Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

It’s been a busy, yet quiet time since my last post. Lot’s of stuff going on, but nothing worth writing about.

Thanksgiving (tomorrow) is going to be weird. I normally go to a friends house, but usually try to get out of it. Because we’re expecting storms here, I successfully got out of going to four different dinners (who wants to be the single loser in a sea of couples?). My plans were to maybe broil steak and stuff and watch the Irishman.... then I talked to a co-worker who is going through a separation/divorce that had no plans. I felt bad. They’re missing out on family time. I’m used to it since my family has been in another state for over 10 years now, but this is very new to them. Their spouse has pretty much turned the adult children against them... so I smiled and said they should come over early and I’d cook. Believe it or not, I CAN cook, LOL!

Luckily, I had a prime rib vacuum sealed in my freezer! It’s been in there for A WHILE though and I was worried that it wouldn’t be any good. Upon further inspection.... No freezer burn thank goodness! Went to the supermarket after work (What a fucking mad house!!!) to get veggies, stuff to make dip, potatoes, etc. I just finished making apple crisp and got it in the oven.

I still have to weigh the prime rib so I can estimate when I’m going to need to put it in. Then I need to clean. I hate cleaning.

We work on Friday, but the office closes around 10am, which is nice.

If you’re in the US, have a nice time tomorrow. Be thankful for all you have, I am.

Take care!

I admit it, I am a hypocrite. How? I always scoffed (scoffed!!!) at the thought of buying an Apple watch and couldn’t believe the folks who did buy them would spend so much money on one. They’re expensive and I can’t be trusted with expensive (and fragile) things. Well, I’ve decided that I want one and, as I’ve been able to take care of expensive purses and such, I should be able to have an Apple watch....right? RIGHT? Come on, I’ve had a nice Fitbit for a couple of years now and it still looks new (thanks to screen protectors!).

Of course, I’ll wait for Black Friday / Cyber Monday deals (or to see if maybe I’ll get one for Christmas...I doubt THAT will happen though).

I guess I’m a grown-up now. That makes me kinda sad.

In an effort to keep things light, I thought I’d post some pictures from the Squeeze / X concert I went to, enjoy!

After FINALLY being called to answer for his illegal actions, Trump is completely losing his mind, and losing it publicly. I never thought I’d ever see someone who is supposed to be POTUS (I’ve never been able to call him by the title he so clearly doesn’t respect) using foul language like he has to the press and on Twitter! I’m embarrassed. I expect people like me to talk like that, not the (false) leader of the free world.

Such a scary time. He and his rabid devoted followers are most dangerous when they’re in situations like this. I hope the whistleblower is safe and protected.

No wonder I’m feeling so powerless and depressed, just wanting to sleep. The non-stop onslaught of crazy bad news and screaming lies coming from the right. Add to it the folks at work who actually believe everything Fox News, Drudge and Alex Jones tells them.... what can I do?

Just checking-in. Not much to report. I’ve been busy the last few weeks, but for the life of me I can’t remember what I actually been busy with.

It’s been a long day and I’m feeling a bit blue. I think I’ll turn in early and avoid this mood altogether. Maybe I’ll wake-up to good news or something else nice in the morning? Man, wouldn’t that be great?

Night.

Happy Friday the 13th!! Woo-Hoo, full harvest moon tonight, it should be pretty!

It’s been a mixed bag of a week. I’m really looking forward to seeing Squeeze and X tonight, that’s for sure!!

I was disappointed to learn that I may not have to testify against an asshole I used to work with. I was sort of looking forward to getting it on the legal record what an awful person they are. My boss told me that they have so much evidence, they probably won’t need to call the witnesses.

I also found out from my surgeon that, while I’m healing really well and things look good (apart from being a modern day Frankenstein’s Monster under my clothes), he may want to go back in and do some revisions. That won’t be until December 13th though. He said that he’d be able to do everything in his office and I won’t need to go back to the surgery center, so I guess that’s a positive thing.

Work was good this week! Very busy, but good. A client that’s almost 90 came in and heaped compliments on me, which is always nice.

I’ve got an eye appointment in a little while. I quit wearing my glasses and contacts over a year ago and have been relying on readers, with lot’s of squinting to get by. The last eye doctor I had was terrible and the prescription was so far off, it was easier not wearing anything. Fingers-crossed this new one is good! I’m fortunate I can walk to the office, it’s only a few blocks away from my apt. Unfortunately, it’s 97F outside right now! It’s a shady walk though, phew!

