The New Water Cooler
Replies
-
So how was Russ's first day?
I'm sorry to hear your cousin is suffering from macular degeneration. My grandma had that and did end up with very limited vision. She could see a little very close up. But she was able to function in her own space up to close the end when she went to an assisted place, but that really had more to do with other issues. I definitely bring up a family history of that when I go to the eye doctor every year. I bet she would very much appreciate the offer to get out for lunch and whatnot.
Not much else, just plugging through the week which is going quite fast fortunately.
I think my sister and niece may be going wedding dress shopping tomorrow. I will be interested to see what she likes. I think most are doing those long almost sheath styles these days. Don't see too many of the ball gown styles right now.
Friday eve0 -
I love the simple classy wedding dresses without all the lace, bows, etc. They are so elegant. I will be interested to hear what she picks out. When is the wedding date?
Yesterday, Charlie and I went out for our walk in the early morning. I saw two dear come out of the woods beyond the corn field and one stopped and appeared to be watching something. At first I thought he saw me, but then I saw a creature prowling through the grass obviously stalking something. At first glance, I thought it was a very large fox, but then I looked at it's face and markings and it was a coyote. He/she was beautiful in color and quite large. Charlie and I were far enough away to turn around and walk home. I sure wouldn't want to be caught up in the orchard if one came along and wanted Charlie.
My sister, her friend and I drove 2 hours south to a different bike trail yesterday. It was a beautiful day with clouds and sun, light breeze and slight humidity. It was all paved, straight and flat, so pretty easy riding. We stopped at the 12 mile mark at a dairy/creamery for lunch. It was packed with tourists and right off the trail. It held us up over an hour but the sandwiches were good. I had a veggie panini. We rode another 12-13 miles to the end of the trail, took a rest and headed back. Stopped again at the creamery for ice cream and a break. 44-45 miles round trip! Our butts were sore and we were beat by the time we got back to the cars. 2 hour drive home and it was 8pm when I arrived, filthy, sweaty and exhausted. I showered, visited with Russ and got in bed at 9:30. I'm sure I was
asleep before 10. I need to call the bike shop and get my bike in for its complimentary tune up. I'm hoping they can take it next week while Russ and I are in Minneapolis visiting Rory.
I was up early, walked Charlie (no critters today), and am waiting to zoom with my retiree friends in MN. My goal is to weed the garden, prune the tomatoes and peppers, harvest lettuce, basil and chives today.
I'm glad your week has been fast. Hope all is well. Did you and Bernie talk?
Happy Weekend!0 -
My typos and spelling errors are getting worse. Sorry!0
-
How is Laynie doing? Growing well I hope.
Any new updates on Chantelle? Her and baby girl are on my heart.
That was a huge ride you did. I bet you slept hard. Hopefully not too sore after.
I haven’t heard if they went dress shopping or not yet. The date is next July 8th.0 -
Oh yeah. Friday!0
-
We haven't heard from Jeff and Karah and have not seen any new photos of Laynie or Miles. I'm guessing they are tired, busy and trying to adjust to their new normal. I texted to ask if we could portal this weekend so we will see if they respond.
Chantrelle had a birthday yesterday. She and Halen went camping and did outdoor stuff with friends. Her next tests are 7/18 so we will know more after that. She is having an amniocentesis and chromosome testing. Probably another scan of some kind too.
I was exhausted and slept well after the ride. I was not sore the next day at all. I can tell my muscles are getting stronger from riding and walking. Stairs aren't too difficult any more unless I'm tired or have an arthritis flare up. Last night I was up due to itchy bug bites so I'm tired now and ready to crash. Russ went to pick up hot sandwiches from a pizza place in town. I started a project today. I'm washing, sanding, and painting some cute chairs that were my parents. They will go in the basement and hopefully I will find nice cushions to put on them too. I bought spray paint last year but can't find it any where! I've looked every where in and out of the house/pole barn 3 times. I went to the hardware store and bought more paint. I'm sure the other cans will show up now that I bought new.
We talked about hiking tomorrow morning and then I volunteer at the theater tomorrow for the 4:30 show.
I need to sand the chairs and have Russ fix one of the legs, then I'll be ready to spray paint them. I bought a bright royal blue glossy paint to go with the bright colors in that basement bunk room. They will go down there for
seating.
My oldest sister that had the kidney stones went to her urologist yesterday. She still has some blockage and has to have a cat scan to determine treatment. Her health is a mess as far as I can see. Here we go again but at least she is still keeping her appointments with her doctors and not ignoring the issues.
