Cleaning Bathrooms and Miscellaneous...

Mr. Don is due in town tomorrow evening, if all goes according to plan.  So far, the weather is cooperating from this end, but up in Montreal, there's lots of snow and wind.  It should be clear and still by morning, so he says, but hey, shit happens...

We have both been frenetically taking care of all of those "last minute" details that one has to deal with when one is travelling abroad.  What a pain!  Tonight, for instance, I reviewed our travelers' insurance policy should something horrid happen and we need medical treatment or, Goddess forbid!, medical evacuation back home from Spain, and printed out the entire 15 page policy. 

In between times, I've been scrubbing out the toilets and sinks in the upstairs and downstairs baths, and now I'm preparing to scrub down the floors.  The rugs have been cleaned and are waiting to be put back down once I've got the vinyl flooring cleaned and wiped down the baseboards.

Soooo much to do, not enough time! 

There are still piles of family tree research and other research papers stacked up around the family room, mostly on the sofa, the wing chair and the recliner, but also some piled around the furniture.  Alas!  Well, that is what happens when one does not have an assistant to keep thing neat for one and one has free run of a two-story house!

I made an Executive Decision tonight that Mr. Don will be restricted to the dinette, kitchen and the living room (where the Christmas tree, fireplace and a t.v. are located, along with a laptop computer that he can use if he doesn't bring his Apple Macbook), except for access to outside.  It's just too dangerous to allow him to enter the family room with its various piles of precious papers and research right now.  He has free run upstairs, but he will have to be careful of the lesser piles of papers in the "den" as he peruses the bookshelves.  I keep the heavy-weight chess books in that room, along with various other interesting tomes.  I really do need to hire someone to straighten out all these books and set up an index of some kind or other...

Let's see:

• Euros ordered - busted!  Big mess, but an email to my personal banker last night made the way smoother today ...
• Euros ordered - check!  They should be here tomorrow or Friday.  I've never been in a situation where I've had to "order" foreign currency before.  Such is the "new normal" in Milwaukee, I guess.
• Emergency cc plans for cash withdrawal, etc. put in place - yes - not that it will happen but it's best to be prepared
• Information provided to personal banker about overseas journey, so bank and credit cards don't get rejected and "eaten" by Spanish ATMs
• Photocopy passport, ccs, ID, etc. - still to be done -- tomorrow at the office
• Trip cancellation, health and death insurance policy provisions printed out and somewhat read. Well, it's a long flight to Spain and it's a take-it-or-leave it option for what I purchased, so trying to read all of it will no doubt put me to sleep on the plane...
• Packing.  PACKING?  LOL!  I'm still working on what to feed Mr. Don while he's here...
• Feeding Mr. Don - Oh He Of The Hollow Legs!  Left-overs and fresh green salad Thursday night upon arrival from airport
• Friday breakfast and lunch: He's on his own as I'll be slaving away at the office, where they'll be draining every last ounce of energy out of me and I'll have to crawl to the bus and home from the bus stop Friday night...There's stuff in the fridge he can eat, or he can wander down to the Pick 'n Save or the restaurants (including fast food) on 76th Street, a scant 3/4 of a mile walk away from the house.  He knows the way...
• Friday Night Milwaukee Traditional Fish-Fry (at Meyer's Family Restaurant) At Traditional Milwaukee Fish-Fry Restaurant (Meyer's Framily Restaurant -- and yes, I repeated the name a second time)
• Saturday morning breakfast, I will cook at last: eggs to order, French Toast with maple syrup, rye toast, bacon, sausages and French-pressed coffee
• Saturday 10:30 a.m. tickets to see The Search for Cleopatra Special Exhibit at the Milwaukee Public Museum
• Saturday after Museum: Trip to supermarket before coming home to buy steaks and goodies for New Year's Eve Feast
• Saturday Night: Cook New Year's Eve Feast (Mr. Don will grill the steaks on the Weber Grill out on the deck or, if the weather be inclement, inside the garage with the garage and access doors open for cross ventilation -- but the weather forecast is for mild weather with no precipitation); nothing too fancy - baked potatoes with fixing available, a fresh salad and relish plate, ice cream for dessert
• Saturday Midnight - drink Sparkling Wine I purchased a few days ago just for toasting at Midnight (I liked the name and description of the vineyard and so I hope it tastes really really good)
• Sunday Morning - nurse hang-overs; cook breakfast:  eggs as he orders, French Toast, bacon, sausages, French pressed coffee; settling in before the fireplace to read the Sunday paper for a minimum of two hours with coffee HE makes; prepare for noon final Packers game of the season against the Detroit Lions at LEGENDARY LAMMBEAUU.....FIEELLDDD...and watch Packers go 15-1 for the season
• Sunday Night:  Mr. Don will manage to keep me up way too long, talking about this and that...
• Monday Morning: Trip to Visit Mother, visibly sleepy Jan
• Monday Afternoon:  Shopping at Southridge Mall, if we can squeeze it in -- I need thick socks, new sliders (yes, still looking) and a thick hoody  -- and a new vacuum cleaner...
• Monday Late Afternoon/Early Evening:  Final preparation for trip including last minute laundry and trips to Walgreens for forgotten supplies; arrange cab to airport for following morning; settle in at 5:00 p.m. to Watch the Wisconsin Badgers WIN the Rose Bowl
• Monday Late Night; Jan packing, unpacking, packing, unpacking half the night
• Tuesday morning - early:  Jan kicking Mr. Don out of bed to go make breakfast and French pressed coffee
• Tuesday morning - later: Leave for airport in taxi that arrives at least 20 minutes early

 That's all I can think of for now...