Senate hearings

Thursday

I got up after 7:30. I brushed and swished and gargled. There was a sore spot in my throat. I swabbed my ears and rinsed my sinuses. I got dressed. I took the morning supplements and mad fiber gel. I made a quart of amended water.

As I was sipping and reading e-mail, Ginger texted me about Bible study. So I bundled up and went outside. I sprayed the windshield with alcohol and waited a bit before scraping. When it was somewhat clear, I started the car and went to the chapel.

Her husband was just unlocking the door. After he left, we chatted for some time. Then we read through the first chapter of Mark. We chatted some more, then we locked the building and headed out. Except that she wanted to say a quick prayer for Tom. And then we went home.

I started watching the senate hearing for Kash Patel. I posted for Math Morning as if it were a drug with the interactions in small print. (I thought it was funny.) I made breakfast. Chris came home briefly and went back to work. When the hearing was over, I put on The Highwire.

Then the doorbell rang. I got up to answer it. But I could not open the door. The knob was not turning the latch. There were two people standing there so I asked them to open the door and they had no problem. Turns out they had come to fix the door at Chris' request. Ha! I stood and chatted with them about this work order and others. He left to get a new part. She had stuff to do on her phone, so I went back to The Highwire. Later he came back and finished the job, added graphite and tested my key.

After they left, I went back to The Highwire. It went long. Then Keli texted from the chapel. So I went over there to unlock it so they could practice ribbons with the kids. I went home. Michelle texted me about going to the LDS church tonight for their Project Night, but she said it would be more chatting than anything.

I went to my sewing room to work on the sewing class project but was faced with a half-pinned ripped nightgown. I finished mending that and threw it in the wash. Then I sorted through my felt and templates. I found felt for katsup, mustard, mayo and jelly. I cut out the pieces and threaded my needle with floss for the mustard and then for the jelly. I laid my pieces out to take a pic with the bread, then went to the computer to make an announcement for sewing class.

Chris came home with a pizza. I had to open the door for him because it was locked. He ate his supper while I finished the project. Then I put the rest of the leftover steak in the toaster oven. I worked on my blog and updated my list of volunteer hours. I tried to get a hold of either Michele or John about Project Night so I could post for that, too. But neither one was answering their phone. Sigh. Chris went to bed. I watched two episodes of Call the Midwife. Then I went through my bedtime routine and got in bed.

Too much cleaning

Wednesday

I woke up at 8 thinking it was 9 because the next watch is an hour fast. I could change it, but it got me out of bed. I brushed and swished. I prepared for coffee morning. It was nice to be alone. I read for half an hour, then tapped and meditated. Then I cleaned the bathrooms and kitchen. I only half cleaned the hall bath because they left their stuff all over it. I did not clean their room for the same reason.

John came over around noon to get some stuff. I finished cleaning the kitchen and washing dishes. I vacuumed in the back and in the den. I took a shower and got dressed. I read some e-mail, then laid down. My right wrist hurt from overuse and sitting at the computer did not give it any rest.

But all too soon I had to get up. I put together a cleaning kit and went to Keli's RV. Her son was there. He took the dogs for a walk. I cleaned but not in the usual order. She wanted her woodwork wiped down with Murphy's oil soap. And there was extra scum in the shower so I sprayed it and let it soak while I wiped woodwork. I was not tall enough to get it all.

I finished at 5pm, after 2 hours. He was sitting outside and Keli was in her truck. I guess she'd been there since she got off at 3:30? She handed me a copy of Lord of the Rings and we discussed doing it with the kids for St. Patricks Day.

I went home. I had a bite to eat and checked e-mail. Chris came home briefly, then went to Mass. I continued reading. There was so much about RFK's senate hearing. Then Chris came home from Mass and heated some leftovers for supper. I worked on my blog and made tea. We watched one episode of Atlantis. Then he went to bed.

I stayed up later to read a book by the red therapy light. Then I got ready and went through the usual procedures before laying down for the night.

They moved out

Tuesday

I got up at 8 to start the day. I made fiber gel and amended water. I read messages. I laid out papaya seeds in the dehydrator to dry. Before 11, I went to 648 for the inspection. Collie asked me to wipe up some hairs he saw in the sink. I didn't see them, but wiped anyway. They were pleased with the house.

On the way home, I stopped at Michelle's house to pick up the container of coffee that I lent her. I dropped off the house key at Housing. They told me their water was frozen so they had no running water and could not flush.

When I got home, Chris was home for lunch and packing for an overnight stay to attend Bear River Massacre Ceremony in the morning. I ingested fiber gel. I had something to do, and then I made and ate breakfast. I put 7 eggs in the steamer. I put on an interview and started ironing washed fabric. John came by got some stuff and left again. I finished ironing fabrics. John came back for their computers now that the internet was hooked up.

I listened to more of the interview and peeled the eggs. Around 6 the kids came back. Michele fixed them each a burrito from leftovers in the fridge. I made a carrot salad for John and myself. After eating, they packed some things and said they'd see me tomorrow. They went to their house at 612. I shut off my wi-fi.

It was nice to be alone. I ate my salad and leftover steak. I looked for a clamp on a flexible arm, but could not find anything suitable. I read articles and e-mail. I worked on my blog. Something must have gone wrong at Blogger again. I could not load a pic, but I could e-mail it in. (The mysterious blogger inbox wasn't full anymore?) However, e-mailing doesn't allow me to control the size of the pic, so I had to repost with a different pic that was easier to read.

I watched two episodes of Call the Midwife. I played a bit on my trombone, then got ready for bed. I put on a classical CD after stretching, and laid in bed. I thought I had the perfect setup for sleep. However, I kept hearing noises and at one point it sounded like someone came in the front door, walked down the hall to the kitchen, and started opening cupboards. I went out to check and no one was there. So I locked the doors and decided to ignore any more sounds. I went to the bathroom and the right leg went into RLS. It lasted for quite a while and nothing seemed to help, although the last thing I tried was mineral drops in water. Then the other leg caught it. Why is this happening to me?

Eventually I fell asleep and woke up late the next morning.

Finishing 648

Monday  <P>
I got up at 8.  I got ready for the day.  I read e-mail and other messages.  Then I went to 648 to clean from 10 to 12.  I thought I was nearly finished with it.<P>
I went home for breakfast.  Michele came home early from work because the computers went down.  I took her and John to the swap shop.  They found some stuff, then wanted to go to the commissary.  So I walked home.<P>
I read e-mail and messages, then went cleaning from 2:50 to 5:05.  I stopped by Housing to schedule an  inspection.  Then when I got home, I remembered the snow.  I called Jamie to shovel the sidewalk at 648 and she said she could do it before work tomorrow.<P>
I moved Michele and John's laundry from the washer to the dryer.  I loaded the washer with cleaning cloths and fabric and stuff from the house.  I drank fiber gel in anticipation of supper, but there wasn't time for supper. <P>
I read the latest messages and jotted some notes.  Then I went to band.  Keli and Saronna had already said they were sick.  I texted Jenni, then played through some hymns at the piano.   Jenni arrived and we talked.  We played through the hymns for Sunday, and we talked some more.  Finally we called it a night and went home.<P>
Chris had cooked steaks.  I ate part of one.  I put my laundry in the dryer.  We all sat in the dining room and chatted.  Finally Michele went to bed.  I took some laundry out and ran the dryer again.  I watched one episode of  Atlantis with Chris.   He went to bed.  I stayed up to work on my blog.  I pulled the fabric out and roughly folded it so it wouldn't be cold and wrinkled in the morning.  Then I went to bed.<P>

Power outages

Sunday

I don't know when I got up because my watch wasn't working. But I had slept well. I did the usual morning stuff and then checked e-mail. Chris read on his laptop too. Later he gave me a massage. Then we each took a shower. I got dressed for church. Michele told me not to wear the belt that goes with my dress. I mixed up a batch of cheese squares and put them in the oven. Later I took them out and cut off the crusts (for me). I think Chris started the laundry. He put chicken and bacon in the oven to roast.