Beautiful weather here!0 -
That's exciting that you feel like you are getting stronger. Way to go. I can totally relate to looking and looking for something you know you have and then replacing it and THEN finding it (usually in a spot you already looked).
I am hearing a lot of people around me talking about how great the new Top Gun is. Still probably not enough to make me want to go to a theatre.
I'm glad your sister is keeping her appointments. That is a good step. I am both looking forward and dreading my next primary care appointment where I will be wanting to talk about my shoulder pain. I wonder if he will order any tests? (Do MRI's show arthritis)? Or if he will just throw a pill at me. It makes me nervous any way. I struggle with side effects. I don't really know what I want to happen aside from feeling better.
No wedding dress shopping yet.
A quiet weekend for me. I am probably waiting until the boys are back at school before confronting Bernie. I don't want to worry about them walking in or overhearing what will likely be uncomfortable talks.0 -
I would assume an MRI shows arthritis and anything else that is present. Not sure though.
We never hiked because we were both working on our own projects in the pole barn. Fun couple! I took my bike to get its complimentary tune up at the bike shop. Hope to pick it up tomorrow. We leave Thursday for MPLS so if it isn't done, I will pick up next Tuesday. I have ridden 233 miles since I bought it! Not bad for an arthritic, old lady. I would like to be at 400 by Fall.
I liked the new Top Gun movie. I will get to see it again for free when I volunteer at our little theater in a couple of weeks.
I was suppose to meet two friends for lunch today but one texted she has Covid. I called the other and asked if they had been together in the last week and they were with one another last Friday. I decided not to meet the other one since we leave for MPLS Thursday. I don't want to be exposed, take it with me and find out in a week I have it and exposed Rory, Hannah, and her family.
It is cool here. Over cast and we have had rain in the last couple of days. Today it is in the 60's! I feel cold.
You will know when and if you want to have a talk with Bernie. If you do decide to, good idea to talk when boys aren't home because they will pick up on the tension.
Russ comes home from this assembly job he is doing and mansplains every detail of what he does. It drives me crazy. I don't need those small details and blow by blow steps of what he is putting together. He is working with a pretty uneducated crowd and the language and personalities are interesting. If he didn't want to get our generator paid off, he would quit. There is still a chance he will decide he can't stand it and be done at some point.
Well I made my list for packing and need to get my suitcase from the basement so I can begin. Maybe tonight...laundry is done, Charlie's bed is washed, and it is a short trip so will be easy to pack for.
Have a nice evening.0 -
yeah - working in a manufacturing environment is.... different. It definitely involves a different vocabulary even in the office. He might like 'stretching' that unused side of himself for a while anyway. Or not.
I bet you are excited to get to see Rory soon.
I have been incessantly googling 'how to update oak cabinets without painting', etc trying to look for ways to make all my oak look less dated. I saw a picture of only one I really liked it had the subway tile backsplash in a sort of sage-y green and gray-ish counter. I HATE the look of the white subway tile and the other colored backsplashes that have the smaller mosaics are being talked about as outdated too. Everybody would keel over and die if I painted the cabinets (and honestly I'm not going to do that), but I would like to find some better finishes. I would love to find some app or site that would let me upload my current and then be able to see other colors and styles. I have to find said option.0 -
Take a look at Houzz.com and see if they allow you to do that. I know you can do paint color in a room on Home Depot and Sherwin Williams. Not sure about cabinets and tile though. There must be an app that lets you put photos of your room on there and see choices. Search out home decorating or reno app and see what pops up. You could just get new door fronts on your cabinets for an updated look. More expensive in a way but less work than painting. Or just clean up, re-varnish and update surroundings. I have seen tile, wall paper, and painted wainscoating as back splashes. Knobs.com has a huge hardware selection if you needed to update cabinet knobs and pulls. Fun to think about!
Errands today to buy little gifts for Hannah's parents, Rory and Hannah. Ironing and putting my clothes in the suitcase. Pack up Charlie and deliver to my sister tonight. I've written out instructions for him so hope she reads it. She requested his schedule and needs in writing. Short attention span so we will see how it goes.
I guess a person needs to be up early to see the wild life. Now that Russ goes to work at 6am, I get up, feed and walk Charlie. I was at the kitchen sink and saw a large Doe and two Fawns eating from our apple trees and weeds in the back yard. They walked by the garden fence but did not attempt to jump the fence. The Doe looked like she could possibly make it. I think Russ should put the finishing boards around the top posts for security.
