The snow still is on the ground, and they still are moving it out of the way.

 

I wish I had captured a shot of the front loader lifting the snow into this pile.  And this was the shorter of the piles flanking my building. The pile on the other side must be another 3 feet higher than this pile.

- - - - - -

The first thing on the docket for the day was a visit to my doctor.  However, they weren't plowed out yet, and they weren't having people to come to the office.  So today's appointment was rescheduled for tomorrow, and it will require that I get up an hour earlier than usual.  At least, I won't have to spend the extra time getting made up as Marian to see him.  (He only knows me in my masculine presentation.)  

Again, I had to move my car for the driveway/parking lot to be cleaned.  So I again had to go out and take a drive.  This time, I was able to pick up breakfast at a local deli, and see some more freshly fallen snow before going home.

- - - - - -

Today, I sent the last of my paperwork to a potential employer.  However, I am still looking for interesting work, in a place where I'd get benefits for working full time.  Since I'm not working at this place yet, I figure that it would be best if I don't mention what I'd be doing on the job until I have started doing it.  However, if I do start this job as scheduled, my dentist appointments will be at the end of the day, and they will be (out of necessity) in female mode for scheduling purposes.  Luckily, he has already seen me this way, so it shouldn't be a problem.

It'll be strange working as Marian again.  The more I'm out in the world, the more natural I am in my feminine presentation.  Eventually, I'll have to answer a big question - do I want to give up being male forever?  (I'd keep my male identity to be with the right romantic partner - having someone who loves me is more important than being Marian 24x7.  But if she isn't in my life, there is little reason for me not to press forward on this path.)

 

The aftermath of a snowstorm

 

 

After I finished yesterday's entry, a neighbor kept pestering me about not moving my car. To make a long story short, I was not aware that people in tandem parking spaces (like mine) should move their cars before a snow storm, so that plows can push snow into the far end of these spots.  And my neighbor wanted to give me a piece of her mind for not moving my car, when I was not in the mood to go out in the snow....

When the snow eased off around 8:00 pm, I shoveled out my car from 18 inches of snow, and moved it into a nearby cleared out space, giving the plows a better place to push snow. Then, I went inside to rest.  This was not a night I wanted to communicate with people, but I had to respond to the ex when she messaged me.  She was wondering why I was quiet, and I didn't want to say that I wasn't in the best of moods to talk with anyone. So we exchanged messages for a while then called it a night.

- - - - - -

Getting up in the morning was relatively easy.  For the most part, I've been waking up around 8-8:30, just in time to watch Perry Mason in its many reruns. Once I heard the plow come to do a better cleaning of the parking lot, I took a quick shower, dressed (sadly, as Mario), and went out for a long drive.  This would give our snow removal guys the chance to clean out our lot and push all the snow into the back of our tandem spaces. 

While out, I had the opportunity to see fresh snow on the ground and to enjoy the sunlight while I could. Passing by the side of the Old Croton Dam (now underwater), I couldn't help but stop to take the above picture.  It certainly doesn't look like it's in an area within 50 miles of New York Ciry, doesn't it?  As I returned home, I met one of my neighbors, and we discussed some of the problems with the property - such as the wood on his patio deck needing to be replaced.  I mentioned that we are prioritizing repairs as best we can, and that we can't do anything about his deck until the spring.

Once in the apartment, I was in for the day.  As the roads froze, they would become less safe to drive on. And I had no need to go out again.

 

Twas the day of the snowstorm, and all through the apartment.

 

Sooner or later, I'll have to get rid of all the clutter in my apartment. What you can see in this picture makes the place less cluttered than it is today.  I've just been too lazy to pick up my mess, something I've been for about a year now, for reasons I don't plan to discuss here.

When I started this entry, it was the day before the storm.  However, I scrapped what I started to write, and left only this picture taken several years ago in my apartment. I figure that I have a little less than two weeks left to take care of what I need to take care of before my schedule gets screwed up.

- - - - - -

Although I can't say that I woke up with the sun, I can say that I woke up before my alarms started to make their noises.  I was glad of this, as my doctor's receptionist called to reschedule today's appointment.  So now, I have an appointment on a traditional doctor's day to play golf - a Wednesday. But to be a little more serious, I was glad that I didn't have to try to call the doctor's office to change my appointment.

