CedarWaxwing of Celeste

Last night, I happened to glance out the bedroom window as I was puttering around before bed. Dark shapes were moving across the snow. I felt uneasy--what is that? That can't be right. It looked like a group of people standing silently by the neighbor's porch. I took a closer look. It was four deer, one a fawn. I didn't think deer came into our neighborhood! I wonder if the cold and snow made them wander from their usual hiding places. But in a few minutes, they were gone again into the shadows.

I didn't blog because my stomach was bothering me quite a lot and I just wanted to collapse. I went out to lunch with my new friend the Poet. The restaurant had banh mi, which I've been eager to try, but sadly, I don't think it agreed with me at all. I'm better today. The lunch was fun, and afterward she drove me over to the art show that I missed on Sunday so we could view it together. An award-winning artist did a commission for her, a large pencil version of her only photo of her family, shortly after they arrived from Poland. The artist had borrowed the piece back again to display it in the show. The picture was very subtle and poignant. All those young faces gazing out into their future, which now for us has become the distant past. There were a lot of other interesting art works in the show, too. It was tiring to be ON for so long with someone I don't know all that well, so when I came home I was ready to close the door and be solitary.

Today I had a therapy appointment in the morning. Then I got my teeth cleaned--not my favorite thing. I think having therapy and the dentist in one day is going too far. Sadly, my attempts at reparative dental hygiene didn't work well enough, and I have been scheduled for two sessions of deep cleaning. Our insurance doesn't cover it, so this will be ridiculously expensive. I said morosely to the perky checkout lady, "Well, I guess I'd better start saving my money to get my teeth cleaned." She was sympathetic. "It isn't fun, is it?" Everyone at the dentist's office seemed a bit harried today. It took them forever to do all their administrative things. But when I got home, two beautiful bunches of flowers were delivered in rapid succession! The first had no label, but I'm guessing it was from the kids. They often do send flowers for my birthday. The second was from Dragonfly and the Minister with thanks for my assistance. They really didn't have to do that, but I appreciate the heck out of their lovely gesture. I made myself an impromptu soup for dinner. I browned my remaindered ground beef with the remaining half cabbage, an onion, and a couple of small potatoes chopped up. I added some leftover miso broth and a can of minestrone that I found in the pantry, and simmered it together until it was done enough. Tasty, hot, and lots of vegetables--a good dish for a cold winter day.