I'm still doing pretty well. The weather is cooler this morning. I have a headache, maybe related to the weather, and lower back pain, probably from sitting too much.

Ray went to work yesterday and I stayed home all day, making a few phone calls and working on some of my cerebral projects, especially the Green Sanctuary. I read a lot of the manual and made some notes about it.

I also made notes throughout the day for a future novel set in Kenney Ridge--or someplace like it--after the end of cheap oil. How well would people in a community like this do without outside supplies? Ray and others have helpful information, but it doesn't always fit my scenario. Fiction is great; you can ignore the parts that don't work.

I made some butter-nut chip cookies into logs in the fridge; I'd been working on them gradually for days; hope they taste all right. Now I can slice and bake when it is cooler.

I made a sandwhich for lunch. A lot of our cold cuts are older; I rejected the Muenster cheese and fed some of it to the dog. I went out to get a few leaves of baby lettuce to put on the sandwich and the garden was drooping. So I set up the sprinkler and watered. The lettuce didn't taste like much, it was so dry and limp. I had a couple slices of plum tomato from the garden, though.

Spent some time at Sky's working on the Kenney Ridge finances. It is wierd when so many people are and have been involved. There are redundant categories and other people do things differently. But fortunately, it's not really an issue.

Made some phone calls and did some work on the computer.

Went to potluck at Kenney Ridge after Ray got home. We had enough left from UUFA potluck to take it again. There's still some left and we have another potluck tonight...but I don't think I'll take it a third time. For one thing, there might be some people that were at the first one.

TV, bed.

Yesterday morning, we went to the doctor's office for Ray to have blood work done. They are checking to see if his efforts to eat better have improved his pre-diabetes. I don't think we have made much difference, at least not lately. We are eating better.

I went to UUFA from his office for a meeting about our end-of-life workshop. One of the things we are looking for is a good name for it. Deb likes "A Date with Death." Too flip? My idea would be something like Strategic Planning for the End of Life--too dry and too long. A Final Act of Love? too sappy. The Affairs of Death? Too obscure. Victoria had to leave a little early. Rosemary was preoccupied--Gene was dying. Anyway, we got to something of a stalemate because the Five Wishes is one approach and the Georgia Health Care Directive is another. We're not sure if we should choose one or the other or try to present both (and confuse people). They cover slightly different topics, but overlap to a great extent. One is simpler, but not as comprehensive. Rosemary is going to line up a hospice social worker from our congregation to meet with us and tell us what she thinks.

Then I drove to Barnes & Noble to buy a book I need for my class on The Future of Humans. I went to the Cafe (Starbucks) and bought a piece of quiche to tide me over. Delicious. I wanted to see if I could buy an electronic book, and it's a little cheaper, so I decided to do that. They did have it in the store, but I was able to read the first chapter for free on my iPhone while I was there. I went to a third Consignment store near there, but they didn't want any of my old clothes. I will have to have a yard sale.

I was home a little after 12 and spent some time outside before coming in and writing a restaurant review. I made supper with the black beans I had on hand. I doubled the recipe and it made a ton. It was a little soupy to be a salad, but tasty. Lots of good things in there--brown rice, sweet potatoes, peppers. But lots of work. Ray came home and helped me some.

We went to potluck and Steve and Mary C. were there with their twin grandsons. Pretty fun, but pretty exhausting. They are just over 1 year old. I don't think they are walking. He had to carry them both in, because her back is giving her trouble. Ray helped, but then the one he was carrying started crying.

Started a new knitting project, an easy light blue scarf. If anyone has any requests, please let me know. Slept pretty well. Dreamed Alison was an elementary school principal and I was the secretary--or the assistant principal--the only other adult there. Maybe it was the end of the world and only old people and children were left through some wierd virus.

Wow, I just saw something so horrible and fascinating, I have to write about it.

The garden is drooping again, over a week since we had the one inch of rain we had all month. I was scooping water from the rain barrels and pouring it on the things that need it most. I heard a scratching, scurrying sound. I am afraid that I frightened an anole into the arms of a praying mantis! It is glorious to see a giant praying mantis, guarding my vegetables. And I love the little anoles that also eat insects. Would you think a praying mantis would kill an anole? The answer is yes, it will, and it was. I wanted to save it, but I was sort of transfixed, watching the struggle, and not sure I should interfere. She was choking him, holding his head with her arms and mouth; he struggled less and less. Then he was lively  for a minute and I thought he might escape, but started to fail again. Even his color changed. I didn't have my camera and I didn't want to watch any more. Cruel nature! I am upset, even queasy and bordering on hysteria. I took a bath and I am trying to breathe and get over it.

Yesterday, I was the happiest I've been since my Mom died. I can't really tell you why, but I will do my best to reproduce it every day.

I drove Ray to the bus at 8:30 and he caught it. He has a 9:30 class on Tuesdays. It's about 5 miles from our house to the bus stop, but it's not the stop-and-go in-town traffic. We don't want to pay for a parking permit at UGA--I think it's about $600 a year. Or buy an additional car.

I went home again and did a little work in the vegetable garden--mostly thinning the young fall plants that are coming along nicely since our rain--spinach, carrots, lettuce, beets. I picked 6 radish, the first of the fall crop. I admired the zucchini and cucumbers that I started late, against the prevailing wisdom, and that will produce something even though it is the end of September. There are beans, too, but it is less sure they will bear fruit. There are cabbage and broccoli, too. And still peppers and eggplants and sweet potatoes to harvest, and a few tomatoes. That makes me pretty happy.

Then I went in and did some writing and work on my end-of-life project.

I met Becky for lunch and had a good meal at Gnat's Landing, which I will write up for Patch. I went to the Writing Workshop, which is comforting. I found pictures of things on my iphone for people: the Temple of Braga was mentioned in a poem, and someone else talked about Petra. I reminded myself of Ray, but they seemed appreciative. Only two people read their work and I was disappointed about that.

I picked Ray up and we decided it didn't make sense to go home and come back, so we had an early dinner at Casa Mia. That was the funnest part. I took pictures and made notes for another review. We were the only ones there and it was good. And, it didn't cost much either. I had a glass of Sangria and Arepas, something I never tried before. Cornmeal biscuit-y things with chicken and other things inside. Tasty. Ray ordered two tapas--tacos and chorizo. Each dish had at least two, so they were easy to share. And then I had empanadas with strawberry filling. Ray had coffee.

Then we went to our last dance class. It was fun. We can collect recycling after the football game and get passes for two more classes.

sangria, chips and salsa

Arepas, chorizo, tacos

Empanadas for dessert

Then we went home--no dishes to do. Fed Cameron. Watched TV, went to bed early. But I could not get to sleep. Too much adrenaline? A dog barking, a train whistle. I got up and was on the computer for awhile and finally fell asleep after I went back to bed, but still didn't sleep very well.

