I had a good night's sleep on Thursday night and woke up on Friday morning with nothing more than a slightly sore arm, which was to be expected. I took it fairly easy, however. Cleaned the kitchen counters and did the dishes, but, that was all housework I did.
It was my late step-father's birthday, today. Although he passed away almost 35 years ago, I still think of him. He taught me a lot from how to use chopsticks to how to drive a car. I probably wouldn't have come to this country if it hadn't been for him. I was supposed to have followed my father's footsteps and gone to England for my higher studies.
My daughter and I ordered lunch from our favorite local Japanese restaurant, today; we drove there and I stayed in the car while daughter when inside to pick up the food and pay. I had my usual - beef teriyaki lunch, which comes with miso soup, a salad, pickled vegetables, and rice; daughter had a sushi roll, some tempura, and an octopus appetizer. It provided both lunch and dinner for us.
I shredded several more files of paper, today. One item I shredded had a handwritten note from my mother to me; I almost cried when I saw that. I have now shredded one small box of papers! I spread two grocery bags full of the shredded paper on the back flower bed.
M bought me the 10 bags of mulch I had asked him to buy. He has his doubts about spreading them in the parkway (he doesn't think my "problem" neighbors to the left of me will be respectful of my attempts at landscaping) but, I feel that I need to try doing something to make that area look a little better than it currently is.
Neighbor S called and brought me a piece of cake she called a Lent cake. It had a dense texture and I am assuming it was made without eggs and butter, etc. I liked it, it had raisins and candied peel; my daughter, who doesn't like raisins, picked out all the raisins from her piece! LOL!
Later in the evening, I called friend R and we chatted a bit.
Today, I am grateful for:
- Only the mildest of side effects from the booster shot
- Memories of my step-father
- Being able to order lunch from the Japanese restaurant
- M bringing me the bags of mulch
- Neighbor S sharing Lent cake with us
Today's joyful activity was enjoying lunch from the restaurant.
Friday's Decluttering:
6 file folders of papers, covering a period of over 10 years of statements, etc.
Plans for tomorrow include bringing in more files from the garage to shred.
How was your Friday? What are your plans for the weekend?
I'm glad that your booster shot side effects were kept to a minimum. Good luck with prettying up the front of your house. Maybe the neighbors will appreciate it and do something themselves.
ReplyDeleteThank you, June; my arm is less sore, today.
DeleteOne can only try, right? Hopefully, putting some mulch down and maybe even planting some succulents at intervals might discourage them from tossing used masks, empty cups, old mattresses, etc., in my strip of the parkway! :) M gets mad when they toss their unwanted furniture in my section of the parkway!
It's interesting how life events impact on decisions made. If you had come to England for your higher studies you may have settled here and I may have met you in person by now! I hope you have happy memories of your step-father.
ReplyDeleteI hope the sore arm is back to normal soon and am glad that you chose to take it fairly easy for now. The Japanese meal sounds lovely, as always.
I've heard of Lenten cake but not a Lent cake ... maybe they are the same thing. My sister always used to pick out the raisins ... I could never understand why she didn't like them!
Yes, it's interesting to see how things turned out. My oldest half-brother stayed in England for several years, before he returned to Sri Lanka; his son is still in the UK, married and settled there.
DeleteMy arm feels much better, today, thank you. I enjoyed my Japanese meal and I look forward to getting some Thai food, next week! We are getting all of daughter's favorite meals before she goes back! :)
I think Lenten cake and Lent cake are the same thing; you must remember that neither S nor I are native speakers of English. :)
I am glad you followed your higher learning path to the states or I might not have your blog to follow!
ReplyDeleteI am with your daughter about the raisins. I will eat them plain but I despise them cooked in foods. Well most of the time. There is a bakery here that makes Oatmeal raisin cookies, but they grind the raisins so you get the taste without the mouth feel of raisins.
Thank you, Anne. :) Who knows how these things turn out?
DeleteThose oatmeal raisin cookies sound interesting! My daughter just doesn't like the taste of raisins. I love raisins, but, when I was undergoing chemo and my tastebuds changed, I didn't like raisins - they tasted like spoiled grapes, then, and my daughter says that's how they taste to her.
Pleased that your booster shot didn't cause too much trouble. They are still trying to push for the first booster shot here, but then we have been behind the rest of the world as far as covid goes.
ReplyDeleteYour lunch sounds nice, I love teriyaki anything! The Lent cake sounds yummy, fruit cake is my favourite cake. Hope your neighbours respect your landscaping. Thats a great idea of using the shredded paper for mulch.
Thank you, Sharon. Some people here are refusing to be vaccinated, at all, never mind getting boosters! Your country has been very good about keeping Covid under control.
DeleteLunch was very good and I enjoyed it. The cake was good, too.
We shall see what the neighbors do once I put down the mulch in the parkway!
The only problem with the shredded paper as mulch is, unless you wet it down right away, the pieces tend to get blown all over the yard. It doesn't bother me, but, some people might not like it! :)
That's s good that your booster jab hasn't had bad side effects for you. Your Japanese meal sounds so delicious. I hope your neighbours appreciate your tidying up your front garden, isn't it awful to have problem neighbours, I sort of know the feeling but not the family just their landlord.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Eileen; I'm very relieved that I haven't had any bad side effects, so far! I hope there won't be any delayed side effects, either! The Japanese meal was wonderful. I hope the neighbors will leave the landscaped area undisturbed; we shall see. The nice neighbors outnumber the not to nice ones. :)
DeleteYour day sounds nice. It's good to remember your step father on his birthday.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure your memories were good ones - he sounds like he was a good man.
I love raisins. I mean I LOVE raisins and eat them every day. I have a recipe from my grandmother that I make at Christmas that she always called War Cake. It is a dense cake with no eggs or butter but a pound of raisins. Wonderfully spicy with cloves and cinnamon.
I don't think I've had Lent Cake although I know of it.
Your Japanese meal sounds very good. I know you like to go to that spot for food.
It was a good day, and yes, he was a good man. :)
DeleteI love raisins, too, and will often snack on them (maybe not every day, though!) I looked up War Cake and found a recipe that calls for a pound of raisins and lard or shortening instead of butter. It does mention cloves and cinnamon! Might be something to try, one of these days. :)
Yes, there is a Japanese restaurant that has been a neighborhood fixture for decades and they make good food. A bit pricey, but, we don't have it all the time and we consider it doing our bit to support a local business! :D
I'm really glad that you have your booster. Your stepfather seemed to have done a lot for you.
ReplyDeleteI am now intrigued by the Lent Cake. I shall have to have a look. Thank you.
Thank you, Lyssa. Yes, my stepfather played a very important role in my life. :)
DeleteLent (or, maybe it's supposed to be Lenten) cake had a dense texture, but, it was delicious. :)