T.G.I.F.

Awoke at 3 a.m. last two days.

That’s not good, as it generally signifies a disturbance in the force. Something unsettling going on within the family unit.

I don’t feel like it’s anything serious, just something unwise that’s going to cause me more worry than the worry family already causes.

I never did figure out why the song "Ding Dong the Witch is Dead" played over and over in my head a few months ago, and still occasionally does. I’ve had to deal with so many witches in the past that it’s hard to decipher which one, but I did research those that traumatized me and found nothing. Not on Facebook, not LinkedIn, nor the obits, so I’m assuming not everyone maintains a social media presence or gets a death notice published.

I know I never could find an obit for Jim.

As I was suiting up for this morning’s workout, I thought I heard the sound of paving trucks here to complete the job. (The sound you heard in that last video was not the pavers, they didn’t show up that day. It was the trash truck rolling through).

Alas, I was wrong because, heading out, I could see half of the front entrance and the opposite side of the building still undone and no crew in sight.

Oh well, that side of the complex doesn’t involve me, so I’m just happy the inconveniences to my side are over with.

At least I think they are because, when I showed Trainer the video I’d posted yesterday, he said not only was the paving a lousy job but part of the problem with the cracking — which btw, looks even worse today, was that no sealant was applied.

He doesn’t think the crew plans on coming back at a later date (but who can be sure), to do that sealing because sealant precedes striping and striping has been done. It quickly followed paving that day when the crew was hauling arse to try to make up for lost time.

So there’s that.

Today was Bingo Friday, so I hurried to switch out of workout clothes, hurried down to the Community Room to claim my preferred seat before Hell on Wheels got there first.

I beat her again.

It’s been a long dry spell for me insofar as a bingo win. I can’t even remember the last time I had a win. I’m usually one number short before someone else yells Bingo!, but it was a lively group of residents and I always have fun.

Red Light’s son donated roses to the group for Mother’s Day. We each received one red, one yellow.

The rose I received from the insurance agent on Tuesday is holding up well, so I added these to that same vase.

It's beginning to look a lot like Mother's Dayish up in here.

Hopefully, I get to sleep straight through tonight. If not, at least it’s the weekend, I have no place I must go, nothing I must do, so I can rest and try to catch up on sleep.

Funny You Should Ask

Finally had a good night’s sleep. Slept all the way through and woke up with a song in my head that I can’t shake — Ding Dong the Witch is Dead.

Right away I’m thinking of Henrietta, Jane, Joyce — the three witches that made my working life so traumatic years ago.

None of the three are popping up on Legacy’s obituary site. Too soon maybe?

The song is still in my head, so hopefully which witch is which will be made known to me somehow some way.

Of course, there’s the Black Witch — the resident who tried to bully me, called me the B word at bingo.

She’s done no damage, is not important enough for a song to be in my head but, if by chance the song is about her, I’ll know soon enough.

There was a ping on the phone at 8:21 this morning. It was a message from the dental office — "Thank you for being a patient. We would really like your feedback. Rate your experience with us here and we’ll enter your name into our raffle to win a $200 gift card".

How’s that for timing.

The plan was to hold off firing the dental office until AFTER I’d found a new dentist, hopefully before January 19 — the date scheduled for me to return for the necessary crown and additional unnecessary work they’d planned to scam me for.

Cats out of the bag now because my reply was — "Funny you should ask, as I’m currently in the process of seeking dental care elsewhere".

As of today, I have two options, both with great reviews and both who appear to focus on quality care, rather than quantity.

In retrospect, I think that’s why so many dentists are scammers. With these dental conglomerates that have offices in many locations, there is the need for each dentist in each location to earn his spot, bring in as much money as he can. Whereas, with the two I’m looking at, they’ve been in business for many years, same location with focus not on becoming bigger and better, expanding, but maintaining patient loyalty.

No. 1 is an all-female dental office. No. 2 is a "holistic" dentist.

Needing a crown ASAP, the all-female office is problematic as they are on holiday until Monday, January 2nd.

The holistic dentists is reading as expensive, but can schedule me for a consultation Tuesday, January 3rd.

The deciding factor will be if I hear from the all-female dental office on Monday and how soon they can schedule me for consultation and the crown work as compared to how soon the holistic dentist can do the work.

