#3042 weekend wrap-up

spring snow

It has been a quiet and relaxing weekend at my house. The photo above was taken on Thursday afternoon after a quick but fairly generous snow storm. It is said that April 16 is the average last day of snow for the season in SLC, which would be fine with me. We had a really dry winter, so any water helps. I'd be fine if the water coming from the sky isn't white, though.

Friday was clear, cool, and sunny. MT went for a hike then left for Pocatello. He is painting the outside of the new property, and he'll be back tomorrow afternoon. I decided to go see a movie because why not? I went to see You, Me, and Tuscany. It was exactly the eye and mind candy I needed. The people and the setting were pretty, the premise is a little sketchy about how the woman gets to Tuscany and the shenanigans involved, but it's total chick-lit-rom-com shenanigans. Along with popcorn and a soda, it was a nice way to spend a couple of hours.

T and I have spent the weekend watching the NBA playoffs. I don't really have a favorite team in the playoffs overall. The Utah Jazz are not in the playoffs. They were terrible this year and actually got in trouble for "tanking" - losing on purpose to try to get a higher lottery pick. Disgraceful. This is not the Jazz front office of old, and Larry Miller is probably turning over in his grave. I am a long-time Jazz fan and I could barely stand to watch the team play this year. Sad.

Yesterday I swapped out my winter clothes for my summer clothes. While I was at it, I culled the wardrobe, but truly, I still have a boatload of clothes, way more than I need or wear, especially now that I am not working. (Although, if I'm being honest, I usually wore the same few things all the time.) I have a dream of putting together a smaller capsule-type wardrobe, but I'm afraid (or something) of getting rid of too much and of keeping too much. I know I'm being ridiculous, and all I really have to do is remember the vast amount of clothing and stuff that came out of the house in Dixon to encourage me to purge my own clothing and stuff, but it seems to be much harder to do that to my own things. <<sigh>>

Let's see what's on the agenda for next week. The 22nd is Earth Day, and the 24th is Arbor Day. Friday the 24th, I've got a volunteer assignment at The Garden because they are having Arbor Day festivities. I haven't been able to do daytime assignments in the past, so I'm happy to be able to do this! It's supposed to be a nice day on Friday, too. I'll also go up on Tuesday to record blooms. The 23rd is World Book Day, which doesn't really mean anything special to me because every day is Book Day in my world.  

Time to sign off here to do some art. I read a lot today and took a little nap, so I didn't do the art I was planning to do earlier. Have a great week!
 

#3040 the start of volunteer season and my art

this month's wee calendar

 Is it possible it's already nearly the middle of April? Sheesh! Those first two weeks flew by!

I officially began the 2026 volunteer season this week when I recorded blooms in the Children's Garden at Red Butte Garden and Arboretum on Thursday. The first entry: wild strawberries. There are lots of plants and trees blooming, so the task took awhile, then I walked around the Garden to check it all out. I hadn't been up there since December. Usually I try to go once a month, but January got away from me, then I fell and didn't feel like doing much of anything while I was healing. I have missed the place. It's really beautiful up there in the spring. The lilacs, viburnum, and wisteria are all beginning to bloom. I think it's going to be a glorious year for the wisteria. It seems to bloom spectacularly every other year. Last year's blooms were kinda meh, but the vines are already beginning to flower and perfume the air. Magical!

The concert schedule was announced on Tuesday. I'd like to have 11 or 12 shows this summer. There are eight shows I'd really like to see including Alabama Shakes, Ray LaMontagne, and Bonnie Raitt. The last time Bonnie Raitt was here, I had Covid and cancelled my assignment. Maybe this year I'll get to hear her play.

Also on Tuesday, MT and I met my friend Liz and her husband for lunch at Emigration Cafe. It was a gorgeous day! We sat out on the patio in the sunshine, chatting and eating. Crabapple trees with pink blooms lined the street and a gentle breeze blew the pink petals toward us. Afterward, we went over to Liz and Chris's house to look at their backyard. They live in a lovely, quiet neighborhood in upper Sugarhouse and the yard is a haven. It was a really nice day all around.

We are getting closer and closer to our big vacation at the end of May. Almost everything is set up and paid for. We still have to choose some tours that we'd like to do, and we will decide on those things this week. There are a few things to buy, like a European power connector for T, a sketchbook/travel journal for me, probably a pair of shoes, and a few other things. Nothing too extreme. This is gonna be a helluva trip.

I haven't been doing as much art as I thought I would, but I do have some things to show you. These are all things I made in March.

made my own little art banner :)

These first nine pieces are from prompts by Jill Badonsky.

"Seems Fishy to Me"

"Sitting"

"Picasso-style Self Portrait"

"The Road to Spring"

"Beware the Cranky Carrot"

"On the Deck"

I didn't give this one a name

This was a single line blind contour of a blooming rose

"Watermelon Butterfly"

The rest of these were inspired by Pinterest and my need to put color on paper.

I made this for my mom.

I like cats looking out windows surrounded by flowers.

I made this one for my mom, too.

I am interested in being able to show a European street.

Thanks for having a look! Have a wonderful week. Be kind and be safe.

xo

#2953 I should have taken that bet

The other night I was at the recycling station at Red Butte Garden during the Trampled by Turtles concert. It was near the end of the show and we were prepping the exits with recycle containers and garbage cans to make it easy for the guests. One thing we do is take the lids off the containers for aluminum cans and plastic bottles. It works well except that the garbage and recycle containers look similar.

One of the guests, a man, came to throw away and can and commented that there were no lids. I told him I was the human lid, and I was there to help him get his can into the right bin. He told me I was more than just a lid, so I said thanks. He asked if I knew what he meant, and I said no. He said I probably wasn't old enough to know what a lid was. 

