WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR JULY 2017

Dr. Katie: I love your wedding picture! My wedding was at the Oregon Coast in a public park where we overlooked the ocean and whales were going by. I wore a dress my mom made for me, and I still have it somewhere. It was March 21, 1970, during the first Saturday of spring break and we were given the gift of absolutely gorgeous weather. My cat was there on a leash, and the photographers brought their dog. DMIL brought us baby clothes and furniture. My husband was furious. The baby she was sure I was carrying was born six years later.


Thank you to everyone for the wonderful birthday wishes. Pip, I like the idea of barking if I want to. I've had a great day so far. DH took me to the County Fair and we had a good day watching 4H horsemanship, seeing plants, quilts, bunnies & chickens, and doing all the fun things at a fair. I even ate an Elephant Ear and I'll be sure to say within my calories despite it.

Katla in beautiful NW Oregon

Tibetan proverb: "The secret to living well and long is: Eat half, walk double, laugh triple and love without measure..."

Machka – Do you have a room that you could use one wall as an accent wall and hang up your bikes and other biking stuff? Just a thought. On “Fixer Upper” they took an old rusty bike and cut some of the parts in ½ and hung it up on the wall in the study. It was a most unusual art piece.

Next year when I get the chairs paid off, we’ll find a sofa; but, will have the same problem of finding one that fits us (not too deep or too high). I’ve sat on some really ‘cute’; but, totally ‘miserable’ sofas in the store. A sofa bed by LazyBoy fits and it would be able to be used as a 3rd room for sleeping especially when Will, Tami, and Mallory come; or if the kids come over to ‘ride out a storm’. I will probably get something with a pattern or texture since all the other chairs ‘look’ a solid cover but one of the platform rockers and the stool has a texture and pattern to it; and, the wingback has some texture.

Tami planned her own wedding and bought a dress (beautiful) for $125. A lot of her co-workers did a lot of other things to help them out. Her BF, in the wedding, took all the posed pictures, and, someone else was taking casual ones. The only thing they did not get a picture of was of them on their first dance or his dance with Mallory (who walked her Mama down the aisle and ‘joined’ them in marriage (she did not ‘give’ her away. She did have a hardback book of wedding pictures made up and gave it to us the following Christmas. Of course, that was when I was at my heaviest and I had on ‘flats’ after the wedding because the ground was so soggy I could not walk in heels. Will’s BF from college and Trey were his only grooms and I don’t think that Trey was the best man.

Lanette and Becca – In HS, my sister and the others in the ‘drama club’ put on “Arsenic and Old Lace” but, for the life of me I can’t remember what it was about. I do remember that sister brought in one of her ‘teacup services’ and Maria (the one who lied like a dog all the time) dropped it (on purpose). She was like that, and would act all innocent about things. At least it wasn’t one of Margaret’s most prized one. She collected antique teacup services in HS. Daddy and Mother bought her the prettiest mahogany china cabinet with diamond shaped glass in the doors.

KJ – We’re also Catholic; Louis would prefer to be buried and has also told me to just put in him a ‘pine’ box. Thinking of it (death) and funeral … I know it would be less expensive to be cremated. I think I will just leave that up to Louis and the boys. Either way, my ‘soul’ isn’t going to be around; and, I have not been back to the cemetery but once, and that was when my BF from HS’s mother died. Spanky the funeral director showed me where they were buried; and, it is a cemetery where they only allow a plack. I can remember my Mother telling my oldest sister that she wanted ‘all’ her affiantions on a plack; of course, she did not get it. It’s a good thing we didn’t even know them (other than Women’s Club and DAR). When one of my first friends’ mother died, she sent me a plate that my mother had paid in china painting class and a roll of adding machine paper that was literally 5’ long, listing all the achievements for announcing her to others. OMGoodness, I would have fallen asleep before she even got to make her speech. But, it was interesting to see what all she had done since my first year in HS. Little wonder that she was rarely at home.

