Friday night ruminations...

 Y'all.  This so-called "short" work week has been one really long, drawn out and stressful week that even now, at *glances at the clock* 7:10 pm still hasn't ended.  And will, I'm afraid, be spilling over into this weekend and possibly Monday .  Gosh, I hope not.

Honestly - who needs this kind of stress?  Not me, that's for sure.  But after this is over I need to sit back and reflect on how I could have handled these stressors better.  I know that I am usually pretty quick and efficient with my work; but I also know that when I am stressed AND in a rush that turns into a total mess; which equals even more stress...and insomnia.  So I think the next time I have a week like this one, I need to slllllllooooowwwww way down and focus, somehow.

Anyhow, we are planning our first actual "vacation" since COVID began - which is just one more stressor for me, honestly.  We are going up to Connecticut to visit my mother-in-law; which is long past due.  But she turns 91 in a few weeks and we just can't wait for the rest of the country to fall in line with masking, vaccinations, boosters, etc.

Between you and me, I think we should have probably taken this trip back in the Spring but here we are in September and this is a trip we need to make.  So send all your good thoughts to the East Coast in the next couple of weeks that keeps us safe and healthy.

I know there are some who think I am being silly - but honestly, in the past couple of weeks, I have seen/heard about some of the most cautious people I know coming down with COVID.  And yes, for the most part (so far) they are fine.  One of my concerns is that you just don't know how it will affect you even despite being vaccinated and boosted.  And, of course, there is long COVID to consider...

But despite all my trepidations, I AM excited to see the family - that will be nice; especially if we somehow miraculously make it up there and back without actually coming face to face with COVID.

God, I hate COVID so very much.

Ah.  Well, it seems I have created a pretty sad post, haven't I?  Sorry about that.

In other news, I wandered out into the big bed out back this evening and relieved some of this weeks stress by yanking out some Morning Glories - which, guess where they like to pop up the most?  If you guessed under the roses, you would be correct.  Now I am covered in scratches.  But that's ok (I guess?) because (for now) they are gone and while I was yanking out the vines I had an eye out for any errant blackberry bits that might be trying to make a come back and didn't' see one shoot at all.  *Says in a whisper, so the blackberry bush can't hear* I think I might be winning that particular war; knock on wood. 

(We won't even talk about the grass that continually seems to invade every flower bed in this yard but stubbornly refuses to grow in the actual yard.  No, we won't - because we are focusing on a positive ending here to usher us into the weekend.)

So there, I found a way to round up this post with a modicum of (possible) good news (unless, of course, the blackberry bush hears about this and begins to spit forth a bunch of new shoots tomorrow to be yanked out).  

My plans for this weekend are to relax and do as little thinking about hard, stressful stuff as I can.  How about you?

The Pajama Drawer

 Ok, this is going to sound utterly ridiculous...but here it goes.

This weekend was a slow, quiet weekend.  The weather, while not rainy for the most part, just had that sense of a storm coming any minute now.  So, I spent a fair amount of time indoors, scrolling Instagram (no judgment; I had already completed all my "chores").

And then I fell down the rabbit hole that is The Folding Lady's Instagram feed.  If you haven't spent any time watching someone fold various items, you probably have no idea just how soothing - and instructive - it can be.  I'm ashamed (no, I'm not) at just how much time I spent on this pursuit.

Another rabbit hole that I sometimes frequent is the GoCleanCo's Instagram feed, in the event you need a rabbit hole or two to fall into.  Actually, there are a LOT of rabbit holes on Instagram - these two are my latest Insta-obsessions.

Some of you that have been around here for a while, may remember that after I read Marie Kondo's book, I completely re-vamped the way I had been folding (most) of the clothes in this house.  Shockingly enough, I still fold the majority of the clothes in this manner - it seems to work for us.

The only areas that this method didn't seem to work was my jeans drawer (yes, always and forever to my jeans living in a drawer rather than a hanger - The Husband's jeans do go on a hanger however) and my pajama drawer.

In the jeans drawer, they are folded in such a way so that I can quickly identify if that is a preferred pair, a work in the yard pair, or if they are a "I don't like them because they stretch out after an hour of wearing them" pair.  Upon reflection, it seems I need to clean out that drawer since there are several that are deemed unsatisfactory 99% of the time.

