BooksRule

I took a load of wet clothes to the laundromat this morning to dry. The place was almost at capacity (limit 12 people at a time right now) and I was the only one wearing a mask (including the person staffing the place). I plan to make a trip later this week to pick out a new dryer.

I edged most of the driveway yesterday, but quit late evening when it got too hot (heat index over 100). It's taking longer than usual, because I have an extension to the side of my driveway that's just big enough for one car to park and since I don't really use it, I let it get overgrown more than I should. I didn't realize how much until I tried to edge it and finally had to just sit down on the driveway so I could 'feel' through the grass to find the edge. It was overgrown by about 6 inches of grass and dirt. That's when I realized that it was going to take a while, so I quit for the day. I went outside just now (reluctantly, because it's still so freaking hot) to do some more, but the sun went away, it got gloomy and I heard loud thunder on the horizon so I mentally said 'yay!' and came inside. (I knew rain was on the way, I just felt obligated to get some work done outside before it came in.) I plan to spend the rest of the afternoon reading, watching some TV and doing a few household chores. Most of my neighbors are either inside or gone, so it's very quiet in the neighborhood today, which is nice. I'm sure I will hear some fireworks later tonight (illegal within the city limits, but people shoot them off anyway), but that's fine with me.

I have two FB friends like that. I can't mention examples here (because they are all about political and religious views), but I learned early to just unfollow them so that the only way I can see what they post is by going directly to their page. I do check in to see how they are doing every few weeks, but about 2 minutes is enough to hold me for a long time. I realized today that I've picked up my habit of going to Wal Mart too often. When the pandemic started, I made a point of only going when I really, really needed to get groceries and would pick up lots at one time. Now, I've started going maybe once a week, but I do make a point of wearing my mask. I went several days ago, but forgot to get some frozen dinners for next week's lunches, so I made a quick trip (along with a quick stop at a local pharmacy for a prescription refill). However, I goofed when I got back in the car at Wal Mart. After being so careful at the drugstore about wearing my mask and using hand sanitizer when I got back in the car, the first thing I did when I got into the car at Wal Mart was to take off my mask and scratch my nose. 😞 I immediately used sanitizer (although if I've breathed in virus that won't help) and washed my hands well when I got home, but it's hard to be so diligent all the time.

Everyone else on my library's staff came back to work on campus today. I have to say I'm going to miss those quiet two weeks when we only had five of us in the building. Now I'm more likely to run into someone when I'm walking from my office to somewhere else in the library (although we're supposed to be wearing our masks anyway). I went to my 'regular' grocery store after work because there were a couple of things I couldn't find at Wal Mart yesterday. There might have been 12 shoppers and other than the guy stocking produce, the checkout clerks and three other shoppers, I was the only one wearing a mask (the produce guy did give me a 'thumbs-up' as I walked past him, but I'm not sure if it was a 'thanks for wearing a mask' or just a 'thanks for shopping with us' gesture). None of the other store employees were wearing masks.

The weather was not bad this morning, although there was a 30% chance of rain this afternoon. I debated whether or not to do some work in the yard (I mowed yesterday, but there's always tons more to do), but decided to go to Wal Mart. Of course, it started raining the minute I pulled out of the driveway. Luckily, it stopped by the time I got to the store. Anyway, (to get back on topic) I was amazed at how many people missed the lesson in grade school where you learned that arrows indicate direction and that green means go and red means stop. About half of the shoppers were entering the one-way aisles the wrong way. (I did hear one guy tell the woman with him 'oops, we're going the wrong way', but I noticed that they did it again on the next aisle (I guess once you get that momentum going, you can't stop, right?). I have noticed that I've gotten a little more passive-aggressive (if that's the right term) in my shopping. I (wearing my mask) follow the arrows and walk with my buggy (cart to you non-southerners, ha ha) right in the middle of the aisle, leaving it there if I go over to get something from a shelf. If someone comes at me the wrong way, they have to scooch around me (and I make a point of stepping a couple of steps away from them). It's not much in the grand scheme of things, but I find that it makes me feel a tiny bit better. (Although, maybe the gods didn't like my attitude, because it started to rain pretty hard as I was walking to my car, so I got soaked and had to bring wet bags into the house.) I'm trying not to be pessimistic about future lock-downs, but I did buy one big packet of TP and one of paper towels to put away 'just in case'. I would have gotten some more canned goods, but the veggie aisle was still almost bare (except for some flavors of canned corn and those dratted French green beans that no one ever seems to want to buy).

