WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR AUGUST 2014

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Replies

  • barbiecat
    barbiecat Posts: 17,180 Member
    :flowerforyou: I have skimmed all the posts but no time to reply……we leaped into the 21st century today and bought Smart Phones……now we are obsessed with learning to use them. We bought identical phones in different colors (so we can tell them apart). Now we can share the job of learning how to use the phones. Jake is home from house sitting but goes back tomorrow. I’ve been to four line dance classes in the last three days, walked about 20,000 steps an day and kept up with my squat challenge (140 squats today). Tomorrow morning is the line dance performance at the County Fair.

    :heart: Barbie from beautiful NW Washington


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  • margaretturk
    margaretturk Posts: 5,244 Member
    bump
  • RebelRenny
    RebelRenny Posts: 1,073 Member
    I am trying to keep up, dear ladies.
    Meg, my heart and worry is with you. I have no solutions to offer, other than please do not poke out your eyes.

    I saw my grandbabies this week. Not long enough of course, but they have no choice but to endure my hugs and kisses.

    it's late and it is past my bedtime.
    gnight

    Renny
  • CynthiaT60
    CynthiaT60 Posts: 1,280 Member
    Good morning everyone!

    Sylvia: you have the makings of a real inventor!

    Jane: still thinking of you!

    Meg: sympathize with you concerning the care of the baby. Very frustrating. Are there any other ways to help or let someone else help with that (without exhausting yourself)? Any chance the dad will “step up”? Other grandparents? I know you don’t agree with their financial support, but maybe their involvement will help in other ways. Of course, I’m just guessing here. A serious step would be having the baby removed from the parents’ care, but I hope that wouldn’t be necessary.

    Alison: I second Katla’s advice on the second opinion. Sure hope that will lead you towards less pain.

    Carol: sounds like you have figured out your “mood”. Try to pamper yourself a little so that this relatively quiet time will be more than just the opportunity to worry. Good luck with the dorm moving!

    Tere: good to see you!

    Renny: good to see you too!



    Everybody with heel problems: can I pick your brains for suggestions? My mom has trouble with her feet. Apparently she has almost no fat on the bottoms of the feet. With shoes etc. she is generally OK , but she really hurts in the shower! She has two bath mats (the ones with the suction cups) placed on top of each other, but her feet still hurt. Any suggestions? (Yes, she’s under the care of a doctor and podiatrist, but they haven’t had any good ideas.)

    Another thing (repost from my timeline): thinking about replacing my Fitbit Flex with a One. Flex works fine; after 10 months I'm just not wanting the sports look on my wrist all the time anymore. The Tory Burch option is too small and too expensive. Have a bracelet from Etsy but don't love it. Any thoughts? P.S. Can you just clip the One onto your t-shirt or whatever for sleeping? The wristband doesn't look that great or that comfortable.

    Up a few pounds since vacation. Will wait a few more days and see how much more magically disappears. In the meantime I’m back to logging as usual. I do notice (much) more pain in my knee; maybe that’s the extra weight. I sure didn’t do a whole lot of walking or whatever on vacation, and the gym visits were per my usual routing (no treadmill etc.)

    Hope everyone has a good day!
    Cynthia :flowerforyou:
  • cityjaneLondon
    cityjaneLondon Posts: 12,674 Member
    Good morning from sunny Hampshire!:flowerforyou:

    Anne - I was a successful writer, only in children's books. I also had a play on BBC radio and short stories and poems published. I also had a small theatre company and wrote and directed my own experimental plays. For some reason my novels got stuck. I had agents who believed in me and famous commissioning editors who were keen to publish me, but I alwsys came unstuck at the last hurdle. Once it was only a financial problem at a prestigious publishing house that pipped me at the post. Of course I got very discouraged at so many near misses. :cry: :brokenheart: It was the cause of much of my depression.
    I think, with the wisdom of hindsight, that the books were very reflective of the disturbed state of my mind at the time. They were also very exposing and I am not sure I had the inner resources to push them. For whatever reason their time has passed and they are very much historical documents thst I would like to see in print so they don't die with me. Amazon kindle can do that for me and you can also print on demand for family and friends to have on their shelves .:blushing: :heart:
    I was friends with Debbie for quite a while and close in the way that mums with young children can be. I knew her all through changes of husband, boyfriends and while her mother went to jail for helping at an old lady's suicide. Her best book is Tulip Fever, about Holland in the 17th century and she decorated her beautiful house in the old Dutch style, just like a film set. I also love Close To Home, which so accurately represents the life of young mothers in North London in the 70s. :tongue:
    Her daughter Lottie Moggach, who I knew as a screaming, unruly toddler, published her first novel last yesr to great acclaim.

