my mood. But I got my desk set up for writing again, did some writing, did some journaling, read a bit, etc. And I made chili for dinner, which [censored] and I enjoy quite a bit.

But I've been falling asleep on my chaise for the last hour, so I think I should go to bed and hope for the best in terms of productivity tomorrow. Goodnight!

the killer in me is the killer in you

I am in transit to ye olde Iowa, but I won't be fully home until tomorrow. My workshop ended today, which meant I had to get up at six and pack + grab coffee + eat breakfast before the nine am session, all of which was accomplished in due form. It was a v nice end to the week, and while I would have liked another day or two, it will be good to go home and start incorporating some of what I learned. 

After we were done, I had a final lunch with the group, and then I caught a train to New York. Sadly I had to do day job stuff as soon as I got here, including a meeting with my boss (even though I'm on vacation and it's also a corporate holiday) - it was not an emergency, but everyone's various summer holidays is making discussions difficult. 

When I was finally done with work, I grabbed a quick bowl of pasta nearby, then came back to my room, put on a robe, pretended I was going to write, and dozed instead. And now I need to sleep since I need to leave for the airport in eight hours - goodnight!

no time is a good time for goodbye

I had another truly excellent day at this retreat. I got plenty of sleep (although I still have a deficit) and I decided to take some pseudoephedrine to clear out my sinuses, which felt great except for the fact that it makes me thirsty. But I grabbed a v quick breakfast and then had an excellent workshop.

And then I got a massage, which was transformative - my whole left side was tight, and now it feels better lying in bed. Then I chatted with some people, grabbed a v late lunch, did some journaling, and went to a panel on writing the self through various genres, which was extremely illuminating. And then I spent some time telling an ER doc that he should just make a fortune writing erotica, which was v fun. 

I took a too-short break, got ready, and then went to the final reading evening. I read a bit of something I'd been working on, and that was super fun; I think I have now convinced most of my class to move to Iowa and start a cult with me. The other readings were all really good too, and my class seems to have gelled in a way that makes it likely some of us will keep in touch. 

After the evening ended, some of us grabbed ice cream, and now I need to sleep so I can get up super early and pack before the final session. Goodnight!

love you mean it

I had an excellent day all in all - and I got a truly excellent amount of sleep last night, which helped. I'm still congested and snot-filled, and I'm still not 100%, but I didn't let it stop me from enjoying my day.

I got up later than previous days, but early enough to grab breakfast and chat with a couple of writers from my small group for awhile. Then I sat at the cafe and nursed a cold brew while scribbling in my notebook, which was v enjoyable. At some point I decamped to my room to change into shorts since the day warmed up, and then I spent some quality time this afternoon with others from my small group.

We didn't have a workshop scheduled this morning (there were various optional tings instead), but a bunch of us met up to discuss our work independently. There were student readings tonight and more tomorrow night, for which people can sign up for a three-minute slot. Three minutes isn't much time, so some of us met up to read our things to each other to get some practice with timing + feedback on whether it was working. It was really fun to do, and I'm enjoying getting to know some of the people in my group more - and it's too bad that we only have two more class sessions left.

Sadly I had to bail to do another meeting with my boss and Adit, but that only took an hour and I ate a sandwich while we talked, so it could be worse. Then I did some personal work, ate dinner, and dialed into a special session of city council. That meant I missed the first few readings tonight, but I caught several people I wanted to see, and had a glass of wine with a couple of my classmates, so that was great.

And now I need to go to bed - goodnight!

you're too sweet for me

I had an excellent day at my writing workshop - I'm starting to make some friends, and I'm really enjoying my breakout group. I also figured out my nutrition situation - I had a bigger breakfast (clearly their strong suit), bought a sandwich for lunch (meals are included at the dining hall, but I wasn't in the mood for lentils; I had to pay for the sandwich at the cafe, but it was one of the best sandwiches I've had in a long time, so it was #worthit), and then had a reasonably acceptable dinner.

I was, however, quite tired - while my cold is improving, I got less than six hours of sleep last night, and I woke up to do a bit of writing before class at nine, so I was wiped out. So after the workshop ended, I attempted a nap, then grabbed aforementioned sandwich, talked to some people, took care of various tings, and then journaled/napped in the sun. Unfortunately I had to spend two hours on a day job call in the late afternoon, but I ended in time to grab dinner before going to the evening readings. They were all quite good, so that was v enjoyable.

And now I'm going to go to bed and attempt to get eight hours of sleep for the first time in a week - my sleep debt on my oura ring is the highest I've ever seen it, so it's time to prioritize some sleep over anything else. Goodnight!

but i want you to want me too

I had an excellent first day at my retreat, although it started off a bit rough - I did not sleep well last night due to my cold + the fact that my bed creaks whenever I move, and so the morning was painful. But I grabbed breakfast, grabbed cold brew, and then had three hours of class (?), which was a very long and good discussion on place.

After that, I came back to my room and took a quick nap, and then I grabbed lunch. I found an adirondack chair by the pond in which to journal / work on my assigned writing prompt this afternoon, and I did do some writing, but I also did quite a bit of napping in the sun. Then I went to an afternoon panel session, spent some time talking to my mom, relaxed a bit more, and then grabbed dinner. When I was done eating, I went to this evening's readings, which were from four more faculty/staff members, and all of them were excellent and v. inspiring.

Then I came back to my room, though about going to bed, and instead wrote for the last two hours. But now I really do need to sleep if I'm going to get enough rest for tomorrow's workshop. Goodnight!

i'm taking a [amtrak] on the hudson river line

I am feeling slightly better today - my throat isn't quite as bad, so I was able to sleep last night, but my nose is running and my cough is still acting up, which may make for some awkwardness in a bunch of small group writing sessions this week.

But I woke up this morning feeling like some sun might help, so I grabbed a cold brew and sat in Madison Square Park (not to be confused with Madison Square Garden) and journaled while people watching. The city was very quiet this morning, likely because everyone was out late celebrating last night - all the guys at the front desk of my hotel were running on a couple of hours of sleep since they were the 6am shift, but they all claimed it was worth it. It was a v fun week to be in NYC even if I did get sick, and I guess I'm now a Knicks fan until next year.

After I was done journaling, I grabbed an amazing gluten free bagel with salmon and cream cheese from the bagel place in my hotel - and now I'm bitter that I didn't know they had amazing gluten free bagels until today, because I would have had one literally every day if I'd realized. Then I was cutting it close to finish packing, but I trimmed my bangs, showered, packed, and checked out exactly at my checkout time. I left my bags at the front desk and did an hour of personal work, and then I headed to the train station to catch a train to my next adventure.

At the train station I had just enough time to grab a gf chicken caesar wrap to go and drink part of a glass of rosé before boarding. My destination was a retreat center about ninety minutes north of the city, out in the farms and wooded areas of the Hudson River valley. I got here without issue and checked in, and then I unpacked into my little cabin, walked around to get my bearings, took a brief nap, and ate a quick dinner in the cafe.

I'm here for a five day writing workshop that I applied for almost on a whim a few weeks ago. I was looking for something different than my usual writing excursions, and I stumbled across this workshop geared toward writing about place and environment. Since so much of what I'm writing these days has to do with Iowa, which is a v specific place, this seems like it's going to be quite fruitful. Tonight there was an intro session with readings from a few of the faculty members, and I'm pretty excited to get to know them - even if I'm also exhausted, and still sick, and feeling shy in the midst of a bunch of new people. I'm sure that will wane as the week goes on, but tonight I'm indulging my desire to go to bed early so I can recover. Goodnight!

big lights will inspire you

I did not have the day that I intended to have in New York today. That was mostly because I slept very poorly last night and woke up feeling sicker than I did yesterday, which was a real bummer. I'm bound and determined to recover in time for what I have coming up this week, and so sadly I cancelled all of my friend plans so that I could sleep. This meant missing out on seeing both Sara and Terry, which was v unexpected, but hopefully I'll be back in a couple of months. 

