random thoughts – Day 1,292 – (Saturday) – cat videos

There was no plan for the day. During the morning coffee drinking, the Facebook events previously marked with “Interested” were reviewed. There weren’t as many as I thought I had read about, and none found for the morning, so it was a trip to the gym.

The treadmill chosen was the furthest from both the check-in desk and the massive ceiling fans, and for the first since joining, I needed to peel off my top layer. Another first was feeling a bit “off” at the 20-minute mark and engaging in the mental gymnastics of “just one more minute and see how it feels.”

That, and decreasing the level from 3.7 mph to 3.4, was how I tricked myself into the full 30 minutes plus five-minute cooldown. After the treadmill there was a quick flirtation with the leg press machine before heading off to the most beloved massage chair.

Back at home, after a brunch of an egg over easy with a slice of toast, it was time to plan the afternoon. Options included the kitchen themed market at Mill No. 5, Cat Video Fest 2023 at the Luna Theater in Mill No. 5, and an art reception for a photography show I wish I had entered at Art League of Lowell, but I'm still too artistically lazy to get my act together.

Tiny fuzzy sun, but not raining.

I almost didn’t go out, but suddenly, in an almost out of body experience kind of way, I was making ready to leave the house, driving out of the driveway, then parking the car downtown. The sun was a small fuzzy ball floating in the gray sky, but at least it wasn't raining.  

The walk from the car to Mill No. 5 put me in the building with 30 minutes to spare before Cat Video Fest began but with plenty of time to still back out. One of the Boozy Book Club members was in the hall and we chatted briefly in a new context. She saw the Cat Videos last month and recommended it. Sold! 

At the Luna, after buying the ticket, the power of suggestion from the person behind the counter led to the addition of a $9 "large" bag of popcorn which is not actually that large, but comes with a free refill. There were six other people in the theater when I entered. Yes, I count things. Often. Like always. No, I don’t know why.

Luna Theater.

I dove into the not very large popcorn bag and a few more people trickled in. As I chomped the fluffy stuff, two women I knew came in. We sat together and it was the stuff of dreams seeing people I knew while out alone. The videos were delightful. Super cute and amusing. All the occupants of the theater were giggling and awwwwing in unison. 

After Cat Video Fest, we three headed to the Art League of Lowell for the reception for the show. The artwork ranged from beautiful to really cool to I wish had more walls and a bigger budget. The refreshments were an artfully arranged and tasty assortment of deviled eggs, cucumber sandwiches, wontons, hummus, mini cupcakes, and cookies. There was wine. It was a great time chatting and looking at art. Lowell has a lot of great artistic talent.

Back at home after the socializing it was quiet, except for the crunching of my free refill bag of popcorn. For what it cost, damn skippy I got the free refill and renamed it supper. Scrolling through Facebook, I saw I missed a Lowell Cemetery tour, which was a bummer, because those are always interesting and informative. 

As the current binge of "Friends" played on max, I imagined having a cat or two moving through the house on little cat feet and kneading biscuits on my leg or a pillow but hopefully not on my face like in one of the videos. Uh oh. I think we know where this is probably heading.

random thoughts – Day 1,291 – (Friday) – solitude in the suite

The day at the office started with a slight adrenaline rush. As I opened the door from the stairwell into the suite, I was greeted with the tone of the security alarm, an unusual situation. I semi-frantically punched a code into the panel hoping it was actually my code, or any other code that might work to stop the alarm. That is when it was fully registered I was the first to arrive. There was hope that I wouldn’t be the only one in the office today, but the joke was on me, ha ha ha. I was the sole occupant of the entire fourth floor. All Day. It felt like a punishment of the most solitary variety.

With the silence inside the office and the rain tapping on the skylights as a backdrop, I went through my work list. There also may have been some stomping around in a bit of a huff while taking care of stupid tasks that seem to go undone for way too long. The coffee cups, plastic utensils, and napkins were restocked and the now-empty box the cups had been in was flattened for the trash.

Lunch from home,
at the office.

Lunch was a splendid treat of spanakopita twirl, stuffed grape leaves and Kalamata olives enjoyed in deafening peace and quiet at the desk. 

Finally, after a workday packed with all the glamour and excitement of a solitary day downtown on yet another rainy day, it was time to leave. The loneliness of the solitary office suite was exchanged for the route home with too many other drivers. And the work week was done. Thank goodness.

random thoughts – Day 1,290 – (Thursday) – movie and moonrise

As I rounded the corner from Shattuck Street to Market Street, there was a plain white moving truck parked at the opposite curb with an aqua bicycle resting against the truck. The back door was open, exposing the heavy stanchions and red velvet ropes used to mark out queues, along with a lot of other stuff that wasn't basic residential moving boxes. It seemed like it was getting late to still be moving and the stanchions marked it as a strange assortment of stuff.

Approaching Warp and Weft, I noticed a police officer in a bright vest standing in the street in a parking spot, which seemed slightly odd, but not more odd than other things seen elsewhere. There was a guy leaning against the building and what looked like equipment on the sidewalk.

Boozy Book Club was meeting outside, possibly for the last time in a while, and I worried about being chilly. The chill was forgotten quickly with an Allagash Haunted House beer and an update of the activities downtown. 

First, there was the news that Shannon, one of the local downtown street inhabitants, passed away this week. He was a downtown fixture for years, and often reclined in various doorways and sometimes in the middle of the sidewalk. It was a weird feeling hearing the news, between sadness because he was a human and likely had a rougher life than I could ever imagine and now he’s deceased, and relief that there is one less person asking me for money when I’m just trying to get to or from work.

That was followed by the exciting news that a movie was filming two doorways down from where we sat, in the space above the book store owned by the organizer of book club. Filming was taking place in the apartment above the book store, and we got a description of the very cool space and the very cool guy that lived there. Of course, my immediate question was, “Is he single?” (He is.)

The box truck parked on the street with the interesting contents was part of the filming, scheduled for 3:00 pm to 3:00 am. It explained the assortment of stuff in the truck, and also the other UHaul and plain white trucks parked in the immediate area, and the equipment on the sidewalk.

Oops.