Me: Well, I'm probably old enough, I just don't know the reference.. In fact, I'm probably older than you.

Him: No you're not. I'll bet you $100 that I'm older than you.

Me: Hmmm

Him: What are you? 42? 43?

Me: Wow thanks. No; I'll be 59 next week. 

Him: Damn! You have me by two years! I'll be 57 in a month.

Me: Dang! I should have taken that bet!

Then he went on to explain that a "lid" is an old reference to a unit of pot sold in a baggie. (MT explained it to me in more detail tonight.)

I guess I'm grateful that some dude thinks I'm more than a lid and that I look young(er) than I am. 

Happy birthday to me tomorrow :)

#2952 a whole lot of Garden time

 

Those first five months slipped by pretty quickly, didn't they? Here we are in June already! These last four days in particular have been full.

My concert season at Red Butte Garden started on Thursday the 29th. I worked at the recycle station for the Trampled by Turtles concert. They are an RBG staple, a bluegrass band that puts on a good show. It was the first time I'd seen/heard them, and I thought it was fun. It was a long day for me, though, because I worked in the office and went straight to the venue from work, so I didn't get home until late. 

Friday morning I was in slow motion, but got my groove back in the afternoon. After work that night  I went to RBG to record blooms in the Children's Garden. It always amazes me how the garden changes week to week. Last time I recorded blooms, on the 23rd, it took me about 90 minutes or so to go all through the CG. This Friday, it took well over two hours to record all the blooms. I enjoy going there in the evenings. The light is so pretty, it's a bit cooler, and there are fewer people, too. 

Guess where I went on Saturday? Yep, back up to the Garden! My sister-in-law Janet was in town to pick up her bestie Tracy from the who came to visit from Austin, TX. Those two have been friends since first grade. I think that's remarkable and awesome. They wanted to go to RBG, and I was happy to show them around. We covered every inch of the cultivated garden that we could. It was a hot day, too, with temps in the upper 80s/low 90s. It was fun to experience the Garden through the eyes of people who had never been there. They each took so many photos! We spent a good couple of hours walking around, then we went to Hog Wallow Pub to have a drink and a snack before they headed to Pocatello.

Saturday night MT, T, and I went to 'Bout Time Pub to watch Game 6 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals. The game was close while we were there, but the Indiana Pacers wound up clobbering the New York Knicks to wrap up the series and advance to the Finals where they will play the Oklahoma City Thunder. I don't have a lot of passion for either team; what I do like is that these two teams are not the same old teams that are always in the Finals. I think that's good for the sport.

Today is Sunday, so of course I was back up at the Garden this morning for my regular docent shift. It was so hot today! It was already in the upper 70s at 9:30 this morning, and in the low 90s when I left at 1:00. The air was dry and still  There weren't many guests there today, either, so it felt kind of slow. A fun thing I'll mention is that the Garden is closed tomorrow and Tuesday because Antiques Roadshow will be filming an episode at Red Butte Garden! The concert crews were already working on getting areas set up all around the Garden. RBG volunteers won't be used but PBS Utah volunteers will be working, and my friend Liz is one of those volunteers. She said she is excited to be part of it. 

When I got home I took a shower to cool off, made some tacos, and I've been sitting here at my desk messing around with the bookkeeping, my planner, and doing a little art. In May I didn't make much art, I'm sorry to say. This month I will be more intentional about taking the time to be creative.

This morning I was listening to something and one of the messages was that there isn't really any balance in the day-to-day activities as much as there is balancing. Every day is a bit different, and balancing what needs to be done with what I'd like to get done is what is at issue. I feel like in May the balance was way more to the what-needs-to-be-done side with a healthy dose of straight-up time wasting (I played a lot of games on my phone.) I need to keep in mind the question, "Is what I'm doing right now an example of how I want to spend my time?"  It's just that playing games on my beloved iPhone is so mind-numbing and easy, and sometimes I need that, too.

Looking forward to this first week of June, I've got some stuff coming up. I've got a dentist appointment on Wednesday. Thursday is my birthday. I'll likely record blooms on Friday. Saturday I'd like to stay home and relax because Sunday I have a double shift at the Garden. That morning I will docent, then that evening I will do cleanup at a concert. The artist is Ryan Bingham. He is the singing cowboy on the show Yellowstone.

Here's hoping you have a week of fun and successful balancing. I will leave you with this pic I took at the Garden this morning. The pots in the Courtyard have been changed since last week and now we have succulents. It will be fun to see how they grow during the summer.

#2948 volunteer season is here

The watercolor paint on a little project is drying, so it seems like a good time to write. 

Volunteer season is here! I had my first bloom recording session on Thursday. There were more things blooming than I thought there would be, and thinking about it, I'm surprised that I thought the way I did. The trees around here have been flowering for a few weeks now, so that shouldn't have been surprising. I don't record hyacinths and daffodils at the Garden, but there are plenty of other things blooming, like the Lenten roses, phlox and violas, as well as wild strawberry and early yellow potentilla groundcover, and of course, trees. My favorite tree in the Children's Garden at the moment is totally showing off. This is a type of redbud. I love the color of the blooms!

This one in particular is quite a cascading spreader. Other redbud trees in the garden are tall and tree-like. This one is like the Cousin It of redbuds, making it perfect for the Children's Garden, I suppose. 

There are also a few early-blooming lilacs, and the apple trees are still blooming a little, too. It felt good to be back there. Next week I hope to be able to walk around a little more. I'll probably go on Thursday night or maybe Friday. It will be May then and the hours are extended.

