The Week that Was

We had a bit of a weather cooldown on Tuesday. It was still hot, but bearable, so I was able to log in a mile around the complex.

Saw that a unit, which had recently been vacated — the resident located elsewhere on the complex, has an obvious new resident. Obvious because the previous resident wasn’t this kind of decorative.

Elsewhere on the complex was this creatively decorated patio.

I'm guessing this is where those people relocated to.

While sitting on the patio, I’ve often grabbed the phone to take a pic of my favorite sight — my two elderly boys on the walkway but, slow walking as they are, I've not been able to get to the phone quick enough to capture a photo … that is until on my walk that day.

The boys, who look like they could be twins, do not live together. At the end of the walkway, one hangs a right, the other a left. So, I don’t know how they came to be such seemingly close friends …… always together.

I may have to one day come up with an excuse to approach, while the two are sitting outside the gate, engaged in their favorite activity of watching traffic go by, start a conversation, find out what their story is.

I bet drivers passing by, seeing not only the two boys but often other residents, sitting on walkers, with nothing better to do than watch traffic go by see it as sad.

I, on the other hand, think us residents to be content, at peace. Don't need a lot of what those driving by have and do to make us happy, feeling blessed just to be able to sit and watch the world roll by.

Wednesday was another day of bearable weather.

I’d planned to watch the eclipse that day, eclipse glasses at the ready.

Then learned, California would experience no visible eclipse activity as the path was restricted to far northern regions — Alaska, Canada. So, I decided instead to join the Usual Suspects in the Community Room for crafts but took the long way around …… twice around the complex to log in another mile.

Told myself this was doable …… that I could, at the very least get up and out, manage one mile a day, so long as the weather cooperated.

That motivation lasted about as long as you readers probably expected, as today is Saturday and I’ve not been out walking since Wednesday.

Oh well.

I didn’t participate in Wednesday’s craft session, just watched, took photos for the residents’ facebook page, as they made picture frames using stencils, plexiglass, cardboard.

As for what I’ve been doing locked in my unit, other than watching Korean and Chinese Dramas on TikTok and Facebook, lusting after the handsome young Asian men I see on the screen, I’ve been finishing up yet another scrapbook …… one I started in '23, which chronicles my own personal activities, got sidelined due to the birth of great grandkids, making books chronicling their activities.

Once my '23 book is finished, the plan is to do one more, that will cover my activities between then and now, which I sense will be the last chronicling my own personal activities.

The hardest part of scrapbooking is coming up with a title page. I've come up with a system where I sometimes make the title page look like magazine covers, like this one ……

Since this next book will be the last of my personal activities, I'm thinking of doing something with one of the few photos I have of my toddler years, titling it HOW IT STARTED.

In addition to scrapbooking, I've also been throwing together tropical wear for the Resident’s End of Summer Event.

Not finding, in storage, the grass skirt I’d previously made, I grabbed raffia when I was at the craft store purchasing that Venus Flytrap and, in between scrapbooking and lusting after young Asian men in K/Cdramas, building a skirt.

Also, while at the craft store, I looked for blocks and letters to arrange in 8647, but didn't find anything usable.

The fact is, I tried, LOL.

So, anyway, as I was saying …… in addition to scrapbooking supplies, there's currently grass-colored raffia everywhere.

Still not sure I’ll actually have the guts to wear the skirt … won’t know until the day of; but if I don’t wear it, it will turn into Skelly the Skeleton’s outfit for this year’s Halloween patio display.

Second of Halloween

Seems I had a senior moment and forgot to post Skelly in that last post, so here he is relaxing on the patio in what is once again extreme heat.

It’s a good thing Skelly has no skin, or he’d be getting one heck of a sunburn.

When I was out and about after Monday’s workout, I found myself behind a car that had the coolest license plate.

If you’re a fan of Starwars, you’ll crack the code right away.

You know how they say, "When someone tells you who they are, believe them"? Well, this driver is saying loud and clear who he or she is, what he or she is about, and it’s not about caring how anyone else feels.

The saying is even on the license plate.