When I finally looked outside, there was only a couple of inches of snow on the ground.  If I didn't know that the forecast said that the worst of the snow was expected around noon today, I'd wonder what all the commotion was about.  It's amazing how some people could be though. I received a call from a neighbor hinting that I should move my car to make it easier for the plows to shovel snow to the area behind my spot.  (If I had thought about it, I'd have parked in a visitors' spot last night, but I'm not in the mood to clear off my car, just to move it to another spot today.)  This is the first time I have received such a call, and I was a little leery of moving the car while it was snowing - so I didn't.  (This woman called me a couple more times until there was way too much snow on the ground to bother with moving the car.)

By the time 5:00 pm came around, there was at least 12" of snow on the ground.  This is when I started doing something constructive for the day - Laundry.  So I figured that this was as good a time as ever to perform a task I've been putting off for a week.  And this was the high point of my day....

 

The calm before the storm

 

Today was a day where I knew I had to do some shopping before the storm hit. I figured that it my last opportunity to go out as Marian before the storm.  So I showered, shaved, and made myself up before going out en-femme. After $85 spent at Wegmans, I have a well stocked refrigerator and some food that doesn't require refrigeration. If I don't lose power, I have soe ethnic food I can heat up and enjoy.  If I lose power, I have pasta and sauce to cook - allowing me to keep the refrigerator and freezer doors closed and keep the temperature at a safe level for a day or so.  Hopefully, I won't need to worry about having power over the next couple of days, as I am not in the mood to throw away food that spoils due to a lack of proper refrigeration.

As I write this, the weather forecast is calling for 12" (or more) to hit the NYC area. This will be the first big storm of the year, and the second one of the season.  It's too bad that I no longer have a cross country ski rig that fits me, as I wouldn't mind going out on the rail trail with freshly fallen snow on the ground.  (My ex likes to snow shoe through her 50 acre property, but that seems like more of an effort than it's worth.)  If I were in better shape, I'd go back to one of the cross-country ski areas of my youth and spend a day outside.

Tomorrow will likely be a day that I spend inside.  Maybe, I'll take the time to attack some of the chores. I'll let you know in my next post. But I can safely say that being transgender will likely not be the focus of tomorrow's entry....

- - - - - -

Many people in the transgender community look to a group of blogs for affirmation that they (the readers) can eventually go out in the world en-femme and not be looked on as men in dresses.  After a while, the novelty wears off, and real life begins.  My blog is a journal of a person who lives in both male and female worlds, and how I balance life between those worlds.

During this pandemic, I have not had as many opportunities to go out in the world as a female, as real world, in-person socialization has almost come to a halt.  So I cherish the times when I go outside and am treated as a lady approaching her senior years.  Hopefully, I'm setting a good example for those people looking to be out in the world, as I don't want people to think that their problems will end once they are out as transgender people.  My blog is a good example of how a person's problems can get more complicated because a person is "out".

I hope that my readers have learned one key thing about being transgender: One's problems do not go away because one is out.  Life goes on, but the rewards can be sweeter because one is living an authentic life.

 

A trip to the supermarket

 

 

Normally, I would have no reason to go to a supermarket in Brooklyn.  But today wasn't a normal day.  FH has heard me talk about the Wegmans in White Plains, and she wanted to see the one in Brooklyn.  So, it was off to Brooklyn to fill up a shopping cart.

Driving the 8.5 miles from Forest Hills to the Brooklyn Navy Yard takes longer than one might think, as there is always traffic on the Long Island Expressway (LIE) and Brooklyn Queens Expressway (BQE).  But the worst part of the trip is finding a spot in Wegmans' parking lot. (We didn't know it, but if we spent more than $15, we could have our parking ticket validated for the paid lot next door.) Yet, once we found a spot, we had a short walk to the store.

FH was very impressed with the size of the store.  The closest she could come to a comparison was Whole Foods, and that was a smaller store with similar (above average) prices. She was impressed with the variety of foods available in the store, including things such as Lobster Mac & Cheese, Sushi, Heat & Eat Mexican, fresh fish and other foods not seen in her "local" supermarket.