No one won the Mega Million last night, so here we go again with my feeling compelled to take my chances until someone finally wins.

I had invested $10 in last night’s drawing, won $4 back. The pot is up to $640 milliion now, so I’ll be purchasing more tickets after this morning’s workout.

Can’t win if you don’t play.

The Day After

Christmas Day came and quietly went, feeling more like a normal day rather than a holiday, especially since today is Monday and business as usual.

Trainer is not taking today off, so it's a workout this morning.

The Elf has gone back to the North Pole — not to be seen until next December, but before he left, I was able to hunt him down one last time.

The Security Guard was in conversation with a customer. So, though he saw me, I hurried past his post before he could interrupt his conversation, tell me where the Elf was hidden.

The plan for Christmas Day was to get caught up on sleep.

Sleep last two weeks has been tossing, turning, waking up anywhere between 1 and 3 a.m., meditating, browsing TikTok until I felt sleepy again, then arising at my regular time feeling unrested, bags under my eyes.

Sleep did not come Christmas Day.

Instead, to keep my mind off things I did not want to think about — like family relationships and my anger/frustrations with the new dental office, I stayed busy. Worked on that needlepoint, made more tamales — as I'm down to the last two of those made three weeks ago and, while the rest of you were probably watching Holiday movies, I was watching/listening to the Snapped Marathon.

The day before (Christmas Eve), I binge watched Homicide for the Holidays — featuring family annihilators.

The upset with the dental office began on Thursday, when I went in for a cleaning and learned the dentist I was becoming comfortable with was no longer with the office, and my first interaction with his replacement was his pulling the same padding the bill crap that caused me to leave the last office.

One would think he'd at least get to know me before trying to screw me, but nooooo.

Not only was he coming up with work that, at my age, I feel doesn't need to be done, but he missed the one thing that does need attention — a tooth that is vertically broken, in need of a crown. It was the hygienist who detected it, not Mr. DDS.

It's just so frustrating that, ever since Dr. McDreamy's practice was taken over by crooks with quotas to meet, that I can't find a dentist that is not a crook trying to bring in as much money as he can.

I don't imagine it will do me any good to look for yet another dentist, as I now feel this new breed are all crooks. I'll just have to learn how to manage this particular crook — let him do the crown, dig in my heels and not allow him to talk or scare me into anything else.

At any rate, this frustration with the dental office, having occurred just before the Holiday began, sent me on a downward spiral of filling my head with mayhem and murder, rather than heartwarming Holiday movies/baking competitions and added to my restless sleep.

One of those mornings when I’d tossed/turned myself awake at an ungodly hour, I entertained myself on TikTok and ran across an interesting story about a kid named Jeremy who had a beef with Santa.

Jeremy’s letter to santa started off "Deer Santa. i am riting this on the day after x-mas and i am very sad. i only received 1 of the 2 presents i asked for. Sense you ate my cookys i will asoom that my missing gift wuz a miss take. i will give you 1 week too fix this."

Santa (actually his parents) replied, "Dear Jeremy, I’m sorry you are disappointed with your presents. You asked for two very expensive presents and Santa can only do so much. You need learn to be grateful for what you have, not upset about what you don’t. If you continue to complain I will have no choice but to add you to the naughty list next year."

That reply seems to have enraged Jeremy, who then wrote, "Deer Fahy (fatty), your threats don’t scare me i played your game and you did not deliver. This is nOt Oke. i will give you 1 week and then you will pay. P.S. i don’t know why you care that it is expensive when you have Elf Slaves to make thingS for you. i think you are naughty for having slaves."

Santa replied, "Dear Jeremy, You are being a very bad little boy. Because you cannot be happy with what you have, I have talked to your parents and told them to take away your Wii U. Now you have nothing. Once you learn to be grateful, perhaps you can have it back. I am very disappointed in you, Jeremy. You will need to be an extra good boy this year if you want to make it back on the nice list."

It was at this point Jeremy went completely off the rails, replying, "Deer Santa, i do not like that stunt you pulled with my parents. You are on my naughty list now. Be afraid. You look slow and easy to kill. Enjoy your cookys next year because they will be pOisOn."

I don’t know if Jeremy is a real little boy or if this is a joke but, if Jeremy is real, then the Tooth Fairy had better not cross him.

