pierced through the heart, but never killed

It is suddenly brutally cold in ye olde Iowa, which is a v. unwelcome development. It didn't get above freezing today, but at least it was sunny for several hours, which was a great improvement for my mood.

So, after snuggling in my flannel sheets, I eventually got up, made tea, took a shower, and settled in to get some tings done. I did write for a few hours this afternoon - everything still feels a bit like molasses, but it felt good to get into the story for awhile. I also did some stretches and kettlebell swings, so today felt like a win. And I tried on a bunch of outfits for the conference I'm going to in Vegas next week - I have no idea what to wear, and also no idea how much to pack, but I think I'll figure it out.

Eventually, [censored] and I went out to our parents' house for supper - my dad had smoked some pork earlier in the week, and my mom made scalloped potatoes and baked beans, and it was all pretty delicious. And now, I think I shall go to sleep - goodnight!

i can still make the whole place shimmer

Today was pretty good, all in all. I had a couple of video calls, which is a couple more than I normally have - both people I connected with over linkedin (one an old college friend, who spent most of the call telling me I should run for office, and one someone I worked with years ago who wants to write a book). I also did four loads of laundry, ate a tasty cobb salad, ran an errand to pay for my new kitchen cabinets (via check, which is how tings are done here), and wrote for awhile.

At some point, [censored] showed up - and since yesterday's leftovers were a chickpea stew with coconut milk and turmeric, we decided to go to Garden Grove for dinner. They were pretty busy (which is good to see for a v. small town), but my burger sans bun was excellent, as were the cheese curds that I shouldn't have eaten because of the gluten. Then we came home and talked for awhile before I came upstairs to fold those aforementioned four loads of laundry and take care of some other tings before bed.

And now, I really need to sleep - goodnight!

putting someone first only works when you're in their top five

I had a really good day, thanks to some retail therapy. I'm going to a writing conference next week, and it's the first writing conference I've been to in (checks notes) four years. It's also the first conference of any kind that I've been to in three years, so my wardrobe is dusty and my social skills are even moreso. To bolster my ego and ensure that I have pants that fit, I made a last-minute trip to Des Moines to scour the stores at the main mall.

Unfortunately, styles are extremely bizarre right now. I am reminded that I am no longer twenty, and if I tried to wear what the twenty-year-olds are wearing, I would look utterly absurd. But also, I am not built for crop tops and also not built for overly-long jeans, and none of those things are appropriate for a conference anyway. So, shopping was a bit hit or miss, but I found a couple of jacket/blazer-type things and some pants that I think might be cute, but I will need to try everything on again in the lights/mirrors of my house.

On the way home, I stopped at Whole Foods to grab a few tings (I was craving rainbow chard, which is not a thing I have ever typed before, but I can't get it here and so scarcity creates desire). I also talked to Katie for an hour or so, which was excellent. And then I got home, unloaded my car, heated up some spaghetti, and watched election results.

All in all, I'm happy with where things are headed so far. I still live in hope that the Republicans will eventually stop nominating completely crazy candidates and will also stop attempting to pass laws that curtail everyone else's freedoms in the name of keeping a sliver of the population from feeling offended, but the party never learned its lesson about Trump and they seem content to continue dying on his hill. I also live in hope that they will get the message on how all the anti-abortion bills are failing at state levels, since I would like to maintain my access to IVF, like having birth control that keeps me from throwing up for hours every month, and also think it's important for women to be able to survive things like ectopic pregnancies and miscarriages that require abortions to prevent sepsis. Unfortunately, Iowa continues to swing to an R super-state, which is hard to watch since the governor is basically running on a massive state tax surplus + funneling money to private Christian schools while rural counties and public schools are starving for funds to stay afloat, but c'est la vie.

So, I'm sure all sorts of crazy things will come up in regards to election denial (i.e. Republicans already claiming that Maricopa County's voting is rigged despite Republicans controlling the entire elections department there), and I still doubt that the Democrats will hold onto the house, but at least it wasn't a bloodbath. And on that note, I'm going to stop watching coverage and go to bed - goodnight!

did all the extra credit then got graded on a curve

I had a lovely day, although I'm trying to remind myself that I don't have to get a million things done to have a good day. I got up in time to make some coffee and take care of a few tings before my usual Monday call with Alyssa. Then, I put together a bunch of cobb salads - I had cooked the chicken and eggs yesterday, but I had to cook the bacon, cut some tomatoes, peel the eggs, and chop the lettuce and chicken before assembling everything. So, I ended up putting together two salads for me and [censored] to eat for lunch (only one of them had bleu cheese, since only one of us thinks that mold is an appealing snack), and then I put four more together in mason jars to eat the rest of the week. Cobb salads are kind of a pain, but I'm always delighted when I have them in the fridge, so I feel v. accomplished.

After that, I spent most of the afternoon working on organizing my office - the broad strokes were completed awhile ago, but my office supplies, files, etc. were still in wild disarray. They're still in some disarray, but things are coming together. I also unpacked the rest of my workout stuff, so I'm getting a better sense of how I want to lay out my upstairs space.

