Mt_Rider

I did more laundry and more sorting. I found different swimwear stuff that I'd completely forgotten. When we took mom out to VA, I stayed out there for a week to help her get unpacked/adjusted. We spent July 4 on Bro's boat. Thus the swim suit. Kinda. (how do you tell a "sports bra" from a bra you wear under sporting clothes? ) This one is black and green...whole halter top. Have a polyester tank to go over it. Swim shorts. And a colorful sleeveless "dress" that goes over it all. Probably a better arrangement than the decades-older versions I'd been looking at. We'll see. So I got normal laundry plus more of the clothes-dug-out-of-back-of closet. Still sorting. Nap...needed it. I'm up late again. Talked to mom today and she said she was at the doctor's yesterday. Mebbe? She gets days all mixed up. I GET DAYS ALL MIXED UP. But she doesn't remember if I forget to call. Two days ago she told me she doesn't have a watch - "someone took it". Then today she says the watch band is pinching her. Uh, when did you get that? Hmm.... She also came up with a great idea to eat more. Put milk in chocolate Ensure to thin down the thick texture and strong/sweet taste. Brilliant! ....course I've been telling her that since last November when I was out there..... I've told my brother that too! (if I had to gain weight, I'd use ice cream and turn it into a shake....but that's me.) Okay....I'm getting sleepy. Y'all take good care. MtRider

Love Crocs since they are light and spacious on my feet. I wear my shoes large for some reason. Wore out a pair and used shoe goo to fix it. Still wearing them. Find all of them at thrift stores. Got a pair to take to Maui. Might wear them on the plane. Always barefoot in Iowa childhood. And Maui too. We had a church gathering at a member's house one night. Grande house on the golf course. But the folks were precious. However Harriette did wonder who walked off barefoot without their shoes. Me. On these Rocky Mts...I wear shoes! The crumbling granite is so very sharp. And all there is ...all granite. No lawn. No mowing. Not barefoot but Crocs are the next best thing.....cuz you don't have to bend over to put them on or take them off. I do have compression socks and I'd thot of that. I've been having a weird thing with my legs when I stand too long - like a shower. The legs turn a bright pink - not dark but bright! And the veins are very dark purple. I've scheduled a yearly wellness exam with my primary after we get back. I'd like to know if that's something I need to be concerned about....esp with flying?? I've never had any trouble. It takes and hour and half at least to get to the airport. Flight leaves at 5am. Plane change in Phoenix....and a 5 hour layover. THEN we go to Maui - about 5 hrs flying. Arrive at around 3 in the afternoon. I think those numbers are right. So we'll be heading over to the city early in the afternoon. After dropping dog at the boarder's house. We'll get a hotel/motel ? and go eat early supper with my friend who lives there. Then try to sleep before getting up at 3am. ****can you tell how we got cheap tickets? **** Oye. But we'd have to leave soooo early in the morning, we would not get any sleep. And I am a Nervous Nellie about getting to airport and THRU THE BLASTED SECURITY ...and to the gate well ahead of time. I'm early boarding with wheelchair. {I'm wringing my hands just thinking about airport! } Once I'm at the gate on time....then it's THEIR responsibility to get the plane there. (which they didn't when I flew last Nov. 4 boarding tickets and I never got out of the airport until the next morning. ) Just checked...13.5 hr travel time - includes the layover. Yeah well that's better. MtRider

