The last few days I have had a lot of energy. What does it mean? I have been sleeping well (is it my sleep machine?), I have been getting a walk every morning, I have been eating pretty well...I am not depressed, but sometimes it feels a little like nervous energy or restlessness and threatens to become anxiety or stress. Hmm...I wake up really early and spend lots of time with my email and other computer work related to my projects at UUFA or the wedding. I am hungry long before it is light. I have the same breakfast almost every morning.

I slice some homemade bread and put it in the toaster. I pour some orange juice and drink it with vitamins. I scoop a half-cup of yogurt into a bowl and slice up fruit into it---these days it is a pear. I add a sprinklle of cinnamon. (I usually buy vanilla yogurt, which is kind of cheating, but I find I don't enjoy it as much if I have to put in the honey and try to mix it). I put peanut butter on the toast and I often work on a sudoku while I eat.

Sometimes I have a cooking or baking project. Yesterday I made apple cake from the Bakery Lane cookbook, one of my mother's favorites and something I plan to have on the menu of the dessert restaurant coming up.

Ray and I take a walk. Lately I tell him to walk faster. We pick up the newspaper at some point and head home. I take a bath, washing my hair every three or four days. I put on some comfortable clothes and spend more time on the computer when Ray heads to the university to teach. Sometimes I do a load of wash, but I usually let him hang it out. It is a little heavy for my back and I don't like to take chances with it. Plus, he likes to do it a certain way. Sometimes my Dad hangs our laundry out, but Ray doesn't like the way he does it, so I try to get it in again so he doesn't have to see it.

There are usually leftovers for lunch. Yesterday was cauliflower marranca, plus I ate a little bit of chicken left from the previous night. Often I spend time communicating with one or both of my daughters via Skype. Sometimes we actually talk, but more often we write messages back and forth. It is pleasant to have their company, even through the computer. Sometimes I let the dog into the house. It was pretty sunny yesterday, so comfortable in the house, although cold when we went for our walk.

Sometimes my Dad comes by to work on something and chat. Yesterday he called, but since I was heading out, he didn't drive out here. I went to a meeting at 3:00. This is a group that grew out of the One Athens poverty initiative. It is about housing in Athens. Generally not much really useful happens. We make recommendations that are not followed. On this occasion, someone from DCA explained how we need to collaborate because there is not enough money to fund the various agencies engaged in housing counseling. This is something we have known for awhile, but it is hard to fix, because no agency wants to say, "That's okay, you take the money. We'll stop doing housing counseling (and close our doors)." I don't have a good solution, but I think it is possible to determine who is helping the most people and give them the money. One group passed around a handout for their classes. They are charging $25, not an outrageous amount, but ALT does it for free and has been for a while. How does any of these groups pay their staff and their rent? It was really annoying to have this woman, who is probably trying her best, to hand out color copies to us (I know they're expensive) and talk about the conference coming up with the really wonderful (expensive) speaker...and how there is no money. And I asked my question that I often bring up. "With poverty in Athens over 30%, many people are not ready to be homeowners. What about them?" The answer was, "your collaborative will set its own goals." Which is good, but somehow the focus is always homeownership. Is that because of the banks and realtors?

After that, I went home and made frosting for the cake. At 6, Ray and I headed to potluck and choir. Unfortunately, there were three other people who brought desserts and not much dinner. This is a rare occurrence. I guess I will have to stop making desserts. Or bring a main dish and a dessert.

I was pretty sleepy by the end of choir and somehow left my purse there, I discovered when I got home. I had the bag with the knitting and the cake pan, but no purse. We decided to go get it first thing this morning, figuring nothing would happen to it overnight. I froze 6 pieces of apple cake to serve at the dessert night.