Aww, I hope the surprise package was successful in comforting.

We crawled around the lake in my sister's pontoon boat and took a zillion leaf pictures, then DH and I went for a nice drive and I took a few more. Stopped and visited an artist friend who has an artist coop place in Raquette Lake to get hugs, and while I was there some super cute ghost earrings and lovely soap. With my place under construction I have no place for any of the other pottery and such. This is the friend who referred me to the artist who painted my awesome otter sign for my camp. I finally have insulation and walls in the downstairs living spaces, and a propane furnace! They are working on the ceiling today. Coming together. Warmth has been very nice, just in time for a series of warm days we are expecting this week. My son and GF are coming Wednesday to go up the ski lift with us to see more leaves on the mountain sides.

That sounds lovely Laura -- the leaf viewing past and future.

SO GLAD the government shutdown was averted, at least for now. So many people were panicking over having their paychecks stop and all the government resources stopping. They might have put an end to this year's Fat Bear Week (starts Wednesday).

So sorry to hear about Atropa's COVID, especially on her own. Glad to hear her own personal lurker is supporting her.

I'm in the office all alone (usual for Mondays and Fridays); next Monday is a holiday, so I have to plan around that. It's really cold in here (I suggested subletting some space for fur storage) and the lights keep going out (they're motion-activated and I don't move around much as well as being outside sensor range).

My mother had both knees replaced and loved not being in pain any more. My sister had one knee replaced; I still have both my original if much damaged ones.

And people were posting about "that one cousin" ... that was my mother. She managed to antagonize both sides of the family; she assumed my father's side were all hicks (well, they kind of were, but still family) and her side, her half sister wasn't sufficiently supportive of their father, so good bye to her, her husband and three sons and, last I heard, a couple of grandchildren.

Hi, Todd! If this hip repair works as anticipated then I will likely do my stupid knee next summer. The knee isn't as annoying as the hip was. These old joints, ah well. Doing what I can to keep them working as well as possible.

I feel like I leveled up on Adulting today, after talking to our Estate Planning Attorney regarding the state of our Living Trust after Death of a Spouse. Which requires follow up with our CPA and Financial Services.

My whole couch is covered with paperwork and my to-do list is two pages long, and half of it is "Funeral Announcement."

I need to go to Kinkos and print things out and then get some things signed and notarized, and then get some other things signed and in the mail certified.

It's much of a muchness.

That is a considerable amount of adulting! How is your wound healing?

That is a lot of a lotness, indeed, Hec. Sending supportive vibes from afar.

My dog does not have fleas, phew. But her skin is dry and read and irritated, so we have a course of steroids, medicated wash, and, well, just because we needed them, flea and tick prevention and heartworm prevention meds.

She was scratching so much last night and even sort of whine/whimpering, poor thing.

Adulting is seriously overrated.

Try playing this with the sound on. It's short and made me smile.

Cereal.

I am getting some seriously skinky lingerie ads in FB these days. Can't figure out what I said, bought, or thought to bring that about, but... seriously, THAT is NOT a bodysuit. I do not think that word means what you think it means.

That is a very much muchness, David.

I tried to have an onerous task day, and I forgot that it's a observed holiday for many, so everyplace I contacted was closed.

My 10 year old MacBook Air is limping along and the Apple Support suggestions did not help. I guess I need to knuckle under and get a new one. A new battery might help, but for how long?