I planned ahead and prepped for Valentine’s Day to be a little hard by taking Friday and Monday off as a buffer. I keep feeling like I should be going back to work tomorrow… and oh ho, it isn’t even that today- so it has seemed like a very long weekend already!

On Friday I was kinda knocking around the first half of the day. Watched “A Star is Born” (Don’t recommend if you’ve lost alcoholics or loved ones or both) and got my towel rack finally finally finally installed.

I bought this ladder three years ago and have had it sitting on the floor in this bathroom for at least a year… nice to finally have it up. Should have been up long ago except for the issue with where the studs were in the wall… it’s all sorted now though. Once that was done and I was done lazing, I headed into San Antonio to meet my cousins later in the day. Before I met up with them I stopped at an estate sale and… well.

I bought this carafe for $9.50. Look, if I’m not reselling I really don’t know what to freaking do with this weird eye for glassware. But I don’t WANT to be stumbling over inventory or having to meticulously pack stuff for shipping again! Gah!

This one, since I love Finnish glassware, I am keeping. Though as I don’t use carafes I’m not sure why I own not one but two of them now. My other carafe is a Blenko. And I *heart* Blenko and that they’re from freaking West Virginia blows my mind. So Finnish and West Virginia glass is my sweet spot, I guess.

After I left that estate sale I met my cousins for drinks and appetizers and then we went in the Centro de Artes gallery (free and spectacular, should you be in San Antonio’s market square in the near future) and then knocked around some shops.

As happens when you have an “on” day I found more things- a piece of art I loved and two new blown glass hearts.

I need to reset it as it’s shifted in the frame, so that’s annoying. (I bought that frame for $3.99 yesterday at Goodwill too, so if it takes some finagling it’s okay.) I do love a linocut, what can I say.

Maybe you could tell from that closeup that the wall is now painted and the furniture is finally moved back. I have the new curtain rod in today, and so at some point I’ll cut and hem the curtains and get that all up. And I need to touch up the dresser as it’s looking mighty scuffed, I’m realizing now… But. We were talking about Friday and the stuff I bought.

Here is one of the heart’s I got. This brings the total in my house to… ten. That seems like a lot honestly, but what of it, surround yourself with things you love.

It was actually on my list of things to do this year- find two more, in the right color (very TBD as I kept waffling on what that would even be), to hang in the kitchen windows. I may not collect cobalt blue bottles or glassware, but these hearts were perfect. Plus, they’re Lucas’s favorite color, and it was going to be Valentine’s Day the next day… it felt appropriate.

Of course when I got the ladder out yesterday to hang them I realized how dirty the kitchen curtains were… so I took those down first to wash them. Once I had the curtains down I realized how insanely dirty the windows themselves were too, so I had to also clean them. Once the inside was done I then took the screens out to clean… only to realize how dirty the outsides were. I cleaned the outside of the windows dodging rain showers on and off. But finally the windows were clean. After all that I was finally able to hang the hearts up… then I turned around and saw how gross the top of the cabinets were. So of course while I had the ladder and supplies out I HAD to clean that.

And look- “accomplishing something you can feel proud of” is literally is in my advice to myself on getting through a tough day… but god damn. I was finished with the cabinets just in time to take the curtains out of the dryer and hang them back up- so this all took an entire, start to finish laundry cycle to do. I ain’t cleaning ANYTHING today, I tell you what.

It worked out.

I wrote Lucas his letter in the morning and cut flowers for his side of the bed. I listened to Someday by Cracker many, many times. It was gently sad on and off. I’ll tell you one thing, though. It sure was great to have a love that makes you think of them every time you see a heart.

He used to do it too… he was the best.

Bless us, truly.

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it wasn’t all sad. In between the rain I was able to go outside a few times and enjoy a stroll in the garden a few times. I tried to get some pictures of the moss in some spots on the brick patio- not very easy to accomplish in a way that does it justice, but I tried.

and the sky was great.

Earlier I had run out to get steaks and had to go to two different grocery stores as the first was out of steaks. And both times walking in and out was in my very very very favorite weather- a soft cool mist/drizzle with a light breeze. I can literally feel my skin come alive in that weather, I LOVE it. As I walked out of the second grocery store (expensive ass steaks in hand) I passed a family all in umbrellas and with rain jackets on… and there I was with just cutoff shorts and a Mexican embroidered top on and I just kinda marveled at people working so hard to avoid the thing that I loved so much, I mean hell, this weather is a GIFT and it wasn’t even in the forecast! And then I went… ah. Well you clever bastard, look at that, I DID get a Valentine’s gift after all! So that did make me happy to think of it all like that. When I got home I went outside again and drank a beer and watched the sunset and enjoyed the misty weather.

The children and I had dinner and we watched “How to Steal a Million” with Audrey Hepburn and Peter O’Toole. And look- I think many of the lead actors in those days are in large part why so many women in that generation ended up in lavender marriages. “No, no, Ethel, some men are just like that but still love women… Peter O’Toole, after all…” To be fair Peter O’Toole was actually straight… not like you’d know it from his acting. And not like you could tell from this commentary, but I actually LOVE Peter O’Toole, too. But the movie isn’t one that holds up really well, it’s no Roman Holiday or Singing in the Rain or Cactus Flower is what I’m saying. But the scenery was good and that deadpan delivery Peter O’Toole has made it enjoyable enough.

I made Steak au Poivre for dinner (pan seared steaks with a pepper crust and a cognac and cream sauce.) The cognac gets lit on fire, it’s all very fancy, and I keep MEANING to take pics of the entire process… but it goes quickly and so I invariably forget.

I got all of ONE pic from the very start. Maybe one day.

The girls also gave me gifts, which they didn’t have to do of course, but I love that they try to look out for me like that.

My oldest got me this awesome mug- I loved a tall coffee mug with no handle, it’s perfect and I’m drinking from it now in fact. And my 16 year old cleaned the kitchen and made me chocolate covered strawberries. Personalized them, even! The youngest cleaned the living room and fed the dogs. Less a gift and more an “I made her do it” chore but whatever. I’ll take that too.

I had a couple friends reach out and check in and the whole thing was still very full of love, if different.

Right before bed I pulled a couple of tarot cards to see if Lucas had any messages for me- 8 of swords and 2 of cups: The 8 of swords is a reminder that your thoughts are the only constraints on you when you’re feeling trapped, and the 2 of cups is harmony in love, union, and strong connection. Well ain’t that the truth on both counts. I went to bed early and I was able to sleep with no trouble… so that was nice.

And now some memes and pics to round out the day.