As we sipped drinks, enjoyed appetizers, and discussed the book, there was the scrape of metal on metal out on the street. A white moving truck had scraped the corner of the truck parked at the curb. My guess is the driver was trying to back into the space behind the other white truck.

The mishap was right in front of a police cruiser that was parked behind the parked truck. It took more screeching and some maneuvering to get the trucks separated and the truck on the move parked in the lot for the Greek restaurant on the corner. Soon, a firetruck and ambulance were on the scene.

The owner of the apartment where the filming was happening came down the sidewalk, saw our book club leader, and stopped to chat. We grilled him about the filming and chaos in his dwelling. Apparently, the initial request was to use one room but the crew and props and equipment and the filming was taking over everything. The dining room table had been jammed into the kitchen blocking access to the beer in the fridge. A lot of his furniture had been rearranged and temporarily removed and replaced. The good news was that permissions had been granted and some of the owner's bachelor pad artwork was going to be in the movie.

Full moon rising
over Market Street.

A police officer came down the sidewalk and stopped at our table and said, “Hey ladies, you wanna see something cool?” It was a unanimous “Uhh, yeah, sure!” and in seconds we were trotting down the sidewalk behind the officer, in the direction of the film set. 

Officer LPD stopped and told us to look at the moon, bloated, pinkish, and bright, hanging over the end of Market Street. The officer stood in the street, poised to stop any oncoming traffic so we could look at the big, beautiful moon. Boozy Book Club oohed and aahed over the moon and took pictures with our phones. I spent the rest of book club checking the moon and taking more pictures. 

Over the next few minutes, staffers and customers trickled out of the restaurant to pause and look at the moon and take pictures of it, and themselves with it. It was spontaneous and fun and surprising and had elements of what I hoped life in Lowell would be like. Super fun night, and all in the space of about an hour.

random thoughts – Day 1,289 – (Wednesday) – random tourist

Old State House, Boston
9-27-2015

On September 27, 2015, a friend I had met while living in Tennessee posted on Facebook a photo in Boston. I messaged to ask if she was currently in the city and how long she was staying, then dashed out of Mom's house (where the dogs and I were staying), to meet her and her friends in the city. I caught up with them at the Old State House, which was a stop on a walking tour they were doing. 

Together, we continued on the walking tour and touristy things. We saw historic buildings that I’d walked past countless times and to which I likely hadn’t paid much attention beyond a literal passing thought. Chances are I was probably on my way to someplace at my normal White Rabbit “I’m late for a very important date” walking speed.

When I was in high school, my dance teacher trained us in city walking, in preparation for when we had auditions with dance companies in New York City. We practiced walking across the studio, head up, eyes straight ahead, at a pace that signaled confidence and that we knew where we were going, even though we didn't. 

At the Harbor.

Sadly, I never got to walk in a city on my way to any dance auditions. My only dance audition was at UMASS Amherst and Mom drove me there. In any event, I sure did embrace the walking style, and even now, sometimes blow past a lot of cool things in the process.

That long ago day as a Boston tourist with my Tennessee friend and her friends was a great time. Included in the touristy historic things was a boat ride in the harbor and a visit to the iconic Parker House, a Boston landmark since 1855. Surrounded by wood paneling, windows, and history, we talked and laughed and sipped beverages with light appetizers in the birthplace of Boston Cream Pie and the famous Parker House Rolls. Seeing the city through fresh eyes with a visiting friend is fun.

random thoughts – Day 1,288 – (Tuesday) – winning revelations

It’s possible that today was the next to last Physical Torture appointment, so that was a spark of brightness. Things aren’t exactly fixed, but some are better and the final determination will be on Thursday. Fingers are crossed for a discharge, because the budget has been shot to sh*t from the twice weekly co-pays for the past couple months and psychologically and financially I’m just over it.

Just like the months before the PT began, the whole time has been a moving target of pains and diagnoses. Today’s revelations include that the left knee pain is most likely arthritis and the lower leg issues are most likely due to a weak calf. I don't know how a calf decides to go weak, but it seems obvious every time I try to put on pants from a standing position and in dance when I attempt the quad stretch standing on one leg that I used to be able to hold forever and now I practically fall over.

Healing heels?

And let’s not forget the lower back tightness, but it's only with 50% of the hip moves and could probably be worse. Ugh. What in the actual hell. I don’t recall signing up for this aging crap. It must have been buried in the tiny fly speck legal print on a document for something I actually wanted like the monthly wine club deliveries.

The weirdest revelation during this summer of PT is that my leg hurts less when wearing a bootie with a block heel than a sensible flat. Go figure. That might have been a good knowledge nugget to possess before spending the past couple years collecting sturdy oxfords and loafers. 

Possibly the most exciting news is that those new sparkly silver fashion heels and all their kin in the closet might be necessary to heal. And heels spare me from hemming too-long  pants. Another win!

random thoughts – Day 1,287 – (Monday) – big chill

The first three days of fall have come and gone. The temperature outside the house has been around the high 50s to low 60s. The temperature inside the house has hovered around the usual range of 65 to 69. And yet, I’m chilly like it’s the dead of winter. Pathetic! 

Peach tea.

I have run full speed into my sweaters, which are now liberated from their plastic storage bags. There have been bowls of hot soup, which were launched with the rain, days before the magical seasonal change noted on the calendar. 

Sitting on the couch now requires a blanket. Ice water and I are now on the outs. It’s now the seasonal return to a renewed steady stream of steaming beverages – coffee in the morning, and endless cups of hot tea in a rotation of the fruity flavors of raspberry, black cherry, and peach from noon onward. 

The heavy usage of mugs will now dictate the frequency of the dishwasher usage, replacing the previous benchmark of no more lunch plates in the cabinet.

There is a full awareness that this heightened level of chilly weenie-ness is excessive, even for me. The concern is, if I’m this cold in September when it isn’t even cold yet, what am I going to do when the weather actually turns cold? Oy. Maybe I should start looking for a home in a warmer location. 

random thoughts – Day 1,286 – (Sunday) – fall panic

Fall mums!

In addition to the renewed interest in cooking, the arrival of fall also heralds the arrival of the potted mums. There was a colorful sea of them at the farm stand passed en route to and from dance class.