    Going to catch up with admin today and read the newspaper.

    Lots of love, Heather UK
  • mollywhippet
    mollywhippet Posts: 1,890 Member
    I finally made it into the 180's! I didn't weigh yesterday, the day before I was still stuck at 190.0, and this morning I was 188.8. I'm doing my happy dance!

    Cynthia, I wonder if you could get her one of those anti fatigue mats that are made for the kitchen? They are expensive, but they are thick and cushy. You might have to cut a hole to fit over the drain, if it's that kind of shower. Or maybe some thick cushy flip flops? Not sure how well that would work for an older person in the shower. Might be a little unstable.

    Gotta go swim. Have a great Saturday!

    Sylvia
  • cityjaneLondon
    cityjaneLondon Posts: 12,674 Member
    GO SYLVIA! ! ! ! ! :drinker: :flowerforyou: :drinker:
  • linder4866
    linder4866 Posts: 11,396 Member
    Bump bump bump.
  • trisH_7183
    trisH_7183 Posts: 1,486 Member
    Bump
  • meyllisa
    meyllisa Posts: 284 Member
    :flowerforyou: WTG Sylvia

    I have just been told about this great site called Yummly it has all the nutrition facts for all recipes and a very wide variety
    just thought I would pass it along

    have a great day

    Juanita in sudbury
  • Katla49
    Katla49 Posts: 10,385 Member
    Lesley: What is a “bore” for a garden?:huh: :flowerforyou:

    Barbie: I hope you enjoy dancing at the fair. Have fun learning to use your smart phones!:bigsmile:

    Heather: Good luck with your Amazon publishing adventure. I haven’t been very keen on ebooks, because reading the phone screen for any length of time hurt my eyes. DH finally got me to try light type in a black background and it is much more comfortable for me. Some of the best books ever written were written for children. Arthur Ransome’s Swallows and Amazons series is a favorite of mine. :flowerforyou:

    Sylvia: Congratulations on making it to the 180’s!:flowerforyou:

    Juanita in Sudbury: Thanks for telling us about Yummly. :flowerforyou:



    Nothing is set in stone where my daughter’s health and the upcoming birth of her son is concerned, but we seem to have settled on a plan and I can start looking for airline tickets.

    Katla in beautiful NW Oregon

    “Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” Thomas A. Edison


    August Goals:
    1. Log every bite and swallow.
    2. Cardio exercise at least 3 days a week.
    3. Have fun every day.
    4. Drink at least three glasses of water daily, preferably more!
  • Cindy781
    Cindy781 Posts: 499 Member
    Good morning ladies!

    Today I did strength for lower body, I will treadmill next. Hubby couldn't find the right size shrimp so I made salmon and roasted veggies. Maybe next trip. Today I'm planning to make pasta with some roasted vegetables and an olive oil sauce. I will make the sauce using garlic, soy bacon, onions and whatever else looks good in the frig. I will add some roasted veggies and spinach when I plate it.,

    Anne, I always put my own touch to my drawings. This drawing is challenging because the face will be small in order to fit the cow in, I will be forced to do more impressionistic style on the facial expression instead of detailed. I'm enjoying the challenge.

    Heather, I loved the movie The Best Marigold Hotel too. I just saw the trailer for the sequel and am looking forward to it.

    Sylvia, big congrats on your loss!

    Juanita, I've heard of Yummly, now I will check it out.

    Michele, I've never tried to freeze mushrooms. They might be good in soups after being frozen. I usually buy them when I plan to use them since they don't keep well.

