For me, dealing with anxiety and depression makes me feel like my universe is shrinking as I avoid things I used to do and people I used to hang out with. It feels nice to have my universe expand again.

Shrinking universe is a good way to describe it. I'm glad your universe is expanding again.

Smoke pot!

Ha! Unfortunately pot doesn't do me much good, and leaves me lethargic for a long time.

Also, you should totally buy the antiquarian book business/home.

I know! In a different place in my life, it would be perfect. Right now, not so much.

That's wonderful, askye! Nothing tastes better than freshly baked bread you made yourself.

Half hour tidying the backyard was more effective than this morning's weeding.

Aw, I am bummed that Zen buying the bookshop etc isn't working out. That would have been lovely.

One of my closest friends from college lost her mother last night. Her mother was failing . . . doesn't make it any easier. I'm just happy that the family was all able to be there. (Possibly the time of year made that a bit easier to do.)

Other news: my pension will be about $100.00 more than originally estimated (per month). It's not a lot but everylittle bit counts. Particularly, when they deposit the difference so I have money in my account. Plus, I was approved for SNAP. Food. So necessary.

Got my Faure on and Requimed it out.

askye, if you can make bread, you can make pizza dough. Keep trying!

Steph, I don't know if you've heard this already, but the Alzheimer's Reading Room, while badly formatted, has some great information and a lot of supportive commentary for dementia caregivers. I recommend it to you and Tim's family.

For those thinking about cannibis, I just learned that there's a real big difference between the effects of the TCH strains and the CBD strains, and apparently the CBD pot is much better for anxiety and pain than the other stuff. I would post a link, but my friend's discussion is flocked. So, FWIW.

I just filed my taxes, and my quarterly estimates were so close that the federal government owes me $13. Awwww yeah me. I didn't owe any state taxes, and now I need to do my city taxes, but they should be pretty damn close, too. Woo!

But then I have to write my check for 1st quarter estimated taxes. Here's the backstory you need to know: since I started freelancing, I really don't mind writing that large check to the government 4 times a year, because there are so many, many things that our taxes fund that I believe are important. Until now, with the current POTUS. I resent the fact that I have to pay for his fucking golf trips and goddamn wall of racism, while he wants to cut everything that I *want* my taxes to support. I resent it so deeply. I don't want to write this fucking check, because fuck that man and his administration.

But I know that's how taxes work. I got NASA and the EPA, and now I get to pay for a brick in the wall of racism. Fuck that guy.

I just learned that there's a real big difference between the effects of the TCH strains and the CBD strains, and apparently the CBD pot is much better for anxiety and pain than the other stuff.

My brother (who is both a pothead from WAY back and also a resident of Colorado, where it's all legal) concurs on the CBD being much better.

Timelies all!

My folks are here. The tv downstairs is up too loud because my dad is hard-of-hearing and won't get hearing aides.

Mayonnaise works very nicely as an egg substitute in a lot of baking - I actually prefer it for making corn bread. I do not recall having tried it with meatloaf, but I can't think of any reason it would not work.

sumi, how sad for your friend. I'm glad you got good news for yourself, though.