blueberries to disperse fog...

That's what I've been told, so that's what I'm trying.

Yesterday, I ate some frozen blueberries while I was at home taking care of emails and computer stuff.

Then, when I picked up dinner from Panera - only cost me 30 cents, for a Grilled Mediterranean Veggie sandwich, thanks to AARP Reward Points - I also purchased a blueberry muffin.

That was breakfast, along with some yogurt.

Nice way to start the day on this third day of my post-surgery vacation!

After tending to my duties, off to home I went to tend to the mail, both actual and of the 'e' variety.

Then I attended my first play of spring!

Such great fun it was, too, and I laughed and laughed!

When I returned home, "Keeping Up Appearances" was recorded, so I went ahead and watched the episode, "Early Retirement".

Ah, poor Richard, pleading with his boss to stay on!

Hahahaha!

Then Rose has her new boyfriend come to fetch her from Hyacinth's house and all hell breaks out.

The man parks his big dog in the driveway and that just won't do...

and, while trying to move the dog, Hyacinth ends up being the one moved!

Hahahaha!

Thank goodness I don't have to walk Stella or she just might drag me along at this stage in my recovery.

Speaking of, I need to bounce back to Georgetown!

Later, y'all!!!

today, i went to a play!

"Good for you! That's the first one this month, isn't it?"

Of course it is. That hernia surgery really put a crimp in my style, or else I'd be going to several plays this weekend. The Savannah Stage Company has "Blackbird" at the Sentient Bean, but all performances are after 7 PM, so those are out. Savannah Arts Academy has "Six Degrees Of Separation" at the Tybee Post Theatre, but two of the three performances are at night. Not that it would matter, as it's still too far to drive for me at this time. However, there's this matinee today, by the Garrison Arts Academy, and it was at Yamacraw Performing Arts Center and that was just perfect!!! "Myth-Understood" was exactly the comedy needed to bring smiles to my face and laughter to my heart!

"Most excellent!!! Was it Roman or Greek mythology?"

It was Greek! I don't recall being into those works in the 5th and 6th grade, but these kids sure were. The two-act play was done completely by those students! I sat near a mom who had seen it last night and was back with her son's siblings so they could enjoy it, too. A family day with live theater!

"Good for her! So, tell me which stories were spoofed!"

That's just it, these were supposedly the real stories, from the very lips of the gods themselves to the two teens writing a report for their class. Hermes had fetched the girls to Mount Olympus so Zeus and Hera could bring forth the others to clarify the myths. For instance, Prometheus had been punished for stealing fire from Zeus, right? Well, what actually happened was this: Prometheus claimed to have invented fire. He was punished for lying about that.

"Oh, really?" (one eyebrow arched)

For sure, as the two girls found out. He took their phone, then claimed to have invented the phone! Later, he would claim to have invented the internet, youTube, and door-dash! Such a rampant liar! LOL! Then the girls heard the true story of how Persephones ended up with Hades in the underworld. Persephone wanted to go to hell so she could dress dark and be in a band, so she followed Hades. He didn't even know she was behind him! Then, when she got there, she found two others and they became rockers known as Queens of the Underworld! Her mom didn't like it, but Persephone did agree to come back above ground once a year to bring spring.

"Queens of the Underworld? Really?"

Yes, yes, and that's not all. When Eurydice died and went to the underworld, she became friends with them.

"Say what?"

Yeah, it turned out Orpheus was a bit of a stalker, so she deliberately stepped on a snake so she would die and get away from him. Then, you know what happened, right? He followed her down there, too! He even asked Hades to let him have her back. So Hades cut him the deal that they could be reunited if Orpheus didn't look back to make sure she was following. Ah, but Eurydice tricked him by saying, "Hey, there's Mick Jagger!" Hahahaha!

"Oh, that's funny!!! Such a nice coincidence! His name came up yesterday!"

I know! Right place, right time!

"Pretty amazing how often that bit of mythology gets plucked for retelling. I bet that tale has been told at least four times in the last decade."

Yep, that would be my count! Now, who else got to tell their side of things? Well, there was Pandora, cursed by Zeus to be overly curious, then given a jar - not a box - and told not to look inside. She got her husband to open it, so he's the one that should be blamed for all the ills of the world. LOL! Then there's the story of Medusa, who just wanted a hairdo that would stand out at school. Athena knew she was a herpetology fan, so that's why she gave Medusa a head full of snakes. Just helping a girl out, you know?

"Hahahaha! 'Be careful what you wish for!' LOL!"

The thing is, Medusa really liked the new 'do, just not all the teasing from the other kids. Then what was there? Oh, yes, a dating game spoof called "Apple of His Eye", in which Paris has to pick which goddess he favors. That's them in the seats out front: Athena, Aphrodite, and Hera. Of course, he chooses Aphrodite, who promises to make Helen of Troy fall in love with him. We all know how badly that went!

