Wednesday - COVID270

I am getting up earlier, which is a good thing for me and not so good for Oliver.  That means it's still dark out when I get up and he has to stay inside, moping at the door, until it's light enough for him to be safe outside.

It was a work day.  Things moved along at a good clip but not too overwhelming.  There is still so much to do and it's pretty difficult to complete some tasks remotely.  But we keep figuring it out.

I had a good talk with my boss at the end of the day.  For all of the challenges in this job, that relationship is a good one.  We are missing our legal assistant who is on vacation until the 22nd but have a routine that works well.

I had leftover curry for lunch and dinner and it's gone now so I'll figure something else out for tomorrow.  

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Tuesday - COVID269

Up on time with more sleep last night, though I am slipping a little tonight.

It was work work work today but things are getting done.  I felt like it was Friday at one point and was sad to realize I'm so early in the work week. That's a change from the way days have been slipping past.

Things that make me smile - I heard music coming from Bex's room this afternoon and it was music I recognized ... one of my favorites by England Dan and John Ford Coley.  And she's singing along.  That sparked joy.  I love how she has such a wide-ranging love of music, even greater than mine.

I'm still working on holiday projects in the evenings and too late into the night.  They take a lot of time but are worth it.  I made curry and rice for dinner, filling and warm. 

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Monday - COVID268

It felt good to get a little more sleep last night but it was still just a work day.  Halfway through I wondered if it was close to Friday yet, and was disappointed and shocked to realize it's Monday.

I got to talk with Tam on my way to the feed store to pick up curbside.

Not much else noteworthy for this Monday and I'm going to try to get to bed a little earlier again.

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Sunday - COVID267

I got up with the alarm on a Sunday - meh.  Got my act together, chores done, then hooked up the trailer to go pick up the fridge.  That was a 2.5 hour adventure.  My first time driving it was out back country roads through Forestville to Covey and Pleasant Valley Road in Sebastopol, then off on a private one-way dirt drive to a narrow dirt driveway through a ranch property to get the fridge loaded.  It took us a bit to back the trailer up in the narrow area and load the fridge up, then I was off again.  The second leg was a bit more comfortable for me, and I took my time and actually backed the trailer in to the house.  Not all the way because I don't want to hit cars but I did it!  The first thing I did at the house was run in to pee of course.  Then Jess called apologetic because she hadn't seen my text from a few days ago asking about borrowing their truck.  The timing was perfect because I could let her know that I didn't take the easy way out and took my courage in both hands and drove the trailer for the first time to pick up the fridge.

I was pretty proud of myself for backing it in.

Bex helped me to unload the fridge... 

...and get it set up in the house.

Then we pushed the trailer into its parking space because I didn't want to try to back up next to her car and potentially bump it.  

The fridge is small for the space but actually works well.  It doesn't stick out into the kitchen like the old one did and is fine for keeping the things we use the most inside the kitchen and the other fridge can be used for less important things.  It would be a dairy and booze fridge if I had a milking doe.

One interesting thing is that the guy I bought the fridge from is the same man who picked up Bug from us 10 years ago, and Bug gave him a lot of goat kids on that ranch.  I'll never forget that he loaded Bug into an SUV.  I would never have done that - it was hard enough having him in the back of our pickup under a camper shell when we brought him home from Lake County.

I spent the rest of the day with small projects, some work, and working on holiday gifts.  These are intricate and slow going and my hands need a break from time to time.

We are safe and well, though dreading another red flag warning way too late in the year.  I hope you are safe and well.

Saturday - COVID266

I slept in a bit today but not too long.  I took the day to relax and do a couple things around the house. I started on a work project before going out for a while.

Bex and I went to Cotati to "shop and stroll" outdoors and were able to take a look at some things and stay socially distant.  We found a couple of cute things, including a fairy wand from Tamily's booth that I've had my eye on for a while.  We are looking forward to planting that in the garden and watch it shine.

We had a couple of other errands along the way, dropping off e-Waste and picking up items on the way home.

I stayed up later than I had planned because I'll be leaving in the morning driving the trailer for the first time to pick up a new/used fridge. Wish me luck.

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too. 

Friday - COVID265

I got up on time and got an early start with work.  There was a lot to do today.

I made arrangements to pick up the new/old refrigerator this weekend.  I am going to drive the trailer for the first time to pick it up.  It will fit easily into the space and once the old one was out, I realize it was far too big for the space.  Having something smaller will be nice - no portion of the fridge with handles poking out and into the cramped kitchen.

I was able to take some time to organize and put away some of the evacuation debris that has been crowding my bedroom.  Things are getting back to normal a little, though the car is still half packed.

The TV went out last night and all my fixes didn't fix it.  If electronics are going to break, this is the time I suppose.  I found a good sale and went for a drive this afternoon to pick it up - curbside delivery into the back of the car.

I am still inexplicably angry.  Maybe that's my way out of the depression and feeling that if I'm going to keep getting kicked, I may as well lay down and just take it until maybe it stops. Getting the car and broken fridge out of here seems to have gotten me back in gear.

