Archive for bathrobe

Sunday morning…

The early birds are singing joyfully as if they know it’s going to be a very good day. It will be as far as the weather is concerned anyway. We are getting a respite from the rain and are going to have a sunny day today. I’m sure it will be a good day overall because it is Sunday and what can go wrong on a Sunday? It’s the one day of the week that’s guaranteed to be uneventful. I haven’t had a Sunday yet that was not.

It’s Pentecost today, so officially a holiday besides it being a Sunday. Tomorrow will be Pentecost Monday and another day off. I’m looking forward to that.

I would have been asleep still if the dog hadn’t started barking. That is a bad habit he has sometimes. I don’t enjoy being wakened out of a sound sleep and having to get up to settle him down. The problem is that I’m wide awake when I do and there’s no chance of me going back to sleep right away.

I’ve had my cup and a half of coffee and have switched to cold milk. It tastes so good. I am inhaling it. It is making me feel kind of cold and I’ve had to put on my bathrobe. I got this bathrobe from my daughter three and a half years ago and it has served me well ever since. It’s especially good now because it’s gotten so big on me. I can really wrap it around myself well and tie it tight with the belt. I’m always nice and warm in it.

The milk is giving me the settled stomach and the energy I need. It really makes me feel good. I can always count on milk to do that for me. A few glasses of milk set me right. I would miss it more than coffee if I had to choose.

It’s become morning now and I have to think about going back to bed. I definitely need some more sleep. The great thing about Sundays is that I can sleep late without feeling guilty. It’s assumed that everybody does and that nobody will disturb you. This neighborhood is very quiet on a Sunday. Even kids don’t show themselves until some time in the afternoon.

I hope you all have a great day.

Ciao,

Nora

 

 

>A load off my mind…

>

I’m sitting here drinking coffee after I woke up from a nap in the dark and cool bedroom. It was most pleasant and I had an interesting dream in which I remembered the name of a medication that I want to ask my GP about. I just googled it and it exists here. I haven’t used it in 18 years, but it’s a most helpful one for a woman in her middle aged years. I can’t wait to get it now. It’s Metamucil, orange flavored. If it hadn’t been for that dream, I wouldn’t have remembered the name. 
The cat got a new flavor cat food. I was afraid that she wasn’t going to like it as I tossed out what was left over of her old one and poured the new one into her bowl. However, she went for it immediately and has been chowing down on it ever since. She apparently does not have very discriminate tastes. I’m hoping that she’ll continue to like this new one because it comes in a much larger, more economical bag that closes airtight.
The dog acts like he is jealous of her new food while I know in my heart that he has no interest in it whatsoever. It’s just the newness of it that appeals to him. Besides, he always thinks that he has to be in on everything thats new and available. Luckily, the cat eats her food on the kitchen counter, well away from the dog, so she is safe. She does always leave behind many footprints that I constantly have to wipe away, especially when it is rainy and they are muddy.
We are expecting a shower tomorrow afternoon, but I won’t hold my breath for it. Such things have been predicted in the past without actually coming about. We’re having a bit of a heatwave right now, though the temperatures are still bearable. It’s 81F right now, which is warm for the time of year. It’s only May, after all.  Oh, and I saw my first red poppies growing. What a sight. 
Today was a nice enough day. Nothing spectacular happened. It was just a plain ordinary day that went by quickly. I did laundry and an extra load to get an opportunity to wash my bathrobe which was due for it. It was full of stains and very grubby. I would have been embarrassed to be seen in it. Luckily, I very seldom am. I don’t get caught off guard that often. 
I wore my Capri leggings and a cotton tank top and my sandals. It was as summery as I could get. That’s the least amount of clothes I’ll wear in public. It is funny to go out so skimpily dressed. You feel like you’ve not got enough clothes on. Fortunately, you notice that everyone else is similarly dressed.

