Thursday, May 1, 2025

m a y . 2 0 2 5

 may-be this month we get to visit the grand-baby? 

     that's my hope anyway.  but first, here are some May flowers to brighten the morning!


     and the first D'Land Rose of the season.

     the day before mothers day my crazy chia pet hair was making me crazier, so I got my aching bones into the car (Craig was golfing, again) and went down to the close and cheap clipping joint.  they thinned out the curls and made it more comfortable, less hot.  on mothers day I got to wish Joyce her very first Mothers Day!!  and her hubby wished me the same too, sending me a text.  Craig had forgotten as he was busy getting ready for his week of golf with the boys in Palm Springs.  yup, always perfectly timed with my treatment or recovery.  what are the odds!  I went to another of the crafts and therapy sessions, and it was good chatting with the ladies there.  commiserating.  we are so good for each other!  
     I finished the pineapple afghan, and it is beautiful!  around the sides and bottom I did the picot V-stitch to resemble the rough texture of a pineapple's skin, and across the top, over each pineapple motif, I crocheted a fan crown of pineapple leaves, six in all!
 
  

     on a biz trip to the bay I planned some personal stops too.  I reserved a compact car at my usual rental place - don't want more miles on my ten year old sedan - but they had only gas SUVs and EV compacts.  so I set myself the challenge of learning about EVs!  a real crash course ... with Joyce helping a lot through texts.  I ended up downloading two charger apps, and did most of my charging at the office parking garage charging station.  the biz purpose of the trip was to move our team fax machine back to the bay area, back to where it was before I moved it during the pandemic.  as for the social, Janet needed me to check her mailbox while she's traveling, so mailed me her key and permission slip.  her mailbox people were lovely and didn't even ask to see ID.  I guess we look like we're related.  next door was a dangerous place - a yarn store! - so I got a little something I can make for Finn.  of course!  I made these two short stops on Saturday before our meet-up.  

     after I saw Janet's post about her visit, I made a reservation at the new restaurant Lira where our very own Shuffle Chef Tucker is the Exec Chef!  I mentioned I was one of her "sous chefs" and a fan, and not only did she come out to meet me, she gave me a huge hug, conversed for a few minutes, hugged me again; then she brought me an autographed menu and hugged me once more!  the food was phenomenal  - I started with a Szechuan Old Fashioned while I was looking over the menu.  then I had a wonderful beet and carrot app, followed by the perfect duck, with Bourgogne Ambroise (red wine).  dessert was a spectacular olive oil cake with pear anglais, mascarpone and a lovely candied pansy and fresh pansies.  I dined at the bar so I wouldn't take up a two-top, which meant I could stay longer than the 90 minutes they plan for.  it also gave me direct access to the bartenders who were my wait staff.  they took excellent care of me, even letting me try two different wines to pair with the duck.  the rose was nice but the red was better.  I definitely want to return! 
     then, even though I woke at 3:10, hit the road at 4:30, worked an 8 hour day, drove in Sili-Valley traffic, had a 2 hour dinner, I was still not done.  my KJ friend had a show at the American Legion and I had to go see him and sing one song.  I had a lovely time talking to a woman and her family - they bought me a glass of wine! - and didn't leave until 9:30, making it a very long but still fulfilling day!  my steps tracker said I walked 3.5 miles!  

     the following day I had committed to joining a multi county meet-up of our California Breast Cancer Support Group.  the organizers were so pleased and kept mentioning that I planned my biz trip around this event - which I did.  trying to find an open charger for the rental EV at Santana Row was no easy feat!  I met up with one of my theater moms, Rosemary, whom I haven't seen in years.  Good Food.  Good Conversation!  it was close to 4pm before I drove out of the bay area for home, wiped out but so full of good vibes from these two days! 

     the 109th Indy - the 39th since they ran it on our wedding day - was not as memorable for the actual race, but for the day-before race of six giant hot dog cars!  the actual race had way too many wrecks and cautions.  in fact, the winner came in on a caution lap.  


     that evening I went to a fund raising dinner at a nearby synagogue, where their theme was the tropics.  the Rabbi invited me to sit at her table, and I have a lovely conversation with a young couple there.  it was a lovely evening with great food and company.  the chef even gave me his recipe for watermelon poke! 


     I gathered with my work colleagues for a proximity lunch event.  the first place I was going to reserve stopped serving lunch, so I recommended we go to the new crawdad place on the lake.  everyone seemed to like it, and we had a lovely time relaxing on the deck, conversing, and eating yummy food!