Monday Finding My Way

The alarm at 7 woke me as I started a lazy Monday morning. Monday feels like Saturday for me. Retired, I have no work week to start, but most folks I know are working, which means no plans for me. It feels like Saturday, except there are no cartoons to watch. Instead, I find a breakfast of toast, coffee, and a banana. The coffee is ground from locally roasted beans. I am at the end of that. I need to acquire some liberal coffee! My order will arrive in a few days from Equal Exchange’s warehouse in Portland. There is nothing like a little liberal in the morning in your cup to remind you of Justice with Compassion and the Love of Community.

I started the blog, Deborah called, and we chatted for a while. It is good to start the morning with Deborah, and usually, we end her day with talking. I also updated Quicken with the downloaded transactions. I resisted doom scrolling (i.e., reading the news when you are a liberal).

The blog was over 1500 words and took most of the morning. I considered making lunch or having fast food, but decided that the last day of March, a wet but not messy day (for the Pacific Northwest) should end with something better. I headed out in Air VW the Gray with 70% something charge, good for local driving, and soon arrived at Stanford’s for lunch at the bar.

The old barrel-like stools at the bar were now comfy, tall, green chairs. Abril was my bartender. Her hair was split between black and manga blue. She also sported a nose ring with a diamond hanging just under her nose. She made me an Old Fashioned Stanford’s version. It was good, and I remembered Susie and I coming here often after some medical test or worse. Today, I was alone and drank her usual drink here.

The Chicken Dijon was on the special menu, and I wanted to try it. I make a chicken cutlet occasionally and wanted to try their version. The chicken was about the same as I can do, maybe a bit better (maybe). The potatoes were industrial-whipped potatoes that many folks like. I like mine chunky with the skins on with butter. I think it’s better. Their asparagus was steamed and grilled. It was good, and I only steamed mine. The drink and food sent the bill pretty high, but it was fun. I did have wet eyes as I remembered Susie and sipped her drink. I told Abrill about Susie as she saw my moist eyes.

Next was Best Buy with my $100 gift card received for buying The Machine and other appliances in my pocket. The choice for a coffee maker ran high. I did not look at the $3,000+ machines that would fit the new Willy Wonka movie! I found a plain one that did ground coffee (not espresso or using pods or built-in frother) for $99.99. I carried it up to the desk and gave the gift card back. The cashier all but rolled his eyes. Yes, there was one cent left.

Next, I headed to Cornell Farms and walked in and out with a $69 pomegranate tree to plant. I did not do more as I carried it to the checkout and could spend endless amounts of money there on plants, soils, and other hole requiring home improvements. I texted Corwin with another request for hole and plant installation. I pay $20 a planting; he needs the money, and I avoid testing my balance digging and crawling on the ground skills.

The plant is on the deck waiting for Corwin, and the shovel is in the ground where I want it planted. I have learned that it is best to be very specific, as there is no undo button. I reboarded the EV and headed to the gaming store but found nothing I needed there. I got some cash, putting the payment for hole and plant installation in the butter dish in the frig; yes, cold cash for Corwin.

Focaccia bread was tried again. I followed the recipe for using the bread machine and saw that the new bread flour was already half used up. I loaded the machine with the ingredients with some trepidation and started the machine. It dances! The dough is stiff, and the machine moves. I had spilled some water running tests on the new coffee maker (bravely set next to the bread machine), and the bread machine was dancing on the slippery counter. A towel placed under the machine prevents the dancing. No doomed focaccia bread this time!

I placed some bags of the beef stew I made a few weeks ago in a bowl in the sink with warm water. I did not know that the bags leaked (why?) and the stew was diluted. After squeezing out the water (using the same holes), I put it in a pan and reheated the slightly diluted stew.

When the bread dough was finished in the bread machine (set to ‘Dough’), I patted it out into a pan and let it rest, brushing it with olive oil and even more fresh rosemary. Once rested and starting to puff again, I popped it in the oven. I sprinkled some sea salt on it, but this was a bit bitter, and I will not do it again.

I ate reheated stew with warm focaccia bread while rewatching the first season of the Star Wars show Andor on Disney+. The new season is coming soon. After that, I wrote for a while, adding more to my story. I am trying to finish the first chapter at 3,000 words. I am at 2,500.

Lastly, I got out my stamp albums and mounted my new stamps. I managed to get a reasonable price on the first pictorials and US Scott # 120 proof version (see them here if you are interested). Proofs were printed on cardboard to show what the new stamps would look like (you see posters now)—they are perfect. I am slowly getting all the proofs for the 1869 US stamps. I also got a few that were just holes in my collection. Somehow, over the years, I miss a few stamps here and there. I managed to get some reasonable prices for the missing stamps. Now, those pages are finished.

I also continue my collection of special locally published stamps from the mid-late 1800s. In those days, local delivery was often not done. You must head to the post office or arrange for a second, local carrier to deliver your mail. Some of these locals sold their own stamps or stamped the letters. These are valuable and a fascinating collection choice (some locals pre-dated the US postal use of stamps in 1947). This area is flooded with forgeries (many more than 100 years old), and I collect the actual local carriers and the forgeries (and reprints). I have the books on identifying forgeries and real versions (and reprints that are between forgeries and the original).

Tired and ready to sleep, it was already approaching Tuesday. I climb into bed after getting my PJs on. I was soon asleep. Thanks for reading.