Mission Accomplished...

 As quiet, and somewhat sad, as Christmas Eve was this year.... we did it.  

My family back home gathered in the house I grew up in, in very small numbers (there were only 5), safely, distanced, and enjoyed the traditional foods.  

My brother and sister sat on opposite sides of the fireplace where my dad read "The Night Before Christmas" to us as children, and they finished the evening with cognac.

My brother's son has been instrumental in getting the house in order...cleaned like it hasn't been cleaned in years, and my brother got a real tree, and put it in the place where my parents first put a tree when they bought the house in the early 1950s.

Here, in OKC, I, too, prepared the foods (my brother sent us a "petite" version of the usual huge pig leg ham). I listened to Handel's "Messiah," and enjoyed cognac with Dave as we listened to Pavarotti before bed.

Our Zoom session with our friends was very nice, and helped me to not feel quite so isolated, and Dave played Rita's guitar for her.

On Christmas Day, Dave and I went to a state park for a hike, despite the return of my leg tendon pain.

We got our wish, and there was no one else on the trail, and it was so warm and sunny that we had to take our hoodies off.

Meanwhile, back home in Chicagoland, Christmas Day was like the Arctic, and my sister's plan to be able to see her children had to be changed.

She had wanted them to gather outside, around the little metal firepot, but it proved to be far too cold for that...

They were able to have the kids over, everyone in masks, and at a distance, for a short visit.  

Elsa cooked a feast, and they brought containers and thermoses with them, so that they could collect their portions, and take them home (her kids both have to work in environments where they may become exposed to the virus at any time, so everyone needed to stay masked and distant).

It was different for sure, but we did it.  I guess Christmas finds a way, even for we who follow the safety guidelines, and want to protect one another, and ourselves, from the virus.

Yesterday, on the anniversary of my mom's death (she died some time in deep of the night on Christmas), we took down all of the decorations and put them away.  It's been my practice to do this out of respect for her, even though SHE always insisted that everything stay up until 12th night.

Then, miracle of miracles, my brother's package arrived on his front porch yesterday, still showing as lost by the post office.  I am glad he got it...but the one he sent to me is still at the post office in Wheaton, where he dropped it off December 16th. 

Most of the other packages we were expecting finally came between Yule and Christmas Eve, so that was nice, too. I was pleased that Dave's gifts arrived in time.

I will see my doc this coming week, so will get labs drawn on Monday, after work.  I intend to ask the doc if there are any alternatives to what we are doing that is causing me so much pain, and if we need to change anything else, since we are now seeing new bone issues after 6 years of no changes at all in the bones.

It's the last week of a very difficult year.  I hope it passes smoothly for all of us.

It's almost Winter Solstice!

 We took tomorrow off to celebrate Yule.

Today, there is much work to be done around the house, as well as going out to get groceries early, so this will be a short post.

I had my scans this week, and they came back 99% good news.  Everything is stable and unchanged EXCEPT there are now some new bone spots.

For some reason, when we did scans in June, we didn't do a chest CT....so these tiny spots developed between the October of 2019 scan, and the December of 2020 scan.

My nurse said that the radiologist did not site measurements in his report, and that this indicates that the spots are tiny.  She also said that chances are my monthly injection is already dealing with them.

I am symptom free, but if I start to have pain, she said radiation is an option, and is very effective for this kind of thing.

SO, when I see my doctor on 12/29, I will ask him WHY he thinks there are new bone changes for the first time in 6 years, and what we might need to change to prevent any more.

I feel good about the overall news, though.  I can relax a bit now.

My menu for Yule is roasted cornish hens stuffed with herbs, roasted root vegetables, and a 14th century recipe for custard tart with hazelnut crust.

For Christmas Eve, my brother sent us a tiny pre cooked ham, and I still have left over cranberry compote, and my special version of green bean casserole in the freezer from Thanksgiving...

It will be an easy feast that night, with the only thing I am making fresh being the spoon bread.

The gift I ordered for Dave weeks ago still has to arrive, as do all of the packages friends have said they are sending.... every day, I get an email from the postal service showing packages that are out for delivery, and every day, nothing comes.

The gift I sent to my brother is lost forever.  Dave is going to go see if he can get a refund AFTER the holidays.  We paid nearly $30 in shipping.  Sigh...

