A Little Bit of This and a Little Bit of That - All Over the Place

I made an appointment for my COVID booster - October 4th. Originally I was going to get it set up for tomorrow, but the automatic appointment system wasn't working properly, and it never managed to actually get set up. So, after errands yesterday, I tried again and managed to grab the 4th instead. I'm not fond of vaccines - injections of any type, to be quite frank. But because I work with the public, I feel that the COVID booster isn't an option for me. I also have several friends at the YMCA who have come down with it within the past week or so, including our regular lifeguard. 

I wasn't going to bother with the COVID booster, but 
I know too many acquaintances who have come down 
with it over the past few weeks, to not have it done. *sigh*

I picked up my favorite set of eyeglasses from the Spectacle Shoppe yesterday. This is the original set that I had purchased from them in either 2003 or 2004. I've held onto these, had them re-lensed several times, and when I was having so much difficulty seeing before my cataract surgery, they were one of the few sets that somewhat worked. Now they're perfect and I'm delighted to be wearing them once again. That makes a total of four sets of eyeglasses. Although I'll miss the two sets that went missing earlier this year, I'm set for quite a while now - just needing to have them re-lensed every now and again when my prescription changes a lot. 

I love the Spectacle Shoppe. They are lovely people, very 
friendly and competent, and they have fabulous, unusual 
frames. The set they were relensing were my original 
set of glasses from them almost two decades ago. It's 
always been one of my favorite pairs. 

I'm going to try to hang on the phone with technical support today and get this website for DH uploaded onto our company website. He met with the buyer of the salvage company yesterday. Said it was rather odd - but the buyer took some photos and the list of inventory supplies, didn't need any in-depth information at this time, and left. DH was a bit confused about whether it was a successful meeting or not. I hope it was - we need the stuff out of the basement and onto someone else's plate. 

DH wasn't sure how the meeting with the buyer for Ax-Man 
went, but I guess we'll find out when we hear back from 
him. He did leave with the list of items we're looking to 
sell, and looked over the materials. Now it's a waiting game. 

Chickie has been spinning her wheels at the shop a bit lately. I know she's not feeling well, but she's really going to have to step up her game a bit more. When DH notices she's not pulling her load, then it means she's REALLY slacking. Time for a friendly chat - damn it all. She really does have to pick it up a bit and be a bit more pro-active when it comes to tasks that need to be done in the shop. *sigh* I hate these kinds of talks - they can be condescending, and sometimes if I'm too kind, the words also miss the target and get deflected - never acted on. I need her to get her head in the game. 

DH will be working on his new garden addition today. 
I think he was mumbling something about needing 30 
more paving stones at dinner last night. So, I suspect 
a trip to Menard's will be first thing on his agenda, 
followed by a day of hard work in the garden. We're 
running out of season here, and need to have this 
done before Winter arrives. 

So, that's where I'm at right now - sigh. Nothing very exciting. Then again, not exciting has positive aspects - I'm not in an active war, my streets are relatively safe, my customers are (usually) fun and interesting people, and it's not snowing (yet - LOL). All wins. I hope you have a day of wins and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Rotation, Writing and an Osotek - Decisions, Both Good and Bad

I did not have a good run today. Yesterday's Covid booster was poorly administered and it's still bothering me. I don't have time to malinger, so I was busy all day yesterday, finishing up by cleaning radishes at 5:15 pm. Still, I'm not at full rotation with my arm yet, and my energy levels are a bit depleted. I could only pull out 1-1/2 miles instead of my usual 2. I'll let myself sluff today, and tomorrow is a sleep-in and no exercise day, and I should be back to normal on Monday. I hope so, since I swim on Tuesday - Thursday and need that full arm rotation back by then. 

I need full arm rotation when I'm in the swimming 
pool, and today I'm not quite there yet. Hopefully, 
by the time I'm back in the pool on Tuesday 
morning, I'll have my arm back from my Covid 
booster and won't have any issue swimming. 

