Back to rainy!

My house was pelted by rain throughout the night, and I even got up to check spots that I've had leak problems with in the past.  The roof treatment works so far, and I didn't even have any water dripping in through the swamp cooler.  Joe wrapped it well.

Around noon the sun came out and it looked like a beautiful day, so after verifying with the Park office that the laundry was operational again, I did most of my wash and took it across the street to dry.  I had to make several trips between brief stormy periods.  I'm waiting for a full sunny day to do the towels so that I can dry them on the line.  

The sun must have dried out the grass so that people are visiting the dog park this afternoon.  All I can hear is barking, growling, and yapping.  It can get annoying, and although people visited that patch of grass with their dogs every day, I don't recall all the noisy barking, but they were all on leash back then.

And speaking of grass, I have a nice patch of green weeds that sprouted overnight in the rain.  I'll never get them all eliminated by the 1st of April (Park Police inspections).  I've been looking at ads for rentals lately, but everything seems to be priced out of my comfort zone.

Yesterday I listened to music on YouTube, and even found several short videos that demonstrated using milk and turmeric to make a mask or a wash to treat skin discolorations, acne, scars, etc.  I used nearly the rest of my turmeric to try it out for myself - mainly on my hands and lower arms.  I have a few of the horrible "age spots", plus sun damage on my arms.  I went to the grocery today and bought a good sized bottle of turmeric, which I will try a few times more to see if it helps.  There are lots of "recipes", including some with honey, lemon, etc., but I'm not going to put "sticky" on my face and hands!  I don't even know why I have honey in my cabinet because I never could stand the stuff.  Probably for the same obscure reason I have a jar of coconut oil, when I consider the taste of coconut to be vile.  Coconut and yogurt - two items I really dislike, and of course, add honey to the group.

I've lost the initiative

Reading blogs and writing my own blog used to be an everyday part of my existence.  Lately I find I'm having too much difficulty getting started that I just don't do it.  I don't have much to say, and I'm sure readers pick up on that fact.

I did have a great past few days - granddaughter Ara was here from Philly for an extended weekend.  It was extended because the snowstorm in PA caused her flight to be cancelled, so she stayed a couple of extra days.  Jeannie, Ara and I enjoyed morning gatherings with coffee topped with whipped cream, cinnamon and nutmeg, while working the NY Times crossword puzzles.

The family also gathered at Straw Hat Pizza on Saturday night which is always fun, although the karaoke makes it a little more difficult to hold a conversation.  Straw Hat pizza and pitchers of Stella can't be beat!

There is an empty space since Ara returned to PA, and we're all feeling it.  On Valentine's Day she urged Jeannie and Donald to have a special "date night", and she took the younger girls out for Chipotle for dinner, and afterwards they came to visit me for a while.  She is such a special person, but also full of fire as only a young person can be.

After a lot of sunny days I think we are going back to overcast skies, showers, and some downright rainy weather.  I have started to treat the weed problem but it always stays ahead of me.

My day is turning out to be not so bad considering I spilled a glass of water all over the table, chair, and floor first thing this morning.  My visit to the chiropractor fixed me right up though - he is so positive and just talking to him makes me feel so positive.

I wish I knew what has happened to all the hummingbirds.  I sometimes bring the feeder in for cleaning and it's obvious that it hasn't been used.  In about 2 weeks I've only seen one hummer; I did see a gorgeous big bird hopping across the street a few days ago, and as it got closer I realized it was a Stellar's Jay.  I have seen lots of them in the foothills, but never here in the city.  When we used to go camping a lot they would steal the dog food right out from Lady's bowl - no fear of me sitting right there, and of course Lady didn't mind sharing.  I'm ready for a good camping trip, now that I think about it.

Interesting Work Today

I worked about 2 hrs at the library today on a project that's kept me busy for the last few weeks.  I am shelf-reading, checking every item shelf by shelf, to make sure things are in the correct place and according to the Dewey Decimal System.  Many would find this boring, but it is totally exciting to me - about the only chance I have to use my left brain.  I am decidedly a right-brained person, but when it comes to alpha-numeric order, and order in general, it's right down my alley!  (Sadly, not order as in "keeping my house in order.)

