The first of 5 days in Mother Nature's Sauna

 

As I write this, Independence Day is still a day or two away.  And yet, I have things to do to prepare for the long weekend that require that I leave the comfort of my apartment and brave the 100 degree heat outside.  Knowing that RQS is coming up makes things a little worse, as I don't want her to suffer heatstroke on her trip to see me, nor do I want the headaches of dealing with the heat.  But this "brave little girl" will do so, simply because it's the right thing to do.

- - - - - -

The day started off with me lying in bed when the A/C shut off.  No, there was no problem with the A/C.  Instead, the fan turned off because the desired temperature was reached.  At that point, there was no going back to sleep for me.  Yet, there was a great reluctance to do anything while the temperature outside was tolerable enough for light outside activities.  It would have been nice to put on one of my exercise dresses and take a walk today.  (Maybe I can do that tomorrow morning.)

After wasting much of the day time, I took a shower, did my makeup, got dressed, and took some garbage outside.  (I didn't want the cardboard box and packing materials from my new chair to get in the way any longer than needed.)  Then, I took a drive, not caring about the destination - I simply wanted to get out of the house. A half hour later, I found myself at Trader Joe's looking for some foodstuffs that would justify my drive.  

Once done at TJ's, it was back home for the night.  It was nice to get out again as Marian, and I wish I didn't have to change back to Mario as often as I've needed to lately.  At least, today's hot weather justified wearing one of my more comfortable summer dresses. 

RQS had to go home today.

 

RQS was up here for a long weekend. It's always nice to have her here.  But it's also nice to see her go home, if only because we both need to recharge our batteries for the following weekend.  We long for each other and are energized when the weekend comes, and we are re-energized when we part.  I think it's because we both have gotten used to having our own nests, and are re-energized by being able to retreat into our own spaces to do the things we would have done on our own before meeting each other.  Simply put, love in one's senior years is more complicated than when we were young.

- - - - - 

Yesterday, the high point of our day was a trip to Stew Leonard's to buy food for the week.  Today, it was the 1-mile walk we took by the Hudson River before it got too hot to do anything outside. It was nice being able to wear my exercise dress again.  RQS noted that she saw another woman wearing her exercise dress.  So I guess I didn't look out of place, save for my height and size.  By the time we were done with this walk (shortly before 11:00 am), all energy was drained from us.  I was glad that we set a limit of 20 minutes to be exposed to the hot and humid weather outside.  After this walk, we went to a deli that I used to frequent daily when I worked for the census bureau.  Four years later, I am still remembered there. 

We spent the rest of the afternoon resting in my apartment.  Unfortunately, I had to wake her up so that she could make her train back to the city.  So, we both got dressed in lightweight dresses, and out the door we went.  After dropping her off, I drove to Poughkeepsie and stopped off at Walmart on the way back home to pick up some makeup remover towelettes and Pointed Tip Swabs. (Think of Q-Tips with a pointed head - perfect for cleaning the area where my ear piercings were done.)  Once home, I was done for the day - and almost ready to go to sleep again.

By the time you read this, I will have returned from my trip.

 

Cloud Gate.  It's one of the most visually impressive works of art in Chicago.  But, with the expected weather, I doubt we'll have the chance to visit "The Electric Kidney Bean" (as some have called it.)  

- - - - - -

Last night, the 4 of us gals (3 Cis, and 1 TG) discussed our final plans for the trip.  And it looks like we'll be doing the hop on/off tour bus to make our way around the tourist sites in the city.  If I were traveling alone, I'd do things much differently from the way we're doing them on this trip, as I've been to the city before and would want to get to know it in greater detail, and not doing another "view from 30,000 feet."  

Chicago is one of those few cities that one needs more than a short weekend to fully enjoy what the city has to offer.  Too bad my friends will only have two days there.  Even RQS and I are staying for too short a time, as we leave the day after our friends.  I will have more to report when I get back....