the cloak, the best gift and baking

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11/12/21 | 43/52

The forecast is predicting a rain/snow mix this weekend but I'm hoping they're wrong. Either way I plan to get out and make the most of this beautiful November Friday.

...and in that moment the cloak sprung to life

the absolute best

A few years ago Allison got me a body pillow and it's the best gift I've ever received. I tell her that every time there's a holiday or birthday. I think she got it for my birthday but I'm not sure. It's the best because I use it every day (well actually night) and it was a complete surprise.

Having shared our lives and time and space together for so long we've been through a variety of sleeping situations. Mattress on the floor? Futon? Foldout couch bed? We've been through them all. Most of them were terrible. As we've grown older we continue to evolve and expand and improve our sleeping conditions. We now sleep in a giant bed and it's great. Sometimes we have separate blankets to accommodate our sleep temperatures. She's usually on the colder side and I'm usually radiating heat like a volcano. Early in out relationship that might have been an insecurity. You don't like being close to me? We're not going to cuddle all night? No way! It's too hot and my arm's going to fall asleep and besides there's already a cat that's trying to sneak under the covers and another one on top of my pillow resting on head.

Anytime I see people on TV or in a movie in bed it stresses me out. I understand they are using a single mattress to keep them close in the shot and to show the intimacy but it's too close! You gotta breathe and turn over and adjust and get comfortable. Getting a good nights sleep is essential to living a good life! A great example of sleeping in the media: Lucy and Ricky with two separate large beds. A nightmarish example: the grandparents in Willy Wonka.

For me sleeping on my side is key to being well rested and that's where the body pillow is magical. If you sleep on your back then a body pillow would just be extra clutter on the bed. I'm not here to sell you on body pillows. What I am here to suggest is taking a hard look at your pillow? How long have you had it? Can it be rejuvenated in the dryer? Is it time to treat yourself to a new one? These are all difficult questions you need to ask yourself. For years I was of the mindset to just deal with. I kept sleeping on the same flat pillows because those are the pillows I had. No more. I demand more from my sleeping setup. I aspire to perfection. So in my aspiration I had to make the hard decision to retire the best gift ever and replace it with a new body pillow. So far it's been great. Should I get one on those old timey sleeping hats? Would that improve my rest? I don't think so but I'm willing to give a try.

Friend of the Week

Another week without any animal friend submissions so I'm celebrating the return of baking. For some reason I have some strict seasonal rules about when it's okay to use certain appliances. I never use my crockpot in the summer and I try not to turn my oven on except in the winter. The crockpot has to do with associating chili and soups with colder weather but the oven thing is based on my belief that it will warm up the house making it harder for the AC to keep it cool. I'm well aware that I'm being irrational but I still adhere to this belief. Don't get me wrong I'll certainly turn the oven on when I need to but baking cookies? No way. You can't make enjoy hot cookies in the summer. As I write this I understand that it sounds unhinged. The good news is the temperatures just dropped so it's warm cookie time. Ironically my favorite cookies are "no-bake cookies" and those don't involve the oven at all!

If you would like your best friend, handiest tool or dearest animal associate to be featured email me 3 pictures of them and I will do my best to try and capture their essence.

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Solid,
Tim