2019 Life Logs, Day 55:  Getting Ready for Knee Surgery
Date:  Sunday, February 24, 2019
Weather:  Overcast; High 46, Low 33 degrees F
Location:  At Home in The Cottage, East Falmouth, MA

Tomorrow is the big day.  I head to Hyannis in the morning for the much anticipated knee replacement surgery.  And I spent the entire day today getting everything ready for my return return home.  I did more cooking, went to the laundromat, got a walker, crutches, and a cane in place and ready to use when needed, and I talked to and texted with a lot of friends wishing me well.  I got emails from friends far away—Lynne in New Zealand, Linda in Australia, Patsy in North Carolina, and Veronica in Virginia.  Olivia drove over to bring me an early birthday card, Karen and Midge sent texts, and Christina who had a knee replacement almost two weeks ago called to give me a last minute pep talk.  Bruce and Jane Woodin called from Florida and the Kanegsbergs called from New Hampshire.  I had calls and texts from various family members, a Skype video call with Justin, Ziggy, and Coco, and then dinner with Heather, Jed, and boys.  It was a busy day!  Heather will be at the hospital tomorrow during my surgery and will stay to get me settled in my room.  And then Justin will arrive on Wednesday to bring me home.  Thank you, thank you, thank you . . . to all for your support.

2019 Life Logs, Day 54:  Indoor Gardening
Date:  Saturday, February 23, 2019
Weather:  Overcast; High 41, Low 30 degrees F
Location:  At Home in The Cottage, East Falmouth, MA

Since there was no sunshine outside today, Heather and I made sunshine inside by planting the first seeds for our 2019 vegetable gardens.  I bought and put together my indoor greenhouse shelves two weeks ago.  I ordered seed planting trays and installed grow lights.  And then today, I turned the living room into a seed planting operation, bringing the garden soil and seed starter potting mix inside and turning my coffee table into a work table.  I started filling each of the cells in the planting trays with the just right mix of soil and waited for Heather to arrive to do the planting.  She figured out which things needed to be started today and which ones we will plant later.  I wanted her to do the planting because last year I noticed that the seed trays she planted had a much better germination rate than the ones I planted.  She is meticulous and seeds must like that.  It is a bit unconventional to have a greenhouse in your living room, but I think it looks great.  The shelves are located in front of the two large windows on the front wall of the living room so the plants will get natural light as well as the light from the grow lights.  Some seed trays were not planted today, but they are ready to plant when the time is right.  Other than this project, the rest of my day was in preparation of my knee surgery.  I got the call yesterday telling me to be at the hospital at 9:15 am on Monday and that the surgery is set for 10:45.  Heather and I will both drive to Hyannis so I will have a car there for Justin to drive when he arrives on Wednesday.  Heather will work in the waiting room during my surgery and make sure I’m all settled in a room before she heads home.  The hope is that I will be released on Wednesday so that when Justin arrives from Puerto Rico, he can drive me home.  He’ll take the bus from the airport in Boston to Hyannis and then walk or get a taxi to the hospital.  At least this is the plan.  Now I just have to make sure I am a good patient and can get out of the hospital as soon as possible.

2019 Life Logs, Day 53:  Day with Goldpebbles, Evening with Friends
Date:  Friday, February 22, 2019
Weather:  Mostly Sunny, Still Warm; High 43, Low 27 degrees F
Location:  At Home in The Cottage, East Falmouth, MA

I spent my day with the Goldpebbles and my evening here at the cottage with friends.  I call that a win-win day.  The boys had a laid-back day, just enjoying the last day of winter vacation.  They still have the weekend before returning to school, but they don’t count weekends since they are not school days.  Jonah and Ollie stayed in their pajamas until the afternoon and thoroughly enjoyed their pajama day.  Sam was leaving late this afternoon for a two-night Scout ski/snowboard weekend, so he spent time packing his bag.  Jed is taking Jonah and Ollie skiing tomorrow, so they laid out their clothes as well.  And all three boys practiced their instruments.  Sam on drums, Jonah on electric guitar, and Ollie on violin.  I hear a band in the making.  I got a couple of photos of Ollie practicing violin—just too cute. Then when Jed got home, I scurried back to the cottage to get dinner ready for our Newcomers Dining-in group.  There are usually 9 of us, but tonight we were only 7 as the Woodins were not here.  It was great to be together . . . a great group of friends.   Bruce and Jane, we missed you.

2019 Life Logs, Day 52:  A Day with the Goldpebbles
Date:  Thursday, February 21, 2019
Weather:  Sunny and Warmer; High 45, Low 31 degrees F
Location:  At Home in The Cottage, East Falmouth, MA

I spent most of my day with the Goldpebbles.  They played at home all morning and then we came to my house for lunch.  It was a beautiful day with high temps in the 40’s, but that made it messy as the snow was melting and everything was slushy.  While Sam and Jonah spent time inside, Ollie was outside shoveling slushy snow.  Then we headed to the cottage.  After lunch, the boys helped me get the new seed planting trays I ordered unwrapped and on the shelves, ready to plant.  Then we headed into town.  I had a 3 pm technology class, so Jed met me there and took over childcare duties.  Tomorrow will be more of the same and then tomorrow night my Newcomers Dining-in group will be coming for dinner.  So, I’m headed to bed early to get ready for a busy day.

