We’ve continued each month to choose to be in lockdown. Stan is still working from home and still only going to store every two weeks. The annual holiday gatherings with our chosen family have been canceled and that is the right decision. We really miss all our chosen family and friends, but people are just being careless, selfish, and just plain bat shit crazy when it comes to following the, easy, protocols given them to help avoid Covid-19 deaths and stop further spread throughout the nation. That’s kept us vigilant and careful.
I’m appalled, but not surprised by the atrocious behavior and lack of empathy for other people. I had to watch the neighbor across the street throw a yard sale week after week, where she did not wear a mask or social distance and the many people who stopped each day, of those maybe 1/15th wore masks and tried to social distance. In the blood lab day before yesterday TWO people walked in to the waiting room not wearing masks and had to put them on! At a fucking blood lab!
I still LOVE Stan being home and getting to eat with him all the time! I’m married to my best friend; spending time with him never gets old. He still adores not having a commute each morning, who wouldn’t. I am very grateful that he can work from home and that he has been able to fulfill his obligations on the school board remotely. We don’t really miss not going places; that was never the focus of our lives. The garden certainly has helped us to keep our sanity too.
I’ve always colored my own hair, but I’ve also now learned to cut it myself. I keep my hair fairly short, so that makes it easier. I needed to buy thinning shears for the hair on the top of my head. Stan has to trim the hair line against my neck. I can’t see that well enough to do a good job!
We voted absentee, weeks and weeks ago. We are hoping for the best outcomes we can have, with the horrible choices we have been presented with at the top of the ticket. There is really only so much you can do and we just try to focus on the positive and uplifting things we CAN do as the landscape changes. That’s what you always have to focus on. Not the calamity, not the spectacle, not the end of days, the things you can do- and there are always things you can do, no matter how bad things are. The biggest killer in the human race is apathy. People spend too much time and energy on the presidential race, anyhow, the race we as citizens actually don’t determine; it drives me crazy each cycle.
The down ballot races are really the most important in each election and many people don’t spend much time thinking about them at all. I’m really excited about Manny running for NH State Rep again! I am glad we have Chris Rice to vote for in our district for the NH Senate race. I’d love to get Gray out of office. The NH Governor race and Executive Council are equally important. We are ready for the outcomes whatever they may be. If you haven’t voted already, go vote. NH has same day registration!
Nick is doing well, all things considered. He bounced back to himself during summer; I’m sure Katie dying really hurt him. His weight and eating are very good. He is sleeping more during the day. He’s got to be taken down the two large stair cases now. He’s losing stability in his back legs. No slippery surfaces anymore. He can still go up the stairs though! He’s definitely going deaf. You really have to be in front of him for him to hear you. He had several horrible episodes during summer and the vet thinks he has the early signs of dementia. That’s pretty natural though as he is 83 years old in human years! He’s adapting well. He is trying to be a really good, helpful boy!
After the pandemic started, when everyone else took to social media and their devices, I went the other direction. I uninstalled Fbook on my portable devices and only allow twenty minutes on my desktop for it. I turned off most notifications on all my devices. Most of the social media platforms are absolute shit and I’m tired of their excuses, poor judgement, and the outright support of white supremacist culture and their lack of support for LGBTQIA, especially how anti-trans they can be. Also, no matter what I do, they never show me things from the people I love, including Stan. Connected my ass. I’m feeling more centered, better rested, more focused, and I’m back to reading about 6-10 books a month. I’d say that is a good net gain!
I’ve decorated for fall. I’m just keeping that holiday decoration simple this year. Just some of my topiaries and cornucopias and the fall wreathes and autumnal flags. It’s nice to have things looking a little different. I also saved some of the summer plants to over winter them, so the house has quite a few flowering plants right now, as well as the over seventy house plants I care for.
Enjoy the slideshow gallery below! It will be the plant gallery for this year.
