Settling in

My husband and I had a few hours this afternoon to try to get our apartment straightened up. The hallway outside the bathroom was still littered with left-over tiles, dusty spots of plaster, and assorted other materials left over from the renovation. He made a couple of trips to Lowe's and returned about $400 worth of materials. In the meantime, I cleaned and vacuumed and did about 4 loads of laundry. I also unpacked the box of toiletries that had been sitting in the hallway for about 2 months, threw out about 2 bags of old lotion, makeup and other assorted nonsense, and put the rest of it back in the bathroom cabinets.

I also went to the grocery store and the co-op with my daughter. The trip to the grocery store was quick and to the point, but the visit to the co-op took forever. I got a parking spot about 1 block away. I managed to find most of what I needed, but because there was a new computer system at the co-op, the lines extended three times as long as usual, into the produce section. Most people were very patient, and I became patient, once I got used to the idea. The new computers were installed to facilitate the check-out process by accepting debit cards. Up until now, the co-op only took cash or checks.

When I got home, I found a parking spot across the street from the apartment. It was too good to pass up. I unloaded in shifts, going up the stairs, opening the door, etc., until I remembered that I had a cart downstairs in the basement. It's a large shopping cart with huge wheels to better navigate bumpy streets. It took two trips, but I was able to avoid having to carry many bags of seltzer and juice, for example.

For dinner, I made butternut squash soup with spinach ravioli, accompanied by sliced tomatoes and basil from the greenmarket.

Even though we would prefer to stay home next weekend, we have two major things planned -- a trip to New Jersey to clean out some old things in our storage locker at Grammy's house and to go back to Long Island for the unveiling ceremony.