Contentment - Day 9

We're also having much cooler weather, which is welcome, but still no rain. Our drought is not yet over and it's too late to save the hay for this year. But we could sure use some of those water droplets to help raise the water level for the wells and such.

I finished my 50th book of the year yesterday. When I was younger, I used to read about 100 books a year, but my older eyes tire easier. I find audiobooks compelling because I can multitask while I listen - fold clothes, listen to a book. That makes the chores go faster.

I am glad I am getting in more reading/listening time.

Sunday Stealing

1. What shows do you like?

A. I like Rings of Power, which is based on Tolkien's world, My Lady Jane, also on Amazon Prime, was fun for its 8-episode run, and My Life is Murder on the BBC is not bad. I also watch reruns of The Big Bang Theory, MASH (when they are on), and The Gilded Age (HBO). Going back further I really liked Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Xena: Warrior Princess, Star Trek: Voyager, and Cagney & Lacey. 

2. What’s your claim to fame?

A. I was a news reporter for about 35 years. My byline will forever be found among the morgue of the local newspaper, for however long that lasts. What I wrote years ago is now the history of my community.

3. How often do you play sports?

A. Never.

4. Are you early or late?

A. I am almost always early.

5. What quirks do you have?

A. My quirks include talking to myself, singing to myself, rehearsing conversations in my head that I likely never will have, and almost always turning the car around to make sure I have turned off the computer, curling iron, and stove.

6. How often do you people watch?

A. Not very much these days.

7. What’s your favorite drink?

A. I only drink water. But I would love to have a good A&W root beer.

8. What do you hope never changes?

A. Everything changes. Hoping things stay the same is futile. But in the spirit of answering the question, I will hope that grass stays green.

9. What’s your dream car?

A. I always thought the Toyota Avalon was a beautiful car, but alas, Toyota has stopped making them.

10. Where would you rather be from?

A. I'm happy being from where I am. I am from the farmland, the plow, the screams of old women, the ghosts of mothers who were fey, the feisty lovemaking of a miner, and the dreams of a young girl in love.

11. What songs have you completely memorized?

A. I have no idea. Hundreds of them. Not much of anything new, but the older songs from the 1970s-1990s, those I know a lot of.

12. What would you rate 10/10?

A. My husband.

13. What job would you be terrible at?

A. I would not do well at being a waitress.

14. What skill would you like to master?

A. I would like to relearn Spanish. I had it in high school but had nowhere to use it, so I forgot it.

15. What movie title best describes your life?

A. The Perks of Being a Wallflower (according to CoPilot).

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I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.

Saturday 9: Summer in the City

Saturday 9: Summer in the City (1966)

Unfamiliar with this week's song? Hear it here.

1) Now that Labor Day has passed and kids have returned to school, summer is unofficially over. Looking back, share a highlight from Summer 2024.

A. The highlight of our summer has been drought and heat. We have mostly worried about hay, about feeding the cows, about ensuring they have water and shade. Up until the end of August, it was too hot to have a good time outside. The temperatures are more pleasant now, thankfully, but the drought has done its dirty work. 

2) Though this week's song is about summer, it was recorded in the spring, March to be exact. What's your favorite season?

A. I prefer spring or fall. Cooler temperatures and colorful. Summer would be great except for the heat.

3) Lovin' Spoonful lead singer John Sebastian sings that he's going to meet his lover on the rooftop. When were you last on the roof of your building?

A. Never. I have never been on the roof of my house. I don't remember the last time I was on the roof of any building, actually.

4) The lyrics refer to sidewalks that are "hotter than a match head." What's the last thing you lit with a match?

A. I don't light candles often, but I have some unscented ones that I use sometimes when a skunk gets too close to the house. The smoke helps alleviate the skunk stink.

5) The Lovin' Spoonful was founded by John B. Sebastian and Zal Yanovsky. When the band broke up, Zal opened a restaurant. Tell us about the restaurant you most recently dined at.

A. The most recent restaurant I was in was the Townhouse Tap House in Daleville. They have an excellent salad bar. They have their own garden and grow their own greens. I've never had a fresher salad than the one I get there.