Sleep Deprived

Lack of sleep notwithstanding, I managed to drag myself through yesterday’s morning workout and bingo after.

I actually had completely forgotten about bingo so, instead of heading home to change out of my workout wear so I could arrive on time, I headed for the other market because I was desperate for two items I’ve been unable to find elsewhere.

If you will recall, in order to get away from the creepy flirtatious security guard at the corner market, I switched to a market other end of the area that I generally only went to for two specific items I could never find anywhere else.

That market was working fine until the kid cashier I’d seen around for years bringing in carts, bagging groceries, got a promotion to cashier, whereupon he became a little too friendly — invited me to a party at his place.

Luckily for me, it was about that same time I learned from Trainer, who had friends working at the corner market, that the security guard I'd fled from was no longer employed there, so I switched back to escape the kid.

Able to again shop at the corner market, the other market having problems restocking the two items I needed from them because of the supply chain thing, I had no reason to go back and had not been back since March. That is until yesterday, when I decided to take a chance the two items were back in stock, and I could get in/out without running into that kid cashier or that maybe by now he'd not remember me.

Luckily, he wasn’t around, and I was able to score all they had of Alexia Roasted Potatoes (one package) and two packages of Ore-Ida Steamed and Mashed potatoes.

Don’t judge.

I cook not because I want or like to, but because I have to and if there's a frozen item that will help me avoid prep work, I'm on it.

At any rate, heading to the other market I spotted that random woman, the woman who'd gotten all paranoid when she thought I’d taken a photo of her exiting the complex after swimming in the pool.

She was coming down the street, from I know not where, carrying a towel, appearing to be headed for another day at the pool.

The photo I’d taken of her previously was on accident — she just happened to be in the background, but I’d planned to take a photo on purpose when I returned.

So, returning from the market, I checked the pool area but did not see her. It may be the two guys sitting out front made her think twice about sneaking in.

She needn’t have worried. Pretty girl like that, the guys would have gotten up out of their walkers, gladly unlocked the gate and held it open for her to enter.

Since she wasn’t in our pool, maybe she detoured to the pool in the building next door. Their office people have reported chasing street people out of and away from their pool as well.

Though, I didn’t see random woman in our pool, I did run into a resident on her way to bingo, which served as a reminder .... ah yes, it's Friday, Bingo Day.

With no time to switch out of workout wear into my lucky shirt, I arrived just as Game 1 was beginning AND, because I’d not worn that lucky shirt, won not a single game.

I wasn't disappointed, as there wasn't anything on the prize table I wanted and there was plenty of other excitement besides winning going on.

For instance, while we were playing, two cop cars drove through the gate.

Hmmmmmm?????

Also, while we were playing, we spotted Karen hanging suspiciously around outside front of the building.

Hmmmmmm?????

She wasn't fooling anyone trying to look like she had a legitimate purpose for hanging around outside.

At one point, someone yelled out, "Oh No!" ... (It wasn’t me this time). We all turned, including Dream Lover, and saw Karen had moved from outside to inside the lobby. She was standing outside of the Community Room entry door staring at us.

When she saw us all looking at her and that she'd caught the attention of Dream Lover, she smiled and waved at him. He turned his back on her, whereupon one of the ladies sitting at his table yelled "Go away" and gave her the universal shoo, scoot, go away hand gesture.

Karen couldn’t hear "Go away" through the closed door, but she certainly understood sign language and fled quick like a bunny.

I began ROFLMAO!

As we continued to play, just as we took a break and I was headed to my unit to get a cup of coffee to take back with me, a fire truck came through the gate, followed by an ambulance.

One of the two police cars that had originally entered was positioned in front of Painted Rock Lady’s (PRL) unit. The firetruck and ambulance stopped in the same location.

It was the trifecta — police, fire, ambulance, so I walked over to verify it was PRL’s unit they were entering.

It was.

Bless her heart, it was not looking good.

Red Light says it's a ploy, that PRL is looking for sympathy and forgiveness because she's no longer trusted, but I dunno. It looked serious, and the ambulance took her away.

Bad Penny

Remember that dental office I asked to take me off their patient list … the one I blasted in a Yelp review? Well, just like the proverbial bad penny, they’ve turned up again.

There was a message on my phone, timed shortly after 3PM Tuesday, saying they were calling to "schedule an appointment to continue my treatment plan".

