Daily Update, May 30, 2023

    Today was a day of phone calls, as a visit.

   I called the vet, and ordered more medicine for Val. I also checked about some medicine we'd stopped, and under the vet's directions, restarted him on it. So far - with only one dose to go by - he ate most, and didn't throw up, which is better than the last time. I can hope it helps his urinary tract disease, and the medicine I'll pick up soon will keep him from throwing it up again. {Smile}

   I also called outpatient therapy at Life Care Center, they had me down for an appointment Saturday, which I didn't have, but put down after hanging up. We arranged to make more appointments tomorrow, when I go in for therapy. I do feel better having one more appointment already; down to one appointment felt tight. {Smile}

   The visit was to my dear family friend in Hale Anuenue Restorative Care Center. I took Uber over, and had a very short wait. The driver was taking someone home from downtown who lived really close, so they were only 3 minutes away.

   I took a book a friend had given me, that she'd been given herself. I gave it to the dear family friend, who said she'd treasure it even more, knowing it had been passed along. I sat and visited for a fair while, then tried to visit her daughter who's in the same care facility, but she was sleeping. So, I went home by Uber, again getting a driver who was quite close. He said a ship was in, and the passengers tended to want to visit a waterfall which was right nearby, so he thought that was why folks were nearby. maybe so, but I'd think they wouldn't stay long at the waterfall... but I admit I don't always understand tourists. {Smile}

   Later, I got a call from the pharmacy. They'd caught a dosage change in a medicine my doctor recently renewed. They called him to check, and he wanted the old dosage. When they asked, I thought I didn't feel different, but this may help the unusually low blood sugar numbers, and also more frequent unstable blood sugar incidents I think I've had recently. Good thing they caught it and checked. {Smile}

   I had dinner with Mom and read to her before that. First, I read scripture and thoughts about it. Then I continued with more from her niece's long family letter from 2019. Then I finished reading and showing Mom pictures from _Memories 1960's_. Next, I started showing Mom pictures in _The Calming Cat Book_. There's a minimum of words to read, so I commented on each picture. Next, I read "Afghan Translator Saves US Lives, and then Becomes an American Citizen," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. I finished with the May 30th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom enjoyed all of it: reading, pictures, and commenting. {Smile}

   I did my walking, arm swinging, arm weight training, and head exercises after dinner, and over 20 minutes of salsa dancing later, including both warmup and less structured dancing. I hoped to do more, especially since i started slightly earlier, but then I did the extra fast piece as the second of the second set, and I just did not recover from that in time to want to try again. {rueful smile} However, I did get both half circle taps and both double fast turns in the same direction into my dance, both during the warmup, and during the slower of the less structured dance pieces. {Smile}

   I read comics over lunch, and after lunch, too. then I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming and found Perogies and Azurette on. Azurette didn't respond to my hi, but Perogies did, and we teamed up, doing more missions together. We also chatted, visiting, and I did get an announcement from Azurette. Then Perogies left, and I thought it was time for the later short, large-group event. Then I realized I'd misread the clock and did a bunch of paperwork that had piled up while we played. That almost took me to time to read to Mom, so I started a little earlier than usual today. {Smile}

   After dinner and exercises, I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming. No one I particularly like to team with was on, so I started watching for teams. I saw three folks ask for teams, then one of them started a team of individual missions. I joined it, and it continued all evening. I eventually chatted with Nox and Azurette while continuing to team. Nox left for bed, but Azurette eventually joined the team, which was great. Teaming with strangers was okay, but I DO prefer teams with friends in them. {SMILE} After the exercise, I started writing this. After a while, I checked the game, and found Perogies back on. He suggested I stick a character in a mission he was doing while I continued to write this, so I did. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 29, 2023

    Today I stayed home. I mostly tookit easy, but i did call Auntie Barbara after dinner, She called back after her own dinner an we had some trouble connecting, but when we did, we had a nice chat. {Smile}

   I had dinner with Mom and read to her before that. I started with scripture and thoughts about it and continued with more from her niece's long family letter from 2019. Then I continued reading and showing Mom pictures from _Memories 1960's_. Next, I read "4 Teens Rescue 90-Year_Old Neighbor from Burning Home," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. I finished with the May 29th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom enjoyed both what I read and the pictures I showed her. {Smile}

   I did my walking, arm swinging, arm weight training, and head exercises after dinner, between the phone calls. {Smile}

   I read articles after breakfast - rather more than I meant to, so I didn't get much else done this morning - and eventually switched to reading comics. A while into the afternoon, I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming. I found Perogies, and we chatted for a while. Then we teamed up, with me on a character I haven't used in a while. we ran several missions - the characters were doing pretty well against the main enemies in the story arc I chose, despite the enemies having a reputation for being tough. That took us up to when Perogies suddenly needed to go. Then i did paperwork that took me up to time to read to Mom. {Smile}

   After dinner, exercising, and the phone calls, I hopped into City of Heroes: homecoming again, and looked around. Phonso was in a task force, and we started talking. He'd looked for me but found one recruiting before I came on. He finished up his taskforce while I finished up some paperwork, and I joined his next task force. He recruited more, and we ran it. Then he left, and the team didn't entirely break up. Three stayed on counting me, and one fellow joined us, and another dropped and rejoined. We did one of my missions, then one of them led us in running a particular, quick mission repeatedly. My best badge-collector ran it maybe five times and got three badges... realizing I'd gotten what I could, I switched to my second-best badge-collector, who got eleven from a few runs. Then they wound down by touring bases, then chatting. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 28, 2023

    Today was Sunday, so I called Uber, and went to church. The driver wasn't chatty, though I think he's been chattier in the past. maybe he was having a quiet day. {Smile}

   At church, I went in, and Auntie Barbara came and sat with me. The service was nice, and the food was so plentiful, I didn't even try to find the nuts that they seem to keep in a bowl in the office. I sat with Auntie Barbara during lunch, too, and had a nice chat with her and a few others. {Smile}

   After that, Auntie Barbara took me home. She noticed some furniture sitting in front of our seaward neighbors, and I told her I thought that was there for the taking, and that I think they're moving. She saw some chairs, and said she really needed more chairs, especially since they expected guests soon. So we went over to look. There was a slightly old looking matched set that she said she knew how to recover. Another that I thought looked in better condition looked harder to recover to her, so she took the matched set. {Smile}

   Then we went in to visit with Mom. She tried singing, and Mom actually sang along with few songs. then Auntie Barbara looked at the picture books I've gotten for Mom.