I stayed here in the morning and spent some time on the computer. Ate leftover curry and black beans for lunch, with the last of Amelia's zucchini bread and cream cheese. It was delicious, but not quite enough.

I went to my first OLLI class and it was good, but a little disappointing. Being a person who likes "school," it was just a discussion group with a lot of people who are less on board than I am, as far as climate change. In particular, some of them said they wanted to do something but didn't know what. Complained about the government not doing anything, the corporations owning the government...

So I was a little discouraged as I drove to my Dad's and brought in his mail and then to Beechwood. I had to mail a package to Nate for his birthday and I wanted to take some clothes to Plato's closet, so I parked in between so I wouldn't have to drive from one to the other. The box of clothes was pretty heavy and not good for my back. There were several other people who had brought clothes and I wandered around the store, finally looking at the sunglasses. They chose two items as worthy of sale: $8.41. The sunglasses came to $6, so I netted $2.41. I had to carry the box back to the car, stopping at CVS to buy packing tape. I set it down outside the store and hoped someone would take it, but it was still there.

At the car, I traded it for a much smaller package for Nate and walked to the post office. It was pretty hot by now and I was tired. Stood in line and sent the package. The lady said it didn't need to be re-taped (Ray had done it with Scotch tape and I was supposed to add the packing tape). I hope it gets there.

Then I drove to the grocery store. Well, I didn't realize: Monday afternoon is not a good time. It was crowded and I had to wait awile to check out, but I did get some good things. I often think of buying fish, but don't want it to sit in the car while I pick up Ray. The flounder was only $6.99 and I was going straight home.

When I got there, I was exhausted, hungry and hot. I had to sit for a while and eat trail mix, but made myself get up and start cooking before Ray got there. We had some beautiful tiny green beans from the farmer's market, over a week old. I was afraid they wouldn't be good any more, but they were still beautiful. Of course, there were a lot of them and it took a long time to break the ends off them all.

Ray helped when he got home and we had a wonderful three-course Italian meal: asparagus risotto, sauteed fish, and green beans, with white wine. Then TV, reading, and bed. I slept well and this morning there is an email from email: she made it back to Westport from NY--at 11 pm.

Blueberry pancakes for breakfast, short walk, then getting ready for church. Ray was not ready when I wanted to leave and I threatened to go without him. But the idea of taking two cars, one of them a  truck, to the overcrowded parking lot at UUFA deterred me, and we were only about 5 minutes late, missing some of the warmup time. I feel an obligation to the director and the other members to be on time and participate fully, to the best of my ability.

The service was about Compassion, led by David Jarrett. Alison is in Romania with Heather Kleiner and others. I am jealous. One of the things David asked us to do was bless each other. This was a new and powerful experience for me and most of us. When we say, "drive safely" or "have a nice day," those are akin to blessing each other, but not very meaningful. When you touch someone and look in their eyes and state your wishes for them clearly and strongly, it is very significant.

After the service was the fourth Sunday lunch. We forgot to take our cookies when we left, if there were any. The food was good and I tried to be moderate in my consumption. There was meatloaf and macaroni and cheese and Ray had several helpings.

Then he napped while I did some work on the computer, including looking at a budget for our living expenses if I do not work. We can do it! I am excited. I would rather work, but it is good to know that we do not need to go into more debt if I do not. There are several categories that are flexible, like travel. If we spend less than budgeted, we can reduce our debt and be ready when we have to buy a new car.

At four, we had our last cha-cha class at Dance FX. We have both enjoyed it; in fact, Ray would like to continue the dance lessons. I think there are other ways I would rather spend my money, like going to France. Just saying.

We stopped at Yoforia, the frozen yogurt place near the dance studio. It is tasty and relatively healthy, with lots of fresh fruit. A good reward after our exertions. Another way we could save money is by not going there!

At home, I made some eggplant curry but no rice. It was tasty, but I found myself still hungry and would have done better to make the rice.

TV and bed. Finished up the Birth of Venus book, which was due yesterday, so I can return it to the library today. Very enjoyable, except for the ending.

Now I am hungry and tired from not enough sleep and not eating right. Hope to get back on track.

sweet potatoes, lima beans in back

It was a pleasantly cool and damp morning. The veggies in the garden look very good. Ray and I took a short walk before heading to pilates.

new beans, old chard and peppers

Then we went to campus to be part of a walk for Global Warming, affiliated with 350.org. We couldn't stay long, though, because we had to come home and change for Gloria's sister's memorial service at 1. We brought the cupcakes and got there a litle early, but everyone else was already there. It was a beautiful afternoon. There were lots of flowers and food and a TV set up to show slides of Trish. Plenty of food--Kasey's boyfriend had smoked pork for barbecue and there was also chicken from Zaxby's. Potato chips, buns, sauces, and tons of sweets of all kinds. Barbara Guyer made a delicious cake--black forest with nuts. And a big fruit bowl as well as strawberries dipped in white chocolate. But not one veggie.

We were home about 3 and I was too tired to do anything the rest of the day--sat and read email and generally rested. It was a little hot to go out. Eventually, I cooked us some squash and Ray sauteed cherry tomatoes, so we had some vegetables for the day and watched TV.

new brassicas, beets, radishes, lettuce, carrots

We managed to get this cucumber through the drought

Eggplants ready to harvest

New zucchini--will it have time to produce before cold?

today's harvest

Memorial service at Gloria's

The Green Hornet was on with Seth Rogen and I watched about half of it before going to bed to read..slept pretty well. But my back is pretty sore--pilates, folding chairs, sitting...

Amelia and Captain are safely arrived in Westport, in spite of heavy rain to drive through. They had a nice lunch with Amelia's friend Darcy in New Haven.

I spent the day at home. I was planning to make cookies, but found I had no sugar. I did make the frosting for Amelia's mini-cupcakes she made for Tricia's memorial service today. I need to frost them this morning and get them to Gloria's at some point.

My friend Andrea came for a visit. She is also unemployed and trying to figure out what to do with her time. I gave her an OLLI schedule.

I ate leftovers for lunch and spent some time reading and working on my story.

Ray and Karen Porter at the climate change symposium

Ray came home and we chatted a bit before heading back to campus for a talk on Global Warming. It was interesting and well attended. We didn't get home until 8:30, though, and I was very hungry. I had taken a chicken casserole out of the freezer, but it wasn't thawed. After a while in the microwave, it was edible, but not great. I was pretty cranky and should have made a better plan.

I finished the Maya Angelou book--very interesting and went to sleep before 11. Unfortunately, I woke up again about 2:30 and couldn't go back to sleep. I went to the red room and read while the kitty slept near me. It was a book by Christopher Buckly about his parents' death when he was 55. Of course, there were many differences, but I found it amusing, touching, and helpful. Perhaps I have read other books that dealt with a parent's death, but it didn't stay with me.

