Handyman

Our handyman was here for a few hours yesterday caulking and priming window trim. It’s one of those improvements that has a favorable cost:benefit ratio.

I picked up lunches at the Senior Center and filled out menus for March.

Afterwards, we attended our first Friday LOG lunch, which was great: all-vegetarian buffet menu – salad, roasted veg skewers, barley/veg soup, flatbread, yogurt/dill sauce, trays of baklava passed around for dessert.

An attorney with DOJ gave the presentation on prosecuting environmental crimes.

Did a small shop at Aubuchon. Spread varmint repellent on the tulip bed, which is starting to sprout.

This afternoon, did a transfer station run.

Sent a message via form to Williams College about the passing of one of their students last month. I’m disturbed by the lack of contrition and acceptance of responsibility on the part of the college’s administration for what seems to me a failure of stewardship.

This young person – age 18 – was in my view overwhelmed. He was involved in enough academic activities to fill a full-time schedule, yet he was also a member of the Berkshire Symphony, participated in a weekend long competition run by the college’s volunteer economic consulting group and worked on projects for the Special Olympics and a local restaurant.

I remember freshman year at an Ivy League school as a living horror.

Body All Achin’

I’ve been tired these days.

I’ve also been cooking more than usual.

Earlier this week, I/we made enchiladas – and they were good. Today I made a casserole from cheese, onion, used squash and a used pepper. Also good.

At this point, we have a couple of different proposals for solar. This afternoon, an engineer from SunRun spent two hours reviewing our attic, electrical panels and even the roof of the garage.

I am addicted to horiatiki Greek salad. Chopping but no cooking.

I did a lot yesterday: got the Corolla inspected, did a grocery shop (thus the used veggies), stopped at the senior center. We had corn chowder at the Berkshire Food Project.

I also checked in with Toyota on whether the scrape I inflicted on the poor Corolla would be covered by one of the policies I took out at lease signing. They said it would not, but I cancelled the appointment at Al’s for tomorrow anyway. The $3,000 that MRS sent is almost gone – already – and I didn’t need to spend $500 right now for a non-essential.

Set up a family group on Ron’s phone this morning so I could share his Apple News+ subscription.

Texted with Peter and with Em yesterday for Em’s birthday.

Signed us up for a veg lunch tomorrow (Friday) at the Log. Looking forward to the presentation on prosecuting environmental crimes in federal court.

The Old Farmer’s Almanac, 1983

After the January thaw comes the February freeze. Both are mythical events, really, or at least they are moveable events. The January thaw may take place in December or it may not take place at all, and the February freeze can put a stop to the quickenings of March. A late freeze will come this month in most years, though, and if you’re sick of winter this is the one that will break your heart.

The February freeze comes as you realize that the year at last is turning toward spring. You notice that the sun isn’t quite a winter sun anymore. It is warm these days, and it makes real shadows, which the sun of December never does. The sun gets into the trees, softening, limbering, awakening buds. At the ends of their gray branches the smallest twigs show softer colors: pink, yellow, green. The trees stretch their arms. The sun goes into the snow and begins to break it down. It gets into the frozen roads. They soften, and to a depth of an inch or so their surfaces turn to mud. The sun gets into you, too. It gets into your heart and tissues and into your thought. It prepares you for spring.

Comes the February freeze. The trees close up like traps. They freeze inside; their branches creak again. The snow that was softening goes as hard and tight as a concrete sidewalk; you can jump up and down on it. The roads that were going to mud freeze solid again, and taking a car on them is like trying to drive a train over the wrong-sized tracks.

It’s hard, when you had thought winter was ending, to have it all back again. Cheer up. You were right. The sun is warmer. The snow froze and the roads froze, but you didn’t freeze. The sun is still preparing you for spring, and soon it will be back at the snowbanks and the ice again. You were right to rejoice.

The Old Farmer’s Almanac 1983, page 53, author not given.

Frig

The workers from the rental company installed our new frig and helped us move the old one out and back so we could unplug it. They also helped us move the kitchen table and switched the doors so it opens to the left instead of the right: good guys.

It’s great to have a working unit again.

I went food shopping and made lunch, soup from a package, Horiatiki salad, biscuits from S&S and ice cream.

Also ordered a sewing machine from Walmart that should arrive here in a couple of days. It’s just been too hard to do hand sewing.

This experience of living for days without a working refrigerator has given me pause to reflect on a comment I read a long time ago that we Americans refrigerate too many things unnecessarily.

We managed to use several dairy products without harm, for example, even though they were sitting in temperatures over 40 degrees. We haven’t refrigerated butter for years.

We did leave eggs in the non-working refrigerator, and I hope they are still good.

European countries have different food processing methods and maybe that’s why they aren’t as fussy as our nutrition and public health experts are.

Maybe Progress

Our new handyman fixed my beloved old office chair, which had a stuck cylinder that no one else was able to remove. Good guy, I asked him back to do some window trim, caulking and painting.

Ron had a checkup of his eyes, post-laser. I was able to order his Tramadol through the Walmart Pharmacy website! After picking up his med, he rushed back to join Linnea and me for Karyn’s Winter Tea at the Senior Center.

I turned off my old Rockland debit card through an app on my smartphone.

Booked an appointment for body work on the Corolla. Another loss due to my stupidity.

I ordered our frig from Liberty Home.

Target

Ron wanted to try a new salve for eczema and Target is the closest store that stocks it inhouse, so we drove to Lanesboro and did a small shop.

Otherwise, it was an uneventful weekend.

Frig, Body Shop, BigY, Cumby

Warranty company is only offering $400, I asked for an explanation.

Went to the Senior Center expecting to see the fifth graders, but their teacher cancelled. Left a contribution for the Valentine’s Day party.

Picked up batteries for the artificial candles and did a shop at BigY. Filled the Corolla at the Cumby in North Adams. Stopped at West’s for wine.

Got a quote from Al’s to fix the scrape on the driver’s side.

Finished up Warranty and Major Units as far as I can take them and uploaded to the server.

Rockland and IKEA came through on the refund!