life in the old lane

Keeping to my one-hour schedule was hard today. I don’t seem to be very focused, centered, motivated, etc. But, today is the last full day.

I wish I could say that 5 days of home alone had given me great new insights. It didn’t. But I am getting more and more accepting that this shit is going to be going on for a long long time for us old folks who live in various congregate living situations.

I was reading Carlton’s little book this morning – and on July 6, 2010, he noted that granddaughter Sam and I went to Japan. I didn’t think that was worthy of a note in his book. But, I guess to him he did seem like a fearful undertaking. Heading ½ way around the world to a country that I had never visited, with a 17 year old kid, with only a backpack… I am sure that was way outside of his comfort zone.  It was a great trip.  We are both better women for it.

Let us just say that according to my phone – I am living a loser life!

And the truly pathetic thing is: Google is correct. There was only highlight in June 2020. And it was the visit to Green Spring Gardens.

Gratitude

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I am really grateful to have rediscovered cooking. When this is over, I am sure that I will go back to eating Asylum food, because eating with friends is very important to me. But, for now. I am content to prepare my own meals. With an assist from Whole Foods deliver.

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Mālama pono

Problem with the fireworks is that a lot of them reminded me of Corona Virus!

So, let us look at airplanes. All manner of planes flew over my window. Haven’t seen so many different planes since they opened the Air Force Memorial back in 2006.  Well, maybe the 70th anniversary of VE Day back in 2015. There were lots of planes there. But old ones.

Speaking of old planes. This bad boy is old enough to move into The Asylum.

Not sure what this one was. Big ass plane. So it must be a B-1B.

I know it is noisy, 600mm from my window. The little guys were flying pretty low.

And finally, Holy Batman.

About being in Solitary. I only have 43 hours left. So, I think I am going to make it. With a little help from my friends that is. We Zoom every evening before we have our dinners.

Gratitude

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Grateful for yoga. I haven’t gotten any much cardio. But more than enough strength and flexibility for an old woman.

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And to recap the last 24 hours:

Mālama pono 

Guess What? I can get my head out of the window. That means I can jump if necessary.

Second full day in solitary. The food service folk forgot about me. But, that is OK. They found me this afternoon and were surprised that I noticed that they hadn’t come around – but I didn’t miss them. I had oatmeal for breakfast, chicken and rice for lunch and ham and eggs are scheduled for dinner. I can still cook.

I was playing with a new camera and Carlton was polishing his old sword. And,  I accidentally fired the remote shutter. Note to self: Should I polish the sword? If so, with what?

I got some good shots that year.

As you can see I had another action-packed day.

Gratitude

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Grateful for windows that open. Even if it is hotter than Hades outside.

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I might put one of my cameras on the tripod and make a video of the fireworks. Or I might do what I did last year and close the blinds. Thing is The Orange Lord will not know that I am not watching. So, maybe I’ll let myself watch.

Mālama pono

The only thing I could find outside my window was a turkey vulture. And it was too far away for a 300mm lens.

Seems like it is really hot out there. Guess that is why there are no people.

So, I have completed one day of my sentence. I am glad that I am not locked in with Carlton for 5 days. I am fairly sure that he would exit via the window. Or just say fuck-it, they can not do this to me. And, he would go about his normal life. More likely he wouldn’t have told anyone that he went to the dentist.

So what have I been doing? Very little. Trust me. But, I am keeping a spreadsheet of my non-activity. My fitness tracker thinks that I have died.

Somewhere along the line today, I did get my fridge cleaned out and my food storage cupboard inventoried and tidied up. That is one of the advantages of a tiny kitchen. It can only get so cluttered.

Gratitude

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Grateful that you really don’t have to dress when you are in quarantine. And don’t need a mask.

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Mālama pono

Lamas from my window. Last Friday, our keepers decided that the inmates would be amused by dunking the employees. I think the dunkees were more amused than the residents. All I know about the lamas is that the young people who bring us our meals were interested. Since this is the holiday weekend, they are also having a Johnny Cash impersonator. But, I couldn’t see him. I do hear applause from time to time.

