Posted tagged ‘errands’
March 24, 2014
If I were to add up all my errands from this morning, today would be the most industrious of days, a day worthy of commendation. It was my annual physical first then three more stops. One stop was for the animals, including the birds, who now have enough seed, food and treats to last through the snowstorm. I stopped at the grocery store and bought all I need and a few things I didn’t need, like Twizzlers.
The roads were fairly empty without the usually frantic before the storm shopping. That will be tomorrow. Did I mention we are expecting a storm with blizzard conditions starting tomorrow night into Wednesday? The Cape will be the hardest hit and get the most snow. Predictions as to how much varies. The last one I saw said 6-8 inches. But by Saturday, though, we should be close to 60˚. I think Mother Nature is pulling a Gaslight, as in the movie, on all of us. The kindly, grandmotherly Mother Nature in bright clothes, a pretty cloak and flowers in her hair is beginning to look more like the Witch in Sleeping Beauty every time it snows, but I’m thinking this might just be winter’s last hurrah.
It’s cold today, no way around it. Everyone is bundled and back to puffy jackets and scarves. I saw a really old woman who could barely move her arms because of the layers.
I don’t really care. I grumble just because it seems the thing to do. Really, though, what’s one more snowstorm in a long line of snowstorms? It’s not stopping me from doing anything. I just sit in the house and wait for the plowman, Skip, to come. There are books to read, TV programs to watch and a comfy bed for a nap. I have Twizzlers. I’m happy.
Categories: Musings
Tags: bird seed, blizzard conditions, cat food, cold day, dog food, errands, Mother Nature, snowstorm, Twizzlers, wicked witch
Comments: 5 Comments
February 21, 2014
Today is the warmest day in weeks, but it’s still damp and dark from the earlier morning rain. The snow is ugly and pocked with holes from the raindrops. Some lawns are visible again as the snow is disappearing. Usually today is a stay under the covers and read sort of day, but I have to go out and pick up a few things. Gracie will be my co-pilot.
The laundry basket is sitting in the hall. I’m thinking it can sit a while longer. Books and CDs are stacked on the carpet in the living room. They came from under the leak or rather from under the former leak. I cleaned all the books and dusted everything else. They’ll stay there in the living room until the ceiling is painted. It’s an old popcorn ceiling so it just needs to be sprayed where the water marks are. My toilet no longer runs so no jiggle of the handle is necessary. My plumber told me where to put the rock he had used to fix the toilet the last time. No plumbing leak and no toilet running-it’s a wonderful world.
In the morning when I wake up I have to figure which day of the week it is. This time of year the days all run together, nothing distinguishing one from the other. I don’t even have a dance card. I seem to be living in a cocoon. I’m back to an upstairs and a downstairs book. The Redbreast is upstairs and Doctor Sleep is down. Neither one is cheery but both of them are good reads.
Despite the weather, the occasional leaks, the dirty laundry, the empty dance card and the dusty books, I am still hopeful. Spring is coming. Red Sox news is back on the sports pages. That makes me glad.
Categories: Musings
Tags: cocooning, dark and rainy, Doctor Sleep, Dusting, dusty books, empty dance card, errands, plumbing problems, Red Sox, spring, The Redbreast, toilet running
Comments: 24 Comments
January 30, 2014
If someone was giving out gold stars, I’d get a few. I feel so accomplished. This morning I had blood drawn, went to the bank, the dump, the pharmacy and Dunkin’ Donuts, all by 9:30. Yesterday the @#$%$$#dump was closed because of the snow on Tuesday night. My trunk had been filled with potentially smelly trash so I was not happy. Luckily it stayed cold. Now I am done with errands and intend to stay inside cozy and warm. I have earned it. A sloth I will be.
