5 Things Friday #17

When I was a kid we made woven paper heart baskets, fill them with violets from the yard and hang on neighbors doors thinking they wouldn't know who did it LOL. Today I wish you a happy celebration of Spring and many baskets of happiness.

Another ordinary week with small ups and downs. That is not a bad thing, but one of the up and down sequences was especially annoying.

I have made all possible changes to lower our car insurance bill including slogging through the 8 hour AARP Safe Driving Course (I did learn some things but really you don't have to repeat everything 3 times!), but then hit a curb driving through a construction detour and got a flat tire. AAA roadside service worked really well, but we have to buy a new tire for a car we've 2 months. One step forward and one or more back. Walking that afternoon I found a penny not that that helps much lol. 

Feeling one step forward, one or more back.

1. I kicked off the weekend by getting Hubby to walk my assigned route with me to distribute campaign literature for a Yes vote on funding for a new library. Go us!

2. We offered to host a Mother's Day brunch at our house for our son and DIL and are waiting to see if that works for all involved. 

We took our son and DIL out for lunch on Thursday for a belated birthday celebration (he's 43 - going by fast) plus early anniversary gift for them and sat outside as it was a beautiful sunny Spring day. 

3. I finally got back to weekly Pilates after 6 weeks off. My trainer is back from vacation and we both are finally over being ill. Now to stick to a daily exercise routine at home. My self discipline needs a boost.

4.  I found some more things to put out in a "Free" pile on the day of the citywide May 16th Spring yard sale. Decluttering never ends and getting rid of stuff after you declutter is hard.

5. I ordered some lightweight clothes from Quince & Jill - several types & sizes of lightweight crop pants & crop jeans plus a top. Free returns on all as I'm trying to have just one order. We'll see if anything fits and suits me. Fingers crossed.

5 things Friday #16 - What occupies your mind these days?

It wasn't the best of weeks as I was sick one day and very low energy a couple of others. Since there is so little to report I thought I'd share some of the things we have been chatting about lately to focus on our little piece of the world instead of talking about the state of our country and the worldwide impact.

I know we are not alone in trying to balance being informed and focusing on what is near and dear. So here goes some not deep conversational topics!

1. Why does the contractor redoing the sewer lines in our area park their large dump trucks and other equipment on our narrow cul-de-sac overnight and on weekends rather than one of the wide streets nearby? They block one lane coming into the court. The project has to be at least half over so this won't last forever thank goodness.

2. Does the dog have a game he invented to engage us in play? He takes his favorite little lamb stuffed toy, places it somewhere he could easily reach it, and then barks until we come and "rescue" it. I call it the "Help, help - Timmy is stuck in the well" game. A Lassie TV show reference if you are too young to know!

4. What can we do for an outing or entertainment? Mostly initiated by me. Repeatedly.

5. And lastly, we had a discussion last week that turned out to be a learning experience about why do we all say pots & pans and not pans & pots. After we threw around our theories (mostly that pots were invented first or used the most historically), I asked Google and it came up with this. So every time you say tick tock or pitter patter or hip hop and so on you can reference ablaut reduplication lol.

AI Overview

The phrase "pots and pans" is the standard ordering due to a combination of phonetic convenience (sound) and linguistic tradition (idiom), rather than a strict requirement based on the cookware itself. 

Here is why "pots and pans" is favored over "pans and pots":

• Ablaut Reduplication (Sound): In English, when pairs of words are used together, the one with the lower, back vowel sound (o) often comes before the one with the higher, front vowel sound (a). Similar examples include hip-hop, ding-dong, and chit-chat. "Pots" (o) flows more easily into "pans" (a) than the reverse.
• Idiomatic Tradition: The phrase is deeply rooted in old English nursery rhymes and sayings, such as "If ifs and ands were pots and pans, there'd be no work for tinkers' hands" (recorded from the mid-19th century).
• Hierarchical Order: Historically, "pots" (larger, deeper vessels for boiling) were often considered the primary or larger kitchen vessel, while "pans" (shallower vessels for frying) were secondary, leading to a "large-to-small" ordering. 