Next Sunday, a week from today, will be the season's first docent shift. I'll be happy to see Wendy and Tracy again. Our friend Ira who was part of our happy foursome passed away earlier this year. He hadn't worked with us for about a season and  a half because of some health issues. Now it's just the three of us. Wendy and Tracy drive the golf cart trams and I am the docent. Last year the three of us started taking a quick drive around the garden before the guests arrived so we could see what was blooming or what might be of interest so I could point guests in that direction. I like this habit, and I hope we continue it this year.

The summer concert schedule has been announced and volunteer assignments have been made. I've got 13 concerts on my calendar. My first show is May 29, and my last show is August 25. 

At work, the remodel is mostly complete. Everyone has moved into their new cubicles and the new Ops Services staff is starting to come on board. My workload is getting busy. The work I'm doing is a bit different from last year, and it's okay. I prepare myself to work around 50 hours a week during the summer, but I'd be happy at around 42 to 45. 

Okay, the paint is dry on my project, so I'm going to do some sketching on it and turn it into my wee calendar for May. I'll show it to you next week!

#2904 three things: June concerts at RBG

 

I volunteered at three concerts in June at Red Butte Garden in June. Let's recap!

1. Burning Spear is an OG roots reggae band from Jamaica. This was the first show of the year at the Garden. I worked east side recycling, so I had a nice view of the stage and excellent people-watching opportunities. The weather was nice, people were happy to be outside listening to live music again, and there were marijuana-scented good vibes throughout the amphitheater. Here is a pic I took of Red Butte Mountain during the golden hour.

the golden hour during the Burning Spear show

2. KALEO is a bluesy rock band from Austin, TX by way of Iceland. This is one of the shows that MT really wanted to see this summer. It was the second time I have seen the band at RBG. I was on the volunteer roster for clean-up, so we bought one ticket for the show, since I get to go to the shows that I'm working anyway. We brought chairs and a picnic and enjoyed the show. After, MT packed everything back to the truck and waited while I helped clean up the venue. It worked out well. 

When we left home for the show, it was very windy and cold. We were dressed in layers and long pants. I also had my long winter coat in case it rained. It did not rain, but I'm glad I had the coat because it made an excellent blanket for my legs.  Although it didn't really warm up, the winds died down and it turned out to be a pleasant enough evening. One of the bonuses of the cooler weather was that the crowd thinned out early and there wasn't a lot of garbage to pick up. 

Here are a couple of pics from that night:

our view of the stage at the KALEO show

It was a bit cold that night

3. Mat Kearney is a singer-songwriter with a sweet voice and a fun personality. This is the second time I've seen him at RBG. I think he is a very good performer. His albums are nice, but he shines in concert. One of my favorite things about him is the mash-ups that he does. He plays one of his songs, then mashes in a cover with his own spin on it. For example, he did one of his songs, "Money" and mashed in "Bust a Move." It was fun. 

My volunteer assignment that night was west side recycling. I was originally scheduled to do clean up, but the volunteer coordinator called to see if I could fill in on recycling since someone had to back out. No problem. Recycling is good because it is a longer shift, so more volunteer hours rack up. West side recycling is busier than east side because the venue exits are on the west side as well as concessions and merch, so lots more people pass by. You also can't see the stage well unless you leave the bins to go get a look at the stage. It is okay to do that, and at any rate, you can hear the music perfectly well anyway. 

It was a lovely evening, temperature-wise. There was a full moon playing hide and seek with me through the clouds. 

I left the bins for a look at Mat Kearney on stage

full moon peaking through the clouds

I had two shows on my RBG schedule in July, one of which is just a stand-by.  I had to back out of the show I had since we bought tickets to see a couple of concerts in Park City that same weekend. I'm hopeful that a volunteer opportunity comes up that I can get in on, though.

#2843 weekly wrap-up

 

I missed writing here on Wednesday again. We had our appointment with the tax guy, and it went kind of long. I was at home, and I could have written, I guess, but I wasn't in the mood, apparently. Maybe I only write here once a week? We'll see.

The month of March seemed to drag on and on to me, but I saw on Mom's blog that she thought the month flew by. It's interesting how different people perceive things. I think this month, April, will fly by because the trip to Spain is coming up in May and I still have several things I want to do to prepare. Even though I've been doing trip stuff for a couple months, departure day will undoubtedly sneak up on me. Time to make lists!

I had a couple of big things going on this week. The first was on Wednesday, when we met with the tax guy. Marty goes to the office, and I stay home to find missing info or for clarification. I did have to find one 1099 form, so it was pretty easy. We have to pay taxes - not surprising with the rentals - but our tax bill is a lot less than last year, thankfully. 

On Thursday, I ended my volunteer career with the company credit union. I've been on the Board of Directors there for over 18 years, they tell me, and I volunteered on a committee for a few years before I got elected to the Board. During my time on the Board, I have served as secretary, vice-chair, chair, and secretary again. I have a lot of love for the CU, and because of that love, I felt it was time for me to step down and let some new blood flow through the Board. I am ready to release myself from that commitment, and I feel good about my service to the organization. 

Yesterday, MT and I took all three dogs to the dog park for the first time. It was fun. We took Stella's warped frisbee. It was windy, and the frisbee was all bent out of shape anyway, so it didn't fly very nicely. A big husky took the frisbee from Stella, and she was looking at me like, "Do something, human!" The husky's human gave it back to us and kept his girl on a leash. That made me feel bad, but dude! Spend $1.99 at Petsmart and get your girl a frisbee if she is motivated by toys! Speaking of spending $1.99, MT and I stopped at Petsmart later in the day to buy new frisbees for Stella, and we retired the warped one. 

Today, MT and I went to Clearfield to visit my BFF LA. She was in town to watch her baby grandson while her son and his wife were out of town for a little vacation. It's kinda weird to think that LA is a grandma. The baby, who is five months old, is a cutie, and a happy little boy. 

