Sleeping less, and defrosting day

 I admit it is a stretch to come up with something new to put up in a blog every day. My life is just not all that interesting.

I seem to have reached a tipping point in my ability to manage the worry that keeps me awake at night. Unfortunately I'm tipping back toward wide awake in the middle of the night. 

The long drawn out election season, with the yard signs still being out, the constant chatter in all the platforms about what has happened each day regarding the election, and the lack of certainty that the process will happen in an orderly and peaceful way... these things add into the thoughts that keep me up.  

Added to that are the current covid infection rates. 

The good thing about melatonin is that it helps me fall asleep without leaving me groggy. If I wake up at 2 in the morning and am still awake an hour later, it's not too late to benefit from melatonin. I may be tired from lack of sleep but not from melatonin. While I wait for the melatonin to kick in, I watch a comedy with the sound turned way down.  

Today was a day to work at home. Chuck took hogs to be processed earlier this week and that meat will be coming home tomorrow. That means it is time to defrost the freezers. New meat goes to the garage upright freezer, which had a lot of my summer fruit still stored in it. I needed to make room and reorganize so new food is on the bottom and older food is on top. I do this twice a year. The first time is before the peach season. 

Now I have a good idea of the leftovers that I can use up. I have nothing hidden away where it doesn't belong and where I'll likely not find it.

This is, oddly, one job I enjoy more than I expect to enjoy it. I put it off, and then find it fun.

One third of the freezer, on the right side, is frozen peaches and frozen applesauce. I love the summer fruits, and we have some every morning for breakfast, and still have enough left over for desserts and other treats.

In the right basket, on top, is a box of almond paste. It's getting close to December when I'll be using that for the traditional almond stritzel. That is one of the few things that will be the same about this winter.

I didn't realize it was defrost day until mid-afternoon, but we got done in time to get a walk in as the sun was setting.

I zoomed in a little too much on that sliver of a moon, but I love the days when it is waxing larger and is visible in the evening. 

I'm reading a book by Sue Monk Kidd, author of Secret Life of Bees. This one is called When the Heart Waits, and is non-fiction, about her learning to be still and wait for God. The bit I read last night included the idea of praying along with the Spirit. She was referring to the Bible verses about not knowing how to pray as we should, but that the Spirit prays for us with groanings too deep for words. She wrote about learning to relax into prayer, allowing herself to trust the Spirit's prayers for her. I do love that imagery.