Nice day, car woes, not mine

Thank you everyone for great wishes and I had a good day of greeting, cards, posts, messages, calls, a lot of attention.

Including a call from Gary wishing me a happy, and reporting on Mike the Artist Contractor whose ancient van broke down finally at the end of the street. Full court press of neighbors pushed it home. On ice.

Then a call from Mike the AC, wishing me, and reporting on the same thing! He didn't say anything about my car having left so recently now that he needs another ASAP, and I was nice and didn't either.

Amazing the life that pours in on me while I'm sitting peacefully on the sofa reading about one of Henry Eight's six wives. And playing games on the advent calendar.

Vital report: 8" of snow fell here. 

I'm hoping to get a birthday service gift Wednesday, when handsome Son is off work -- errands. To be exact, food to the food pantry, then packages to the PO. Then home for cake and tea. 

My life is just one giddy whirl of frivolity and pleasure. Level One.

Happy day everyone, frivol, and dance in the kitchen.

 

Sez Ted and Big Ursy, too 

Misfits, curry leaf plant and new fiber work

Misfits arrived promptly this morning, and I just had time to put out the returnable packaging.

Limes for a limey, long time since I had any, but I love the flavor. It's a citrus fruit I'm not allergic to, unlike all the orange family.

The cauliflower is for an upcoming cheese cauliflower, plenty of cheeses available for the sauce, and a sturdy Western meal, contrasting to the Asian type of cooking I've been doing. 

Carrots to be steamed and added to the black bean rice dish, and as salad makings. Orzo because I haven't had any for ages and they're fast for quick meals and in soup.  Cannellini beans because I use them all the time, versatile things. 

High end pop tarts, all organic ingredients because it's soon going to be my birthday.  I've made these from scratch in the past. Home baked junk food!

Speaking of birthdays, in the Gratitude book by Oliver Sacks, he talks about, in his eighties, feeling detached from the world. He still cared, but was ready to leave everything to the next generation. 

I'm far from detached, in fact still very actively involved in political action, so we differ greatly there. Soon I'll be in the second half of my eighties, an age Oliver didn't reach. But he was writing after a terminal diagnosis, and I'm in a very different position there.

Anyway I think pop tarts are in order.

The other present I'm giving myself is a set of Tunisian crochet hooks, because I've been making everything on the one big hook available, which is a bit hard on my hands, also limiting. Anyway it belongs to the library, so I can return it to their collection. 

In regular crochet, I'm doing the occasional granny squares in a range of blues and greens, maybe ending as a throw.

Just a handy thing to pick up at odd times.

In celebratory Sag mode, I'll ask Handsome Son to come over on whatever day we are both free, and make me lunch, our usual procedure. It's a visit and a present in one. Then he'll bring down the box of Christmas stuff and we'll set it up. Not much, just a gesture to the festive season.

Meanwhile life goes on in the plant world, see the curry leaf plant has started two groups of baby plants. 

It's so satisfying to grow your own flavoring ingredients. I use curry leaves quite a bit.

Happy day everyone, try not to detach before you need to.

Finally the birthday thing, and Misfits

Handsome Son asked to do his birthday thing mid afternoon today. Soooo, not lunch then, not pizza.

Instead I baked two desserts 

ANZAC biscuits, near as I can get without golden syrup 

And a chocolate cake baked in loaf shape. Misfits is bringing fruit, so there'll be enough treats. That and some folding green will do it.

Pro tip: the ANZAC dough was more than I needed this time, so I converted some to oatmeal for breakfast. What with the oats, butter, honey etc, it was great. Just added milk and cooked stove top.

Beautiful cool weather again, and the patio's looking good 

Between allergy pills and cool nights with a quilt on the bed, great sleeping is happening.

Misfits arrived, complete and nice looking 

Future plans include chicken, roasted, in salad, sliced, made into broth then soup. Ground turkey for meatballs with pasta. Shells for baking with cheese, strawberries to share with Handsome Son, bar of Chocolonely just because. Likewise nectarines and apples, best desserts.

Happy day everyone, life's short, make sure of dessert.

After the storms, anniversary, birthday and Misfits

The storms caused flooding locally, not my street, and damage to trees and shrubs. Gary's hydrangea was destroyed, and he salvaged branches for me to put in water.

So something good came from the storm. 

Today's an emotional day. Handsome Son has his birthday. And it's the anniversary of Handsome Partner's death, at home in hospice care. He went home in the early evening of our son's birthday, with only Handsome Son present. I'd stepped out for a minute.

We'll celebrate the birthday when HS is free to come over. I expect to make a chocolate cake. Maybe there will be takeout pizza, his choice of toppings.

Misfits box arrived,  reminding me that daily life comes crowding in anyway

with the ingredients for a Yeung Man Cooking recipe involving oyster mushrooms, miso tofu, soy sauce, and other ingredients I already have.

Lovely fruit, cherries, peaches, plums,

this is a good year for stone fruit. 

With berries and salad greens, as well as the yogurt I just made, can't go far wrong. And the plant based sausage goes with a lot of ideas, mostly quick ones.

I wonder if today's events are the reason I was struggling recently? Your body knows even when you don't.

Anyway happy day everyone, especially people with August birthdays, powerful Leos.

Photo AC 

Lovely day to start my year

 Yesterday was full of wishes and greetings and visits, thank you for your part,  with more to come next week. Handsome son brought lunch he'd made, chicken breast, garlic, mozzarella melted with big crisp rolls. Dessert was a miniature Italian fruited bread, a gift from my cleaning family. 