Back at home, I took a nap (as I do), then played with the dogs a little bit in the yard. It was pretty mild, in the mid 40s (mildness is relative!), then I came up here to my desk to do the bookkeeping, order the groceries, and draw. Yeah, order groceries. The past couple of weeks, I have ordered groceries online, then gone to pick them up on Monday after work. It's kinda cool, and it saves money because I'm not wandering down the aisles picking up random stuff that looks good. 

As for art, I listened to a podcast that Jill the Artist does with a guy called Danny Gregory. It's called Art for All Podcast, put on by Sketchbook Skool. This week's topic was about finding your style as an artist, or at least identifying what you like about the art you like. I'm only five months in to my art journey, and I like lots of different things. Currently, I am drawn (pun intended!) to splotches of color and loose, scribbly lines. But then I'm also drawn to very graphic, bold, simple type art, too.  Here are a couple of things, art pieces if you will, I did this week to show you what I mean.

This one is the cover for my April zine. I was trying out markers that I got for Christmas from Mom. I think she got them from the Japanese store. They are pretty fun because I can make a bold line and thin lines with the same pen. 

This piece was in response to the prompt from the art group. The prompt was to identify three elements that you like, then create a garden. I like splotches of color, loose, squiggly lines, and drawing with my eyes closed. I painted the colors, and when they dried, I closed my eyes to draw flowers. I did open my eyes to move the pen to the different colors, then closed again to draw. I opened my eyes to draw in the green splotches. 

I think both of these pieces are fun. I enjoyed doing them, and they both satisfy me. 

What's coming up this week? I've got my monthly Facetime call with Mom and Lizzie on Monday. On Tuesday, MT and I are going to another anthropology lecture. Wednesday I have book club and I'm not even close to being done with the book we are discussing. It's kind of weird and I'm not really into it. I don't have plans for Easter. It's not really a thing for me, plus T will be working the whole weekend. That might be a good time to switch out my winter clothes for my spring/summer clothes. Then again, do I really want to swap out my warm clothes? We are supposed to have another big storm come through tonight and last a couple of days. It is currently drizzling at my house.

Have I mentioned how tired I am of winter?

Here's hoping y'all have a little bit of sunshine this week. Do something nice for yourself!

#2830 weekend roundup

I did a couple of things that were kind of unusual for me these past few days. 

On Thursday, I volunteered at a charter school's book fair. The librarian there is a member of my book club. I think I may have met her once in person, but now I know a bit more about her. During our book club meeting on Wednesday, she mentioned that volunteers - usually parents - were not signing up to help, so I offered to give her a bit of my time. Mostly, I chatted with her (Kathy is her name) about being a school librarian. I straightened up some books and reached the higher ones for the little kids. It was no big deal, and I think Kathy was happy that I showed up when I said I would. 

Yesterday was Saturday. I had an appointment at the spa to get a manicure, a pedicure, and have my eyebrows tamed. All of that was fine, except the eyebrow waxing was a little aggressive and I might be missing a bit of skin in some places along with eyebrow hair. The brows look good, and so does the skin, but yesterday, the skin looked raw and pink. My scary eye area didn't stop me from going over to Old Navy and to Barnes and Noble. People did look at me funny, come to think of it. 

After shopping a little, I decided that since I was at Jordan Landing, I would go to a movie. I had time for lunch first, so I went to Chipotle and had some tacos while I read a book. The movie I saw was Women Talking. It is nominated for Best Picture. I do not see a victory in that category. The women talk. They talk a lot. The premise is that these women live in a colony, like a religious colony. Some of the men drug the women and rape them. The women vote to decide whether to stay, to stay and fight, or to leave. The vote is tied between staying and fighting, and leaving. The women of three of the predominant families (I guess) have to make the final decision on behalf of all the other women. This movie is sort of based on a true story. Men in a colony did rape women, but did the women really talk it out like this? I don't know about that. 

I actually snoozed a bit during the first 15 minutes or so. I was full tacos and guacamole, after all, and those loungers they have the movie places now are really comfortable! I kind of missed the set up. I spent the whole movie wondering where all the men were. I had to read a synopsis after the fact. Some (most) of the men had gone to the town to bail out the rapists, I guess. I actually don't really care because I didn't really care for the movie. 

When I came home, we had some dinner, then I was feeling really tired, so I went to bed. It was 8pm. I was out by 8:30. I did wake up a couple of times during the night to use the potty, then I went right back to sleep. This morning I got up around 6am to feed the dogs, then got back in bed. I decided I was done being in bed, so I went down to the couch, covered up in my weighted blanket, and read for awhile. Then I fell asleep and finally woke up for real at 9:30am. Was it the women and all their talking that wore me out? The incredible foot massage? The loss of eyebrow hair and skin? Who knows, but I was tuckered out!

Today has been pretty normal. I've paid the bills and cleaned the bathroom. I've got a load of laundry going. I'm getting ready to watch the Grammy awards. The prompt for the art group I'm in was self-portrait. This is the photo I drew from:

I had it on my beloved iPhone and turned it upside down...

...and started drawing. Here's what it looked like (turned right side up)

I accept the imperfections of my drawings. This one I'm showing you is actually my fourth try! The first two tries were scary as hell because I drew teeth. (Not good.) The third one was fine until I couldn't stop with the paint. Not knowing when to stop and leave it alone is something I'm working on. With this fourth effort, stopped and accepted it as it is, imperfections and all.

I'm off to watch the Grammys! Talk to you on Wednesday!

