February 29, 2020 - 169 - "Mexican Casa - 10 - Bonus Day!/Rooftop Transformations"

Leap Day

   Today felt like an extra day.  The obvious reason is that it's Leap Day and it only comes around once every four years.  But there were other reasons...

    We've been expecting our delivery of rooftop furniture from Costco Mexico for about two weeks.  The online information always said it would be delivered on February 28th, but it also said that the furniture had arrived at a warehouse only an hour away two weeks ago. 

   So, we kept thinking:  any day now!  

   ...and it willfully and spitefully kept not arriving.

   But the ‘maybe it will come early!’ possibility cane and went, then yesterday the date mentioned online came and went, and we began to wonder how long it was going to take.  

     We're long past wondering if something will arrive:  It always does.  But it comes at its own special pace.

    Anyway, since it didn't come yesterday we put it into the 'could be a long time' category and decided to stop hoping for it every day. Then early in the day today we got a phone call that the FedEx truck was 10 minutes away.  Squeeee!!!

Yay!!!  It's HERE!

     The FedEx van arrived and the van was so small we could hardly believe it could contain an outdoor couch and two outdoor chairs...but before they could get that out they first had to pull out a refrigerator to get at our stuff.  The van was like one of those tents in Harry Potter:  bigger on the inside than the outside.

Oh Crap!! It's here.

February 28, 2020 - 168 - "How Old Will You Be If You Don't?"

Savoring the Moment

     The last few days we have been enjoying our new home in San Miguel.  

     This is a first.  

      We enjoyed it for Day of the Dead when the kids came down...but only very briefly.

   We created a house from the rubble...and then immediately had to return it to the 'Under Construction' state to finish things we couldn't get done in time for the festivities.

     All this to say that there hasn't been a lot of relaxing.

     We sat in the living room tonight and really looked around:    Wow.  So comfortable and pretty. 

Way Beyond Our Expectations

      We'd meticulously planned for, purchased for, and dreamed about each and every space.  But, now it's all in real-life 3-D...it seems a whole lot more than the sum of its parts.  

February 27, 2020 - 167 - "Vaqueros for the Day"

Two bad hombres just home from the market with their
new Vaqueros hats.

Setting the Mood

   First thing this morning I hooked my phone up to a speaker and blared "Back in the Saddle Again" by Gene Autry throughout the house.   

    Oddly enough, my housemates did not appreciate the charming, festive, and perfectly-timed song.  

     I think, considering the early hour, they would only have appreciated silence.  But, hey, you can't live your life pleasing others, right?

Put On The Feed Bag

     Michael rustled us up some eggs, bacon, and flapjacks, and we wolfed them down so we could be on top of our Vaqueros game.

Time to Saddle Up and Move 'em Out

      Beth, from Leisurely Country Horseback Riding  came and picked us up.  We drove out to the country and got to ride horses all morning.  
  
     The trails start at about 6400' above sea level and go up to around 6700'.  We rode through river beds, past a 300 year old Otomi shrine, to the very edges of canyons, through rocky corn fields where we learned they grow the 'three sisters' all together:  squash, corn, and beans.  

February 26, 2020 - 166 - "Mexican Casa - 9 - El Pozo de Dinero (The Money Pit-Mexico)"

Peaceful Morning

     Michael and I were sitting in the living room a couple of mornings ago.  We were just hanging out, drinking coffee, and talking.  I kept thinking:  "Ahhhh...this is great.  What a peaceful morning!."

     And then it occurred to me that, perhaps, our construction project had gone on too long.  My definition of peaceful has changed dramatically.

     When I actually paid attention to my surroundings 'peaceful' probably wasn't the most accurate description.  We'd been answering the door buzzer since right at 8 a.m. , one of the worker's bicycles was leaning against the wall in our entry, there were at least four workers i the house, and the door was left slightly ajar so they could come and go without us getting up to let them back in every time. 

     I probably wouldn't have called this peaceful a year ago.  

Sometimes It's Better to Do Nothing

     At the beginning of the project I wouldn't have been able to just sit there and drink coffee while a passing parade of people came and went.  But, after a year, I know that mainly I gum up the works if I try to work on something while there are crews around.  Partly because there are people working everywhere I want to be, and partly because anytime I start to do something, they feel the need to help me. 

     It's best for me to get any project I want to do done in the evenings or on a weekend when they're not around so they can focus on their own projects.

World's Sweetest Crews

February 25, 2020 - 165 - "Cultural Mysteries"

Culture Shock  

                                                                                       Spending time in a foreign country is a daily adventure.  We're constantly learning new words, sayings, customs, foods...the list goes on and on.                                                                                                                                              It can be exhausting.  It can bring on the kind of overwhelm that sends a tourist heading for the local McDonald's out of sheer exhaustion.                                                                                                                                         Even there you're not safe:  If, for example, you're in Germany you might find that they eat their McDonald's french fries with (gasp!): mayonnaise.  And, as if that's not bad enough:  they eat them , not with their fingers, as God intended, but with little tiny wooden forks/spear things.