I made and ate breakfast. I read messages and articles. I listened to recordings of the praise songs for today. Chris wanted some cheese squares for Anca. So I put some in a container for her. I also put some in a container for church. Then I took my trombone and headed to the chapel. Once there, I left the cheese squares in the back and took my trombone up front to assemble.

Keli took the kids down the hall to practice. I talked to several people. Then the kids came back and lined up. Keli introduced a song and it appeared on the screen above. While we sang, the kids did motions. It was very nice. Then they sat with their parents and we sang two more songs. Then the chaplain gave the sermon. At one point the power went out and the slide disappeared. He continued to preach without his mike. In a few minutes, the power was back on. When he concluded his sermon, he invited us up to play. We played two hymns and he closed the service. I chatted with band members, then others. Finally the chaplain and I walked out together. I was glad to have boots on because of the snow.

I went home and changed clothes. Chris was gaming online. Michele and John were in their room, probably on their phones. I read some online, then sliced up several banana peels for the compost. I jotted notes for my blog.

I read messages and saw that someone wanted to get into the swap shop. So I put on boots and went over there. It was open and Jenni was there with the people. I talked to her for a bit. Michelle texted me that she was in the sauna. So I told Jenni. Then I went home to change into my bathing suit. I drove to the gym and got in the sauna with Michelle. We chatted and Jenni came in. So the three of us talked until Michelle's phone alarm went off. Then we got out, got dressed, and headed out. Jenni gave me a bag with a torn sheet in it so I could use it as fabric in sewing class.

When I got home, Chris, Michele and John were setting up for the game. The power outages had taken down the internet. But by the time I changed clothes, it was back up.

We fought two dragons for a couple hours, then proceeded to the nearby town where we were celebrated. As we headed back to the capitol city, we encountered more aggressive creatures. They said they were paid to kill us.

The game ended because there wasn't time to complete the fight. Michele and John went to their house to unpack more boxes. Chris and I went to the post office building to fill two 5-gallon jugs of water. When we got home, we folded laundry and dressed the bed. Then we watched two episodes of Atlantic. John and Michele came back and presumably went to bed.

Chris went to bed, but I stayed up to read e-mail. Then I posted to my blog, shut everything down and got ready for bed.

Moving the furniture

Saturday

I had a terrible night. First I had trouble getting to sleep, then I got up to use the bathroom and RLS set in. Usually it only lasts 20 minutes or so, but this time it didn't stop. I remember how earlier I gave Michele calcium and she was asleep later. So I got up to take some. When that didn't work, I put on the red therapy light and read a book for quite some time. Eventually I dozed off with the book, so then I went to bed.

I got up before 9. I did stuff in the kitchen. I threw towels in the dryer. I unwrapped the accordion to make sure it wasn't molding. The power went out for a short while and when it came back, the internet did not. So I jotted notes for my blog.

Michele came out asking for something to help John breathe. I would have looked it up, but the internet was still down. I found some shower steamers and gave him one with menthol in it. Then I went back to jotting notes. Kurt texted me with a rotation problem. I looked up a question about Kings Quest.

John and Michele went to 612 to pack and move boxes. Chris was going to give me a massage, but we ended up having a heated discussion. He took a shower and went to help John and Michele. I ate breakfast, then headed in the same direction. But at that time, they came back to take a break.

Jamie met me at 629. Chris told us his plan. She brought her truck and trailer around. I packed some kitchen things in boxes and went to 612. While I unpacked boxes and cleaned up newspapers, Jamie and Chris loaded furniture and brought it to 612. I wiped the furniture down because they had been snowed on. He and she went back for another load.

John and Michele came back. John helped Chris while Michele and I moved boxes around to make more room. We cleared space for the diningroom table. We also cleared space in the livingroom. We unpacked some things. She showed me her leftover fabric and gave me a bunch of it.

When the furniture had been moved, we thanked Jamie and she went home. We assembled the diningroom table and the master bed. We agreed it was time to go home. I drove by 629 to make sure it was closed, then to the post office for mail. I still beat John and Michele getting home, but could not park because Chris was shoveling the driveway. When he finished my side, I parked and went in. John parked when Chris finished the other side.

Each made his own supper. I made more breakfast mix, then ate my supper while reading e-mail. Chris and Michele watched a movie. I worked on my blog. Chris and I watched one episode of Atlantis. He went to bed and I stayed up to read a book by the red light of the therapy lamp. After I dozed off twice, I went to bed.

The kids aren't feeling well

Friday

I woke up in the dark to go pee, and had trouble falling asleep after that. I may have dozed on and off. When I got up, it was 15 till 9. I hurriedly brushed my teeth and got dressed. I filled a bottle with water and headed out to the chapel for Math Morning.

Moira got there on her bike just as I walked up to the door. We walked in and proceeded to the fellowship hall. All the chairs were on the tables and she helped me put them back on the floor. Then the rest of her family arrived. Wilhelm sat beside me and Moira sat in front of me. Wilhhelm said he had a present for me and he gave a quarter. So I said I had a present for him and I gave him a key I found at the house next to him when I cleaned. I tried to keep him on track for the rest of the hour.

After they left, I locked up and went home. I read e-mail and messages for 20 minutes. Then Chris said he had a meeting at 11 and could I go buy some Tums and ice pops for Michele at the commissary when it opened. Ok, sure. I read a little longer, then I looked up the active ingredient in Tums: calcium carbonate. I had a whole bottle of that. So I had made some peppermint tea for Michele. I tried to pour some of the calcium powder in it and it came out too fast. She tasted it and said it was too strong. So I took it to the kitchen and heated some water to refill the mug. Then she drank it and almost immediately seemed to feel better.

She asked me to buy an Asian pear and Chex. John wanted chicken soup. So I went to the commissary. When I got there, the doors were all open. I went inside and it was dark and no one was about. I walked toward the far wall and people came out of the back. The manager said the power was out and the generator did not come on. But then the power came back on. So I shopped and checked out.

When I got home, I put away the groceries. I cut up the pear for Michele, but when I took it back there, John said she was asleep. So I worked on my breakfast. Chris came back from his meeting. I read and ate until 2. Then we gave up on thinking either John or Michele might want to go to Tooele and we left.

We listened to the book on CD. I almost fell asleep, but I had to keep shifting the case under my head to keep it from falling aside. Then Saronna called me. Finally we got to Luckey's. We shopped, then I walked to Melanie's while Chris checked out. I got a few things there and paid with cash. I thought about going to Joanns for felt, but needed more floss too and wasn't sure of the color.

We went to Macey's next and then back to the base. We almost finished the last CD of the set of 12. We brought the whole thing in the house with us to finish it. We unpacked the groceries. I checked messages and listened to some interviews. I looked for heart-shaped felt cookies for the next sewing day. Chris heated supper for me and for himself. John made a bowl of chicken soup and Michele ate most of the pear slices.

I worked on my blog and got ready for Game Night. Chris called off his game night because he wasn't ready for the campaign. Michele and John called off their game night because they weren't feeling well. So I prepared my game notebook and a bottle of amended water. I put some sumac in a small container for Michelle.

I drove to her house. I gave her the sumac and explained how to make tea. Casey had the game up. I started at John's last save. As I entered each square, I paused to draw a pic of it, attempting to make a map. But sometimes the little man got attacked and died., or walked off into another square. After awhile, I gave up on that and looked for the gnome. Michelle read the letters while I typed them in. When I finally got it right, he left me some beans and I went to another square and planted them. A beanstalk grew. But every time I tried to climb it, I fell down. I went to the fairy godmother to get her blessing, then back to the bean stalk. Still no luck. So then I found the big bird and it carried me away and dropped me somewhere near a hole. I fell in the hole. There was a rat and I couldn't figure out what to give him.

By then it was 11, because of the time spent reestablishing the game after it crashed. We chatted a bit more, then I went home. Everyone was in their room. So I watered the plants, and shut off the phone and router and went to bed.