#2829 Wednesday vibe

Happy February! This week has been frigid. Monday and Tuesday, we had high temperatures in the teens, with lows in the single digits. At least it wasn’t windy. Look at me, all Miss Brightside. 

Wednesday is a work from home day for me. I was pretty busy today, which was nice. What had me feeling all happy, productive, and content today was that I was working a little hygge action. I had a really nice You Tube screen on:

There was nice, quiet piano music, and I think you could hear the crackle of fireplace. Light snow drifted down (not in real life, the sky was bright blue today.) I lit a cedar balsam candle that smelled so nice. It was very peaceful, and just right for focusing on getting my work done. 

I usually have You Tube screens like this one whenever I work at home. There are so many options, everything from coffee shop ambience to beach cafes. There are seaside Italian cafes and scenes with a view of the Eiffel Tower. The music isn’t all that great, but the fact that it is unremarkable is good, in my opinion. I prefer wordless music while I work. Sometimes, if I really don’t like the music but I like the background, I will turn to Apple Music for some soothing lo-fi beats, or classical music, or ambient noises. 

In fact, I am so into these You Tube things that I will often even have them on in the evening as background when I’m reading or folding clothes or drawing or whatever. When MT was on vacation in early January, I got into the habit of laying on the couch for 30 minutes or an hour or whatever and reading or snoozing. The You Tube screens are perfect for that kind of thing. There are some screens that are just a crackling fireplace. I love it for quiet time! 

This afternoon Mac and Stella were playing with each other outside. Harley was snoozing on the couch under a blanket (she gets cold), so the other two went outside. I was so happy to watch them chase each other around and play. Both their tales were wagging. Mac’s ears were all perked up and Stella had a big doggie smile on her face as she ran around. It was adorable.

This evening during the book club meeting, I rode my stationary bike. I don’t know why I haven’t done that before. The book club meeting is on Twitter, so it was no big deal to ride and read and sometimes tweet. An interesting development happened during the meeting. One of my fellow book club members is a school librarian here in West Valley. She was tweeting that she didn’t have many volunteers for the book fair, so I offered to go help out after work, and she took me up on my offer! I’m happy to go do that. Her school isn’t far from my house, and I love school book fairs. 

That’s all I’ve got for today. Take care!

#2769 winding down

Y’all know how much I love my Red Butte Garden. Volunteering there is one of my joys. I can think of less than a handful of times when I have gone there and wished I was somewhere else. I truly love being there and helping where I can.

That being said, I am counting down the shifts I have left there this season, and I am ready to be done with the volunteer time this year. Last night’s Melissa Etheridge concert was the final show of the year. I was glad to be there. She was fun. She has this way of speaking that was cracking me up. I don’t even know if I can describe it. It’s kind of gravelly, breathy, world-weary lounge singer, “Hey…you all look great out there. I was doing arena shows in the ‘90s, and now I’m doing smaller venues where I can see you, and I really love it. And I also loved arena shows. Rock and roll!” 

I was happy that she played my very most favorite of her songs, “I’m the Only One.” I love the bluesy sound and her vocals are fire. Her voice now, at 61, isn’t quite as powerful. She has her moments but there were times last night when I worried she was going to lose her voice. Then she would bring it back down to the breathy growl and all was well. MT swears we have seen her concert, but I don’t have any memory of it whatsoever. I can’t place when or where that might have happened. He doesn’t remember where or when either, just that it happened.

This week was unusual because I had back-to-back-to-back volunteer days. On Sunday, I had my regular docent shift. On Monday, I worked at the Teton Gravity Research movie, and then yesterday at the concert. Today I feel a little tuckered out. I was thankful for this work from home day. I worked steadily, but I was relaxed in a soft, loose t-shirt and comfy yoga pants. 

I only have one more docent shift this year - Sunday is the last day. I’ll have three or four more bloom dates to record. My last bloom date will be Oct 14 or 15, because then I’ll leave on vacation and I know there won’t be any blooms when I return two weeks later. So yeah, I’m counting down!

I’ll leave you tonight with the sexy video of  “I’m the Only One.” Rock on! (Please cut & paste to view)

 https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oCphbDRkZSo

#2765 weekend wrap-up

 It has been a busy and eventful weekend for me. I meant to write on Friday, then it got to be 11 pm and something had to give, so sleep won out over writing. Let's catch up...

On Friday, I went to the gym for the first time in awhile. My work friend told me she was going to a Zumba class at the Vasa near my house and encouraged me to come dancing there. I think the last time I went to a Zumba class might have been in March. I do love to Zumba, and I was planning to go to the gym anyway, so what the heck? I went and we danced our faces off. 

Note that I said I was planning to go to the gym. I set a goal for myself this month that I would go to the gym at least once a week. CHECK!

After dancing, I came home, heated up some leftovers, talked to my mom, picked T up from work, and then I was done with being awake. 

On Saturday, MT and I drove up to Pocatello to attend an open house baby shower for our best friend's son. Caz. He and his wife are having their first baby, and we had to go wish them well. I hadn't seen Caz in awhile, so it was nice to catch up with him for a few minutes. Of course it was wonderful to see my bestie, LA, and her husband. MT always says that they are our oldest friends, which is true. We have been solid friends for over 30 years. 

MT had some work thing he needed to do, so I hung out at Linda and Jake's house (my in-laws). The three of us sat out on their back deck, read, and snoozed. The temperature was in the 70s and it felt wonderful. It was a little smoky because of fires in the area, but it wasn't bad enough to send me inside. They live in a quiet neighborhood, their yard is nice, and my seat on the deck was shady and comfy.

Sitting there with an iced PSL and reading my book was exactly what I wanted to do that afternoon.

MT and I had an early dinner with LA and Rob at a cute little BBQ place. The restaurant had a groovy patio. We enjoy sitting outside to dine, so it was pretty wonderful. The food was good and the company was even better. 