"Yep another case of someone getting what they wanted and having the world collapse all around them. So, how did the teacher like the girls' report?"

She gave them an "F"!!! She said they didn't even try to research, just "made it all up" instead. Everyone on Mount Olympus was shocked! They had listened in and thought the report was fabulous, as the girls told their truths, but I guess the world just wasn't prepared to hear that from two 11-year-olds. At least the teacher gave them a chance to make up the bad grade by trying again.

"LOL! Yes, who's gonna believe two 6th-graders? The gods must have been crazy to think that would work."

That's my guess. Now, I need to finish up here as I have places to be! Such a nice afternoon this has been!

today, i had a party on the patio

Oh, did you think the party was for me?

No, no, no! 

It was for Stella and Coco.

Every day, at 5 PM.

It's the only time either dog gets to socialize with other dogs, so it's important.

I'd gone home earlier to give Stella a break and to take care of the mail and such.

However, I forewent the Friday Fiesta to make sure I'd be in Georgetown on time.

Sure, I got to socialize with Susan and her husband, Terry, on the patio behind their house.

We listened to WRHQ as we chatted and swatted at sand gnats and discussed Mick Jagger's age.

I don't know how it started, but I did my spiel about him and Keith Richards, then said they would both be 74 this year.

Lol! Susan is 71 and she knew they had to be at least ten years older than her!

She was correct, of course.

Perhaps I would have done better using the information learned from "Sad Animal Facts".

Take this one: "An alligator's brain weighs less than an Oreo [cookie]."

As Brooke Barton cites in the prologue, a 400-pound alligator has a brain that weighs 8 grams.

Lets make the units of measure coincide, shall we?

Then, a 181,600 gram alligator has a brain that weighs 8 grams.

That's a much scarier fact, isn't it?

It certainly shivers my timbers.

(smile!)

The weather, however, isn't scary at all for the next seven days.

Warm, warm, warm, with blue skies all the way!

Yes, I do believe I will regard this as my post-surgery vacation.

It won't be a stay-cation because I'm not at my house.

And I will be waking up somewhere different, as I did this morning.

"Post-surgery vacation" - I do like the sound of that!

The fact that I'm dog-sitting is simply one of the activities for this trip.

Very nice perspective, right?

Now, I have movies to watch: "Indiana Jones And The Ark Of The Covenant", "Monsters, Inc.", and "Point Break".

Sweet dreams for me! 

today starts stella time!

Here's that beautiful Ridgeback girl!

I can't believe this picture has such good focus!!!

Seriously, she hardly ever stops moving.

Dawn and Chris are off to the great white north to officiate for a niece's wedding, so I get to spend time with Stella in Georgetown for a few days.

Yes, it's going to be a bit of a challenge this time, as I still have brain fog from the anesthesia.

I'll just be mindful that there will be zero driving allowed at night time.

I can do that!

To celebrate my vacation here in "north Jacksonville", I let AARP treat me to lunch.

Yes, indeed, that was all paid using AARP Reward Point money, so it cost me not a thing!

Cranberry Walnut Chicken Salad Sandwich is what I had as an early dinner and it was good, though a bit small, as it was a half-sandwich.

The Fuji Apple Chicken Salad, with its toasted pecans added for crunch, was a positively delicious lunch, even though it was a half order, too.

I'll be dining on that again some time!

Okay, time to feed Stella!

(smile!)

today, i had a luncheon!

Nothing fancy, mind.

We went to Cici's Pizza, 'cause we all love it and they don't yet have one in Hinesville.

"We" means, me, the first niece, and her two darling daughters!

This was taken at the time that Chloe and Miyah came to ask for money for the game room.

That's a usual occurrence. 

Christina was prepared: a game card purchased before!

Each girl got $1 for whichever game or prize machine they wanted.

Chloe came back with three prizes from her machine!!!

Pretty cool.

Pretty cool that they were in town, too, on this blustery day.

I'd invited them to go see "The Croods" at NCG with me, as it was just $2.

Instead, they were already coming to visit Christina's Nana.

She's been in the hospital the last few days, with a worsening of the blood cancer she's had for the last two decades.

I do hope she is going to get better.

Meanwhile, I got to have lunch with my first niece.

i thank You, God.

today, i went for a drive

I'm not saying I drove down to Hinesville or anything.

It was after my brother, Smitty, had taken me to my post-op appointment with Dr. Whipple and we were back at my house.

 

He could see that my car was covered in oak tree fronds.

The three hours of steady rain on Sunday had knocked them loose from the tree and all over any surface. 

"You want me to stay while you see if your car will start?"

Good idea.

In fact, I told him I would take a little drive, let my Saturn cruise...

and that's what I did.

I went straight to Truman Parkway South and let her run.

It wasn't yet 11 AM and both sides of the parkway were almost deserted.

That was good for my first venture out.

