It’s gray and rainy and I’ve done something to my back and that’s just not fun. It’s an excuse to take things slowly today, at least, one I will listen to.

Because I have to.

Meanwhile with the weather, it’s a cozy day for doing less. I don’t always mind a rainy day, especially when enjoying the weather isn’t in the cards. It feels like the weather’s on board.

Which is nice.

It’s been one of those blur weeks for me, one second it was Monday and then it was Friday, and it doesn’t feel like there were the right number of days in between. Not sure how time pulls that off, but somehow, it does.

I’ve been having a fun time with my Cricut this week, though, making mugs like I need a new one daily, making tote bags. I tried layering vinyl with more than two colors for the first time, and though it was tricky, I loved how it turned out.

New skills are fun to acquire, I think. Especially when they flex your creativity in a different way. And I think it’s never too late and you’re never too old to try something new, especially something you’ve been curious about.

Why not?

The worst that will happen is you won’t enjoy it. If you’re bad at it but enjoy it, then that’s all that matters.

And with that, I am done for the week. Have the best Friday and even better weekend.

Check out  my full-length novels: 
Aunty Ida’s Full-Service Mental Institution (by Invitation Only)   
Aunty Ida’s Holey Amazing Sleeping Preparation (Not Doctor Recommended) 
Her Cousin Much Removed
The Great Paradox and the Innies and Outies of Time Management.
And download Better Living Through GRAVY and Other Oddities, it’s quick and weird and FREE!
Peruse Montraps Publishing
See what I’m writing on Medium.

It’s gray and rainy today. At least I think it’s rainy.

Can’t be entirely sure.

I’ve given in to the temptation and tried out Temu. I got my first order, and overall, I’m pleased. I don’t think I’ll be buying clothes there, but never say never. I haven’t had much luck with clothing from Amazon, though.

I got some scrapbook paper, though the sheets were very, very small. It said they were 6″x6″ and yet somehow the size was a surprise. Looks good, though, and useful for various projects.

There were the embroidery scissors shaped like a crane, which I won’t be using for embroidery but small, sharp scissors are always helpful when you do crafty things. A little tape measure, a box cutter but it doesn’t stay locked open, which has limited use, and some organizers for my drawers.

I was most skeptical about the organizers but I just used them, not with 1 item per pocket as intended, mind you, and they hold a lot. I would get more.

So far, I’m pleased. I have another couple of small orders coming with more craft things, kitchen gadgets (I love a kitchen gadget) and even some earrings. I’ll keep you posted.

We’ve got to get our fun where we find it.

And I just used the bird scissors and it cracked me up because the join of the two blades is the eye of the crane.

Like I said, fun where we find it.

Have a great Friday and a fun-filled weekend.

Check out  my full-length novels: 
Aunty Ida’s Full-Service Mental Institution (by Invitation Only)   
Aunty Ida’s Holey Amazing Sleeping Preparation (Not Doctor Recommended) 
Her Cousin Much Removed
The Great Paradox and the Innies and Outies of Time Management.
And download Better Living Through GRAVY and Other Oddities, it’s quick and weird and FREE!
Peruse Montraps Publishing
See what I’m writing on Medium.

It’s a gray day, again, we seem to be having a lot of them since I’m kind of keeping track. We’re supposed to get rain tomorrow, but I’m not sure the weather is going to wait.

The weather, as always, does what it wants.

It’s a week that went by quickly somehow, it was Monday, then it was Wednesday, then it was Friday and I can’t even tell you where Tuesday and Thursday went. Maybe they never happened.

Maybe someone is messing with time again.

Maybe the news of a Supreme Court more corrupt than we’d imagined makes the time fly by. Who knows.

I decided to try a cashew/date frosting for my dairy-free and ultimately vegan cake. I made it as a test batch, really, as I didn’t believe such a thing was possible. It only has cashews and dates, which you soak, some vanilla plant milk (I used almond, that’s what I have) and a pinch of salt. I added some vanilla, because why not.

And it is amazing. Truly amazing. It’s its own flavor, it’s own thing, and a perfect texture on top of a cake. No powdered sugar so it’s not that intense sweetness.

One caveat though, you really need a powerful blender. I have a Ninja with a spread/smooth cup thing that you turn while making stuff like nut butter. Even with that, I went three of the “spread” program rounds.

Otherwise, though, it’s a wonderful option to have, even for non-vegan baking. It’s likely healthier than buttercream, given the base is nuts rather than butter, and is gluten-free. I’m not sure if powdered sugar is, I haven’t checked, but I have a gluten-free friend who loves cashews. Seems like a win.

And something different.

My experiments in baking this week were fun and a success.

Anyway, that’s it for me this week, have a great Friday and a fantastic weekend.

Check out  my full-length novels: 
Aunty Ida’s Full-Service Mental Institution (by Invitation Only)   
Aunty Ida’s Holey Amazing Sleeping Preparation (Not Doctor Recommended) 
Her Cousin Much Removed
The Great Paradox and the Innies and Outies of Time Management.
And download Better Living Through GRAVY and Other Oddities, it’s quick and weird and FREE!
Peruse Montraps Publishing
See what I’m writing on Medium.

