October 2020: Time Ticks Along

10/22/2020: Anniversary of Mom’s passing. Damn. 20 years, or is it 21? Up at 6 AM, prayers, Bible, sweeping, shower. E-mail John, internet checking, start new ghost story, and now it’s 8:15 AM.

Straightened up the towels under the bathroom sink, throwing away three of them (the 2 with bunched ends and the old blue stars-and moons towel). There is now room for the others to be neat. Moved the PS2 game connectors into the tin behind the big TV; the old electronics bin can now go into the attic. Can hardly wait until Andy helps me with that; I hope he remembers. Worked on Files much of the morning, and they are now in striking distance of being done. Yen messaged me about the Anniversary.

At lunch had the leftover sausage and dumplings and started to help Kameron with more homework. He came in to hang around, as he wasn’t feeling well after going to church meeting where there was a sick comrade. At 4 PM made chili-noodles-corn on the cob, then buckled down to the main body of Kam’s homework. A little after 6 PM S&A came in to collect him and go vote. Amy had messaged me that the account was now set up, (they had used $20 of theirs to start it – must pay her back), and she would get me the account numbers ASAP. I am starting to get quite anxious to start spending money to upgrade my life, having the suspense grow since Monday. When they came back Kam started in on his homework and we finished about 9 PM. I took a little lie down, then prayed a rosary at 10:30 PM, with special decades for Mom and Mike.

 

10/23/2020: Woke up about 4:40 AM, with the observation that when I am ‘inside my mind’ I feel rather ‘abstract and eternal’ but when I’m fully awake and present in the world I get that “Oh, yeah, this place” feeling. Prayed. Went to bathroom, caught up diary. Wondering how much more forward on the bank thing I will get today. I want to get it and the attic clean-up behind me so I can go back to a routine. They are both very distracting. Finished up the Files with a gasp and had to wait about half an hour as the recycling bin digested the deleted bits.

The day proceeded much the same until a little after 12 noon, when Kameron came in, feeling bad, to lie on the couch and yack (how did he inherit his Granny’s nature?) until he went back in about 6 PM, after having me play MST3K’s all afternoon. I fried potatoes from 2:30 PM to a little after 5 PM; also made fish. Opened the house up as it started to get cooler (front coming in) about 6:30 PM. Susan got my account numbers from Amy, and we go to deposit tomorrow (time unspecified). Now 8 PM, and perhaps I should settle down to a rosary.

Prayed rosary, did some Kipling and DQ8, and bed about 11 PM.

 

10/24/2020: Up about 5 AM, prayers, Bible. Got dressed. Started working on the Quotes File, which is bigger than I realized, and cleaning up the Images File. About 9 AM Andy sticks his head in and asks if I want to go ahead and go to the bank, and I do. Susan helps me fill out my deposit slip. We go and I return home with $2310 in my pocket. I tuck most of it away, but take $50 and head for DG, first telling Susan where I’m going and where I stashed the rest away. What I did not know was that it was Trading Days, and I had to walk right through the middle of it. It was annoying, but not too bad. At DG they didn’t have the sort of aspirin I need, or Spam, and I wasn’t going to settle for Treet, but I got soap, mouthwash (a gigantic bottle – they didn’t have the smaller one I wanted), Dawn dish soap, Dobie pads, a small bottle of hand sanitizer, hand wipes, Christmas tree room spray, Little Debbie cakes (no Pumpkin Delights, alas), oatmeal cookies, Cheez-its, lemon- and garlic-pepper, Kraft spaghetti, and tomato sauce. I may go to Family Dollar later this afternoon to see what they have. It was quite a trek back, through the Trade Days again, of course. Got home about 11:15 AM and put everything away.

Worked on the Quotes File and ate zebra cakes all afternoon. At about 5 PM we loaded up and went to Wal-Mart, where I got some supplies (including face masks, Big Red, stuffing mix, hydrogen peroxide, aspirin, a smaller bottle of mouthwash, Spam, eggnog, and Vienna sausages, as well as Season 4 of Rick and Morty (altogether about $67). Came home, and Andy hauled the bins out of the attic for me, as well as patching up the water heater pipe (which we saw had come loose, so it’s a good thing I decided to work on things up there; who knows what might have happened. 

After some swapping and accommodating, everything is ready to go back up. I catalogued it all into “What’s in the Box”, so I need not let my vague memory plague me anymore. Finished about 9 PM. The main thing to get rid of is a box of ancient bills and medical papers. Fred’s burn pile? John’s? Or just in the garbage? Now 10 PM, and time for the rosary, I think.

Tried to go to sleep but couldn’t. Kept getting up to make adjustments, but I think everything is where I want it now.

 

10/25/2020: Up at 6 AM after a restless night. I’ll be glad when everything is where it should be. Prayers, Bible. Took a shower and dressed, then out the door at 7:10 AM, the first time back to church for months. Plenty of protocols in place, sanitizer, pamphlet ‘missals’ instead of little books, seating in every other row and space between people, everyone with masks. Father Stan is much better in person. Received Communion in place as it were with it being distributed while we remained standing in pew. Passed Andy leaving in the blue truck by St. Andrew’s. Back a little before 9:30 AM, with a tremendous need for the restroom. Changed clothes and straightened up. Nice and cool all morning, so much so that my glasses fogged up.

