Monday has dawned, sunny and bright and cold. A nice, brisk 40 degrees. I love it.

I'm not going to work today (trip to the VA and various other errands), so I can relax in jeans and tee and sandals. I may put on shoes to go to the VA since I have visions of various microscopic life forms attacking my bare feet if I wear sandals.

From the smell of them, the VA cleaning crew makes liberal use of Lysol-type cleaners in the waiting rooms and consulting rooms, but still, the mop gets put back into the bucket and the germs not killed by the Lysol are then widely applied to the other rooms by the same damp mop.

I try not to think about it. Usually I wait out in the car and read, unless he is going to an appointment that I need to participate in or listen to. It drives me crazy when he returns from an appointment and says, "I'm supposed to take the medicine at 5 p.m. and midnight." Fine. Which medication? What dosage? Do we have to go to the pharmacy or is it one we have at home already? What's it called? What is it for?

He doesn't know, just that some medicine is supposed to be taken. At this point I'm foaming at the mouth and chewing the carpet. I try to get him to ask the doctor to write the instructions on a piece of paper. Sometimes he remembers to ask, sometimes he doesn't.

Then there was the time what he got from the doctor made so little sense I had to call anyway. The doctor (a specialist) wrote, "Take one in the morning and one in the evening." One of what, pray tell?

But for now the madness has not started, and I'm eating breakfast (sharing my cheese with the friends-in-fur, don't tell hubby) and enjoying some quiet time on the computer and some more quiet time reading. The hustle and bustle of the day will start soon enough.

Coffee, anyone?