Gray today, but probably just for the sake of it, I’m not sure it’s going to rain. I went to check and got distracted by a story about a Russian war plane dropping a bomb on a Russian city. “Accidentally.”

You always have to wonder about these things. Was it an attempt to blame Ukraine or another country for the bombing, but didn’t work out that way? Is the equipment so unreliable?

Something else more sinister?

It’s very difficult to know.

Very precarious times. I wonder how many people were killed, just living their lives, likely in a country they didn’t choose. In the midst of a war they also likely didn’t choose.

So many ways our world could have gone and yet this is how it is. A place run by men with egos that cannot be satisfied, greed that is bottomless, and no souls to speak of.

It makes me even more glad we’ve gotten rid of such a person in favor of Pres. Biden, but they’re always, always banging at the gates. Look at that authoritarian wannabe in Florida.

Heavy thoughts for a Friday. Heavy thoughts for a heavy sky.

Anyway, that’s it for me this week, have a great day and a spectacular weekend.

Check out  my full-length novels: 
Aunty Ida’s Full-Service Mental Institution (by Invitation Only)   
Aunty Ida’s Holey Amazing Sleeping Preparation (Not Doctor Recommended) 
Her Cousin Much Removed
The Great Paradox and the Innies and Outies of Time Management.
And download Better Living Through GRAVY and Other Oddities, it’s quick and weird and FREE!
Peruse Montraps Publishing
See what I’m writing on Medium.

Well look at that, it’s Friday once more. Round and round we go.

Got my major things for the week done, and some minor things, so overall, not too terrible. And the final season of Mrs. Maisel has its first three episodes up.

Not so bad.

I’ve been in a bit of a TV rut lately, with few shows totally taking my attention. So it’s nice to see some characters I’ve gotten to know, and I love the time warp feeling.

I did watch this British show, Am I Being Unreasonable? which was written by the two female leads. It’s on Hulu and called a comedy, which seems like a stretch, but it was an excellent watch. I recommend it.

It’s a little dark, though, be warned.

We’re still sunny, we’re still warm but that’s supposed to change tomorrow. Big, crashing storms, allegedly.

We could probably use the rain. Though things are starting to look greener already. Given a little time, they always get green again.

Funny how that works.

Of course the opposite is also true, lest anyone get too optimistic or anything. Nature’s built-in balance.

Anyway, that’s it for me this week. I hope you have a fantastic Friday and the best weekend,

Check out  my full-length novels: 
Aunty Ida’s Full-Service Mental Institution (by Invitation Only)   
Aunty Ida’s Holey Amazing Sleeping Preparation (Not Doctor Recommended) 
Her Cousin Much Removed
The Great Paradox and the Innies and Outies of Time Management.
And download Better Living Through GRAVY and Other Oddities, it’s quick and weird and FREE!
Peruse Montraps Publishing
See what I’m writing on Medium.

It’s sunny at last, though not warm. With this much sunshine you can imagine it’s warm though, I suppose that’s something.

It’s been a weird week in the world, with a lot of terrible things happening in this country and one very good thing happening in this country, which was trump’s indictment.

But the combination of the utterly shameless with no regard for the Constitution and a Supreme Court packed with people who are happy to make it permanent make for a very unsettling situation. What we could say with certainty before–states limiting interstate travel is unconstitutional, for example–we just don’t know.

This Court could say sure, set up border checkpoints. Sure, force women to carry special cards stating their pregnancy status at all times. Sure, The Handmaid’s Tale seems like a great idea, let’s do that.

It doesn’t feel like we’re losing but that we lost, and of course that is how they want us to feel. That it’s done and dusted, that it’s all over.

Well, it’s not.

But we need more Democrats in Congress to fix it. Enough to expand the Supreme Court.

Enough, if we can, to impeach the people who shouldn’t be on the Court in the first place.

The power belongs to us, not them, but people treat claiming that power as an inconvenience. Living under fascism is way more inconvenient.

Anyway, that’s it for me this week. Have a great Friday and a lovely weekend.

Check out  my full-length novels: 
Aunty Ida’s Full-Service Mental Institution (by Invitation Only)   
Aunty Ida’s Holey Amazing Sleeping Preparation (Not Doctor Recommended) 
Her Cousin Much Removed
The Great Paradox and the Innies and Outies of Time Management.
And download Better Living Through GRAVY and Other Oddities, it’s quick and weird and FREE!
Peruse Montraps Publishing
See what I’m writing on Medium.

No TV Watch this week. Last week, to be entirely honest, it slipped my mind completely; this week I don’t have a good theme for you fleshed out. I was thinking about bad guys getting their due, but that feels a little spoilery.

Topical though.