Lovely afternoon, and he brought down the box of little Christmas ornaments and set them up around the place.

 

He also accepted my printer and scanner to replace his non working ones, which he will take to be recycled. I never use them nowadays. And we made Christmas day plans, another easy dinner.

Then later, in the evening, Gary and the well neighbor came over with cake and cream and ice cream, to wish me. We had a lovely evening chatting and eating cake, and she accepted an artwork she loves, a stitched piece, for her house. 

I talked about why this was fine for me, too, overcame her hesitancy, and she went away happy. It's a good artwork that's been exhibited, admired, and came home with me. Now it's where it's loved, yay!

Gary was a bit dismayed about my plans to move the big plants to the library, but was persuaded it's okay. He hates change unless he's doing it!

All in all, one of the best birthdays. Just what I like, home, chatting with one or two people, good food. I'm very lucky.

Interesting that I managed free cycling even yesterday!

Happy day, everyone, and go find this video on YouTube, my favorite school nativity play ever

Talk about fighting the good fight!

 

Photo AC

Yay me! A much better Christmas across the street

 So I seem to have made it halfway through my ninth decade, and thank you everyone who messaged and emailed and sent electronic and paper cards and wishes already!

At least we think this is the right day. Back where I was born, homebirths with records only in the official log of the midwife, carried away with her,  the father had to go to the town hall to register a new baby. 

My mother wasn't well after the birth, and, one thing and another, it was after Christmas, big family, busy time, that he finally got there. Knowing him, he'd forgotten the exact date, so much going on, and I suspect estimated the likely date! Anyway this is my official bday, fight me! 

He also got the wrong name, having completely forgotten Mom's choice by the time he got to the church for the baptism. This was always performed asap after birth, because you never know. She wasn't up to the walk, babies always carried to church, so Dad did the honors. 

When the priest asked the new baby's name, they had a quick male conference and ended up naming me for the priest's mother. Which turned out to be the same as my mom's name. Which sent her as ballistic as she felt up to being, when we got home,  since she hated the Old Tom, Young Tom tradition of her brother's family and didn't want an Old Liz and a Young Liz in her own!  Terrific guy in many ways, physically one of the most courageous of men, my dad, but not clerically  gifted.

Yesterday Gary came over to wish me a happy bday and  check my tire pressures! He had the compressor out anyway for the neighbor across the street, so he did his and mine, too. I returned the bday wishes, since his was last week, you might have guessed he's a hellbent Sag!

This is a great Christmas for the neighbor across the street, this time last year newly diagnosed with cancer and facing chemo, this year tests clear, feeling fine! Hence the tree, no tree last year.

And Gary helping unload.

Yesterday was the smallest misfits box ever, missing eggs, 

Everything yellow or orange or pinkish.  Every now and then I have enough food in the house to cut way back on ordering. 

And since I can officially start the Christmas season, here goes

They'd have arrived on time, too, no wandering hopelessly across the desert for twelve days, not asking the way, claiming a star was leading them.

Happy day, everyone, and I hope you get as long and happy a life as I'm lucky enough to have

Final (!) arrangements, and good plans

 So yesterday's meeting went well and took ages, many parts, and we were in a lounge sort of room, probably a viewing room, nice furniture, low annoying music in the background. 

The young woman working with me was very considerate, turned off the music for me, when I explained it was cutting out her voice, asked me how to address me, yay, and ran to get a mask when she saw mine.

There were various forms to fill out  then print up, the office part done elsewhere in the building, I suppose they're tactfully trying not to look too businesslike. 

I was very firm about wanting the cheapest everything. They're respectful anyway, as I know from the way they took care of Handsome Partner. I'm sending a check in the full amount today, could have done it yesterday but I'd neglected to make sure of my bank balance, and they don't have guest WiFi, so I couldn't check on the spot.

Its coming out at $3,800+, only a bit more expensive than Handsome Partner twelve years ago.

She's very good at her job, discussing her own experience in the business and her plans eventually to own a home conducting green funerals. She's picked out a willow casket for herself, showed me the picture! But I'm still going for a cardboard box and cremation, and a box of ashes home to Handsome Son.

So that's done, and I feel so much better getting everything taken care of this week, doctor visit, house cleaned, cremation organized, puzzle back to library, online chair yoga registered for.  The Shakuhachi effect at full throttle.

I had more to write about today, but I'm a bit tired after the emotional exertion yesterday. Tomorrow Handsome Son comes to cook me a favorite lunch as a birthday present, on the right day, first time he's been free in years on the right day. 

Happy day, everyone, whatever it brings, it's all okay.

Day after thanks

 Thank you for all the good wishes yesterday, in fact

I had a lovely day, warm at home reading and knitting and receiving good wishes by text and ecard and email and blog, including Sparkling M's inspired foray into Arabic!

I had to be out in the morning to leave a clear field for the cleaners, who left me a Christmas card and this lovely little plant

A Christmas cactus, so long since I had one and I hope it will keep its buds. It's now out of the cellophane and foil jacket. So I did get flowers.

Then later Gary came over to visit, bringing this

 

A large share of his own birthday cake, from his daughter, his birthday being two days ago. He also was given a seafood dinner, eerie similarities. He's much younger though, s kid in his seventies.

So that was a lovely day, and more greetings this morning. 

Let's celebrate, while we're thinking women and Arabic, this wonderful scientist 

I finished the third pair of gloves 

and they'll go off as soon as the minor flooding in the neighborhood from the last two day rainstorm has abated.

Happy day everyone, enjoy your day, birthday or unbirthday. It's someone's birthday somewhere, may as well celebrate.