The first thing I did when I got home from the pharmacy yesterday, was photograph my newest booster documents and card and add them to the Vaccination album I have on my phone. It's a LOT easier to handle things that way than try to find photos in the vast array of photos I take. I worked in the kitchen for a couple of hours, and finally had some breathing room, so I went outside and enjoyed listening to my flycatchers peeping in the backyard and watching my hummingbird(s) come to the feeder. I have no idea how many hummers I'm getting to it, but I'm refilling it every week and it's going down steadily. Yesterday I had two visitors and each time it was taking at least twelve good gulps of nectar. Go Hummingbirds - LOL. They're so amazing and so much fun. 

I just love watching the hummingbirds come to my 
feeder. I have no idea if it's one coming several times or 
several dropping by once, but it's a joy to have them 
stop by for a quick meal. 

I'm still pondering "Unconventional". I must have tossed out at least 50 different storylines and ideas by now and I'm unhappy with each one of them. I've got to figure something out - ASAP - I'm running out of time and I refuse to take a strike because I couldn't post something. That would be beyond ridiculous. I'm going to get something written today and polished tomorrow because the clock is ticking. I'm absolutely determined. 

There are just so many ways to take "unconventional" 
as the theme. I can take it as format, storyline, 
structure or theme. It's just so damned OPEN ENDED 
that it's driving me crazy. So, I need to shape those 
ends and make it something that's wholly mine. 

I suppose, in many ways, I'm overthinking the theme for this section of the writers challenge. But, I know I'm not a bad writer, that I can create scenes and characters of interest, and that I'm still in the pack (which is very important too). We're whittling down in numbers, and I always enjoy writing to a challenge, but this one has me flummoxed, and I'm spiraling down a drain of research but no text. I have to pull myself from that vortex and just write! 

My new Osotek Hotwave Vacuum Cleaner 
may not be as applicable to my personal 
needs as I wanted (it doesn't work on carpet, 
only on flooring of all kinds). However, it's 
a magnificent piece of equipment, and should 
do an amazing job on the store flooring. It's 
a self-cleaning item, it heats its' own water 
and I suspect it's going to be the best thing my 
hardwood floors at the shop have seen in 
a long time. I got it on Kickstarter for a reduced 
price, and it may not be the best decision of 
my long life, but it's certainly not the worst 
decision either. 

So, that's my tale for today and I'm sticking to it. I've written down Sharon's dates on the calendar and I still need to get a couple of items for our State Fair trip, and of course, clean the house. I had been looking forward to getting my Osotek, but it's not going to do everything I had wanted. It will be fabulous at the shop, though, so I brought it over to the shop and I'll start using it there next week. My floors may finally be clean for the first time in years using this, but I don't have a lot of floor at home, so when I close up the shop next year, I'm not going to have a lot of use for it. Still, it's going to earn its' keep for a few months, and that'll be good. 

I'm out of here, have a fabulous day and a wonderful weekend and I'll be back on Monday. Slava Ukraini. 

Headphones, Boosters, Healing and Fairy Godmothers - I'm All Over the Place Today

DH had decided he wanted some bone induction headphone for his tablet, similar to what I use. I use the underwater ones because I wear mine in the swimming pool as well as on the treadmill, but he just needed a more standard set. So I purchased a non-submersible version of AfterShokz which arrived at the store on Wednesday. I got it unpacked yesterday and charged it for him this morning. He's set to go as soon as he pairs it up with his phone and tablet. I have a feeling he'll love it as much as Chickie, ChickieMama and the rest of us love our own AfterShokz headsets. 

The AfterShokz Aeropex is quite different than 
the underwater version I have. The buttons are 
much easier and the charging cable is totally 
different - also much easier. Still, I love mine and 
use it every day. I suspect DH will get a lot of 
use from his as well. 

I have to build my schedule around my Covid booster shot this morning. I've got an 11:00 am appointment. I'm not 100% sure why I chose that time - possibly because I wanted to be finished with the grocery shopping and have everything home and in the refrigerator before heading over to the pharmacy. It's not a huge deal, and I probably could still make an earlier appointment, but I'll keep my schedule - go early to the store and then back to the pharmacy. It's tempting to take a brisk walk over to the pharmacy. It'll be sunny but not too hot. I'll think about it. It's only a mile away, so no real issue walking there and back home again. 

Last time I got the Moderna booster, and I'm getting 
a Moderna booster again this time. Hopefully I won't 
have any reaction to it because I still have a lot of 
things I need to get done this afternoon. 