At some point, I took a walk so that I could drop off the payment for my water bill (#smalltownlife = no way to pay my water bill online), and then I ate some popcorn and chilled. I also bid farewell to [censored], ate some leftover spaghetti, and then did more office work until now. I have grand plans to do something other than organizing tomorrow, but we'll see whether I accomplish them.

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

o geronimo, no minor ego

I had a lovely day, but it was more productive than I had intended - I had sort of planned to lie around and read all day, or perhaps mess around in my office. My morning was sufficiently lazy, although I did make some v. tasty scrambled eggs and hash browns. But then, [censored] and I somehow tricked ourselves into fixing the platform for my bed + mounting my bedroom tv + mounting [censored]'s bedroom tv.

I'm happy that this all got done, of course - we attempted to fix the bed in September but were missing a part, and then the project got postponed due to efforts to paint the garage. And because the bed frame was leaning against my bedroom wall since September, we hadn't been able to mount my tv. But now those things are where they should be, which means great things for my ability to finish setting up both my bedroom and my office. And [censored]'s bedroom tv looks great too, so at least all of that got done.

At some point, I made dinner for tonight (spaghetti amatriciana) and also prepped several ingredients to make cobb salads for the week. And [censored] and I watched WEIRD: THE AL YANKOVIC STORY, which came out this weekend - it's a biopic that is a parody of Weird Al's life, which is appropriate given that his songs are parodies too. It was really really strange and mostly hilarious, so it was a nice way to spend the evening.

And now, I should really sleep - goodnight!

and i'm a monster on the hill

I had a nice day, all in all - nothing noteworthy, but that's how I like my Saturdays. I did some journaling, and a lot of reading, and I had scrambled eggs as per usual (sorry to all the chickens who will never become chickens because I eat them too soon). And [censored] and I had dinner at the parents' house - Mom made tasty twice baked potatoes and Dad barbecued some chickens (sorry to the chickens who won't make any more eggs).

So, all in all, it was a good day - we'll see if I get more done tomorrow, but I kind of doubt it. Goodnight!

what do you get when you place all your bets outside you?

I had a v excellent day, which was a lovely way to end the week. I spent the morning indulging in some very self-care things, like stretching and doing my nails and eating some excellent scrambled eggs (a little more indulgent than usual, with avocado and black beans and peppers on top of the usual onions). And I spent the afternoon with some coffee and journaling and napping, along with a long chat with Alyssa. So, all in all, or was a relaxing interlude before I get back into kitchen/bathroom remodel design and writing in earnest.

But now, it's definitely time for bed - goodnight!

see you at the bitter end

I had a v nice day today...it's amazing what staying off my phone, drinking water, sleeping, and reading will do for me, and also amazing that I somehow don't remember that fact most days/weeks/months. I spent some quality time with my journal and coffee; spent some more quality time with scrambled eggs; had a v impromptu but great catch up with Veronica; and did a lot of research into the ancient Egyptians for reasons that will probably filter into my book but are still currently vague.

But now, in the interest of continuing to stay off my phone, I'm going to bed - goodnight!

imma wade through your shallow love

Today went pretty much as I intended - I got some stuff done, but I'll spare you the details. And since [censored] wasn't around to force me to build equity in my house (jk), I slacked off and finished the weird necromancer fantasy I'm reading...and immediately wanted to start the next one, but decided to spare my eyes. There's always tomorrow for that!

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

there's an endless road to rediscover

I'm sleepy, but I got quite a bit done today despite my worse intentions. I spent some quality time cleaning up the garage after all our painting exploits - unprepping the garage also took several hours, since it required folding up dropcloths, sweeping, pulling down a lot of plastic, unwrapping the meticulously wrapped garage door rails, etc., etc. I also had to get all the things that belong in the garage out of my kitchen / living room. And then all that effort rolled straight into starting to pack up my kitchen in anticipation of my remodel, although luckily it's not starting this week, so I didn't have to pack up everything today.

Somewhere in there, I also did a workout with Alyssa, and I went into (the other) town to vote. And I stopped by my parents' house to drop something off, and also stopped at my dad's shop to throw away all the plastic from my garage. And now, I really must sleep - goodnight!

cut me down where the water meets the sea

Today was okay, but I'm thoroughly ready to retire my paint sprayer and never see it again. When I woke up, I felt like I was developing the cold that [censored] has, which is definitely not what I want. So, I made a vat of hot tea (followed by another vat a few hours later), and I also made a bigger than usual breakfast (hashbrowns with my v. tasty scrambled eggs) in an effort to ward off the plague. We'll see if any of it works, but at least I got through the day.

At some point, [censored] and I finally rallied and finalized our painting prep so that we could paint the garage ceiling. This continued to take longer at every step than I would like for it to take, since we're meticulous about prep and already had too much stuff in the garage, and the garage is hard to seal since we need access to almost every door. But we got everything sorted out, set up the sprayer, mixed up all the paint, and then painted the ceiling. And by that I mean I did the majority of the setup, but [censored] painted the entire ceiling, since [censored] is an excellent/masochistic buddy who is sacrificing spare time to make my house more pleasant. The painting took exactly one hour, with copious breaks to clean/defog goggles -- so, one hour of painting to 20+ hours of prep / cleanup continues to be the paint sprayer ratio.