I meant to post this on Friday evening, but got busy with other stuff. This past week was my first one back at work on site (university campus library). I had been working from home since April 2nd. It was strange being back (and my poor lone plant in the office was still alive, but needed a good drink of water). I didn't get as much done as I planned, because I found myself kind of floundering around, not sure what to do first. I had plenty of work to do at home, but had lots of projects that were having to wait until I could get to my office and to the book collection, but I couldn't seem to focus on any one project. And, I kept wanting to put projects aside that I knew I could work on from home 'just in case'. It's more difficult than I thought transitioning back to 'regular' work life. We're closed to the university community until the middle of July, so working there in a large building with only four other people there was kind of like when I would come in on weekends when we were closed and get work done uninterrupted. The main difference was that I could occasionally hear a toilet flush or a door slam in the distance. I would see the two people who were working downstairs as I passed by on my way to the main entrance a couple of times a day, but only to wave at the them from across the room and I think I saw the other two people working once during the entire week. I've kind of planned out this coming week in my head a little bit, so I'm hoping it goes a little smoother and I get more done (after next week, most staff will be coming back to work, even though we'll still be closed for another couple of weeks). I did have to laugh at myself, though. Working in a library you try to be quiet so that students can work and study (even though parts of the library can get noisy at times), and as I was working in our DVD section this week (doing inventory) I found myself trying to be quiet until I realized that I could make noise and speed up (working quietly really slows you down) because there wasn't anyone nearby to hear me.

I've watched a couple of the videos of the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain. I love their rendition of the theme from 'The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly'. I thought about trying to learn the ukulele but didn't want to put the money into something if it turned out that I couldn't stick with it or couldn't get the hang of it. I've read that some public libraries have ukuleles (plus guide books) that you can check out, but I don't think any near me do that. I laughed a little at the discussion about TP, because I was extra pleased when I could find my 'usual' (Scott brand) at the store instead of the other stuff I was having to buy.

I'm not sure if I've become extra sensitive to scents or if my tastes have just changed (I don't get headaches, but many scents just annoy me--I find them way too strong). Maybe the formulas have changed. I remember a cologne way back in the early '80s (I think) called 'Le Sport'. I loved that fragrance, but it gave me a headache whenever I wore it--no matter how little I used. I think it was the only one that ever did that to me. I gave up trying to find the perfect shampoo a long time ago and just use Suave basic clarifying shampoo alternating with the one that has conditioner in it. They don't seem to be too strongly-scented. I do love Lemon Up shampoo, but balk at paying the high price that Vermont Country Store wants for it (both cost and shipping are high). Does anyone know of another maker of a lemon scented shampoo?

I just put a pot of rice on the stove to go with my 'multi-day' chicken gumbo. (I took a hen out of the freezer a few days ago and put it in the fridge to thaw. I need to boil it and turn it into gumbo, but my A/C quit on me so the last thing I wanted to do was sit at a hot stove making roux. So I went ahead and cooked the chicken, took the meat off the bones and put the meat in the broth. It went back in the fridge and now -- 2 days later with my A/C (hopefully) fixed -- I just made some roux to finish it up). I just snacked today so dinner will be at least two bowls of gumbo and rice.

I haven't gotten any last-minute-on-a-Friday-afternoon updates, so I guess I'm still on schedule to return to my place of work on Monday (as part of 'phase 2' of '4'). The campus is technically open, but all buildings are locked to anyone who doesn't work in them, so it will just be those of us allowed to work on campus in phase 1 and 2. I'm looking forward to getting back to my office (which I haven't seen since noon on April 2nd). And seeing if my one lone office plant (a ponytail plant) is still alive. I think it probably still is, because I was really, really bad about watering it, so I think it has survived for these many years by sucking water molecules out of the air. The one thing I don't look forward to is gradually having to bring back all of the office files, notebooks, books, boxes of 'stuff', etc. that I brought home (most are still in my car, but the back seat and the back back of my SUV are pretty full. Frankly, I'll probably just leave it all where it is and just bring things in as I need them. If we end up having to go back home at some point in the fall/winter I might still have some files out there! (My printer is going to be a pain, though--it's a big, heavy color printer. I brought it home and it has sat on my laundry room floor the whole time, because I didn't even want to try hooking it up if I didn't need it and I've managed to do without. At least I already had a computer at home so I didn't have to bring home my desktop computer and all of the components that go with it)

I didn't know that these had been discontinued. I had a box in my medicine cabinet for years and every once in a while I would remember that they were there and would use one when I washed my face at night (instead of my usual wash cloth and face cleanser). A few months ago, I was doing a major house-cleaning, realized that I hadn't really used them very often so I tossed them. Oh, well. (not that I could have sold them--the box had been opened.)

I'm scheduled to go back to my office on Monday. I've missed not being able to just run out to the campus anytime I wanted to (even during our usual closed hours, since I have a key), but unless you are on a very short list you aren't allowed in the building (and are even discouraged from visiting campus) right now. When I've had A/C problems in the past (or no internet for a few hours for some reason) I've always just gone out to my office (about 5 minutes away) to sit in the cold air and use my office computer. I've missed that. Right now it says that the inside temp is 80, but it doesn't feel that warm to me (I'm sitting under a ceiling fan, though). The system has been running constantly since about 2pm (once it warmed up outside so the inside warmed up too), so I turned it up to 80 so it would cycle off now and then. The house feels humid, too, which indicates that there is a problem. The first 12 years or so of my life (1960s-early '70s) were spent in a house (1950s-type ranch) with only a window unit in the den (maybe there was one in my parents' room, but I only remember the one). I don't remember missing having A/C, but I do remember making a beeline for the window unit when I would walk home from school and stand in front of the icy air for a few minutes (while drinking an ice-cold bottle of Coke!). Now I've gotten too spoiled to do without for long (maybe if I lived in a climate that didn't get so hot and muggy it would be easier, but it gets in the upper 90s during the hottest part of the summer and mega humid. It's like having a hot damp blanket tossed over you sometimes when you go outside). It's funny that when there is a cooling problem, my two cats will stretch out on the hardwood floor and act like they are just melting from the heat (they get very long and flat and give me irritated looks). I remind them that they went without any power at all (so not even any fans) after Hurricane Katrina for over a week. But they ignore me. I do try to keep the A/C set on 78 during the summer to keep the electric bills down (which are high enough anyway--I think I have some air leaks around a couple of doors that I promised myself I would identify and fix before this summer--that didn't happen, of course), and also because I've had some problems with the condensation pipe clogging up (it gets gunky with algae and such if you don't treat it with a bleach solution once a month or so). When it has clogged up in the past, I have to call a professional to come out and clean it with compressed air (it's installed where I can't get to it with a wet vac or I would do it myself). I haven't had the particular problem in several years, but the fewer cycles the air runs the less water goes through the pipe.