for Jeepers and your Four Dollar Rebate. And the insurance company paying their part of the house stuff was pretty neat too. So glad for you. This has been an incredibly difficult era for you. It doesn't need to be overly expensive out of your pocket too! AND..... I realllly accomplished things today. {oye, I'll likely pay tomorrow} Oh well, I'm pleased today. Had the Bible study this morning - which wears me out. A lot more sensory overload than I'm used to. But after lunch I began to sort thru clothes - all over. Dug out from back and top of closet. In boxes. All of it. Cuz I need to see what I've got that's appropriate for our Maui trip. The swim suit trial was....interesting. I haven't had those on for...30 years. Oye. I ended up with a couple possibilities...with a cover shirt. Since we'll be stark white with no tan, I bought a long sleeve shirt - polyester or something "silky" that I can wear over the swim suit. 2-piece only but not even near bikini. LOL So I've got some options that fit comfortably. I want to actually be ON the water in a kayak or something but... {excited to see the ocean again....after I see the o'hana, of course!} Anyway, I sorted out clothes from everywhere. I was trying things on for hours. Have things for thrift store donation; things for winter put elsewhere; pile of probably pack for Maui; things that now fit into the drawers..... I have not, however, tackled the hanging clothes in the closet...nor the footwear. That's the next thing. But I'm thrilled to get so much cleared. Course I'm putting a lot into the laundry - ran 2 loads and a blanket today. PROGRESS ...on packing and on Clutter Clearing. .....might be a bit off tomorrow tho. I'm sure that was a load of adrenaline to get that much accomplished when I was gone this morning too. Oh well. I have to keep pushing this. It's been SO long since we went back, got to think in a whole different way than our mountain existence. And then there's the 15 hrs of plane flight to survive. Need to get really creative with that too. MtRider

Sorry you've run into this, BeccaAnne. My parents were/are in their 90's but my dad had ever-increasing dementia/paranoia. It was not fun. Mom is more even tempered so when she gets hissy.... it's quite a shock. She's been coming up with odd stories and reactions to things for the past several years. It's more and more frequent, but most of the time her errors are merely getting the time of day mixed up. { IT'S STILL HARD} The emotions switching up like that is disconcerting - to say the least!! Huh, what? You'll have to be very adaptable...flexible....and you've already noted that. I think my brother is still trying to figure out when to duck&cover and when to relax cuz 'Mom's here in the now today'. Not that "other woman" who can't be satisfied or made happy. But it makes the good times more precious. My mom was MIA tonite when I called. Twice. It was early so she shouldn't have been asleep at 7pm East Coast time. For the past 30 yrs, she and I talked from 10pm til ....up to midnight sometimes. Until she changed time zones to east coast. 2 hrs difference. It's a pain to remember now that the sun sets so much later with the change of season. I've had to set an alarm clock to remind me. Hope she's ok. She wouldn't have had her meds by that time so someone will be in for that....and will see if she's okay. But this is hard to rely on staff when we can't reach her as normal. MtRider ....not exactly enjoying this aspect of this season of life.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIDNIGHT!! Isn't it nice that everyone can eat cake on line..... MtRider don't mind if I do!

Gooood choice! Oye, trying to raise up the next couple generations! I think you're on the right track with GrSon, Little Sister. He has improved and seems to be responsible at his current work. But it's "immediately do this or that and then go home to do what you want". Delayed gratification doesn't seem worthwhile to him? No patience to do something now for benefit later? Lots of folks with that....but they don't do well until they learn it IS worthwhile. Praying ... We had to get up early again (and again tomorrooooow! ) Had to go in to go thru all the procedures to get the little card that authorizes a person to carry little metal bits in their pockets/purses/hip packs/or wherever. And I don't mean coins. I made sure my finger tips were nice and moist. This was are second time around so I knew mine don't "impress" well. Old, dried up person now. With all that's happened in the last couple years, this item lapsed and had to start over. But we're official now again. But we had to get up so EARLY! I hate mornings! I could hardly function and tomorrow is the last Women's Bible Study which is even EARLIER! So I'm gonna get off here and get Hawaiian done quick and get to bed! MtRider ..stay alert folks

Agreed! I had to add an extra filter to my system and then.....as DH said, surprised, " It tastes like milk!" Yep. I've had some goat cheese that I did not like at all. But I made yogurt and a soft cheese from my Nigies! (missss them but I couldn't find a breeder) MtRider ....soooo cute, Euphrasyne! The girl too.