Cleaning when the power goes off

Thursday

I woke up and stayed in bed until I realized I had to pee. So I did, then went back to bed. Still couldn't fall asleep. Chris and Michele got up to have breakfast and get ready for work. The cat started mewing so I got up to check on it. There was water but no food. Michele said she just wanted attention. I went back to bed.

As daylight started to creep in, I heard my alarm go off. I got up to brush my teeth. I took the seed crackers out of the oven and put them in a baggie in the fridge. I made more seed cracker mixes. I made fiber gel for later. I jotted notes for my blog. I parsed supplements for the week.

I filled a water bottle and put cleaning stuff in a box. When I tried to pick it up, I dropped the water bottle and it shattered. I had to mop it up and corral the glass pieces near the wall, waiting to dry.

I went to 648 to clean for 2 hours. At noon-ish, I came home for breakfast. I watched The Highwire as I ate. At 3, I went back to 648. This time I did not park in the garage. Not sure why. I cleaned for another two hours. I ran the dishwasher with the oven racks in it. But the power went off so the cycle did not finish. It came back on long enough for me to vacuum the HVAC intake cover. But then it went out again.

I was glad I hadn't parked in the garage. I went home. By then the power was back on, but the internet was still out. I jotted notes for my blog and recorded my hours. I checked e-mail. Michele and John went to the first house to move boxes to the second house. Chris came home from work with a pizza. I heated some curry in the toaster oven. After we had both eaten, I suggested going to help them. So we got in the car and headed over. But they passed us on their way back to our house. So we swung by the post office to pick up mail and then home.

But we passed them again. They were going to the Community Club. Chris invited them to have pizza at our house. So we all went home. After John had eaten, I brought him to 638 to pull some nails from a wall. I also picked up my phone which I had left behind. Then we went to 629 to get my red therapy lamp and CD player.

When we got back, Chris and Michele were watching a movie. John joined them. I listened to Mike Adams talk about using AI to answer everyday questions. I worked on my blog. Chris and I watched one episode of Atlantis. Then he went to bed. I stayed up to read. Then I turned everything off and went to bed.

The big break

Wednesday

I woke up hearing Chris talk about rushing water. Then he was at my bedside asking for towels and buckets. It was 6:30 but felt earlier. The house that John and Michele put their stuff in had a frozen pipe which burst. A neighbor had called it in when they saw water rushing from the garage.

John and Michele went over right away. Chris took a shower and then he and I drove over there. I took my own car since it had cleaning stuff in it. Chris picked up Michele and took her to work. I stayed to talk to the Housing and maintenance people as they worked to fix the pipe and pour salt on the garage and driveway and all down the side of the street. It had turned into slush and snow. John unpacked wet boxes in the livingroom. I think someone had helped to move the boxes in from the garage.

When I could get out, John gave me some wet laundry to take home to dry. And he wanted his phone. So I went home and put the clothes in the dryer. I found his phone and brought it back. I hung out with the Housing lady, watching the men work. Seems the heating unit wasn't heating even though the blower was working. Maybe the water shorted it out.

John asked me for trash bags and a laundry basket. I suggested boxes too. I got some trash bags from home. I went to the swap shop for boxes, but all they had left were wardrobe boxes, which were too big for my car. I forgot about the laundry basket. When I got back, the maintenance people said the thermostat wasn't working.

John said he needed to go home for 15 to 20 minutes. So I stayed and unpacked a couple boxes. The men said they had to go get a new front panel for the thermostat. So they left, but I had to stay for when they came back. I sat down to rest my back. Eventually John came back. He gave me more wet clothes to take home and dry.

When I got home, I started my coffee morning, albeit late. I did my exercises and meditation. Housing called, trying to get Michele to set up a signing for her permanent residence. I texted John and Chris about it. I cleaned the bathrooms and kitchen. Chris came home for lunch. And John returned. I vacuumed and mopped floors. Then I took a shower and got dressed.

I ate the rest of the seed crackers and thought about making more. But they take an hour to bake. I got ready for cleaning, picking out the fluids and applicators that would be needed. Then I went to 648 to clean. I stopped at Housing to return the key to 79. I cleaned for two hours, mostly in the kitchen. The place was dirtier than I had been led to expect. I guess the inspectors stopped inspecting when they realized it wasn't going to pass. So I found dirt they hadn't seen. I tried washing the outside of a window, but the cleaner turned to slush before I could squeegee it off.

I went home around 6. I made notes on my phone about what cleaning supplies I wished I had brought along. I read e-mail for awhile. Chris and Michele ate supper, probably ramen with ground beef. John stayed in his room and Michele brought him a burrito. She said he wanted to move dry boxes to the new house, unpack them, and bring them back to refill. I was all for it, but it got later and colder. It was after 8 when they finally left and since they didn't say anything to me, I just stayed home.

I made a detox drink and worked on my blog. I whipped up a batch of seed crackers and put them in the oven. We watched one episode of Atlantis. I turned off the oven and left the crackers in to crisp. Chris went to bed. I sat on the couch and tried to read. I might have dozed off. I gave up trying to read. John was in the dining room. I turned off the router and went to bed.

The scam, again

Tuesday

After the usual morning stuff, I texted Jamie that inspection was at 11. I made a paper scoop and used it to fill capsules with fiber. I read e-mail until almost 10. Then I went to ACS to look at the quilting and craft stuff that had been found and needed to go somewhere. Jenni was there so we looked together. As we were separating out, Jamie called to say she needed help finishing the house for inspection, so I ran over there to clean. We were still finishing up when the inspectors came. But we passed, just as Jamie was loading up the leftover stuff.

I went back to ACS to help Jenni. She had loaded some stuff in her car. I took some of the quilting stuff to the library and talked with them. Then Jenni and I took the rest of the quilting stuff to the chapel. We found some bins for the stuffing to keep the mice out.

I went home for lunch. I found three dozen eggs on the stoop. I put 7 in the egg steamer, and made an ice bath. I made breakfast, then put steamed eggs in the ice bath. I ate breakfast, then got a call for cleaning.

So I ran over there with a contract. I looked the place over and quoted him $250. He's the guy who gave me his washer and dryer, so I wasn't worried if I didn't charge enough. He went to the ATM for cash but couldn't find his card. So he wanted to do Venmo. I had to call Jamie and they worked it out somehow. Then he was telling us how the moving people had quoted him one price and then said he had twice as much stuff so they wanted thousands more. Its a scam which I hear over and over. So I insisted on getting the name of the company. He had even taken videos of his stuff on the truck to show how little space it took. He gave me one house key and the post office keys.

Then I went to Saronna's house to play. With only 10 minutes left, I wasn't sure she would want to, but her husband said he would take the kids when they got home from school and disappear so we would be uninterrupted. So I brought in my horn and we talked. Finally we played through the two hymns I had chosen and one that I wanted to play but wasn't in our regular hymnal.

I stopped at the post office to get mail and return the keys, but the window was closed. So I just got the mail out of our box. I went home and put everything back where it belonged. I started another 7 eggs in the steamer, then sat down to jot notes for my blog. However, the electricity went out so the steamer was interrupted.

I worked on the blog, and got my snack and then the electricity came on. The steamer came back on too. I read Telegram messages. When the router came back up, I read e-mail. Then I realized it was 6pm in Alabama. I signed into the Zoom call for the quilt guild. While I was watching that, it got dark. John came out and asked if he could turn some lights on. I said yes. I put the second batch of eggs in an ice bath.

When it was over, I left Zoom. Michelle started texting me. Back and forth. Finally Chris and Michele came home. He had been in a meeting and she had tried to watch a movie at the community club, but the projector didn't work.

They made supper. Michele clued me in that John likes to peel eggs. So I asked him to peel the eggs and put them in the pickled egg jar. Chris put some curry in the toaster oven for me. Later I ate that, still reading.

I worked on my blog and made tea. We watched one episode of Atlantis and Chris went to bed. I took my evening supplements. I read e-mail till 11, then turned off the router and got ready for sleep.

