Valentine's Day

Much rougher and achier in the morning... toss back another ibuprofen... open the shades to icicles melting off the eaves...

With Oxbear on back-to-back video calls all morning and afternoon... it's Patience taking over... microwaves breakfast sandwiches for the two invalids while preparing all her gear for Saturday from the checklist I print off for her (she loves being self-organized)...

Yali has resumed regular play with sound effects, from his quarantine... he's feeling pretty good...

After Puck works out later that morning, he walks into my room for the clean laundry basket, stares at me for a few moments... “Are you more sick?”... clearly they're not used to this...

Later in the afternoon Puck leaves for six hours in Produce on Valentine's Day... he wonders at the purpose of being there so late on such a day... who's buying things like red cabbages and turnips on V-Day?

Meanwhile the germy mama (in some kind of other-world flu daze) manages some finances... finally finishes stitching that gold ruffle to Patience's dress hem... texts Elmer about a 6.0 earthquake in Ethiopia, which seems unusual... and takes another ibuprofen for all the goodies the flu generously provides...

Oxbear ends work a little early to pick up Crumbl Cookies (they're advertising things like strawberry and chocolate and molten lava)... maybe for tomorrow...

And Patience is busy writing letters of thanks to her dance teachers for Valentine's Day...

By evening Yali is back to the LEGOS... giant snakes eating minifigs... LEGO blood everywhere...

Oxbear returns with a big box of cookies and a bundle of white roses for me and prepares lamb burgers for everyone... it's been awhile since we've had fresh flowers in the house... that one time Puck's cat decided to eat lilies and almost died... apparently roses don't kill though, so we'll try again...