The Lure of a Mall (The Cat Made Us Do It)

     We needed an automatic feeder.  We used one to get her weight down at home and now she gets freaked out that the feeding schedule isn't identical to the one at home.  

     We just went to a little mall outside of town.  It's about the most non-Mexican place there is around town.   You could be almost anywhere in the world.  Everything is modern and sleek.  There's a department store, a furniture store, hair and nail salons...and the only McDonald's around.

     We were drawn by the lure of a Petco.  

     We needed a collar with a bell on it.  Ella has been hiding around the house like she did when we first got her ten years ago...and this makes it slightly easier to locate her.  (Yes, as you probably imagine:  she hates it.)

     We also needed some treats (see above about luring her out of her gazillion hiding places.)

     So, there we are in the middle of the parking lot of this very familiar-seeming shopping center and we come across a very strange sign painted on the pavement.

Mystery Traffic Signs

  Before shopping for these items I went to the ATM at the bank just outside the mall.  

Walking back across the parking lot we see this sign.                                                                                                                                               Me:  What could this sign possibly mean?                                                                               Michael:  Don't know, but I'm envisioning four cars in a head-on collision.

Google Answers All

February 24, 2020 - 164 - "The I Ching vs. the E Ching"

Ella Ching say:  Take nap!

     I recently stumbled on some information about the I Ching.  I've had the book forever and have started to read it more than once.  It's not a very big book...but it didn't pull me in.  I'd read the intro about how it was translated and fall asleep.  Seemed like writing for another place and another time. 

    I never even got far enough to understand that it was intended to be a fortune telling handbook. 

    Somehow I came across an online I Ching hexagram prediction website.  I'd heard of hexagrams, but didn't know that they were connected to the I Ching, or what they were for.  

     Finding it all online struck me as the most hilarious thing ever. I mean here's this 2 thousand year old text, and there are these hexagrams that you can refer to, based on throwing some broken and unbroken sticks...but now you can just find out your future by virtually throwing sticks. 

    When I write in my journal I refer to people (or cats) I talk about a lot by their first initial. 

    While reading through some of this I Ching stuff I started thinking of it as the E Ching (Ella Ching).  My guess is that every time you throw the sticks and get your pattern...when you look up the hexagram it would suggest that sleeping is in your future.

    Never a bad plan, I suppose.

---

"When the going gets tough, the tough take a nap."
-Tom Hidgkinson
---   

February 23, 2020 - 163 - "Olympic Gold for Napping"

  Doing Nothing

  Today was our day to Do Nothing. 

     Yesterday I got unpacked and Michael and I worked on sprucing the house up for the big reveal to our friend (/the former owners of the house). 

     A couple of days ago I wrestled a cat all the way to Mexico. 

     Before that I prepped huge bags to get here with all manner of housewares. 

Being a Mule to Mexico...a Pack Mule

     Side Note About Luggage:  We're allowed to check 2 bags at 50 pounds a piece.  We have a manual scale that gives us a pretty good estimate, but I always bring a bag to pack home anything that is above the limit.  This trip Bag 1 weighed:  50.0, (on the nose). Bag 2 Weighed:  51.0.  Luckily, the nice baggage agent allowed the extra pound.

      Two of the bedrooms at Casa de Llaves have big wide windows.  They're about the size of a sliding glass door, but with windows on either side and a regular sized glass door in the middle.  

     I ordered these extra-long curtain rods with two bars.  I just could afford to get the top black-out curtains this time and left the sheers for next time.  (Lots of yardage in them...and not available at TJ Maxx, Tuesday Morning, etc.)  But I could have stuck with just ordering one of the bedrooms.  I had no idea how heavy curtains are.  Especially if each panel is 95" x 100".  So I had to do the 'Sofie's Choice' thing and choose whether Michael and I, or our guest got to sleep in.  

     We chose the guest (Michael's brother...though now that seems silly because he gets up at the crack of dawn and goes running like we would never do unless the house was on fire or something.). The choice was made because our curtains are old, stained, and the grommets are rusted...but they're long enough.  I used the guest curtains as an experiment and took them to be washed.  Now they're about 9" from the floor.  lol.

     Before all of that I worked a bunch of trips back to back.  

All's Well That Ends Well

    It all went great.  In the case of Ella:  way better than expected...after a rocky start, of course.

    I said all week:  On Sunday...we Do Nothing.

    At dinner last night our friends invited us over for pancakes this morning.  I said:  "Thanks!!!  But...it's our day to do nothing.  I need to sleep in and.."

    "Come at noon!", our friend kindly offered.