Making a capsule holder

Monday

I heard my 7:30 alarm go off, but stayed in bed. I might have gone back to sleep, not sure. I did get up after 8. I cleared the dishes in the sink and washed my own and left them to dry. I took the morning supplements and made the fiber gel. I worked on the name Rumpelstiltskin to make it backwards.

Michele got up after 9. I jotted notes for my blog. I message Michele about the hairdresser. I finished looking at every hymn in the book to find one with the same tune as Lord of the Dance. But no. I watered the plants. I watched a talk about organ donation. She made the point that organs have to be harvested from people who are very much alive. In Britain now, everyone is an organ donor unless they opt out.

I chose 2 hymns. One was hard to read, so I made a better copy. I made and ate breakfast, then read e-mail while I ate. There were no eggs left, so I ate some ground beef. I looked up how to measure miligrams. I got out the drill and a piece of wood to make a capsule holder. I put Casey's catch in the bucket with mine. I put the empty egg cartons in a bag with egg money and hung it on the front door.

Michele wanted a sadness pizza (because Trump is being inaugurated), so while she and Chris went shopping for ingredients, I made dough for the pizza crust. Then I watched Portal videos, which almost put me to sleep. Saronna texted that she would miss band tonight. I went to the chapel for band. I played songs on the piano. When it was clear that no one was coming, I went home.

The pizza was done. Chris cut me a slice. I ate the slice while reading e-mail and articles. I made a carrot salad and read more e-mail. Then I worked on my blog. We watched one episode of Atlantis. Then Chris went to bed. I stayed up to read e-mail, then went through my bedtime routine and was in bed soon after 11.

Double game night

Sunday

I got up at 8:30. I took the morning supplements and made fiber gel. I watched newsy videos while the others got up and had breakfast. CJ messaged me that she would bring eggs on Tuesday.

I started the breakfast process a little early. That gave me extra time to read Telegram messages while eating. Then I got ready for church. So did the others. Chris rode with me while John and Michele took their car.

When we arrived, I put cheese squares in the back. I went up front to assemble my trombone. I had to move down the row to make room for Michele, John and Chris. I introduced them to Keli and to Jenni who gave them hugs.

We stood to sing praise songs at the beginning, then we sat for the sermon. Afterward, the band played two hymns. The chaplain had the congregation clap for us. Then there was much chatting and snacking. Jenni said how much she liked the cheese squares.

When we got home, I looked for a hymn for John, but could not find it in either hymnal. I swear it is in there by another name. I looked through the first 100 hymns and didn't find it.

John helped me update my character sheet. Michelle came over to talk to Chris about the hairdresser. I changed clothes. Chris checked his stats and said we gamers are at level 5 now, so John helped me level up again. The game started late so the others in NY could level up too.

We ran afoul of an ogre and fought him to the death. Then we reported to Yarl Freya and were given a feast in our honor. Then a traveling troupe of entertainers came by to put on a show, but at the end they attacked the crowd. We fought them off. Then we went in search of a dragon. And halted the game for the night.

At one point, I had to mute John because he was sitting too close to Chris and the reverb was making it impossible to understand the words. After the game, John and Michele cuddled with their cat in their room. I got a few things done and filled a water bottle with tea.

Then I called John, who showed up ready and we went to Michelle's house for another Game Night. Before we went in, I looked around for the the gopher I was promised. It was in a plastic bag tied to the gate. I put it in my car. Then we knocked on the door and went in. Casey was loading Kings Quest. Cedric was there to watch. Once it loaded, John took over because he knew how it worked. Around 9, Michelle got a call that someone needed help. So she told me and I offered to go along. I encouraged John to stay and play with Cedric.

So Michelle and I went. Other women arrived and we were cautioned not to speak of it. Around 11, I was getting tired and Michelle encouraged me to go back to her house. It turns out that John was stumped and ready to go home. But since I had my phone silenced, I didn't get his message. We thanked Casey for loading the game. I thanked John for not finishing the game without me. Then we drove home.

Chris and Michele were still up. But soon they went to bed and so did we. I was so tired I went to an almost sleep pretty quickly, but then there were doors being opened and closed so actual sleep was longer in coming.

Record attendance

Saturday

I got up at 7:30. I got started on my day, watching Portal videos. Michele got up and asked me to turn on the router. At 9:30 I went to see if Chris was ok. So then he got up. I read e-mail, etc. Then at 11, he offered me a massage. So we did that. I drank half the fiber water and took a shower, then made and ate breakfast.

After breakfast, I made sure I had needles, embroidery floss, felt, templates, pens, samples, etc. I invited Michele to sewing class, but John wanted her to go into Tooele with him. I couldn't blame him.

I went to the chapel. I set up one machine just in case. Then people started coming to class. Summer came with her two kids. The Clark family came with 4 kids. Both of Michelle's kids came. And yes, everybody wanted to make both the bread and the cheese. I ran out of cheese-colored felt so Moira use orange and called it 'spicy cheese'. I helped with the sewing of the bread and also with the constant threading and re-threading of the needles. It was 4:30 by the time Cedric finished his cheese and bread. I locked up and walked out with Saronna.

I went home. I went through the felt to find something for Sophia to use for provolone cheese at Project Night. I looked for matching floss, too. Chris heated supper for me. After eating, I picked a project for me. They had their own projects.

Michele and John followed me to the chapel. Again, the largest turnout we have ever had. Casey and Cedric had projects. Karen made a clock. Randy came with Wilhelm to finish his bread. Both of the Lunas came. Veronica came with a dress that she wanted to remake. Michele helped her decide what to do. I had some black and white hexagons but spent most of my time helping others.

People started heading out before 9. So we got out a little early. John knew the way home, so I followed them. But they turned left when I turned right. Oh well. I went home and brought in my stuff. They arrived a little later. Then I think they went to bed. Chris and I dressed the bed with clean sheets. I read messages for an hour then worked on my blog. I realized I had deleted the running list of volunteer hours for this week. Arggh! What else got deleted? Chris went to bed and later I followed.

Game night needs to change games

Friday

I got up about 7:30. Michele and Chris were already up. I did the usual morning stuff. I read some e-mail. I counted my open tabs: 96. Then I got ready for Math Morning. My windshield was frosted over because the temps have been so low. I sprayed it with alcohol and wiped it with a sponge. Then I headed to the chapel. But before I got there, the windshield began re-freezing in a different pattern, one large enough to see through.

I parked across from the church so my car would be in the sun. I unlocked the doors and went in. I turned on the lights and got out some pencils. Then I made two phone calls, one about insurance and one to the bank. Still no one came. Saronna had said they weren't coming but I thought Karen was. Then Casey walked in. We chatted for over half an hour about lidar, and LA fires, and computers and density. It was obvious that no one was coming, so we locked up and left.

I came home to find the laundry going. Chris and Michele weren't here. Maybe John was in his room? I ate a small amount of meat. I washed out the coffee maker and put vinegar in it to soak. I scrubbed the burner bowls brought home from one of our houses. The two small ones came clean but the larger ones will need to soak in ammonia. Then I turned on the coffee maker and let it run the vinegar through a brewing cycle.

I paid an insurance bill, walked to post office and mailed a check to the bank. I talked to Summer, then walked home. I made and ate breakfast. We got in Chris' car and dropped Michele off at her temp house to wait for the movers. Then we went to the commissary for groceries and came home. We went back to Michele who was still waiting, then to the commissary to buy water and sandwiches for the movers when they arrived.

We dropped off those two things, then we drove to Tooele listening to the book on CD. I fell asleep. When we got to Luckey's, Chris went in to shop and I went to Melanie's for a few things. Then I went to Joanns for embroidery floss to make the felt food. Finally we went home.

Chris dropped me at home and went to see Michele and John, who had just said goodbye to the movers. Apparently they got a late start because the front gate spent a lot of time inspecting the truck. (Come to find out, it was a long background check on the driver's helper). I started making an avocado salad when Chris got back. The others were not far behind.

