We got some generous checks in the mail, sponsors for the upcoming fund-raising event. I had lunch with Becky and Janna, sitting outside. It was very nice, except they somehow lost our order and we sat for about 30 minutes before realizing they were never going to bring our food. I saw Libby W., whom I hadn't seen for years and Caroline W. and her mother. She is apparently married...I suddenly realized I needed to go back to work...The bank statements had come and I spent some time working on reconciling them, not totally successfully. They will be waiting for me on Monday. I spoke to M. about being more or less caught up on work and offered to work on some grants, but she said no. The only thing she wants me to do is teach her how to do the reimbursements, which I understand and agree with, but it also makes me nervous.

I went by the bank, but they closed while I was waiting in line, at 4:30. I'll go by this morning. I picked Ray up and we headed to Democratic HQ. I asked if they needed anything and Erin said, "paper." I went and bought a case and kept a couple reams for us. The executive committee started at 5:15. We talked about HQ and then there were several other items. We are having some trouble getting enough volunteers for everything we want to do.

I had taken a chicken and rice casserole out of the freezer and Vanessa baked it, so we ate as soon as we got home. It was a pleasant evening, but too late for chicken-watching. There is a new program in Athens, called Whatever It Takes. We got one of 21 planning grants approved nationally and they are hiring some people. I am trying to decide if I should apply and who to put down for references.

When I got to work yesterday, I was the only one there for a while, which I kind of like sometimes. The phone rang a lot though, and there was a high-pitched beeping sound coming from the computer in the night staff office across from mine. When Jaron got there, he said it was the alarm system. We studied the map and tried to figure out where zone 21 was. I went into a couple rooms before we figured out which window it was. There didn't appear to be anything that should set off the alarm, so I took out the battery and went and bought some replacements when Kerri got in about 11. And we pushed bypass on the keypad, which made the beeping stop. The new battery didn't fix the problem though (so I threw away a perfectly good battery maybe).

I had lunch at Panera while I was at Batteries Plus and it was really good. Later, Greg and I went to the Food Bank to get milk. The other thing I did was move some things and throw away some old papers so there wouldn't be anything on my floor today when the tour group comes. What to wear??

Ray and I were home by 4 and it was another lovely day. I spent at least an hour sitting in the sun, leafing through a cookbook to no purpose and occasionally checking on the chickens, who seem to like staying near the deck, under the big rosebush. When it got too cold, I tried to call them to come into their coop, but they said, "no thanks, we like it out here." Fortunately, they are not really ornery and when I got behind them and shooed, they headed into the coop. If they really wanted to put up a fight, there is no way I could make them. They can fly a little and it would be impossible for me to catch them. We are checking every day now for the first egg.

Ray made a pasta salad and we had a nice supper at UUFA potluck and a good choir rehearsal. Amber got a little testy, which is Ray for her, because people were talking too much when she was trying to talk. Ray is one of the guilty parties, because he was asking Stu questions all the time.

Slept soundly, starting in the car on the way home.

I finally got a response from DCA, so I could submit over $20,000 worth of reimbursement requests, which I did the same day. I also finished up the CDBG request. One of the most time-consuming parts is photocopying every check stub and receipt. I had a quick lunch, but my phone was dead and I have already lost my new reading glasses. I had to order from memory and couldn't read while I was eating or waiting.

In the afternoon, there was a staff meeting at which Meredith announced that there was going to be a group touring the Shelter on Thursday. Nothing is allowed to be on the floor. Well, I have a box of old documents that has been there since she decided to clean out the closets. They have to be kept for 5 years. She said the offices have to be dusted. Fortunately, I did that a few days ago. In addition, she said that job descriptions will be changed effective January 1, with no specifics yet. I left right after the meeting and have been worried ever since. I had trouble falling asleep and slept really badly.

I stopped by the Democratic HQ. Lots of bustle. Erin says not all the volunteers are showing up for their shifts.

