Blue-Footed Musings

Today turned into an active day. I had intended to stay home, like usual, but my hubby talked me into going to the library. Not only did we have three boxes plus a bag of books to donate, but we also had some overdue library books. So I hauled all the books there, then renewed my library card. I bought and borrowed some new books, too, because the Universal River of Books flows both ways. (BTW, one of the books I donated was a big, gaudy Bible that had come into our possession. I heard one of the people at the bookstore ooh-and-ah over that Bible, and I had to laugh–everybody has their own taste in books and religion, that’s for sure!)

Later, Livia’s swimsuit arrived in the mail. She tried it on, and of course it did not fit. So I went to the store and bought another one (which mostly fits her, and she adores it). While I was there, I got a haircut. My hair is so much shorter and healthier, but OMG, when did a wash/cut/dry reach $50 in suburbia? I’m out of touch, I guess. I liked the hairdresser, so I might go back to her, but only if I can come to terms with the price tag.

Up in the side yard the partridgeberry was blooming, and the pairs of white flowers were so beautiful, and so were the pink buds and the plush moss, and I stopped to take their pictures though the light was failing and the mosquitoes were humming, so happy to see me that they bit me all over, and now I am itchy, and all the pictures are fuzzy, because no amount of wishful thinking can atone for a lack of light, but the flowers were so beautiful that I could not resist.

• I had to give myself a stern talking-to yesterday, because over the last few days I haven’t been getting my Daily Minimum done. I said to myself, “The Daily Minimum is the best thing to come out of the pandemic, and you’d damned well better keep up with it! Just because you go to Target now doesn’t mean you get to be a slacker!” I had to admit that I was right, and I promised to do better.
• I had my teeth cleaned on Thursday. What a nice feeling it is to have thoroughly clean teeth. But, apparently I have a cavity that could require a root canal. Send a little positive thought my way. I really don’t want to have a root canal.
• I’m going to turn 49 in a few months, and then I’ll officially be on the cusp of 50. Fifty is a big, scary number that ought to be an important milestone, but I’m afraid that instead it will slip by, another blip in a long line of blips, and the next thing I know, I’ll be on death’s doorstep, not even knowing how I got there. So, I have decided that I should, before hitting 50, “clear the table.” That is, I should clean up all my half-finished tasks, eliminate any half-baked dreams or goals that aren’t achievable or that I no longer really care about, so that I can start the second half of my (theoretical) century without all that emotional baggage and with the freedom to move forward in new directions. It’s a good idea, anyway, and something to ponder in detail as my 49th approaches.

• Last week I started to read a Barack Obama interview. I admire Obama, and I am interested in what he has to say, but I couldn’t get past the first few paragraphs. The problem for me is that Obama is such a decent human being–even after the terrible way he was (and still is) treated by some Americans–that the contrast between him and certain other politicians is painful. I can’t stand to be reminded of it.
• I signed Marshall up to get his Covid vaccine in a few weeks. I can’t believe he’s almost 12! He probably won’t be thrilled with the idea of getting another shot in the arm (he just had a bunch of them at his last check-up), but I know he’ll be happy to get his Covid immunity.
• I went from having barely left the house in over a year to being out and about most of the day last Monday. The world seemed, at least on the surface, pretty much as I had left it, though one of my favorite restaurants had gone away (sadly, another loss in a year of many losses). But I got to see my best friend again, and though we couldn’t have lunch at our usual place, we had a good day. It was wonderful to see her again.