I mixed up the ingredients, including tuna, garlic, spices, lemon juice and olive oil. Then I cut four avocados in half and pulled out the pits. I covered each one with salad and put them on a plate for them to have as many as they wanted. Chris fixed himself a burrito.

I read e-mail and worked on my blog. Michele and John had a scheduled game but not everyone showed up so the game didn't last long. Chris' game started a hour late. I read articles in open tabs. I searched my sewing room high and low looking for embroidery thread, certain I had some from long ago. Finally found it, a treasure trove of leftover pieces and colors. I looked at Portal videos in prep for my game.

I gave John and Michele a 15 minute warning, but they did not get ready. So I filled a bottle with tea and went to Michelle's house. Casey had the game up. Isadora wanted the resin to add to a craft project. SO I went home to get it. I also got the molds and the skulls. I wanted to bring glitter as well, but it was in the guest room and they were asleep. I went back with the resin. While I played Portal and Cedric helped, Casey and Isadora worked on mixing resin. She added it to her project and then filled the molds with the gopher heads. I tried one with pieces of glitter. Cedric helped me get past some barriers. But he couldn't get through the hallway. He went to bed. Isadora got through the hallway and into a new room. We struggled to figure out what to do and she looked it up and soon it was done. I figured I'd have to look up what she did later. After she went to bed, I gave up. Because the next part of the game shoots at you and you can't shoot back. Not the kind of puzzle I enjoy. We decided King's Quest would be better. Then it was 11 and I shut down the game. I went home, forgetting that Casey caught a gopher and left it for me to take home. Chris was already in bed so I shut stuff down and got ready for sleep.

The extraction

Thursday

I woke up early with my ears ringing. My finger hurt where the nail kept catching on the blankets. I stayed in bed not knowing what time it was. Then as the daylight brightened, I remembered that my house would be empty this morning because John took Chris to the dentist. I got up, redressed, packed my little suitcase, and got in the car to drive home. The car registered 32 degrees in the garage, but by the time I got home, it went down to 17.

I put a bandaid on my finger and read some e-mail, then got ready for Bible Study. I could not find the large print Bible. It was not in its bag. So I went without it. When I got to the chapel, Ginger was taking ornaments off the tree. So I took ornaments off of the smaller trees in the back and put them in baggies to keep the colors separated for next year. Anca showed up to help. When Karen arrived, we sat down with our Bibles to study the book of Mark. When the study was over, I got out a ladder and took down the higher ornaments. We also took down the wreaths and garland. We did everything but dismantle the tree. Ginger said the men would do that part later.

I went home. It was after 10. I looked up the felt sandwich pattern. There were patterns for everything you might want to put in a sandwich as well. I downloaded the patterns and put them on a thumb drive to plug into the old desktop to print out. After printing, I used basting spray to glue the pieces to cardboard. Then I got out all my felt. I sat at the computer cutting out the cardboard pieces.

Chris and John came home from the dentist. Chris was still under the effect of Novocaine. He pulled out some frozen ground beef and started making ramen. I started making breakfast. We talked about his extraction. Then I ate breakfast while watching The Highwire. When I was done eating, I did more cutting while still watching. I put 7 eggs in the steamer.

At 2, I went to the post office to mail two ink cartridges and put some stuff in the swap shop. Then I waited in my car for Christine. She pulled up behind me. She gave me her uniform and the new patches. She needed it for tomorrow so I got started right away taking the old patches off. She messaged me the correct positioning of the new patches. I pinned one on and tried to get it under my sewing machine needle, but there wasn't enough room in the shoulder to do it. So I had to do it by hand, tediously.

When I was done, I messaged her and she messaged me about picking it up. I realized that she worked in the ACS building, so I took a book to return and went over. I gave her the uniform and she gave me a card. Then I stopped at Emily's office to check that my volunteer hours went through. She showed me a bunch of craft stuff that came out of the cabinets in the ACS room, which is now being remodeled. There was a bunch of quilting items: fabric, rulers, rotary cutters. Then colored pens, pencils, paint brushes, etc. I didn't have time to go through it all.

One of the items was a CD player and I knew Housing was looking for a CD player. So I took that to Housing and scheduled an inspection for 79B. When I got home, I put the eggs in an ice bath.

I cut out two loaf-shaped pieces of white fabric, plus the brown strips that go around. I sewed the brown strips end to end. Then I found some brown yarn and threaded it through a needle. I did a blanket stitch around the first half of the top and then the bottom. I stuffed it and stitched the rest of the top and the rest of the bottom. Then I set it up to take a pic for Facebook. I wrote a class announcement and added the pic.

I drank the pre-meal (formerly fiber) drink. I put leftover beef in the toaster oven to heat. I made a salad with carrots, cucumbers, sprouts and tomatoes. After eating the salad, I ate the beef, adding chia seeds to it. Chris stack the dishwasher and ran it. I worked on my blog and made tea. We watched one episode of Atlantis. Then Chris got ready for bed. I wanted to turn off the router but the younger Damours were still using it. So I gave them till 11. I read e-mail till a little after, then turned it off and got ready for bed.

The Primo walk

Wednesday

I got up with daylight. I realized I never heard Reveille. I got dressed and drove home. It was almost 8.

I listened to an interview on the surveillance in cars. All your information is recorded by the cameras and microphones in all new cars and is sent or sold to other companies.

After coffee morning, I took a shower and cleaned the bathrooms and kitchen. I washed dishes and mopped the floor. I read some e-mail. Then John and I walked to the Primo machine at the post office with two water jugs. We filled both and he rolled them back to our house with luggage carts. It was quite a workout. For him.

I went to 79B. I talked to Jamie who was already there. Then I finished the kitchen and took all my cleaning supplies home, getting caught in the 5 o'clock music. John helped me move the cleaning stuff back into the house.

I made laundry soap on the stove. Then I collated all the cleaning supplies that were in various plastic bags in the cleaning area. Michele came home from work. She and John went to the commissary. Chris came home from work. He made burritos for supper. Michele wanted me to try on one of the dresses she made. So I did, but it didn't fit. Then she wanted to try on one of mine. Same outcome. I must have been a lot smaller when I made it.

There was general discussion. I ate some chocolate-dipped sweet potatoes with cashews. I worked on my blog, made tea, and we watched an episode of Atlantis. Chris got ready for bed. He needed to get up early to see the oral surgeon. I got ready too, but then packed the small carry-on and drove to 629 to read a book while listening to a classical CD. When the CD ended, I re-started it and turned off the light. I was asleep before it ended. I did wake a couple of times because my finger nail got caught in the sheets. But all in all, not too bad.

A sleep-away

Tuesday

I was awake when Chris' alarm went off before 6. Then I heard him moving about the house. Michele got up too to get ready for work. Doors opened and closed. I could not go back to sleep and I thought really hard about what it would take to sleep over at 629 the next night.

I got up at 7:30. I made the fiber gel and took supplements, and brushed my teeth. I got dressed. I found what I think is Michele's favorite hymn and scanned it into the computer. Then I spent some time recreating the right hand side because it was near the fold of the book. When I went to print it out, the first half printed well and I guess it ran out of ink after that. I tried printing the test image, but it didn't print. So I wrestled with the printer to move the cartridges into the right place. I don't know why it was a problem. I tried several cartridges before I found one that worked. Still didn't print well so I had to do the test image again. It was almost 10 till I got that straightened out and picked another hymn to go with it.

Then I worked on parsing supplements for the week. Some ran low and I swear I had more, but couldn't find the new bottles. I was ready to go cleaning when I realized it was almost time for inspection. I looked for the key to 612 but didn't find it. I put a cleaning cloth in my purse just in case they find a spot. I jotted a few quick notes for my blog.

I unlocked the swap shop for Jack. I showed up at the inspection and one of the inspectors was parked in my spot. I let myself (and them) in with the key. They looked around and took pics of everything. Then I signed the papers giving it back to Housing. They asked how I liked having my daughter living so close and I told them the kids were still living with us because the new place didn't have internet. And that I was considering spending the night there myself.

