Where has the summer gone? I ask that every year, I suppose, but this time I really mean it. I spent so much time indoors, left the house so rarely, and had nary a barbecue or swimming day or even a day trip. The pandemic ruined everyone's plans. But we are healthy so far, so really there are no complaints. It is just strange.
Except for missing my family, a lot, this has not been a bad year for me. I am a homebody at heart, and quite content to putter around with little sewing and cooking projects. I continue to bake our bread and last week decided that I had put aside enough stale bits and pieces to make a small bread pudding, which was a treat with the traditional decadent bourbon sauce. I roasted some tomatoes with a red pepper and made a delicious tomato soup, which I hope to do again before summer is over. And I baked -- but did not get to taste -- a Boston cream pie (which is, of course, a cake) to drop off for my daughter-in-law's birthday. It is her favorite and definitely one of mine. (The wonky candles in the cake are placed to hold a protective wrap while I drive 25 miles to take it to her!)
My sister continues to improve, but still has lingering effects from her Covid-19 diagnosis. The virus has lodged in her lungs and brain and, besides the "fog" that is apparently typical of the virus, she has had a continuous migraine headache for the past twenty days. As of yesterday they may finally have found a combination of medications that give her some relief; it is too soon to tell. They do not know if or when the various complications will resolve themselves, but they are hopeful that it will eventually happen. She is still in isolation in a rehab facility and, now that she can safely walk by herself from chair to bathroom and back again, they plan to release her as soon as she has a negative Covid test. She is not well enough to cook or do even light housekeeping, and she and her son have still not discussed a discharge plan. I have suggested that she consider coming (2 hours) north and staying with us since her grandchildren, son and daughter in law are out in the world and, judging from the Facebook photos of them with friends, often not masked. Her family has remained well so their lifestyle seems to be working for them, but she is at higher risk because of underlying conditions, and the doctors cannot guarantee that she will have any lasting immunity. As she reminds me in our daily texts, I hate not being in charge but her son is going to be the decision maker in this.
We had expected to have a new roof put on earlier this summer but contractors have been busy doing emergency work as a result of the flood this spring. Things are settling down and our roofers tell us they hope to start on our job this week, which I suspect will be an adventure. The job involves replacing our five skylights, one of which is directly over our bed. We will cover everything with tarps and move to the guest room but I am curious to see what our bedroom will look like, open to the heavens. I just hope that a lot of dead bugs and crud don't fall and fly in before the job is done. I am not a fan of dead bugs and crud.
After the roof is done, Jack and I would like to get away for a few days, just for a change of scenery, so I have been exploring the internet for options. I discovered that a hotel we like near Lake Michigan has a kitchenette-room and we are toying with the idea of going there mid-week sometime soon. We can take our own food and keep to ourselves, going to the lake if it is not too crowded. It's a big lake with a lot of shore, so we are pretty confident that we can find a place with the requisite distance. We are both too immersed in the political news to relax these days, and a few days away from internet sounds like a good plan to me. Fingers crossed that all goes well enough for us to take a little time being even lazier than usual.