After I'm finally finished with my outside errands, I'll get my next batch of "Ogre Juice" made. I have three portions left, but those are for Saturday, Monday and Tuesday. I could make my next batch on Wednesday, but I prefer to be ahead of things on this one, not backed into an "I must make this today because I need it tomorrow" corner. 

I've been called "unconventional" by many people throughout 
my life, but I'm not sure I want to go autobiographical 
in this tale. I try to stay with fiction as much as possible - 
my private life is kept semi-private. Still, I certainly fit 
the basic definition of the word. 

I'm still whirling away with my story for "Unconventional". I've come up with a lot of very boring things - I'm not fond of boring. I'll continue to think about it, but I really want to get something posted and move on from there. It doesn't make much sense to be a part of this awesome group if I don't push myself a bit. 

Please keep sending those healing thoughts in 
Keiliss' direction. They're doing real good, 
and hopefully will continue to help her heal to 
return home to her family once again. 

And for those of you thinking lots of positive thoughts for my friend Keiliss, she's out of ICU and into the general care ward now, but still has a lot of healing ahead of her. Please keep those positive healing thoughts coming for her - healing thoughts like that can only help and she (and others in hospital) need all of the positive help we can give to them. Thanks to all of you for your thoughts and prayers *hugs*. 

There is some truth to this. Cinderella annoyed me in 
many ways.  (Actually, most of the "fairy tales" of
my youth were quite annoying). 

So, I'm out of here. A busy "day off" as usual - LOL. Since I have Sharon's flight schedule in hand, I suppose I should spend much of my afternoon on a preliminary housecleaning. That's ideal, of course, and probably won't happen since I'll be making Ogre Juice, but a girl can dream. Where's a Fairy Godmother when you need one? LOL Have an excellent Friday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

The Times They Are A-Changin' and Historical Perspective

I have a dental checkup on Monday and yesterday they sent me an emailed form that I need to fill out for them. They need it ASAP (of course), and I was hopping with customers all day while DH was down in the warehouse dealing with rewiring the light fixtures (which took him all day, quite literally. He was putting the final plates back into position when I was locking up.) So I didn't get a chance to fill the forms out. BUT, I also probably don't have all of the information readily at hand any more. So, I'm tempted to do the best I can today and tell them to look up the previous forms for the details I'm missing. Can you tell I'm just a little crabby today? LOL

This kid looks wonderfully crabby. What 
a great expression! LOL

All of these extra hoops we have to jump through these days to get our health care is more than annoying, and it all is placed totally on the threshold of COVID. Before the epidemic we were actually able to get access to our physicians without running through the gamut of a billion questions and more people. We were able to get into our dentists (with whom, in this instance, we've been patients for more than 30 years), without having to try and remember when we had our immunization and booster shots. We were able to travel on public transportation without wearing a mask. All of that seems like a distant memory, now. 

This is a VERY young Bob Dylan. The album was 
released in 1964 and was a standard for those 
already protesting the war. (That escalated and 
crested in 1968-1972.) 

When I was a young hippie, there was a song by Bob Dylan called "The Times They Are A-Changin'". (Here's a link to the original song on You Tube as sung by Bob Dylan.) It was a protest song - an early Bob Dylan in the times of Joan Baez and others becoming the popular music. We sang it loud and proud, happy to be that generation - the one that would change everything for the better. And we tried, and then we aged and the younger generation picked up the torch, changed the path's directions, and we were off again, and again, and yet again. Now it is my generation who are "behind the times" and "standing in the way" and the younger generation who seem to be looking for conservative security, new causes and a rash of new demigods to be thrown down by their own children in another 10-20 years. 

Every generation gets an opportunity to carry the 
torch for a short time, and then must pass it on to 
the next generation waiting in the wings. Although 
each generation starts out with great intentions, 
more often than not, they fall flat and fail because of 
the weight of what needs to be changed, and the 
intransigence they butt up against. 

The times have a-changed. When historians look back at these days from the far future, what will they see? What will the tinted glass of time smooth over in their analysis, and what will stick out clearly? What will be that rock in the middle of the raging river of time that was pivotal to all except those of us living through it.? I wonder what the generations of 100 years from now will think about us. That's a massive gap of time. Think back to 1922 - the end of World War I (the war to end all wars ... the joke was on us). The flu epidemic was winding down, the economy was going great guns for another seven years and industrialization was starting to grip the nation's factories, but we were a bit less than a decade away from the Great Depression. Isn't it interesting how history can bring perspective? 