Well, I’ve got to take the dog for a walk. It is that time of day again. I’ve also got to take my medicines. If I want to stay sound of mind, I better not forget that. I hope you’re all having a good day and that the weather is treating you well. 
Ciao,
Nora

>Taking a break…

>

I almost always feel stress. I feel stress when I sit in my apartment and I feel stress when I walk the dog. I’m almost constantly a bundle of nerves. At least, I’ve been especially so lately and now can’t remember when I’ve not been. It seems that I’m always hanging on by the skin of my teeth to some extent, except that now it has taken on extreme forms. 
I didn’t want to get out of bed this morning because I didn’t want to face the day and I only did so very reluctantly because the dog insisted on it. He had to be let out. I sat in my bathrobe for the longest time drinking coffee with my stomach tied in knots, feeling miserable and trying to figure out how in the world to make it through the day.
When it was noontime, I took my medicines and I also took 20 mg of Temazepam because I didn’t know what else to do, but just wanted to be relieved from the enormous pressure that I felt. I had to walk the dog, but kept postponing it until I couldn’t any longer. 
Now the Temazepam has started to work and I feel a bit better. As a matter of fact, I wish I would always feel this way. Most of the stress is gone and my stomach is almost not tied in knots anymore. I’m only a little bit neurotic. I think that’s what I have: a neurotic personality. I can’t explain it any other way. I had a grandmother who was the same way. 
I get very exhausted of being me. I always feel that I have to read an instruction booklet to know what to do with myself but that the booklet has been lost. It’s so tiring to deal with these moods and feelings. Sometimes I feel like giving up completely. But then I take a pill like the Temazepam and the pressure is off and I can handle things again for a while. It’s so nice to get a bit of relief. 
I curse my genetic make up and wish I had never been born. I don’t see any added value to my life here on earth. It serves no purpose whatsoever. I don’t see what I add to the common good. I’m basically taking up a tiny little bit of space in a very negative way. 
Don’t pay any attention to me. I’m being super realistic and probably need to take another pill. Everybody needs some redeeming qualities and I just don’t happen to see mine. 
Ciao,
Nora

>Midnight revisited…

>

Despite my good intentions I relented and closed the windows about an hour ago. I also turned on the heater. I wanted to not do that or worry about the temperature because, after all, it is springtime, even at night. But I got too chilled, even in my bathrobe, and I don’t like suffering. It’s toasty warm in here now and I think I can turn the heater off and have it be warm enough in the apartment for the rest of the night. It will have to suffice. 
Like I said, I’m sitting here in my bathrobe and I’m obviously not in bed where I should be, but I enjoyed being up late last night and slept well in the morning. I had no bad effects from it today and didn’t need to take a nap like I had expected to. I was up on time for my personal helper and even had some time to spare.
I’m extremely mellow and slightly sleepy headed and that feels very pleasant. It’s a pleasurable state of mind to be in. I think that’s why I like being awake right now. 
It’s the whole experience I appreciate. I’m always one to seek out the more pleasant moods that are stress free and in which I feel just a little punch drunk. I seek the altered states of mind that I seem to find at night. Feeling normal isn’t good enough. It will do during the day, but at night I want a different experience. 
I went on the bathroom scale tonight and had lost 600 grams. Now I need to get on it in the morning and see what I really weigh, which will be less. I never weigh myself at night, but I was curious because I had not been on the scale in quite some time. I can’t wait to see what the weight will be. I hope I will have lost a total of a kilo, but maybe that’s too much to hope for. 800 Grams would be nice and I guess that’s more realistic. 
Today was an utterly normal day. Nothing out of the ordinary happened, except that the weather was unpredictable. Sunshine one moment and huge gray clouds the next.  It was real April weather, although it was a little warmer than usual for the time of year. I guess even the weather wasn’t that out of the ordinary. It was a completely forgettable day and you could have traded it in for any other ordinary day that had nothing to distinguish it. 
I suppose I shouldn’t complain about that. I’m sure there are enough people in the world who would like to have a very ordinary day with nothing to distinguish it from any other. I’m not really complaining, just stating a fact. It went by quickly and I even watched television last night and watched a soppy show called ‘Memories’ in which people go in search of an old love from their past. 
Well, I did that and married him and divorced him 15 years later and I don’t think the whole adventure was a good idea. It sounds very romantic on paper, but in reality it’s not such a great idea. You can’t revive a teenage romance. You can do it briefly, but not long term. It has to stay rooted in the past. Ships passing in the night and all that… You don’t want to end up like the Titanic on an iceberg. 
I’m a sucker for soppy shows, though, providing they’re tastefully done and don’t abuse the sentiment. 
Well, I have to move on to the next thing, whatever that is going to be. I don’t know if it’s going to be bed yet, although I am yawning. I may get excited about something yet. The night is still young. 
Have a good one. 
Ciao,
Nora