I went to 79 to clean for an hour. Then I went home for breakfast. I left before 2 to lock the swap shop. Then I went by Housing to return the key. I stopped to talk to Jack who had found what he wanted. Then I went to Saronna's house to play music. We played through the two newly-picked hymns. We talked about stuff, then ended by playing When The Saints go Marching In.

I went home to post some pictures to Anka's swap shop announcement. But I had left my purse at Saronna's. I stayed home long enough to have a conversation with someone who wants patches sewn on their uniform on Facebook. Then I went back to 79 to clean. Saronna lives next door so I stopped by to pick up my purse and phone. I cleaned for an hour.

I went home and heated leftover soup. Michele was home and asked when the FRG meeting started. Then Chris came home from work. He waited until I finished my soup, then we all got in his car and went to the Community Club.

The three of them waited in line to order food so I went and sat by Steve and Shannon. She ran the FRG meeting after lots of others showed up. I am not sure why we had such a good turnout. There were lots of good questions and suggestions for activities. Then most people left but some of us stayed to continue discussing issues, particularly with the swap shop.

Finally, around 8 we left and came home. Chris dropped us off, then parked his car in the overflow lot and walked back. I made and ate a salad, then worked on my blog. We watched one episode of Atlantis. When it was over, we found the kids had retired to their room. Chris got ready for bed and I kind of did.

I packed a nightgown and blanket and book and red therapy light and put them in my car. Then I drove to 629. I parked in the garage, thinking how nice it will be not to have to scrap ice in the morning. I took my stuff upstairs. I dressed for bed and set up the red lamp by the bed. I also set up a CD player and got it started. Then I read my book until it was finished. I turned off the light and went to sleep.

Michele's first day

Monday

I awoke hearing Chris and Michele getting ready for work. I tried to go back to sleep. I ruminated about several things. I got up at 7:30 when my alarm went off. I got ready for the day. When I turned on my phone, there was a message from Michele asking me to give John her birth certificate to bring to her at 1.

I cleaned up in the kitchen. I worked on yesterday's blog post. I found the missing December post in my Sent file and added it to the post of the previous day. I jotted notes for today.

Before 10, I went out to my car and found it covered in frost. I sprayed it with rubbing alcohol to dissolve and headed toward 79. But when I passed the Housing office, I stopped in to schedule an inspection for 612. They gave me my CD player back and some bottles of lotion to say thank you for lending it to them. The inspection is tomorrow at 11. I proceeded to 79. I cleaned the countertops and fridge. I called Jamie to tell her about the inspection. I got a call from Housing saying they had an appointment with Michele at 11 to sign for 639. I didn't know, so I called her and she didn't answer. I cleaned a bit then called John to see if he could get her.

At noon, I quit and went home for breakfast. Michele was sitting at her computer with headphones on. I called her name but she didn't answer. Turns out she was on some kind of onboarding call. And her phone doesn't work well here on Dugway. Sigh.

I made and ate breakfast while reading e-mail. The yearly inspection team came by. I let them in to look around and check. They replaced batteries in the smoke detectors.

Then I got a call from someone wanting to bring stuff to the swap shop. So I ran down there to open the shop. I helped him bring some stuff in. There was a transformer so I called Jamie. Davis showed up and got some stuff. John wanted a coffee machine but there wasn't one. The man wanted to bring a washer and dryer. So I texted Chris and John to see if they wanted it and should we have them at our house. Jamie came by to get the transformer and she took other stuff as well.

Finally I was there by myself waiting for the guy to come back. But then he called to say he needed help to load the appliances. So I called Jamie and she said she could help him in an hour. I left the shop unlocked and went home to finish breakfast. Michele was gone, but John was there and the maintenance guy needed my signature. So I signed. He said he would call in work orders for the blinking lights and cabinet door.

I ate parts of a pomegranate that was past its prime. I emptied the compost and coffee grounds. Jamie texted. The man texted.

I went to clean. I wiped down the sandwich makers. I sent pics to Davis. He texted back that he wanted the larger one. Then Jamie texted about the appliances. So I put the large one in my car and headed to 629. Jamie was backing into the driveway. I opened the garage door. Her son helped her move the appliances inside.

I went back to cleaning. I finished the cabinets on one side. I worked on the stove. Jamie came over. We discussed all the vacuum cleaners that were left behind. We had a good time taking them apart and discussing the merits of each. Then she went home to start laundry.

As I headed out, I got a text from Janet about band, and I suddenly remembered. I checked the time and it was 5:55. So I went by the chapel to open the door for Saronna who was waiting. Then I drove home to get my trombone and music.

When I got to the chapel, everyone was there. I assembled my trombone and quickly picked two hymns in the same key. We played the hymns, then we played Sleigh Ride in F. But it didn't work because there were notes too low for the trombone. So we played it in G and it went better. We discussed playing it one day after service, sort of as a postlude. Then we played songs from the Broadway book. When we came to “Get me to the church on time”, we wondered if we could play that as a prelude, without permission.

When I got home, Chris said Jamie had been there, looking for the three packages. I had completely forgotten. But Chris could only find two. So I got the third one and drove to her house to give it to her. She had offered to drop them in the UPS and Fedex mail in Tooele tomorrow. I also gave her an embroidered Christmas Cracker. She loved it. She, and her daughter and I had a nice chat. Then I went home.

Chris and Michele were having discussions and John chimed in occasionally. I listened as I ate supper and worked on my blog. I worked out how much to pay Jamie for her work on 612. The conversation went on until after 10 so it was too late to watch TV. Chris and I got ready for bed. I shut off the internet, not sure if John and Michele were using it in their room. We went to bed about 11.

Entering volunteer hours for December

Sunday

I got up before 8, having slept pretty well. I found myself crying. I went to the kitchen to prepare the morning drink and fiber gel. Michele came out to see me. I told her how I cried when we left her behind in Korea and now I have her back. I also hinted that the skirt she was wearing had too much fabric in it. But she insisted that even though she put extra in, that it was to make her stomach look smaller by making her hips look larger. Then Chris came out and we discussed other things.

Eventually John came out and we discussed the future. Michele made oatmeal for the two of them. Chris prepared a roast of beef and put it in the oven. Then he took a shower. Then they all decided to walk to the clinic where Michele will be working and see how long it takes. I decided not to go because it was freezing outside.

While they were gone, I melted three chocolate bars and dipped dehydrated sweet potato sticks and frozen bananas in it. I left the tray of them outside to harden. I also steamed 7 eggs and bathed them in ice water. Then peeled them and added them to the pickled egg jar. I had to take out some of the juice. I added back more vinegar.

They came back from their walk as I was cleaning up in the kitchen. I started making breakfast. Chris made ramen for them for lunch. I finished breakfast and got dressed for church. I put some cheese squares in a container, then took that and my trombone to church.

When I got there, I left the container in the back. I talked to Jenni and Janet. Jenni was telling her that the vitamin C protocol took away all the pain she had with her flu. Then I went up front to assemble my trombone. The chaplain got the service started and we sang three praise songs. Then he gave the sermon and afterward, we ladies played two hymns. After the service, the chaplain told me that the Christmas Eve service had 31 people, which was the largest attendance since he has been here that wasn't pitched to people not of Dugway.

Keli paid me. We left all left the church. I went home and changed clothes. I checked e-mail. I read through all the blogs for December in order to enter my volunteer hours for the month. I think they are due on the 15th. I noticed there was a day missing. Chris took the beef out of the oven. He also had made asparagus and mushrooms. There was leftover rice. I paused reading to eat, then continued so I could finish by 5 for the game.

So the game started a little late till I was ready. Then Chris gave a synopsis of last week's adventure. Then we fought ROUS's and ogres today. We ended the game a little early because we were about to get into another fight and some of us didn't want to start what we couldn't finish tonight.

