Friday Miscellanea: Halloween, Housework, Ian, and the Mets

In recent walks with Jace, I've been checking out seasonal decorations and seen more general autumn than Halloween decor. You know pumpkins, scarecrows, artificial autumn leaves, gold and orange flowers (sorry, I don't know the names.) I've seen a handful of houses with specific Halloween decorations: one with inflatable figures. Surprisingly, the house up the street, that usually vomits inflatables on its lawn each year, is strangely bereft. So far, anyway. I'll see how long that lasts.

For the past few weeks, I've done minimum housework. The dishes and laundry have been completed, and the worst of the messes cleaned, but that leaves a lot to be desired. I've started...That's all I can say. Two days of rain, courtesy of Hurricane Ian, will keep me inside for a good part of the weekend. If not now, when?

The Mets are playing in their most important series of the regular season. As I write this, the Mets are down 1 to 3 in the 7th. Jacob deGrom gave up three homeruns; his ERA is now over 3. 

I don't feel so good. 

Lynne's Greatest Hits

 As I wrote in a recent post, I went to an author talk Saturday by Bette Bono. One thing Bette said that struck me was that she took stories she did for our class homework, but revised and improved them. It got me thinking that I wrote a few good stories in the classes I've been taking since 2018.

I've gone through ten folders of stories (from six to 10 depending on the length of the class.) I've picked 21 stories that are good enough to revisit, and I have six more folders to review. 

Now I'm not saying these 21 stories are all publishable gems, but they are good first drafts. I was encouraged to find so many to revise.

Happy Birthday Jeff!

It's a big birthday for Jeff, but for various reasons, we're not celebrating big. Maybe next year. 

I did make a double batch of vodka sauce for dinner tonight. I need to go out and get something chocolate for our dessert.  

Today is also Jace's one month anniversary with us. Time to celebrate.

Book 26: Neighbors & Other Stories by Bette Bono

Bonus: I went to Bette's author talk yesterday at the library.

After I finished my last book, I read some magazines and then picked up Elizabeth of York: A Tudor Queen and Her World. Then last Saturday, I bought Bette Bono's book, Neighbors and Other Stories at the latest flea market. I put Elizabeth aside to read Bette's book before her author talk. I wrote that it's not often I read a book by an author I know. Now I've read all three of Bette's books. 

It was especially fun to read this book, because many (if not all) of the stories were written for our writing class. Bette edited and polished the stories, but as I once told her--her rough drafts were equal of many of our finished products. 

Bette also shared that her next book is a second collection of short stories, and that she is working on another time travel novel about the progressive era.

This Thursday's Thoughts

Jace has been with us for four weeks. He's been sweet and loving, but disruptive. We've taken care of his medical problems. Now we have to deal with his socialization, separation anxiety, and barking. We just confirmed a meeting for friends to meet Jace this weekend.

I wish I had posted about the Mets on Monday, They clinched a postseason berth and Max Scherzer won his 200th game. They won again the next night, their sixth in a row. That would have been a good time. I thought the streak would keep going. Yesterday I didn't have the heart to write after the Mets were shut out by rthe Brewers. On to Oakland.

Fall started about an hour ago. Sometimes fall is described as "arriving." I just started thinking--arriving from where? I know it was in the Southern Hemisphere for a few months. but where after that? (Cue suspenseful music.)

There's a lot to do in the next few days.

Canine Health Report

I dropped Jace off at the vets this morning. He got his teeth cleaned, his leg x-rayed, and a few vaccinations. I'm glad he didn't need to have any teeth extracted, and there are no serious concerns about the strength discrepancy in his rear legs. He's looking good. He's been groggy the rest of the day, mostly sleeping. 

TMI Alert: We'll call tomorrow about the results of the fecal sample. If that's clear, he can go to the dog park. We were invited to walk with some friends today and visit others on Saturday. He's popular before he's even met people. 

Neighborhood Walks

It took two years before Lola got comfortable enough to walk around the block. Then for the last year-and--a-half or so she was unwilling to do it. So, we'd take her out for short pee breaks and go to a park/trail first for an hour and later a half hour was enough for her. 

I'm happy that Jace likes walking around the neighborhood. I enjoy meeting the dogs. I like checking out houses, plants and trees. Recently my focus has been on lawn ornaments. I've seen the Virgin Mary and Saint Francis (of course) bunnies, dogs, flowers, mushrooms, angels, gnomes, even gnomes on motorcycles. I never got the appeal of gnomes, but whatever. If we had a yard, we'd probably have a beagle and a buddha--sounds right to me. 

34 Years

Jeff and I have been married for 34 years. 

I don't know what I was doing at this time 34 years ago. Maybe I was at the hair salon. My stylist Arthur was late, but another stylist did my hair and did a great job. So all was well. This little snag was overshadowed by the limo from hell.

