Living in the Time of Corona

Good evening my corona friends and I trust you are all keeping up with the news. Many of our friends are not following protocol and getting the jab, so the delta variant is causing a bit of some angst for all those paying attention. But if that is the way you want to play fine, just don’t come a-knocking when you need some medical care, call up your buddies on Facebook or Fox news and have them sit with you. So many say they are waiting for full FDA approval as they don’t want to be an experiment for the government, well darling that ship has sailed. We were an experiment in that we survived four years under Cheetos’s dynasty and who knows what else is coming down the pike it is all one big science experiment.  Fires are raging, earthquakes, evacuations and probably heading into a wild hurricane season, but other than that Mrs. Lincoln how was the play?

I don’t want to rant and rave about my fellow citizens but I do want them to behave because if something happens to my grandchildren, lookout. Hell has no fury like Grandma Peggy scorned. Summer is coming to a close and I know this used to be a time when parents of young kids were just itching for class to resume but now you have to worry about whether some dipshit moron decides on a mask or no mask?  One thing I am sure of is that I think all the parents will have to be committed if their kids have to go remote, there will be no room on the Psych wards.

August is a tough month for me so much going on and it is the end of summer, so I want it to slow down but it’s already almost over. When you are old it seems like time flies in the blink of an eye. I remember when my son Max came to me when he was in college and said “mom remember how you always say time goes by so fast?  Now I get it.” When you have young kids the days are long but the years are short and now my baby girl Erica is turning 40 at the end of the month. I can’t believe I have a daughter that is 40 it’s inconceivable I still think I am 30, well mostly I act like a teenager and misbehave but old habits are hard to die. Tomorrow my roommate and beloved techie celebrate 43 years of wedded bliss and I just can’t believe it’s been that long, how did he survive?  My mother never thought he would stay around as I wasn’t a proper wife and wait on him and make him all his meals, she used to say how does he keep you?   She never quite understood that he was capable of making his own sandwich and God forbid a laundry. I knew right from the get-go he was a winner, In one of our first ventures the car breaks down and he asked for a hair clip or nail file and then fussed under the hood and we were off. I thought this guy is MacGyver and I am going to keep him and my mother-in-law was right “it was the luckiest day of my life when I met him”.  Freda, my mother in law had a certain way about her that sometimes could be charming with the backhanded compliments, like nice sweater too bad blue is not your color. My two sister-in-laws and their mothers never appreciated that “luckiest day of your life” line and took offense, but when she brought it up to my mom, she whole heartily agreed.  Well Mom and Freda I think you were both right and hope you are smiling down on us.  So how do you celebrate 43 years well last week my roommate says I made reservations at The Fox and Knife for dinner and I said great I made reservations to fly to Bermuda.  Guess where we are going?  A certain savvy “techie” let his passport expire so the next best thing is a lovely weekend dine around, and it will be wonderful.  We have everything we need right here in this large one-room loft where we can’t escape each other. 

Techie and I just completed our 12^th and 8^th Pan-Mass Challenge last week and for those who aren’t familiar it is a two-day bike ride across Massachusetts till the end of the cape In Provincetown, but because of the Pandemic like all events it had to change up. We ride for the Flames and Dana Farber and are lucky enough to have a fabulous team captain and honorary captains to Reimagine our route and hopefully if people would just behave we can get the real route back. This year was especially hard for a lot of reasons, first I am old, and second that Covid 19 turned into Covid 29 for me, so not only is the riding hard but squeezing into a spandex riding costume was especially hard.  They sent us a box with our PMC shirts and when my roommate came home I was crying he was worried but I said I can’t fit into the jersey.  Wouldn’t you know he found time to go by the PMC office and swap shirts but also mentioned they had lots of calls complaining the shirts came in too small this year. I think he was lying but that is why we are still married after forty-three years.  Techie and I met a couple at a bar this evening while enjoying our evening stroll and they mentioned it was their tenth anniversary and they ask each other every year “do you want to sign up for another year?” Well, that is all well and good but sweetie if you are enjoying the roller coaster and having so much fun, you just hang on tight on no need to ask.

Just saying……………….

