Recovering from unforced errors

 

Yesterday, I mentioned an "Unforced Error".  Today, I recover from that error.  No, I'm not bothering with the bank until next week.  Instead, I just needed to put myself in the right frame of mind to function for the next few days.  Of course, I've been putting off calling the doctor for an earlier than planned for visit to discuss what's happening with my legs.  I've been waking up around 7 am after 5 hours of sleep.  Several years ago, I was getting more sleep and waking up later in the morning.  Now, I'm concerned about the little changes in my health which may add up to big things.   I'm not as worried about my sleep as I am about other things.  I have so much on my mind these days, and yet, nothing that I can't handle with some friends to lean on.

- - - - - -

I knew I needed to get out of the house.  And by 6 pm, my legs were starting to feel like they could support me for a while.  So, I got showered, made up and dressed, and out the door I went.  Although I had no exact plans about what I wanted to eat, I knew I wanted something with more plant based protein than I usually have.  So I decided on Chinese.  One problem - the new restaurant I wanted to try didn't have working AC.  On an 85+ degree day with high humidity, I'd melt in the heat.  As a result, I was off to another place to eat.

A couple of miles down the road was a diner I've been to before.  The food was good, the prices reasonable, and the portions large enough to have leftovers.  This was the place I chose to have dinner, knowing that I'd never make it to Trader Joe's for a food run.  As expected, the food was good, and I got out of there at a reasonable time to make a phone call to TCL.  (Nothing much in the phone call was worth reporting here.)

Eventually, I made it home with a stop at the local supermarket for some food items.  $35 later, I was out the door and on my way home.  I'm glad I didn't buy much, as my legs were starting to complain again.  But I had food for tomorrow's dinner, and that was the important thing that I took care of.... 

 

I made an unforced error. AARGH!

 

Yesterday, I went to the bank to do a couple of things, and I screwed it up.  It didn't help that I was in Mario mode (and was uncomfortable), tired, and a little bit hungry.  Everything was a little out of whack when I went to the bank down the hill.  

But first....

As I've noted lately, my legs have been bothering me, and they didn't want to cooperate with me when I got up.  It was a pain to do much of anything because I couldn't trust my legs.  So, I was doing everything slowly and carefully.

When I decided to get moving and prepare to go to the bank, it was around 3 pm.  And then I went down the hill.  I had the proceeds from the sale of the family homestead to deposit, and I was nervous about handling this money, as I wanted it handled properly and put into appropriate vehicles for use.  Entering the bank, I found that my favorite staff member there was in semi-retirement, and no longer is in the branch.  (This is the woman with a TG offspring.)  So, I ended up sitting down with a junior account manager, and then was handed over to the more senior person.  And this is where the up sell began.

First, one can't (as I was told) do a split deposit with the amount of funds I was bringing into the bank.  So, the senior person tried to sell me on a savings account to be used temporarily where I could get a bonus of maintaining $150k there for 90+ days.  One problem - they don't pay a reasonable rate on this type of account, and my money would be locked in for 90 days.  But I was weak, and focused only on the "free" $1k.  So in my weakness, I signed up for the deal.  Even though I'd get all of the benefits of being one of their "Private Client" customers, this would be a problem for me when I shut everything down.  I'd have to make sure to shut down the "Private Client" relationship, or I'd get charged $35/month.  OUCH!

Driving out of the bank, I regretted what I had done.  After a quick fast food lunch, I called Vicki, as I needed to talk to someone.  I didn't make a big mistake.  Just one that will cost me time sometime in the near future.  And it was enough to leave a bad taste in my mouth for the rest of the evening.

 

Lunch at the Gazebo with MSJ

 

I set up an Amazon order last night, knowing that I'd want to think about it before placing the order.  One thing I ordered was a yoga mat, so that I can do the exercises I'll need to rehabilitate my legs before I go on my cruise.  And it was the weakness in my legs that made itself apparent when I met with MSJ for lunch.

- - - - - -

This would be a day spent fully as Marian.  It was nice to present as a female again, after a weekend where I ended up presenting as a male due to yesterdays finalization of the house sale. So, I took my time getting ready after waking up, and cooked an egg for breakfast for the first time in a while.  After watching some videos, I got showered and dressed, and headed to the deli in town to pick up lunch.

MSJ met me a little after 1, and we headed over to Croton's Senasqua park, where we planned to eat under the gazebo there.  Unlike most days, it was busy there, and we had to look for an open bench before we could start with out lunches. (Out of 10 benches, only 2 were unoccupied.)  Once we sat down to eat, we got down to catching up on things.  I talked about my visits to the city, my cruises, and the house sale.  MSJ talked about family affairs, and difficulties with her business.  While we were chatting, town employees were setting up for a shindig occurring later in the day. One thing I mentioned was how several people took me as a cisgender female, and she was glad I had some validation.  What I didn't have the chance to mention was one conversation I had a while back in Shoprite, where a cisgender woman and I were talking about menopause, and I noted that I haven't had to worry about it for years.  😇

Around 3 pm, we left for our homes.  I ended up stripping off my dress and started to fall to sleep.  And then TCL called.  AARGH!  She wanted a review of the voice she used on her answering machine.  At least, the call was mercifully short, and I was able to take a nap until 6 pm.

- - - - - -

Tomorrow, I'll deal with the issue of depositing some checks at the bank, and switch back into Marian mode for the rest of the day. 

Selling the family homestead - At Last!

 

I could have found a picture of a mat asking whether the people at the doorway were missionaries or not.  But this one reflects my position on Covid during the darker days of the epidemic.

