Watching but Not Worrying; Unrelatedly, Hockey and Vaccine (separately)

As you may have heard, Tropical Storm Helene has formed and is headed toward Florida. The good news for me is that Florida is very large, and so far, the path is not aiming directly at where I am. Not that I wish a hurricane on anyone, but it has to go somewhere, and since two years ago it changed direction and Ian came here, I am (provisionally, not counting any chickens) relieved that it isn't us this time. I can deal with heavy wind and rain and flooding, if it doesn't mean power going and staying out, making hotel reservations, and packing up Mom, Maggie, and everything we need for an open-ended trip to the east coast.

Please let this all remain true.

Worst-case scenario, we'll have to bug out, and if we have to, we will. Best-case scenario, Helene will pull the humidity with her as she goes by, and we'll get at least a short break from the feels-like 100+ temps we've been having. Because much as I like hot weather, I am well ready for a break.

~~~~~

Completely unrelated, but as hockey season comes around again, finally, I have to say that one thing is making me sad. Well, two things.

1. The Bruins have not signed presumptive number one goalie Jeremy Swayman to a new contract, so he is not at training camp and can't join the team until he's signed. This actually makes me more angry than sad, but sad is part of it. I could go on and on, but I will spare you the rant. Just pay the man!
2. I am more and more happy with the social media experience on BlueSky (finding new-to-me authors! slowly finding more knitters! lots of cute cat photos!), but so far, few hockey people are there. However, as part of the recent influx of Brazilians who joined BlueSky when Twitter was taken down in Brazil, I was surprised to learn that there are Brazilian Bruins fans. I mean, why not, I guess. But what it means is that the account on BlueSky that seems to most closely follow the Bruins...is in Portuguese.

Come on, English-speaking Bruins fans and media people, step it up now! I'm happy to see black and gold on my feed, but it would be nice if I could read it. That one semester of Portuguese in college isn't helping me out much.

Also also, I got the latest covid shot over the weekend, and if you can, I would encourage you to get it. I made sure to do it on a weekend when I didn't have other plans, so I could rest if need be, or be lazy with a good excuse, depending, and had very few side effects. A little injection-site soreness, not bad enough to keep me from sleeping on that side, and as I have had with every covid shot, some swelling of the lymph nodes under that arm, making it tender but not actually painful. I believe in the vaccines, and in their power to make it less likely that I catch covid, and less serious if I do, and I hope you feel the same.

Of Brrrrrrrrrrr and Future Knitting and Get on the Bike Already

It wasn't snowmageddon or snowpocalypse where I live, but is it cold! Here's a first-world problem for you: my remote car starter can be fussy about starting, and the colder it is, the more so. Kind of the opposite of how it should be! And I tell you, the difference between getting into a frozen solid car, and even one that has only been running long enough for me to get my coat and boots on and walk outside, is epic.

Typically, snow amounts in this area are higher the more north and inland you go, but every once in a while a storm comes along that belts the south shore and the Cape more than Boston and north. This was one of those: I'd say I got about three inches where I am (hard to be precise because powder + wind = blowing everywhere), while the editor who works from home and lives south of Boston got over a foot.

Mind you, I did stay home this morning. I wanted to wait until the snow stopped, and the roads had been plowed, before I tried to go in. But it was no problem getting in, other than being horribly cold. Urgh. And being the only one in the office meant that I could talk to myself, or cough, or whatever, without bothering anyone. It's strange, but peaceful. I managed to put in a three-quarters day, not bad for the weather.

Now, having just registered* for a knitting class in May (Two Socks in One: The War and Peace Method taught by Kate Atherley, fun!), I am going to go get on the damned bike, because I have to get back on the bike! Please ask me about it! Hold me accountable! Even if it's for five minutes, I ride tonight! I will!
*I had to make myself ignore the typos, but honestly: Raverly? War and Peach? Proofread, people!

Snow's Done; So Am I

The snow seems to be done, all 2+ feet of it, and I still have power, bless the world for that. Not only that, I can still see my car! Or at least, enough to see that it's there. Since it disappeared gradually, it's good to see that hint.

Here it is Friday morning at 10:45, barely snowed-upon.

By 1 PM, the cover was a bit more comprehensive.

And by 3:30, we were here:

If you can still see the wipers, it isn't much, though. By 5 PM, this was all that built up:

I didn't try to take more pictures in the dark, but by 9 this morning, you could see a substantial difference, eh?

And less than an hour later, even more:

And half an hour after that, yet more, or rather less.

