Monday, October 3, 2022

Elise would have turned 50 today. Hard to believe she has been gone for almost 18 years.

We are leaving in an hour to pick up youngest DD at the airport. I am looking forward to her being here for her sister's birthday and the next few days.

Yesterday we went to the driving range and I surprised myself in that I wasn't hitting any worse then last year, and actually somewhat better in terms of consistency. I can't send it far, but it does go up in the air more or less in a straight line when I want it to. I may try 9 holes with Mike again in a week or 2. Maybe I can feel confident enough to join the women's 9 and dine group in January which I have been told does not require that you are a great golfer. Some brave souls have joined it without ever golfing or having lessons previously. I couldn't do that but maybe I will be comfortable enough?

Not much else to report. On these days I just try to put one foot in front of the other. Having DD visit makes that easier.

Have a mostly good Monday!

Happy B'day to your first born! Must be a very hard day for you. It's simply not natural for a parent to lose a child. I can't imagine anything worse. Many warm hugs to you on this day.

Seems very right to have one daughter with you while you remember the day another daughter was born. A comfort to you both.

My bffs son just got engaged ,crazy kids, rushing into marriage after almost 10 years and 3 kids together :) and with the joyful milestones also comes the sadness. It really caught me by surprise, as his older brother passed away in 1998 when he was 13, but the news brought tears to my eyes as I said, Raul should be the best man. It's not even my kid, but I did love him so. Time moves along, but grief, or longing, it can ambush you in surprising ways. I guess this is just to say, I sympathize Liz, that these anniversaries, birthdays and other milestones evoke a lot of things.

Today was another nice day with the students, and I think we got some good work done. They had to write a short poem about something they wish they could have a re do button for (related to a short story we read), and then present it to the class. For some kids, this is very scary. It is so gratifying to see the look of triumph on their faces when they walk back to their desks.

All the same, I ran the retirement estimator again, and yes, I need to stick it out until 2025, for a couple of reasons. Always good to double check, just in case something switched up in my favor, but alas, no. Well, I guess I continue the good fight.

Liz, I've been thinking about you today. Loss like that never gets much easier.

So much rain last night and this afternoon! Really makes you think about how CA survives with so little (by taking from the CO river) if this is how much falls in the desert southwest!

Aside from watching impressive storms full of heavy rain, lightning, thunder, and hail, I finally made it to Walgreens while the pharmacy part was open to stand in line for an hour to pick up my prescriptions. A crazy part of me wants to get a job there just to help clean up the staffing mess!

I also spent a lot of time on the phone and emails for board stuff (I really need to get off). Then talked to the propane people about my new house. I've never had propane before and have no idea how much I'll use let along how much I need. They have a pre-payment contract you sign up for. This tiny neighborhood banded together and got a great deal on prepayment contracts so long as they all switched. It's a $1 less per gallon than their standard contract if you pay upfront. Having no idea how much propane I'll need, I had her check the house and the neighborhood. She said they all use about 1000 gallons a year. Eek. For a mostly electric house! Should be interesting to see what I use. They will have a tech come out and explain "propane" to me at the end of the month. So nice.

I ran to the grocery store to buy a few healthy things. I really need to do something. I feel VERY fat! I think one of my rules needs to be no fast food. And another no sugary/pastry treats.

How long is your board commitment? It doesn't sound very rewarding. Someplace else deserves your talents and energy. But not Walgreens! :)

Greetings all

We are all thinking of you Liz today. Elise was so lovely and I feel like she is a friend. Hugs indeed. Aniverseries are not easy. My nephew was named Chris because he was born on Christmas. He died at age 17. Christmas has never been the same. I guess we can just be grateful for the memories we have.

And golf! Sure play in the league. Golf is really just about riding around in carts and acting silly.

CC our gallery uses propane and its like any other gas heat. No clue how much we use though. Dumb question but does that heat the swimming pool too or is that even a winter thing. Shows how little I know.

We are gearing up for our trip. Getting the guest room ready, glazing a bunch of art for later firing and otherwise organizing. I will be out all day tomorrow between Scrabble and gallery duty. DH will have to step up to dog feeding.

More chili tonight. Gonna get sick of it eventually.

Pups hope some puppies got made.

Cheers all.

Diane S

Hugs to you on missing your Christmas boy. Memories are good.

I'm not sure I'll heat the swimming pool (people do though!). Seems like a lot of energy for something I wouldn't use much. But maybe heating the spa sometimes?