We finally had a decent rain, not enough to declare an end to the drought, but enough for the plants to perk up and me to not have to water for a few days. Everything looks much better.

Amelia's cat, Leia, is with us for the next few days, and I am enjoying having her in the house with me. She plays and explores in the morning and naps extensively in the afternoon. When you don't see or hear her, she is sleeping on the hidden bookcase behind the desk in the red room. I wonder if there are any books we care about there? I am sure no one has looked at them in several years. When we are away, or at night, we shut her in the red suite, with her food and water and litter box. Last night, she managed to get the door open (a pocket door that slides) and wander around meowing. This morning, I realized she had no food or water. I felt terrible; she is perfectly entitled to meow if she needs something. Yesterday after Amelia left, she was meowing too. Kevin came to visit her for a few minutes in the evening. I heard from Amelia and the Captain. They spent the night in Pennsylvania (I forget the town). All was well, except he was tired and missed Vanessa. Amelia was not interested in having a martini with him. They had some trouble finding a motel--they were full and expensive, but they found one.

I made tabouli for KR potluck. Mostly I worked on the End of Life project, reading and making notes and copying info from websites. I was pleased to spend so much time on the project. Today my back is pretty sore, though.

It is sunny and cool, but warming up fast. Very pleasant for the moment.

weed (morning glory) growing from compost

in wheelbarrow

Amelia and Captain left this morning, so my schedule is off. I'll check in with you this afternoon.

Vanessa's morning glories

It rained last night! For five minutes...I was awake and heard it come and go. It's definitely better than nothing.

Ray took himself to work in the truck. Amelia and I made Cowboy Cookies and she worked on the shade in the West window that needed repairing, taking it down and sewing it by hand. Ray will put it back up. The question is, what kind of string will work best to keep from tangling.

At 12:15, we drove to Last Resort to meet him and the Captain for lunch. We had a lovely lunch, but the Captain was not feeling very well. He had a martini and beef stew. I had chicken with penne pasta and red peppers and spinach; it was wonderful. We had a couple pieces of cake too.

The Captain went home and we went to Earth Fare and then Joann Fabrics, one of Amelia's required stops in Athens. I succumbed and bought some pretty yarn that was on sale. Now I am looking for the perfect project to make with it. It is still not so cold I can imagine wearing a sweater. Perhaps my relatives in colder climes need something hand knitted? Maybe I will try some kind of lacy scarf for myself.

At 6, Ray and I had waltz class. It was fun and just the right degree of difficulty. I really like Natalie, our instructor. We review every week and then add new challenges. There were about 5 other couples last night.

Amelia had supper with Kevin's family (they picked her up some Mexican vegetarian food at a restaurant). I went to a meeting about Sustainability for the Kenney Ridge community. Some of my neighbors are stockpiling food and talking about putting up a gate to keep people out...I said I would move when that happened, and Sky said, "If you can..." True, it might be hard to sell my house in those circumstances. The question is, if I have three months' worth of food, and you run out, am I going to let you starve? What if you have a gun? I said I will die, I am not interested in living in that world.

Needless to say, I came home and watched comedy. And ate some leftover beans and sweet potatoes. I am reading Maya Angelou's book, Heart of a Woman, depressing and fascinating. She was a performer and worked for the SCLC and lived in Harlem. Lots of celebs.

Cluny Brown by Margery Sharp

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Very fun and inspiring: be yourself. British society of the last century.



View all my reviews

Items of Bertha's for Molli

We had time for a quick walk and breakfast before taking Ray to work and me to Small Group Ministry. Amelia went to Janna's to pack up a box for her. Small Group was lovely. It is a paradox that I enjoy the group, even though I usually cry at least once. I always feel better when I leave. Perhaps it is partly because of the sadness and complication in other people's lives. One woman's husband died more than a year ago. She is withdrawing from the group because going anywhere there are people makes her unbearably stressed. And her house is so dirty it turns her stomach to clean it, and she is embarrassed to hire someone else to do it. OK, I'm just too lazy to clean mine. It doesn't make me sick.

Amelia picked me up and we came home and ate lovely leftovers. Captain Mudge was there. He had just been to the doctor to check out a small pain in his abdomen, which they think is swollen glands. The doctor gave him antibiotics and took blood and urine samples. The only ongoing issue is not enough oxygen in his blood. Not sure what you can do for that. He practices deeper breathing when he thinks about it. We suggested yoga, but not sure he is going to follow up on that any time soon. But that may be why he gets so tired sometimes. He did some more work outside before heading home about 3.

Ray came on the bus and I met him at the Shell station. Amelia made supper for us: quinoa with eggplant and zucchini. I have to say, it was delicious. I started chicken and rice casseroles for the freezer (no chicken while Amelia is here). And chocolate eclipse, aka chocolate pudding cake. One of its excellent features (other than it tastes wonderful) is using up sour milk. I think I am down to only 4 old milks now. Of course, I bought a gallon for Amelia and she won't use it all before she goes. I'll have to make yogurt or bread or mac & cheese before it goes bad.

I went to UUFA for a meeting of the Governance Committee. It wasn't too bad. Dan drove and we were home by 8:30. Ray and I were watching TV when Amelia arrived, back from Kevin's. She finished up the chocolate dessert and it was delicious, with vanilla frozen yogurt.

Ray and Amelia and I took a walk and ate pancakes. She doesn't like blueberries, so I placed them individually in ours.

We went to the Fellowship and Ray and I sang with the choir. Another good service about the vision of UUFA. Amelia had knitting. It is a beautiful scarf she was working on for my Mom. We saw lots of people we knew and enjoyed chatting with.

We had salad nicoise for lunch. and we watered the gardens with the sprinkler. Maybe it will rain this week. There is a 50% chance predicted one day. At least it is cool and pleasant over night.

We drove to town and visited Janna some. Kevin picked Amelia up and Ray and I went to cha cha class. Fun.

Amelia had supper with the O'Rileys. I was really tired and sore from pilates and dancing, I guess, and Ray helped with supper. We made sweet potato and black bean burritos. Good thing Amelia wasn't there after all, because we only had two tortillas in the fridge. I sat on the porch for a while with a little white wine, enjoying the evening and the cool temperature. I thought of my Mom and how she would have enjoyed it and would never sit with me again enjoying the deck and the dog and the chickens. She was a gentle, happy person and I miss her.

We watched TV and Amelia came and joined us, so we watched some of the Emmys.

Wow! That day actually went by in a blur. Too fast, too much.

Amelia went to pilates with us. Both she and Ray got up too late to really eat breakfast and we went back and forth about going, but it was great. It had been about 6 weeks since we had gone and it was harder to do. Also, I think I am gaining back the weight I had lost.

Then we went to the farmers' market and bought some squashes and lettuce and cheese. We talked to lots of people we knew.

