random thoughts – Day 2,210 (Sunday) – combo party and siding

Unlike the Easter Sundays of my youth, there was no fancy Easter outfit. No new patent leather shoes and tights. No new dress. No hat, gloves, and woven straw purse. There were also no hidden hard boiled, dyed eggs and candies and no solid chocolate bunny or cross. Adulting is boring.

Easter dinner.

I did have some new-ish blue, cream, and navy pants bought from a consignment shop at some point in the past eight months and they fit today. The pants coordinate with a sweater I’ve had forever and that is what won the day’s wardrobe lottery.

We gathered at my sister’s house for a combination Easter and middle niece’s birthday celebration, tucked into a pocket of time before the youngest niece had to slip out for work. The youngest niece works in hospitality and always seems to be scheduled with an oddball holiday shift that is piled upon with day-of requests to come in early or stay late to cover the duties of people who called out.

It was a nice visit with delicious food and good conversation. There was an early ham dinner followed by birthday cupcakes and strawberry shortcake and gorgeous lobster claw pastries which were a new treat for me.

On the way home I took a longer route to drive up one of the other streets in my neighborhood to look at the siding colors and if any houses have interesting combinations of siding. The contractor is coming Monday to collect the samples dropped off on Friday. There are four shades of green that are possibilities, with varying availability in clapboard, board and batten, and shingle styles. Of course, the color I like best is special order. Or maybe I like it best because it isn’t an in-stock item, thereby assigning it a higher status in my mind, which, despite years in marketing, is still susceptible to marketing tricks. I can’t tell at this point.

To help visualize the various siding styles I dove into AI with a photo of the front of the house. The request prompts were to remove the shutters (hate them, they are useless!), change the color to sage green, and then to apply the different siding styles. Some of the iterations changed the detail around the bay window and made it harder to evaluate.

New color contender, existing door color.

Heading into the exercise, I thought I liked board and batten best but the AI mockup shifted my thinking on it. In that regard, the exercise feels like a success and a good investment of 40 minutes. The combination of shingles at the peak and clapboard elsewhere may be the winning combination of textures and interest. 

I like the style of my front door, but it will likely need a new color because I’m not sure I want a red door (current color) with a green house. AI helped with door suggestions in wood stain, charcoal, and navy, but that is a decision for another day and after I see the siding in place.

The real priority is the roof, which zoomed to the top of the house repairs list with the leak in the kitchen cabinet a month or two ago. It's possible the roof is the original one from 1988/89. There are two roofing colors under consideration and no strong feelings for one over the other, at least until I see a cost estimate.

random thoughts – Day 2,209 (Saturday) – pickup sticks

My backyard is about 20% grass and 80% messy woods. Amongst years of fallen leaves are several broken trees and limbs and cut trees and large branches that were left where they fell after meeting the blade. Three or four rotting tree stumps edge the yard, along with chunks of the trees they once held. Last summer’s greenery blocked the view into the trees but winter revealed the broken trees and various piles of leaves and branches.

There is a designated area in the neighborhood where yard waste can be left. Last fall I wasn’t ready for yard work, but now I’m reasonably motivated to get it started. The weather was pleasant enough today (in the 50s) that the initial gathering of sticks, twigs, and branches began.

Dead and fallen limbs in the woods.

Gloves were put on. The big barrel and a study cardboard box were fetched from the shed. The edge of the yard was full of dried sticks and dried stems that had been mowed down in the fall and these were gathered, snapped smaller, and set in the box. The larger sticks, branches, and previously cut limbs started a few feet into the woods and the most manageable ones were carried or dragged to the edge of the lawn and set in a pile. The larger ones were put in the barrel. Dead branches were snipped from trees with the loppers and the massively overgrown rhododendron and set on the pile. 

After an hour, the wind had picked up and clouds were looking ambitious so I stopped. I had a pile of sticks in front of the cluster of rotting tree stumps, a cardboard box of sticks in the shed, and barrel full of larger sticks against the shed. There was also the satisfaction of having done something productive in the fresh air.

The start of pickup sticks season.

The helpful neighbor with the snow blower offered to help me transport the yard stuff in his pickup truck down to the yard waste drop off area. This will happen sometime next week, and in the meantime, I will keep dragging tree trash out of the woods. 

The plan for spring is to rake some of the leaves back several feet from the edge of the grass and from around the trees and rocks closest to the house. The objective is to expand the usable area of the yard, which currently feels claustrophobic and is barely wide enough for a couple lounge chairs. It’s fun to have goals.

random thoughts – Day 2,208 (Friday) – crown and chips

The delivery and installation of the crown was scheduled for 9:00 this morning, which meant getting up, showering, caffeinating, and being out the door around the time I’m usually barely out of bed still in pajamas and on the couch drinking coffee. The traffic was reasonable, and the dentist office was quiet.