I’m toying with the idea of taking Uber or Lyft to the show tonight. I’ll have to if the eye doctor dilates my pupils, but I might just take one of them anyway if the cost isn’t too high. Parking is always a pain and on the expensive side downtown. Might be worth it to avoid the stress.

Bring on the weekend! Puttering and some chores. Nice!!

Argh! I was supposed to see Keane tonight and I can’t make it. I was really looking forward to it!!! It was a special, super-small gig at the Roxy I was LUCKY to get tickets for. Now my friends are going and I can’t. Boo! They have a new album out soon, so I’m sure they’ll tour soon to support it. So disappointed though, I saw one of these shows at the Roxy for Under the Iron Sea and it was amazing.

Not much I can do about it though.

Next time!!!

I went out with an acquaintance I haven't seen in a while this past weekend. We used to be very close friends, but I felt that wasn't such a good idea any more, so I'd stepped back. This was kind of a test to see if I'd made the right decision...I had. We had a good time driving up the coast to do some outlet shopping. They live at the beach (Right across the street from it!) so it made more sense to take Ocean and head-up PCH, rather than drive to the Valley and take the always crowded 101. We had a decent time. Not spectacular by any means, but it was okay. Not terrible though. Maybe one day we'll be back to how we were. It will take a lot though. Good news is I didn't find anything to buy, other than a blouse for work, so at least I saved some money!


Progress!!! I think Facebook may have finally figured out, after 9+ years of never really using it (I don't remember setting up the account!) that it’s not worth it for them to send me the usual daily barrage of emails about “updates” of friends. It’s been so nice not having my inbox clogged with their status emails!!! Am I out of the loop on the happenings of my friends? Yeah, but that’s okay. Actually, I’m not even sure if I have any “friends” on there any more! It’s been forever since I checked. Maybe I don’t get the notices because they’ve all ditched me?


Yes, I’m THAT person! The one that you find in every group that doesn’t use social media on any kind of regular basis. Maybe once a year I’ll respond to birthday wishes or I’ll accidentally click on something that will take me to Facebook (and I close it immediately when I see it has done so), but that’s it. I can’t tell you the last time I was on Twitter, I don’t have an Instagram and I don’t shop on business websites if that website is through Facebook. I’m not sure why I have such an aversion to them, to be honest. I used to LOVE Twitter! I was on it all the time!!! Myspace was cool too. I dunno. I guess I don’t trust that my information is safe, the news is real and that they are truly friendly places to express yourself.

Someone I know (or used to know), who is the gentlest of souls, got EXCORIATED by trolls on facebook for writing their opinion. On their own page!! It was so bad, they shut down the page (I thought they’d unfriended me when I went on and saw they weren’t there...I sent them a sad email, I’m sure they thought and still think I’m crazy for being so sensitive and out of touch!). The hate people spew when you happen to have beliefs and opinions that are different to theirs is out of control. There is no such thing as a friendly discussion and an exchange of ideas and opinions any more. You either agree or you are a piece of shit that needs to be yelled at, insulted and threatened. I’m not cut out for that environment! I was horrified that this person had to go through that. My heart was sick at how people treated them. No wonder they shut down the page for a while!!

Do people still enjoy social media? The nastiness, fraud, doctored news, scams, the addiction to checking your phone.... Maybe it’s just me. I guess I must be a sad, isolated person and I need something in my life that will spark an interest and make me want to be a part of that? Who knows? I'm probably too closed off for it.

Have you been on a date or out with a friend and they had their phone on the table and checked it every few minutes? I have. It was odd. Enjoy the time! Be present in your experiences. You don’t always have to document everything in real time. Me? I put my phone in my bag and look at it when I get home (or if my companion leaves the table). I want the folks I'm with to know I'm invested in our time spent together.

I guess I’m just weird!!! (No comments from the peanut gallery thankyouverymuch!)

I DO enjoy scrolling through Pinterest though, that’s fun!

Social media commentary over!!!

