K, N, and I have been watching House together for a while now. We’ve seen 172 episodes so far, with only 5 episodes left.
Every time we watch, we laugh as familiar tropes and typical lines come up. “We should make a House Bingo game!” K said. So we did.
Our printer is currently broken (I keep meaning to fix it and then I keep putting it off; maybe tomorrow,) so I wrote out three Bingo cards by hand. We put them in clear plastic sleeves and used dry-erase markers to cross off items as they happened.
Hilarity ensued.
“Sarcoidosis! Who’s got Sarcoidosis on their card?”
“Did that count as relationship advice?”
“Is that plasmapheresis?”
“BINGO!!!”
Even though we swapped Bingo cards every time a new episode started, K somehow won all 3 rounds. We have no idea how that happened.
Only five episodes left in the series. What should we watch next?
Not a Freemason, mind you, just someone who can fix stone and concrete. Today I repaired the concrete steps and then did some tuckpointing on the front porch. I even took before and after pics this time! Here’s my concrete repair—you can see where a giant chunk was missing:
I don’t have a “before” pic of the tuckpointing I did today, but I’ve got a couple of “after” pics. All you need to know is that several of the stones were lacking any mortar, so there were these huge gaps. Stones have been falling out (and we’ve been shoving them back in) for years. Hopefully that’s over now.
And the wall I tuckpointed earlier in the week. You’ve seen the “before” already, but I’ve included it for comparison purposes. The fix isn’t the prettiest work I’ve done, but at least the gaps are closed.
Next up: I need to redo the porch surface, then build the new railing. And then… I’ll relax on my beautiful porch with some lemonade and a good book.
Nothing bad, anyway. I’m just having a weird, overwhelmed kind of day today, and I guess it’s making me a little bit grumpy.
I burned the brussels sprouts to a crisp, which could have been delicious if they’d only been mildly singed (I was thinking we could separate the leaves and turn them into brussels chips.) But they were dessicated and kind of bitter, so I heated up some frozen peas at the last minute. On an unrelated upside, some of my kids who don’t normally eat grilled chicken breast ate (and enjoyed) it tonight with great gusto.
Earlier today I took Mr. December out to the front porch and explained what I felt we should do next to rehabilitate it (new railing, re-coat with the stone coating because the primer is showing through, etc.) “I don’t think we need to replace the railing,” he said with a straight face, while swinging the end of said railing back and forth because it’s so rusted through that the post isn’t even attached to the ground anymore. “Just drive a stake into the ground beside the bottom step and tether the railing to that. Problem solved.”
I pointed out that his solution was ugly and that I was hoping to make our house look less neglected, not more; he looked out at the un-mown front lawn (full of beautiful violas and dandelions and forget-me-nots) and said, “Yeah, a new railing is really going to make people think our house looks well-tended.”
I guess he has a point—but I’m still replacing the railing one of these days.
Mr. December and R arrived home this afternoon. I picked them up from the airport… at rush hour. People were driving in insanely stupid and dangerous ways—good thing most of the traffic was moving too slowly for people to get hurt.
They came home exhausted, but R perked up when she heard we had a ticket for her to see Six the Musical tonight. We drove down to the theatre (to minimize K’s need to be upright)—again with the stupid traffic. I actually honked at people tonight; Mr. December and the kids will tell you what a rarity that is, even when the other driver deserves it. At least the parking was easy, and we got a spot right next to the elevator that came up directly across from the theatre.
The show itself was… loud. It had its funny moments and I learned a few things about history (I will fact check some of it tomorrow,) but overall it doesn’t even come close to any of my favourite musicals. R had a blast, though. It was 2 a.m. for her (Paris time) but she was wide awake, grinning and bouncing in her seat.
Of course, she and Mr. December fell asleep as soon as they hit their respective pillows. I wonder how early they’ll wake up tomorrow?
First, catching up with Mr. December—this is his post from May 5:
Cabs are cheaper that Uber in Seville. But not to the airport – 28 Euro for a quick drive over. Oh well. We get through security almost immediately and have a two hour wait since the plane is again delayed. And they make us check our bags in, despite our “guarantee” of cabin luggage, just shrugging: “The plane is full, what do you want us to do?”. Maybe sell fewer guaranteed slots, or pull of some bags, or give a refund, or change your policies?
R was really worried, but the bags will be fine, even on a budget airline like Transavia. We brought our own food and drinks since everything costs, and even got some sleep on the flight.
Paris is cold and rainy, and we must first go to “60 Rue de Seine” which isn’t on any places. I call the Airbnb and they tell me it is the cashier in a grocery store. We first must give him the password, and then someone will bump into us and slip us the keys.
We make it to the real place, and try the door, only to have a nice French Canadian couple answer. Our bad – directions were wrong, next story up. The place itself looks nice, but it was built only for looks, which you notice whenever you try to use anything. Like washing your hands – where is the soap dish? Or the lack of a toilet-paper holder, or bedside tables that are extremely rickety.