So I dozed fitfully through the morning, then had breakfast in the hotel lobby. I also ventured out to run a couple of errands, which mostly meant buying several more types of cold medicine plus some bug spray so that I'm ready for my trip up the Hudson tomorrow. The errand running really wiped me out, and so I came back to the hotel and slept/read various articles on my phone for most of the afternoon. I went around the block to grab some food for an early dinner at four pm, which was well-timed. The restaurant was totally empty, and the cops were already setting up barricades for the various Knicks activities that were expected tonight. My food was tasty and probably would have been even better if I hadn't been sucking on honey-flavored throat lozenges.

But that wiped me out again, so I came back to my room and slept some more. Unfortunately, that means that I'm now pretty much wide awake, but I haven't declined any further today, so hopefully that means that I'll turn a corner. And I ended up watching the end of the Knicks game on my room TV. While I kind of wish that I was out in the city celebrating, it was still cool to be here during the NBA Finals run, even if I'm experiencing it from bed. 

I'm going to attempt to sleep since I need to get up and pack and check out tomorrow morning. Wish me luck with all of that - goodnight!

I like the way you move

I am v unfortunately getting sick - yesterday I had convinced myself that it was the after effects of karaoke, but overnight it became apparent that it was just my immune system in total rebellion.

So I slept fitfully last night, and then got up in time to drop my laundry at a place down the street with same day service (and willing to wash and fold nine pounds of laundry for the cost of one dress with the hotel laundry service). I also bought cough drops, although perhaps I should have stood in line for Sudafed.

I would have been tempted to stay back today, but I left my laptop in the office last night, so I had to go in. I had too many meetings, but they were all uneventful. And then I came back to my hotel, picked up my laundry, and spent two hours taking with Avichal, Curtis, and Aditya. This took it out of me, and I was going to just grab food at the hotel bar, but the live music was too loud, so I went to pecora bianca and had a v tasty gf pasta with vodka sauce. 

And now I'm going to try to sleep a million hours to promote recovery - goodnight!

I know you're trying to forget

I had a reasonably good day despite feeling much better than I deserved and much worse that I wanted to. I didn't get much sleep and I felt it all day...but the work I did do was good. And I had a v delightful extended dinner and drinks with Maya at Thai Diner - the line was ridiculous, but it was v nice to catch up. 

But now I need to sleep immediately - goodnight!

I scream at the top of my lungs what's going on

I accidentally had an Adit kind of night tonight. I was at the office a little after 8am and worked v diligently all day, until our team dinner at an Italian restaurant at 6. There were twelve of us at dinner, which was great. Then we whittled to 8 before going to a bar, where we hung out until they closed at midnight (and watched the Knicks win at the last second on Adit's phone, which we shared with the bartenders, and then we got comped more shots).

Then we whittled to the final 5, and went to karaoke, where we sang in a private room for two hours, which means it's now 2:30am and I vaguely want to die. But even though the city is still buzzing (thanks to the Knicks), I'm safely ensconced in my hotel and am going to try to power through enough sleep to get me through tomorrow. Goodnight!

I dream of love as time runs through my hands

I had an excellent day in NYC, and I need to go to bed immediately if I'm going to trust similar feats tomorrow. I woke up early (after exactly the right amount of sleep... so far after two nights in NYC my official sleep deficit is zero and my heart rate is still low, so I'm doing something right), and I swung by Starbucks before getting to the office at 8:15 and slogging v diligently for an hour.

Then I escaped the office for a brief interlude to have breakfast at Friend of a Farmer with a podcaster who I've connected with through various writing and Stanford channels. I am not likely to make a podcast (although I'm always tempted) and she is not likely to work in tech, but we have many other things in common, so it was a v fun meetup. And breakfast was great, so I went back to the office in fine form. 

Unfortunately I then had meetings for many many hours. I also ordered an açai bowl for lunch, which I have literally never done and will probably never do again, but in this moment (still full from breakfast), some cold açai with fruit and coconut and almond butter actually hit the spot. I ate it while participating in various convos about various tings, and somehow I survived until leaving the office at 6:15.

Then I came back to my hotel (with some window shopping along the way), relaxed in a way that came dangerously close to turning into a nap, and then frantically got ready when I realized that I was about to be late for dinner. This would have been particularly embarrassing since dinner was less than a block away. But I got there just in time to meet up with Emily. We had dinner at Lola's, which was an absolute delight. Emily's company is always a delight, but the food was astonishingly good. We had a tuna sashimi dish that was excellent, some gumbo grilled oysters that were extremely delicious, and a beef and barley tartare that was out of this world good. Of course, barley has gluten in it, which means I may pay for this decision, but the tartare is probably the best thing that we had, so #noregrets.

The main course was a surprisingly interesting and good Carolina rice grit cake, which I can't really explain, so you'll have to trust me. We also had a short rib that was a delight as well. And we had two hours of excellent conversation, which was long overdue. It was great to get a chance to catch up outside of the office, and hopefully we'll have more fun in the next few days.

Then I came back to my hotel, and now it's time for bed. Goodnight!

space ghost coast to coast

I got a glorious 8.5 hours of sleep last night, and while I woke up to a slightly sore leg (thanks to a bed that's not exactly to my ergonomic tastes), I felt very much rejuvenated. Since I had gone to bed so early last night, that meant that I was able to get going this morning early enough to grab a benti cold brew to fuel my walk to the office. I was in the office by 8:30, and I had quite a fun day. It's always great to hang out with co-workers in person, and my meetings were an appropriate blend of productive and entertaining. I also got to have sushi for lunch, as well as another coffee at some point in the afternoon, so I felt pretty well fueled for the day.

After work, we had a finance and friends happy hour, which meant that the finance team went out with a variety of other folks. There were nine of us in total, and Adit happens to be in town for the week as well, so we had quite a delightful happy hour/early dinner. My dinner was perhaps too early since I'm feeling a little bit hungry right now, but since my only options are $8 M&Ms from the mini bar or braving the real bar downstairs during the Knicks game, I think I'll refrain.

Happy hour was relatively sedate, though. I had one cocktail and a burger, which was just the right amount to have fun without going overboard. Then I walked back to my hotel with a couple of coworkers since we were all headed to the same general vicinity. The blocks near me are closed due to the Knicks game, but I was able to get to my hotel with no issue.

I should have done some work tonight, but I was feeling a little bit too wiped out. So I mostly caught up on the news on my phone, went on a fruitless search through the hotel for ice, and then handwrote my to-do list since I was feeling a little bit scattered. And now I need to go to bed since I have many plans tomorrow - goodnight!

I wanna see you in another light

I'm completely exhausted, so I may go to bed by 10 / 9 central, which is unheard of. Yesterday was excellent, but I did far more than I usually do on a Saturday - I was prepping to fly to NYC today and so felt compelled to do all the things.

This mostly meant gardening, although I did run some errands and do some basic tidying around the house. I had finally hardened off various seedlings enough that I didn't think I would kill them (although I'm planting two weeks later than planned, so we'll see what they do). Also, a rascally rabbit or some other non-apex predator had wrought havoc in my raised beds, killing two of my four tomatillos outright and also damaging my eggplant. Luckily I still had two more tomatillos on deck (literally, since I was storing them on my deck), but still. 

So I planted many things in grow bags, and we will see how they do. [Censored] also came up with a plan to fence the garden, which was exciting. And I did some Florida weave to support the tomatoes, tomatillos, and eggplants that still survive, so hopefully things get better (until some new pest arrives).

That took basically all day though, which was perhaps ill advised since I had to wake up at 5:15 this morning to go to the airport. I took a break last night to pick up Mexican so that [censored] and I could eat with Mom. Sadly I was too busy to hang out very long, since I hadn't started packing - and I forgot a couple of things that I basically never forget, so that's a sign that I was a little too last minute on this. But I got five hours of sleep and made it to the airport in time to have breakfast, so it could have been worse.