Headed out now for the walk. Hope I don't see coyotes or anything threatening. I prefer to see things from my window.
Have a nice day. I will check in from MPLS.
0 -
not much new. Spending quite a bit of time in 'houzz' scrolling backsplash.
Just another trip around the sun.
Safe trip!0 -
Rory just called. He's excited for our visit. We will get our ethnic food fix in Mpls. I'm looking forward to that.
We are packed and I need to make our lunch for tomorrow, clean out the car after we drop Charlie at my sister's in a bit. I bought the famous fudge for this area for Hannah's Mom and Rory and her. Hannah's Dad likes wine so I bought a local wine for him. I'll shower tonight and we will get up and leave by 4:30 am our time, 3:30am MN time. We can have dinner with Rory tomorrow eve. I'm craving a good Thai meal!
Houzz is fun and so much to explore. You can go down the rabbit hole with ideas. Good luck.
Have a nice evening and end of the week. I'll check in tomorrow or Friday.0 -
mmmmm, can't wait to hear about your trip - especially the food!
Safe travels.
0 -
We ended up leaving home about 4:20am MI time. We arrived at our hotel at 2pm MN time. Easy trip and not too much traffic until MN. We definitely do not miss living here in the Mpls metro area. So dense with chain stores, cars, people,etc. We really get peace and relaxation from our slower paced life style in the country in MI.
Our hotel room is nice. It is like a studio apartment at the Hilton Homewood Suites. Last night we went out for Thai food with Rory and Hannah. It was so yummy to eat good Thai food again. Rory took the left overs home. They were tired so they came up to our room briefly to pick up what I brought them and then they left to retire and get up for work today. We will see them this evening for Himalayan/Indian food at their favorite restaurant. Then we are going to play cards at Hannah's apartment. She is so sweet and fun. We meet her parents tomorrow so that will be nice too.
Russ and I delivered some Lemoncello from a MI distillery this morning. She had me pick up 6 bottles from the distillery near our house. She had it when she visited last Fall and wanted me to get it for her. She spent almost $200 on 6 bottles. She makes a lot of lemon drop martinis for friends.
Russ and I went to the grocery this morning to buy our favorite coleslaw sauce we can't get in MI. We indulged in a donut each because this grocery (Cub Foods) has the best donuts. He bought a sandwich and I got Chinese Chicken Salad from the deli and took back to our room for lunch. We are relaxing until we meet Rory and Hannah. I'm not a shopper so am not taking advantage of the Mall across the parking lot. We have no desire to go back to our old neighborhood or look up anyone we know, this visit.
I hope your work week has ended well. TGIF!! Have a great weekend. Is C ready for college and do you have his dorm room shopping done?
0 -
Friyay!
Glad you made your way safely and are off to a delicious start!
I have never had a lemon drop martini - sounds good though. I used to only want alcohol drinks that were on the definite sweet side, but am finding room for things with a bit of bite occasionally. Which is occasionally in general because it's not often I drink anyway.
Caleb is ready to hit campus for sure. He hasn't been feeling very well this week. On Tuesday and today he had me take him home early from work. His stomach has been upset. Not sure what is 'ailing' him. It was over two weeks ago that I was under the weather. But I can see he is fighting something, he has been really pale. It seems like a long time to be suffering an upset stomach though. Usually those resolve faster. I wonder if this is a 'variation' of covid symptoms. If not better by Sunday, I'll probably have him test at home just to see.
I have been working on getting the rest of Caleb's supplies. I like to send them off with a nicely stock 'pharmacy' box and other things for just in case. The mom in me doesn't want him to have to worry about how far Walgreen's is or when student health will open when you have a case of "uh-oh" I need Imodium, or boy I should have used that sunscreen mom packed, but now I need some aloe. Too bad I didn't use my shower shoes, oh looks there's tinactin. I think I have him loaded up for most possibilities, but hopefully not excessive. It sounds like his roommate is doing a futon and the rug and Caleb said he would do a microwave. Easy for us. Much smaller too! Caleb will be using his t.v. but since Brandon is moving in early for band he might get to send it with him then. I had bought Zach two sets of sheets when he started and he only ever used the one, so I am putting the second set for Caleb and had bought him a comforter and blanket and mattress topper during Black Friday last year. I believe his move in date if 8/16. Two days before his 18th birthday! He needs a power of attorney thing for student health so they don't have to call us before he uses, but I can't fill it out until he's 18. So I'll have to do it after he's there and find a notary and send to UNL. They can still see him, but have to call me/us.