Good evening my corona friends and here we are in August when I always want it to slow down let summer last twice as long, especially after that soggy July we just had to endure. Well, it looks like we will be living through groundhogs day as the Plague once again takes over our everyday life.  Corona is back to the number one headline, the first thing we hear in the morning and the only thing we seem to be talking about in the news. This could have all been preventable but some dipshits would rather take their medical advice from a pundit or a politician than a medical professional, so now we all have to suffer the consequences.  Seriously it is Day 497 and I thought maybe 100 days and we would be kicking this virus to the curb, but no it is coming back with a vengeance and wants to kick those doubters in the ass.  I have four grandchildren and I sure don’t want them to suffer the consequences, so go out and get the DAM Jab.I had the absolute pleasure of spending this past weekend on the cape with seven of my oldest girlfriends and I am not talking about age.  Really to be in the company of these fabulous women for 48 hours and our only care was mixing the cocktails and getting to the beach is truly a slice of heaven.  I never lived in a sorority house, just wasn’t cool back in the ’70s, for me anyway, and I am pretty sure there could be a lot of bitchieness at that age, but not at our Centrum age. Granted we are not quite the blue-haired crowd yet but certainly at an age where we don’t give a shit about a lot of silly things that may have been important back in college. We don’t have to get all dolled up before we venture out and there was plenty of belching, farting, and snoring in the house all weekend.  We made some fabulous meals together and amazing how everyone just pitches in and gets all the jobs done, setting the table, chopping the veggies, mixing the drinks, and clean up without being asked. Not that men haven’t gotten better about pitching in but when there is a crowd they still tend to sit on their asses. Women just step right in and make it all happen and enjoy the group effort.

We did manage to put on a very nice dinner the first night and our host Jane, even relented having so many hens in the kitchen which can make her a bit anxious sometimes but I noticed a new calmness on this visit. I guess it is inevitable that with age the discussion at dinner can change on a dime when people start talking about their aches and pains, and soon enough we were full-blown about Osteoporosis. As it turns out a few have some serious issues and are on different medications and all about their bone density.  Of course, I would rather totally ignore any of this and no one could believe that I never had a bone density test, or at least not one I know of presently. I am my mother’s daughter, and for me, that means to avoid going to a Dr. at all costs, unless absolutely necessary.  After we exhausted all the possible medication combinations that may be of some benefit, we all started to get ready to retire for the evening. We are all snuggled up in our jammies and as it turns out there is another discussion of what we all take to sleep for the night, and there is quite a variety, Ativan, valium, and my personal favorite Gummies.  Oh wait I skipped the beauty routine and all kinds of potions and lotions are a must to maintain our natural beauty, apparently, I am lacking in this department and I have to improve my beauty regime.  I have been busy looking up all the products and I will be sure to order them and never use them, but I will feel like I am trying. The next morning there was a lot of sharing the actual pill bottles and picture taking of what vitamins and supplements everyone was taking, so now I have that all up to date as well. Women of a certain age look out for one another and we all discussed when to collect social security and what Medicare plan is best. Apparently, I missed out on some packages they don’t offer anymore, but maybe something new when I retire, but not anytime soon because I don’t want to sit home and watch Law and Order, I can do that all night.  Once we had all figured out our retirement plan it was time to pack up and head to the beach for a super long relaxing day just sitting in our group with endless conversations and funny how we never run out of things to say. I absolutely love my girlfriends and we hope to all live in our own group home someday, our own private care home.  Debbie is a former ballroom dance teacher, so she gave us all line dance lessons during the cocktail hour, and boy, it was getting serious. We nailed it.   Had to cut the dancing short because we had dinner reservations and then we had a snafu, somehow the garage door disengaged and it wouldn’t close. Somehow they convinced Jane, our host, that we should just close it and deal with it later, and this is when I truly realized she definitely was chill, normally this would freak her out, but not wanting to miss out on our girl time she agreed. Dinner and cocktails and then we had to pay the piper to come home to a broken door.  Not to worry because I called Techie and with the help of facetime, Linda on the stool, and Sandy on the ladder he talked us through it, and after several tries it clicked. You might have thought we scored the winning goal for the Gold we were so excited.  Just go to show that several slightly inebriated girls and one very calm Techie, on Facetime, can pretty much accomplish it all, ok maybe a slight exaggeration but it sure felt good.  We were all sorry the weekend had to end, but more importantly, we were extremely happy that we had this time.  Sometimes you may wonder how did I end up with these friends and if I met them today would we choose each other, because we all tolerate less as we get older, but I am grateful they tolerate me, even with the very loud snoring.  I don’t want to be afraid to go out and gather in a group so please all you undecided, get the shot. I never really believed in all these undecided anyway, that they go and dig up a few days before the election, seriously?  I say bullshit so just do it!

  Just saying…………………

Good evening my Corona friends and I hope you are all happy and enjoying the summer. Well, suck up every last minute of that Joy because who the heck knows what is coming next? We are 488 days into this pandemic thing and now all the news is it is rearing its ugly head in the form of a Delta Variant. I hope this doesn’t do for Delta airlines what it first did for Corona beer because some idiot will start a conspiracy theory that it all happened on a Delta plane carrying some people who worked in a Chinese lab and it got out of hand one night because they overdid it drinking the Corona. This one little tale can go on to blow up the internet with misinformation and promote the anti-vax conspiracies that seem to be believed and create chaos.