My flight was uneventful, and while my Uber failed to get me the last couple of blacks due to a parade, everything was otherwise smooth. This may be my favorite hotel that I've stayed in in NYC (pending how I sleep tonight) - the rooms are small and the bathroom is laughable, but the bed seems nice and the lobby bar is great. My room wasn't ready, so I journaled while eating a Caesar salad and having a glass of rosé.

My room was ready just in time for me to drop stuff off and switch shoes, and then I walked down the street to get my nails done. Then I came back, unpacked, thought about going to bed, was too hungry to go to bed, and so went to La Pecora Bianca for tasty gf pasta. 

And now I must sleep immediately despite the hour - goodnight!

have you had enough wine

I had a surprisingly productive day - probably because I didn't shower and instead started puttering around the house and taking care of various tasks. Then I sat on my balcony and worked for several hours. I am v fortunate that I work somewhere where I can dial into a meeting with my camera off...or with my camera on, thus revealing that I'm wearing sunglasses, which conveniently cover up my lack of makeup. 

So I worked outside until after one, and then I finally ate lunch, showered, and got back to it. My meetings were all good, and I ended with a call with Natalie (an old coworker), which was quite nice. 

Then I was supposed to water plants in town, but Mom and I took a chance on delaying since it looked like it would rain tonight - which was the right call since it seems to be pouring now. So I started rice in the rice cooker, did some tasks, and then made salmon teriyaki for me and [censored]. I hadn't made it in ages, so it was nice to have it again. 

And then I mostly procrastinated until now, but I'm going to go to bed and hopefully hit it early tomorrow. Goodnight!

the city's gonna love you and leave you alone

I have had a fairly boring couple of days, which is why I have not been blogging - it's all work meetings and household tasks and watering plants (my own and the town's), with some attempts at journaling and writing sprinkled in. It's finally warm enough that I can consistently work on my balcony - although that just reminds me that I want to do several big outdoor projects involving my balcony and deck and maybe a fence and also the gazebo, and potentially a fire pit too. So sitting outside isn't as relaxing as it could be, but it's better than being inside. 

However, I have nothing else to report and a million things I want to do tomorrow, so it's time for bed - goodnight!

i'm on fire, but i'm trying not to show it

I had my usual Monday - got up fairly early, tried to write (with limited success), started working, ended up taking a meeting in my pajamas, and then got ready so I could slog through meetings the rest of the day. I did run into town quickly to grab milk for tonight's dinner, so at least there was that. But it was too hot to work on my balcony, and various neighbors were burning various tings, so I decided to stay inside and attempt to focus.

By 5ish I was done, and then Mom picked me up so that we could water the planters downtown. When I got home, I inspected my plants (rabbits are attempting to eat them before they can produce anything tastier than leaves), took a break, and then made dinner. [Censored] was home tonight, unusually for a Monday, and I had picked up some swiss chard in Des Moines on Friday, so I made this rigatoni with sausage and chard and lemon zest that I occasionally make when the stars align. It's quite delicious, and it's not that much more effort than any other pasta dish - but since it requires chard, and I can't get chard within 75 miles of here, it's a rare treat.

So we ate pasta, and then I cleaned up, came upstairs with the intention of getting something done, and instead procrastinated completely. And now it's time for bed so that I can reset tomorrow - goodnight!

or am I origami, fold it up and just pretend

I got a lot done this weekend, which felt great... but now I'm heading into the work week feeling like I could use another day, or possibly week, or maybe month of time to get things done. Yesterday I did some writing in the morning, as well as various other tings on my laptop, and then I spent the afternoon tidying up my office, doing laundry, and taking care of various other household tasks. While the weather was certainly nice enough from a temperature standpoint that I should have been outside, it was overcast and seemed to be threatening a storm most of the day. So I had quite a productive chunk of time in my office instead, which felt unusually good.

Eventually I got ready, and then [censored] and I picked up Mom and we went to Seymour for dinner. My steak was so rare that I almost sent it back, which is unheard of for me - I don't think I have ever had a steak that I thought was too rare. It's like they forgot to cook one side of it, which, since it was a really thin ribeye, maybe could have worked out to all of our advantages, but in this case it was simply too rare for my tastes. However, that means it will make for an excellent reheated steak if I actually cook the other side and make some eggs to go with it, so I'm looking forward to having leftovers later this week.

Today wasn't quite as productive because I struggled to get enough sleep, but I woke up this morning and did some good writing until about noon, which felt great. Then I messed around online for a while and procrastinated just a little bit too much, but I eventually made it outside. I spent several very nice hours planting things on my patio - I've now planted basically all of the vegetable plants that I purchased, although I still haven't finished my seedling experiment. I'm trying growing peppers in grow bags this year because I felt like they got too much heat and sun in my raised beds last year. So now I have several grow bags with poblanos, anaheims, and jalapenos sitting on my patio, and I have a couple more peppers to plant once I get a bit more dirt. 

I also planted almost all of the flowers that I bought - at least the annuals that go into containers. I skipped planting a dahlia because it was looking a little sickly anyway, and I also discovered that the nursery pot it was in was a very nice home for a toad that looked like it didn't want to be disturbed. I still need to plant some perennial succulents that I bought, and so I'm hoping that this week I can clean out some of the bed next to the house so that I can get those in the ground.

By the time I was done with all of this, it was almost 6:00, and so I cleaned up, took the trash, and watered one of the containers on the main strip in town. Mom and I are in charge of watering this week, and usually there are eight containers to water. But I walked downtown this afternoon to check them, and we'd gotten just enough rain yesterday that seven of the eight didn't seem to need any water. We'll need to water everything tomorrow, but at least I was able to take care of the one pot today without any issues.

Then I came home, took a quick shower, and made chicken and chorizo burrito bowls in the instant pot. I hadn't made them in so long that I had to look up the recipe, which is almost embarrassing, but they turned out just as good as they always do. And then I came upstairs with good intentions to write, but I didn't get as much accomplished as I wanted to. So now I'm going to go to bed early, hope I get more sleep than I did last night, and wake up early enough to hit it hard tomorrow. Goodnight!

i'm either busting at the seams or i'm broke down

I had a lovely day in the metropolis, but now I'm safely ensconced back in my small town life. I woke up after a sufficient quantity of sleep, got ready, and then walked to the nearest Starbucks so that I could load up on caffeine. When I got back to the hotel, I worked for three hours and was shockingly productive - especially shocking since I feel like I haven't been productive in weeks (that is, of course, a gross exaggeration). Then I picked up a sandwich from Palmer's Deli in the Skywalk, came back to the hotel, worked for another hour, and finally packed up and left.

My next destination was West Des Moines. I had an allergy appointment late in the afternoon, but I needed a place to take a couple of meetings from. I found a new Starbucks that is quite nice, settled in, and was able to take my calls without any issue. I also made a quick detour to Floor and Decor to look at tile - when a staff member came up to me and asked if I needed help, I said that I was in the very beginnings of a design and construction of a bathroom remodel. This was factually accurate, although I didn't say that the number of bathrooms is between three and six, depending on various tings that might happen in the next couple. But I always enjoy looking at tile, so it was a fun detour.

Then I went to my allergy appointment, and we talked for much longer than was strictly necessary, mostly about waymo's and my extreme crab allergy (okay, maybe the crab allergy was relevant to an appointment with an allergy doctor, but we probably didn't need to go as deep as we did). Then I went to Target to load up on toiletries and Whole Foods to load up on groceries. I had wanted to go to Costco, but it was so hot that I didn't feel like adding more groceries to my car was really feasible without causing earlier purchases to get damaged.

So I drove home, unloaded my car, loaded up my freezer, and then hung out with [censored] until it was time for bed. And now I need to sleep so that I can accomplish all the things tomorrow - goodnight!

always gotta push my luck

I am safely ensconced in a hotel in downtown Des Moines, in the middle of the pursuit of a whole stack of errands. I occasionally need to get enough things done in the city, and without actually taking a day off, that it makes sense to come up, spend the night, and work from a hotel. 

