i could've gone sanding today, since laura wasn't leaving until 5p for an 8:45p flight. but i associate sanding as morning work, and since i slept in late this morning, by the time i got up i wasn't in the mood for manual labor anyway. besides, there was a threat of possible strong thunderstorms, and even though it's mostly western massachusetts and northern new england, that was enough for me to rationalize my way out of sanding for the rest of the day.

laura was busy, spent the early morning packing, then went out in the late morning for some last minute souvenir shopping on mass ave, including wardmaps (her boyfriend hugo apparently loves maps) and paper source (scrapbooking is one of laura's hobbies). she came back briefly and gave me some gifts: a porter square station magnet and a bottle of spanish white wine. then she went out again to meet up with her friend ana for lunch. earlier she said she wanted some pancakes, and i told her about IHOP in harvard square, the quintessential american pancake chain.

while laura was gone, i went to market basket to do some light grocery shopping (package of hot dogs, a carton of pomegranate seltzer, gallon of milk, potato salad). i put away the bike i prepared for laura but she never rode, as well as my own bike (in anticipation of evening rain showers). i also went to the community garden to harvest some zucchinis, tomatoes, and zinnias. i didn't bother watering, so sure was i that it'd rain later today.

laura came back home around 4:30p. she told me they went to IHOP based on my recommendation, and that she had a classic american breakfast of pancakes, eggs, and bacon, the perfect last meal before she returns to spain. she returned my umbrella, her charliecard, and her keys, and then she left.

a tremendous relief washed over me afterwards. i savored my time living alone, since in another day or two, laura's friend ana will move in. laura didn't leave much behind since she only stayed a little bit over a week: a container of humus, a jar of orange juice, a bag of bread, some plastic sandwich bags. she did have some chocolate chip cookies but she said she was taking those with her.

i did a load of laundry, including all the sheets from the guest bedroom. roommates leave their own special odor and i lit a scented candle to try and disperse the smell. later i washed the small entrance way carpet, which to my recollection has never been washed before. after shaking it outside (a lot of sand came out), i started washing it in the bath tub. the water was black, even after 3 rinses. finally i decided to roll up the carpet and throw it into the washing machine, drying it manually in the kitchen.

for dinner i ate two hot dogs. nothing fancy, the only reason was because there was a sale on frankfurters this week. i ate while watching a PBS documentary about american pies. i've made a few pies in my days: pumpkin pie (2005), spinach ricotta cheese pie/quiche (2010), and chicken pot pie (2015). i've only used readymade crusts, maybe one day i might want to try making my own crust, up my pie game. i prefer savory pies though, i'm not much of a sweet pie eater, although i do enjoy custard pies and pecan pies around thanksgiving.