Noon:

 And by 1:15 Saturday, we were about done:

It's a lot of snow, and it's quite pretty ... until you think about going out. The plows haven't even done a thorough job on the street yet (concentrating on main roads, I'm sure), nor has our guy come for the building. A half hour of digging around the car wore me out, and that job isn't even half done. Then I come in to the news that this afternoon's tonight's Bruins game is postponed. Maaaannnn! It's the sensible decision, I know, but still. Not my idea of a good time, here.

I'm going to rest now.

A Bit of a Bleargh Evening

So, who needs to see something cheerful? I do! It's chilly here and was gray most of the day, and I'm tired and almost have a headache (believe me, that's a thing). Even peas were not enough to totally cheer my evening.

But here we are: another dancing goalie! Remember the other one that I posted, last year? Well, this one's a kid, getting his groove on to that arena classic, YMCA:

Now there's a reason to smile! I love when the second goalie joins him.

I can see that exploring "dancing goalie" and "goalie dance" on Youtube will have to happen. 

I was so tired last night, and had a mild but persistent headache, so I got in bed at a decent hour for once, and was turning the light out at 9:30. Apparently that was the cue the thunderstorm was waiting for, since for the next 90 minutes or so, there was lightning and thunder every few minutes, just infrequently enough for me to start drifting to sleep between bangs. Closer and closer, until the windows shook, and Carlos raised his head from snuggling to wonder if he should be worried. Not a happy camper, me. Finally, it stopped, and I was able to get to sleep, but what a waste of good sleeping time. At least my headache was mostly gone this morning.

Tonight, it's early to bed again, but with unisom this time.

Weekend!

When I was unemployed, I kind of missed that Friday-night-feeling of relief, but it came back fast. Whew! Survived another week! This one has been hot, which of course I love, and humid, which I don't love but am okay with, but it came on so suddenly I wasn't really prepared. Let's just admit that the flannel sheets should have come off the bed earlier.

Honestly, it just hasn't been staying warm at night until this week. Last week I still had the heated mattress pad turned on; I didn't need it, but it felt good. Now I wake up sweating without it. Quick change.

Having changed the sheets tonight, I took the opportunity to take some pictures there. Not the best light, but at least you can see proof that I did finish two socks.

And started another.

I also wanted to show just why I have trouble deciding which sock yarn is up next.

A. That's a lot of yarn.
B. Yes, that's just the sock yarn.
C. Pulling it all out reminded me why I bought what I did. So soft! So pretty!
D. As I was taking pictures, the thought crossed my mind to hope that no one who might be thinking of getting me sock yarn (not that anyone is, as far as I know) would take these photos as evidence that they shouldn't. You can't have too much! I'm nowhere near SABLE*!
*Stash Acquisition Beyond Life Expectancy, meaning more yarn than you could knit in the rest of your life. I've made almost this many socks already, and that's in less than six years.

So yeah. Make of that what you will.

I'm working on a great long write-up All About Work. Look for that soon. And knitting Olympics ideas! And Patrice Bergeron winning a major award! And the Bruins schedule is out, though there might be another lockout! And Doctor Who! And ... and ... and ... I think I need to go chill out now. I've got peas that aren't going to shell themselves here (though wouldn't it be something if they did?). What a pea season; this is my sixth batch this year, not of California's or New Jersey's, but local. Mmmmmmm.

Wait, the weekend's ... over? Already?

How can that be? Wasn't it just Friday after work, just a minute ago?

I know, it's only been two weeks, it will take time to get used to the schedule again, but ow. Ten hours from now, this will be the look on my face:

Honestly. While admitting the whole thing about being grateful to find a job, let alone a job doing what I like best, blah blah blah, take it as read, let's be candid: working is a major time-suck away from fun and relaxation. I'm not trying to wallow, but it's true.

I am trying to look on the bright side, though.

Don't want to give in to those blahs! So, in the coming week, I have stitch and bitch to look forward to, and a haircut, and the goofiness of the annual NHL awards show. Also, it's supposed to get HOT, which would not be a bright side for some but it is for me. Looky here:

Highs in the 90s and lows in the 70s? No more than a 30% chance of rain? Oh, please, let that be right. There's been a lot of rain, and a lot of cloudy days, in the last two weeks. I notice my mood swinging dramatically upward when the sun comes out. On Friday, I sat outside for half an hour in the sunshine, knitting, and it helped my attitude immensely. More, please.