I need to get busy.... have a great week, and happy holidays, if you celebrate! 

First snow

 They've been saying for days that it would snow this weekend, and they got it right!

There was rain and sleet overnight, the sleet tapping against the windows.  

The cats woke me in the still dark early morning, and I got up and looked out, but there was only rain.

Went back to sleep, and slept until 9!!! That's VERY unusual for me.... Got up to a blanket of white!

I love how the snow brightens and silences the world.  It has always represented peace for me.  I hope to get outside later and enjoy it.

The past week has been just fine around here.  No fights, no gunshots, no drama.  Just a normal week, with pretty weather.  We actually got outside a couple of times to walk in the afternoons.

I had appointments every day but Friday (physical therapy three times, and injury doc once), though, so I didn't get to take many breaks to get out and walk.  Friday, we went and picked up my glasses and did an errand, so we were busy every day of the week after work.

Next week should be less busy, with only two PT appointments, and my scans on Friday morning.

I dread the scans, like usual.... but especially this time, after 2020 proving to be a challenging year in almost every way.

Good news might be on the way, of course, and we will hope for that, but I can't help but feel anxious.

We put the tree up yesterday, and some little bits of decoration here and there.  I will work on it a little more today.

Frank has been pretty good about the tree so far, but we have it anchored to the wall anyway, HAHA!

Tomorrow is Frank's one year Gotcha Day....  He was so tiny and sickly when we brought him home.... He's now big and strong, though small for an adult male.

He's calming down a bit, too, and a couple of times lately he has curled up next to me on the couch.

He is very attached to me, even though I am the one who always seems to yell at him and scruff him to stop his bad behaviors.  He always sleeps by my feet at night, and I can't go into the bathroom without him RUNNING from wherever he is to join me.  If I get in there and close the door before he arrives, he will sit outside and cry.

He is still very vocal, too.... lots of trills and chirps, and sometimes just walks around the house meowing.

We love that he is so talkative!

I am going to make a pot of chicken soup with last night's roaster (which was exceptionally delicious). It will be lovely to have a bubbling pot on the stove while the snow falls.

Enjoy your week!

WAY too much drama

I'm OVER it!

There is a rental property across the street, and over one, where there is frequently a big crowd of people hanging out.  Cars come and go, they have house parties a lot, even during Covid.

It appears that the person who rents the house is an older woman, and that she has a constantly changing cast of characters staying with her.  It seems that there always are different people hanging out on the porch with her, and walking around in the yard.  Sometimes, they stay with her for a long time, but then they are gone, and someone different is there.

If you pay attention to what's going on around you, which I was raised to do, you can't help but notice, because they are outside a lot, and they tend to speak loudly.

At first, we thought she was running a day care, too, because people drop their kids off and pick them up, every day.  But now, we think she's just babysitting myriad grand children, nieces, and nephews.

It's always been quiet by bedtime, though, which is good. 

Well, when we got back into town last weekend, I noticed that there was a different young man out in the yard, and on the porch, that I didn't remember seeing before.

NOW, a week later, we suspect he was with a gang, and came to stay with Grandma to try to hide from rivals, but they found him, 

Sunday night, after we went to bed, there was a HUGE fight, with people screaming and milling about in the street of our quiet, peaceful, mixed ethnicity neighborhood.

When I got up to look outside, I couldn't see much because of the huge pile of storm debris that is still piled at the curb, and what's left of the willow tree is still green, and in full leaf, and is at just the right angle to mostly block the view of that house.

All I could see was that there were two or three cars parked in the street, and I could see that there were several people out there...possibly ten to twelve.  The sound of them screaming was enough evidence that there was a crowd.

Our neighbor directly across was standing in his door way, lights on, phone in hand.  Dave called the cops, too, and within minutes, 6 squad cars arrived, and the crowd disbursed.

The rest of the night was quiet.

Then, on Monday, I had an appointment with my injury doc again, and Dave drove me.  

When we got home, there were two cars in the street in front of that house.  They were parked up against a car parked on our side, so that they were three across, and were completely blocking the street.

They were honking their horns incessantly.  

Now, we are not usually afraid to step outside.  We've never had cause to be in this area.  So, Dave stepped out onto the porch, where he was blocked from their view by the debris and willow tree, and he yelled "knock it off!"

