Continued Idle Thoughts: “I Don’t Know, What Do You Want to Do?”

~ snakesinthegrass2014

Keep moving, folks. Nothing to see here…

As the days begin to blend together, I feel a strong kinship now to Violet, the Dowager Countess of Downton. What’s a weekend?

Someone on social media recently asked, “What Do You Miss?” Nearly all of the comments from people were endearing: getting together with friends, hugging relatives, playing softball, attending performances, etc. All I can come up with, though, is missing certain restaurant foods. I’m fantasizing lately of egg foo young from the now-shuttered Chinese takeout place near us, or sitting at the counter of a Waffle House and scarfing down their hot buttered waffles. Neither are healthy, of course. Perhaps I’m like the world’s ecosystem at the moment: The air is less polluted because of fewer greenhouse gas emissions, and my arteries are benefiting from a forced lower fat and cholesterol diet. Cold comfort.

Our financial advisor continues to baffle me. In his latest email, he asked me to choose a “safe word” for our next session.

Without the gym open, it’s getting harder and harder to work up a sweat. My morning walk in our condo development is a veritable obstacle course in avoiding the extroverts who live amongst us. Must remember not to wear my “Tales of Topographic Oceans” t-shirt again. The last time I did, I got a 20 minute lecture from the heavyset man walking his schnauzer on how Chris Squire is the greatest bassist of all time. Likewise, I need to ditch my “Cambria By The Sea” baseball cap because of the sweet old lady who stops to tell me each time about her daughter, a nurse who lives and works in San Luis Obispo.

I’m that guy you see now who keeps going down the wrong way in the supermarket aisles.

Nearly verbatim from last week:

Me: “The stimulus money was deposited in my checking account!”
Gorgeous: “Oh, good. Just transfer it to me. I’ll take care of it.“

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, denouncing the current stay-at-home mandates, has declared that “there are more important things than living.” We’ve seen his type before, of course. I’m dating myself here, but I remember former Colorado governor Richard Lamm, who in 1984 famously opined that sick and infirm people have a “duty to die.” Mr Patrick is 70 years old, while Mr. Lamm is now 84. I’ll keep good thoughts for their continued health.

The FedEx guy is such a regular visitor to our door that I’m pretty sure we’re building up mutual immunities to one another. Gorgeous is doing her level best at propping up this economy; the contents of today’s shipment is below. Everyday is a surprise. Well, for me anyway.

We note that none of these ingredients are used for making egg foo young.

We’ve been following the exploits of Chris and Marianne Fisher, a British couple who gave up their jobs to travel around the world in a campervan named “Trudy.” They’re currently holed up in Turkey, as they try to figure out a game plan for dealing with the coronavirus. You can support their cause by buying them a coffee, as we do each time they post a new video to their YouTube channel. They always respond with a personal email of thanks, and we’ve even traded a couple of fun messages with them. Check them out as you stay homebound. They’re quite entertaining.

Our friend Heather is a terrible influence. I’ve had to be the “bad cop” over the last couple of years in holding the line at having only one streaming service: Acorn TV. But with the stroke of a single email this week, Heather announced that she’s now subscribing to BritBox. It was enough to motivate Gorgeous into a full-throated onslaught for us to do the same. “Oh, come on, Heather’s getting it. Why can’t we?!“ I inherently smell a deep, well-planned conspiracy. For the sake of peace and harmony, however, I will begin a new subscription. Nice try, ladies, but I’m on to you both.

My former friend Heather along with Gorgeous, at Rolliewood (CA) in 2013

Speaking of streaming TV, we recently watched a three-part psychological thriller on Acorn called “Alibi” (2003). It stars Michael Kitchen, Phyllis Logan, and Sophie Okonedo. It’s riveting. Highly recommend.

Florida governor Ron DeSantis recently showed us all a slightly unconventional, though I’m guessing in his mind, perfectly acceptable way to wear a mask. It’s something congregants can discuss in detail as they sit together in pews at the houses of worship here.

Finally, for Kate at the Views and Mews blog: a plate of pumpkin scones, per her recent request. Only ten more cans to use!

Stay safe. And, I’m begging you: send egg foo young, please. I’ll reward handsomely

Until next time…

43 thoughts on “Continued Idle Thoughts: “I Don’t Know, What Do You Want to Do?””

  2. My husband keeps our delivery people employed. I swear he sits downstairs and tries to think of things to buy online. I call him an emotional buyer. All I have to do is mention something and he grabs his phone. I think he gets a thrill out of finding things and he thinks he’s helping me. Good thing we’re saving money in other ways right now!! Stay safe.

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  3. On a very dreary Sunday morning here in the middle of the Mid-Atlantic, I was grateful for this chuckle. I hope laughing wasn’t bad form. I would like to know how BritBox turns out for you, as it’s been tempting. I’ve thought about adding it, but I already own the entire “Vicar of Dibley” series on DVD.

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    1. It’s hopefully good to laugh even as we weep for all that we’re seeing right now, Angela. Re: Britbox. We’ve borrowed DVD’s from the library for all the shows we can’t get on Acorn, but it’ll be nice to see the last upcoming season of Vera on time; and ditto for Shetland (two of our favorites).

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  4. Ah yes, our own Governor Lamm back in the day…My folks were livid that anyone would tell anyone else how to live (or not live) their own lives…I remember being mildly & naively amused by their reaction as they were usually pro-active rather than the reactive types, but not at all amused by Richard Lamm…I’ve been secretly wondering how he adhered to his own life’s set of values in that regard…seems he’s laid low and for good reason.
    (non-disclosure: I wish no ill-will on the man)

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    1. I think we get these kinds of comments from politicians every so often, Laura. It’s grandstanding and provocative; but brainless at the same time, of course. I have to wonder if Governor Lamm has any regret about that statement now in light of all that’s taking place.