I had started weeks ago on the non-fiction and am getting close to the end.  What remains is a combination of fiction and non-fiction, but in different languages.  Today I worked myself through Chinese and Russian.  The Chinese was easy once I got used to it (still using our regular alpha-numeric system on the book tag).  The Russian for some reason was really confusing to me and not so easy.  The book ID is still according to Dewey, and I can't explain what the issue is, but is isn't simple.  Next I go to Spanish, then Vietnamese and Korean.  I'm not sure if there is a separate section for Ukranian although I have seen some books with that designation.

So I feel like I'm taking a virtual trip around the world.  The library system also has the same language sections in the Juvenile collection and it's an insight into the diversity of Sacramento.  I stopped work briefly to talk to an oncology nurse who is trying to improve her fluency in Spanish since a large percentage of her patients are Spanish speaking.  When we said goodbye I said "Buena suerte" to her, and until now (I just looked it up) I was hoping it meant "good luck".  It does.  What little Spanish I know is rusty.

The weather predictor on my MAC says it is 73 degrees now (at 4:30pm) and will be in the lower 70's for the next five days.  I will have to look at weather.com to see what is coming up after that.

When Donald & Jeannie drove me home last night after our gym workout, we all got out of the van and looked up at the sky.  The kids spotted Orion and a few other things that weren't as clearly visible to me, but I know they are there.  I need to walk out into the middle of my street at night to really get a good view, and try viewing the sky with my binoculars.  A good sky chart showing planets and stars would also help, but reading them, especially in the dark, would be problematic.

Good night, all, and buena suerte!

 

Problems with AOL mail

I've just been able to access my AOL mail and it's nearly 2:00 pm!  I don't know what their problem was but it affected a lot of people from what I can tell.  I was talking to my son on the phone about it, and he replied that I could live without AOL for a day or more and nothing terrible would happen.  I realize he is right, and I just now looked at the 31 messages piled up in my inbox, and deleted most of them unread!  Why do we let ourselves be so controlled by technology.

I'd like to get weaned off the internet, or at least not have to check things so often.  I'm not watching TV except for the local evening news and weather, and I can tell my internet time has increased exponentially.

I'm still dressed warm, but don't have to run the electric heater and in fact, have the front door open a bit.  We are at 64F, with a high expected today of 69degrees, and the sun is bright.  I went out and sprayed my weeds & grass growing among the rocks with a vinegar-salt solution.  There is no way around it though, I am going to have to go out and pull up the offending plants.

Has anyone noticed that I'm answering comments right on the blog page?  I'm going to do it for a while at least, although I don't know how many folks check back, or if those who don't leave a comment ever read the ones that are posted.

I'm going to go out and sweep my driveway.  I have a leaf blower but don't like the noise it makes.  I have those big earplugs (or whatever you call them - they look like ear phones), but don't like wearing them, and just don't like using the blower itself.  I don't feel I have much control over it. 

Let there be light!

As anyone who reads my blog knows, I suffer from macular degeneration.  There are probably other issues related to aging eyes as well, and I find I need bright light to function - read, clean, cook, etc.  I love the LED bulbs that are available, especially the 100 watt bulbs.  They stay cool and cost very little to operate, although they are way more expensive to buy.  I purchase Cree brand at Home Depot, and a 100w bulb costs over $10.  But it supposedly has an extremely long life, costs much less in energy use, and I feel it is worth it just for the superior light output.

Yesterday I drove to Home Depot after visiting the market, and bought two bulbs for my kitchen.  What a difference!  I am so happy with the light and love being in the kitchen now because I can see so well.

I appreciate the layout of the house during summer months as it seems to block harsh sunlight coming in the windows.  It also makes everything indoors a bit darker, and I'm delighted to find the LED bulbs improve my sight. 

Jeannie and her family went with me to the gym on Friday evening.  We went to the one nearer to their house rather than the one closest to me.  The kids love the Kids Club there, and Donald can play basketball.  ("My" gym has 3 racketball courts, but no basketball.)  I did a fairly strenuous workout and even last night (Saturday) my muscles hurt.  I'm fine now and can't wait to get back.

(I moved a couple of paragraphs around and proofread this post a couple of times, so I hope I got it straight.) 