In case you haven’t heard, donald trump was indicted in New York on 34 counts. We don’t know what, specifically, yet, as it’s still under seal, but it’s probably safe to assume many of the charges are the same ones Michael Cohen already served time for. And he cooperated.

Which means trump is not likely to get a deal like that.

It’s been a long time coming and is probably the first of many, so here’s hoping it can go all the way.

It’s gray today and rained last night, booming thunder working its way into my dream, dramatically and very strangely appropriately. Plus one to my imagination.

Now, though, it’s not clear what it’s going to do. Maybe it will rain, maybe it won’t. The sky itself seems unsure.

We started this week with 0 indictments against trump and we’re ending with with 34 counts against him so I think, no matter what happened in the intervening time, it’s a pretty good end.

So with that I wish you a happy Friday and a wonderful weekend.

Check out  my full-length novels: 
Aunty Ida’s Full-Service Mental Institution (by Invitation Only)   
Aunty Ida’s Holey Amazing Sleeping Preparation (Not Doctor Recommended) 
Her Cousin Much Removed
The Great Paradox and the Innies and Outies of Time Management.
And download Better Living Through GRAVY and Other Oddities, it’s quick and weird and FREE!
Peruse Montraps Publishing
See what I’m writing on Medium.

It’s still gray, possibly not rainy, though. I’m not entirely sure. I guess I can see what the weather has to say but they can’t be sure either.

They say later. I guess we’ll see.

I slept badly last night, and now that I’m awake, sort of, the dreams still linger in a very vague way. Like I’m supposed to be somewhere else.

Like I’m partially somewhere else.

Physics is weird.

Keeping us to one place at a time and all that. Or so we think. I mean the universe could be far more complicated than we understand.

Most things are.

Yesterday I ran a bunch of errands and it felt strange, out in multiple stores all at once. The stores feel emptier than they did before, fewer things on the shelves, fewer people.

The world has changed but only some of us have been changed by it, I guess. Inertia is strong.

Anyway, that’s it for me this week. Have a fantastic Friday and a lovely weekend.

Check out  my full-length novels: 
Aunty Ida’s Full-Service Mental Institution (by Invitation Only)   
Aunty Ida’s Holey Amazing Sleeping Preparation (Not Doctor Recommended) 
Her Cousin Much Removed
The Great Paradox and the Innies and Outies of Time Management.
And download Better Living Through GRAVY and Other Oddities, it’s quick and weird and FREE!
Peruse Montraps Publishing
See what I’m writing on Medium.

First, #TVWatch, “Funny from the other side.” And now Friday. Which some are even happier to see than others this week, and to those of you, I salute you for getting through it.

It’s a sort of sunny day, but the weather said it was snowing. I think it might be wrong.

Given that there’s no snow. I also think it’s a little to warm for it but of course that could change at any moment. Chicago, after all.

Our weather is fickle.

I am finally headache free now for a few days, and the aftermath is pretty exhausting. I wish there was a magic cure for it, but I’m sure everyone who has that kind of a condition wishes the same. All we can do is our best to manage it.

Like most of life.

Anyway, that’s it for me this week. Have the most spectacular Friday and your dream weekend.

Check out  my full-length novels: 
Aunty Ida’s Full-Service Mental Institution (by Invitation Only)   
Aunty Ida’s Holey Amazing Sleeping Preparation (Not Doctor Recommended) 
Her Cousin Much Removed
The Great Paradox and the Innies and Outies of Time Management.
And download Better Living Through GRAVY and Other Oddities, it’s quick and weird and FREE!
Peruse Montraps Publishing
See what I’m writing on Medium.

It’s gray and maybe snowing, maybe raining, it’s tough to tell. No, wait, that’s definitely snow. No new #TVWatch, but you may have missed this one, “Sci-fi silliness.”

Like most of this week, I’m feeling a little underwater, my brain slow and plodding. I would like it to pick up the pace.

We’ll see.

I’m throwing coffee at the problem.

It’s tough to believe the week is over, but I’ve had migraines going which really mess with time. And then they leave me with a bunch of stuff that isn’t done that should be done.

Which seems to sum up life as a whole, really.

It’s stopped snowing, but the sky still looks moody. I get it, sky.

I get it.

I feel like I should take a word vacation, but I don’t even know what that would mean. Maybe some time off from all my writing endeavors.

We’ll see.

But it would be better if that was during a trip to somewhere else. Which seems very unlikely at the moment. At least travel is a fun dream again, so long as I don’t think about the logistics too hard.

So much of the world out there to be seen.

Anyway, that’s it for me this week. Have a great a great Friday and the best weekend.

Check out  my full-length novels: 
Aunty Ida’s Full-Service Mental Institution (by Invitation Only)   
Aunty Ida’s Holey Amazing Sleeping Preparation (Not Doctor Recommended) 
Her Cousin Much Removed
The Great Paradox and the Innies and Outies of Time Management.
And download Better Living Through GRAVY and Other Oddities, it’s quick and weird and FREE!
Peruse Montraps Publishing
See what I’m writing on Medium.