    I don't remember who mentioned moon pies. My Dad loved those!

    Time to treadmill. Have a wonderful day everyone!

    Cindy in OK
  • :happy: Hi Ia Sue

    I am new ro the site I am 57 and I habe put on mega weight on since herniating a disk and could not move for almost 3 months, Been told Pilates is good to strengthen backs any one any comments on this Please Sx:smile:
  • Katla49
    Katla49 Posts: 10,385 Member
    :happy: Hi Ia Sue

    I am new ro the site I am 57 and I habe put on mega weight on since herniating a disk and could not move for almost 3 months, Been told Pilates is good to strengthen backs any one any comments on this Please Sx:smile:

    My DIL had significant back issues and started taking Therapeutic Pilates. They changed her life to the extent that she's become a Therapeutic Pilates instructor herself. Her transformation is amazing and encouraging. I've taken Pilates, but I don't think the "instructor" had any certification, and I didn't like the experience. Find someone reputable with verifiable credentials. Go for it! :flowerforyou:
  • MimiPersists
    MimiPersists Posts: 94 Member
    Woo hoo, Sylvia. That's wonderful. You are an inspiration.

    Heather, you've done so many interesting things and know so many interesting people. Thanks for telling us about it in your posts so we can do a little vicarious living.

    Ready for the day (it's 9 am in California). Barbie, this is probably time for a mid-day siesta (if you take such a thing), lol. DGD has promised an hour of housecleaning. I'm excited! She's only 10 but she's a great little organizer and cleaner. She can use the extra money that I'll pay her too. She's all about shopping for back-to-school clothes.

    My, she's picky though. We went to TJ Maxx last night. There were exactly 2 shirts that she was willing to try on. Part of the difficulty is that clothes need to meet Waldorf (the school she goes to) standards. That means no graphics and no logos bigger than your finger. She cracks me up in general though. Everything has to look and be "just so." She's 10 going on 16.

    We tried the compressed air on Izzy (my little dog) when she was jumping up against express orders. It worked. Poor dog. :laugh:

    I had the difficult :ohwell: problem last night of not having eaten enough calories or gotten in enough nutrients :noway: . I had a piece of steak thawed in the fridge. Izzy would normally have been the beneficiary as I'm cutting down on saturated fats. Oh well. Poor Izzy again, lol. I enjoyed every (guilty) bite.

    Mimi
    :heart:
  • mollywhippet
    mollywhippet Posts: 1,890 Member
    Juanita, thanks for recommending Yummly. I just downloaded the app for ipad and it seems really nice. It even has preferences where I can list my fish allergy, so it will recommend recipes without fish. I wish it had a low salt diet preference. I'm having fun looking at all the beautiful food that I can't/won't eat.

    Here is the joke of the day:

    :happy:


    Pete and Larry had not seen each other in many years. Now they had a long talk trying to fill in the gap of those years by telling about their lives. Finally Pete invited Larry to visit him in his new apartment. "I got a wife and three kids and I'd love to have you visit us."

    "Great. Where do you live?"

    "Here's the address. And there's plenty of parking behind the apartment. Park and come around to the front door, kick it open with your foot, go to the elevator and press the button with your left elbow, then enter! When you reach the sixth floor, go down the hall until you see my name on the door. Then press the doorbell with your right elbow and I'll let you in."

    "Good. But tell me...what is all this business of kicking the front door open, then pressing elevator buttons with my right, then my left elbow?"

    "Surely, you're not coming empty-handed."

    :laugh:

    Sylvia
  • MimiPersists
    MimiPersists Posts: 94 Member
    BTW, speaking of DGD being 10 (just) going on 16...she's actually very age-appropriate in most areas. She bought a Samsung tablet the other day for her birthday, with birthday money and money she'd saved up over the last year. She decided to return it and use the money to build a tree fort. Way to go!!!