Despite that, the garage looks great and I'm really glad we got it painted before we permanently fill it with all sorts of stuff. After we were done, I cleaned up a bunch of stuff and then made dinner (chicken burrito bowls in the instant pot), which [censored] and I ate while watching several episodes of CHARMED (I'm calling it research). And now I must sleep - goodnight!

say goodbye to hollywood

I had intended to paint my garage ceiling today - but after approximately eight hours of prepping, all we accomplished was getting the garage ready to paint. It truly takes an exorbitant amount of time to put plastic on everything and seal the room up, especially when trying to cover garage door tracks and various other strange features.

Somewhere in there, I took a break to make scrambled eggs and hashbrowns to fuel me and [censored] for the journey ahead. And really, the prep wasn't too bad - it's just incredibly tedious to hang a bunch of plastic that will likely come down tomorrow. But the garage will look great when we're done, so I'm holding on to that belief that spending this many hours painting it will be worth it.

Eventually, I threw in the towel on garage stuff for the day. [censored] and I left the lights off in the house tonight to avoid attracting candy-seekers, but we did welcome his best friend's kids, who were pretty adorable. Then we had dinner at the parents' house - v. tasty brisket with mashed potatoes, which went a long way toward refueling me.

And now, I am falling asleep as I type, so it's time for bed - goodnight!

right around the corner son

I meant to go to bed an hour ago, but that's what happens when you're having fun (and by having fun I mean panicking over all the choices I need to make for my remodel).

Today was good, though - I did some writing and other work in the morning, worked out with Alyssa, and had a writing class. I also continued to work on the neverending garage painting project. And my parents lured me to their house for dinner, which I fell for because I'm easily lured by cheeseburgers and fried potatoes.

Then I came home, talked to [censored] about various tings and hootenannies, and made many lists. And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

sleep just to dream her

I did less than I would have liked today, but far more than might be expected on the day after a trip, so I'll take it. I was lazy all morning and half the afternoon, but I made a tasty tuna sandwich and used it to revive me. Eventually, I spent some quality time painting a second coat on the garage walls - while the previous efforts looked pretty good, I knew in my heart of hearts that a second coat would make it better. So, I finally broke down and did it, although I didn't bother touching up around the garage doors. We'll see how it looks in the morning, but I am glad I got it done.

Then I ate a baked potato with some pulled pork that I had waiting for me in the freezer. I also procrastinated a bit more before deciding to throw in the towel and read - I'm still deeply engrossed in an extremely weird fantasy novel, and unfortunately I'm approaching the climax but can't stay up to finish it if I have any hope of getting anything done tomorrow. So now it's time for bed - goodnight!

harmony hall

I'm back in ye olde Iowa after a perfectly smooth (except for turbulence) trip out of New Orleans today. I got up, encountered no issues getting an Uber, met no major traffic on the way to the airport, and didn't have to stand in line for security at all (thanks to my Clear membership, which is paid for by one of my credit cards, and my TSA precheck). That gave me time to have a lackluster but still helpful breakfast and grab Starbucks before boarding.

My first flight was on time, and I had just enough time to make it between gates (a long distance, as it turned out) before boarding in Houston. The second flight hit some unpleasant turbulence, but otherwise it was all good.

When I landed, I drove to the next town south of the airport to get gas, picked up some groceries, and ate takeout Chinese from the grocery store deli in my car. Then I got home and promptly took a nap. I spent the rest of the evening settling, planning my week, and reading the book I was reading on the plane (which I will discuss in more detail later). Goodnight!

did i play my songs too loud

I had a relaxed day in New Orleans. It was cheaper for me to get a hotel today and fly out tomorrow than it was to fly out today... But on my fifth trip to New Orleans, I didn't feel much urge to go out and explore.

So, Caroline and I grabbed coffee and checked out of our Airbnb, then stowed our luggage at my hotel and grabbed brunch at an excellent place called Willa Jean. My brisket and potatoes and grits were excellent, and we had a nice time hanging out. Then, we mostly hung around my hotel lobby - I did a bunch of writing and a bunch of reading, as well as some home goods browsing.

Caroline left for the airport around three, and then I spent the rest of the day doing more writing/reading with #noregrets. And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

look to the horizon

No blog tonight - I had a lovely day in New Orleans, with an excellent brunch (duck hash) and also excellent dinner (tuna tartare and a tasty fish), as well as writing/reading time and an interesting cemetery tour. But I'm tired and need to go to bed rather than regaling you with that - goodnight!

just find a place to make your stand and take it easy

I had another lovely day in New Orleans - the weather is perfect, and we've made the most of our wandering/eating opportunities. I had a lazy morning, and then we went to brunch at Tableau. I've eaten there before, but not in their lovely courtyard, where I had some v tasty shrimp and grits in deference to my gluten issues. Then we wandered all over the French Quarter, had some coffee, bought some paper, etc.

After that, we found a hotel that had a Banksy mural painted post-Katrina, and then we went to Magazine Street to explore the shops of the Garden District. Eventually, we wandered back home, where I took a v necessary nap.