We drove home in the early evening, and the harvest moon greeted us when we got home.

Kind of a cool photo, huh? I don't know how that line got involved, but I like it.

This morning, the day started slow, just how I like it. I made a cup of coffee, grabbed a book, and sat out on my deck for 10 minutes or so before the rush of the day started. So good.

After that, it was all go. I did the docent gig. It was beautiful up at the Garden this morning, of course. 

Wouldn't you like to sit on that bench and let the sunshine warm your face on a cool morning? That's the bench I sit on when I'm in my feelings. That isn't where I hang out when I am being a docent, though.

After the docent shift, I needed to record blooms. I was unable to get to the Garden after work last week, and I will often do blooms on Saturday morning, but I couldn't do that this week, so I had to do them today. The blooms are really winding down now. The anemones and asters are going strong, and there are still some roses and a few others, but not too many fresh new flowers. The leaves haven't quite started to turn yet, except in the highest branches of the tallest trees, like this guy:

I actually took this pic last week, on the 2nd. He's a little more orange and gold up top now. 

I got home around 3 and let myself chill out with football and phone games for about an hour before I started on some chores. I picked T up from work at 6:00, and we went to Lowes. I bought some mums to plant in a pot on the deck. I also bought a coleus plant. I've been wanting one for a long time, and today was the day. He will live inside the house.

After that, it was dinner time (orange chicken from Trader Joe's), a quick walk with the dogs, then helping MT with some paperwork. I just took a cool shower to relax, and now here I am, writing and thinking back on the weekend's good times. 

I really need to get to bed, but there are pages that I want to read. I've gotten myself into another book situation. I can't help myself! Here's the thing: I'm reading Wrong Place Wrong Time and it is really compelling and I need to find out what happens to Jen. That one is an physical book from the library. I am also reading Carrie Soto is Back. Will Carrie win a Slam, five years after she retired from the WTA? Will she become a better human? I gotta know! That book is also from the library, but it is on my Kindle. On Friday I got a notice from the library that a book I had on hold had arrived, and I've been wanting to read it for so long that I couldn't let it go back into circulation. That one is called Beach Read. While I was at the library, I couldn't help but look at what else was available, and on the Lucky Day rack, there sat the new book by Sarah Addison Allen. I LOVE HER BOOKS! I had to get it. The twist on that one is that I can only have it for seven days, no renewals. I just started it this morning, so I only have five days to finish it now. PLUS, I just got a new book from Ekpe for book club. I've got to read 150 pages of that by Saturday at 1:00. To recap, I am reading one book on my Kindle, plus three physical books, and one book impatiently waiting on my nightstand. I know. I'm a nut when it comes to books. #bookworm #problems

So I'm going downstairs to lay on the couch and read for 20 to 30 minutes, hopefully. Honestly, I'll probably fall asleep with ten minutes, but what can I say? 

What's coming up this week? Not too much, really. I'll go to the gym at least one time (#goals). I will finish Other Birds, the book by Sarah Addison Allen. I don't have any concerts or events this week, so it ought to be pretty calm, hopefully.

Take care! Write on your blogs! I want to know what you are doing :)

#2761 three things: sad, sad, silly

1. It will be better in the long run. My local Starbucks is going to be closed this month while the shop undergoes a major remodel. A week or so ago, there was a sign on the door that the store would be closed for a couple of weeks at the end of the month, but this morning, a new sign declared they would be closed starting tomorrow through the end of the month. I am sad about this, and to get over my sadness, I remind myself that there are many, many Starbucks around the valley, so I will be able to get a coffee treat at another location.  I also tell myself that based on what the baristas told me about the remodel, the new look will be nice and we will all be happy. I will miss the convenience of my Starbucks, though. Thursday mornings will not be the same without you, Starbucks.

2. It's gonna take a long time to get better. The Utah Jazz management completed their annihilation of  what used to be a good team by trading All Star Donovan Mitchell today. A couple of years ago, we had three All Stars on the team, and two of them have been traded this summer. I'm sure the third is looking to get the heck up out of Salt Lake City. I sort of lost my shit right there in the office when I found out about the trade. I very nearly cried. My eyes were hot and my throat was tight. I don't have a lot of hope for the team this season. T thinks they will only win 15 games. Ugh. No longer must-watch TV for me. I'm annoyed.

3. Time to lighten up. Last night I volunteered at the Joss Stone concert at RBG, and I had the good luck to work alongside a lovely woman called Libby. I've met her before and enjoyed working with her. We were stationed at the Donor Terrace, checking tickets and giving wristbands to the guests in that area as they arrived. A blonde woman, who was alone, stopped to chat with us. She said  to Libby, "Oh! I talked to your husband the other day! He gushed about all of your accomplishments, and told me how proud he was of you. I wanted to let you know!" The woman probably talked for about a minute, and I was watching Libby's reaction. She was smiling, but she seemed kind of stiff, and a couple of times, she looked over at me,  widened her eyes, and raised her eyebrows. 

I wondered what was making Libby react this way. Was her husband fooling around with the blonde woman? Had Libby's husband recently passed away? Maybe Libby wasn't married at all. I don't know her at all, except that she volunteers at the Garden and at a couple of other places, and that she is from southern Georgia.

The blonde woman left us and went to her seat. Libby watched her walk away, then turned to me and said, "Huh. I've been divorced for 50 years. I really don't think she talked to my husband!"

For some reason, the whole exchange tickled my funny bone. The blonde woman was so sincere about telling Libby all that her "husband" said about her, and Libby was kind of bemused by the whole thing. Libby and I had a giggle about it. 