That one tornado looked to be miles WIDE! MtRider

Great day, Becca Anne............. ....until you got to the moccasin! Glad he didn't want to get up close and personal! MtRider Yiiish! I abhor snakes! {toes curled up}

Well....it snowed hard all day. Pouring straight down. Sun is trying to peek out now. Heavy wet stuff. Slides off the car easy! NOT sliding off the 15 steps easy with 8" before I swept the first time. I did the stairs and car. DH went down to let birds out of the duckhouse but not on the pond today. Snowing so hard you had to sweep your way up or down the steps. Had to move part of my Maui sorting pile so we could start the pellet stove. Felt cold/chill and that warms things up. A nap would have been a good idea but the sleepy didn't hit until now....and that's a bit late ...would set back sleeping tonite. So I'll keep struggling til closer to a bedtime and hope to sleep as I normally do. Not sure what was wrong last nite. We did have to drive a long distance for the horse ride. But if I'd get that stiff/sore on that....what's a whole day/night hanging out with airplanes and airports gonna do. Oye. Wow, Little Sister! Seems like you got a lot of wood hauling/stacking done with your knee/shoulder problem. Go carefully .....but if the swelling can go down,, you'll move better. Jeepers: Amazon link. Made in China They make the tiny wood burning ones too but we have grills for outside cooking. We needed something for inside - nasty days like today if we lose power for heating water/etc. Heated up a small pan of water quickly. Remember anyone: Alcohol is okay for INDOORS because it burns clean. HOWEVER that also means that it's hard to SEE THE FLAME! Make sure it's snuffed out with an included tool for doing that. Then there is the regular screw-on leak-proof cap too. Ha! Finally found the link to what we bought: boils water in 8 min https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01GRMMKKM?m=A1V3FYXGEOXN6V&tag=tomtopb-20 This is informative ...even shows very homemade stoves....which I've been meaning to make; saved a few cans; never got it done. Plus I wanted the sturdy stand cuz I'm just a wee bit hyper about pot tipping/fire-in-unwanted-places/& all that!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pexDNx5LtdM As you'll see on Amazon, there are a zillion different types of wood and/or alcohol stoves - tiny for backpacking. Wood won't work inside, of course. Then there are the option of Sterno cans and their structures to set the pans over the Sterno containers. That also looks like a safe idea. Sterno has been around forever and uses the solidified alcohol. No spill. Might be good for shaky hands? Anyway DH is quite pleased to be assured of hot coffee - even if it's instant - during outages. MtRider (mine is tea or cocoa)

Ugh. Due to the weather forecast, we traveled a ways to get a horse ride for me yesterday. Unfortunately, I had muscle spasms all night. ??? The horse was fine; Not a wide horse....a bit strong in the motion she put me in but that's usually a good thing???? I tried Flexeril and added Nuprin in the night. Eventually put some arnica gel on R hip.....slept a bit more. Was overly hot then chilly then hot. That's been happening but it sure doesn't help the sleep. Woke up shivering under all the blankets and gave up. Looked outside - Forecast on this 27th day of April said : snow. Well yeah but.....it's POURING down snow! Trees are heavy. Always on alert to lose electric in the heavy snow. Yesterday one more bit of preparedness arrived. DH had no idea why I wanted an alcohol stove until he got to fiddling with it last nite. He's the one who didn't have any HOT water for coffee last May during our 3 day blackout. So he got really excited about the solution to that problem. I'm sure a few more alcohol bottles will be arriving shortly. We made hot water rather quickly. This one folds down to 2 flat things and the actual container of alcohol. Yep....taking care of the last thing we needed for INSIDE heating of water, at least. Have camping food that needs hot water poured into the packaging to make a 2 person meal. That's WAY head of the game last year. And today is one of those days where power outage is imminent. But not a done deal. Whatever, we're set better now. ....may have to nap today. Achy and Sore...which is unusual enough to wonder if I'm getting sick or something? No time for that!! No time for that! I've got sorting and organizing to do!!!!!! MtRider ...