- - - - - -

RQS got up around 10 and found me in the living room watching TV.  I was not in the mood to bother her, and figured that if I left her place around noon, I'd be able to pick up my brother by 1 pm, and get to the law office for the closing by 2 pm.  While I was killing time, our attorney called - the closing was delayed 1 hour.  While on the phone,my brother called toe to say the same thing.  So I killed more time and picked him up at 2.

We did a last minute inspection of the house and threw out some garbage.  I grabbed a single outlet extension cord that I planned to use to connect my printer to a non switched outlet.  At 2:30, we left for the law office where the closing would be held.  And we were there just in time.

Real Estate closings are relatively simple, but require a lot of "I Dotting" and "T Crossing" to make sure that all items on a checklist are taken care of in the proper sequence.  And I was totally confused by the paper shuffling that went on.  Thank God that our lawyer knew what he was doing, and explained the things we needed to understand.

We were done with the closing by 4 pm, and made it to a nearby restaurant before 5.  And that's where the three of us (myself, my brother, and our lawyer) had a filling dinner.  All too soon, dinner had to end, and I was on my way back home.  Rush hour was over, and I could finally relax again.

- - - - - -

Tomorrow, I can get back to being Marian again and do things I want to do.  Additionally, I have to touch base with a financial advisor, and with the foreign birth registry to take care of the next steps in processes I've committed to.  

Shifting to RQS's place for convenience

 

Lately, I'm grateful that I use a cane (albeit mostly for security), as my legs have been giving out on me.  So, the decision to drive to RQS's place to spend Sunday evening and go to the closing on the family homestead the next day wasn't done lightly - it was a matter of practicality.  There was a much smaller chance of getting hung up in a traffic jam on the way to the closing when I didn't have to cross a bridge, and I knew I had to play these odds.

Knowing that parking spots on the correct side of the street would be scarce the later I looked for a spot in RQS's neighborhood.  On one side of her street, there is no parking on Mondays and Thursdays from 8 am to 11 am.  On the other, there is no parking on Tuesdays and Fridays during the same hours.  I would either have to get up, get showered and dressed and kill several hours, or I could sleep late and meet my brother at lunch time.  So, we left my place before noon, and found a good parking spot around 2 pm - about 600' from RQS's place.

Going up the stairs was painful, as my legs didn't want to cooperate with me.  But, with a little bit of use, they functioned acceptably.  Yet, I knew that I will need to do some exercises to strengthen some muscles to get my mobility back.  And I will need to do this before leaving for my next cruise, as I want to go on the shore excursions and not feel like a cripple.  At least, I was able to take a nap when I was upstairs.

When evening came, we ended up getting delivery from a nearby Thai joint.  The food was good, and I was ready to fall out again after dinner.  I'm growing less able to eat large meals on a regular basis, and have already started to cut down some.  Hopefully, I won't look like the lady in the photo above when I'm on my cruise.... 

Starting a weekend at home (a short post)

 

There are times that I don't have much to say about myself, politics, cruising, or transgender related issues.  Today is one of those times.  And yet, I stumbled onto an ethical question brought up in the New York Times.  I'm glad that I wasn't caught between two generations with different values.

But first....

RQS arrived at the train station at the usual time, and we decided to eat out at a local pizzeria.  She had to be careful with what she chose to eat because a crown came off her tooth.  Although I could have had a steak, I chose to have a pasta dish, as I wanted something filling which would allow me to have leftovers for today's lunch.

After dinner, we drove to a local ice cream stand for something sweet, and then it was time to go home and strip.  One thing this T-Gal has in common with every cisgender female is that we feel comfortable when we remove our bras.  Unlike cisgender females, I have to make sure that my falsies are properly maintained.  But I digress....

The next day, we stayed inside all day.  YouTube videos occupied our day, and the only "work" I did was to move my ID and money from Marian's wallet to Mario's wallet, as we'd be driving to RQS's place so that I can go to the lawyer's office for the house sale on Monday.

As I said - this would be a short post, as I didn't have much to say.....

Lunch with Maria (in spite of the recent weather)

 

The above is certainly not a lunch for a summer's day.  But it does illustrate how full I felt after finishing off a chicken sandwich and a bowl of clam chowder at lunch.

But first....

Over the past few days, we had several inches of rain which caused major problems in the area.  Tuesday was the worst of it, with 6+ inches falling in my region, causing some small bridges to be washed out, some roads to get flooded, and some hillsides to fall onto local roads making them impassable.  On Wednesday, we still had a little rain, but all of the roads I needed to take to New Jersey and back were clear.  Today (Thursday), I had to deal with a sporadic light mist of rain on the way to Cold Spring to have lunch with Maria.  However, Maria had a much harder time to reach me, as the main road from her place to the restaurant we were to meet was closed.

 

In my area, there are 2 main roads on the East side of the Hudson River to reach Albany (our state capital): Route 9 (which is mostly a local road that connects communities along the river), and the Taconic State Parkway (a limited access, divided highway that parallels the river, but is more inland).  I live near Route 9, and use it to travel upstate (or, at least until I cross the Hudson to connect with the New York State Thruway (another limited access road, part of the US Interstate roadway network).  I had to leave Route 9 before the washout in order to reach the restaurant, while Maria had to take a detour.  So, she was a little bit late.

When Maria arrived, we were seated outside, under a large umbrella.  This would keep us dry in case of a light rain, and get drenched in case of a heavy rain.   It was a little of a crap shoot, but we chose outdoors seating and were lucky.  I told Maria of my issue with the foreign birth registry (among other things), and she told me of things going on with her family (her daughter is moving out of state), and more importantly - she is starting to date someone nice.  Yay!  We had the longest lunch we have had in a while, and I'm hoping that she and her boyfriend (?) can meet both RQS and I for dinner soon.

All too soon, we each had to go home. And when I got home, I had no energy to do much of anything.  But it was a good day.....