It was a beautiful afternoon with the chickens. The Captain planted some more things in the garden. Ray and I made a yummy supper. We watched TV, spent some time on line, and went to bed.

Lovely and cool here yesterday. Since I spent some time shopping for the Shelter on Sunday, I went in a couple hours late. Got to walk the dogs in the light and have breakfast with my parents. Ray and I played racquetball at Ramsey. I couldn't believe I was so groggy. I really had no energy at all. We used to play in the morning all the time, but now I am used to the afternoons.

Funny thing, when I got to the Shelter, everybody had been so worried about me because I wasn't there at 8. (even though I had talked about it with Meredith on Friday). Next time, I will call to check in. It was kind of nice to know they missed me.

Saved a few hundred dollars by shopping around for a new maintenance contract for our copy machine and researched companies that provide payroll services. It would cost us something, but it would ensure that we never had to pay penalties and late fees for taxes.

Had a late and good lunch by myself at Big City Bread.

Left at 3 and ran a couple errands with Ray, ending with picking up some carrot seeds at Cofer. Captain was in the garden planting things and planting them immediately. The chickens were happily roaming around close to home. Spent about an hour outside enjoying the day. Our sweet potatoes appear to have been harvested by a critter--maybe a vole. So sad.

Made supper, but had to rush off to rehearsal downtown at the Morton. Parked ad waited an hour reading my iPhone and watching 20 little girls on stage, to get my blocking for one 5-minute scene. Oh, well.

After that, TV and ice cream and bed. 

It was downright cold last night. I haven't been down to check the temperature yet, but we slept under the quilt! Before you know it, we'll need some firewood...

Yesterday's highlight was that Ray mowed the lawn, so it looks much nicer and might last awhile. The chickens were out again some of the afternoon and we all enjoyed interacting with them. They are quite docile, although about as smart as you would expect, so they don't really come when you call them. But I think we will get better at it--like other animals, you can train them with food rewards. Ray was trying to get them to go to a certain part of the yard, where he thought there were more grasshoppers. We called and shooed, but they did not want to be herded. The three of them stay together pretty much and they are quite "chicken," not wanting to venture very far from their coop, which is good. They don't like the hot sun and will stay in the shade, even though it was only in the 70s yesterday.

Ray and I sang some great music yesterday morning, including Standing on the Side of Love, for a service of the same name. Also a terrific version of Kumbaya, arranged by the Soweto Gospel Choir--you should hear their recording of it!

After the service, we drove downtown and joined the Captain and Vanessa at the Melting Point for a soup cookoff competition. Eleven members of the Classic City Chefs Association prepared soups. For $1, you could have a taste; for $2, a bowl. There was music too. The weather was gorgeous and we saw people we knew, including Joan Prittie. It was a benefit for Project Safe, but they were approached by the chefs and didn't have to do any work. My favorite was a potato soup, but there was a great lobster bisque and a really good butternut squash soup. Free rolls and tea or lemonade or you could buy alcoholic drinks. A great idea.

In the late afternoon, Vanessa and I went to the mall. Belk had a sale and I was looking for pillows and sheets for the Homeless Shelter. They gave me 10% off. I bought a dozen Ralph Lauren pillows for $7 each. I hope no one thinks Ralph Lauren pillows are too good for our residents. I bought 6 new bath towels that were about $6 each, in all different colors. The Prius's back seat is full. But the thing I really needed was twin sheets, just the fitted ones. They only sell sets. Kerri told me we have plenty of flat sheets, but need the fitted ones. We walked to J. C. Penney's, at the other end of the mall, but it was almost 6, closing time, when we got there.

On the way, we stopped at Lady Foot Locker because Vanessa was looking for some new walking shoes. It is a little hard to find the kind she wants; most of them are too big and clunky for her taste, but we found some on sale for $50, more than she wanted to pay, but she got them because they were the right kind. At J. C. Penney, they didn't appear to sell bottom sheets any more than Belk did, but I couldn't find anyone to help me to be sure.

