Looking ahead in the MMP

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
141

They provide big aprons, so I don’t get thoroughly soaked, but he does shake, so I don’t remain dry, either.

FCD had a nightmare the other night - he’s carrying this guilt that he “killed” his parents because he gave them morphine in their last days/hours. Intellectually, he knows he didn’t do anything wrong, but the engineer in him seems to think that he could have done something to keep them from dying. Which, of course, he also knows is impossible. But he won’t go to counseling, so the dreams resurface from time to time…

Outlook is my appointment brain. It pops up reminders the day before, then then day of whatever I need to remember. Sometimes I put reminders on my phone, but Outlook is better. Plus I use Alexa sometimes.

Look what was waiting for me when I got back from Food Lion/Aldi:
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I’ve read that if you have to move a turtle, always be sure to leave it in the direction it was headed. I managed to scoop this guy into a bucket (he hissed at me when I tried to pick him up) and I walked about 100’ to the woods and set him there. Luckily, Otis was with FCD so he didn’t meet Mr. Turtle. Last time he met a turtle, only one of them came out of it alive. The hunt instinct is strong in Otis.

FCD is working on the window modification so we can vent my kiln out the window. We found out that our old vent thru the furnace exhaust pipe was illegal and stupid. Ooooops! So he’s removed the glass from the little window and will replace it with an aluminum panel thru which he can mount the exhaust line. Then I can use my kiln again, assuming the heating elements haven’t corroded away.

I stopped at the Oakville convenience center and got rid of my recycling. They have 2 recycle dumpsters there, and tho they were swapping one out, I was able to use the other one. So yay!

I think it’s time to get rid of the scraggly remains of my cuke and 'mater plants. I’ll harvest the last handful of 'maters then haul the rest into the woods. Good times!

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We (I) have a couple of French presses, a couple of moka pots (plus a single-demitasse camping one), a pour-over urn from Gemco :astonished_face: (the coffee holder is missing, but it’s easy to use something else), two Vietnamese coffee makers, and an old percolator. If all else fails, there’s always a cooking pot. :wink:

I used to love them when I lived in L.A. I always got the salt & vinegar. I only put the big can into recycling a year or two ago.

ETA: I noticed a spot of blood on the bathroom rug. I knew I didn’t cut myself, so I asked Mrs. L.A if she did. Nope. I was worried it may have come from one of the cats. She examined it, and declared it was tomato sauce. Not, I did have a messy sandwich made from that zucchini boat filling; but I took my plate, messy hands, and napkin right to the kitchen when I finished eating, and washed my hands. Couldn’t be tomato sauce. She reached down, and picked up the ‘blood spot’. It actually was a bit of tomato sauce/skin.

143

The np told me to take fiber supplements.
Already taking probiotics.

144

I hope the fiber works.

We use a pour-over to reduce our household exposure to heated plastic.

I’m still a little lethargic and both arms are sore, but compared to early COVID vaccines, this was nothing.

Despite us cutting back her calories every time the vet tells us to, S-Cat keeps gaining weight. We will try a microchip-activated feeder for T-Cat, though it’s hard to imagine S is stealing that many calories from her. In fact, they both leave some of their food and eat it later, so S might have a nacent metabolic issue. Sigh.

I myself am losing a little weight. Gee, without tamoxifen, the Mounjaro actually works. It will be interesting to see whether my next Camino results in weight loss–I started walking them while taking tamoxifen, and have never lost an ounce.

Happy Thursday all around! I hope everyone, spouses, and pets feel better, that many Legos are assembled, that semi-gloss is all you dreamed of, and that soccer urchins, dogs, students, and minions prove untroublesome.

145

Our painter, who is about 8 inches shorter than me, forgot his ladder today. I’m sure he will remember it tomorrow!

I didn’t think about that! I have learned that if I supply a suitable container, he will use it. Right now they are in an oversized plastic tub, I just want something smaller that I can push under one of the chairs. That will be much less expensive than new shoes every six months.

So far, this flu shot has been very unremarkable. I can remember having bad reactions to them twenty years ago, but for the most part I don’t even notice anymore.

Grabs for pearls while falling onto fainting couch. What a disaster! Thank goodness you had options, but thinking about them in a hurry without coffee couldn’t have been much fun.

