I have not watched any of the winter Olympics. In fact I think the last time I watched the winter Olympics was when Torvill and Dean took the gold medals, back in the early eighties. However, on Monday morning, I decided to hold my own Olympic challenge. After setting up my new piece of furniture under the stairs, I had put all the items that had been removed, back again, and somehow, dislodged the top of a bottle of car upholstery cleaner. At I picked it up by the pump handle, the bottle fell, and the oily liquid poured out on to the carpet. I picked up the bottle, which promptly slid from my hand, and more of the oily mixture puddled on to my tiled floor. I cleaned it up, as best I could, but it was a little slippery, and I spent a good deal of time attempting to make the gloss into a matt finish. The new event comprised slalom, gymnastics, high-jump and ice skating. I slid down on the ice, did an upside down star jump, whilst flying through the air, at the same time managing to put my foot out to stop the lamp from hitting the wall, recovered with a half triple twist, and my head broke my fall, as it hit the table, saving my right hip from taking the brunt as it hit the tiled floor. There was no applause, despite the new choreographed move. I am not sure whether I passed out, but I do remember a brief period of darkness! This was not in my plans for Monday morning, when I had to get myself to the office, and be three people instead of the usual one and three quarters! Thankfully, I did not appear to have sustained injury, and when I decided to walk at lunchtime, there was only a modicum of pain in my right side.
I spent Tuesday morning in the kitchen. Despite washing the floor again, it was still very slippery around the 'under the stairs' area, and I realised that although I had moped up the mess from the carpet, each time I stepped inside the cupboard, I was bringing out gloop on my feet, or slippers, and transferring it back to the tiles. I became very aware of my own mortality, and tiptoed around the area, with caution, adding curling to my repertoire, sliding along on my knees, as I brushed the baking pans along the floor, having let them go to prevent another triple axle turn, and inevitable loss of points should I fall in an ungainly fashion!
Shrove Tuesday on this side of the pond is Fat Tuesday, and in honour of Mardi Gras, I was definitely using a lot of 'fat'. Having made my choux buns, toffee cream and three lots of salted caramel sauce, (each one with a different twist) I put 'fat' on my shopping list, using the word, 'butter'. I headed out to the office, and was once again very late. Work was relentless, and the phone did not stop ringing. At lunchtime, I took the dog for a walk, and wondered why! I recalled the words I used when trying to convince Dana that it was a good idea to have a canine in the house. "New life, new ideals". I was never an animal lover, per se. I certainly did not object to pets, as long as they were in someone else's house! A goldfish was about my limit, preferring a pet rock over the water creature, as it required less attention! However, when Samantha had said she wanted a dog, all those years ago, I amazed myself by suggesting this might be a good thing! I was starting anew in a new country, and new things should be embraced. Little did I know that I would become the 'go to' person when the animal felt abandoned! For a walk we did go, and there was not a tree, fire hydrant, nor obelisk, which did not require a modicum of eau de Frank! If there was an Olympic challenge for dogs, on the number of pillars on which to mark territory, Frank would definitely be in the running for a gold!
Dinner was leftover Shepherd's Pie, and the evening, or what was left of it by the time we arrived home, was spent watching television. Dana had developed an attack of the sniffles, and had promptly fallen asleep very early, leaving me to take the dog out for his final night time walk. It was not a very pleasant evening, as drizzle trickled down from the cloudy sky, and we walked around aimlessly for a few minutes before the dog decided he had had enough! Waking up at two in the morning is not an uncommon event for me, but waking up to a whining dog is something to which I am, thankfully, unaccustomed. The word 'final' as in 'final nightime walk' had obviously not filtered through to the dog, as he failed to be comforted. "You should have told him to stop" was advice given a little too late, when I told Samantha I had to walk him at three in the morning, so that he did not wake the neighbourhood. This was not on my 'Decathlon' list of events, and when I arose early on Wednesday, it was somewhat unhappily!
I had a busy day Wednesday. A day that has become normal in my new normal life. I know I am constantly referring to my 'new' life, albeit fourteen (nearly) years in, but I am still amazed at where I am now, considering my vehement opposition to any mention of living anywhere but England in my younger years. I left for Joe's around seven, and took with me an array of goodies. Gingerbread, peanut butter biscuits (cookies) and banoffee filled choux buns. From Joe's I went to get my nails painted. The fog had delayed Michelle and as I waited, I called my mother, who had received a call from the supermarket to say that the delivery may be a little late. I had not realised that her number was in 'my account', but remembered afterward that I had been required to add one, and as it did not recognise my foreign cell phone, it had seemed the obvious choice. I promised her I would remove it when I got back to the office, but my surprise delivery was no longer a surprise, as she had called Richard to ask why he had given her number!