    M
  • cityjaneLondon
    cityjaneLondon Posts: 12,674 Member
    I just could not resist using up the two "aged" egg whites I had left. (You are supposed to leave egg whites out for a day or two for macarons):ohwell: I was going to have a day off fancy cooking.:ohwell:
    So I now have three beautiful meringues.:happy: They are the type with the chewy interior.:smile:
    I am glad to say they went straight into the freezer for visitors.:bigsmile: They did look magnificent though and I'm not even a sweet lover.:love: I did have a little lick of the mixing spoon.:embarassed:

    Dinner is bolognese sauce from the freezer, :bigsmile: , roasted butternut squash, and chard from the garden. A sprinkle of parmesan. I will add a trail of chilli sauce to the top of mine.:bigsmile:
    Then our own gooseberries and our own apples, stewed with blackberries DH picked yesterday from the hedgerows. :bigsmile: DH does all the fruit. With homemade yoghourt.
    Kim - did you enjoy the yoghourt you made and did you make any more?

    I am going to whizz up a soup for my friend on Monday with some of the butternut squash, butter beans, onions I have roasting and some tinned tomatoes. Turkey stock made from the Christmas carcase.:laugh: I will do that tomorrow.

    Katla - today I emailed a company in Scotland that can produce Word docs or Kindle compatible docs from typed pages. Just to get an idea of their prices. Our local company had no idea what I was talking about, but the software is all over the internet!:noway:

    Love Heather in soon to be rsining Hampshire UK
  • dinaesia
    dinaesia Posts: 54 Member
    CynthiaT60'
    Get your mom a pair of crocs or flip-flops with a cushy sole to wear in the shower. A bit bothersome to step out of and wash the toes, but they will stand up to water use. In the military hospitals, the soldiers use flip-flops for shower shoes. :happy:
  • margaretturk
    margaretturk Posts: 5,244 Member
    Sylvia !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • megblair1
    megblair1 Posts: 1,225 Member
    Hello my friends. What a frustrating Saturday. I’m trying to make ONE little edit on a pdf file for the book and can’t do it. I have downloaded all sorts of their free products and they don’t work and you can’t buy it on line except per month. If I buy the program outright the publisher will reimburse me but not for a month-to-month purchase that I probably won’t need again for months! So now DH is headed to Best Buy to buy it outright.

    I did okay last night with pizza. We had a pizza cut into squares instead of wedges and I had 4 squares, so I think that’s about 2 slices. I had salad and ½ plain vanilla ice cream. Not bad. We watched Robin Hood Men in Tights…I had never seen the whole thing before. It was pretty funny.

    Heather your bbq sounds like it will be wonderful! I hope the weather holds out for you

    Vicki: I did see the news about the Kearney hospital. What a mess! It could have been much worse though. Yes, other grandmother is planning to help the kids financially which is not going to be encouraging them to become self-sufficient.

    Sylvia; I don’t have osteoporosis either but have shrunk due to the discs in my spine compressing as I age. So it can happen without the bone disease. Good thing you don’t have that! My mom must have had bones of steel because she (and dad) fell constantly—including down stairs-- and she never broke a thing. Glad the kids got a good start to the school year. I never understood the thing with dogs and bikes either! Great joke!

    Kim: your stuffed zuc recipe sounds good; I may have to try that!

    Katla: I tend to be an over-worrier myself! I hate those companies that take advantage of having access to debit your account by adding on services. That has happened several times. Now I make my automatic payments strictly through the bank.

    Carol: I hope you have fun at your dinner!

    Tere: my dh and I were married later too. I had baggage from a violent first time around and his baggage was that at 45, he had never been married! Our greatest challenge was him and me realizing that he was so used to just doing what he wanted that he didn’t think about me! I had to learn to understand that habit while he learned to break it!

    Mimi: your suggestion is a good one and one that I had thought of. I have already given DD her one warning that if I even have a suspicion that the child is not being cared for properly I will call CPS. I can’t be the grandma who cares for the kid day in and day out, but I can spot signs of neglect with the best of them.

    Sue: wow what a welcome home! No wonder you are tired! Get some extra rest!

    Anne: why are you not allowed to have cats? Can you call the police about dogs off the leash? We have leash laws here and the humane society will intervene pretty quickly for running dog complaints. We have had a couple of horrific child –dog run ins where the child has been severely mauled by dogs running loose.