    "No.  Thanks again.  But, really,

Going For  the Gold  The Nap(s)

February 22, 2020 - 162 - "Lady of Leisure/Bath Time!"

Lavender bath bomb-Check!  Yummy tea-Check!  (Cynthia:
I got a sampler of that Ahmad tea like you sent me.  :-)
The Peach-Passionfruit is also very nice.)

Baths = Goodness!

     I don't know if I've ever shared just how much I really, really, really, enjoy baths.  It is the ultimate form of relaxation for me.  Maybe it's because I'm a Water Sign?  Perhaps I spent a previous life in Atlantas?  As a mermaid?  Or maybe it's because being in the bath is sort of the ultimate 'Do Not Disturb' moment.

   There's the expansive feeling of time alone to think your own thoughts and decompress.  Plus warm water.  Plus nice smelling soaps, bubbles, scrubs, and masks.  Plus some nice music.  Plus a little bit of red wine...

   What's not to like?

February 21, 2020 - 161 - "Mexican Casa - 8 : Making It Feel Like Home"

Home Is Where Your Cat Is

     A friend recently said that having your pets with you is the fastest way to make your house a home.

     That is soooo true.  Waking up this morning with Ella felt sooooo great.  We've always hated to leave her behind, and missed her until we got back...but I didn't realize how much until now.  There's no damper on the happy time off - it's pure joy with zero sad and lonesome for the cat.

Ella Goes International

     Success! 

     Maybe Ella nixed the morning flight to Mexico...but she aced the evening flight.

A Tricky Process

       I have been dreading bringing Ella on a flight since we got a house in Mexico but she was an absolute trooper. 

     She let me put her in her little anti-escape harness, put her in a carrier, then drag her all over creation.  She rode in the car to the airport, waited outside alone while I checked the bags at the gate, rode to the employee parking lot, rode on the employee bus...then got jostled through the airport.  She was taken out of the carrier at the TSA security checkpoint, then went back in.

     Probably the scariest time for her was in the women's bathroom at DFW airport.  Her carrier was on top of my rolling tote and I realized how scary it must be from her perspective...a crush of people, stall doors opening and closing all around, toilets flushing loudly, and a lot of noise.  Then she got the the Skylink to ride from Terminal C to B.

     Finally we were on the flight and she seemed fine.

     She was, of course, drugged for the occasion.

February 20, 2019 - 160 - "Ornery Cat"

This would be Ella:  "Yeah...I knew you were looking for me.  I just wasn't
ready to be found."

     So...Ella and I were going to head down to San Miguel this morning.

     Many elaborate plans were put into place.  A carrier was purchased, special 'cover up the meds' paste was purchased, documents were requested, filled out, and printed out, and I had a plan of when each part of this would all unfold.

    But Ella had another plan.  She had a plan to slip off before anything happened and hide in an undisclosed location and not make a peep.

    The longest she's ever hidden before was about 10 minutes.  Now 10 minutes can seem like a long time when you've got a vet. appointment, but in the grand scheme of things, it's just not that long.

    This morning she was missing for more than an hour and a half.  In this time I shut off all doors in the house.  (Typically if she gets shut in anywhere she raises a major ruckus instantly.)  I went through each and every room over and over again.  Calling her.  Shaking the treat jar...

    Not a stir, not a peep...nothing.  She is not known for being a quiet cat.  She usually can't keep quiet for long.

    Then I freaked out that maybe she'd pushed the screen door open when I was taking out the trash.  I couldn't see that happening because a) she was in lazy morning mode, b) it was cold and wet outside, and c) I really thought I'd shut both doors and she can barely push open the screen door.

    Still, she stayed hidden sooooo long I got paranoid.  So I walked around outside the house calling her name and shaking the treat jar.

    I watched the motion-sensor videos of the doors of the house over and over again looking for a little gray streak.  Nothing.

February 19, 2020 - 159 - "Steps to Perfect Packing: Plan Carefully, Execute Plan, Have Epic Melt-down, Get On With It"

     So you're going on a big trip.  You can find all sorts of great information on how to pack perfectly.  Things like checking the weather, thinking about the activities you'll be engaging in, and choosing a color scheme so the things you take coordinate.

     I've read these articles and always begin the packing process with the best of intentions.  My goal is to have everything I need, and nothing I don't.  My goal is to be done with the entire process early the day before a trip.  And I really want to do it with as little stress and angst as possible.

     I'm here to tell you that this has never worked out for me.  Not even once.

     I leave fewer important items behind than I used to.  I generally have outfits that work for the trip.  But never have I ever been done early the day before.  And never have I ever not gotten at least a little bit stressed (read:  turned into a crazed maniac) over the whole process.

     I would love to say that this is not the case, but it would be a lie.  It's only the levels of stress that have varied.

