Quarters

I was setting up to do laundry, and the quarters box came up short of what I needed. That happens sometimes. This time, the pockets of current jackets didn't yield enough to fill the gap, and even after raiding coats I haven't worn in months or years I was still one short.

Then I had an inspiration. One of the trinkets on the side table is a little copper box I brought back from Chile in 1991, containing a small collection of exotic coinage from my travels. And yes, among the Dutch and French and Irish and South African coins were one quarter, one penny, one nickel and one dime, which may well have been there since my first trip to the US in 1994. Problem solved! I probably need to pick up a couple of rolls from a bank some time before the next laundry day, though; the natural replenishment rate isn't quite enough, and each close call eats further into those forgotten reserves. (There is the collection of state quarters, one of each up to Nevada, but those are strictly not for laundry.)

Prickly Pear

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Originally uploaded by ellarien.

I took this on yesterday, on my (slightly detoured) way to the grocery store. The flowers are more plentiful than they were last week, but still not quite in full swing. Some of the plants. the ones that aren't in irrigated yards, look to have succumbed to the dry winter, sadly.