Surprises

It's 1:21AM, soon to be 1:21AM again since this is the night we turn the clocks back one hour. And I just finished working on a project about which I can say nothing because it's a surprise and the person for whom I'm surprising stops by and reads this. It's making me crazy because I'm terrible at keeping secrets. Growing up I frequently told people what their Christmas presents were before Christmas because I couldn't contain the excitement of giving them something neat.

So this is a good ending to a day that started out badly.

Last night I took a whole Trazadone tablet instead of one half because I really needed some good sleep. With chronic insomnia and being recently diagnosed with sleep apnea, sometimes I need help getting some rest. Even being physically exhausted doesn't guarantee a restful night.

But Trazadone is a harsh drug. It dries out my sinus, gives me a headache and only helps me fall asleep, not stay asleep or sleep peacefully. I try not to take it. And as soon as I swallowed the whole tablet I remembered that it was probably going to make me miserable.

And it did. My alarm went off at 7AM and I turned on my lamp. I was supposed to have gone to a meeting at the zoo but I was really miserable, still tired and my legs and feet were really aching. Bad morning. So I stayed in bed. I didn't even get up to go to Napa with friends.

I made it out of the house by 1PM to run errands. I tried to drop off the rent checks at the agency but they're located inside a building and it was locked. It frustrates me that they don't have an after-hours drop box. What a waste of gas and time to drive clear across town and couldn't even leave the envelope there. So I decided to mail it. But since I rarely buy stamps, I discovered that postage has gone up twice since I last bought any. Fortunately I had some extra 1-cent and 2-cent stamps. It took three stamps to come up with enough postage.

At OSH, I picked up three 40lb bags of wood pellets. I use it for cat litter. It's cheap and natural. One of the bags was for my "job" as a cat-sitter for a neighbor. She's using something similar that costs a lot more. I laughed out loud when I saw her litter box. It's something I saw in a SkyMall catalog on a recent flight that made me laugh out loud. I'll let the photos speak for themselves.

Okay, maybe this isn't too funny. But in the catalog, the "planter" was located next to a sofa in the living room. Now THAT was funny! Honestly. Can you imagine having guests over when suddenly there's a digging sound followed by the pungent odor of cat poop coming out of the corner? I don't know about your cat but when my cat finishes in the box, he must feel light as a feather and full of energy because he runs around like he's on Benny Hill.

Another high point of my day was using a Dyson vacuum cleaner for the first time. I don't know why but I kept thinking about our old Kirby and wondered if they're still around. Now that was a vacuum cleaner! Sure, dust leaked out of the bag. But it sucked up way more than it leaked so it worked out fine. These modern plastic things are all too wimpy.

It took HOURS tonight to pack away the Halloween stuff. And now all five storage containers are waiting for someone else to carry upstairs. I know I'll end up doing it but I just want to see if that particular someone else surprises me and lends a hand. It's sooooo unlikely but every once in a while I like to test him...