12 Oakdale

I’ve planned a quiet and relaxed 74th birthday. I’m up at my usual 5:00 AM, made coffee, fed the cat, done my ab exercises. Now time to read magazine articles and learn one more bird order (28 down; 3 to go, unless the ornithology people reconfigure the groups, which they seem to be doing, now that DNA testing is widely available. My next project is to learn the passerine families. Might be possible.) Breakfast, then some yard work to finish weeding and trimming the west poolside bed. The weather has turned coolish, low 70’s, so I don’t have to be out at o’dark hundred. I’m cutting most of the salvias way back, to encourage more flowering. At the same time, I don’t want to cut back too much because all the bees, wasps, and flies still need places to feed. A delicate balance. After lunch of the very last of the Thanksgiving leftovers, we’re going to the Garden Theater in Winter Garden for Moonshine and Mistletoe: An Appalachian  Christmas Tale . My review will be posted later. Then ...

It wasn’t raining when I left the house, however 3/4 of the way through my 20 minute jog, it began to pour. Since there was no lightening, I decided just to slog along even when I got to the 5 minutes of cool down. I was already soaked, so there wasn’t any need to rush. I’m certainly not going to get hypothermia this time of year. In fact, I was a little warm in my long sleeved Goofy race shirt. It has been raining for the past two days. We got 1 1/4” Wednesday and 3” yesterday. Today is supposed to be clear, which the Town of Windermere is certainly hoping. Tonight is Light Up Windermere when they ceremoniously turn on the “seasonal” lights. Not to be outdone, several families in town have already put up and lit their Christmas decorations. What happened to Thanksgiving?  I am quite pleased with my progress with my Couch to 5K app program. Five weeks down, 3 to go, then I plan to run the Santa Twilight 5K in downtown Clermont, December 13th, amid the twinkling lights. Today was th...

A quick trip to California for Bella’s birthday party, flying Alaskan Airlines nonstop out Thursday evening and the red eye home Sunday night. Travel is getting back to normal with some people still wearing masks, most not. I’m just hoping the kid in the seat behind me who threw up was airsick, not contagious. Too late to do anything. On the other hand, if being around 6 kindergartners and their younger siblings Saturday afternoon didn’t do us in, I’d say our immune systems are working fine.  For the party, Mary made mini cupcakes which I frosted. The kids decorated them with sprinkles as a party activity. She also had small white paper bags which they colored on and stuck on stickers for their take-home goody bag. In it, we tucked a paintbrush and their plastic pallet which had held their sprinkles. She’d decided no candy since everyone had so much left from Halloween.  Ryan had planted big bubble wands in a couple of large pots of dirt so they didn’t dump over and lose all t...