I am not quite sure if it feels like Groundhog Day or Armageddon.  I don’t think he could see his shadow because of all the rain here on the east coast, mega huge fires blazing on the west coast, and the scorched earth of heat everywhere else, so this end as we know it and I don’t feel fine. What is the universe trying to tell us? After a year living with the plague and wearing a mask, we finally can bust out and we have extreme heat or flooding, when the locusts show up it’s real. Wait a minute would cicadas count as locusts?  Now we find ourselves approaching a possible shutdown that no one wants to acknowledge or at least pray it can’t possibly be happening. I have been to Costco and there is plenty of Toilet paper and Clorox so that could be a good sign. Of course, this could all be good news for a way to sell off all those masks that everyone and their mother rushed to market. Like everything else all the major sports teams got right in on that hustle and plastered their logos right on the mouths of their fans.  I know that there is a huge surplus of all kinds of masks and they might be taking down the sale signs as we speak, so run out and buy them for pennies on the dollar so you can resell them on eBay. 

I am so sick of turning to the weather channel hoping for a good news report. Instead, we hear how this is the wettest July on record and we may see the sun for a slight tease only to have more showers. I went up to Maine for the 4th of July and was hoping for some beach time and sailing, and the week before it was almost 100” for days, so one would assume it would be warm. My roommate had sailed up the week before with a few of his buddies and we opted to drive on land and meet them in Maine.  It was looking pretty good and the next day it was rainy and very cold, and the next day and the next day and the next.  The six of us hunkered down on land in a little house with one bathroom. I know it’s a first-world problem, at least we had indoor plumbing, but six adults who all seem to wake up to pee a few times a night, could set off a cacophony of flushing sound all night, just call it the toilet opera. The kitchen was the size you might find in a New York City apartment, so a lot of elbow bumping trying to get our bagels toasted and coffee in the morning, then a line for the bathroom.  I have to say we were pretty impressive in getting that routine down and no one came to blows, all very civilized.  We did manage to have a lot of fun and had some spirited games of scrabble. You don’t want to go up against my friend Nancy, because she is killer. Her husband Pate went to bed the first night with all the pieces studied in his brain to finish the next day. I swear to God he dreamt up defeating us all night and came in with a vengeance the next time. That being said there is only so much fun you can have in the rain so we opted to hit the road and beat the traffic and we left Techie on his beloved boat. He is happily retired and didn’t even mind living on it through the rest of the rainy month and I am so grateful that I came home.  I was able to blast my BRIT BOX all night and watch 10 seasons of MI5 without my headphones. I never turned on the weather channel during the night because I would have nightmares. Just best to get your bad news over morning coffee. I was thinking the other day that I need to find a radio station that plays music, as I only play NPR in the car and I find myself humming some weird tunes during the day. I watch morning news shows at 6 or 7 am and I am humming the jingle of Ozempic, O,O,O ozempic, really going downhill fast. It gets in your head and it’s hard to get rid of it so I need to let some other tune in fast. 

Well, I am glad to have techy back in the house, some days I couldn’t get the computer on, and I couldn’t yell across the room for help, often had to resort to texting for answers. He is going to teach me how to post this blog on my own before he departs on another sailing adventure. 

Just popped up on one of my feeds Delta plane diverted to St Louis where it was forced to land and unload suspicious cargo that resembled cases of corona all being carried off by people in lab coats with Chinese lettering.

Just saying……………………

Good evening my Corona friends. I trust you are all getting back into the swing of things and trying to navigate post-pandemic, mask, or no mask?  That surely seems to be the big question as we venture out into the unknown sea of humanity, vax or no vax?  I feel pretty confident that most people I am in contact with have had the vaccination but then today I read about some people who are actually avoiding those with a vaccine because they fear they are spreading something. Is there no end to this insanity?  Did we not just spend more than a year in lockdown jump through hoops to get a damn vaccination at the earliest point, now to have the looney tunes start-up with this bullshit? Seriously, in the beginning, I thought it was the twilight zone and now I am pretty sure some people have definitely crossed over and all I can say is haven’t you just had enough of all this craziness?   Why are you looking for more?  Look on the bright side! We can now go into a bar and order a drink without having to order food, seriously it’s the little things in life that can bring you joy. I am very sad to report that Jared my favorite bartender is not coming back to my neighborhood watering hole, so will have to do some shopping around to see who doesn’t have a limp arm when pouring.