In the Market parking lot, I ran into another one of those cybertrucks.

They're getting to be popular in this area, which Trainer tells me is because there's a Tesla plant/warehouse nearby.

Who knew?

Returning to the complex, who did I see heading to his car but UNC, the man who moved into the cursed across the quad upstairs corner unit.

We exchanged hello's, to which I added, "I haven’t seen you for so long that I thought you were gone".

Not exactly true. I didn’t think he was gone, I thought he was a goner, had fallen prey to the curse of that unit.

"I’ve got no place to go", said he.

That sounded sad, and he looked sad when he said it.

I commiserated, without knowing what I was specifically comisserating about, by saying "I hear ya. I can’t afford to live anywhere else, so here I stay".

He looked surprised, interested, when I said that, which kinda tells me he's not happy living here but, like me (though I'm not unhappy), is restricted by finances.

That was all there was to the conversation, as he got into his car to drive away, and I began removing items from mine.

The good thing is UNC looked physically okay, as though he’s beating the curse.

I'll keep an eye out for possibly changes, because perhaps the bad energy is attacking him emotionally ..... making him sad.

First of Halloween

It’s the first of Halloween!

So, let’s get this party started.

That dancing skeleton was one of many cool Halloween goodies I resisted purchasing, because I need to get rid of stuff, rather than bring in more.

Thus it was, I also passed on this bloody shirt ……

I actually could have used this knife holder all year round, but don’t have the counter space. So, I passed on it as well.

Body in a bag had me ROFLMAO, when I spotted it at Walmart. However, to put something like that in my patio display, when there is so much sickness and dying on the complex, would have been incredibly insensitive.

Already surprised I've not gotten into trouble for my skeleton, a body in a bag would for sure have gotten me evicted.

This murder cat vinyl wall decal was too cute to resist, so I bought it — but not for myself, a Halloween gift for a friend I thought might appreciate the humor.

I did spurge a little on the front door decor — dispensed with the candy corn wreath and mat I’ve displayed last few years, and this year moved over to the dark side, with an eerie twig wreath and headless horseman mat.

Then

Now

I really wanted a Wednesday Addams doormat, couldn't find one I liked, but I'm satisfied with the horseman.

Skelly the skeleton is comfortably seated on the patio, with his broom at the ready to escape, fly off the patio when triple digit heat returns this week.

Lastly, the pumpkin I won at bingo has been given a facelift with gauze and paint.

How it started

How it ended

I did not intend the pumpkin to come out so gruesome. However, inasmuch as it is what it is, I now wish I’d put 45’s face on it, blackened and bloodies its eyes and mouth.

Trifecta

I hit the trifecta at the medical center this morning.

At the center early, to get the doctor-ordered fasting blood work off my bucket list, I saw a sign for flu shots.

Didn’t realize it was time for that already but, since I was there, I went back to the desk, registered for and got my flu shot taken care of; after which, I thought I’d get ahead of having to come back for a doctor ordered blood pressure reading.

So off I go to the desk for a third time, registered for a BP test, got that taken care of.

The nurse calling those of us there for BP test, greeted with "Happy Friday Eve".

Never ever thought of Thursday like that before, and I’ve never ever heard the saying before.

Have you?

If the medical center offered the latest Moderna booster, I could have hit the Superfecta — gotten the latest covid booster, as I saw they had a vaccine station.

I keep getting notices to get the vaccine, but my provider only offers Johnson, and I do Moderna.

I have plans to go off-site for Moderna, as I did last time, but have yet to get around to it because I've been dreading the headache of fighting with member services.

Some readers might recall how it was, when last I heeded the call to get a booster, member services refused to give approval for the vaccine when the off-site center called for authorization. I paid out of pocket, then filed a complaint with the medical center because ……… what am I supposed to do when you don’t offer Moderna.

I got a reimbursement.

Before leaving the center this morning, I checked with the covid vaccine station nurse, just on the off chance Moderna might now be available.

No such luck, and she tells me, member services will no longer reimburse those of us who go off-site for Moderna.

