It’s hard to believe it’s already December! I’m busily working on sketching and painting Christmas cards. I think I have 6 more to do, and then I’ll figure out who gets which card and carry them with me so I can give them to people as I see them, starting around the 15th.
We are now into “The Cool Season.”
COOL SEASON – (November- mid-February) – highs 30 degrees C. (85 degrees F) & cooler mornings and evenings. Lows 10 degrees C. (50 degrees F.) This doesn’t sound impressive as ‘winter,’ I know, but we don’t have heat here. I can get hot water in my shower, and I can make hot water in my teapot, but there is no heating unit. There is just sunshine – and thank goodness for that.
I sat in beside my window this morning with the sunshine streaming in. It felt SO GOOD on my back! I’m learning that I need to have more sweatshirts, sweat pants and hoodies to be comfortable for this season. I have a wonderful throw that Brian gave me as a housewarming present that I am using over my duvet on the bed. I sat at the computer today with a towel over my legs as I waited to go to the gym. It’s quite an abrupt change from the hot temperatures needing a/c and my bucket and towels brigade due to my leaking windows!
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I am LOVING the fact that my door works well now, and I can go out and come back in all by myself! It acts like a real door! Added to that, we ordered and put up a Christmas wreath a couple of days ago. I smile every time I go out or come back in. 🎄
Add to that my new window frames, windows, and sealing from the outside! I should no longer have any leaks. They even put up ‘rain roofs’ that should keep part of stormy weather from pelting against the top edges of my windows. I’m thrilled. I have enjoyed a couple of days now of “the great window opening” when the temperature is 79 degrees F, as it is now. I open at least a couple of windows to get a nice cross breeze, pulling the screens across to keep any intrusive bugs out, grinning like a nut. I LOVE IT!
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We went to visit my husband, Harvey, at the nursing home today. We took him a pineapple ‘pie’ – a packaged dessert that we would have steered him away from while he was better, but that now we encourage. He has a nasal tube, and gets his main nutrition through that, but he is again able to eat and swallow without choking. We are all still being very cautious, but he enjoyed the pie and a cup of coffee while we were there. 🥧
He noticed that I need a manicure and new polish today! The fact that he looked and realized that, instead of previously not knowing who I was, who HE was, or anything about our situation, almost made me cry today. He did ask about the scheduling of his first ever massage. He thought it was this Friday. (It was actually scheduled for the 2nd week in April, after we first moved here, before he had his stroke.) It’s challenging to see him bedridden, a shell of the former Marine Corp veteran and sharpshooter he once was, but he IS ‘in there’ showing up every once in a while. He wasn’t hurting today and I thanked his nurse and hugged her for taking such good care of him.
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I have newly discovered ‘Substack’ a place where I’m finding delightfully talented people, people who think, who can write intelligently, artists, photographers, and more. I’m very new, only having followed a few people so far, but it’s like a treasure chest to be opened with care, taking time to examine and ‘ooh and ahh’ at what is found.
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For some reason I was awake at 3am today. I tossed and turned, finally getting up and getting ready to go to the gym. I sat at the computer in my gym clothes, my husband’s lined flannel shirt/jacket and a towel over my legs to feel warm. Now it’s just after 4pm and I’m beginning to feel a bit zombie-like. I foresee an early evening for me.
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Here is one of the mailbox decorations my husband and I made for the Christmas season. I miss getting to change the decorations each month, celebrating holidays, honoring favorite cartoon characters, etc.
A thing I’ll never forget is when we would be changing one out and someone would start to drive by, stop, and tell us how much they enjoyed seeing what we were displaying. Some actually said they drove by JUST to see if we had changed the display!
What a joy to be able to work together to make the decoration, choose the one we would display and drive down to put it up, and then have someone kind enough to make our day with such kind words. I’m so glad my husband and I shared this time together.
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Make this a special month for you and the ones you love.
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