Oh, and speaking of knitting, I finished the socks today! These are the ones I started May 20th, and I really powered through them, because the yarn is unfortunately terribly splitty, and was a royal pain to work with, so I wanted to get it over with. Too bad, because I love the colors. (Photos to come, though of course they will look much like the photo here, times two.) I am at peace with never using it again, though, and to get the taste out of my mouth, I have already cast on the next pair in My Favorite Sock Yarn, Period (you know, Socks That Rock lightweight). Usually I have to ponder and consider which yarn comes next, but this time I knew, I had to go with the best. I did really enjoy going back to the Skyp pattern, and I'm doing it again. Sometimes you just don't want to rock the boat.

Oy, time to wrap up the evening. Paying the bills is over-rated...

Wednesday: Knitting, Reading, No News

For a day that included nothing further on the interview/job front, it was actually a pretty good day. Oh, chilly, yes, no sunshine, yes, and most of all no news about the possible job, but hey, I read and enjoyed not one but two books I've been eagerly anticipating for some time, plus a friend came over to hang out and knit for a while--and I got my sock to the toe, too. Here it is yesterday, whereas now it is awaiting its moment of kitchener glory.

I have a few more photos from yesterday. I noticed this sign, and am terribly curious about what the sign said before they covered a spot. _____ Real Estate?

Then there was this sign:

And I know I have a problem with being over-literal, as well as with nit-picking, but doesn't that imply that denim and lingerie are not clothing? And if they're not, what are they? I mean, lingerie could be considered unclothing, I suppose, but denim?

Now, have you ever seen a duck cross a busy street? Did they use a crosswalk? Because this one did.

Finally, lilacs in the rain.

It wasn't a driving rain, but it was a very persistent drizzle. Which, given the forecast that the rain would end mid-afternoon, was a trifle irritating to me at five PM, and again at seven PM. Just saying.

*****
The hockey blog Puck Daddy links to, and comments on, hockey-related items around the web. And this kind of commentary is why I love reading them:

Horrible editorial letter of the day: This guy thinks the Canucks should change their name because there are no real Canucks on the team. Right. And I don't think any members of the San Jose Sharks even have gills.

Right?

*****
Finally, have you seen this video? Fabulous family sings along to Bohemian Rhapsody on the way to school? Oh, just watch it!

Love!

A Lick and A Promise

I have a Long Post of Much Updateness in the works, all about my mother's visit and our trip and my grandmother's birthday and knitting and the Bruins (the Bruins!) and more, but until then (which will hopefully be tomorrow), here is a picture and not-a-picture.

I don't have a picture of Friday afternoon, when Mum and I were driving with the windows down (because the weather was so nice), comparing the spring bloom levels in eastern MA with central NY, and I was wearing a short-sleeved shirt, and we stopped for homemade ice cream on the way.

I do have a picture of Monday morning, taken out of the motel window:

Apparently we were in those "higher elevations" that might get snow instead of rain. Apparently.

I had to borrow a snow brush from the motel (having removed my own after the 95-degree day last Monday).

Then I went out in my (mesh) sneakers and splashed about clearing roughly six inches of wet snow off my car.

Yup.

Hockey Springs Along (And So Does Spring)

Well, last night's Bruins game was better than the first two games! Possibly combined. After a slow-ish start, their emotions and intensity seemed to pick up, they scored, they pulled off the win, and I'm nervously hopeful for game 4. Things are getting nasty, the teams are sniping at each other through the media as well as on the ice, and that means playoffs! (For example.)

The grocery store is firmly on the bandwagon:
I wonder if things started slowly because the Bruins and Caps don't have a heavy-duty playoff history? Unlike Montreal, say, who we play just about every year*, and where the hatred is firmly established. Just a thought.
*Not this year, though, since they DNQ! Ha.

*****
I feel as though I haven't written a lot about the weather this year. I think that's been mostly a superstitious fear of jinxing things, as we had a wonderfully mild winter, an early spring, and a week of summer mid-March that got all the flowers and trees confused. After that heat wave, the temps got closer to typical spring, and I have to admit I was a little wistful. I like warm. I like hot! But hey, I honestly feel like I can't complain these days.

I don't check the weather forecast that much, so I was caught by surprise yesterday, when it was over 90. Thrilled! But surprised. Only a few days before, I needed a jacket! But hey, bring it on.

Though I think it was too much for the remaining mini-eggs. I noticed that they all cracked!
