Friday, March 25, 2022

Friday's Happenings


Cat Naps

I spent a relaxed morning and then, went to the grocery store at noon to pick up the groceries I had ordered, yesterday.  They didn't have one item I had ordered and they substituted a different brand of sausages for the store brand sausages I had ordered, but, otherwise, everything was fine.  I will post my grocery totals in another post because I have put in another order of groceries, today, to be picked up, tomorrow!  I'll explain the reasons for that, later.

After I came home and put away the groceries, I did a little more garage cleaning.  I am still working my way down the left wall of the garage.  Today's decluttering included three dried up paint cans, one foil pie pan, the box the microwave came in (I had used it to store some wreath-making supplies), four 3-ring binders, and a bag of artificial flowers.  

I had planned to take a few things over to friend R, this afternoon, but, by the time I finished in the garage, it was past 2:30 p.m., I was feeling hot (it was 87F, today), a bit tired, and hungry as I hadn't eaten anything yet (had a cup of tea in the morning).  So, I called R and postponed my visit for another day, came inside, ate a fruit, relaxed a bit, and then, had leftovers from last night's dinner for my brunch!  

Afterwards, I cleaned my bathroom (and Dancer's litter box) and relaxed for a bit while my daughter packed a box with some clothes and other items to take back with her.  Her original plan had been to go up to Berkeley this weekend, on Sunday, getting a ride up with her friend P.  But, her office move in day has been postponed from April 4th to April 20 and she has decided to stay down here for those extra three weeks.  However, her friend had offered to take a box of stuff up for her so, daughter will send some of her clothing and other items with P and then, fly up later, closer to the move in date.

M came by, a bit later, around 4:30 p.m. and put up the trellis for the passionfruit vine, which we transplanted into a bigger pot, today.  Hopefully, it will grow and produce lots of fruit!  

Later in the evening, I called friend A to see how things were.  No change in her mother's condition, she said.  We spoke for a bit and I asked her if she needed anything.  At first, she said no, but, then, she asked if my daughter could possibly make her the dhal (lentil) curry she had made for her, earlier, with oat milk, and kale mallung made without coconut; of course I said yes, and daughter offered to make an egg curry, too.  We needed to buy more oat milk and fresh kale, so, we put in another grocery order to be picked up tomorrow and we included a few other items I didn't order, yesterday, in order to bring up the total to waive the pick up fee.   I asked friend R if she wanted me to order anything for her, but, she said, no.

I will pick up this new order of groceries at noon, tomorrow.  Daughter has made plans to attend her friend P's 30th birthday celebration, tomorrow, but, she will cook the dishes A wanted on Sunday morning and we will take them to her in the afternoon.  That is the plan.  

For dinner, tonight, I baked some chicken thighs and potato wedges, and steamed some broccoli side shoots picked from the garden.  Plenty of leftover chicken thighs for the weekend.  

I also did two loads of laundry, this evening.

Today, I am grateful for:
- Being able to order groceries online and pick up curbside
- A safe drive to the grocery store and back
- Daughter's friend has offered to take some of her stuff up for her
- M putting up the trellis for me
- What I was able to accomplish

Today's joyful activity was making more progress in the garage.

How was your Friday?  What are your plans for the weekend?

16 comments:

  1. Yay, an extra three weeks with your daughter until she has to leave. How lovely for both of you ... I bet you're pleased!

    You and your daughter are such good friends to A, taking the time to cook the recipes she has asked for. Have her brothers arrived from Australia yet?

    I'm looking forward to a very quiet weekend at home. I may go out for a walk each day but the majority of my time will be spend reading or listening to music.

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    1. Extra time spent with my daughter is such a bonus! It's more fun when she's around. :) Last night, for example, she gave me a facial and a partial pedicure (I didn't want my toenails polished).

      Friends are there for each other when needed. A and her daughters were there for me when I needed them; it's my turn to be there for them. A said one brother will be arriving next week (Friday) and the other brother hopes to arrive the week after that (maybe Monday).
      I like your plans for the weekend. I've just come inside after spending an hour or so cleaning in the garage. I think the end is near! :D

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  2. Your daughter is so very kind making food for A. How lovely :) We ate some of our allotment-grown kale yesterday and it was delicious. I'm envious of your passionfruit plant, it would be much too cold here to grow one, I think.

    A great job on the garage clearing, Bless, and in all that heat too!
    Enjoy your weekend x

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    1. Thank you, Pensive; my daughter does have a very kind heart. This is the first time I'm trying to grow passionfruit, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will grow well. I read the blog of someone who lives in Norfolk and she has a passionfruit vine growing up the side of her house; I don't know if you have a similar climate or not, but, maybe you can grow a passionfruit vine?
      Thank you! I am making good progress on the garage! I can only do about an hour or so before I get tired, but, I'm getting there! :)

      Thank you; hope you, too, are having a lovely weekend.