   She suggested that I call my aunt, since it was good day for Mom, so maybe she and her sister could get more of a conversation. After resting a bit, I did. I had a little talk with my aunt, then took the phone to Mom. She said hello a couple of times, and a couple of general tings, like that it was a nice day. That's a good conversation with Mom these days. {Smile}

   I had dinner with Mom and read to her before that. I read scripture and thoughts about it first and continued with more from her niece's long family letter from 2019. Then I started reading and showing Mom pictures from _Memories 1960's_. Next, I read "Humpback Whales on the Comeback Trail" from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. I finished with the May 28th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom enjoyed both what I read and what I showed her. {Smile}

   I did my head exercises after dinner. They're the only exercises my physical therapist wants me to do the day after physical therapy. {Smile}

   After the phone call with my aunt, I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming, did a little paperwork, and found Perogies, who wanted to attend a DJ show. That's a web-hosted show that reminds me most of listening to the radio, with musical pieces interspersed with the DJ who chooses them talking to his audience in between. We chatted while listening to it. Near the end, we went to team with Kitten. We ended up arriving early at the later short, large-group event. I wanted it for one of my characters, who's been wanting the rewards from it for most of last week, but we were always doing something else. Then we ran a couple of short arcs a couple of missions long each, and tried a single mission that wasn't as easy as I'd hoped before I went to read to Mom. Perogies left before the last, which Kitten and I didn't finish. {Smile}

   After dinner, I read several comics, then got back into City of Heroes: Homecoming. I found kitten still there and said hi. We teamed up and did two lower mid-level story arcs that contribute to a couple of badges. They left, and I did a solo mission that was the last of a bunch I needed for a badge. Yes, i finally got that badge. I also said goodnight to Nox; we missed a chance to talk again. Then I worked on something for a friend, and on this, but didn't get it finished until the next morning. {Smile}

Daily Update, March 27, 2023

    Today I had physical therapy, so a bit after breakfast, I called Uber and got Cody, a driver I've ridden with several times. He was in a particularly chatty mood, so we chatted all the way over. {Smile}

   Physical therapy went great. I think my therapist and i were both a bit surprised when he passed my double fast turns in the same direction as safe to do at home. I was expecting it to take a little longer to get down, and I think he was too. My double fast turns where I reverse direction were better, too, but he still wants to watch when I do them, I don't think he actually steadied me, but he reached out in case a few times. So, I'll keep working on them. Maybe I'll get them, too. {Smile}

   I called Uber and got a different driver on the way back. He was less chatty, but not a lot less chatty. {Smile}

   I came back to see our housekeeper busy cleaning the house, which was great. It is so much better for her attentions. {Smile}

   I had a nice, chatty call with Auntie Barbara after supper. We're planning to meet at church, sit together, and such. {Smile}

   I had dinner with Mom and read to her before that. I read scripture and thoughts about it first and continued with more from her niece's long family letter from 2019. Then I finished reading and showing Mom pictures from _Memories 1950's_. Next, I read "Nine-Year-Old Collects Cans and Donates Proceeds, All on His Own" from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. I finished with the May 27th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom said she liked what I read to her, and she seemed interested in the pictures, especially the fashion and movie star pictures. {Smile}

   No exercise today beyond my physical therapy. That was a lot right there. {Smile}

   I read a sample beginning of a kids' novel I found on Amazon over and after lunch. Then I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming. There, I found Perogies farming, and met a new character of his on a brand-new second account, though I didn't realize it was a second account at first. We chatted, and then Kitten came into the game and joined us. Then Azurette invited us to tour her base through Perogies, so we went. She's really done some nice work on it, though she admitted to me afterwards she was frustrated with us running all over the place. I need to remember she wants to guide the tours; Div prefers to let visitors find things for themselves. This tour took us all the way up to time to read to Mom, and when it did, Perogies left for bed, too. {Smile}

   After dinner, I hopped onto City of Heroes: Homecoming, and found Azurette teamed up with someone, and no one else around. I tried talking to her, but she was busy base building... or base decorating, as she explained later. So I dropped a note on the chat server, letting Kitten know I was online, and tried to do some paperwork, and find something to get into like last night. Then Kitten came in, and we did a midlevel story arc together. Just as we were finishing, Perogies came in. We got together a bit after that, then I noticed that Owl Girl was leading a giant monster team, so we joined, and ended up making it a league. that did help a character of mine who needed a prize most giant monsters drop. Then it went down to one team - though that was by one person leaving to make room for Perogies. We ran a couple of missions, and Owl Girl left, and Perogies's new account joined for a couple more. Then the team broke up, and Kitten, Perogies and I chatted a bit before first Perogies then Kitten left for bed, giving me time to do some paperwork and finish this update. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 26, 2023

    This morning, after breakfast, I finished writing up yesterday's daily update. Then, instead of looking at comics or anything, I called up a story that's mostly done, and started looking it over, meaning to work on revising it in hopes of getting it where I can be happy trying to publish it. I got as far as reading the first scene and into the second, and realized I wanted a notebook that I'd been keeping track of the characters and other details in. Somehow searching for that took me up to lunch time, but I eventually did find it, so I can use it in the future. At least I've started working on it again. So help me, I'm a little proud of that. {Smile}
   I had breakfast, lunch, and dinner with Mom and read to her before dinner. I started with scripture and thoughts about it, and continued with more from her niece's long family letter from 2019. Then continued reading and showing Mom pictures from _Memories 1950's_. Next, I read "Get That Styrofoam Out of the Big Apple!" from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. Then I finished with the May 26th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom said she liked what I read to her, and she seemed interested in the pictures. {Smile}
   I did my walking, arm swinging, arm weight training, and head exercises. I did them right after dinner, before getting into City of Heroes: Homecoming, so I could concentrate on them and get them all out of the way quickly. {Smile}
   I read a few comics in the morning, but not many. Then I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming after lunch. I saw Perogies and a few other friends in an MSR, but Kitten seemed to be solo. They were responding slowly and admitted to being tired. They still wanted to team, and as we were starting, Perogies came to join us. So, we restarted to team up with them, too. Then Azurette asked for help while we were doing our first mission, so we got out and joined her just as she was getting ready to solo because I was so busy checking with them, I forgot to tell her we were coming. We debated what to do afterwards. Kitten went off on their own, and Perogies and I joined Azurette in another story arc that sort of follows this, but pretty indirectly. Perogies left after a while, and Azurette and I finished the arc. Then she left, too, and I did some paperwork until it was closer to time to read to Mom. I started slightly earlier than usual, but not really early. {Smile}
   After dinner, I did my exercises and then hopped back into City of Heroes. None of the folks I usually team up with were on... well Azurette, but she left pretty quickly, and no one else came on for a while. So, I started checking the Looking For Group channel, and sooner spotted a low-level task force being advertised. It earns credits, which one character is trying to do, so I joined it on her, and did the sequel afterwards, with much of the same team. We had a new player who needed some extra guidance. I tried, and so did some of the others. I hope we helped them. I also added a different player to my list of friends in game... we'll see if we start playing together. Their handle is Arctic Hawk. After that, I did some paperwork and chatted with Nox for a while. After they left, I did more paperwork and started writing up my daily update. Then Perogies came back, and we chatted as he set up some low maintenance play. We chatted a lot, but I seem to be managing to finish writing this up, though not with much time to spare. {Smile}

