And that's the best kind of summer

And here it is, the last day of May. Mom and I had a great weekend, though we didn't really do a whole lot of stuff. There were a lot of relaxing afternoons for us, which always sounds good, but we don't really function well on Nothing to Do. But we got through it, and moved on from day to day, meal to meal. And that always is good, the eating thing. We did do a whole lot of eating.

    So tomorrow begins our official summer: Sydney is out of school, Memorial Day is in the rearview, and the air conditioner is on and the windows are shut and locked until October. I'm excited to say that my summer is going to be relatively busy; we have appointments and weekend plans here and there on the calendar. Really though, our summer is almost exactly two months; school starts again on August 4.

    We do have other things to take care of, though. It's my intention to get my family in a better frame of mind for the next year, and that comes with work on everyone's part. In addition to that, I've got a list of movies and shows for my kid to watch, and nooks and crannies in the house to clean out, and little projects to get done. So it will be a summer of Work to Do.

And then there's June; only 30 days

Just finished "Halston." It was very good.

I'll tell you now that Mom is going to be here for the weekend, and so I probably won't blog much, if at all. Not that this will keep you from sleeping at night, but it looks like I do have a genuine 10 to 12-person following who is reading this blog every day, and I appreciate you reading me here. It was my goal to blog every day for at least one month this year, and it looks like May won't be it either... :)

No itches for Cooper tonight

Cooper got another allergy shot this afternoon, and I think tonight will be the first in a couple weeks where he's not going to wake me up licking his feet. It hasn't been so bad that he's obsessively licking, but for sure, I wanted him to get his shot now, right at the tail end of the allergy season. Hopefully this will calm his body down for the rest of the year until next spring.

    He's resting so calm and content right now.

    On a completely opposite note, I am about three episodes deep into "Halston," starring Ewan MacGregor. I have absolutely no previous knowledge of Halston the man or designer; I know nothing going into this show. So far, I'm super intrigued and fascinated by his ambition and savvy. I don't know his fate beyond what I'm seeing, though I suspect it doesn't end well.

Arm/typing/aching issues continue

I did some deep-tissue massage on my arm tonight because that is still an issue, and it's been a while since I treated it and I've had a hard time typing lately. Time to find an acupuncturist, I think. I need to find a better way to treat this dystonia. There are so many other things going on right now that I've been ignoring this entirely, but at this point, I am really aching and irritated by it, so it's time to start Googling.

It's a village of gross stuff

None of the entertainments I wanted to enjoy this weekend got done. I wanted to watch "Army of the Dead," or "The Serpent," or even some other random movie. "The Serpent," I decided after about 45 minutes, was lame. And we just never got around to "Army of the Dead." Instead, we ended up buying a new video game, "Resident Evil Village." It is weird, and involved, and long, and kinda spooky, but it also definitely took up our weekend. Sydney and Brian are having a great time figuring their way through the villains, monsters and creepy buildings, while I am following along peripherally. But I love so much that they are having fun together.

Weather update: Cool and breezy

According to my nifty weather app and the thermometer in my backyard, temperatures are in the low 70s outside, which means I can open my windows tonight. It looks like it may be cooler tomorrow too, so perhaps an open-windows evening is on my agenda for Saturday, as well.

    I'm not at all delusional enough to think that this will last beyond tonight and tomorrow, but I am certainly going to take advantage of it while I can. Because in mid- to late May, there is very little cool weather to be found in this town.

    I feel a breeze coming through my window and it's making me very happy.

Yes, I'm just now discovering podcasts

So I am finally beginning to dip my toe into the world of podcasts. My curiosity began with the ESPN personality Bomani Jones, and how much I enjoy his commentary. I started listening to his podcast a couple weeks ago, then I moved on to Sarah Spain's podcast one week, and then the Prince Harry podcast with the actor Dax Shepard.

    I now eagerly anticipate Bomani's episodes every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and with nothing else for today, I listened to Mina Kimes' podcast for the first time, and will probably add that one to my rotation.

    One other podcast that I listened to this afternoon was the show based on the Houston Astros cheating scandal, hosted by the journalist who predicted the team's 2017 World Series win, and who now is diving deep into the scandal and logistics of it. I'm one episode into the podcast's six episodes, and will hopefully get through a couple tomorrow.

    But I can see where people are super into podcasts, and thoroughly enjoy all the different personalities and topics and genres and stories that are out there. It's overwhelming for me, as I'm just now diving into the pool, but I'll take my time finding new and interesting shows, and be sure not to drown in all the information out there. It's like just now discovering something like Netflix, and trying to navigate it at this point, with all the content it has on there. So much to listen to, so little time.

