Category: The DayBook

The sky was fire red for a couple of minutes this morning, but no storm materialized. 

So, howzit working out? My inside job to get my sorry ass in gear and accomplish something. Well, finish all the projects. 

I didn’t finish anything today. However, I did stuff.  Stuff was shredded. And, I didn’t even scan it before I shredded it. Stuff was pitched into the recycle bin. Stuff is ready to good to the Goodwill on Thursday when I go see the Lawyer and the Dentist. Doesn’t that sound like a fun day? 

I always had deadlines. I have to trick myself into believing that I have deadlines. I am not too very bright. So, I think I can fool myself. For a while at least. Maybe long enough to finish some things. I am too old to have many UFO – Unfinished Objects/Obligations.

The rose went into composting this morning. It wasn’t taking up any room, but it wasn’t adding anything to my life either. Carlton is not a dried yellow rose. 

The Woman Who Doesn’t Fit In… That would be me. Don’t worry about not fitting in. I have always been one of those (Wo)Men Who Don’t Fit In – for those of you who never worked in Alaska – A little Robert Service, please:

Theirs is the curse of the gypsy blood,
And they don’t know how to rest.
If they just went straight they might go far;
They are strong and brave and true;
But they’re always tired of the things that are,
And they want the strange and new.

I have never fit in – anywhere, and I am cool with that.

And, if I had taken a photo at 8 AM Sunday – the flower was a fat green bulb.

I sorta put my money on the line for the boat trip down the Columbia and Snake rivers. But, I haven’t gotten confirmation that it’s a go. So, I am in a holding pattern while the boat decides if they want my money bad enough to take a grumpy old woman. Stay tuned. 

Figured out why I have not completed any of the many tasks and projects that are haunting me. None of them have drop-dead due dates. My entire life was run by due dates and schedules. And me being in panic mode trying to get everything done on time and within budget.

In my current life, there is no on-time or due date. So I never feel any need to actually complete anything. I just keep starting stuff and finish nothing and get more and more frustrated. But, I think I understand my problem. So, maybe, I can fix myself. Or Not. Stay tuned.

 

Yesterday’s popup bluegrass concert was outstanding. Terribly young. And, of course, they all have day jobs in Appalachia. Bluegrass is alive and well. We fed them dinner. I hope we paid them well.

I was a total slug today. The only thing I did was decide on my April adventure. Since I waited until almost April to get serious about the trip, my choices are not as great as they would have been 6 months ago. I am currently in my self-imposed 24-hour cooling-off period before I make the reservations and pay the money.

And what is this adventure? Well, sort of a trial trip for the big 30-day northwest passage trip in late summer. A week-long run from Clarkston WA/Lewiston ID to Portland OR on the Snake and Columbia rivers. I read this review of The Sea Bird:

“Sea Bird is a utilitarian vessel, not a floating resort hotel. The ship has three decks, no casino and one restaurant venue. While all cabins have windows, no cabin is larger than 120 square feet. Bathrooms are teeny tiny, and the narrow twin beds are immovable, either in an L-shape or with a nightstand in between. The spa is one small room; the gym is a set of three outdoor cardio machines. At night, passengers can’t go to a show, sing karaoke or even watch TV in their cabins.”

I knew that this might be my kinda vessel. There are Zodiak trips, a jetboat run up Hell’s Canyon, little (I hope) hikes to waterfalls, visits to a couple of wineries. Seems like a good adventure. And a chance to check out my raingear.  The challenge is getting to Lewiston, Idaho. Ending up in Portland I can always catch the train back home to keep the adventure alive a little longer. Amtrak’s Empire Builder is always an adventure in reliability. 

Maybe this will all be sorted out and paid for by COB tomorrow. 

Having dinner with the entire accidental asylum family tonight. All eight of us. We all look forward to our “everyone” dinners. We manage it 3 or 4 times a month. I really don’t know how I would survive here without my asylum family. 

PS – Dinner was great. Both the food and the company.

For no apparent reason, the pool across the street prepped for summer a couple of weeks ago. It is nowhere near pool season. In this area, the pools open at the end of May. Maybe there was an Early Bird Special on pool startup.

This is with my GoPro. I could/should do the lens correction thing. But, I sorta liked the fisheye effect. 

Been ensconced in my comfy chair thinking about going somewhere. After I see my dentist and my lawyer next week. 

Pretty decent bluegrass group playing here this afternoon. What could be more mournful than bluegrass music on a rainy afternoon in an old-folks asylum?  

Finished up a little work today. Got my room cleaned. Did a very little origami. Walked up the stairs a couple of times. And, before you know it it is Happy Hour. 

And for the first good news in a long time. Michigan repealed its right-to-work law.  All in all, a good day.

One from the neighborhood today. Pixel 7.

On from yesterday’s Cherry Blossom trek. GoPro 8

One by request from MidJourney. It actually took a few tries. Got tangled up with the British “pudding”. So, it had him eating chocolate cake. And chocolate cover strawberries. 

Spend most of the day wrangling data. To me, it’s like a game. How can I get all this data correctly tagged, codified, ordered, sorted… Grateful the brain can still do it. I don’t want to do anything “mission critical” anymore. But, I have no problem spending a couple of days pounding the data back into shape. 

Wow, an American Eagle just flew by my window. He/She was on a mission. Just time for a look. No time for a photo. 

Went downtown to check out the cherry trees this morning. Really grateful that I am still able to do that. 14,000+ steps, 6 miles, 29 floors. Not too shabby.

Unbelievably that the gang is still all here!

A great day.  

Window washers always remind me of my favorite George Formby number from 1936. 

Fashion note. Women did not wear PJs in the 30s.   The song was banned by the BBC…” if the public wants to listen to Formby singing his disgusting little ditty, they’ll have to be content to hear it in the cinemas, not over the nation’s airwaves”. 

Going out to dinner this evening with my old boss from the hospital. 

Here is Vince, on The Table of The Dead. Vince lived in independent living. He did not have an aide. I believe he used a cane and/or zimmer frame. He could not hear. So that cut down on his social life. Every evening until the day he died, he put on a sports coat and came to dinner.  

He had a very nice Obit in the Washington Post. 

But what really speaks to the character of the man is the little note that the young people who work in the dining room put on his picture.

And, for Vince, a peaceful passing. After a long life well and graciously lived.  

Enjoyed a total no-brainer lazy as possible day.  

By request.

With apologies to every drag queen on the planet. 

Another good start to the day.  And the sun stayed around all day.

The day got off to a happy start with a couple of 80-somethings declaring that they are a couple. Then we realized that one of our group had failed to check-in this morning. Much worry and concern. Pollyanna Peggy was pretty sure that she left the building early in the AM and just forget to check in. But still. We have been doing this for 3 years now – and no one ever missed. An inspection of her apartment came up empty and we all relaxed. It was a good test of our system. 

I did my laundry while I was worrying. Bonus. One less thing on tomorrow’s to do list.

Now you gotta know that this is MidJourney. Because there are some things that a pig just won’t do!

On the bright side. My room got cleaned today. I got 30 floors and 3 miles in.  And, I didn’t kill anyone. (But, the day isn’t over. So, there is still time.)

Yesterday MidJourney and I crashed an art class. I had some difficulty getting MidJourney to put an apple orange and a pear on a white plate. Well, I tried that one again today, except

except I asked for a tangerine.  That worked. 

And since I crashed a watercolor class – I asked for a watercolor version. 

I gotta get out of this place. Going insane. But, I have a dinner on the outside, a birthday party, my dentist, and my lawyer. Those will be over by April Fools Day. Don’t mind me. I am in one of my periodic short-lived funks.