Afterward, I worked on my blog. They ate brownies. Michele asked for shampoo so I gave her a shampoo bar. I posted for band tomorrow and made tea. They hid in their bedroom while Chris and I watched two episodes of Atlantis. Then he went to bed and, since I was sleepy, I got ready and went to bed too. I asked John to turn off the router when he was done with it. I don't know if he ever did. I got up to turn off my phone, then went back to bed and slept.

The next generation arrives

Saturday

I got up before 8, having slept better than usual. I brushed my teeth and turned on my phone. I looked at the portal video for the level that stumped me and made notes. I took the morning supplements and made augmented water which I drank at 15 minute intervals. I looked into StemRegen to see if it was worth the price.

Chris took his car to Charity's house for an oil change. I put some more stuff together for John and Michele, then went over there to place it. Chris was there so I offered him a ride home. We cleared the bed in the guest room and some space in front of the mirror. We were not home long before Charity texted. So I drove him back to get his car.

On my way home, I stopped at the post office and the swap shop. Chris was home when I got there. He gave me a massage, then we took our showers. I made and ate breakfast. I read an article and watched a video on the benefits of interval walking and slow running.

Michelle came over and took me to 629. We made the bed and put out toothpaste and soap. She liked the toothpaste I was giving them so we went to her house and traded it for whatever she had. Then we sat in the kitchen and I listened to her talk about how God is moving on Dugway and her part in it.

Finally she took me home. I contacted Jamie to discuss 612 and the cat tower from 79. Chris had brownies in the oven. When they were done, I whipped up a batch of cheese squares and put them in the oven. I also steamed sweet potatoes.

I read about aloe macroclada and tried to buy some. But it was sold out or really expensive. I peeled the sweet potatoes and sliced them up to go in the dehydrator. I texted Michelle about the proper temperature. She called and we talked.

Chris made his supper and I made mine. I made tea and worked on my blog. Then we watched an episode of Atlantis. It ended a little before 10. I went back to my laptop and soon Chris was announcing that John and Michele were here.

Chris went out to help them carry stuff in. I held the door open. It was really cold outside. When the immediate stuff was inside, we offered them food and drink but they were not hungry. They let the cat out of the carrier and she looked around. There was a leash on her so she wouldn't run under furniture and hide. Then they put her in the hall bathroom with the litter box and closed the door.

We all stood around, talking a little, until they said they were ready for bed. So they went to bed, as did Chris. I stayed up to check e-mail and then I unplugged the router and turned in as well.

Adding to their house

Friday

I woke up at 8:30 hearing my last alarm. I jumped out of bed, knowing that Math Morning starts at 9. I quickly got dressed, brushed my teeth, took supplements, made solé water and fiber gel.

I got dressed and went to Math Morning. The Clark family came. Wilhelm sat by me but he didn't do much math. At 10 they packed up and drove home. It was too cold to walk.

I pulled some things for Michele and John. I stopped by the post office for mail and ended up talking to Summer and Lisa. I also stopped at 79 to get the cat tower but it was gone. AND I stopped by 610 for leftover hand soap etc, but Jamie had cleared it all out. I did not see it at the swap shop when I talked to Summer.

Finally I arrived at the new place. I hung up towels and a shower curtain. I went home, then realized I had forgotten my purse. I went back to get it and tried to make the bed, but the sheets were too tight.

I had breakfast, then we went to the commissary. After unloaded those groceries, we went to Tooele for more. We made good progress on the book on CD which is now overdue. We shopped at Luckeys and then I went to Melanies. She was back at work and we discussed her recovery from hip surgery. Her husband gave me a check to balance the account. Then we shopped at Macey's and went home.

We put away the food. I read e-mail, ate supper, and watched Telegram videos; mostly about the LA fires. I worked on my blog. I got a text to get Chris to call the Aid Station in Ditto because they have no heat. Chris called and was upset that proper procedures hadn't been followed. I offered our little bathroom heater and Chris said it was too little. I also offered the bigger unit in the swap shop, but he said he was sure they had better options that could be found.

I prepared for game night and watched Portal videos. Suddenly I realized it was after 8:30. I picked two greens and put them in a small container with two seed crackers. I went to Michelle's house. She was at the gym, but Casey had the game up and Cedric was playing with his toy soldiers. They watched as I played. Then Michelle came home. I gave her the snack. I played through several levels, having to figure out how since I didn't remember how the levels were solved, just bits and pieces. Cedric got sent to bed, which was sad because he and his sister are good at manipulating the avatar, making it jump, shoot, etc. And in one level I kept dying because I couldn't jump from platform to platform. Cedric would have happily done it for me.

Anyway, I finally did get stuck and I quit at ll, having tried everything I could think of. Michelle and I talked about getting the quarters fixed up tomorrow, then I went home, where Chris was already in bed. I put everything to sleep and went through my routine, then joined him.

Shipping kits

Thursday

Chris was very quiet all night and I had to reach over to make sure he was still breathing. At some point he got up and went to his computer. Later I heard him clearing his throat and blowing his nose, etc.

I got up about 8. I went through the usual morning routine, then spent hours trying to get all the specimens labeled and in the right boxes, etc. Chris took a shower and went to the endodontist.

Then I find out the overnight ones can't be shipped on a Friday. So I would have to drive myself to Tooele (an hour each way) just to drop off the packages. I tried using their pickup service, but I didn't have an account number. So I called the local store. They said I would have to call the hub in Salt Lake and good luck with that. I called the hub and after some discussion, they said I would have to have the company that sent the test kit schedule the pickup. I e-mailed the company but did not hear back.

Chris texted that the endodontist was sending him to an oral surgeon for extraction and he might need help driving home afterwards. So I texted Michelle and she said we could go get him after 2:20 and drop off the packages in town.

I made and ate breakfast, including a big pomegranate, while watching The HighWire. Chris texted that the oral surgeon had left for the day and so he had to reschedule for next Thursday. I paused The Highwire to go see Jamie. We talked about everything. She asked me to let her finish 79B because she needed the money.

When I got home, I messaged Brandon then rolled the rescued bike over to his house. I read packing instructions for all three tests. I got each one properly packed up and put in the deep freeze since I can't drop them off until next week.

I read e-mail and such. I got one from Mail Delivery Subsystem telling me that the blogger inbox could not accept anymore e-mails, which means the blog I posted yesterday didn't post. I confirmed this and wanted to scream, thinking I would have to recreate it. But no, it was still in my 'sent' file. So I tried again, and got the same 'undeliverable' message. I tried posting the way I used to, and it would not accept photos. So I went looking on the net, and someone said you have to post the text, then add the photo as an update. So that's what I did, muttering all the way. I did not see anything labeled 'Inbox' that I could empty in Blogger.

I made supper. Michelle called and we made a plan to add towels and such to the temp quarters. After a while, she came over. We pulled out towels, sheets, pillows, etc. She talked to Chris about the contract for the hairdresser. Then she and I went to the swap shop to look for dishes and shower curtain rings. We also got hangers.

We took the stuff to the new place and basically just left it. Michelle took me home and she went home to get ready for her sub job tomorrow. Then I made tea and we watched another episode of Atlantis. After that, Chris went to bed but I stayed up to read.

Cracking the egg-peeling code

Wednesday

I woke up at 4:30 to use the bathroom, then could not go back to sleep. Chris didn't get up until 6, and then took a long time to get ready. So he didn't leave until 7:30. I got up to start taking the urine and saliva samples. There were three different test kits so it got a little complicated, especially with the timing. Chris came back with keys and garage remote for the temp quarters for Michele and John.

Then I went on with the usual Meditation morning routine. I spent extra time cleaning afterward because John and Michele might be staying a few nights (or a few weeks). I peeled the steamed eggs from yesterday. They did not peel easily. I drank a quart of vit C water, Then I washed dishes and took a shower. I went to the post office, and then the library to get the next book in the series. They told me Chris had been in to pick up DVD's to watch. They also said my library card was about to expire so they wanted to see my ID and it was due to expire as well.