Then, we got dressed up and took the streetcar to dinner at Commander's Palace. It's a New Orleans institution, with excellent service and even more excellent food, and it was pretty much perfect tonight. To avoid glutening myself, I skipped the gumbo (even though I really wanted it) and instead got a perfect salad (romaine with bacon and egg, but very well executed) and an excellent steak with some spiced-up mashed potatoes. The meal was fantastic, as was the company, and we left happy.

Then we grabbed cocktails at the Columns Hotel, which was excellent, before coming home and discussing celebrity gossip. And then I read until now, but I really should sleep to fortify myself for the day ahead - goodnight!

in the dark of armstrong park the marching bands attend, but they never make a sound

I had an excellent day in New Orleans. This city feels like a town that has already died, but the news of its demise hasn't caught up with it yet - which is probably why it feels a bit like home to me, even though I've never lived here and these ghosts aren't mine. This is my fifth trip here, and each time it feels like something calls to me - my French ancestors, or the waters that drain from my home to this delta, or just the feeling of grit and determination in the face of inevitable decay.

Or maybe it's the rum that calls to me. Regardless, it was a great day. We all got up around the same time, and we took an Uber to Cafe du Monde, where I succumbed to the gluteny allure of beignets (which were #worthit) and chicory cafe au lait. Then we wandered around for hours, had a decadent lunch at Herbsaint, and came home to take naps.

In the evening, we did a walking tour that talked about ghosts, vampires, voodoo, modern PTSD, etc. Then we had dinner and drinks at a wine bar, followed by hurricanes at the supposed original hurricane bar (terrible drinks, nice ambiance) and another drink at a nearby bar that I'd been to before and liked. And now, after getting home before midnight (which is v civilized in New Orleans), it's time for bed - goodnight!

the costume fits so i played my part

I am taking a break from my #smalltownlife for the weekend, and am about to fall asleep in an Airbnb in New Orleans. I'm on a girls trip with a couple of former coworkers (Caroline and another girl named Sara, which is probably confusing on a three person trip). Everything today went quite smoothly - I had some time to take care of tings around the house before leaving, and then I got to the airport without any issues. My flights were on time and I had time for a snack in Houston. And when I got to the Airbnb, I was here for approximately two minutes before meeting my friends at a restaurant down the street for a Caesar salad and champagne, which felt appropriate.

So, I'm very excited to be here, and also very excited to go to sleep so I can do all the things tomorrow - goodnight!

raise a glass up cause i won't

No blog tonight - I had a pretty good day, all in all, but I was dragging after staying up too late last night, and I had a lot to do today that I didn't really get done. However, I did pack for my trip - I'm leaving for New Orleans tomorrow, which is v. exciting. And I talked to Katie, which is always a delight. 

But right now, I desperately need to sleep - goodnight!

so welcome back and take a breath, you come to life, you're bored to death

I was lazier than I intended to be today, but that's because I had intended to spend today prepping the garage so that I could spray the ceiling tomorrow. However, my hands are still shot from this weekend's painting activities, and I've been on the brink of carpal tunnel or RSI or whatever other hand issues often enough to know that I need to rest them now or they will only get worse. So, I reneged on my plan to prep the garage, which felt right even if Future Sara will probably not be excited to do it next weekend.

Instead, I spent the day messing around the house - I did approximately four loads of laundry, cleaned some tings, moved some tings around, etc. I also did a wee bit of journaling and an even wee-er bit of writing. And I took a walk around town, despite the fact that it's approximately forty degrees - it was colder than I wanted it to be, but it helped me to stretch out from painting + kettlebells, so it was #worthit.

After all of that (and a trip to the grocery store), I had a pretty quiet night. [Censored] showed up this afternoon, and we ate dinner together (leftover burrito bowls that I made last night). Then I retired to my room, where I reread the first half of SUNSHINE. This has been a favorite reread since it came out almost twenty years ago (gasp), but I don't think I've reread it since the pandemic started, so I'm overdue. It has a bit of an interesting plot structure and a very strong narrative voice, so I'm reading it partially to see how the author did what she did - but I'm also reading it because I love it, and I continue to love it despite reading it so many times over the years.

But now, I need to go to bed before I inadvertently stay up all night finishing my reread. Goodnight!

acapulco, tel aviv, and maybe japan

I did a bunch of tings today, but none of them are that interesting to you. I woke up with a headache and some soreness, no doubt due to painting the garage, so I was pretty lazy getting around and making coffee. But I did take care of some tings and shower in time for an 11am call with someone I'd connected with on LinkedIn, and then was secretly delighted when the person no-showed (but less delighted to find out it was because they had a medical issue). So, with some unexpected free time, I made a dash to the next town over to return some countertop samples and buy ceiling paint for the garage. I was in the store less than ten minutes before driving home, so I feel like my efficiency at doing things for my house is going up a bit.

When I got home, I did a bit of an Alyssa-themed workout (kettlebells), and then did some stuff in the garage. I also did a whole bunch of stuff upstairs, which is not what I had intended, but I needed to vacuum and throw away the detritus from installing my lights, and I also needed to organize tings.