Step 1:  Plan Carefully

     I used to be really bad at this.  I thought this lack of planning was the source of my stress.

    I now know that it is not.

    These days I do more planning than the Allied Powers did for D-Day.  I use an app called StyleBook and have every item of clothing, jewelry, and shoes in my wardrobe entered in the app.  I decide on the outfits I want to wear during the trip ahead of time and the app creates a packing list for me.  All I have to do is to check off the items as I put items in the suitcase.

    Easy, huh?

Step 2:  Execute the Plan

     But then the trouble sets in:  where are all of the items you want to take?  Why does every outfit require a different pair of shoes?  Why is your luggage scale registering way beyond your limit?  What if it rains?  What if it gets really hot?  What if there's a sudden blizzard at the beach and you need a down jacket?  Is this even the right thing to wear at this event?  Did I wear this outfit the last three times I saw these people?  Will I need a swimsuit?  ...

Step 3:  Have a Melt Down of Epic Proportions

     The real problem is rarely with the actual packing...that's just the trigger for an avalanche of issues. 

February 18, 2020 - 158 - "Take Ten"

I did a 'free to share' search on 'bad ideas' and
got this.  It's not Ella...but looks like it. 

Another Habit!

     So I said to myself:  How's about you add just one more teeny tiny habit to your day?

     And I answered myself:  What a great idea!!

     On the down side:  the habit requires attention every hour of the day...literally. 

     On the upside...the point of it is to bring calm and clarity to my days.

     My new habit is an hourly 'Mindful Moment'.

Peace of Mind

    This is the reasoning behind this new habit:  I've created the habit of meditating at least once per day for 15 minutes. 

     The results of this habit are hard to quantify, but I do have the sense that I do get something out of it.   There's a little more calm in my mind.  There seems to be a tiny space between my first instinct to overreact to something...and the actual act of over-reacting to something.

     So I was wondering about how I could bring this sense of peace into the rest of my day.

The Practice

    So I set timers once per hour from 8:13 in the morning until 10:13 at night.  (13 is my lucky number.  I'll explain that in another post...).

    So, anyhow, the goal is:  When the timer goes off, I turn it off, and then breathe 10 mindful breaths.  In for a count of 3...out for a count of 5.  Until I reach 10. 

    Easy, right?

  

    I timed it.  Even when I focus on breathing really slowly I rarely go over a minute.  And, when I tried it at home I felt pretty darn chilled out by all that mindfulness.

Kind of Worked

February 17, 2020 - 157 - "Mexican Casa Renovation - 7- Teamwork"

Home Renovation Process

     Here's a tiny example of our Home Renovation Process.  (Sounds pretty formal when I write it like that.)  But, we have, weirdly, gotten a system going through the years.  

     Our process relies heavily on Discussion, and Vision Boards (I used to draw them.  Now I use Pinterest, PicMonkey, or whatever random form of technology I can semi-master.). Add in a lot of  Debate, Discussion, Trolling the internet, books, and stores, Trial, Error,  Occasionally Getting Advice from People Who Actually Know About What They're Doing, and (this is super-important),  Big Bucketsful of:  Dumb Luck.

Being Childish, Drunk, and/or Foolish

    I don't like to brag...but dumb luck figures very prominently in most everything we do.  (Have you noticed how much I love this phrase 'I don't like to brag but...'?  Is it just me...or does anything you say after that just sound hilarious?)

   What's that saying?  "God looks out for children, drunks, and fools."  Through immaturity, regular happy hours, and a stubborn disdain for knowing what the hell we are doing...I think we're fully hedging our bets.   

Just a Hallway...

     This pass-through has gone from dirty and unfinished to kind of fabulous.  It's a small example of how we do stuff.

     It started like this... 

     Pros:  What we saw:  Amazing 'bones'...  It's got a rubble wall, formerly part of a garden wall for the 16th century church next door.  (Dang!). It's got a ton of built-in storage; floor to ceiling wardrobes with clothes rails and shelves and drawers galore.  

       Cons:  -Everything was dusty.  -The floors had almost no finish left on them and were back to bare clay tile.  -The light fixture was an outdoor light and huge for the space...also it's wire ran from the light, several yards away to the electric source.  -We needed access to the bathroom behind the wall to the right.  It originally was only accessible from the bedroom at the end of the hallway, but we wanted to use that room primarily for a den/tv room...and the door took up a lot of precious wall space leaving no room for furniture.  

Counting On The Experts For the Infrastructure

     So...we asked our general contractor, Juan, if he could move the door.  As always he shrugged and nodded, as if to say: 'Of course; it's nothing.'  And he proceeded to show us just how do-able it was.  

February 16, 2020 - 156 - "Miss? Or Near Miss?"

     Oh
     My
     Gosh!

