Quiet day at home until we met with our Meetup for Happy Hour at the taco bar overlooking the (permanently closed due to damage) pier. Then we took our favorite long cut home along Sunset Cliffs and the Pacific.
Now husband is watching some hockey game 
.
Tech came to template our kitchen counter for granite install next week. I’ll post before/after pics in the Home Improvement thread when it’s done.
Planted some (hopefully) deer-resistant plants in the area in front of the cabin porch. If the wildlife doesn’t get them, my black thumb usually does them in. I’m hoping to host their memorial later this year than last.
Took care of the garden, did puzzles, walked with a friend, and had my hair done.
Walked to yoga -we had a Prince theme class today ( yoga with Prince music). Got a few things done around the house, cleaned upstairs. Weeded the yard a bit.
Meeting up with some friends from my strength training class for a happy hour later this afternoon. The place is in the neighborhood, so I’ll walk.
Attended my virtual Tai Chi class and flipped through the Smithsonian Journeys catalog to dream. Reaffirmed with husband how we’re handling estimated taxes (withhold from RMD distributions in December for both Federal and state). Kept an eye on election returns although it may be quite a while for California.
Took one friend out for a belated birthday brunch and had a nice visit.
Then took some baked goods over to a second friend and visited with her. She had asked yesterday if I could visit…of course!
Met DH who dropped his car at the dealership for an oil change, and home we came.
My community garden friends spread the mulch, so we drove past to see. It looks great. I’ll add the flags for the 250th anniversary. It’s nice to give to our community!
This morning I went for a walk and picked up a pair of pants that had been hemmed. Then I drove to Poughkeepsie to meet a HS friend for lunch. She drives about an hour and 20 minutes and I drive about an hour and a half and that’s where we meet. Then, of course, nap time, and then I watered my flowers on the deck.
Working on the recovery from my ankle surgery a couple of weeks ago. I can finally start weight-bearing!
Also, signed up for a one-week cooking class in Venice, October 10-17! (DM if you want to see the link!)
“Camping” in our 5th wheel down in OR.
Spotty cell coverage, but I managed to do my puzzles this morning. We weren’t sure about the weather, so we stayed inside til after 12, and then headed out to a winery we’ve visited on past trips. A nice tasting and we picked up a few bottles. They recommended a new-to-us winery that makes some of our favorites and some more unusual varietals, so off we went. We sat outside and had a great tasting with the assistant wine maker. Did we purchase? Yes. Did we join their wine club? Also yes. We’d already decided to stick with a winery though the end of the year, but we have so many Pinots that we felt it was time for a change.
Dinner outside - shrimp, rice, veggies, and a glass of white. Planning tomorrow and looking forward to a week on the coast.
Sitting on my back deck with fresh brewed coffee and my laptop searching for good terriyaki marinated sous vide recipe, basically time & temp. Turned off the news I had playing the background to hit Merlin on my phone to identify a new bird sound, it’s actually not a new bird but I didn’t remember the sound of the Eastern Phoebe, I guess birds have multiple sounds. I really love their morning songs. Watching red shouldered hawks fly in/out of the trees. What I had previously thought was squirrel nest, may possibly be a hawks nest, or he’s interested in eating little squirrels, yikes! Was able to make a reservation at a restaurant in a city we are visiting this weekend and I haven’t been able to get in in a long time. Love the fact I’ve recently read on many sites I visit that early morning/morning daylight is the best time to get your Vitamin D. Not sure if it’s true but I’ve always woken up with a bluebird on my shoulder and this outside morning “me time” suits me well. Oh, and I already did my morning hand weights and floor exercises! Going to be a great day!
Gonna go pick up the check for consigning my mom’s China. Bittersweet.
Got up at oh dark thirty - not to workout, but to go to a conference. 3 hours each way. We don’t pay for hotels. Gonna be a long day.
So this site better entertain me today!
I did listen to 2 hours of German podcasts on the way at least. It was a pleasant drive. Hopefully the way home will also be uneventful. I am planning on swinging by the office on the way home to make a map for someone high up. They want it asap.
Going to a hearing this morning about a noise ordinance violation, taking a friend out to lunch for her birthday, going for a hot and sweaty walk this afternoon because that’s when I’ll have time, and then having our first neighborhood gathering of the season in one of the back yards. Should be a good day!
Woke up early and exercised. Just finished watering my plants and putting my lunch together for work. I’m now sitting on the porch drinking coffee, doing Wordle, etc. I’m headed to work in 30 mins. Dh is going down to the beach this evening so I’m on my own tonight. I need to stop at the store on the way home - making pasta salad at DS25’s request for him to take to the beach. He and his GF are meeting DH there tomorrow night.
I just started the audiobook version of The Calamity Club - a very long read. I plan to take my dog for a long walk tonight to have a good portion of time to listen. I am also reading a very short novel, Under Water, which I hope to finish tonight.
I’ll be heading out soon to walk around the lake. Strength class is at 1PM, shower and throw in some laundry then on to Mahjong. I’ll head to D and SIL’s after that to pick up my weekend house guest ( grand dog).
Well, I just made our final mortgage payment 
!! Woo hoo!! (We did this once before when we paid off our suburban Chicago home. We hadn’t planned on a mortgage originally for San Diego but it was the only way to get the house we wanted.)
And to make it more exciting, the Wells Fargo system wouldn’t let me do it online like I’ve done every payment for 11 years. So I had to call and give them the bank info over the phone (and their telephone system makes the other person sound a bit muffled). He did say Congratulations.
It will be lovely to be done with that monthly expense.
I met a friend at the local diner for breakfast. Then went to the grocery store. Came home to realize the cashier must have not scanned my frequent shopper card – I got none of the rewards I was due. Napped. Took the dog to the woods and chatted with my friends there. Came home and went back to the grocery to get my rewards and dealt with the rudest, most lackadaisical customer service person. I got my rewards, but oh my gosh, she was terrible. Came home and watered the plants – it’s been terribly dry. About to make dinner. DH was gone all day at a baseball game with a group he belongs to. (The Yankees won!)
In continuing excitement, we were thrilled and relieved to learn from our rat/ant whisperer guy that the small swarm that showed up on the study wall last night were little flying ants, not termites. And that it may have been just the one small swarm in the wall and we basically exterminated them ourselves using termite spray.
I was so afraid that we might need to have the house tented (it was tented just before we moved in eleven years ago and the treatment is supposed to last ten years). But the house is stucco and we hope the neighborhood termites are having enough fun in our wood fence to think about moving in.
You are lucky to be getting a check!! And not being asked to come get the china.