This appointment was the rescheduling from the first crown that was supposed to be delivered (official dental term) a couple weeks ago. That visit involved two full hours of torture in the dental chair and in the end it didn’t fit correctly and had to be remade. Fortunately, today’s appointment went like it was supposed to and I was in the chair for about 15 minutes of minimal fuss. We were all relieved to be spared another dental horror show consuming a chunk of the day. 

The afternoon included a chat with a contractor that involved pointing at parts of the house for ideas on mixing siding textures and highlighting areas with vinyl cedar shake or board and batten and using regular horizontal siding on the sides and back. Of course, the dollars that appear in the estimate will dictate the final direction taken. 

We looked at the issues with the current siding (circa 1988/89). The saying may be that "vinyl is final," but "final" in this case seems to be only about 35 years. The current siding has areas of of buckling and has come away from the house in spots. There are places where reattachment was attempted with packing tape (now peeling off) and what looks like glue.

It took me about three seconds to spot two colors of siding I liked in the samples, but I've been thinking about it for months already and have a solid idea of what I like. The boards with little sample chips will be here hogging the kitchen counter until Monday, providing me ample time to change my mind 100 times

More pita chips.

After the meeting with the contractor I got busy in the kitchen making more pita chips to take to a couple events this weekend. Baking sheets of chips coated with olive oil and garlic salt and one of sea salt, and others with butter and cinnamon sugar were placed in the oven. The oven temp was set lower than the other day and the chips came out less dark. 

Now the challenge is to not eat all the pita chips before the events. The batch made on Wednesday was eaten by me within 24 hours. To pace my consumption, I filled up on a supper of lobster cake and roasted asparagus. 

random thoughts – Day 2,207 (Thursday) – game day

It was cold, cloudy, and raw with sporadic showers and even snow flurries. This made it the perfect day for a one-hour webinar on estate planning I had signed up for a week ago. It certainly didn’t feel like I was missing out on any nice weather activities while at the desk. The webinar featured three talking heads from a bank wealth management group.

Scrawling notes.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t the best presentation I’ve ever witnessed, but to its credit it also wasn't the worst. There was a decent amount of helpful information and not a single slide featuring a graphic or bullet list. Just three heads against a corporate logo Zoom background, talking in rotation in a manner that suggested they either forgot to practice their sections or it was their first time presenting. Then there was me, cramping my hand scribbling notes like there would be an exam because I don't retain info just hearing it while sitting passively. If this was an actual exam situation, there would be a follow up with much color coded highlighting, so at least I’m spared that. 

Presentations I’ve seen on all manner of topics had a few slides displaying key points which were shared after the event and greatly minimized the need for note taking. And to think I declined a lunch invitation from Mom and Sis because I was registered for the webinar and encouraged them to go off to lunch without me. I could have been in a restaurant instead of scrawling notes. 

Playing Yahtzee.

After they returned from lunch, Sis called to tell me they were about to play Yahtzee next door at Mom's and I was out the door and walking across the damp lawn to join. 

We played three games of Yahtzee with Mom’s vintage Yahtzee cup and dice. The dice led each of us to a win and Mom and I each had a game with two Yahtzees. I made a dumb mistake that led to a really crappy score in my worst game. Before we knew it, a couple hours had passed on a cold, damp day. It was perfect.

random thoughts – Day 2,206 (Wednesday) – market treasures

A couple weeks ago, friends and I went to a belly dance show and I got to try Turkish Delight. Ever since, I have been collecting Turkish Delight items in my A-Z shopping cart, and particularly the flavor my friend said she liked.

Online searches for local sellers of Turkish Delight weren’t super fruitful, but I stuck gold recently with another search term. “Mediterranean market near me” produced a list of locations which were mostly in Worcester and what I expected. But in the list was a new surprise entrant with Yaya Mediterranean Halal Market in Fitchburg. Through their Facebook page, I sent a message and received a response that they had what I was looking for.

I hit the road for a quick drive with a box of rose flavor Turkish Delight envisioned at the end of the journey. The front of the building is an unassuming brown brick wall of boredom but a sign on the side of the building at the parking area confirmed it was the correct place. Across the threshold was not only Turkish Delight, but a world of delights.

Treasures from Yaya's.

The bright and tidy shop had shelves loaded with colorful packaging and hundreds of products. There were grains and lentils, sweets, tea, coffee, canned goods, fresh pita bread, snacks, frozen foods, coffee sets, cookware and a very nice shopkeeper. She offered me coffee and poured it into a beautiful small cup. It was dark, rich, and delicious and I ended up buying a bag.

In addition to the target item of a gift box of rose flavor Turkish Delight, I got a second box of rose flavor and a box of pistachio flavor, toasted chickpea snacks, cans of hummus and baba ghanoush, two bags of the largest pita breads I’ve ever seen, and Turkish coffee. I can’t wait to go back. The next visit, I will be armed with a shopping list.