Enough about the crazies and the booze because today is a most auspicious day, and no it is not just about Flag day, although I do like to fly a freak flag whenever the opportunity presents itself, today I welcomed a new grandson.  Early this morning Gilbert Lawrence graced the planet with his presence and he will be known as Gibby.  I know what you are thinking because I was thinking the same thing, there is a reason that new parents don’t share the name ahead of time, because there would certainly be a lot of commentaries. In this instance, it took me a few minutes to adjust. My first thought was the Dilbert comic strip but clearly not the same spelling and thankfully it wasn’t Pancake as he had been affectionately referred to these past several months. I will be eternally grateful that covid restrictions have been eased just a bit and I got to hold and cuddle with my newest grandson and whisper how much fun he and Grandma Peggy will be having in the future. It is funny how you are summoned for the first baby duty and the second is a bit different. The first we came down to gush over baby, do some laundry, and a bit of cooking and cleaning. Now we have baby number two and there is a list of instructions for the care and feeding of baby number one and I learned from the best, my Mom says she didn’t follow instructions and heck she had twelve kids so she must have known a thing or two. Now Gibby’s father is my son, so for all those mothers-in-law out there you know what I am talking about. It is a different animal than if it were your daughter’s second baby and a whole different level of instructions. You can set the rules for your daughter but it’s not the same for your daughter in law, she is the gatekeeper to your son.  Of course, I am super fortunate that I have the most awesome and incredible daughter-in-law and I hope she is not reading this, how can she, way too busy with the new baby.  My son has to remind me every so often to please play nice and don’t upset the apple cart, as if that was even remotely possible. I am the dream to have for Monster in law, wait did I just call myself a monster?  It has only been one day but Tilda who is almost three is just coming to realize that this baby brother stuff is real. When she woke up this morning and her parents were gone and came home from school to her grandparents, now she is maybe thinking I should have paid more attention to this baby brother coming. I employed a new tactic tonight. When she didn’t want to eat dinner and said no problem we will give it to Gibby, she never scarfed food so fast. Techie says I have to give that up, as though even if it worked like a charm, could lead to some serious issues, I will work on a new plan for tomorrow.

I have spent some time these past few days sorting through a lot of clothes that have been handed down or come via Mommy groups, how the world has changed now your world is online, used to be you might have to employ Oprah’s secret and like believe it or will it and it will come.  Now you just post on FB or some online forum and it flows.  Honestly, I have sorted so many little clothes we are good for a few years and I don’t care what they say little boy clothes are not as much fun to buy, all these silly sayings.  Of course, I know Gibby will be a standout in whatever he chooses to wear, but I am putting my foot down on one garment he won’t be wearing, right to the donation pile. Max, you may have moved to Philly and we are not really a sports family but am pretty sure putting an Eagle suit may be akin to sacrilege.

Just saying…………………………

Happy Birthday Gilbert !!!!!!!!!!!!

Good evening my Corona friends. It has been twenty-two days since my last post and things are moving quickly, and after this year I would say it is warp speed. I know I live in a place where most people trust the science, or they will do anything to get back in the bar, so they get a vaccination. Last week our Governor announced that as of May 29, there will no longer be a mask mandate, so this weekend it was almost like a gigantic skinny dip party or would have been had the weather cooperated.  Seriously it was like ripping off a big band-aide and jumping right in, at least for the bar crowd that has been denied just bellying up to the bar for more than a year. It was close to a religious experience. For myself, I am waiting to see my beloved Jared behind the bar in my hood before I take a seat, as I don’t want any of those weak pours. We were going to go out with a bunch of friends to celebrate the open borders at a restaurant, but then with the weather not cooperating for Al Fresco, I did a last-minute pitch to move the dinner party to our palatial one room estate and we were also thrilled we did.  I just pull out my trusted friend Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa books, and just whip up a meal in these situations. I would love to be married to Ina and I don’t know if Jeffrey understands the full extent of how he is the luckiest man on the planet.  Of course, now that I have Techie cooking out of a box twice a week now, I can call upon him to be my sous chef when whipping up a meal for ten people, and because he is the wonder that he gets it done. It was an n emotional evening to just sit next to your friends and hug them. And to think sometimes you talk shit about these guys. That night there were all Gods and old friends are the best, warts and all. Talk to me next month and I will tell you if I am still kvelling so much about them. Of course, I have had a few people over during the shutdown, and we did have our pod, Howie and Lisa, Donna and Jon, Nancy and Pete, and then, of course, there are my work friends, and my nieces and nephews, sisters and brothers and a few of their friends, but other than that we were in a very strict lockdown for over a year, and grandkids don’t count, that’s a given. I mean we saw none other than the thirty or so people, and I never stood that close to anyone at work and had I was always wearing a mask, so like we were super careful. Seriously I don’t know when we started relaxing a bit, maybe last summer, then it was a scary time after Thanksgiving, and no one wanted to be near anyone, and now we find ourselves ripping off the band-aide.  I know this is not easy for everyone and I can tell you after spending some time in Harvard Square today they are not ready, masks are strictly enforced. This is after all the PRC, Peoples Republic of Cambridge and we will probably be masked up outside at soccer games till the year 2023.  Seriously I am really poking fun right now but I totally get it, how do you just jump right in after what we all have been through this past year?  But I have always been a person who jumps right in and doesn’t need to be told twice, feet first I jumped. My grandson Charlie doesn’t find it that easy and not ready to rip the band-aide all the way, but we will take some baby steps until Grandmas pushes him right into the deep end. I am just worried that this glimpse of normalcy will pass and I want to kick it up like the roaring twenties right now………….so judgment-free zone while I break out in song and dance at any given moment.