WHAT?! …… You text message harass me to get the vaccine, but won’t approve/pay unless I go to your facility, take what you offer.

Cheap bastids.

It’s not worth the time and effort to hassle with member services. The vaccine is only $139.99, so I’ll go off-site, eat the cost.

After leaving the medical center, I stopped by a craft store for needlepoint floss that wasn’t available when I last made a run by the local craft store, and found a Halloween outfit for my patio skeleton Skelly.

I think Skelly is going to love being a witch, complete with boom, this year.

I had the cashier at the craft store in stitches. When I saw she was struggling to get the broom into a bag, I said, "Oh, don't worry about bagging that. I'll just fly it on out of here".

I could hear her still laughing as I exited the store.

Happy Columbus/Indigenous Peoples' Day

Today’s Holiday wasn’t listed on this month’s Activity Calendar, so looks like the holiday fell by the wayside and management missed another opportunity to take the day off.

In fact, but for the fact the Catalyst posted a meme of actor Peter Falk in his role as the bumbling LAPD detective Columbo, with the caption "Happy Columbo Day", I’d have missed the day as well and another opportunity to set the record straight as to exactly who it was that discovered who.

Except for news of yet another war, today started off well for a Monday.

Driving out of the complex the long way around, to check on decorated patios, I felt a tad better about the apathy of other residents seeing at least one more patio display had gone up.

Upon returning from this morning’s workout, I walked over to take that above photo, which looks to have a Day of the Dead vibe, and came across one of our bingo usual suspects setting up a display that looks to be part Halloween part Thanksgiving.

Seeing me taking photos, she motioned for me to wait; whereupon she ran inside; returned a few seconds later wearing a witch's hat.

I’m thinking the hat is a dead giveaway as to what she’s planning on showing up as at the residents' Halloween Costume Party, Friday the 27th, which party is replacing that Friday's bingo game.

With not much else going on, it's looking like the Costume Party is going to be standing room only.

I'll have to decide if I want to skip that morning's workout, so I can arrive early, take photos as costumed residents walk through the door OR if I want to make a dramatic entrance by arriving late, take whatever photos I can then take.

I'm leaning towards the dramatic entrance.

As for the patio decorations ... with the two pumpkins on patios across the grassy knoll, my display and the above two, that’s 5 out of 178 units getting with the program.

It’s a start.

So Far So Nothing

It’s been unusually quiet here on the complex.

The calm before a storm?

There is also not a lot of Halloween spirit on the place.

Except for a pumpkin on the patio of a resident across the grassy knoll, and an even smaller pumpkin on the patio of her next door neighbors — the couple that moved into the unit previously occupied by the Black Witch, my now decorated patio is the only other homage to the holiday thus far.

Skelly is in his Johnny Depp, Captain Jack Sparrow evolution — even has the requisite eye patch.

I really wanted to pose Skelly giving the bad finger; but alas, the fingers don’t have individual joints that can be posed.

The Smoker’s unit is ready for new tenants. I haven’t seen anyone come look at it yet, but seeing my dark side patio display may give them second thoughts about leasing a unit in this quad. LOL.

I imagine residents participating in patio decorating would be a different story if management hosted a decorating contest, which they did two years ago — the only time it was done in the 12 years I’ve lived here. The idea of winning a prize had residents decorating in droves but, with no incentive this year, there’s no motivation.

Halloween Day proper actually falls on a Tuesday. Perfect day for a costume party, pumpkin decorating, etc., because Tuesday is Activity Director’s day here.

But nooooo. Not even a mention other than the day blocked off with HALLOWEEN in big letters on the calendar.

What does that even mean?

Does it mean Activity Director is taking the day off?

A movie matinee has been added to the calendar — Friday, October 20, 1:00 - 3:00.

That’s suspiciously new, but there is no mention of what movie is being offered.

Who does that? … Arranges for a movie matinee but then give no information on the movie so folks can decide if it’s something they want to see.

Oh well, something is better than nothing to some of the residents, so they’ll show up. I myself refuse to play the game — prefer nothing, so I’ll pass.

