Sunday Stealing

Strawberry Lollipop Kisses

1. Are flowers a nice gift to give someone? Yes. But you have to take their circumstances into account. Do they have allergies that flowers could irritate? Do they have a cat (like mine) who will view a floral bouquet as a salad bar?

2. Do you wear any jewelry? I wear a ring on my left hand, a watch on my left wrist, earrings and a necklace.

 

3. Have you ever laid in a field of flowers? No.

4. Do you like tea? Hot tea, yes. Iced tea, no.

 
5. What would you do with a million dollars? Before or after taxes? I want to know how much I'm playing with before I start fantasizing.

 

6. What word do you have trouble saying? "Halcyon."

 

7. Favorite fairytale? Rapunzel is the first that springs to mind.

 

8. Do you sleep with stuffed animals? Nope. But frequently this real one curls up with me.

Reynaldo

9. Do you prefer the city or the country? City

10. Are you a big fan of makeup? Yes

11. Favorite drink? Coca Cola

12. What’s the longest amount of time you’ve stayed awake? 17 or 18 hours.

13. Have you ever traveled outside of your country? Yes

 

14. Do you like spring? Yes, because it means BASEBALL!

 

15. Lipstick or lipgloss? Chapstick

 

16. Favorite color? Cubbie blue. Especially when worn by Anthony Rizzo. The Cub first baseman reportedly got married this weekend.

17. Do you like to decorate? Not especially.

 

18. Do you ever go barefoot when you’re outside? I have.

Christmas Eve in Key West

 
19. Are aliens real? Today, our sermon was delivered by a Romanian immigrant. He looked very real to me.

 

20. Does you zodiac sign fit your personality? According to astrology.com, a Sagittarius woman is "unfussy and liberated" and "never really seem able to save." That's true. It also says that men who have loved me "pine" after me after I'm gone. If that's true, they're very good at hiding it.

 

21.Favorite sea animal? Manatee

 

22. Are you a nice person? I try.

 

23. Favorite word? "Gubernatorial." It's just fun to say.

 

24. Night or day? You are the one. Only you beneath the moon or under the sun ...

25. What would make you happy right now? The million dollars you mentioned in #5.

 

More than Henry

Henry's accident last October was such a big event that it's elbowed everything else out of the way. When Henry was still in the hospital, I was obsessed with raising money for his care. I relentlessly pressured all my friends to contribute to his Gofundme page. I sent giftcards and postage stamps (since I knew Reg wouldn't have time to go to the post office). It was all I could do, since Henry was in a coma and Reg was incommunicado.

Once Henry got out of the hospital and began calling all the time, I admit he has exhausted me. It was an adjustment that I'm still making -- he sounds like Henry, he has all Henry's memories, but he's not yet the same Henry.

I have allowed this to distract me from my other friends, and that's not right. Women I care about will be ringing in 2019 in heartache, and I must pay greater attention.

Joanna has been in a long-distance romance with the brother of her neighbor. He's semi-retired and lives on a sailboat in Panama. He came in for Christmas and she's been eager for me to meet him. She's also been excitedly planning a New Year's Day open house, themed to her New Orleans girlhood.

She texted me often when I was in Key West, wishing me a Merry Christmas and asking, "When will you be home, Darlin'?" Turns out they had a blow up on the Sunday before Christmas. "His loss," she texted bravely. But she is upset and it's manifesting itself by her removing both him and her neighbor from the guest list for the open house.

I wasn't going to attend the open house. Since I got home from Key West I've been seriously cocooning. Plus, Joanna and her friends can be intimidating. She brought a handful of them to one of our movie meetups and they talk about architecture and classical music and things I know nothing about. Not to mention that they're all very put together, and I have two new pimples on my chin.

But she's only invited 20 people. Not everyone is going to show up. This party is important to her and much planning has gone into it. So I'm heading over there on New Year's Day. Because she needs my support right now. I can do this.

My oldest friend is depressed again. Maybe it's been continual. She's been rather remote since spring. She has abandoned Facebook, seldom emails, doesn't want to talk on the phone. I thought that getting confirmation that she's cancer free would perk her up, but it hasn't.

I need to nurture our connection. I've been asking her questions -- via text -- about The Godfather (one of her passions). I got an EOB from my insurance company about my recent trip to Urgent Care that I'll run by her. I can figure it out on my own, but it won't cost me anything to acknowledge that this is something she's good at.

It's time for me to step it up and extend myself a bit more.