That would be the treatment plan the dentist wrote up for an additional $5,000+ worth of unnecessary dental work, over the $3,000 or so he got outa me before I woke up.

I gotta give it to them for chutzpa.

This is the first time I’ve had a dental office call ME in what can only be interpreted as a move to drum up business, rather than my calling to schedule necessary care. 

So, does this mean they’ve milked all they can from us long-time clients of the office before they took over? Are we leaving in droves? Is business declining to where they are now desperate?

I dunno but I won’t be giving them the courtesy of a return call to repeat "take me off your patient list, I’ve moved on".

This week has been moving fast. Can’t believe it’s Friday already, and up until Wednesday it has been a very good week. THEN I had one of those convoluted overwhelming dreams that can’t be interpreted but left me with a sense of there being a disturbance in the force.

That dream was followed by my tossing and turning all of last night, resulting in waking up this morning somewhat exhausted as I try to figure out if this sense of dread/disturbance in the force is related to something going on in the family or has to do with residents here at the complex or elsewhere.

Unfortunately, I can never pinpoint where this sense of uneasiness will land. It's a time will tell kinda thing.

Last time I went through this was when it landed elsewhere.

I still think of him often and fondly. He was so fun.

Picking up mail yesterday, I halfway expected to see that random woman availing herself of our pool again. Instead, it was a resident I didn’t recognize and what I assume to be her three grandkids.

As I responded to a comment by blog buddy Mike, over at Billions of Visions of Normal, that the pool has no cover, is subject to direct sunlight, I’d assumed the water was warm, rather than refreshingly cool, so I asked the kids "Is the water warm?"

They assured me "No. It’s cold".

I don’t know how it could be, unless there’s a special mechanism to keep it so, but afraid I’d tip over and fall in, I didn’t dip my toe in to verify.

Then There Were None

Opening up the blinds to sunshine in the morning, looking down from the patio, there’s been that pop of color for me to look at.

“Take Pride” Painted Rock

Returning to the complex yesterday, from that mix-up that sent me to three different malls, I found Jan had graced my walkway with three additional pops of color.

Hallelujah

Dream Big

Make it Happen

Once upstairs in my unit, I tried to take a photo of the new view, looking down from the patio, but the sun was shining straight into the phone lens. I decided that when I awoke this morning, I’d take a pic for you.

Last night’s sleep was interrupted at 2:12 a.m., by someone doing laundry.

The complex is so peaceful and quiet late night, early morning, that one can hear a pin drop. Thus, it was, I could hear the washer door being slammed shut, and then the sound of water gushing into the washer.

Who are these residents who wait until well after posted Laundry Room hours to do laundry?

No one knows.

At any rate, unable to fall back asleep, I logged onto the laptop, replied to a comment, then watched a few TicTok videos, until I felt sleepy again — along about 4 a.m., waking up, raring to go, at 6 a.m.

Remembering to take that photo, I grabbed the phone, opened up the patio door, looked down and ……. nothing.

Not a pop of color in sight.

ALL the painted rocks were gone.

What the hey!

It wasn’t maintenance skulking around late night removing just the rocks along my walkway, and the fact that ALL were gone makes me think it wasn’t someone wanting a souvenir but, rather, someone like Negative Nelly who takes offense, doesn’t like ‘em, wanted them gone.

Can’t be Negative Nelly herself — the woman I’m itching to rebuke. She lives way on the other side of the complex. Gets no nearer to my walkway, than the mail center around the corner.

My guess is the creepy girl downstairs — Illusive Unfriendly, who shouldn’t even be living here because she’s not 55, not even in her 50’s yet.

Hopefully, Jan will see the area devoid of color and fill ‘er up again.

I’m seriously thinking of purchasing a motion activated camera. One that doesn't have to be installed, attached to a wall or anything, but something easy to set up that I can place in the patio chair, capture Illusive Unfriendly or, if I’m wrong, whoever it is in the act.

A motion-activated camera in the chair would also help me capture photos of the humming birds lulled daily to my patio by the red chair. Finding no sugar water, they sometimes fly right up to the patio window and look straight at me, like where's the nectar, you mean old lady. 

I’ve grabbed for the phone to take a video, but they’re too quick, curse me out and leave before I can hit record but, yesterday, I was fast and managed to at least get a pic.

