In the win column:
I toured the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library in Los Angeles, a hidden gem I didn’t even know existed. Our friend Shawn arranged the tour and graciously included us. Clark was once the richest man in the U.S., right up there with Carnegie, Rockefeller, and Huntington. Unlike other private libraries that rigorously restrict who can access their collection, this library’s policy is quite liberal. You don’t have to be a scholar or student to see their collection of 17th and 18th century books and manuscripts, and the largest trove of Oscar Wilde material.
In the loss column:
I don’t know why I buy lottery tickets only when the pool is bazillions and chances of winning are more infinitesimal than usual. David used to ask me why I just didn’t flush the money down the toilet and be done with it.
Several friends celebrated birthdays in the last week, so I stuck MegaMillions tickets in their cards, assuring them that I had requested only winning tickets and that I was certain these were good.
Could fit either column:
After 3.5 years of dodging Covid, my luck ran out Thursday. I thought I was coming down with a cold, a possible gift from a friend’s four-year-old daughter who was sneezing away. I tested to be sure and was stricken to see the positive result.
I could slot this as a win because:
- My friend Laurie is coming to visit from Chicago in a couple of weeks and if I have to have Covid, better to get it out of the way before she gets here.
- I’m fully vaccinated — even had the sixth booster shot in the spring — so while I do not feel well, my symptoms are considered mild.
- A massive, potentially overwhelming project landed this week unexpectedly. Since I must isolate in my office until Tuesday, I suppose it’s a good thing to have lots of work. The project concerns immunoglobulin A nephropathy, another tough condition, but I’m glad to take a break from gout.
- Maybe I’ll quit eating so many cookies since I can’t taste anything.
My greatest concern is that I was around a lot of people this week — the birthday celebrants to whom I gave dud lottery tickets, an elderly neighbor I visited to welcome back from a long stay in a rehab facility, my book club, and the group who toured the Andrews Library. I let everyone know about the ugly double line. Now I’m nervously waiting to hear if anyone falls ill. If no one does, and I’m praying they don’t, that will be the biggest, most important win of the week.
Hah! I also caught Covid from a child who I thought had a cold. So far, no symptoms. I hope you’re not feeling too poorly and have a speedy recovery.
Jean
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Fingers crossed you stay healthy, Jean!
Hope you feel better soon
Thank you, LA!
I feel this with you! My bout was quite similar, and fortunately, none of the people with whom I was in close contact got ill, or at least none reported it if they did. They all said they had no symptoms when I contacted them. Not a clue where I might have been exposed since I had not been without a mask for 3 years except at home. Sigh. I actually thought it was just allergies at first.
I’m going to count on your good luck in not infecting anyone!