It's kind of amazing. Ray's internal clock is calibrated completely differently from mine. Given his natural inclination, he would stay up late and sleep late, while I am a morning person par excellence, usually falling asleep between 9 and 10 and getting up again about 5:30. Over the years, though, he has trained himself to get up--without an alarm clock! One of the things that used to drive me crazy was for him to set an alarm, which woke me up, and then sleep through it--over and over. Of course, once I was awake, I was awake for the duration. But these days, he often wakes up before me--without an alarm! I don't know how he does it. It reminds me of James Bond's ability to stop his heart. Today he got up at five. Sometimes, i hear him as he is trying to tiptoe and not disturb me--or just the click of the door as he closes it behind him. We both went to sleep about 10, so getting up at five is fine for me today. I have a lot to do, so I want to get an early start.

Yesterday, I was pretty much cooking all day. But the secret is not to be stressed. Standing in the kitchen is bad for my back. Ray got me a mat to stand on and that helps. But if I space things out and take lots of breaks, I'm fine. If I get intense and trying to get something done in time, I am more likely to end up hurting. I made a carrot cake, finished the slice and bake dough, cooked a small batch of rice pudding (glulten-free) and a delicious cauliflower-cheese pie for dinner. In between, I spent some time studying my schedule for today and revising the list of things I need to bring with me to UUFA. I also had some reading and writing to do for my lay ministry class last night.

I didn't have any company--unless you count Molli chatting with me on Skype, which helps a lot. But Ray had a dentist appointment at 2 and he came home after that and worked at the dining table. About 5 or so, he took a break and finished up the dinner for me. (I had delicious leftover lasagna for lunch). We got to the Commons about 6:20 (we were supposed to be helping to set up). There was a Mardi Gras theme and two (delicious) kinds of rice and beans, as well as shrimp and some delicious sweet potato biscuits. Sky had made blueberry tarts and they were wonderful. So I ate as quickly as I could, but of course, I was 10 minutes late to the lay ministry class. They were well into the discussion by then and I felt bad--but perhaps not bad enough to wish I had bypassed that supper.

The lay ministry classes are interesting. The other people are awesome and I really enjoy the process of thinking and talking about things and listening to each other. But they last two hours and I begin to long for some action. This is not a group that solves any problems or makes any decisions or plans. Apparently, I am an action person, not an academic?

At home, I had a taste of ice cream and watched a little of Downton Abbey--strange to come in on at the end. There was a funeral and an arrest and a few tearful scenes. Then I went to sleep and slept well.