Both my papers had stories about Atlanta. One headline was “City Brought to Standstill by 3 Inches of Snow.” It gave me the chuckle I suspect was meant. We got between 4 and 5 inches overnight on Tuesday which is not even considered a snow storm, a dusting maybe. The schools were even open. I swept the walk all the way to the car which plowed easily through the snow in front of it to the road without needing any shoveling or sweeping. By late morning the sun was shining, and the road was down to pavement. Today the sun is shining again with that shimmering light that only comes with winter and the sky is stark blue, both helping the day take on the illusion of warmth. It was 20˚ went I went to the dump.
The threshold between childhood and adulthood is hazy and comes in steps. Thinking of snow as a bother is one of those steps. When I was a kid and it had snowed, I was just so excited. I’d grab my sled and we all, the whole neighborhood, sledded, and flew down the hill whizzing by those trudging up the hill, those who had already flown. We’d build snow forts and use water to ice and reinforce the walls. They’d last for weeks. We had snowball fights. The world was a giant play-land. Some time or other all that stopped and snow on the ground meant shoveling and not much more. That’s still my current stand about snow. Once you cross the line, it’s usually forever.
The sledding and the snow forts may go, but a few pieces of that childhood and snow never disappear. I think snow is lovely when it falls, when the world is hushed. When I was young, I’d watch the flakes fall in the shine of the street light by my house. Now I turn on the outside lights and stand at the door to watch the flakes falling and sometimes I put out my hand to catch a few.
After the storm, I used to pile on the winter clothes, put on a hat and mittens, shovel the walk and then free my car. Sometimes it took hours depending upon the amount of snow, and I’d come close to freezing. The snow had stopped being pretty and had become a nuisance. Now I stay and wait for Skip, my plowman. The snow is pretty again.
Categories: Musings
Tags: 4-5 inches of snow, accomplishments, cold day, dump, dusting of snow, errands, shoveling, Sledding, Snow, snow flakes, the fun of snow
Comments: 19 Comments
January 28, 2014
Cold isn’t enough of a descriptor for the weather today. Bone-chilling comes a bit closer but even that seems inadequate. Yesterday was “…Just spring when the world is mud-luscious.” The snow was soft, perfect for snowballs. The streets had reappeared and the icicles were melting from the roof. It was like a day in early March when the first green shoots start appearing and winter begins its swan song. Today, though, is pure winter. The snow is hard and the water of yesterday has frozen making it slippery especially along the sides of the road. I walked gingerly and carefully to the driveway to get my papers. The high today will be 20˚. The only bright spot is we will not be getting any snow. That will fall in the most unlikeliest places like the Virginias and the Carolinas where more than six inches are predicted. Forecasters have called this storm a once in a generation winter storm. I have to think kids will be thrilled with their first ever snow day.
I have errands, but they’ll have to wait until tomorrow because of the dump. It is closed on Tuesdays, and I really need a dump run so I might as well lump all of the errands together for tomorrow. I do fear the dump most of all. It is open ground and like the frozen tundra with the wind blowing and howling and with no place to find shelter. I will even wear my winter coat for the first time this season. I swear I saw a polar bear on the last dump run.
My mother used to keep her heat so high we wore t-shirts around the house when we visited her in winter. She was always cold. I finally understand why. The older we get the less resistant we are to the cold. I always wear a sweatshirt around the house now. I used to wear only a long-sleeve shirt and was plenty warm. That won’t do any more. Socks with my slippers are now a necessity. Nothing is worse than cold feet. I haven’t moved my thermostat any higher to combat the cold. I’ve decided to layer, even in the house.
I got an energy report from the gas company. It seems I burn more gas than my neighbors. That makes perfect sense considering four of the neighboring houses are empty most of the winter and my two closest neighbors heat with oil. I guess I win the prize by default.
Categories: Musings
Tags: cold, dump run, errands, howling wind, layers, mud-luscious, once in a generation winter storm, Snow, socks, sweatshirts, tundra, winter
Comments: 18 Comments
January 11, 2014
The only snow not yet melted by today’s warmth is in piles left by the plows from last week’s storm. The rain hasn’t started yet but is on its way. It will rain here most of the day, sometimes heavily. The wind is strong. My feeders are spinning like a carnival ride, the swings maybe, the sort of rides which always make me sick. The birds, though, don’t seem to mind and hold on when the feeders are being thrown about by the wind, by the strong wind. That dump run I didn’t make yesterday is on the dance card for today if the rain holds off long enough.
