Misha Day

Biggest blessing is the election results. Whew!

I went for groceries Friday morning before I knew, but the first stop was a liquor store, and I got me some bubbly. (I had been hoping!) I also got my hands on a bottle of Empress 1908 gin, because it CHANGES COLORS! (It's distilled with butterfly pea flower, and is this gorgeous indigo in the bottle.) So far I've mixed it with a few different citrus seltzers and it's very tasty. 

I also made an order with NM Tea Company - support a local business and taste some new teas. I thought about going down to the store itself, but it's in Old Town, and wasn't terribly convenient for my errands, so I went online. They had a deal for free shipping for folks who were struggling, and another option to pay shipping forward. So I did the latter, and the tea arrived the next day! I got 8 or 9 1oz packets to try their various teas. Current sipper is a light Darjeeling, though I think I'll switch to a breakfast tea in a little bit. 

I took Friday off since my boss has been urging us to take time, and it was a delightful lie in after the stressful days of waiting for election results. Work has been going well - I've developed a routine with time built in to check in on mom: lunch is blocked off entirely, so I can make her some wee sandwiches and sit with her for a little. I need to renew the FMLA paperwork, but that shouldn't be difficult - the nurse who signed the last round was delighted at how short the form is: only two pages! My student intern has just gotten her first real job, GO HER! I'll be sad to see her go, but I'm so happy we were able to keep her an extra quarter to give her the time to find this. And ok, I didn't have to train someone again just yet while I'm dealing with the situation here. In the meantime we've stolen away another fantastic person from a department who have had to put her on half-time, and it's looking like we'll be able to keep her full time once all the paperwork is mangled. I mean, handled. Right. 

I've managed to lose a little weight since coming down here, but not much, since Dad's got a super sweet tooth and keeps ice cream and cookies on hand. More importantly, I've been walking almost every morning, either 2 or 3 miles depending on my time and energy levels, and I've been slowly getting faster. I'm up to a slow jog that's getting faster: when I started, my splits were about 18 and a half minutes, and this mornings 3-miler was entirely under 16 minutes. I go first thing, as soon as it's light enough, and it's a good time for me to noodle on fanfic or plan my day. Gets me out of the house while Mom is still sleeping and I can have some time alone. 

My condo is finally completely fixed as of last Friday. (For those counting, the leak was in mid-June. So, four and a half months.) I just signed the paperwork last night to list it: my real estate agent will get someone in to clean it this next week and it will go on the market the week after. Here's hoping it will sell quickly. My plan is to buy another, larger condo in Seattle. There is a specific complex I've had my eye on, but their available units have come and gone before I could offer. But, with the situation as it is, I'm not in a rush, and can bide my time waiting for the perfect place. I have a set of search terms and a couple of real estate tabs open. Wherever I end up, it will need to be very close to someplace I can keep up this running habit. 

The cats are happy and healthy - Dad is delighted that little shy Darlene allows him to pet her. Mom's not as much of a cat person, but they give her something to watch: Mocha loves perching in her window to watch the back yard. 

I'm feeling energized this morning, so I'll get some cleaning and crafting done this morning while Mom and Dad listen to their church service.