Weekly recap of my ritual of existence in this liminal space called life. (See here for more info.)
- Weather
Cold week. I don’t know if it’s typical of late January but I think it might have been colder than usual. The highs ranged from 18.9°F to 9.1°F, averaging 16.1°F, and the lows except on two nights were in the negative numbers, ranging from -6.7°F to 4.5°F and averaging -1.5°F. I noted that Friday and Saturday were sunny, yay. The snow storm that began on Sunday and went well into Monday brought about 16 inches of light fluffy snow our way.
This was Thursday’s weather warning:
- Beginnings/Firsts
Not exactly a first but for the first time in a long time we bought a new shower curtain for the downstairs hall bathroom. (The incumbent was mildewed beyond recovery.)
- Wild Things (Flora, Fauna, Fungi) in addition to others elsewhere in this post
TOP row: mourning dove & downy woodpecker; downy woodpecker (2); SECOND row: downy woodpecker underside and wings; hairy woodpecker; red-bellied woodpecker; THIRD row: all red-bellied woodpecker; FOURTH row: white-breasted nuthatch; red-breasted nuthatch; tufted titmouse; ; FIFTH row: two tufted titmice; 2 photos of purple finches (male and male + females); SIXTH row: purple finch male and goldfinch; goldfinches; goldfinches and pine siskin; SEVENTH row: pine siskin; blue jay; three blue jays; EIGHTH row: blue jay; black-capped chickadee; American tree sparrow; BOTTOM row: mourning dove & Carolina wren.
Special wild guest, a brown marmorated stink bug seen inside near the deck door at a local restaurant this week:
- Wandering
I walked in town on four days this week (Wed., Fri., Sat., and Sun.) and drove to a town a few towns away to shop at the farmstand/store there on Thursday. It was a good week for mostly staying home.
in town & farmstand pics
- Curiosity & Discoveries
As you know if you read this weekly posting much, I use an app called Flight Radar to see what’s up in the sky from time to time. On Friday I noticed this aircraft in Nevada and researched to learn more about it. “Janet” is a U.S. Air Force shuttle that transports personnel to and from “restricted areas like Area 51 … and the Tonopah Test Range.”
- Creating
Yes, it’s February, and yes, I am planning to write a poem per day for at least most of the 28 days, if I can do so in an hour or less. I’ve written one today. I’m not sure when I’ll post them, if at all; that remains to be seen.
- Repairing and Maintaining the human(s), the cat, and the cars
Humans: I worked out four times (4 hours) this week, with weights, stretching, dancing, etc. I walked more than 9,000 steps every day, more than 10,000 steps on four days, and more than 14,000 steps on two days. I took walks outside on four days. We ping-ponged a total of 2 hours and 35 minutes this week and I treadmilled on one day for 33 mins (2 miles). I started the Real Happiness Challenge on Sunday; it’s daily meditation and teaching offered online every year in Feb. by Sharon Salzberg. My husband got a haircut on Friday and he also got out cross-country skiing and snowshoeing over the weekend.
- Nesting
Cleaning/Maintenance: The usual bathroom cleaning, kitchen counter/sink/stove cleaning, bird-feeders and heated birdbath filling, cat litterbox tending, etc. I watered the houseplants on Monday and on Sunday we were gifted two poinsettias by a friend (LD) to add to the collection. I did clothes laundry on Tuesday and towel laundry on Wednesday. I vacuumed the kitchen on Saturday. My husband tried to bleach the mildew out of the aforementioned shower curtain but couldn’t so it’s been replaced. My husband replaced a zipper on a very heavy and very warm parka that we got from a neighbour and friend (LP) in Maine almost 25 years ago.
Yard: My husband cleared the driveway of many inches of snow with the snowblower a couple of times on Monday. I shoveled snow from around the birdfeeding area and made a path to the fence gate. This was the situation when I went to dump compost on Tuesday — the composter is under that snow mound outside the fence.
Financial/Admin: I backed up the laptop on Sunday and went through the bank transactions this week.
Supplies: We ordered more drapes for the bedroom on Tuesday and they were delivered on Thursday and immediately installed by my husband; now the drapes close in the middle on each of the four windows and make the room much darker as well as further reducing draft. We were able to get the same drapes we already had, which were ordered in 2012, so everything matches. I ordered another pair of Kizik shoes on Thurs., duplicates of some I have and love (knowing how quickly these things go out of stock never to be seen again) and I also ordered pecans, pine nuts, and Chex mix (the latter not available this week in our local grocery). We researched electricity suppliers on Wed. I rejiggered the upcoming Chewy autoship on Saturday. I ordered two more packages of Bells & Stars cookies (by Archway) now that we’ve finished the Christmas supply. (Archway, if you’re listening, Bells & Stars cookies: They’re not just for Christmas, they’re for life.)
I spent several hours this week researching and shopping for (in person and online) women’s short puffer coats with hoods — my current iteration (which I bought used years ago) has down escaping from various largish openings in the nylon and is prone to zipper issues. I had no luck but I did learn some other features that matter to me, like the inside of the sleeves being slippery (not fabricky) so that wool, fleece, and flannel can move easily inside them. And pocket number and size matter. But — I did find a very nice vintage lambswool LL Bean sweater at a local consignment store for $8.50 after using my consignment balance. And my husband found a great winter puffer jacket for himself and a pair of attractive and very comfy shoes at the consignment store, too.