Today was the first day I’ve been feeling like myself since returning from Long Beach. I was so stressed driving up and driving back, due to a now fear of driving long distances because of that tire blowout I experienced last month, that I’d been completely devoid of energy and off center since returning.

It didn’t help my energy level that I ended up with a gut episode that lasted for days because, even though I tried to be careful insofar as what I ate at the Sprinkle's brunch, I wasn’t careful enough and suffered the consequences.

I came back so not myself and so off center that I went through the whole entire of Wednesday thinking it was Friday and didn’t figure it out until 8 pm that night when Survivor came on.

Since when did Survivor move from Wednesday to Friday, thought I, when the show came on.

After pondering it for a bit is when it hit me — the day was not Friday.

I’d even walked out of the Pain Cave that day saying "See you Monday".

Trainer didn’t correct me, so I guess he didn’t hear my mistake.

Oh well. I’m back to myself today — worked out in the Pain Cave, stopped by the market after — where I found the young lady security guard gone, the hugging security guard (let’s call him Mr. Huggy) returned, shampooed the carpets and worked a little on clutter management.

It was a productive day.

BTW, I didn’t ask Mr. Huggy where he’d been or offer a friendly greeting, just kept it cool with "Hey dude". Whereupon he responded, "Hello ma’am". And that was that.

On tap for tomorrow is nothing. Since housework is done, I can just sit tomorrow and watch the world go by.

Everything Everywhere All at Once

Season 45 of Survivor begins tomorrow.

I’ve never missed a season, don’t plan on missing this one, but the thing is Big Brother has yet to conclude (I’m rooting for Matt to win) and Amazing Race is waiting in the wings ready to jump into the lineup.

What with Halloween Wars, the Halloween Baking Competition, Cookie Challenge, Outrageous Pumpkins, et al., it’s everything everywhere all at once.

The seniors had yet another food fest hosted by Activity Director today — a Welcome Fall Luncheon.

I wasn’t planning on attending, could not have attended even if I had wanted to because I was scheduled with Nora at 11:00.

Inasmuch as the seniors were being encouraged to "Wear your favorite football team to show who you’re rooting for this football season", had I gone, I’d have worn my Twilight Team Jacob tee, cause that’s the only team shirt I own.

Eleven o’clock with Nora almost didn’t happen.

I’m a punctual person. Actually, always early so as to not inconvenience others. So, arriving 10:50, I checked in, took a seat, and it really chapped my hide when eleven o’clock came and went.

I don’t know if the client she was working on was late, which pushed into my 11:00 but, along about 11:20, I had this urge to just get up and walk out.

Shame to do so, thought I, because I really liked the vibe of the salon, and loved this sign on the salon wall.

I knew that, had I walked out, it would be another salon I can never return to so, desperately in need of a mani/pedi, I forced myself to be patient but, making the decision to be patient only for so long, set the alarm on the phone to 11:30 and, if not called to Nora’s station when the alarm went off, I’d get up, walk out, no explanation.

She called me up at 11:28.

Happy with the work she did, the vibe of the salon, I told myself to not be so annoyed if it happened again which, looking at the popularity of the salon, it will. So, I’ll be prepared for a wait next time with a book to read, because the work she did was worth the wait.

As you can see, done waiting for October 1 — the First of Halloween to get here, I decided yesterday was close enough and put up the front door decorations, and a new header this afternoon.

I’ll probably string the candy corn lights on the patio railing before I take off for the weekend, and return on Monday with only having spider webs and Skully the skeleton to put in place.

BTW, Nori isn’t any older than the other girls in the salon. They’re all about the same age, and are Swifties — fans of Taylor.

It’s a good thing I’m a bit of a Swiftie myself because, along with my favorite country music, they played quite a lot of Taylor in the salon, while speculating she is in fact dating that football player.

All in all, looks like I’ve at last found a nail salon and no longer have to do my own mani/pedis.

The thought did occur to me that, inasmuch as I now know Nora will likely always be running late, that I should arrive late.

