I mentioned in the last post that I was getting an estimate for housecleaning. And today the service came! They do a “deep cleaning” first, then do maintenance. It took about 3 hours and I locked myself up in one room with the cats. They weren’t to clean that one so we could stack stuff in there. I was a bit apprehensive about this; you never know what it’s going to be like and if you will be satisfied. Also, despite my best efforts at picking up stuff I had limited time as my friend’s service was yesterday, from 11-3. I was wiped out when we got home but still tried to do some more picking up.
Results: I’m thrilled! I’ve never had anyone clean my house but wow. They were so thorough and even moved things and put the pillows back on the couch in a nicer way than I had them! It was really like hotel service. I had to laugh when I saw this in the bathroom:
Like I said – sort of like a hotel! Even funnier, we don’t even put toilet paper on that roll because Taffy unrolls it or tears it. Note the evidence below – which was taken during the pandemic when toilet paper was scarce!
If my WordPress skills were better, I could add text next to the picture, but alas. So, we now have to try and keep the house clean until my brother-in-law visits, and I still have to deal with my excess stuff.
Other things: we just finished watching Succession. I liked the show when we first started but found the meanness and bickering among the characters was draining. We continue to DVR Alone, which we got hooked on during the pandemic. I have not been at all motivated to cook which is a problem because I also don’t like to eat out.
So there you have it. I’m a bit antsy as I haven’t exercised in 2 days but it is 95 degrees out and I’d have to go to the gym. I hope you have a good weekend. Thanks for reading.
I haven’t been in the Christmas spirit this year. Not sure really why. I reluctantly got down the boxes of Christmas decor – only a few of those as I purged recently and we don’t get a tree because, cats. I usually like a few lights strung about and have one string of white lights that I keep up all year. But that’s about it.
I’m choosing also not to buy Christmas gifts. It seems like each year, there is confusion among my sisters and me about what we are doing. It tends to stress out my younger sister a bit, if I get gifts she will say, “I thought we weren’t exchanging gifts this year!” Seeing as I haven’t been into it, we talked about this a few weeks ago and I reminded them this week.
We’ve had a lot of rain and cold weather which I love, and we so desperately need out here! It’s sunny today, but still cold. The other day, it was 31 degrees here! The downside of the train is that we had a roof leak. I think K fixed it. A messy job, getting up in the attic to do some patching.
I’m trying to rein in the holiday eating – there are some things I look forward to during this time and most are not healthy. Like Starbucks Holiday blend coffee, mint M and M’s, and gingerbread cookies. I’ve found nothing really tastes the way I expect it too. Not sure if this is a COVID holdover (I didn’t have taste issues but who knows) or just expectations exceeding reality. I guess that’s a good thing. I’m not buying that stuff in mass quantities.
I’m considering training for a half marathon in March. Walking only. I feel the need to have some sort of physical goal with a training schedule. I’ve been trying to do some strength training during the week, in addition to walking. It was so fun working an aid station at the California International Marathon a few weeks ago. We were at mile 19 and it was really busy!
We are headed to San Diego for a few days over Christmas. I always enjoy that, K’s brother and SIL are low-key people and I like being able to go to the beach and walk around the hills where they live. Other than that, my dad’s birthday is the 20th and that’s always a day of reflection for me. Sometimes my sisters and I get together. Not sure if we will this year.
Hope your December is going well. Happiest of holidays, however you celebrate. Thanks for reading!
WordPress, you are a mystery to me. I thought I had published a post in September, after I had COVID, but it looks like it’s from June? How confusing. I am on here so seldom that each time I start a blog, it seems like everything is different. SIGH.
Today it’s November 25, 2022, the day after Thanksgiving. Ours was fairly quiet, but it was busy leading up to it. Usually – as in before COVID – we would have my younger sister and her husband over. Because we are mostly vegan, we wouldn’t cook a turkey but having something else. One year, we had one of those tofu roasts which I thought was horrible. More recently, we’ve just had Beyond Burgers. And the sides. So we were planning to have the younger sister over and then my older sister had some drama with her kids. Long story short, I invited them over. I got a turkey breast to cook with the Beyond Burgers, and it’s been so long since I’ve done anything like that. It took forever to warm up, even though I had it defrosting for 2 days in the fridge (it was pre-cooked). I’m also not used to having people over, it’s been a long 2 years, so we worked hard getting the house cleaned or rather PICKED up. My husband did a lot of the cleaning which I really appreciated as I was the one at the grocery store several times.
So today I am exhausted. I enjoyed spending time with my family but don’t enjoy what it takes to host 4 other people.
I went to get a pedicure and then to one store, Falling Prices (which I will talk about another time) but the store was crazy crowded and busy so nope. Home I went. Tomorrow we have plans to go to Sebastopol for my good friend’s 60th birthday. I am dreading the traffic…I have become such an old grump about such things…
Okay, I am going to hit publish before something else weird happens. Thanks for reading and be well.