Then there is the regularly scheduled Halloween costume panic. The dance troupe is performing early in the Halloween season at a haunted trail and costuming needs to be ready (and practice tested) for the event on October 7. Oy.

This is an acceleration of the usual costume planning process that occupies most of October. It starts with panicking over having no ideas, getting an idea and then panicking about the idea, shopping for items for the idea while second-guessing the idea, changing the idea several times and starting over with the item sourcing. Then, after finally settling on an idea, there is the last minute discovery that a crucial component once in the closet was given away in a move, and the item doesn’t exist in any retail environment. It's a tradition.

So far, my costume ideas for performing with “The Dancing Ghouls,” have not been very inspired. Of the many options residing in the home costume collection, several of the favorites were removed from consideration for various reasons. The much beloved corset, trotted out for many a costume-wearing occasion, is off the list due to the mobility restrictions from the boning. The 1920s flapper, mermaid, and pirate stuff would all result in frostbite. Not to mention the mermaid mobility challenge.

The Amazon shopping cart has been filled with components for creepy carnival, Steampunk, or pirate, but none feel quite “right” and they were saved for later or deleted. In case it’s cold that night, gloves and tights with skeleton bones printed on them were ordered. And a black crown, because I don't have one and it looked really cool. But so far, that is the extent of the costume. 

I hope inspiration strikes soon so I can wrap it up. There are other things I need to be cultivating ulcers over, like what to pack for the October vacation trip to the Vegas wedding.

random thoughts – Day 1,285 – (Saturday) – home comforts

PB and banana toast.

The first day of autumn was on the cool and grayish side, and the morning coffee was accompanied by the comfort of toast with peanut butter and sliced banana. 

Despite having had the opening of the  National Park Service ”One City Many Cultures” exhibit on my calendar for months, I failed to muster the energy to attend. Part of the hesitation was the fear it would be crowded, and jostling through a crowd to see an exhibit is frustrating. 

Instead, the afternoon was dominated by the continued binge-watch of A Discovery of Witches on max. And a nap.

I was chilly (not unusual), and too lazy/frugal to turn on the heat (also not unusual), so I grabbed the cozy blanket strategically located on the back of the sofa and snuggled under it. The equinox noted on the calendar is usually also the early days of the annual fall installment of “wake up way too many times overnight,” so I was tired. Chilly, tired, and under a blanket are the exact recipe for a nap and it was sleepy time on the couch for the win.

Stuffing with stuff.

The change of season felt like the official blessing to kick off the winter food menu, so after the nap, there was time spent in the kitchen over the stove. The cast iron fry pan and I are still in the early stages of courtship, and today marked another date. Despite having been seasoned, the pan has a couple spots where food seems to stick, so we aren't enjoying the smoothest of relationships yet.

The cooking project was one of my favorite fall and winter fast food dishes. It starts with a package of corn bread stuffing mix which is prepared and mixed with diced apple, celery, pecans, and cranberries sauteed in butter. Also onions and a splash of orange juice, if available and remembered (tonight they were not). While married to Mr. Meat and Potatoes (X2), it was a side dish, but now, it’s just supper.

By 7:00, the house was dark. It felt like bedtime, but of course, it was too early. Now the challenge is to hang in there until a more adult hour. Do I hear 8:30?

random thoughts – Day 1,284 – (Friday) – breaks and hunting

Some days offer a break in the routine, and today was one of them. There were three of us in the office. I was on my side, and the others were on the far side of the floor.

There were letters to be stuffed into envelopes, and on Thursday, the team had been given a "divide and conquer" directive to get it done. This morning, I started folding and stuffing a few letters and the next thing I knew, they were all done.

There was another divide and conquer plan for some favors that needed tags attached over the next dew days. With everyone working on a dozen or so, there would the right number done for Tuesday. When one of the colleagues from the other side of the floor came over to tag some items, they were done. Like the letters, I got on a roll and did the entire box.

I joked that I had channeled the factory piece work skills of my grandparents. It felt nice to handle a task that I could control, and which provided a sense of completion. Such immediate gratification is often lacking in my regular tasks, which can be hung up for days, and in some cases lately, months, in the review process with various business units. It was nice.

After the tagging and stuffing, the rest of the day was less triumphant. The request came in for a monthly task and I was able to knock it out right away. This week’s to-do list was updated and next week’s was set up, which is my Friday afternoon ritual. It’s helpful to start on Monday with a plan already in place, something I learned ages ago from a great production manager I worked with.

The last sky of summer.

After work, it was a quiet night at home with a frozen pizza, a bottle of Anchor Porter, A Discovery of Witches on max, and a scavenger hunt for some witch-related costume items. It was mostly successful. A couple skirts were found and run through the washer. Forgotten and never worn jewelry was found. One item not found will haunt me until it is finally located. It could be a matter of hours or years, there is no telling. Sometimes, things just mysteriously disappear forevermore.

I remembered it was the last night of summer and had intended to look for the sunset, but I forgot. When I remembered and looked outside, the bit of sky I could see through the houses up the street was sky blue pink.

random thoughts – Day 1,283 – (Thursday) – soup days

Lunch soup.

Another beautiful day dawned in Lowell with blue skies and sunshine. The week has launched the household into soup season, and it's been homemade chicken soup with vegetables and noodles for a couple days. Dang, I do love soup. 

Today was a doubleheader. There was soup for lunch with half of an everything bagel with butter, and for supper with two slabs of Scandinavian rye crisp with butter. 

Cooler temperatures often make me want to cook and the meals on hand situation improves dramatically. Veggie roasting season is right around the corner and I can almost smell it. Fragrant good times are ahead.

After a video meeting, there was a quick break out to the front yard to pull some weeds. This particular task used to be handled in small spurts, two or three minutes here and there while Winston did his business. With fewer excuses to be in the yard, the weeds have a chance to go a little wild.

The front flower bed was overgrown with individual tall grass stems, waving in the breeze as if to say “hey!” and beckoning (taunting?) me to pluck them from the earth. So, I did. In no time I had harvested a bunch of grasses and weeds and dropped them into the Yard Waste bin.

