Wednesday, December 27, 2017

I hope you had a great birthday Cecily!

Welcome to Wednesday!

I wish I could luxuriate in all the excellent posts here! Maybe tonight. Ann, fingers crossed for a gentler chemo cycle. Devon, looking forward to your blog. Have you been able to cut back on your extra work schedules? Cecily! I am more than just a little jealous of your hiking opportunities! So, do an extra one for me! Paula, have good fun with the family. I can't imagine having 4 drivers in the car! Hugs to the rest of you, too!!

Barring any unforeseen problems (like not being able to find my skis) I plan to cross country ski today. I need to pull my stuff together!

Peace and hope. JFDI.

Shel

Greetings to Enjoyers of Post Holiday Bliss

Ah yes, the big relaxation from the holidays being mostly over. New Years is a big nothing to us as we stay home and watch tv and are usually asleep by midnight - only to be awakened at midnight by fireworks and gunfire in our hick town.

Yikes, I seem to be in eating/weight gain free fall. 144 today. Yesterday I ate a big slice of the cranberry nut bread at studio. It was quite good. I took it there to get rid of. I think I will take the other loaf to the senior center here. Dinner last night was Popeye Pie - the egg bake with spinach and hamburger and cheese.

Ann I wish my de-clutter efforts were as good as they sound. As I type this I gaze upon a sea of debris. I hope your husband's chemo goes well and they can help it be more tolerable. And I want to come eat at your house.

Hey Shel, were you in the Peace Corp? Love the Booboo story. How often does one get into a group of about 10 people and 2 have lived in Africa?

Diane O, what a good puppy mom you are being. Our Tesla was a really obnoxious puppy but at age 20 months has settled down considerably. And after months of piddling everywhere she was suddenly, all in one day, house broken. It will happen.

Devon, can't wait for your blog. You are a natural writer.

Hey Cecily, happy 46. A great time of life.

Dave you are so industrious. And I love that you made giant dominos. Just think what you can build for new grand babies? I may have mentioned my grandfather built me a small hutch and dresser when I was little. I still have them 60 years later.

Off for a haircut today and I think it will be a big one. My once blonde hair now looks like a grey chimney sweep device and I really need a new look.

Well I need an infusion of JFDI. I don't know if its winter or what but I just can't seem to get organized. So far I have made a list of bowl games to watch and the times but thats about it.

Well time to wish you all peace, joy and gratitude. Diane S

Wt 237

Yes, Ann, here is to easier chemo treatments for DH. Yes, I think it is odd that I am still grieving the loss of a pet / anger with my dad. Sounds like I need to do to mental health work. It has only been 45 years.

Paula, best wishes with your travels. I have traveled on holidays, I like it. Less traffic. Highway driving is an excellent place for kids to gain experience and confidence with their driving.

Devon, I look forward to your posts, always, and anywhere.

Diane O, puppies in the night. They grow so quick. I took pictures of DS#1 puppies. Could not even remember them being that little.

BB, Oh an instant pot makes the best yogurt. I used to make it all the time. I was making it with fresh whole milk. Could not figure out why my weight took a jump. Duh. It is neat to look on the outside at the stages of pregnancy. My DD#1 had to put some of her baby stuff in the closet because she was taking so much time with getting it all set up. Totally Normal.

Cecily, your hikes sound wonderful. I hike with a four wheeler and scope out the trees to harvest. I ordered a shirt that says "if you see me hugging a tree I am measuring board feet" I am not that bad but do believe in good management. The big trees on the Left coast are on my bucket list.

Shel, Yes moneys love to preen each other. I used to go to the zoo every other week while in Africa. They are fun to watch. I was friends with the main zookeeper. He handled a gaboon viper for me and a friend. One of the most poisonous snakes on the planet. They were local. I stepped lightly. Going out to a baptism one night, I was walking a trail and a covey of oversized quail jumped out of the darkness. I almost died right there. I just knew a gaboon viper had bitten me. Thank you Jesus it was just quail. Is Mandikan from Ivory coast? That is next to Ghana. I was in Ivory coast briefly in 1972. You were still in daycare.

Diane S, I can tell already that I will only build the granddaughter ... anything she wants. I am so wrapped.

Well the cat that has ignored me all of her life now thinks I am ok. She is 9 or 10 maybe she just can not remember that DW is really her person. She tries to get up on the keyboard as I type or tries to get my attention by pawing at my arm. There is something so comforting about a cat s purr. I am definitely a dog person but like the purr of a cat. Our water in the Airstream freezes at an out side temp of 15 degrees. I have heat strips on it but there is one little 3 inch section that I put the blow dryer on and it thawed out. Will leave it dripping tonight supposed to get down to 10. I need to build a underpinning.

More later, David

You might have to knock a few activists out of the trees out here before you could harvest any . Are you a woodworker too with what you mill?

I have a gift when it comes to woodworking. I have owned my own cabinet shop. Sold my tools and went to nursing school. Still have a hard time looking at trees without seeing furniture. There is a time to harvest trees. Around here there are enough blown over by storms to keep me busy. I do not have a sawmill yet but I hope to have one in the very near future. I do not think the giants should be cut.

Hey Dave, I live in the heart of the redwood empire and yeah you ought to come see them. Let me know if you ever come this way. There is a little town near here that is an old logging town but now has a zillion little redwood burl shops . some have nice stuff and some junk. Redwoods are still logged around here but not the old growth. New ones grow like weeds in the right conditions. I have a friend with about 30 acres *****cently had it selectively logged. Big money in it and no clear cutting.