So this morning I got up early, did some work while still in my pajamas, and then threw some stuff in a bag, watered various plants, and headed north. I left a little later than planned, so I stopped at Starbucks in Indianola to take a couple of meetings. Then I proceeded to Des Moines, but I was cutting it too close to figure out lunch, and I even up living dangerously by going to Long John Silvers. I hadn't been there in years (probably since one of Dad's hospital trips), and the gluten is definitely not my friend, but their two piece fish basket still slaps even though the fries are now waffle fries and the hush puppies seem smaller. 

Thus sated/poisoned, I went to my salon, where I got my hair cut and colored. The colorist was new to me, but she was significantly better than the woman I used to see in West Des Moines, so I think I'm sold on switching to this salon. Unfortunately the woman who cut my hair is going on maternity leave (fortunately for her, obviously), but hopefully the interim stylist is just as good. 

So that took awhile, and then I took a meeting from my car, sped to my hotel, checked in, and did three more hours of meetings from here. Feeling accomplished, I eventually went downstairs and had a drink and a steak (both massive) at the bar. And now I think I'm going to go to bed early so I can do all the things tomorrow - goodnight!

say goodbye to hollywood

I'm unusually tired tonight because I accidentally got up unusually early this morning. But I had a good day - I did a bit of writing before work, and then I quickly showered and had meetings straight through from ten to six with an insufficient thirty minute break in the mid afternoon.

After that I was wiped out, so I watered indoor and outdoor plants, did some laundry, and then sat on my balcony and pretended to plan future tasks but instead mostly zoned out. When [censored] got home I had a late dinner of various leftovers while chatting with him. And now I am going to go to bed a bit earlier than usual and hope that revives me - goodnight!

evening glow

I managed to be somewhat diligent at work today, by the skin of my teeth - I wasn't feeling it when I woke up, but I eked out a solid 8-9 hours of productivity (much of which was meetings). By six I was feeling done, and so I went outside and spent a good hour and a half gardening. I also talked to my mom and listened to an audiobook while doing so, which was quite nice. I got more tomatoes planted, planted some peppers and eggplants, got my mint and rosemary going, and generally felt quite pleased with my progress.

Then I ate a brownie, came upstairs with a glass of rosé, and wrote on my balcony until it was dark and the mosquitos started to come for me. Then I ate a late dinner of leftover tomatoes/mozzarella, steak, and baked potato, came upstairs, and wrote some more. And now I need to go to bed immediately if I'm going to repeat any of these feats tomorrow - goodnight!

you bury your treasure where it can't be found

I had a v nice weekend, thanks for asking - it's amazing what sun and eighty-degree whether can do for my mood. Yesterday I spent some quality time in the morning writing, and then I did various yard type activities. I finally got my raised beds fully prepped with additional dirt, and I planted some of the tings that I needed to plant. Then I ran an errand to Chariton to get some stakes for my plants + go to the larger grocery store there. I was in the mood to make caprese salad, and the local grocery store didn't have mozzarella, but luckily I was able to get it there. Then I came home, did some more tings, and eventually went to bed.

Today got off to a productive note earlier than usual, mostly because I was making lunch for family and needed to start the prep early. I put the tomatoes for the caprese salad in the oven (trust me) by 8:30am, and then I spent a couple of hours cleaning the dining room, reorganizing stuff in the garage that was blocking the east door, and getting the grill ready for the first grilling of the season.

This was all in preparation for a v. exciting visit - Drewbaby and Sammie and Aunt Kathy came down for the day, and they (obviously) brought Marcella (aka Drewbaby's baby). Kathy also brought ribeye, which was almost as exciting as the baby, but not quite. And Mom brought a pineapple upside down cake, which was v. tasty. We had a fun time hanging out today, and many stories were shared, and if Marcella comprehends any of it, I'm sure she will be eagerly awaiting more wonders that southern Iowa may hold for her in the future.

So, we hung out all day, and then everyone left (including [censored]), and suddenly I had the house to myself. I needed a bit of time to recuperate, which turned into not getting much done, but that's okay. And now it's time for bed - goodnight!

love's the loudest sound

I have had a v boring week and I have nothing to report, which makes blogging feel somewhat excruciating. I worked all day yesterday, then got allergy shots, and then met Mom at the cemetery to decorate Dad and Gram/Granddad's graves. Dad's headstone got installed a couple of weeks ago, and it looks quite nice - of course, I would prefer if it did not need to exist, but since it does, I'm glad that it's taken care of. Then I came home and made elmer's chili for dinner, watched some SNL with [censored], and did various tasks until around midnight.

This morning I woke up late thanks to the late night, spent the morning attempting to write with mixed results, and then did a bunch of random stuff around the house / yard this afternoon. I need to get my plants in the ground, but that requires a bunch of prep, and I've been quite slow. However, I made some progress this afternoon before taking a break to make brownies for a belated treat for [censored]'s birthday. Then we went out to Mom's house, where I grilled brats, which we ate with some v tasty potato salad and baked beans that Mom made. It was a very nice day for being outside and grilling, and I hope that we finally warm up and stay warm, because this cold / cloudy spring is starting to get to me.

But now I need to go to bed - goodnight!

stick season

I have had v little to report since coming home - I was pretty wrecked on Tuesday thanks to the long travel day, and that feeling partially continued into Wednesday.

Yesterday I was a bit more able to get some tings done, which I did - and then I slacked off to go into town and have a margarita with Brenda and Bonita. Brenda and I had meant to get together for awhile and finally made plans after seeing each other at a board meeting last week - and then she invited Bonita so we could discuss various mural-related things. It was nice to hang out with them, and also nice to take a break from my laptop, so I'm glad we did it. 

Then I grabbed takeout for me and [censored], got some groceries, came home, relaxed/almost napped, and then miraculously wrote from nine to midnight. Of course, that made this morning a bit rough, but coffee went a long way toward helping me. I gave [censored] a ride to pick up his [censored], and then I came home and did day job stuff quite diligently all day. I wanted to write again tonight, but my brain refused, so I did some journaling and various other small tasks and generally chilled. 

And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

giving up a part of me that no one needs to know

I'm back in ye olde Iowa after a very long travel day yesterday. When I woke up yesterday morning, Chandlord and I finished doing some packing, and then we hung out in the hot tub and pool for a couple of hours. But all good things must come to an end, and so we showered, got ready, and vacated the resort. Then we went to downtown Palm Springs, where we walked around and shopped for an hour, and then had a leisurely lunch at Clandestino. It was yet another delicious meal to cap off our trip - my tacos were tasty, and their chips and guac were perfect. Then we made a brief detour to see a gigantic statue of Marilyn Monroe, which would not have been worth anything more than the half block that we walked to see it. And then we drove the eight arduous minutes to the airport, where we dropped off the rental car, checked in, and hung out before our flights.

I had originally planned to go to San Francisco with Chandlord last night, which would have meant being on the same flight around 7pm. But my travel plans for the next few weeks have changed, so I took a 4pm flight to Denver instead. My flight was uneventful, and when I got to Denver, I had time to grab a mediocre ahi tuna bowl and a decent enough glass of rose at Mercantile in the A Concourse. I usually don't eat in the A Concourse, but since United has expanded there, sometimes I don't have a choice. Then I boarded my flight to Des Moines, and I was very glad that I was upgraded at the last minute because the flight itself was pretty rough. Iowa was having all sorts of weather last night, and there was major turbulence in the last half hour of the flight. Luckily, I had taken dramamine, but it still made for a pretty brutal re-entry.

By the time I got to Des moines, it was 11:30pm. I was able to get my bag pretty quickly, but I didn't make it home until after 1am - and next time I should probably stay in the city overnight, because the drive was very unpleasant. I also shouldn't have tried to get up this morning and have my regular slate of meetings because I was really not feeling in it to win it. But I made it through the day, worked until about six, and then [censored] and I picked up pizza because I didn't have any inclination to cook. We ate while watching this week's SNL season finale, which featured Will Ferrell and Paul McCartney and was overall pretty delightful. And then I came upstairs, did various tasks, and I'm now ready to crash so that hopefully I have enough energy to be more productive tomorrow. Goodnight!

girls are faking, goodness saking

I had another excellent day in the desert, and Vidya is still here, so I think she's having an okay time too. I got up pretty early, did some journaling, and then drove Chandlord to her time share presentation (which she was required to attend to get this room basically for free). Then I hung out at the pool until she got back (without purchasing a time share, which makes her stronger than I probably would have been).