In fewer than 10 minutes, I was back at the desk, cranial cobwebs cleared and mentally ready to tackle the next glamorous marketing task. Today's glamour included sending emails to check in on the too many projects suspended in limbo in other departments and check the details on some of the initiatives under my own control. 

Overall, it was one of my favorite types of work day. There were no nasty little brush fires to be stomped out. No last minute requests. Nobody complaining about the execution of said last-minute requests that were made with insufficient information. Truly, a very good day.

After work, there was no debate about going to the gym. It was a remote day with no commute home. There was a quick costume change into some gym pants and a tee shirt topped with a lightweight hoodie, and by 5:15, I was parking the car at Planet Fitness.

The preferred treadmill location is about three-quarters of the way down the row, beyond a couple of intimidating stair machines. The treadmills closer to the entrance and the check-in desk seem to fill up, but at the further end there is more availability. 

The only thing I really don’t like about the gym is the ceiling fan situation. They are huge, built to circulate the air, and they execute their function very well. No matter where I am on the floor, it feels like I’m in a hurricane force wind. It takes a full 20 minutes on the treadmill before I can lower the zipper on my hoodie even an inch. I’ve yet to take it off. Or even unzip it all the way. Sweating is a physical impossibility. It's all good -- shivering burns more calories.

The reward for 35 minutes on the treadmill (hills program) was a 10-minute treat in the massage chair. It was a tossup between the hydro massage table and the massage chair. The chair won out but only because it was the first word I saw on the check-in screen  Either way, life in the massage equipment is good, 10 minutes at a time. 

random thoughts – Day 1,282 – (Wednesday) – go/no-go

Afternoon walk.

There was work, lunch, pumpkin squares, more work, a walk downtown, and more work. The afternoon walk was a great break taken under a sunny sky with comfortable temperatures. 

There was no set path, just .77 miles through downtown, across and then alongside a canal, and back to the office. The canal is partly drained and looked like a dump site for old tires.

The sidewalks were busy with people walking places and waiting to cross streets clogged with vehicles. As I waited to cross Central Street,  a young guy came up from behind me, and as he passed me, he said “love the hair!” as he continued on his way. Well, thank you very much, kind and youthful stranger.

The ride from work and the first ten minutes at home were consumed with a go/no-go debate about attending the gym. The freezer and cabinet doors were opened and closed, and opened and closed again, with a poorly scripted narration that was something like, “Go to the gym or eat supper? Why are there only ingredients here? Why is all the food food frozen? Cripes!”

Carrie Bradshaw in Paris.

In the end, there was no trip to the gym, after work or otherwise. Supper was ramen with mixed frozen vegetables, queso, and Korean hot pepper paste, eaten in front of the TV with Sarah Jessica Parker as Carrie Bradshaw. 

The Sex and the City binge is now up to Season 6. Carrie is in Paris, Miranda is in Brooklyn, and I'm in Lowell, on the couch nursing memories of my own trip to Paris, and wondering if I won or lost the gym/no gym debate.

random thoughts – Day 1,281 – (Tuesday) – dog-gone life

Life with no dogs is settling into a flow. In many ways it's similar to life with dogs, just less entertaining. The shift from two dogs to one was hard, and from one dog to none has not exactly been  a basket of cheer. 

Winston and Moose, once upon a time.

Thanks to physical therapy co-payments twice a week, recent life isn’t even less expensive. Canine medication expenses have been replaced with human health care costs.

There are still multiple overnight awakenings but they are due to neighbor noise and my own sleep issues and not from a Canine Overlord needing to go outside for a late-night wee. The morning alarm goes off at the same time is has for years, but now it’s followed by a leisurely trip down the stairs instead of a race to the door to let a pup outside. 

There are fewer grocery store visits and no food measuring, chicken chopping, or veterinary medication dosing. There are no cuddles, no gentle snores. No dog breath in the face. No Canine Overlord barking at the backyard gate to be let inside. It feels very empty. 

One bright side to dog-free life is leaving the house. It’s a lot faster getting out the door, and little to no concern about the return time. Yet, despite the new “freedom” I still spend about the same amount of time at home as before. 

There is no reason to say “Bye, I love you! See you in a little while” while walking out the kitchen door. The arrival home after any trip outside is met with silence and no little Winston rounding the corner from the office. The benefits still feel mostly overshadowed by the void.

Like anything else, it will take getting used to. 

random thoughts – Day 1,280 – (Monday) – firsts and nots

The rain is back. Ugh. It was a delightful break with sunshine and warmth on Sunday, and now we’re back to wet weather. Luckily, after work, it was just a light rain as I headed to the gym where it was dry inside. Tonight’s equipment of choice was the treadmill, which was located under the heavy duty, industrial ceiling fan. I was freezing and glad to have worn long sleeves and a hood.

The treadmill was a delight. Unlike the recumbent bikes, the treadmill controls worked, including the heart rate reader. And man, that ceiling fan worked.

Treadmill done!

The weekend aches and pains in the lower leg were on a break and it was terrific. In 35 minutes on the hills program, the alleged equivalent of 1.83 miles was achieved. I pretended I was walking a runway for part if it, doing the one foot directly in front of the other 90s model walk and wondering how on earth they did it in high heels. I amuse myself with crazy stuff like that all the time. The fantasy walk was followed by 10 minutes in the massage chair, still my favorite feature at the gym. 

The flirtation with the treadmill provided a good idea of how long it might take to walk to the office, which is actually a flat route so might be a bit quicker. 

Will I ever walk to work? Well, it’s been seven years in the house, and it hasn’t happened yet, so history indicates that it’s probably not very likely. But the successful flirtation with the treadmill in a controlled climate condition was promising.

Fresh floor,
Sept 2016.

Fun fact – On September 18, 2016, Moose, Winston, and I finally spent the night at The BungaLowell. The several weeks since the closing had been consumed with ripping up wall to wall carpeting that covered the first floor (including the kitchen), then laying down plywood throughout the dining room, living room, and kitchen and rolling on three coats of polyurethane. I have some great friends who helped with all of this. 