We got home and showered and ate some food (leftovers) and jumped in the car again. I drove Ray and Kevin and Amelia to the football game and dropped them off and went to the Fellowship for Larry Hamby's memorial service. There were lots of people there setting up and plenty of food. Pat Adams was mostly in charge, but she had helpers from the Fellowship and Larry's writing groups. He was apparently something of a foodie, which I didn't know about him. I had agreed to watch Calvin and Lila, so I didn't actually hear the service. Amber was singing a solo. Larry had written everything down. He wanted "Down to the River to Pray." I stayed and helped with clean up, but there wasn't much. Pat had gotten paper plates and plastic cups, so Hank didn't have much to wash.

It was a little after four and there wasn't much more to do. I had a messge on my phone that they were ready to come home. The trick was driving through the post-game crowds. Amelia said to pick them up on Lumpkin Street by the Tate Center. "Really?" I said. "The Tate Center? Are you sure?" I suggested turning on Cedar, but Ray said the traffic wasn't that bad. It was pretty bad, but an hour later we were home, and I got to see all the young women in black and red minidresses and cowboy boots.

My Dad was at the house. He had spent two hours at the callback for A Christmas Carol and then come over. I was pretty tired and Amelia and I had planned to make a casserole, so we had to get on it. It was pasta with eggplant, ricotta and cheeses. Kind of like lasagna with homemade sauce. It would have been fun if it had been earlier in the day and I hadn't been so tired. Then Janna called and she and Ron stopped by to see Amelia and bring back our bowls and such. So it was after 7 before we ate, but it was tasty. The Captain went home, although I invited him to spend the night. I hate for him to drive after dark, especially on a game night, when there might be people out who had been drinking.

We watched some TV, even though that is not Amelia's favorite way to spend time. The three of us on the couch, pretty nice.

OMG! I almost forgot to blog again. I was so busy deleting 1000 or so old emails.

Even the gum trees are dying

Amelia and Kevin and Leia (the cat) arrived about 10:15 last night. Kevin is staying at his Mom's, but Amelia and Leia are here. It is so exciting to have them here, I could barely sleep last night. I want to rush around and cook things, but trying not to make noise.

I spent most of the day applying for a job with the courts in Athens. It is such a long shot (they want cour experience) that I was really discouraged and hating wasting all the time I spent. But you have to keep trying. This would be a full-time intense job that pays over $50,000 a year. I could handle intense for a few years and sock away some bucks! The day before I applied for a $10/hr part time assistant to the board of directors of an environmental group. It's hard to be excited about $10/hr. Is that really what I'm worth? And of course, they may not choose me or even interview me.

Cool here last night, in fact, so cool the windows are closed!

My Dad was here for a little in the afternoon, working (and playing) on his computer and watering the garden to try to keep it alive, especially the fall things he has just planted. He had a sad day.

whisky sour and appetizer with 3 dips

Ray and I went to dinner with Becky and Kent and some friends of theirs at the Melting Point. The food was okay, but we were really there for the band--Sons of Sailors. They play Jimmy Buffet songs, also some Van Morrison and one of my favorites by Crosby Stills--Southern Cross. It was really fun; we danced some. We had to tear ourselves away early to be here when Amelia arrived.

No photos; computer difficulties again.

Ray making cookies

Windy out there this morning; at first we thought it was rain.

Yesterday morning I went to the OLLI bash. OLLI stands for Osher Life Long Learning Institute. It used to be known as Learning in Retirement. I have heard about it for years and wanted my parents to get involved, but they (my Dad) resisted. He wasn't interested, as a retired teacher, in taking classes. And he didn't want to spend his time with old people. It is for anyone over 50. Daddy agreed to meet me at this begining of the year event. It was crowded. I was late. He was sitting with a couple from Kenney Ridge, but waved and got up when I got there. They were drawing lots of door prizes, including free classes, but we didn't win any. The lady from Talmadge Terrace, Ann, was there, and I told her my Mom  had died, so she could make a note in her files. We didn't talk at length.

There were many people there I knew, and some Daddy knew. Apparently Ann D. invited him out for a drink. I spoke to Roger, a man from UUFA who knew Dad slightly from playing bridge. He spoke to him at length about playing together sometime. Daddy and I both signed up for classes. I was pleased that it went so well.

I went to Kroger and then went home. I ate leftover pasta, but it didn't hit the spot, so I had a sandwich too. I spent the afternoon on the computer and made myself a very healthy supper, since Ray was going out with the speaker. I had bought some boneless skinless chicken breasts to cook and freeze and I decided to have one for my supper. I sauteed with garlic and herbs and ate with pan juices. I put half away for today. I cut up cucumber and onion and herbs and put dressing on it. I decided not to have any carbs and maybe have some ice cream later. Somehow, I ended up eating a bunch of potato chips right after my delicious healthy supper.

At 7, I went to the Fellowship for a meeting on lay ministry. Alison is preparing 6 of us (self-selected) to assist with spiritual growth in the congregation. Well, that doesn't really explain it. Somehow, the group that showed up is all women. It was fun and I really like them. But how did I get myself into one more UU commitment? I'm a little vague on what we will do when we're finished, but there are 9 monthly sessions on various topics that I think I can participate in. We'll see.

Ray got home just before me, with a piece of cake to split from Last Resort. Yum. We were up a little later than usual.

I was headed downstairs for some breakfast, when I realized I had not written my blog for today. I knew you would be disappointed, so here it is.

Yesterday, I went in with Ray and spent some time throwing out old magazines in his office and trying to make space for him. I dropped him at Aderhold and called Becky about meeting for lunch. She suggested over on Timothy, so I went by the Fellowship for a bit, to help them with filing. Lunch was good and it was nice to talk to Becky. Her friend Teresa joined us. I went back to UUFA and worked some more there (could spend months on it). Then I headed to Kroger and bought some things, putting back the milk since it would have to sit in the car for a while.

I went to Trumps to attend an end-of-the-program bash for BCS, the grant-funded program, part of the Stimulus, that paid for my job at ALT. It was a little sad to see everyone I know, most of whom are not only employed, but directors of non-profits making a decent salary, all congratulating each other. I went to get Ray and we went home, finished up the pasta salad and sat for a few minutes before heading out to potluck and choir.

A little TV, but fell asleep watching. Cooler weather coming!

I had intended to stay home all day yesterday. I made chicken cacciatore for supper. My Dad came and watered the garden. I did some UU work on the computer. There was an email from Deb asking me to come to the writing workshop, so I got him to drive me in. It was good to be there, but I felt a little bit like a fraud because I haven't been writing as much as I want to.

Amelia called to tell me Kevin's aunt has died. She had been in hospice, but Gloria is still quite upset.