For those who are interested, the gash to my finger has all but healed. It’s now just a pink scar that you only see if I flex it. My back is almost 100% better and I’m healing nicely from the surgery. You gotta love all that! I've even taken the grandma pillows off the drivers seat in my car! Yesterday was the first pillow-free commute! Awesome!!!

I’ve got a concert at the Roxy coming up early next week that I’m supposed to go to and, barring anything extraordinary, it’s looking like I’ll be able to make it. On a work night no less!

Yikes! I hope I’m not crabby at the office the next day!!

GAH, Gotham is yelling, I'd better see what it's about.

I hope everyone is having a great summer so far!!

I’m happy to report that I had a good day today. My back barely hurt when I got into the car to drive to work and I only had to use ONE old lady throw pillow as support!!! Plus, as far as healing goes, my finger is looking good and the scar should be barely noticeable in the end, PLUS my surgery incisions are healing really well and I’m hopeful the scar tape I’m using will do it’s job and the scars will be flat and blend into my skin. In addition to all that, I had a really good day at work and even though there was a bad accident on the FWY on my way home, I only had a few minutes added on to my normal commute time! Now it’s time to relax!

A good day by any measure! Even the unbearable heat can’t dampen my mood!

I bought some grenadine this past weekend (I don’t know what happened to mine), so I think I may make a Shirley Temple or a Roy Rogers to drink before dinner. It’s too hot for cocktails (drinking a measly drop of alcohol will result in a hangover when it’s this warm... it’s currently 100F here). Plus I don’t usually drink alcohol Monday through Thursday, so I’m looking forward to something other than boring flavored water, iced tea or diet coke. Yay!

I've come to the realization that I am an old, broken down mess.

Healing after surgery is a lot slower than I expected. I had the weird experience of having about 7 internal stitches decide that they wanted to work their way up through my skin. Luckily, I had my 3-week post op appointment this week and my surgeon took care of them. Other than that, I made good strides this past week, but hit a hurdle two weeks ago with something else.

I was getting ready to change clothes and run errands a couple Saturdays ago and stopped to yawn and stretch. Apparently, my recent lack of mobility fucked with my muscles because I pulled my "Rhomboid Major" muscle group. The pain was so bad I hit the floor! Breathing, walking, laying down....everything was the worst pain I have felt in decades, including my recent surgery. I couldn't even go to work. Luckily, I'm normally super healthy so I have WEEKS of sick time accrued. Driving was impossible that first week, so on the days I tried to go into the office, a gal from work picked me up and brought me home. It's taking so long to heal! I can do short bursts of things, but then my back starts to burn and I have to lay down.

Which leads me to the dumb thing I did earlier today.

One of the platforms on my cats HUGE cat condo was wobbly, so I thought I'd try and fix it. Easy, right? I can do that sitting down! I was able to unscrew the post and take the small unit to the couch. Separating the platform from the post was more difficult (this was the part that wobbled). It took a while, but I did it. Thing is, I'm not sure they were supposed to be taken apart. It kinda looked like I broke it.

In order to get a better look, I grabbed some reading glasses and got some tools. Bad idea. I'm not quite sure how I managed it, but the hand holding a pair of pliers slipped and I sliced the top of my middle finger, right below the knuckle On a sharp jagged metal edge of the post. Deep. I've never seen the inside of my finger before this morning. It was so gross and gushing blood. I'd also gotten a small cut on my index finger, not a bad one, but it contributed to the blood flow mess. I rushed to the bathroom and ran cold water over my fingers and tried to get toilet paper to apply pressure without bleeding all over the place (I failed). I had to sit on the floor to try and get bandages on it, but they kept getting soaked through and making a mess. I actually got scared (very rare for me) and figured I needed to get into clothes meant for leaving the house (if I had to go to the E/R), so I had to try and get dressed and put on/tie shoes while trying to hold my hand in the air above my head (except when doing a poor job tying the shoes, using all but the gashed fingers), blood streaming down my arm. I finally called a guy I work with whose wife is in medicine to see what I should do. They were out of town, but walked me through some steps. It took a while, but the bleeding finally stopped. They said I should be okay without going to urgent care, which made me feel less scared.

My hand really hurts, my back really hurts and my incisions from my surgery hurt.

Again, I'm an old, broken down mess.

Tomorrow will be different though, I'm gonna feel great and get shit done!!