The pajama drawer though?  A nightmare.  I can't tell you how many times, I've pulled out all the pajamas, re-folded them and put them back in.  The pajamas for some reason (I guess it's the material) wouldn't "stand up" in the drawer (also probably because I need some kind of bin/organizer in there) but, it never failed that this drawer would end up in a jumbled mess.

And then I fell down The Folding Lady rabbit hole.  And noticed, that she folded her kids pajamas as a set.  Whereas I had been folding each item separately - a lightbulb went off in my head and I immediately went to the problematic drawer, pulled everything out, weeded out what could be donated or trashed and re-folded everything as a set.  They still won't "stand up" (I'll probably add some drawer dividers in the near future) but it's not the hot mess it was before.  And now, when I pull out a fresh pair of pajamas, I am not rummaging around for the whole ensemble.  Sometimes, it's only after the fact when you realize, um yeah - this IS a better way...despite doing it a different way for your entire life.

What about you - were you smart enough, to sigh and say "Of COURSE, you should always fold your pajamas as a set!" or are you like I was...clueless?

Day 5 Update (however many days later) and The Orphan Collector - a book review

 Raise your hand if you are surprised I actually remembered to come back and tell you how this story played out?  AND that I've got another book review?

I don't blame you, I'm kind of surprised too, if the truth be told.

Turns out the AC was not dead dead (yet).  The service technicians said they would be out between 8-11 am this past Monday (of course).  They showed up around 8:20 am and were in and out of here in less than five minutes.  Turns out the capacitor (look at me acting like I know what that is!) needed to be replaced.  They had the part on the truck, took the old one off, plugged the new one in and here we are - fully air conditioned.

Although, thanks to our sweet neighbor's willingness to share their fans/stand alone and window units; we were never in any actual discomfort.

But still, the demise of the AC is a cloud on the horizon - but we won't worry about it for now.  

Moving on...

The Orphan Collector: A Heroic Tale of Survival During the 1918 Influenza Pandemic by Ellen Marie Wiseman.

Stellar reading...if you are into reading about a previous pandemic all while living through an actual, current day pandemic (or two - if you count monkeypox; which honestly, just HOW much do we have to deal with at one time?).

I'm not even going to post the whole description (which you can find in that link up there).  Just remember how terrifying the beginning of our current day pandemic was.  We had no idea - should we be washing our groceries?  Should we touch the mail?  Every person we came across could be harboring disease.  That is exactly how this story unfolds - they are afraid and with good reason.

The story centers around a thirteen year old girl and a bitter, grief stricken woman and how their lives tragically intersect over and over through the years.

I found and read this book through Prime Reading (which, if you aren't familiar, if you have a Prime account there are books that you can read for free on a device with a Kindle or Kindle app - or you can actually buy a copy.  Or check with your local library) and read this on a device - which I normally don't prefer but it comes in handy every once in a while.  And I tore through this "book" (can I call it a book if I didn't physically hold it?) and was so invested in the story that I regaled The Husband with the plot over lunch one day - and the kicker?  He actually listened and found it fascinating.

The Chain - a book review (Days Three and Four)

 Well, it HAS been a minute since I've done one of these hasn't it?

The Chain by Adrian McKinty is a page turner that's for sure.

Stephen King's blurb alone would have been enough to make me buy the book.

When a mother is targeted by a dangerous group of masterminds, she must commit a crime to save her kidnapped daughter—or risk losing her forever—in this "propulsive and original" award-winning thriller (Stephen King).

"You are not the first. And you will certainly not be the last."  Imagine dropping your child off at the school bus stop and then these are among the first words you hear when you answer the phone.

As a parent, reading this book you realize very quickly that, yes, you WOULD do whatever it takes to bring your child home safely.

If you are looking for a story that pulls you in and keeps you reading way past your bedtime, this might be a book for you.

***

Days Three and Four update:  Nothing new, of course.  Crossing our fingers that tomorrow we get a definitive answer/resolution.

Day Two - and What's Up With Blogger Now?!

 Nothing new to report except the contracted company called and set up an appointment for Monday morning.

Frankly, I was shocked.  I had assumed we wouldn't be able to garner an appointment so soon; particularly since the whole issue arose so late in the afternoon yesterday.

With all the fans/borrowed AC units, the house isn't completely unbearable, so there's that.  We can't decide if we are hoping for the unit NOT to be dead dead or is officially dead and we are just waiting for the death certificate to be signed.  Either way, we know that the unit is either dead or at death's door and we'll have to deal with the hassle of laying it to rest sooner or later.  Currently, I'm leaning toward the diagnosis being dead dead and just getting it over with.