Kind of funny. Today was mid-80s, and pretty much my idea of perfection. (Of course, it's not going to last: 70s coming, and then 50s. But whatever.) I decided that I would take today's exact weather for ten months a year. That would leave 3 weeks of autumn, 2 weeks of winter, and 3 weeks of spring before returning to this:
Bliss. Speaking of which, I recently discovered this drink, a frozen caramel from Panera. Simply delicious, and the largest straw I have ever seen.

And if we're to speak of spring, what about strawberry shortcake? Shouldn't we mention that?
Not fresh berries, but good just the same.

Now, I know that winter scarves do not belong in such weather. But when I started this, last Thursday, I was chilly, I swear!
Finished it today. Just long enough to fit doubled around my neck, the way I wanted it to. I'm going to try to block it a little longer; I used every bit of the yarn, but maybe I can stretch another inch or two out of it. Pictures of that to come, before and after if I get my act together.

It feels very nice, not that I want to touch it too much right now. Ahhhh.

Updates, All Sorts

Health Update: I am feeling a lot better than I have been recently. I still have some extra congestion, and since this started two weeks ago, perhaps it really is allergies and not a cold, but whatever the reason, I'm not coughing much, and only needing cough drops when my throat gets dry.

Walking Update: Like when I go for a walk, which I did yesterday and again today. I always tuck a tissue in my pocket when I go for a walk, but these days I need cough drops, too. Also, my feet are very unhappy tonight, sore and almost blistery on the balls of my feet. What kind of super-smooth socks do I need for walking in? Distances of two or three miles shouldn't leave me hobbling. I've tried a couple of different sock types, not just my hand-knits, but it's not working. Maybe I should ask in a sporting goods store.

Weather Update: I don't regret it even so, for we are having ridiculously good weather here these days, and one simply must get out in it! As in, around 80 yesterday and today, and forecast for more of the same tomorrow and Thursday. I love it! Now, it's dropping after that, as you can see by the 10-day forecast:
But no one in their right mind* could complain about this nice weather in March.
*By which I mean, of a like mind to me. I know there are people who find this too warm, or unnatural, or something. I don't care, they're crazy, I love it!

Coffee Update: A couple of days ago, I thought my morning coffee tasted a bit funny. I was trying a new flavor, so the next morning I tried the old kind, and something was still off. I looked at the ingredient list of the cocoa I just bought. It's the same kind I've been using, plain old Swiss Miss, but [danger, danger!] it's New & Improved! And do you know what it has now? Sucralose. I swear I can taste that in anything, and not in a good way. Ugh. Waste of money, and of cocoa unless I can find someone who wants it. Yuck. I bought more cocoa today, store brand, checked the ingredient list carefully first. We'll see how that tastes. So complicated, isn't it?

Knitting Update: I managed to go ten days from finishing the Wingspan scarf with only my socks to knit on. In a strange corollary, I've made terrific progress on the socks. Go figure! The first one is done, the second past the heel and moving along the foot. Tonight, though, the lure of all this fabulous new yarn was too much for me. I've just cast on another Wingspan, this one to be larger due to using a heavier yarn. Two yarns, in fact, as I'm planning to alternate triangles of the Noro Cash Iroha and the Colinette Iona that have made a home with me recently. We shall see if the reality works as well as it does in my head.

Cat Update: Carlos continues to be super-cute. He has enjoyed having more open windows the last few days, since apparently things smell different out of the others than his usual window. Or something.

It's a cat thing. You wouldn't understand.

Yes, Actually, I AM Going to Tell You About My Dreams

(Quickly, between periods, and yes I've heard that other people's dreams are boring to hear about, but it's my blog and I'll write about my dreams if I want to.)

I had a tremendously scary dream last night, the kind where you don't really want to go back to sleep after. I think, actually, that the whole dream was creepy, but it was the end, featuring unseen but wiggly things in a bed, that tipped it over the edge. I went into a sort of hotel room*, very small and mostly bed, and could see a mysterious package on the bed, and then realized that there were small lumps under the covers, moving. Large insect or small mammal size? I stared at them for a moment, and at the large box that I couldn't see into, then said, "I have to get out of this room," and stepped out the door. I pulled the door mostly closed behind me, but not latched**, stopped, and said, "Wait, think this through first."*** But as I stood there, I could see a wave of creeping shadows flow to the rooms on either side, and when screaming started I slammed the door shut and woke up. In, you know, a bed. Unsurprisingly.

