May 26, 2020 – Tuesday (still sheltering in place – Day 2,465,839) …
I’m on a roll. A lobster roll! Ha ha … omg – wouldn’t that be terrific if I WAS on a lobster roll … or was at least EATING one! Yum. No lobsters here in the NW – except for me!
As our friend Mr. Rogers said – more than once, ‘”It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood.”‘ It’s sunny (yay) and to be mid 60s today. If you live about anywhere else, you’d think I was crazy to write home about mid 60s temps … and yet here I am! Woo hoo … SUMMER weather! I know, I know. It’s pretty pathetic … but I’ll take it!
When the temps (here) surge past 58 it’s gonna be a good day. Then I can wear only one sweater! If the temps go up to 62 … I might break out the 3/4 sleeved tshirt … if it’s to be 64 or 65, I will venture out with a short-sleeved tshirt (but might still have a sweater handy) … and anything above 68 … it’s tank top all the way! I’m thinking if I move anywhere that has temps higher than 72 I might just have heat stroke repeatedly – until I get acclimated!
However, I have noticed that when I’m in Denver and it’s 72 degrees, I’m freezing! Go figure!
My mom gave me a book for my birthday – a country year ~ living the questions by Sue Hubbell. I emailed a friend this morning and told her it will be coming her way after I’ve finished with it as the author was a beekeeper (and my friend’s husband has also “kept” bees). It’s an interesting read but I’m not liking the author – she seems a bit hard-edged/caustic to me (and I could be totally wrong) and it reads like a text book in some areas. There’s so much latin (as in bug/flower/bird identification) I’m feeling like Julius Caesar … not fluent in Latin but wishing I were dead as it is in the book … ad nauseam! See? It’s rubbing off on me!
I much prefer Gladys Taber’s writings of all things country in her “Stillmeadow” books. They are lovely. I can curl up anywhere and feel like we are just two gals having a chat about her life in the country – with a sweet dog (or two) by the fireside. If ever I have a dinner party where I’m allowed to have people attend who have passed (that is always a Miss America question, you know) … she’d be on my list. And Abraham Lincoln. I’d love to pick his brain! Metaphorically speaking only.
It’s another quarantine day … “Shelter at Home” – “Shelter in Place” – “Stay Home-Stay Healthy” … whatever it’s now called. I’m still here/at home/sheltering. Well, MOST of the time. I was out “getting air” the other day and drove through town to see if anything had changed since I’d last been there – which now seems like lightyears ago – and the aroma of pizza made me park my car and stand in line for a slice. (Said line consisted of one woman ahead of me – not in line – but tangled up in the leashes of three chihuahuas and clogging the sidewalk.) She ambled away and it was my turn. I had my mask on – I have been wearing it from the onset – since way back when the dinosaurs roamed the earth.
It’s a “rule” in our town that I’m all for. The guy behind me, an apparent mask-free visitor, stood grumbling and swearing under his breath about freedom and justice and f*g masks. I turned around and smiled sweetly (and then remembered he couldn’t see me smiling with my mask on) and told him it was a city rule … for the benefit of everyone. He grumbled louder. There are signs all over town telling people “No Mask – No Service” … good! He walked 2 car lengths and retrieved his mask and HELD it. I was a bit po’d by his attitude so I told him he wouldn’t get served unless he was WEARING the mask and for emphasis, I pointed to the sign in the window. HOLDING his mask wasn’t going to cut it.
More grumbling and swearing – at me this time. He said he didn’t need a lecture from me. Well, apparently he did – cuz he continued to hold the mask. Lovely. Go home, idiot. We are trying to do our best for each other and our community so that life can get back to some semblance of normalcy as quickly as possible without a resurgence of this virus. We would like our shop and restaurant owners to get back on their feet … we would like all of our “first responders” to catch a break and catch their breaths. We would like our older population to remain vibrant and if wearing a mask and keeping six feet apart keeps this vastly older community from being six feet under – I’m all for it. Idiot. I left with my pizza, muttering loud enough so he could hear me, about how good it was … and he was still (holding the mask) on the sidewalk arguing with the pizza guy in the take out window.
Butter. There is no segue from pizza to butter but here I am. I had an English muffin earlier for breakfast/brunch – with a perfect egg – and the last of the whipped butter. I rediscovered whipped butter a year or so ago. How did I exist so long without it? I don’t know! It’s a mystery! It’s just SO good. The same about pre-cooked bacon. My store has a store-brand (Essentials) pre-cooked bacon that is ready after a minute in the microwave. It’s perfect … tasty/crispy and done in 60 seconds (or less). And it costs a fraction of any of the other bacons! Thank you universe!
While those are great (and yummy) things … sadly, I have a body by butter and bacon. A while back I tried a Keto diet. Apparently I wasn’t doing it quite right. I gained 15 lbs! Leave it to me to gain weight on a diet. Anyway, thanks to said diet and having those things back in my life … I am now eating whipped butter and pre-cooked bacon in moderation (well, sometimes). If I look like the Michelin Man by the end of this covid crisis – so be it. I’ve gotta find comfort somewhere!
And, thinking about that … I find comfort in writing. Solace comes in many forms and mine is the written word … hence, this 3rd post in a week! So, if you are reading this – I hope you enjoy it. And while so nice, I do this more for me. I’m on a roll! And speaking of which … I could find comfort in a lobster roll, too. And, omg, I just remembered I bought a tail for my bday that I haven’t eaten it yet … so, huh! Wonders never cease – I know what’s for dinner later! I’ll thaw that baby out and … yum! But, I’ll have to venture out to the store, though … I need more butter!