This is a short one. Made it through surgery. Was more complicated than they expected, so it was about 5 1/2 hours instead of 3 1/2 and I had a really hard time in recovery and with pain at home later (I decided not to take the pain meds). Very grateful to my mom for coming down to help me. I had my 1-week post op appt yesterday and I believe everything is okay. Another appt in 2 weeks.

Home office visit in FL beforehand was neat. Will discuss later.

Today was my first day back at work, luckily my boss let me go home a bit early. I’m exhausted. In fact, I was exhausted after getting dressed this morning.

Off to rest...

Well, I had another birthday. It was okay. I didn’t feel too good on the day, so I didn’t go out. I did celebrate with friends on other days, which was nice.

Work has been really very busy! We opened a new office within walking distance of my apartment, which worked out well for me as my boss asked me to go there and help train and transition the business. I wouldn’t want to work that close to my home long-term, but it’s nice walking to work sometimes. If the weather is nice (it’s too hot now).

The only snag I’ve encountered was the day that I got a bloody nose JUST as I was walking in to Starbucks to pick-up my mobile order. Not having any tissues on me, I grabbed some of their brown napkins and kept going on my way to the office. Once I got to the building, I realized it wasn’t open yet (it was 6am) and I didn’t have an access card. Fortunately, a security guard came through the door and I asked if he could let me come in and also unlock the elevator. He stared at me for a few beats and said “Ma’am, are you okay? Do you need anything?”. At that point I realized how odd it must have been for a stranger, dressed in business attire, holding a bunched up bloody Starbucks napkin to their face while asking to be let in to the secure building must have looked! He was nice though and let me up.

I had my two week pre-op appointments. Yikes! Things sure have changed in the 12 years it’s been since the last time I had this done! So much to do and so much I can’t do. I’m still getting my place ready for my mom to come visit. Watch, she’ll show-up, walk through the door and proclaim it’s too hot and we’re going to a hotel.

Next up- Maybe a few more short visits to the office by my house, then I have to head to FL to work for a few days and after that I’m off work for a bit for my surgery.

I hope the weather cools down a little!

It’s the start of a nice, 3-day holiday weekend!

How will I be spending it? Trying to put my closets back in order!! I volunteered at the Downtown Women’s Center on Skid Row last weekend and, as always, I brought huge bags of donations. In order to get stuff together to donate, I thrashed through my stuff and threw everything all over the place. The entire last week, I’ve been unhappily living amongst piles of clothes, shoes, books and stuff. Not acceptable!

Another thing I might take care of is, if I can, I want to try and make the baseboards look better too. The person that painted my apartment before I moved in apparently didn’t clean before painting, so they painted over dirt and it looks grimy. Plus, they didn’t paint over some spackled spots. They just did a shitty job in general.

I also need to move one last set of curtain rods in the living room up closer to the ceiling. I bought a corded drill last weekend now that my old rechargeable one finally died and I’m tired of trying to screw things in above my head by hand. It takes too long and I’m too lazy.

So, apart from Target and maybe Home Depot, I’m hanging out doing domestic stuff.

Living the dream!

I know it's been a while since I've posted, sorry. It's been kind of hectic. Here's a small taste:

I've mentioned before a very good friend of mine is battling cancer again. They're still putting everyone else first, so it's heartbreaking to see them getting IV drips because their immune system is down to about zero and they keep getting deathly sick, yet they still drive 2 hours each way to take a virtual stranger to run piddly errands. A stranger who no one has anyting nice to say about. Look, I'm selfish. I just want my friend to get better, but there's nothing I can do. Telling them to rest and put themselves first has fallen on deaf ears. They have a huge heart, except when it comes to their own health and wellbeing.

A couple of my friends are going through some issues, so I've been trying to be there for them as much as I can. It's my pleasure to do so, goodness knows they've been there for me!

A relationship gently, mutually, respectfully and very kindly came to an end.

A family crisis has happened. Luckily, everyone is healthy, but this has been big and involved meetings and phone calls. There are a lot of times when I wish I was smarter and more educated than I am, this has been one of those times. I don't have all the answers on a GOOD day, let alone about stuff like this. I'm doing the best I can with the tools I have, I guess.