When I got back to the Asylum from the dentist one of the older ladies was having what passes for a birthday during COVID. She couldn’t go out and her friends/relatives couldn’t come in. That sucks. especially when you are over 90. But, nobody is promised tomorrow.

Unexpected surprise. The friend that was driving me to the dentist this morning begged an indulgence from The Executive Director. Since it was supposed to be hot – he allowed her to bring me home too. So, that was great. Now, I just hope that we both stay COVID free for the next 14 days.

Gratitude

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Grateful for Friends.

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So far, Solitary is like a normal day for me. I usually exercise, attend to stuff outside of the apartment, etc in the morning and usually hang out in the Old Bat Cave in the afternoon. Sometimes I take another little walk after dinner. Tomorrow is when the adventure really starts.

Mālama pono

Sucking up some rays before I go into solitary tomorrow. Don’t even get to go out to the exercise yard.  I can honestly say that I have never been sent to my room for 120 hours. A new Adventure in Living as the UHaul trailers used to say. AFGO as the young people would say. Stay tuned. It will be boring.

I have promised myself any Kindle book that I want to read. Any audiobook that I want to hear. Any movie I want to see.

This coronavirus thing isn’t a sprint. Don’t even think it is a marathon. More like an ultra-marathon. And, I am gradually adjusting my mindset to the new normal. This 5-day sentence in solitary will either help me make the adjustment or drive me right out my window.

I haven’t made any plans except to take out the trash and take in the mail tomorrow morning. Then catch a ride to the dentist with a friend. See the dentist. Hope that everything is OK. Walk home. Stopping for a picnic lunch along the way. Water my garden boxes, and turn myself in to the authorities. I could skip the last step and avoid imprisonment. But that would be cheating.

Gratitude

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Grateful for digital photography.

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Mālama pono

Yet another image from Sunday’s Walk in the Park. This is a cardoon. Which sounds like the evil lord in a 1950’s Saturday movie serial. It is a monster thistle plant. Relative of the artichoke. But, one eats the stems of the cardoon. They are huge. And quite wonderful to look at, eating them might not be so great. Bees like them.

Reading the Washington Post this morning in dead tree format. I put it on the table to go get more coffee and when I returned the tops of page 8 and page 12 were visible.

This describes the current state of affairs.

Trip to the dentist is moved up to July 2. Day after tomorrow. I think this is a good move. New cases are down in this area right now. BUT, tomorrow more things will be more open. And, in other states that is when the wheels fell off.

Then I get 5 days in solitary. In my room. Not even allowed to go to the trash room. (Note to self – empty trash on Thursday Morning!) Much less outside. If I had false teeth I could just drop them off at curbside for service.

Gratitude

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Wow, just saw a bunch of swifts swooping around. Grateful for my windows. It was about 5 years ago that I selected The Old Bat Cave for my “forever home”.

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According to CNN, nearly 60,000 lbs. of chicken nuggets are being recalled because they may contain rubber. I wonder: How did anyone notice?
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No new pictures today. But, some nice ones from yesterday’s walk in the park.

Totally tired today. So, I was happy to enjoy doing nothing. And, trying to learn to accept the “new normal”.  I stopped reading the travel-related emails that arrive. Travel isn’t happening. So, why am I torturing myself trying to figure out where I can go. I can go nowhere. So I can just deal with it.

This amused me. Seems that Remington Arms Company is preparing to file for bankruptcy again. And the Navajo Nation is expected to buy whatever is left.  There seems to be some sort of cosmic justice in this.

Still hoping for a miracle and I am allowed to go to my dentist next week without 5 days in solitary.  But, as long as Arlington County remains relatively Covid-free I intend to go.

Gratitude

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Grateful for fluffy white clouds and bright blue sky out my window.

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No old travel pix today. I was lazing around Bermuda. Just ocean, sunrises, and sunsets.

