I had gone to bed just half an hour late. I count that as progress.
I had to jump out of bed right away because I had to leave the house at my usual breakfast time. So no morning pages, yoga or meditation. The boy had sent me a late text to wake him up at 8 if he wasn’t awake by then but he also texted me at 8, so he was awake. He had to leave the house in time for a 11 o’clock exam.
I did leave the house at 8.15 in the rain and caught a train. I only had to ride it for two stops and the new dermatologist was pretty easy to find. I didn’t have to wait long, everything looked nice, new and shiny and the dermatologist was making a good impression. Of course, the rash that prompted the appointment was much better now. I still got a prescription for some lotion and a couple of shampoo samples. Did you know there are anti-itch shampoos as well. Mind-blowing!
I took the train back, took a picture of the machine that had smeared my ticket with ink the other day so I had its number (all the machines have individual numbers so that when one is broken you can call in and report it). After getting down from the platform I saw the boy go up. I followed him without calling out at first because he usually is rather late and I didn’t want to be the reason he missed his train but up on the platform it became clear the train was already gone. So I talked at him for a bit before realizing that he needed peace and quiet to mentally prepare for the exam.
I went to the pharmacy – again – for the lotion which had to be ordered and they offered to deliver it to my in the afternoon. So now I have a pharmacy membership card. No idea if that is a badge of aging or what.
I went back home where my husband was eating breakfast and the wood stove was making everything warm and cozy. I did the dishes and listened to a Mozart sonata for two pianos in D major. It was very nice but my husband kept preparing things for lunch so my attention was divided. It did get me thinking about how I used to dislike Mozart. When I was young and didn’t know anything I thought Mozart was just empty tinkling but then I studied musicology and now I know better.
Then I went grocery shopping. Since there were only a few things on the list and it was already late I just walked to the nearer supermarket. Had to circle the store three times, squinting at every shelf to find the baked beans and then left without them because they only had the version with artificial sweeteners. „No added sugar“, my ass. I mean, yeah, sure but I really don’t like the taste.
When I was standing in the queue to pay my phone went off. At first I wondered why my husband was calling me but it turned out to be the thyroid doctor. She called me back after all! I quickly went over to the side and discussed my thyroid nodes in front of a fridge holding beer and energy drinks.
Went home, found that my husband was right in the middle of cooking and that the pressure cooker had re-opened twice already and decided to make an appointment for a fine-needle biopsy. After 10 minutes in the loop listening to the same music over and over I finally got a real human on the line. „Do you have a referral?“ Um, no, but I will get one. „I am not allowed to make appointments without referral.“ Bam!
So I guess I’ll get myself a referral first and try again next week. Since I’ll be seeing my primary care doctor then, it shouldn’t be a problem.
Then lunch:
So, it turns out when you pressure cooker loses pressure three times before closing you actually lose a lot of the cooking liquid. And when the goulash starts to smell burnt you need to stop cooking even if it might not be completely tender yet. So. Not the best meal ever but definitely not the worst either. We ate while my husband kept complaining that everybody was always telling him that cooking only ever takes half an hour but the way he cooks it takes two and he needs that time and if he doesn’t get it this is the result.
I’m still not entirely convinced one can’t cook these things faster but what do I know, I haven’t cooked in years.
The boy showed up shortly after, not all that happy with the exam. We talked a bit and then it was time for me to get teaching.
I had an extra long teaching day because I had rescheduled my first Wednesday student to Thursday. We had a lot of fun with „Dust in the Wind“ and he is making great progress. The next two lessons were online, the next one didn’t show, the next one is making a valiant effort to learn „love token“ by Elena Kats-Chernin. And since the student after had canceled as well we just kept going for a bit longer. Then I ate dinner, taught my last student, who is also working really hard and making great progress, and that was it.
In between I tried figuring out how to fix the boy’s phone that is acting up and doesn’t charge anymore and did some research on and off about something completely different. There was also some folding of laundry.
I finally did the dishes and very little Duolingo, watched the second half of the episode I had started the day before and went to bed.
Phew.
Today there will be lots of teaching, the changing of the sheets and the cleaning of the house. At least I hope so.
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