*And for once in the long-corridor-of-rooms type of dream, I found the room number I was looking for relatively easily.
**Partly because there was a bra hanging on the handle, something I do in real life (what, I live alone, who does it bother?) but had not done in the dream.
***Which cracks me up, actually. "Wait, think this through first"? Like there was a good way to handle this if I used logic?

It was 4 AM. I got up, went to the bathroom, fed the cats*, got back in bed, and stayed awake waiting for Carlos to come back to bed, as I wasn't going to close my eyes without the furry comforter nearby. Thankfully, when he did and I fell back asleep, the dream did not return.

*I'd rather not feed the cats in the middle of the night, but it prevents my precious last hours of sleep being disturbed by Miri's power-purr. "You like me! PURR! You want to feed me! PURR!"

In another dream, which was also somewhat creepy and where I was, at one point, the Bad Guy being taunted by a former victim for my neurotic fear of anyone having their hands in their mouth, a camel was standing off to one side for no reason. I think that part came from a little stash-diving I did last night. Why yes, I do have camel yarn in my stash; doesn't everyone?

Now, if you will forgive the all-caps, I will quote from tonight's weather.com's Special Weather Statement:

... RAIN CHANGING TO SNOW ACROSS MUCH OF INTERIOR SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND...
RAIN HAS OR IS IN THE PROCESS OF CHANGING TO SNOW ACROSS MUCH OF INTERIOR SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND THIS EVENING. ACROSS THE HIGHER TERRAIN OF NORTH CENTRAL AND NORTHWEST MASSACHUSETTS AS WELL AS SOUTHWEST NEW HAMPSHIRE... ONE TO THREE INCHES OF SNOW WILL FALL. THE SNOW MAY ACCUMULATE UP TO AN INCH ON GRASSY SURFACES ACROSS MUCH OF THE REST OF INTERIOR SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND NORTH AND WEST OF THE I95 CORRIDOR.

That's them shouting, not me, but would you forgive me if I was shouting? Snow in October! It's disgusting. Even if I am in the coating/dusting area (inside 128, or what they're calling "the I95 corridor"), currently just a few feet from the "icy mix" line according to the map, I disapprove.

Though I do want the freeze, to kill allergens. But man, it's cold! (Sure, I'm contradictory. Who isn't?)

Finally, tonight's game so far. I was listening to the first period in the car (a few people from work went out to a local pub after work [mmm, potato skins]), and having heard this play, I had to find video online when I got home. (Of course it's already there.)



Awesome! The Canadiens win the faceoff and put it in their own net for us. Bergeron broke his stick and fell on his face, and gets credited with the goal. I love it! It's the sort of play that super-sucks if your team makes it, and is delightful when it's the opposition.

In the second period, I got to see a crazy fight between PK Subban and Brad Marchard, which had the Bruins agitator chirping and swinging while Subban spent some time shoving at him, holding him by the shoulders and trying to tip him over. Didn't work! I have to go see what the third period holds. Should be entertaining!

Now that's more like it, campers!

Leaving stitch and bitch last night (with the second sleeve almost done, woo), I was saying to a friend that I was so nervous about the Bruins game, that the close games were killing me, and that I wished they would just win 7-2 so that I could relax and enjoy it. "After all, why would they want to punish me?" I argued, and we laughed that I live in a ccr-centric universe and it is all about me.

And then the Bruins won 8-1, in a game marred only by a serious injury to Nathan Horton*, and after four or five goals I could laugh and enjoy it.

*He's out for the season with a serious concussion, while his attacker was thrown out of the game last night, and given a 4-game suspension today.

Part of what I was laughing at, actually, is that one of my neighbors seems to have TV reception that is literally three seconds ahead of mine. Perhaps it's a different cable provider, perhaps it's HD, I don't know. All I know is that I would hear him yell "Yes!" and three seconds later, the Bruins scored on my TV. It was pretty funny. Made for a good warning system, so I didn't miss anything.

Seven different goal scorers. Two power-play goals, from a team whose power-play is a league laughingstock. Two short-handed goals, including an absolute beauty by Brad Marchand:



Ahhh. Good game. Root, root, root for the home team.

**********
We've got some crazy weather coming, if the forecast is to be believed (ha! I know, I know, I never learn). Look at this:




Can you see that thirty-degree drop in two days? Wacky as all hell, my friends. At this time of year, whether the sun is out makes a big difference in how a temperature feels, so it may not feel as hot or as chilly, depending. (I mean, feels-like-85 and feels-like-75 are not so far apart.) Or maybe it will. It's not like they really know.