Ray met me and we came home, stopping by Cofer's to pick out a gardenia for Gloria. She can plant it in her yard later and it will remind her of Tricia. I had to put fabric and a bow around it, because it was from Amelia. Of course, it was not as nice as she would have made it. I made a quick batch of macaroni and cheese, even though I was a little short on milk and cheese. Fortunately, I had made dinner earlier, so we gobbled that down and went to dance lesson--fun, because we had done waltz the week before so this was mainly review and a chance to practice. We did pretty well and enjoyed it.

We took the plant and the mac and cheese to Gloria. She and Kasey were there and Gloria talked a lot about her sister and her death. She was so upset partly because she was suffering a lot and the hospice people had said they shouldn't come because she had tried to talk to them and couldn't. It just made it harder for her. And so much is difficult about Gloria's family, for one, there is no money at all. She wants to make a very special celebration of her life, while spending as little as possible. She found a place in Elberton that will cremate her for about half price. She had life insurance, but it lapsed because she couldn't pay it. Anyway, it was very sad, but I was glad we were there for her. I wondered if she had any friends that could come and be with her.

The good news is that Kevin and Amelia will be here this weekend. Poor Amelia's life is so complicated! She just arrived in Durham and won't be there long before she comes here. Then she and my Dad are planning to go to Massachusetts. She has to talk to him about going later so she can be here for the service. She already committed to being in NY on the 26th and the service is on the 24th, so she may look into taking the overnight train. I don't know if they can still get tickets or how much they will cost. It is sort of out of my hands, but then again...

We went to bed about 10:30. It is pleasantly cool this morning with the windows open and I slept well.

Ray slept until 8. We took a short walk. I dropped him off at his office and drove to Deb's, where we had a good meeting about our workshop re planning for the end of life. We divided up the topics and are pretty excited about it, for ourselves as well as others.

Then I called my Dad (who was at my house doing his laundry) and met him for lunch. Then we drove to the nursing home to visit Don D., from UUFA, who is recovering from bypass surgery. We talked a little and then left because he seemed tired.

I went to Ray's office and spent some time going through the piles of books, magazines, and papers. I have done about as much as I can, without the okay to throw some things out.

We drove home. It was pretty hot; the air actually came on for the first time in a while. I cut some chard and we had a healthy omelet with some leftover rice. Ray did the hard part, preparing the chard. I was feeling a little weak.

I headed to the Fellowship for a meeting of the Green Sanctuary team, which went pretty well. I was annoyed with myself, because I forgot to call Karen P. about carpooling, so we drove two cars from Kenney Ridge to UUFA and back--to a meeting on an environmental group! Of course, she didn't call me either...

A little TV, a little reading, and a good night's sleep.

Ray made it home from his trip safely. I was asleep, but I very glad to have him back.

There was nothing in the want ads for me to apply for. Time to pursue other things.

I had a really busy day, but it was good.

I did not make pancakes for one, so the supply of sour milk is undiminished. That means Sunday breakfast was the same as every other day: yogurt with a peach, toast with peanut butter. I walked out to get the paper with Cameron and got ready for my busy day. I had two dresses and two pair of shoes in the car wtih me.

FIrst, I went to the Forum (9:30). Clela was speaking about her experience in Romania. Fun and fascinating. She went through an incredible process to become a Peace Corps volunteer at over 60. She studied Russian, but they ended up changing where they sent her, so she had to learn Romanian. She was teaching English in a small village in the northwest. She enjoyed it and learned a lot. However, the US is now phasing out the Peace Corps there, as they are no longer a "developing" country. They still have, as she says, lots of problems, but not enough to need our help, or not the kind that are solved by the Peace Corps. There is lots of corruption, so, for instance, there is universal free health care, but you are expected to slip the doctor some money if you want good free health care. And the same thing applies everywhere. The teachers are woefully underpaid and so do not have the same dedication ours do. They do their job, present the information, and if the children learn, fine. And if they don't, too bad.

At 11, the service was about 9/11 and remembering and love and hope. I thought Alison did a great job. We sang, "When I breathe in..." and I cried, as did many others. Ruth and George were there. I told Ruth she was an inspiration to me, something I've wanted to do for a long time and not found the right moment. They are living at Talmadge Terrace now. It was one of my hopes that my parents would get to know them and like them, but I don't think that's going to happen. Julene's parents live there, too.

After the service, I hurried to Daddy's apartment. I ate some bread and meat and cheese for a quick lunch, changed into my good dress, and we drove to the Lutheran church for Bertha's service at 1. I stood at the guest book and my Dad went in and sat down. When Deb and John arrived with dogs, I asked them to sit with him and they did. Just about 1, Mark and Francesca came in with a projector and started setting it up. I said, "you go and I'll take care of this." It took me almost half an hour, but I finally got it set up as best I could. I went and sat outside and listened to the end. My Dad came and found me, he was worried about me. Afterward, we went into the reception hall. At first, I couldn't get the photos to loop, so I sat there and advanced them manually. Of course, all the family was in the recieving line. Eventually, I got it to work perfectly and people really enjoyed seeing the pictures, some very old and some recent. They were really grateful to me. I talked some with Julie Knowlton, among others.

I took my Dad home and he said the service affected him more than he expected. I felt bad that I was not able to sit with him.

Then I went to the dance class. I had about 30 minutes, so I changed my dress back and walked to Yoforia and treated myself to a little yogurt, and read my email for a bit. I walked back to the car and got my dance shoes (actually my mother's shoes) and spent an hour learning to cha-cha. It was surprisingly fun. I had really worried about Ray not being there. As it happened, there were more men than women and I danced with a young man with bare feet. He was sniffing and sneezing, but assured me it was allergies. He said he had been a drummer for x years, so he was able to keep the beat really well. I hope I can remember what I learned and teach it to Ray.

After that, I went to the library and paid my fines so I could renew my books. Then I went downtown to First United Methodist, where they were having a community sing of Faure's Requiem. I was definitely over my head, not having sung the piece before at all. In Latin, of course. I could barely read it. First, I sat next to Brenda Poss, who is a retired choir director from Cedar Shoals. She was singing alto, but I could count on her for the right tempo and sometimes the same notes. Sara Baker came and sat with me, so that was fun. She was singing soprano, too, but had only rehearsed it once. (once more than me). We moved up, so there would be at least one person behind us to listen to. There was an awesome young woman from UGA directing and a 15-piece orchestra or so. It was a 9/11 remembrance, but I mostly went for the fun of singing in a large group.

Then I went home, fed my dog, ate leftovers (including some really old pork that made me a little nervous), and watched a little TV. In bed, I started reading Another Country by Mary Pipher. She wrote about teenage girls in Reviving Ophelia. This is similiar about aging and the elderly. She divides them into young-old and old-old. Young-old travel and play cards and have a great time. Old-old usually have some medical issues. Our current system doesn't allow for these two different groups. If you are old-old, you need to live near family. (in her opinion) but it is hard to move once you reach that point. She is brilliant and helpful and easy to read.