Historical perspective has always been of interest to 
me, since history is usually written by the victors of 
any battle. Those battles don't just have to be in war, 
they can also be in economy, culture, religion or 
other things that impact multitudes of people. 

On that note, I'm out of here. I guess I'd better try to fill that silly form out and send it on it's electronic way. I hope you have a wonderful weekend and I'll be back on Monday. 

Etsy Progress and a Friend Tests Positive

We were really slow at the shop yesterday, although we did have some customers, so it wasn't a zero day. I'm grateful for that. It was hot, and most people who are not used to summer heat yet, just stayed indoors with their air conditioning instead of venturing out into the summer sunshine. It did allow me to get a lot of computer work done, though, so that was a plus. 

The revised format has nine colors per page for 
the 10 allowable photos. That allows one splash 
page and nine detail pages, one for each of the 
colors. I think that will be a better indication of 
what the person is looking at and purchasing. 

I started uploading the 4mm Swarovski cubes into Etsy. I worked on that for a couple of hours and got 2/3 of the pages entered and uploaded. They're not live yet, I want all of them entered, ready and thoroughly proofread before I click that switch. But I'm happy with where I'm at. I'll try to wrap the 4mm size up today and start the 6mm size tomorrow if all goes well. 

My old Etsy photos used a 4x4 grid and din't have 
any of the detail photos I want to put in. You couldn't 
zoom into a color to take a closer look. I think the new 
version will be an improvement, even though it will 
be more costly. 

I also found the missing photographs for my 8mm revisions. I have the photos stored in two different places, for some odd reason. I'll need to pull the 8mm photos from the one place and put them into the other, or vice versa. I'l decide on that a bit later, but I'll have everything I need to revise and repost the 8mm size when I get to that point. 

It's the little things that can kill profit on Etsy. So 
yes, it will cost me more for the revised listings. 
But I'm hopeful that the better views will also 
increase sales, and having more pages will splash 
me as a serious vendor. 

The way I'm revising it will cost me quite a bit more money. I get charged 20 cents per page, and that is charged again every time I made a sale from that page. I'll be shifting the 8mm size from two pages (40 cents) to 12 pages ($2.40), and the 4mm and 6mm are also that many pages. These will be renewed every four months no matter what. In the scheme of things, it's not a lot of money. But it's those little sums that add up on Etsy. Still, I think it will be worthwhile eventually, and eventually I'll have a LOT of stuff up there. 

My friend Aearwen has tested positive for Covid, along 
with her son. Positive thoughts would be appreciated, and 
several of you know her from her writings in the Tolkien 
fan-fiction realm. They are both vaccinated, so hopefully 
this will be mild, but it will still be uncomfortable
for a few days. 

So, I'm off to the pool. Yesterday's swim was marvelous - we were already in mid-70 degree weather when I left home, and the pool was gloriously cool and happy. I fully expect today will be as fabulous since we're at 75 degrees at 3:45 am. Have a wonderful Wednesday and I'll have a very busy "day off". Spare a kind thought for my friend Aearwen, my usual Wednesday chat person, who texted me yesterday telling me she's come down with Covid and will skip this week's chat. She's an older woman and both she and her adult son (they live together) are both down with Covid. They're vaccinated, so hopefully it will be just like an awful cold, but kind thoughts and prayers would be appreciated. I'll be back tomorrow. 

Plot and Character, Holiday Cards, and Sending Hugs

I have to get back to work on the short story I'm working on. I got lost in the Halls of Karnak and need to get hold of my character once again. I allowed Egypt to take over my story, and it's just a backdrop. I might pull her out of that land completely and into an unknown area instead. It might work better for the overall story if I do that. In this story most of the setting is unimportant, it's the character who needs to be the focus for this one. 

Setting of any story is as much of a character as those 
who are living and acting out their lives in it. But a 
balance must be achieved between the setting and the 
character - one cannot overshadow the other. It's a 
delicate balance - a dance, if you prefer. The character 
and the setting must be harmonious and move the plot 
along. Right now, that's not happening in my short 
tale, so I need a serious revision. 