    Michele: your D must stand for “pretty D***ed good! LOL. Actually I have never met the other grandmother nor do I even know her name. I agree with the selfishness part…and it goes around to all three of them. I assume I will get to meet her sometime! It’s very strange; the kids have never had us over and she has never attempted to make contact with us. So who knows. But I agree that if she is too involved they will be in a crisis when she dies.

    Barbie thank you once again for continuing the thread!

    Renny: thank you for the kind words. So many people have asked me not to poke my eyes out that I will agree. I do reserve the right to fall on a spear though!

    Cynthia: The other grandmother actually lives about 50 miles away in another town. The other grandfather is not in the picture. We hope the dad does grow up some; he at least seems to have some common sense. My almost-22 year old daughter just changed her name again, like you do in grade school. I almost deleted her email yesterday because I didn’t recognize the sender! That’s her maturity level. Maybe mom can wear shower shoes or the kind of shoes you wear while swimming? I have some from Lands End that are very comfortable. The wrist strap with the fit bit is pretty comfy too. I don’t even notice I have it on.

    Sylvia: CONGRATS!!!!!

    Juanita: I have been on that site and it’s pretty good!

    Mimi: my daughters were horrible about being picky! They were so bad once a saleslady said she could no longer work with us! They were so bad people stopped what they were doing to actually laugh at them. I finally had enough…I know part of the problem was the styles were so different from what they saw in Russia. So I put up with it longer than I would normally have. But one day I just walked out of the store. Startled, they ran after me. I said “no more shopping. You’ll get what I buy you from Good will and that’s it.” So I stuck with that for a while and they learned their lesson! When we started shopping again, my rules were 1) you try on anything I suggest you try on and 2) you have to have a concrete reason for not liking something. Well low and behold, they learned that some things look much better on you than on a hanger. They also had to start helping me by being specific “I don’t like plaid” v. “That’s just ugly.” I kept picking stuff they didn’t’ like because I had no idea what they did and didn’t like and they wouldn’t tell me. Now things are much better when we shop.

    OK I need to get busy. It’s cool and dreary here today with rain in the forecast for the entire week. My cold seems better. I need more water though. I nearly totally stop drinking when I am sick; seems to make me feel worse. Oh (and ugh!) the baby’s name will be Nikita even though she is a girl.

    Take care, Meg from Omaha trying to think nice grandma thoughts.
  • MimiPersists
    MimiPersists Posts: 94 Member
    Meg, keep thinking those nice Grandma thoughts. Names are very different now and it's hard to get used to. You should hear my mom moan and groan over some of the new names. Our names were much better, lol. The latest additions to the family are Asher, Malachai, Ansel and Eisley. We also have a Mason but that seems pretty normal! The funniest thing is that, as hard as our kids and grands are trying to name their kids something different, sure enough those names will become popular!

    You would have laughed to see me working to create that family cookbook, with nine kajillion photos and graphics, using MS Word. That was not a pretty sight. I ended up dividing the cookbook into a bunch of files, one for each chapter. I should have learned one of the appropriate programs but was daunted by the thought.

    Mimi

    I'll close with the first 3 "Food Rules" by Michael Pollan. (From the book of the same name. He's a terrific author, btw, for those who haven't heard of him.)

    EAT FOOD.

    DON'T EAT ANYTHING YOUR GREAT-GRANDMOTHER WOULDN'T RECOGNIZE AS FOOD.

    AVOID FOOD PRODUCTS CONTAINING INGREDIENTS THAT NO ORDINARY HUMAN BEING WOULD KEEP IN THE PANTRY.

    :heart:
  • skuehn48
    skuehn48 Posts: 3,024 Member
    Hello all: I got up this morning and went horseback riding in the indoor arena as it was threatening rain. My poor horse looked a little surprised when I brought out the saddle as she has not been ridden for about four weeks but we had a good ride. Some poor guy is camping out at the stable as his truck broke down while he was hauling his horse out to the Black Hills. He was hoping the truck would be fixed today. Hope he and his horse get on their way soon but at least they are well taken care of.