Then we went into Palm Desert to grab brunch, which turned out to be great - we went to a delish Mexican place where the chilequiles were on point. We wandered around the shops for a bit and bought some truly ridiculous clothes, and then we came back and spent the rest of the afternoon by the pool. 

Eventually we went to the nearby JW Marriott, which had a fancier vibe, where we had cocktails and fries, and then I had a sushi roll and a glass of rosé. And then we came back and watched "Wine Country", which was quite silly and fun. And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

jack trainer

I don't know about Chandlord, but I had an excellent day in the desert. I woke up absurdly early due to the time difference, and I drove off site to grab Starbucks as fuel for my morning. Then I came back and did some journaling while Vidya woke up. Then I showered and hung out by the pool while she finished getting ready, and we drove into Palm Springs to avail ourselves of the various tings to do. 

So we put our names in for brunch at Farm, and we window shopped nearby while waiting for a table. Brunch was really excellent, and the vibe was good (for me, at least; unclear if Vidya is enjoying herself at all, but I am delighted). Then we went to various shops and browsed various things, but other than an expensive pair of reading glasses, I was quite frugal. 

Then we came back to the resort, relaxed a bit, and spent the rest of the afternoon at the pool. We grabbed dinner at the only restaurant at the resort, which was tastier than I expected, and we ended it early when the winds picked up and we started tasting sand instead of salt. We got an impromptu golf cart lift back to our room, and then we watched "Lost City", which we have actually watched together before, but I always like Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum. Again, not sure Vidya is enjoying herself, but c'est la vie I guess. 

And now it's time for bed - but not before wishing [censored] a happy [censored]! Goodnight!

I heard you calling on the megaphone

I had a lovely day in Palm Desert, thanks for asking. I got up early enough to write for a bit, and then I got ready, packed, checked out of my room, and caught an Uber back to the airport. When I got there, I rendezvoused with Chandlord and also picked up a rental car, which we very much need since things are spread out in the desert.

Vidya and I grabbed brunch downtown, which was a delight. Then we checked into the hotel (again) and luckily our room was ready. So we spent the afternoon hanging out at a variety of pools, soaking in a bunch of sun, and generally catching up.

After we showered, cleaned up, etc, we went back into Palm Springs, where we grabbed a drink at Truss and Twine, and then had a v tasty dinner at Eight4Nine. The crowd around here is v eclectic - we saw some moms potentially getting their daughters drunk, a lot of surprisingly cut dresses, and also a lot of gay men. So far so good, and I'm looking forward to the rest of the weekend. 

And now I'm exhausted and need to go to bed - goodnight!

it all just takes over you

I have arrived in Palm Desert after a long but uneventful travel day. My morning was pretty easy peasy since my flight wasn't until 11:30, and I got to the airport in time to eat breakfast before my flight. Today was the first day that the Des Moines airport had new numbers for their gates - after flying out of the A concourse (either A2 or A4) my entire life, suddenly I was flying out of gate 25. This is all in preparation for their new terminal, which should be quite nice. Still, it was v strange, and I'm glad [censored] saw it on the news and told me last night, or else I would have been super confused. 

Anyway, I had a long layover in Denver, so I grabbed a burger at Elway's and then took a glass of wine to go so I could sit in a random gate area and talk to Adit and Baz. Then I boarded and slept most of the eat to Palm Springs, but the landing almost made me vomit, and I've felt pretty off the rest of the night. 

So I Ubered to my hotel, where I did not settle in bc I have to check out and switch rooms tomorrow. Instead, I took a walk around to check things out, grabbed a smoothie, and sat on the balcony while the sun set. My balcony view is perhaps better, but the balcony has no mosquitos, so it's a trade off.

And now I must sleep - goodnight!

and we always use the same tired lines

I have been v. busy the last couple of days - it's always a bit chaotic during Iowa Week (tm), which is the week when I have my economic development, city council meeting, and library board meeting within 36hrs of each other. Of course, I also am supposed to do my day job in that period, and also feed and groom myself, so that adds some complexity. And in this particular week, I happen to be leaving tomorrow to go on a weekend trip, which added even more baggage (pun intended).

So I slogged relentlessly yesterday between my 8am economic development meeting and my 6pm city council meeting, and then I came home and sat on my balcony and did a bit of writing. This morning I got up and wrote before work, and then slogged all day before my library board meeting. When I got home, I immediately started packing (while talking to Adit briefly, and occasionally answering various messages). I took a break to eat a late dinner around the time [censored] got home, and so I talked to him and we filled each other in on all the gossip we acquired in 48hrs (which is, as usual, quite a lot).

Then I came upstairs, finished packing, and in a miracle I will most likely be able to get 7.5hrs of sleep before waking up and getting ready for the airport. If everything goes smoothly, I will arrive at my destination tomorrow night and be ready to greet Chandlord for some fun in the sun on Friday. Goodnight!

mississippi moon won't you keep on shining on me

I have basically nothing to report - I spent the day slogging, or attempting to slog, mostly with good results. I got up early enough to journal before work, and I also took a break in the morning to inspect various aspects of the yard with [censored], as we do. And then I sat through many meetings, did many tasks, sent many slack messages, etc.

After [censored] left, and after I was done working, I sat on my balcony with a glass of sancerre and listened to part of a SymSys lecture (my old major occasionally does distinguished guest lectures that are open to alums, and sometimes they are interesting) while also doing various personal finance tasks and knocking some minor tings off my to-do list. Then I had a late girl dinner (cheese, crackers, salami, jam), tidied up, and answered some emails I had been putting off (note: every single email I get is an email I put off, unless I answer it within two minutes of receiving it).

And now, I need to go to bed - I have an early meeting in town tomorrow morning, and a city council meeting tomorrow night, and many tings to do between those events. Goodnight!

surrey with the fringe on top

I had a pretty good weekend, all things considered - and of course the primary thing to be considered was that Dad passed away a year ago yesterday. He has been on my mind the last few weeks, as the light changed and began to mirror the wavelengths present when he went to the hospital for the last time, and the trees and fields began to look generally the same as they looked during his last few days at home.

But despite the melancholy of the anniversary, the weekend overall was good. Yesterday, Mom and I went on a greenhouse tour - we went over to Decatur to check out Yutzy's, which was slammed with people doing Mother's Day shopping. It still feels a little too cool to plant tomatoes and peppers, but this weekend was gorgeous, and everyone is in the mood to get outside.

Yutzy's had a reasonably good selection of various things, and I got some pepper plants to augment my seedling experiment, which I am convinced will fail. They also had some nice-looking patio furniture, although tbd what I will eventually do with my deck. After we escaped the madness there, we decide to go to Ellis, which was a bit of a detour - but the detour meant going through Osceola, where we got McDonald's, which is tastier than it should be given how mass-produced it is. Ellis was also quite busy, but I got a couple of nice-looking shrubs that I need to figure out where to plant. And then we went to Bomgaars, where Mom exhibited surprising restraint and didn't buy anything, while I got a peony and something for [censored].

Thus satisfied with our gardening efforts, we came home, and I spent the rest of the day doing various things around the house, all of which felt reasonably productive and none of which are memorable. I should have gone to bed early, but instead I sat down on my chaise around nine intending to work, and instead dozed until I actually went to bed at midnight.

I woke up this morning determined to seize some momentum, so I made some coffee, and then wrote off and on for about four hours. This was v. fruitful and I'm glad I did, but by the time I wrapped up, I had a headache from staring at my screen for too long, and I had missed much of the best part of the time to be outside. I also had various indoor tasks to take care of (four loads of laundry, changing my sheets, etc.). All of this was so much to process that I took a nap. And then when I woke up, I ran to the grocery store, came home, did some plant prep (mostly moving seedlings around and starting to harden off my tomatoes), and then prepped some stuff for dinner.