Vanessa was also looking for a new travel kit for the Captain. On his last trip to Boston, apparently the Pepto-Bismol leaked all over everything including the travel kit. They didn't have them at Belk, and they didn't appear to have them at Penney, but there was a line at the check-out counter and no one to ask.

Then we went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond, where they did have bottom sheets, but they were $20. You could also buy a sheet set for that price. I bought a few, but will need to keep my eyes peeled for sale sheets. They did have a travel kit, though, so I bought that.

We hadn't been home long when Ray was shouting my name. "I broke the faucet and the water is just spurting up--call the water office." So I did; they were going to send someone out, but he got it shut off. Of course, he also shut off the water to the whole house. He had stepped backward onto it while mowing and he was really angry because the Captain leaves the hose around and doesn't keep the cover on the faucet. It's a wonder he didn't break his ankle...We called our neighbor Paul, who would have come fix it for us (by now it was getting dark). Ray bailed some water out and figured out there was a shutoff valve half buried there. He was able to shut off the water to that faucet and not the whole house. So he was very pleased with himself (and glad to be able to shower). It's funny how happy you are when you avert a crisis--much happier than if the crisis had never happened.

Old-fashioned and snack, plus leftovers for supper. TV and bed.

It is lovely and cool here this morning. Time for my bathrobe and slippers. The fans are turned off. The sliver of moon is casting light on the east end of the house and there are some bright stars too. When I close my computer, I can see a hint of brightness around the horizon that suggests morning is coming.

Unfortunately, I am afraid I may be getting sick, perhaps as a result of the changing weather. I have had a headache since yesterday. I even took some Tylenol in the night. And I have a stuffy nose. Also I have very dry lips and am thirsty. We'll see.

Ray and I spent most of this gorgeous day driving to Dahlonega and singing at a choir retreat. We took Don M. and Aleta and left about 8:30 and were back by 4:30. It was a lovely ride. You could see the mountains clearly from a long way off. And I thought what I always think, "How beautiful it is here. It makes me happy. I should come more often." But do I? It is only a few hours away. Dahlonega less than 90 minutes, the mountains a little further.

On Friday, I worked, but met Ray for a pleasant lunch and left again at 2:30. We went to Ramsey and played 2 games of racquetball and swam a few laps. At home, we had leftover linguica soup that my parents had made for lunch, after freezing most of the giant pot of soup I made Thursday night. We picked up Muhterem and went to the contra dance, which was very fun. They had to leave because I was asleep in my chair at 10:30.

Then of course, yesterday and today, I was stiff and sore from my neck to the bottom of my left heel. Riding and sitting did not make it better.

When we got home, it was in the 70s and sunny out. Vanessa had made beef stew, at least the beef part. My Dad was working on his column. Ray went upstairs and I went out and pulled up some weeds, while I let the chickens out of their coop to roam freely. I was nervous, but they did great, going after bugs and strutting slowly in a cluster. Eventually, they wandered back into the coop. I gave them a cup of feed and closed it up for the night.

I went in and peeled the potatoes and carrot. We also put in a bunch of green beans from the mostly defunct garden. We chatted pleasantly during dinner and watched some TV before heading up to bed. I woke up when Ray took my book out of my hands.

It was pleasantly cool all day yesterday and rained again in the afternoon. I worked on reimbursement requests and the mailing list and began to feel a little dissatisfied with not having anything more interesting to do. I had lunch with Becky, so that made a break. I left right at 3 and went to Kroger to buy groceries, including the ingredients for a big pot of soup.

I don't plan to keep to this diet. I would starve if I ate nothing but soup and the small amounts of other foods they list. But I like the idea of having the soup base and being able to make a variety of soups from it. The information is here, in case you are interested. I went to pick up Ray up at 4:30, but had to wait almost 30 minutes with the groceries.

When we got home, we made supper, chatted with my parents some and ate it. Then they watched TV while I worked on the soup. I used the food processor to chop the onions and slice the other vegetables and cook them for a little while. So it was done before bedtime. I haven't tasted it yet, though.