It'll be a full weekend so time to get some rest.

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Thursday - COVID264

I made myself get up when the alarm went off this morning because I had prep to do before the old Equinox was picked up.  I allowed myself some coffee while I set up my work day on the computer and then I went outside to play musical vehicles.

I hooked up the trailer and moved it up the driveway to make room for the old Equinox to get out.  I discovered there is a slight bend in the arm on the trailer that made it exceedingly difficult to back up properly, though I spent at least 15-20 minutes on that attempt.  It doesn't help that the driveway is narrow and oddly curved with bushes that need to be trimmed back.  I ended up getting the trailer close to where I wanted it, unhooking it, and manually pushing it into place.  

I then needed to jumpstart the car again.  I have no idea why it's doing this because the battery is relatively new - but it hasn't been started much at all since July.  I then moved it to the end of the driveway to make it easier to get out.

I then moved the trailer by hand to the side of the house, getting in a good workout.  Then the new car followed.  I didn't have to push that, thank goodness.

The car was gone by 11:00, after signing everything off and taking my check (which was the wrong amount but they'll mail me the balance) and watching it get loaded onto the flat bed and taken off.  It's always mixed feelings.  There are a lot of happy times and trips in that car and it served me well, but it became a big problem toward the end.  It did teach me a lot too, as each car tends to do.

I took a few minutes to start dough for rolls that I had with chili, which I started in the crock pot after the dough processed.  Not much room on counters for appliances, so they take turns.

I finished off work and dinner was good and will last us for a few days.

I dropped the leash this afternoon when I took Bella out.  Normally that wouldn't be a thing, right?  Leash drop, step on it, or just pick it up.  But this is a retractable leash.  And she ran like crazy because it chases her.  It took me such a long time to get her to just stop and sit so I could pick it up and get her inside.  Maybe she'll figure that out if it happens again.  I really try not to drop it - I've done it once before indoors - but it's probably inevitable that I'll do it again.  

I am tired early tonight, maybe the exercise pushing a trailer around this morning, maybe a rush of depression and anger that hit me tonight.  One thing I know for sure is that I need more sleep than I've been getting.

It was a good day.  We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Wednesday - COVID263

I way overslept this morning - to 9am.  And discovered I'm almost out of cat food and didn't remember to order more for curbside pickup until 4:30 p.m.  I crossed my fingers that I could pick up same day and wouldn't need to go to Safeway for a different cheap brand of food.

I worked, and I contacted a couple of people and the garbage company about getting rid of the defunct refrigerator.  I decided to pay a local man to haul it away, and Bex and Q helped me get it outside.  As we were rolling it through the kitchen, Bex suddenly stopped and stepped back and said that a zombie mouse had just dropped out of the fridge.  It turned out to be more mummy than zombie, and I disposed of it while the kids got the fridge to the door.  It took some time and finagling to get it out the door.  We got it down the stairs and then waited for Manuel to show up.  It was nice to get that out and plan for the new/old one coming next weekend and wash the floor under where it has resided all this time.

I was going to make crock pot chili but got a late start and the kids picked up sandwiches instead.  I'll start the chili earlier tomorrow.

The old Equinox is supposed to be picked up in the morning, so I need enough sleep so I am up on time.  I need to jump the battery again and hopefully get it to the street where it'll be easier to tow away.

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Tuesday - COVID262

It was one of those days that I wished I could just stay in bed all day.  I'm  feeling pretty low but just keep moving until I feel better.

I was able to get some things done today while working.  

My plans for selling the old Equinox to the Kelly Blue Book people fell through when the damn battery died again and I realized that I do NOT want to drive it to Petaluma, no matter how much more they might give me than a dismantler.  I found that Pick N Pull gave the best price, 33% more than Cream's, and so I set that in motion for them to pick it up and bring me a check this week.

I finally got someone to look at the fridge and it is dead.  The parts needed to repair it are discontinued so there's no saving it.  I saw on FB that a friend is selling a fridge that I hope will work.

I had a chance to talk with Mom and Dad today, which always brightens my day.

The rest of the day was uneventful, just work and holiday projects.  

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Monday - COVID261

Sleeping is getting easier but I am still going to bed too late.  I'll work on that.

It was a workday Monday.  I postponed the Equinox inspection/potential sale to tomorrow because I thought I was going to need to take Luna to the vet.  But she was improved this morning.  This girl has been sliding like her mama did and I'm doing my best to take care of her and not make any of my previous mistakes.

When I went outside this morning, I smelled the strong smell of vegetation fire.  I know they are doing controlled burns these days so I stomped down my panic and looked it up.  Yes, a controlled burn nearby.  The adrenaline spike was no fun, though.

The appliance guy was scheduled for between 1 and 4pm today and didn't show.  No phone call either.  It took two days for them to return my call so perhaps they are super busy.  I'll follow up in the morning.

I am trying to finish holiday gifts and as always am worried about deadlines even though I started early.  I do like what I am working on.

It's a topsy turvy world.  But we are safe and well.  I hope you are too.