My week, let me tell you about it
Mb invited me for Chinese food on Tuesday. We discovered when we got to Melbourne that her favorite Chinese Buffet has closed. Oh dear...we ended up at Cici's Pizza, which is AYCE. Mediocre pizza, but the price is right. Also, I discovered they have free wifi for the win.
Wednesday, J and I had a dog. It's a myth that you can't teach an old dog new tricks. You certainly can---IF you know how to go about it. However, teaching an old owner? Forget about it. This one was boohooing about not wanting to be "mean" to the dog. *eyeroll and gnashing of teeth* Having rules and letting the dog know what they are is NOTNOTNOT being mean. So we doubt we'll hear back from this one. It's the dog I feel sorry for.
Got confirmation about house-sitting next weekend, oh yay! I said YES quite smartly. I know they're having work done on the house, but I'll deal with that. I need the money AND the change of scene and air, glorious air! I'm also looking forward to a nice, flat driveway so I can clean out my car, which is a hot mess, literally. I'm also hoping I can scrape together a few nickels and see The Expendables 2, which is my kind of movie.
More running around with J on Thursday, including her comping me lunch at Five Guys Burgers, which was fabulous. I honestly couldn't remember the last time I had beef. They were really sweet. When I said that the fries weren't very fresh, the counterperson immediately made us a fresh batch. Mmmm! I'd go there a couple times a month, if I could afford it.
Friday, I was kinda fatiqued from all the running around of previous days. I did some laundry, not much else.
Yesterday was canasta at J's, and it was a hoot. The first hand we played, I was getting skunked. J, her BFF and I were playing cut-throat, which is every player for herself. We got down to the bottom of the deck, and BFF got the last card in the pile. In the variation we play, the next player, which was me, can take another turn if they're able to pick up the pack of discards. I lamented that unless BFF discarted something I could use, I was screwed. BFF waved around the cards she had left; the highed value card she had was an 8. "They make lovely discards," I said breezily...and she promptly discarded it. I pounced. BFF couldn't believe it. J was laughing her ass off. I just smiled and completed a wild-card canasta from the pack. It was an awesome moment. I didn't win, but it put me in second place.
The second hand, the deck was getting low, not more than two or three turns left, and I just wasn't getting the cards I needed to complete sequences. I sorted things and realized I could go out if I didn't draw anything too unfortunate on my next turn. Sure enough, I got cards that would work with what I had, and proceeded to go out. There was some fussin' and cussin' for sure! I won that hand neatly.
When I got home, around 1AM, an odd thing happened. I walked into my living room, and it felt a little cleaner than I expected. Nothing had been moved, the elves hadn't magically come in and tidied up for me, it just seemed less dingy, more welcoming. I have a long way to go, but I could tell that there's been progress.
Today was church. The speaker was someone who's new, and she gave an interesting talk about the erosion of civil rights. Hospitality was plentiful; there was a Buddist retreat at the church this week, and there were plentiful leftovers. Enough that we all ate, and most of us got more to take home. I have a bag of salad greens, a bag of cooked brown rice, two onions, some grape tomatoes and two hard-boiled eggs. Woohoo, I'm set for the week!
.
Wednesday, J and I had a dog. It's a myth that you can't teach an old dog new tricks. You certainly can---IF you know how to go about it. However, teaching an old owner? Forget about it. This one was boohooing about not wanting to be "mean" to the dog. *eyeroll and gnashing of teeth* Having rules and letting the dog know what they are is NOTNOTNOT being mean. So we doubt we'll hear back from this one. It's the dog I feel sorry for.
Got confirmation about house-sitting next weekend, oh yay! I said YES quite smartly. I know they're having work done on the house, but I'll deal with that. I need the money AND the change of scene and air, glorious air! I'm also looking forward to a nice, flat driveway so I can clean out my car, which is a hot mess, literally. I'm also hoping I can scrape together a few nickels and see The Expendables 2, which is my kind of movie.
More running around with J on Thursday, including her comping me lunch at Five Guys Burgers, which was fabulous. I honestly couldn't remember the last time I had beef. They were really sweet. When I said that the fries weren't very fresh, the counterperson immediately made us a fresh batch. Mmmm! I'd go there a couple times a month, if I could afford it.
Friday, I was kinda fatiqued from all the running around of previous days. I did some laundry, not much else.
Yesterday was canasta at J's, and it was a hoot. The first hand we played, I was getting skunked. J, her BFF and I were playing cut-throat, which is every player for herself. We got down to the bottom of the deck, and BFF got the last card in the pile. In the variation we play, the next player, which was me, can take another turn if they're able to pick up the pack of discards. I lamented that unless BFF discarted something I could use, I was screwed. BFF waved around the cards she had left; the highed value card she had was an 8. "They make lovely discards," I said breezily...and she promptly discarded it. I pounced. BFF couldn't believe it. J was laughing her ass off. I just smiled and completed a wild-card canasta from the pack. It was an awesome moment. I didn't win, but it put me in second place.
The second hand, the deck was getting low, not more than two or three turns left, and I just wasn't getting the cards I needed to complete sequences. I sorted things and realized I could go out if I didn't draw anything too unfortunate on my next turn. Sure enough, I got cards that would work with what I had, and proceeded to go out. There was some fussin' and cussin' for sure! I won that hand neatly.
When I got home, around 1AM, an odd thing happened. I walked into my living room, and it felt a little cleaner than I expected. Nothing had been moved, the elves hadn't magically come in and tidied up for me, it just seemed less dingy, more welcoming. I have a long way to go, but I could tell that there's been progress.
Today was church. The speaker was someone who's new, and she gave an interesting talk about the erosion of civil rights. Hospitality was plentiful; there was a Buddist retreat at the church this week, and there were plentiful leftovers. Enough that we all ate, and most of us got more to take home. I have a bag of salad greens, a bag of cooked brown rice, two onions, some grape tomatoes and two hard-boiled eggs. Woohoo, I'm set for the week!
.