Day 35 - Governor Newsom reinstates the mask mandate in California

Garage door installation begins…a close approximation of MY door…

1/19/22. Wednesday 

6:00-I turn off my alarm and lie in bed for the next 15 minutes, with a headache.

6:15-6:45 – I go downstairs to greet the animal.  This is way too early for her and she’s asleep on the couch.  When she sees me, she rolls over on her back so I can rub her tummy and I sit next to her for awhile.  I put a toy in front of her face and cue her to go outside – she takes the toy and outside we go. While I wait for her to go potty, I note that my yard is in need of some TLC. Return inside and turkey for her and I make a cup of coffee.  Then, I unload and load the dishwasher and head upstairs.

6:45-8:00 – Shower. Lotion. Covid-19 uniform. Light make-up.

8:00-8:30 – I move our cars from the driveway to the street, then push L.’s stereo table [in the Art Studio] to the side of the fake ivy wall.

8:30-11:00 – Three contractors arrive to install the garage doors! I’m unable to leave because I need to be accessible while the contractors are working, so I report to my office and start working on my Canvas shells for Core Class and Specialty Class 1B offered through College No. 1. I discover that I’m able to increase the speed on my AUDIO lectures two-fold and this is a game-changer! I finish listening to the Chapter 3 AUDIO lecture for my Core Class; L. needs only to reformat a couple of Google slides.

-The contractors focus on the door leading from the garage to the backyard first so the dog can have the run of the house…inside.

11:00-1:00 – B. arrives with Starbucks so he can briefly visit with his friend “John”, the contractor. Then, B. and I sit outside at my patio table and talk politics. The contractors start installing the garage door to the kitchen, so I move the dog to the stairs and block her access with the child-gate.  She whines and barks for the next 5 hours…this is so irritating that I want to kill her. She pees on the carpet outside of L.’s bedroom out of spite and I clean it up. B. leaves.

1:00-1:30 – I put the dog on leash and take her for a walk so she can go potty.  I can’t put her in the backyard because the contractors have both doors open while they work on the installation. I’m also unable to use the kitchen.

1:30-2:00-I ask L. if I can have a piece of her leftover pizza – she says yes.

2:00-4:00 – The contractors are still here. I return to my office and listen to Chapter 1 and 2 AUDIO lectures for Specialty Class 1B.  I’m pleasantly surprised that these lectures still hold up, even though they were recorded a year ago. After, I listen to a new podcast I’ve assigned for that Module and design a podcast quiz.

-I take a break and spend some time with the dog in the stairwell, because she’s upset and stressed out over having been contained on the stairs all day.

-The workers finally leave, but John says they’ll be back tomorrow at 10:00. Uh oh…three contractors working steadily, all day, to install two doors…and they’re coming back tomorrow? This is going to cost me.

4:00-5:00 – It’s a relief when they leave. I take the dog outside, then have popcorn, some of L.’s plantain chips, and hummus. Kitchen duty and I ready my coffee.

5:00-6:00 – I read Friendshipping.

6:00-8:00 – I change all the due dates for my Core Class video quizzes.

8:00-8:30 – L. edits the AUDIO lectures, reformats three of the Google slides, then heads to the Whole Foods hot bar to pick up a few items en route to T.’s house.

9:00-10:00 – The dog starts whining near the front door the same way she did on 12/1/21, when the mysterious “Bill” informed me, through the front door, that he saw someone enter my backyard. L. is at her boyfriend’s house, but he lives 10 minutes from my home, so I text L. and ask if she and T. can drive by my house to see if someone is trying to breech the perimeter. L. actually texts back ASAP and says she and T. are en route. The relief I feel is palpable.

-In 10 minutes, T. and L. are outside my house and report that they don’t see anything.  T. hops the fence and checks out the perimeter - nothing. I’m relieved and grateful that T. and L. took the time to drive by my house and search the yard.

10:00-12:00 – I listen to the Chapter 3 AUDIO lecture for Specialty Class 1B. Then, I record two PSAs and upload them to the Canvas shell.

12:30-1:30 – I take a brief nap.

-L. returns from T.’s house.

2:30-3:00 – I do a 20-minute Insanity Max – Pulse workout. It’s only 20 minutes, but my form is off and I do a half-assed job.

3:00-3:30 – Nighttime routine. Bed.