The second he was back in the house, they started shooting.

We found out later, from our neighbors next door,  that the shots had been fired into the air...but that is also dangerous, as the bullets have to come back down somewhere.

We don't know if they were shooting to warn Dave to stay out of their business, or if they were shooting to warn the gang banger that they'd found him.  We will never know.  Chances are they never even heard Dave...that's what we hope.

Anyway, the instant we heard the shots, we both went down.... There we were, in our own home... lying flat on the floor, to avoid being shot. 

Dave was petrified...I'd never seen his face like that before.  I was wierdly silent, and calm.

Dave crawled to get his phone, and called 9-1-1 again, for the second time in about 18 hours.

8 squad cars arrived this time, but, of course, by the time they did, the cars had all sped away.

After the police came, Dave allowed us to get up off the floor, and we could hear the old lady talking to the cops.

Dave said that he heard her give the police an address, so apparently, she knew the person who fired the gun.  

We also heard, again from our next door neighbors, that there had been a jogger in the neighborhood, and he had gotten the car's license plate information and given it to the police as well.

Apparently, we were the only neighbors, who were home at the time, who stayed inside after the shots were fired. 

The guy directly across from us wasn't home, but it seems that several others were outside, watching the excitement, and learning stuff like that...

Ever since then, it has been eerily quiet over there.  No one on the porch, No cars coming and going.  No kids in the yard -- until yesterday.  

Again, yesterday, one of the usual cars that comes and goes came and went, but no more sign of that young man, or of the older model spray-painted sedan that the shooter was driving.

We contacted the neighborhood association president, and made sure he knew what was happening.  He was to contact the property owner and alert them, and perhaps advise them to end the lease.  He informed us that the property owner actually lives on the other side of the rental house.

If she was home Sunday night, or Monday evening, surely she knew what was going on.

We also assume the association president has activated the Neighborhood Watch people to start keeping an eye on activities there a little more closely.

I just feel bad for that Grandma.  She obviously has her hands full.

We have a new policy of NOT looking out the windows, or stepping outside, if we hear any kind of disturbance from over there.  Our new policy will be to go to the back of the house, sit on the floor, and call 9-1-1.

SO....between Covid, the life changes it has brought to us, months of isolation, Pop dying, Eric cutting us out of his life, Dave's eldest brother and best friend alienating him, the horrible ice storm and 2 week power outage, the car accident, and now this.... I have had it up to HERE with drama.

2020 can SUCK IT.

I want to win a lottery and move back home!

IN other news...this past week, I FINALLY got to start physical therapy for my minor neck injury from the car accident.  It's been very nice to have some neck massage, and to learn some new self care exercises.

Next week, I have two more sessions scheduled, and then see the injury doc again. Maybe I can be done with it after that.

Dave is still needing more treatment, though.  He was hurt worse than I was, and his chiropractor has not been available since before our cabin trip.

We also have the other person's claim number now, so the car will hopefully get fixed this coming week, too.

Today, the weather should be nice, and we are going to do a little more clean up in the back yard.  There are dead plants, and damaged shrubs, that need to be dealt with.

I am making a slow cooker meal, working on my course, doing my exercises, and maybe some yoga, and trying to get back to a calm center.

Yesterday, Dave got our packages shipped off, and I got our cards ready to go.  I also ordered some on- line items to be shipped directly to friends.  My shopping is done, except for Dave.

We are getting a "Soda Stream" for the house, so we can stop buying so much sparkling water.  We don't drink pop, unless it's as a treat when we get carry out, but we do drink sparkling water every day.

We generate a LOT of empty cans and bottles, between Dave's Perrier and my Topo Chico!!  The Soda Stream will eliminate all of that recycling, and will pay for itself quite rapidly!

SO - other than that, we will get each other some little things. Stocking stuffers, maybe a book or two.

I had decided not to decorate this year, but now I have completely changed my mind.  I need some cheer and brightness!!

Our isolated, Christmas Eve feast-for-two will be complete, too, as my brother sent me a "petite" Virginia ham.   It's pre cooked, and boneless...so all we have to do is warm and slice it.

It won't be the same, with no huge pig leg boiling away on the stove all day on Christmas Eve, and no crowd around my table....but it will still be wonderful anyway!