12 Oakdale

The first day of our seventh year at 12 Oakdale Street. I hope this will be similar to the previous ones, with no surprises. At our age, surprises are rarely good. I will keep on shedding stuff, being optimistic about how much I will accomplish. I also continue shedding weight, since some crept back, definitely no surprise. Baking and eating sourdough bread has consequences. Will this year be when I get rid of all the grass paths? Sure, why not? Could happen. The freeze gave me an opportunity to rethink some of the plantings I’ve done. I will continue adding to my hedgerows on the north and especially south property lines. Since the lychee died back, I’m moving more bananas along the canal. Eventually that 2-story house will be built across from us. Grant is slowing down, although he is still doing his 2 mile, somewhat daily walks. I use a lot of my energy being patient (that’s definitely ironic). Sometimes I’m successful, often I’m not. A growth edge it would behoove me to work on. Bi...

2023 has started with deep fog and temperatures in the mid-60s. A lazy morning to begin our new year. Grant remains abed, recovering from his cold, which produced a copiously runny nose and not much fever. I’m debating whether I’ll get it. Everyone is so twitchy about even the slightest cough. We are supposed to go to Fort Lauderdale tomorrow for a brunch with our covenant group, so we both need to be well. We will decide whether to go or not when Grant gets up and assesses his health. I want to see our friends, some for the first time in 2+ years; I don’t want to do the drive down and back. I stayed up last night to watch the Sugar Bowl, which Georgia won at 12:01 AM, 42-41, when Ohio State’s kicker missed a short field goal. The earlier Fiesta Bowl was a slow game, with TCU rolling over Michigan 51-45. For dinner in front of the TV, Grant broiled scallops and shrimp which he served with rice and a cucumber-radish salad. I put out a plate of all of the remaining Christmas cookies we’d...

We really thought we’d stay up this year and ring in the new year. On the agenda was the Cotton Bowl at 3:30 PM in which out-of-it’s-league Cincinnati did much better than expected against Alabama. Final score: Cincinnati 6; Bama 27. Could have been much worse. Next up, the Peach Bowl at 7:30. My plan went away when Georgia got a touchdown on its opening possession and never looked back. Final score: Georgia 34; Michigan 11. I’d quite by halftime. Grant had wandered off to play his computer game. We’d eaten my onion tart with a bottle of American sparkling wine during the first game, and Grant’s black eyed pea salad with seltzer during the first quarter of the second. Desert was a shared Kris Kringle cookie (formerly known as Santa’s Winter White) from Gideon’s Bakehouse. Off to our respective corners, me to continue my binge of Episodes , a decade-old sitcom being retired by Netflix on January 4th, and Grant to manage his dragon quest. By 11:00, we were in bed.  The Town of Winder...