Have more fun and food!0 -
Do you think C is nervous for college and leaving home? Maybe some anxiety about the job or college that is causing stomach nervousness instead of Covid? It seems like he has had a lot of days this past year he hasn't felt so good. Is his room mate a friend from Columbus? It would be fun to be young and go off to college again. I would do it differently, make life long friends and not date the same guy through college.
We are going over to Hannah's apartment in a few minutes. She and Rory are cooking us breakfast and then we are going for a walk in a pretty park near her place. Later on we will change clothes and meet her parents for an early dinner at a steak house.
It has been a relaxing weekend with very good ethnic food. The Himalayan Restuarant was so good!
Enjoy your Saturday. Charlie is doing well with my sister. She hasn't lost him yet that we know of.0 -
Hannah's parents are very nice. We had a nice dinner with them at a restaurant. Her Dad is very quiet and her Mom is very talkative like Hannah. Very warm personalities. I ordered beef brisket with mashed potatoes and maple glazed carrots. Very good but I got full fast. Why do restaurants give such huge servings? They could cut the servings in half and charge less. America's obesity problem can be partially attributed to the platters they serve an individual at restaurants. Crazy!
Hannah made us an egg bake and fresh fruit yesterday morning for breakfast. We ate and then went for a 1.5 mile walk in a city park near her apartment. It was beautiful and such a nice walk around a canal and ponds with lots of flowers and native plants. People can check out paddle boats, sit on benches or swings or enjoy several patios of restaurants and coffee shops that border the park with the view. Very lush and private place.
We will have lunch with Rory and Hannah today, maybe go to a brewery with Rory (Hannah is going to a soccer game with her family), and then relax and pack to leave early tomorrow. Rory has to do laundry this evening and likes to relax before his work day. I think he wakes up at 4:30 for work and checks in by 6am. We walked right by the building he is currently working to put electrical in. He says it is very hot inside and makes for a difficult day.
Charlie has done very well at my sister's. She went on a bike ride with friends yesterday and Lynn went to check on him and let him out of his pen in the laundry room. He had busted out and greeted her at the door. I emphasized with Becky that she needed to make sure the gate was tight but she obviously didn't listen. I hope he did not pee in her house. Lynn took him out and said he peed when he got outside. I hope that's all he did. What a goof!
Well I hope you have had a good weekend. It will be 90 today and humid just like yesterday. I showered twice yesterday because I hate to be sweaty.0 -
we are super hot here and look to be upper 90's and 100's through the end of July. Yikes. That's a really long stretch of such high heat and humidity.
Glad it sounds like a really nice trip and that the pup is doing well as well.
Another weekend just slid away.
I don't think Caleb is worried about school.
Have a safe trip back!
0 -
We made it home. 89-90 here and will be a hot week. It's evident no rain since we left and things are turning brown and dry. Our sprinkler system helped but the front grass looks parched. I will check my garden tomorrow morning. I hope it is still alive and it was watered enough to keep up with the wind and heat. I have to pick up my bike tomorrow at the bike shop too.
We unloaded the car and went and picked up Charlie. He must have rolled in something because he stinks. I had given my sister written instructions for his treats and feeding. He was spoiled while we were gone and given more soft food and pumpkin daily than we would give him. I emphasized a teaspoon of pumpkin with dry food for breakfast and a teaspoon of wet food with dry food for dinner. She went through a whole can of pumpkin and all the wet food. He must have loved that! He was a good boy and got lots of attention so that is good.
Your weather sounds like a scorcher. We may try to kayak tomorrow and enjoy being on the water. Russ goes back to his morning job on Wednesday.
Happy Monday!0 -
David and Chantrelle saw the cardiologist in Anchorage yesterday. He said the baby's heart will be fine and the shape and position are just an anomaly that shouldn't affect her life. They do not see evidence of any syndromes or other anomalies with other organs and stated pictures show a "cute" baby. He told them they could give birth in Homer and all should be fine. A relief if he is right! I don't know if I should fly out there for the birth or not. If they stay in Homer, they can get coverage for Halen. I don't want to be in the way but I do want to see my grand child earlier than many months later.
Very hot and humid today. I need to pick up my bike and go pick up Charlie's poop at Becky's house.0
