Detachment and the end of limbo, sort of...too

[Phoebe]

Today was a lot of fun, and yet it was a bit of a difficult day, too.

My sleep remains a struggle, and, even though I have been genuinely trying to get to bed at a reasonable hour (lights were out here by 11:30 last night!!!), I am having continued issues. I was restless and awake so many times last night. I was in bed for 7 1/2 hours, but I doubt I slept more than 5 hours, total.

I had my alarm set for 7:45 this morning because I had plans, but I woke up well before dawn and just ended up lying there until the alarm went off. I don't understand it, but I'm continuing to work on this issue. It seems almost like every other day I am struggling to sleep. I should probably start taking some notes and see if any patterns emerge.

Yesterday was doctor's appointment central in my world. I had a recheck for Lyme disease issues with one doc (doing much better, by the way), and then I saw my GP, and that took forever!!! First I saw the nurse, then in came a student, which is fine, but they take a long time because they are very thorough, and then i saw my doctor. I convinced her to let me taper down my AD meds by 25%, but she was reluctant, and then we decided that I should get a few vaccines. Make that 3 vaccines. My arms are kind of tender today!

Afterward, I went for a bike ride with L-friend and a friend of his that i've met a few times, then the two of us came back to my place for a nice dinner. I was exhausted, so he did the cooking which was really nice.

Today I went on a MeetUp hike for the first time in a couple months. H-friend was along for this one, too, so we carpooled. That gave us an hour each way to talk and get to know each other's stories a bit better. I am really glad I met her. We have a lot of common interests and she is easy to talk to. Once we arrived, we had a lovely hike with a good group of people. She already knew almost everyone there, but I had only met a couple of them previously, so it was a nice chance for me to meet a few more people.

H-friend and I are already talking about winter outdoor activities. We both ice skate and snowshoe. She does cross-county skiing, and says she will teach me how to turn on them (thus far a turn on a hill in x-country skis has always equaled a fall in my world!!!)

L-friend is going to help me with downhill skiing, so it's looking like I will have lots of reasons to be outdoors this winter. It's exciting to be making plans for winter already, rather than to be bemoaning the coming cold and snow. I actually like winter.

So, the first part of the day was great, and then I talked to a friend of mine on the phone and found out that her marriage has gone off the rails, too, and it just made me feel sad to see, once again, how much pain there is in the world, and to see yet another long-term marriage falling apart. She's in her late 50s, and her H is sounding like he's in a crisis of some sort. I used to think that the whole proverbial MLC was a silly phase that only a few people go through, one characterized by red convertibles, etc.. Nowadays, I know the ugly truth... that a MLC has the power to cause incredible pain and destruction. It's no joke.

I was going to go on my regular Thursday girls' night out with my Mom, but I just felt kind of like the wind was knocked out of my sails after that, so I just came home and spent the evening by myself. Knowing how common marriage destruction is doesn't make me feel better in any way. Quite the opposite, really.

So, it's time for a farm update:

Today I released my second monarch butterfly safe and sound into the great big world. The whole process is so incredible and amazing. My third chrysalis is staring to turn clear, so I should be releasing my third (out of five caterpillars that started this adventure) butterfly tomorrow.

My flock integration project is still a work in progress. Three of the 9 young chickens have sort-of found their way to their correct coop these days. One was in the adult coop, and up on a roost bar for the second night in a row. So, one bird is fully trained now. Yeah!! Two youngsters made it into the coop, but on the human side, sitting on a galvanized feed can, but they were at least in the ballpark.

Six birdies, however, were still way off target, and I had to do a lot of herding, cajoling, hauling down off a ladder, issuing of person chicken invitations, etc. to get them over to where they were supposed to be for the night. Still, I managed to get all but one to enter their coop via the proper chicken ramp and door BEFORE the light-sensing door activated, so it was a semi success. I'd say their training is coming along, if a bit slower than I had hoped.

Beyond that, I still need to finish cutting the second half of my smallest field very soon. Maybe that should be tomorrow's project...

I hope that everyone gets some good sleep and makes some progress tomorrow!