56

It's my 56th birthday, so mostly I've been taking it fairly easy. I did go to work, mind you, and did the things that I needed to do, but I didn't work that hard. We got lunch from Ideal Sandwich in East Durham which, if you haven't been to, you should. Top tier Italian-style sandwich shop which bakes its own bread and so on. It also has prepared foods, cookies, etc. It's open 20 hours a week now. I had heard that there was always a line so I got there ten minutes before opening and I was the first person there, but not by more than a minute. It was a smart move. There were 10-15 people in some stage of waiting by the time my order was ready at 12:10.

Then I had to figure out how to get myself some coconut cake. They had none at New Hope Market on 86, but my second call -- to 9th Street Bakery -- bore fruit. As it were.

Somewhere in there I got a second booster shot to get ready to go to Houston. I see that the BA2 variant is rising not just in the Northeast but also here in Orange County, so it feels like the right thing to do. Also it's time to mask back up in stores and eat outdoors for a little while.

Now I am back at home, read my book, had a little nap here on the couch in my study and should probably walk or run before dinner.

BTW, it occurred to me that I had never published a photo of my new couch, my most prized possession, so there she is. Mary is honestly not all that enamored of the color but she doesn't spend her time in this room and it's fine with me. It is comfy and it is here. I can ride out several more pandemics.