From there I went to 79B to clean for 2 hours. I started in the kitchen and had to use ammonia. The fumes got bad, so I spent the rest of the time sweeping walls and floors and baseboards. It was so satisfying.

I went home to do the next saliva sample. I read some e-mail. Chris came home and we talked. He made supper while I put away the dishes I had washed. I steamed 7 eggs in the steamer, keeping an eye on when it finished. I had an ice bath read and put them in and set the timer for 10 minutes. I texted with Michelle. Then I started peeling the eggs. Still didn't peel well, so I got out the Negg. As long as I shook each egg for at least a minute, they peeled ok. One was bad so I mashed it with avocado dip and ate it.

Chris was on the phone with a customer service rep. I went to Michelle's house and took the garage remote for 629. We talked for awhile. She chose a gopher head and packed up everything else. She gave me some pomegranates and the calendar I paid for. Then we went to 629 to see if it needed bedding, towels, etc. Yes, all of it.

Then we went back to her house. She wanted to work out at the gym so I took my car and went home. I read some e-mail and worked on my blog. I called the credit card company about my expired card. I made tea and we watched the last episode of Taxi and the first episode of Atlantic by the BBC. I got sleepy, so when Chris went to bed, I did my end-of-the-day stuff and joined him.

Seeing the finished product

Tuesday I got up around 7:30. I brushed and took a few supplements. I made a quart of water and put 6g of vitamin C plus a fruit powder in it. I drank a cup every 15 minutes while reading e-mail. I had to spray my windshield to thaw the frost. Then I went to clean for 2 hours at 612. I came home with a padded mat for the space in front of the sink. I ate/drank the fiber gel. I made and ate breakfast. Then I went to Saronna's house. We played and talked. Later I went to the library to make copies of Sleigh Ride. I went home to drop off my trombone and music, then went back to 612. I spent 10 minutes mopping the last bedroom, then packed up all my cleaning supplies. I went to 79B to start cleaning and cleaned for 90 minutes. Michelle called to say her kids wanted to pop out the gopher marbles. So I went down the street to her house and Isadora popped all the spheres out. We oohed and ahhed over the gopher ones and the colored ones. They had divots in the tops because the resin shrank as it cooled. I went home and ingested the remaining fiber gel. I read e-mail, and put vegetable soup with beef and chorizo in the toaster oven. Chris told me about his day and about visiting the dentist who is now referring him to an endodontist. I ate supper, then read through the instructions for three at-home urine tests. All the things you can't do for 48 hours before the tests. I want to get them all out of the way tomorrow. I posted to my blog and we watched two episodes of Taxi. There was only one left, but Chris went to bed. I stayed up to read the instructions again and take notes. Then I went to bed.

A long and frustrating day

Monday

I woke up to find Chris was still in bed. He hadn't gone to work. I got ready for the day, made fiber, etc. I drank a quart of fortified water over the course of an hour. Chris laid on the couch.

I read e-mail, then went to Housing to schedule an inspection for 638. I went over there to look. I wiped up some flour that the rodent left. I tried to get a hold of Jamie to ask about the final shelf, but she didn't answer.

I went to 612 to clean for 90 minutes, then went home to drink the fiber gel. I made more supplements: 2 days of minimum and 5 days of normal. I made breakfast, ate while reading e-mail. I kept calling and still no Jamie. I activated the test kit that came in the mail last week.

After breakfast, I scooped out two pickled eggs as usual, except that there was only one egg left. So I searched the freezer for eggs. There was a frozen bag of them. I put them in hot water to thaw.

At 2 I went to the inspection. I was disappointed to see that the floors were dirty. Had we tracked in that much? But it passed inspection. I mentioned the missing money and they said to ask at the Housing office if anyone signed out a key. I went home for my key (completely forgetting the eggs), then went to Housing to return my key and see if anyone checked out a key about the time the money went missing. No one had.

I went to Keli's RV to clean. The dogs were there so I cleaned downstairs. Then her son came home and took the dogs for a walk while I cleaned upstairs. She left me a gift bag so I took it with my cleaning supplies. Her son was sitting outside so I invited him to band.

I went home. I put the thawing eggs in the toaster oven. Then I went to 612 for another hour of cleaning. When I got back, I ate the eggs and discovered that some of them were in a plastic baggie inside the freezer bag. Sigh. Then I had to run to band.

Keli and Saronna met me there. Then Mrs Popken came with her daughter. I wanted to play Sleigh Ride but it wasn't in Keli's book. So she got another book from her car. It had Sleigh Ride, but in a different key. Sigh. We played through the hymns for Sunday. Then we got out our book of broadway tunes. But I didn't have mine, so I got out the flute version. That didn't work because I couldn't drop an octave and change clefs at the same time fast enough. So then I played off of Saronna's book.

Afterward, we discussed flags and ribbons for use during the praise songs. I turned on the tree and turned out the lights so everyone could see how awesome it was. Then we all left and I locked the door. But when I got to my car, I realized the keys were not in my pocket. I went and tried all the doors of the chapel and they were all locked. I figured as much but had to check. I called Michelle and she said Dispatch could open it. So she called them and I waited. They came and unlocked it. He accompanied me in and watched me retrieve my keys. Then they had to fill out a report. Sigh.

I was going to go to Michelle's house to pop out the gopher marbles. But I was too tired now. I went home. I put my broadway band book in my music sack. I ate the rest of the fiber gel. Chris told me he took 2 grams of vit C every 6 minutes like I had said and it made him nauseous. I said you used the powdered C, right? And he said no, the packets. OMG. He must have taken 6 or 8 of them and each one is the equivalent of 10 grams because they are liposomal.

I worked on my blog. I made and ate a carrot salad. Chris went to bed early. All he did all day was lay on the couch and sleep or watch TV, so how can he be tired enough to go to sleep now?

I texted Michele and she said it snowed too much for the carpet people to come so they are coming Wednesday, which will delay their trip. I'm not sure what the new plan is. I read from the second Hunger Games book, which made my back feel better. Then I got ready and went to bed.

Finishing the last thing on my 2024 to-do list

Sunday

I got up around 8, possibly. I brushed my teeth and made fiber gel and electrolyte water. I drank every 15 minutes while reading e-mail and ordering from sales. I sat with an ice pack on my arm while reading e-mail and ordering new glasses. Then I made a batch of seed crackers.

I made and ate breakfast. I got ready for church, then sprinkled the cheese squares with paprika and went to the chapel. I spoke with a few people before the service, including the LDS couple that comes every so often to check in.

The religious affairs assistant gave the sermon because the chaplain was not feeling well. Then Keli and I played two hymns while Leilani played the shaker. So cute. Afterward, I gave her brother the job of opening the cheese squares each Sunday so people know they can have a snack.

I was the last person out. I found a dead mouse behind a speaker. I threw it in the trash. Then I made sure the doors were locked and I went home. I changed my clothes and ate a pomegranate. I read e-mail for awhile.

Then I went to 610 to put the dog beds out for bulk pickup. From there, I went to Michelle's house to finish the gopher project. She had Casey mix the formulation. Then I poured the resin over the gopher skulls in the mold. The kids were fascinated and wanted to make some spheres too. They used stones and shells and drops of paint.

I had to leave before 5 to make the game. I went by 79 and picked up the bike to save it from the bulk trash pickup. I could not close my trunk. Chris was already online with everyone when I arrived. John and Michele were playing on one computer set up in their hotel room. She was lying down because her back hurt. Since snow was forecast for tomorrow and might mess up their plans, John asked Chris if he could pick up Michele at the airport if it came to that.

We played through the game, mostly fighting orcs. Then we went to an inn for the night. We had an expensive meal in the private dining room and we were visited by a gentleman that warned us to stop seeking what we were seeking. He left, and we tried to follow, but he was gone and no one had seen him.

After the game, I read from the second Hunger Games book. Chris went to bed early, not feeling well. I stopped to look up music memes so I could post to the Facebook pages for band tomorrow. Then I worked on my blog and went to bed.