Food: On Monday we had jasmine rice or leftover herb & potato risotto, root veggies, and Old Bay shrimp (and my husband had chicken). I made more root veggies on Tuesday — radish, turnip, shallots, garlic, beets, carrots, potatoes, with dill, rosemary, parsley — which I had with rice and shrimp while my husband had homemade turkey rice soup. Wednesday saw us eating more root vegetables, and I made penne with asparagus and pine nuts (to which my husband added chicken); Thursday was leftovers of the same. On Friday I made a vegan coconut curry, plus jasmine rice and papadums, and we had that the rest of the week. (I can’t find the version I printed in 2019 online anymore but it’s very similar to this recipe. I double it and I use lemongrass paste in place of the sticks of lemongrass — 2 to 3 Tbsp for the doubled recipe version — which works great. Beware that grating the sweet potatoes and carrots is arduous and takes a long time!)
My husband made three sourdough baguettes on Thursday and gave two away to friends.
- Sleeping & Dreaming
Sleeping continues to be good, dreamy. Overall this week I slept 7 hours 55 minutes per night, with an average sleep score of 90.3 (same as last week). I got 15 hours 15 mins of REM sleep and 9 hours 7 mins of deep sleep.
My fitness app knows me:
- Reading / Words & Ideas / Listening / Watching
Reading
BOOKS: I’ve almost finished The Black Wolf (2025) by Louise Penny. I had a hard time getting started with it but now we’re moving along.
OTHER:
I’ve come across so many interesting and engaging articles and essays and such lately. Including:
This was just really enjoyable: The opposite of suicide: An ode to Cairo’s traffic by Christian Näthler in his newsletter lol/sos [I wish I’d thought of that] on 26 Jan. 2026. It starts: “the opposite of suicide is to spend a few days walking and driving the streets of Cairo. True, it can feel like self-murder. Cairo has more than 23 million people and no traffic lights. Getting anywhere demands submitting to an unruly accumulation of motion and believing unwaveringly in the ancient concept of going with the flow. It’s very somatic.”
And this, The Only Fruit: STOP TAKING ORANGES FOR GRANTED by Felicity Cloake in her newsletter Felicity Cloake’s (Almost) Perfect on 27 Jan. 2026. “[W]hat I wanted to write about today was a justification of why, when I can no longer use the middle shelf of my fridge because it’s full of citrus, I’ve just received an email to inform me another order is on its way from Calabria.” And that candied kumquat dish!
This long Rest of World article, Death of an Indian tech worker: A wave of suicides and widespread AI-fueled layoffs reveal a workforce under extreme pressure by Sameer Raichur on 27 Jan. 2026 was eye-opening on more than one front. “A 22-year-old data analyst at an AI-focused startup in southern India told Rest of World her U.S.-headquartered firm was already using the AI tools she expected would replace her. But the company still needs her because the AI often makes mistakes, she said, requesting anonymity to avoid retribution. She expects her job to be in danger in two to three years’ time. In the meantime, she regularly works more than 12 hours a day. Employees who complain about unpaid overtime are told they could simply resign, she said, so she doesn’t speak up when her seniors ask her to keep working late from home: “[My] mind is always online.””
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This looks yummy, and not too difficult?
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Listening
Shazam’d songs this week — which does not imply anything about whether I like them or not, just that they went in one ear and out the other
Watching
Mostly “House Hunters” or “International House Hunters” and either a “Keeping Up Appearances” or a “Waiting for God,” and one “Death in Paradise” (season 10).
- Connections & Community
Local Support: My husband and I had lunch at a local restaurant on Tues. and on Sunday I had lunch there again with a friend (MAB). We bought birdseed from two local hardware chains this week. On Wed. I bought asparagus from the local co-op, and on Sat. I bought cans of garbanzos, fresh broccoli, and local garlic from them. We each bought assorted items at the local consignment store this week (as mentioned elsewhere here), on Wed. and Thurs. I went to a nearby farmstand on Thursday (celeriac, gold beets, parsnips, Asian pears, shallots, plus whole bean coffee as a birthday gift and a purple daikon radish as an anytime gift). We had breakfast at a local bakery/café on Friday and I bought a treat there on Saturday. I bought limes and local spinach from the farmstand on Saturday.
Relationships: We Zoomed with college friends of mine (R&ChN) on Monday evening for an hour. I talked with my sister by phone for 40 mins on Tuesday. Texted a friend (LM) for her 87th birthday on Wed. My husband took baguettes to friends (ND, LD) on Thursday afternoon and evening. Also on Thursday I texted and talked by phone with our neighbour (BSF) who was having an issue with their mail delivery while away. We had Salon on Friday with seven of us for 2-1/4 hours. Ran into a friend (DH) at the farmstand on Saturday. I had lunch out and delayed Christmas gift giving with my friend (MAB) on Sunday. We picked up poinsettias from a friend (LD) on Sunday afternoon.
- Endings
Goodbye, mildewed shower curtain!
- All This Useless Beauty
this Chrome screensaver caught my eye on the TV, like an enhanced woodcut
tufted titmouse looks like a watercolour wash
David Lebovitz posted his spice cabinet in a recent newsletter 💓swoon💓 (caption his)
speaking of spices and condiments, the lemongrass paste, tomato paste, and curry powder wowed me when I was making the vegan coconut curry: the colours and textures and oohlala the aroma
the red bellied woodpecker is so completely unnecessarily gorgeous
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