Gracie woke me up this morning by ringing her doggie bells. Yesterday she had an upset stomach so I figured she was going out to graze. Eating grass or my spider plants make her feel better. When she came inside, Gracie wanted a treat, and I obliged. She, however, turned her nose up at everything I offered until I gave her a piece of chicken meat from the deli. Once that was finished she ate all the rest of the treats: the cheese slice, the beef tidbit and the dog biscuit. I figure she was holding out for the best she could get. She knows the treats escalate in quality because I worry when she doesn’t want her usual.
Winter is a lazy time for me. I am content to stay inside. Hanging around the house doesn’t usually get boring as I have books and movies and the occasional dusting chore to keep me busy. I venture out only when I have a list of errands or I need animal food, coffee or cream, essentials in this house. I avoid main roads, supermarkets and parking lots. Rainy days are the best days for errands as people choose to stay home. I don’t care if I get wet. It is easy to get dry.
My house is quiet. I can hear only Gracie’s deep breathing as she sleeps beside me on the couch and Fern’s quiet snores from the pillow behind me where she sleeps. The lamp here is lit staving off the gloom of the morning. I like today.
Categories: Musings
Tags: deep breathing, dog treats, doggie bells, Dusting, errands, gloomy day, lazy winter, melting snow, quiet house, warm day, Wind
Comments: 4 Comments
December 13, 2013
A Review of Yesterday
People only saw a swift glimpse of red speeding up and down cape highways. One woman thought she saw a dog in the backseat but she couldn’t be sure. She wasn’t even sure she saw a car. The witnesses could only agree it was a red flash going at a speed difficult to calculate. Fearful cries rang out and 911 was inundated so to halt this growing fear I am admitting to you here and now it was my car driven by me with Gracie as the pit crew. It went from South Dennis as far as Orleans with stops in between. I had a list. It started with the dump, the coldest spot in town with winds raging across the open field. I think I saw a wizened old lady borne aloft by the wind. She didn’t wave. The next stop was almost as windy. At the parking lot in the shopping center, people were holding on to door handles hoping to stay on the ground. I made it safely to stop two: the sports store for stocking stuffers. Stop three, the hardware store, was protected by trees so my life was not in peril. Batteries are the bane of Christmas toys. I needed six AAA. They came in a package of four or eight. Of course, they did. The bank was a quick stop. I got all crisp bills for gifts to nieces and nephews and grubby bills for myself. Gracie got a dog biscuit. It was her favorite stop. We then flew down 6A to Brewster and the book store. It is a dangerous place. I wanted books for my two grand nephews and nothing else. I left with a filled shopping bag. No comments please. I have a defense. I found some neat stuff like small clasped sock-like bags, the kind Scrooge McDuck kept his money in, to hold those crisp bills. I bought myself a book, some special Christmas cards and a couple of stocking stuffers. It was a great stop. From there I had to go all the way across the cape to the speciality gourmet shop for crackers, the kind you eat not the kind you open at dinner. I, of course, didn’t just buy crackers. I bought a fig spread for cheese and a paring knife. The lady and I chatted. She is getting a puppy today and she showed me pictures. The puppy’s name is going to be Gracie, and that started more conversation. I left there and went to my final stop, Ring Brothers, which is an occasion of sin for me. I bought so many things I had to make two runs from the car to the house. I also bought lunch: two pieces of pizza. It was, by this time, close to 2:30. One of the things I bought, which was not on my list, was egg nog, a new kind for me. It comes in a glass bottle. I thought that was pretty cool, but it was also pretty heavy when you add a 6 pack of winter ale (for guests as I am not a beer drinker) and a bottle of champagne for those Christmas mimosas. Those I’ll drink. I crossed off the last items on my lists, which were actually orange juice and bread, and went home.