I baked ginger snaps I had in the freezer. Five dozen for Janna, a few that were a little burned on the bottom I kept. I wanted to make Cowboy cookies as well, and a rice salad, before I left at 9. I couldn't find the recipe for a while, and I needed to wash some dishes to get to the big bowl I needed. But I finally did all that. I even took a really quick showere while they were in the oven. When I left about 9:30, the last batch was still in the oven, turned off. I left the rice on the stove turned off too.

I had voluntneered for the Water Festival at Sandy Creek park, from 10 - 2, but they wanted me there at 9:30. Well, I was about 15 minutes late, but it wasn't a problem. The first kids didn't come until closer to 10:30. My job was explaining the water cycle and showing them how to make a bracelet of it: blue for rain, yellow for the sun, which evaporates the rain and turns it to water vapor (clear), white for the clouds, and then blue again... There were probably more than 100 kids and they seemed to like the activity pretty well. There were five actitivities they could get check off and earn a blue armband. Some schools had told kids they would get a homework pass if they did. The organizers gave me free pepperoni pizza (2 slices), and I filled my water bottle again and again. It was very pleasant at first, but by the time we left, it was really hot and I had a bad headache. My Dad had been and gone. I rested some, but then I had to make the rice salad to take to Janna's.

I managed to arrive at the funeral home before 5, while they were setting up the pictures, just in case they needed me to do something, but they didn't. There was a power point of old and new pictures too. They had been chooseing pictures, scanning them and putting it together all day. There was one quite recent pictures of Bertha smiling by the Golden Gate bridge that they had enlarged and put near the urn. The visitation was definitely worth doing--there were nearly 100 people, I think, but I was surprised there weren't more. People from Holy Cross, College of Education people, friends from OLLI.

Becky and I left a little early to go set up the food. We were ready and I was having some wine when they arrived. They exclaimed over and over about the great food. Becky had brought ham and turkey, plus potato salad and fruit salad, and blueberry cake. Debbie Valentine made a huge delicious lasagna. Deb Brenner made a big pot of lentils. Pat Waldrip brought some couscous salad. There was plenty of food and lots of it was vegan and gluten-free. The times, they are a-changing. I also brought some homemade bread, as well as rice salad and 8 dozen cookies. We talked and laughed. I said I had to go about 9:30.

Went right to bed when I got home, falling asleep over the book I am reading, Birth of Venus, set during the time of the Medici.

Well. busy day. Ray had to be at UGA at 9 to leave on his field trip. Naturally, he had a few things to do before then, but he headed off about 10 of. I probably had things to do, too, but I didn't do most of them. Maybe I deleted a few emails. Sometime after 10, my friend Janna called to say her mother had died at 3 in the morning quietly, in the hospital, after kidney failure following a stroke some months ago. She asked me to call a couple more friends and share the news with them. I waited most of the day to see if I could help, not that it didn't stop me from doing other things.

At 11:15, I was heading to lunch with the ALT staff and my Dad called. "You have to help me," he said. My phone doesn't ring for very long, I can't answer it in time." "I'll stop by after lunch," I said. Then I had to feed the chickens and lock them in their coop. The traffic was bad and I had to park a ways from the restaurant. We had a very pleasant lunch, although it felt a bit anti-climactic. What was I doing with these people?

I tried Janna again after lunch, but no answer at home or on the cell. That's okay, she would know I had called and would let me know if I needed anything. Ray called to check in. I went to my Dad's and couldn't fix his phone, but he managed to. I was getting up to leave and he said, "let's talk about what we're going to do." I told him about the reception I was going to later and suggested I take him back to the house with me and bring him back a few hours later. He wanted to take his own car, but I talked him out of it and then he told me how to drive and complained he would have to leave when I needed to.

He watched TV for a while and then worked outside. It was a beautiful day, a little warm in the sun, but the clouds came and went. He set out some cabbages I had bought. We got dressed and I brought him back to his house. The traffic was even worse than earlier in the day. There is a home football game today and the crazies were arriving from out of town and the students were buying beer...

It was 5:45 before I arrived at the School of Social Work reception at the Taylor-Grady house. Had to walk a ways again. Speeches were going on. There was lots of food...and free wine! Then they passed out champagne. They were celebrating the re-accreditation process. I chatted with some folks, including my Mom's friend from exercise class, Dr. John. He says he misses her a lot.

Then, I called Janna and went over to her house. She was pretty exhausted after doing everything that needed doing. We chatted a bit and then came up with a plan. She and Ron went to find a place to eat, while Dani and I picked up Mark and Francesca in my car. I debated if I should leave the family alone, but Janna insisted I was family. The shuttle was later than usual, but they arrived. Mark was pretty exhausted too. His organization was running a conference for three days this week. It was good to see them.

There is a new restaurant downtown, Ted's Most Best, opened by people from the Grit. It is pizza and salads and they had some delicious cheesecakes! The way I got a parking spot was to pay $5 to park behind the Chamber of Commerce. That was easy. The food was great; Janna had ordered 3 pizzas for us to share.

I took  them home and took myself home and read for awhile and went to sleep. No word from Ray; they may not have cell phone service.

My stay-at-home day was surprisingy busy. It was a gorgeous sunny day, but never got to 80 degrees!

Ray headed out early to meet my Dad at a house near him where there was some firewood that looked available. They loaded it in the truck and then Captain dropped Ray at work and drove here. We unloaded it and he gardened. I talked to him a lot and made bread and couscous salad. He worked a long time, but eventually came in and ate some lunch.

After he left, I did some minor computer work, entering some recipes on sparkpeople.com and gathering information for the Green Sanctuary program and the meeting Monday about the death prep workshop, while chatting with Molli on Skype.

At 6:30, I headed over to the community center and had supper with several of my neighbors. Some new people, Armando and Kathy, are thinking of buying into the community and building a house. I know them slightly from years ago, when I was Director of IHN. They were involved at the Catholic Center and are peace and justice advocates that Ray MacNair steered here. I invited them back to see our house. I wish I could help design theirs! They have two teenage boys. He is from Argentina (?) and they met in Mexico and lived there, about an hour from Mexico City. They spoke fondly of Xalapa and what a beautiful place it was, mentioning a specific coffee shop. I really enjoyed their company.

Then I watched TV for a while until Ray came home, bringing me a piece of cake from Last Resort.

Yesterday morning Ray had to give a make-up exam at 9:15 and I picked up Janna and drove her to her school. Then I went by the Land Trust to check my email and kill time. I have to stop doing that; it makes me unhappy. I brought my plant home.

I went by the water business office to pick up a t-shirt because I am volunteering at their event on Saturday. I could not find the office, but it turned out to be in my old bank.

I met Cindy for lunch. I had chatted with her briefly a few weeks ago. I know her slightly and she is a friend of Janna's. Her mother died about a year ago and we mostly talked about that and its aftermath--in her case, she had a house to empty and sell. But the point of the meeting was to tell me about doing contract work for Babies Can't Wait. It sounds good. She is supposed to send me the link. We ate at Last Resort and it was good. I had to resist dessert. Last time I got a piece of cake "for my mother" and it confused the waitress--she thought I wanted it to go.