Daily Update, March 25, 2022

    Today, I had an online counselling session at 9:30, half an hour early. It began when I was only half done with breakfast. However, just when we started, I got a phone call. It was my doctor's office. The doctor was feeling pick himself, so they needed to reschedule the appointment that had pushed this counselling session earlier. We tentatively rescheduled it, and I called back after the session to confirm that I didn't have a conflict with the time, since my main calendar is on my phone, and it doesn't let me check these things without hanging up. {Smile}

   The counselling session went well. My counsellor was pleased with some developments, and really, so am I. {Smile}

   I got a phone call from our former nurse before dinner. That was nice. I had a short one yesterday that I forgot to mention, but it mainly promised a longer call today, and yes, it was longer - long enough to catch up a bit with what we've both been doing. {Smile}

   I had lunch and dinner with Mom and read to her before dinner. I started with scripture and thoughts about it, and then read more from her niece's long family letter from 2019. Then started reading and showing Mom pictures from _Memories 1950's_. Next, I read "Irish Teen Wins Science Contest Revealing Fake Videos," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. Then I finished with the May 24th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom said she liked what I read to her, and the pictures, too. {Smile}

   I did my head exercises, which are the only ones my therapist wants me to do the day after physical therapy. {Smile}

   I read comics before and after lunch, then hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming. There, I saw Perogies and some other friends. Perogies and I chatted slowly as I did some paperwork. Then I realized some of my friends, including Perogies, must be in the early long, large group event, so I joined it. I hoped to team up with Perogies afterwards, but Perogies disappeared. So, I soloed on the character I'd soloed on yesterday, working on more badges. I actually did get another badge, but somehow the badge it also contributes to didn't note that I had it. I reported the problem but got no response. Perogies came back on, and we teamed up on the villains again. We finished the story arc we'd done the first mission for yesterday. that almost took me to time to read to Mom, so we chatted while I did something particularly simple. {Smile}

   After dinner, I hopped back into City of Heroes: Homecoming, and found Darkthough1 on. We started to team up, and Perogies came back on and joined us. Perogies wanted to work on a villain, so Dark and I got villains a bit lower than earlier. We started a story arc both Dark's and my characters could get. Perogies left a few missions in. Then Mistress Aegis joined Darkthough1 and me, and we finished the story arc. Then we chatted until they left for bed. I also chatted with Nox for a while until they went to bed. I then soloed on the character I'd played in the evening until I wrote the first part of this, and made notes for the rest, while doing a little more soloing than I really had time for. I really need to watch that. {rueful smile}

Daily Update, May 24, 2023

    Today I had physical therapy, so I called Uber, and dashed inside to grab a book I'd need, because the car they found was three minutes away, and I'd called 3/4ers of an hour early in case the car was 20 minutes away instead. I got a reasonably chatty driver, so the ride over was pleasant. {Smile}
   I waited until our actual time to start. because my therapist didn't come in until then, which is fair enough. I had a nice session, and a nice talk with the therapist, both about therapy, and other things. He asked about my writing, since I've mentioned some that I want to get ready for publication. I really need to get back to working on that. {Smile}
   Then I called Uber, and another driver took me home. He was pleasant enough, though I don't think he was as chatty as the one on the way over. {Smile}
   I had dinner with Mom and read to her before that. First, I read scripture and thoughts about it, and continued with more from her niece's long family letter from 2019. Then I finished reading and showing her pictures in _Memories 1940s_. There weren't as many pages left as I thought, so I continued with the front and back covers of its sequel, _Memories 1950's_. Next, I read "Youth Prefer Watching Earth Programs to X Factor," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. Then I finished with the May 24th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom said she liked what I read to her, and the pictures, too, at least when we got past the sports page. Ball players just aren't her thing, but the next page was fashion, which she showed distinctly more interest in.  {Smile}
   No exercise beyond my physical therapy today. {Smile}
   I read comics over lunch, and a while after that, too. Then I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming. I found Perogies, and we chatted, then teamed up on a couple of our villains. Well, villain is a strong word for my character. She's just the product of a corrupt foster care system who learned to watch out for her own interests because nobody else was doing so in there and isn't too concerned about whether that involves breaking a law on occasion. I think we ran around 3 missions before he had to leave. At that point, I only had half an hour or so before reading to Mom, so I did some badge collecting on the character I was on until it was time. {Smile}
   After dinner, I hopped back into City of Heroes: Homecoming, and found Darkthough1 and Mistress Aegis. they didn't want to stay as long as they have been doing, so we teamed up, finished a story arc we'd been working on, and chatted until we lef.t Then I worked on paperwork, first on the character I'd been teaming with them on, and then on a character who is working on a project that involves a lot of paperwork. After that, I went back to my former foster child, and got a few badges that together got a badge that improves her abilities. Then I started working on the last badge like that - there are four, and she already had two - but I have more to do with that. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 23, 2023

    It was another quiet day. I thought about going out, but I've got physical therapy tomorrow, and online counselling and a doctor's appointment Thursday, so I will be getting out this week. {Smile}
   I had dinner with Mom and read to her before that. I read scripture and thoughts about it first, and more from her niece's long family letter from 2019 next. then I showed her more pictures in _Memories 1940s_. After that, I read "Colorado Granddad Comes Out of the Closet at Age 90," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. He first admitted in the memoirs he wrote when the pandemic started, and then shared it online, too. I finished with the May 23rd story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom said she liked what I read to her, and the pictures, too.  {Smile}
   I did my walking, head, and arm weight training exercises. I also did over 20 minutes of salsa dancing. I just got started to late to do more, with the pauses I need between sets. {Smile}
   I read comics in the morning and over lunch. then I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming and found Perogies on. Perogies was slow responding. Then I realized he was in the early long, large-group event. I picked a character and did get into the zone, but the league was full, so I had to tag along solo. I hoped a spot would open up, but none did. Perogies and I teamed up afterwards, and Kitten came in and joined us. We worked on that badge, since Perogies picked yet another character who needed it. Then Perogies's mouse died, so he left for dinner, saying he'd try to fix it after dinner. So Kitten and I switched characters and ran a story arc that helped with a different badge. About the time we finished, Darkthough1 came on and joined us for a couple of not-too-long missions before I left to read to Mom a little later than usual. {Smile}
   After dinner, I hopped back into City of Heroes: Homecoming, and found Darkthough1, Mistress Aegis, and Kitten all on and active. We teamed up and did some talk missions in preparation for a story arc. Then Phonso came on and invited us to join a task force. We did, switching characters as appropriate, and when it was done, he ran the same task force on a different character, which we ran open the same characters, despite rewards being lower for a repeat. I got a little chat with Nox in on the chat server, too. Then that team split up, and we tried the mission we'd been planning to do before. However, we could not find the last character or characters we were supposed to rescue. by then Kitten was unresponsive, so it was tricky to abandon that mission, but I hope I figured it out. If not, we'll work things out one way or another. The search, abandoning the mission, and saying goodnight took us into my salsa dance time, though the other exercises I did got slipped in earlier. That is why I didn't do more than 20 minutes of salsa dancing. However, Perogies came back on just as we were saying goodnight, and said good morning, since he was still waking up. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 22, 2023

