It occurs to me that I ought to have written a solstice post, so here it is. Such as it is. So here I am...
Wishing everyone who marks the longest night a blessed sun-return. Wishing everyone a happy instance of whatever winter holiday they celebrate. Wishing everyone peace, happiness, good health, and good fortune in the coming year.
It's been a rather lazy-feeling day, though I've actually gotten a few things done. Not a walk, though; I could have gone walking either before 9am or after 4pm without getting wet, but I didn't. By the time I finished breakfast it was raining gently.
I've gotten a few things done, though. Dishes, mostly, and a bit of general cleaning-up in the house. Started giving the Wolfling a lesson in CGI scripting, though it was interrupted by Colleen waking up (in a bad mood, with very low blood sugar) and needing breakfast. She asked for a sweet omelette, so I made two, with grape jelly. Yum.
Made us grilled-cheese sandwitches for "lunch" -- the quotes are because by that time it was 2:30 or so. Hers came within about 30 seconds of being burned into inedibility when I got distracted. Somewhere in there I also changed the tablecloth on the dining-room table (for some unguessable reason the Y.D. had used a plastic shower curtain) and re-organized it pretty completely. Did I mention the lightbulbs, the freezer shelf (with a rack of ribs frozen onto it), a little bit of music practice and a little bit of IM'ing? Must have slipped my mind.
Finished the afternoon with a quick last-minute shopping trip, during which I established that the items I need a couple of for last-minute presents are not currently in stock, but are expected sometime this week. Yeah, I could get them more cheaply online, but not if I have to pay for expedited shipping. Which I would.
Started the evening with a glass of gin. Somehow I still don't feel particularly accomplished, possibly because none of the things I actually did were on my ever-lengthening to-do list.
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chaoswolf is cooking dinner.
Good morning! I crashed hard last night and slept a little longer than usual; the sun appears to have returned without my assistance. It always does, fortunately.
I live in what passes for a city , so I still haven't seen the sun above the houses across the street, but there was light behind the ragged high clouds when I stood on the porch to look this morning. The pink is gone now; I think I could see the sun by now, but the light behind the clouds is far too beautiful for me to wish them away.
A merry Yule and a happy Solstice to you and yours, and may this year's sun shine upon you with love, friendship, and happiness.
We're well into the longest night of the year here at Grand Central Starport; the kids are upstairs, and Colleen is watching a comfort video. I have a great deal to worry about: our finances, our health in the longer term, many of our friends. But I'm calm, and for some unguessable reason somewhat hopeful. The returning sun will bring healing, music, and friendship. One can only hope for health, joy, and prosperity; they aren't ours to command or to expect. May we all have them in the coming year.
The Middle-Sized Bear is here if you need him.
Went to the Dickens Fair today with Colleen, after determining that none of the kids intended to get out of bed before 10am. That's actually what we were hoping for -- they always get bored before we do. Not to mention the expense of buying them tickets and meals.
Our only non-consumable purchases were a purple vest and cravat for me, and a set of pewter switchplates for the house. (We were able to save on consumables because we each ate a good breakfast before we left: a single plate of Greek appetizers, plus avgolemono soup for me because I couldn't eat the ones with gluten, was enough for the two of us.)
We took Colleen's new wheelchair -- the big front wheels make it pretty easy going over minor obstacles, though a couple of larger bumps still required turning the chair around and pulling. The handbrakes on the push handles are fantastically convenient. I still need to adjust the footrests, though.
I found myself singing "Wheelin'" under my breath at a couple of points.
It was still daylight when I went out for my walk a little after 7pm, and it had finally cooled enough to make walking reasonable. The sun was still up when I returned around 8pm, but it was low in the sky. The air had cooled considerably thanks to a clear, if slightly hazy, sky.
I'm calm, and reasonably content.
My left calf muscle has been cramping a little the last few days; I took things easy.
Went out around 2pm to buy plywood and redwood for a wheelchair ramp. I appear to be allergic to some wood or other; my throat started tightening up a little while after I returned. Still scratchy, but the claritin seems to be fighting it with modest success.
The longest night of the year is over; the sun is up and the morning is bright and clean after yesterday's rain. It's a good day for feeling hopeful and optimistic, so I think I'll do that in spite of having had very little practice lately. Perhaps a good day for Getting Things Done.
I had a nice warm bath last night, slept well, and woke up feeling better than I have in several days. Apparently I've managed to dodge the Martian Death Flu and the Zombie Cold. So far. Wish me luck.
A number of people on my friends list wrote thoughtful Solstice posts. I meant to, really I did, but instead I ended up hacking on the makefile rules that pull together the CDROM portion of About Bleeding Time. Better that way, I think.
I'm going in to work now -- to catch up on my email, hopefully do a little actual work, and bring my laptop and a couple of other things home so I'll have them next week to get ready for travel.
Good morning to you all!
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