My middle granddaughter’s birthday is 12/24. I was supposed to go in the labor room; but, she changed her mind. Taylor’s birth was a C-section so only 2 could be in there, Trey was one, and a friend who filmed it was the other. But, I was in when Emilee was born; but, I stayed up beside her; she got SOOOO upset with her Mama for ‘looking’ while the baby was actually being born. I thought she was going to curse her out, she kept screaming at her. She is overly ‘modest’. I remember once Trey threw the girls in the shower with her, because as he told her ‘they needed to know’ what they were going to ‘look like’ when they got mature. Boobs and pubic hair. I don’t know who was the most ‘mortified’ … she or the girls. None of them expected it.

Becca – Acid Reflux maybe? I know that I cannot ‘eat’ one of my ‘protein bars’ at any other time than in the evening after supper with coffee. If I do, it makes me nauseous; but, I can have a shake anytime … they don’t upset my tummy.

Karen in Virginia – I think flowers at a funeral are a waste; I want mine while I am still alive so I can ‘enjoy’ them. I rarely send the normal funeral sprays; I don’t even buy ‘cut flowers’. I will send a nice plant; but, ask that they NOT send a peace lily – you have to keep them damp all the time. Not wet, just damp to prevent them from drooping over.

Katla – I don’t think ‘living with family’ even on a short-term basis is good. I know we lived with our son and DDnL#1 while we were building our house. Nothing I did or said was ‘right’ and Jenn *kitten* about us (especially me) being there and what she called ‘snooping’. I wasn’t snooping; all I did was put the dishes in the dishwasher and wash them and make up all the beds. Something I do at home. I could not figure out how their TVs worked (with 3 remotes) and I would call son to find out how to get it to a station. When he turned it on in the morning, that was ok; but, at noon when the ‘soap operas’ came on I was stuck. I finally cried enough that Louis had my 16’x20’ studio and we set up our king-sized bed; and stacked all the boxes that had been in storage. Had our TV set up with DirecTV, a small two-burner oven top and our coffee maker. We used my porta-potty from when I had my wreck. It was outside the door, had a lid and Louis would empty it out into the woods, wash it out, and I would go over to their house only to take a shower. We would have been tearing each other’s hair out by the roots if we had continued staying there.

My Mother was heavy (really heavy considering she was really short); someone pulled the wool over her eyes to rent to own one of those 3-wheeled scooters. When my sister came down, she ‘flipped out’ and told mother she could NOT keep it, too unstable; and we bought her one of those rolling walkers that had a seat. We also bought/rented actually one of those recliners that would stand you up or lay you back so she was able to get into it and get out. It took us several months or working with her, so she’d stop trying to get up before it actually ‘stood her up’. I just don’t want to be a burden on my family. I know Trey (and maybe even Jenn) would come over and check on me … I’d just hate to lose my ability to drive (for any reason). Even now Louis will not let me drive on the Interstate to Macon to see one of my MDs, he takes off, we meet some of my HS friends and some of their spouses for lunch, go to Bass Pro Shop, and to the MD’s office then back home. Usually on trips he doesn’t want me to drive either. That will never change.

I think if I was wheelchair bound, I would want one of those the make for wounded vets; the one with the movement area like on a tank.

Both of us are donors; but, I am sure there isn’t going to be much other than my eye parts will ever be usable. I cannot even donate blood due to the issue with my first pregnancy.

Allie – You’re just a nurse-maid for anyone who asks you. That can be good; but, you’ve been sick so you need to take care of yourself. I know it will be something you have to learn; but, occasionally you just have to ‘admit’ that you’re sick and are afraid of ‘exposing’ someone to what you have.

The funeral director in my home town is very laid back; but, he is also the only funeral home in town, other than the black one.

O.J. Simpson should NOT benefit from what he has been accuse of; he owes Nichole and Ron’s families millions of dollars. He should just go off and be a quiet person and not go for charging for taking selfies or signing autographs. Whoever has to be beside him to make sure he doesn’t collect without turning over the allotted percentage is going to have their hands full. I’ll be surprised if he stays ‘out of prison’ for long. At least in there he did not have to worry about paying for his upkeep. We did. If he has money put up; then someone is going to find out about it.