Sunday, Knitting, etc.

Since I'm going to visit a friend in the DC area next weekend*, I just pulled up the forecast there for the next ten days, and while we all agree that the forecast is as likely to be right as darts thrown at a chart of random numbers, STILL. It irked me to see temperatures in the 70s this week, then in the 60s and raining next weekend. Honestly! That's just not nice. (And it goes right back up in to the 70s on Monday, when I'm leaving. Sheesh!)

*Remember when I talked about the train? I know, I've been talking about other things recently for some reason.

The weather here today has been up and down, though overall not bad. I was at a Mother's Day brunch this morning, and the sun was out more often than not, making for a very pleasant, sit-on-the-deck time. At some point, though, the clouds took over, which drove everyone inside. The temperature without the sun just wasn't warm enough. Come on, warm!

I thought it was about time for knitting updates again, as I have quietly made progress, here and there. The purse knitting is into sock two:


And the bike knitting, while still on sock one, is moving along:


Also, what I'm thinking of as the first draft of the sweater is growing well, and I hope that trying it on does not burst my bubble.


It's sort of hard to tell it's a sweater, right? Trust me.

Meanwhile, this weekend I worked on a yarn-y project that was not knitting. A family friend had asked if I might be able to mend a sweater for her, and since she was not bothered when I said I wouldn't be able to make it good as new, but could make it less holey, I gave it a try.


It's a beautiful wool sweater, which they got in Ireland years ago, but it appears to have had a moth encounter, or something that left lots of holes. I didn't see a speck of insect evidence, but this had to be caused by something.


Most of the damage was much smaller, but there were a lot of spots to patch overall. Not that I mind. Easier to catch little holes before they become big holes.


I started work Friday night, watching the Bruins, but didn't get all that much done because of someone, ahem, who wanted space that was sweater-occupied:

Mom?

That's better.

I worked on it more Saturday, and finished it up this morning in time to return it at brunch. Not the most conventional Mother's Day gift, perhaps, but she seemed pleased, which is what counts.

Friday Night, Not At All In Brief

I was going to blog last night, though as it was late (again) and I was tired (again), it wouldn't have been at great length. I did start to write, though, and then I hit an issue with Blogger deciding that I wanted my words to be italic. I didn't, so I highlighted them and took the italic off and started typing ... and they were italic again. So I highlighted them and took off the italic and started to type onward--and when it came out italic again I lost my cool, and shut down the computer in a high temper, aka a fit of the I'm-So-Tireds.

I feel rather like a broken record* with the so-tired this week, but looking at my calendar, I can see I've been overdoing a little, and not leaving myself enough recuperative time.

*Do the kids these days use this expression any more? Do they understand it? I mean, I know what a party line was without living with one, hopefully broken record endures in the CD** era.
**Wait, is this now the MP3 era? Or something else altogether? Gah. I Is Old.

To wit, this week:

• Sunday I was out in the afternoon and evening, not getting home until late (for me, for a work night).
• Monday I left work at 4 to go to the eye doctor; then went to stitch and bitch; then picked up some groceries quickly. Home after 8.
• Tuesday I stopped at the mall to go to the Clarks store (full shoe story below) on the way home (arriving around 6:30, the earliest all week).
• Wednesday I went to another stitch and bitch near work, then stopped at DSW on the way home, thus arriving 8-ish.
• Thursday I went to Petsmart after work, and returned a library book, before going in for my annual contact lens appointment. Another DSW stop after, and home after 8 again.
• Tonight I went for the long-overdue Full Grocery Experience. Home maybe 6:30? In time for my three-dollar therapy* dinner (real food tomorrow).
  

*Ben & Jerry's Coffee Heath Bar Crunch, of course.

Not a huge amount of stuff, nothing individually strenuous, some quite pleasant ... but the cumulative effective made me Too Tired to Deal* (With Much of Anything). Thank heavens for a weekend without anything scheduled. I like having things to look forward to, but too much brings stress in its wake.

*TTD, I like that. I may use that again. TTD or TTTD, would you say?

So! Let's update, shall we?

Number one, the weather.

After that brief flirtation with nice weather, we are firmly back in the unseasonably cold department. It seems that Mother Nature mixed things up this year, and March came in like a lamb but is going out like a lion. (Wait, lions are equated with warmth to me. Well, never mind that analogy.)