We don't have elaborate plans this year. We planned to go out to dinner, but Jace suffers from separation anxiety and barks. So we're going to get takeout and eat at home until we work through his issues. It's not glamorous, but we don't need glamour. The important thing is that we're together.

A Wednesday in a Life

I don't remember the last time I did a post like this.

Here goes:

A tough morning with Jace started with him barking around 4:30 or so. I managed just a few more minutes of sleep before walking Jace at 7:15.

I had already decided that it would be a day for home chores starting with making flank steak black bean chili.

Before I started on the chili. I cut up peaches. They had ripened the day before and some had spots. We had peaches with breakfast. I worked on the chili and cleaning up after myself from about 9 to 11, finally showering then. I took Jace on another walk, sorted the laundry, and ran a few errands.

After a late lunch I doctored the chili, did dishes, and exercised. I took another walk with Jace and made an arugula, pear, and dried berry salad. When I cut the peaches in the morning, I saw that the pears and one avocado were also ripe and planned to use them the same day. I'm still a work in progress, but I am getting better at reducing food waste. 

We had the chili with fresh avocado and the salad for dinner and watched the Mets lose again. Sigh. I tried to come up with a story idea for my homework with no luck. I took Jace out for a quick pee break, and went to bed. Not exactly a red letter day.

Topics for this Tuesday

1.  Time Tracking 

I tracked my time (in 15 minute increments) last week and have continued this week as well. I already know I am walking more because of Jace--about an hour each day. 

2.  Writing Class

The fall session started Monday, Phiction Writing with stories based on photographs. We've done this exercise many times before but not as a focus of the session. The core of the class has been together for at least three years. We have one new person in this session and lost a few from the summer. 

3.  Jace

He's a challenge. He's a love. He's a work in progress. I guess Jeff and I are a work in progress to him.  

4. Farmers' Markets

I've picked up a few prepared items last week in New Canaan: macaroni and cheese, mushroom quiche, cous cous salad, and curry white bean humus. I have to go this week for sushi bakes and pasta. I like trying new things and having more dinner options.

Second Abandoned Book of 2022: Strange But True Mysterious and Bizarre People by Thomas Slemen

No guilt this time: I'm not talking about War and Peace. 

This is a book I picked up from a filled bookshelf labelled free when I was walking Jace around the neighborhood. I hesitated to take it but thought it might be fun. 

The book consists of short entries (three to ten pages) of various persons including Richard III, John Wilkes Booth, Edgar Allan Poe, Robin Hood, vampires, and doppelgangers. It was convenient to have short things to read before going to sleep, but I just didn't think this book was worth my reading time. 

Books and More Books

In 2020 at the beginning of the pandemic, I made a list of books in the house; I had 19. At that time, the library was closed and I didn't know how long that would last. 

I decided to make a new list of books I currently have to read.

Unread books from the 2020 pandemic list

Unveiling the Edge of Time Black Holes, White Holes, Wormholes by John Gribbin

Cosmic Coincidences Dark Matter, Mankind, and Anthropic Cosmology by John Gribbin and Martin Rees

The Elegant Universe super strings, hidden dimensions and the quest for the ultimate theory by Brian Greene

The Sagas of Icelanders with a preface by Jane Smiley

Unread Free Books from a house on Magnolia Street

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd 

Strange But True Mysterious and Bizarre People by Thomas Slemen: partially read

Unread books from the July Pequot Library sale. 

Social Crimes by Jane Stanton Hitchcock

She Walks These Hills by Sharyn McCrumb

Mystic River by Dennis Lehane

In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez

The Alienist by Caleb Carr

Elizabeth of York: A Tudor Queen and Her World by Alison Weir

Unread Books from the May Pequot Library sale

The Fire by Katherine Neville

Mansfield Park by Jane Austen

Sonnets from the Portuguese by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Unread books from Westport and Wilton Library Sales 

All This and Heaven Too by Rachel Field

The Last Czar The Life and Death of Nicolas II by Edward Radzinsky

South The Story of Shacketon's Last Expedition 1914-1917 by Sir Ernest Shackleton Edited by Peter King

A Treasury of Railroad Folklore the Stories, Tall Tales, Traditions, Ballads and Songs of the American Railroad Man Edited by B.A. Botkin and Alvin F. Harlow: I doubt I will ever fully read this book, but I couldn't resist this. 

Unread Book from 2021 Wilton Library Book Sale

Katherine of Aragon The True Queen by Alison Weir

Unread Free Books from Norwalk Public Library 

Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

An American Marriage by Tayari Jones   

Formerly abandoned but not forgotten

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

That's a total of 23 books. They will keep me busy.

