Tuesday, August 26, 2025 – Day 378

Tuesday, August 26, 2025

Good morning—here we are in August, and I’m actually thinking about turning on the fireplace. On second thought… I am. No reason to sit here chilled when it’s 49° outside! In a few hours, of course, the A/C will kick on. No wonder the utility bills are so high.

Every four weeks we have our house cleaned by a Polish woman named Beata. She’s been coming here for years, and at this point she’s more than just someone who cleans—she’s a trusted friend. And she loves Bear too… though honestly, who doesn’t?

Before Beata can get started, Cindy has to wrestle with the clutter. That’s gotten harder as we move furniture around and out the door, trying to carve out space for walkers (one upstairs, one downstairs, and soon… the wheelchairs). It still surprises me how much room it takes just to keep me from being roadblocked as I try to move from one room to the next. It’s too bad I had to move on to the Walker, I enjoyed showing off the cane Alex made for me.

When Beata arrives, I find myself hopping (well, more like shuffling) from spot to spot just to stay out of her way. Sometimes I think I should just head to the library and hang out with the unhoused folks—it’s warm, it’s quiet, and besides… it’s a good place to read.

Speaking of reading, I managed to knock out a couple more Prey books over the past few days. They’re getting more engaging now that I really know the characters and all their tangled relationships—21 books in, I feel like part of the family. Thankfully, no psycho serial killers have popped up lately; I’m not fond of detailed gore and brutal murders.

Here’s a strange moment from the last book I read, Storm Prey. Lucas, the detective, is married to Weather, a surgeon. In the story, Weather caught a glimpse of the bad guys, and naturally they tried to kill her—because that’s what you do when someone can identify murderous thieves. She barely escaped by seconds. When she finally made it home and the dust settled, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. That’s when I had an emotional release and suddenly tears were streaming down my face. Strange how this disease has me tearing up at the oddest times—one minute I’m wrapped up in a thriller, the next I’m crying. Geez. I want to tell myself, “Get a grip!”

Once the house was back in order, I suggested we head out for dinner—no hesitation from Cindy. She called her sister, who also didn’t feel like cooking, so we made our way to our favorite pizza place, Giorgio’s. It turned into a nice little wedding-planning session too. We’re traveling together, and they’ll be a big help getting us to and through the airport and on to our final destination. An extra set of hands will be needed—and welcomed. Let’s just hope they don’t change their minds.

Oh, and when we got home another Prey book showed up. No worries about running out of reading material. And get this—since I started the series, book #36 has been added to the list. It’s called Revenge Prey. Just thought I should let you know… clearly, one of you out there is a fellow fan.

Have a great Tuesday.

Love you guys!❤️