I don't think there are any active tree sits going on around here right now but there was one a few years back. They worked it out somehow. The other thing people do is put spikes into the trees so the loggers have trouble cutting them down. There is a dangerous narrow section of highway 101 that needs work but old growth trees are right up to within inches of the road. Big dispute about that. Trees rule. Diane S

I was in The Gambia 86-88. Just missed you. ****a Kinte of Roots fame was Mandinkan and from The Gambia His home village was a tourist trap during my time there.

Poisonous things seem more poisonous in Africa. There was a path between my little village and the big village that we (Peace Corps Volunteers) called Sssssssnake Alley because snakes supposedly hung from the trees and would drop on unsuspecting victims below. Usually at Night. After a few Jewel brews. Pretty sure that story was a fun fable to tell silly PCV's because we would believe anything.

My dad was never friendly with cats tho we had a million of them on the farm. A couple of years ago, my mom tamed a couple of wild kittens and let them into the house. (They now live in town.). Dad says he never knew a cat could be such a nice companion. Those two formally wild kitties are now surrogate grandchildren.

Gratitude... excellent theme! It is so easy to overlook the things for which we are really grateful. I know I can focus on the negative aspects of my life and those aspects will begin to overshadow all the wonderful things with which my life is blessed. Perhaps that is human nature and why we have the phrase, "The grass is always greener..."

I also love Diane O's adaptation of Ann's and BB's sayings! JFGSD! That applies to so many things, but I have to caution myself that my work this year is not about getting "it" done - whatever the it may be (usually taking weight off...). For me this year it HAS to be about discovering the why. I've dicked around for so many years sidestepping true self discovery or understanding. Until I figure out the cause, I have sort of given up trying to treat the symptoms. That approach clearly hasn't worked long term the past 40 odd years. I don't entertain the notion that this time things will be different. I need to do things differently. Ugh.... more work....

Cecily, Shel... I so admire your out of doors approach to exercise. I am much more a gym rat. I realize I am somewhat envious of the time you have available to take such lovely hikes. I push a lot of exercise into my 30, 45, and 60 minutes stints at the gym.

Diane O, you are in the danger zone! What is going on is a tough call with Atlas. Not being there and not knowing your partner's acceptance of wee hour whining and puppy behavior, I can't make a 100% accurate call, but I will caution you about giving in to Atlas's middle of the night desires. Getting up to go potty is perfectly fine and he should be praised for not wetting his crate. Take him out. Don't talk to him other than to give him his potty command (whatever that may be for you... mine is simply, "Go Potty"). Say NOTHING else to him until he's done his potty. Then tell him what a good boy he his. Take him back to his crate, give him a treat, tuck him in and go back to bed. No meal, no cooing and cuddling, no dim lights. All those things tell him that he can have what he wants when he wants it. Remember, he has it harder than many pups because he left his mama and litter mates far too early, though luckily he's had Sadie. He has missed some important learning and it's now up to you to teach him. The behaviors he's showing are normal for his age. If he were still with his litter mates or his mom, they would take care of him in quick order and he'd go right back to sleep. Up to you to do the same.

Ann, hope chemo goes well and the next few days prove to be better than expected. I'm sorry you are going through this. I admire both your courage and Paula's. I've been there with my mom. It is not easy. I so admire you well you are both coping. Paula, enjoy your holiday with Ben's family.

Dave, I sure would like to have some of your talent in crafting! Luckily, I have a BFF who is very much like you and has been my lifesaver around the home for repairs and building projects I'm reluctant to take on by myself - especially electrical! I hate working with electrical in the house by myself. Gives me the heebies! I'm sure my BFF has saved me thousands, if not tens of thousands, of dollars over the past 30 some odd years! We've done some heavy duty projects together!

Diane S., am curious to see what you do with your hair. When I saw you in April it wasn't terribly long and I liked the cut. I think it's fun how woman can change their hair color and it's so readily accepted. It's a great way to get a new look! Men, especially those of us without much hair at all, don't have that luxury.

Liz, I thought of a game, but I don't know how appropriate it is. It's an hysterical, somewhat base humor, anti politically correct game called Cards Against Humanity. It's wicked fun, but can be quite naughty. It's available on line only. It might be too boisterous for your DH. Basically it's finding a card in your hand that sort of fits a sentence that is read. Your goal is to have the reader of the sentence (card) pick your word as the best word to complete the sentence. Go here to check out the free PDF version: http://s3.amazonaws.com/cah/CAH_MainGame.pdf

I am feeling grateful for the puppy who is resting his head on my thigh as I type. These pups are just something else. Haven't had puppies quite like these two before. I imagine Lucky must be much the same as his grandfather was at this age. His grandfather, Jackson, is my IT dog - my once in a lifetime dog. We have done so much together and have such a strong bond I can't imagine what it will be like when he is gone. I see Lucky as stepping in and filling his grandpa's shoes. He is a dedicated, loving, eager to please, wickedly smart puppy. BTW, Diane O, Lucky scored 3s straight across the board on his PAT. Doesn't get any better than that! Actually, so did Dot, but being a girl, she's much more independent!

Off to the gym... hopefully, we will get to see the movie tonight. Went last night to see a movie that's been out for quite some time thinking it wouldn't be crowded. Got there a half hour early and it was sold out! Booooo! Ron already went to buy tickets for tonight. We have these Costco tickets that can't be redeemed on line. Double Booooooo!