   

#2757 Saturday with Sandy

I missed writing on Thursday because I was volunteering at a Red Butte Garden concert. The artist was Maren Morris. She put on a good show. She is a big voice in a small body (she’s 5’1”). My favorite song of hers is “My Church”. 

Anyway, it was fun. It was a long-ass day. I left home at 6:30 am and got home at 11:30 pm with not much of a break between paid work and volunteer work. I was feeling pretty tired on Friday, let me tell you. I did get a good night’s sleep on Friday, so today I was feeling pretty perky today.

It was a busy Saturday. I got my car inspected and registered. I recorded blooms at the Garden. It was the first time I’ve recorded blooms in a month. The last time I was there to record was July 20. I went on vacation from the 22nd to the 25th, and I promptly got sick. The first two weeks of August were kind of a blur. I thought about going up there yesterday, Friday, but as I mentioned, I wasn’t up to it. I’m glad I went this morning, though. 

There is a day every summer that I feel a change in the weather is coming. Today was that day. It doesn’t mean we still won’t have hot days ahead, but there was a hint that the cooler weather really will come. The temperatures today were in the 70s. There was a bit of rain. I noticed some trees starting to change colors, just on the top branches, but still. The biggest sign that change is coming? I saw pumpkin spice creamer at the grocery store. 

Book club was fun today. We are reading What Happened to the Bennetts by Lisa Scottoline. The author joined our discussion, which is always fun. She was great about giving some insights to her research for the book, and was generous and kind with her comments to the group. I have enjoyed the book so far. I have some theories about what may happen, so I’m eager to keep reading. 

Here’s a curious thing: the other two books I’m reading both have twins as main characters. Has that ever happened to you? You’re reading a couple of completely different books, and there is a curious similarity between them? 

I took a nap after book club. I intended to sleep about 30 minutes. It was more like 90 minutes. I still get super-tired. Like when I was looking at flowers today, I had to sit down a couple of times to take a little rest. Also when I was at the Garden, I talked to a bunch of people. One couple wanted me to tell them the best way to walk around the Garden and what to look for. Another couple wondered what I was doing and why. A man told me all about how much he loves the Garden and that he comes up to walk around every week. A few people asked me to identify plants for them. I talked to a mom and a daughter about figs, baguettes and goat cheese. I took some photos, too. These two are my favorites:

I hope y’all had a wonderful Saturday. Rest and relax tomorrow, if you can.

#2754 ready for the weekend

First of all, I’m feeling a lot better today. I have made it two days in a row without needing to take a nap at any point. I have been moving and thinking a little more slowly than I’d like. I haven’t taken the dogs for a walk since Tuesday. It wasn’t a good experience. They acted as they normally do, rambunctious and excited, and it plumb wore me out. When I got home, I was pale and sweaty, and not breathing very easy. It freaked me out, and I haven’t been out with the girls since. Maybe tomorrow or Sunday.

I had some plans for this weekend. I was scheduled to volunteer at the Bonnie Raitt concert at Red Butte on Saturday night, then I had my regular docent gig on Sunday morning. I cancelled both of those assignments. I made the decision yesterday morning, and I’m still glad I did it, even though I feel better today. That’s actually exactly why I’m still glad I did it, because I do feel better, and I want to keep feeling better and better. I was really looking forward to seeing and hearing Bonnie Raitt, though, so I’m kinda bummed out about it. That’s two shows I was looking forward to that I have missed because of The Virus. Oh well. There are a few more shows that I have on the schedule this year. Hopefully I’ll be okay to work at the Maren Morris show next week.

Bloom recording has also fallen by the wayside the past couple of weeks. There was no way I had the stamina to walk around for 60 - 90 minutes in the heat looking at blooms, even though it is by far my favorite thing to do. Again, I’m hopeful that I can get back to it next week. 

MT is going to Idaho tomorrow and probably spending the night, so I basically have all the time to myself this weekend. Yes, T will be here, but he pretty much stays in his own space, and then he goes to work. My only planned outing will be to go to Petsmart to replace an old Kong, and to go to the bakery to get a sugar donut. I’ve been craving a sugar donut for about a week and I just want to eat the damn thing already. Other than that, I’m staying home. I’ve got two good books to read. I might watch something on Netflix. I’ll nap. I do want to do some laundry. Oof…so much laundry! Slow and steady with lots of resting. That’s my plan.

Have a great weekend! Take care of yourselves. 

Here’s a little rainbow that I spied from my deck yesterday:

#2747 weekend wrap-up

I have had a pretty good weekend. The weather was extremely hot, like that oven-dry, soul-sucking heat that makes you want to sit in front of a fan in the minimum amount of clothing and just stare into the void. I didn’t do that, exactly, but I did take a really great nap this afternoon in a minimum amount of clothing with the AC, and overhead fan, and a floor fan all attempting to cool me off. I’m jumping ahead, though. Let me tell you about the weekend.

On Friday after work, T and I went to the day spa and got pedicures. He got a manicure, too. I kind of wish I had scheduled a manicure for myself, but the pedicure was so good that I was satisfied. The two of us had dinner at Rumbi. I hadn’t been there in quite awhile, and it was NOT as good as I remember. It gave me a stomach ache. Tristan then went to his friend’s house, and I came home. I talked to Mom, and then went to bed.

I got up around 7:30 on Saturday morning, took the dogs for a quick walk, had some breakfast, then went to Red Butte Garden to record blooms in the Children’s Garden. It was hot but not soul-sucking hot (yet) and for some reason, I was a little overcome with emotion at the beauty of the place. Everywhere I looked, I thought it was extra pretty and inviting that morning. I felt my eyes fill up a little. Isn’t that silly? I’m there often. It’s always gorgeous and amazing, but it hit different yesterday. I took a few pics, but I don’t think my photos do it justice at all.

