Thursday

 A fun day! No, we didn't go to the parade or attend the fireworks, activities that are not high on my list of wanna-dos, anyway. After breakfast, Ellen suggested we take a short hike up in the hills. and off we went. Later, the temp would nudge a hundred, but in the morning, it was just pleasantly warm.in this lovely area:

The two of us--intrepid!

We sat for a bit to rest poor El's bad knee and here's Mimi:

Back at El's, she cleaned the grille and otherwise prepared for The Chef's arrival while I lazed around. Greg came after work and he and I went to Bart's Books (El passed), which I always enjoy. We were there for an hour or so, happily reading (I bought one on the Laci Peterson murder), then we drove the short distance to Greg's present home* to  drop something off. Back at El's, the two of them worked on dinner: he cooking, she setting the table and so on.

Oh, mama, was that good! The sea bass was just superb and the side dishes** were to die for. After that, we had one of our intense games of gin rummy. I'm trying to be modest here, but must proclaim that I won because of my consummate skill and unmatched card shark superiority--or maybe I was lucky. Anyway, it was great fun. We then said goodbye to Greg--I'll drop in to see him at the Rainbow Bridge one of these days--and settled down to watch first some fireworks at the Rose Bowl, then the ending of a 45- year-old Twilight Zone starring Howard Duff.

To bed and slept soundly. I leave today via the Access Van after a lovely, lovely time thanks to one of the people I love most in the world.

* Greg lives with the founder of The Rainbow Bridge, where he works--long story on which I won't elaborate.

** The sides: an artichoke dressing of the main course and a tomato/onion combination that sounds ordinary, but with Greg's addition of seasonings--he's a master of this, which can often make or break a meal-- was just wonderful.  

Wednesday

 Ellen picked me up shortly after 11:00 and we drove to Diane's. She was out front waiting and I was somewhat startled to see her hair--the usual attractive silver, but with flip-ups on both sides. Actually, it was a wig and we three got a good laugh about it. 

From there, it was the Urban Café, where we sat outside and El treated us to lunch. I wish I had thought to take pics of the three of us, but we were so busy talking, I didn't. However, when a man came walking by, I was so intrigued by his shirt that I asked if I could take his and  he was pleased to agree:

Hmm...could he be Jewish, maybe? 

From there, we went to Diane's apartment, which she has wonderfully decorated in a kind of exotic, but pleasing, far eastern style. She and Ellen got deep into "spiritual" topics and I was a good girl, mostly keeping my mouth shut. Actually, it was enjoyable. In lieu of what I should have taken yesterday, here's Diane a few months ago:  

This illustrates her high-born lady persona; I guess the flippy wig was Diane as teeny-bopper.

We left about 3:00 and drove directly to Ellen's. She showed me the former guest room, which she's having renovated. Since it can't be used yet, she had the bed moved to the front room temporarily and that's where I'm staying. She then had a few things to do and I indulged myself by watching several episodes of Jeopardy. El made a good dinner of chicken, sweet potato fries, and broccoli, which we enjoyed along with Margaritas. 

Greg came over at 8:00, bringing some things to put in the fridge, as he's going to be making dinner for us tonight.  He said it will include artichokes and sea bass and that's all I needed to hear--yay! I was so pleased to see Greg. I realize he and Ellen are not in the same place they were, but they're friends and that's good to know. 

Tuesday

Slept until 5:30 again, I'm happy to say. I'm also happy to say that Suzanne texted that she has tested negative, still feels a little tired, but is much better. Called Stella and she invited me to the botanic gardens--we'll go some day next week. Otherwise, did this and that, then made lunch and bused to town. I stopped in a few shops and found these wooden boxes at the thrift store:

I like the old fashioned look of them and have plenty of small items to store.

It was quiet in town and I enjoyed lunching at my usual place across from the mission. Home at 4:00 and, in my current lazy lady mood, watched T.V.--a story on the disappearances of gay men in Canada.

Talked to Ellen and she'll pick me up at 11:00, then we'll get Diane, then lunch at the Urbane Café. Because neither the buses nor the Access Van operate on the fourth, El suggested I stay over at her place on Friday, also. Okay, sounds good, but I must remember to call Cheryl to tell her I won't be going to T.O.P.S. tomorrow.

Darn, I forgot I have my suitcases stored in Ellen's shed; I'll see if she can bring the smaller one. Otherwise, I'll have to use one or both of my large cloth beach bags. 

Monday

Yesterday made up for poky Sunday. I left at 10:30 for the Soaring Spirits lunch at the Stone Fire Grille. I usually walk Telephone Road and bus the rest of the way, but a bus wasn't due for a while, so I walked the whole way. That totaled 2.1 miles. Once I reached the shopping center where it's located, I deviated to Kohl's, where I have a gift card. Didn't see anything I wanted to buy and traversed to the other end to Barnes & Noble. I was there a good 45 minutes, trying to find an address book, as my current one is filled. Finally had a manager help me, but it was difficult for her, too. I then stopped at Sprout's and bought two big containers of blueberries. By that time, it was noon and I went to the lunch. 

