Eye light

 

This malaise is just enough to annoy, but I'll make another attempt to get tested later today.

A fresh start for the new year crawled out of the river basket this morning but, to slow me down, I washed everything in the sink. Finger-pressed, they'll be better off for the delay. Me too.

My aged phone is beginning to fail. Pictures have been chancey. If a test turns up positive, it's because I went into the phone place to look into a new one. The same day I yelled at the woman for crowding me at the post office, I only gave the stinkeye from across the store to the putz with his mask under his nose while I waited my turn.

The shit that takes up emotional energy these days...

Christmas 2020

 

2020

 I Remember Everything

John Prine

Alright

I've been down this road before
I remember every tree
Every single blade of grass
Holds a special place for me
And I remember every town
And every hotel room
And every song I ever sang
On a guitar out of tune

I remember everything
Things I can't forget
The way you turned and smiled on me
On the night that we first met
And I remember every night
Your ocean eyes of blue
How I miss you in the morning light
Like roses miss the dew

I've been down this road before
Alone as I can be
Careful not to let my past
Go sneaking up on me
Got no future in my happiness
Though regrets are very few
Sometimes a little tenderness
Was the best that I could do

I remember everything
Things I can't forget
Swimming pools of butterflies
That slipped right through the net
And I remember every night
Your ocean eyes of blue
How I miss you in the morning light
Like roses miss the dew

How I miss you in the morning light
Like roses miss the dew

Source: LyricFind

getting real things done

  Thursday I had errands to do. Banking from the car. Picked my time at the post office to buy some stamps only to be crowded by an idiot who I had to bark at a social distance violator - much to the glee of the mail lady who was only minimally protected from a parade of idiots by her plexiglass shield and cloth mask.

There was a short foray into the phone store to see about replacing my aging LG2. Not for a while. I'm not all that impressed with the latest model. I can wait.

 Time was you didn't think about disguises, armor, or weapons. If I'd pulled up to the drive-thru at the bank like this a year ago, who knows what might have happened.  

Sweetie has commandeered one of the fleece lap robes. Cats know what's right and good.

And for all my making ready? Christmas cards, lap desk, pens, and stamps? I still cannot find the little address book that I've been so holy about cultivating all year. With the state of what I'm seeing on the news of Post Office backlogs, y'all may get cards from me by Easter.

.

I picked Charlie up after school on Friday. They wore their PJs to school and watched "The Polar Express" which is the only Christmas movie I could call a favorite. Pretty steeped in Christmas Magic now, he said, "Nana, I bet I know where in the movie you cry."

I assured him, "every time."

   

At my house I let him pick up gifts and weigh them, but refused to reveal anything. Patience will be rewarded.

He spent the rest of the evening writing and illustrating a chapter book and criticizing (but glued to) an inane cartoon show. 

I drank hot tea and dozed as I could, A middle ear infection had its way with me for a day. Slowly on the mend. We forget that we can still come down with things other than the Big C. But, for all concerned, I'll look into a test on Monday.

A (small) blaze of Glory

I've always wanted a fire pit. This cast iron pot hasn't done anything but smell bad since I burned a pot of chili in it over ten years ago. I'm talking incinerated. The lid was on tight and I thought the burner was off. I chipped the charcoal out of it with a chisel but never could get rid of the smell.

Now, it's serving again. There was an incantation.

I need to get a bag of marshmallows to have on standby if someone calls the cops or fire department. I hear they'll give you a pass if you are cooking and not just burning leaves. 

After working on trucks and cars all weekend, the guys took a minute to go find a Christmas tree. It's just big enough.

I'm likely to be wordless here for a while. Putting them elsewhere. Taking a deep breath along with the rest of the country. Tending hearth and home. Celebrating and sharing as I can. Making plans for the future!

Change, as sure as the sun and the tides.