    Today, I stayed home and took it easy, pretty much. No outings, visitors, or even special phone calls. {Smile}

   I had dinner with Mom and read to her before that. First, scripture and thoughts about it, and next come more from a niece's long family letter from 2019. After that I started showing her the pictures in _Memories 1940s_. Mom responded a bit more, but not like with the fashion, Vogue covers, and maye pictures of cats. Then I read "Turkish Mom reads to Blind Daughter, and then Gets Honorary Degree," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. She helped her daughter, who's vision is impaired, with reading and writing for four years she needed to get a bachelor's degree. Then I finished with the May 22nd story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom said she liked what I read to her, and the pictures, too.  {Smile}

   I did my head, arm swinging, arm weight training, and walking exercises, which are what are wanted two days after physical therapy. {Smile}

   I read comics in the morning and over lunch and hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming after lunch. I found both Kitten and Perogies on, and we teamed up to help Perogies get a badge that would actually improve his character. Most don't, but this one does. It involves getting a few simpler badges. We got the easy ones, and worked on the hard two until it was time to read to Mom. My character - who had four of the five needed already - got the last one, and Perogies got a lot closer. Even kitten's newest character already had it, so they were just tagging along and helping for general rewards. {Smile}

   After dinner, I hopped back into City of Heroes: Homecoming. I found Darkthough1, Mistress Aegis, Kitten, and Azurette on. Azurette didn't respond, but the others did. Phonso came on while we were getting going, and immediately invited me and my friends to a Strike Force and a Task Force. Kitten thought they'd join, but then decided they'd better go sleep, because they were just too tired to make it through, especially after a busy weekend. Darkthough1 did join us. Owl girl was already there when we got there. Phonso filled the team, and we ran the first one. We lost one along the way but finished nicely. Then some left, and Phonso filled the team again, so we could run the second. We really had trouble towards the end, until we followed Phonso's directions more carefully. Then we finally got it. After that, Phonso and most of the others left. Darkthough1, one new person and I stayed and talked for a while. Then the new one planned to be absent for a while. Darkthough1 and I left that team, switching characters to team up with Mistress Aegis to do a few more missions. Then we chatted until they went to bed. I also said goodnight to Nox. We missed a chance to talk beyond that again. I also chatted with Azurette, who finally responded to my hello hours earlier. She'd been busy making a piano in a supergroup base. After Darkthough1 and Mistress Aegis left, I went to visit to admire it, and we chatted a fair bit before we broke up, her to bed, and me to my walking exercises. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 21, 2023

    Well, I went to church, even though the service started at 9 am, and I didn't get out until 9:40 am due in part to a hard to shell egg. The Uber driver was 10 minutes away, and nicely chatty on the way down. I got there after holy communion had started but was able to sit down before they got to my row, so I was able to go up normally and get communion, at least. {Smile}

   I got lunch and had some trouble finding a place to eat it. They expected us to eat in a tent on the grass, and my balance doesn't like the grass, though their lawn is hard enough packed, it's not impossible, at least. But AJ and another got me a chair on the patio, between the tables of the ministry fair. AJ offered to take me home and was ready to go while I was still looking at the tables. i tried to be efficient in getting stuff from the rest of the tables. Fortunately, at the first table, a friend showed me a thick folder full of the plan and said it should be good at figuring things out. also, I found a warm reception at the choir's table, but I'll have to wait until Labor Day to join. Next week is their last week before summer break, but they plan to return for Labor Day. the gal who I was talking to even offered to take me home if I couldn't find another ride, which is very reassuring when I'm out after dark. So I'll talk to the organist sometime during the summer about joining. {Smile}

   AJ and his mom took me home when I was done, but not before we'd been shown some old pictures a friend had set up, including one of Dad, and one of AJ when he was distinctly younger. {Grin}

   Oh, and our main nurse is so impressed with our plumber/handyman, he got their number from me today. {Smile}

   I had dinner with Mom and read to her before that. I started with scripture and thoughts about it, then continued with a bit from a niece's long family letter from 2019, followed by this year's Mother's Day card from her sister. Next, I finished showing her the pictures in _The Picture Book of Vintage Vogue_. It has pictures of Vogue Magazine covers from when they were all a particular style of painting. Mom seemed to perk up, and said a few times that she liked particular pictures, so I didn't stop as soon as I expected, but covered the rest. Then I read "A man Helps Grandma Fight Dementia with Jelly Drops," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. They help with hydration when dementia makes folks forget to drink enough. Then I finished with the May 20th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom said she liked what I read to her, and particularly liked the Vogue Magazine covers.  {Smile}

   I did my head exercises, which is all that's asked the day after physical therapy. {Smile}

   After getting home and assuring our main nurse that I really had had an early lunch, I read some comics. Then I hopped into City of Heroes homecoming, checked some badges, and found Perogies on. We teamed up and ran a few missions together. Then they wanted to watch a science fiction movie together, called _Arrival_. We got roughly halfway through when I asked to stop and continue another day. it's giving me a lot to think about, and I think I got enough from the first half for one day. After that, we chatted a while, until he left for bed. I did some paperwork and read some more comics to fill the half hour left before I read to Mom. {Smile}

