This week has piled on like no other week. Everything seemed almost manageable until the dog had a skunk encounter on Thursday night; now, we’re just barely hanging on. But another week is almost here and we have to do at least what we already know what we have to do. There will also be the Things To Do That We Can Anticipate, the Things We Won’t See Coming, the Things We Forgot We Had To Do, the Things We Need To Do For Other People, and probably several other categories. And if none of them have to do with skunks, we might be able to handle it.
I also have quite a lot of reading to do: the reading assignments for class, the extra books I’m reading to investigate a particular line of student development theories, the reading I’ll need to do to research a development theory for which I need to develop a class presentation, the daf yomi (a page a day of Talmud), my daily poetry reading, the works of Eric Temple Bell, and the gathering-dust volumes of the Impossible Read.
Some of these tasks have been complicated by the rather inevitable degradation of my glasses frames and the need for a new eye exam (bright and early tomorrow morning, thank goodness) and a new pair of glasses. Maybe a repaired old pair as well. (Maybe not.) But when I made the appointment, the optometrist’s office said that my last appointment was sometime in 2019. So that’s when I got my “new” glasses, which I broke last week. The older glasses — which I have been wearing so I can drive, but don’t work when I want to text something using my phone — are of course older than that. I’d call the previous optician but it was Shopko, which has been gone for several years.
Another thing that Eldest and I are starting to take care of is the process of getting connected with a new primary care physician. Ours (yes, we had the same one) left the practice at the end of July, which was right when we were out of state for a week’s vacation. We didn’t take care of the matter right away when we returned, and now it’s a pressing issue. But do we opt for a shared doctor again? And the same clinic? Something definitely needs to be done, but we’re not sure exactly what.
This is all to say nothing of the dog, who detected and attacked a varmint while on his Thursday evening walkabout after dark. The varmint turned out to be a skunk, and its mild deployment of chemical weaponry has left an impact on our home that we continue to feel smell, albeit mildly. We are spraying every fabric in reach, as well as the dog. We are washing everything over and over. We are airing out the house and the car and the garage. Is it enough? When does it end? Well, the walks after dark have ended — at least in areas that aren’t already illuminated.
There have been some things that almost happened but thankfully did not come to pass. On Friday morning I was driving down Main Street, getting a vibe that the large car in the next lane was going to swerve into me. Eventually, it did move over on me. I found my horn in time and I can guarantee you that the drive will be checking their side mirrors for the rest of their life before they even consider making a lane change. I can’t imagine the degree of difficulty I would have right now if I didn’t have a working car. So NOPE, crashes aren’t happening, not on my watch.
However. When I look back to last year at this time and think of the desperate family crisis I was marshalling every resource to manage, following which my house had no running water to speak of, after which my car died, I can take a look at the current situation and count piles of blessings. My family members are healthy and happy, with some life improvements on a nearer horizon than any of us expected. I have running water at my house, and I can wash my own laundry as many times as I need to. My new car runs well, has a great horn, and is big enough to hold the typewriter desk that I bought off Craigslist today for $20. I own thousands of books, and I have friends who buy more books for me.
Who could want even one more thing?
Most of the things that happened this week are really Other People’s Stories and it wouldn’t be ethical for me to share them here. But I can talk about this new-to-me typewriter desk that I picked up. Yes, I did get one more thing.
The desk I bought in June features an adjustable platform which can be raised or lowered depending upon the depth/height of the typewriter.
The desk I picked up this weekend has an entire center section that flips to either reveal or conceal the typewriter, and it’s drilled so that the typewriter can be bolted to its base.
This new piece will receive some cleaning and repair, as well as stripping and refinishing. I don’t plan to keep it in its hybrid natural/green/white state, but there is something to be said for a dramatic color contrast in the center area when the typewriter becomes exposed. What color combinations seem good to you? Or should the whole piece be painted or stained the same color?
I don’t know when I’ll be able to start working on this project, since I don’t have a heated interior workshop and the garage is on the verge of becoming absolutely inhospitable for the winter. But I do want to know what you think sooner rather than later.
Knitwise, I’m still thinking about knitting instead of knitting. Boo!
Chocolate Sheep 