On to Blogger.  All of a sudden, for no apparent reason, ALL of the comments you are so kindly leaving are being put into quarantine - despite the fact that I do NOT have the "Moderate Comments" option on. Fellow Blogger users, is this something you are also experiencing?  Curious minds would like to know.

It's a puzzle, that's for sure.  And although, it wasn't an obvious fix, I finally figured out how to release the comments from quarantine.  So, that's TWO good things for today - we have an appointment to diagnose the AC and your comments are no longer quarantined (for now, anyway - who knows if this is going to be a regular thing or just a glitch).

So, I will end on that note - despite everything else, good things are there...sometimes we just have to actively look for them.  

Day One

Friends.  We knew it was coming.  Especially as we watched the same scenario play out two doors down (on both sides) in the past couple of months.

Our AC died this afternoon...in August, no less.  Of COURSE this couldn't haven't had happened in, I don't know, June! (let's bow our heads and pray that the warranty company comes through...since this is the only damn reason we have that warranty anyway).

But honestly, after the whole hot water saga of 2020 and the no stove for Christmas (also 2020); I am not hopeful.

Especially after discovering our neighbor has the exact SAME home warranty company and was told that it would be WEEKS after their AC died a few weeks ago before it could be replaced.  They ended up buying a new unit and are now fighting with the company for some kind of reimbursement.

Therefore, since my memory is like a sieve, I figure I better document every single detail - especially since I've recently learned that this company has come under fire lately.  I want to be ready to unleash all the gory details, if necessary.

Actually what I am hoping happens is that since they ARE under fire this will be a smooth and not a long drawn out process.

Luckily, we have good friends two doors down (on either side of us now!).  One brought over a heavy duty fan and the other (the one with the same home warranty people) brought over a free standing air conditioner AND a window unit (they bought both when they figured out that the warranty people were weasels).  Plus, we have ceiling fans, a standing fan and a box fan.  

As the evening goes on, it's not terrible in the house; but we shall see what the heat of the day feels like tomorrow.  According to my weather app, it's not supposed to get above 90 degrees for the next four days - that itself is a blessing, I suppose.

So, I guess I'll wrap this up with - let's see how this plays out.

A Satisfying Little Project

 After bringing home a new tinted sunscreen to try, I realized it was WAY past time to jump into cleaning out my make up drawer.

Well, that makes it sound like I have a regular sized drawer chock full of make up products, doesn't it?  That is the farthest thing from the truth.  The drawers in our vanity are ridiculously narrow - almost to the point of being practically useless; but I digress - back to cleaning out said drawer.

This afternoon, while I had a few blissfully quiet hours (i.e., I was home ALONE!  A feat which is rare these days.  At most, I usually get about 30 minutes), I went in and pulled out everything that was crammed into that woefully narrow drawer.  I discovered cracked, un-used cream eye shadows (gone), old mascaras (three - gone), shimmery eye shadows that were so old I don't even remember buying them (gone - besides the days for shimmery eye shadows for me is long gone), "long wear" lipsticks/stains that I bought on a whim to see if they could outlast my CoverGirl Outlast (they didn't - gone), powder (gone), and a BB cream that I swear once you put it on it would stay there till the end of time (nothing could get it off - not even cold cream - gone).

Most of the above wasn't really a huge surprise.  Not in the least.  What DID surprise me is that I have, apparently, somehow been inadvertently acquiring a ridiculously HUGE number of make up brushes.  

Twenty-one, to be exact.

Now, do I actually use ANY of these brushes on a regular basis?

Two on a daily basis - maybe four for a "dress up" event.  So the question remains, where and how did all these brushes come to be stuffed into my make up drawer?  Who knows; it's a mystery for the ages.

At any rate, I cleaned them all and the extra brushes are all set for the next Goodwill drop off - hopefully, they will go to someone who will actually use them.

The only things that went back into that drawer were one eye shadow (used on a daily basis as "eye liner" - much less harsh than actual eye liner, FYI.), two eye shadow palettes that I would use for a "dress up" event (but who are we kidding here?  What dress up events are anywhere on my calendar these days?).  Two mascaras (I'm trying to decide which I like the best).  Blush.  Foundation (also only used for the non-existent "dress up" events).  Concealer.  My two favorite shades of CoverGirl Outlast lipstick (Brazen Raisin and Unique Burgundy), the four brushes that I decided to keep, my eyebrow pencil, cold cream and, of course, the new tinted sunscreen all made the cut.

