Well, I may not mean it exactly the way Wordsworth did, though I appreciate his ideas about the healing aspects of the natural world, but it was the world humans, not nature, shaped that was too much with me today.
There was a piece of good
news: Henny James was featured in Dru’s Book Musings, talking about Irene
Deep in Texas Trouble and her premonition that Irene Foxgloves would ruin
the James’ family Christmas in Fort Worth. Henny proved to be right, but not in
a way she ever dreamed of. You can read it here if you want: https://drusbookmusing.com/henny-james-2023/
Then on to the real world. I
started the day with a longer list of “busy-ness” chores than I liked, and I
still haven’t conquered some of them. I ordered a product online, something I’ve
been using for at least thirty years—and got the wrong thing. So I “chatted”
with an AI person (he really did have a name though I can’t remember it). He (that
AI person) was pleasant and efficient, and I got a refund, but then I went to
order the correct item, ran into a real person who I couldn’t understand and
who insisted he couldn’t help me. I have yet to order what I wanted.
Next was the plumber: I had a
couple of small plumbing problems in the cottage that could have waited a
while, especially if Colin was coming soon. But then an outdoor spigot on the
front porch began leaking big time. A plumber is coming tomorrow, but to my
dismay the man I have used for twenty years has retired.
There were other small calls—reminders
about things we needed to order, appointments to be made, and the like. Then
mid-morning my alarm system began to beep at me. It told me that the battery in
the bedroom window was low. Now, there is only one window in the bedroom, and
because of the configuration of the room (once a parking bay), the arrangement
of furniture is a bit awkward. Part of the six-foot headboard on my antique
board overlaps the window, and there is a bedside table (my mom’s old sewing
cabinet) in front of it. The window shade is never up, the window never opened
(yes, I wish it had worked out differently, but you take what you have). I
asked if we could bypass it, and the tech said I’d have to do it individually
each time. Cancel that. She did bypass the warning alarm for several days so
that it was silent and sent me a video on how to replace the battery. She was
efficient, bright, and personable, but she might as well have been talking Greek
to me in that video. I’m hoping Christian can understand it.
A couple of times in the
morning I thought I heard Sophie banging around in her crate. She can come and
go at will, but she’s usually not that noisy about it. About noon I looked out
the window, and she was standing on the grass, shaking hard. When she tried to
move, she stumbled and fell. Fortunately Jordan was home and came flying out
the door when I called her. We flew around in a panic, Jordan issuing order
like call Christian, call the vet, open the gate. Margaret from across the
street came and walked Sophie in the driveway while Jordan collected car keys,
etc. By then Sophie was walking okay, though Margaret said she seemed a bit out
of it. And off they went to the vet.
Long story short, Sophie’s
blood sugar had dropped dramatically. I know how perilous this is from a friend
who has brittle diabetes. Once Soph was home, the vet told me to feed her
immediately, and he adjusted her medications. By mid-afternoon, she was just
fine. Barked furiously at the yard guys, demanded her dinner, all normal
behavior for my Soph. I am so relieved and if it happens again, I know immediate
food is the answer. Even before calling the vet. I had horrific thoughts of
seizures and TIAs and all I could think was that surely we hadn’t gone through
all that we had only to have her develop something else. She’s getting a few extra
treats tonight.
Needless to say, I did not get
much work done today, and I still have miles to go before I sleep, with
apologies to Robert Frost. Good night, sweet dreams, and I hope for a better day
tomorrow—for you too if you need it.