From Michelle, with newly, elaborately, painted nails, I went for the third week running to the radio station. Today was a performance of 'School of Rock'. None of the usual faces were at the studio. Being 'Billy no-mates' was also not confined to me, as many people were on their own. "Help yourself to sandwiches and candy", said the young guy whom I had asked the previous week, "What's on next week?" We did! It was a delicious lunch, and decorating the tables were cards and packages, filled with sweets and other 'fun' stuff, such as little notebooks, ice-cream shaped lip gloss, heart ink stamps, and other 'kids' stuff, which had been left over from a Valentines event that had taken place. Apparently, unable to give 'candy' to children, they had decided to give it to the adults in attendance, and we all took full advantage! With my bag filled (although not quite as full as some others) I went into the lounge and took a front seat for the performance.
"See you next week", I said to the young man, who laughed, somewhat anxiously, as I left office bound. The supermarket delivery had found its way to my son and daughter-in-law, and they were very grateful for the gesture.
My Olympic event today was to complete my work and get home to clear up my kitchen, which I had left, as is the norm on Wednesday, in a complete mess! Our Wednesday night visitors had cried off for the evening, as one had a prior engagement, and the other was taking his wife out to dinner for Valentine's Day. I was rather pleased that I did not have to leave work early to finish off preparing dinner, as I was lagging behind in the event of 'work'. Dinner was in the crock pot, and ready when we eventually arrived home, and the rice cooker cooked the rice, as I cleared away all the excess mess.
I became slightly overwhelmed on Thursday, as thunderstorms threatened, and my workload became the size of Mount Olympus, and I felt buried in the avalanche that seemed to be preventing me from being able to ski to safety. Having been up, again, at four o'clock, for another post midnight stroll, I did take the dog for yet another walk, but the impending tempest caused him to pull me back, and we only made it to the crossroads, before he stopped and would not move. Not in a very long time has the puppy stood stuckfast to the ground and refused to go any further. The clouds were looking rather angrily down on us, and I thought perhaps he had a point. We did not want to be caught in a torrential downpour, which would prove to be every bit as scary as the deluge that awaited me back at the office. I gave in and let him pull me back to our building, which he did hastily! On the eve of the 'year of the dog', I felt it was appropriate to give in to the hound, again!
Friday saw no let up to the workload, despite heading into a long weekend. I arrived at the office early, and when Dana announced that he had left his phone at home, I said I would man the fort while he went to get it. However, apparently, it was considered to be a silly suggestion, as he felt it better he maintain his position in the 'judging' chair, and I go an perform the task! I could not go home, get his phone, come back, and then take a walk, as time was at a premium. I made a plan. Driving home, I suddenly realised that I should have changed into my 'walking' gear before leaving the office. Once home, I changed, and packed up my 'work clothes' in my back pack an headed out. I walked to the top of our complex and then hiked through the woods to the adjoining neighbourhood. I had forgotten the hills. Our adjoining neighbourhood roads all have the suffix, 'Hills', and for good reason. From my entry point, all the hills went up, before they went down, and my task was to find the least mountainous! Olympus one, two or three? I chose three, as the incline was slightly less than a ninety degree angle, where as the other two appeared to be one of a perfect right angle and the other an obtuse angle, where I would have found it easy to repeat my Monday morning performance of a double back flip with a triple axle! Hiking had not been in the plan, but hike I did! Up and up the hill I strode, and then just as I thought I would need oxygen, I reached the peak, and without the use of skis slalomed down to the main road.I arrived back at the office, changed into my work clothes, and continued to wade through the mire until seven o'clock, when the checkered flag was waved, and I knew I would only have time for one more lap before having to pack up!
Enjoying my Saturday morning, I headed out to take part in the marathon event of shopping and completed it in record time. I did deviate slightly, but not enough to take me completely off course.
Heading out for the airport at 10:20 on Saturday night was not as bad as I thought it would be. The kids landed early, and we took them home, and deposited them at their front door, with their dog, and got home before midnight! I fell into bed and slept sideways, without being herded into a square foot, by our canine grandpup!
So, once again, it is Sunday, and my plans are the same as always. "What are you doing today?" comes the question. "Blog", is always the constant, and depending on the time of the year, the next answer differs. Lemon poppy seed muffins are on the agenda today, for reasons that elude me, but the gauntlet has been laid down, and the challenge accepted. My Olympic events this week have been somewhat unconventional, but no less deserving, in my opinion, of a medal, than any other competitor! At least my co-worker will be back in the office on Tuesday to help with the vast amount of paperwork that I piled up on her desk, and we are looking at the possibility of adding a staff member, which will hopefully give us all a little help! In the meantime, we have a holiday on Monday, which should give me time to recuperate from mental, physical and emotional events that have been added to the great mount which loaned its name to the four yearly event. Hopefully, next weekend I will be brimming with a renewed sense of eagerness, and have some very exciting events to report in ..... another story!
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