life

Slightly weird day after just, ahem, six hours of sleep.

I did all the usual morning things not including the manuscript, then breakfast with my husband and then another one of those draining emotional conversations. It ended well, though.

I called my mother on the phone and we told each other about the past two weeks. Meanwhile my husband was busy making lunch and when he looked out the window he saw his brother’s grown-up children arriving, one after the other.

That was puzzling because we didn’t know anything about it. I took the chance to ask one of them when I saw him in front of the garden gate, and he said they were there to play cards. In our garden. Now, this is also my mother-in-law’s garden but we would have liked a bit of warning.

After lunch it turned out that the boy had known about it. My mother-in-law had told him and had also assumed that we already knew because one of our nephews is taking guitar lessons with him. But, he hadn’t had a lesson in ten days.

Husband had planned to spend the day puttering around the garden, taking care of the compost and relaxing in the hammock but there were five people sitting right there having a small party.

We ate lunch with an accompaniment of grumbling but it did taste nice:

I finished reading the last Sarina Bowen book afterwards and then was slightly stuck on what to read next. I then started playing Genshin Impact.

Around four when I thought about eating a piece of milkbread my husband showed up. His brother and nephews had offered to help us with that plaster board so it was time to put on real shoes and get busy.

Even with the four of us it was not easy. The couldn’t believe how heavy this thing was. But we managed and now our balcony is whole again, after years and years.

That made us so happy!

My brother-in-law even produced a cordless screwdriver from his car that is stronger than mine, and that helped.

I then ate my snack, played some more video game and finished a quest, then started another one, and then it was time to do bodyweight training with the boy. We were a little earlier than usual because we also planned to cut his hair.

Which we did. Just like the last time I did this, years back, I set out to cut it a length that would still work with a ponytail and just like then he ended up with – short hair. That is not symmetrical at all. On the bright side, it looks okay after he washed it but I did not pack the scissors away, I will do some corrections later today.

I also decided to send him to a hairdresser the next time because I find it way too stressful.

After that it was half a bag or tortilla chips for dinner, more Genshin, then I started writing this post, planned the week and today rather quickly and went to bed somewhat earlier for once.

I did get a little more sleep than the night before but still not enough. Did the usual morning routine and skipped writing again.

Husband and I talked a little longer and so the rest of the day was off but not by much. I finished a pair of socks:

I am very proud that I then opened the manuscript and added new words to it. I am writing scenes that I didn’t know I needed, very exciting.

I did the dishes while listening to classical music. I am really far behind on my „A Year of Wonder“-project and I have no idea when I will manage to listen to all 25 minutes of Richard Strauss’ „Metamorphosen“. For now I skipped it and made a note to come back to it.

There was the walk/run:

It was warm enough for short sleeves and shorts for the first time this year. I also managed to do the full 60-minute session of my Couch to 10K-program. My thighs were somewhat complaining at the end.

Lunch was ready when I came back:

I then read a bit, played my video game for a while and got rather frustrated because nothing was working out like I wanted it, then I finally took a shower, the boy came downstairs to get my help in choosing loads of new clothes (his old ones are falling apart) and then I was late for my weekly writer Zoom.

Zoom was very nice even though I had to sit through it without knitting because I didn’t have the time to wind the yarn into a ball, and then the whole family met to try and repair the balcony.

Well. So there is this huge sheet of plaster board that used to be underneath the balcony but then a drain pipe broke and there was water coming out the porch ceiling right next to the lamp that was there. Not good. So my husband and I took the plaster board off.

I remember it almost killing me to hold and move that thing because it is very, very heavy.

Now, yesterday the plan was to move the board back to the porch/balcony, have my husband and the boy up on ladders pressing it against the beams and then I would put the screws in and screw it in place.

Well.

The good thing is, no one got injured and everything is still in one piece.

The bad thing is that we would need another person to help us with this job. There was no way the two of them could hold it over their heads while balancing on ladders for long enough to let me fix enough screws that it wouldn’t come down again.

We thought about constructing something to hold it up, we also thought about asking a friend to help but what we will probably do is to ask the gardener we know to fix it for us and then we’ll just pay him.

After that we had mini pizzas while watching a rather good episode of ‚Columbo‘ and then I had to rush to get the rest of my evening routine done.

