Warfare with a Mouse

 I noticed that I posted on the mouse issue already a few weeks ago.  Sadly, the saga is not over but we may have moved into a new stage in the battle.

After the spraying did not eliminate the nightly scratching sounds, Adriano set traps in the attic. Jim said that he heard a new sound that night--one that seemed like thrashing and banging around.  He assumed the mouse was caught and was trying to free itself.  Amazingly, I slept through that episode. 

When Adriano and his colleagues came to inspect the traps, they said that two of the seven traps were missing and there was no mouse dead or alive in sight.  So what could have happened?  Adriano looked all over the attic but with blown-in insulation, it was hard to find the missing traps. 

We did not hear a mouse last night.  I fear the next evidence of a mouse will be the terrible odor of a dead one.  Adriano said that the odor should rise up and not come down to us.  I hope not.  He said he is going to come back to check on the status of the traps again today.   Didn't see him today--maybe tomorrow.

We have been so happy with our apartment and with maintenance here.  But this has been frustrating.  We pay too much money in rent to not be able to get an uninterrupted night of sleep.  

To be continued....(The available mouse photos are so cute--but not appealing to me right now! So no photo on this blog.)

----------November 3--no mouse sounds for several nights now.  Shhh.  Hope this doesn't start it up again!

Home for a Week

We have been home for a week and we are happy to be home.  I have been thinking how it is a good thing to like being home and not wanting to be on the road or busy all the time.  We like our routines.  We like our apartment and our frequent sports watching.  I am not fond of meal planning or preparing but I like to eat so it needs to be done.  Two weeks of frequent meals out gave me a weight gain of three or four pounds that have to go!  

This week has been one of terrible news coming out of the Middle East with thousands dead and injured--both in Israel and in Gaza.  Our hope and prayer is that it doesn't escalate.  The news out of Washington DC is also chaotic with the House of Representatives unable to choose a speaker and thus unable to accomplish any goals.  And then the news continues on the several indictments for former President Trump with the latest bit that one of his lawyers has pleaded guilty just before her trial in Georgia;  we wonder what her cooperation will mean for the others.

Our lives involve frequent doctor's appointments.  Jim had a good and reassuring one this week with his urologist for the six month follow up for his prostate cancer diagnosis of four years ago.  

We had the joy of a dinner out with our friends the Moorheads who treated us at Seasons 52 to celebrate Jim's induction into the AAAS.  And we had the fun of our first Wall Street Journal Wine Club shipment which to my surprise, my husband took charge of ordering.  Our first bottle (Caballie Blanc)was really a winner; the second not as much.  But it is fun to enjoy them and read about them.  

We began planning for the church small group which will meet at our apartment starting next week.  Suddenly the carpeted steps look terrible and needed cleaning.  We will dust and vacuum and clear off the coffee table. We have begun to look at the lesson and have emailed the group.  I have planned the snack.

 Jim was able to get in his weekly golf outing again.  I have spent time with my Goodreads "want to read" list and began downloading some for my Kindle app on my phone.  And as always,  there is our daily Spelling Bee time each morning where we don't stop until we get to "genius" together--usually with the help of the two-letter hints on the site.  And we do a happy hour NYT Crossword puzzle with each one of us on our own laptops. 

Last week Saturday was a great win for Notre Dame football over Southern Cal.  We are watching the Phillies and the Diamondbacks in the NLCS with the Phillies ahead 2 to 1.  We watched the Liberty lose to the Aces in the WNBA finals.  When we complain about the frequent repetition of some commercials, we have to admit that maybe it is because we are spending so many hours in front of the TV in the evenings.

I write about our trips and adventures.  It seemed good this morning to also write about a wonderfully  ordinary week at home.

A Trip to Notre Dame

 

DQ treats!

We have arrived at the Morris Inn at Notre Dame where Jim will be participating in a conference honoring his former colleague Gary Anderson who is retiring soon.  We had a mostly uneventful trip here--almost 700 miles--a trip that we took many times during the years we lived in South Bend.

Last night's stay was at a place familiar to us over the years, the Holiday Inn Express.  Because it was unseasonably cold, Jim turned on the heat in the room.  Smoke billowed out of the register.  He quickly turned it off and opened the door to the hall.  We were given another room down the hall but were hesitant to turn that heat on.  Eventually, I was so bold as to give it a try and all was well--and the room warmed up nicely.

Supper was also at a familiar place--Ruby Tuesday's--just down the road.  We came back to the room for Sunday Night Football.

Today's trip was blessedly routine.  We stopped at Martin's and picked up a few things for snacks.  We were able to check into our room early choosing priority parking--at $18 a night it was a bargain compared to last week's $48 dollars a night in the challenging parking deck at Le Meridien in Cambridge. 

The trip was easy for us but because of the Hamas attack on Israel and then retaliation by Israeli forces, four participants for the conference were unable to come.  We are wondering if they can still join by Zoom.  