   After dinner, I hopped into City of Heroes. Not finding anyone, i read some more comics, even catching up on some my computer was having trouble finding. Then I noticed Darkthough1 and Mistress Aegis had come on. We chatted, and teamed up to do several mission, finishing one story arc and getting well into another. Then Phonso invited us to a task force. We debated, continuing what we were doing for a while, then Darkthough1 and I joined. Phonso did not get more interest than us two, and the others weren't interested in a small task force, so we gave up. Mistress Aegis and I stayed in the area, chatitng, while Phonso went elsewhere, though we didn't bother to disband the team. Then Darkthough1 and I commented when we noticed three other characters standing near the contact, which some people will do when they want a more popular task force. Phonso came back and found one of them eager to join. Another disappeared, and the third didn't join us. We started recruiting, and finally got enough interest for Phonso to be happy running it. Darkthough1 and I talked a bit during the task force, and more afterwards, until I went to fed Val, and discovered I'd forgotten to give him his last feeding. no wonder he acted hungry! Well, I fixed that with a snack when I headed to bed. Darkthough1 left while I was feeding Val, so I worked on paperwork, read more comics, and wrote much of this until bed, making notes to cover the part I hadn't finished writing up. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 20, 2023

    Today I finally got back t physical therapy. I called Uber not long before leaving the house, I thought, but found them waiting in the driveway for me. I don't think they were waiting long, though, and they took me right over to Life Care Center. We had a nice talk on the way, too. {Smile}
   I enjoyed physical therapy, and catching up with my therapist, talking about this and that. Adn he passed my half circle taps for home use! I didn't expect that quite this soon. We'll still use them in therapy. They seem to help my double turns and makes the dancing a lot more interesting. {Smile}
   I had a different driver take me home. He wasn't quite as chatty, but still nice. {Smile}
   I had breakfast and dinner with Mom and read to her before dinner. I started with scripture and thoughts about it, then continued with a Christmas card from her cousin's granddaughter, followed by this year's Mother's Day card from her sister. Next, I started reading - or showing her the pictures in, since there aren't any captions - in _The Picture Book of Vintage Vogue_. It has pictures of Vogue Magazine covers from when they were all a particular style of painting. Mom said a few times how much she enjoyed this. Then I read "Kellogg's Turns Rejected Cornflakes into Beer," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. Apparently, Kellogg's has teamed up with an English Brewery to use some of the too large, too small and overcooked cornflakes in beer. Then I finished with the May 19th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom said she liked what I read to her, and particularly liked the Vogue Magazine covers.  {Smile}
   No exercise today beyond my physical therapy. I'm a bit relieved to finally get a night off again. {Smile}
   After lunch, the plumber came. Replacing the bad tube and unclogging the drain were easy. The door was more complicated. He'd gotten a doorknob, but it too wide and not tall enough for the hole in the door for the old knob. So he worked on the old knob and got it working better. I'm happy with the results, and so is our main nurse. {Smile}
   I read comics in the morning and after lunch, then hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming. There, I found Perogies, Darkthough1, and Mistress Aegis on. I chatted with Perogies and Darkthough1. Then Perogies and I teamed up for a mission. Then I wanted to do another mission, but Perogies really wanted to improve his character, and I wasn't high enough to get any of those missions, but I was high enough to help him hunt for some enemies we needed to get for a badge that would help him. Darkthough1 and Mistress Aegis joined us for that. We worked on it until it was time to read to Mom... when another friend joined us, one we suspected would want to roleplay with Darkthough1 and Aegis.
   I hopped back into City of Heroes: Homecoming after dinner. Darkthough1 and Mistress Aegis were roleplaying with the friend I'd met briefly before dinner. We chatted a bit, but it didn't sound like something I'd be comfortable joining in on. Then Perogies came in, and we worked on our characters some more. Mine gained a level, which finally let us run a mission good for getting some of the enemies we still needed. Then Perogies left, because he was tired, and needed sleep. Next, I did some paperwork. Then I noticed Azurette and Owl Girl on. I checked, and Azurette was giving Owl Girl a tour of the base she's getting fixed up. I joined them. It's really coming along nicely. After the tour and some chatting, Owl Girl went to do something else elsewhere in the game. Then I wanted to team with Azurette, who wanted to join a task force that was being advertised. Just before we started, the leader said it would move fast. Azurette said she normally prefers that, but I really couldn't keep up, and ended up complaining about that longer than I meant to after we were done to both Azurette and Darkthough1. Then Azurette left because she was tired, and Darkthough1 and Mistress Aegis ran one last mission so I could join them. Afterwards, I chatted with them for a while. Then I did paperwork after they left.

Daily Update, May 19, 2023

    Today, I got a call from our financial adviser. We worked out what I should do with a couple of things I'd gotten in the mail recently. So that went pretty well. {Smile}

   I called the plumber before lunch, and sked him to come over, mentioning that the tub backs up, and since he also does some handyman work, the back door needs help, too. He called late afternoon, apologizing for going to the wrong house - he went to Diane's house down the street, not Anne's house a little higher. He figured out which house was mine and came up. I showed him the tub that's partially clogged again, and the shower which the nurse said is leaking where the hose attaches to the hand-held sprayer, and the back door, whose knob works better in one direction than the other. He plans to come do the work tomorrow after lunch. I figure I'll be back from physical therapy then. {Smile}

   I had breakfast, lunch, and dinner with Mom and read to her before dinner. I started with scripture and thoughts about it, then continued with two Mother's Day cards from this year, one from me, and the other from her sister. Next, I finished _A Picture Book of Cute Kittens Vol. 1_. She did like the pictures of kittens and the occasional older kitty. Then I read "How to Stop Hate with Kindness," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. That was about a Black Blues singer who deliberately makes friends with Ku Klux Klan members, drawing many away from the racist organization. Then I finished with the May 19th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom said she liked what I read to her, and the pictures, too. {Smile}

   I did my head, arm swinging, and two of my six arm weight training exercises tonight. The head, arm swinging, and arm weight training were again during lulls in I also did over 25 minutes of salsa dancing. Yes, five more minutes than usual, though not the full 30 I hope to get back to someday. I was a bit tired for the last piece, but not so much that I was off beat, so I kept at it. {proud but slightly tired smile}

   I read comics around lunch and the phone calls, then hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming a bit after lunch. There, I found Perogies. We chatted and teamed up. Perogies wanted to work on a lower-mid-level character, so I found one of a similar level. He liked one mission of mine, but I was only a couple of missions into that arc, and he hadn't done it, so we started his. We did two missions together, and found we had the same mission next. However, Perogies realized we could get in on the later long, large-group event if we worked fast. So he took his character there, and I switched to a character who wanted it, and we joined in. That and a little after event chatting took us up to time to read to Mom, so we said goodnight. {Smile}