     It was such a low-key day.  Kind of a bummer day...but things were ticking along okay.

     It started out...reaaallly slowly.  As in:  I slept half the day away.  I'm not sure if I'm just having allergy symptoms...or if I've come down with a bad case of the  bubonic plague.

     Either way my energy is zapped and I can barely speak above a whisper.  I've got an appointment with the doctor at 8 in the morning.  Hopefully they'll give me a steroid shot, or some other miracle cure, and I'll learn that this was just a lot of pollen getting my goat.

---

      Once I finally got up...and nearly at 'em, I spent the rest of the day getting all of our forms and information together to take to our accountant.  About a month ago I set an appointment for 10 tomorrow morning.  (Yeah.  Two appointments in one day...no wonder I feel sick.)

    I was pretty on top of the record keeping all the way through June, things did fall off after that.  It took me fooorreeeverrr to get it all organized and compiled and updated.

     Then I finally put the manilla envelope full of tax stuff on the table by the door and drug myself downstairs.  I managed to clean up the kitchen and the bedroom a little.  (Michael's not home and I get a little lax from the lack of pressure to be a good roommate.)

---

     I was thrilled to get into my pajamas and brush my teeth.  In spite of the cold water coming out of the tap I was about to fall asleep as I washed my face.  I was thinking:  I'm sooo tired, and soooooo ready to crawl back into bed.  Ellas was already there and meowing her protests that it was waaay past bedtime. 

     Snuggling up to Ella sounded like the most fun thing a person could do.

    But that's when I noticed the clock said:  1: 35 a.m.

     And it hit me:  !!!!! H o l y   C r a p o l y !!!!!  I've missed my deadline!!!! f

February 15, 2020 - 155 - "Time Zoned-Out"

Another Great Idea...

      A lot of my work trips are 2 day trips/"3-1's".  (Three flights the first day, one leg home.)  I try to get ones that get in early.  My logic is that even though it's a work day...I'm home so early that I can still get a million things done!

     Sometimes that's true, but most times it's not.

     The reason I get home early is because my flight was really early...which means I'm getting up really early.  But, since I don't normally go to bed really early...the chances of managing that on a layover and getting a good night's sleep are approximately:  zero.

     This morning, for example:  Our flight left Ontario, California at 5.  Yep.  That's right:  5 a.m.  We were at an airport hotel so the pick up time this morning was 4 a.m.  Soooo...my alarm clock was set for 3 a.m.

     Ahead of time I told myself:  it's okay...that's actually 5 a.m. at home.   But a) that's still painfully early in my book, b) your brain still knows that the act of entering 3 a.m. on your phone alarm (and work tablet...and the room clock...) is wrong.  Just all-around wrong.  And then there's c) No way will you ever go to bed 8 hours before that wake-up call.  Or even 7.

     Our work tablet, unhelpfully, tells you how long it is until your wake up call.  Last night I entered 3 a.m (and 3:05 and 3:10...just in case) and it said:  Alarm set for 5 hours and 46 minutes from now.  (5 hours and 56 minutes, 6 ours and 6 minutes...) So, you can't fool yourself into thinking you have...vaguely enough time to sleep.

...Gone Bad

     Seeing the countdown also reminds you that the number given is only accurate if you fall asleep instantly.  Which rarely happens.

     But I tell myself when the alarm goes off:  I feel good!  I slept enough!  No problem!  (And the adrenaline rush I get from the 5 thousand alarm clocks blaring at once usually does make me feel fairly alert.)

     By the time I'm back at DFW that little rush has long-since worn off. 

February 14, 2020 - 154 - "Valentine's Day: Our Hot Dates"

 Our Take On Valentine's Day

    Best I can figure, Michael and I have been together for 24 Valentine's Days.  I'm guessing a good 1/3 of them we've been apart.

     It's not a holiday we're that into.  I think we both look at is as pretty forced:  more to do with Hallmark and Russell Stover than me and Michael.

     I don't bid off for it.  We don't plan for it.  It usually kind of sneaks up on us. 

    But when the day comes we usually get a little sad if we're apart.  Suddenly it seems like nothing should be more important than celebrating the fact that we, miraculously, ended up together.

      But then I always say (and really mean):  "Every day we get to be together is like the best Valentine's Day anyone ever spent."  Sounds sappy when I write that down, but it's true.  Our worst day together is better than my best with anyone else.

     I mean this in the big-picture way.  Neither of us would be foolish enough to test the other on this point if we're in the midst of a spat, but once the tempest passes, we're both clear about this again.

     Getting to wake up and go to sleep together is the most romantic time of my whole life. 

     I've experienced some of the 'should be romantic...but feels kind of 'meh' ' type stuff:  poems written for me, impressive gifts, dinners in fancy restaurants, the whole champagne and chocolates and pricey get-aways stuff.  I once got 10 dozen roses sent to my office. 