>Being absolutely absorbed…

>

I’ve moved the radio/CD player from the bedroom to the living room and I’m listening to my music at random. Just picking out CDs that look interesting and that I haven’t listened to in a long time. I’m not being too picky. I just listened to The Doors and now I’m listening to Queen. 
It’s been very enjoyable so far. These are CDs that don’t have too many memories attached to them for me and I can listen to them easily without much tugging at my heart strings. I have a lot of Cds that do and I think I’d rather not listen to them, so I’m avoiding them. I guess I do have some selection process. It’s not completely random.
I spent all afternoon and the early part of the evening yawning and two hours taking a nap. I was feeling very sleepy, but I’ve gotten over it now. I’m perky again after two cups of coffee. That’s what it took. I don’t know why I get these attacks of sleepiness. 
I don’t want to go to bed too early, because I want to have another good night’s sleep like I did last night. I’m postponing bedtime as long as possible. I will get my pajamas on shortly, because it is so cozy to sit here in my bathrobe. That’s the most comfortable outfit to spend the evening in.
I shouldn’t have said that I was feeling perky, because I’ve started yawning again. I guess I’m doomed to do that tonight. I wonder if it has something to do with writing blog posts? I was doing that earlier too. No, it couldn’t possibly. I probably just need more sleep than I’ve gotten so far. One good night’s sleep doesn’t cure everything. It’s going to take a few nights’ worth. 
I’ll just have to get some decent amounts of sleep. Going to sleep and waking up in the middle of the night is not a good system. Even if I do go back to sleep early in the morning. I’m going to try not to do that tonight, just like I didn’t last night.
I have to sleep until a decent time in the morning, because my personal helper is going to be here at 8:30 am. If I can wake up before that time and make coffee it would be perfect. I do want to be functioning up to some point. I don’t want to be comatose. I can be very perky when I wake up and be in a good mood right away. Sometimes it doesn’t quite work out and I need a little bit of time. 
I still have to find a battery for my alarm clock. I forgot to ask the Exfactor to buy some for me when he went to the grocery store. I think I may know where there is a one. I will have to go look there in a minute. I did remember to have him buy lighters for me, I thought that was very smart of me. I forget to write things down on the white board in the kitchen. That’s too easy. God forbid I should do something as simple as that. 
I should end this now and get my pajamas on. I’ll also see what’s on television. My CD has ended.
Have a nice evening.
Ciao,
Nora