   After dinner, I hopped back into City of Heroes: Homecoming, and found Darkthough1 on. We started chatting, and teamed up, along with Mistress Aegis. We did a couple of one-off missions, then finished a story arc I thought I was nearing the end of. Maybe I was, but I wasn't as close as I thought there were at least three missions more, not counting talking to various nonplayer characters. We finished, but close enough, we just chatted a bit before heading out, to start my salsa dancing, in my case. I did say hi to Nox, too, but so late, they were leaving, so we mainly said goodnight. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 18, 2023

    Today I stayed home. I did call my financial adviser twice, but both times I got office staff who told me she was in a meeting but would call me back. The second said if not today, she'd call me tomorrow. So, I guess I wait. {smile}

   The housekeeper came today, too, with apologies because the text she'd tried to send me last night hadn't gone through. Things worked out fine, though, and the house is definitely better for her attentions. She'll be back next week. {Smile}

   I had lunch and dinner with Mom and read to her before dinner. I started with scripture and thoughts about it, then continued with two cards from her sister. First was this year's birthday card from January. Next was the Mother's Day card that arrived yesterday. Next, I started _A Picture Book of Cute Kittens Vol. 1_. She did like the pictures of kittens and the occasional older kitty. Then I read "Lebron James Works to Boost the Black Vote," both from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. Then I finished with the May 18th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom said she liked what I read to her today, and the pictures, too. {Smile}

   Nox very gently suggested that I seem to be stuck at doing only 20 minutes of salsa dancing and a little of my other exercises, and that maybe I should work harder at doing more. So tonight, I started doing my head, arm training, and arm swinging exercises during lulls while playing City of Heroes after dinner and managed to get them all done. Then, I did some salsa... only a bit over 20 minutes still. I tried to start more but somehow; I just wasn't in time with the music. So, I did my walking exercises instead. I was still 10 minutes short on the salsa dancing, but at least I got all my other exercises done. {Smile}

   I read comics in the morning and hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming after lunch. there, I found Perogies on, and eager to join the early long, large group event, which was in progress. So we did. Then Kitten came on right about the time we finished, and the three of us teamed up. We ran the next, slightly higher story arc in the bunch we've been doing for badges. That, mixed with watching videos each to her shared, ran us close to time to read to Mom. Through much of the afternoon, Nox told me about a game they're playing now, both the game in general, and the particular one they're starting. {Smile}

   After dinner, I hopped back into City of Heroes: homecoming, and was surprised to find Perogies still on. Kitten came back on very shortly, too, so the three of us teamed up. While we were deciding what to do, Darkthough1 and Mistress Aegis came on, too. Darkthough1 joined us, and I suggested running a task force with just us. Mistress Aegis joined us, too, for a group of five. We took it more slowly than the "Pick Up Groups" usually do, waiting for everyone to reach the door and such, so it took most of the evening, but we all enjoyed it. We did move fast enough to keep Kitten awake. Then Perogies left, and Kitten, Darkthough1, Mistress Aegis and I chatted a bit, then ran one of... I think it was Mistress Aegis's mission, though it might have been Darkthough1's. I chatted with Kitten a bit between salsa sets, and looked at some videos in between, too. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 17, 2023

 Today, I got some things in the mail that I wanted to talk to my financial adviser about. I called, and got the secretary, but she couldn't raise the adviser. She promised to give her a message to call me. {Smile}

I had dinner with Mom and read to her before that. I started with scripture and thoughts about it, then continued with a Mother's Day card from her sister that arrived just this morning, followed by the Mother's Day card I gave her Sunday. Next, I finished _1960's Fashion in Pictures_. I think she likes all the pictures of clothes. Then I read "Army Awards Three Hero Medals to Teens Posthumously," and "No More Plastic Bags at Kroger Checkout," both from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. Then I finished with the May 17th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom said she liked what I read to her today. {Smile}

I did over 20 minutes of salsa dancing and my walking exercises before it was too late. {Smile}

I wrote up yesterday's daily update after breakfast and read comics over lunch. Then I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming. I saw Kitten and Perogies and got a response from Perogies first. We started chatting. I also got a response from kitten. The three of us teamed up, and I finished the particular set of badges I was working on, then switched characters to work on a badge both Kitten and I were working on. that involved doing a particular low-level story arc, which we finished just a little before it was time to read to Mom, so we broke there. {Smile}

After dinner, hopped back into City of Heroes: Homecoming, and didn't see anyone on, so I started working on some badges with one character. Darkthough1 came in, and we started chatting. We teamed up, and when I finished the particular set of badges I was working on, we got together, and started to do a story arc my character had. Perogies came on and joined us. Phonso came on, and invited us to a task force he'd joined, but it filled before we could join, so we continued the story arc. Perogies left just before the last mission, so I tried to get the attention of the four friends I saw who weren't on teams. Two responded, and one was willing to come help us. We did the last mission with the three of us. followed by two shorter one-off missions with particularly good rewards for our characters. that took me right up to time to exercise. I tried talking to Nox, but we barely had time for a short chat before thy left for bed. So I did some paperwork in the game around my dancing and walking exercises, and wrote this up after, with a little article reading I kind of wish I hadn't done, because then I could have finished this sooner. {Smile}

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Daily Update, May 16, 2023

    Yesterday, I got a call from my financial adviser after breakfast. She told me what progress she'd made while I tried to remember what I wanted to teel her. I remembered one part just as she was suggesting I call back later, and remembered the other pat as I was finishing the first. So we got everything covered after all. {Smile}

   Then just as I was finishing getting ready to go, the driver arrived to take me to the picnic. So that worked out pretty well. The driver and I chatted a little on the way down, but there was much more chatting at the picnic. There was also a major coffee spill that somehow coincided with a big gust of wind. It It somehow ended up in my lap. There were apologies, and I blotted up what I could, and declared it good enough to get me home. 

   I rode home with the leader. We had a lovely talk on the way home. She also bought another Asterix comic off me, since I still have two that I've replaced. Well, one now. {Smile}

   I had dinner with Mom and read to her before that. I read scripture and thoughts about it first. Then I read the Mother's Day card I gave her Sunday, followed by a Thanksgiving card from her sister, and a Christmas card from her cousin's granddaughter. After that, I continued _1960's Fashion in Pictures_. This time, she liked to say "and that's a lot" after most of the pictures. Next, I read "Chile Opts for 11 million Acres of New National Parks," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. Then I finished with the May 16th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom Mom said she liked what I read to her a lot today. {Smile}

   I did my head exercises, and over 20 minutes of salsa dancing. Yes, I need to do more, but at least I'm getting some of it done. {Smile}

   After I got back from the picnic, I cleaned up and changed some of my clothes because of the coffee spill. It was definitely nice to be less sticky. Next, I read some comics. Then I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming. There, I found Perogies. WE chatted, then teamed up, and ran a couple of missions. Then we noticed it was close to the time for the later long, large-group event, so we joined that. After that, it was time to read to Mom.

