Goodnight Irene

Other than the sounds of chainsaws and woodchippers all over the neighborhood, things are pretty much back to normal here at Old Maid HQ. The power went out approximately ten minutes after the wind started to blow and stayed out for about 36 hours, but thanks to the folks at National Grid working around the clock, we got power back days ahead of projections.

I spent the day yesterday with my darling sister-in-law and my nieces and nephew. They got power back around noon, so I was able to charge my phone and scrounge a hot shower and a hot meal before venturing home.

The cat is also really glad the power is back on. On Sunday night she got pretty tired of me shining a flashlight on her to cast her shadow on the wall and then singing the theme from the 1960s "Batman" television series.

This Just In

Good news! I thought you, my gentle readers, would want to be the first to know that there is a robin in my yard. A sign of spring! Never mind that there is a possiblity of snow in the forecast for tomorrow. Robin is sending the message that warmer days are just around the corner.


Wait. Not that kind of robin.

This kind of robin. I said it was good news, not awesome news.

Act Now! Operators Are Standing By!

WANTED: Job for individual with such a high degree of fabulosity as to be almost unemployable.

Candidate possesses excellent organizational skills and the ability to pull miracles out of thin air (also known as the sport of Extreme Problem Solving). Able to get a great deal of work done while appearing to be engaged in nothing in particular. Candidate has reached a state of decrepitude where she can no longer do any heavy lifting, but she is still willing to do the odd bit of climbing to reach the desired objective. Well-versed in Microsoft Office applications, but may, at first, run screaming from the room if presented with an Excel spreadsheet. Can Google like a rock star. Plays well with others, provided the others are not marinating in unmedicated mental illness.

Special Skills:
• An encyclopedic knowledge of show tunes
• Spelling savant
• Drawing food cartoons
• Writing, drawing, and saying random things that make her co-workers laugh
• Large catalog of literary quotes to be deployed at various times
• Plus! Almost daily cat stories, absolutely free!