Eventually, I was done with all that, and I decided to cook tonight so that tomorrow will be easier. I made a chicken burrito bowl in the Instant Pot, which has officially become a staple of my diet, and it was v. tasty. And then I did some cleaning, did some procrastinating, and wrote for awhile. And now it's time for bed - goodnight!

it seems like once again you've had to greet me with goodbye

My hands are covered with paint, but luckily the garage walls are also covered with paint, so I think it was a worthy tradeoff. Today was far more manual labor than I like to pack into my Sunday, but there was really no other choice given the many tings that are coming up in my schedule over the next few weeks.

When I woke up this morning, I made some coffee and got ready, and then [censored] and I did some garage prep. Then, we took one of my mattresses to my parents' house (it's been sitting in my garage since I moved, but it's going to replace the mattress in my bedroom at their house). We also drove around the field, which is always fun.

The fun ended when we got back to town - I made some eggs to fortify us, and then we painted. We decided to roll the paint in the garage instead of spraying it due to the intense prep that spraying requires, but rolling has its own issues (namely, it hurts more due to the repetitive motions). But we successfully rolled a coat of stain/odor blocking primer, and then rolled a coat of paint, and it looks really good. It helps that [censored] has scaffolding on wheels, so when I was cutting in the ceiling with a brush, I could do several feet at once, and then [censored] could roll me on the scaffolding to the next location. This felt almost majestic, especially when I had to crouch down to avoid the garage door tracks and so felt like I was being slowly paddled down a jungle stream -- or perhaps the fumes from the primer really got to me.

sssanyway, all of that took 6+ hours, not including a break to let the primer dry. But it looks really good - I have some touching up to do, and then I need to tape up a whole bunch of plastic since we are going to spray the ceiling. But I think the project was #worthit, even though it was painful.

When we were finally done, we picked up Mexican takeout (I had it two days ago, but beggars can't be choosers here, and I am happy to eat that instead of having to cook after spending six hours painting). Then, I relaxed for a bit, and now I should sleep so I can get back into the writing swing of tings tomorrow. Goodnight!

i'm in the beauregards, slow me down if i get hard

Yesterday and today have been v. full of productivity, which is not what I signed up for with my #funemployed life. [jk, I am excited that I've been fairly productive since leaving the day job, which is not how the last two departures felt initially]

Yesterday, I was still in Cedar Rapids, where I enjoyed my free hotel breakfast before going to a coffee shop and writing for a couple of hours. [Censored] suggested that I go to Stillwater, which overlooks the river and has a v. city vibe - and I really enjoyed it, as well as the two pourover coffees that got me wired while I was there. I also wrote steadily for that couple of hours, and my story is taking strange and interesting turns, which means I really just want to be writing instead of doing manual labor.

However, I gave up the writing at lunchtime and met [censored]; we went to a place called Daisy's Garage, where I had a smothered chicken sandwich sans the sandwich part (so basically a chicken breast with peppers/onions/cheese) and some excellent tots. Then, [censored] took the afternoon off, so we went to Lowes to get some painting supplies, and then loaded a whole bunch of stuff in my car. I then drove home through a bit of rain the whole way, but the trip was otherwise uneventful. And I made it back in time to have Mexican takeout with my parents, which fortified me both yesterday and today, thanks to leftovers.

Today continued the productivity show - [censored] showed up last night, and we spent today doing myriad house projects. First, [censored] installed new overhead lights in my bedroom and my office, which wasn't entirely necessary (I'd gotten used to using the bare bulbs hanging overhead after painting) - but we needed to take the scaffolding down to the garage for our next project, and it had stayed upstairs for the express purpose of installing the lights. And I must say, I'm quite pleased that they're up and usable, so I'm one step closer to feeling settled in my bedroom/office.

Then, we hauled scaffolding downstairs, ate lunch, and spent the rest of the afternoon prepping the garage to paint the interior. This meant I spent most of the afternoon crawling around on concrete while wearing my gardening kneepads so that I could clean/tape/mask the trim. This was definitely not glamorous, but I will be happy when the garage is painted -- back doors around here are always the actual entrance, and the fact that everyone enters my house through the garage means I have some incentive to spruce it up. Also, if we don't paint it now, we will never paint it, so there's some incentive.

However, all of that effort made me tired, so [censored] and I mooched vegetable beef soup off the parents, then came back and watched a bit of TV before deciding that perhaps bedtime was in order. And so I should really sleep (which is what I planned to do an hour ago, before falling prey to online shopping). Goodnight!

who needs a house out in hackensack

I'm not living my #smalltownlife at the moment - instead, I'm in the large(ish) city of Cedar Rapids. When I woke up this morning, I hurried around to get ready, and then I drove for three hours to get up here in time to have lunch with [censored] at one of [censored]'s favorite eating establishments near the office. I had a BLT pizza on a gluten free crust that was really tasty - I have never had mayo on a pizza before, but it was delish. And it was fun to see the place that [censored] often eats at during the week, even if we didn't have a lot of time to dilly-dally.