The forecasted 1-3 inches of snow for Wednesday-Thursday turned out to be less than an inch where I am, NOT that I am complaining, of course. Even better (I thought Thursday morning), it fell overnight, so I avoided the ultra-depressing sight of falling snow* that had me so low on Monday. The worst part was having to clear off the car--and then even worse, driving behind cars that didn't bother, so that there were be a *pouf* and I'd be driving through a cloud of snow. Lazy asses, some people.

*Though it flurried mid-day, and again in the evening, which was pretty depressing.

Then there was some more last night, so I had to clean my car off again this morning, little frozen pellets this time, and seriously, enough already. Enough! The sun came out today, which was nice to see, but the highest forecasted temp in the next week is 48, and really for the end of March I expect a little more than that. And, as we said when I was a kid, that and sixty cents will get you on the T.

Update number two: the shoe story. It's one of those "why does a thing get discontinued as soon as I find it" stories. Fortunately, there's a happy ending.

Having decided to buy a new pair or seven of the shoes I mentioned, that are comfortable and attractive (to me), although not cheap and not as durable as I would wish, I went to first one Clarks store, and then another. Neither had my size, and at the second they told me that the company isn't going to make them any more (OF COURSE THEY'RE NOT), so they couldn't order them for me.

Naturally, I wasn't pleased. I tried on some other choices, but nothing worked as well, and I left empty-handed, feeling bitter and thwarted. I want those exact shoes, I'm willing to pay for them, and I can't have them. Humph!

It was only on the way home that I remembered the existence of a little thing called the Internet, and considered the possibility of finding the shoes elsewhere (what a revolutionary concept!). I looked online, and though there were not a multitude of options (some didn't have my size, and some only had the nubuck option which I rejected because hello, cat hair), I found what I wanted, in black at least, at DSW.com. Yay!

Before ordering, I decided to go to a DSW store and see if they had the shoes in stock. They did, in both brown and black, in many sizes, but none in mine. Of course. However, the nice clerk called another store and found a pair there, and they held them for me and I picked them up last night and yay, happy ending.

Except it's not the end, because I'm also ordering more online (I was going to order them last night, but I was TTTD, remember?). It's going to be a couple of years before I'm ready to go through the trying-on process again.

Update number three: the results of my eye appointments. Not that I think you particularly care about The State of My Corneas, but you know I'm quick enough to share when something goes wrong, I thought it would be nice to do so when everything's good. So!

The eye doctor had no complaints about my eyes. He checked everything out, including the spot where he had to repair a small retinal tear a few years ago, and gave me a clean bill of health, optically speaking. Good! Any appointment that ends without plans to point a laser at my eye is a good one for me.

Then, last night was the contact lens guy. The store is the one where I got my first glasses at age seven, and switched to contacts in high school (so early 80s), and as I told the eye doctor, John is in charge of my eyes. I just do what he tells me to, because he's the expert and my vision is very important to me. (It is such a relief to be able to out-source something like this, to someone I can completely trust. I don't know what I'll do when he retires, since that will probably happen before I die. I try not to think about it.)

As a contact lens specialist, John keeps up on the market and what's new and improved, switching the brand I use if something better comes along (that's available at my prescription [-10.5 and -11.5], anyway; not all brands go that far). For the last five years, I've been using the same one, which he liked for me because it lets more oxygen through to the cornea, and after the exam last night, he was extremely pleased with how my eyes are looking. He said my corneas were the best he'd seen all day, which is kind of a weird compliment but hey, I'll take it. Also, there's a spot on my right eye that he's been monitoring forever, and it's actually healed to the point where it wouldn't register as a problem if seen for the first time now. How about that!

I'm all about my vision continuing to be available to me for many years to come. We actually switched my lenses to the new version 2 of the same brand, which are supposed to be even better. I can't tell the difference, which is what matters to me. The technical stuff? That's John's job. God bless John.

Update number four: the Bruins. Or, after last night night's awesome game of amazingness, perhaps I should say THE BRUINS!

I've mentioned that the Bruins have seesawed this year (and last year), doing great and then rotten with no obvious reason for the change. When they went 7-0 on their road trip recently, then won only one game of their next seven and looked like they weren't sure how to play the game, it was incomprehensible and frustrating to me. Tuesday's game against New Jersey didn't start much better (bring outshot 12-1 early on is pretty bad), but after allowing one NJ goal, the Bruins scored the next four, leading to a much-needed win.

