Another Storm Brewing

 This was supposed to be a good week.  Nature seems to have other plans.

Some things have been good.  I had my annual physical.  This always stresses me out, for various reasons.  One- it's almost an hour's drive there.  Two - I wonder what the doctor is going to nag me about (my blood pressure?  My cholesterol count?). And I will always have the memory of Bob going to his usual annual checkup, feeling fine, expecting everything to be normal, and finding out that things were really wrong.  So it's a relief to have it over with.  And she couldn't find anything to nag me about - between diet and walking, I have my blood pressure and cholesterol where they need to be, and everything else checked out.

A Spirit Halloween has opened up between the doctor's office and home, so of course I had to go poke around in there.  I was also adamant about treating myself to a coffee; alas - the shop I wanted to go to wouldn't have opened for another half-hour, and patience is not my virtue.  I settled for a Starbucks.  One - I don't like their coffee; it always tastes slightly burned.  I went for a latte so the milk and sugar would cover up the taste.  And I don't like the atmosphere.  I like coffee shops with a certain coziness to them; Starbucks is more industrial.  And loud.  So I sat outside to sip and read (Confederacy of Dunces) and tried to tune out the "atmosphere" of a busy street on one side and a parking lot on the other.

The visit to Spirit made me really want to give in to some Halloween urges.  I raided my cottage for a plastic bird skeleton, some cheesecloth, and a bicycle brake cable.  A little surgery on the skeleton, some glue, and I have a little friend for my shoulder.

Then on Friday Jeff was in town (he has to come in about every two months for meetings).  I've written before about the irony of his never having time to get together when he lived here, but now he makes the time.  It was a lovely day - we had lunch, and then went to the big Spirit Halloween, and then went mall walking while we talked.  We spent close to five hours together - that hopefully will hold me for awhile.

And I did have a lovely moment in Spirit.  I was looking at quite a good demon goat skeleton mask.  One of the sales staff came over to comment on it, and I mentioned that I liked making puppets and thought it might be a good puppet head.  She then asked "if you don't mind, can I ask why you like puppets?"  I first gave my usual glib answer of "I like to make new friends" but then went on to how people naturally interact with puppets - that even if they're on a screen, they need belief, or the suspension of belief.  She told me that she's really into puppets, and showed me her sleeve tattoo from Labyrinth (a Jim Henson movie).  It's those little connections that I've come to treasure.

So last week was good.  This week?  Supposed to be good.  Finally, after a month, I was supposed to take my car to the shop on Thursday to get repaired.  And Tuesday through Friday evenings I'm taking an online class on making a rod-controlled puppet - out of cardboard (it's a great entry-level material)

But you know what else looks like it might happen this week?  On Thursday?  Frickin' hurricane.  We won't know for sure for a few more days - but at the moment it has the potential to be a nasty one.  I've spent part of today doing storm prep (I don't have to do much because I sort of keep permanent storm prep happening).  Tomorrow I'll fill up my buckets of flushing water.  I'm trying - not that successfully - not to stress out.  But I'm pissed - why couldn't this thing have waited another week?

Stay tuned.