After lunch, I stopped by Earth Fare and got my Dad some cold cuts for his lunch. He wasn't feeling very good and hadn't gone out. After he ate, he ran some errands. I went to get Ray and we drove home. It was cool and overcast. In fact, I wore socks all day for the first time since last spring. and long pants. Made a salad of peppers and onions. I started feeling really bad--anxious and stomach upset. I didn't know what was the matter with me. Finally decided I had too much sweet tea for lunch. Ray finished up the peppers for me. We went to potluck and I was fine after I ate--no dessert for me. I enjoyed a challenging choir rehearsal and went straight to bed, reading a little.

Long and depressing but interesting report by GOP Insider

Finally a little cooler. I had to have a quilt on my bed last night--and the windows are closed so it won't be too cold in the house!

Tuesday mornings Ray has a 9:30 class, so we left pretty early. I went to the hospital after I dropped him off to spend time with Janna, while her mother is dying of kidney failure and dehydration. She is receiving oxygen and minimal medication to keep her comfortable, no treatment. She is not in a coma, but sometimes stirs and mutters. She doesn't open her eyes and we can't tell if she knows Janna is there, but she talks to her and strokes her head. She is in the palliative care unit and there is a private room next door for the family. Janna can work some on her computer and there is a mini-fridge and microwave so she can eat. Dani came from Wisconsin yesterday.

At 11, I had my haircut with Nathan. It was a real pleasure to watch him work, making sure every strand of hair was even and smooth. Then I met Becky for lunch. The food at Panera is fine, but not extraordinary. I had soup and salad and a little baguette. The company was good, though. I spent a few minutes at Goodwill, killing time before my job interview. I had it in my head it was at 2, but my calendar said 2:30. I went at 2 just in case. I introduced myself and said, I'm early. I sat in the waiting room for a while. The people were very nice. They are looking for a part-time bookkeeper/receptionist, splitting a job that had been full-time into two part-time jobs. It would be a very nice atmosphere to work in and allow me lots of time for other pursuits. They will decide in a week or so.

Then I picked Ray up at Hendershot's and we went home. My Dad was just arriving as well. He worked in the garden for a while, since the weather was so nice and the rain had loosened up the soil. He weeded some and got a spot ready to plant some beans, even though I said I thought it was too late. 

We had an early supper of asparagus risotto (the asparagus from the grocery store). I invited him to join us, but he went home for his routine drink and snack and TV. We headed to a waltz lesson, which was enjoyable. We stopped for frozen yogurt afterward. This morning, my shoulder is especially achy, from the dance lesson and the cooler weather, maybe.

TV and early to bed. Ray read a little to me from Cluny Brown.

Labor Day was not a big celebration at our house. Being unemployed makes it not very celebratory.

The rain did come, though. It was very strange. A little band in the morning gave us 2/10 of an inch. My Dad came to admire and had lunch with us. We talked about him signing up for classes at OLLI, which used to be called Learning in Retirement. I might, too. You have to be over 50 and there's a $40 registration fee. Classes range from $5 up, plus parking ($2). Gardening, history, languages... a lot of them are taught by retired professors.

Ray went to give platelets at 2 and I went to sit with Janna. Her mother is in the hospital and has been moved to palliative care. She is getting oxygen and a little morphine, but no meds. She hasn't been communicative since last Saturday and we are not sure she knows Janna is with her. Dani is coming today and they think she will die before the end of the week.

Back home, I made some enchiladas with peppers. They were tasty, but I think a cup of peppers may have been too much for my digestion. Peppers being what there is in the garden in plenty still, we have been eating them almost every day.

There was more rain in several batches, maybe up to an inch. We'll go check when it gets light. Now it is breezy. There is a risk of trees coming down. We watched the radar and most of the storms just slid by us. I expect they got a lot more rain in Atlanta. An inch is good, but more would be okay too.

After supper, Alison and Paul came to play hearts with us. We had a really good time and a close game. Ray won in the last hand (and I was the first to go over 100). It was fun to play with someone new.

Well, the rain is not here yet. I certainly hope it has not veered away from Athens. There was a little mist last night and it's still very overcast, but they had predicted 6 inches of rain, and I planned on waking up to it!

My Dad came and planted some things yesterday morning in anticipation of rain. Ray and I had pancakes and walked out to the newspaper and went to the Fellowship. Just the women sang, a Holly Near song about unions in honor of Labor Day. It was not our best effort, but the congregation seemed to like it. There were only about a dozen of us--and four parts.

After the service, we came home for lunch, leftovers. Then it was time to look at the Want Ads. There it was, a job someone had mentioned to me the week before: part-time, working with the Board at Sandy Creek Nature Center. I had been looking forward to finding out more about it. Salary $10 an hour! I was enraged--really, that is what I am worth (if I am lucky)? To top it off, a friend wanted to go shopping. For fun, I watched her pick out things to try on. Because she has a professional job and needs lots of clothes. If I were working, I would not spend my money on new clothes. I have plenty. And if I did need something new, I would probably buy it at a thrift store.

Then we went to dance class. A young man with a sexy accent was teaching the Argentine tango. It was very fun, but hard for us. The beat in the music was not always clear and I had trouble recognizing what Ray was doing (since I am supposed to follow, not lead). I think tango is not our dance!

We came home and made supper, anticipating the rain would start any minute, but nothing. We watched TV and went to bed...

The rain is coming; I have been excited for days. I can't wait to wake up and hear it on the roof. I can imagine all the plants stretching their dying roots to suck it up.

My Dad came for breakfast yesterday morning--scrambled eggs, toast with butter and jelly. He planted some fall crops: spinach, lettuce, beets, carrots, even though it was pretty hot already in the morning. This is in anticipation of the inches of rain we are supposed to get from a tropical storm in the Gulf headed our way.

Ray wanted to get the last of the tree he has been working on. I went and sat in the truck, waiting to call 911 if need be. He cut 5 huge slices off the bottom of this tree trunk, but they were too heavy to get in the truck. This took over an hour. He got a couple in (I was not much help) and split one to take back in two pieces, but left the rest to come back for today.

I was anxious to go to the Farmers' Market, but we always have someone there when anyone is working with a chain saw. We finally left about 11:30 and there wasn't much to buy--onions, potatoes, cucumbers. So expensive. I bought a pound of sausage for $6. We needed lettuce for a salad for a dinner party, so went to Kroger afterwards. Now it was lunchtime, so we stopped and got some giant ("medium") smoothies, which tided us over well. I do most of my shopping at Earth Fare these days, but some things are impossible to find or outrageously expensive. We bought two bags of dog food, some wine, and a pork roast, among other things.

