Into the Wild Wood and Home Again

Brr. It is 49 degrees, and of course, this is the "Fun Friday" at the pool to celebrate the end of swimming lessons. I'm pretty sure that "I must find out for myself" Holly will want to go, so we'll go. I just think she might be a little cold. So be it. I'll bring her sweatshirt.  Other than that, it's a typical day. I, for one, would much rather it warmed up-- I still have not spent a lot of time on the deck. I need to. I'm feeling almost panicky about the start of school --too soon, too soon-- and I don't feel at all excited about anything much. I'm just dog-assed tired.  I'm going into Year 40.  Can you believe this? Forty years of getting ramped up to try to lead recalcitrant teenagers to the promised land of written and spoken literacy. And all they want to do is scroll Tik Tok, watch reels, and eat snacks. Boy, did I take a left turn at Albuquerque.  Well, I'm not bad at my job. I can do the work. I just hate the resistance ...

Thursday, and it's a cool and damp start to the day. It rained again last night, just enough. I should putter about in the garden boxes later on. So many "I shoulds" are starting to crowd my brain, but right now, I have not even had breakfast yet (it's 8:20!) and I honestly have no zip as of yet. No matter. Soon enough, I'll be on the go-go-go. But maybe not today.  I have minimal chores to accomplish, and only one errand to do. I don't mind. In fact, the only possibly pressing thing I have on my internal agenda is to buy more peaches. The good ones are in the market now! And I've been enjoying them so much-- I love good peaches. The hard, tasteless, rubbery ones are such a disappointment. To have just-right, super sweet, big ol' peaches is a temporary delight, and I don't mind gorging on them.  And our tomatoes are starting to really come in-- I want to avoid having to chop/freeze too many, so we are having tomatoes with many meals. Again, I don...

Wednesday.  Did you see that the proposed 25% tariffs on imported metals will include brass instruments? An already expensive trumpet (say, $500) will cost $125 more. Yeah, way to get kids interested in marching band. And the reason? National Security. A reliance on imported copper and aluminum, etc. is going t undercut our safety. Okay, maybe, sort of. But gee whiz.  The hits keep coming, eh? If you have an old model in the closet, you might be able to get a good price on that ol' tuba, French horn, or trombone.  I spent years in marching band with my wooden clarinet. Yes, everyone else's were made of molded material, but my paternal grandfather had gifted me with a wooden Prueffer clarinet. It was hard to march with (heavy), and hard to keep on pitch, but I managed. I still have it. I do not still play it. I sincerely doubt anyone ever will. I should sell it.  I didn't really like marching band. Honestly, I didn't really like band all that much. That was a mother-l...

Medical decisions by untrained, uninformed fiat.  This whole situation about the vax schedule for kids, for the availability of medical care being decided by AI bots, for the cutting and gutting of funds for everything from research to school nurses and everything in between-- what is the end goal, really? I do not for one minute buy the idea it's about personal choice. Or parental rights. Or about unnecessary costs. People, from birth to old age, are going to-- are already--dying, due to the grossly incompetent mismanagement of health care in what should be one of the more advanced nations in the world. How is a dead and dying population any benefit? Parental productivity will plummet (hey, that alliteration works), and thus the workforce is impacted precariously (sorry, couldn't help myself). But in all seriousness, a proposed 22 visits in just the first year of a child's life? Copays for each visit? Time off work? And the actual needle fear that will be the obvious side ...

Yesterday was a good day. Church was good, we ended up having breakfast at Starbucks (so many tourists in our usual spots), and G helped me out with two cleaning projects that I needed a bit of assistance with. The day was hot and sunny, and neither of us had outdoor chores to battle through. The reading at Iron Furnace went really well, and dinner there was simple and good.  Sorry the Sox lost. Sigh. Maybe they'll kick it back into gear this next series. It's August, it's hot, and everyone --ballplayers and Memeres alike-- are tired.  Today, we do not have swim lessons. Holly completed the whole summer and she learned a lot; the "test" is Wednesday, and the final "fun day" is Friday. But today, we have a day to just hang out. That may or may not be as easy as it seems, but I have a couple of fun things in mind. I've promised a picnic at the park and she can play on the swings, slides, and so on. And we have a birthday cake to bake. Meg is coming hom...

Sunday morning, warm, damp from the gully-washer and on and off rain last night. The garden is happy. I'm happy that the pool cover didn't get swamped in.  I made a simple enough supper last night: shrimp cocktail ring and a sort of bruschetta. I can't have a lot of garlic right now (tummy hates me sometimes), so I got nice Tuscan white bread, then slathered it in butter, sprinkled a little garlic powder on it, then topped it with diced tomatoes (our own!) and diced zukes that I'd marinated in a little olive oil, oregano, and basil. This I covered with shredded cheddar and parmesan, and popped it all in the oven for about 15 minutes. YUM. Next time, I think I'd head out to the herb garden and get fresh basil and oregano, but it was a little wet out there when I thought this whole thing up.  Anyhow, it was good. And tummy-friendly.  Today, church, breakfast, then clean the downstairs shower. woot.   Then, off to Iron Furnace to hear my good friend Meg Kearney rea...