Javelinas are the best kind of feral pigs

As I mentioned a few days ago, a few of my friends are in the state for a "work from home" vacation wherein they are working from an airbnb in Sedona. They've been here for almost three weeks, and will be heading home early next week. I visited them at the house last Friday, and am playing with the idea of going up again this Friday.

    But when we were chatting last week, I introduced them to javelinas, the feral pigs of the desert here. We hadn't seen any, but I told them about them and that the javelinas were aggressive when they felt like it, and to stay away and not bother them.

    Anyway, Kim was working on the deck in the backyard, and she had a visitor come strolling through the property. She was able to catch it on video, and from there, pulled a screenshot, so here it is: her friend the javelina.

    I don't know exactly what it is about javelinas, but I think they're just fantastic. I'm beyond jealous that Kim had such a close encounter, and now definitely kinda want to go up there this weekend. I wish they made snorting noises when they walked; actually, I wish I *knew* if they made snorting noises when they walked. I would very much like to have one stroll past me, but that's just not going to happen here in my community. We're going to have to move closer to a wash or the Preserve or somewhere like that.

Kiddo got her first vax; we're almost done

I'm pleased to tell you that Sydney received her first COVID vaccination shot this afternoon. Her experience was much easier, quicker, more efficient, and closer than mine, which was awesome. Pretty amazing how much of a better experience today was than my two visits months ago.

    We've got an appointment for her second shot already, and it's on the calendar. And bonus is that she'll be 10 days deep past her second shot when we go visit Brian's parents next month. They're vaccinated already, but there's a relaxation in knowing that we'll all be in good shape at that point.

    You guys, it's almost here. The time when we're all (relatively) safe.

We are now art museum members

I had lunch with Michelle and Shannon last week, and during the course of that meal, Shannon mentioned that she and her family had a membership to the Phoenix Art Museum. I had been considering this for a while, but I have a hard time figuring out days when we should buy tickets and go down there. I love the art museum, but it's downtown and I'm lazy and all that.

    But hearing that Shannon drives down there from Gilbert was a wake-up call for me. If she can do it from Gilbert, I can drive from Scottsdale; they're comparable drive distances. So today I hopped on the museum's website and bought myself a family membership. I had a discount code as well, so the entire thing, including visits throughout May of 2022, was less that $70.

    That is a pretty amazing thing, and I'm excited to get down there. Our first member visit will be when Mom is here over Memorial Day, and a fun day will commence. And then we'll go regularly to appreciate all the different exhibits and artists and gift shop stuff.

Update on the backyard foliage

I went to battle with the tree in the backyard this afternoon, and while I did get a couple of the dead branches removed, the tree itself managed to bloody me, so I'll call this a win for the tree. What was interesting is that my backyard neighbors to my direct left, whose yard also has some of my other neighbor's bougainvillea cascading into it over their fence, had some work done in their backyard this weekend. This morning when I went outside to survey the land, I realized that their one tree wasn't hanging over my fence anymore, and also that the bougainvillea was trimmed back in their yard, too. So finally, the bougainvillea is cut back entirely, which should make it easier for both me and them to keep it that way. Now I just need to trim back a rose bush or two and the yard should look way better.

    Also, my rosemary died, which is a very odd thing to happen; my boysenberry plant is doing well with fresh growth; my vinca is happy; the plumerias are growing new leaves; and the succulents are acting very much like succulents in the desert. The gardenia that no longer has tree shade is concerning me just a bit, as I'm not sure how well it will do with full sun this summer, but I'm keeping an eye on it, and I've got an umbrella in my Amazon shopping cart to provide it shade if need be.

    That is the update on my outside garden.

Much laughter and drinks and happiness

I had a delightful day yesterday, evening last night and morning this morning. I got to visit with friends for lunch, took a road trip with a sister, and had dinner and drinks with even more sisters. My Friday was so full up of good stuff that I had a hard time remembering that today is Saturday instead of Sunday. I am though, so super tired that I honestly can't wait to go to sleep tonight.

    But hey, you know what? I also get to hang out with my sisters tomorrow. I'll be bringing Brian and Sydney with the expectation that they'll be charming, but still, it'll be a good visit with my girls.

    I slept so terribly last night.

Currently yawning, with finger pain

Day two of being in possession of a library book, and I have not cracked it open yet. I won't open it tomorrow either, but Saturday looks perhaps more promising.

