Thursday, February 18, 2021

Really Random Thursday, 2/18/21


 Thursday at Wienskler Academy, West Campus, we celebrated an early Valentine's Day with our students. We rarely have dessert at lunchtime, but it was nice to have a special treat. I love donuts. If they weren't so bad for me, I would eat them every single day.

Pickles always makes us laugh.


Every Valentine's Day for at least the last five years, we have celebrated at Big Mama's. We bring our little jar candle and order burger and fries. We were able to sit outdoors, as outdoor dining is back on in California. At Big Mama's, that is the only option as there is no indoor dining. The burgers never disappoint.

Speaking of burgers...
And I mention the above cartoon because in 2017 Mark and I decided to do the ancestry.com thing. We were quite sure we knew what the outcome would be, as we both come from the same German background. In fact, we briefly considered only profiling one of us because we were so sure we would have nearly identical profiles.  And sure enough, Mark's profile showed him to be 84% Germans from  Russia. Mine, however, was a total surprise, enough so that I thought they must have made a mistake. My profile estimate was 61% Great Britain (what??), 19% eastern European, 12% Scandinavian and 7% western European. Over the years, I get periodic updates, and gradually my profile has shifted. 

Here is my latest profile. 

I have always adored all things British, so I was quite giddy with the original 61% British estimate. I'm assuming over the past few years they have been able to tweak their algorithms to more accurate estimates and I have finally arrived to where I thought I would be to start out...

*sigh* But I did enjoy briefly thinking I was British... So I'll just keep reading British literature and watching BritBox. :)

Isn't this funny? I bet he was a great and creative teacher.
My friend, Maggie, stopped by Sunday morning for some much-needed social-distanced girl time. On the way here, she passed this vehicle. Um, what???


Mark and I received our first Covid-19 vaccinations on Tuesday. After stalking all the websites I could think of (and I highly recommend registering for updates through myturn.gov), including the pharmacies like Walgreens and CVS, we received a call from Fresno County to schedule our shots. I can't remark enough how organized the whole process was, from the initial check-in through scheduling our second appointment and checking out. We arrived at 12:10, 30 minutes (as requested) before our scheduled appointment. We walked back to our car at 12:55, which included the required 15-minute observation period and scheduling the second appointment. 


We feel we have made the first steps back to something that will resemble life before COVID. I know our new "normal" will not be like it was a year ago. But I'm looking forward to a little more freedom, a little more adventure, and hopefully a lot more real contact with friends and family. I can hardly wait. For the time being, wear a mask, social distance and stay safe.


5 comments:

05 08
Robby said... #

A great burger is always a good thing. For a few years, we celebrated at Chili's which was sort of the site of our first date. Then they closed, so we adopted the first place we ate a meal together before we dated. As long as it's special to you, sort of like the teacher wearing the same outfit. I'm sure he was a great teacher, nobody stays 40 years if they are not liking teaching.

I'm so excited for you guys to have gotten your first vaccine dose! Perhaps you can mark the second dose with a donut. It certainly seems like a donut-worthy event. Even a little more "normal" sounds like a big deal these days, doesn't it?

Anne / Springleaf Studios said... #

How dare you lead with the donut photo when I'm reading this while I have breakfast. Cruel. Just cruel. Happy for you to have gotten the first shot. It will probably be summer before I can get mine.

French 75 said... #

DONUTS! Now, I want donuts. haha Okay, maybe after the burger and fries. I'm with you and looking forward to a bit more freedom and less worry about getting infected. xo

FlourishingPalms said... #

Okay... let me just say that starting your blog post with donuts just isn't fair! We have NO good donuts near us, so getting something half as appealing isn't possible. Though I could eat them every day, like you, I know it isn't a good idea. Love the "Pickles" funnies. Believe it or not, I don't keep ice cream in the house. It's too tempting. But just last week succumbed and got a half gallon of French Vanilla. Haven't had it in the house, literally for more than six months. Now I'm having the same "Pickles" evening argument in my head! Guilt weighs just as heavy as pounds do. :-( I have tried several times to visit the website you mentioned myturn.gov, and am unable to open it. Must be for people only in certain states. I take it to mean that here in Florida, the site I am visiting is: "stillisntmyturn.gov"

OPQuilt said... #

Loved this post. Our vaccines were really well organized, too. Apparently, once you can get an appointment, it goes smoothly, I guess. That burger looks great! We've tried a couple of different burger places lately, branching out from In and Out. I still like their fries the best, though the ones above look really good too. Happy Valentine's Day!