Katla – We’re going to make a wide loop through NOLA and Texas before going to Will and Tami’s. Then we will spend Rosh Hashanah in Daytona Beach with sisters and spouses/SO. Both will be a lot of fun!

Machka – Both Louis and I are drawn to ‘earthy tones’ … maybe more because he is an outdoorsman. Hunting and fishing.

Joyce – Your house looks so much better with all that tall landscaping cut down. Is it just you and your husband living there? Sure hope y’all have a MBR on the main floor. I grew up in a 2-story house and there were 2 sets of stairs going up; both had doors so that when all of us moved out, they had a way to shut off the 2nd story; and, they had already moved their bedroom downstairs after Daddy fell UP the stairs and broke his leg.
If I had had my way, I would have used basically the first house we bought after being transferred back to Albany because the market had exploded and it was what we could afford. We made the best out of it. It had so much charm; but, Louis did not want a 2nd story. He did not even want a ‘split-level’; I wasn’t wild about the split-level we had in Macon; but, only having a part of the house as the ‘living area’ is sure easier to keep clean/straighter when you can put stuff out of sight.

Michele – A root beer float is the only kind I ever liked. There is just something about the mixture of root beer and vanilla ice cream.

You basically ‘don’t have any control’ over what Denise’s soon-to-be MnL talks her into. She must be very ‘impressionable’ to go along with the things she tells her to do. Then she wants to run it by you; but, then takes her future MnL’s idea. But, at some point, maybe Denise will understand why you feel the way you do. I can’t imagine what will happen if they have a child. But, there again … that also isn’t anything you can do anything about.

Dana – I will write down the name of Trudy’s since we will be going to Austin, TX on our vacation.

Aw, such a cute picture of your Husband and the ‘baby’ of the house. I even wear my Cpap when I am just taking a nap. Usually, if I happen to fall asleep in my chair, I will wake up in a ‘start’ as if someone has covered my face with something. Last year, my DDnL#2 said that I scared her when I stopped breathing for more than a minutes
Louis cracked up and could not even talk at the gravesite when his Mother died. He started with how she had driven him around on his paper route when it was raining and she did not even have a license to drive. Basically, that was a learning lesson for them. I’m sure that if his Dad had not been off in the service he would have made him take his bike anyway.

Re – I just do not want for whoever is speaking at my funeral to take the opportunity to ‘preach’ to others. Our neighbor did that when he spoke at another neighbor’s funeral. To me, it was totally inappropriate as were his ‘comments’ about the ‘pine box’ he was in. Nobody would have even know it, if he had not made a point about him ‘choosing it’, and it wasn’t that he could not afford any better. What a prick.

Machka – Beautiful area for a wedding; and, it isn’t important to have a bunch of people at a wedding; you’ve got great pictures and memories.

Becca – That reminds me of the cemetery (military) one in Marietta, GA where my grandparents were buried. After they got their plots one of her friends wanted to change with her ‘so she could “see” what was going on in town’. Mimi did not mind because where she moved to could be seen from her home. Worked out for both of them. She had moved to Forsyth prior to her death; but, she was taken back to Marietta to be buried. A girl down the street that I would play with (her Dad was the overseer). It was really hilly and we’d go over and ride our bikes since he kept the gated closed for the general public. My Mimi had a nip-ups when she found out that was where we were allowed to play. But, she got over it. We could only ride in the area where he could watch what we were doing and we not allowed to get off bikes or off the roads.

Lenora

jmkmomm wrote: »

. Muscha, just looked at your wedding album. Wow, I opened it expecting to see the traditional white dress and all. But it was a wedding celebrating who you guys are. Loved where you had it, method of transportation, just everything.

Thanks!

My first wedding was the whole white dress in a church with a reception in a hall after ... bridesmaids, decorated car honking through town, flowers, white crepe paper bells, multi-tier cake, etc. etc. It was relatively simple and inexpensive compared to a lot of weddings, but it was traditional.

