I did the dishes! Even the errant pots and pans and cutting boards.

Also, we cleaned the Guinea Pig cage, and by "we" I mean Matilda did 80% of the hard stuff and I took the soiled liners down to be washed. (Which is unpleasant enough - carrying armloads of urine soaked cloth down the back stairs etc.)

Also emptied the garbage can and put out the bins.

I need to vacuum and I have a stack of about four packages that need to get in the mail and I should start packing/addressing those so I can run to the P.O. tomorrow.

I've been trying to stick to a disciplined diet and no alcohol for a week or two after my birthday indulgences of cake and pizza and I've been good so far. Fortunately, Alembic has some great mocktails, including my current favorite which is Strawberry Shrub and ginger beer.

Food prep is done; it did not include tonight's dinner, so we're ordering Indian. Aloo saag for me and vegetable tandoori extravaganza (cauliflower, broccoli, potatoes, mushrooms, paneer) for Tim.

My (slightly more than) 2-week follow-up for my left-hand carpal tunnel surgery is tomorrow. I think I'm owed a refund because this hand doesn't seem very evil.

Well, now I'm going to make a tomato, corn and basil salad with a lemon vinaigrette.

I also made a tomato, basil topping for my sourdough bread using up the vinaigrette from earlier. Also yum.

I wasn't hungry, but now.

Well done with the super productive housework day, Hec.

I burned stuff for about 6 hours, and now I am cleaned up and ready to go next door for cocktails. I have purposely not purchased any wine in over a month, but have had a glass when eating out or with friends. Just not having the option at home makes a big difference.

I burned stuff for about 6 hours

That sounds so satisfying!

Dinner at my aunt's house with DH, cousin and her DH was lovely. A summer smorgasbord!

Last load of laundry is in dryer, but that one and the previous one I will fold and put away tomorrow; I'm done. Kitchen is all done, though!

Just finished the crossword, and now we're pretending like we're going to watch something but will both probably fall asleep during whatever it turns out to be. We watched The Bondsman with Kevin Bacon over the last week or so. Pretty entertaining.

I was at a big gay dance camp out. It was pretty cool, though def a few things I’d do differently if I could (if they do it again next year, I will!). Do NOT understand how Friday I was good, hydrated, electrolytes, went to bed at a decent(ish) hour, slept enough, and woke feeling like absolute crap. Saturday I had a headache, ended up taking some meds, then went crazy and drank 3 drinks (premixed Jack and cokes) AND did a shot of tequila. And then although I tried to sleep at 1am they were blasting music until 3am. So I slept like shit. ….and woke up at 745am feeling great!! wtf body. I do not get it. In penance I am going to sleep early tonight. But gotta be up on time tomorrow to deal with annoying work people and with cleaners, so have to run around putting stuff away.

I've been reading about the Texas floods and it's so horrible.ive alas watched some meteorologists on social media and a few have said that the National weather service gave accurate predictions and warnings but they can only do so much. Mandatory evacuation orders need to come from the local authorities and there were failures on that level.

It also seems that Texas has been told they needed better sensors and early alert systems but they hadn't added anything.

I hate this year.

I also have doctor's appointments on the 22nd and 23rd. Didn't realize I had scheduled them like that. One is with my regular doctor to follow up with all my test results that are normal and to ask what is next. I've had continual health issues since March. There is something going on is it related to perimenopause? Is it an autoimmune disorder? Do I have peripheral neuropathy at this point?

Despite all of this my anxiety has been almost non existent. Which is really good. And I'm getting back to doing more art/creative play and reading more. And I keep getting physically stronger. Although I really need to add some exercise to the areas that don't get used everyday at work .

Sounds like a fun weekend, meara!

Askye, great that you're feeling like doing the creative stuff and feeling stronger. I fell out of swimming and reading lately, so I really want to get back to both.

Today is another get shit done day, so... fold/put away rest of laundry and focus on job search for Jen stuff. Oh, and change the cat litter. And either go swimming or read for an hour. Baby steps.

the National weather service gave accurate predictions and warnings but they can only do so much. Mandatory evacuation orders need to come from the local authorities and there were failures on that level.

Yup, I've been seeing the same. The NWS warnings were clear and specific, but local Texas authorities didn't react until 7-8 hours later. And of course, gutting FEMA hasn't helped.

Today is another get shit done day, so... fold/put away rest of laundry and focus on job search for Jen stuff. Oh, and change the cat litter. And either go swimming or read for an hour. Baby steps.

Go team swimming readers!

Looking out my window and the skies are milky white with fog. After several summers with minimal fog we've been socked in since June. I do prefer the blue sky days, but I have to say it's been good for my sweater and scarf game.

I found this cool small company from Portland, ME called Heading Prints, and they base all their scarves on vintage book designs.

For example: [link]

They also have cool scarf rings and bandanas. The only negative is that they do small runs and they sell out very quickly. But they're beautifully made.

I got this bandana just because it is JZ's favorite visual theme - a girl reading a book: [link]

Back to Pilates this morning after a week off (summer break for them to maintain all the machines). Pretty sure I've lost my entire core.