03.14

 Today is the 5th day of the 11th week, the 14th day of the 3rd month, the 74th day of 2024, and:

• Celebrate Scientists Day
• Crowdfunding Day
• Genius Day - on the birthday of Einstein 
• International Ask a Question Day
• International Day of Action for Rivers
• International Day of Mathematics
• Learn About Butterflies Day
• Legal Assistance Day
• Moth-er Day
• National Children's Craft Day
• Nanakshahi New Year - the first day of the month of Chet [Sikhism]
• National Equal Pay Day
• National Potato Chip Day
• National Reuben Sandwich Day
• National Save a Spider Day
• National Write Your Story Day - does regular blogging count?  I would argue that it is akin to journaling, unless your blogs are more in the nature of essays.  I find I rather miss the discipline of writing every day as I did throughout 2023, making the mistake of not wanting to write when "nothing has happened" ie the day is the routine day that fills so much of our lives
• Pi Day
• Popcorn Lovers Day
• Professional Speakers Celebration
• Science Education Day
• USA Earth Overshoot Day - on this day our country has officially used its entire carbon budget for 2024, exceeding our ecological footprint 
• White Day - akin to Valentine's Day in Asian countries where men give gifts to women
• World Kidney Day

Quote of the day:

"If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe."

~  Carl Sagan

I wish they had celebrated Pi Day when I was in school as it sounds like a great way to make mathematics more fun, and somewhat more approachable.  Come to think about it, I don't think schools really got on the bandwagon when my kids were going through either.  Of course, it wasn't made a national holiday until 2009, and that was long after they were adults

As for my favorite kind of pie?  Like so many, I am quite fond of pizza, but although I like savory pies such as chicken pot pie and shepherd's pie, I usually think of pies as desert.  And my very favorite pie is Boston Cream Pie, which is actually considered a cake.  It used to be pretty commonly available, buat seems to have fallen out of fashion these days

It is truly abnormally warm today - the temps are forecast to hit 78°F this afternoon!  Originally forecast as "partly cloudy", the sun is out and was beating down on my balcony first thing in the morning.  The average temperature is a far more March-like 51° hereabouts, and there are even times when we have had a very late snow storm in the past, something I very much doubt could possibly happen this year.    Anyway, I am working from home and have the windows flung wide open and the heat turned off, and things are supposed to cool down tonight, so hopefully I'll be able to sleep comfortably

The HVAC unit in my master bedroom has not worked for the past 2 1/2 months.  Fortunately I live on the 20th floor [heat rises and my apartment is always warm - nice in the winter, not so nice in the summer] and have a space heater, as well as preferring to sleep in a colder room, so it really hasn't been much of a hardship.  I keep opening service tickets and they keep getting closed - finally someone put a note on the last one and told me I had to talk to management - never easy as they are really understaffed.   Because I understand this wholly owned management company can do nothing without the owner's consent to invest the needed capital, I do wish they were easier to communicate with!

Yes I know, more reason to move.  I'm working on getting rid of the Disaster Area, but it is a slow process.  When I get home from work I do not want to work in the apartment, I want to rest and unwind!  I'm planning on taking some days off and trying to get in there and really get things done.  This coming Tuesday [while I am working from home],  Junk in the Trunk [as recommended by Absolute Organizing Solutions, the owner of which works closely with my friend in DC and has helped me before] is coming to take away the pile of boxes and stuff that I have already filled to give me room for a staging area.  

As usual, Triscuit is totally unconcerned with Pi Day, an itchy rash that just will not go away [never mix vitamins without checking interactions with what you are already taking], the abysmal state of our politics [yes I have been reading the news and no do not get me started on judges that are in a politician's pocket or politicians who love dictators], working [I am still doing reports for examiners on 2023 for crying ou tloud], appliances that do not work [including only 2 of 4 elevators in our building], or moving.

I will endeavor to be more like Triscuit and just take one day at a time.