I thought about putting up a sugar water feature for the little guys, but read that the nectar in direct heat goes bad rather quickly and my patio takes a direct hit from the sun, no shade.

A motion activated camera would serve dual duty — capture the person removing those pops of color AND produce nice shots of the humming birds.

Any ideas on an outdoor cam, preferably battery operated, that can be placed in the chair?

Right As Rain

I never could have imagined I’d be on my feet and working out in the Pain Cave this Monday morning. But there I was doing a full body back and bicep routine, 3.2 on the treadmill in-between sets. On little sleep I might add because, after no problem sleeping my life away all of last week, I was so excited about being able to work out again that I tossed, turned, had insomnia last night.

Catching up on what's been happening around the complex, while I was in last week’s self-induced coma … the Monthly Calendar indicates that staff has reopened the office area, clubhouse, game room … but “with restrictions”.

But get this …. Instead of indicating on the calendar what these restrictions are, we’ve been instructed to “call office for more information”.

Won’t be playing that game.

Put the restrictions in print.

I also see there’s to be an activity — “Summer Movies in the Park” management calls it.

On Friday, June 18, on the Grassy Knoll next to my building, the movie “Get Out” is to begin at dusk.

That’s actually a good idea.

Get Out is a really interesting movie. So interesting that I myself have viewed it like a zillion times.

I find it hard to imagine there might be others around here who’ve not seen it but, whether they have or have not, desperate for a community activity, many might bring lawn chairs and show up for the viewing.

Again, though I can’t imagine anyone has not seen Get Out but, just in case you haven’t …… it’s a horror comedy that deals with racism.

Black people are abducted, and what was done to them is sort of like what Psychic Jeanne Dixon described as a Walk in situation  — one consciousness voluntarily walks out of a body, another consciousness walks in. Only, in Get Out, it's not voluntary. Instead, White people — in need of the Black person’s skill or physique,  walks in and takes over the Black body, after the Black person's conscious awareness of himself/herself is forced into a dark place in the background of the body. 

The pitfalls of being Black are not addressed in the movie, but I like to think the joke is on the Whites, seeking Black bodies .... giving up their White Privilege to live life in Black skin.

At any rate, it’s a fascinating movie — not horror bloody gore, except for one medical procedure I always turn away from.

I am not interested in hanging with the folks outside, when I can pop the CD into the laptop and watch Get Out any time I want, but I will head down to see the lawn setup.

Are they going to screen it on the exterior of one of the buildings?

Are they going to set up some kind of viewing screen?

Or is it something stupid, like setting up a TV on the lawn — expecting all those present to be able to see and hear?

I also want to head down, for a hot minute, to take roll call — see who, of the old group, are still around. Having not seen, for over a year, the man chasing Not Dead Nancy, or the married couple (married 35 years) who got into a physical fight with each other, I’ve been wondering what's happened to them.

If residents show up, I might also get an idea of whose been moving in, as there has been indication of two such recent move-ins.

None of the movement was in my quad.

Sue’s upstairs, across the quad, unit is still vacant.

Took the guys a long time to get it ready for a new tenant, because of so much work having to be done because of Sue’s smoking inside — plus, Sue had a dog.

No word yet on whether Bourgeois sealed the deal.

Bourgeois is the woman who complained about how unhappy she was while living here, couldn’t wait to get out, so to speak (LOL) but now wants to return — the only holdup being she’d have to pay $2500 to compensate for all the work it took to clear the place of her having smoked inside the unit she occupied before she was so happy to move out that last time.

Bourgeois is the second person I personally know of as having moved out and wanting to come back. The first being Veronica.

Bourgeois can lease a unit if she forks over the dough management wants, but management refused to lease again to Veronica, who then tried to skirt around management by making arrangements to move in with another resident.

I don’t know the specifics of why management didn’t want Veronica back, but Veronica pulled a fast one on those of us who were friends with her.

She knocked on my door one night asking to borrow $40. I gave it to her no hesitation, no question.

Two or three days later, when I ran into her, she couldn’t look me in the eyes and instead of greeting me said, “I’m gonna get your money back to you”.

$40 wasn’t going to break me and, to tell you the truth, I’d thought nothing more of it until she made that statement which, to me, was an indication the $40 was a gift, not a loan … and I was okay with that. I'd just never "loan" her money again.