I got all of my holiday cards punched and tied yesterday afternoon, finishing up approximately 10 minutes before DH arrived back home from the shop. Envelopes are the next and (almost) penultimate step. Then one final stamp on the back of the card, sign them, stuff and seal, put postage on, and send. They should be in the mail no later than Wednesday (ideally). They're late this year, but still in time to get to most of my mailing list before Solstice. I suspect my overseas friends might have delivery delayed a bit more, but once I drop them into the mail, it's out of my hands. 

I'll be glad when I can actually put my holiday cards 
into the mail. I hate it when I run this late, and I 
haven't been this late for years! Still, I'm in the 
final stretch, so they should be in the mail by 
mid-week, if all goes well. 

I'm pretty happy with this year's card. I had no idea what I was going to create this year, which is hard. I was skating on thin ice a few times, but it all managed to come together and I'm pretty darned happy. I hope you'll enjoy yours when it arrives at your door. 

Done and done. I was good, showed up on time, and by 
10:15 am I had received my booster shot and was on 
my way. I decided to have a cup of tea at home before 
heading to the grocery store, but eventually went over 
there, bought the veggies I needed, and headed home 
again to make my next batch of Ogre Juice. 

So, today I'm cold, my left arm is a little achy from my booster shot yesterday (which actually went rather smoothly at the pharmacy - I had a Pharmacist whose sister is also needle-phobic, so she knew how best to handle me). I have the booster added to my Vaccination Card, and filed away with my personal papers. I'll take it easy for the weekend (as much as I can at the shop, since I work both days), and put some serious exercise into my arm on Monday morning in the swimming pool. 

Rosemary's husband has been in full-time care 
for the past two+ years, but he's been slipping 
lately, and she was advised to move him into 
hospice care instead. I know it has been a 
difficult few years, but she's really done well. 
Now she'll need to be strong, but in some ways 
I suspect she'll also be relieved that John 
is finally at peace. She has two sons who 
have been very helpful, but neither of them 
live nearby so she's learned how to deal with 
the home and yard and her general life on 
her own. 

My friend Rosemary - my swimming lane partner for many years - wasn't at the pool yesterday. She had warned all of us that if she wasn't at the Y one morning, it would be because her husband (currently in hospice) was dying and she would need to be with him. I suspect that's where she was yesterday morning, so I'm keeping a close eye on the obituaries. If I can go to the wake, I'll try to be there for her. 

Sending hugs to each of you - nearby or far away. 
I hope your day and your weekend are glorious 
and filled with love, happiness and joy. 

On that note, I'm out of here. We're colder once again, and the northern part of the state is getting the first serious snowstorm of the season. It won't come down as far as the Twin Cities, but we are definitely colder than yesterday. Time to bundle up and face the fact that it's December and I live in the Frozen Northlands - LOL. Have a wonderful weekend and I'll be back on Monday. 

Scheduling Crunches - Chaos vs Calm, We Need Both Aspects to be Fully Human

I'm going to have an hour of "crunch time" today - something that I really didn't need, but have no choice about. DH has an eye doctor appointment at 8:20 am and he's worried about being at the shop in time to open at 10:00, so asked me to be there until he arrives. 

I have my Covid booster shot appointment at the pharmacy near me scheduled for 10:00 am today, and they want me there approximately 15 minutes early for check-in. That means if Chickie isn't at the shop by 9:30 (approximately 15 minutes early for her), I'm going to be running late for my check-in, unless DH manages to be there by 9:30 after his own doctor appointment. What a mess! I thought I'd be home or at the grocery store for my booster shot, instead, I'm several miles to the south, trying to get back to home ground on time. Sheesh! It's no wonder I couldn't sleep well last night. I hate scheduling issues. 

I thought I'd have no problem with a 10:00 am appointment, 
but suddenly DH needed this and that and my wide open 
time slot started compressing. If I miss my appointment and 
have to reschedule, I'll be quite upset. 

I'm one of those people who will be early to almost anything, rather than be late. I have no patience with people who always are late - I run on a perpetual "fast" setting in my life and rarely slow down for much. (Last year's broken foot and ankle certainly slowed me down ... a LOT ... but I was back up and running as quickly as I could.) My cries at birth were less "Damn - get this bright light out of my eyes," and more "pick me up, let me see what I've gotten myself into ... oooooh! There's a lot going on!" 