As ever, I had a good time. Most of the regulars were there: Vera, Susan, Roice (a man), Renee, and the English woman  with the unusual name I can never remember. Gayle wasn't, as she was on one of her perpetual cruises. We were there until 2:00, then I bused to the transit center. Got off at the post office, as I needed overseas stamps. I then walked to the Von's shopping center, stopping into CVS to pick up my meds. Suzanne had texted me, asking if I'd get her RX at Von's (I might switch there), so I stopped there next and picked it up. 

Vickie had texted that she'd leave some homegrown lettuce (from a friend of hers) at my door, but I stopped over there and picked it up. By that time it was 4:00 and I was ready to relax. Did so by re-watching Fatal Attraction on Netflix. Yoicks, that was some movie. It's 37 years old, but still packs a wallop. 

I saw an ad for Shameless Snacks on Facebook and ordered some to the tune of thirty-seven dollars (am I nuts?). They're gummies and don't contain sugar, so I'll give them a try.

No plans for today; maybe I'll call Stella. Or maybe not.  

Sunday

Slow day. I followed the Sunday routine: took my osteo pill; stripped bed, washed sheets, re-made; enjoyed the crossword, and stayed in for lunch. I then walked to Wal-Mart for citrus and several other  items, including turkey franks, which I had for dinner and were good. Not much else went on except:

1. Lorraine, dizzy neighbor called at 7:00 am to talk about our even dizzier neighbor, Michelle. 

2. I steeled myself and viewed about eight minutes of the "debate." First of all, the set was incredibly tacky, looking like a D-level movie or something. Second, the performances were incredible. How anybody could vote for either of the low-class jerks is beyond me. Trump wore his usual street corner gang persona and Biden was obviously reciting some crapola he had been force-fed. He's so clearly incompetent to be mayor of Upper Japip, Alabama, let alone.... I just couldn't stand watching any more, but I wonder if Julian Assange was mentioned. I'll see if I can look that up. The overall impression I took away was a conviction that the empire is crumbling, as all empires do.

3. Showered and washed my hair.

4. Watched a documentary on the Bamber murders (U.K.) and after that...

5 Slept well, which is my best news.

Saturday

Left at 9:30, bused to the mall, then walked the mile to the hospital to meet Diane at 11:00 for early lunch at the hospital. We settled into a table, she bought her meal (but accompanied it with her apple juice bottle of white wine, of course) and I unpacked mine. We remarked on how strange it was that this large dining/lunch room was so sparsely filled; I'm not sure where all the employees eat. Anyway, we settled in and were there for three hours--we never seem to run out of discussion topics. We walked back together to the transit center and caught our respective buses home. I'll see her again on Wednesday when she, Ellen, and I meet at the Urban Café.  

I didn't feel like doing much when I got home, so guiltily watched the rest of Loving Elvis on Prime. That made me sleepy and I lay down for a half-hour nap. Little else of note went on, aside from cooking up a pound of broccoli, having some for dinner, and stowing the rest in the freezer for later. 

I forgot to mention yesterday that, while I was at T.O.P.S., I got a (AI spoken) text message from Suzanne, sent to Vickie and me that, she has COVID. (These messages come through my hearing aids.) Of course, V. and I texted her back, asking if we can do anything. I hope it's a mild case. 

The debate: I still haven't steeled enough myself to watch a re-run, so haven't seen it. Maybe I will today. The thought crossed my mind that there may be some kind of collusion between the two parties. Maybe they made deals or trade off or something. How could that possibly be so? Because politics is show biz, folks and there's a lot going on behind the curtain.   

No particular plans for today; maybe I'll stick my nose to the grindstone and do some cleaning. 

Or maybe not. 

Friday

Unfortunately, the weight report is--well, weighty. I was up 2.8 at home and 2.3 at T.O.P.S., so 127 and 127.6, respectively. I know why, but am not too worried; at least, I'm still in my comfort zone. (Hmm, that sounds familiar--maybe I've said it before?) Anyway, Lora picked me up and besides us, there were Lennie, Sharen, and Bev. We had one of our therapy sessions, even veering into politics and the current idiocy: Trump is the devil incarnate and Biden is a good guy doing his best. That got my pacifist juices flowing and I even used some naughty language. Including the F word? Of course. 

Didn't get breakfast until 10:30; after, I did a color wash, than had lunch before busing to town. Stopped at the post office for overseas stamps and waited in line for twenty minutes, then decided the hell with it, I'll get them later. I do like the main Ventura P.O., though; it was built the same year I was born, (practically the middle ages for California) and has some wonderful murals:

Went from there to the library and browsed around, then stopped in a few shops. It was a nice day and pleasant to be there. 

Took the bus back to the mall/transit center and went to Target for blueberries (I like to have a good amount in the freezer) and paper towels. Home, I put together the meal my older sister had told me about years ago. You just cook up a pound of pasta (I used shells), add a can of peas, and a can of tuna fish in oil. Mix and you have it. I guess you could eat it cold, but I prefer it as a hot dish. Ate half and froze the rest for later. 

Jim called to say that, thanks to me and directing him into CNN on his computer, he had seen the debate and it was "sad" and "terrible." I thought I'd look at the re-run, but lost interest. Maybe I still will, not sure. 

I'm almost afraid to mention this, but it's so good, I will: I've been sleeping well the last few nights. I've been getting in more walking and trying to stay up later. Will continue.

Early lunch at the hospital with Diane today.