Methuen has had a recycling pick up for as long as we’ve been living here (I think). I’ve never really participated. They changed the trash pickup process on us last week and it includes a huge recycling barrel. Okay. I’m buying in now. So much so that we have a recycling barrel in the mudroom, right near our regular trash barrel.
Let the sorting and separating commence.
This morning at work has been INSANE. Crazy upon crazy upon crazy. I went upstairs to go to the bathroom in one of the brief breathing moments and figured I’d take a quick pic of Bertha, seeing as I haven’t documented Bertha’s progress for a while.
Bertha is HUGE, but she hasn’t grown a lot over the last week or two. She’s starting to open up a new leaf now, but it’s been a while since I saw any clear signs of growth. I’m a little worried about those spots on the Ficus though. Those don’t look happy.
Anyway, this will be my photo-a-day pic because I am not going to have time for anything more elaborate.
Duck and cover, it’s back to work time.
I was waiting for my lunch to heat up in the microwave and I happened to look outside and see our groundhog friend.
I don’t know anything about groundhogs but I do know that this little sucker is adorable.
As cute has he is, he’s isn’t even close to as cute as Lady Pachalotte of the Rhode Island Patchalottes.
I feel exactly the same way, Patches.
I had to step outside today to take out the trash and I saw this hideous monster. How can we live in a world where an evil like this exists?
Also, you’d think that living in the woods in New England would mean we’d have some cool fall colors. Not really. In our back yard the leaves go from green to ugly yellow to dead on the ground. Oh well.
Jen and I talked about going leaf peeping up on the Kanc this weekend. It’s probably a smidgen too early, but it will be a fun day if we go.
Patches guards the bed.
I’m home again. We’ve added putting together a pre-fab TV stand that we bought a few weeks ago but we’re planning on returning to my to do list.
The traffic was nuts out there today. I failed on one of my errands, but completed the other, and I got to see mom on her birthday. The visit was a bit on the rough side, emotionally speaking, but I’m glad it happened.
Obligatory Methuen Center pics, both coming and going…
Inside the Masonic building?
We drove up to Vermont to have lunch with the kids. We left ridiculously early so that we could take the scenic route. We left the highway at the Vermont line and went back roads the rest of the way. We stopped at Quechee Gorge and a couple of random spots. There aren’t a lot of pictures but here are a few.
I was afraid we were going to be stuck behind this guy for hours. He was going 29 in a 50.
We stopped at this field to stretch our legs. I liked the view. The next door neighbor was a Jehovah’s Witness building. Oddly we found two Jehovah’s Witness places today.
Harry likes Stok Cold Brew coffee. I’ve never seen it like this before, but I really haven’t been paying attention.
The reason for the trip. The college crowd.
I thought this looked cool. Sorry.
I met with a nutritionist yesterday and got to share my glee over dropping below 300 pounds for the first time in decades. She seemed like she was happy for me. I was happy for me too.
She approves of everything I am doing, which also made me happy. I had a few questions and she answered them all and gave some suggestions for things to fix the one or two small issues I’m having (artificial sweeteners do not cause dumping syndrome, hair loss isn’t a nutritional thing and it happens to everyone and it stops after a few months and it grows back, adding some sodium to my diet should help with the occasional moments of light headedness, if you’re eating a meal and it’s taking more than 45-60 minutes to finish just stop eating so you don’t develop a grazing habit).
This week is a screwy one, work wise. I only worked about two hours on Monday and then went out sick. I worked a full day Tuesday. I worked a half day Wednesday because of the nutritionist appointment. I am working a full day today. I have vacation days tomorrow and Monday. So that means today is the last day of my work week, and I follow it with a four day weekend. I didn’t have a reason to take two days off. My company has personal time off accrue monthly, and if you accrue too much you hit a cap and they stop adding time. If I didn’t take two days off this month I would have hit the cap. So I guess I take two days off, right?
We are planning a drive to Vermont this weekend. I think we’re shooting for Saturday, but the plans are still up in the air. I want to visit my mother as much as I can. Her birthday is Monday so I will be able to see her on her birthday. That makes me happy. I want to do as much camera nerding as humanly possible. The forecast is calling for rain on Sunday evening through Monday morning. Tomorrow and Saturday look clear, or at least clearish. I want to be in Boston by sunrise at least once and it looks like that is going to be tomorrow. Beacon Hill, Newbury Street, if the conditions are good maybe some reflections off the Hancock building, maybe a quick run into Harvard Square in Cambridge. We’ll see how it works out, but as of now I am totally making the trip. I just need to find an appropriate parking garage near Beacon Hill.
Speaking of rain. About an hour ago we had the loudest crack of thunder you’ve ever heard. It didn’t shake the house, but it was one of those monster booms. It’s pouring like the end days out there right now.
Inside the Red Head's Head 