VSG Maintenance Group
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I am looking forward to trying that Big Mac salad whenever I can get back to cooking!
Liz 5'3" HW: 219 SW: 185 GW: 125 LW: 113 Desired maintenance range: 120-125 CW: 119ish
We are visiting DH's DS and DIL in Poland for 4 days. They are in their second of 3 days living and working here for the US government.
Monday as Saturday for errands is great as it is less busy but restaurants are sometimes closed LOL.
Hyrangeas sometimes burn on Cape Cod at the end of summer if it is really hot and dry and they are in full sun. But they still do well in that kind of summer in partial sun if watered enough.
Liz 5'3" HW: 219 SW: 185 GW: 125 LW: 113 Desired maintenance range: 120-125 CW: 119ish
I remember a bullet filled Bonnie and Clyde car on display in our local KMart's parking lot when I was a kid!
During Prohibition, St.Paul was a gangster sanctuary! The police chief had an agreement: 1. Criminals check in to let him know they were there 2. They pay off the police department 3. They commit no crimes with in St. Paul city limits. If they did this, St. Paul police would protect them, hide them etc. Dillinger was one of the more famous people hiding out. Eventually, crime happened, and the city demanded a clean up. Even with that, a few bad players got left behind.
I don't think of the area as a hotbed now of organized crime, but it had it's moments. There was a supper club in some caves by the Mississippi called the Wabasha Caves that gangsters used. Its an event center now (cousin had his wedding reception there). The staff will show you the bullet holes from gangster shoot outs in the walls and of course there are gangster ghosts that haunt the place.
The timing of Social Security checks is interesting. Good things to keep in the back of my brain!
I can't eat out every night either. It definitely gets old for me!
Odd about all the mob ties in the Midwest. We have stories from around here too being close to Chicago!
I think eating out everyday can be a bit much. I bet being with your family in Poland will be a nice change for many reasons. When DD was doing her semester abroad, some family friends living in London invited her to stay during one of her breaks. She remarked that it felt really nice to be in a house after so many months just in the dorm.
Yes time is a whole new concept retired. Weekends feel so different because I'm programmed to get all the things done quickly. No need now. Our season tickets for the Guthrie are Sunday evening. Last night, even though the parking ramp was backed up because one pay station was offline, no worries, no stress, no calculating what time we would get back, no deciding if I needed to pack my lunch for Monday before we left...
Speaking of theater, the production we saw of Cabaret just gutted me. It's always been a naughty romp, but also dark. They really leaned into the dark the 2nd half. The pain of the Jewish characters, the resignation of some of the Germans, the gleeful embrace of the Nazi movement by others... Most performances I've seen end with the reveal of the Emcee wearing a Star of David and a stripped prison suit. This one did too, but with the sound of doors slamming shut on cattle cars and shadowy people walking slowly in a line behind them. The Emcee, with shorn hair and prison suit in front trembling... Cabaret has shocked me, made me laugh, given me goose bumps , made me sad, but it's never made me cry before. These are troubling times. I'm still digesting what I saw.
Today we met a friend and her Mom at our coffee shop. Her Mom is 96 years old, and still so cognitively sharp. She grew up in the neighborhood, and told us about all of the things that used to be on that block, including the place she and her brothers would pull their wagon to to buy the ice block to go into their ice box. She was reminiscing about the street cars. One of the biggest civic tragedies of the Twin Cities. Up until the late 40s there was an extensive street car system that traversed the entire area. In Minneapolis, you could even transfer to a boat run by the street car system that would take you across Lake Minnetonka and you could hook up with the cars again on the other side. It all got ripped out for more modern transportation: busses. It's rumored the mob had connections for kick backs on the sale of busses, and they used their influence to help pu**** through. Now we're trying to rebuild light rail for billions of dollars, and the system is puny. So sad.