2019 Life Logs, Day 51:  A Day in the Kitchen
Date:  Wednesday, February 20, 2019
Weather:  Overcast, Still Cold; High 29, Low 27 degrees F
Location:  At Home in The Cottage, East Falmouth, MA

Not much to report today, as I spent most of my time in the kitchen.  But I do one have one bit of happy news.  On my way to the gym this morning, I stopped by to get a first hand report from the Goldpebbles on their snowboarding adventure in Maine during the past four days.  All three boys were unanimous that it was a fantastic trip.  Sam and Jonah had a snowboarding lesson during over the Christmas vacation, so they got a running start on this weekend.  Ollie had never been on either skis or a snowboard before, but both Sam and Jonah boasted that their little brother was a natural on the slopes.  To see all three boys so animated and excited was the highlight of my day.  When I returned home, I worked on preparations for a dinner party I am hosting on Friday night and on starting batches of sauerkraut, kimchi, and dilly beans to ferment.  Justin called and we had a long phone conversation and got to say hello to Ziggy.  When we hung up, I got on my computer to research a couple of things and then I got one of those very scary screen notices that said repeatedly that if I didn’t call the number on the screen, Microsoft was going to shut me out of my computer as it had been breached by a virus.  I was pretty sure this was a scam, but I quickly called Heather and had her listen to the repeating message.  She was able to look up the source on her computer and confirmed it was a scam, but she sent Jed over to double check on things.  Thank you, Heather and Jed, for guiding me through this.  These notices on your computer seem so real.  I can see how so many people call the number given on the screen, and then end up giving financial information that can lead to disaster.  I’ll spend most of tomorrow and Friday with the Goldpebbles since it is school vacation week, but not a vacation week for Heather and Jed.  Looks like it is going to be mostly sunny and warmer tomorrow, so it will probably be an outside day.  Looking forward to it.

2019 Life Logs, Day 50:  ‘Girls’ Night Out
Date:  Tuesday, February 19, 2019
Weather:  Sunny and Cold; High 33, Low 18 degrees F
Location:  At Home in The Cottage, East Falmouth, MA

It was a gorgeous day ending with a great ‘girls’ night out.  When all of the females in a group are 70 or older, I don’t suppose I should refer to them as girls.  And that was emphasized when we got to the restaurant for dinner and decisions on seating were made based which ear you hear better out of.  The reason for the outing was to celebrate Midge Frieswyk’s birthday and she was the one that pointed out that there was a time when you chose where you were going to sit to have a clearer view of the good-looking guys at the bar, not based on your hearing disability.  That comment brought more than one chuckle!  But once we settled on our seating positions, we had a lovely birthday dinner in a colonial setting in the Scargo Café.  This dining venue was chosen because it is just across the street from the Cape Cinema where we were going for a 7 pm showing of an independent film about Pablo Picasso in his youth.  The Cape Cinema in in Dennis, which is about a 45-minute drive.  That’s further than we like to go for evening celebrations, but just going to sit in this art deco theater is a special treat.  The Cape Cinema was founded in 1930 and the exterior was modeled after a Congregational church.  The theater interior has individual arm chairs upholstered in tangerine-colored suede and a 6,400 square foot mural covers the ceiling representing the heavens.  The theater specializes in independent American and international films and is a Cape Cod treasure.  Great evening.  Happy Birthday, Midge.

2019 Life Logs, Day 49:  A Little Snow
Date:  Monday, February 18, 2019
Weather:  Snow and Icy Mist, Mostly Cloudy; High 37, Low 17 degrees F
Location:  At Home in The Cottage, East Falmouth, MA

For the second time in a week, it snowed.  We got a little snow overnight and into the morning, but then it turned into an icy mist.  There is still some of today’s snow on the ground, but not enough for sledding.  I have heard from Heather reporting that the boys are enjoying their time on a snowy mountain in Maine, so at least they have had a couple of days of winter fun.  They return home tomorrow evening as Heather has to get back to work early on Wednesday.  But the boys have the rest of this winter vacation week to enjoy.  I have had three days with no appointments and no commitments, but things pick up again tomorrow.  So, after three lovely, lazy days, it is time to get back into the fray.  But that will end on Monday with my knee surgery.  I visited with a friend this afternoon that had a knee replacement last week, and she reminded me that I will have many days without a whole lot of movement after the surgery.  Lots of time to read and recover.