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  7. Those scones look yummy! My husband loves egg foo young and fortunately the local restaurant that makes the best one delivers! Wish I could mail it to you! On the other hand, I’m missing some good Mexican food!

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  9. Honestly, I may never go into a real store again unless it’s one of my small local independents. I do try to have that button NOT be Amazon when I can out of principle. Just a thought (admittedly we have more streaming than you all). If you have a firestick (or even the amazon prime app, I think) you can do a thirty day three trial of almost any streamng service there is. I did Hulu to watch the handmaids Tale and Acorn to watch Jack Irish and something else to watch Arctic Circle. Im sure they love us. Admittedly, you need to have a prime subscription first lol.

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    1. Sage advice, Barbara! I understand the desire to go local, though that can be hard when it comes to finding what you need (i.e. multiple trips to more stores than you’d like). I just hope there *are* local stores still after all of this.

      We do have Prime, but held off on the 30 day trial for the other streaming services because it’s one more thing for me to keep track of. I’m sadly a slave to convention, which doesn’t necessarily make me a very good deal finder. 🙂

      Many thanks for reading!

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  10. Hehehe Marty..I can see yummy spice rubbed meat coming your way for dinner.
    As for us our post office deliveries are all clogged up. So I’m still expecting mine. A dehumidifier.

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      1. Most things I just go out and grab them. Some stores are still open thus it’s doable. Much quicker than online ordering. Though it’s a pain trying to dodge people. More people are out and about now that our numbers are down.

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  11. I can see the quarantine hasn’t dampened your sense of humor (for which we are all grateful). I feel your pain about missing favorite restaurants. We don’t go out to dinner often, but lunch has always been our favorite date. The good news is that this morning, I very reluctantly got on our bathroom scale, expecting the worst but was very pleasantly surprised that I hadn’t gain a pound. I think it’s because I’m no longer eating those extra calories that are found in restaurant-prepared meals. Good to see that Gorgeous buys from Penzeys; I like their corporate stance on social issues.

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    1. One of the ironies of trying to stay out of harm’s way, Janis, is that I suppose some of us might be getting better in the process. I always eat healthier at home because that’s the only way Gorgeous cooks. So because of that, I always seem to go for the most outrageous of high caloric, fatty entrees when we eat at restaurants. Nearly all of our favorite places here have shuttered for now (I hope that’ll be temporary), and the ones that have remained open for carry out I consider meh. So I’m involuntarily healthier, dammit! 😁

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  13. Our local Chinese restaurant is still open for take out only, so I had egg foo young last week. I’ll trade you some egg foo young for a pumpkin scone! You and Gorgeous stay safe and healthy!

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  14. Well, at least she’s buying stuff to make good meals for you to enjoy even if it’s not your favorite takeout. My sister-in-law is a big buyer during any time. Her mantra is – the more you spend, the more you save. That always makes me laugh when I think about her sitting in her chair and punching out orders on her tablet. 🙂 Stay safe and away from all those extroverts.

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  15. You said: a veritable obstacle course in avoiding the extroverts who live amongst us. And I’m shouting YES! There’s no way to walk quickly outside when people insist of talking with each other six feet apart while walking down the street. Can’t these good folks just be quiet? Will look for Alibi on Acorn. We’re rewatching the Miss Fisher Mysteries now, but could use some new blood, so to speak.

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  16. You remind me of my best friend, Marty. She still sees her immediate family since she is “essential” around there. The only thing she really misses is some of her favourite restaurants.

    Very funny, yet scary on the “safe word.” Also scary, Gov. Patrick’s quote. I have heard talk about “Alibi” and added it to my list. We just finished “The Stranger” Netflix. (2020 since similar names out there). British. Suspense. Worth watching.

    You remind me how I bought two cans (there were only two cans left) of organic pumpkin on first day out, Day 30 of sheltering-at-home after seeing your post. I am still not too sure what I will do with them, yet it is comforting to know I have them in my cupboard. 🙂

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    1. Many thanks for “The Stranger” suggestion, Erica. I’m seeing lots of sharing now of shows and movies, which is always helpful. Where I’m failing massively for some reason is with reading books: I read two, maybe three pages and then put it down. Then repeat a few minutes later. It can be very slow going.

      Don’t fret: we still have canned goods purchased from last year’s hurricane! 😀

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      1. I have not read any novels for about a year. I just finished a captivating, fascinating and sometimes disturbing book by Chuck Palahniuk “Moments in my writing life after which everything was different.” You may have already read this book. He is also author of the “Fight Club.” Too many gems to try and summarize here. I may even read it again. I often can’t sleep at night and I could pick up and read a few pages at a time. He refers to creative people, some mentors, unusual situations over the last few decades. You may enjoy, Marty. On a lark, I downloaded this book from our elibrary. Take care!

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      3. I don’t recall anything too noteworthy about martial arts in the book. It is more about the writing process without forcing dry information onto us. And the people who have been part of his life. I should read it again.

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  18. A safe word? Oh myyyyyyyy …! I guess he means like some sort of password to confirm it’s you, or that you’re not making decisions under duress, but – really – has he no idea of the connotation of safe word? Was it a video call Marty, or were you grateful to be on a regular call when you could muffle your startled reaction or laughter? 😀

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