We rest for an hour, and I am determined to get some onion soup. I was in Paris 25 years ago, wanting French Onion soup, but didn’t realize they didn’t use the “French” moniker so I ignored the plain “onion soup”. Today I rectified that mistake. Against R’s complaints, we went out to a local French diner, where we got a “granulated onion soup” to share, R got the duck confit, and I got a minced steak. R’s sullenness dropped completely, and she gave the meal a 10/10, even praising the bread as “as good as Thobor’s” (our local French bakery back home). I was surprised that some random, and not expensive, place was so good.
R tries to say “thank you” after the meal, but forgets what it is in French. “My French class has failed me!” she yells dramatically.
Time to sleep – tomorrow is the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower. Will my tickets still be valid? Find out tomorrow.
As for me here at home, I enjoyed another beautiful sunny day. I did some planning for our road trip again (I think I’ve got all but one night’s accommodations sorted out.) Then I took everything off the front porch, hosed it down, and started fixing the gaps in the mortar. Here’s what it looked like before I started:
I’ll get an “after” picture once it’s dry and cured—right now it looks pretty wet.
I guess yesterday was some kind of catch-up or reset day. This morning I woke up ready for action, if still a bit sleepy (mornings are not my forté.) I was back home from the school run and grocery shopping by 9:30; by 10:00 I was ensconced at my desk, working diligently on plans for our summer road trip.
(I mean it! I didn’t even play my usual word games or sudoku before I got down to business. That’s huge for me.)
K texted me that she’d forgotten to charge her laptop over the weekend. While I usually don’t save my kids from things like this, I took it to her this time for my own reasons: it was beautiful out, K’s school is an 8-minute bike ride along a forested path, and I needed to get my exercise anyway.
The less-forested segment of the ride to K’s school.
The sunshine and warm air had me itching to be outside, so after picking up the kids from school I spent an hour in the front yard, cleaning up the garden a bit. Make no mistake, it’s still absolute chaos—but at least all the dead goldenrod stalks from last year have been removed.
Tonight I did a bit of work on my current quilting project. E was dubious about cutting up the large blocks that I just sewed together, but I think now that I’ve decided on a layout she’s coming around to it. I just wish I had figured out my vision earlier; I might need to actually rip some seams and rearrange a few of the pieces to get the ombre effect that I want.
Mr. December has sent me more blog posts from Spain (and as of last night, Paris,) but I think I’ll save them for tomorrow. Good night!
I slept nine hours last night. I should feel rested and great—but I don’t. I fell asleep in the hammock chair right after breakfast. Then E woke me up to help her with something and while she was describing it, I fell back asleep. So where exactly is the benefit of having slept nine hours?
Do I need more sleep? Less sleep? Or is the problem unrelated to sleep?
Ed. note: Here’s Mr. December’s post about yesterday.
A long day.
First, an aside. My favourite parenting experience from the trip: We’re going to the ropes course, and a kid has forgotten something or other. She gets a nice lecture from her father about how to pack in advance and not forget anything. 15 seconds later we’re at the front of the line and he is like, “Can I borrow some Euro? I forgot my wallet at home”. His wife especially loved that story, adding that she had reminded him twice to bring it.
Today we had a lie-in. I went out to get our usual breakfast. Pretty nice for around six Euro: bread, turkey, tomato, orange, banana, and coffee.
At 11:40, R did a bit of multiplication practice. We rented bikes and I decided we’d find a second coin shop. Bad idea. We had to ride into centro, which was a mess, and 20 minutes later could not find the shop. Eventually I gave up, we had more city riding to get to the Navigation Pavillion at 1:00, just as the tower was starting its siesta. So shoot, we could only do the museum. But first, a victory over the orange trees:
The oranges were really sour and not great, but I was still glad to eat one.
The museum had a 50% satisfaction rate with our family. It was about the history of navigation (and quite a nice museum) but was probably different than what you’d see elsewhere :
Was not focused on politics or human rights.
Talked a lot about science, technological advancements, and exploration
Described a Spanish fleet winning a battle against Drake (not the rapper), and some unkind things about English pirates.
One small piece about slaves.
Almost nothing on Colombus.
I did some quick fact checking later and didn’t see anything wrong.
Then we had to ride back. Apple maps doesn’t seem to show me exactly where we are, and it isn’t clear which roads have bike lanes, with all kinds of curvy and blocked streets. It took us 41 miserable minutes to return, with R threatening to just give up. There are all these close parallel roads, and bike lanes that just end with no signs. Ugh.
Next: The pool party. Exhausted from our activities, we took a cab. The pop-up hosts had a nice place 4 km east of us with a pool and a shaded veranda. Everyone brought snacks, and ours were the crappiest (here is some corn). I didn’t even think to buy a bottle of wine or two. Lots of splashing from the younger kids, and I did get to see one of R’s friends fall into the pool which was pretty funny.
R wasn’t feeling well, so we left a bit early; and suddenly she says, “Let’s go to the Setas for the night rooftop tour.” Two friends agreed, and a couple of hours later we were back on the road. This time we just did the 15m walk, and I got there only needing to check my phone once. I’m learning.
We got there and watched a little random street show. Turns out I knew the whole routine – I had seen the identical show in NYC a few years ago. They get some audience members together and jump over them, stretching it out for 20 minutes and collecting Euros.