>Culture…

>

I got up early this morning and was full of good intentions. I didn’t want to act like it was another weekend day and waste it sitting around in my bathrobe, not accomplishing anything. The first thing I did early this morning was walk Tyke when it was still dark outside and cold. It was even snowing a little bit. Luckily, Tyke cooperated and got his business over and done with quickly, so we could return to the warm apartment soon. I did let him sniff around on the field for a while, but it was too cold to linger long. 
Once we got back inside the apartment, I realized that I was still a bit sleepy and I laid down on the sofa under the red fleece blanket and closed my eyes for a while. I had planned to watch the cultural programs that were going to be on that morning, so I had turned on the television, but all I saw were 5 minutes of news and then I fell asleep and didn’t wake up until noontime, so I slept for a long time. 
I immediately made myself a cup of coffee, and then another one, so that I would be alert and well and then I took Tyke for another walk. It was a bit less cold outside and the sun was shining. Still, there was a lot of ice underneath the freshly fallen snow and walking was a bit treacherous, even in my new boots. I certainly mustn’t get a false sense of security, because I can still slip and fall. 
After I took Tyke home, I walked to the tobacco shop very carefully, although in some places people had cleaned their sidewalks really well. They had sprinkled them with salt and gotten rid of all the ice. I slipped a few times, but managed to find my footing anyway, so they were just close calls. 
I bought a chocolate bar at the tobacco shop along with my usual supplies and made my way home, aware now of the treacherous places and avoiding them as much as possible. Tyke and Gandhi came to greet me both when I walked in the front door and you would have thought that I’d been gone for hours. It does feel good to be welcomed so, although Tyke was also very curious about what was in the bag that I was carrying. I didn’t give him a chance to look, afraid that he’d find the chocolate bar.
I watched television all afternoon. Some of it was interesting and some of it was inane. At least I was dressed and I wasn’t sitting around in my bathrobe. That was one redeeming feature. At least it wasn’t a day like last Saturday that I let completely go to waste. I do feel that I did something useful. 
I’m waiting for it to start snowing again, because it is supposed to. I’ll go walk Tyke in the snow. The country has been in chaos because of the snow and the ice. Planes, trains and automobiles have been delayed or canceled or stuck in traffic jams. People are told not to go anywhere unless they absolutely have to. There’s a terrible mess at Schiphol Airport and many passengers are stranded. 
I must go and watch the latest news. 
Have a good evening.
Ciao,
Nora

>On my way to bed…

>

If I write that I’m on my way to bed, I’ll feel that there is a reward for me waiting at the end of this post. What I really should do, is put on my pajamas and bathrobe now and really be ready for bed. I still may do that after I’ve finished my cup of coffee. I’m awfully tired at the end of this day and look forward to going to sleep. I can’t wait to get under the duvet and put my head down on my pillows and fall asleep by the sound of the radio.
It all started off this morning with me picking out the clothes I was going to wear. I had some idea before I looked into the closet and did end up picking out that outfit, which consisted of two pairs of legging, a black long sleeved stretch T-shirt and a black and white tunic. The top pair of leggings was black also and I needed two pairs to keep me warm. 
I took a shower then and shivered, because I can’t get the thermos faucet hot enough, no matter how hard I turn it, and washed my hair. I quickly dried myself off with Tyke’s help (he likes to lick the water of my lower legs) and got into my clothes as fast as I could and doused myself with perfume.
Then I did chores and waited for my personal helper to get here, which she did a half hour early, on foot, bundled up against the cold, trying not to break her neck on the ice that was in the streets and on the sidewalks. So we had a hot cup of coffee first before we put our brave boots on and went and took Tyke for a much needed walk. Tyke was very happy and eager to go when he saw me put my boots on. He was sitting pretty while I put his leash on and was ready by the front door before I even had my gloves on. We walked very carefully and moved to the grass as soon as we could, because there things were soft and crunchy. We sank into the icy patches.
When we came home, I talked about all the things I was so nervous about and that were worrying.me, which were just the ordinary every day details of the life of a human being who functions in the world, but which I find very difficult. It’s why I have to take tranquilizers. This personal helper, whom I’ll call my Belgian personal helper, is very good to talk to and gives me lots of good feedback and I always feel better after I’ve talked about these details of ordinary life. It’s like she holds up a mirror in which I see myself and my problems and things seem less complicated. 
She suggested that she comes more often than once a week and starting next week she will be here on Thursday mornings as well. I’m very grateful for that and can’t believe my luck. The other personal helper will come on Wednesday mornings, so I will have someone three times a week. I can discuss all my problems with them. Whatever sort of trouble I run into I can discuss with them and they will help me. If that isn’t a very good deal, I don’t know what is. 
Soon after she left, the domestic help got here and cleaned up the apartment very nicely and it is such a joy to have the place look spic and span. I never have to be embarrassed about having anyone over here, because it always looks good in here. 
Because it was my sister’s birthday today, she came and picked me up and took me to her house for coffee and pie. Her Italian friend was there and he had bought her a dishwasher and was finishing installing it. It looked very good when it was done and worked like a charm. He’s a very handy man to have around the house. We had delicious pie and I would have liked to have eaten two pieces, but alas… the gastric band! Because I can’t speak Italian like they do and I didn’t want to speak English, I went on strike and spoke French. I thought about speaking German, but my German is rusty. 
I finally made it home after six where my loyal animals were waiting for me and needed lots of cuddling and food. And then I was tired, because it had been an eventful day for me. I normally don’t have such busy days. Tomorrow the Exfactor is coming in the morning to do the groceries and in the afternoon I have an appointment with my SPN. I need a good night’s sleep and that’s what I’m going to get right now. I’m going to put my pajamas on. 
Have a good night!
Ciao,
Nora