I want to get back the year that I lost and when I think about how much time I have spent watching the tube with Netflix, Apple, Hbo,showtime, britbox, Hulu, fungu or whatever my brain is fried.  When you get to a certain age you start thinking about the clock is ticking and there are still all these places and adventures I want to do before I leave the planet, I am dam well pissed off that I lost a year to TV, but at the time it was awesome.  My roommate doesn’t really watch TV, he would rather sit at his computer and read blogs from skeptics or who knows what?  But those things can suck you in just as well but you may feel a bit more superior because it is not as pedestrian as TV, just giving him a poke, since he does do my editing.  We both know that we are not going to waste time but rather I am planning our next adventure, biking in either Croatia or Italy but on one of those nice trips where they carry all your stuff and a really nice wine dinner every night. I am thinking maybe an electric powered bike since I am approaching a delicate age and I didn’t just gain the Covid 19 but maybe times two?  Anyway today we are grateful that we can still walk to Little Italy, have a fantastic meal, or better yet Regina’s pepperoni and mushroom and then enjoy the walk back, and that my fiend is heaven on earth.  After all we have been through this past year I do want to give a moment to honor all those brave men and women who didn’t get to experience this past year as they gave the ultimate sacrifice and we salute you and your families.

Just saying………….

Good evening my corona friends and I trust everyone is doing well and almost feeling like we may be getting back to normal or wait, THE NEW NORMAL.  I didn’t realize that it has been well over a month since my last rant. That was Easter so since Today is Mother’s day I guess I am turning into a Holiday scribe. I went out early this morning for a stroll around the city. It was truly a glorious day, and there were certainly lots of people out. Today what was particularly noticeable to me was that people had actually put some serious effort into their attire, almost like their Easter outfits. Maybe because the weather was so lovely and they were taking their Momma’s out to dine, for maybe the first time in a year.  If there was ever a time to celebrate Moms I would say that after a year like 2020, they all deserve a Nobel Prize.  I know it was tough on all of us, but moms with young kids, any kids, or those caring for the ones in depends, it was freaking hard. Imagine having to work and monitor your online classes for the young ones.  I just have to imagine that all those parents who severely limited screen time, like everyone had to give in to it sooner or later, and no one will hold it against you. Heck, I just had myself and my roommate to take care of and I super OD’d on my screen time. I know I am late to the party on this but when I figured out a few months ago that I could watch on my IPAD with earplugs, I was in heaven and I wake up at night with those silly earbuds stuck in my ears, but I love it. I am pretty sure I have watched every BBC crime show for the last 15 years, but that is a whole other rant. Back to Mother’s day, I was thinking about my own Mom on my walk today and how truly extraordinary a woman she was and of course how much we didn’t appreciate it at the time.  She pretty much raised eleven children on her own, working nights in a hospital coming home and getting everyone fed and off to school so she could have some time to clean up, do several loads of wash, hang it outside on the clothesline, and be ready with the after school snacks, homework and dinner, before grabbing a nap before going off to work at 10:30 pm. OMG there is a reason my siblings and I only had two kids and some not any, exhausting and to think I used to cry to my Mom how hard it was with two babies and working. I had a nanny that lived with us, a supporting and very much participating husband, yes techie did everything, what must she have thought?   I know she always thought that I had landed the best husband and Dad in the world, and she always was amazed that I didn’t wait on him and serve him his meals, she often wondered “how does he keep you” her words.  She just never got that the world was changing and men could do their share, and we did try and please her on occasion and do the dishes on holidays because we didn’t want her to do it and God forbid the guys could do clean up. Well, Ma, guess what they are all doing the clean-up now and the world didn’t end.  Mom has been gone for more than twenty years but I still speak with her often and now I am getting to experience her best joy in life, Grandchildren. She was lucky enough to have an abundance of Grandkids and most lived close by so they spent a lot of time with her and reap the benefits of a super generous grandma. I am super lucky to have three grandchildren and come next month I will add another Grandson to the mix.  Charlie and Maisie live nearby so I see them all the time, Tilda is a short plane ride away and luckily I just spent a week with a wild two-year-old.  I have to get back to the gym to keep up with everyone.