     I'm not saying that stuff isn't nice...but there's usually a reason for flashy displays of affection.  A lot of times it's about someone making up for misbehaving, or over-compensating for what's missing in the relationship.

February 13, 2020 - 153 - "Ferocious Beasts"

Carrying Ferocious Beasts Across International Borders

    I was feeling optimistic yesterday that I could get Ella to Mexico.  I was so happy thinking she wouldn't be left alone in the house.  (With her good friend, and our neighbor, checking in daily...but still.  She's accustomed to a lot of interaction when we're home.)

    So, this trip is long enough to make it worth the effort.  There are no huge home projects going on there, so she'll have time to settle in.  It's the perfect time.  We won't have to miss her.  She won't have to miss us.  We'll all be happy and it will go great.

---

2nd Thoughts

    One look at her this morning and I thought:  This flight is gonna make the papers.  

    Considering the rules of media these days:  If it bleeds...it leads. 

    This could make news around the world.

    She doesn't like cars of any sort.  She doesn't like to leave home.  She's violent, by nature.

February 12, 2020 - 152 - "Playing Cat and Mouse"

     ...with my cat.

     So it's 7:42 a.m. and I'm sitting on the couch with my laptop pretending not to be trying to corner Ella.

    I made the mistake of brushing my teeth after I'd gotten out her cat carrier.  She heard the sound the plastic hardware against the metal dryer made, flew past the offending gear...and up the stairs.

     Now she won't let me come near her.  I don't even know where she is at the moment.

    She's no dummy.

    She knows that it's Vet. day.

    That's not Veteran's day... but Veterinarian Day:  two of Ella's least favorite days of the year.

---

     I'm supposed to drop her off at 7:45 a.m.,  The vet's office is only about 15 minutes from us, but she's been hiding in one of her 8973 places, and I can't find her.  She peeked out at the top of the stairs as I came up, but then tore off again to find another place to hide.

     I should have shut all of the bedroom doors before I got out the carrier.  I should have gotten the carrier while I was holding her.

     But that's all useless information now.

---

     So now I'm sitting here typing away.  Playing the waiting game.

     I put on the standard  'I'm-writing-music/....music-for-not-stalking a kitty' on the computer, along with the background music for writing (.../-and-definitely-not-for-taking-cats-to-the-vet.')

     Ella, of course, is not buying any of it.

February 11, 2020 - 151 - "Hablo-ing Español"

 

Upgrading my Habits.  (get it?  get it? lol)

Goal Setting Demon 

     I  need another goal like I need a hole in my head, but...somewhere along the line I seem to have become addicted to goal setting and goal pursuing.  

     It's a good thing...except when it isn't.

     I've improved my fitness level, and my writing discipline.  I meditate more, and watch less TV.  I eat more vegetables and fruit, and less sugar.  I check my calendar more, and social media less...

     These are good goals, right?  But, geez Louise...there's always room for improvement isn't there?  I think I like, enjoy, and accept myself more than I ever have.  I think I have more patience and compassion for myself than I ever used to...but it's sort of an 'all evidence to the contrary' thing.  

     I do seem to put a lot of pressure on myself.

More Room For New Stuff Again

     It's partly because habits that were once hard...just don't take that much effort after a while.  They just become part of what I do in a day.  Things that were once my all-consuming tasks for the day, get done as easily as I used to sit down and scroll through my phone for hours.  So, in a way, I have bought myself time.  And, in a way, these goals take up less bandwidth to maintain than they did to set up.

     I know when to put things on a back burner and just blow them off.  Yesterday, for instance, I took an un-planned exercise rest day, ate less-than-perfectly, and basically slept alllll dayyy looonnnggg.

    It was AMAZING.

    It followed four days in a row of flying and I enjoyed every minute of it...but I did make sure I got my new goal in, because new goals are the easiest ones to lose.

     There's also the fact that the hardest, most all-consuming parts of the house renovation are coming to an end.  We might actually get to live there and enjoy it.  

    So now I'm going to really get to enjoy the local community.

Viva Español!

     So...I'm back to learning Spanish!  

February 10, 2020 - 150 - "Sesquicentennial/Accidental Texts"

     

     




     My 150th post!  

              Yay.

---

     I saw this last night on Pinterest.  I thought of Michael because fitted sheets are the bane of his existence.  He believes they were invented solely to irritate him.  

     He doesn't believe there is a way to fold them.  He thinks they can only be wadded in a ball.  That was my method for many years so i don't really fault him on this...but there are enough YouTube videos out there so that I believe it's possible to fold them...even if mine don't turn out like Martha Stewart's perfect rectangles.

    So I texted this image to Michael last night...or so I thought.


      Just as I hit send, I saw I'd sent a text to someone one digit off of Michael's cell phone.