Back home, put the groceries away and ate some lunch (leftover goulash--yum!). I managed to run the vacuum for the first time in weeks. And I took the pictures of my Mom off the display board to start scanning. It will be very time consuming (we have an old scanner hooked up to an old computer), but I look forward to having them all safely "digitized." I was a little sad after that.

Luckily, we were invited to dinner at Jane's house. She had invited us for the Friday after my Mom died and we had to cancel. This time, we brought a green salad with a delicous homemade dressing: oil & vinegar, mustard, garlic, chives from the pot out front (just barely still green). There were friends from the Fellowship there--Herb and Myrna, Michelle and Jim. It was a pleasure to talk politics safely. Ted was trying to get everyone to say who they thought the Republican presidential candidate would be. Jane served hot dogs and hamburgers in honor of the end of summer. Michelle brought potato salad and cole slaw. Jane had delicious baked beans, too. I ate cheese and crackers and drank wine, passed on a bun for my burger. The dessert? A delicious strawberry shortcake--a frosted cake with strawberries between the layers, whipped cream, and more strawberries on top.

Sadly, eating and drinkling like that gave me a rough night. At one point, I woke up and Ray was somewhere else. This morning, I had dry mouth and general discomfort. I would previously have said I had too much wine, which is partly true--maybe 3 glasses over 3 hours. But I think the pre-diabetes is part of why I don't feel great this morning. Not that I wouldn't do it again--maybe skip the crackers or ask for a smaller piece of cake. And limit the wine.

The Distinguished Guest by Sue Miller

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This book was educational and made me think--which is not always a lot of fun. It deals with writing, aging, family relationshps, and dying. The hero is an architect. His wife is from France. (Two things I enjoyed about it). It was a little choppy, I think, because that is how life is, not neat and smooth.



View all my reviews

 

Yesterday, I spent about an hour and a half talking to Michael, director of the Stable Foundation. He seems to treat me as a peer and I enjoyed the time. He has some issues with his board and fund-raising and I gave him my two cents. But in the process we talked about the challenges facing the homeless in Athens, especially during the upcoming winter. He wasn't sure whether the Homeless Shelter had a new director or not, but thought they continue to face funding challenges. Meanwhile, IHN is once again without a director.

I went by the Land Trust and picked up my last check. I went to the bank and deposited it. I spent an hour at Ray's office organizing his stuff. We went to the Captain's apartment and swam for a bit. We went  home and the Captain was at our house. He was doing some bill-paying, I think, and then he watched the tennis on TV for a bit. Ray did most of the preparations for supper, maybe because he was excited about having goulash. I was too. We hadn't had any pasta or beef for a while, so it was pretty decadent.

It hit 97 degrees. No rain.

For fun, we went to Canopy after supper, and saw a fascinating show--aerial dance, dancing with hoops, poi, belly dancing, juggling fire. It was fun and different. I love the idea that you can see these things in Athens. We saw Harriet and Dave. They sent love to the girls...and were sorry to hear about my Mom's sudden death.

We came home, ate ice cream, and went to bed. I slept well for about 8 hours.

Well, that was a little bit of a kick in the teeth. I finally contacted the university about scoring essays, a part-time temporary job that is paid by the piece. I did it a few times a couple years ago and it's pretty brutal. Imagine my shock when they said my accuracy was not good enough and they do not want me back! My big accomplishment for yesterday was making that contact; it never occurred to me they wouldn't have me, only how much I didn't want to do it.

Secondly, my Dad is having a rough time of it. For example, he had to go to the eye doctor. He called to tell them to cancel my Mom's appointment (since she died). When he got there, one of the things the doctor asked him was if he had been under any stress lately. "Yes," he said. "My wife just died. I thought you knew that." Well, in this case, the person in the office didn't pass that along to the doctor, I guess. He came and spent a few hours with me, mostly dozing in front of the tennis. My Mom loved to watch tennis. He was telling me things about it and in my usual way, I was not very interested. He came to the Kenney Ridge potluck with me, but I warned him they wouldn't have much that he would like. "You mean, there won't be any meat?" he said. "Probably not," I said. He ate a little tuna fish I got him before we went. We played a few rounds of Boggle with Sky and Gere and Basil.

Ray was at work and then at the Democratic Executive Committee meeting and went to dinner with the geology speaker. The paper says we have the hottest summer on record, with 82 the average temperature and only 6 inches of rain, the 8th driest since record-keeping began. I think we have had 0 rain since just after my mother died. Many people are giving up on their gardens, but we still have herbs and peppers, and maybe we will have some things in the fall.

So far (10 am), staying home alone is good. Of course, Ray just left a few minutes ago and I have not actually accomplished anything. It is 78 out and humid and I have closed all the windows and most of the shades. The AC will kick in soon, I hope. One of the good things about being home is the chickens are out, but they are just hanging out under the porch because it's too hot.

Yesterday morning, I made myself some garbanzo bean salad to eat for lunch with the leftover shrimp. We headed into town before 10. I called my Dad to check his plans for the day and he didn't answer. I called again (4 times, plus my house once in case he had come there). So I made a detour to his apartment. He was fine, had been out for a walk without the phone. We chatted a bit, he had some errands and finances to take care of.

Then I went to ALT for the last time (for now). Nathan had me show him how to work with the mailing list, getting ready to mail a second set of Harvest Moon postcards, and the vertical response email software some too. I ate my lunch and then headed out.

First I went to the bank, to put some things in the safe deposit box. I stopped at the library to put a book Ray had finished in the drop box. When I looked at the back seat to get the book, I saw Polly's birthday present that I had wrapped a couple of days before. I went back and stood in line at the Post Office. It was a little more to send it Priority, but I would have had to buy an envelope for it to send it Parcel Post, so I used the Priority.

Then I noticed that Borders still had Going out of Business signs. Yup, sure enough, nothing more than 50%. I found a lot of books, mostly for Christmas presents. Some on aging and caring for your parents and estate planning. I got one for grampa on Grief, although I suspect he will not want to look at it or find it useful. But maybe. I finally stopped, but I bet there are lots more I would find a use for. I didn't buy any cookbooks or craft books...You can even buy their bookshelves for $100. I am tempted...

I headed over to Captain's apartment to meet Ray and go for a quick swim. Captain had headed out to the bank to get something official signed. Ray and I went to Earth Fare to buy a few things. At home, I finished up the lentil salad for potluck. I am always surprised at how tired I am after a little swimming.

We went to potluck a little early, but unfortunately, I thought Ray had the salad and he thought I had it. So he had to go all the way back. And most people didn't want any lentils with their dessert! So now we have a good bit left. It's pretty tasty, with oranges and peppers and herbs. That's what I'll have for lunch probably. After choir, we came home and I fell asleep in front of the TV pretty early. Woke up a few times during the night, sweaty and a little congested, from the weather, I think.