I've been working a lot, but it's been good. In fact, I've been nominated by my bosses to attend an invitation-only work conference in Florida in June. I'm thrilled that my hard work and good work ethic are being recognized. That makes me feel good. I'm not sure when I'm supposed to find out if I'm going or not. I'm secretly hoping I'm not.....

The big drawback about the conference is, it's the week before I'm scheduled to have surgery. A four-hour surgery that my mom (and possibly my dad) is going to come to town for. Yikes. What I'm having surgery on isn't life-threatening or anything, so don't freak out. It's something that causes a lot of pain that I had taken care of a long time ago, but as all the old pains have come back, my doctors and, most surprisingly, my insurance have deemed it "medically necessary" again. Now, I fully expected to have to deal with the pain forever and get a big fat rejection letter from my insurance, as I had nine rejections before I had it approved last time, and I had WAY kinder and more understanding insurance back then, lol!!! When the approval letter arrived, I was in shock for a few days! I submitted it thinking "there's no way, but I might as well put in for it." I'm excited, but I'm also 100% sure I'll be freaking out the closer it gets. Four hours!

Now I have to make sure all my crap is in order before June....

That's some of what's been up the last little while.

I hope I caught all the typos, my IPad is old and the keyboard is acting up. My apologies if I didn't.

Happy Birthday CBLMW. This new year is going to be filled with amazing things for you!! With all your hard work and dedication to your craft, you deserve it. Anyway, as always, I wish you the best of all things and a life of joy, success and happiness.

I debated emailing you, but figured you had enough going on and didn’t need another thing in your in box.

Robin

Stayed late at work today, I'm so tired! I was up at 2am, so it's been a really long day. We're at a standstill with the remodel/construction, so I'm also navigating around boxes and artwork all day every day. My legs are bruised. It's like working inside a full storage unit.

I'm making my feeble attempt at cooking a nutritious dinner, as beat as I am. Fresh green beans, roasted rose potatoes and air fried chicken breast. Wish me luck that it's edible.

I think I'm going to block out all news outlets, fix a cocktail a binge watch something stupid until I can fall asleep. I've already showered and picked out my clothes for tomorrow, so most of my chores around the house are done. It's too late to get the big stuff done, but oh well.

All I need to do is wash pans and dishes before I get too comfortable.

I've been a bit more outspoken lately than I normally am. In certain situations. Sometimes, a lot of the time It's foolish, but I can't help it. I’m non-confrontational by nature, but it can be a bad thing sometimes.... and sometimes it can be a good thing, lol. If I act out, it’ BIG!

A few weeks ago, I was walking to my car in my old Miracle Mile neighborhood (a tax document was sent to my old apt by mistake) and saw a woman crying in the street, looking scared of her large, scary companion, begging the man to leave her alone and leave. I asked her directly if she was okay and the man told me to "mind your fucking business, nosey bitch". I didn't take well to that. I continued to talk to her to see if she needed help while he hurled abuse at me. At some point, I lost my shit and started giving it back to him. I don't know what got into me. I got into a yelling match with this big, scary guy (and I NEVER yell, ask anyone. When I get mad, I go quiet.). Then I called him the F-word, MF-word and the C-word. Repeatedy. (he called me the same things). It ended with me shouting, pointing at him, calling him names and letting him know I called the police and they were on the way and taking photos. I'm gonna get killed one of these days for my beliefs. I hope the woman is okay. I couldn't sleep that night thinking about it. The thing to remember is, had the asshole guy let the woman answer me herself and say "we're okay, thanks though", none of that would have happened! H was posturing and acting like an abuser. I know that behavior when I see it.

Then, today, I was talking to someone I know very well about a work situation and they started in on a hateful anti-Semitic rant. I shut them down immediately and told them it was disgusting and wrong and that I didn't want to listen to it anymore, the proceeded to walk away. They said things to me as I was leaving along the lines of me “not wanting to hear the truth". I replied, "what you're saying is not the truth, it's disgusting and wrong" and continued walking away. How can it be Los Angeles in 2019 and people are saying this bullshit? There could be big ramifications in my friendship with this person for me saying that, but what right is right. I felt sick about their horrendous views.

My liberal heart and values are going to get me killed one of these days. At least it will be for a good cause, right? RIGHT??!!!??