I read recently what a lot of Mom’s wanted for this Mother’s day was away or two alone, just some me time.  I know after this past year it was even more important but I can remember wanting that as well when the kids were little, I would say to Techy I go away with the kids and you get to have the house to yourself, can you please go away for a night. Well we were invited to go hiking Saturday up a mountain and then stay in a hut with by daughter, son-in-law and two kids but longing for some me time I opted out but my roommate went along. I was thinking about how we were going to get Maisie, who is three to walk up that mountain when just a few days ago she couldn’t do the fifiteen minute walk to the Aquarium, without me carrying her, aching back was what I was thinking, plus you have to go outside to the composting toilet.  I opted to having this one BIG room to myself and suddenly it was palatial.  I keep the TV on rather loud and just binged on whatever I wanted.  I didn’t even mind when my friends cancelled the pizza party and I could stay in my jammies, heaven on earth is what I say and didn’t even answer the phone, well no one called anyway. I was thrilled to be invited out to Lunch with My niece Amy and family, back in the hood as they were the previous occupants of this big room.  Well what better way to top off Mother’s day than to have a facetime call with my kids Max, Erica, Hugh and Alana, arranged by my incredible daughter to toast all the Moms but what they really wanted to say that they booked a trip for all of us on Thanksgiving to Puerto Rico to kick start celebrating retirement.  Of course I thought they were kidding and didn’t get that excited but later when she sent the itinerary I felt unworthy and very special at the same time. Techie and I are both incredibly fortunate to have these great kids, and spouses, in our lives, plus the biggest plus are Charlie, Maisie, Tilda and the one they are calling Pancake soon to come.

Mom you would be proud and even if I find that they hacked my account and used my miles, I will be Ok with that, I am just glad they talk to me.

Happy Mother’s Day to all you Corona Moms and May the fourth be with you!

Just saying…………

Good evening my Corona finds and I hope everyone had a Happy Easter, as the weather proved to be a glorious day for an Easter egg hunt. Crowds were out in the city and a lot of strolling happening but I didn’t get to see too many Easter bonnets as my roommate and I spent the day helping out some family members declutter for their move to assisted living.  Declutter may be too easy a word for what was really a steam shovel event for some massive hoarding. Imagine if you already have a problem and then add a yearlong pandemic where you don’t leave the house and rarely throw out a piece of mail.  Now you double it because there are two of them. Can you imagine how many trash bags we took down to the dumpster?  It really makes you appreciate that we have adopted a more minimalist lifestyle and believe me when I say my roommate is even more convinced that we need to pare it down even more. I know most people during this year of lockdown used this opportunity to do a Marie Kondo thing and really organize and only keep the things that “bring you joy”, well that wasn’t happening to these two as I don’t think every solicitation that came in the mail was a source of joy but rather a heaping mess. I am so thrilled that they finally agreed to make the move that I didn’t even mind that much to give up this beautiful Easter weekend helping that happen, Covid gave us another pass to skip a family celebration as not everyone is fully vaccinated yet and you know we only break the rules half the time. After yesterday and the hot mess, I decided we better get a fresh start with things for their new home.  Costco and Target were closed today but I found that Walmart was open so off to the big blue to outfit the kitchen, bathroom, and bedrooms. This may have been my second trip to a Walmart, like I said Target and Costco are my favorites, and we were so shocked at the sheer size of the place this one must have been a super-size.  You can’t really do power shopping if you don’t know the lay of the land and Techie doesn’t love pushing a carriage around a superstore. First off I was shocked how cheap things are, ice cube trays for .87 cents, bath mats for $2.99 and I didn’t get the cheapest.  How can they put this stuff out so cheap?  We easily filled two carts and I thought they were downsizing. I was running around finding things while Techie looked dazed and confused. The best part was I was wearing a blue vest so other customers kept asking me where things were.  I got to thinking have I hit a new low? Shopping in Walmart on Easter Sunday and getting mistaken for an employee?  Not that there is anything wrong with being a Walmart associate but if you recall from my last entry My roommate and I were transitioning from our old jobs, and I really wasn’t looking for a new one just yet. I am actually still gainfully employed and that is a whole other story for the future.   By the time we’re leaving today, a crowd had formed outside and there was a line to get in so Easter service was alive and well in the Walmart parking lot. Americans love to shop and consume and I am pretty sure this place never closed during the pandemic because the food aisle went on forever and ever.