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  3. You certainly keep buys and make time to relax, seems like you have the balance just about right. I spend more time relaxing lol :) More time for you to spend with your daughter as her return to the workplace date has changed again, that's so nice for you. Good that your friend's mother's condition hasn't worsened. Enjoy your weekend, here we are having some glorious weather which is so nice after such a gloomy winter.

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    1. I try to find a good balance between "doing" and just relaxing and "being", Eileen. :) I seem to have slowed down considerably and I feel I spend more time relaxing than I spend doing things (housework, etc.), but, I guess that's OK, too. :)
      Extra time spent in my daughter's company is a bonus!
      Enjoy your lovely weather, Eileen. :)

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  4. I'm sure Dancer is happy to make an appearance on the blog again. I bet he thinks flowers are all very nice but I am exquisite with my lovely striped fur!
    I'm so glad that you will get extra time with your daughter, and having some items taken north for her will save work later on.
    That is good that A was specific about her needs, it makes it easier to help.
    We are having a lazy day as bottling was postponed until Monday. DH isn't quite ready. Also a warmer night meant very little sap to collect so the crew will have a day off, too. I'm happy as I didn't sleep well and I was able to go back to bed this morning after breakfast. I'm going to make a lamb curry this afternoon for supper.

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    1. Dancer likes to smell the flowers!
      We are both happy that my daughter can stay a little longer. :)
      A was saying that she had no appetite, especially since her mother was hospitalized; I asked her what she likes to eat and that's when she asked for my daughter's dhal and kale dishes. :)
      Glad the bottling was postponed and you were able to get a little extra sleep, this morning. Lamb curry sounds wonderful!

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  5. Sending hugs. It sounds like you are keeping very busy. It's great that you have those extra weeks with your daughter. x

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    1. Thank you for the hugs, Lyssa. :) Yes, I'm keeping myself busy! There seems to be plenty to do; finding the energy to do all the things is the problem! Having my daughter home for a few more weeks is lovely! :)

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  6. I know that both you and your daughter will enjoy the extra time together? Is there ever any talk of getting a job closer to where you live?

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    1. Oh, yes, we have talked about her getting a job down here or me moving up north. So far, it is still just talk. Our original plan was for her to finish grad school and move back home (I was still undergoing cancer treatments at the time) and look for a job down here. But, just before she graduated, she was offered a job and we decided that she should accept it to get some work experience (it was supposed to have been for 1 year!)

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  7. I think the truth of the matter is that you are making Dancer do most of the garage work, while you just supervise. The poor thing looks exhausted!
    Great news about daughter. She won't recognise her place any more, when she walks through the door!

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    1. Oh, no! I've been found out! LOL! Dancer is getting up there in years and seems to spend the greater part of his day, sleeping!
      My daughter left her apartment thinking she'll be gone for 3 months; one year and 3 months later...I must tell her to record herself walking into her apartment! :D

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  8. I'm so glad your friend asked your daughter to make the curry she enjoyed last time.
    Often when people ask us if we need anything, we say no so as not to inconvenience someone. But your offer was genuine and I'm sure you and your daughter are pleased to be able to do something for friend A that will please her.

    That is interesting about your grocery store worker strike. Or the possibility of one.
    I am curious to hear how that plays out.

    You are working diligently on your garage. Little by little adds up - and I am all for breaks! lol.

    Yesterday was our town's first bulk waste event this year. I think I've mentioned that we do not have curbside pickup for large items.
    So we took some things to that and I am happy to get those items out of here. We had an interior fence around our patio and although it was very old I really liked it for the privacy it provided. Once we put up the newer fence at the back of our yard, I began to think about removing the fencing around the patio since it wasn't really necessary now. Well, the winter storms battered it very badly so this week my husband and I removed it and he sawed it down to a size that would fit into the car.
    Wow - does this open up the yard and the view from the house! I love it.

    We also took several other things and actually had to take both of our cars!
    lol
    I feel like the garage should look emptier. hahaha

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    1. Yes, we do often decline offers of help so as not to be a bother to the other person, but, I'm glad that A knew our offer was genuine and felt comfortable enough to request a certain dish that she had enjoyed.

      The grocery store workers have authorized a strike. Apparently, it doesn't necessarily mean they will walk out, but the vote gives the union a bigger bargaining power when negotiations with the grocery store management resumes next week.

      The garage is coming along! I am going through a box of files, right now, trying to reduce the number of boxes of files in storage!

      Sounds like you've been busy with some decluttering of your own. :)

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