Today I got to talk to Social Security. I put in my application in March, and this week is when they had a question. My first check will come next month. I was surprised to learn they pay in arrears AND the week of your birthday is when you get your check. So even though I retired mid June, I earned more money the first part of the month than is allowed, so July had to be my retirement month, and will be paid in August. But not just August, the 4th Wednesday of August because my birthday is the last week of my birth month. So DH, who was born the first part of the month gets his check on the first Wednesday. It seems unfair. I will wait 2.5 months after retirement to get my first payment. DH worked until June 30, and got his first check the first week of August. So complicated. We're fine, but someone who lives paycheck to paycheck could really be slammed by this.
Tomorrow I get my haircut at 12. Since its an hour drive, I definitely won't get my workout in. My plan is to go do that now in about 30 minutes. Life is good.
Greetings all
Another overcast Monday here. As mentioned I have come to like Mondays because the kiln opens and my tv shows resume normally. Pretty lame. And yeah Peps, Monday should not be a big chore day. It is more like "celebrate being retired day" when you can go to stores and places that you previously could not do because of work.
My day is shaping up to include payroll and minor errands. I am still in clean up mode for upcoming guest. House cleaner comes wed. and I will get a little extra help from her but first the path must be shoveled. So long as the guest room is in decent shape I will not worry too much about the rest. This person will not judge me. Kitchen table is cleared off in case we decide to eat a meal not in front of the tv.
Wow Liz Poland! How interesting and exotic. Mike's son is there right? Very cool to have locals to show you the cool stuff. Enjoy. Hope your SIL gets out of the hospital and home as early as possible.
Well Peps you are entitled to rest upon your dog show laurels after this weekend.
The gallery was kind of slow yesterday. Mostly sold cards. I picked up a pizza so that makes dinner for a few days. Post vsg I can still only eat one slice of pizza at a time. My pre vsg self would have had three.
More later if anything happens. (don't hold your breath).
Diane S
124.1, exactly the same I was when we left for our weekend away. Glad to see no damage was done even with ice cream and more adult beverages than usual. My calories were pretty much kept in check. Going over only a little bit here and there. The biggest difference was my macros. Definitely more carbs and less protein. That should get back on track this week, even though DC and I made chocolate chip cookies today. The dough and a warm cookie are a draw for me but after that, they are a pretty easy pass.
DH and I had a nice walk this morning. 50 minutes at a 15:30 something pace. Felt good!
Costco run completed. Stocked up on meat for us and the dogs. They eat raw every morning - chicken, pork or beef. Pork is the cheapest but I try to vary it for them.
Grilling out burgers for dinner. I'm going to make the Big Mac salad for myself again! It was tasty!
Have fun in Poland Liz! Looking forward to more pictures!
Peps, I like the idea of taking Mondays as your rest day after a dog show weekend. Isn't sleeping in glorious? I stayed in bed until almost 8 today. Naps are awesome as well! Hope you have a nice visit with Dad and a good workout with the trainer!
Poland? If I knew that was part of your trip, I had completely forgotten! How wonderful! Poland is not a place that has been on my travel radar, but I certainly wouldn't turn down the chance to visit! How nice to add a visit to Mike's side of the family, too!
201.7 - Right in the range. So all is well. My target is to be under 200 by month's end. Time will tell.
I must have been tired from the weekend. I stayed in bed until 9 this morning (after getting up at 7 to let dogs out to potty)!
Today I am taking it easy. The only things I HAVE to do are visit my dad and work out with my trainer. Everything else is on an "As I Want To Do" basis. My retired dog show friend uses Mondays as his Saturdays. I kind of like that idea, so I am adopting it. I get to actually rest up from dog show weekends, rather than plunge back into the work week. How civilized! This retirement thing is looking better every day!
Liz, hydrangeas burn here if they are given too much sun. I have two that are planted in shade, but they haven't grown a bit since I planted them. I think the tree under which they are planted sucks everything out of the soil, so only super hardy weed like plants are able to grow/thrive underneath. The shade garden I planted beneath it is pretty meager - even after 5 years. I think I may put in some of that "miniature" ivy, just to get some green by the sidewalk.
CC, welcome back to your summer home! I'm sure a break from AZ and the HOA business is overdue! Will be nice to see Claudia and your dad, too! Glad Kirby is happy to be "home", too.
Merry, merry!