Day 73 of Governor Newsom’s “Blueprint for a Safer Economy”

Constant mischief the entire day…

Sunday. 11/8/20

8:00 - No.

10:00- 12:00 - Awake and I lie in bed until 10:30, then go downstairs to take the dog out. She pooped in two places on the patio, so I have to clean it. Just what I want to do first thing in the morning. The dog does her business and we go inside. Cheese for her and I start my coffee. I do dishes while it brews because I left dirty dishes in the sink last night. Still in my pajamas (read ‘sweats’), I go outside and sit at my patio table while I read Displaced.

-At some point, the dog jumps in my lap and I see that, for some reason, her paws are muddy and she has left dirty paw prints all over my sweats. Sigh. I continue reading.

-I’m finished for now, so get up to go inside and see that the dog vomited on the concrete right outside the door. It’s green and contains undigested grass. Sigh. I clean it up.

-L. leaves to accompany R. on an Insta-Cart run.

12:15 - My Wine.com monthly delivery arrives and I confirm that I’m 21 and able to receive it. The Fed-Ex guy leaves and it is then that I look down and see muddy paw prints all over my sweats. I look like I’m homeless.

12:15-2:00 - L. bought acai bowls from Pressed Juicery yesterday and froze my bowl for me. I take it out to defrost.

-I watch two episodes of The Patriot Act as I search for material for the immigration lecture that I have to create. I like the episode entitled Immigration, but it contains some salty language that might offend the students so I go with a different episode entitled Asylum. It’s not as good, but should suffice. I eat my acai bowl while I watch the episodes.

2:00-3:00 - Shower. Covid-19 uniform. I listen to What Next from Slate and America Interrupted.

-R. and L. return from Insta-Cart, having made $40 in two hours. Not too bad - $20 a hour is above minimum wage. They have Mexican food for lunch.

3:00 - 5:30 - I grab my ladder and finally take the Halloween flag down. I wanted to do it on Friday, but it was raining. Then, I get my gardening tools and the trash can and report to the backyard, where I sweep leaves and clean beds for the next 2.5 hours. I listen to the Pop Culture Happy Hour, Counterclock, and Fresh Air.

-I’m on my hands and knees, cleaning the beds next to the fountain. The fountain is surrounded by large rocks that I’ve collected from various beaches that I’ve frequented over the years. With my hands full of leaves, I slip on one of the rocks and it’s difficult to put my hands down as I fall to my knees on yet more rocks. I think I’m okay, but my hands hurt.

-I keep sweeping and clearing the beds, but realize that my hands and feet are numb. Is it that cold out here? I look at one of my potted plants near the fountain and see that the plant is missing!!! When I wasn’t looking, the dog actually pulled the plant out of the pot and hid it. I think she believes that she’s “helping” me with the yard work…or maybe she’s just jealous that I’m paying attention to plants and not her. I can’t find the plant so I guess it won’t survive. Sigh.

-It’s time to go in as I can’t feel my feet. Just before the dog goes inside, I see that her paws are COVERED in mud. How did this happen? I don’t even see any mud in the yard!!! Sigh. I lock her in the garage and run a shallow bath so I can clean her paws - I don’t have the energy to give her a complete bath. I collect the dog and bathe her feet, then dry her paws. She’s not happy.

6:00-7:30 - I move my car, grab my ladder again, and finally store the Halloween boxes. Another Halloween come and gone. The lights went out on one of my topiaries near the front door, so I wrap it in new white lights. I empty the trash cans in the house then take the trash out. There are more dishes in the sink…when did that happen? I clean the kitchen and eat the very last of my “Greek Nacho” recipe. The chips are long gone. I prepare my coffee for tomorrow morning.

I start a load of laundry.

A leg on one of my patio chairs has started to unravel so I drag the chair around the side of the house, superglue the repair, then wrap it in duct tape. I think if I paint the duct tape, the repair will not be so noticeable. I turn the chair upside down and wait for the superglue to dry. I also take this moment to super glue a drawer pull on a desk drawer in my office. I see that a throw pillow is missing from my office couch and when I start looking for it, my giant Ming vase falls on my foot. It is so painful!! Not my day today. The throw pillow was on a chair, in the living room, the entire time.

7:30-9:30 - I’m exhausted and stiffening up from my fall in the back yard so I go upstairs and read more of Displaced. R. returns after his shift ends at Starbucks with a peppermint hot chocolate and a croissant for me. Much appreciated!! Thanks R!! I drink my hot chocolate and eat my croissant while reading Displaced.

9:30-10:30 - Ooops! I fell asleep. I’m up now.

11:00-1:00 - I update my blog.

1:00-1:45 - I prepare the Discussion Board and course content for my morning class tomorrow.

1:45-3:00 - I have a glass of champagne and listen to The Daily and What a Day. Nighttime routine. Bed.