Monday, September 5, 2011

Labor Day weekend! Wow! This has been a good one. I was off Friday, so this is has been a 4-day weekend for me...a chance to rehearse retirement!!! That's coming up really fast -- November 29 will be my last work day, at least at my long-time employer. Not sure yet how I feel about that - many mixed emotions. I've been a recognized player in my particular chosen field for quite some years - going to feel odd to be unemployed. But, I've been looking for other work...something easy, part-time, not another career.

So, what's been happening? August was full of quilting/sewing classes and I guess I got burned out 'cause I haven't touched anything resembling sewing in a couple of weekends! I'll get back to it, just needed a break.

It has been way too hot to do anything here in Texas, but now that it's September we're hoping for cooler weather and rain. Texas is on fire everywhere it seems. We need rain so badly. We've lost about all of our landscaping due to the drought.

Friday morning we went to IHOP for breakfast and then on to the grocery store. I don't normally do the shopping, but I have grown sick of the nasty stuff DH has been putting together and calling meals! I don't want to see anything that resembles any kind of pasta or sauce again for a very long time. To avoid that I put together a menu and bought groceries and have been cooking this weekend. I made a really good tuna salad for sandwiches...DH complains because I don't put globs of mayo but otherwise he likes it. It's made with tuna, diced apple, green onion, boiled egg, almonds (or pecans), and sometimes I use pickle relish. I don't eat pickles so this is added to the part eaten by others, not mine!

Yesterday we went to West, Texas to the Westfestival. Oh, my God! It was so hot. We went through the vendor areas, had a lemonade with sausage on a stick, and shared a funnel cake. We saw it all in a couple of hours and then went back to the car. We had to break down and load the scooters (both mobility scooters) and the heat got us really badly as we did it. I didn't think Ken was going to recover. We sat in the car in the A/C for a few minutes before we were able to drive off. and then K got choked on a drink he was sipping to try to rehydrate and got into a coughing spasm. That coughing spell went on for what seemed a good half hour, with us having to pull over in the downtown area of West because he couldn't continue to drive. Thankfully we were finally able to continue. We stopped at the bakery in West for potty break but we bought no breads, pastries, etc. We usually buy several items and then throw them away a few days later because we don't eat them! I decided not to do that this time.

I didn't get to sleep Saturday night until about 2 a.m., had a bad night, and then woke up to slamming doors, the dogs barking, etc. Yep, Ken gets up early and he makes so much noise and causes the dogs to make so much noise that there is no sleep for anybody around here. I got up in a really nasty mood.

I planned to make peanut butter cookies today (meaning Sunday, which was really yesterday but I haven't gone to bed yet and it's almost 1 a.m.). I couldn't just go in the kitchen to make cookies, I first had to CLEAN the kitchen. You see, my husband doesn't work, but he doesn't DO anything while I'm gone to work either. Oh, he puts the dishes in the dishwasher but he has no idea that cleaning the stove, countertops, sinks, faucets, etc., is part of cleaning the kitchen.

Anyway, finally got the kitchen cleaned, started getting out ingredients, figured out that I had no soda. Ken went to the store so I wouldn't have to. I made a royal mess making that dang cookie dough! The big mixer (inherited when my MIL passed away) wasn't strong enough to mix the dough and the beaters work in the center of the bowl and weren't doing anything. I finally gave up, electing to use my hand held mixer -- not to be found. Finally spotted it in the cabinet way above the stove/microwave in the back behind pitchers. No way could I get it down. Had to get K to get it -- I fail to understand why things I use get put way up in the sky like that!!! I am 5'5" tall, NOT 6'3". But he never thinks about that. I used to have a little ladder that I kept in the kitchen because it's how I got things down - but youngest daughter walked out with that many years ago. The replacement we have is not nearly as sturdy.

Cookoes got made, cooked to perfection, taste wonderful, kitchen cleaned back up. I napped on the sofa and didn't wake up until almost 5 o'clock!! I made chicken and rice - cooked the chicken with pineapple, a little brown sugar, lemon juice, Worchester sauce, a splash of orange juice, and a box of Herb and Butter rice. Fixed some steamed vegetables with it and called it dinner. and now I have stew mix in the crockpot slow cooking through the night so it will be ready for tomorrow. I don't plan to cook anything but breakfast in the morning.

Monday (today/tomorrow - it is, after all, after 1 a.m.) I plan to do my laundry so I can go back to work, and then sew all day. I dread going back to work...it seems so pointless but I still have things I have to do. It's really going to be hard to say goodbye...unfortunately, even if I stayed, it wouldn't be the same. You see, the people I've worked with for such a long, long time are leaving, too.

Ok, now off to bed - where I will toss and turn until at least 3 a.m. Goodnight all.