     This is the interaction that ensued: 

February 9, 2020 - 149 - "Frequent Flying Questions"

• 
  

  How Much Looonnnngeerrr??

  A frequently-asked question on planes is:
       How much longer 'til landing? 
  
  If the person seems to have a sense of humor I will usually first come back with: 
       "Oh...hours and hours."  (This is really only vaguely amusing on very short flights.)
  
       If there's any remote possibility that it's actually true...it's not funny;  not for them to hear.  Not for me to say. 
  
       NOT funny.
  
       Last night a passenger asked how long 'til we arrive.
  
      I showed him our nifty new app that updates constantly with a countdown to landing.
  
       It has the city code for where we left from on the left side, and the city code for the city we're going to on the right.  The time remaining counts down and a bar fills in very satisfyingly from white to blue as the time decreases to landing.
  

  

  How It Works

  Passenger:  "How does it know that?"
  

February 8, 2020 - 148 - "Heirloom USB Plug"

Interaction with a Passenger While Boarding our flight tonight:

Passenger:  Is there a way to charge my phone?

Me:  Yes.  There's a plug between the seats, just to the left.
   
(I indicate where it is.)

Passenger:  Great.  Thanks.
 
(He takes out his charger.  It's just a cord with a USB connector on it.)

Me:  It's like a wall plug, not a USB plug.  Do you have the wall adapter?

Passenger:  No.  Do you have one?

Me:  Yes, I do.  But it's my personal phone charger.  I'll have to get it back or I won't have a phone for my trip tomorrow.

February 7, 2020 - 147 - "Flight Attendant Super Powers"

   I stepped in from the aisle and caught my hose on a piece of metal on the seat. (I’m pretty sure they build them into the design.  There are probably all sorts of specs on the part:  Flight Attendant Snag-Makers.   It may be a no-go item.)

   I looked down and even though they're pretty thick and tough tights.   (Such as are intended to avoid just this scenario.)  But they didn't just have little snag...that had a full on hole in them...that was growing as I looked at it.  A man coming on sympathized with my predicament.  

    He was one of the first passengers on so I was able to get back to the back of the plane,  get into my bag, dig around a little, and retrieve another new pair.  I went in the bathroom and made like Clark Kent.  

    The old pair was off and tossed in the trash, and the new pair was on in no time.  The lav. measures about 2’ x 2’, but in under three minutes I was back in the aisle helping passengers.  

    That is a legit flight attendant super power.  

Here are some others:

February 6, 2020 - 146 - "Each Flight is Like a Box of Chocolates..."

...they can be dark and bad for you and sometimes involve melt-downs.

Today was a good day.  I worked three flights.  There were weather and air traffic control delays, but overall everyone was nice and it went well.  I really enjoyed my crew, which makes a huge difference in how things go.

    But among the overall goodness of the day, as usual, there were pockets of the unexpected.  (To put it mildly.) .

     There was one call light where a woman explained that she was having an anxiety attack and might have to leave the plane.  In the end she was able to maintain her composure.  She stood by the galley for a long time and I kept her talking while we were delayed getting de-iced. 

    There was a woman who didn't speak English, and I couldn't figure out what language she did speak.  All that was clear was that she wanted to sit in someone else's seat.  It was a better seat than hers,  so I can see why she'd prefer it, ...but the man who'd paid extra for it also wanted to sit there.  Much chaos ensued. 

    We had three armed guards on our first flight.  They were going to pick up a prisoner to escort him back to Dallas.  This piqued my curiosity.   I've never seen three guards.  It's always just two. 

   I'm sure (okay, I like to think) if it was Hannibal Lechter or something they wouldn't carry them on public transportation.  The prisoners usually seem fairly harmless.  When I asked the reason for the extra guard I was told:  "It's a very high profile case."

February 5, 2020 - 145 - "Change and Alteration"

Try It!  You Might Like It!    

There was a box sitting in my office for about a month and a half.  It loomed larger and larger every time I noticed it.  It contained my new uniform pieces.  We have to be ready to wear them to work starting March 2.  

     There was a major uproar about our last uniforms.  Lots of people had reactions to them.  I was lucky not to have that to deal with.  It led to a lot of issues for a lot of people, and also a work force wearing all sorts of random uniform pieces.  Our older blue ones, items kinda-sorta matching the current charcoal gray uniforms...and an array of items that really didn't resemble either one.  

     The new uniforms have been tested and retested, so hopefully that problem will be a thing of the past.  But the problem that's always been there is the question of how they fit.  The blue uniforms we wore for the first 20-ish years of my career, for the most part, didn't look great no matter what you did.  The jacket was boxy, the fabric looked like the polyester that it was.  Most of the pieces you could spend your whole paycheck altering and they'd still look terrible.  The only people who really looked good in them had taken them on trips to Asia and had tailors completely take them apart and put them back together.