Kitty must have gone home naked, otherwise the owner would have come looking for the airtag. Or at least I know I would have been searching your garden if one of my tagged kittehs went missing and the tag said it was there.

He still serves his primary function. :wink:

Sure. That would mean he wouldn’t have to look out at all those horrible plants and trees. He has black out curtains on his windows and rarely opens them. Its easier to spot the monsters on the screen if the room is dark.

I can’t remember seeing boxes or Jays, I wonder if they were a regional thing or if it was because Mom had four kids and a husband to pack lunches for, big bags would have saved money.

There is poison ivy in the back yard. I know where it is. He knows where it is. I haven’t once gotten even a little rash. He’s had two major exposures and half a dozen minor ones.

So the painter is here now without his ladder or helper. He’s got a lot done, all of the dings and screw holes have been patched and a first coat applied (leaving the mud to dry, of course). I think he’s finished with what he can do today and I’ll need to keep the fuzzbutts out of that room until the paint is dry. Probably for the rest of the day, its been raining all morning (1.4 inches so far) and paint likes dry air to dry.

Now I’m hearing clattering in our bedroom. I’m sure its the cats. Laters all, have great days!

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I’ve seen a French press, but don’t understand the point. No idea what a moka pot or pour-over urn is. Do the Vietnamese make coffee differently from the way Westerners do? (My first thought on reading that was Vietnamese servants who make your coffee for you. :slight_smile: Hopefully they are better workers than your ninja was! :smiley:)

Our problem with Mr Coffee was that the pots kept breaking. We’re now on our third Keurig. (The first one came from the break room at Lady SCAdian’s old job, so it didn’t last very long.)

147

I probably count as a troublesome student…

Following the discussions of house paint colour, I assume you’re gonna paint your bedroom black then?

Never been to Costco. There’s only a few in Scotland and the whole membership thing means it’s just too much faff. Besides, the one in Edinburgh is right next to Ikea and there’s only so much capitalism I can take in one day…

It’s grey and gloomy here, with occasional rain. I already have the lights on, at 5pm. The heating system is starting to look at me, it’s been off for the summer but it won’t be off much longer I think, it’s starting to get a little chilly…

I think I do have a little blight in the tunnel, but I’m not sure, there’s just a few patches on a couple of plants that could be, and it’s not spreading much yet if it is. I’ll have a proper clear out at the weekend, do some triage. The disappointing summer squash can come out too- the thing is huge, honestly the biggest squash plant I’ve ever had, and has given me a grand total of 1 (one) usable squash, in exchange for about 1/5 of the tunnel space. The weedy one has been much more productive, but I was expecting bags of the things, and I’ve had a sensible amount… I have some seedlings to go in there for winter stuff, so it’s had its last change.

148

Weekly CostCo for gas or prescriptions. OLccasionally for 8,000 rolls of TP.

I don’t especially like potato chips.

149

Another day of taping and reboxing. The irregs have been crazy heavy as of late. At least 10 package cars were cubed out, and had to leave stuff behind. I did my Senior Day shopping, grabbed some Utz BBQ ripple chips, among other things.

Kadir beneath Mo Moteh

We had a manufacturer abandon a slightly bent catalytic converter rather than ship it back to Canada. Considering those things are full pf platinum, the tariffs must really hurt commerce.

My last one lasted 7 years.

Ah, I have the thermal carafe model,

“Can you say ‘Ah’, then swallow your webcam?”

Why stop there?

150

A comfortable 73F this noontime. Housekeeping has come and gone, and Sadie has come out of hiding.

Somewhat achy from yesterday’s exercise, but that’s normal. All puzzles vanquished.

The wife is making noises about buying lobster. I’m not a real fan, but she loves the stuff. We’ll see what happens, as she has become compulsive about food, and moves on quickly. Sometimes I can just wait it out. I’ve learned not to make a big batch of anything because she loses interest quickly and it ends up in the trash, which is annoying to anyone who likes to cook. Trying to roll with it, but some days are better than others.

151

Ooh - Hello, there, Turkle!

Just got back from my last clinical trial visit. The nurse who see me is very nice, but she is a terrible phlebotomist[1]. My arms are gonna be so bruised.

  1. First try! ↩︎

152

That’s the one they have in Switzerland.