When the exit for White Bluff Road came up, I took it, then circled back on the ramp to hit Truman Parkway North.

By 11:15 AM, I was back to my driveway.

Hallelujah!

I definitely felt a sense of accomplishment with that foray into the world!

I thought, very briefly, of going to a movie.

After all, I haven't been to a cinema since World Theatre Day.

However, I haven't felt deprived in the least.

Between the free movies on Up Faith & Family last week, interspersed with my own reward movies and those on Peacock, I've had plenty to watch.

"Romantic Friction" - a book cover artist gets to play author when the real writer of a fluff romance wants to hide from the limelight; lightweight and funny.

"Starstruck: Gene Kelly's Love Letter To Ballet": not a word is spoken or sung, but there is no doubt about the plot; beautiful and captivating!!!

"My Boss' Wedding" - over-organized assistant is pegged with the groom's loosey-goosey nephew to plan an over-the-top gala in a week... from gown to flowers to food to venue to rehearsal dinner; definitely fun, with a little twist.

"First Dog" - when the pet of the POTUS gets lost and turns up in California, it's up to a foster boy to "do the right thing" and return him; I really liked this one, with all the Dolly Parton music and Eric Roberts as the President with a heart.

"Forgiveness Girl" - follows the childhood of a girl with spina bifida as she seeks friendship with a new girl; gets a bit too intense when the girl tries to kill herself.

"This Little Love Of Mine" - woman returns to her childhood town to convince her childhood friend to take over his family's business; yes, definitely liked this one, with its setting in a tropical cove!

"We're The Millers" - the Thursday reward movie from Comcast had a ragtag instant 'family' on an RV trip to Mexico to smuggle drugs; had some moments of mirth, Jennifer Aniston as a stripper, but a decent ending.

"Five Date Rule" - a widower and a birthday spur two people to the same internet dating site by their family and friends; another good one I'd see again!

"The Other Woman" - an older Cameron Diaz finds the man she's been dating is married and drops him, but his wife insists on being her friend; a bit wacky, but that's to be expected with this cast!

"Airplane!" - I watched this oldie from 1980 just for laughs!

That last one was seen last night, ending my Post Hernia Repair Film Festival right before the post-op meeting with the doctor.

Now, I'm going to watch some TV as I enjoy my dinner.

This is courtesy of Smitty and Mary's Easter repast: brown-sugar ham, green beans, and sweet potato casserole.

I'm watching an episode of "Father Brown" in which he introduces Sister Boniface as "The Forensic Nun".

I enjoy both of those British murder-mystery shows, so it'll be nice to see how the one spun off from the other.

Then, it'll be watching a recorded episode of "Two And A Half Men".

I've discovered I need that show to signal my body that it's time for bed.

If that's what I need, that's what I'll have.

Loss adjustment takes many forms.

today, i got dressed

That most definitely counts as news.

For the last two days, I've been in my nightgown.

That would be all day, all afternoon, all evening, all night.

I wasn't going anywhere, so why get dressed and tempt myself to venture out?

Indeed. 

This morning, I was still in my nightgown as I watched the Easter service - well, the latter part of it - with the Asbury contingent viewing on fb.

I've been in bed every night by 11 PM, if not before. 

Last night, however, had brought a bout of insomnia that had me up every hour until I relented and stayed up.

I watched the Thursday reward movie from Comcast: "Meet The Millers".

I dimly recalled seeing it before, though I'd somehow forgotten about Jennifer Aniston's stripper routines.

By the time it was done, I was ready for sleep, as the time coincided with my regular bedtime, i.e., about 2:30 AM.

I woke up about 10:30 AM, but didn't leap out of bed.

After all, I'm not the Easter bunny.

Bah dumm dum.

Just a little - very little! - joke to show I'm still here. 

(smile!) 

I caught most of Rev. Billy's sermon, so that was good.

Then came the "Alleluia Chorus" at the end, with folks in the congregation being invited to come up on stage with the choir.

I really loved that!

I seemed to liven me up, too.

After putting away to breakfast remains (Chocolate Ensure and two fig cookies), and verifying that my bowels were working well, I got dressed.

I'm wearing my dark blue dress with daisies.

Technically, it's a nightgown with pockets, but it looks like a casual dress and I've worn it as such on several occasions.

I will say this: it feels good to be in clothes for a change.

That includes wearing a bra for the first time since Wednesday morning. 

(smile!) 

And now, I have a lovely bouquet of flowers from the Easter service!

Chuck Long came by to deliver them just a few minutes ago.

My thanks to Asbury Memorial Church for this gorgeous display!

Now, what shall I do with my day?

Do I dare to drive my car yet?

Hmm... no, I think not.

While it's true that this is the first day that my brain doesn't still reel from anesthesia, I prefer to wait until tomorrow.

Meanwhile, I have plenty of movies to watch on TV.

Let me go find which one is next...