>Brewing coffee…

>

Tyke has managed to get my cigarettes and lighter from the third shelf of the bookcase in my bedroom and chew the lighter to pieces, leaving me with one lighter that doesn’t work at all and one lighter that works badly. This is, to say the least, very frustrating and I have a sore thumb to prove it. Luckily, I have a stove lighter that barely works and that will do for now. After that, I don’t know what I will do. I hope the supermarket will be open by that time. 

I had the windows open during the night, but it was much too cold and I closed most of them and turned on the heater when I got up. Now I’m sitting here nice and warm in my bathrobe drinking my first cup of coffee. I think I will be okay in a little while. There is hope for recovery yet. Coffee does wonders, after all, and this is only my first cup. Imagine what the second cup will do. I should stop yawning soon. 

I got into my cold bed last night and slowly heated up a spot for myself. I listened to the results of the football games as I did. Little by little I got warmer and sleepier, until I drifted off to sleep. Falling asleep is always the easiest thing to do. Staying asleep is the toughest thing. 

It’s quite a nice thing to heat up a spot for myself in the cold bed. I think about getting an electric blanket, but I think I would miss the ritual of warming up the bed with my body. The initial coldness makes you appreciate the warmth afterwards all the more, especially when you get your arms under the duvet and the duvet up to your chin.

So, I’ve got to go to the supermarket first thing this morning and then do some chores. The Exfactor can’t come and do any groceries today. I will have to get what I need myself. This is quite nerve wrecking to me, but it must be done. If I go at 8 o’clock, there will hardly be anyone there and I will have the store to myself. Those are the most user friendly circumstances. I dislike riding my bike over there and having to get the groceries on it. I do wish I had a car. It would make everything so much simpler. I feel so vulnerable on my bike. It gives me a panic attack. 

I think I will do my chores as soon as I’ve finished drinking my coffee. There’s no point in waiting until the last minute. It will feel good to get them out of the way. I still have to hang up all that laundry and I have to clean up the kitchen. It will give me some sense that things are under control and that’s a better base to start the rest of the day from. 

I’ve just taken my medicines and I’ve taken two tranquilizers in the hope that it will calm me down enough to be able to take care of things in a peaceful way. It will be wonderful to not have this feeling of extreme anxiety.

Wish me luck and have a very good day.

Ciao,
Nora

>Mondays that don’t hurt…

>

It’s already afternoon and the day seems to have flown by. No doubt that has to do with the fact that I slept until 9 o’clock in the morning. I don’t know how I managed that feat either, but I thought it was worthwhile mentioning. I couldn’t believe it when I looked at the alarm clock and saw what time it was. I had been up twice during the nigh, and those had both been opportunities to stay up, but I withstood the temptation and went back to sleep, rightly so, it turned out. It seems I do have enough sleep in me at night to stay in bed and take advantage of it instead of getting up and artificially arousing myself with numerous cups of coffee, only to collapse again in the morning.

I took my time getting started and had two cups of coffee while I sat behind the computer and smoked cigarettes and answered emails. To me that’s the only way to start the day. Reach out an touch someone. I must get my brain in working condition right away and coffee and cigarettes help me get there. I does feel good when all the synapses fire correctly. There’s nothing like some mental activity to get me in the right mood. I would be a talker if there were someone pleasant to talk to. 

