Sunday, Oct. 08, 2023 1:26 pm
Fall is here FINALLY
But I feel GREAT this weekend because we finally finally finally got a day of FALL. Yesterday was the coolest day we had had since April. We went from 70s overnight to 50s overnight. From 90s in the day to 70s in the day. I've been sitting outside this morning for hours just enjoying the air and the sun. Yesterday I actually walked a mile to the closest restaurant (that's not fast food) and sat down and had a real hot meal that was delicious. Chicken fried steak, green beans, and fried okra. Yum. I'm sure the two miles of walking took away all the calories. - ha - It was worth it. I haven't had a real meal like that in a long time. I also was outside yesterday digging and pulling weeds a little bit. Then my yard man came and mowed so everything looked pretty decent and I really could enjoy sitting out there last night and this morning.
There is a big cat walking across this desk. I truly must clear it so he doesn't have to pick his way through it and knock off piles of papers while he does it. TODAY.
Last weekend, when I didn't write and was feeling like crap, I did go to a Pen Show. I didn't know such things existed until this year. It was a lot bigger than I expected. It was also more crowded than I expected. I looked at a few pens and wrote with a $1500 pen (!!!!), but I didn't really know what I wanted or was looking for so I only bought some ink cartridges for a pen I own (that only takes cartridges and not bottled ink) and some beautiful stationery that seemed like a really good price for such beautiful paper. I also went to a seminar on sketching with a fountain pen. It wasn't particularly educational, but the speakers were very entertaining and great artists and it was inspiring.
I have been drawing a lot this week for Inktober. I haven't missed a day and I've had really lovely comments on my drawings. I haven't done any "throw away" kind of posts last minute either. They've all been thought out and I have used the prompt. I've chosen this year to NOT do any designs or zentangles. They will all be real subjects or cartoons. I still need to organize my sketch book and pens a little to be able to easily draw and not have to hunt up supplies each night (or dig through couch cushions for a pen).
This week I have gotten away from my early bedtimes and I don't like that! The late night TV shows are back on after the writer's strike finally ended after five whole months. I don't stay up for the late night shows, but I have them recorded and I have watched the first 20 minutes or so of several of them just to see what they have to offer as they catch up on the last five months. That's taken longer than I would hope and I've gone to bed late, read less, and overslept in the morning because of it.
I woke up this morning truly NOT knowing where I was. I've had that a few times in the last couple of years just because of the move, but this was totally because of the weather. I woke up and it was so relatively "cold" in the house I had to really stop and think. It was weird!
I DID get the curtains hung last week. That probably was two weeks ago. I was having a really great day. I was in my office hanging curtains, listening to a podcast, deeply absorbed in my job when there was a banging on the door. "It's your sister!!" Man, she was hot AGAIN. How many wellness checks has this been? Yes, I had carried my phone with me to do something in another room and left it there so I missed her texts and her call. She was certain I was dead. At least she was already out in her car and didn't have to leave her house this time to come check on me. She was SO mad, but I don't know how to help that! And, TOO, when I got the phone, there were no calls from her. My phone was on airplane mode, which, granted, it shouldn't have been, though I didn't turn it on, it was a mistake. So at least I didn't NOT hear it. But what really ticked me off was that she stayed and visited and visited. She was here a couple of hours. The whole time I was itching to get back to my project. Of course, by the time she left I had less energy for it and that irritated me. I'm over it now (as you can tell as I type a whole paragraph about it).
But the curtains are hung (don't look too closely at how the rods are attached to the wall) and they look great. It really does exactly what I want it to do and the color matches my desk pad and a basket on my desk. I moved art around and it looks very cool and moody, too, now. Next I'm afraid I need a new office chair or a cushion for it. This is the same chair I've had for maybe six years? It belongs to the company and I was grateful that was one of the things I got to take home to use. But it has become very very HARD and my butt and legs really suffer. I shouldn't sit so long, but when I do it really is apparent. Sometimes my leg and foot are asleep so much I have to be really careful to get it fully awake before I put weight on it.
But, I've been watching my accounts and I think I need to be pretty careful for the next month or more (probably through January!). My cushion is almost non-existent right now and though I'm not completely paycheck to paycheck, it's pretty close. When I start delaying paying the credit card (not enough to have to pay interest, but some), I'm afraid I will fall a bit behind.
The first weekend of November I've committed to going to Hot Springs, Arkansas, for a baby shower for a cousin. I don't care about the baby shower (or much about the cousin, I barely know her), but the honoree's grandmother (my first cousin) is having a brunch on Sunday for the family and she is the best hostess and cook in the world. That will make it worth the trip. And she's the one that has paid for condos twice that I've been able to enjoy as her guest so I want to accept her invitation and give to her granddaughter. That may be an expensive trip: gift, hotel, and I need a haircut.
Interesting sight in my neighborhood: strikers! I hadn't realized that a GM Distribution Facility is close by and there were UAW strikers picketing. Exciting!
And, best news of the week: eggnog is for sale at Braum's. Theirs is really really good and full fat and delicious. I have had my half-gallon and I must hold off before buying more. I drank it without the booze (I haven't been drinking this week) and I am craving more.