Sunday 2 November

Sunday, and thankfully it's light out early cos we changed the clocks back again. It will be dark at the end of the day, at least it will be light out walking early in the morning. As it was today. And cold! Very frosty. Was forecast to be in the teens overnight. But it is sunny and clear despite the frost and all quite lovely.

I cleaned the church. It wasn't too dirty. Except for an issue with the toilets -- there was a porta-potty out back when I got there, never a good sign. A sign inside saying 'Flush as little as possible' -- think I'm gonna even lift the lids of those toilets, not to mention clean them? Nuh uh. Oh no. No way. And so, I didn't.

It made me think of the aging, and often failing, infrastructure of this village and the fact the mayor is a complete dickhead. 2 reasons why the church's sewer issues are what they are. In the past the mayor has refused to have the village see to these matters, even tho they are village matters. Four trustees have quit just this year because he is such a nasty little dictator. Even the Rocks Out Back War at work -- L called the mayor, since that is a fire lane out there, with signs and everything to prove it. And the mayor said, 'I don't know who out those signs there' (Oh! I went and bought them at Target and put them up myself!) 'but the village will no longer be responsible for that lane and we won't snow plow anymore either!' The guy is a total idiot. Total. Idiot.

Anyway. I am enjoying my Sunday mandarin oranges, compliments of the Food pantry. They are an intensely beautiful shade of deep orange. Very nice. I love them.

I slept well. I had weird dreams but I don't remember them. I am going to church today, as D begged me with tears in her eyes when I went in last Friday to get my paycheck. So I promised. Yes. I picked up 2 of those calendars they are selling again this year. I am sending one to my mother. It's pretty, so she should like it, and even if she doesn't like it, she will hang it up anyway.

I got lots of stuff done yesterday, and managed to rest too. Today all there is is the fish tanks. And dishes. I did some cooking yesterday, so that makes dishes.

How boring this all sounds. But it actually isn't boring. It is busy and full and reassuring. The daily round can be like a millstone around my neck, or it can be a spiralling disk upon which I ride and rest and reflect and let shape my days. Weekends I have more leeway in deciding what when, but during the week, not so much. The weekend is such a welcome break, and tho I often wish I had 3 days off instead of 2, I can usually hang in until a holiday comes. This month it will be a week from Tuesday -- Veteran's Day. This Tuesday is Election Day and if I don't arrange a ride over there, I am going to have to walk the mile -- in the dark -- to go vote. Because I have to vote. This is such an important election.

I am supposed to clean up after Communion today, and then I hope C can give me a lift to Byron's so I can get a big bag of cat food and a few other things. It was nice not to have to go yesterday. I did go to the library and got 3 more books that all look good. The novel is good, so well written, and Hillary Clinton's memoir which is dry but interesting and definitely written by a politician seeking votes.