When the floors were done, dried, and covered in cardboard, it was finally time to unpack the moving POD and move the furniture inside, which included my friends sawing the box spring in half to get it up the narrow, steep, low clearance, 1930 staircase and then splinting it back together in the bedroom. That was fun.  

The weirdest (most remarkable?) thing about the first night in The BungaLowell is that I don’t remember a thing about it. This means either I have a crappy memory (sometimes true) or it was a blissfully uneventful night, free of major stress, ghosts, hauntings, and emergencies. The only reason it is even on my radar now is the Facebook memories feature.

Besides not once walking to work in the past seven years, there are a few other things that haven’t been done at/from the house. Like setting up the alleged “guest room” which is still a storage room stuffed with supplies for stained glass, jewelry, and photography, plus shelves and storage tubs crammed with framed photos and completed tie-dyed clothing and jewelry items. It’s kind of depressing, so mostly I don’t even look in there.

Then there is the futon bought from Habitat for Humanity ReStore that was supposed to graduate from the living room to the second floor “guest room/office” as seating and bedding. Some day. Baby steps, right? 

random thoughts – Day 1,279 – (Sunday) – dancing through

The weekend continued with more dance. First was the dress rehearsal Friday night, then the performance Saturday morning, and today was the beginning of the fall session of dance classes, which was able to start on time, thanks to Saturday's event not being pushed to the rain date of today. We began working on new choreography for a performance in October.

The flag of Finland at
 Saima Park.

Overall, dance felt good, with a few issues that needed to be danced through. There was a twinge in the lower back. A pain or two or ten in the lower leg. A balance issue here and there. Some numbness in an ankle and across the top of the foot, just like in the early days of the broken leg. Luckily, the new dance is for a Haunted Woods event and we are zombies (Dancing Ghouls!) so lurching around and twitching will only add to the spirit of the dance.

Immediately after dance it was off to Saima Park to meet Mom, StepDad, and my sister for a walk around the Nordic Market. I managed to resist the salmiakki (Finnish salted licorice) although sitting at home, I have no idea why. It’s not the sort of thing that is available everywhere and sure, I saved a few bucks, but now I also have no salmiakki. There were a lot of cool things I didn’t buy – some Finnish language books, holiday ornaments, linens, and coffee mugs I definitely don’t need but were cute. The usual.

The stream at Saima.

The Fitchburg State Orchestra played and sounded great. My sister and I recognized some songs from the Saturday morning cartoons of our youth. Cartoons may have done more to introduce classical music to kids than any school programs. My classmate from last fall’s Finnish language class was playing in the violin section and it was nice seeing her in action.

The sky was blue, the sun was blazing and it was a gorgeous day. The stream at Saima Park sparkled and gurgled under the footbridge. It was a picture perfect day at the Park. Yesterday’s winds from Hurricane Lee had died down, and there wasn’t enough breeze to unfurl the flag mounted on the building that houses the summer kitchen. 

On the way home, there was a stop at Kohl’s to return the two pairs of drapes. They didn’t quite look like their glamour shot profile photo posted on the popular matchmaking website that pairs items with shoppers. It was a rocky first date and now we’re officially done. It’s time to move on to different curtains. And maybe we’ll meet the old-fashioned way – in person. Though I doubt it. Just like the perfect love interest for people of a certain age, window dressings have become few and far between.

Having danced through the weekend, it was time to deal with the yard. Despite it being a dry day, the shaggy grass was damp closer to the ground like it has been all summer. It clumped underneath the mower and the rubber flap began to detach from the back of it. When clearing out the wet trimmings caked under the mower, the flap attachment was examined. It seems there is a little problem. It needs either a new way to be attached or it needs to come off. It's been filed under "deal with this later."

random thoughts – Day 1,278 – (Saturday) – dance day

Hubbardston Field Day.

Last spring, Salaamati, the belly dance troupe, committed to dance at the Hubbardston (MA) Field Day event hosted by the Hubbardston Lions Club. We cut our usual summer hiatus short in August for rehearsals as we polished our repertoire.

The weather forecast had us on high alert, but we proceeded with preparations and plans as if Hurricane Lee would not be a factor. At Friday night’s dress rehearsal, we discussed costume layering to combat the forecasted chill. We crossed our fingers, hoped for decent weather, and prepared for the day to go off without a hitch.

At 6:00 this morning, the alarm clanged and there was a trip downstairs to start the coffee. While it brewed, it was back upstairs to start getting ready for the performance day. The first layer of chilly day costuming was leggings for under the big skirt. A long sleeve mesh shirt was added. FYI – mesh fabrics can be surprisingly warm. 

Dance bag!

Soon, the first bit of coffee had kicked in enough to be awake enough to apply makeup. Powdered eye shadow and shading were successful, but by the time I got to the eyeliner, it was at least one caffeinated sip too many for a steady hand. There would be no makeup artistry awards for today’s raggedy eyeliner. 

It had been raining in Lowell all morning, but at the performance site, 45 miles to the west, it was dry with a cloudy sky. The breezes were cool and plentiful.

We had the luxury of a place to change and leave our stuff, which is a great convenience. Clad in jeans, leggings, and sweats, we dropped off our bags and crossed the wide lawn to the gazebo to check out the grassy surface where we would dance. We plotted our entrance, then walked back to the building to finish dressing.

The event had some fun activities. There was a beautiful baby contest, a bouncy house, and a chicken poop bingo game. The aroma of chicken barbeque scented the air.   

Our dancing went well. There was one tiny glitch when the music cut out, but we kept going, and a few long seconds later, it came back on and we hadn’t missed a beat.  

The audience seemed to enjoy our show, and we enjoyed dancing it. And then we were done.  The paillettes and stick on bling were stripped off and packed away, and we were back into our jeans and civilian clothes and scattering our separate ways. I went to Mom’s and we went out for lunch, followed by a visit to an antiques and collectibles shop. Before long, it was time to head back home. By then, I was tired, so it was a quiet rest of the afternoon.

random thoughts – Day 1,277 – (Friday) – issues

This day had issues. They began overnight with neighbors talking in the street. Loudly. An hour later, a different neighbor was in the street in the midst of a long and chatty goodbye. A couple hours later, a third unrequested wakeup call had no apparent reason.