Thing with that is, it would be just my luck she'd be running on time the day I showed up late.

I once did just that with a hairdresser who would stay home until I arrived ... on time, have someone from the shop call her to say your client has arrived then, after having me wait, she would leave home, arrive at the shop acting all important and stuff.

Why?

I've no idea, except it pleased her to do so.

When I decided to not play this game with her again, to not book her or return to that salon in the future, I pranced myself in very late.

She was in the salon waiting and looked shitfaced when I walked in saying I was late because I knew she wouldn't be there anyway, would have made me wait.

Too stunned to react, and embarrassed — because the other stylists were smirking at her (they knew what I'd done, why, and enjoyed the drama), she nevertheless did my hair, and that was the last of us.

I bet she learned her lesson, and never tried to play that game again with another client.

Last Call for Halloween

Yesterday being last call for Halloween, I wore my skeleton leggings to that morning’s workout.

Patio lights were turned on for the last time and today is put everything back in storage day.

It was a fun display while it lasted, only one of a handful of others. That is if you don’t count Painted Rock Lady’s display, which only went up last Wednesday.

"Why now, why so late with Halloween just days away", asked I when I saw her setting up.

She didn’t have a good answer, other than there not being a contest this year.

Whatever.

Her next-door neighbor then made an effort to get in the spirit by putting up a display — if you can even call it a display.

Red Light put her display up in a timely manner, but it was just a wink and a nod to Halloween compared to her last year’s display, which won her first prize in the decorating contest.

Two others got in the spirit without there being a contest.

Then there was the cute little Dalmatian I spotted yesterday afternoon, as he stopped by to show grandma his costume.

My pumpkin held up very well — no rotting, attracted no pests.

Pity to toss it in the dumpster.

I thought about sneaking it onto the college campus for the squirrels to have at, even offered the pumpkin to the Baker to make pies.

She says she’s buying her pies these days, rather than bake from scratch, and campus security would probably catch me in the process and lock my arse up, so to the dumpster it is with the pumpkin.

The skeleton cowboys are staying put as an all-year-round display and, while at the market, I saw another skeleton I could not resist.

This skeleton very much resembles Jane, the Lead Attorney I'd blogged about as being one of three female attorneys who made my working life miserable.

The skeleton carries that same haughty stance as Jane AND even the boney leg peeking out from a slit in the skirt reminds me of the day she wore a skirt to the office that had a slit up the side. Erroneously thinking she looked sexy, she walked around sticking her boney leg out to show the slit off.

She only wore that skirt once, so I imagine she got the message how ridiculous we all thought she looked.

A subsequent visit to the market brought home a sister to sit beside that skeleton.

In the throes of an obsession with skeletons, I would have taken this guy home as well, except he was a display, not for sale.

Yesterday was Day 22 of Mildred’s 30 Songs in 30 Days Competition — "A song that moves you forward".

My long deceased ex-husband tried to trap me in the marriage by attacking my sense of self. Telling me that no other man would want me and I couldn’t make it on my own without him.

Thinking to myself that if no other man wants me, I don't want you!, I managed to escape him and, not only did I attract more than my fair share of male suitors thereafter, but I supported myself and my babies with no help from him.

Now a senior, fortunate enough to still attract male attention — albeit unwanted attention, living on my own, paying my own bills, making my own entertainment, there are too many songs celebrating the independent forward moving woman; but the one that's like a slap in the face to insecure men who try to hold women back by telling them they can't make it without them is one by Runaway Jane that makes me LOL and think of my ex rotting in his grave while I'm still out here doing my thing.

It also makes me think of when my neighbor Handsome Man made his pitch for our hooking up by saying it would make things easier for the both of us.

I was thinking easier how? inasmuch as I'm not lonely or having a problem supporting myself.

Today’s challenge is "A song you think everybody should listen to".

Edwin Starr told us what we needed to hear back in 1970, but inasmuch as there’s one going on now and a possibility we’ll be drawn into it if things go nuclear, Starr’s warning bears repeating.

Jokes on Them

I had three packages go missing recently ─ two on September 30, one on October 1.