And no, I did not turn the lights out on time. Again.

Today there will be the usual Sunday things, some cleaning that I didn’t manage yesterday, and I will probably cut the boy’s hair. Wish me luck.

I did get a little more sleep than the night before but still not enough. Did the usual morning routine and skipped writing again.

Husband and I talked a little longer and so the rest of the day was off but not by much. I finished a pair of socks:

I am very proud that I then opened the manuscript and added new words to it. I am writing scenes that I didn’t know I needed, very exciting.

I did the dishes while listening to classical music. I am really far behind on my „A Year of Wonder“-project and I have no idea when I will manage to listen to all 25 minutes of Richard Strauss’ „Metamorphosen“. For now I skipped it and made a note to come back to it.

There was the walk/run:

It was warm enough for short sleeves and shorts for the first time this year. I also managed to do the full 60-minute session of my Couch to 10K-program. My thighs were somewhat complaining at the end.

Lunch was ready when I came back:

I then read a bit, played my video game for a while and got rather frustrated because nothing was working out like I wanted it, then I finally took a shower, the boy came downstairs to get my help in choosing loads of new clothes (his old ones are falling apart) and then I was late for my weekly writer Zoom.

Zoom was very nice even though I had to sit through it without knitting because I didn’t have the time to wind the yarn into a ball, and then the whole family met to try and repair the balcony.

Well. So there is this huge sheet of plaster board that used to be underneath the balcony but then a drain pipe broke and there was water coming out the porch ceiling right next to the lamp that was there. Not good. So my husband and I took the plaster board off.

I remember it almost killing me to hold and move that thing because it is very, very heavy.

Now, yesterday the plan was to move the board back to the porch/balcony, have my husband and the boy up on ladders pressing it against the beams and then I would put the screws in and screw it in place.

Well.

The good thing is, no one got injured and everything is still in one piece.

The bad thing is that we would need another person to help us with this job. There was no way the two of them could hold it over their heads while balancing on ladders for long enough to let me fix enough screws that it wouldn’t come down again.

We thought about constructing something to hold it up, we also thought about asking a friend to help but what we will probably do is to ask the gardener we know to fix it for us and then we’ll just pay him.

After that we had mini pizzas while watching a rather good episode of ‚Columbo‘ and then I had to rush to get the rest of my evening routine done.

And no, I did not turn the lights out on time. Again.

Today there will be the usual Sunday things, some cleaning that I didn’t manage yesterday, and I will probably cut the boy’s hair. Wish me luck.

Though I didn’t get enough sleep and I did not open the manuscript. Again.

I knew I wanted to get quite a bit done and opted for morning pages and yoga but no writing.

Husband and I enjoyed breakfast together, I knitted while we talked, and then I did my usual online rounds and did the first half of the breakfast dishes. Breakfast dishes have two stages, the first one is cleaning all the tea things and the second one is everything else.

And then my husband and I met to figure out a stopgap solution for the broken audio mixer in the basement where he teaches drums. He had gotten the smaller audio mixer out, the one I used to use for recording my podcast, had connected it to the computer and the speakers and it did – nothing.

So he had to use a rather inadequate bluetooth speaker the day before, not ideal at all.

So we tried it all again and the first thing we found was that the socket the mixer and speakers were plugged into was turned off.

Unfortunately, that was not it. But then I put the speaker cable into a different output, pressed a few buttons, opened the system settings on the computer and switched the computer’s output to the new mixer and – voilà!.

Phew.

After that I had exactly one hour left before lunch. I set out to change the sheets on my bed, clean the mirrors, dust everything (very superficially), start a load of whites, and even managed to vacuum the whole house (only the middles). In between I ordered takeout and then picked it up in the nicest, sunny weather.

Lunch was very good as usual:

And I managed to eat only about half of my main dish:

I had the rest for dinner. (What’s in the bowl is half, well, the bigger half.)

I asked the boy to hang up the laundry because it would be done while I was teaching but after I taught all the students I found it still in the machine. I had even used a five minute break where a student was late to pick out a new piece for my last student and print it out, but no, I couldn’t rest, I had to hang up laundry.

Then I changed into exercise clothes and did bodyweight training with the boy. I might be getting marginally stronger, even, but it’s a bit frustrating that it all goes so slow.