After lunch, [censored] hooked me up with a conference room, so I took a call with Alyssa. Then [censored] gave me a tour of the building and introduced me to some people before I returned to my conference room hideout for my writing class. By the end of that, it was basically the end of the work day...which is when the real work began.

[Censored] is in the process of moving some tings, and since [censored] was an extremely generous buddy and came to Denver to help me move, it seemed like I should probably make some mediocre effort to return the favor. Unfortunately, [censored] doesn't have access to skid loaders or telehandlers or other accoutrements of civilized life here, so moving tings like a king-sized bed required basic manpower instead of high-powered equipment. Even more unfortunately, I have child-sized hands and t-rex arms, which makes moving tings difficult - Alyssa, who is my trainer and knows my body better than anyone, actually expressed some humor at the idea of me moving a king sized bed given my size.

However, [censored] and I successfully moved a king sized bed, the two twin box springs that go under it, a large TV, a recliner, and a few other tings down 1.5-2 flights of stairs without dying and without killing each other, so I feel v. accomplished. There is still some stuff to do tomorrow, so I shall amuse myself by writing at a coffee shop (yayyyy) until [censored]'s afternoon off begins, but I'd say tings are in good shape.

After we finished moving, [censored] took me out for dinner at a v. tasty Italian place, where I had a nice glass of wine and some risotto for my efforts. Then, we checked into a hotel, since [censored]'s bed is now in a trailer and there is nowhere else to sleep. And now, I really need to sleep - goodnight!

who gives a fuck about an oxford comma

I had quite an excellent day, although there wasn't time to do everything I wanted to do. I spent the morning writing, which went well. I also had a call with an old college classmate who reconnected on LinkedIn; she told me a bunch of stories about Iowa that she remembered me telling her twenty years ago, so I guess maybe I should write a book with those stories because apparently they stick in others' memories. It was great to catch up and I think we'll do it again, so that's a nice highlight for the day.

At some point, I made an omelette and some toast for lunch, which was tasty. I also did some more stuff in my office, and did some more prep work in the garage. And in the evening, I went to a meeting of my secret society; I got drafted into being a temporary note-taker for the night, but it was all good. The dessert after was also pretty tasty, and I got to indulge in some good royal gossip with someone, so it was a worthy outing.

Then I talked to my mom in the parking lot for a bit, came home, and did a bunch of stuff that I needed to get done. And now I'm going to go to bed slightly later than intended but slightly earlier than usual - goodnight!

heat wave, the slow lane

I had a mostly excellent day, although I easily could have fallen into some Tuesday Scaries (not really a thing, but you never know) because the weather seemed rather gloomy. It wasn't actually that gloomy - it was still warm out, but the wind and clouds made it seem wintery.

However, I did do quite a bit of writing today, which was excellent - I'm feeling my way into the story and it's taking some weird (aka exciting) twists already. I'm willing to see where these twists go, as long as the setting doesn't change - but we'll see what happens.

Beyond the writing, I did some house stuff, took a short walk, and discovered that I still can't get ceiling paint in town (the paint-ordering guy at the lumber yard, whose name I know but will not share for privacy reasons, said that he hopes to get it 'in his lifetime' but has given up hope for now). I also spent some time working on prepping the garage to paint it, which felt like a worthy endeavor. And I did the reading for my class this week, so I feel quite accomplished.

And now, I need to sleep - goodnight!

nirvana on the last try

I had a v. lovely day in #smalltownlife - while fall is definitely in the air and the colors are absolutely gorgeous, it was almost eighty degrees today. This was perfect for a long, meandering drive with my dad around the southern reaches of our county. I asked him to take me around and show me tings, although I didn't have any specific destination in mind - I am trying to figure out the vibe of my book, and because of my dad's unique history with this place, he has more stories than I will ever have.

So, he took me down a bunch of dirt roads (although one, which is part of the Iowa/Missouri line, was impassable enough that we didn't try it) and various gravel/paved roads and showed me things he thought might be interesting. I took a few photos to jog my memory later, and I made some notes. While most people think Iowa is flat, this area definitely isn't -- any number of things could happen in the draws and valleys that are shrouded by timber, and my mind is buzzing with possibilities.

All in all, it was a great afternoon, and I'm glad we made time for it. The rest of my day was fairly unproductive, but I need to get some more stuff done tomorrow - so I think it's time for bed. Goodnight!

we rattle this town, we rattle this scene

I had a long but good day of house projects, and now I'm v. tired. I made some eggs and coffee this morning to get me and [censored] fortified, and then we did a whole bunch of moving of various tings to various places. Between my dad's equipment and [censored]'s stuff, moving tings around certainly goes differently than it did when I lived in cities by myself - for instance, [censored] was able to move a treadmill from the garage to a shed across the yard on a skid loader, which was way easier than any other method.

I will spare you the (occasionally illicit) details, although I will say that bringing my dad's dumpster to my house was way easier for clearing the previous owner's stuff out of my shed than it would have been to take all that stuff to the dumpster. So we cleared out a bunch of shed stuff, then moved a bunch of garage stuff to the shed. We're still hoping to be able to paint the garage next weekend, and we made a good dent in getting it cleared out, but we'll see what happens.