With this little project out of the way, I was inspired to clean out two of the other drawers and found even more stuff to get tossed or donated.  So now, all of the drawers in the bathroom (minus that last one - it holds my curling irons/flat irons, etc. that I'm not quite ready to give up despite the fact I cannot remember the last time I used any of them and don't expect to use any of them in the near - or far - future) are clean and tidy.

A satisfying little project that will make me smile when I open those drawers tomorrow to get ready for the day.

The library

 Well.  I have to say it IS soothing to know that I am not the only one actually pulling weeds.  Who the heck knows what my neighbors are doing since I never see any of them out there doing the hard work.

At any rate, we are here to talk about the library and my, by now, very obvious aversion of talking on the phone.

For however long this damn pandemic has been going on, I have been trying to access our local library to place books on hold online.  And let me tell you - that website needs some serious work because navigating it (particularly when you can't get access) is a nightmare.

So for the past 100 years (or so), my reading options have been pretty slim.  I've pretty much re-read everything in this house at least once.  And have met any new books that have come in via gifts or from an online order with rapturous delight; as you might imagine.

Recently, I had had enough, so I used the "contact us" feature on the website.  I was absolutely DELIGHTED to receive an immediate response (I can honestly say that while the website was lacking; the customer service was exceptional).

After a few emails back and forth, the person on the other end simply could not find me anywhere in their system - although I've had a library card since we moved here in 1997 (I think.  Who knows anymore?  Time has always seemed to slip through my fingers quickly - the pandemic has exacerbated this to an alarming degree).  This person suggested that I call the library.  Oh, the pain and agony!

As it seems for most of us, I despise making phone calls.  What good is the internet if we can't handle all of our business online, I ask you?  But, as I mentioned, I was fed up, so I placed the call.  The person on the other end was perfectly competent and sweet - but she couldn't find me either.  Then she asked if it had been a while since I used my card.

Well, yeah.  Haven't used it in the past 100 years (or so), plus some prior to the pandemic when I had a plethora of fresh, new books at my fingertips on a daily basis.  She then informed me that most likely my card had expired.  (WHAT?!  Since WHEN do library cards expire?!)  She went on to tell me that I would have to come in to get a new one (see above re: the internet) as they couldn't give me a card without verifying my identity.  

Ok.  I GET why SOME places (banks, DMV, etc.) need to verify my identity - but who in the Sam Hill is stealing people's identity to get a library card? *sigh*

(I KNOW they want to ensure that you are a resident of that particular county; but honestly - just who is driving from one county to another to "scam" libraries out of lending books?)

I thanked the woman and told her I'd see her soon.

This was a lie.

I sat with this information for a few days (ok.  Maybe a few weeks - you know how I can be) before I masked up and walked into a local branch.

The woman I spoke to also couldn't find me in the system and she agreed that it looked like my card had expired and quickly set me up with another one and told me to keep my old one as "keepsake."  Which I promptly tucked back into my wallet - where it will be totally forgotten about in no time and reside for eons.

So. To re-cap it's only taken me 100 years - give or take a few years - but now I can place holds online for books I'd like to read.  And I'm over the moon about it.  Until today, when I went to pick up one of  the "books" that was ready for me - and just in time too, because I'd just finished the last "new" book.  Upon arrival, I discovered I'd put the audio version on hold.  *sigh*  So, despite all that progress, I don't have anything new to read this evening.

Do any of you put off annoying, "little" things for eons?  And then once the ordeal is done think, "that wasn't so bad after all."  Or is that just me?

Bathroom Talk

 Hi!  Yes, I'm still here; you can quit wondering if I've fallen off the face of the earth...for now anyway.

Life - both work and personal -has quieted down quite a bit since my last couple of posts; thank goodness!  And this week has been extra quiet as I gifted myself a week off as a birthday present.  Although, this week has been pretty quiet it HAS been a busy one.  There was weeding to be done on Monday - and you know what I was thinking as I was out there cursing every single weed as I yanked them out?  Am I the only person in this whole wide world that actually weeds?  I never see anyone else out in their flower beds yanking weeds.  What is their secret to keeping the flower beds weed-free?  Anyone have any idea?  If so, spill it in the comments please.