The way it works around here is that the mail carrier puts packages into a lockbox, then puts the key to the lockbox in our mail slot.

A good system.

However, the system is only as good as the mail carrier. So, if the mail carrier puts the key in the wrong mail slot ─ which unfortunately often happens when we get a substitution for our regular mail lady, deliveries go awry.

Of course, when I get a key, open the lockbox, find that the package is not addressed to me, I walk it over to the correct unit.

Unfortunately, that does not always work in reverse.

Whoever was getting my packages in error in the past has been the recipient of makeup, bras, a $50 creative memory cover set (that is no use to them without the insert pages), and now two photo deliveries and scrapbook paper.

No way of tracing who received the items ─ unless I catch them with what they’ve confiscated. All I could do and did was file a complaint with the post office — which goes nowhere, does nothing and reorder the items. Only this time in reordering, I paid a lot extra (more than the price of the actual items) to get the photos and scrapbook paper shipped by a carrier, rather than trust the USPS not to screw up again.

The bright side of this latest snafu is that the joke’s on the person who is willing to set themself up for karmic retribution for not doing the right thing because the box the scrapbook paper arrived in is deceiving.

The box is rather large and gives the impression of something grand and glorious inside.

Consequently, it’s tickling me to no end to imagine the disappointment when the person opened the box, saw it was pretty papers they probably have no use for, can’t sell, and the other two packages are non-descript photos of no value.

Joke’s on them.

Except for a rather large jack-o-lantern gracing the patio of a unit across the grassy knoll, I’ve not yet seen any patio displays other than mine and Red Light’s, but it’s early still. So maybe other displays will pop up closer to Halloween.

It appears Wrong Way Witch’s broom has returned to the scene of the splat down.

Actually, I missed seeing a broom so much that I made one by twisting masking tape to look like a handle and gluing straw as the bristles — straw I plucked from a decorative straw bale I had in the trunk of the car (Don’t ask. Besides ... doesn’t everyone keep a big ole bale of straw in the trunk of their car?).

I actually wanted to use a twig from one of the trees as the broom’s handle, but the landscapers and tree trimmers did such a good job of cleaning up the property after the flash flood and on their usual landscaping days that there wasn’t anything on the ground and nothing I could reach in the trees.

Looking online at the witches that did have a broom, the masking tape and straw looks every bit as legit.

More incline training this morning, after which is bingo.

I actually haven’t been feeling bingo lately and somewhat resent wasting the time away from my unit, but bingo is the only time I make contact with others around here, have an opportunity to get caught up on the tea, and they serve really good tea at bingo. So, bingo it is!

Say Hello to My Little Friend

Wrong Way Witch

It appears the GPS on this witches’ broom malfunctioned because, hearing a crash bam boom late one night, I looked out and found she’d run smack dab into the patio door that houses the water heater.

She either lost the broom in the commotion, or the broom took off without her.

At any rate, she’s pretty well stuck to the door for now but I expect, come Halloween night, the other witches will realize she’s missing, send out a search party, find her stuck, peel her off, revive her with some potion, and she’ll be out flying again next Halloween.

As for what else is on the patio, this is what I see from my perch on the couch.

It makes me smile.

This is what those walking down the pathway see.

Hope it spooks them a little.

I was the first in the complex to put up front door decorations, and Red Light was the first to set up patio decorations.

Thus far, it appears we’re the only two in the complex but hopefully our decorations will spur others to get with the program.

Red Light and Talker are still not speaking to each other. In fact, the Talker wasn’t present at bingo last time. Time will tell if her staying away has something to do with not wanting to be in the same room with Red Light.

Also not coming to bingo is Dream Lover. His now ex-girlfriend is always in attendance, so I’m guessing it was a test of wills to see who was going to flee. She won.

Yesterday was Day 1 of restarting incline training in the Pain Cave. Trainer set the pace at 3.4 mph, which is way faster than I ever would or could attack a hill, but I managed it, no problem. So, barring any unforeseen workout injury, I’m good to participate in the Mission Inn 5K.