Annarchy, this isn't an Apple problem. I've got regular PC laptop. I got the white screen last evening, tho I tried a few times. Getting on today normally just now. is it over...whatever problem? Hard to tell. Y'all in the midwest are in for some realllly bad stormy weather in the next few days. Stay safe! We....in the higher elevations of the West....are pouring down snow this day. Were warned it was coming so we traveled yesterday to the much larger town to do my horse ride there. The weather was warm and sunny...then cloudy and threatening rain...then sunny... Yeah, Colorado in Springtime. But it was a good ride. ....watching those heavily-laden pine trees. One snap brings down the power lines but we're prepped for that now. MtRider

You're bad, Necie. I've had a fairly awful day. Not sick but light-headed and blinking...trying to function! It is SO hard to gauge how much is too much. After the fact, it's a little bit more clear. Yet...I'm never quite sure if this or that is too much or I'm just hitting a rough spot. I think the gathering of a lot of women, talking (taking turns/not all at once like the social brunch meetings) .... I guess it's still draining me. So - cost/benefit analysis! I'll still go cuz I can't be a hermit forever. So much to do and I am encouraged by the progress already made. AND ITEMS LOCATED!! I don't think I have anything else on my Find-It list. But I'll start gathering what's going to Maui, etc. Already began a LIST, of course. MtRider ...yuck...just not feeling 'well'... Like I have low blood pressure. Mebbe I'll have DH check that. ??

Well Little Sister, now you've got confirmation of your knee, shoulder. Hope you can get something to ease the pain and increase the function! Do those of you who run low on D3 get any increase if you spend time in the sunshine? Balance between sunshine for D and not sunburn. Mine was low but is fine with a gummy per day. So I'm not experienced with what you're talking about. Ugh! I went to Women's Bible study today. First tho......I spent time trying to clear my hearing aids and put new filter (?) things in. Teeny-Tiny Itty-Bitty parts. And me with hand tremors. (DH would be worse) So I tend to put it off....until the hearing aid doesn't work. Well, I was trying to do it quickly before leaving.....and couldn't get L one in the ear. I had the "tail" on backwards and had forgotten to put on the new flexible, clear plastic thing that covers the very small "bug" in your ear canal. Got it on the first one and oops- forgot on the second. Sheeesh....high level of general competence here! Missing parts are not in the recommended procedure!!! Finally got out the door and was not quite late but rushed. Used the wheelchair this week. Was worn out by the time I got back up the stairs at home. Dang...I need more stamina! Was freezing all afternoon - sign of fatigue or just can't keep up body temp. ..or I'm sick?????? For the second time recently, I thot I was going to lose lunch. Got to bathroom but didn't. Placed buckets JIC.... This is not the time to get sick!!! Ginger ale and ginger cookies relieve this but... what is this? So other than another load of clothes down stairs to laundry and collecting dry clothes to put away, I've been laying down resting/reading/talking to mom. IS it a virus or is it from all my sorting/arranging? Pushing too hard? I really can't tell. But if that's the case, I'm going to have to carry a barf bag and ginger ale/ginger cookies on the flights to Maui. Might be a good idea anyway. Will take us 15 hrs total - including airport wait times to reach Kahului, Maui. O'hana! MtRider ....I definitely need more sleep than last nite. But I've got a good record for the rest of the week.

Not sure if I mentioned but I've also been looking for all the books which are recipes, manuals, How-To's, resources of data for a post-hooey situation. I was missing the big ole book by Dr and Nurse Amy Alton. Was quite a costly item and I had no idea where I'd put it. I thot it was on the bottom shelf... I found that today...surprise. So we have 6 reference books of various topics like wild edibles & medicinals, Ball Blue Book, Carla Emory - Country Living, LDS book on Making the Best of Basics. I've had most of these for years/decades. But they're all together and would be in the Grab It pile. Reference material! Things get lost too easy in this house. If I reorganize the living room book case - I'll put them over there. But for now - stay put! Don't go running off! Sheeesh! Did more sorting/organizing of living room space. There is a little bit of space now. Not just a walk way. Still got a lot piled up in front of the pellet stove but ...a little by little. Got all the small First Aid stuff for human and dog (mostly cleaning her ears occasionally.) All on the small desk but will still undergo more change when I get to that point. I did walk the dog tonite. Hmph...all this bending, contorting to reach things, lifting and moving.... and the walk was short cuz I couldn't really push too far. I thot I'd be okay cuz I'm moving a lot. But stamina gave out on me. Hmph! Well, I can get that back but I get really exhausted from a day of sorting and such. Lotta motion but... I do have to sit down a lot. MtRider