The first thing I do, though, when I wake up, is abundantly greet Tyke who sits beside the bed waiting for me to open my eyes. I make a big deal out of saying good morning to him as if I haven’t seen him for a long time and not just a while ago when I let him outside to do a piddle. We have our bonding ritual with much petting and hugging and that really starts the day of right. I wouldn’t want to have to do without it. He is very friendly and good natured first thing in the morning, but then he really always is. 

The hard part is waiting for the coffee to get done, even though it really doesn’t take all that long. It just seems like it because I want it done instantly, which makes me sure that I want a Senseo machine again. Once I have my cup of coffee, I am truly satisfied and think that all is well with the world and for a while I am the most contented person around. I don’t think there is anybody on the block more happy. They can all make the claim, but I won’t believe them. 

So, I sat in my bathrobe and wasted some time behind the computer and waited for my personal helper to show up. When I knew it was time for her to arrive, I shut the computer off and emptied the overflowing ashtray. She does smoke too, so I like to present her with an empty ashtray. Once she got here, I jumped in the shower and got squeaky clean and dressed in a clean set of clothes. I sprayed all sorts of delicious things on myself and Tyke had a very good sniff of me when I surfaced again. 

It does feel good to be a reborn person, if only on the outside. It makes you feel as if you’ve gone through a little metamorphosis, because there is such a big difference between you in your bathrobe and you in your nice clothes, all dressed up. I had very shiny clean hair and for a change I got it in the proper do all at once and sprayed hairspray on it to get it to stay that way. Even I liked the way I looked. And I’m a critic. 

We walked Tyke in the cold foggy morning air, with the sidewalks all covered in yellow leaves, and it was very pretty and I liked the way the air felt on my face. It was a very typical autumn day and perfect for the first day in November. The timing of the weather couldn’t have been better, but it would have been very nice to have been out in the countryside to really appreciate it and the beautifully colored trees and the fields that are fallow now. You do appreciate this time of year when you realize what’s up ahead and you want to take advantage of it all the more. 

We had coffee and a long chat when we got home and the domestic help showed up before the personal helper had even gone. I had the apartment full of help. I do so appreciate it and feel very lucky. The quality of my life has improved tremendously. When the personal helper left, the Exfactor showed up and had a cup of coffee also and told me about how he had had to work yesterday when the weather had been so beautiful. It had been unseasonably warm and the sun had been out in a bright blue sky in the afternoon.

As a matter of fact, when I had coffee with my sister, we sat outside the front of her house in the sunshine without our jackets on and it felt like a summer day. We stayed out there until the sun disappeared behind some houses and it cooled off to remind us that it was autumn after all. 

The Exfactor took my list of groceries and went to the supermarket on my bike with the large shopping bag and my bank card. The domestic help finished cleaning the apartment and when she was done, the Exfactor returned fully laden. The fun part is always finding room for all the groceries while Gandhi and Tyke try to poke their noses into everything and generally try to get in the way as much as possible, until I distract them with food, which is what it is all about. 

I had to change Tyke’s dog food, as he ate the stuff I had for him very reluctantly. Luckily, he liked the new kind very much and ate it within the shortest amount of time. Gandhi also like it very much and I gave her a small portion on a little dish on the kitchen counter. She didn’t realize this was her lucky day and that there are many lucky days to come. She does owe her luck to Tyke’s generosity and his willingness to share. 

The Exfactor had another cup of coffee and then was off to do his other errands and I was finally alone with the animals again. Tyke’s gone to sleep at my feet and Gandhi, who was locked into the room with a vacuuming domestic help, is now sound asleep in the armchair. She was very upset about the vacuum cleaner and walked out of the room very indignant when we rescued her. The poor cat does have a tough life here, what with all these people coming and going and wanting to be friends with her and saying how pretty and lovable she is. 

Oh, by the way, there was some doubt in my sister’s eyes when I presented her with the cardigan that didn’t fit me, but once she put it on, and saw that it fit and how nice it was, she was happy with it. So, I’ve done a good deed. 

Have a nice day all of you!