I'm one of those people who always likes to be early. 
Because of DH's schedule conflict (which I didn't 
know about when I made my booster appt), I'm 
suddenly in a time crunch. Sucks! 

What kind of person are you? Do you enjoy quiet, silence, the slow movement of a creek through a forest copse? Or are you a midtown, city streets with bustling people and myriad sounds bursting upon you? Are you both - switching from one to the other as time and circumstances dictate? One of the major reasons I meditate is I tend too much towards the second, and need to find my center which is closer to the first. I need that inner quiet to deal with the outer chaos.  They both have their beauties, but they are two separate sides and rarely manage to intersect comfortably. 

I use contrast in artwork all the time - it's 
one of the driving forces for any piece of 
visual art. I prefer my life to have minimal 
contrast though. I like to have a bit of 
predictability to offset my creative arcs. 

I'm heading off to the swimming pool. I think I seriously need an hour of quiet and listening to my current "Amelia Peabody" novel while working out. After I get through the chaos of my morning and get the groceries I need, I can settle down, make my next batch of "Ogre Juice" and get the next stage done on my cards. They're almost ready to address and get into the mail, and I can hardly wait to send them out. 

We all need some calm in our lives, but the chaos can 
also be helpful to broaden our horizons and allow us 
to explore new feelings and experiences. We can't 
shut either one off, but we can try to control the chaos 
just a bit. External chaos is almost impossible to 
control, but inner chaos has a chance to be reined in. 

Have a truly excellent day, hopefully a bit less hectic and harried than my day promises to be, and I'll be back tomorrow. Today, reflect on how to get some quiet into your life, or alternatively, how to jazz it up just a bit. We need both sides to be fully human. 

Bins, Boosters and Stone

I brought one large bin home from the shop yesterday. This is the bin I had managed to wrestle from my craft room shelving to bring over for a serious search. My "Stamps" bin is filled with a variety of stamps from which I choose for my holiday cards. I had wanted a couple of additional ones for the card interior, and found exactly the right ones after a bit of hunting. Today I want to put the bin back where it belongs. 

This is not my specific storage bin set-up, I can't 
remember when DH built that structure, so I don't have 
a good photo of it. But the storage system is quite 
similar to this with wooden shelving and bins stacked 
on them. 

I also have the cards themselves and the blank envelopes inside the bin. I'll be pulling those out and beginning the final stages of images, signatures and assembly. I need to make a stencil for one part, but that shouldn't be too difficult to do. Once I have the stencil, using it on each interior will be quite quick. 

I'm into the final card assembly stage. I need to weigh one fully 
assembled card to find out if I will need additional 
postage. It's entirely possible I will - They are thicker 
this year because of the imagery I came up with. Every day 
I'm closer to getting them into the mail for all of you. 

I don't think I have a Zoom call scheduled for today, a bit of a relief because it can be hard to shoehorn that into my day. I do need to do a serious grocery shop - I only have one piece of fruit left for breakfast, and I don't have any salad stuff, or stuff for my Alkagizers. I'll need to make four Alkagizers today, and another four on Friday to get me through until next Wednesday. I'll pick up the additional veggies I need at the grocer when I go to get my Covid booster on Friday. I'll be right across the street from my neighborhood grocery store. 

DH got his Covid booster shot yesterday and I've got an 
appointment for Friday. I'm not fond of needles, as my 
readers well know, but I'll deal when I need to. I think this 
is pretty important, so I'll get it done. 

Chickie worked like a demon yesterday, even though her arms were hurting from helping her Mom put plastic all around the interior of her porch on Monday. At least the porch will be a bit warmer now, and it night help her Mom's heating bills. But Chickie said her arms were killing her by the end of the day. Anyway, she worked really hard tying up stone strands for hanging. I'm hopeless at that task, so Chickie and DH have to do that specific product prep for me. She got an entire box of stone done yesterday while I worked on the price tags. We should be ready to tag and hang pretty quickly now. 

When we get our stone beads in from the supplier or the 
factory, they come as straight strands of approximately 
16 inches in length. We tie them into a loop, attach a 
price tag, and then hang them in our stone beads section. 
It's a lot of work and I can't tie a knot for anything. so it's 
Chickie's job. 

