My Temporary "New Normal"

My temporary "new normal" is anything but normal! But then, with our wacky weather, I'm not sure what normal is anymore.

While Australia is experiencing an environmental tragedy from the brush fires, I know many of my friends in the south and southwest faced horrible tornadoes and damaging winds in the storm of the weekend of January 12. For us, it was the predictions of a very bad ice storm. (They said it was moving northeast, so that goes for you all, too.)

When we see the Weather Channel broadcasting live from our little town, it's a bit disconcerting. Mid-Michigan is not the world's most popular travel destination, so when I was checking the weather and saw a fellow huddled up by a spot that they said was Lansing (but I didn't recognize) it was worth taking notice.

The predictions were for lots of rain first, followed by lots of ice and possibly power outages. This brings back memories of the ice storm of 2013 when Rick was without power for 11 days. (Most of the city got it back within six or seven -- still too long in one of our coldest winters. And it began two days before Christmas, which made it quite the holiday to remember, despite how much you want to forget it.)

But I digress. Rain. Yes. We got it. Inside and out.

I was going to wait to replace my basement windows till later in the season because I need them for rain and it doesn't rain in winter, right? It snows? Needless to say, with two rains over less than two weeks and ground too frozen to absorb it, I am rethinking that strategy.

We were worried that the ice and following snow would be so bad that no one would come to Rick's concert or that it would be canceled. But we shouldn't have wasted that energy! While it was sloppy and a bit icy, things didn't materialize as badly as predicted and a warm and enthusiastic group gathered at the library to hear our guys play!

It started with a solo by Rick and I really wish I'd recorded it. It was a really beautiful piece and he rocked it!

I have to say, I was really proud of him. It's scary to get up there by yourself and perform. I've done it too many times and it's still nerve wracking. As the audience continued to come in, he just kept playing. And it was beautiful.

Then the rest of the gang came on and they played a concert of about an hour.

And they sounded great! I was surprised after when Rick told me he had been pretty nervous. They've played small gigs for nursing homes in the past but it's a lot different when a) there are more people b) the program is much longer and c) the audience can both hear and is mentally present and awake, and not just wheeled in for the show. My surprise was that it didn't show to me.

I feel my own world is in a bit of chaos and total mess and it's making me a little crazy. I can't really take down Christmas till I can get the basement ready, and also till I can beat a path to the basement door wide enough to take down a tree. Which I can't do till the kitchen pie rack and chest are out of the passageways. Which I can't do till the back wall is painted and the stove is installed. Which won't happen till we return from Texas.

We may be back, by the time this posts. But till then, nothing is back to normal. Nothing is in its right place. And, there is only so much I can do till it is. So, I counted my loose change.

Well, not so loose. Let me just say that if you toss your silver change into a piggy bank (or in my case, four piggy banks) for a year or so, you can end up with $256.50 if you're diligent! I see new basement windows in my future.

Lizzie has been naughty. Because of the chaos in the house, nothing being where it should be, I put her Christmas present -- two unopened bags of treats -- in a totebag with other things from the same shelf on a chair. Of course, I didn't zip the totebag.

So it shouldn't have surprised me when I found one bag of treats open and half eaten on the family room floor. I did what any smart cat-mom would do and zipped up the bag to within an inch. The next day the bag was open and her other bag of treats on the floor, dragged half across the room. That, too, was open -- and half empty.

Let's just say some in our household seem to be liking the new normal.

Which includes not having to practice so hard for a bit!