don't forget the tube to Ala-MEEda!

A familiar view!
Angel Island from the backyard
And the GG bridge from the front porch.

Yeah, I get all my mail at the P.O. and about 95% of it stays right there in the big recycle tubs they have. I have to be alert for the damned checks the credit card companies send, though. They have to go home to the shredder. Our former helper Curtis said that the criminal element (of which he was a part for a long time) routinely fishes them out of P.O. wastebaskets. It is alarming to think of the volume of that stuff. Some days I get a dozen or more catalogues. Add to that the daily Wall Street Journal, and it's terrible. Small box, too. We subscribed to the Friday-only WSJ for years (good crossword puzzle, nice wine, book and movie reviews, and a weekly dose of serious news), but they've discontinued that. Now you have to get it every day. But they've graciously extended our subscription until January 2008 (that's as long as we'd paid for the Friday-only), daily at no extra cost. We don't want it every day. The postmaster will be happy when it's over, too. Sometimes (remember this is a tiny P.O.) when I'm taking out the mail from a stuffed box, it suddenly fills up again, because he's noticed I'm there and put in the overflow.

There's a little rant about nothing at all. The heart of blogging.

So yesterday went well, but it was hectic. I went up at 10:30, after a flying trip to Trader Joe's to pick up a couple of bottles of reisling that she wanted ($2.99 a pop, and not at all bad). Then to Piedmont Ace Hardware for some chair slides, then by the Village to see if they had crab (they didn't). I talked to her for an hour, got some papers signed, this to straighten out her accounts at Cal bank -- I finally found someone who understood that a) under no circumstances was Thea able to come to the bank in person and b) never in this or any other lifetime was she going to grant me or anyone else power of attorney. So it was all able to be done on paper. Anyway the nice bank lady was at lunch. I did pop into Albertson's there in Montclair, and they had just gotten a big box of fresh crabs. I don't even think they'd ever been frozen. I bought two, and then motored down to Alameda. Chinatown at noon is terrible; streets jammed with people, cars, and double-parked trucks. I was at full speed by the time I got back to the motel, and rudely rousted Mom out. (Hurry! We're running late!). We went back up the hill, stopped at the Village Market to finish the lunch shop (cole slaw, potato salad, tomatoes, avocadoes), and went to Thea's. I left right away to go to the bank (I left so fast that Thea became confused and a little cross) and got it all straightened out. Also got a big floodlight for the back corner of the patio. That goes out regularly because the fixture is not waterproof. Charlie's worked on it for years, but the bulbs still have a very short life expectancy. Penny left, and Thea was mad about that; I thought Penny'd discussed it with Thea (leaving early), but I guess not. Thea does not like the idea that I, instead of she, might give instructions to one of her helpers. Mea culpa.

I picked crab while Thea slept and Mom blogged. It was nice to stand still and focus on one thing for an hour. I always feel better in the kitchen. The crab was truly wonderful, among the best we've had here. Served with tartar sauce for Thea, melted butter and cocktail sauce for Florence, melted butter for me. Really a nice meal. Awfully white, though; Thea has a hard time seeing what's what when the food is pale. The ladies topped off their dinner with ice cream while I did the dishes. I never mind washing dishes there, but then I've never cooked so elaborately that there's much of a mess.

By this time it was 5:00, so I helped Thea get to bed. You know, there's really not much difference in her condition in the last year. She sees a little less well, and the stairs get harder and harder for her, but really there's not much change. Her mind is still quite sharp, and since Ella has left, she is more cheerful. When she feels frustrated about things she can't do, she's making an effort to just accept what she can't change. This is very helpful (and not easy for her, you can imagine). She seems a bit less paranoid, but I believe that a lot of that was caused by her mistrust of Ella. And I must say, I believe that the mistrust was pretty well founded. Certainly the safe deposit box key trick, which Suzy was in on, was a prime example of Ella's ways.

I'll have to check on that FC pasta. I've barely had time to delve into that issue. When I return most of the garden stuff will be over (Charlie has torn more stuff out), and I'll have a little more time to cook.

Anyway, it's another fine morning in Alameda. The weather shows no sign of changing. As soon as my hair's dry I'll take my morning stroll. Today I'll take some pictures up at Thea's and post them in the late afternoon. I'll cook up there again today, so we won't be back here until nearly six. Tune back in here for photos.