I just called and set up a service call for Friday between 12-3pm. That was the earliest that they can come out, but she said she would call if something earlier becomes available. I should be able to manage until then, since at least I'm getting some 'cool' air through the system. I have it set for 79 right now and it's only come on several times since I got up this morning (we had a rainstorm come through a little while ago so the temps outside are in the upper 70s, which is helping). But it's supposed to be in the upper 80s beginning tomorrow, so hopefully I can get it taken care of before too much longer. I'm going to try to just not be too active (which isn't to hard for me, ha ha!) and keep blinds closed and lights off to keep the house as cool as possible (which I should be doing anyway). I'm still working from home, so I'm pretty much tied to a computer (under a ceiling fan) most of the day anyway, so there shouldn't be a problem. The one hiccup in my plan is that I put a hen in the fridge several days ago to thaw so I could make gumbo and I needed to get it cooked before it went bad. So I just started it boiling on the stove which will create heat in the kitchen. Oh, well.

I'm having a problem with my central air conditioning. I guess I should be happy that it's working at all, but there's definitely a problem somewhere. I noticed last week (maybe Friday?) that it hadn't seemed to shut off for hours. And it seemed to be getting a tiny bit warmer in the house. Now, I'm one of those people who keeps the temp set on 78 during the summer (which horrifies some of my cold-natured friends), but I'm perfectly comfortable. When I checked the thermostat it said that the inside temp was 80. When in doubt, turn everything on and off. So I moved the setting up until it shut off, turned it off and then went outside and shut off the circuit breaker for a minute or so. Then, I turned everything back on. I gradually changed the setting from 80 down to 78 and it seemed to be working okay (cycling on and off like it should). However, I don't know if I actually did anything or because it was getting towards nighttime it was cooler outside which made the inside cooler. I don't know. Anyway, everything seemed to be working okay until today when I noticed that it was running long again. (Sigh) I just re-set everything again, but it didn't make a difference. I'm hoping that it's just the thermostat that's faulty (a fairly inexpensive fix) and not something outside (much more expensive). I haven't had maintenance on the system in a while, so no telling what could be wrong. But since the outside unit looks like it's running fine and the inside unit (handler?) is running it might be the refrigerant is low. Right now I have it set for 79 and it's cycled on and off like it should and the house seems comfortable to me. (I do know one thing--if I knew way back then what I know now, I would have taken classes/workshops in basic plumbing, carpentry and maybe electrical work so I could do my own minor home repairs (not HVAC repair, probably, but other stuff). I could have saved myself a lot of money over the 18 years that I've lived in my aging home!)

I still haven't replaced my dryer (after way too many months!) so I took a couple of loads of wet clothes to the laudromat to dry (I actually had enough dirty clothes for one more load, but three was too much to handle, so I'll probably go back tomorrow when I have another errand to run and will be out on the road anyway). I usually try to schedule my visits either first thing in the morning (Sunday mornings are good) or right around 1pm because those seem to be the less busy times. But I got delayed today so it was around 2pm when I went out there. There were probably about 8 people in the place at one time (it isn't very big) and others coming and going. About half of the people were wearing masks and most of us were trying (as best as we could) to keep our distance from each other. I could tell that we had gone another step towards normalcy because their sign that said that no more than 10 (or maybe it had been 8 ) people could be in the building at one time had been changed to 12 and they had put back 4 of the chairs. But the chairs were spaced far apart and there was a sign warning people not to move them around. Before this, you couldn't stay in the building, but had to leave and sit in your vehicles after you got your clothes situated. I was happy to snag a chair so I could sit in the air-conditioned building. The discussions about missing contact with other 'real live' people are interesting. I'm pretty much okay with staying by myself for weeks on end, and contacting people only by e-mail, internet or Skype/Teams. But my neighbor rang my doorbell right before noon (which was why I was delayed in my laundry chores) because she had come over to see my lightning-blasted tree (I posted about it in the Chit Chat forum 🙂 ). We ended up sitting on my front porch for almost an hour just talking about nothing much. I highly enjoyed it, so I guess I do miss personal contact with others to some extent!