So today is a swimming day, and my time is truncated. Today's meditation was finding my inner silence, and it was delightful, so I think I'll shut up now - LOL ... allow you a bit more silence also. Have an excellent Wednesday and I'll be back tomorrow. Please, do one random act of kindness to help spread love in this world. We desperately need to be reminded that not everyone is filled with hatred and jealousy. Namaste. 

Routines, Social Distance and Virtual Hugs

I'm starting to get into the rhythm of my new routine, but it's like anything new, it takes a bit of practice to make it a regular part of my life. Today is a Friday, so today is a swim day. That changes my morning routine from Awakening, Meditating, Getting dressed in running clothes, Running, Showering, Breakfast and Blog, to Awakening, Meditating, Getting dressed in swimming clothes, Blog, Swimming, Showering, Breakfast and Work. The two different activities require different time frames, and those things I deem of most importance must be accomplished. Also, today is Friday, so when I get home from the pool, I need to make my reservation for swimming on Monday morning. 

Most people are comforted by routine. When something 
changes that routine, especially on a long-term basis, 
it can cause confusion and anger. My routine is very 
slowly returning to what it had been before Covid, but 
it's nowhere close to that yet, and may never truly 
return to the "old days". I enjoy routine, though, and 
set personal schedules for myself often. It's the only way 
I actually get things accomplished. 

DH also asked me to drop by the grocery store this morning on my way to the shop. No real problem with that - I usually drop by the store on Fridays anyway. But I purchased maximally on Wednesday so that I wouldn't need to do this. Still, it's on the way to the shop, and we have a functional VERY OLD refrigerator in the basement, so it's a bit of time spent, but not much past that. 

We have a very old, probably 1950's vintage 
refrigerator in the basement of the shop. It 
was from our old location, and similar in 
age to the first refrigerator we had in his 
Grandmother's house. It still works, and 
that's all that's important. We keep our 
lunches in it during the work day. 

It always take a while to really hit stride in a new routine, though. It's always a bit of a learning curve, a hill with unexpected bumps, twists and turns. So much has changed in our world since Covid. We're not as free-and-easy, not as trusting as we were more than two years ago. We carry masks in our pockets, cars and handbags. We automatically back off a bit when people get a bit too close to our personal space. We don't embrace without second thoughts the way we used to. This virus, this hateful thing that has killed so many, has forced distance into our lives and perspective/retrospective into our lives. 

We're getting accustomed to social distancing and making 
sure to keep that distance between each other. As someone 
who really enjoys hugging, it's a total PITA. 

Is this a good thing? Is it a bad one? I will say that I miss hugs. I miss that close interaction with other people I feel close to. I don't particularly mind wearing a mask, but I rarely have to wear one for more than an hour at a time. I'm not sure how comfortable I'd feel if I had to wear one for long stretches of time. I'm used to barricades - usually clear plexiglass - between me and other people. I think that's a bit sad - the fact that we, as social beings, have to barricade ourselves away from contact with others. 

These days it's all about virtual hugs, and those 
are the only kind I can send over the are to my 
friends far and wide anyway. So here's a virtual 
hug from me to you. Have a wonderful day! 

So your task today is to interact with another person so that you feel hugged virtually. Make a difference in one life. Leave one place with positive feelings behind you. Be that one person reflected on at the end of the day by someone you had never met before today. Spread love in the midst of the pandemic. I'll be back tomorrow, be safe, be kind, long-distance *hugs* to you from me. 

Scheduling Summer and Thoughts About Covid and Baseball (Random ... totally random)

I had a welcome email from Sharon in my in-box this morning. Her airplane reservations have been made and she's coming to the Twin Cities in September for the State Fair. So, unless the Apocalypse occurs, or we end up back in a Covid shutdown (Spirits and Heavens Forbid), we'll be one step closer to "normal" again, and I can hardly wait. 

I'm casting a spell to ensure that our lives here 
will be able to return to "normal" and we'll be 
able to celebrate together at the State Fair, 
the Renaissance Festival, and the various 
sporting and special events that are usually 
scheduled throughout the summer months. 