Suddenly, it was 5:50 a.m. and the first waking thought was worry about the black shirt I hadn’t been able to find earlier in the week that I wanted for dress rehearsal tonight and the performance on Saturday.

There was no point laying in bed until the alarm at 6:15 and the latest search for the wayward shirt commenced. It was finally located under a slew of hip scarves and crop tops and a veil after carefully picking though the sequin covered storage bin of dance things. Whew!

The costume necklace had already gone into the dance bag with the 25-yard skirt, the costume belt and top, and the black overshirt with the long sleeves with hanging pointy pieces that remind me of Stevie Nicks, which would be fine if I actually liked Steve Nicks.

It was chilly, and in case the weather got wet and windy, it was decided to close the storm windows on the porch. This requires the three-pronged garden tool to get the release lever things to budge to lower the windows. Of the eight windows across the front of the porch, half of them had at least five dead wasps in the space between the two windows. Apparently, there is some sort of wasp issue. Ugh. At least they were deceased and not flying in my face or into the house.

Oh goody, low tire pressure.

A few minutes later, as in leaving late for work, the car was started and the dashboard lit up with a blaze of red, an angry red indicator at the driver side front tire, and the low tire pressure warning. With past tire warnings, the warning dominates the dashboard display until the tires are properly inflated and it is most annoying. 

Halfway to work on the newly underinflated tires, I realized I had forgotten to grab half the jewelry for the costume. It was too late to turn back. At work, there is a stupid number of projects still in a holding pattern and other things beyond my control but with which I must deal were just annoying. I ended up leaving work late and had to rush to get to dress rehearsal. Yes, there was swearing.

Near the dress rehearsal site is a Haffner’s station, but a car was parked in front of the air machine so I bailed and kept going. Closer to the rehearsal space a Mobil service station had an accessible air machine. The caps were removed from the valve stems, which involved standing in a puddle at the right front tire. The card reader didn’t work and I had to go inside to get $2 in quarters.

Oddly, during the drive, the pressure in two tires had increased, one to 250, another to 260. The machine “recalibrated the tires” and either added or released air, displaying “END” when the tire was at 35 pounds of pressure. When the car was restarted, the tire pressure was correct and the diagram went away. Too much time was spent standing in the puddle during the process.

Trial mix bars!

Rehearsal was great, and an hour later we were done. Upon starting the car again, the tire pressure warning came back on because two of the tires were suddenly low again. Grumble, grumble. Is it the temperature? A leak? In two tires? Of course, this tire issue nonsense would happen on a weekend when I need to be somewhere at 9:30 Saturday morning. What in the actual hell.

On the way home, there was a stop at Market Basket. Included in the cart were fresh vegetables and cheese. In the cereal aisle, there was a shelf tag declaring "Trial Mix Fruit & Nut 7.4 oz 2/$4." It was amusing, partly because the trial wasn't even near the right product. Without too much of an issue, the correct and on trial Fruit and Nut bars were located so that 12 future mornings can start with a nutritional trial. 

random thoughts – Day 1,276 – (Thursday) – fresh day

Dewdrop diamond.

Remote work day went well. Things on the to-do list moved along. Dew drops glistened on the grass like diamonds. There was a bug in the sink, but no deceased creatures in the yard and no water in the basement. 

The Internet lasted the full day, and the weather was beautiful with a cloudless sky and sunshine. Downstairs windows were opened and fresh breezes blew through the house. It was a great break from the recent rains and forecast for the weekend of more. 

The wildest thing to happen all day was neighbor dog Loki and the French bulldog in another yard having a barky conversation. The dog conversation was more entertaining than annoying. 

After work, I was scheduled to attend the annual fundraiser for the Lowell Humane Society. I arrived downtown a bit early for the event, and had a chance to walk around the area near the event site for a few minutes. There were some older buildings full of character, gardens bursting with color, and some of the smoothest, most pristine asphalt seen in ages. 

Cake!

The food at the event was a variety of heavy hors d’ouerves passed around by the caterers. They including avocado toast, spinach pie triangles, stuffed mushroom caps, beet slices on bread, and more. There was a cheese, veggie, tabouli, and hummus table. "The caterers" are students of a culinary program at UTEC, the host site, and they did a terrific job.

The adorable cake of fondant covered tiers featured a stack of animals and looked as perfect as a sculpture I saw at a gallery. Once sliced, there was white cake and chocolate cake, each fresh and delicious with light as air creamy filling between the layers. 

The auctioneer, who is also the City Manager, was highly entertaining. The slide show of Humane Society animals featured the cutest cats, dogs, guinea pigs, and birds.

Overall, a great day and evening. And now I want to go cuddle some shelter animals.

random thoughts – Day 1,275 – (Wednesday) – rain and boots

It was cloudy for most of the day and rainy for part of it. It made me nervous knowing that rain was predicted and there is a hurricane swirling and twirling in the Atlantic and reportedly headed for the East Coast with more wetness. There has been so much rain already this year.

After work, the walk to the garage was riddled with a tight calf and discomfort with every transfer of weight to the left foot. It was just like the days before physical therapy and before the March trip to Rome when I worried about being able to walk around like a tourist. Ugh. At least there is more therapy tomorrow.

At home, the puddle in the driveway was back in place which felt like a suggestion to check the basement for water. I was thrilled there was none and thanked the basement for all its work staying dry today.

Shoe loving.

While Sex and the City season 3 played in the current binge, my own little shoe loving inner Carrie Bradshaw decided to give the gray and lightly sparkly boots from Amazon a second chance. One boot had been tried on a couple days ago, and it pinched in the toes. It was restuffed with the foam and cardboard and tissue to keep the shape during shipping, and set back in the box with its mate. 

The latest wishful thinking was that maybe the first try-on was a fluke or the socks were too thick and it only felt too small in error. This time, the first boot felt fine so the second was tried on, and they aren’t too small at all. There was a walk around the house, and these boots are made for walking after all. Thank goodness for the procrastination and not hastily hitting “return” on the boots. The wedding guest footwear seems to be solved after all.