All three of this pics are in the Children’s Garden. By the time I was done recording blooms, it was too hot to walk through the whole place, and I had to get home to take T to work anyway. 

After I dropped T off at work, I went to the grocery store. I didn’t buy all that much, and it was still $75. I’m getting a little tired of this inflation, aren’t you? I came home, ate a late lunch, and finished the book I was reading for book club. Our discussion was at 5:00, and I finished in plenty of time. Good book, too! The discussion was fun and lively. I very much enjoy being part of that reading community. The people are all very nice.

I don’t really remember the rest of the evening. I must have futzed around; nothing exciting.

This morning I went back up to the Garden for docent time. I got there at 9:30 and it was 86 degrees. The air was still and hot. I plopped myself down in a chair, drank a lot of water, and chatted with my docent companion, Wendy, and the tram drivers, Ira and Tracy (he). There weren’t a lot of guests today. I think the heat is a deterrent. I had a shortened shift today - I left at noon because T worked at 1:00. After I dropped him off, I picked up some take-out, came home to eat, and then took the epic nap I described at the beginning of the post. 

After the nap, I decided I really needed to clean up the house. We have a little Roomba robot vacuum, but MT isn’t here to put it to work. I felt the need to do a more thorough job than the little robot does, anyway. Mac and Harley are furry little beasts, and there was an obscene amount of dust/dirt in the house. I also took the time to plant a succulent I’d purchased to replace one that didn’t make it. I also planted a little cutting I’d taken from one of my own plants that had rooted out nicely. My house plants are looking pretty good. 

Last weekend I bought a couple of geraniums, a Russian sage, a lavender, and a sunflower for the deck. The geraniums and sage are doing well. I cannot grow lavender. I try every year and every year, the damn thing burns up and shrivels and dies. Same with the damn sunflower. Isn’t a sunflower a weed? I see sunflowers merrily thriving along the roadsides and some giant ones in people’s yards on the way to the Garden, and the ones I buy just die. It’s distressing. I will say, though, that the plants that are living are doing well. I put new fairy lights on the deck railing and it looks very cute. 

I picked T up from work at 8:00, then I took a shower. It felt glorious! This may sound strange, but after I liberally applied lotion to my skin, I put on fleece relaxin’ pants, some socks, and a soft t-shirt, and it is the best I have felt all day. 

I forgot to mention that it rained late this afternoon. It cooled down a little - it’s now around 77 degrees, but the rain felt nice and smelled good. I didn’t take the dogs for a walk, though. I didn’t feel like getting wet. I gave each of them a filled Kong and they seemed satisfied. 

Let’s see…what’s coming up this week? MT is still in Missouri; he should be back by Friday. On Tuesday, I have a concert at Red Butte. Harley gets to go to the vet on Wednesday for her shots. She has really dry skin and itches all the time. I’ll be asking the vet how I can ease her itchiness. On Friday T and I will get on a plane to Long Beach to visit Mom & Lizzie for a few days! Lots of things to look forward to. I like that!

#2740 weekend wrap-up

This weekend has been pretty great! It started on Friday with the Chris Stapleton concert. We had nice seats in a lively section. Sitting, or mostly standing, right in front of us were two giant men and their wives. Thankfully, they were quite nice and friendly, and fairly drunk. In front of them was four young women who spent more time turned around talking to the two couples in front of us then looking at the stage. 

I mentioned before that the show was supposed to be the previous week, when I was just getting over my cold. Turns out that Chris Stapleton had Covid, and that's why he pushed the show back. It all worked out. He was totally fantastic. MT told me before the show that he was really just there because I wanted to see Chris. After the show, MT told me he would be very happy to see Chris again. He really liked the music. It was a good time.

At one point, after the song "Fire Away", Stapleton told us to hold up our cell phones and sing out the chorus. 

It was something else to look around and see the whole place lit up like that and hear all the voices. Stapleton said, "That's what magic looks like to me."

On both Saturday and Sunday I did volunteer work at Red Butte Garden. I recorded blooms on Saturday and did my docent gig this morning. It wasn't very busy today except that there was an Indian  wedding in the orangerie building. When the ceremony was over, the bride, groom, and all the guests came out into the Courtyard for photos. I loved the clothes! The women looked so beautiful in their brightly colored saris and jewelry. I liked what the men were wearing, too. I don't know what the men's clothing is called, but the shirt is long and loose, worn over slim-fitting pants. RBG's wedding coordinator told me that the couple was having two ceremonies at the Garden today: a traditional Indian ceremony in the morning, and then an American ceremony later in the day. There was food after both ceremonies, and two photographers for the whole day. I can't even imagine what all of that must have cost. It is so rare to see the bride and groom, as a volunteer. It was special to see the families and the celebration. 

I didn't take any photos of the family, but here are a few pics I took today when I wandered around before my shift started.

I'm pretty sure I take this same photo every year. I love the reflection!

I love the blast of red from the Japanese maple trees.

Other than that, it has been a normal weekend. I'll be glad to have tomorrow off. There are several things that we might do. MT and I have talked about going for a bike ride. Maybe we'll take the doggos to the dog park. T and I talked about going to see the Elvis movie. MT and I may go to Lowes to buy some flowers for the deck. I have a new book to read, and I've thought about not leaving the house at all tomorrow. We'll see what comes about.  

A quick note to say that my dog Mac does NOT enjoy the fireworks that have been happening for days. Harley doesn't seem to care. Also, it is about 11:15 pm and still 82 degrees. There's not much respite from the heat in the summer. I'm very thankful for air conditioning. 

Have a safe and sane 4th of July.