Worrisome Wednesday

 We were finally able to get blood work for the Old Man today.  We haven't been able to get it in three weeks due to the cyber attack on the entire Norton Hospital system.  Luckily the lab portion of the system was back up yesterday.  We were there promptly at 1:30, after their lunch break.  They took him right back.  Then it took three attempts by two different nurses to get a good vein.  I don't need to tell you he was way over it.  But he took it like a trooper.  To help ease the pain, we went out to our new favorite Jeff's Donuts for one of his favorite huge apple fritters.  Now we have to wait for a call from the doctor about the results of the blood work -- mainly about one of his kidney numbers that had increased since his last blood work and is a big concern. 

Then I had my share of worrisome things.  A few months ago, I became the treasurer for our women's group at church.  Until today, things were going smooth.  I emailed the business administrator at church yesterday, asking for a financial report that he sends me monthly about any money gone in and out of our women's group account.  I didn't see two pretty big checks on there for mission projects.  I emailed him this morning and he promptly emailed back apologizing that those two check requests fell through the cracks.  So now I'm waiting for a call back from the leader of our women's group so I can explain this to her.  It might not seem all that bad, but one of the checks was going to a medical mission group's trip on the Amazon, and they left on the trip this past Friday.  

Needless to say, I'm nerved up about waiting for the blood work results and waiting for the women's group leader to call me back.  

Stay tuned.  

Ten More Annoying Commercials

1.  Nugenix Total T
2. Golo
3. All Camp Lejune lawsuit commercials
4. All Medicare benefits commercials
5. Lume Whole Body Deoderant
6. Gutter Helmet
7. Leafguard
8. ZocDoc
9. Colonial Pen
10. Liberty Mutual Insurance

Top Ten Most Annoying Commercials

1.  Pretty Litter - health monitoring cat liter
2. Pooph - pet odor spray
3. Ember Wave - hot flash relief wrist band
4. Balance of Nature - expensive fruit and vegetable supplements
5. Go Gut - probiotic powder
6. Omega XL - supplement for joint pain relief made out of Green Lipped Mussels
7. Super Beta Prostate (no explanation needed)
8. Be Active Plus - leg brace to relieve sciatica pain
9. Inscents Waterfall - calming incense cone burner
10. Car Shield

Sleep Report

 I am very happy to report that last night was the best night's sleep I have had in about three weeks.  You cannot imagine how thankful I am for that.  My big change was I didn't drink anything (except a half a bottle of water) after supper.  That means I didn't partake in evening cocktails with the Old Man, nor did I have any HiC Orange nor Minute Maid fruit punch.  It sure made a difference.  I will try it again tonight.  

Stay tuned for an update. 

Sleepy Saturday

 For the past week and a half, I've not gotten a good night's sleep.  Last night, I got up at 2:00 to go to the bathroom, and when I got back in bed, I tossed and turned and was wide awake until almost 5:00.  Needless to say, I've been tired and sleepy all day long.  I purposely have been out and about, making sure I didn't doze off in my recliner in hopes of a good sleep tonight.

Stay tuned. 

Flashback Friday

 I went to our local vegetable and fruit market yesterday to get some green tomatoes to fry this weekend.  As I was checking out, the lady that runs the store was chatting with me and asked if I had any big plans for the holiday weekend.  I smiled and told her that since I retired, every day is like a holiday. 

Then I thought back to when I was working, how I longed for a long weekend with a Monday off.  On Memorial Day weekend I would usually go down to my great aunt and uncle's and spend the long weekend with them out on Rough River on their houseboat fishing.  I sure miss those days.

Thankful Thursday

 Our family is very thankful for prayers answered for my Alabama Cousin.  He had colon cancer surgery yesterday morning and the surgeon said things could not have gone any better.  Thank the Lord they were able to do the surgery laparoscopic instead of the old school way.  He had the surgery yesterday morning, and at 10:00 last night they already had him up and walking.  

Thank you again, Lord, for prayers answered.  

A Pleasant Surprise

I got a very pleasant surprise a few minutes ago.  I went out to Marge's pen to rake up all of the trimmings and clippings from last week's clearing out, only to find that it had all been raked up and desposed of.  I have awesome Neighbor Nick to thank.  I can't say enough good about him.  We have always been blessed with good, kind and thoughtful neighbors.   

I Made A New Friend

 

The Old Man and I made a new friend today -- Waffles. 