Around six, I drove Dad's truck out to Mom's (partially to help [censored] get a load of mulch out there, partially to avoid getting my car dirty since I washed it in Des Moines on Friday and like to have at least forty-eight hours where I don't drive it on gravel). I spent some time cleaning the grill, which didn't really get cleaned last year either - I had kept the grates clean, but I was never in the mood to clean the outside, and we didn't use it much last summer. So I cleaned the outside, brush copious cobwebs out of the inner cabinet, cleaned the grease trap, and then fired it up so that I could brush off any remaining residue on the grates.

Once that was done, I grilled three ribeyes and some burgers, all of which turned out excellently (if I do say so myself). I had sauteed some sweet onions and mushrooms to go with them, which were delicious and well worth the 25+ minutes I spent babysitting the sauteeing process (okay, I didn't babysit too closely, since I was taking care of plants during that time). And Mom threw together a caesar salad and baked some potatoes, so it was a pretty perfect meal. [Censored] took a break from mowing in time to eat, so the three of us celebrated Mother's Day in style.

When we were done, Mom gave me a ride back into town, and I took out the trash, dropped off my water bill payment at city hall, and did various tings until now. And now it's time for bed so that I can hopefully bring some of this productive energy to my day job tomorrow - we shall see. Goodnight!

swedish suicide pods

I had a relatively decent day to wrap up the week, although I feel like I got v. little done compared to what I had intended to do in the last month. That is, perhaps, my usual minimization of my actual accomplishment in favor of comparing them to my grandiose visions of what I should have accomplished, but c'est la vie.

I had to get up pretty early this morning to run to Des Moines for my semiannual botox appointment. My jaw was starting to tighten up, and injecting a reasonably large quantity of toxin into my masseter muscles is the only thing that saves me from having the jaw of a linebacker and the worst of the headaches I have always been prone to. My appointment was as brief as it always in - in and out in ten minutes - and it was worth the three hours of drive time to make it happen.

After I finished there, I speed ran some errands - I got my car washed, stopped at Trader Joes to stock up on gluten free muffins, ran to Best Buy to get a new keyboard and mouse, and stopped in at Container Store because they appear to be going out of business / combining with Bed Bath and Beyond, and I wanted to stock up on a couple of tings that I usually get there and am not sure I'll be able to get in the future. Then I grabbed an iced coffee and refilled my gas tank before heading south.

I made it home just in time for my afternoon string of meetings, which I accomplished without fuss (and with quite a bit of laughter in one of them since we were playing with various filters on the videoconference, which added some levity to our Friday afternoon). Then I ran to the grocery store, came home, and made this chicken orzo pasta casserole thing that has quickly become a favorite. While it was baking, I sat on my balcony and made a to-do list (way too long) and soaked up a little fresh air.

Eventually, [censored] and I ate dinner while watching various tings on tv. And now I need to go to bed so that I can accomplish various things tomorrow, or perhaps just embrace a whole weekend of Sunday Scaries rather than saving them up for Sunday night. Goodnight!

i want to come over, to hell with the consequence

I had a long but productive day of looking at screens - I got a new monitor yesterday thanks to work, and it (at least temporarily) made a difference in my ability to focus. I got up at a reasonable hour, did a couple of hours of work while sipping my coffee, took a quick shower, and ran into town to get allergy shots. Then I came home and slogged until six, which felt quite productive.

As soon as I was done with meetings, [censored] and I went to Chariton (third time this week, which is a new record) to look at some garden supply stuff at Bomgaars. Then we decided to have Mexican food up there for dinner rather than driving back to our town. The service was a little slow, but the food was excellent and I enjoyed my margarita, so I would def go there again.

And now, even though this post is boring, I'm too tired to try to spice it up - so I'm going to go to bed. Goodnight!

catch a rare type specimen

I drove 120 miles today, but in the end I didn't really feel like I got that far. Probably that's because the 120 miles were two trips to Chariton, both of which were to take mom to the eye doctor. The first trip was planned, and it was just a quick check up. But she had also been waiting for new glasses, and when we were up there this morning, they still hadn't come in. Of course, about an hour after we got home, they did come in, and so we went back up there rather than trying to do it tomorrow or Friday. I'm glad she was able to get them since it will dramatically improve her ability to see, but it wasn't quite the afternoon that I expected.

However, that wasn't really that big of a deal. Even though I had a lot of work that I intended to get done, none of it was super pressing, and so this was as good a day as any to make a couple of road trips. I didn't really wrap up until 6:30 because I had a meeting after we got back from the second trip. Then I went downstairs, did a bit of stuff around the kitchen, baked a potato, and had a late dinner. I was ready to eat just as [censored] walked in the door, so I ate while catching up with him, which was nice. And now I need to go to bed so that I can do all the things tomorrow that I intended to do today - goodnight!

my heart runs on gasoline vapors

I have been staring at screens for way too long, so I shall keep this brief. When I woke up this morning, I felt relatively #inittowinit, so I got out of bed, made some coffee, and journaled for awhile. I'm sure the sunlight helped - my mood is always better when it warms up, and today was almost perfect.

Sadly I had to work inside most of the day, but I got through all my meetings in due form, and I managed to squeeze in a little personal business too. I was finally done around six, and then I got to sit out on my balcony and write for awhile. Eventually I came inside and ate some food (a v. unusual dinner of apple, peanut butter, and cottage cheese - I had other food, but I had zero desire to eat any of it) and tidied up the kitchen. And then I switched into sweats and did some work until now.

And now, I can sleep the sleep of the just (or at least the screen-blind) - goodnight!

lead me to the right side, keep this rolling

Apologies for not blogging the last couple of nights - I had a whirlwind end to my week, including breakfast in NYC, a long and much-needed coffee with Emily (all of my coworkers are my favorite, but she is first among them), lunch and various meetings, etc., etc. My trip home was complicated by some stalled vehicle or accident in an NYC tunnel, which made my Uber ride to the airport 90min instead of 45min, which meant I did not have time for a leisurely lounge experience like I had intended. But other than that, my trip was smooth, and it was good to get home.

I spent the weekend doing a variety of household and writing things - I got fully unpacked from both SF and NYC, got my room and desk reorganized, etc. I spent more time than expected yesterday afternoon talking to the neighbors - or rather, the heirs of the neighbor who passed away earlier this year. And then I sped into town and grabbed groceries so that I could cook. I made ham and potatoes au gratin for dinner last night, and Mom came in to eat with me and [censored], which meant I had to turn the dining room back into a dining room instead of a greenhouse (with mixed results, since I couldn't move my seedlings). But dinner was v. nice and we had a good chat, so it was worth it.

Today was more of the same - I actually wrote for three hours this morning, which was excellent but also made my brain feel a little melted. Then I ate lunch and vegged for a couple of hours, and then I spent three hours doing yard work. This resulted in cleaning out part of one bed in front of my house and putting down fresh mulch, which was definitely an improvement even if there is still much work to do. And I am guessing I will be sore tomorrow, since my fingers all seem to hurt and I think my arms and legs do too, but hopefully I can get back outside as the week progresses.

I took a break to put a roast chicken in the oven, and then I finished it with some roasted potatoes and a caesar salad, which [censored] and I v. much enjoyed as the fruits of our labors. And now I need to go to sleep - goodnight!

it's giving me divine feelings

In a surprise turn of events, I am in NYC for less than thirty six hours, which was not in the cards when I went to San Francisco last week. This is entirely a work trip (sorry Terry and various other NYC friends) - I took the only direct flight here this morning, and I shall return on the only direct flight tomorrow afternoon. And I have a million meetings in that time period, so personal time is basically nonexistent.