TV is so disgusting lately that I spend more time watching YouTube videos.  I've heard that "sitting is the new smoking" and I sure hope not.  I sit way too much.

I checked my library account and find I'm now 29th out of 169 patrons on the list for Marie Kondo's "Magical Art of Tidying Up".  I'm putting a lot of hope in this book to help me get control of organizing my stuff and getting rid of a lot of it.  I cancelled the hold I placed for Whitley Streiber's "Communion".  I read the sequel which I think was called "Transformation".  I'm not crazy about his writing style, but if any readers have read "Communion" please write me about it.  Is it worth reading?  I don't want to have nightmares!

Watching the skies

I looked out the front door late  yesterday afternoon, and saw that the sun is getting closer to setting where it's supposed to!   There will come a time in a few months where I will be able to see it from my chair, whereas now I have to walk to the door and look at the sky to the left!  I also got a glimpse of the moon in the middle of the night, but when I woke up a couple of hours later the clouds had moved in and obliterated it.  I'm sort of bummed out that I haven't been able to see all those beautiful planets in the skies along the path of the moon.  What a winter this has been.

After leaving the gym I drove to the place that takes items to be donated to homeless men, although they let me leave a bag for the ladies as well.  It's mostly the men who need the shoes, clothing, etc. as there are other organizations that help women and children.  I even drove there via Freeway 50, both ways, and was pretty proud of myself.  I usually hate the freeway, but didn't feel  like dealing with all the red lights at intersections along the way.  It's supposed to be getting just a little warmer each day although I certainly haven't felt warm yet, and I know it gets cold at night and even chilly on summer nights when the breeze comes up the delta.  I hope someone enjoys my Eddie Bauer down jacket!  I worried that the weather will soon be too warm for it, but was told that they (the homeless) take good care of things like that, and will even roll it up during the warmer weather for a pillow.

Driving today I realized that I was seeing a lot of green.  Green grass, that is!  Where the lawns have died through the drought, the rains have brought the grass back to life.  It is really much prettier to look at.  We've had some very strong winds the past week or two, and I saw at least 3 houses that were having new roofs put on or roof repair.  The aluminum carport of the homeowner across the road from me is still hanging down, and I can't imagine that insurance is taking so long to at least remove the old one and replace it.

I made another big batch of chicken soup yesterday, which is even better than the last one.  I have enough left for at least 3 more meals.  This is certainly the weather for good, nourishing soup.

I think I will respond to comments on the blog, just to see how it goes.  I may or may not continue the practice.    

Dreaded job finished, for now

I'm talking about laundry, and it's dreaded because I have to wash the clothes, then load them into the car to dry them at a nearby laundry.  It's really not that bad, but for some reason I hate doing it.  The towels will wait until we get our laundry back in operation and I can dry them on the line.  

I was mistaken about my granddaughter (Ara) coming to Sacramento for a  visit last weekend.  She will be here in another week or two.  I joined Jeannie & her family for a day of shopping, Target and Costco, and then went back to their house for dinner and conversation.  On the way back from Costco we stopped at American River Brewing Co. and got my growler filled, so dinner was enjoyed with good craft beer.  I get tired while shopping for that long, but it sure beats sitting at home by myself.

I saw my chiropractor this morning, and that always puts me in a great mood.  Fortunately my ribs have healed so I didn't need another adjustment for them.  

I'm thinking about my response to comments.  When someone comments on my blog page, I also get an email of the comment; if the email has an return email address (or if I already have your address), I usually write a short reply.  I would love to be able to reply personally to every comment, but the only way to do that is to go back to the blog and reply to the individual comment there.  The reason I haven't done that to date is that to see my reply you would have to open the blog post and see if the reply has appeared.  If I haven't gotten to it you will either miss it or have to check back again, which is a PITA.  Please let me know in the comments section of this post, if you would want to see my replies on the blog itself and if you would check back to read it.  Thanks in advance.

I swear I don't think we are getting a full 24 hours in our days anymore.  The days fly by, as well as the weeks, months, and years.  I look in the mirror and see an old woman whereas I would like to see me as I feel myself to be now - maybe a bit older and wiser but without the wrinkles!