A hectic day in balmy weather

What a gorgeous day! Sunny, with a temperature in the mid- to upper 80s. Tonight it was so lovely I took a mystery out to the front porch and alternated between reading and watching the world go by. I am so lucky to live in this lovely area, with huge trees all around. Many of the trees on my street are still green and look from a distance like live oaks, along with some cedar across the street. But the elm and maple trees are just beginning to bud, and so is the redwood that I'd so worried about. I have tried to nurse a plumbago plant through the winter, and it shows no signs of buds but it has green in its stems. I'm still hopeful.
It was a hectic day in spite of the weather. I had an eight-thirty haircut appointment, so I decided that I wouldn't wash my hair, I'd just go as I was. Well, my hair looks like an egg beater has been after it when I wake up, so even with brushing it was pretty awful. I'm sure there's a connection between that and the fact that nothing I put on this morning looked right (I don't often try on several outfits--usually just throw it on and go). I finally made it to the salon, got my hair washed and cut, and then when Rosa was ready to style it, she said, "What I want to do with your hair is make it look sort of like you did when you came in this morning." My jaw dropped. "You know," she said, "sort of windblown and casual." She did and it was neat, though by tonight its lost all its volume and just looks messy again!
Our boss, the dean of the library, took my office (all three of us) for an "appreciation" lunch today at Joe T.'s (for those who don't know, it's a landmark Mexican restaurant in Fort Worth where you can sit on a gorgeous, lushly planted and very large patio). We were early enough to avoid a line and get a table in the shade--a double win--and enjoy a lunch of the "small dinner"--nachos, enchiladas, tacos, beans and rice.
Then I rushed to the grocery store, rushed home and put away groceries and tried to straighten the house, all in preparation for Jacob's arrival at 2:30. We played together for an hour while "Mama" got her hair cut. I tried so hard to coach him to say "Mama pretty" when she came back, but no dice. He was cheerful and good company, and I enjoyed some loving time. Another of those instances, like sitting on the front porch, when I have to tell myself to take a vacation from work.
I have piddled tonight, wrapping birthday presents, emtpying garbage, checking my bank account. I was thinking that in anticipation of the arrival of the Houston Alters late tonight, I couldn't settle down and work--but I did. Made some headway on the draft of a grant application to support a series of recovered writings by women of the Southwest. Such writings, often buried in memoirs, local newspapers, letters, etc., give us real insight into the lives of women of the 19th and early 20th centuries. I think we can support that it will be a real addition to TCU's academic program in several ways, but it has to be said just so.
I'm a firm believer in letting projects stew on the back burner. The grant application narrative has been on the back burner and just began to come to the fore yesterday and today. The Scots book is still simmering.