Beware the Ides of March

 


Shakespeare had it right.  Beware indeed.  Only not just today, but the whole month has been, in my view, "wonky."  We had NO SNOW this season until the end of February and then three more snow "storms" since then.  While the accumulations have been small (barely, and I do mean BARELY, measurable), the temperatures have been all over the place.  Coming in like a lion and going out like a lamb?  More like coming in like a bipolar swamp monster.  (Is that a thing?  CAN that be a thing?) 

Let me talk about today, Wednesday.  If you've read anything I've written before (and I hope you have), you know that Wednesdays are NOT my favorite day.  It's the day I trek to the office via public transportation.  (I'd like to say I'm being an environmentalist like Ed Begley Jr. [check out this article:  https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ed-begley-jr-oscars-2023_n_640e5594e4b0bc5cb64b1303], but the truth is I just want to save money since daily parking in my building is $20 and round trip bus fare is just under half of that.)  Yesterday, a Nor'easter hit our area.  Our community wasn't hard, but it did snow for most of the day, but it didn't stick until the end of the day, when I went out to pick up pizza. (It was, after all Pi day.)  

The worst part of the day (and the night) was the wind.  Biting cold which felt more like January than mid-March.  (Walking into it was blinding with the snow coming right at you.)  All night long it rattled the house.  This morning temperatures were in the low 30s, but "real feel" was in the 20s.  So I was thrilled to have to walk to the bus stop.

I bundled up (wearing my lined LL Bean pants which I have worn maybe ONCE this season and already have a grease stain on them that I didn't notice until this morning and I WASN'T taking them off!).  There was some ice on the stairs so I was extremely careful.  Then I noticed there was ice on most of the sidewalks, so I ended up walking on the side of the streets as I headed downtown to where I would catch the bus.  Even though the streets had been treated/salted, there was ice in some places.  I was extremely careful as I walked downhill.  (I live in fear of "I've fallen and I can't get up" syndrome.) My ears (the right one is still not "right" even though the ENT can find no issue), my face, my hands (even in gloves) and feet were really feeling it.

Thankfully the bus was early (SO GRATEFUL).  I stumbled on at total windswept mess.  (As I later observed in the ladies' room.  I try so hard to look "together" but by the time I arrive I am a disheveled mess that even a comb and static guard won't help.  I think I need a professional hair/make up person and dresser waiting for me at the office.)  The traffic was light (WIN!).  I placed an order for my coffee while I was still a few blocks away from Penn Station.  (Will someone tell me HOW I can get my "reward"?  I have been trying for two weeks to get the Dunkin app to apply my reward to my order, but it keeps telling me I don't have anything in my cart.  If I don't have anything in my "cart" how come I can place and pay for an order????  I'm old I know it...I need help with this from some young tech savvy person for whom a phone is like an appendage.)  Even so, my coffee was hot and waiting for me when I arrived.  (WAS hot...as I write this I'm going to have to warm it up for the second time.  I'm a slow drinker...at least when it comes to coffee.)

As we enter the second half of the month, forecasters are telling me that it will be more "lamb" like.  By St. Patrick's Day we are back in the 50s and I'm hoping it stays that way.  AND it gets even warmer.  As social media reminded me, just three years ago at this time, my son was laying out his pandemic garden.  

Spring officially arrives on Monday and I'm hoping Mother Nature got the memo.    Let’s get through this ides (hopefully surviving, unlike Julius Caesar) and onto the season where flowers can sprout from the ground.  Let me put my dirty winter coat into storage (after I’ve had it dry cleaned…it’s filthy) and dig out the “fun” warm weather clothes. I'm ready.



Comments

  1. AnonymousMarch 18, 2023 at 2:57 AM

    So sorry you’re having all this pressure. You are not alone. I also had trouble with the Dunkin Rewards thing, also have tinnitus? But mostly ignore it. Really noticing it since you made me think about it. Falling is another issue that I think about all the time. Can’t relate to the Porto Potty issue however. Hang in there. Thing can get better, worse or stay the same! Singing on Sunday helps! We’ve missed you. Luv and hugs!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

We Have Taken America Back

Image
Back to a time when all men (and women) are not created equal.  Where women's healthcare is determined by men's laws and not by medical professionals. Where education tells only the "winning" side of the story and truth does not matter.  Where banning and burning books is a social event.  Where people who are "different" than those in power can be mocked, shunned and hurt with no real consequences. Where lies are acceptable and integrity is  just a word on a page We have moved into a time where rage is the rage.  Where hate is not just normal, but accepted and even cheered. Where leaders can ask to have their "enemies" killed and no one will bat an eye.  Where it's "funny" to see someone struggle.  Where felony is applauded. Where compassion is not shown and caring for others is looked down upon. We have taken America back to a time of pain and suffering for many.  Back to when the "haves" can have and the have nots don'...
Read more

It's Not About Starbucks (or is it)?

Image
  About a block and a half from my home in a major intersection.  At the southeast corner (which is nearest to me), is an empty building.  Back in 1995 it was a Bank of NY (I remember this because they didn't shovel/de-ice their parking lot well and my husband fell and broke his ankle one Monday morning.  I recall this clearly because we were not yet married and it was the first day of a new job for me.  I had gotten on the bus to work and he was catching a later one; only he never got there.  Instead he ended up laying on the ground until an employee came to open up the bank.  Then he had them call an ambulance AND my mother who took control of the situation until I arrived home that night blissfully unaware of what had happened that day.)  It eventually became a Chase Bank; the second one in my small little town.  It eventually closed.  I'm not sure when but it's been empty for quite a long time.  (I do know that it was open in 20...
Read more

As Is

Image
  Today I want to discuss what I think it is a relatively simple concept, but may be difficult for some, even an attorney who might have once, over a decade ago won a  prestigious award  for young lawyers .  That term is "AS IS." As you may know, I volunteer in a thrift shop.  Everything we sell, from all the donations we receive, is "as is."  The items are not brand new.  They are not perfect.  That doesn't mean they aren't any good or worth something. They are sold "as is."  Buyers should go in knowing that. (After all you are shopping in a thrift shop!)  In some cases, particularly when we are offering higher end products, we will actually write on the price tag, "as is." Such is the case of two designer purses that I purchased from there this summer.  (I'm a purse-aholic!  Don't look in my closet.)  They were reasonably priced (especially when you consider the name brand), but each had an "as is" clearly marked o...
Read more