At some point I took a break from garage stuff to make dinner (chicken tortilla soup, which is always good). And eventually, I took a shower and spent the rest of the evening writing + messing around online while [censored] watched videos about garage floors. And now it's time for bed - goodnight!

they reach into my head to steal the glory of my story

I had a pretty chill day - some would argue that it was too chill, since I didn't finish getting my stuff out of the garage (which has been on the books for weeks). However, I have acquired the paint for the garage and have also purchased new garage door openers, so I would argue that I'm making some contributions, even if it's still going to be a slog to get to the point that [censored] and I can paint it next weekend.

Beyond that, I did clear out a bit of garage stuff today, which was better than nothing. I also put away some stuff upstairs, making yet another small dent in my disorganized post-move detritus. And I did a small bit of organizing in the basement. Someday, my house will be tidy and clean, but it is not this day.

In the afternoon, I took a break from house projects to go to a 50th anniversary party for Clell and Lee Ann. This is the kind of thing that I would normally have missed without a second thought because I wouldn't have flown back for it, but since I was here, I went. It was pretty nice and there was a good turnout, and I spent some time talking to various people (including the other, unrelated Clell; and also Clell's niece). Before we got to the party, [censored] and I also stopped to see a guy about [censored], which resulted in me getting some decent town gossip from the guy's wife (who is the mother of one of my high school classmates). So all in all, it was a very good #smalltownlife afternoon.

Then I came home, prepped some food, and went out to my parents' house to make dinner. I made a creamy chicken and mushroom parmesan dish with mashed potatoes + a caesar salad, and it was pretty tasty (if I do say so myself). And now, I should sleep in the interest of getting some tings done tomorrow - goodnight!

going down the old mine with a transistor radio

I had a v. nice day, even if it was approximately Day 23 of ignoring [censored]'s request to clean out the garage. When I woke up, I drank some cold brew and then took a walk around town, mostly in service of dropping off my water bill payment + some stuff to mail at the post office. Then I came home and wrote for awhile before taking a shower and eating lunch (an assortment of leftovers) with [censored].

After that, the afternoon was mostly spent in my office - I had a follow-up chat with Alyssa, and then I did an hour of reading for my class before it met this afternoon. The discussion was pretty good, overall - it's been a v. long time since I've been in a workshop-style writing class, but it is good to get the juices flowing.

At some point, I was going to start cooking dinner, but on a whim [censored] and I decided to check out a new-to-us restaurant in a town we never go to (Garden Grove). I'd heard about it last week, and it's only open Thursday-Saturday, so we decided to see what it was all about. It was actually quite nice inside - it's in an old recently-restored hotel, and the decor is pretty nice (and features some trains, which my family is into). The menu is limited mostly to burgers and pasta and various fried tings, which isn't great for the gluten-free life, but my burger without the bun was quite tasty - and their cheese curds (which definitely had gluten) were excellent. So, having sussed it out, I would go back - and it's nice to add possibilities to the food options around here, even if it is 25 or so miles away.

Then we came home, and I mostly messed around and did nothing until now. And now I should sleep - goodnight!

all night long, writing poems to california

I had a fairly excellent day, all in all. I did some stretching and a bit of kettlebell stuff, and then I spent the morning doing some legit writing, which felt great. It's quite likely that none of it will make it into the final draft, but it's also quite likely that I'm getting into something interesting. We'll see where it takes me tomorrow!

I also had lunch with [censored], although we ate different things. Then I did a bit more work before talking to Alyssa, who was a delight. After, I did a bunch of random house stuff - I put together the rest of a set of shelves, did some laundry, tidied up the kitchen, etc. And eventually, I made dinner - I roasted some salmon, along with some roasted potatoes and some roasted broccoli, and even though everything roasts for different times and even though (or perhaps because) I used approximately one gallon of olive oil, it all came together right on time and was quite delicious. I ate it while [censored] and I watched some TV (Big Bang Theory reruns + some replays of this week's SNL - ooof, that cast is gonna need some time to gel).

Eventually, I came upstairs and read part of a book on the folklore of rural crafts (especially beekeeping and blacksmithing), which is way too high level but also gave me some interesting avenues of exploration. And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

headlights pin the highway down

It was a gorgeous day in rural Iowa - winter is still coming, but today was warm and sunny. The fields are golden, descending into brown; harvest is ongoing, which means an uptick in the number of trucks going by my house at all hours of the day, headed out and back to fields with loads of grain. In a few weeks everything will be brown and grey and dead, but for now it's still gorgeous, and I want to soak it in.

Unfortunately, I slept in this morning - I woke up at five with a v. unusual sour stomach, which is unusual because I used to do that all the time when I was working but haven't had a sleepless interlude like that in a couple of months. So, when I did go back to sleep, I let myself turn off my alarm. Despite that, I had a good day - I made tea and read some of the readings for my fantasy/scifi class while sitting on my balcony, which was great. I also made a perfect omelette for lunch. I went to the flooring store to have yet another entertaining conversation with the proprietor and confirm the flooring I want to get for my kitchen/main floor bathroom. I ran to the grocery store to get more eggs, since I'm living on omelettes.