Now it’s time to get moving on the return of the curtains which definitely don’t work and need to be gone from the dining room table. Maybe later. For now, it’s Carrie and the girls and their shoes and clothes. It’s been years since we spent any time together.

random thoughts – Day 1,274 – (Tuesday) – sh*t show

Some days move along like a carefully choreographed dance production with one segment moving to the next, and multiple participants flowing across the stage and in and out of the wings and it’s lovely. Today’s production was more like a car wreck than a dance piece. Right from the start, the day was a bit of a sh*t show.

I woke up with a knee that felt puffy and tender, and was sore into the lower leg. The physical therapist looked disappointed when I told her that my leg hurt after the last session as I walked to the car from the office and this morning it was just a different flavor of not great. I forgot to also tell her there was sciatic pain over the weekend. Later, during the side steps exercise with a rubber band, my knee felt crunchy and sore, a new and depressing setback. I swear I wasn’t trying to make the therapist cry.

Poor, dried up plant.

After Physical Torture it was home for a remote work day. Once at the desk I saw that the once beautiful pink mini rose my sister gave me barely a month ago had become a crispy, dried relic. The care label said to "keep moist," and that works great when I’m home working at the desk three days a week and home on the weekend, but last week the work schedule was changed up and I went into the office Wednesday through Friday, and then I took off out of town Sunday and Monday. I hadn’t been at the desk to notice the plant since Tuesday, it showed and I felt bad. I hope it can be resurrected. 

Ninety-six emails awaited my attention, including several notices for required training modules. When I checked out one of the trainings, it was disappointing to see it was a video format, my least favorite training format. Videos might work well for some people, but I don’t absorb information presented by a talking head droning on and on about legal stuff while different words are shown on the screen. Am I supposed to be reading the screen, or listening to the presenter? I can’t do both, and there is a test at the end. It was so frustrating, I bailed, and now I get to look forward to dealing with it again between now and the due date which isn’t very far off.

Shattered.

Before work, there was an idea to change an art piece in the bathroom. One piece was removed and set on the kitchen counter, another piece moved into the now empty spot and a shadowbox piece done when I lived in Tennessee was chosen to fill the newest vacant spot.

The newly placed piece looked great and I was happy with it. A few hours later, it fell off the wall and landed face down on the tile floor with a crash. The corner of the frame broke on impact and the glass smashed all over the floor. Four of the eight photos inside were gouged. Tiny glass shards were spotted several feet away, including in the kitchen. 

During the day, confusion and annoyance continued to reign. 

One project suffered from a lack of useful communication / information. Info was requested and responses were incomplete. Excuse me magazine ad salesperson, but when the question is “what is the size for the new ad,” an answer of “X inches by Y inches” is more helpful than “the same as the ad for a totally different publication,” which, I will note, someone else worked on and communicated with the ad person. Thanks for all your non-help. I’ll drop everything and go dig up those dimensions myself. The ad is for a “best of” edition, and big surprise, instead of covering "the best of" one town like it has forever, it suddenly covers two towns. Thanks for not pointing that out, not helpful ad person. It was super fun asking the designer to redo the ad once we finally had all the random info tidbits. Or do we have it all? Maybe not. It turned out the same type of annoying day was taking place over at the designer's desk.

Ugh.

Thankfully, the annoying work day finally ended. There was a small break before a board meeting via Zoom, and when logging in for the meeting ten minutes in advance, there was a notice there was no Internet. Of course not. The router was glared at. The troubleshooting feature on the app was consulted and it informed that my internet was offline due to an outage being fixed in the area and “should be resolved by 6:50 pm.” Riiiiiiiight.

At 7:00, the board meeting ended, the Internet was still out, and I learned that no Internet also means no TV. An Outage Map amended the resolution to “as soon as possible.” Maybe they gave up after blowing past the first benchmarked time.

While trying to talk myself and my tight lower leg into attending the gym, at 7:37 Internet, TV, and calm were restored at The BungaLowell. Whew. It was the foot stool, TV, social media, and Duolingo lessons for the win. 

random thoughts – Day 1,273 – (Monday) – day trippin' 2

Such a good cuddle buddy.

Monday morning featured the continuation of cuddles with "such a good boy" Jett, supreme bed hog. There was an amazing breakfast of coffee with creamer and maple syrup which is really tasty, plus toast with cream cheese and salmon. It was delicious and fortifying. There was more relaxed conversation with my friend, and suddenly it was nearly 2:00 and time to leave my friend and the dog and head home. 

The ride back from Freeport was as breezy and uneventful as the ride there. The songs on the radio were good and today’s extra loud car singing was done to Matisyahu’s “One Day.” I am a terrific singer when alone in the car. Very confident. Very loud. Probably completely off-key or pitchy or some other musical term I don’t actually know about or how to correct, but there is no audience and I don’t care.

The route was from Freeport to Fitchburg and a mission to get to the vet’s office to pick up the mementoes of Winston. There was a clay piece and ink impressions I was expecting plus two tiny vials and a sympathy card from the office which I wasn’t expecting. Tears were trying very hard to escape as I headed to the car and threatened to flow while I stuffed the items into my purse and began driving. Historically, if the tears are going to flow, they usually try that crap when I’m in the car and the risk to safety is highest.

The rain began as Fitchburg and Leominster slipped past and entered the rearview mirror. After getting gas and as I approached Arisu, the Korean restaurant on Route 12, I considered stopping for some kim bap and bi bim bap. The time was checked, the hunger level was not sufficient, and I kept driving to attempt to beat the 5:00 traffic. The traffic volume heading east on Route 2 at 4:30 wasn’t too awful compared to sections of the westbound lanes and I landed safely in the driveway at 5:00.

Facebook posts a short time later revealed that I dodged more than just traffic volume. The rain hit with some serious volume and resulted in flash flooding on the highway and elsewhere in Fitchburg and Leominster. Sometimes I get lucky and/or gut instincts are on target and I’m grateful for it.

Hours after arriving home, I took a minute to look at the items from the vet. The two vials seem to contain some of his hair. That and his little prints of his toes and the kind words from the veterinary office and I lost it. 