I do have to remind myself that I was under the weather for weeks not that long ago and so now I need to rebuild. And I need to do it in a way that I don’t hurt myself and especially not my hands.

While I was eating a handful of licorice after lunch I also decided that it is time for a(n almost) no sugar challenge again. The rules are the same as the last time, I can have up to four pieces of dark chocolate per day, I can have cookies, ice cream and cake when I make it myself or on special occasions like birthdays, and that’s it.

I’m pretty sure I’ll feel much better following those rules, we’ll see how that goes.

After training I finally ate dinner, talked briefly with my husband, started writing this post, made a list for today, finally did the day’s dishes, played some more Genshin Impact (the boy had given me a long list of things I needed to do ASAP, funny enough) and went to bed a little earlier for once.

Oh, and I am all caught up with „War and Peace“. I had gotten behind but managed to read enough yesterday that I’m also done for today.

And now for the weekend. I wouldn’t mind it being a productive one as well.

And I don’t have a lot of time today.

I went to bed too late, slept well, did my morning routine but did not open the manuscript.

Husband and I had one of those emotionally draining conversations but hey, I finished a hat while we were doing that:

 

I did some of the dishes, went to the supermarket, came back and had lunch:

The boy had returned from uni in time while my husband was all peopled out so the boy and I had lunch together and I got to listen to some of the stuff he learned in his crystallography lecture

My first student had canceled so I had quite a bit of time. I played Genshin Impact, I also read a little, and then it was time to teach my first student.

We had a fun time talking about waltzes and other music in three-four-time and then I had a generou break that I used to do the dishes and start folding the laundry.

Just when I was almost done my husband showed up because the mixer he uses in the basement when teaching drums didn’t work. We eventually decided that he should dig the small one that we own, the one I used to use for recording my podcast out from the annex attic and connect that to his basement computer but something wasn’t working so I gave him my small bluetooth speaker as a stopgap. That one is not loud enough for sure.

So that is something we need to figure out next. Best until lunchtime because then he’ll need it again.

Meanwhile my next student was already waiting.

I taught her and then a friend over Zoom, we talked for a while, and then I had guacamole and tortilla chips for dinner, finished reading a book, switched to another one, played some more video game, started writing this post and went to bed.

Today will be stupid busy. We need to fix the mixer/loudspeaker situation, I want to finally clean some of the house, get takeout for lunch and then teach all the students. Oh, and do strength training.

Oh my.

I went to bed too late again but did pretty well in the morning with not using my phone. Much.

I did not manage to open the manuscript, though, because my husband showed up in a mood and that threw me off.

We are continuing our new morning routine up to the point that my husband has asked me to buy a new clock for the kitchen because from where he sits at the table he can’t see any of the clocks we have, and with the new routine he really needs to know what time it is.

When I was doing yoga in the living room and my husband had left the room briefly there was a big thump all of a sudden and one of the logs fell out the wood stove to the floor. Thankfully there is a glass plate on the hardwood floor there and I managed to wrestle the huge log back. As far as I know nothing got singed but the room stank of smoke for a while after.

We talked about all the things including my coaching the night before, pentatonic scales for guitar and some other stuff.

I did dishes and went out for my run. Then I went back when I realized I had forgotten to put my sports bra on and started over. The sun was shining but it was pretty cold. Hence the fire:

When I came back I thought I had time to take a shower before eating but nope. The bra thing had cost too much time. Lunch was very good:

I had quite some tim after lunch but didn’t use it as well as I wanted. I did some stuff in the video game and took a shower but didn’t manage the dishes.

I taught my usual Wednesday students including replacing a guitar string for a student, something I don’t do often, usually my husband restrings everything. It’s magic, I have a broken string and the next time I look it’s whole again.

After that it was time for bodyweight training with the boy. This should be the last triple exercise day for a while, I hope. I was so tired and exhausted while out running that I didn’t run all that much, maybe a total of five minutes. Strength training went a little better but I was still sore from Monday.

After training I ate dinner and talked with the boy, then read for a bit and then did the many dishes. Halfway through that the boy showed up again, we started talking and – whoosh! – an hour went by. I brushed my teeth, drank a cup of tea, talked some more and then finally started writing this post, wrote my list and went to bed an hour too late.

Sigh.

Better today.