Thursday 9/24/2020

Weight 124 - a full pound above range. I am a bit bloated, but that's not all of it.

Mike and I had a really good night out with his longest term friend (since age 3). Good conversation and food at a place on the deck of a restaurant on a river. The weather cooperated for outdoor dining so we didn't even need jackets. Today I am going to his part of Cape Cod to walk on the beach in Provincetown and poke around in town. Then I am back home for dinner out with the family. I think it will be easier to settle back into a lower eating level once I get back to Florida.

It's funny how quickly my life has shifted to focusing on Mike. I hope that I am not rushing into something too fast to fill the gap caused by losing DH, but it just feels so right. Mike has a history of being cautious about relationships (per both he and his friends) so this is somewhat out of character for him too. We just seem to share so many interests and values and just plain enjoy being together. After only 2 months I feel completely comfortable with him and don't have to be anyone other than who I am, but a much happier me than I have been for a long time.

Have a safe, healthy, and social day!

I think that's great, Liz! It's good to see you so happy.

Scale still bouncing around. But I'm doing really well on food and walking, so what will be will be day to day.

Ann posted to TT!

This is kind of fun. I did 23andMe years ago and roped my dad into doing it so I could tell who were my dad's relatives and who were my mom's (as a woman, you need a male relative for their Y chomosome to differentiate yours). We have a really small family, so other than my dad who was a 50% gene match, the highest match I've gotten was in the 2% range - the grandson of my great aunt. That alone was fun. Yesterday I got a match that was near 5%. Turns out my mom had a first cousin I never knew about. Her dad was my grandma's brother. My grandma never talked much about her brother, so I didn't know he had kids. She lives in MN and is 11 years younger than my mom was. I'm looking forward to getting to know her. She seems really nice (she's from MN, why wouldn't she be nice??).

Anyway, off to walk on the beach with my friend, then therapy and maybe zoom knitting if I feel like it. The pain in my back is gone all together today, whew.

The DNA stuff is cool! That's how we found DD's birth father (via a match with his sister) and I have connected with a second cousin.

Good morning! Liz, when it's right, it's right! When it wasn't quite right with other men you dated, you preferred to not see them, then try to force it into something it wasn't. You have been true to yourself during your dating journey, I think yours and Mike's story is lovely.

I haven't done 23 and me, my parents did, and my Dad's was 98% Finnish, my Mom was 49% Finnish, and then a mix of Scottish, Irish and English. 6 of my 8 grandparents were born in Finland, so the tests were quite in line with that part of our history. I'm glad your tests turned up some nice connections. I think people have discovered both fun, welcome information, and surprising, unexpected info. Once upon a time, my BIL who was placed by my MIL for adoption really wanted to find his bio father's family. I thought when 23 and me came out, he would jump on it. So far, he has not.

My visit with the oncologist was great. She said she thinks I should take a hormone suppressing drug, but she wanted me to take a few months to get back to normal and take a break from treatment. Her attitude was I should try it in January, but if I couldn't tolerate the side effects, we could revisit it. She talked a lot about quality of life vs. risk. She did recommend I use the time to establish an exercise routine to strengthen my bones, and to lose some weight, both things I already planned to do before I met with her. So my next medical task is to get treatment for osteoporosis. She recommended a medication that is an iv infusion. Completely onboard with this, no need to worry about absorption, or to remember to take it.

I was on such an adrenaline high yesterday, I was more than able to go out to celebrate. It was a beautiful evening. Our daughter had pre ordered and paid for a bottle of Cava, so they brought it over as soon as we were seated. The hostess stopped by to tell me her mother was a 15 year breast cancer survivor, they sent a free dessert to the table when we finished dinner. Perfect celebration.

DH wants me to take it easy today with the hope that I will have enough energy to go kayaking tomorrow, if even for just a quick paddle. That's my goal too, it would be so awesome to be on the water again.

What a wonderful celebration! So great that DD and the restaurant added to it.

Okay, I must confess I laughed when I read Liz's opening line, "Weight 124 - a full pound above range." The statement sounded heavy to me. It may or may not have been meant that way, but that's how I took it. LOL! It shows how perspective colors one's viewpoint of things. I am 98 pounds above my original VSG goal weight. So a pounds seems utterly negligible, yet i completely understand Liz's need to monitor weight and keep things under control.

Was wonderful to see Ann's post on TT.

I have settled into the mundane routine of Zoom school and continue to work on my eating issues. I've started meeting with small groups of kids on Zoom to do writing instruction. It's SO WEIRD, but I think the kids are motivated to work on this project. That right there is plenty for which to be thankful! It's obvious that the kids are really missing school.

Not weighing daily is a much bigger challenge than I thought it would be. LOL!

So glad all of you seem to be doing so well and making huge strides in whatever your endeavors are.

I know 1 pound isn't much - it is the trend that frightens me.

Greetings All

Yes we were all thrilled to see Ann posting on FB. Sorry she has had a run of bad things but, as Scarlett said "tomorrow is another day".

Shirley I know you are not posting because you have a bad finger. Speaking as a veteran of many hand surgeries, DO AS YOUR DOCTOR SAYS and don't be tempted to do chores you are not supposed to. I messed up and got an infection and other problems from not doing so. So please, baby that hand!

Peps, congrats on your zoom teaching success. Not easy I am sure. And why do doctors and nutritionists always tell us to do stuff that is HARD to do? Why can't someone tell me to eat mashed potatoes?

DD yay on end of radiation. Nice that the restaurant helped you celebrate.

Not much new here. I did the pool yesterday and it was full of little kids! Not sure if they changed policy or what but I must investigate. I don't feel much covid threat but there is nothing quite like the piercing screaming of kids in an echoing indoor pool.

Studio activities today. Amazing what all one can get done with fewer people around.

Neighbor is bringing us great home grown tomatoes. Mine are crappy so its appreciated.

Yay Liz and Mike. So glad you are having fun. Its as it should be. Good to know you are happy.

Cheers. Diane S

Do big tomatoes do well in your area? I find in Michigan either the season is too short or the temperature too cool to do them justice. Cherry tomatoes I can grow like a champ, but not the large ones.

Home grown tomatoes are the best!