But today's travels were smooth despite getting up at four am. I made it out of the house on time, and I had time to grab an omelette at the airport before boarding. I slept most of the way to NYC, grabbed an Uber, dropped my bag at the hotel, went to the office, and ate sushi while chatting with Gary. Then I grabbed coffee with Finn, did some meetings, went back to my hotel when my room was ready, and did more meetings until after seven.

By then I was done done, so I went to serafina and had a v mid gf pasta (but a v nice glass of cab) while writing a bit. And now I need to sleep immediately if I have any hope of being on tomorrow - goodnight!

tell me where will it end

No blog tonight - I had a v busy day, starting with allergy shots, then six hours of meetings, and then a city council meeting. When I got home, I had to furiously take care of all the tings that I needed to get done tonight, and now I have to go to bed if I have any hope of getting up early tomorrow. Goodnight!

wish i didn't know now what i didn't know then

I did not blog yesterday because I had a long day of travel - it was all smooth, but I had to get to the airport in time for an 8:30 flight, and since I had to check a bag and also wanted to eat breakfast beforehand, that meant leaving my hotel at an unfortunate hour. However, my flight to Denver got in twenty minutes early, which gave me just enough time to grab a glass of rosé and a caesar salad with salmon for my last 'city' meal before heading back to the countryside.

My flight to Des Moines was on time, and my bag made it within three minutes of my arrival to baggage claim, so I was in my car v. quickly. I stopped for Starbucks on the way home, and then I zoned out to a Trevor Noah podcast while completing my drive. When I got here, I caught up with [censored] and we got takeout Mexican since I didn't feel like cooking. This does not count as a 'city' meal, although it is certainly more convenient than trying to cook after traveling all day.

Today should have been a slog, but I played a bit of hooky. I got up this morning and worked, and I sat through several meetings, but I slacked off at 2:30 to take my mom to one of our favorite greenhouses. I usually don't make it there this early in the season, and they had quite a good selection - but I also don't know exactly what I want to plant, so I didn't load up as much as I could have. But we had a v nice time examining all of their plants, and we got lucky to not end up with rain / tornadoes, so I'll take it.

When we got home, I dropped her and her plants off, and then came back to my place, put my stuff away, said goodbye to [censored], did various household chores, and then ran back into town to grab various dairy products + pizza (not something I usually do, but I have many many things I have to accomplish this week and cooking is not something I have time for). Then I came home, ate, unpacked, did some laundry, tidied up, worked for a couple of hours, etc. And now I need to go to bed because tomorrow is going to be an overwhelming slog - goodnight!

peace of mind

I had an extremely chill day in the city of sin. I slept in, lazed about, and eventually showered and grabbed breakfast at the hotel before wandering out into the city. I spent most of the morning and early afternoon shopping along Fillmore Street, which was as fun as it always is. And then I grabbed some oysters and a glass of wine at Little Shucker while catching up on various reading, which was very nice.

Once evening rolled around, I met Claudia and Adit at a wine bar, where we had drinks and cheeses while waiting a couple of hours for the waitlist to finally clear at Khao Tiew. The wait was worth it - we had some excellent curries and a tasty pad Thai, and the conversation throughout was a delight. We probably could have kept going, but I still needed to pack and I have to get up pretty early for my flight tomorrow, so I called it for the night. And now it's time for bed - goodnight!

when in rome

I had a nice final work day in the SF office. I managed to rally and go in despite sleeping v fitfully last night, and the vibe was quite chill since only two of the newest people + Adit were there. I myself bounced around three, and I used my self driving taxi time to talk to my mom, which was a delight. 

Then I got to the hotel, promptly took a nap, did a bit of work, and then walked to maido to see if I needed any stationery (spoiler: I always need stationery). Then I came back, took another break, got ready, and headed out for an absurdly late (for me, this week only) dinner at 8pm.

My destination was Collina, and my friends were Julie and Tom and their spouses. I hadn't seen all of them in far too long, and it was a joy to see them again - we caught up properly over many dishes and a much more moderate amount of alcohol than we used to drink in our youth. And we discussed the usual topics that pervade society these days (AI, the job market, Heated Rivalry). So all in all it was a beautiful evening, even if I am wiped out.

And now it's time for bed - goodnight!

verbier

I had a v nice, v long day in the city of sin. I woke up at 5:45 not at all in it to win it, but I had to get to the office relatively early because I accidentally left my laptop there last night. So I got ready, took a waymo to Philz (the one bright spot), and then walked to the office during my usual 8am Thursday meeting (which is 10am in Iowa, which is much more civilized).

I then spent the day in a variety of meetings, including some walks and some talks, and I also convinced people to order poke for lunch (a mixed bag, since the delivery took forever, but it was worth it). My big boss showed up at some point and some of us grabbed juice with him, and then I snuck out for a quick happy hour with Martha. And then we went to team dinner at Destapas, which was quite nice - team dinners are always pretty entertaining and this one was no different.

After dinner, the usual suspects (me, Adit, and Geoff) dragged a new inductee (Owen) to Lost Resort for a hot toddy. But it's 10pm and I'm almost ready for bed, so all in all it was quite sedate. Goodnight!

I keep dancing on my own

I slept v fitfully last night, which resulted in a surly morning and a stomachache. But I managed to write in bed for awhile before getting ready for work, which helped my mood. And I took a waymo to the office so that I didn't have to deal with people, which helped even more. 

Once I got to the office, though, I had meetings basically all day - but luckily I like the people I meet with, so it could be much worse. Unfortunately I decided to skip the decadent lunch off-site with one of our vendors and instead had to eat the same slop that Adit, for some reason, orders basically every day, but I survived (and vowed to order sushi tomorrow in total defiance of the pressure to be healthy).

However, overall my day was good, and I left the office a little before six. I was supposed to have dinner with Lauren tonight, but I had cancelled this morning due to not feeling well, and I'm glad I did because I definitely felt too run down to go to burlingame. Instead, I rested a bit when I got back to my room, and then I grabbed a quick dinner at delfina on Fillmore (where the server remembered me, which is always nice).

The other thing that was going on today was that Drewbaby's baby was born! She was a month early and also didn't make it easy on Sammie, which was all a bit concerning - but the end result is v exciting, and I can't wait to meet her.

And now it's time for bed - goodnight!

all that time spent alone in my tower

I had a long but fun day - I got up before six (unheard of, but I'm trying to stay on Iowa time), start working in bed almost immediately, took a quick shower, took a robot car to the office so I didn't have to interact with humans, and then spent the day in a variety of meetings + various tasks. Then I lured people in the office to a happy hour at Restoration Hardware, which turned into dinner with the finance team - we were welcoming a new team member, and I think we did it in fine fashion. 

But now I must go to bed immediately (even though I've already been dozing for a couple of hours) - goodnight!

raining in baltimore

I have nothing to report - I got up at a reasonable hour but did but feel well rested enough to be maximally productive. But I did write over coffee in the corner of the library for a bit, which felt v good. 

Then I went to work, where I slogged with mixed energy all day. I then took an Uber to Burlingame, where I had a great dinner with Barbara and Anne. I would say more but I'm falling asleep in my bed - goodnight!

ain't that mister mister on the radio

I had an excellent day in the city of sin, thanks for asking. I woke up this morning at 6:00, determined to continue to be on midwestern time. I was able to go downstairs and write while fueling myself with complimentary coffee for a couple of hours, which was great. Then I showered, dried my hair, and took a long walk over the Presidio for my daytime plans. The walk was really lovely and I didn't run into any coyotes, which was a good thing since I'm ill prepared to see coyotes when there is not also a shotgun in grabbing distance. But if I had had a shotgun, I probably would have gotten banned from the Presidio, which would have deeply impacted my future self. So all's well that ends well, I guess. 

My plan today was rather unusual for my trips to San Francisco. I met up with Ritu and her family, as well as Chandlord, for a delightful brunch at the Mexican restaurant in the presidio. I took all of the bites of my food, which were huevos benedictos - an excellent gluten-free twist on eggs benedict. However, the fact that I took all the bites didn't seem to get the same acclaim as if children take all of their bites - although it's hard to tell because Ritu's kids definitely did not take all of their bites, so I didn't see what kind of celebration might ensue if they had actually eaten their meals.

