Source: free-picture.net

One sweet clueless guy – I was checking out at a local grocery store. I usually weigh and tag my own produce so it can be scanned quickly. I bought a sweet potato (or maybe a yam, never sure) and there was no code on the display so I couldn’t print out a price tag. I usually do self-check-out as I’m fast (often faster than the real cashiers) but there was one young guy (with soft fuzzy facial hair trying to look older) without any customers, so I went in his checkout. First, he asked if my sweet/yam was a white potato. What? It’s orange and huge. How could it be a white potato? I explained what it was and we moved on. Last up I had a bag with a single donut – not overly big or extraordinary. (No judgment please!) It was a cinnamon swirl donut but definitely a donut. He told me that sticky bun was not on the price list. There was no way you could mix it up with a sticky bun. It was much smaller and without the “sticky” on top. He said he would ring it up as a bagel. (Good grief!) I told him it was a donut. He corrected himself then let me know that it was the same price as a bagel. I wished him a good day (and wondered what the rest of it would look like). Obviously, his mama never took him grocery shopping.

Love my bleachy litter boxes.

You learn something new every day! – I’ve had cats for over 50 years. All different kinds with different preferences and different behaviors. I noticed a few months ago that Gus liked surfaces that had just been cleaned with a bleach cleaner. He acted like it was catnip. Yesterday I did a deep clean of the litter boxes with the bleach cleaner. Afterward I thought he was having an orgasm. He was rolling around and rubbing against them. I checked with google and yes, cats can be attracted to bleach. It is similar to pheromones which can produce a catnip-like reaction. Fortunately, He rolls in areas that are dry so there is no health issue, but I will be careful going forward.

This is the side planting 4 years ago. Everything has grown big and some things have been removed.

With nice weather comes the work – We are still experiencing yo-yo weather. It’s warm, then cold, then windy interspersed with 10 minutes of truly nice weather. This week there was enough “nice” stuff to scope out what we need to do this spring for cleanup. We have a long, planted border with our neighbor that needs to be mulched. It’s on a steep decline. This is a big job that I will have our local yard guy do. Gone are the days when the beloved husband and I would haul tons of mulch. (My back aches just thinking about that!) There are some dead shrubs that need to be removed and replaced. Overall, the yard did okay even with the unusually frigid temperatures.

Spring in general – Even though cleaning and opening the deck and yard is much more work than closing it up in the fall, there is an exhilaration about it. It’s fun and I get the old “daydreams” of serving margaritas dressed in a flowing caftan on the deck. (Trust me that will never happen, at least the flowing caftan part!) Maybe it’s a renewal of dreams.

The flowy caftan that resides in my dreams.

Road trips – Yesterday a neighbor took me on a tour of old-time stores in the country. I was amazed that they still exist and the prices were so reasonable (by grocery store standards). I bought strawberries (that didn’t have white unripe shoulders) and potatoes (without black spots in the center). I call that a win-win. They also carried a collection of grains that I would have loved to work with back in the day (when I enjoyed cooking more than I do today). They had all the weird ones but also carried semolina flour which is hard to find. I love it in breads, but it is an all-purpose flour. Overall, it was a fun day.

So how was your week?