Work has been a bit hectic. We've got some remodeling going on and A LOT of folks that should know how to disconnect and connect their own computers, don't. I'm a woman, pushing 50, crawling over, under and beside desks to get people under 40 back up and running. ME??!!!?? Do they know how weird that is? We're a team though, so I'll help where I can. I have the bruises to prove it!!

We've hit some speed bumps with the remodel, but most are rolling with it. A couple aren't, but that's to be expected I guess. I just wish they would show a little grace.

Completely different note:

Everyone knows that Sunday afternoons are MY time, for me. I do a head to toe deep clean and relaxation routine to prepare for the week ahead that I've been doing for 20+ years. This past Sunday, it was nice enough to open the windows wide and let the fresh air in. I am so grateful for the fact that I am lucky enough to be sitting in a bubble bath, looking up through a window with blue sky, framed by palm trees with sunlight streaming through while listening to beautiful music. It was just about perfect.

There has been other stuff, but it's too boring to post. Maybe later. Maybe.

I am hopeful that the weather holds for a bit and doesn't get too hot or too cold! I really want to enjoy this. I feel sense of calm in the chaos with it and I know the weather has a lot to do with it...

In a world tgat’s gone topsy-turvy, I will take any teeny tiny bit of calm I can get my hands on.

Let's all do something to help someone else today. Big or small. Please? Wish someone a nice day, that's free! Let someone in front of you on the freeway (that's free too... and don't expect the wave) or hold the door for the person behind you. You could change someone's day.

Sorry if this is a weird post, things are odd right now. Good, but odd.

Sorry.

When is this dumb cold going to go away? It's a pain being sick!

So, I've a change or two in my personal life. Good changes (I hope).

I'm excited about this next chapter and the extra spare time! I think I'm going to take advantage of some of additional time and binge watch some of my old favorite tv shows without any guilt and maybe enjoy the nice weather.

Crap, Brody Stevens... such a tortured person who only wanted to make people laugh, help folks and be a positive person. I have an appointment tomorrow afternoon in my old neighborhood, I think I’m going to wear my Brody shirt and try to spread some positive energy in his memory. Rest easy Brody.

I'm sad about Peter Tork. I saw him a couple of years ago with Mike and Mickey at the Pantages. I went to the concert with an amazingly gentle soul who was kind enough to plan a really nice evening for us. I was unwell that night and never really got the chance to properly say thank you. While Peter's voice was different than what I was used to or what I expected, it was a thrill hearing him perform again. I am grateful to have been able to go to that show.

If he's reading this, I want to say a heartfelt thank you to my companion that night. I thought about you when I heard the news and my cold, cold heart hurt.


The dreary weather seems appropriate.

I need a little comedy to snap me out of this. Either that or some NyQuil. Being sick AND sad is no good. A Dead Authors podcast should help.

I feel crappy. Came home from work after only about two hours. Does taking NyQuil during daylight hours count as day drinking? I've been trying to sleep, but not having too much luck. I hate being sick.

Well, no surprise, I went to the Doctor Who convention this past weekend, as I do every year around this time. Once again, I'm going to say that this might be my last year. It seems like it just hasn't been terribly good the last eight years or so. It's the only convention I go to now, so I guess it's hard for me to totally give it up.

John Barrowman, Katy Manning and Catherine Tate were amazing, but they aren't there the entire time! To be honest, I went to some panels Friday afternoon, went up to the room, had a cocktail and watched TV. Stayed in the room sort of late Saturday morning watching The Office, then went down for about four panels, had dinner then back up to the room for cocktails and TV while my friends went downstairs later. Sunday, I didn't even bother with panels, I packed my crap and went home while my friends stayed another night. I think this is the first convention I didn't buy anything. At all.

Our hotel room was terrible. The mattresses on the beds slid all over the place, the fitted sheets didn't stay on, the windows didn't open and were constantly covered with dripping water from condensation, the bathroom ceiling tiles didn't match well and were uneven, the TV kept blacking out, the cleaning folks came in the room when I'd put the "privacy please" sign out, parking wasn't adequate.... and that's not all! It wasn't like we were tearing the place up either. We are women over 40 eating junk food and watching tv when we're in a room, we're not Led Zepplin at the Riot House!!!

Topping everything else, I'm sick now! I don't know if it's a crummy cold or something I was once told about called "Con Crud". Either way, it sucks and I feel terrible. I've got antibiotics from my doctor and both NyQuil AND DayQuil. My evening plans are sorted!

