Good Morning

Thought I better post at this point of optimism. The temp is rising from the 8 degrees of the morning. It's a home improvement weekend. We're hoping to get to 40 degrees and my neighborly carpenter will be installing the new side doors. It's the entry that we use all the time and they have never been a thing of beauty or efficiency. After 7 years I'm ready to upgrade!

Also, prepping my bedroom for painting tomorrow, ya hoo. Next weekend will be painting the computer room and possibly the family room downstairs including the red brick fireplace. Anyone painted a fireplace out there? Ultimately it might need more than that to raise the bar but a couple coats of paint is the first low tech treatment of choice.

My morning pages are mundane these days, having to do with color choices, finessing my mother's details, getting phone service restored. It is my inclination to pick up that baseball bat and use it upon myself, just name the reason, any reason will do. I am happy to report that I am aware of that tendency, accept my humanity and am much more successful in keeping my serenity. And sharing it.

My self care has included taking the afternoon off work due me, moving ever slowly forward on the mother/house tasks, not taking more on in an hour or a day than what I can tolerate. This week I stocked the frig with fruits & juices, the cupboard with nuts and dried berries and have prepared healthy comfort food all week. That alone has helped immeasurably.

It is not acceptable behavior to myself to re-tell mother tales, to perseverate on the dark side; I frankly don't have the emotional stability to risk riding that see-saw. My boundaries need patrolling, I re-directed a neighbor who wanted to give me 'poor you' stuff over my mother's needs. The Iyor (spelling?) approach of victim-hood wears out with me

And that's what's good about today. If you live in a warm climate, go skinny dipping for me, okay?