Monday, June 22, 2020

6-22-2020 Monday- 1:30pm

Good afternoon!
Feeling better than last week.  Just dealing with the residual lack of spoons I have after being sick, but I have things to do this week so no more procrastinating--LOL!
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Tuesday I had my video call with Leah.  (We are switching to Tuesday nights now instead of Thursdays.)  There's an exciting new plan afoot!  If everyone stays well...I should be making my first trip over to McFamily's this coming Sunday!  Whoohoo!
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You know Leah had a double bubble or covid pod with her sister's family...well, their oldest, Julian, is going to be going to a summer school program for the month of July.  Therefore they won't be getting together.  So.....I have put Caroline's cleaning on hold for now...will have been quarantined for over two weeks since Caroline's visit...Michal's family is still in isolation and are coming over on Saturday for Ian's birthday party (6 years old!)...and I plan to go over on Sunday for his birthday.  Michal didn't want me to be part of their pod even if I wasn't actually there when they were there.  (I wanted to go over on his actual birthday this Wednesday on the 24th--but then they wouldn't have come over on Saturday.)  
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I know--confusing.  But I will take the chance and go over the day after her sister's family is there as they are all still home and being careful.  And this means that I will then be in a double bubble with McFamily for a while!  At least until mid July when Dagan's work wants him to be back all day on the 15th for reopening.  He can work from home after that and still come in after hours for computer repairs like he has been, but they want him there that day to make sure all is well for reopening the business location.  So, I'm not sure if I will want to go over after he has been more exposed or not?  Maybe wait a week instead of two?
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The thing is--there's also another issue coming up.  Fall will be coming and decisions will be made about school for the boys.  Once they go back to school--well, Ian--then the exposure will go way up.  If they even reopen.  Could be they will continue online classes.  With Ian, he's only starting kindergarten this fall so it's not even grade school yet.  Decisions.  Decisions.
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So, I realize that July might be my only chance to be able to see the grandsons...and Dagan and Leah...until who knows when.  Possibly even only half of July...and if we all stay well.  LOL!  So, fingers crossed!
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Oh--and Caroline was thrilled for me and totally understood.  Said to get ahold of her whenever I want her back.  :)
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Well, I went to water the flowers this week and discovered they had removed the handle from the outside faucet!
 So--can't use my hose and had to haul out water in buckets.  Makes having planters a much bigger project for the first time.  Leah says I should call the office and ask them to put it back on.  Working up to it.
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Meanwhile--on Friday afternoon I got my little chest freezer delivered to my garage!  
Since we only shop every 2-3 months this will make life so much easier!  Really nice local company--Karl's.  They unboxed it for me and put it where Leah had cleared a spot.  Even took the tape and some cardboard out of the inside and hauled all the trash away with him.  Such a nice man.  No mask, though.  But we were far apart, I had mine on, we were outside and it was windy.
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Had a video Gramma Day on Saturday.  Chatted over lunch with the boys and then later we synched up to watch Stinky and Dirty Show for a while and then watched the short little movie Burn-E.  We were going to watch Wall-E afterwards (Liam's favorite movie) but Liam fell asleep on the couch so Ian and I picked Frozen because Gramma had never seen it before (not a favorite of Ian's really).  Liam woke up to NOT Wall-E and was very upset.  He finally went upstairs to watch Wall-E with Daddy while Ian and I finished the second half of Frozen.  Was a nice laid back Gramma Day, regardless.  Can hardly wait to, hopefully, see them all in person! 
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Meanwhile back at the ranch...
Every day it's not raining I see these two smokers who are from my building... 
...out by the nearby apartment garages. 
Even if it is sprinkling I usually see at least these two. 
They sent around notices a few weeks ago about smokers needing to be 20 feet from the building and that they they aren't allowed to smoke on their balconies or patios.  So now the smoking buddies gather back here in the grass or they walk back and forth on the sidewalk.  There's another lady who joins them in the grass sometimes and another one in a wheelchair.  I know I have seen a couple more at the front door before but they haven't shown up back here with this group.  Maybe have their own smoking buddy group.
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I never used to see them except when I went to get the mail or bring my trash out because they hung out in the front of the building.  Now they are out back.  Depending on which way the wind is blowing I sometimes smell the smoke--especially if they are pacing the sidewalk.  I used to smoke (until 1989) so I can't imagine where they will go when the weather turns in the fall.  I wouldn't want to be standing outside when it's 20 below!  I'd park my car by the front door to sit in or go out to my garage.  They mostly stood right outside the front door in the cold.  Brrr!  The entryway often smelled like smoke.  Bothered Leah's asthma.  (So does the heavy perfumes some of the ladies wear.)  I was a smoker so it doesn't bother me much.  But, as a former smoker, I would never want to rent in a no smoking building.  Maybe all apartment buildings are non-smoking now, though?  Not sure.  I know I'd be sneaking cigarettes on my patio or inside my apartment--especially in the wintertime!  How could you not?!  You're addicted.  And we have blizzards, wind advisories, thunderstorms, hail, etc.  I'm glad I don't smoke anymore.  Smokers have been demonized.  Plus--the expense--OMG!
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Rambling.
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Anyways, was a very quiet recovery week.  I haven't worked on letters for two weeks, but hopefully will get back on track now this week...in many areas--LOL!  I rented the first two seasons of Yellowstone with Kevin Costner and saw It's a Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood with Tom Hanks last night (Netflix DVDs), am revisiting Monk on Prime, enjoying the cozy mystery series Father Brown (season 7) on BritBox, consumed mini-series Deadwater Fell & Alibi on Acorn, and my daily smattering of YouTube videos are always there, of course.  Been very pleasant recovery down time.  
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For half the week I was entertained by a teenage grackle who refused to leave Mama alone.  Everywhere she went the baby flew after her squawking to be fed!  Was so funny.  She was trying to ditch this fully capable "child" who would not leave home.  She'd speed away to this spot and that one--and her "baby" would adeptly speed after her no matter how far she went or how fast.  She was refusing to feed it anymore, but it trailed her wherever she went begging and pestering her.  Even though when she ignored the full-grown youngster it would eventually give up and start gathering its own food right next to her.  Reminded me of Mama cats I've seen giving a clawed whack upside the head to their way too old kittens who were trying to nurse.  Time to leave the nest, as they say--ROFL!
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Anyways, need to push myself this week and get some things done.  Been gorgeous cooler weather.  Rain off and on.  Till next week--take care!  :) :)
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"Start where you are, use what you have, do what you can."
Arthur Ashe

16 comments:

Rita said...