Waffles is a trained therapy dog. Her owner is a friend of mine from my BSF group, and she wanted us to meet Waffles. It was a great morning.  Waffles did her tricks for us, and let us give her treats as we commanded her to do the tricks.  She was so well behaved and didn't jump up on us or anything.  Waffles rocks.  

Moody Monday

 I've been in a mood for the past couple of days; not necessarily a bad mood, but a mood nonetheless,  Unfortunately, it's affected my sleep.  I've been wide awake at 6:00 the past three mornings.  I need to do some thinking today and snap out of this mood so I can get back to sleep.  

Stay tuned.  

Tuckered Out

 I was tuckered out yesterday, faithful readers.  The day before, I weed eated in Large Marge's pen, and cleared out the jungle that had grown up.  It wore me out.  I was worthless all day yesterday.  And it's raining right now, and after being wide awake since 6:00 this morning, I feel like a nap.  I might go stretch out in my recliner and doze until the Old Man gets up. 

Thankful Thursday

 First of all, I am thankful today for the Old Man feeling good and going with me this morning on a mini road trip out to the east end to my Triple Crown places -- Jeff's Donuts, Kingsley's Meats, and Paul's Fruit Market. 

Second, I am thankful for having the energy and no arthritis pain today that enabled me to get out and clear out Large Marge's pen.  It was like a jungle in there with weeds and everything else all growed up.  But it's all done now. 

Third, I am thankful for Stouffer's for their lasagna that is in the oven right now.  

Once Again, It Is Never Easy

 I procrastinated for two weeks, and finally this morning I went to Lowes to buy a new toilet seat for the back bathroom.  I got home, and within five minutes of opening the box, was on my way back to Lowes because the hardware pack was missing from the box.  The empty and torn pack that it came in was in there, though.  And to make it worse, the box was sealed on both ends.  I don't have to say how pissed off I was.  

Luckily it was fast to return it and get my money back and then hike to the back of the store to get another toilet seat. 

The Old Man and I spent about ten minutes taking the old seat off and putting the new seat on.  It would have been quicker if we'd had an extra skinny arm to reach underneath the toilet and help us.  But we got it done - without any fussing or flared tempers.  

I can now add another thing to my resume as a single homeowner.  

Torrential Rain Tuesday

 One minute after I pulled out of the driveway today at noon, headed to get us some White Castles for lunch, it opened up and poured.  And poured.  And poured.  I kept on driving through it all.  When I got to White Castle, there about a dozen cars in the drive-thru.  I was not going to wait, and didn't let rain bother me.  I zipped up my raincoat and waded through ankle-deep water in my old tennis shoes to go inside and order. In a few minutes, I was back out in the van headed home.  And as soon as I got back to the van, the rain stopped.  But for a while this morning, it looked like the rain was not going to stop. 

So much for my wanting to get out and weed eat today.  Maybe tomorrow. 

Can't Have Nothing

It happened again, faithful readers.  This time, someone in San Francisco used my debit card number for a TMobile phone and for four Uber rides.  I appreciate my credit union being on top of it.  Three of the charges cleared before they caught it, but they have paperwork going for the fraud claim and will put the cleared charges back into my account.  

I think I'm going to be like my parents and start paying cash in person.  And from now on when I buy something online, I'm going to use my Capital One Mastercard.  

Lesson learned.  

Top Ten Sad Songs From The 70's

 I did some reminiscing, and here is a list of my top ten saddest songs from the 70's, in no particular order.

1. All By Myself - Eric Carmen
2. Rocky - Dickey Lee
3. Seasons In The Sun - Terry Jacks
4. Shannon - Henry Cross
5. Diary - Bread
6. King Of Nothing - Seals and Croft
7. Long, Long Time - Linda Ronstadt
8. Without You - Nilsson
9. Billy Don't Be A Hero - Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods
10. Run Joey Run - David Geddes

Flashback Friday

 I got the Old Man a grapefruit at a cool fruit and veggie market, and after I sliced the grapefruit in half, I grabbed an old (probably older than me) grapefruit spoon out of the drawer to use.  I always thought they were extremely cool.  As a kid, I wished I had liked grapefruit so I could have used the cool spoon.  

The Black Cloud Is Still Lingering

We got news last night about a friend who has the sweetest spirit of anyone we know.  She had part of her left lung removed, and the biopsy confirmed that she has a very rare form of an autoimmune disease.  The prognosis isn't very good.  But she will start with chemo treatments and steroids in hopes to contain the disease.  As I said earlier, she always had a smile when you saw her, and her sweet spirit is something that I am striving for.   

