Thursday, February 6, 2014

Sleeping Beauty

Walt and I sat down at 6:30 to watch the episode of Jeopardy which had recorded last night while we were in Sacramento, and the episode that would air in about 20 minutes today.

Next thing I knew it was 11 p.m. and The Daily Show was about to start.  I had fallen asleep after returning from a meeting and Walt had managed to scrape together enough food (leftovers from the Olive Garden) so that he wouldn't wither away and die.
 
Whew!  Where did that come from??

It hadn't been that strenuous a day.  I spent the morning working on the review for Flashdance, though it was difficult because it was so bloody cold here in my office.  However, I found a work-around that made it at least possible for me to work.

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Yeah, yeah, I know.  Most of the country is buried in mountains of snow and all I'm coping with is a little 62 degree weather, warming up to 70 once I reset the thermostat, but that didn't mean I wasn't suffering, people!

Anyway, once the house warmed up and my review was submitted, I called my friend Stephen to interview him for an article I'm writing.  He is consistently my very favorite interview.  You give him a question and he comes back with an almost complete article.  You just need to transcribe and shape it (I actually type his comments as he is speaking, which is such a help!)

Later, I folded my mother's laundry, which I had washed last night   Trying a new thing this time.  Putting her laundry in a laundry basket instead of a bag and leaving it on her bed, making a big show of leaving her laundry in a laundry basket and leaving it on her bed.  Let's see if that gets all of her clothes into her closet (she won't let me do that part) and not at the front desk as clothes that don't belong to her.

I had a meeting to go to in Woodland, so I didn't go to Atria until about 3:00, late enough that I could leave from her house and go directly to the meeting, still having time for a visit.  And the visit was fine.  She told me twice about the frozen plants and first about how Niecie would be so disappointed, and second about how it was Niecie's fault for bringing them in the first place.  It's nice to have that discussion instead of the discussion about how much longer she is going to live.

Oh wait a minute.  We had that discussion too.  "How much longer do you think I'm going to live, Bev?" and then the relating about all her siblings who died because they smoked and how she never smoked.  When you do nothing all day but sit in a chair, it's no wonder that the primary thing on your mind is how much longer you are going to do it.  I was surprised when I left and discovered that every Wednesday there is a social in the lobby with lots of nice snacks (I had 3 jalapeno poppers) and wine and a chance to chat with fellow residents, but of course she isn't in the least interested in socializing.

BUT, I had a great triumph today.  When she was out of the room, I checked one again for the puzzle that Laurel and Tom had given her for Christmas.   I have been just sick for weeks because it disappeared and I thought I had checked everywhere for it.  It was a puzzle of the girls that Laurel had made and just the absolute perfect gift for her.  I finally decided that she must have thrown it out.   But every time I'm there I look around trying to see if there might be someplace I hadn't checked.

There was.  I found it in the bottom of a drawer, covered up with other stuff.  I am SO RELIEVED.  I know she worked it, but I hated to think of her having "lost" it.  Rejoice with me for I have found the puzzle I thought was lost.

Then it was off to Woodland.  I was asked to be on a committee for the Woodland Shakespeare Book Club to plan the April lunch, the event which ends the club's year until October when things start up again.  I couldn't figure out why we had to meet two months ahead of time to plan the lunch until I saw the thick book of instructions on how to do stuff, whom to contact, what to make , etc.  This is a Big Deal.  I have volunteered to go shopping for stuff for decorations and to make the special mints.

Apparently at one time the recipe for these mints was a closely guarded secret and you had to leave your firstborn for ransome or something until you had made them and returned the recipe.  But then a few years back they put out a book club cookbook and someone included the recipe in the book.  Sounds like it was a great scandal at the time.  So now my firstborn can remain in Boston shoveling snow while I try to master the art of mint making and hope I don't screw it up.  I have a whole two months to get it right!

So my day wasn't all that strenuous, but maybe sitting up until 1:30 a.m. last night, watching the movie of Flashdance on Netflix had something to do with my falling asleep all evening.  Now the big question is whether or not I can get back to sleep and sleep the regular night long.

1 comment:

Harriet said...

Two things can make you unexpectedly sleepy. One is the cold, even if it's not freezing, it's a new stress on your body.

The other is something you ate. It happens to diabetics all the time. But there is something liberating, as I told the doctor, about being able to take a nap just because you want to.