We went up to the roof, and the kids played while the adults looked out at the gorgeous skyline. Then they went around again, and finally downstairs for many pictures in front of the “I love Seville” sign that every city has. Then more waiting for them on the steps, until they setup barricades and kicked us out, and then we waited across the street. Finally, at 12:15, we said “time to say goodbye”. One friend will still be around tomorrow so we may try to meet up again. R was very grateful for the trip and letting her stay out so late. I was touched. But it really was a wonderful pop-up that unfortunately just ended. A few of us agreed what we need is a hub where you can stay for a couple of months, and live and school together for a while. Maybe Hoi An 2025?
Addendum: at 1:15 a.m., R is doing math homework. She’s convinced she must finish up to a certain page while she’s away from school.
It’s almost Shabbat, which means I can put this week’s work to rest, right? “Pics or it didn’t happen,” they say, so here’s the photographic evidence. First the room when the curtains are slightly open. Note the evenness of the pleats, the neatness of the black felt on the ceiling (it keeps the light from being reflected up to the ceiling and then into the room, and the artfully-draped throw blanket on the bed.
And this is what it looks like when the curtains are fully closed:
Artist’s rendering. May not be exactly as pictured… but pretty close!
Moving on… the ironing board. Ironically, the cover needs ironing.
Here’s a close-up of the solution I devised to support the non-hinged side:
Here’s how it looks halfway out, and then fully stowed under the countertop:
(set to the only part of the Macarena tune either of us knows)
Today we got up to see the walls
R was tired from the long days and stalls
I woke her up playing this stupid so-ong
Heeeeeeeeeeey Macarena
We finally got out and rented our bikes
Bikes lanes led us to to the walls in sight
Waited 45 minutes for the others on invite
Heeeeeeeeeeey Macarena
Anyways, the joys of large groups. We got some mediocre churros, a 1.50 Euro coffee in a small Styrofoam cub. At least R wasn’t mad at me for getting there too early (which was 15 minutes late). Eventually we saw the Church of the Macarena. It was beautiful, and we were there during some sort of mass. They did not do the dance.
Next we walked along the Macarena walls, which seem to be in the range of 1000 years old. They looked like walls. Some towers, some stuff on top, a couple of doors at the end. Maybe I’m a bit jaded.
Picture: a Macarena photo with caption “Heeeeeeey Macarena”.
Heeeeey, (church of the) Macarena. Unh!
We then toured ABC (another bloody church), but this time I insisted that R learn about arches. When we emerged our group was gone. Nowhere in sight. We went to the next meeting point, and she stayed there while I went to tour an antique market. It was pretty cool with various kinds of weird knick-knacks, from old post-cards, to old non-working locks, statues, and even some very old magazines with scantily-clad women on the cover. They also had one antique coin dealer, and the prices were much lower in Spain, probably because they just find those things buried in the ground. I bought three coins, including one from the time of the Muslim rule in Spain.
Next up: lunch, sort of. We went to a mercado (market) and found a baked sweet potato. With cherries, orange, tomatoes, and a bug bunch of carrots (for 2.25 Euro), we went home to eat and rest. 27 minutes on the bike – 3 minutes short of needing to pay more!
After a rest, back at it to the Antiquarium / Setas combo. Turns out the Antiquarium is not very old fish (antique+aquarium), but old ruins, which looked like every other Roman ruins I’ve seen, and since they put it behind glass where you buy your Setas tickets, we got to look for free. But, I assure you, no unauthorized learning occurred. The Setas is a weird mushroom structure that lets you walk up on the roof and see the city fairly well (despite it not being all that tall). Combined with great weather we all had a great time. We even saw a 15-minute movie, one scene of which featured a woman singing with two lines of men on either side wearing hooded robes with eye slits. This is purely religious in Spain, but would not be acceptable in Canada!
Afterwards we hung out afterwards, the kids and adults in happy little groups, and learned about the various Vegan/no sugar diets everyone was on. Except for me and this other fat guy. But anyways.
R decided to get into Spanish food and buy bubble tea with her friends. She felt sick afterwards, and we agreed this wasn’t a great food if you’re feeling a bit dizzy. Tasted good though. R felt dizzy so we took a cab back (I was told to find the “Ultimo” cab, which I correctly figured was the last one). I’m finding I can understand a fair bit of the simple Spanish now. Back at home, R lay down and demanded room service. I bought her yet another Poweraid, some bananas, some smoked chicken, and a nice bag of dried corn for Bukbuk the chicken. But no, she stole it from him, and then demanded more for the flight. At least she ate the bananas.
So another great day, but this is too fast a pace! No rest in sight either: two more busy days until our flight back to Paris on Sunday. Next time we need to stay longer.
Ed. note: I knew it! As soon as he threw out that clue last night I started googling “Macarena” to see if there was an eponymous landmark. I am so smart! S-M-R-T!
While they were off having fun, I was waking up in a properly blacked-out bedroom. The curtains worked! I also found a solution to the ironing board problem, and I finished the board—including a cute cover made of quilt fabric that (let’s face it) I was probably never going to use. I’ll try to get you some pics tomorrow.
sweet & crunchy 