I ate lunch and them took a nap. I deserved it.
Categories: Musings
Tags: banks, batteries, Brewster Book Store, crisp bills, errands, gifts, hardware store, red car, stops
Comments: 14 Comments
December 3, 2013
In the movies, people grit their teeth or chew on a belt while surgery is performed without anesthesia. Off goes the leg, the patient smiles in thanks then passes out from the pain. The next day the one-legged patient is up and around using a tree branch as a crutch. It’s not only inspiring but we also know exactly what to do should we ever find ourselves deep in the forest needing our leg amputated using only a Swiss Army knife, the one with fork and the toothpick. I, however, am not inspired. I’d spit out that belt, curse and scream my head off. I know this because my back is now cause for cursing. When I sit too long or when I sleep, my back stiffens up, and I have to grab whatever I can like door knobs or bureau corners to help propel myself forward. In the morning the added need is speed to get to the bathroom. I moan and groan at every step and let slip a curse. Okay, I admit it: several curses. Gracie, sitting on the bed, cocks her head and wonders. Fern lies on her back meowing for attention. I just keep moving.
After I am up for a while, the stiffness almost goes away. At my best, I think I look like the second or third ape from the right on the evolutionary chart. We’re definitely cousins.
A few stops are on my dance card today. I am out of sunflower seeds and cat litter but don’t warn or worry. I will not be lifting them. They’ll be put it in the trunk for me, and Skip is coming tomorrow to do a couple of things so he’ll move the bags into the house.
It is time to treat myself. I’ll have another cup of coffee and a biscotti I bought yesterday, a chocolate biscotti . Call it a reward for getting out of bed.
Categories: Musings
Tags: amputation, cursing, dance card, errands, gentleman's gentleman, gritting teeth, inspiration, lady's maid, painful, stiff back, sunflower seeds
Comments: 31 Comments
November 26, 2013
My stops took far more time than I expected. At Agway, I bought three wreaths and had to wait while the ribbon on one was changed so all three would be the same color. The two plain wreaths are for the fence and gate while the one for the door has starfish and shells and a tiny bird’s nest. It’s lovely. I also bought a rosemary tree for the house, and my car was filled with the wonderful aroma of the rosemary as I finished the rest of my errands. Why do people put those pine tree air fresheners in a car? I’m thinking dried rosemary would be amazing. At Ring Brother’s, a favorite stop of mine, I bought a sandwich for lunch, a turkey breast so I can have left overs and a pine kissing ball with golden bells, also for outside. I bought stuffing, but Rita, who owns Spinners, the pizza place inside Rings, was horrified. She had me buy bread, and she made stuffing for me with bread, Ritz, onions, celery and sausage. She told me that every good dish has only 5 ingredients. The stuffing is scrumptious. I hope it lasts long enough to cook with the turkey breast.
It is dark and overcast. A storm with heavy rain and strong winds will be here tomorrow, but today is dry and still and warm at 45˚. I’m back to my sweat shirt.
On the day after Thanksgiving I’ll light up my Christmas lights. I love how beautiful the colors are and how they shine so brightly even on the darkest of nights. I still take a ride to see the lights the same as we did as a family when I was young. I think back then it was the only time we didn’t fight for our spaces in the backseat. The car was filled with oohing and ahing and pointing at the best houses. The ones all outlined in lights were the most spectacular. There were no white lights back then or computer programs setting the lights to music. There were just these big colored bulbs that got hot to the touch but shined ever so brightly. I have a few of the old sets and should check to see if they still work. Maybe I’ll throw them on a bush by the door the same as my father did.
