12:37 a.m. | 2003-07-06 I�ve Been Out Roaming The Streets. Several times a day, I take empty boxes out to the recycle bin out back. Then, I take a walk around my new �hood to check things out. Oh, and I walked to The Diner this morning for brunch. There are just a ton of different places that I want to visit. Anyway, I�m making some progress with the unpacking and all, but it�s a little challenging. First, as I knew deep down, I do NOT have room for all my books. Gah. I�m a total addict when it comes to reading. God forbid that I should run out of things to read. All my bookcases are now full yet I still have a few boxes of books. I�m gonna have to get serious about purging �em. Or maybe I�ll just buy another bookcase. You just never know. At least I can see more floor space now. Tomorrow, I need to tackle the kitchen stuff. One major obstacle is that there is barely any storage in the actual kitchen. However, I do have extra storage in the built in china cabinet and my buffet. I just need to determine what must be in the kitchen and what can be in the, uh, livingroom. I�ve learned from experience, for example, that potholders must be in the kitchen AND readily available. I did some gardening on the porch today. So far, the only plants there are mine. I just watered and did some trimming and such. I put my Bird of Paradise plant outside and I hope it�ll thrive out there. I think this arrangement is gonna work out well. As the official porch gardener, I can still get my hands in the dirt but I don�t have to spend hours doing maintenance stuff like weeding and watering. My plants were a little neglected over the past month or so, due to the move, so none of them are currently blooming. However, once they get �settled� here, I think they�ll start flowering again. Well, except the Bird of Paradise. I think it�ll be 2-3 years before it�s mature enough to bloom. (They usually don�t start blooming until they�re seven years old.) You have to be a patient person to be a gardener. That�s for sure. Oh, someone just buzzed me. You know, on the entry/speaker thing. Actually, they didn�t buzz me specifically, it was just someone who wanted in the building and he was just buzzing people randomly. Since I didn�t know who he was, I didn�t buzz him in. However, I did get to practice with the speaker thing. It�s very cool. You know, I say �cool� a lot. And, I�ve managed to get away with it for more than 20 years. �Cool� is one of those words that never really goes out of style. I could say �That�s so rad�, but that�s all about the �80s. Or, I could say, �That�s so neat but that�s out-of-date also. Or, I could say, �AAAYYY� like The Fonz, but I think I need the leather jacket to go with it. Well, and Chachi. �Cool� is just cool, you know? Christmas in July is only two weeks away. Yikes! I need to go shopping. And, do some wrapping. I already have my adult gift for the gift exchange but I need to get a toddler gift. Well, and I need to get Little Nephew�s birthday present (his third birthday was on the Fourth), and my nephew, Happy Henderson�s graduation gift. Maybe a box of books for each of them? Oh, and I have to bring an appetizer. And, rent a car since mine isn�t safe for traveling. Or maybe even driving at all. Good lord, have I been living in denial or something? I have a ton of shit to do! I think I need a vacation soon. Very soon. your thoughts? seed flower