My comment to get your comments. :)

Jenny Woolf said...

Oh my goodness, it is exciting to think of seeing the kids in real life! I hope it happens for you. I agree about school increasing the exposure. If it was me I'd be keeping kids at home. early years is when they miss their education least, I think. In some Scandinavian countries kids don't even go to school at all till they are or 7. They're so adaptable.
And those smokers are funny! :)

DJan said...

I sure enjoyed hearing about your week. I'm glad you're better. It's hard for so many grandparents who are missing seeing their kids and grandkids. I'm glad you don't smoke any more. I did, too, long ago! :-)

Far Side of Fifty said...

Good for you getting to see the kids! You sound a bit better!! I am not so sure I would send a child to kindergarten unless something happens by Fall...although I bet he is looking forward to school.
Hope you have a good week, I suppose they figured someone would turn the water on and not shut it off. :(

Janie Junebug said...

I think smokers tend to develop groups of people with whom they smoke. When I worked in the nursing home, my smoking co-workers would take breaks with their smoking buddies. I'm afraid I'm confused by Michal and the pod. I haven't been around enough to know what's going on.

Love,
Janie

Bonnie said...

I'm so glad you are feeling better! One day at a time will get you there! It will be wonderful for you to be able to get together with the family. As I said in my post, I was so excited to finally get together with family. Three months is a long time to not see loved ones. Even though we are seeing family this month for a couple of birthdays and a graduation, I am afraid we will end up back in lockdown afterwards because the cases are going up quite a bit here all of a sudden.

That's great that you got a freezer! It will save you money in the long run and help you to stock up on many items. It sounds like you had another good Gramma Day and that is always wonderful!

Take care Rita and give Annie some love from me!

Anvilcloud said...

We have been watching POirot on Britbox. I never thought I like him, but when we started to watch from beginning to end, I appreciated how well he does the character, and the plots are quite clever IMO.

Deb J. in Utah said...

Glad you are feeling better. That little freezer will come in handy. We have a small upright freezer downstairs and enjoy it. Hope you get to spend more time with McFamily. School in the fall is a conundrum for everyone. Have a good week!

Jon said...

It would be great if you were able to visit McFamily on Sunday. I hope things work out.

I have mixed feelings about the kids going back to school in the fall. The virus really isn't affecting children - but schools are always germ traps where kids catch all kinds of diseases. It's a risk.

It's very odd that the handle was removed from the faucet. Sounds like they don't want any one wasting water. You should probably call and find out what's going on.

Jo-Anne's Ramblings said...

You had an interesting week my friend more interesting then mine I reckon. Here school breaks up at the end of next week for two weeks holiday and it feels like they only just returned.

Divers and Sundry said...

I'm glad you're feeling better. How exciting to be able to see them in person! It's a shame about the outside faucet. Can you run a hose from inside? I remember having an adapter that would fit a hose. That freezer will be a wonderful asset. I think non-smoking is a plus. They should perhaps have a designated smoking area outside away from sidewalks that pass right in front of people's apartments. I'd imagine as it is now the grounds will become littered with cigarette butts. I've been watching old movies and Star Trek: Enterprise. I only watched season 1 when it was on tv first-run. I hope this week is going well with you :)

Lady Fi said...

Hope you recover soon.

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

Nice update, Rita, and we all know how happy you will be to see the family "in person" allowing for social distancing. We have not yet made plans to visit any family members as they are all in different states, maybe by late summer? Sometimes it's nice to have down time and allow yourself to rest and enjoy shows you might not sit and watch. I went thru several Netflix series over the past few weeks and I think many others have as well no matter what streaming service and You Tube has a lot to watch too! Bummer on the faucet handle being taken off but Jon may be right about the water usage restriction. We are a no smoking apt complex now, but smokers congregate by side doors and you can always "tell" by the number of butts they deposit. I tried smoking once in HS, didn't like it and my mother discovered the cigarettes I'd hidden -- best thing she ever did for me. My late father was a long-time smoker and I'm sure it was a factor in his death.

Friko said...

You seem to have it all sussed, keeping in contact with family safely and happily. I know it’s all a bit much but what can we do.

I couldn’t be around smokers although I used to smoke myself; I’d die of a coughing fit.

Stay safe and sane.

pearshapedcrafting said...

Pleased after reading your previous post that you are getting better! The boys and their cousins certainly had a good time! I am excited for you getting to see everyone! One of my sons has been working with key workers children in school so I won't be seeing him or family until August and youngest son has returned to work now so won't be shopping for us - I shall miss seeing him each week! Oldest son is also working but has plans to go to France to work on his property there as soon as he can - so can't say when we will see them either! Not sure how I would feel about smokers parading font of my door! Hugs, Chrisx

Harvest Moon by Hand said...

That's good that there's no smoking in your building. It sure will be cold for the smokers in the winter. Maybe the below-freezing temperatures will get some of them to reconsider smoking. :)