-------------October 10  Jim is in meetings all day.  I had granola from home for breakfast with some milk taken from HIE yesterday.  I then got a great cup of coffee at the coffee shop downstairs--no complimentary coffee available.  I was able to meet Linda Hanstra, a friend from church here in SB, and one I've kept up contact with--particularly because she has asked me to vet several pieces she has written.  We had a great chat over another cup of coffee.

Meals are always an issue--but I treated myself to an apple turnover for lunch!  

Last night's dinner at the Anderson's was lovely.  Lisa planned a musical celebration for Gary with several numbers--mostly light-hearted but one very somber canon for four women's voices:  By the Rivers of Babylon We Wept--as we all thought about the war in Israel and the conferees who could not fly to the US.

October 11  Last night we joined a few others for a light supper at the Coleman-Morse Building, a short walk from the Morris Inn.  It was fun to see Door Dash robots roaming the campus. After chatting over supper, Jim suggested a DQ treat--a great idea.

October 11  Jim gave his paper today.  Four of the presentations were via Zoom with folks who could not leave Israel.

I met with Lisa, Madge and Andrea, friends from our South Bend church, for coffee this morning.  We stopped at the grocery store on our way back to the Inn and I heard "Mary!"  It was a student from Family Literacy days--the kind of meeting that would occur more often in South Bend but never in New Jersey!  I had to ask her name but then I certainly did remember her--and her toddler from those days is now 20 years old!  

We met John and Lois who drove two hours to meet us for supper at Villa Macri where we had a leisurely dinner.  After getting back to the Inn, we decided we could still make a short walk to the Grotto. I lit a candle and prayed for all those on my nightly prayer list.  

It was a Phillies win tonight --10 to 2.  Leaving the restaurant we saw a few moments of it with Bryce Harper's three run home and then Trea Turner's later.

I think I'll end this posting now with the hope that it will also be an uneventful two day ride home--with an overnight stay at another HIE, another familiar one in Donegal, Pennsylvania.

October 12  Donegal, Pennsylvania Holiday Inn Express--407 miles--bought supper at nearby McDonald's which we have done before.  With a bottle of wine from Martin's we were all set!  Time to watch the Phillies who are ahead of the Braves 2 to 1 games amazingly!  

We began the day with coffee at Martin's with Dan and Jody Machiela--a great visit with them--and a gift for Jim of Dan's latest book.  

It was a good trip but we are eager to be home--maybe about 5 hours tomorrow.

--------------October 12--home at 1:30--easy driving today--about 700 miles total.

Jim is Inducted into the AAAS

 

We are home after a three day trip to Cambridge, Massachusetts where Jim was inducted as a part of the class of 2022 and 2023 into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.  He joined a long list of scholars, artists, performers, leaders, philantropists, etc. going back to John Adams and Benjamin Franklin.  His class included Glenn Close and Abraham Verghese who gave a short speech as the representative of his group of the humanities. 

Our trip did not start well.  We almost forgot my dress clothes on the floor of the bedroom.  The weather was terrible and the five hour ride was dangerous with poor visibility and trucks spraying us with water.  We found our hotel easily however (Le Meridien) although getting into a parking space in the hotel garage was a challenge.  We enjoyed our kind of supper--MacDonald's and we bought  a four pack of wine for later.  The opening event Friday night featured John Lithgow and a conversation with David Rubenstein and Sheila Johnson.  Coincidentlally Jim's sister Terri and brother-in-law Ken had visited us the previous night in Princeton after their stay at Johnson's Salamander Hotel in Virginia.  We briefly joined the hotel reception afterwards but it was noisy and crowded and we were happy to escape to our room.

Saturday morning we found a great coffee shop, Mariposa, on Massachusetts Avenue and enjoyed pastries and dark roast coffee.  The afternoon was the highlight of the induction ceremony.  The AAAS provided shuttles to Kresge auditorium on the MIT campus. Jim had a reserved seat with his Humanities Group Section IV Religious Studies 7.  I found a seat on an aisle in the mezzanine--after looking for restrooms knowing it was going to be a long program.  And it was--three hours of short speeches and then each inductee called up by name and affiliation to sign his or her name to the membership rolls.  After the session there was a really nice reception in a tent outside the auditorium and then a shuttle ride back to the hotel.  Jim said he was delayed in meeting me because of the many folks who wanted a selfie with Glenn Close.  Jim was not among them!

Signing the membership book

And then--the Notre Dame football team won a very tense game over Duke in Durham.  With less than a minute to go, Audric Esteme ran for a touchdown--surprising everyone who expected a last ditch try for a field goal for a possible win.  

Leaving the hotel this morning presented a few more challenges.  We almost left our suitcase next to the car with each one of us assuming the other had put it in.  And then we had to get help to open the exit gate of the parking deck when the access card was a challenge.  And there was a 5 K race closing off some streets.  But we made it! And now we are home again after a much more pleasant ride in dry conditions.  

