Extremely Calm

I was ready to drive out to the nearest PO, to mail my bills, but I stayed up this morning, writing until five, then slept, and when I got back up we had entered another thaw cycle. It was a mess and I didn't feel like dealing with it. A mug of tea, finished the new Bosch novel and read a New Yorker. I'd picked up some eye-of-round slices of beef, tougher than shoe leather, but I planned to pound the hell out of them and roll them around crab-cake stuffing. I braised them in red wine and butter and they were good, nothing special, tough. In winter mode, adequate is fine. I'm not setting the bar very high here. Nothing I can't step over. Keep a path to the woodshed, keep very dry kindling, and remember to bring the toilet seat in at night. Today I decided I had to get my bills mailed, the last thing I need to do in February. The driveway was frozen up top, so I didn't think much about it, but down at the infamous second curve it was already thawed. Very frightening descent for a few hundred yards, and I knew it was going to be impossible to get back in unless I killed most of the day in town, give things a chance to dry somewhat. So I went to the library. An event called "The Chocolate Walk" was happening in town, you buy a ticket, you get a bag and a map, and everybody gives you chocolate; and there were a great many mostly female fat people on the streets. The pub was on the walk. I got a free beer because one had been miss ordered, and then free chocolate. Went to the museum and talked with TR, watched and listened to a great soprano doing a piece of modern opera. It was incredibly vibrant, I liked it quite a lot (Hannigan, I think), then went back to the pub. Greeted by a couple of Irish musicians I knew slightly, and we had a lively conversation, they bought me another beer; and I had spent the day in town, easy as that. Drove home slowly, thinking about what I had forgotten: citrus segments in light syrup, those fucking batteries, a couple of unripe avocados, but you can't beat yourself up about minor lapses. I get back in without too much trouble, treat myself to a small steak and a sweet potato, browned butter with black pepper; I'm a simple guy, if I eat well and sleep warm, I don't worry too much about tomorrow.