Wednesday, March 25, 2026 

        I did it Tuesday morning. Yep I drive to the library, park close to the front door.  Drag in the heavy bag with 4 books to return, conquer the curb with my cane and a pole sticking up from the sidewalk. Inside I use the library’s walker, picking up the California tax forms and the twelve books waiting for me.

     At the check out desk, I shuffle through the pile to find six books to keep. I use the walker to take the new books back to the car. And then I return the walker. I am so tired I can hardly move. My roommate says she will bring in the bag of new books into the house. I miss my wonderful recovering personal librarian.

     We begin to hear the sounds of a cooing in the morning. At first, I think it is the owl but no according to the phone app, it is a mourning dove. We hear the owl at night. At 10pm I comforted with the bugle blowing from the army presidio marking the end of the day.

      The music on TEHRAN is thrilling, starling.  We brace ourselves for the opening sounds. We finished the first season and then watch another episode of THE CLOSER.  There are seven endless seasons of THE CLOSER. I am committed to seeing every episode. I continue to read ANTIDOTE, a long complicated imaginative book.

 

Tuesday, March 24, 2026

     I am learning about park benches. You don’t know a comfortable bench until you sit for an hour on an uncomfortable bench. I now know I need a short bench, one where my feet can be secure on the ground. I am going to bring a pillow to sit on.  I love meeting with friends. 

     My bench friend Monday is great. We have a lot to talk about and agreed we would continue to meet next month. At a different park bench.

    My roommate places an order for home delivery at COSTCO. Always big boxes of food and other stuff. Last night we ate a delicious deep dish pizza for dinner. Now we have half the pizza left over and another one in the freezer. Everything comes in giant sizes.

     In the evening, I watch another episode of my favorite TV series, THE CLOSER. Later we watch more of the thriller, TEHRAN.  Monday is not only garbage day but it is also Rachel Maddow night.

 

Monday, March 23, 2026

     All the factors line up, warm day, good night’s sleep, eating with out difficulty.  Yep, perfect day to do my 2025 taxes. I picked up the forms at the library, set up at the dinning room table.  I read through the changes and began scribbling on the blank paper. Finally, I fill in the federal form, sign with my signature, and with an envelope and a stamp, ready to mail.

     Have the wrong state tax forms so back to the library this afternoon to pick them up. Two hours to complete the federal forms.  This is my annual test to see if I am still competent. It helps that my financial life is very simple. And I don’t really care if I make mistakes. The tax people will let me know.

     My roommate plants tomatoes in the back yard near the potato patch. She has a pile of seed packages, along with her computer and a stack of papers, on her side of the dining room table.  We share the table for our work projects. Between our projects is the pile of library books and unopened packages and mail. A full service dining room table.

     I am in the middle of reading ANTIDOTE.  I have never read a book quite like this and I have read thousands of books. We watch another episode of TEHRAN in the evening. Such a great show.