Happy Tuesday So-So

 The plumbers were here bright and early this morning at 8:00.  They were finished and left at about 1:00.

Unfortunately, the leak was by the house, so we can't put it on the water company.  The plumbers also had to re-route the 54 year old water line, and as of now, we are good to go.  So hopefully no more big-ass water usage and all is well. 

This is the first water leak/issue we've had in the 54 years of being in this house, so I'd say that is pretty darned good.  

At least our water usage will drop drastically, and above all, it could have been worse.  

Happy Monday . . . Not

 Saturday, I got our water bill.  I was shocked as all get out to see they said we used 17,000 gallons of water in the last billing cycle.  I did what anyone would do - I checked the Dixie Highway Facebook page, only to find over 300 posts from people in this area with the same issue.  The water company came to most of the homes in this area early spring and replaced the meters.  

I called the water company this morning at 9:00 when they opened, and got to speak to a great customer service rep.  Within an hour, someone from the water company was here checking out the meter.  He said there was a leak, and for me to call a plumber.  So I called our trustworthy plumber, and they had someone here within two hours.  He confirmed there was a leak, and they will be back in the morning to dig up the line and find and repair the leak.  

It's not all that doom and gloom - if the leak is on the line from a coupling to the meter, it is all on the water company.  If it is on a spot beyond that, it is on me.  But the new homeowners insurance policy I have covers that.  So all in all, it's all good.  

Stay tuned.  

Derby Day Wrap Up

 Derby 2023 has come and gone.  All in all, it was a great Derby.  The weather was great, it wasn't too hot nor too cool like it has been in Derbies past.  We had a great day of eating and having adult beverages.  And best of all, I came out a winner.  I made back what I lost on Oaks day plus about $100.  Needless to say, that made me very happy. 

We are already looking forward to next year's Derby - it will be the 150th.  And we are already talking about different party foods to have.

Stay tuned. 

Oaks Day Wrap Up

I didn't win much today on Oaks day - but as my betting spreadsheet shows, I only lost $22.  So I count that as being a winner. 

The Old Man is about a buck ahead.  So he is the real winner.

Stay tuned for tomorrow.

I Think I Have A New Job

 I went to the Super Kroger today to get all of the provisions for our family's Oaks and Derby party this weekend.  My trip lasted about a half hour longer than it should have.  Why, you ask?  Because I spent a half hour helping three little old ladies find items on their shopping lists that they couldn't find.  I was impressed at myself because it always takes me longer to shop at the Super Kroger because I'm not as familiar with that store as I am the one up the road.  But today, I was the hero.  I'm glad I could help those little old ladies.  When I get in my 80's and can't find what I want in the grocery store, some younger person will help me.  As for today, I think Kroger should have put me on their payroll. 

Windy Wednesday

 For about two months, we've had crazy wind almost every day.  The wind blew a slat down from the back fence on Sunday.  I went out and put it back Monday morning only to have it blown back off that afternoon.  I'm waiting now until we have no wind to go back and put it up.  I'm just thankful that the wind didn't blow our garbage can into the ditch Monday morning.  I went out and dragged it back in as soon as the garbage men emptied it early Monday so we dodged a bullet on that. 

It's also been unusually cool, so that has put the halt on my sun therapy.  Tomorrow it's supposed to be 72 and sunny, so after I mop the kitchen floor and do the dusting, I am hoping to get to go sit out for my 20 minutes.  

Take It Back Tuesday

 It's Tuesday of Derby week, and I have been reminiscing about previous Derby week Tuesdays.

Back in the day, Diva Stacy and I would go to one of the chow wagons in the south end and listen to a friend's band play.  We always had a great time - having a few beers, eating a good chow wagon hot dog, and listening to our friend Sherry Edwards and her band play.  It was probably the big Derby week event that I looked forward to the most.  

Thanks for the memories.  

There Are No Words

 After his check up with the heart failure center this morning, we stopped at one of our favorite restaurants for lunch.  At the booth behind us was a young family with two small kids.  One of the kids was playing a game on an iPad while they were there.  We were eating and all of a sudden I heard this coming from the kid's game (and I quote): "I need to kill somebody.  I'm going to kill you."  

Believe me when I tell you that my mouth flew open, and I just shook my head in disbelief.  

There are no words.