Happy birthday Atropa!

Work is making me so cranky this week. I have a 5-day weekend coming up over Thanksgiving and I need it SO MUCH.

Happy Birthday, Atropa!

lisah, feel better!

We’re having Thanksgiving at Mom’s but I’m bringing quite a few things. I sort of got used to doing things my own way having Thanksgiving at home the last few years.

Happy birthday, Atropa!

Wine update - I just got an email that it was delivered and I can pick it up from the front desk at my convenience. WFH today, so Monday will be convenient. But that was quick!

I have no wine, and no convenient method of popping over to see -t. Pout.

3 days with northbound A1A closed now, and the city just said it will still be closed tomorrow. That doesn't even happen in most hurricanes. What a freak storm that was.

Wow Laura that’s wild!

I did manage to get 35 pounds of dog food delivered for just the price of a tip, so that was nice. Not “free” shipping like they claim, exactly, but I didn’t have to schlep to the pet food store that is very out of the way so yay. Thanks door dash person!

I have no plans most of the weekend and super just want to relax after a stressful week…but the plans I do have are both tonight (and one is a birthday I can’t miss). I want to be snuggled on my couch. Ah well, tomorrow I guess.

Happy Birthday Atropa!

((David)).

There was a girl today in the store with her mother or grandmother (or possibly aunt) anyway the girl was maybe 10 or so and she just reminded me of a Matilda, not her appearance really but she had some really cool shoes and this burgundy and black velvet burnout wrap on over her top and was kind of dancing around in place while her relative was looking for something. Her grandma or aunt didn't know the English name of what she was looking for she just knew "mazamorra" and she apologized because she said her English wasn't that good (it really was though). I ended up googling it and finding out that Mazamorra is Columbian dish made from hominy and she was looking for dried hominy, which we don't have.

And then at the end of the day I had a customer who spoke also didn't speak English well looking for "the marshmallow cookies" and he made a gesture like he was patting something between his hands. I didn't quite understand when he said marshmallow so he said "the cookies for the marshmallows" and it clicked-- Graham Crackers! I made sure that was what he was making and I showed him where they were. I think I'm going to think of graham crackers and "The cookies for marshmallows" for awhile now.

Timelies all!

Happy birthday Atropa!

Mr. S was discharged from the hospital today. We’ll see how things go from here.

I think I'm going to think of graham crackers and "The cookies for marshmallows" for awhile now.

I love this.

Tomorrow morning Dylan and I are flying down to Mexico for a week--just the two of us. We offered to take Alex along, but he said he'd rather stay home, and he is after all a grown-ass adult, so it's the first trip of more than a few days for just the two of us in, well, 19 or 20 years now.

It'll be the first time in Mexico for both of us. We'll be staying in Todos Santos, a small town near Cabo. We don't have any particular plans, which is out of character for me when traveling, but as exhausting as this year has been, if I spend most of the days sitting by the hotel pool and reading, I'll count it as a wonderful vacation.

Tomorrow morning Dylan and I are flying down to Mexico for a week--just the two of us.

How fun! I hope you have an amazing trip.

Just today I made plans for one of my high school friends to come down to SF (with her family) to see a Bowie tribute concert in January, and tentatively (but enthusiastically) discussed arranging a trip to Spain with Matilda guided by some college friends (who have both spent extensive time in Spain) as guides.

I'm trying to figure out what my life looks like going forward and this seems like a way forward. I'm 62. I'm keenly aware I'll be 70 in 8 years. I really want to exercise the financial freedom I have to maximize these kinds of experiences, especially to open things up for Matilda.

This year has been stress and loss and loss and loss. I want to be hopeful about things. To be excited about what's on the horizon.

This year has been stress and loss and loss and loss. I want to be hopeful about things. To be excited about what's on the horizon.

Your plans sound like a great step in that direction. Of all the places I've ever been, I think Spain is my favorite. May I recommend Salamanca? It's not quite off the beaten path, but it's also not one of the standard places Americans always go IME. We only went there on our 2015 trip because it was a chance to tour one of Wellington's battlefield with an English guide (an English guide who kept turning to Dylan expecting HIM to be the expert and the one interested in the battle, which led to me putting on my most bravura display of Peninsular War expertise despite it being bad form to try to one-up your tour guide, but DUDE. We kept telling you!), but we ended up falling in love with the town. Eating dinner in the central plaza on a long June evening was pure joy.