Fingers crossed that the move happens this week and we could not be happier to have them move into a sparkling clean apartment, newly outfitted with my Walmart purchases.  I know it is kind of ridiculous that I bought so many new things, when they probably had several of each item that I bought, but finding it was another story. Some of you may have seen a show on the telly about hoarders well this place could be considered a medium one and going through and putting your hands on it gave me the heebie geebies, so thankful for those low prices. Meeting with movers it was weird standing among this shit mess but he was very kind and said he has seen worse. OMG, I couldn’t imagine it being worse but glad he could work with us.  In the past, we would have gone in and helped them declutter but during this year of lockdown under the Pandemic that was one place I wasn’t going to take a chance, hence the buildup. After today I decide I am not going to get annoyed with my roommate for always leaving his dirty sox on the bedroom floor and I will just pick them up like I always do, but now I won’t secretly curse him, as it is only a pair of socks, but when I start finding weeks’ worth of mail on the floor, he is getting a swift boot in the ass. I can always go to Walmart and get him some new socks. Did you know that they have bins of facemasks at the checkout and actually in several places in the store? You could really get something going with your fashion statements.

Just saying………

Holy Shit! It has just passed over one year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Good evening my Corona friends. I can’t believe we have passed the one-year mark and still living in the twilight zone.  So much for that 2 week lockdown. It has really found a home with us and just won’t leave. The good news for me and my roommate is that we have had both our shots and now we feel totally invincible, totally weird feeling but right now I am digging it.  I know some of my friends have traveled south this winter and it is like we live in two different countries and no masks required but here in our beautiful city almost 100% compliant with mask-wearing. I did even break down and order a bunch of new styles as for sure we will be wearing them for a while. If I paid attention to my fashion I would do better on the coordination, but right now just want one that won’t fog up my sunglasses. Is that too much to ask?  So we had a great experience this past weekend, we actually had our friends Howie and Lisa over for dinner in our one big room. I was so excited to cook a meal for the company I broke out Ina’s best recipe and went to town. Wow, we got our dining room table back as it has had two computers set up as our work from home station, it was like a whole new place. I always loved having people over for dinner and I didn’t realize how much I missed it and how good it felt to actually feel like a regular human being, well maybe not regular?  It was a lovely evening with cocktails and wine and even gelato for dessert, heavenly.

Today my roommate and I had a life-changing event happen for us and we celebrated by actually dining inside at our favorite Pizza place, Regina’s.  You know you are really simpatico with your lover when you both come up with the perfect celebration spot for all your life-changing events.  I was walking back home this afternoon and I was thinking to myself Techie and I should go out and celebrate big time tonight, feeling very emboldened with my double vax.  Plus the fact that I wouldn’t have to get out my sweatpants sealed the location, and happy to report that we were not disappointed and didn’t have to worry about popping the button on my pants as they were already pretty well stretched. Well, that life changing event I was speaking about is that we will no longer be working together as our business changed hands today and now what am I going to do?  Well I have seen all the Law and Order so that is out and now I picked up another British crime show “Dirty tricks” which is about a bunch of retired old geezers who get hired back as consultants to the Police department, there is a parallel theme here with the old geezers maybe I will get an offer?  I may have some time to get back to the gym, no excuse now got all my shots!  Funny how we all seem to want to know who got their shots?  It’s like I can only play with those who have had their shots, well it makes it easier to decide on who you are letting in or who wants to come on in for now anyway.

Walking around my neighborhood today I came across a flock of Pink Flamingos and took it as a sign that it is time to dust off the travel bag and explore the world. We visited the Galapagos a few years back and came across these beautiful birds a few times.  I have to heed my lover’s advice and maybe look at this change as a good thing and those Flamingoes just may have sparked the fire.

 Just saying…………………..

Good evening my Corona friends and yes it has been almost one year since I started this blog and I never thought in a million years, I would still be carrying on about Corona virus, WTF???? It was supposed to be like the flu and when the weather got warmer it would disappear, well it sure wasn’t and is still with us today, Mask or no Mask?  I know a lot of places are doing away with the mandates for a mask but I know I am going to keep them in place till it is safe to go back in the water. I went this long and hate to blow it now because of mask fatigue, so I guess I can stick with it a bit longer. Besides I just read a post that said don’t get all shook up about masks required for entry, because just imagine what it was like when the sign said “whites only” how would that fly today, you would be outraged so just suck it up, and walk in someone else’s shoes, it’s not that hard.