The one in the wedding album I linked is my second wedding. We had both been married before, and we were both older, and we really didn't want a repeat of the traditional wedding.

He's Australian and was living in Australia then. I'm Canadian, and was living in Canada then. He was planning a visit in August 2008, and about a month before he came, he rang me up and in the course of conversation said, "Why don't we get married while I'm there." Oh ... OK. Good idea. We were planning to spend some time cycling in the Rockies so chose that as our location, and selected the specific location the day before. My mother knew that my cousin (the mayor of Banff then) was a marriage celebrant, so she called him and asked if he'd do it ... and it all just came together.

Because we had met on a long distance cycling event in France, we cycled a century (100 miles) earlier in the day, then everyone (all 6 of us) gathered on the dock late in the afternoon for the ceremony ... then we went out to dinner in one of the restaurants in Jasper.

10 days later he returned to Australia and I returned to university for the final year of my degree.


Machka in Oz

Happy Birthday Katla!

Happy Birthday, Katla!

I am with you on the Elephant Ear = I would have chosen that over cake, any day.

Hugs!!

Re in TX

Happy birthday, Katla!


Joyce: Your house looks really good! So happy for you.

Our wedding was in Waimea Falls Park, a botanical garden on the North Shore of Oahu. We were poor and there wasn't any parental support, so we only invited one girlfriend, and another couple who happened to live near the park. Literally just enough to legally witness. Fortunately for us, one guest was a photographer, so we have exquisite photos of us surrounded by waterfalls and tropical foliage. My girlfriend took the liberty of renting a Lincoln towncar to drive us there, bought the cake and champagne and got us to the airport to catch our flight to Kauai for our weekend honeymoon. Of course in typical Hawaiian fashion, our simple off the rack attire was augmented by fragrant flower leis.

As I write this it occurs to me that Waimea Falls Park would be a lovely and spiritual place to scatter my cremated ashes. I have asked that my organs be donated. I have also asked my family to have a seance every year on my birthday so I can visit from beyond.

Stay well friends. We can do this.

Rori
Colorado Foothills

Marcelyn OMG! Your story about the caskets being loaded up with ice had me laughing!!

When my Aunt's MIL died, she was embalmed and put into a casket but they were 100 miles away from the church and cemetery. So my Uncle, in order to save money, drove the casket in the back of their station wagon to my Grandma's house to spend the night. When my parents went over to my Grandmas house the next morning, there it was parked in the driveway!! At least they threw a tarp over it! I can't imagine keeping my mother in the driveway overnight!

When my Dad died, my mom had him cremated. She didn't want to pick up the urn, so I had to. It was kind of weird. So I strapped him in on the front seat next to me! I kept him at my house until we drove him from Austin to Ft. Sam Houston Natl Cemetery in San Antonio for the services. My mom wasn't there when he passed either. She left after last rites. I had to run after her.

So much on death and dying! Eh?

A giant tree roach (3" long) was walking on the ceiling tonight!! He was way up there, about 10' up so I sprayed hornet spray on him. He flew off behind the TV. Still haven't found him! I might have to wash the wall down tomorrow. Bummer!

Have a good evening!
Dana in Arkansas

July Goals for the week 7/16 – 7/22
400 calories under budget 5X: XXXXX
Weights/Abdominals 3X: OXX
Planks 3X: OOX

Hugs for Everybody!

Re in TX

Joyce: Although I don't know you, I have some advice. If your Vet does in fact declaw your cat, find a new Vet because any Vet that will do it now days should have his license revoked. It's not really a matter of removing the cat's "claw"s, they remove all the cat's finger's up to the first knuckle joint. How would you fair in life if someone removed the front thirds of your fingers? This is very painful and torturous. Why not just clip the cat's claws short and keep them that way. Training goes a long ways.

NYKaren: It sounds like glass half full, glass half empty. I think it is flattering. Obviously there are two excellent candidates and each of you is good enough that they could not bear to lose you. I think I would say yes, but be sure that the contract you sign gives you full control. It is a hard decision.