    I do have a case of the yawns though. And I'm tired. I had a very draining day/afternoon, and I'm glad it's over. This morning, my whole being was consumed with becoming what I am now: done with my day. I'm about to be intentionally vague here; I accomplished what I wanted, got a majority of the results that I wanted, and have the plan going forward that I wanted. Now it's just a matter of putting into practice our new plans and changes, and we'll be good going forward ... hopefully.

    And just to screw with me, the universe decided that I needed the tip of my right-hand index finger to get split right on the edge of my fingernail, so typing right now is bringing me a special sharp pain every time I use that finger. I'm not completely unaware of this particular pain, but it's usually on my thumb and it's usually during the winter when my hands get chapped from the cold. That actually didn't happen this past winter, so clearly it had to happen to a more inconvenient finger at this stupid time.

    Oy, I can't stop yawning.

Libraries save trees; believe it

ITEM!: I picked up the book from them library today, and with my receipt came this nifty bit of information: I've saved more than $2,000 in book costs by borrowing from the library. Gotta tell you, that's pretty cool. I've told you how much I love my local library, but it surprised me how much savings that is. That makes me happy not only in money saved, but trees saved by my not buying the books in the first place.

ITEM!: I'm instituting a quote and photo dump every Friday on my Instagram, and I've already got multiple selections for the day this week. I've been saving fun, inspirational, weird and eye-rollingly awkward screenshots of random tweets, quotes and pictures on the internets, with nowhere to put them, and a Friday dump sounds like an excellent place to post them with little to no context. Context takes time; dumps are just fun.

ITEM!: I tried to have a kissy-face photo session with my dog today but in looking at the photos afterward, I realized that I'm exhibiting super old-lady neck skin, so they all got deleted. I was sitting on the sofa and my head was tipped forward, so it was all neck wrinkles and double chins, which is never a good thing. I'll try again another day from a way more flattering angle, and here's hoping he'll be up for more kissy faces at a later date.

I said, brrr... it's cold in here

I'm super chilly right now. My metabolism and constitution demands that my body get super cold when in an air-conditioned space, so even when the air isn't blowing on me, or even blowing very cold, I get chilled. Right now, simply by way of sitting here on my bed with the a/c going, I'm wearing a sweatshirt because the breeze is freezing me.

    At work, where I sit, the a/c blows almost directly on the back of my neck. I wear a hoodie very day, and have a space heater under my desk. All that for use throughout the year; yes, even in summer. Mom has sent me a "work scarf" for wearing while I'm there, to protect my neck from the cool breeze, and I've worn it every day since I got it. I swear I must look like I'm ready to scale Everest or something for all the cool-weather gear I've got at my desk.

    I'd say that it must just be me, but Cooper is lying right next to me and pressed up against my hip, and Elliot is laying on the blanket on my bed; not at all the placement and poses for dogs that are warm or temperate even. I find that I'm looking forward to putting on my pjs and getting into bed, with all the covers.

Yaaasssss! May is getting started

It's so weird to me how I can just forget to post at night. Last night, I forgot. Tonight, I remembered.

    I texted with my landlord today and we will be able to sign a one-year extension on our lease, so that frees up a good portion of my anxiety going into this summer. I didn't want to move this year, but for every extension since we moved in, we've signed for two years, so I didn't know how flexible the house owners would be for less than that. But of course, she was great about it, and now I can relax for another year.

    Also, I followed up on a couple other things that have been plaguing me, so in my head, I'm in pretty good shape right now. My summer is beginning to come together in a relatively cohesive fashion, so all my work so far this year has been worth it. "Get shit done, 2021," indeed. But I do still have a tangible and relatively lengthy EXPECTATIONs list, so I'm really not letting myself get too comfortable.

    I actually just decided that I have so much confidence in myself at the moment that I requested a book from the library. It's a longer book, if I remember right, but should be a good one, and that will be the May book. But I feel like I just found a mountain to climb, and it is a book to read this month.

A type of kindness board, I guess

I came across a quote yesterday, as part of a Twitter thing where people were sharing the best thing a therapist had ever said to them. One that I read that has particularly settled into my brain is this: "Honesty without tact is cruelty." I let it rumble through my head all day yesterday, and this morning even, and I have since written it down on a sticky note and stuck that note to a cabinet door in the kitchen.

    I like the idea of writing down notes and phrases and setting them out where everyone can read them. No judgement, no criticism. Just a note to think about. Just a little something to help everyone learn something about each other and for each other.