I am sure everyone does the same thing but I got to thinking of all the things I missed getting accomplished this year during a year of the shutdown and that list is pretty small. I did find a whole new genre of murder shows, and of course, the British ones have it all over us, with a lot of murders happening in these small quaint villages. Just goes to show things are not always what they seem and these idyllic villages have a lot of bad things happening, just ask Harry and Meghan. Seriously I often worry that when I retire I will be on the couch with a bag of Cape Cod chips binging on Law and Order but now I have a whole another genre of British crime shows and on Amazon or Netflix there are no commercials. This past year I learned that I can watch from my IPad with my earphones so I can be in bed and watch all night, before my discovery I was sleeping on the chaise part of my sectional. Speaking of which I got into this feathering your nest thing and got a new sectional, mind you the look is killer but there will be no burrowing into my chaise in the middle of the night and finding just the right spot to be at my moment of Zen.  No, this one is all about the look and trying to be cool in my loft, and guess what Techie hasn’t even noticed it yet.  He never watches TV or if he does it is on his laptop, he is such a millennial.  Mostly he spends a lot of time reading weird blogs or listening to podcasts that are more intellectually stimulating than Law and Order or City Homicide but murder gets my attention and my fantasy but lately, since the last election, I don’t feel like killing anyone and I will take it as a good sign. The weather is getting warmer and daylight savings time is coming this weekend and even though I know I shouldn’t be tricked into this Fools spring, I have lived here long enough to know snow could come any day by the feet, I can’t help but feel a spring in my step. I am getting my second dose of the Moderna vaccine this Friday and just can’t wait. When the last time people is were so excited to get a jab but hell we sure are and then some.  We heard tonight that we may get together with others who have been vaccinated and your grandchildren if the pod is safe. well, we are lucky as we all just got to celebrate Maisie turning three with fire pit and s’mores, so let’s not rush back to anything we used to do as I like these ‘Hot Toddies” and the campfire. Tomorrow night I will celebrate my sister Debby’s Birthday with 4 of my five sisters and we have all been vaccinated, up until now it was a good excuse not to see them, just kidding. Soon enough we won’t have that excuse not to get together but maybe can we scrape by with missing one more Passover or Easter??  I love hosting or attending but I have really grown to love not getting dressed on said holidays and just eating take out, maybe because with my Covid 19 I can’t fit into any of my clothes. I am trying to psych myself into going back to the gym but always think of a reason not to go, just don’t have the right mask.  Plus I do have that second shot on Friday and I heard it can be a setback so best not to overdo it before I am fully vaccinated.

In the meantime my roommate gave me a few days to myself and I knew just what to do with my free time.

 Just saying………….

Good Evening my Corona friends and hope everyone is happy and healthy and enjoying our time here on planet earth. Well, I have to say that I did not see that coming with Techie taking over my blog and singing my praises and probably even paid the kids a few bucks to say nice things about their mother. I know my grandkids really do like me, as they don’t know enough yet and besides, I let them watch videos and eat all the junk food they want, so what is not to like?  I know through all this crazy shit going down this past year that I may be one of the luckiest women alive to have my most wonderful family.  So what do you think I did to thank Techie for such a very public announcement of love on Valentine’s Day, just said I few days alone for me sounds grand. Honestly, my daughter and family went up to Maine and wanted us to come for a few days. The idea of driving for hours and being buttoned up in another small house just didn’t get me excited. I can assure you if the weather was more agreeable and we could do some biking or hiking I could get on board. Techie said maybe I will go alone and I couldn’t pack his bag fast enough and send him on his way. The very thought that I could have this one big room to myself for a few days literally brought me to tears. Hey, the little things in life, being able to keep the volume up on the telly all night while I watch episodes of Law and Order that I have literally seen a dozen times before, HEAVENLY.  I know it makes no sense as what many of us have been craving during this pandemic is being among friends and family and not craving solitude. I had two nights where I only talked to the person doing my take-out and then my occasional shout-out to Benson and Stabler.

Well, I don’t know about anyone else but now the big news around here is did you get an appointment? Of course, I am talking about the vaccine and it is top of mind for Techie, me, and most of our friends. Used to be want to meet for drinks or dinner and now it’s about doing a deep dive on the vaccine hunt. Luckily most of us have just received the first dose and already planning our escape that will happen after the second. I renewed my Global Entry online today and techie was very impressed that actually did it all by myself. I think he may be worried he won’t be as useful if I can manage these things on my own, but don’t worry my love I still want and need you forever. I also did manage to make my own vaccine appointment and there was a lot of trial and error.  I booked an appointment and then when back on and got another appointment, so canceled the first one, but typical of how I screw things up, I thought I made it a day earlier but actually a day later.  I was all excited to go for my appointment and then freaked out when it wasn’t’ that day but rather a day later than the first.  Unfortunately, not the first time for me, have shown up at the airport more than a few times on the wrong day. You would think once it happened you would know better and triple-check, but the queen of multitasking will never learn her lesson.  I have my next appointment, it’s written on the calendar and my roommate promises me that he will remind me when it’s time.

I am absolutely giddy with excitement and feel like I just got a new set of wings and can fly away. I hope I am right about this vaccine and let the liberation begin. Look out world “the olds” are coming and they are ready to party and trust me we know how to do it. We partied pretty hard back in the day.

Just saying………….