Blah!

Interesting day today. Not much happened, so I got a lot done, both at work and at home. I'd been procrastinating doing some things, so it's nice to have them taken care of. I feel a wee bit lighter.

I recently went back and started reading Jerry Capeci's weekly column from 1996 to current day. So interesting! It's weird reading through knowing how things turn-out or reading and being surprised because things are different to how I remember. Well worth the annual subscription fee, at least it is for me!

I'm not sure why, but I feel really unsettled. I can't say that I'm unhappy, but (at least for the moment) I don't think I can say that I'm totally happy right now either. This especially sucks because I had a neat achievement at work and my boss is taking some of us out to lunch at a very nice restaurant in Beverly Hills Wednesday to celebrate and I'm going to have to fake it through the entire thing.

Ah well, not an insurmountable problem.

Start of a new, GREAT week, right?

Not a bad day today, but not the best day either. I was optimistic that it was going to be a great day, lol! it had such great potential too!!! Serves me right for expecting a Monday to be awesome, right? Ever the optimist, I'm hopeful tomorrow is a better and maybe a wee bit shorter.

I think I'll plan on going to bed early tonight....

I'm really loving the rain we're having. As I usually do when we have rain that lasts for a bit, I put on some Henry Mancini and just enjoyed everything.

I'm not really that interested in the Super Bowl (or is it SuperBowl?), but I did eat a bunch of wings I made in my air fryer.

I think I'm going to play some Art Pepper and enjoy what's left of this amazing Sunday night.

I'm really very relieved to report my dad is home from the hospital. There were a couple of issues, so he had to stay a few nights, but he got the all clear earlier today. Being this far away from my folks During this was tough, so I'm really glad he's home and resting. I'm looking forward to calling him tomorrow. I didn't want to risk waking him up tonight. I know he didn't get a lot of sleep while he was in hozzie.

I'm exhausted myself. Worrying takes it out of me! I didn't really tell anyone how worried I was... Now I can really concentrate on stuff and stop being so darned distracted.

On a completely different note, I did my first FaceTime. A client was out of the country and needed help, so sthey wanted to "call" me that way. I have to say, it was a little heartbreaking, I looked so old!!! it was a neat experience, but my self esteem took a bit of a hit.

Ah well....

Off to make dinner.

My dad went in for surgery yesterday and I'm so happy that he made it through okay!!!!! They're still keeping him, but I think that it's a really good idea. I've been worried about this for a while, it's been re-scheduled so many times.

I'm not sure if I should be proud of this or not, but on my way home "King Tut" came on.... and I still knew all the words!!! That made me not worry about my dad for a couple of minutes.

If you a chance, spare a good thought for dad.

As I've mentioned in the past, I really enjoy watching all sorts of infomercials and home shopping channels. "As Seen on TV" stuff fascinates me! So, about a week ago, I was re-loading the channels on my antenna and deleting the vast number of channels I have no interest in watching when my TV landed on HSN. So far, so exciting, right? Ha!! I sat back and watched for a bit, I couldn’t help myself.

A few presentations in, the coolest thing came on! Headphones that you don't have to insert into your ears that also aren’t big bulky huge DJ sized either. How do they work? Bone conduction! I was so excited to see these things, you have no idea! I've never been able to wear earbuds because 1) my ear canals are too small (even for child-size earbuds) and 2) I have really sensitive ears and just about any pressure on them is painful.

I got right onto the internet and did some research. The manufacturer and their products are top rated across the board. Now, I knew not to expect Bose standard quality, but compared to not being able to wear anything up to this point, any decent sound at all will be pretty fucking amazing! You wear them around the back of your head and they sit lightly on the top of your ears (where glasses would rest) and the little sound thingies rest in front of your ears on the cheekbone kind of wear your sideburns are.

No surprise, I bought them!!! Almost half off their retail price, so they were a bargain too!

Now, when I got them and opened the package, I thought maybe they were just a little speaker hanging by your and that's what I would be hearing... not so! I asked people if they could hear the music or podcasts I was listening to and no one could! If I wear my hair down, they barely show, which is good. Turns out the sound quality is really good too! You can put ear plugs in if you want more sound immersion (I can’t, but you can). Also, a big plus is that, since nothing is jammed into my ears, I can still hear what's going on around me.

