The sun is shining, and the sky is a deep blue unmarred by clouds. The breeze is chilly and strong enough to blow the chimes hanging from limbs in my backyard. The sound is sweet.

Not much happening. The house is quiet as Maddie and Henry are both napping. He woke me up at 6:30 so I hurried downstairs and opened the back door. He went through the dog door. I went back to bed. He joined me after he’d finished his outside business. He used the dog door again. We both slept until 9:30. I stayed up until the end of the Sox game. They are playing on the west coast so it was late. They won handily.

When I was a kid, I’d check out the funnies in the newspaper every day. I remember my fingers got black from the printer’s ink. That no longer happened at some point, but I don’t remember when. It’s happening again. The Boston Globe leaves my fingers  blackened, mostly on the tips.

The other day I noticed one ear was missing an earring. It was from a pair I had bought in Ghana. I figured I’d lost it at physical therapy. I called. They found it. I took the remaining earring and put it on the table or at least I thought that’s what I did. I couldn’t find it. I had thrown away some papers so I checked the trash: no earring. I checked it again: still no earring. I looked all over this room without success. When I went to PT, they gave me my other earring. I was a bit bummed to have just one. Yesterday Lee and Roseana came to clean. I told Lee, the designator vacuuming half of the cleaning duo, to keep an eye out and an ear tuned. He found the earring under the table. He heard it clink.

My lack of energy is disappearing. I did all my laundry. I had no choice. I needed the clothes. I was almost at the breaking point and gave thought to bringing the dirty clothes to the laundromat where they wash it and give it back clean and folded, but I caved and did three loads. It’s upstairs waiting to be put away. Thoughts of my sort of staff prompted this burst of energy. My house gets cleaned, my groceries get delivered, my lawn gets cut, my snow shoveled and plowed and even my flowers planted so I figured I’d reluctantly leave a task or two for me.

My day is open. I have no plans, no tasks and no appointments. I’m excited about that. I have been, of late, a homebody and resent having to go out. My sister makes fun of me. I don’t care.