•Now that it’s spring, I walk with my friend Betty a few mornings a week. Gets us out of the house and moving and makes me feel a little less guilty about my frequent visits to the Dairy Queen. Last week, we were walking and talking a mile a minute, when I say, “Man, did I ever have a crap night’s sleep last night! Awake from about midnight to 3:00am, tossing and turning.”
“Me, too! 12:00 to 3:00, wide awake. Slept fine the night before.”
“Same here. Remember growing up, when our periods tended to sync up with each other?”
“Oh, yeah. Getting together was a real cranky-fest.”
“Bad! Well, here’s what I’m wondering. Post-menopause, do your sleep cycles sync with your friends?”
“You may be on to something, Ida. Results are the same, though: cranky, squared.”
•I’m also wondering if there’s a direct link between my closet and the weather. Not every day, mind you. Just twice a year. Seems like whenever I switch my clothes over from winter to summer, we get a cold snap. Happens in the fall, too, when I switch out all my lightweight summer stuff for sweaters and the like. Never fails: we get a heat wave. Maybe that could be a little side hustle for me. If you’re planning a fall wedding and are worried about the weather, call me. I may be able to help. You know, plan my wardrobe switch over to accommodate your schedule.
•How about this. Why doesn’t it say “Single Serving Size” on a pint of Ben & Jerry’s? And are they trying to be funny when they put “Sharing Size” on a packet of Peanut M&M’s. I’m wondering about that.
•My Dad had a nice bounce during the fall and into the new year: talking in complete sentences, making eye contact, laughing a little. Knew it wouldn’t last forever and it didn’t. Now and he’s back to his same old confused self. Though, no matter how out of it he is, he still says “thank you” if you compliment him or give him a candy. I’m wondering if that’s just hardwired, you know, kind of a reflex.
Thankfully, he still recognizes my sister Irene and me. Lately, we’ve been getting together on Saturday mornings for a Dad visit. It’s easier if it’s the two of us. Let’s face it, at this point, Dad’s not much of a conversationalist.
After a visit, we usually go for lunch and ice cream. That stopped a few weeks ago when Irene and me were at the DQ, chowing down on Peanut Buster Parfaits. So, I’m finishing off my Buster, scraping the bottom to get every bit of the chocolate sauce. “Wow!” I says, “I’m stuffed and a little nauseous. But in a good way.”
“Me, too,” Irene agrees. “I kind of think lunch and an ice cream is too much food.”
“Sadly, yes.”
“Look, next time, how about we skip the lunch and just do ice cream?”
“Ice cream as a meal substitute?”
“Why not? It is tastier than Ensure.”
“Brilliant. I mean, peanuts are protein, right?”
“Yup. A Peanut Buster Parfait is a perfect meal.”
“I’m wondering why they don’t advertise it like that.”
I could go on, but I won’t.
That’s it for now. Catch you on the flip side!
Hear Ida Tell It: Things I’m Wondering About