Sunday Randomness

Today is the last day of Hanukkah. We celebrate, though we are not religious, because when Maya was little we wanted to expose her to more than just Christmas, and also because it’s fun. (Truthfully, this confused her as she told friends that we were Jewish when she was little, and why wouldn’t she think that?) We have latkes with our dinner and give gifts on the first night, and the other 7 night we just light the menorah. This year, of course, the light of Hanukkah felt dimmed by the horrible shooting on Bondi Beach in Australia. My mind immediately went to my friend Nadine, who is Jewish, and who I knew from our time in Philadelphia, where her (now ex) husband was going to dental school while Ted was working on his PhD. She lives very close to Bondi Beach. I messaged her, asked if she was OK, and while she is thankfully physically unharmed, she is not OK. She was there that day, and says it is scary being Jewish these days.

I was thinking of Nadine a lot this week, of course, and did a google search to see if I could find a link to some of her amazing paintings. She’s an artist, these days mostly a photographer (She took the first photos of Maya, when she was 2 weeks old, because our camera battery died and she lived right upstairs in our apartment building). She also paints and does pottery. My google search came up with her official photography website, and also one of her paintings on sale on eBay! I’ve always wanted to own one of her paintings, both because she’s so talented, but also to remember that time together in Philly, but I couldn’t really afford one. This one was in San Diego, and lo and behold, I could afford it! I remember when it was exhibited in a gallery in Sydney, because she sent me a flyer, which I still have. So I made an impulsive decision to buy myself a gift for my upcoming 60th birthday. I’m so glad I did. I did zero research, I thought it was a canvas, but it’s not. It’s 3D, wooden, and has a lot of texture. It’s named ‘Band of Brothers’, from her exhibit ‘African Innocence’ (she is originally from South Africa).

Look at the sweet Christmas Cactus our friends gave us at their holiday party! I mean, the friendship is the main gift, and then the party (lots of work and money goes into that, as we all know), but I have always wanted a Christmas Cactus, and now I have one! (OMG, my windows are filthy.)

Speaking of Christmas Cacti, look at these in front of a neighbor’s house. They sit out front all year, I have no idea what goes into their upkeep. Through the heat of summer they look like crap, but then they do this.

Our weather has finally changed. Can you see the low fog over the hills? For weeks we were socked in by this fog, bringing much gloom, dampness, and cold to our area. On this drive, we were in the sun, then as we passed through these hills, we were shrouded in cold, damp fog. The worst is that it also holds down air pollution, so the air quality was kind of crummy. This is the air San has been dealing with longer than we did, because as you can see, as of a week ago, we had sunshine, while the valley was still socked in. Now we have rain, glorious rain. That means a lower pressure air system, and hopefully it gives us some cleaner air once the rain clears out.

Back to Hanukkah, I couldn’t find my usual candles this year, so I bought these at the grocery store. They suck. Do not recommend this brand. They were under $2, which is good, but look, some of them wouldn’t stay lit. Bad. Spend the $6.

Almost 2 years ago, I wrote about the slow leak from our bathtub faucet. It was almost manageable and the repair was drastic (ripping out 45 year old tile and drywall), so we lived with it. Which means we’ve been listening to it dripping for over 2 years. Recently it got a lot worse, and was a constant stream. UGH. Happily, a neighbor has a friend who is a plumber, and he was able to fix it for SO MUCH LESS than my fear. To be clear, it was $325. I was imagining an entire replacement of the bathtub area, into a walk in shower (which admittedly we would all love, but would be very spendy) which would be closer to $10,000. HUGE DIFFERENCE. NO MORE DRIPPING. Beyond the cost, there is the guilt in California of wasting water. Whew. I’m glad that’s taken care of.

I don’t write about work much, but my company supports payroll software, which means lots of year-end work as tax rates and reporting requirements change. So while some folks are winding down a bit for the remainder of the year, my work is crazy busy. And my job specifically is very reactionary, meaning I have to wait for other people to get their work done before I can do anything. There is not a single thing anyone on my team can do to manage this work, it comes when it comes. So one week we don’t have much to do, the next week I’m finally getting my shower at 5pm and we’re eating dinner out of the freezer (thank you past me, for freezing leftovers), because I didn’t have any way of knowing that this was going to be an insane week. (I mean, of course I know this time of year will be busy, but not THIS busy.) It’s frustrating.

Friday I was planning on having some leftover salad for lunch, but it was a little too leftover. Meaning, slimy. So I had chips and guacamole instead. Does that count as fruit (avocado) and veg (corn chips)? No? I’m still not sorry, it was delicious.

We’ve had a lot of little earthquakes lately. (3 or 4 this week, one while I was typing this post, which motivated this section of randomness) They’re mostly centered in San Ramon, a few towns south of us. Are they a warning of THE BIG ONE, or are they a bit of relief, letting off steam? The science is out, because no one knows. Is it wrong that there’s a small part of me that wishes there had been a small one when Birchie or Engie were here this year? Not enough to scare them, but just a ‘hey, you’re in Cali’ thing? Probably wrong, probably would have scared them. Sorry.

Friday I ran a ton of errands, trying to get things wrapped up for Christmas and so on, but Ted’s aunt and uncle have requested some specific English Muffins, and the bakery ran out by 10am. So yesterday I went at 8am, which was much luckier. They’re in the freezer now.

I liked this mural I saw on the way to the bakery. I think this is how Mulder thought of himself, very fierce but also cheerful with big feet.

A few doors down from the mural is this Turkish shop. If you’re ever looking for an evil eye, this shop has you covered. Let me know your theme, I’ll find it for you.

On our walk yesterday, I came across this sticker several times. Likely we’d all be sent to Venezuela, or perhaps Zimbabwe, but I wanted to imagine being sent to Paris. I sent it to my white liberal sisters, and asked them where they wanted to go (as if anyone has a choice) and one is joining me in Paris, the other Copenhagen.

After my early morning trip downtown (still parking issues, we are urban yo), breakfast, weights, yoga, and a walk, I make some popcorn and sat down to watched a dumb rom com, Champagne Problems on Netflix. Christmas, romance, Paris, champagne, what’s not to like? I mean, there were stupid stereotypes and it was entirely predictable, but it was fun and I enjoyed it. After that I wrapped my gifts, and finally took a shower at maybe 4:30 (in my non leaking tub!!!). So what, I got clean, that’s all that matters, right?

This is me at the grocery store. To be clear, I’m the one asking for help. I love these coneheads.

Lastly, you all know I’m thankful for you, right? This meme expresses my feelings.