    The charcoal uniforms did have the advantage of being more fitted to begin with, so you could have them tailored to fit pretty well. 

Love Me Some Uniform-ity

     Personally, I just love having a uniform.  I began my career in corporate life, where outfits were not provided...but were necessary for success.  I resented every penny I spent on all those 'I'd really rather not wear this' clothes.

     Now I just  love not spending my money on work clothes.  I love not thinking 'what am I going to wear today?'

Turn and Face the Strange Ch-Ch-Changes

    Still, I was dreading trying on the new ones because time is closing in and I was afraid I'd have to exchange half of the items, and have a huge job for the tailors for all of the pieces 

    We get reimbursed for tailoring...but nowhere near how much the market value actually costs.  A hemming allowance is something like $4, jacket fitting is $10...or something about like that.  Every single item I had changed cost more than double the allowances.  But, I figured, they do provide our uniforms to us, and it's worth it to feel good in them.

     I learned from an online fashion group I'm in that 'selfies don't lie'.  So I take pictures of most things I wear.   These pictures are without makeup, doing my hair, or panty hose...and I notice my face does weird things when I'm not thinking I'm taking a photo of me, but just focusing on he clothes.   Anyway...here's a sneak peak...

February 4, 2020 - 144 - "Winter Doldrums"

Looked for a copyright-free image for 'doldrums' and found this picture
of Doldrum Bay.  Wondering if it's a real place.  If yes...then where?
But need to get this done...better make a note and look it up later.
Wherever it is, it actually looks more awe-inducing than
doldrums-inducing.

  Defining Terms (Unnecessarily)

First of all I'd like to say what a great word 'doldrums' is.  It just sounds exactly like what it is. 

   And, okay, now I have to say...second of all; that first line forced me to look up 'that word for something that sounds like what it means'.  

    Onomatopoeia is the word I was looking for.  Onomatopoeia doesn't sound like it would mean what it means at all.  

     It sounds like it would mean urinating on a mountain top or something.  Well, really, to me it just sounds like a completely made-up word.  It may as well be: 'supercalifragilisticexpialidocious'. Which backwards, according to the song is:  Dociousalieexpisticfragicalirupus ...but really is:  suoicodilaipxecitsiligarfilacrepus.

     

     But I digress.  

     

     Which really should be the name of this blog...but isn't. 

One night in a blizzard on my work trip, and an overcast day at home...
annnnnd I'm done with winter.  Thanks very much.  (There is, of course,
 every chance that Mother Nature isn't done with me yet.)

Down in the Dumps

      What I intended to talk about was how the winter doldrums have set in over here. 

February 3, 2020 - 143 - "We Learn As We Go"

"Like the one armed alligator wrangler says:  We learn as we go." 

-Esther Hicks

---

Stuff Michael Says

      I heard this little saying and thought it was funny.  I made a point to write it down and remember it because Michael has a series of 'one-armed' sayings he'll share occasionally.  

Stuff like:  

     -"Busier than a one-armed paper-hanger."  

     -"Busier than a New York taxi driver with crabs."  

     So I was planning on writing something about how we've learned home restoration through on-the-job-training.  

     But, as you might imagine...searching for information with that saying as a jumping-off point  led me down a major internet rabbit hole.  

     Or, I should probably say:  into an alligator-infested swamp...

     There are some things you really want to get up to speed with in a safe environment before trying them out in real time.

---

February 2, 2020 - 142 - "Quality Control"

      Since about the 2nd post of writing daily, I've intended to make a list of everything I've posted.

Something like this:

September 14, 2019 - 1- "Our Daily Thread"
September 15, 2019 - 2 - "Surviving the Life: 
                                               Frenemies"
September 16, 2019 - 3- "Two Quotes"

       ....etc. etc.

   Then, each day after I wrote my post, I would spend a little time going back and editing an old one.

     
     Because they never really come out exactly as I intended, and I never seem to have the time, mental clarity, or perspective necessary to correct and edit posts until they actually convey what I'm intending.

     But each day seems as busy, jam-packed with activities and events.  There is barely time to post something to begin with...but time to edit?  Damn.  So far this goal has proven to be a bridge too far.  

February 1, 2020 - 141 - "It's a Sign"

   

     Ever have one of those days where everything seems funny?*

      The other day we went to Westside Cafe for some 'Country Cookin'.  It's a good place if you're in the market for biscuits and gravy or chicken fried steak.  It's interesting how you can pretty much translate "Country Cookin'" to mean:  full of carbs and fat. 

     

     I noticed in the same little shopping center there was a sign for an Unfinished Furniture store.  I've seen this sort of sign a thousand times but for some reason I couldn't picture items that needed painting...but tables with just two legs on them, lamps without wiring, or chairs without backs.