Categories: Musings
Tags: Christmas lights, colored bulbs, errands, kissing ball, lights on the trees, riding to see the lights, storm coming, Stuffing, Turkey, wreaths
Comments: 18 Comments
November 1, 2013
Today is windy, dark and rainy and very warm. It should reach the high 60’s. Last night was perfect for trick or treating. The howling wind made the night sound spooky and leaves whirled in the air as if juggled by unseen spirits. It was warm. I had about fifteen trick or treaters who wore the best costumes I’ve seen in a while. One girl was an elf with all green make-up on her face and arms to match her green costume. The full size candy bars were a hit as were the wind-ups and bubbles. One girl went yelling to her parents that she got a big candy bar. Her father yelled, “Hello, Miss Ryan.” He was a former student and we chatted a bit. At one point I was trying to give candy to a large group of kids and Gracie almost got loose, but I grabbed her just before she could make her escape. She loved Halloween.
Last night I opened a window in my bedroom. I could smell the fresh air, and there was a small breeze. The night birds were singing then I heard a drop and another drop then a bunch of drops. It had started to rain. I listened for a long while. The sound of rain is one of my favorite of all sounds, not a howling, driven rain but a rain of drops plunking on the roof and the side of the house. I fell asleep to the melody of the rain.
Today is meteor day on the Syfy channel. The Earth is endangered in every movie. I’m watching Collision Earth. I had to laugh when the meteors began to fall. Two men started running as meteors were hitting the ground all around them. It was as if the men had been targeted by the falling chunks. They hid behind their car. It was a miracle: not a single meteor hit their car. Two college students were also miraculously saved. They ran, got in their car and clung to each other. Meteors fell all around them but missed them and their car. Another miracle! I’m guessing the Earth is not doomed. I’m thinking another miracle.
Gracie and I have a couple of errands later. I’d rather it be a sloth day but canned dog food is on the list to buy. Gracie thinks dry food is a treat. That’s my fault.
Categories: Musings
Tags: costumes, dark and windy night, dog food, Earth's doom, errands, Halloween, melody of the rain, meteor day, rain, raindrops, Syfy channel, unseen spirits
Comments: 8 Comments
October 19, 2013
Last night Morpheus grabbed hold, and I slept for twelve hours. My mother would have said I needed it, and I agree. I woke up not feeling up to par (another one of my mother’s sayings) so I’ll just sort of wait around and see what happens. The TV is filled with aliens and monsters so I’ll have plenty of entertainment.
I can hear leaf blowers and mowers, the sounds of Saturday. I went out on the deck and the air smells fresh, of cut grass and fall flowers. There is a morning chill I expect will be gone by afternoon.
I do have a couple of errands today and laundry to wash. I don’t feel like doing either, but I did finish the last of my bread for toast this morning, and I’m out of cheese, two good reasons to get out and refill the larder.
My mother shopped every Friday evening. My father drove her to the supermarket as she didn’t drive, but he never went shopping with her. When they got home, we all helped to unload the trunk. It was filled with paper grocery bags. The next few days were bountiful as cookies and snacks were back in the house though some snacks were untouchables as they were for lunches. Oreos were always a standard. They were everyone’s favorite cookie, even the dog’s. My sisters used to feed him the sides once they’d eaten the middle. He sat right by them on the steps while they snacked. He knew what was coming. My mother always warned us to go slowly because once the cookies were gone, that was it until the next shopping day. We were kids: slowly wasn’t in our vocabulary.
We used to pop corn on the stove in a pan with a lid. It was less expensive than Jiffy Pop, but it took more attention and constant shaking of the pan or the popcorn would burn. My father made the best popcorn. He never burned a single kernel. My mother would melt butter and put it on the top then mix the popcorn around to spread the butter. She then sprinkle a bit of salt. The popcorn was served in a huge bowl. In my mind’s eye, I see a green bowl, but I’m not sure as my mother also had a set of white bowls with tulips, and that set also had a large bowl. When I was shopping with my mother once, we found a set just like it at an antique store and I bought the set. It sits on my fridge and holds all sort of memories.
Categories: Musings
Tags: aliens and mosters, bowls of popcorn, Cookies, errands, grocery shopping, Jiffy Pop, Laundry, lawns, left bloers, morning chill, Morpheus, oreos, popcorn, tulip bowls
Comments: 21 Comments
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