After that, I didn’t see Veronica around at all. So I asked The Seer, “Is Veronica okay … I haven’t seen her around?” and was informed Veronica had moved …. to Texas or New Orleans, some place out-of-state I can’t recall.

I had to laugh at being taken-in so smoothly. I laughed even louder when I learned I wasn’t the only one she’d “borrowed” $40 from that night.

Would have been interesting to see how Veronica planned to face us all had she come back, but moving in with another resident never happened. In fact, the resident, who was going to allow Veronica to move in, was herself on management’s short list — for maintaining her unit in deplorable condition (she was a hoarder), and got herself evicted shortly after.

Play it straight, do the right thing — don’t smoke in a no smoking complex, don’t con your friends, and Karma might not have to teach you a lesson.

Oh, and btw. Just in case you missed it.

Plot Twist

Just when I’d gotten my post-quarantine procedures in place — decided where I’d go, what I’d do, where I’d not go, what I’d not do, granddaughter threw in a monkey wrench.

She’s getting married … in two weeks.

A road trip, for any reason, was something I wasn’t planning on for a long time coming.

Pre-pandemic road trips were already a stressful thing, in that I can’t handle a long drive, an activity that day, turn around and drive back. I have to drive up the day before an event, rest up in a hotel room, attend the activity the next day, return to the hotel and rest up for the drive back the following morning. Not to mention all the hassle involved in feeding myself in a hotel room, because my gut issues won’t allow eating out.

All that was pre-pandemic and now, in order to attend the wedding, I have the normal travel stress with the added threat of infection — travelers around me in the lobby, in elevators, guests at the wedding, the hotel room itself.

The couple had planned to marry … eventually and, if the world hadn’t changed the normal travel stress for their wedding would have been manageable, but plot twist — the world did change. Granddaughter was in the process of having expensive dental surgeries when the quarantine hit, subsequently lost her health insurance, so a decision was made to fast track the wedding to get on his insurance.

Their initial fast track plan was to do a courthouse wedding now, a larger wedding in the fall, but courts only allow one guest and they wanted their families to be present; thus a backyard wedding — limited to 15 guests, and a larger reception party next year.

Understandable reasoning, smart and necessary on their part but, all things considered, too risky on my part.

Though I was sure granddaughter would be disappointed if I didn’t attend, I personally didn’t feel my attendance was all that important. Family rarely gets to see me in person as it is, and granddaughter’s mom (Twin 1) would surely attend, her aunt (Twin 2) would probably drive up for the wedding, and granddaughter’s three brothers most likely would be there for her.

So after a sleepless night of considering the pros, cons, granddaughter’s hurt feelings, my feelings, what’s best and right for me won out. Solidified by my waking up to some official on the news saying that because people are stupid ─ my interpretation of her announcement, and because we’re reopening too soon ─ again my interpretation, we are now reaching “Critical Mass” ─ her words.

At any rate, granddaughter took my declining to attend well, when I called her a little while ago, saying she understood and would try to work something out where I can at least view the ceremony on Instagram.

Works for me.

Having received my race packet for the Over It 5K, plan for today was to head to the college for a 3.12 mile qualifying walk. But now too tired from last night's tossing, turning, lack of sleep, that will have to wait until the mood hits.

Getting low on tamales, and having purchased a proper tamale pot, I may spend the day whipping up another batch.

I shared some of the tamales I made last week with Trainer. I walked into last Monday's session saying, “I brought you this month’s payment and lunch”.

He later told me, he’d taken them home to share with his wife.

“OH NO!”, said I. “She probably judged me”.

Trainer got a puzzled look on his face and asked, “Judge you how?” 

Being as how they are a Hispanic couple, I was afraid her expertise in tamales would make her judge their taste, so I told him she’d probably said something to the effect, “These aren’t good. They’re not even close to authentic”.

“HA!” said Trainer. “She wouldn’t know. She’s never made a tamale in her life”.

ROFLMAO. But he said he enjoyed them, they were good and he’d been impressed that I’d made the tamales myself.

Yet and still, I’ll be keeping this second batch to myself.

Say Hello to My Little Friend

Except for one or two or three little hiccups, the week has been peaceful around here at the senior complex.