According to today's newspaper (yes, we still get the newspaper - we're old, remember? LOL), the state's current Covid count is under 100 a day now (we had 90 new cases yesterday). At it's peak, in late November, we had over 9000 new cases. We've come a long way. Vaccinations have certainly helped, but I think the long mask mandate and the sanitary procedures that most stores and public places instituted also helped a lot. Now that things are unlocking again, it's time to be happy because life is returning, but also cautious because what happened can happen again, quite easily. 

I might not be required to wear a mask all the time 
any more, but I always have one handy, and wear one 
more often than not. I still keep social distancing. 
I still am careful about sanitizing. I'm cautious. 
I think if all of us are, we'll pull through this. 

Still, I'm going to go on-line today and order our State Fair tickets, because I'm an optimist, and I have faith that we'll continue to see low counts, increase vaccinations, and generally return to the things we used to love here in the great state of Minnesota. It would be lovely to enjoy a summer eating on the patios, drinking in a bar before going to a baseball game (although our team really sucks this year), and just enjoying sharing events with other people once more. 

The Minnesota Twins baseball team has been horrible 
this year, but the St Paul Saints, newly announced as their 
AAA Affiliate Team, has been playing really well. If I 
was to choose which team to watch right now, I'd head 
into downtown St Paul, to CHS Field, and watch the Saints 
play. After all, their ball retrieval is by a trained pig - yes, 
a pig. How many AAA Affiliate teams can claim that? 

Today's going to be a very busy "day off", so I'd better get moving - no time to lose. Have an excellent Wednesday and please stay safe and be kind. I'll be back tomorrow. 

Are You Still Wearing Your Mask? You SHOULD Be!

I love the Google Doodle for today reminding all of us that masks are still important. And they most certainly are. Even though vaccination against Covid is progressing nicely, there are still people who refuse to be vaccinated, or who can't get a vaccine, or who simply don't want one. There are people who object on religious grounds, people who object because of a lack of faith in the science or in the government, and people who are just stupid. The world is populated with all types of people, and not all will get vaccinated - EVER. 

I don't see us giving up masks anytime soon. I'm also 
getting so used to wearing one, it's not really a big 
deal to me to wear one or not. Realistically, we'll 
be wearing masks for a long time, so we might as 
well become accustomed to it. 

Where taking temperatures doesn't work very effectively, masks have been proven to help control the spread of the virus from person to person. I require masks from everyone entering my store and my staff is always masked when working with a customer. I think it's common sense. I shop businesses who also enforce a mask mandate. If I'm in a business where they sluff off on masks, they also sluff off on my business - I can buy my goods elsewhere.  

It's important to wear your masks correctly. I'd say 
15% of the customers in my store are actually 
wearing their masks correctly, and some people I 
have to remind constantly to pull their mask over 
their nose. 

Yesterday a customer mentioned to me that she doesn't think we'll ever be free of Covid. My response was that it may become more like the flu - something that is around all the time, but that people can get a vaccination from every year so that they will be more protected. Admittedly, I don't get a flu shot - long history there. But I would get a Covid shot (hopefully a single-dose vaccination). I'm quite sure that the various drug companies are working out plans for long-term world-wide vaccination options, they would be silly to not think ahead. 

There are some people who legitimately can't wear a mask 
easily - autistic and severely asthmatic come to mine 
immediately, along with some sufferers of PTSD. It's 
hard for them to work around the "must wear a mask" 
restrictions that so many of our stores have now. The last 
medically limited person I had in the store who couldn't 
wear a mask wore a face shield instead and also limited 
her time in-store to a minimal amount. 

Meanwhile, I'll continue being a "fashionista" and wear my masks. I love them - they are colorful, funny, and fun. I have my Minions mask in my car so that's worn at the grocery store and other shopping stops. I have my Dinosaurs Roamed the Earth mask in my apron pocket at work, so I can't be caught unaware if I'm not close to my desk and my pile of masks. And my preference at work is my "Original Six Ice Hockey Teams" mask that my customer Mikaela made for me. All different, all fun, and always worn. I'm quite used to masks by now, so no. I'm not putting them aside yet. 

Have a wonderful Tuesday. As always please be kind, stay safe and as I said above, wear your mask. It's for safety, courtesy, and common sense. I'll be back tomorrow.