(Old) Trip Planning in the MMP

Mr. L and I got engaged on Valentine’s Day in 1981, and we celebrate by saying, “Happy anniversary!” to each other. We don’t go out to eat because it’s too crowded, and we don’t buy gifts because we decided a long time ago that our gift to each other is not having to worry about getting presents.

Given that you had the mammogram today, I’m glad to hear your life didn’t get exciting!

I’m glad your dad is stable, and I hope you can get him into a more convenient place, especially while you’re convalescing as well. I hope your surgery goes well! It sounds like you have some good supports in place - and you have that brand-new adult who can help out, too!


Whew! I started writing this yesterday morning, got called away and left it, and now I’m 99 posts behind! I’m just gonna drop this here first and then read what I’ve missed.

Hooray, the internet is back! We got a few inches of snow yesterday evening. It was so beautiful. I love the way a fresh snowfall hushes the outdoors. Of course, I don’t have to drive in it. School was delayed 3 hours, and there were lots of road closures and power outages. I’m so grateful I didn’t lose power.

Taters, how much snow did you get?

Real Fish, sending positivity your way for a smooth and successful surgery!

One of my closest friends is from the DR and still has family there. It sounds beautiful, but she hates the heat and the insects. I guess it’s one of those cases where familiarity breeds contempt, like my students complaining about there being “nothing to do” while living in some of the most beautiful surroundings in the country. (I should add many of them climbed, skied, bouldered, fished, etc… They were mostly talking about the lack of night life, as teens do all over. It’s very “Dancing in the Dark”: “There’s somethin’ happenin’ somewhere/Baby, I just know that there is.”)

Early forties, yep. I had the old saying, “Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water” on the whiteboard. When I turned 40, one of my colleagues changed it to, “Before 40, chop wood, carry water. After 40, wear chompers, retain water.” (He was 40, too, so I guess he knew.) I used to say, “Back when Benjamin Franklin asked me to prom,” and I think some of the kids thought he had.

If you’ve got a butt on the counter, it’s sitting. :slight_smile:

Ah, yes, the famous Neil Sedaka song, “Waking Up is Hard to Do.”

FCM, that kid gets handsomer every time I see a photo. Those eyelashes! Oh, yeah, and he’s smart, too.

That is a yummy looking pizza!

I don’t need to worry about the chocolates being eaten, all I have to do is leave them out on the counter and they will evaporate. I don’t remember hubs every showing interest in that sort of chocolate either, I highly suspect that was the only thing left on the shelf at 11:00 on Valentines day, LOL!!!

I hope you aren’t getting a cold, constantly draining sinuses are such a PITA.

I’m crossing my fingers for you! BTW, with as fast as pups grow, isn’t it time for more pics? You want to be sure we all recognize them as they grow.

Geeze louise, this is just not at all fair! I sure do hope it is not that much money to fix and I also hope that this will be the last fix!

Yeah, who’d a thunk that embroidery is “handed”? When you get the chance, look up a video showing the spinning process. That will help you understand what is happening as you stitch. Basically I tighten the twist of the thread with every stitch, you unravel it which can cause the fibers to split apart and snarl.

I’m not saying you can’t do beautiful work because I know that you can. You just have different challenges than me.

You will also probably end up being faster than me as well. I waste so much time on fiddly little stuff that nobody will ever notice because I let myself hyper-focus if I get too stoned while I’m stitching. Yesterday, I followed the stitching instructions to the letter and produced this:
Imgur

Then I looked at it for a few minutes and realized that I hated it because it didn’t cover properly AND the top stitch wasn’t centered.

So I pulled it out and did this instead:
Imgur

Don’t be me. Unless you are competing, nobody will notice and if you are just entering county fairs, chances are good that nobody will notice that sort of thing as long as everything is consistent.

I hope your bad feeling about work is just worry about missing data, and not a subconscious realization that “something is very wrong”.

Thank you. He’s a good man, but I can feel him slipping through my fingers now.

Surplus produce was yesterday, just like always. Today I had a box of leftover stuff to take to the library when I went to my usual Thursday morning Tai Chi class. I told him that I was going to get healthy and he saw me pick up the box. Half an hour later he started wondering why I wasn’t home yet and of course didn’t get an answer when he tried to call (we all put our phones on silent during class). He got in his car to go to the library and look for me, but by the time he got there (two towns over) class was over and I was on my way to take food to Chicken Guy and he missed me. He was on the phone with the sheriff asking about accidents or car-hijackings (!!!) when I got home.

I think I’m going to start leaving a note on the door when I leave so he has a reminder as to where I am and when I should be back.

We are going to have SO much fun! They have refurbished two of the trains (we are going second class, those seats are more comfortable than the ones in first class) and I understand the Grand Canyon motel has also done some updating. It is going to be SO dark at night, we’ll be able to read by starlight!

Here’s hoping you had enough work to keep busy…and that you got lots of tips!

That already sounds hopeful, I hope it works out for you!

Seems to me the combo of rural / wilderness, population non-density , and teens would produce lots of dancing in the dark. The kind that involves neither shoes nor music.

Something is always goin’ on near you if you make it happen. :leer:


Ouch. But good plan. Pro-tip: Always greatly overestimate when you’ll be back. Far better to walk in at 1pm having said 3pm than vice versa.

Otherwise who knows how many SWAT teams will be out trying to purge the Junction of excessively-ethnic hordes of carjacking hoodlums.

True, although they also really liked to gather in packs and drink beer. When I hiked up my favorite mountain, I’d go off trail to a lovely area with a sort of shallow cave. It was always littered with beer cans. Hey, kids, here’s a Good Citizen tip from your Aunt Nellie: If you’re going to be degenerates, be TIDY degenerates!

That’s a great pickup line! I can tell you were a popular guy in your high school.

