And Monday's stuff

 - I tentatively wrote syllabi for the fall, considering I'm going to be OCCUPIED (and PREOCCUPIED) for the next few weeks with non academic things.

I did find out classes start a week later than I had intended, so August 22 now. That buys me an extra week of downtime (And I am hoping and praying my house is done well before that) where I could get ready for class and even MAYBE take a day at Chickasaw (if it ever stops being death-hot) once the schools reopen, so it would be less crowded. 

But also: all the feels. Last fall I gave mask advice (we can't mandate them, thanks SO much governor /sarc) where I said "Delta is very transmissible, especially if you aren't vaccinated, so I recommend masks" and I just deleted "Delta" and put in "BA.5" and I guess this is the real life now. I kind of hate it.

- Really hoping I can avoid infection, so that the rather unpleasant aftereffects of the booster seem more worth it. Yes, I will be masking in class again, I kind of hate that I will, but them's the breaks, I guess.

- I retrieved a few storage tubs I had kept in the storage building on campus to fill with stuff from my bedroom and just stow temporarily in a closet or the sewing room. But one still smells like crickets! (I used to keep crickets in it when I used it in class). I washed them well but....I guess cricket stink sticks around. I won't use that one today, but I will spray it with an "all natural home fragrance spray" I have in the hopes of removing or covering the cricket stink.

I need to get back to my room, to gathering up stuff to make space. I would REALLY like to clean behind the dresser if I can. 

- But I'm also emotionally prepared for the GC to text me his regrets, because it's supposed to be 113 as a high tomorrow, and it's probably not safe for his guys to work. (Or maybe they just work half the day, which I'm also fine with). Anyway I have a doctor's checkup tomorrow so that's kind of enough stress for one day. 

Anyway, Wednesday is supposed to be marginally cooler. (But then again: the guys won't be on a roof, and there's pretty deep shade around my house the first half of the day, so maybe they will show up)

- My hip is still bothering me. I think not wearing sturdy shoes/spending most of my time this weekend in the recliner messed it up. I had bursitis in it a dozen years ago and I think I have some osteoarthritis. (But I think the bursitis is back, and this time maybe the ilopsoas tendon is involved, based on the location of the pain). At least that's better than my initial worry when I felt the pain - that there was a tumor somewhere that had gone undetected. But after looking up the hip anatomy, and then looking up "ilopsoas pain," I'm fairly convinced that it's Not a Too-mah. (Also, the good bloodwork would suggest nothing is really wrong with me). Anyway, it's getting better after a day of wearing more supportive shoes and making a conscious effort to stand up and walk around periodically

- I need a treat though or something to look forward to. I am telling myself after the several weeks of disruption and agony things will be much better. I'll be broke, and on the hook to pay the part I can't pay now, but things will be better. (And come August, I get a paycheck again, and it will be a bit higher). I've told myself if my "groceries and incidentals" giftcard from the church has any money left on it when I get that August paycheck, I'll let myself buy a treat with whatever the residual is. (I've spent about $70 of it already though- groceries, and I needed another bottle of loratidine)

Also it will be nice to have the dang construction dumpster gone, but I'm guessing it won't be until all the work is done and I"m predicting 2 weeks at a minimum for that. And for part of that time I'll lose access to my kitchen when they repair the floorboards. 

This is really unknown territory for me and it's freaking me out, to be honest. It's worse having to do it all alone, with no one to talk to about it, really, and no one to sit with me while I sit at home while the windows are ripped out of my house around me and everything. (I am still praying he was somehow wrong about that, and it'll turn out they can do all the repairs from the outside for that). 

I know I've weathered a lot of hard things before I didn't know how I'd get through them, ranging from moving down here far from family, teaching three classes I largely created from scratch that first fall, buying this house, weathering the budget failure and furlough days, living through my dad's death and helping my mom deal with all the paperwork, and then most recently, surviving basically not talking to another human or even leaving my house much for seven months during the pandemic, and hopefully I will be able to weather this.....but every time I doubt myself.