While the order is interchangeable in context, "pots and pans" is the conventional English idiom. 

The week ahead - A little carryover plus more

A tiny shrub now in the back yard to replace one that died during the winter

Will get as big as its relative in the front yard. About 4 ft high and wide.

I did complete quite a few things on last week's list. We went on our outing, bought a plant to replace one of the 3 that died this winter and got it in the ground. I went and watched the 3 year old's swim lesson while visiting with my DIL and older granddaughter. I walked or did yard work 5 days and we did a good job on eating leftovers - pretty much the usual.

I also went to a meeting for people supporting the initiative to fund a new library in the city. The vote on that is during the upcoming primary elections on June 2nd.

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Carried over to this week

Finish mopping floors - both bedrooms and both bathrooms left.

Shop for a couple of nice lighter weight pants outfits for Spring/Summer.

Decide if I am going to start drawing again. I should take inspiration from the 9 year old grandgirl who carries a notebook with her to write poetry and stories and make pencil drawings. She just crosses out any she doesn't like and keeps going. My perfectionism gets in the way.

Added to the list for this week

Son's birthday celebrated in some way. He's a low key guy about his birthday and only wants family to celebrate.

Decide if I am going to sign up for any recreation center summer programs. Line dancing lessons for seniors perhaps? The completely refurbished lap pool opens at the beginning of May so it just might be time to get a new swimsuit and take water aerobics (and meet some people) or private lessons to get my stamina and technique back a little bit.

Listen to a debate by the top Governor candidates for the primary election.

Get a haircut.

5 Things Friday #15 - Day trip & brother is moving

The Victorian ranch house where John Muir and his family lived for 24 years. His FIL built it and ran a 2600 acre fruit ranch and medical practice from there.

 

Got this at the visitor center. I didn't know he walked from Indianapolis to the Gulf of Mexico starting in 1867. One of my ancestors walked & took small boats to go from Illinois to Mexico to fight in the 1846-1848 Mexican American War which has always astonished me but also made me realize it wasn't unheard of.

A sign in the Slow Hand BBQ restaurant where we had lunch. Love it!

1. We took a little drive on Thursday to see the John Muir House in Martinez, CA and to have lunch at a BBQ place nearby. We also went to the waterfront park, salt marsh and marina for a walk. Loved watching the flock of little marsh wrens skittering about.

I mostly knew of John Muir in relation to Yosemite and the Sierra Club but learned he managed his in-laws ranch and grew so wealthy doing that after his FIL's death that he retired and devoted himself to environmental issues. Strong educated interesting women in his family too - MIL, wife and 2 daughters. We liked the town of Martinez so much that we are going to find reasons to take more little trips there.

Here's a link to the overview video shown at the visitor center - A Glorious Journey

2. My brother has a full Spring and Summer and it sounds as if it is stressing him a lot. He turns 80 this summer and they are moving to an apartment in a continuing care retirement community. That means downsizing to a home 1/3 the size of their current one. They have a full attic on top of New England things like maple sugaring equipment, etc. We had a nice long phone chat about that plus some memories of our parents and updates on our kids and grandkids. I both do and don't wish I was nearby so I could help! 

3. I'm trying to keep my spirits up by rationing my exposure to the dreadful news and instead focusing on what I can do locally. So we now have a yard sign supporting the financing initiative for a new city library to replace the tiny, seismically unsafe one build in 1949.  I am considering volunteering to help at an info table on Earth Day and to pass out fliers.

4. I've done what I can to reduce our auto insurance bill for now. We dropped rental coverage, increased our deductible for comprehensive coverage, and I completed AARP's Safe Driving Course for a small insurance discount. It's not a lot of money off each 6 month bill, but is worth it over the 3 years of the accident penalty. I'll pay the bill at the beginning of April and then decide if it is worth the effort to comparison shop AAA insurance, etc.