One hiccup being hearing sky rockets, cherry bombs, roman candles, and I don’t know what else, going off all day … every single day.

Because we’re in the hot zone, fireworks are illegal, but that’s not stopping whoever.

Attached to the July Calendar was a note ... "If you are aware of someone selling or using illegal fireworks, please call the police department."

A lot of good that’ll do. Besides, though it sounds like the fireworks are going off here, right under our feet, we can’t pinpoint where coming from.

Hopefully, we can get through the 4th without a blaze.

Another hiccup was the resident who decided to begin laundry at 11 p.m. Wednesday night, just as I was falling asleep.

Sounds coming from the laundry room had me tossing/turning. I did, however, fall asleep ... eventually, only to be periodically awakened by the sound of water gushing into the washer, items rolling around in the dryer, until 3:00 am! That's a lot of laundry.

It's only after hours, when we can hear the doors of washers/dryers being opened closed and the other sounds, because sounds are amplified by the quiet at night.

Last hiccup was the resident who decided to do laundry at 4:00 this morning.

Try as I might, I could not fall back asleep, so I got up and started my day early ... very tempted to get dressed, put on makeup, go downstairs, snap of photo of the culprit and turn him/her into the office. Makeup because, of course, I wasn't going to be seen not totally put together.

It may eventually come to my taking the initiative, because I’ve had about enough of the rule breakers. I think, however, others in this building have already complained because, also attached to the July Calendar, was a notice reiterating that “Laundry hours are from 7 am to 10 pm ... Respect Your Neighbors”.

Either the rule breakers can’t read or, I know it's hard to believe, but there are people in this world that just don’t care about disturbing or inconveniencing others.

So, other than those hiccups, it’s been smooth sailing.

Still no sign of The Seer or Shadow, but I spotted the other Nancy, the one who’s not dead, pushing her walker away from the area where Shadow lives.

Not dead Nancy being on a walker is new. Younger and healthy looking, she all of a sudden came up with balance problems. But that’s what happens when residents sit all day, never walk any further than from their unit to the Community Room.

It’s also happened with one of the guys who regularly attends events. A big friendly guy, also healthy looking, no activity other than walking to the Community Room, driving to the Casino. I see he’s now using a cane.

As I watch neighbors deteriorate, I'm so happy to have gotten off the couch shortly after moving here in 2012, observing neighbors deteriorating even then, seeing signs of my own body deteriorating, saying to myself, "I'm not going out that way",  forcing myself off the couch, started walking, graduated into doing 5Ks. Happier still to have been led to Trainer, who’s helping me build on strength, stamina and balance.

The July calendar only shows one event — a 4th of July Potluck but, inasmuch as the 4th is a staff holiday, Activity Director is hosting the event on Tuesday the 2nd.

There’s no such thing as a holiday in the Pain Cave. Trainer’s client list is such that he appears to never take a day off, so I expect I’ll be working out on Thursday the 4th per usual.

No big deal, since I can’t eat hotdogs and potato salad anyway.

So though I haven’t been spending any time with the seniors, don’t know when I’ll be able to, I was passing the Community Room after Thursday’s workout, and saw my little friend was here to play Bingo with her great grandma.

Other than stopping in to give my little friend a hug, that’s the closest I’ve been to socializing with the seniors since Apache’s party.

The Baker's Great Granddaughter and My favorite young person

Her great grandma took the photo. Great grandpa designed the frame.

Springing Forward

It doesn’t seem logical that time springing forward one hour would throw me so off center but with that time change, along with all the chaos going on in the world running through my head, the day has been challenging. Starting with my not being able to fall asleep last night.

There I was ─ tossing, turning.

Sleep wouldn't come, so I turned on the lights and put in some reading time.

Unlike Bob Woodward’s book Fear, which was so boring that I’d get sleepy after a page or two, Cliff Sim’s book made not being sleepy worse because it’s so interesting, stimulating, a lot of laugh out loud funny.

It must have been around 1:00/2:00 that I put down the book, picked up the tape player and popped in a meditation tape.

That did the trick because next thing I knew, I was waking up ... but late, very late ─ 9:30 a.m.

Waking up so late didn’t give me the time to putter around that I usually need before I decide to start living. And, but for the fact I HAD to make a Sprout’s and Ralphs market run, because I was out of staples and also needed to pick up something for tomorrow’s Saint Patrick’s Day potluck, I’d have blown off the entire day.