Yes of course we are this cool, too

I have to tell you all, I really enjoy having friends in town. A few of my girls are in Arizona for a few weeks, and I was able to have dinner with them tonight. It was lovely. So fun and entertaining hanging out with my friends. It's hard to not be sad about being so far away from them always, and it really makes me miss being closer to them all. There's not "but" there. There's nothing that makes that at all okay.

Return of the previous hormones

I left myself a note for tonight's blog post topic, and the note said, "Return of the previous hormones." Now the last time I spoke about hormones, I believe I was concerned about the change in them causing some terrible side effects, like gaining weight. In fact, I'm pretty sure I said I was terrified of putting weight back on, because a 20-pound swing is a big one for me. And I don't want it.

    Last week I got a text notification from CVS about my refill of the new hormones. It bugged me, that it was a different manufacturer, so I called the pharmacy. Indeed, the young man said, I could get the name brand I want, and he didn't know why the prescription seemed to flip to the generic, but I could just let them know that I want the brand, and they'd take care of it. I said, "Isn't that what I'm doing?"

    No; in fact, I had to go into the store and request the change in person. It was no problem, they made the change, and I had my normal, brand-name hormone pills to begin on Sunday.

    Maybe it was all mental, and perhaps I'm that suggestible, but I felt better Sunday and Monday. I felt ... lighter, I guess? Not as bloated or watery, and more alert, perhaps? Very weird, but I felt more myself than I had in a few months, and it was good. I'm still not even a week into the pills, but I'm in a better place on every level, I think. Sure parts of the world are crumbling around me, but I'm feeling more capable of dealing with it, and like I'm not retaining a Great Lake in my center of gravity.

Shadows and bones aplenty, maybe

Oh you guys will be so proud of me; I audio recorded my flexibility yoga today while I did my session, and I think that is going to be a great thing moving forward. I haven't tried the strength or balance sessions yet, but I will over the next week or two, and record those as well if I like them.

    I started watching "Shadow and Bone" on Netflix today, and while after the first episode I was ready to say no thank you, I ended up watching two more episodes after that, and now there's no point in not watching the rest of it. There are eight episodes, if I remember right, and now that I'm almost halfway done, I need to see what happens next. We'll call it my April Binge, and move on after that. I have read the books that the show is based on, but of course I don't remember much from them. All these characters can be completely new to the story and I'd not know. This is the problem with reading as quickly and often as I do; I don't have as much retention as I'd like.

A little stretch here, a little stretch there

I had an epiphany tonight, and while I'm embarrassed to tell you what it was, I still will. On my Apple TV, there's a yoga app, and on that app is a single beginners session that is a 15-minute flexibility class. I don't have much flexibility to speak of, and my balance is even worse, but if I can get through the class without falling over, I'm feeling pretty triumphant. The issue is, of course, that the Apple TV is downstairs. So if I don't do my class in the afternoon, I lose possession of the TV and I'm out of luck for the day.

    Tonight, I tried to recreate the class from memory on my bedroom floor. I did okay, not well, and I remembered most of the poses and stretches. But in the midst of a stretch, I thought, "I should record that class for when I'm upstairs at night." And yes, that was my epiphany. Because I don't even have to waste memory on the video recording. I can do an audio recording, not take up much space on my phone with it, and still be able to do my little yoga class every night. And now I'm excited to play my class and record it and have it available for me whenever I want it. And perhaps I'll record the balance and strength classes, too. The possibilities are pretty awesome.

    This idea, while not an EXPECTATION, seems to be working like one. I'm eager to get started on my new nighttime yoga experiment.

It's gonna be May

Um, you can ask me where I've been, but honestly, I just forgot to blog the last several days. I thought about it last night, just as I was rolling over in bed, and then thought, "Wow. When's the last time I blogged? A few days, right?" I answered myself in the non-committal, and made a point to remember to post tonight.

    I had a productive weekend. A whole lot of errands and tasks finished, which is very exciting. But notably, today, I finished trimming back my neighbor's bougainvillea in the backyard, and tried to rake up the flowers as best I could. What's unfortunate and what was my nemesis was the brief bits of wind that would swirl around and move the damn flowers after I'd raked them into piles. At some point, I said screw it, and decided I was done and the job was good enough. So there's still some flowers, but that should be the last of them falling in my backyard. I also replanted the pineapple in a big pot. I hope it'll be happier than it seemed to be in that dark, wet corner of the garden.

   I just scrolled through the avatars I have on file to find the proper one for this month, and as I caught sight of the golfer, I had the thought, "That's me, stuck in a sand trap for a few months." And that imagining perfectly encapsulates my thoughts on heading into the summer in the desert.