Mixed bag week

The good news on the lost object front is that the cookbooks turned up in the bookshelf. The bad news is I haven't seen my cell phone since Monday.

I learned that one of my former net.pals is now in the Guinness Book of World Records for her duck collection, but it is a bit overshadowed by learning that a former coworker had lost her battle with breast cancer. It must not have been too long after I ran across her at Genova Deli (since I remember I was on the Ship, and had stopped bleeding by then). Karen was a righteous babe and the planet is lessened by her departure.

Oddly enough I was thinking of Karen earlier when Ayse said that she wanted to do a series of photos of me in my environment for her photography class; way back when, I had seriously considered asking Karen to set up a glamour shot of me in a bubble bath.

I have the serious urge to go to Genova for a sandwich now, but speaking of environment, I have some house tidying to do. Nothing major like last weekend but I do need to finish what I started, and look for a particular book (not my missing book of hours, I have concluded that it will drop from the ceiling some day).

The fog is back

Well, it was back yesterday morning, but burned off quite nicely. It was sunny (if very windy) when I went to Out of the Closet to drop off my donation. I started tackling the bedroom, got more for the Lost Object count, and added two bags of trash to my total. 10 bags total for the weekend and a couple of more of recycling assembled.

I didn't cook (much - I made orange-blueberry bread) and I neglected a necessary trip to the pet food store for Maya's supplies, but I can do that tonight. I'm also wondering if I feel like doing more deep cleaning in the bedroom since it now looks like more of a wreck than usual with stuff strewn all over the floor. I didn't realize I had so many odd socks and that is why my underwear drawer wouldn't close.

Yay Me!

After procrastinating in about every way possible about doing some zone cleaning (a la Flylady), and doing some half-hearted work (okay, I did fill up most of a paper sack with trash), the penny dropped and I realized that organizing my records for giveaway for the remainder of the clothes donation counted as zone cleaning, since the giveaway pile was in the zone room.

I found my file on the computer, logged into ItsDeductible, and started going through the bags.

And now seven (recorded) bags of give-away are in my car, not in my office. I made a dent and I completed a long-delayed task. It's a good feeling! Last year a big "push" (at this time of year - the day I stopped doodling and started cleaning was the first day of the war) gave me momentum to carry through with the program and I'm getting that feeling again. It's good to have the energy (and the time) to do it, too.

Hoping I have energy to both cook and clean today. I was pretty tired last night.

The lost object gods, redux

... were VERY kind to me yesterday because my driver's license slipped out of my purse on my way to lunch and the security people caught it.

Extra money for the St. Anthony kitty. Will try to get my hour-plus of Flylady Flinging in today (bathroom and office). Hoping to find the prayerbook.

Havin' a heat wave ...

Two weeks of warm weather, in March. Astounding!

I will have the three people reading this blog know that I am Doing My Bit to keep it nice by NOT making an appointment for a leg wax and pedicure.

The Patron Saint of Lost Objects ...

is St. Anthony of Padua. I learned this because the Lost-Things had reached more than critical mass late last week. I couldn't find my mortgage bill to pay it. I had no idea where my state refund check had gone. Some of my favorite books were (and are) still missing.

And to top it off, I _found_ a jury duty notice. How I missed observing that when it came in, I don't know. It must have been during my true crunch. I recognized it from the outside immediately, but happily my report date had not passed.

I found the pile of papers on Saturday, after I posted a cry for help on the Ship. The answer propelled me over to the Mexican markets, where I found "velas" for both S. Anthony and S. Martha (housekeeping - for good measure). Things also started looking up on Sunday when my sunglass clips made themselves obvious in the car.

I found several magazine bills in the pile. My net.bullies have apparently paid for an address search on me and signed me up for a bunch of mags. I have been having a lot of interesting conversations with customer service people recently. Monday I cracked up laughing because there was one whose bill I missed in the mail - "Muscle Mania". Wonder what new surprises are going to appear. A lot of this seems to be wish fulfillment on the part of the doers.

The Party's Over

... at least for now.

On Tuesday, the California Supreme Court ordered San Francisco to stop issuing same-sex marriage licenses, ending about a month of weddings (about 4,000 from what I have heard).

It's been interesting and I'm quite sure this is not the last that will be heard on the issue. I have gotten a sense of being a front-row observer to history. I had this feeling during the early height of the AIDS epidemic, when I moved to SF in late 1984, and nobody was dying this time (thank you Jesus). The genie is out of the bottle and I think by the time I'm an old lady it will be legal.

It was a heckuva civic pride booster for SF too - was quite impressed with the Mayor. Gavin Newsom might only be out for Gavin Newsom but it was a master stroke.

The news was not good, but far preferable to the other news of Thursday - once again that sinking feeling of turning on the radio in the am to hear of a massively-fatal act of terrorism. Two and a half years to the day.

The weather still continues very warm and fine, which is quite amazing; we've had a week and more now.

Flip-flop
My icecream run last night really took the wind out of my sails. Since the local Andronico's didn't have the flavor I wanted, I decided to go to Boney's Marketplace. They not only didn't have it, they're selling the place down to the walls. Last fall when I was spending $50-100 a week on extracts, I thought (selfishly) that I was probably keeping it afloat. There may have been something to that.

On the way home (the North Berkeley Andronico's had the icecream) a cop car flashed his lights at me as I turned onto my street. Turns out my taillights are totally out. So no night driving till I get that dealt with.

I did make Soybean Stuff, no taxes though. Ate the icecream (it is very good) and read my library books.

It's a beautiful day

Highs well into the seventies! I had a seminar at a theatre in downtown Berkeley today an walked in thru the spring loveliness. Wore my sweaterset and took off the cardigan after two blocks. Good thing I brought a light T-shirt.

I have that tingly exercised feel.

And as I was walking home, lo, I saw a man strumming a guitar, with a parrot on his shoulder, with three dogs behind him. OIB (Only in Berkeley).

I have to go to the store for milk, I think I will use the excuse to try the raspberry ice cream from Straus Family Creamery ... rarely icecream weather here.