    I already have over 8000 steps today!!! I will catch up with my DD yet.

    Sylvia - Yeah for you getting into the 180s!!!

    Kim - Would have loved to have met up with you but we were on a very tight schedule that weekend with my mom's 90th birthday party in Discovery Bay. We went to the church and then back to a potluck immediately after.

    Words to remember - Don't let go of hope. Hope gives you strength to keep going, even when you fell like giving up. Sue in SD
  • janemartin02
    janemartin02 Posts: 2,653 Member
    Have a great sat!!!
    hugs
    jane
  • GodMomKim
    GodMomKim Posts: 3,703 Member
    Barbie – I have been working on making the decision to get a smart phone too!!

    Cynthia – shower shoes, or flip flops… I have great open rubber and Velcro sandals for beach walking with lots of padding – you could sit and wash your feet then put these on and be really comfy!

    Heather – would you be comfortable sharing the name of a kid’s book you wrote, it would be fun to read it.

    Sylvia - Congrats!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:love::flowerforyou: :love: :flowerforyou: :bigsmile: :love: :flowerforyou: :bigsmile:


    August goals :
    Stretch 5 minutes a day xxxx
    Walk 45 minutes a day 13 times
    Do Heather’s abc balance 1 time a week 2 weeks done

    Kim from N. California
  • jmkmomm
    jmkmomm Posts: 3,247 Member
    Cynthia, I know you may find it a bit extreme but have you considered a shower chair? I have the fitbit one and love it. I think it has all the things on the flex and other kinds but it is worn either clipped onto your pocket, waistline or I just put it inside my pocket. I don't use the little clipper thing. My cat chewed up my first one so I had to get used to just putting it in my pocket. You can also just put it in your bra. I worried about getting it wet but I put it in a baggie like someone suggested here and it worked fine. I do not use it while I am showering though so I cut off a few steps that way. It comes with a wrist band for night time and I just keep it right by the bath tub and put it on as soon as I get out of the shower.

    Heather, we all know a famous person!!!!! My SIL has many published books. They are all pretty boring to the everyday person since they are on church media but he sells them through Amazon and Kindle.

    Sylvia, doing the happy dance for you!!!!! Congrats. You are no longer a plateau princess.

    Mimi, I am glad the compressed air helped you with your fur baby. It will eventually get so that you just pick up the can and not have to spray.

    Heading into a wet and rainy period. I think we have 7 out of the next 8 days that have rain predicted. Of course when they do a 10 day forecast things can change pretty quickly and the forecast many times. I decided to test the recumbent bike and see how many MPH it can go. If I push it real hard it goes 20 MPH. Of course I could only do that for a few seconds. I am going to have to devise a better way of holding onto my Ipad when I am riding the bike. I don't want to hold it. I need a way of clipping it on the bike so i don't have to hold it.

    Joyce, Indiana
  • grandmallie
    grandmallie Posts: 10,062 Member
    afternoon ladies,
    long long day..and ate way to much, ate bad bad stuff.. but tasted real real good...my DFIL had a nice time but didnt get him back until about 5:45 so he was exsuasted...he got to see his sister, and brother, and sister in law, but of course he couldnt remember who anyone else was...
    I am going to speak with the nurses early next week and see what plan of action to take with my DFIL, I want to get him into a facility that can deal with the dementia ,there is one across the river from us about 10 minutes away, so I am going to go check that out...I will speak to my SIL also since they are the POA,but if we are going to move him, it has to be before he really gets going and out of it. want to settle him in to somewhere were he can adjust well, and have people to talk to..
    well I will have to brush up on the eating tomorrow.. I ate sugar stuff, I ate a roll with butter, chicken parm, pasta salad.. but drank a boat load of water...Oh well tomorrow is another day...
  • MimiPersists
    MimiPersists Posts: 94 Member
    There aren't many of us who are feeling chatty today. Must be the weekend. Or...just maybe...I'm chatty because I'm procrastinating. I'm getting ready to go down to Walnut Creek for a few days. That's usually fun but I'm not crazy about the transition.