Last night's opponent was Montreal, a team the Bruins have long history with, and much recent bad feeling due to the issue with Max Pacioretty. I was concerned that the Bruins would be tripping over their skates, but instead they came out in a dominant fashion, never really let up, and won 7-0. It was awesome! (Did I say that already? Well, it was.) They scored here! They saved there! They scored when they were playing two-men short!

Happy sigh. What a good game. I'm going to try to bask in the glow, and not think about tomorrow's game just yet.

By the way, the Globe had a short video piece with fans of both teams before the game, which is fun, and at one point this guy walked by in the background. I am offering a prize (contents tbd) to anyone who can give me a rational explanation of his suit.


What the hell? That thing is heinous. They're Bruins colors, but that thing is fourteen kinds of wrong.

Now, if I don't post again soon, think of me searching through my yarn stash, looking for my missing size 7 DPNs. I'm missing 2 of the set of 5, I haven't used them in over a year, and they could be ANYWHERE. Knitterly version of a needle in a haystack, this is.

In conclusion, all this text needs a photo ending. Here, look at the baby, and have a good weekend.

Florida Stories

When I was here last fall, it was just before season. No, not tourist season: orange season. And in orange season, this is part of breakfast:


Every day you're willing to crank up the juicer, as long as you've been to the grove. There is just nothing quite like taking the oranges, squeezing them, and drinking the juice within five minutes. If you've never had it fresh, you've never had real orange juice.

All that and it's good for you! Hard to beat that. I juiced six oranges this morning (while Mum was out), and I could have drunk more. Mmmm.

So here I am, on my second bonus day. Tomorrow, I fly home and start digging out again. I haven't forgotten what it's like. I left this, beautiful but cold and messy:


Took off last Friday as that storm blew out of town:


Which gave me some interesting cloud and snow-on-the-ground perspectives:





We flew through the afternoon, until the sunset was glowing across the sky:



And here I was. Warm (if not for here, for where I came from). With my mother.

With these! I've never seen the like.


Golden raspberries! I didn't know such a thing existed. They were delicious.


And endlessly amusing, for some reason. Like raspberries! Only not red!


I took this picture for the interesting tree, but now I see the greenness of the grass, too. You know, they take it for granted down here that the ground isn't white.


I am not complaining when I say that the weather hasn't been perfect. I'm okay with it. It doesn't have to be shorts weather to be better than home is. And I find the clouds and light patterns interesting.


Though more of this sky would be nice, too:


Anyway, we make our own fun. We spent about a whole day bargain shopping, plus stores here and there, and I have a nice new jacket ($20), a skirt ($6), eight new t-shirts (some to leave here for next time; $4 each):


And five new pair of jeans/khakis (for a combined total under $60):


Some stores have reminded me that I'm not at home, in case the lack of boots and coat wasn't enough of a hint. My local Walgreen's doesn't have one of these:


Though according to my mother, you really want to use fresh chum, not frozen.


I really liked this pelican painting:


And the zebra (she paints all sorts of animals on palm fronds, they're quite good).


In 3-D art, we found a recent addition of a manatee sculpture (which made me think of you!):



We've only made it down to the beach once, as it's been cooler and windier weather most days. It wasn't typical perfect beach weather, but it was still lovely:


And we picked up a ton of shells.


I threw these two back, as I suspected they were still occupied, but they had their kodak moment first.


It was a strong shell-and-beach-stuff tide coming in.


I also suspected this guy was still in the land of the living, so back in the water he went. I hope he made it. I've never seen a starfish on the beach before!


This one was still hinged, and probably a broken part of something, but I don't know what kind of shell it is, other than a pretty one.


Shells often have little holes in them, not so often large ones. Do you see the heart?


Another day, we stopped in at the farmers market, and marveled at the beauty of it all.


It turns out that my flight got in close to on time yesterday, but I don't regret changing my plans. The uncertainty as to how it would go, plus the bonus days here with Mum, for no extra fare, is well worth it. I feel better fortified to deal with what awaits me at home, though I don't expect it will take long before I'm bitching about it again.

Hey, it's my blog; where better to whine? And today, at least, is whine-free. When Mum gets back from bridge, we'll go out to lunch, and then we're getting pedicures--my first! And after that, who knows? For now, the sun is shining, and the lanai calls to me. It's not warm, exactly (maybe 65), but the sun, the sun ... I feel like a reverse vampire. Must go to sun!