It’s been so long since I’ve written or posted, I almost get overwhelmed. It was easier for me on Sparkpeople!There’ve been some changes to WordPress and that always throws me, and I got a new computer, which meant new software and it has not been smooth sailing. I have been having trouble uploading pics to WordPress (grr) so it’s just going to words for now. So here are some updates from 2022 so far:
I travelled a bit. In April this year, I finally went to visit the Vancouver Aquarium with my friend and got to see my sea otters! This was a longtime dream, begun in the summer of 2020, when I was not doing much because of the pandemic. I started watching the YouTube stream of the rescued baby sea otter, Joey, where his care and rehabilitation was streamed 24/7. I found the stream relaxing, entertaining, and informative, as I learned a lot about sea otters and their importance to the environment. I decided that once I could travel again, I would go visit the Vancouver Aquarium, where Joey lived. This became even more important during my cancer diagnosis, surgery, and treatment. I was so isolated from others that having something to look forward to became extremely important. I booked and cancelled several trips before the trip became a reality. It was more than I could have dreamed of. I met several of the aquarium staff, who graciously took me and my friend “behind the scenes” to see the otters up close. We also got to do that with a stellar sea lion – a huge marine mammal weighing 500 pounds! Another unexpected treat was staying with a friend of MY friend, a woman who lives in Vancouver. She opened her home to us and not only was her place absolutely gorgeous, with views of the water, but she herself was a delightful and interesting person. I felt so lucky to have gotten to meet her! I loved spending time with my friend Mary, who I’ve known since graduate school days in the ’80s. She and her partner had moved the year before from Seattle to Bellingham, which happens to be only 30 minutes from the Canadian border. That part of the country is so beautiful, and so much cooler than where I live. I find I have become increasingly more bothered by the heat here in Sacramento.
In March, a big group of us went to Moss Landing (near Monterey) to kayak in Elkhorn Slough. This part of the state is one of my favorites; especially when we stay in Pajaro Dunes. It’s very peaceful and not crowded and of course….. there are otters! It was a fun filled weekend kayaking in the ocean, although the whale watch that we had scheduled was canceled due to weather.
In May, cousins from Kansas came out to visit. I hadn’t seen them since my mom’s funeral in 2017, and my cousin’s wife and kids had never been to California. They wanted to see lots of things which made for a very packed visit. I felt a bit bad for my sister, who served as hostess for the family. She has the most room at her place but we learned that none of us are very comfortable having house guests !..I was a bit leery of getting too close to these cousins since NONE of them were vaccinated. I got my second booster the week before they arrived.
In the first part of September, I travelled to Ireland with another friend from graduate school. Ireland was another place I’ve really wanted to visit, and plans were made earlier this year for our trip. We scheduled flights and hotels, choosing to stay in two places and make day trips from each. Neither of us wanted to drive, so this was a good option. We started in Dublin and then took the train over to the West Coast to Galway. While there, we took days trips to see the Cliffs of Moher, Connemara, Kylemore Abbey, and one of the Aran Islands, Inishmore. We both had those items as our priority places to see, and I also went on a castle tour in Malahide, where we stayed for a few nights before our departure.
The only real downside to my trip to Ireland is that I caught Covid!!! I was pretty careful while on the planes, but less so while there. We did most things outside, but the two tours meant being on a bus for quite some time. Honestly, I wasn’t as careful as I have been and paid the price. Fortunately, I didn’t get sick until the very last day of the trip, feeling symptoms all the way home. I wore my N-95 all the way but still had a positive test. My husband set up the back bedroom so I could isolate, and I immediately began taking Paxlovid after a video appointment with my doctor. The Paxlovid is terrible but at least it prevents the virus from multiplying. My major concern was my husband getting it. I tested negative after a week, but stayed isolated until 10 days are up. Now I have to wait another week before getting my next dose!
My days have a fairly consistent routine. I get up when I wake up, feed the cats (indoor and outdoor feral), and have coffee. I like a slow start to the day after so many years getting up super early to work out before going to work. Now, I work out after my coffee and during the summer, before it gets too hot! We had a nice string of cooler days in May but the summer was pretty hot again. I was so glad to be in Ireland when the temps here hit new records of 115 degrees. We put up some sunshade curtains in our den/kitchen area, as that part gets afternoon sun. My art classes were on break over the summer, but resumed in September. I did a bit of watercolor while on “break”, taking classes through Skillshare. We tend to eat early, watch some Netflix, then head to bed. I usually read for a while, then sleep! On the weekends, there are usually things to do with my active friends. Usually there’s a hike or two scheduled, cycling, and maybe kayaing.
Well, I will call this a minor success if I can just post. Now, I need to figure out the pictures…thanks for reading.
selfhelpsunday 