5. The Smitten Kitchen recipe for pumpkin bread is so good! More a dessert than bread but delicious. We've also been extra good about using up leftovers and fresh produce (for example; tomato sausage risotto from dinner at son's, tofu with broccoli & red peppers). No problem using up the pumpkin bread lol.

The week ahead - Day trip, back to projects and more

We had a lovely family dinner last night, the rain has stopped as have the cold winds, and my bruises and deep cut have healed. It is a new week. Time to find some energy and get on with it. A few ideas then -

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We will go to Matinez to tour the John Muir House historic site, have lunch and walk along the waterfront.

Back to my house project of mopping the wood and tile floors. It’s half done and past time to finish.

Time to get outdoors again with long walks and/or light yard work 5 days. I do like having a destination for walks alone and there is a library book to pick up plus I could visit the neighborhood market for some sourdough bread or the coffee shop for a latte.

Perhaps I’ll pick up a shrub to replace one of the three that have died this winter. We have decided on 2 but the other one will be ordered and delivered.

I want to start drawing again. I’ll make it easy and do a few simple pencil sketches of objects in a notebook.

We have leftovers available for 3 dinners. For the rest it would be nice to try something different for one. I also want to make pumpkin bread.

Time to shop for one nice lightweight outfit for warmer weather. Why have I been putting this off?

 

5 Things Friday #14 - An unremarkable week

Hope you all enjoyed last weekend whether you celebrate Easter or not. We spent time with my DIL's extended family and got to see the kids have fun finding plastic eggs with treats in them and then hang out until dinner. Our dog and another joined the party and had a good time.

Otherwise, it's been an unremarkable week -

1. In the "it's just money" category - 

I found a quarter while walking the dog in the nearby park. Up $0.27 for 2026 lol - it is fun to find these small amounts on dog walks. Not sure who drops money because hardly anyone here uses it anymore. 

We got a refund check for $9 as the Honda dealer overcharged us for registration for the new car. 

Got the bill for car insurance reflecting the accident. Yikes. 40 years with Allstate with no claims and no consideration of that. I do realize part of the increase is having a new car and adding collision coverage as a result. Making a couple of tweaks to the policy for small savings and I will be shopping around to see if we can do better.

2. The holes made in our street to upgrade the sewer lines were filled with the final asphalt. What a project coordinating all the steps to complete this project for the large area of town that they have been working on. Glad to have attention to aging infrastructure.

3. We are getting a decent rainstorm coming through starting in the wee hours of the morning today.

4. Today is "date night" for our son and DIL so we get to hang out with our older granddaughter for the evening which is a joy.

5. We have decided to take a local field trip next week and visit the John Muir House National Historic Site and then go out for lunch. We are calling it our anniversary gift.

5 Things Friday #13 - Mending a toy & myself

Help! I'm coming undone!

1. Cute little Squishmallow needed stitches. I was happy my granddaughter asked if I could fix it. Years of experience repairing dog toys pays off.

2. Apparently we weren't done with accidents. Friday I tripped on a stepping stone in our yard and hit a stone edge with my right hand when I fell. The stone was driven into my hand leaving a very impressive bruise and a jagged gash in the area below my thumb. Nothing broken & I got myself up so we doctored it at home. It is healing fine, but boy did that hurt. Moral of the story is don't wear flip flops outside even if just going out a for a short time! Already knew that but ...

I did actually learn something though. Given the size and location of the bruise I looked up how to help one heal. Ice for the first 48 hours and then heat to help the blood get reabsorbed. I didn't know about heat for a bruise. It did help.

3. Six swim meet events in two days. That grandgirl is understandably tired, but her strokes looked good and she beat her previous times. It is hard to go up an age group and be one of the youngest again. She has a good attitude and has fun.

4. After Sunday's swim events we went to our son's and DIL's for a late lunch and family time which was fun.

One of the murals we saw in the area of the restaurant

5. Our plan to combine exploring a bit locally, using a gift card from Christmas, and going out for lunch last Friday was cancelled by my fall. (I had to pause Spring deep cleaning too - sad/not sad!) We went out Monday instead and it was fun to see a different area nearby plus have some good Mexican food for lunch.