multitasking

 Yesterday I spent a lot of time watching TV news.  Today, I chose to ignore all that and do some other things, all at once.  Yes, I can multitask, kind of.  This afternoon I made a big pot of spaghetti.        I had some for supper, delicious, and froze five servings.  While the sauce was simmering, I downloaded some church related forms and started working on those.  Every so often I jumped up to stir the sauce.  Meanwhile Rhoda vacuumed the living room and dining room and she did a good job.  She wandered around for over an hour, stopped once so I could empty her little bin, and, when she decided she was finished (it looks good to me) she put herself to sleep in her little docking station.  Does it really count as multitasking if a machine is doing your work for you?  It works for me.  (Pun intended.)

It's not so clear

 Next week Wednesday I will be having my first cataract surgery.  I wasn't particularly concerned.  I have great confidence in my doctor and the testimony of several friends that have had cataract surgery with excellent results.  Today I became even less concerned.  My first surgery will be on my left eye and then I will have the surgery on the right eye three weeks later.  Because of the gap between the two procedures it was recommended that I have the left lens taken out of my glasses so I can still wear them to help my right eye.  So I took my second best pair of glasses in today and the technician removed the left lens and replaced it with a nonprescription lens.  I put them on and discovered that I really can't tell any difference in my left eye.  Prescription, nonprescription, my left eye just looks blurry.  So now I'm even less concerned.  I'm actually excited to think I might be able to see with my left eye.  Of course when it comes to my right eye, I might be more apprehensive since that's the one I see with.

I'm stuck...

 I like to think that my daughter's first word was mommy but I don't actually remember.  I do however remember her first phrase.  One evening, when she was supposed to be asleep. I heard her calling "Stuck, Mommy, stuck."  When I checked out the situation it turned out that her foot had slipped down between the mattress and the side of the crib and she couldn't quite pull it out.  I rescued her and she did, eventually, settle down and fall asleep.  What reminded me of this little episode was my feeling of being stuck this evening with nothing to write about.  I blame it on the weather.  Even the weatherman said during his report this evening that we're stuck with heavy cloud cover.  I had noticed that. since there really hasn't been much else to notice.  I know that the sun will shine again eventually.  It is, after all, only six months til July, but in the meantime I wouldn't mind a pretty snowfall, especially if it lands only on the grass.  Oh wait he just predicted freezing fog for morning.  Seems like the clouds are stuck too and sinking fast.  Before I start thinking of political parallels I think I'll just go to sleep.

a double day

 Today is National Trivia Day and also National Spaghetti Day so I have decided to share some personal trivia.  

Spaghetti is my favorite food but only the way I make it.

Tomato soup is my least favorite food in the world/

I like dark beer, but only two or three a year.

I eat carrots for breakfast.

I was the tallest girl in my high school.  I hated being tall then, but like it now.  

Over the years I have been pet mom to two dogs, five cats (not all at the same time) two white mice, two hamsters, and a boa constrictor.

I have lived in eight cities.

I have traveled to 22 countries.

My first car was a Corvair and yes, I did roll it over.

That's it for tonight and I'm sure that it's more than you ever wanted to know.

hearing things

 Last night I happened to be awake about 1:00am.  I was in bed but reading a good book when I realized I was hearing a really loud weird noise.  Sort of a very loud droning sound.  I knew it wasn't a train, at least not like any I usually hear.  It wasn't the downtown siren that they test at noon on the first Wednesday of every month. It wasn't the fire alarm in my building.  While I listened (it went on for several minutes) I recalled recent reports I've heard on the news about strange howling noises heard in some far away parts of the world and began to wonder if this was going to go on for hours or days.  The thought crossed my mind that it might have something to do with work on the deep tunnel.  Finally it faded away and I fell asleep.  I didn't think anything more about it until I heard a report on this evening's news.  Evidently several people reported hearing the noise which I found very reassuring.  It's good to know I wasn't imagining things.  Unfortunately no one seems to have any idea about what it was.  Perhaps by tomorrow we will have an answer or maybe it will remain a mystery.  Either is fine as long as I don't need to listen to it again. 

PS it was not my Roomba run amuck. 

Service with a smile....

 I watched a British comedy this evening called "Are You being Served?"  It takes place in a very old style department store somewhere in England and, in some ways, reminds me of Wolf & Dessauer's.  I was talking with a friend who moved here a few years ago, but long after the end of W&D's.  We were talking about the big Santa Claus on display downtown and I was describing how it used to hang on the side of W&D's and that led to a description of the store.  When I was a young teen shopping in downtown Fort Wayne was a twice a year treat.  Spring and fall my mother and I would dress up and drive to Fort Wayne from little old Woodburn to shop.  In the fall it might be school clothes and shoes, in the spring an Easter hat and maybe a new dress in the color of that year.  We were never in a position to spend much money but we did have fun.  Just riding the escalator and elevator was exciting.  I especially liked the elevators.  There was a speaker system that said things like "Fifth floor, women's lingerie.  Third floor, men's better suits."  and so on.  You get the idea.  The new elevator recently installed in my apartment building reminds me a little of those old elevators.  It doesn't give a list of who lives on each floor (probably just as well) but it does announce tmy floor number in a perky feminine voice.  I might have preferred a sexy man's voice but nobody asked me.  

Happy New Year

 Today is the very first day of a brand new year and so far it seems to be off to a good start. At least if you didn't have to drive anywhere.  I did eat sauerkraut. thereby ensuring a good year and I also added to my list of things I never need to experience. My west coast brother reminded me that, in some communities, today is also Polar Plunge Day.  Not the least bit, never have been even slightly tempted to strip down to my swim suit and jump into freezing cold water on January 1 or any other day.  Let's face it.  The only water I really enjoy jumping into is a hot shower.  I didn't see any coverage of a local Polar Plunge today so I have to assume that it's another activity that fell victim to Covid 19 restrictions.  I have to wonder how many usual participants were really very upset to learn that they couldn't take the plunge this year.  I'm guessing that at least were not that upset.