Two Weeks with Jace

Thursday marked two weeks since Jace came to live with us. It's been fun but challenging. We've settled into a routine. We usually get up between 6:30 and 7. I wash up, brush my teeth, and dress. He waits patiently. We do a long morning walk--about 45-50 minutes. I like to try new routes around the neighborhood. Today we went to Oyster Shell Park. 

When we return, I give Jace breakfast. Then he usually veges on the couch. We've been going out for two or three walks each day and a few pee breaks. He always wants to walk. He is mostly friendly with all the other dogs. Mimi who lives on the third floor is an issue. She won't stop barking when we meet and Jace does the same. Last night I took him out for his last break a little earlier to avoid running into her at 10. 

Jace has met Dylan and Jack twice. The first time Dylan leaned down from the wall (and invisible fence boundary) and Jace put his front paws on the wall to get closer. It was so cute. Thursday we saw them again. Jack looked vicious, baring his teeth. He always barked at Lola but never looked so mean. Dylan is a sweetheart. Just by walking down Highwood Avenue, we ignited a chorus of barking of the street's dogs. 

On Thursday at Oyster Shell, I saw an egret, swans and a hawk. I followed the hawk around to get some picture. Unfortunately, this was the best I could get. 

Looking forward to exploring new places with Jace. 

A Dialogue

My writing class has been on hiatus: our last summer class was August 15. We start next Monday for a 10-session class called Phiction Writing--fiction inspired by photographs.

I told myself that I would continue to write during the break. Then I didn't. I wrote in my journal five times and wrote 12 blogposts (this will be 13) but not what I intended.

Last night I was sitting here watching the Mets lose (boo) I suddenly imagined/heard a conversation between two men and wrote it down. It's 263 words of dialogue between a musician and a reporter. 

Is it a short short story? I don't know.

Is it part of something longer? I don't know.

I'm just glad I wrote something. 

Monday Musings: Disappointments

A few things have changed since my last post--and not for the better. 

Jace was diagnosed with and treated for whipworms. Additional treatment may be required. We might have to hold off on some vaccinations which means we can't start obedience/training classes. I'll have to check what we can do on our own.

Unfortunately, we also learned that Jace is is not a good restaurant dog if other dogs are present. On Wednesday afternoon after we saw the vet, we went to Sedona Taphouse for a drink and sliders, and Jace was good. The key point is that we were the only people there.

On Friday, we stopped at Space Cat Brewing after attempting to refill our growlers at East Coast Kombucha. East Coast was closed. Then Jace barked so much in the taproom, we left before putting in our order.  

Our lunch at Sedona Taphouse the next day with my brother and his girlfriend didn't go well either. I took Jace to meet the other dogs thinking that would stop him barking. It didn't. Now I've become the asshole with the dog was doesn't obey. Sigh.

Then there are the Mets. The Dodgers series feels like it was weeks ago. The Mets did beat the Washington Nationals Friday night 7-3, but lost the next two games, 7-1. Losing a series now to the Nationals. It's scary disappointing. The Braves are now only one game behind the Mets. The Braves are scary good.

I'm scared. 

More Thoughts for a Thursday

I have many things I want to write about even though I am tired. I felt the same way last night and kept dozing off as I tried to finish my post. I wanted to write more about the Mets game but couldn't find the performer's name on the Mets website. Later I literally fell asleep with my fingers on the keyboard. 

Today was my first productive day of the week. I did five loads of  laundry, went to the gym, took Jace's fecal sample to the vet, and walked Jace three times. My dinner was kind of half-assed, but you can't do everything.

Jace surprised me today. First, he slept until 7:55. Then, instead of a quick walk early in the  morning, he opted to go around the block. 

I usually get up between 6:30 and 7:00. Jace has been waking up between 6 and 6:30. I've been tired all week thinking that getting up a little earlier was the problem. I said I should go to bed earlier. But I felt pretty good today. We'll see what happens.

Jace has been with us for one week. It's been fun, but he's annoying at times. (I can just hear Jeff saying, "Not Jace!") I need to research dog training; the vet had a recommendation.

The Mets beat the Dodgers today 5-3; the Mets won the season series 4-3. That's something to celebrate. 

I was disappointed with Tuesday's loss (4-3) especially because Max Scherzer missed an opportunity to get his 200th win. I cursed at Francisco Lindor for his ill-advised steal early in the game. 

Wednesday's game was awesome: deGrom's performance, a homerun robbing catch by Brandon Nimmo, and a live performance by Timmy Trumpet heralding Edwin Diaz. It was fun; it was electric. I said to Jeff, "He better not blow the save." As a Mets fan, I wasn't alone (read down.)

Tonight Chris Bassitt prevailed, the Mets won 5-3.

LGM! 

I need to write these posts earlier in the day.