I was very proud of Jim and so glad he could be honored in this way. When the inductees were first asked to stand for applause on Friday night, it made me tearful!  

Apartment Life

 In so many ways, we are happy with our apartment but there are adjustments and issues.  

Jim has been hearing a mouse in the wall in the middle of the night.  Yesterday he put his complaint on the "portal" and maintenance was here promptly.  They will return on Monday morning to do something about it--which may involve a hole in the wall.  I fear a mouse in the house but at least the annoying scratching will be over we hope.  I am not bothered by it because by that time of early morning, I have wandered to the guest bedroom--where Jim joined me last night.  It was like the earlier days of our marriage pre-king-size bed. 

Our appliances are mostly just fine but the freezer is not large enough for what we purchase--which may be too much.  So Jim coped today by finishing off the old coffee ice cream so we could find room for a new container!  Ice cream for lunch!  

This is not an apartment problem, but a technology issue.  In order to get the Mets-Phillies game last night, we had to sign up for Apple Plus streaming.  It is free for three months and then not expensive.  But Jim put in his password instead of his Apple ID and there was no going back.  We watched the game on his phone for a short while and gave up.  The Phillies have more at stake and will be in the wild card games but our heart is with the Mets and they lost again last night.  We hope to watch ND vs. Ohio State on NBC tonight with no issues! 

One more item to note--my gardening is limited to my moonflowers which are doing well again this year.  I started them from seed in April and potted the only two that germinated in May after the danger of frost is over.  With a tomato cage as a trellis they have blossomed ourside our door--just one or two a night and then they are withered in the morning.  They have attracted the attention of neighbors--and maintenance too who ask about "Jack and the beanstalk." 

Today is a very rainy day and once again we were glad we chose a complex with garages attached to the units.  When we came home from the grocery store, we got a bit of exercise climbing those steps. But at least it was dry!  Jim's sister and brother-in-law will be visiting this week and I wonder what they will think of our apartment life.  We think Barclay Square was a good decision.

He's OK now but....

 Many years ago, Laura emailed me after a night in an Australian swamp "I'm OK now, Mom."  It was a memorable line after a terrible experience.

I've been thinking about that line today.  Yesterday Jim had a routine rheumatology appointment in which he had a high blood pressure reading.  He attributed that to his hurrying into the examination room from the car.  I said we could check it when we got home with a monitor I've had for a few years.  

When we checked at home, his reading was even higher--much higher.  After a few more tries with confirming readings, I asked him to cancel his golf date and call our doctors.  He did so and got an appointment for this morning with a nurse practitioner.  Little by little the reading went down but it was still definitely hypertension. 

Googling the numbers told us that one had to head to the ER immediately if it was 180/120.  It was not that high but the initial numbers were not far below that. 

Jim felt good about the nurse he saw this morning.  She prescribed a medication and asked him to monitor his blood pressure twice a day and then see her in two weeks.  She didn't want the drug to lower it too far!

We picked up the prescription and Jim took his first pill at noon.  Tonight at 9 pm we got out the monitor.  Sadly, the batteries were dead.  Happily, we had more in the closet.  The numbers tonight were great!  What a relief!  How wonderful to see that drugs work and work so well!  We are so relieved and grateful.

----------Two weeks follow-up--All good.  He needs to check b/p two or three times a week and see nurse again in three months.   

This is Enough

 

"This is Enough" has been my mantra lately.  When we were in St. Pete Beach last January, I sat on the deck looking out at the bay and told myself, "This is enough."  I didn't need to go on a long walk or a swim and we didn't have a car half of the time.  It was enough to look out at the beauty around me and meditate with thankfulness.

Laura writes about the value of setting 100 goals.  I don't have 100 goals.  I don't have a bucket list and this week I read a piece in the Washington Post in which someone's father set a "chuck-it list" instead of a "bucket list" and was relieved to do so.  There are no places I really want to see other than visiting our children and grandchildren in their homes.  I have no desire to travel overseas again or even to fly anywhere in the US.   We do plan to go to Florida again in January so we will endure Newark Airport one more time at least.

It makes me somewhat sad to think of all the times I explored NYC by myself--the adrenaline I felt stepping out of Penn Station into the crowds on the sidewalk.  Thanks to a few falls and other incidents, I would not dare do it alone again.  Jim and I might make a trip there together but we have no immediate plans. 

We are offering our bikes as a give-away to students coming into town.  I insisted on bringing them here when we moved but we have not used them and now I feel too uneasy about doing so--getting off and on and keeping my balance.  It's a regret but not a big loss!

"It is enough" to do the household chores, to do Spelling Bee and the NYT crossword puzzle daily with Jim, to watch the Mets or the Phillies from our couch, to find good books to read, to email friends and hear from them in response, to visit our children and grandchildren, and to blog when I am inspired to do so!