Sunday, January 5, 2020

I knew you'd be all over that stuff. Sounds like you've got most of it already handled.

Weight 201. Considering at one point it had gotten as high as 208.4, I'm feeling more in control for sure.

I was a true slug yesterday. My tree is still mocking me and must come down today. I'm so disturbed by the world news of late my anxiety is high. A proper walk for me today rather than just the super slow doggie walks might help burn some of it off.

Ann, thank you for for lunch suggestion. It looked wonderful! Any others you all have, I would appreciate. Liz, your son sounds like a real blessing through all of this.

Anyway, thus far that's all that's rattling in my brain. Wishing you all a calm Sunday.

I think you should just go with the fact that you aren't taking down the tree until Epiphany (the 12th day of Christmas) which is tomorrow. Ron is a big advocate of keeping the tree up for the entire Christmas liturgical calendar. This year he does want the tree to come down today, but I bet it won't. It'll come down tomorrow or Tuesday after the 12th day has concluded.

My lifetime personal best for taking down the tree was February 2.

It'll never be bested. :)

Ha! At that rate I think you just leave it up and hope to do better next year!

Peps, being stubborn as I am, I used your comment as motivation to get the tree down, sawed in half and at the street for pick up with the morning garbage. Go me!

Liz, Your plans for Paul's funeral and luncheon sound like a fitting way to honor him. As a Catholic (convert), I find much comfort in the Funeral Mass in a way that it's hard for me to articulate. I hope it brings your children comfort, and you can know that your Catholic husband wanted this ritual.

We had a very nice visit with our son and his girlfriend. We went to brunch at a very charming restaurant, in an older building in Madison. Love the brick, reclaimed wood tables, huge reclaimed chandeliers... the building was originally a bank, and the original vault is in the basement. They turned it into a ****tail lounge. Also very cool aesthetic. It didn't open until later in the evening, so we'll have to go back one evening and check it out.

Meeting son and gf at a place called the Jet Room for brunch again, then heading home.

Weight: 140.8
Veggies/Fruits: 3
Macronutrients: Cals - 1,679, Carbs - 170, Fats - 54, Protein - 116, Fiber - 44
Green SmartPoints: 36
Water: 1 cup
Sleep: 6 hours
Exercise: 7,531 steps and yoga@home (30")

Yesterday, I did indeed go out and stir up some trouble ... went to my local brewpub for live music, that fortunately started early enough that I was still awake, and enjoyed some hilarious conversation at the bar with fun women friends. The music was good, the whiskey fine, and food truck cheese sandwiches put me deep in Weekly Smart Points territory. Nonetheless, it worked out. :)

Today is Stay at Home Day devoted to yoga@home, reading, and maybe laundry. Here it's mild (nearly 60 degrees) and not too windy under a sparkling blue sky. Could be much, much nastier this time of year. This afternoon I'll actually go outside and mow a messy field that needs neatening up and will mulch some leaves.

Today I will also avoid going insane by NOT reading the newspapers (arrrggghhh!).

No musical theme today ... it's a quiet day here in Lake Wobegon.

Good morning. The last day of winter break. Tomorrow is back to the old grind.

Liz I have nothing to offer except, that I know my dad had to have multiple copies of my mother's and my uncle's death certificates. Some took copies, but several insisted on having originals, and some insisted on having originals, but then made copies so my father could keep them. WTH?

Perhaps my 2 pound loss is real. I was the same weight this morning. I'll take it.

I have done something to my left hand. I don't know what I did, but it feel sprained, though there is no evidence of a sprain. It is better than it was, but still strange to have a generalized hand ache out of nowhere.

WW.... I still have yet to join. I am certainly putting it off. It's not like I haven't gone to the site several times, but I never make to the sign up button. LOL! I did, however, go to Costco yesterday and did stock up on some nice healthy foods.

Ann, thank you for the Go To Lunch photo. I found it inspirational. One, because the salad was so pretty; two, it looked so normal; and three, it reminded me that's pretty much how I eat when I'm on track. I am not a big veggie eater (as stated many times before). Seeing appetizing vegetables on a plate serves as a reminder of what I am missing. I know, too, that when I eat more fruits and veggies I simply feel better.

Today I will have to do a few of the things I have been putting off all vacation. That's okay. I won't get them all done, but I will get some of it done.

I had a wonderful 2 minute Vent Fest yesterday. It was great. I felt the pent up frustration spew out of me leaving me refreshed. I had been feeling more and more dragged down by my friends who suffer from depression and anxiety which is exacerbated by post holiday let down. On top of that Ron has been ill tempered and unkind towards me. (In his own words, he has been an "asshole"). Yesterday when BFF didn't want to join us for dinner, I just went with it and didn't try to talk him into it. Ron poked at me for not doing more to get him to join us and I blew... Not at him, just into the air about me. I ranted about being tired of being dragged down by the moods of others and not wanting to be subjected to the negativity and energy sucking drama of depression of others. There comes a point when people must take responsibility for their own happiness. My BFF won't do that and neither will Auntie Kathryn and Ron, while the most redeemed of the three, still lets excuses get the better of him. He often doesn't want to admit that it's his own choices that cause his frustrations. Thank goodness I love him otherwise he'd probably drive me completely bat**** crazy!

All this is not to say I am not without fault. Lord knows, I have a great many idiosyncrasies that annoy others, but I've gotten pretty good at owning them. I am guilty of Devon Droppings - just leaving stuff where I put it, e.g. keys, mail, school bags, spoons, yesterday a stainless steel dog dish with puppy poop tissues ended up on my nightstand; I zone out and miss parts of conversations, and I am a control freak, a mild perfectionist, oh, and I'm sure if you asked Ron he could tell you some more....wink, wink....

I have been staying up super late with the puppies. Going to bed around 2:00 am and getting up at 7:30 to feed them and going back to bed and sleeping until 9 or 10. Tomorrow is going to be a rude awakening. I will need to get back on a firm bedtime schedule so I can get up and do puppy duty before school each day.

Well, I would like to wile away the remaining morning, but I must get on my broomstick....

Re your hand, I find the older I get the more my pains have no discernible origins!

Greetings All

A couple of thoughts for Liz

One thing you can't do remotely is get into any safe deposit boxes. So do that when you can.

And ditto order plenty of certified death certificates. Funeral home should order them but make sure they don't charge extra for doing so. Yes many places just want to see and copy an original but will return it to you. Still I think I got 2 dozen for my mom.

Don't be in a big hurry to do things with IRAs or other retirement accounts. Unlike other forms of inheritance, they are still income taxable and there are timing requirements to distributions. So take this part slow and have a good tax adviser.

The rest depends on whether there is a probate estate or not. Hopefully not. Most stuff does not have to be rushed.

Take care.

Diane S