THE LIGHTER SIDE CAFE WEDNESDAY JULY 22

Yes, as luck would have it, she is only closing daycare the one week DS and his family planned to visit.  Ordinarily, they love being there together, but they would be nervous about a California visitor during COVID and I want to be fair to them since last year, I had to cut my time short with them while they were on vacation to fly out to CA to help DD.  So, her visit will have to wait a little longer.  I told her that September is the best month of all on the Cape. Crowds are gone if she can get away then and leave daycare in capable hands of her lead teacher.  We'll see. I really despise this virus stuff but we all have to be thankful that so far, we are healthy! 

It is another hot one but doesn't feel as bad as it did the past few days. I will have to get D&D out for their walk soon.  I woke up at the crack of dawn today and though I slept well until then (5:30 AM), i did not sleep enough.  I had two very disturbing dreams.  I am even having "mask" dreams where i am caught in a crowd with no mask and no one else has one one either.  Last night I had scary dreams about my DH that left me unsettled.  He says he wonders how I get any rest with these vivid dreams! 

Breakfast was a frozen waffle, bit of Vermont maple syrup and a strawberry banana Light & Fit Greek yogurt and a cut up peach.  I'm gulping the water and I like adding the Stur into it sometimes.  

I finally finished my Last Girl Standing Book (Lisa Jackson) and I'll bring it and the other Shelter in Place (Nora Roberts) paperback to my book club social distanced dinner tomorrow night to pass along for fun beach reading.  I'd been reading heavy duty books earlier and this is a nice escape and relaxing! Next I have one more paperback Barbara Delinsky's Before and Again to start soon.  I'm on a roll away from non-fiction for a bit.  Too much of that in our crazy world now. 

I get sworn in for another 3 year term as an elected town meeting member tonight via Zoom at 7 PM.  This is my 30th year (at least) serving the town.  We have a little over 200 elected town meeting members for our population of 37,000 people.  I just learned that our little berg in Arizona (Goodyear) which had a population of 3000 people now has 80,000 (in 2017)!!! Wow! I knew it had grown but jeepers peepers. It was such a sweet little town. We knew everyone.  DH was on the Planning BOard and I was on the Economic Development Committee.  We loved it there but we left in 1990. Summers were brutal. We'd lived in AZ for 10 years.  

Back from shopping and happy to say that the Walmart in Gardner had all we wanted with the exception of Clorox wipes and Lysol spray which I didn't count of anyway LOL. Also it wasn't crowded so we zipped in and out in record time. Carl went to Hobby Lobby while I waited in the car and read. He needed something or other for his leather craft work.

Took LuLa down the path beside the house and now she is all set for awhile.

Sue I agree...I love catching up with you gals. We are a fun group Glad you got to sleep with the windows opened. I had the same breakfast LOL.....Just finished lunch which was a salad with low sodium ham and a mozzarella cheese stick thrown in for happy measure. Tonight we are having cheese burgers and I'll have a little potato salad. Fruit and hummus and carrot sticks will also be part of the daily menu

Happy shopping. Your meals as always sound tasty and healthy.

Judy didn't realize that you were on the board in Shrewsbury. Good for you! I'm sure you enjoy it. I agree with September or October being perfect for the Cape. Hope DD can come. Also not loving all this virus stuff but nothing much we can do if we want to remain safe and healthy! Glad that you are enjoying your books. I'm really loving this one that I'm reading. I need to buckle down as I don't want it to poof away LOL.

Going to sit and enjoy coffee. Everything is all put away and I'm pooped. Shopping really tires me out!

Waving to Pam.....

Hi All ~

I decided today was the day to go to the pharmacy and get my shingles vaccination.  I got the older one about 7 years ago, but then of course had that outbreak in Jan/Feb this year.  When we went for our flu shots at the end of September last year the pharmacist was hawking the new shingles vaccine. I told her I'd talk to my doctor and let her know.  Just recently when I went in to my PCP for the mole on my arm, I did ask him about it - and he agreed I should get it - especially considering a more recent outbreak unlike the past ones.  I have been thinking about it, but today seemed like a good day, so I devoted the time to go and have a "Covid check" (which consisted of  questions and a temp reading), then filled out paperwork, and sat and waited, then they called me in and it was over and done. I feel really good about it.  Since it is a two-shot series, I have to go back between 2-6 months from now for the second one.

Then I started my grocery shopping and was lucky enough to find things I wanted, plus some for later dated far enough ahead that they can sit in my fridge.  I came home and ate some snacky foods, then just added up the SP and ate a HB egg for protein. I think I already mentioned we're having Strawberry Waffles for supper tonight.  Right now I am eating a bowl of red Washington cherries and they're delicious!!  

I plan to try for a second walk, but right now it is hot and humid, so I don't know when I'll go.  Our time on the porch last evening was perfect!!  We came in to watch an episode of Chicago, PD, so cut it a little bit short.  Also, we forgot we had a dish of cut-up watermelon for the porch, so perhaps tonight??

BBL.

Ann ~ I am also in that crazy, lazy state of mind.  I blame mine on my arm being sore, and I am just feeling punky (and blaming the shot). I just called DH to ask him if he'd like to bring home a couple of salads for supper as I don't even want to cook the waffles now.  Tomorrow is another day.  I thought those cherries were the same ones you were talking about .... I've had them several times and LOVE them!!

Pam ~ I can just picture your DGS reconstructing your angst at the McDonald's drive-thru.  I love when kids have that kind of wit and humor!!  So many things little ones have said while in our care have become household phrases that when one of us uses them, it brings back a flood of happy memories.  Hope your hip feels better!!

Judy ~ I also have those very vivid dreams and unfortunately along with them, I talk.  DH sometimes asks me who I'm talking to and yesterday morning it was HIM!  I was dreaming that he and I and his VBF (the three musketeers) were bike riding and I had a basketful of Christmas decorations and was trying not to break any of them.  It is more distressing when I dream the kind that make me wake troubled.  I do hope you can make your DD feel okay about the fact that she can't come when she wants to.  You are doing so much for her, I am sure she will understand.

I am going to go back to my lazy afternoon and then wait for DH to bring home our supper.  

Hi friends, we are in the middle of a wild thunderstorm with heavy downpours and very dark clouds. Wouldn’t you know that this is the first night my book club has met since February and we thought we would do a nice outdoor socially distanced dinner together. Most everyone was going to bring their own dinner. The host offered to pick up sandwiches and a few people took her up on it but I’m fine With a nice salad. However, it doesn’t look like it will happen unless the storm blows over quickly.