When I got home, I did a bit of organizational stuff, and I also took a bit of a walk. And I ended up making another batch of burrito bowls in my instant pot - it wasn't what I intended to make tonight, but my salmon hadn't thawed out, and I wanted something easy. So I ate that, then did some more stuff in my office, and then greeted [censored]. And now, I should consider going to bed and trying to get up early again tomorrow - goodnight!

lost inside a dream with halls that never seem to end

I have nothing of interest to report - today was very Mondayish, in that I had a lot I wanted to get done but also not a lot of desire to do it. I did, however, make some progress on unpacking more of my office - I need some more shelves, but I'd like to get it mostly organized this week so that I have at least one finished room in the house. I also spent some quality time on my balcony writing / journaling, since it's still warm and I want to take advantage of it. And I continued contemplating the book I'm writing, which is its own weird internal process that I can't describe.

But with no further updates, it's time for bed - goodnight!

but i sang 'em all to another heart

I didn't get as much done as I intended today, but I also didn't succumb to Sunday Scaries, so I'll take it as a win. I did my usual morning stuff of making coffee + taking a shower + making scrambled eggs, and the eggs were just as delicious as usual. I also procrastinated, which is rarely delicious. But I did spend some quality time in the basement - I put together most of another set of shelves, and I unpacked all the dry goods that were in the basement so that I could see what I have in my stockpiles. I need to see if there's anything I need to stockpile / order before winter, and I also want to be ready to try some new recipes this fall, so knowing what I have is critical to that goal.

At some point, I saw my mom, and I also saw my dad; and I drove out to their house to abscond with some leftover barbecued chicken so that I wouldn't have to cook tonight, which was #worthit. After [censored] left, I sat on my balcony until it was too dark to see, and then I ate a baked potato with the chicken and mostly called it a night. I did write some tings that I'd been meaning to write, but none of it was noteworthy.

And now, I think I'll try to go to bed early (but we'll see if that actually happens) - goodnight!

sex, drugs, etcetera

I have nothing particularly noteworthy to report today. I somehow continue managing to sleep in despite having no window coverings in my bedroom (it's a good thing I can sleep despite it, since they're backordered until late October). So, I eventually got up, made coffee, and then made some v. delicious scrambled eggs with bacon, onion, and mushrooms. Then I took a shower, and eventually I buckled down to do some house work.

The main task for today was to get the basement in a bit better order so that I can shove a bunch of stuff into it from the garage. While [censored] was doing a variety of [censored] tings, I put together the two sets of wire rack shelves that came with me from Denver. [censored] graciously picked up three more sets of similar shelves on the way here this weekend; I didn't put those together, but the two I already had were a good start toward getting some boxes out of the way.

The other things we somehow successfully got out of the way were the water heater that died last Thanksgiving + a dryer that also died. I sort of assumed these things would just stay in the basement forever, since I certainly wasn't hauling them upstairs myself. But [censored], in a move that managed to surprise me even though I should not be surprised at what [censored] has the tools to do, was able to pull both the water heater and the dryer up the steps using a dolly + a [censored] attached to his [censored] and powered by his other [censored]. My effort mostly consisted of pushing the switch when told to push it, which pulled the cable and dragged the tings up the stairs. This was certainly better than dying while trying to lift either of those things. So, this felt like quite a successful adventure.

After that, I watched pieces of the Iowa State football game (sad), and also did some more organizing / started hauling things downstairs. Eventually, we went out to the parents' for supper - my dad smoked a brisket, and even though it had been smoking for twelve hours, it didn't get quite to the temperature he wanted. Still, it was extremely tasty, as were the scalloped potatoes that my mom made. And we were almost interrupted by Stinky (the neighborhood skunk), but [censored] scared him off before he made himself at home on the back porch.

And now, I really need to sleep - goodnight!

say goodbye to hollywood

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

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

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

And now I really need to sleep - goodnight!

but my hand's been broken one too many times

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

so i woke up with entropy defined

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

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

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

And now, I really need to sleep - goodnight!

there's no hand on the lever

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

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

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

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

And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

in anticipation for precipitation stack chips for the rainy day

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

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

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

And now I really need to sleep - goodnight!

just a quiet prayer for congo square

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

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

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

midnight train going anywhere

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

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

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

you check out guitar george, he knows all the chords

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

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

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

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

the things we do to the people that we love

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

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

it took forever and a day to miss the mark

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

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

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

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

rule britannia

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

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

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

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

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

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

home on the range

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

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

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

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

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

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

hypnotized by you if i should linger

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

send my love to your new lover

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

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

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

And now, I need to sleep - goodnight!

about damn time

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

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

fill up the engine, we can drive real far

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

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

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

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

never forget

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

beach or mountain

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

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

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

one to get up, one to get down

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

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

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

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

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

But now it's time for bed - goodnight!

spin that record baby

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

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

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

And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

don't you worry don't you worry child

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

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

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

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

cover up the sun

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

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

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

the god of ocean tides

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

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

And now I need to sleep - goodnight!

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

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

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

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

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

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

simply the best

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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