Getting dressed turned into a circus because, after picking out a pair of warm socks, I lost one between the bedroom sock drawer and the couch.

After looking here, there, back/forth from one room to another, I gave up, sat down on the couch to collect my thoughts and ......

There the missing sock was, on my left foot.

I began to reconsider trusting myself outside, but carried on.

The wind was howling so, not wanting to drive 20 miles, I took a chance on that new Sprout’s ─ where the parking lot had been so crazy.

No problem today. There was not a line at that chicken place, no armed guards, and plenty of parking. However, I did see a sign on the door of Sprout’s that I’ve never seen in any market anywhere, any time.

I got in, out and on to my next stop without getting shot, but what the heck is that sign about?

Did someone actually come in and do their grocery shopping while carrying a gun?

At any rate, I hurriedly picked up what few items I couldn’t get at Sprouts, and something easy peasy for tomorrow’s potluck at the next stop.

It’s a good thing that Sweet Tooth had run its course, and I’m now not remotely tempted, because these on my counter overnight would have been dangerous.

At any rate, as I turned to push my purchases away, after going through the checkout line, the casher got my attention with “Ma’am, Ma’am”.

I turned, puzzled and asked, “Did I not give you enough (money)?”

“You didn’t give me any”, said she.

Still puzzled, trying to put it all together, I realized the cash was still in my hand.

“Oh”, said I. “That’s why I’m carrying this in my hand”.

I made it home without further incident, but I can’t wait for this day to end, and will probably stay home until my mind, body, spirit adjusts to this time change.

Fire Weather

Waking up this morning, feeling like I’d had a full night’s sleep, out of bed I popped, feeling energetic and ready to get the day started.

Then I looked at the clock.

It was 1:45!

I don’t usually wake up that early unless my subconscious is telling me there’s a disturbance in the force, so I looked around the unit, outside through the windows, perked my ears, but saw and heard nothing.

Not ready to try to go back to sleep, I booted up the computer, logged onto facebook and saw my Archeologist friend had posted this …

That’s behind the University, where I’d planned to go walking today.

Thinking my spidey sense had awakened me at 1:45 because I needed to be concerned, I opened the patio windows, stepped out, listened for sirens, smelled for smoke. Having neither heard nor seen either, I decided it was safe to go back to bed, only I wasn’t sleepy.

Knowing I was going to have a hard time falling back asleep, I meditated for a bit THEN pulled out something better than a sleeping pill --- Bob Woodward’s Fear.

I STILL haven’t finished that book, but it’s not that I’m a slow reader, it’s because, unless you’re a History buff, the book is soooooo bloody slow, soooooo boring, a snooze fest. I’m lucky if I can get through six pages without yawning and then getting too sleepy to continue reading.

At any rate, after the book put me back to sleep, I reawaken at 7:00, checked to see what was happening behind the University and found fire services had everything under control. The fire was out.

Strange though that I didn’t hear engines or helicopters.

Looking at what happened in Paradise California — where the entire town has burned to the ground, and seeing what's happening in Malibu, I’m taking last night’s sleepus interruptus as a warning and reevaluating my priorities.

There is nothing in this unit I value more than the 15 Creative Memory Albums and, considering the Jeep I bought back in March doesn’t have near as much trunk and back seat space as the Saturn I had before, those albums and important papers are my saves. The two laptops can be replaced and, much as I love my sewing machine, that too can be replaced. A couple pair of leggings, tops, pj’s and toiletries are in the go-bag, but the go-bag comes after the albums and important papers, only if time permits --- because I can always buy more clothes and toiletries.

Heading over to the campus to put in some walking miles, and collect Poké Balls, didn’t happen. It was way too windy for that. Instead, I joined the seniors for November Birthday Celebration in the Community Room.

Attendance was sparse. Actually, only one with a birthday this month made an appearance. Then there was myself, The Baker, younger sister, older sister, The Seer and, of course, her Shadow. We all came just to support the event. But, with the poor attendance, I doubt the new Community Manager, whose event it was, will bother with December birthdays.

Checking the bulletin board, I see 42 residents have signed up for the catered Thanksgiving affair.

That’s quite good. The room will be full.