Ciao,
Nora

>Regardless…

>

In spite of my intention not to be awake during the night, I find myself up and about in the early hours of the morning anyway. I had a good enough sleep, but it just wasn’t a very long one. Never mind, I’m sure I will catch up again at some point. It isn’t important now. What is important is that it is now officially my birthday and I have that birthday feeling too of slight excitement and anticipation at what the day will bring. I feel like a young kid and like I’m turning 12, although I don’t remember my 12th birthday, so no doubt it wasn’t such a big deal. I do know that I was in my first year in secondary school and that it was tough and I had to get used to it very much, but no doubt I was too young to be in it.

I’m sitting here now with my second cup of coffee, in my bathrobe, and very optimistically waiting for the real morning to start. It hasn’t started raining yet like it said it would and with a little bit of luck it won’t rain at all this morning, which would be fortuitous if I’m to go downtown this morning. It’s supposed to rain in the southwest first and then slowly come over here. It depends of your interpretation of slowly. I don’t mind getting wet on the way home, I can get dried off once I get there. It’s when I go there that I don’t want to get wet. There’s nothing more miserable than walking around downtown soaking wet.

I can’t wait to pick out my present, especially since I possibly know what it is going to be and hoping I can find it. I will walk straight into the store to the right department and pick out the right size and color. Then we’re going to have coffee and then my sister has to go to work.

I’ve turned 56 today, but except for the traces my age has left on my body, the number is meaningless. I feel as young as I did when I was in my 30’s and in many ways I have not aged, though I must add that I have grown wiser and would not want to lose that wisdom that has been hard to come by. It’s ironic that I should grow sage when I’m in my 50’s while other people have managed that much earlier, but maybe they have not gone through the School of Hard Knocks. Or maybe they were not as backward and naive as I was. I seem to make discoveries about myself and life that I should have made much sooner and I’m glad I’m making them now, but I should have known these thing much earlier in life. I could have saved myself much trouble.

Nevertheless, I know them now and I hope I get to apply them for another 30 years or so. Long enough to make it worthwhile anyway. I do hope to do some good with it. Even if it’s just for the sake of myself. I do hope to live to a healthy ripe old age and gain some good experiences out of life. One thing I think I’m saved of, and that is that I will grow old as a bitter woman. There was some danger of that at one point, but I’m not worried about that anymore. I’m not bitter at this point and see no reason to be so in the future. I hope that stays that way. It’s best if I keep living my life my own way, according to my own rules.

So much philosophizing so early in the morning. I told you that’s when I’m at my best. Any endeavor I start, I should start at this time of the day. That’s when it should be most successful. I can imagine that if I had the space and the materials, I would create the best works of art now. But that’s just speculation. The proof would be in the pudding and there is no pudding until I get the opportunity.

I haven’t heard anything about the creative and music classes yet, but I was not expecting to. There are the waiting lists and I haven’t been on them very long. I will call in a month and make sure they haven’t forgotten about me. I’m sure the system works and I have nothing to worry about. One of these days there will be a letter in the mail.

It’s amazingly cold for how warm it is supposed to be in here and I wonder if the thermostat is telling me the right temperature or if it is an optimistically tuned one. Maybe it is hanging in a warm pocket of air. Maybe I have to calculate in the draft chill factor. I have socks on and haven’t been without for three days. I even wear them in bed, because it’s chilly under the duvet at night. I lie there and wait for my space to get warmed up and avoid the cold places. It would be worse with cold feet, but I have notoriously cold feet. That’s okay, I’d rather not be warmed up like an oven in bed, which is the problem when you sleep with someone else. That’s only good in really cold winters when the ice is on the windows and that never happens, knock on wood.

I’m amazingly free of anxiety. I’m full of good cheer and I’m looking forward to the day. When I was cleaning out the dresser drawers, I found stuff to decorate the room with for a birthday and I just may do that today. I can at least blow up the balloons and Tyke can play with them afterwards. No doubt he’ll pop every one of them, but that will be part of the fun. I’m going to look at those items now.

Have a splendid day. I wish you could all come over to help me celebrate.

Ciao,
Nora