Anyway we had a very delightful brunch and then we walked over to the main park area where all the red chairs are, which is one of my favorite spots in the city. We managed to secure a couple of chairs despite fierce competition, and we also grabbed various ice creams from one of the food trucks that was set up nearby. The weather was gorgeous and it was a delight just to be outside hanging out and watching the kids have a good time (while getting very sticky from their ice cream).

At some point I decided that I really needed a break and that I also wanted to keep writing,and so I grabbed an Uber and came back to my hotel while Ritu and her family continued on with their adventures. However, I had agreed to meet them for dinner so I found them again at 4:30 at Fiorella in Noe. This plan included Adit and Priyanka and their kids, as well as Claude, which meant that we were already a large group. Then Jeevyboi and his girlfriend showed up, which made for quite the party. Luckily it was 4:30 p.m., which is early even for the early bird crowd, and so there was no issue with us taking up a gigantic table and ordering all the various things on the menu.

We had a very delightful conversation, despite the usual interruptions from the children, and then we all ended up walking a few blocks down the street to grab ice cream. I, however, did not grab ice cream because the fact that I had dinner after already being full from brunch meant that I knew that I was going to be way too full for the second dinner that I had planned tonight. 

So I parted ways from the group just in time to waymo over to my dinner with Shedletsky. We had booked this with the intent of including Christina, but she had had to stay home at the last minute due to child care duties. However, Shedletsky and I had a great time - we split a bottle of wine, and I just had a handful of bites of my pork, which I expected givem how full my stomach is. Luckily he did not yell at me because he is not in parent mode, and I wasn't forced to take more bites, but it's too bad I was so full because that pork chop was excellent.

Anyway we caught up on life, went deep on AI, and talked about various novels that we've read in the past few years, all of which did a lot of good for my soul. I'm intentionally trying to see people on this trip that I don't usually get to see, which has been nice so far, and so we will see how this trend continues over the next week. 

But now I really need to go to sleep if I'm going to get up in the morning and do anything before work - goodnight!

I fumbled it when I came down to the wire

I had a couple of very busy days in ye olde Iowa, and I am now in San Francisco after a mad dash to get out of the house this morning, so forgive me for not blogging the last couple of nights. I don't even remember what I did Thursday, except I know that I had intended to cook and instead ate random leftovers like a feral beast. Oh and I talked to Adit for an hour while sitting on my balcony, which was better than working, I suppose, although it's still Adit, so how good can it really be?

Friday was more of the same at work, although I took a break at lunch to run a couple of errands. The weather got spicy in the afternoon, just as it had earlier in the week, and so my last meeting of the day kept getting interrupted by the weather radio. But we all survived, although it seems like every yard and field is mildly flooded.

Since we all survived, Mom and [censored] and I went to Seymour for dinner, where I had my last Iowa steak for the next week or so. Then I spent the rest of the evening packing, and also engaging in some light warfare with the robins that are trying to take over my balcony. They will probably win while I'm gone, which is a real bummer.

This morning I was actually feeling pretty ahead of schedule because my packing was basically done. Of course, that meant that I decided to start a new project a couple of hours before I needed to leave the house, which was ill advised. However, I had been meaning to up pot my tomato seedlings, and I realized this morning that if I didn't do it they were really going to be too root-bound to do much later. So I spent a pretty delightful hour this morning repotting the various seedlings that I had going under my grow light. Almost everything I planted germinated, which means I also needed to thin out the seedlings so that there was only one plant per pot. I seem to have a pretty good start on a bunch of tomato plants, all of my peppers, and my tomatillos. I'm not quite sure that the eggplants are looking super solid, but since I'm the only person who wants to eat eggplant, it's probably not necessary for ten of them to make.

Anyway, as soon as I was done with that, I frantically cleaned up, took a shower, and got out the door within twenty minutes. I made it to Des Moines without any issues and was able to grab a burger and a glass of wine at the airport before boarding my flight. Both of my flights were smooth and my layover in Denver was about as easy as it can be so luckily I got to San Francisco without hidden any of the delays that I expected due to San Francisco's airport construction. And while my Uber driver was a little stinky, he was quite efficient, and so I made it to my hotel and was able to unpack before it even got dark.

I had considered going out tonight, but I'm glad that I didn't make any plans. Instead I ordered Thai food from across the street, ate it while chilling in my room, and now I'm going to try to go to bed before 10 p.m. While that feels absurdly early for my California life, it can be quite helpful to try to stay on central time while I'm here since it means I get up early enough to do things before diving into the slog of work.

But now my eyes are trying to close of their own accord, which I think means it's time for bed - goodnight! 

I don't wanna be false art

I have very little to report today. I got plenty of sleep last night, and then got up, made coffee, and took care of various things before I actually got down to work. Work wasn't quite the slog that it usually is because I only had a couple of hours of meetings. And so while I should have probably done more with the expansive time that I had in front of me, it felt good to be able to ease my way through the day. 

I had originally intended to have dinner with my mom tonight, but when we discussed the plan again we decided to stay in our respective homes since there was a risk of severe weather. This was probably the right call since we ended up with a tornado warning about 10 minutes after we made the decision. The warnings and rather absurd weather continued off and on for the next hour or two, but we didn't get anything really damaging beyond some very heavy rain and a little bit of pea-sized hail.

I spent the rest of the evening taking care of things around the house, eating a bit of a frozen gluten-free pizza, doing a bit of writing, and eventually talking to [censored] when he got home. Now it's time for bed so that I can hit it hard tomorrow - goodnight!

kangaroo court

I had to get up earlier than I usually do because I had an economic development board meeting at the ungodly hour of right am. It took longer than usual, but it was mildly entertaining, so I'll take it. Then I came home and had meetings off and on all day - but it was warm out, so I spent the afternoon working on my balcony, which was great.

After I was done working, I relaxed for a bit, and then worked on some personal projects until my eyes got tired. And now it's time for bed - goodnight!

get high like planes

I have nothing to report tonight - I spent the day working, doing laundry, eating leftovers, and taking a much needed walk before unwinding/writing in the evening. But I have to get up early tomorrow for a local meeting, so I really need to go to bed - goodnight!

there ain't enough smoke in my eyes to hide the kinda games you're trying to play

I had a reasonably good weekend, despite the fact that it rained for most of it, which usually doesn't put me in the best mood. Yesterday I slept in until after 9:00, which is very necessary, and then I put it around the house and drank coffee and did various tings. Unfortunately, some of those tings were work tings, but for the most part I was able to focus on my own stuff. Later in the afternoon, Mom and I went to Centerville to stock up on groceries and various goods from walmart, which was a nice use of a rainy afternoon. I didn't need all that much stuff since I'm usually pretty stocked up, but given that I constantly need to cook, there's always something that I can get for my basement hoard.

After we got home, I dropped Mom off along with all her stuff, and then I came home and put my things away. Then [censored] and I ordered Mexican and picked it up to take out to Mom's for dinner. My food was pretty good, and we generally had a nice evening, so I'm glad that we did that. Then we came back to my house, and I spent far too much time awake given how little I actually got done, but no regrets.

Today I slept in again for just a little bit, but then I managed to get up and start getting things done. I spent some time writing this morning and then did various household things. I also kept reorganizing my office, which was a bit of a mess since I tore it apart on Thursday to get a shelf delivered. And [censored] and I had an adventure at the shop where we installed some extra Wi-Fi capability, which went about as smoothly as these things can go given that it's not always obvious where there might be an empty outlet or an available flat and clean surface on which to put something.

After that, [censored] left for the evening and I came home. I did various household activities and made myself a very delicious dinner of roasted chicken thighs and potatoes. This is not something that I can make for my family since neither Mom nor [censored] understand the delights of chicken thighs, so I get to keep the leftovers all to myself. After I ate, I cleaned up the kitchen, watered plants, and then spent the rest of the evening writing and engaging in various other activities. And now it's time for bed - goodnight!