Mālama pono

Just for today. Pretend this is just a normal day. A good day for a walk in the park. A good day to make pictures.

Chipmunks are much cuter when they are in someone else’s garden.

See, a nice normal Sunday morning stroll in the park.

Gratitude

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Grateful for a new normal day.

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June 28, 2019. My Lap Around the Planet was coming to an end. I was retreating to Greenbanks in Bermuda to rest up after my travels.

I liked all of my hotels. Hazzlitt’s is a strange hotel. But fun. You get breakfast delivered to your chambers. They have no kitchen. But, you get great coffee and fine baked goods. A “continental breakfast” worthy of the name.

Soon I am in Bermuda. There is no one to greet me – but the key is in my door.

And my lounge chair is ready.

Mālama pono

Sometimes all you need are a few flowers to lighten the day.

Now this is a serious mystery. This “tombstone” recently appeared on the grounds. Who was Misty? Someone’s favorite goldfish? A budgie? Maybe it is a game. Stay tuned. Someone will know. Someone knows everything around here. You just have to find the right someone.

We have been locked up for a seriously long time. And, I see no end in sight. Even if we could go anywhere without being hit with 5 to 14 days of quarantine, where would I go? I feel like I am living in Ogallala, Nebraska in 1862 before the Union Pacific came through. Stuck in one place. With no hope of escape. I have jackrabbits in my boots. I don’t stay in one place well. Not even close.

Gratitude

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Grateful for my little kitchen. As the Asylum food has gotten worse I have rediscovered “The Joy of Cooking”. Actually I gave my 1957 version of that midcentury standby to a friend from work. And, at this instant, I am really thankful for my little dishwasher.

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June 27, 2019, was my last full day in London and actually then end of the Round the World trip. Next stop Bermuda for some downtime.

Time for yet another tiny obscure museum.

I don’t purchase much, but I adore window shopping. And this was a killer window.

Mālama pono

 

Stopping to admire the other garden boxes while watering mine this morning.  Most people grow flowers. Some tomatoes. I grow weeds and one huge rosemary plant. But, I like my weeds.

The area around The Asylum seems to be taking the mask business seriously. Which is good when you are an old person.

Today, The Asylum attempted to amuse the inmates with public dunking of staff members. It did amuse me because I spent 4 hours taking and post-processing pictures.

Hey Carlton, are you still paying attention to me? Well, just thought you would like to know that your old enemy Advanced Towing is being sued by the VA Attorney General. (Just one of Carlton’s adventures with Advanced Towing – and he was dead guilty that time.)

Gratitude

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Grateful for an email from a very old and lost Park Service friend today. From wayback in the last Millenium. Sometimes, technology is our friend.

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June 26, 2019.  I explored to obscure but fantastic museums.

The Old Operating Theatre Museum and Herb Garret

And the Grant Zoology Museum.

Great place London. Wish I were there. Or lots of places other than here.

Mālama pono

This morning’s “hike” was for distance not speed. I did 3 miles in 70 minutes. Hey cut me some slack. I am an old woman.

First thing I discovered on my adventure was that the street, sidewalk, and bus stop were gone. That is when I decided to head to the bike path for a while. Didn’t encounter any bikers or runners or walkers. Just some squirrels. Then I wandered slowly back to The Asylum.

After reading the newspapers and doing the laundry – this being my assigned laundry day – it was lunchtime.

Well, this nice modest healthy lunch just wasn’t going to cut it. Had to make an production out of it. So. I gathered up my lunch, the Kindle, and some water and headed for The Asylum’s unused Dog Run.

I was visited by a bee, a spider, an ant, and a couple of catbirds. Shared my ½ sandwich with the birds. Read my book and killed an hour. By then – naptime!

Gratitude

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Grateful that we seem to be going in the right direction. Just for today.

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June 25, 2019 – I went to see the Prime Meridian. Seemed like the right thing to do on a trip around the planet.

I had a sinsus infection, I was tired, I needed to find a laundry. And, I was loving every minute of the trip.

Mālama pono