A filled shopping cart later, we were ready to leave the store for home.  (No, I won't say how much she spent, but I think she was a wee bit surprised when she found out how much everything cost.)  At least, it was easier to get back to Forest Hills than it was to get to Brooklyn.  And it was much easier to find a spot around 7 pm, than it would be a couple of hours later.

After having some Chinese food upstairs, we settled down to watch "The White Tiger" on Netflix.  During the film, FH and her daughter had a disagreement, and I was caught in the middle of things.  Without saying much, I was there for FH as she talked about some private issues.  And then, we finished watching the film.  I was pleasantly surprised that this film had a plot I liked, a good script with acting to match.  FH thought that my surprise might have been a prejudice against Indian films (which could be true.)  But I countered that I don't like the typical Bollywood film that breaks into a musical number at the most inopportune moment.  (I dislike most Hollywood musicals, and Bollywood takes the idea of a musical a few steps further than Hollywood ever could.) Thinking about it, maybe my film watching bias is towards cultures with which I am more familiar.

And then, it was time to go home.  As I drove down the hill leading into Croton, a sudden chill came into the car.  It's as if cold air had been trapped close to water level, and once encountered, the car's heater couldn't warm up the inside of the car quick enough not to notice a change.  

Tomorrow will be a food shopping day, as a big snowstorm is expected Sunday night through Tuesday morning.  I guess I'll have to postpone my doctor's appointment originally scheduled for this Monday.

Thank Bruce it's Friday!

 

As you can guess, I enjoyed "Bruce Almighty", though it hasn't been on cable in years.   It's a pleasant, mindless piece of fluff - something perfect for a night spent at home, where if you miss anything in the film, you can either go back a scene or two, or just keep playing the film.

- - - - - -

Today, I was awakened by a person looking for some paperwork from me - which I sent in (in parts) throughout the day.  If all goes right, there will be a job waiting for me in two weeks.  And it'll be something that stops the drain from my savings account, something that the census provided last year. However, this good news is balanced by some bad news - I still don't have income tax info (W2 forms) for the Census and for my Pension. I'm hoping that I don't have to start making a lot of phone calls to get this mess resolved.

Sometime towards mid afternoon, I ventured downstairs and found a box addressed to me.  In that box were the prescriptions I asked my doctor to send to the mail order pharmacy.  Yay!  Now I know that my problems with the health insurance company are over.  Hopefully, I'll be able to go to the doctor on Monday, given the storm they expect to come in that morning.

Eventually, I decided to go shopping for food.  Considering how cold it was, I figured that the car needed a good half hour run - and Stew Leonard's was perfect.  So, off I went to Stew's, and I returned with a full bag of goodies.  Knowing that I still needed stuff I couldn't get at Stew's, I stopped at the Stop & Shop for canned Chicken breast meat, so that I can make something filling if I can't get out Monday afternoon.

- - - - - -

Tomorrow, I'll be seeing FH again.  It'll be another shopping day (for her) and she wants to see what the Brooklyn Wegmans is like.  I told her it's a big supermarket, but until she sees it, she won't appreciate it.  Maybe, if we're lucky, we'll be able to get some premade dinners that only need to be nuked.  Otherwise, it's my turn to take care of takeout....

 

The end of the week is coming

One of these days, I'll color correct all the Corel stock images I have on my disk.  I enjoy putting them up on my entries now and then, as they are wonderful photos of places I've visited (or would like to visit).

- - - - - -

Today, I didn't bother leaving my apartment to do anything.  If anything, the only thing I needed to do was to attend my Thursday night Zoom meetup, and catch up on my reading.  And that's what I did.  Although I woke up around 8:30, my day didn't start until 10:00 - and I was glad of that.  I wanted to be awake when I took care of using up the milk I had in the refrigerator (which would soon start to go sour) to make pudding.  

For the most part, this trans-gal lives a hum drum life.  This evening, after my Zoom meetup, I called Vicki, and we chatted about many things.  Unlike our last call, we had an effective time limit - she had to work in the morning.  So we covered some of the subjects at hand before calling it a night.  But one thing I can say - we'll be going out for a nice dinner soon, as soon as she's fully recovered from her recent illness.