At least while home on the couch it was safe to cry. Much safer than when hurtling down a highway in a downpour. 

random thoughts – Day 1,272 – (Sunday) – day trippin’

When I noticed that a friend I met in Tennessee, who grew up in Maine, had posted photos tagged in Maine, I messaged her to ask how long she would be in New England. We made a plan to catch up and meet up in Freeport, Maine. The designated adventure day was today.

The route was plotted a couple days in advance, and I knew what time I needed to leave the house to arrive for noon. The wild card was the weather. Hot? Cool? Wet? Dry? The unknowns made planning what to wear a bit, um, challenging. It also meant I defaulted to my usual “pack 15 changes of clothing to leave the house” habit. Back up jeans, shirt, sweater, sneakers, and rain jacket were shoved into a tote bag. 

This particular neurosis means it looks like I am running away forever any time I’ll be out of the house for more than a few hours. It helps me to feel prepared and have options. It also may explain why my back and shoulder hurt so often.

Lunch!

The two-hour drive to Freeport was a breeze – the traffic volume was moderate and kept moving. There were good songs playing on “92.5 The River” and the weekly Sunday Brunch show, so I got to belt out some Prince, and Earth, Wind, and Fire as I rolled along the Interstate. 

We talked about the city where we both lived, life, love, and travel. We walked to the center of town and visited the bookstore and a couple resale clothing shops. We had lunch and afterward, ice cream. Later, we watched Eat, Pray, Love which I hadn’t seen in ages, and had forgotten most of, so it was like a brand new movie for me. We rarely looked at our phones. Such a great day. Like the Maine state slogan says, it was "The way life should be."

random thoughts – Day 1,271 – (Saturday) – window and shopping

Yesterday the drapes arrived from Amazon, and with great excitement, I prepared for the hanging. Instead of launching in to the multiple panels for the patio sliders, I began with the lone window near the door. The current window treatment was removed from the rod. The window was cleaned. 

At first glance, the print looked off. The colors were darker and the flowers in the pattern weren’t as crisp and clean as in the photo. It looked like a kindergartener's finger painted knockoff of the item I thought I bought. I stopped after the one window and decided to look at it in the morning. 

Not loving it.

The morning light and rested eyes didn’t improve the curtain and I still didn’t like it. After coffee, there was a trip to the gym where I successfully avoided the bitchy bike with the faulty heart rate monitor and defective distance gauge. After the biking it was the massage chair, home for a quick shower, and out the door again. As I blew through the dining room a couple times, I noticed the curtain. Nope, still don’t like it.

The day had one solid commitment – an appointment at the hair salon that had been rescheduled twice already. My hair has been behaving and we’ve been getting along great and I was afraid to ruin it all by trimming it prematurely. This is a lesson learned the hard way, after asking for “the tiniest trim possible to clean up the ends” and then waiting weeks for it to feel right again. Today’s appointment was nearly rescheduled, but I felt badly at the idea of changing it a third time.

It was a nice day in Worcester. The drive to the salon was smooth and easy. The scalp massage during the shampoo was divine. The blow drying was soothing. After the salon, the plan was to visit Kohl’s to return the Steve Madden loafers that I couldn’t get my high instep feet into, and the plaid pants in the terrible fabric.

The Worcester Kohl’s was neat, well organized, not crowded, and a pleasant shopping experience. I visited clothing, shoes, lingerie, home goods and shoes. The clearance racks had 50% off the lowest price, and I found two pairs of pants and some underpants, plus two tops from the non-clearance rack. Next door to Kohl’s is Aldi, and knowing I haven’t grocery shopped in weeks, it seemed like the logical next stop. Provisions were gathered and the trip home commenced.

Back at home, the curtains awaited. Nope, still hated the one in the window. It came down and was carefully refolded with its partner in the plastic zippered bag. The next step is the return of the curtains and a return to curtain shopping. At least the shirt looks good and has been afforded residency in the closet.

random thoughts – Day 1,270 – (Friday) – wall flowers and raindrops

It was comfortable to chilly in the 4th floor fortress today and hot outside. I enjoyed the heat as I stood awkwardly in the parking lot waiting for a branch team member to arrive to pick up the cornhole boards for an event on Saturday.

A colleague from our facilities team passed by during my wait and we chatted about the shirtless guy across the street on the bench and the sweat wicking qualities of some fabrics that can make it feel cooler than not wearing a shirt. That evolved into a chat about cold weather wear and brands from Nordic countries like Helly Hansen (Norway) and the merits of polypropylene, and Finns dressed in white on skis fighting against the Russians. Yes, I was waiting outside leaning on the brick wall for a while. 

Wall flowers.

The chatting was lovely, as were the colorful flowers in the planters that run atop the brick wall along the parking lot. Even the heat was pleasant. The unpleasant part was that the entire time out there, I needed to use the rest room, because when I saw the message declaring “I’ll be there in 10 minutes” 15 minutes had already elapsed since it was sent, so I skipped the bathroom trip, grabbed the cornhole boards and raced outside. 

Later, around 2:45, clouds had rolled in darker and the weather had become louder. Thunder rumbled and rain began to hit the skylights. It was so dark outside that the streetlights came on. Two of us in the office had just finished making hot cocoa when the rain began tapping on the roof and skylights and lightning flickered outside like a lethargic strobe light.

Getting brighter after the storm.

Soon, four of us were gathered near the arched window and commenting on the weather. Meanwhile, emails were coming in about power outages in several towns in our network. By 3:20, it was beginning to get brighter outside.

Social media posts showed downed trees and utility poles. I wondered what I would find at The BungaLowell when I arrived home. The delivery tracker from Amazon included a photo of the package with the drapes and blouse delivered safely in the enclosed porch around noontime, so there was no worry needed there. The source of wonderment was the basement and front yard, both of which have experienced various levels of water coverage during recent precipitation events. 

When I went outside at 5:00, it was hard to tell that a couple hours earlier it had rained. The concrete sidewalk was dry, as was most of the street. At home, there were few clues that the rain had happened. Fortunately, there were no downed trees along the route, and the basement was puddle free. It felt like a victory. I thanked the basement for holding fast.