Whew! I was so exhausted yesterday I was barely human. Oddly enough, I was able to do my job, but was really cross. I wonder how many times I have been in a bad mood and it was really just fatigue?

I walked the dogs; they seemed quite happy to see me, but Cameron has not improved his ability to walk calmly without pulling on the leash. The Captain was already up, studying the garden, and Zoe was reluctant to come with me, sensing that she might be fed if she stayed with him, I guess. Ray got up just before and walked with me to the road and back. We were somewhat mystified about the mail. It appeared that only one day's worth had been brought in; no newspapers. This morning there was a paper and I brought it back with me. There wasn't much to eat, although there was orange juice (horrible cheap variety). All the dishes had been put in the cupboard any which way, which was surprisingly annoying. I wondered if they had left them dirty and washed them all at the end, then stacked them in wherever they fit. There was skim milk and granola and a very old English muffin, so I had enough to eat, but there didn't look like anything for me to take for lunch.

I headed off for work and got there just at 8. The traffic was bad, and driving seemed challenging, perhaps in part because I had not driven for a couple weeks, but possibly because my brain was not working as well as it should have. I had not taken time to find my other purse, with the work keys I had deliberately not taken on the trip. So I had to have someone let me in the building and then wait for Kerri or Meredith to let me into my office. Shawn was there and she told me Meredith's grandmother in Venezuela had died, so she had been gone since Tuesday. I texted her to say I was sorry and was she going to be in today. Yes, she said, at 9 o'clock. Kerri arrived as I was texting her to ask about her schedule. I had forgotten that she had a meeting with all the residents every Monday morning. She has a key to my office.

The new computer and online mail seemed daunting to me. The computer was on and it was clear someone else had been using it. The old computer defaulted to a screen requiring a password every 5 minutes, which was annoying. I had not set up the new one that way. Since my office was supposedly kept locked when I was not there, I didn't think it necessary. There was a lot of mail piled up and I made a start on it. Meredith arrived and I expressed my condolences, perhaps too briefly. She did not seem responsive to my questions and comments and I don't know if she was just grieving and exhausted from her trip, or was for some reason unhappy with me. We eventually got payroll done and I paid the bills that had accumulated. I was hungry very early. I am intrigued by the relationship between hunger and fatigue. None of the restaurant options appealed to me; I didn't have a book or magazine to look at and didn't want to eat by myself. I went to lunch at 11 and drove home. Ray and my Mom had been to the grocery store. He and I ate some leftovers our house sitters had in the fridge, a mix of rice, beans and squash (from the garden?) and some leftover green beans as well (from the garden?). Ray had bought a baguette at Kroger and I had a little of that too. I felt much better afterward and headed back to work. Met with Meredith for our weekly meeting to talk about what we were both doing for the week. She will be gone a couple days at a meeting. I tried to find out about McKenzy's schedule. She is the new volunteer coordinator, formerly an intern, who started last week while I was gone. I have some ideas about her duties, etc., that Meredith does not agree with, so I make suggestions and she says no. It is okay, I can let it go. Meredith seems a little overwhelmed. Her husband left town to visit his family in Texas the same day she was coming back from the funeral. After we talked a little about her personal issues, she seemed a little better.

At 3, I left and made deposits at the bank before heading home. I was tired but not sleepy and didn't want to nap. I downloaded some photos from my camera (after deleting some old things) and posted them on FB. (A few of them are here; somehow I have regained the ability to add photos to the blog--yay!)

Ray did a load of wash and Vanessa did one too. He hung them both out and made supper. There were lots of peas and beans in the garden. Vanessa shelled and froze the peas and she and the Captain cut up, blanched and froze three batches of beans, while we ate some for supper. Our neighbor, Sky, called to say she had our mail and Vanessa and I dragged ourselves to their house, with the unruly Cameron on a leash. I brought a bag for the mail, but there was also a heavy plastic bag full of newspapers that I put over my back like Santa Claus. Vanessa had to rest a bit before we headed back. We were certainly glad to have our mail. Ray and I managed to stay awake until 8:30 before heading up to bed. I slept until almost 3, which is an improvement. Then I read some and dozed a little more until 5:45. I feel much more human now!