6) John went on to have a solo career. His biggest hit was "Welcome Back," the theme to a popular 70's sitcom. The first line: "Welcome back, your dreams were your ticket out . . .". Do you recall what show used "Welcome Back" as its theme?

A. Welcome Back, Kotter. It had John Travolta in it. I did not watch it much.

7) In 1964, when "Summer in the City" was popular, Americans were tuned in to Bewitched. The show centered around Samantha, a witch married to a mortal. Among her supernatural powers were flight, time travel and telekinesis (being able to move objects by twitching her nose). If you could have one of those powers, which would you choose?

A. Telekinesis would be fun. I could move the furniture without help! And then make the vacuum run and get rid of the dust bunnies under it. Or just make the dust roll out from under the furniture. Either way it would be clean.

8) In 1964, AJ Foyt earned the second of his four Indy 500 victories. Do you watch car racing?

A. I do not watch auto racing, but my husband is a big fan of both NASCAR and the Indy series (which is called something else, but I know not what). He watches all kinds of racing, including funny cars and other different kinds. Since I live here and the house is small, I see the racing if I decide to sit in the living room with him and a book.

9) Random question: Is your big toe your longest toe?

A. I wonder if everyone else had to look like I did. My big toe and my second toe are about even, but I used the level on my phone, and it shows my big toe is a smidgeon higher.

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I encourage you to visit the posts of other participants in Saturday 9 and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however. 

Contentment - Day 6

I thumbed through old papers this morning, looking for a manual on a piece of machinery my husband couldn't find.

In doing so, I stumbled over an envelope full of photos. I pulled it out and began looking through them. They were pictures of me from school and a large picture of my grandmother as a young girl that I would have sworn was of my mother if not for the name written on the back. And there were pictures of my mom.

The envelope was one of the last things she gave me before she died.

It wasn't the pictures that got to me though - they were just images. What did get to me was the smell.

The envelope smelled not of old paper, but of my mother. A smell that I'd not thought of in many years, and one that even now I cannot describe.

Something like a cross between makeup, hairspray, and light perfume.

Nothing that comes from a bottle.

Just my mom.

Thursday Thirteen

I do not consider myself someone who takes good care of herself. The other day I was thinking of how much work it is to take care of your own person. It is difficult to take good care of yourself and then add caretaking of others on top of that and wow . . . that's a lot of time to put in. It also takes some skill to take care of someone besides yourself and I think this is definitely undervalued. 

My husband and I do not use the same products for everything, we are definitely a "his and hers" household.

Anyway, here are 13 things I do to take care of me and my beloved:

1. Brush my teeth and make sure we both have new toothbrushes, the toothpaste, and floss that we like.

2. Shower daily and make sure we each have our own unscented soaps we prefer.

3. Wash hair and make sure we each have our own unscented shampoos and conditioners.

4. For me, I require unscented lotion. My husband uses specific stuff on his hands in the winter when they start getting chapped.

5. Clip nails and cuticles. I don't use polish; of course I am allergic to it.

6. See the hair stylist for me. He sees a barber because he likes that hot shave on the back of his neck.

7. Go to the grocery store and (mostly) pass up the bad foods and try to purchase healthy stuff. And then fix it and eat it. This one is especially difficult for me as I dislike cooking. I suspect if I cooked better, we both wouldn't be overweight.

8. Wash clothing and keep it looking nice so as not to scare people when out in public. You feel better when you look your best if you're out. I try not to send him out in wrinkled clothes and same for myself.

9. Put on makeup where applicable. (I no longer do this because I can't find anything that doesn't make my eyes water now, but I used to do this every day.)

10. Exercise in some fashion. I walk on the treadmill.

11. Have down time to rest and regroup, whether that's through reading, meditating, or watching TV.

12. Learn new things to keep the ol' brain working.

13. Change the bed linens once a week so that everything is nice and fresh, and wash the coverings every six weeks or so, unless one of is ill in which case they get washed right away.

There are more things I could list - but it is a glorious chore being human, isn't it?

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Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while, and this is my 873rd time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.