   After dinner, I hopped back into City of Heroes: Homecoming. I found Darkthough1 and Mistress Aegis. We teamed up and did two story arcs which we'd meant to start yesterday before Phonso started inviting us to do task forces with him. I was surprised we got both done completely, but we did, though it took us right up to bedtime for them and exercise time for me. I also chatted with Nox. After Nox left, I looked up some things I've been thinking about, as well as doing a bit of paperwork in the game. Then I jotted down notes to write this from the next morning. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 15, 2023

    This morning, I got a call from Auntie Barbara. She and Michelle were in town for some medical stuff, and wanted to drop by my house afterwards, to visit both Mom and me. I said of course, and for once, i remembered to unlock the front door, since Auntie Barbara likes to let herself in. {Smile}

   She did let herself in when she arrived, and immediately went back to visit with Mom. Mom did respond when Auntie Barbara spoke to her and said yes when asked if she wanted to sing, but she didn't actually sign when Auntie Barbara, Mom's main nurse and I sang a few songs. Mom did listen, though. {Smile}

   Then Auntie Barbara and I went out into the carport to sit and talk.  go out to sit int he carport and talk. Michelle was out there and did join us. She let us have the two chairs and did sit for a bit when our main nurse brought a third chair out, but then she got up to look at things, and was standing and walking around during more of the visit. {Smile}

   When they were ready to leave, Auntie Barbara offered to take me along and drop me off if there was some place I'd like to go. I accepted, remembering some lab tests my doctor wants me to have before my next appointments. So Auntie Barbara and Michelle took me to Clinical Labs and dropped me off. There, they discovered that my cardiologist had already called in tests, but my primary care physician had not, so they had to call them for that. They did so, and had me do the tests. This involved a lot of waiting, so it was after noon by the time we were done. I just called Uber and had them take me home, without going anywhere else. {Smile}

   The secretary from Helping Hands Healthcare stopped by for a quick visit, to check that I'm taking care of myself. I was able to satisfy her that I'm doing enough. {Smile}

   I called the financial advisers in the afternoon. I got the secretary, who tried to connect me to my main adviser. When she discovered my adviser was away from her desk, and said she'd tell her to call me. They didn't that day, but it was close to closing time. {Smile}

   After that, I got a call from the organizer of the monthly picnic, which was scheduled for the next day. I confirmed that I planned to go, and we arranged transportation for me. {Smile}

   I had dinner with Mom and read to her before dinner. First, I read scripture and thoughts about it. Then I read a Christmas card from a friend, a Valentine's Day card from her sister, and the Mother's Day card I gave her yesterday. After that, I continued _1960's Fashion in Pictures_, one of her presents. She did something new: repeating the year after I read the description of each picture. Next, I read "Four-Day Work Week Means More Productive, Less Stressed Employees," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. Then I finished with the May 15th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom enjoyed both pictures and stories. I think she particularly liked the pictures of clothing. {Smile}

   I did over 20 minutes of salsa dancing, and my arm swinging and head exercises. {Smile}

   I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming after lunch and cleaning up. I found Perogies, and we joined the later short, large group event. Then I think we joined the later long, large-group event together. I say I think, because Perogies had to leave suddenly, but I think that was after the second event started. I finished out the event by myself. This and a little paperwork took me to time to read to Mom. {Smile}

   After dinner, I hopped back into City of Heroes: Homecoming. This time, I found Darkthough1 and Mistress Aegis in the game. We started to team up, picking out a story arc to work on together. However, before we got started, Phonso invited us to a task force. Darkthough1 and I joined it. Then Phonso ran a second task force which Darkthough1 and I also both joined. Then Phonso ran a third task force. Darkthough1 had been thinking they'd not do a third because it was a work night and getting late, but he decided it looked to be short enough, he stayed, and we both joined this one, too. I think I chatted with Nox around this time, too. This took me right up to time to exercise. Around my exercises, I did paperwork in the game. Then I started writing this and talking to Azurette. I ended up visiting Azurette's new base to see all the work she's put into one section, and making notes about most of my day, so I could write this up the next day. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 14, 2023

    Happy Mother's Day to those who celebrate it now! To others, I hope you had a good day anyway.

   We did celebrate it. I gave Mom five more picture books for dementia: _1960's Fashion in Pictures_, _The Picture Book of Vintage Vogue_, _A Picture Book of Cute Kittens, Vol. 1_, _Memories 1940's_, _Memories 1950's_, and _Memories 1960's_. I also wrote her a card. I recited what I planned to write, then wrote it down, and did the same with the next segment. I've really got to do her cards ahead of time. Maybe next time I will. {odd smile}

   It was also Sunday, so I went to church, calling Uber to go down. I was surprised how late it was when I got out, and even more surprised when the car was 22 minutes away. Taht was after the service started! However, not much I could do but wait. I think he was a little quicker, but no, he didn't get here until the service had started. He'd been taking a passenger from the ship that was in today to the airport to rent a car for the day. Apparently, a lot of ship passengers do that. I got there during the lessons, but got most of the lessons, and al of the gospel, sermon, and communion, so I don't feel too bad about being late. {Smile}

   After the service I checked with my priest. We're having a single service at 9 am next week, to make room for a "Ministry Fair." I told my priest that I wondered about coming - if I'm as late as today, I'd miss the entire service. She encouraged me to come to the ministry fair and fellowship anyway. I'm tempted to do so. I'm curious what a "ministry fair" is. {Smile}

   AJ Kubo took me home, since he was heading towards his Mom's afterwards, and I live on the way. We talked about next week, but he'd want to pick me up at 8:30, and I can't quite promise to be out of bed by then, never mind ready to get in a car and go to church. We talked about other stuff too. it was a nice visit. {Smile}

   I had a nice phone call with my cousin after I got home from church. We caught up on how things are going with each other. It was really nice talking with her. {Smile}

   I had dinner with Mom and read to her before dinner, after giving her the presents, and writing her card. After the presents and card came scripture and thoughts about it. Then I read a birthday card I'd given her, and Thanksgiving card from her sister. After that, I started _1960's Fashion in Pictures_, one of her presents. Seh does like pictures of clothes, and this was no exception. Next, I read "No More Confederate Names for Army Bases," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. Then I finished with the May 14th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom enjoyed presents, pictures, and stories. {Smile}

   I did my head and arm training exercises, and over 20 minutes of salsa dancing. Walking, arm swinging, and 10 more minutes of salsa dancing would have been nice, but actually, I was so tired during the second set, I'm mainly glad I made it through that. I think I was too warm. I did cool down, but not enough in time for a third set. {smile}