On Tuesday, The Husband decided he was done with my procrastinating ways (I mean come ON.  It took four years to get the damned thing built so what if it's been two months and it's still not painted?) and informed me that we would be painting the built in shelves for the guest bath.  And, apparently, he meant business as he prepped everything and even (despite his loathing for painting) actually helped paint.  So that is done, I'm just giving it a few days to cure before I actually place anything on said shelves.

And in true, "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" fashion, things kind of snowballed from there.  While at The Home Depot to look at options for around the mailbox to help keep the damned grass from encroaching into the flower bed that surrounds the mailbox (a project that will be held off until fall due to the fact that neither of us want to work outside in stifling heat); The Husband suggested that we look at bathroom light fixtures for the guest bath.  He has hated that light fixture since the day we moved in.

This is pretty much what we had in there...

Except ours had clear bulbs and a little bit of rust.  Explain to me WHY light manufacturers would create a light; designed for a bathroom, I might add; that would rust? 

At any rate, we found a light that we both didn't hate and today The Husband pulled the offending fixture down, spackled the wall and plans to sand, paint, and possibly hang the light tomorrow.

As an aside - have you looked that the bathroom light fixtures at your local big box store lately?  Holy cow - yes, I get that taste is subjective - but next time you are in the store take a walk over to that section and have a gander.  I was fascinated - in a I'd give anything to personally see some of the options on offer in someone's bathroom way.  

While we were discussing the whole fixture situation; I mentioned that I really hated the builder grade, standard gigantic mirror in there and wondered if we should remove it; along with random, ugly curtain rod (this house was built in the 90's - so you just KNOW there was some kind of balloon valance in there at some point).  He balked at the idea (of course, because that will require more spackling and painting - plus getting someone to remove it).

My argument was that if we do those two things, in addition to my painting the vanity many moons ago, finally getting the shelving done and the fixture - we would pretty much have a complete makeover in that room on the cheap.  He agreed but is still hesitant.  But I am pretty firmly in the mirror must go camp.  So we shall see how this turns out (the mirror will go...eventually)

So basically, this stay-cation, to date, has been a week of household projects/chores that I've been putting off.   

I posted about burnout...and then, ironically enough, things got even crazier...because of course it did; that's how life works.

 Thank you all for the sweet comments on the last post.  I have really tried hard to cut back - particularly on the weekends and after-hours.

And then, ironically enough, I got far too busy to even respond to any of your comments (or visit many blogs - so sorry).  And then this week hit.

I don't know that I've mentioned it here - I don't think I have.  Or maybe I did.  Who the hell knows at this point and I'm too tired to look into the archives.  

Some of us were in "mandatory" workshops this week and I was one of those "lucky, lucky" people (it is my understanding that ALL employees will undergo this torture exercise eventually - those that haven't had it yet have my deepest sympathy).  These workshops were from 1-5 Monday through Thursday.  Yes, friends.  That is twenty hours of my work week - spread out over four VERY long days.  Who knew that sitting on a Teams call for that long was SO exhausting?  For your information, it IS exhausting.  So much so, that I found myself in bed and fast asleep at 8:30 last night.  And after this, the final day of the workshop, I have a feeling that will happen again tonight.

Now, have I received some good information so far from said workshops?  To a degree - but not enough to warrant this much time out of my work week.  The majority of information does not apply to my job AT ALL.  But upper management seems to think that it does.  Pffft, whatever.  I will say this, some pieces of the workshop made me stop and ponder a few things.  So I guess that means it worked?  At any rate, the very best part was interacting with people across the company.  Some that I knew kind of; others that I never even knew existed and one or two that I actually know and work with.  And as today's session wound down, it seems that for the majority of us, that was the best part.  Now, will we take those new relationships forward as we move on?  We shall see.

And then, as I am desperately trying to keep my head above water on the actual JOB piece of the equation, I notice what is coming next week (major meeting - all hands on deck...whether you need to actually be in the office or not) and I want to cry - BUT bonus, I also get to meet one of my co-workers that I didn't know existed before in person - so that will be nice.

And while ALL of this is going on, there are some other shenanigans going on that I have been battling it out with in another department.

Finally, I had to call on my boss to apprise him of the situation.  I hated to do it - particularly since he is on a much needed vacation - but needs must.  Luckily, right before I came here, he agreed with me and told me to tell them to back off on his orders.  Which I will do, happily...but it will be done tomorrow.

Because right now?  Right now, I *need* a glass of wine (or four) and to take a breath before putting my exhausted self to bed.