2019 Life Logs, Day 48:  Another Beautiful Day
Date:  Sunday, February 17, 2019
Weather:  Sunny and Cooler; High 36, Low 27 degrees F
Location:  At Home in The Cottage, East Falmouth, MA

It felt a little more like winter today, but with that sun shining most of the day it felt warmer than it was.  I basically had a repeat of yesterday with exercise, guinea pig feeding at the Goldstones, biking at the gym, and more grocery shopping.  I added a trip to the pet store for fish and guinea pig food and some basic house cleaning.  It looks like we are going to have two or three more days with high temps in the 30’s, then it will go back to the 40’s.  I think most people around here are waiting for the winter weather shoe to drop sometime in March.  But I’ll just enjoy the mild weather we are having for now.

2019 Life Logs, Day 47:  Saturday My Way
Date:  Saturday, February 16, 2019
Weather:  Beautiful Day; High 43, Low 23 degrees F
Location:  At Home in The Cottage, East Falmouth, MA

Today was a beautiful, low-key day.  The sun was shining, it was warm enough that coats were not necessary, and I had nothing that I had to do other than feed the Goldstone’s guinea pigs.  It was a Saturday ‘my way’.  Although everyone who knows me would never think a low-key day would be my kind of day, I actually relish those rare days.  I normally live a pretty fast-paced life, but days like today give me a chance to focus on the glories of the simple things in life.    I got up, did my morning exercises, and communed with the baby fish in my aquarium while feeding them.  Then I headed to the gym to ride the stationary bike while listening to music choices chosen by Sam and Jonah.  I love listening to their music as it makes me feel closer to them and is reintroducing me to music.  I did some food shopping, and then finalized the sale of the dinghy, motor, and trailer that I bought for Heather and Jed in 2017.  Since we have never used it, we decided that selling it to someone who will really use it was the right thing to do.  And it will still be in the ‘family’ as I sold it to Sam Patterson who sails with Bruce and Jane Wooden.  So, by mid-day, I had made a little money and exercised and bought food to keep me healthy.  All good things.  I spent my afternoon buying seeds and organic potting soil to get my indoor garden started, came home and continued working to get the grow lights installed in the shelves that will be my indoor greenhouse, and then had a nice visit with Karen and Peter Baranowski who dropped by.  I went to Heather and Jed’s to feed the guinea pigs and then came home and did some cooking while watching the Grammy Awards.  I know.  The Grammy’s were on last Sunday, but I recorded the program and watched it tonight.  In the late 1980’s, my niece Lynn came to visit and made the pronouncement that I had absolutely no pop culture knowledge.  She was right then, and it is still true today.  But when she called me last Sunday to tell me the Grammy’s were on, I did at least record the program and then watched tonight to catch up on my pop culture knowledge.  I knew the name Alicia Keys, but really didn’t know who she was.  Watching her emcee the Grammy’s gave me a chance to get know more about her . . . so talented.  And I was blown away by the voice of Brandi Carlile.  Thanks to my niece for persisting in the challenge of getting me to expand my pop culture knowledge.

2019 Life Logs, Day 46:  Gearing Up for Knee Surgery
Date:  Friday, February 15, 2019
Weather:  Mostly Cloudy, Afternoon Rain; High 53, Low 28 degrees F
Location:  At Home in The Cottage, East Falmouth, MA

I headed to Hyannis this morning for my pre-op appointments at the hospital where my knee surgery will take place on Monday, February 25.  Then I drove down the street to meet with my orthopedic surgeon’s assistant to get his final approval for the surgery.  Now I’ve met with all the players and will just wait another seven days for knee replacement day.  Since my knee gets worse every day, all of a sudden I can’t wait for this surgery that I never wanted to have.  I am ready!  In addition to finishing up the required pre-op appointments and tests, I was also able to pick up my little Honda Fit.  She now has a new front door and looks like new.  I was very excited to have my little car back, but when I picked Ollie and Jonah up from school this afternoon, they were disappointed that I no longer had the rental car.  The rental was a Nissan Altima, and in terms of comfort and electronic gadgets, it was far ahead of my bare-bones Fit.  The boys loved the cushy seats in the Altima and the little screen that lets you see behind you when backing up.  And they loved that the car started by pushing a button, not with a key.  I don’t even have a remote ‘clicker’ to unlock the doors on my Fit since I lost it in a field searching for milkweed for the Monarchs last fall.  Maybe it is time that I order a new one, but they are not cheap.  It costs almost $300 for a new remote ‘clicker’ for a Honda Fit.

It will be lonely around here for the next few days.  Next week is winter vacation week in the schools here, so Heather and gang are headed to a family ski resort in Maine so the boys can have a couple of days of snowboard and ski lessons.  Heather has to be back at work early Wednesday morning, so their time is limited.  This afternoon all three boys were very excited about the trip north and will enjoy what time they have to learn new skills of negotiating a snowy mountain on skis and snowboards.  Have fun, Goldpebbles (and Heather and Jed)!