   After I got home and called my cousin, I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming. There, I found Perogies - which I should have explained yesterday is the short version of my RWBY friend's username - and we went to the early long, large-group event together. Then we teamed up more specifically afterwards, and Kitten joined us, too. The three of us worked on some badges Kitten and I wanted. We finished and were just picking a story arc to do next when I realized it was time to read to Mom, and left, promising to be back after dinner. {Smile}

   After dinner, I hopped back on. Kitten and Perogies were both gone, but Darkthough1 and Mistress Aegis on. We started chatting, and soon teamed up on the trio of low-level villains we like to run together. We picked a mission we had. Perogies came in part way through, and joined us, then left after that mission, which was a long one. Next, Darkthough1, Mistress Aegis, and I picked a story arc we wanted to do and started it. We did a few missions, and eventually realized that the one we'd just started would be both Darkthough1's and Mistress Aegis's last. Phonso came in and invited us to do a task force. I said that Dark and Aegis were leaving soon, but I'd be interested. However, the mission we were doing turned out to be a lot longer than I'd expected. Phonso eventually asked how it was going, and if I'd still have time. I admitted that I wouldn't have time and apologized for that. Phonso said maybe next time and left. After the mission, Darkthough1 and I chatted, with me slipping in the head and arm exercises until it was time for me to start salsa dancing. Then he left, and I danced and read comics and did paperwork in CoH around my salsa dancing. Then I started writing this up, and chatted with Perogies when they came into CoH, where I was working on some more paperwork. I also did a little research until bedtime. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 13, 2023

    Today, I called my aunt Valerie after lunch. I told her about things that have happened recently here, including things I thought she should know as Mom's next-of-kin after me. I also learned about how things are going with her. It was a nice phone call. {Smile}

   I had breakfast and dinner with Mom and read to her before dinner. She was definitely awake today, and more responsive than she she's sleepy. I started with scripture and thoughts about it, then I read four cards from her nephew, her cousin's granddaughter, a different cousin, and her sister. After that, I started _1950's Fashion in Pictures_. She seemed particularly interested in the pictures of clothes. Next, I read "Ukrainians Don't Need Visas to Move to Ireland," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. Then I finished with the May 13th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom enjoyed both pictures and stories. {Smile}

   I did my walking exercises, and over 25 minutes of salsa dancing. I'm supposed to do 30 minutes of salsa dancing, and I think all my exercises... I really should check with my therapist about salsa dancing nights and the rest of my exercises. {Smile}

   After lunch and my call to aunt Valerie, I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming. There, I found Kitten teaming with a friend. I asked about joining and did so. They'd just started Kitten's favorite high-level story arc. the three of us did fine, but for the last mission, they wanted someone else, too. Azurette joined, which was fun. Then Azurette left, and kitten's friend switched characters. We played two or three more story-arcs, and then I left because it was time to read to Mom. {Smile}

   I got back into City of Heroes: Homecoming after dinner. Kitten was still on, though their friend had left. We teamed up to work on the moderately low-level story-arcs we're doing for badges, and actually got two done. Kitten talked about stopping because they were tired, but Phonso came on, and invited us to a task force, and Kitten joined right along with me, and kept up just fine. I started talking with nox on the chat server, too. After the task force, Phonso left, and Darkthough1 and Mistress Aegis came on. How I wished to team with them, but it was time to start my exercises, so I limited myself to talking with them, Nox, and Kitten between my exercise and my dancing sets. Nox left first, then Kitten went quiet, and Dark and Aegis left last. Then I read some comics, and wrote this up, but didn't have time to share it everywhere. {Smile}

Daily Update, May 12, 2023

    Today, I found a voicemail on my phone from Life Care Center first thing in the morning. It said my physical therapy tomorrow is cancelled because my therapist is sick. I think he said before that now that his kids are in grade school, he does catch stuff from them. I called to confirm, and yes, that's off, and next Wednesday is off, but to the best of our knowledge, the next Saturday is on. I guess I'll do salsa dancing from tomorrow until I can go to therapy again. {smile}
   Later, I got a call from the nursing company. The secretary was checking up on me, making sure I take care of myself. I asked her to clarify something that the owner had mentioned at lunch. She confirmed it, and told me she'd told me, too. It's funny how that slid by me until now. {rueful smile}
   I chatted with Auntie Barbara on the phone after we were both done with dinner. We talked about recent developments on both sides. She says she'll be at church, but busy with the children during the service, and helping with the food afterwards. I told her about the packages of nuts that I took last time. Since they didn't all get eaten, they can supplement this Sunday, too. {Smile}
   I had breakfast, lunch and dinner with Mom and read to her before dinner. I started with scripture and thoughts about it, then I read three birthday cards from a friend, church, and myself. After that, I finished _1940's Fashion in Pictures_. She seemed more interested in this than most. Next, I read "Free Tuition for Those Less Privileged in Wisconsin," from _100 Uplifting Short Stories for Seniors_. Then I finished with the May 12th story from _366 Stories for Bedtime: A Tale for Every Day of the Year_. Mom enjoyed both pictures and stories. {Smile}
   I did my walking, arm swinging, arm weight training and head exercises tonight. That's a full set for two days after physical therapy. {Smile}
   I read comics in the morning, and more after lunch. Then I hopped into City of Heroes: Homecoming and found Kitten. We teamed up to do an arc together, one of the ones which don't let us add anyone after we begin. That turned out to be unfortunate when Perogies came in We both chatted with him but couldn't add him. He left before we were done, so we just continued until suddenly Kitten went quiet with little warning. I noticed a few pauses, but nothing that made me think they'd fall asleep so quickly, but they didn't respond for half an hour, until I left because it was time to read to Mom. {smile}
   They were still unresponsive when I checked back after reading, and again when I came back on after dinner. I checked on comics and ran a task force that caught my eye. Then I talked with Auntie Barbara before joining another task force. Phonso came on during the second one, but when he couldn't join me immediately, he decided he felt like playing a different game, so we said goodnight and he left. I chatted with Nox for a while before he went to bed, too. My RWBY friend came on around this time, too. We chatted, then teamed up. He chose a moderately low-level character, and I found one of the same level. We ran a story arc mine could get. Part way through, Kitten turned up, saying they were surprised how quickly the fell asleep. Yes, so was I. They chose a character they play less often so the one stuck in the other story arc with me could stay stuck while we finished my story arc. Then my RWBY friend left, and Kitten and I switched to the others to try to finish before my exercises. That actually worked nicely, since it turned out we just had one more mission. So we aren't stuck overnight, which would bother me a lot less than them. {Smile}