Looking for the silver lining

I spilled super-hot water all over the counter today before I could make a cup of coffee. Yes, I was making instant coffee: I drink it for the effect at that time of the morning. It got all over the sugar bowl that I had out to make cinnamon sugar croissants; it splashed in the fruit bowl; it sprayed the cutting board that I was planning to use to cut Cat's thyroid pills into tiny-cat-sized pieces. And it got on my feet and on the floor. I was annoyed not only by the cleanup but also by the fact that I was all that cleanup's time away from having that first cup of coffee. I guess it's better to clean up water than clean up coffee, I told myself as I put a fresh cup of water in the microwave. I came across this paper towel right before my youngest and I were headed out to baseball camp.

The thought of baseball is what is helping me to remain somewhat sane during this horrible winter. I say "somewhat" because there had been some moments in the past week where I didn't think I could take another day of being snowed in: the claustrophobia that ensued after the last storm rendered our driveway no more than a bobsled run that was difficult for me to navigate backwards with the rental car I have while my own four-wheel drive clown SUV is in the shop having the vandalism (it suffered at a hockey tournament) repaired left me wishing I had Valium or similar.

Today, not long before I was supposed to get on a conference call, my office windows started leaking. Dam ice on the roof! I spent the time I had expected to prepare for the call simultaneously calling or texting people for referrals, looking up people I might call, and putting containers and dishtowels on window sills to collect water. 

It's Lent. My oldest goes to Catholic School and had mass today and got ashes, which he wore all the way up until his basketball game. He told me he doesn't know what he should give up. "Why give up anything," I asked, and a discussion ensued about how you can add something positive rather than give up something and it's still a good way to prepare for Easter. A few years ago I blogged every day for Lent, which is what I told my youngest I planned to do while we were on our way to baseball camp this morning. And here it is nearly 10:00 p.m. and it's the last thing I am going to do (since we just changed the drip catchers and dish towels on the sills. Why it's leaking now in the cold, dark of night, I can't even imagine...except for the fact that it is snowing again and maybe the new, soft, unfrozen snow is melting into the crevices that the sun melted this afternoon.)

I have heard other people lament about their ceilings leaking who say that they just repainted their whole house or that they only just realized it was dripping on their brand-new couch. So, on a positive note, none of that has happened here yet and we have a guy coming tomorrow morning to help us. I don't like wishing time away but I wish it was baseball season now.