WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR JUNE 2023

It's Monday morning at my house

Karen you know I am SO excited that you are having a monthly lunch with Marcella Fierro. And I admit, a bit jealous, lol. Please let us know if you hear some juicy forensic pathology story

I was able to download "A World of Curiosities" yesterday. It was the only one readily available at the library. I'm over half way through it. After having watched the series, I can better envision what Gamache might look like and the area. Anyhow, it works for me. I know the series took liberties with the storyline and characters but that's OK.

Allie - I'm glad, for your sake, that Miles will be able to attend daycare earlier than the beginning of next year. I'm sure you'll be able to see him a lot. Also glad that Carmine has Seth in her life. Hope your computer is A-OK. In my experience, sometimes these computer whizzes get everything up to snuff but don't take into consideration that we mere mortals need some guidance on how to navigate changes.

Flea - Thrilled to hear your "stable" report. In fact, I've become satisfied with "stable" in most areas of my life. By the way, a good friend of mine and his wife attended the same concert you and your DH went to in Bend. You probably sat beside Jerry and Annette, lol.

Betsy - safe travels!

Lisa - what a shame to hear about your young friend. So sorry modern medicine couldn't pull him out of it. Thoughts and prayers for the family. I bet your sunblock curtains will help a lot.

Barbara - I enjoy reading about Joe's developing interest in health. I can't change the past but I think DH might have lasted longer and been happier if he would have eaten better.

Ginny - I'll be anxious to hear how your visits to communities turn out. So far I think Karen's sounds nifty. There's one in our community with a long waiting list, I'm not ready to move yet and might not be for years. But it's fun to look and keep on top of prices for these places. (YIKES!)

I ran across this regarding talking and alzheimer's:
I'm not sure it's true - I've known people with dementia who live in environments with plenty of opportunity to talk. But I thought it made excellent points about the benefits of talking - stimulates our brains, helps our breathing, helps relieve stress. Nothing wrong with that.

And that's what got me thinking about being isolated. Only talking to the dog, cat and chickens is pretty one-way. The planning committee in my head helps some, but I really miss the practical advice DH would give me. What should we do about the _______ (roof, car, weeds, etc.) Should I be worrying about it or is it no big deal? 99% of the time he had a good response. I'm lucky to have Roger across the street who is helpful. The sunshine and good weather seem to brighten up my outlook, may have to consider actually communicating more with humans this winter.

Debbie - So good to see Destiny smiling. Your parents live in a beautiful area near the ocean. When we first moved here to WA State in 1977, island and ocean front property wasn't desirable. We could have picked up a nice lot for very little, if we'd have had the money to spare and the desire to take a ferry every time we wanted to go there. This was before Microsoft and other tech companies made overnight millionaires.

Beaches: When I was a teen in Northern Indiana, the beach hot spot was Indiana Dunes on the tip of Lake Michigan, south of where Kelly lives. Huge sandy beach and very, very high sandy dunes to climb. It might as well have been an ocean. I've dipped my toes in both the Atlantic (Chesapeake Bay) and the Pacific (various Washington beaches). Not sure I could live there full time because of the wind, but I love the energy there.

Tracking expenses: I keep an Excel spreadsheet loosely modeled after Quickbooks with columns for budget items to keep track of how much I'm spending for food, utilities, car expense, taxes, insurances, etc. I'm not real strict about adhering but it's been a wake-up call when I get too busy with Amazon, lol. I rarely write checks, sometimes pay cash and sometimes use the credit card. So this spreadsheet pulls all expenses together.

It's going to be a warm sunny day, so mowing the front yard is on the agenda - hopefully after lunch. I have Nellybelle gassed up and ready for action as soon as the dew dries the grass. And dandelions.

Have a great week!

Lanette
SW WA State

Lanette, interesting article about talking and Alzheimer’s. I agree with you. I’m not sure I agree. What I have noticed though, is a correlation between memory failing and withdrawing from conversation. As in, the desire to have conversation diminishes because of the fear of being caught in a memory lapse.

Beth, the same thought occurred to me regarding checkbooks and monitoring your spending. Regardless of whether you write checks or use other payment methods, you either write these things down and know your bank balance or you don’t. I don’t like relying on the bank to tell me how much money I have available for spending. I like to keep these records for myself. It doesn’t matter if it’s a paper and pencil register or a spreadsheet. If you keep it, you keep it.

Lisa, hugs, my dear, on the loss of your friend.

I had not measured myself in a while, so I decided to do it this morning. I was shocked to see I had lost 8 lbs and 5 inches since Jan 1.