too much time in Troutdale

in which our plucky heroine is ready for a rest...

Today was rather too much time on zoom and on the phone. In the morning several family video visits, and then this evening was the regional Laurel's meeting, which went about twice as long as usual. Between those bookends, there were several long phone calls to various customer service centers to try and sort out more than one delivery difficulty. Still not sure what is going on, but now the relevant systems know that there is a glitch.

I don't know why, for example, half my Ikea order arrived here yesterday with no problem (other than being days late, but that is due to the ice storm, which no one could have predicted, and which played hob with all kinds of things - I am not fussed about late delivery) I am concerned though, that one set of emails shows both items I ordered delivered?!? and the other set of emails shows the second half of the order stuck in the Troutdale facility for a number of days now and "pending", hope not a synonym for "lost".

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~ re-useable ~

This painted wooden cabinet is going to move from the bathroom to the workroom. It should just fit next to the kiln (aka Mr Hot), and be a larger place to hold the various cooling surfaces. Also, having the drawer and the closed cabinet will be a tidy way to store some of the tools that get used in my enameling. Putting this cabinet there will also allow me to re-purpose the current wooden box next to the kiln into part of Tansu Terrace instead.

It is starting to feel that making small improving changes in one spot in the house will lead to other helpful activity. I've removed all the contents of the various things in the bathroom, and have started separating them by type, and want to figure out which will be best stored where. I will need to remove all the contents of the shelf in the linen closet as well, as there is quite a bit of overlap of purpose. Once I know how much space the different categories take up, it will be easier to decide how best to contain and store them, and whether that will be in the bathroom or elsewhere.

And I suspect that there will be even more things to discard, as I have with some of what I sorted through today. I don't need bandaids so old they aren't sticky any more, or random papers describing medication from ten years ago, or hair elastics that are no longer stretchy (indeed, I don't have enough hair to make good use of elastics at all)

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January SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	Jedi obi sash	reinstall octopus	recycle bin
2	Jedi underlayer	hang candle lantern	-
3	2 tiny books	paint tiger frame	-
4	teal knit top	patch closet holes	-
5	3 hats & 3 scarves	teal top mended	-
6	plaid flannel slip	RÅSKOG	x
7	5 tiny books	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. so excited... I asked at NS about rose yogurt and the grocery manager is ordering me a case (6) which should arrive by the end of the week!
2. realised I could recut the Gary Larson dizzy alien flying saucer cartoon that fell off my kitchen cupboard, and turn it into a miniature book
3. The cabinet I'm removing from the bathroom will fit really well into the workroom, and be able to replace less suitable storage that is currently next to Mr Hot. A cabinet with a drawer, and a door that shuts, will be welcome.

Time of Isolation - Day 1301

Reading in 2024:

1. Mink River
   by Brian Doyle -
   This book is written in most lyrical prose about the most unlikely folks, in a small town on the Oregon coast. I found it so engaging that I stayed up far too late reading it. Perhaps because I am lucky enough to have coastal people among my circle of friends, and heard some of their quirky stories, the inhabitants of Neawanaka won my heart and my interest
   
2. A Half-Built Garden
   by Ruthanna Emrys -
   
   
3. Three Twins at the Crater School
   by Chaz Brenchley -
   this was recommended to me, but it wasn't my cup of tea... I am not keen on the "adventures of young people at boarding school" genre, even if transposed to a fantasy version of Mars. While this novel is better than many, since there is no infighting and nasty behavior, I just never connected with any of the characters or their challenges in a way that allowed "the willing suspension of disbelief" which is crucial to entering a tale.
   
4. The Inheritance & Other Stories
   by Robin Hobb and Megan Lindholm -
   
   
5. The Year Without Sunshine
   by Naomi Kritzer -
   delightful hopepunk novelette