We chat with a woman on the train on the way to work. She just got a recall on the air bag in her 20 year old BMW.

Speaking of commuting by train, today was a doozy, by Swiss standards. This morning we were delayed by 20 minutes due to a medical emergency. So we were 20 minutes late to work.

Going home? The train stopped two stations before ours and we had to take a bus to get home, so 15 minutes late getting home. So a total of 35 minutes of extra commuting time - almost a 30% increase. The horror of it all.

And I was even later getting home, because taking the bus means walking by the other grocery store, where I had been planning to go to this weekend. I was getting low on TP - I only had 3 rolls in the queue. (Don’t tell Swampy - he’ll be clutching his pearls.) I now have another 20 rolls, which will last me a while.

Good luck with the HRT, mollie. I started HRT after ovary removal and it took some weeks before noticing any differences, but YMMV.

Hubby grew up with them, and his sisters each have a few vintage tins. I don’t think I’ve ever eaten any Charles Chips or actually seen a Charles Chips tin with chips in it.

Got an ad for a (Swiss) government vaccine site so I followed the link. It appears that they do advise my age group to get regular COVID vaccinations. I’ll ask the doctor about that as well.

Despite today’s travel chaos, I did manage to do some exercises with free weights, and we did two loads of laundry. So some productivity, but I think we’re going to bed a bit later than usual. At least tomorrow is Friday. Woo hoo!

153

I’d be thrilled to swap with you. About 11:30am here, and it’s 93F (33.9C) here. It’s still several hours before peak temps for the day, too. If you don’t like it that hot, perhaps we can split the difference? :wink:

154

Ooh, please! The thermostat said 16.5C inside the house earlier, though it went up a bit when the wind stopped. Maybe 5-7C swap would be nice?

155

Sounds good to me.

156

Perfect. I’ll send you a box for the spare °

157

Same for me - other than feeling like someone punched my shoulder, I haven’t had any issues, even getting both shots in the same arm.

When we married, FCD brought a Mr. Coffee with a carafe - one of the things his ex didn’t take when she left. Neither of us drink coffee, but for a while, I used it to brew his iced tea. Then it stopped getting hot. But we still have the carafe. It’s used to refill the ice maker and the dog’s water fountain. And now that I’ve said that, it’ll probably shatter next time I touch it.

What?? Are you some kind of commie??? :open_mouth:

Actually, I’m not a big fan of them either. If they’re on hand, I’ll have some, but I very rarely get a hankerin’ for them. One of my sisters absolutely refuses to eat any but Utz regular - no flavors, just regular.

I cleared my 'mater and cuke plants. Some were very brown and dead, some still had edible bits growing on them, but not enough to wait for. So the remnants have been tossed into the woods and with luck, tomorrow FCD and I will move the new planter out there. Then I’ll decide how to relocate the others - I’m not giving any up, just adding to the mix.

Speaking of FCD, he’s moving right along with my kiln repair. And I opened it up to have a look - the elements don’t look corroded, so that’s a plus. I need to find the 3" vent line - I think I bought one, but maybe not. And the next step will be reconstituting clay and glaze.

Not sure what tonight’s supper will be. I don’t suppose a food fairy will show up with a meal…

158

I oh so cleverly locked my key in the car. It even has one of those code thingies on the door, but I got it used and was never told the code. I thought I had a spare at home, but it looks like neither of them were ever cut, they might have been programmed, can’t remember. My boss gave me a ride home, and a coworker is gonna pick me up in the AM, then I’ll call AAA. I’ll bring the title, so the tow guy knows it’s mine.

I’ve never done that before in my life. Thinking about too much stuff at work.

159

If you’ve got a Trader Joes nearby pick up some Argentinian red shrimp. Tastes remarkably similar to lobster and can stay frozen for a while.

160

Get a kettle and a French press, a stove top espresso pot and/ or a stove top percolator. No more warranties or electronics to deal with and they’ll even go camping with you. Shoot, if you cook with gas, you even have coffee when the lights go out.

Just don’t become one of those adolescent mean girls! :stuck_out_tongue:

I’ve slept a good share of the day. BIL should be here shortly to look at my TV. I’ll be so glad in 3 more days when I don’t have to take the pills that are making me sick and lethargic. I want my life back. :whine over: