Day 33 - Governor Newsom imposes new restrictions

Why is this here?…read below to find out…

12/18/20. Friday.

9:00- 9:30 - My winter break officially started this week and it’s been great! I was consumed with work this semester although I still managed to incorporate “personal life” activities.  Long ago, I made a pact with myself that I would never let my to-do list encroach upon my personal life, time spent with loved ones, etc.  I’ve tried to hold true to that.

So, I’m up and I get dressed before I go downstairs.  Covid-19 winter uniform.  I drink as much water as I can from my Hydroflask. Downstairs and I say good morning to the dog and rub her tummy.  There are no accidents inside, but she pooped on the patio outside. Still drinking water. She goes potty.  Back inside – rotten turkey for her (she still seems to enjoy it) and coffee for me.

This is terrible in light of the “body posi” movement, but I weigh 99.5 pounds this morning so I get to have  half-in-half in my coffee without stressing about it.  I rarely weigh myself anymore, but decided to do it today.  I’m finishing up the small container of cream that L. bought when she made that corn dish for Thanksgiving and my coffee is sooo much better without the almond milk.  Unfortunately, cream in my coffee typically contributes to weight gain for me so I use it sparingly.

It’s the little things.

9:30-11:00 – I finish my new ebook, The New Corner Office.  I’m not sure I learned any additional information regarding how to work from home (WFH) more effectively.  I feel I’m already at the pinnacle of efficiency, but when going over my previous blog posts, I spent way too much time last semester doing class prep and grading papers.  Clearly, I didn’t allocate my time sufficiently because my sleep  suffered greatly.

There’s a little left from L.’s Stonefire chicken and the tofu I threw together yesterday so I have that for breakfast.

-L. leaves for work at the art studio.

11:00-1:00 – Upstairs and I read a Money Diary and then switch to You’ve Been so Lucky Already.

1:00 – 1:30 - I could use some fresh air so I pick one of our many parks that I haven’t been to before – I literally close my eyes and let my finger hit the list – and get ready to leave.  I pack a lunch bag and my book.

2:00-2:30 – L. returns on her lunch break and vents about work. I left the last of the quinoa veggie-bake for her because I thought she might come home for lunch.

2:30 – 3:30 – I leave for Begonias Lane Park.

-Driving

-I didn’t realize this park is all the way across town.  Traffic is really bad.

3:30 – Arrive.  So, this is a park on the other side of town, nestled against a mountain in a residential neighborhood. I like the park, but there is a Latinix family (20 members) sitting, walking, talking, around a picnic table, none of whom are masking.  This is probably why Southern California is at 0 capacity for ICU beds – we literally have none left and the Huntington Hospital is resorting to tents now.

Also, there are some sketchy “gang members” [not related to the gathering] that are riding around on scooters, unmasked.  The fact that they’re riding on scooters probably means they are not gang members, but I don’t want to get out of my car.  I park and watch, wondering if I should go outside.  I can read on the opposite end of the park…

Naw…I’m out.

I drive up the hill so I can turn around and – this part is very strange –  I see a large ranch-style house on my right, seemingly with several acres of land.  This is right next to a standard residential neighborhood, with cookie-cutter front lawns and 500 sq. ft. back yards.  I’m assuming that the owners of the ranch house refused to sell when the big bad developers and the City of Santa Clarita ‘threatened’ to surround them with a residential neighborhood and community park. So they stayed.

To the far left of the house, but still on the property, is an old water tower replica and a skeleton hanging in effigy.   

I drive closer and the skeleton is dressed in a flannel shirt, jeans, and a hat, but you can see the bones peeking out.  I took a picture for today’s blog – can you see it?  We are well past Halloween and this is so distasteful and inappropriate, especially since the noose is absolutely authentic.  This isn’t a hastily done Halloween decoration, using fishing line.  I am really creeped out – the word of the week – so I drive a few feet, into the normal neighborhood, and make a u-turn in a cul-de-sac so I can get on the road.  Very disconcerting.

5:00 – 7:00 - Home and I finish You’ve Been So Lucky Already.  I liked the book but found the author, who appears to be around my age, a complete flake with no plans for her life in general.  As a result, she is randomly bounced around like a pinball, flitting from one thing to the next, although she ends up with a 13-year career in proofreading, but this is a random event that occurs.

The most compelling part of her personality is that she is most comfortable being alone.  It’s rare to hear/read a woman who admits she would rather be alone as there is so much derision in our culture concerning single females, especially when they’re older, like late 30s/early 40s, i.e., “What’s wrong with you? You’re supposed to get married and have babies!  Humans are social creatures…” [ I’ve heard that last line for years.  Are humans really social creatures?  Maybe it’s just the extroverts who are].

None of this applies to single men, who are viewed as “bachelors who don’t want to be tied down” and secretly praised by other men for having escaped marriage, whereas single women are simply thought of as “spinsters”; “old maids”; that weird “cat lady” who lives in the neighborhood; or just extremely flawed individuals.  This is a cultural construct – unfortunately, most women internalize these negative comments and fail to realize it’s a lie until their late 40s/early 50s. They spend most of their lives, if they’re not married, wondering, “What’s wrong with me?”  It’s not you, honey.  It’s society.

2/3rds into the book, the author is struck by a strange debilitating illness that is not discovered until the end. Spoiler Alert: She has a problem with iron absorption and is cured by taking B1 supplements. Reading about her journey to cure herself when everyone else – including multiple male doctors – tell her “You’re fine – see a psychiatrist”, was fascinating because she thinks she’s going crazy.  Again, had she been a single, white male, I really believe her illness would have been discovered much sooner.  Sick women are usually viewed as ‘hysterical’ and there are many accounts of women who have to bring their male partners into the exam room to vouch for their illness so the doctors will take them seriously.  And this is happening in the “aughts!”[2000s].

Highly recommend this book – at least for this section.

7:00-9:30 – I make White Chicken Chili.  This is another new recipe for me and, yet again, very labor intensive (sigh).  I have to boil the chicken, then chop garlic, onions, a red and yellow bell pepper, and squeeze lime juice over everything.   I have to defrost corn and wash the white beans and simmer everything together in chicken broth.  Then, there’s the clean up.  By the time I’m done with everything, I want no part of it.  I eat the very last of the quinoa bake and listen to PBS News Hour and NPR Politics.

-R. is live-streaming his album to a music venue so L. is at his studio.

9:30-11:30 – I take a damp rag and clean ALL the kitchen cabinets, then touch up the black paint because they’re starting to chip.  After, I vacuum the kitchen, put on my knee pads, and mop the floor on my hands and knees.  I switch out the sofa slipcovers and put them in the washing machine.

11:30-12:30 – Personal admin. I prepare a grocery list for L. and pay a bill. I’m going to Natchyerals Restaurant tomorrow [pick up – no dining whatsoever per the Governor’s orders] so I check the menu.

12:30 – 1:00 – Night time routine and bed.  I hear the garage door open just as I’m falling asleep so I know L. made it home safely.