    Barbie, I got a smart phone a month or two ago. The only thing not smart about it is the user. I'm signed up to 2 Verizon classes next week. You're lucky to have a pal to share the pain with.

    I just made, and ate, a huge salad. It was way more trouble than it was worth. I usually like my odd creations but this one was just meh. This leaves me with just 300+ calories for dinner...the opposite problem from yesterday.

    Mimi:heart:
  • yoyonomore55
    yoyonomore55 Posts: 350 Member
    Bump

    Deb A in CNY
  • RebelRenny
    RebelRenny Posts: 1,073 Member
    Mimi...I feel chatty too, but can't seem to wrap my mind about how to get the words transferred from mind to computer. I thought I might get better on the tablet, but that was worse. I know when I want to go back on something I write on the tablet to change it, it gets all messed up and won't let me get back to the spot I want to get back to. Okay, enough of this nonsense.

    I was telling DH this afternoon - after a bike ride and over a glass of wine - how impressed I am with the caliber of ladies on this forum. I mean, let's face it, it is quite amazing: we have a collection of writers, bikers (well, bicycle riders mostly :bigsmile: ), chefs, medical experts, dancers, travelers, walkers (I mean those who walk:bigsmile: ). There are women in various stages of physical (dis)abilities, mental states, goofy states as well as global states. Some are single, some widowed, some divorced and some married. No kidding, how eclectic a bunch we are. What has been keeping us together is not just our similar stage of life in terms of age, but also our sense of respect and encouragement for each other's struggles and successes.

    Saturdays are typically rest days for me, and so was today. The weather here has been amazing. We recently had some rain. And you would think living in a rain forest would suggest it rains all the time, but here it does not. We have a lengthy period of dryness in the summer. This includes water restrictions from May to September, so our lawn is yellow.

    Okay, back to it being Saturday (my, I am more chatty than usual). DH and I went for a bike ride. 10k one way, 10k back. We have road bikes. I warned him that the way back would be against the wind and uphill. He realized that only fully when it happened. He said that my legs are stronger than his. And that from a guy who is always on his feet, puttering in the garden and keeping up the grounds. Thank you endorphins for the afterglow. After the first 10k I suggested we drop in at the 6-mile Pub (yes, that is its name) for a cool refreshing drink. So that is what we did and DH had a BLT. Now I am waiting for our stir-fry for dinner.

    Am I rambling yet?

    Tomorrow, DD is coming over with two cute little boys, one a 3 year old and one 2 month old. Furthermore, I get to babysit them on Monday, when I have a day off, while mom goes for a massage appointment. This Oma loves cuddling with her wee little grandbabies. Last Wednesday I dropped in on DS and DDIL to cuddle with little 13 month old grand daughter. She is walking. No surprise there. She is a little go-getter.

    I finally feel like I am totally over the cruddy flu that plagued me for 2 months (jb understands, and so do some others who were affected and afflicted by this nasty bleh). So, I made a dentist appointment to get some crowns done in early September. I had postponed that because of the nasty circumstances. I also feel well enough to get back to Jazzersize, and sign up for a 10k (don't worry, it is walking, not running). Oh yeah, the Rebel is back.

    My mom sounded really good when I called her today. She is back to her feisty self at 91, although confused and confusing. When I told her we had been talking for almost 40 minutes, she was surprised. I am enjoying her being so well. Such a load off my mind.

    Our neighbours are having a yearly event this weekend, and we have many cars parked everywhere on our dead-end street. There will be a band, drinking, playing games and partying. Tents will be pitched for people to stay overnight, because no one wants to see drunk people trying to drive away after the party. We were warned and invited to participate (smart neighbour :bigsmile: :bigsmile: ). Should be lots of fun. :laugh:

    DH says I should get a smart phone too (mimi, barbie). I have this really, really old fashioned flip phone. I have a hard time even finding where to find the ring tones. :tongue: :tongue: Time to step up and become part of the smart generation, me-thinks.

    On another note, I am reading 3 books on the brain. How it works, does not work and how it works in a weird kind of way.

    Have a lovely evening for those who have an evening left.

    Renny
    Vancouver Island, BC



    Time to quit my rambling.