Lack of Enthusiasm? Ya think?
It's not just the single digit temperature that is getting me down. Though it is expediting my rise and shine routine...sleeping under my summer quilt after forgetting to get my comforter out of the dryer last night. [Nothing says "welcome home, Mom" like finding dog vomit on the bed. I'll give the dogs credit - I've become very disciplined about bed making since I realized that the covers are my last line of defense against canine bile. In a bigger, better world I'd just move the bed away from the window and decrease its appeal as a place for the dogs to operate their neighborhood watch, but I'm trapped so I deal with it.]

Work is in a bit of a lull. Task oriented without the adrenaline buzz that fear of a major screw-up adds. There is the pre-Lent prep. Extra ashes have arrived. We don't want a repeat of last year, when the ashes weren't shipped and then our supplier over-nighted them at a price that must have made our transaction a total loss. (Yes, we burn palms...but we need back-up. Back up with a black colorant because the natural palm ash doesn't leave much of a mark.) I hope I haven't divulged any 'trade secrets' but I think I've spilled those beans before. 'Trade secrets?' I'll tell you a secret. I've reached the point of frustration wherein I casually used the word "fugly" in a discussion of Easter paper products. Nothing has changed from last year. Fugly, fugly, pastel, horns lunging out of floral arrangements. My guess is that we will go with the same motif that we have used for the past four years. A choice that I liked the first time we used it. Now I just see it as being backed into an art corner.