Once home, I opened the can of baba ghanoush, cut up a giant pita, and halved some grape tomatoes for lunch. Eating the lunchtime snack gave me a chance to wonder what I would do with enough giant pita bread for an army. Recipes for pita chips were reviewed. 

Freshly baked pita chips.

After checking a couple sources for time and oven temperature guidance, olive oil, garlic salt, sea salt, were lined up on the counter. Pita bread was halved and sliced and brushed with oil and several cooking sheets of it were baked. 

The pita was very thin and it turned out five minutes was too long, but four minutes was better, but chips cooked at both times came out delicious. There is still a lot of pita left for additional chip making sessions. The next time I’ll use a lower oven temperature and experiment with some more seasonings.

random thoughts – Day 2,205 (Tuesday) – energy and successes

I woke up tired this morning because I stayed up until 3 am reading a book. I think it was the reintroduction to coffee after three days without, plus the excessive display of gluttony eating an entire 16 piece cinnamon bread bites order from Domino's. Yes, I did it to myself and I deserved what I got.

Painting hung.

Once I was out of bed, all was okay. I drank coffee (but less of it than yesterday) and things got done. The walls are beginning to talk (or it was the sleep deprivation) and today a painting done by my friend Terri was hung. The painting used to sit atop a bookcase in the Lowell house but now it needed hanging. 

The task required using the drill and the tiniest, cutest little drill bit in the entire kit to attach two eye hooks so I could add hanging wire, and that part was fun. I was tempted to look for other things to be drilled. 

Other walls were scrutinized and some art pieces auditioned, but there was only the one success for the day. Knick knacks and dust collectors were evaluated and rearranged. A candle was moved here, a plant to over there, a planter that may never see plants in it over there.

A contractor arrived to measure the house for a new roof, skylights, and siding. Luckily, it was after one of several rain sessions that filled the morning. It was oddly warm and humid as we walked around the house and talked about the project. Material samples and an estimate will be received later in the week.

Avocado bagel.

A trip was made to the Post Office during another one of the in-between rain windows. Two grocery stores were passed on both legs of the journey, but they are the pricier chains and I resisted the urge to visit either one. The avocado bought last week was perfectly ripe and was transformed into a topping for a perfectly toasted bagel. These felt like successes in budgeting, willpower, and timing.

Instructions for the pattern layout, fabric cutting, and sewing of the 25-yard skirt were reviewed (again). Preparation and production will begin soon. Later, two new-ish dances were reviewed in dance group in preparation for the show in June. The drive to and from dance involved some long stretches with horror movie quality fog that was a combination of impressive and terrifying. 

So much variety in one day.  Maybe it’s because I’m feeling physically better, or because it’s feeling like spring and that helps me feel mentally better, or some combination of factors, but the energy shift is most welcome.

random thoughts – Day 2,204 (Monday) – energy replenished

The day began with me waking up feeling rested and remarkably well. The energy level was dramatically better than the four days of being flat-out sick, and also so much better than usual that I wondered if it was possible that I was low-grade unwell for the past bunch of months. And that was before a shower and coffee. 

Crocuses at Mom's.

After coffee, which I hadn't had any of since Thursday and didn't taste as good as I expected it to, the litter box was cleaned and detailed like it was being listed for sale. The glass stovetop which always gets wiped but never quite looks totally clean met the magic eraser and got a more serious cleaning. Laundry was done. Bills were reviewed and set up for online payments. 

When I went outside to haul the trash and recycle bins up the driveway, I spotted Mom and StepDad trying to haul the base of a new recliner into the house and popped over to lend a hand. Once in the house, I helped with the final assembly. I hope today’s level of vitality continues and isn’t just some cruel prank of modern medicine or my declining mental faculties.

While next door, I spotted crocuses in Mom’s front flowerbed and feeling a bit of spring floral envy, I walked the perimeter of my own house and yard to see if I had any such spring flowers (I don’t – need to get some!). I walked into the woods behind the house to fetch an abandoned flowerpot that has been there since before I moved in and put it in the shed. I scanned all the broken trees, abandoned cut limbs, and years of fallen leaves and wondered how difficult and time consuming it would be to tidy things up back there without benefit of curbside yard waste pickup like I had in Lowell.

Cinnamon bread bites.
Okay, but not great.

There was a slight energy dip at supper time, so I killed the idea of planning supper and ordered pizza from Domino’s. I got frivolous and also ordered the cinnamon bread bites. Domino’s isn’t my favorite pizza purveyor so I’m not even sure why I chose them to provide the evening's sustenance. I might have been suddenly too lazy to think of another place.

The pizza was comfortably predictable. The cinnamon bites were okay, but not great, but I still ate the entire order which gave me a stomach ache that was immediately followed by pangs of regret. Live and learn (except I probably won’t learn).