About 12:30 PM Andy came in and we put the bins back up in the attic. Afterwards I put on R&M and started moving the desk and DVDs back. Just finished that in time to make spaghetti dinner for the family, starting at 1:30 PM and eating at 2 PM. Tried to take a nap, but right leg hurting like the billy-o. I must have overdone it with walking and working (not to mention eating a can of Spam and drinking a whole jug of Big Red Zero). E-mailed John at 3:48 AM:

“Happy Anniversary! First of all, I hope you two are having a good time this weekend. Sometimes I forget that there are such positive goods in October, and you and Amy are very strong exemplars of that.

“As of 2:30 PM this afternoon I finished putting everything in place again after Andy helped me put the bins back up into the attic. All is organized and cleaned as well as can be expected from an old recovering hoarder such as myself. I am at the point of cleaning where everything looks superficially the same but only you know that it is essentially better. With SSI and everything, I feel I am entering a new phase in my life, and this has been sort of a prep for it.

“I went back to church today, the first time since lockdown. Many good protocols in place, including space between people (every other pew empty besides six feet between folks), masks required, sanitizer as you come in, no congregating afterwards, and so on. My reflexes were a little off from being gone for months (despite having watched YouTube Mass every Sunday) but it was good to be back.”

Finished watching R&M, and now it’s 6:30 PM and starting to cool down some from the lower to middle 80’s it had risen to. Some showers predicted for tomorrow and then a cool front late in the evening. Must get back to writing now.

 

10/26/2020: Got up a little after 6 AM after a restless night. Prayers, Bible. Dressed, got some garbage together and took it out, medicine, Vienna sausages, Perry Mason. Posted about Disneykins Castle on NOT. At 9 AM started wash, then gave Kameron a lesson on how to boil eggs. Made egg salad. Back to the guest house for ramen/eggs. Changed load at 10:30 AM. GGACP Halloween episode.  Worrying about setting up bank account/disability connection; must wait till my card comes, I think.  About 11:30 AM go to switch loads and brag to S&A on Kameron for learning to boil eggs. A little rain fell for about 10 minutes, but now at 12 noon it seems to be over.

Went in at 12:30 PM to make broccoli salad. Beef ramen for lunch. Afterwards Kameron came out about 3 PM and we watched the beginning of Hellboy. Went in at 4 PM to feed pets and start supper, and then back in at a little before 5 PM. The cold front had come in for real by then. I’m eating a little too much (out of boredom and availability), and I’ve got to get that under control. Read more Kipling, finishing up Stalky & Co. a little before 9:30 PM. Time for a rosary, I guess. Bed about 10 PM.

 

10/27/2020: Up about 5 AM. Prayers, Bible, rosary. Shower, shave, dress. Now 6:13 AM. Things to do today: go to Family Dollar (remember bleach), call SS office about bank account, call parish house about Sunday reservation, and (if the bank card comes in) call Zincone’s about virtual appointment. Future considerations: see about that Medicare, appointment about shoes. So it’s now 8:20 PM, and let’s review this list. At 9 AM I did go to FD and got bleach, floor mats, and so on; found out I can’t call the SSI without a particular number; at lunch Andy brought me in a new envelope that says I have to register my doctor with Medicare before Nov. 4; no bank card yet. Breakfast at 10:30 AM of ramen and eggs. For lunch I had Spam sandwiches, finishing off my Walmart bread. Nap. Made pot pies for supper. At 8:30 PM it’s time for Green Acres. It’s so cold and sleepy I went to bed before 10 PM, after reading a little Kipling.

 

10/28/2020: Up about 6 AM, after getting up 4 times during the night to urinate. Stomach a little urpy; apparently the broccoli salad sitting with the augmented amount of intake of the last few days. Prayers and Bible. Started making a Taste of Thanksgiving for breakfast. Which means I should skip the ramen-and-eggs until lunch. Need to go forward on things today especially on my blogging, and not be sidetracked.

Most things hung fire all day. At 3:30 PM went in and fed pets, started supper: sausages, cabbage, and taters. Finished a little before 5 PM. At 7 PM prayed rosary. Went in at 7:30 to wash up. S&A gave me a letter they thought was a bill, and it turned out to be my RBFCU card! So it had been here basically all day. Will activate it tomorrow, and then proceed with the business in hand. Time ticks along! More Kipling before bedtime.

Notes

The "What is in the Attic" list is a little outdated; several more things have gone up there, and I have not made notes about them. Just reading this entry makes me want to haul it all down for a peek at it again. But it did settle me down for five years.

Dollar General used to be my go-to store; it tends to have a slightly better selection. But Family Dollar is much, much closer, and these days that counts. Or I can take the bus trip to HEB or Walmart, though that can take up to three hours. All I got is time, though as I get older, that does get more precious.