The only drawback so far is that they aren't adjustable, so the back tends to hang down which makes laying back against something uncomfortable. Small price to pay though!!!

I love these things!!

I had a really good time yesterday taking my friend out for her birthday. The day started with us having a good lunch, then we were off to Beverly Hills to see the Drunk History diorama exhibit at the Paley Center. The exhibit was a wee bit disappointing, as it was so small, but we had fun nevertheless. After that we went to Trejos and had REALLY shitty chips, salsa, corn, cheesy bean dip, margarita and a diet coke. Seriously, how can you make any of those not taste good? They managed it! With EVERY item! At least I can cross them off the list of places to try... After that, it was back to my place for presents. She got me loads of neat stuff (as well as Gotham) and seemed to like the gifts I got her, which is nice as I never seem to get people the right thing.

After that, we watched MST3K for a bit and she went home. It probably sounds like a boring day to most folks out there, but once you get to my age, having lunch, giving someone a copy of Adrian Edmondon’s “How to be a Complete Bastard”, snacks, cocktails, a good chat and a funny TV program is a really nice day!

I woke-up early this morning, walked to Trader Joe’s and am now sitting outside in a plaza on a beautiful Sunday morning killing a few minutes until the specialty pet food store opens, so I can get Gotham his weirdo food. As long as none of my TJ’s food spoils, I can tell it’s going to be a really good day.

I guess I should probably do chores when I get home. BAH! So much for taking full advantage of the beautiful day!!

This week is taking forever to end! I'm excited about going with a friend of mine to the Paley this Saturday. I've got a lot of friends with birthdays in December and January, so I'm taking one out for lunch (local to my house), then over to the Paley. Should be a lot of fun!!! I'm hoping that it won't be raining, driving over to the West Side in the rain is a dangerous proposition!

Really looking forward to lunch. We're going to a bar in the area that's fairly historic that serves the best prime rib beef dip sandwiches! And free cookies. 😆 Mmmmmmm, free cookies!!

One more day of work to get through first though! I still need to wrap the presents and stuff... I'm terrible at getting gifts for people, luckily I've known this friend for almost 30 years, so they already know and expectations are sure to be low!

Most folks know that I cut the cable/dish cord about 8 years ago (give or take). I really do dig not having a HUGE bill every month. When I first got rid of cable, I used to have to hook my laptop up to my TV and then watch Amazon or Netflix. Then I discovered Roku and got one for each TV. This opened the door to Sling, Pluto and others. The best was when I got a few antennas and the joy of over-the-air programming opened-up to me. channels with just 70's/80's sitcoms and Canadian lifestyle shows!!!

It may not be cool to admit to it, but I LOVE watching infomercials and shopping channels. I can't help it! The shows are really good! As Seen on TV products are so awesome!

The sad bit of news is that I think the weather is affecting my antennas because I'm not getting ANY of the informercial channels or the home shopping channels. WTF??? Luckily, QVC has an app on Roku, so I'm getting the entertainment, but it's just not the same.

I want to see Ronco! Power XL! NuWave!

Simple pleasures......

(Sigh)

I'll get over it. I guess.

Happy 2019 everyone!

The holidays were really good. Spent a very cold, yet snow-free Christmas with my parents. It really is very pretty where they live. I wouldn't want to live there, but it's nice to visit for a bit over Christmas.

I came home to a cat that, apparently, comfort ate the ENTIRE time I was gone. I think he ate about 2 or 3 weeks worth of food over the course of the 7 days I was gone. I always leave WAY too much food out as I'm afraid something will happen to me and it will take a while for someone to realize they need to get him and feed him. Honestly, him being fat is much better than when he first got sick and got so skinny. I'll take it! I just wish he'd stop yelling at me to feed him all the time as though he's starving when he's got a full dish of food.

New Years' was nice and quiet. End of the year is always a stressful time at work, so it's always nice to have that behind me.

2018 was a good year for me, but I'm hopeful 2019 will be just as good, if not better! I have a lot to be grateful for. Friends and family being top of the list. My only resolution is I need to make more of an effort to make time for more people and let them know how much I appreciate them (and maybe go through and shred my junk mail).

I think that's about it for now. I may post again later.

Take care of each other!!