Oh, always! I’m in the “if I’m not 15 minutes early, I’m late” crowd, always have been.

But, yeah, a car-jacking? Really? Of all of the things that could cause delays that would be the very last on my list of worries. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a car-jacking in Yavapai county TBH. I hate fox news.

My butt has also been sitting all day.

But the pork butt has been sitting in the smoker since 10. :slight_smile:

Hardly. I was the shy Poindexter who was terrified of girls. And witty, but in a biting way, not an endearing one.

I’m doin’ my damnedest now to make up for sitting out the game in my teens and 20s, then being locked out of the game in my 30s to mid-60s. Hope I didn’t totally (fail to) screw the cooch on this one.

Howdy Y’all! Today has been a blissful sloth-filled day. Ah, the joys of bein’ a retired drain on society! I read, achieved nappage, day drank, and then it was a sup of chili and cornbread. OYKW volunteered to clean up, so I didn’t have to do that even. Except I tend to clean as I cook, so there’s not a whole lot of clean up beyond dishes and utensils used for sup purposes. Still, nice that he usually does that.

Now 'tis time for Netflix and chill. I want, nay need, popcorn.

And a good early evening to all. Have a leak detector expert due out here Saturday, hopefully that will pin down the problem. Until then water rationing and turning it on/off at the meter will be back in fashion. Not a big thing, I actually have gotten pretty good at managing my water usage over the past couple of months. Still pretty warm (59F) and the heat hasn’t popped on most of the day, which is good because I got my March gas bill and it was fairly hefty. Heading out to the gym here in a little bit for some pedaling, since I haven’t been out all day, been emulating swampy in my slothage.

Oh, I also cleaned my bathroom mirrors, so some good came of the day.

Pilot, sounds like a great trip with great company. And heck of a deal Virgin was offering, don’t blame you in the slightest for taking them up on it. But the octopus/squid meal I’m afraid would not be appetizing to me…

Spicy, making sure your banking is all square is a pretty good task to do. And not getting the data you need is ne reason I am happy to have left the bureau-crazy. Hang in there.

talkie, keep on smokin’…butts, that is…

FCM, that’s a marvelous pic of Toby.

shoe, hope the driving was uneventful.

Coppertone, handling 2 jobs can be tricky, but given the limited hours at that first place, it seems your doing the most logical thing. Fingers crossed.

flyboy, hope the conundrums of business get settled soon.

nellie, hooray for the Return of the Internet.

JtC, sorry to hear about Hubs memory issues; picking up some note pads is not a bad idea.

OK, the after-work rush on the gym should be about over, so need to dress for the part and head out into the wilds of suburbia. Take care all.

Hmmm. Do I make cacio e pepe with ham, or mac n chez with grilled hot dogs? These are the questions that keeps one up at night.

Narrator says “leaning towards the dogs.”

shoe Hope “the thing at the end of the driveway” isn’t too bad. That’s usually my biggest trouble after a dandfruff sprinkle.

Armor meatballs are the best, the only ones I buy.
Oh, not anymore, they’ve been discontinued!
Tried Rosinas; crap.
Damn Committee!

Subsequent uploads worked, but I’m uncertain about the first two. I created a ‘case’, so I hope to hear from them soon. The correction request has been submitted, and they should have it done in a week. Haven’t heard back from the client who wants to report their commercial accounts receivable. I made some progress on the data crush.

We had half a head of lettuce, and there was ground beef in the freezer. So we had taco salads for dinner. Mine had some of that salsa I made, onion-and-cilantro, sour cream, pickled jalapeños, shredded cheddar (and of course, the taco-seasoned beef).

Go you!

Our housekeeper has been sick this week so I finally sucked it up and wiped the bathrooms down.

I’m hoping you meant January because it would suck for utilities to be able to bill in advance. Our HVAC guy said that currently using oil-filled radiator heaters is less expensive than burning propane out this way because heating gas and oil has gone up, so there is that.

Thanks, this sucks. He was seriously scared that I had been killed or worse and I don’t want him to feel that way. His father had dementia, Dad had dementia and Mom is forgetting more and more every day.

I’ve learned a lot of coping skills over the years…did I ever mention that I always wear red shirts or a red jacket or vest? It helps someone with failing eyes as well as failing memory pick me out in a crowd because they know what they are looking for.

We got a USDA packed pork loin roast at surplus yesterday which made hubs happy. He loves Mom’s recipe with a honey, garlic sauce so a trip to the Honeyman will happen. I should probably also pick up a gallon to start another batch of mead. Hubs has quit brewing but I haven’t stopped drinking!

NF and I have started negotiations over lunch next week. We are going to bring the guys and figuring out a good day is much more complicated than it should be. When I retired I expected to have so much spare time, I was going to spend all of my days stitching and reading and gardening because I was joining the ranks of worthless drains on society. That has NOT happened, between the four of us it seems like everyone has something scheduled all of the time.

NF had to miss TaiChi today because her hubs had a doctor reschedule him unexpectedly. NF says it was just a wellness check but she does tend to lie about their health on a regular basis.

When I talked to Mom today, she told me she had fallen in the driveway and hit her head and couldn’t get up until a passing car stopped and the driver helped her up. She says she’s just fine as well.

Why do the people I love keep lying to me about this sort of thing, I don’t freak out and I don’t try to take over, I just try to support.

Grrrrrr.

Awww, metal mouse, I hate to hear that.

TGIT!

Irk week is done. I took Nelson to the dog park after and it was a pretty enough day that small dogs were out in full force. He got to hang out with his buddies Jack (chiweenie), Lola Mae and some new friends, Knox (Jack Rat), Tim (whippet who kept puppy tag going and wore everyone out), Gunter (dachshund), Chico and his sister Blanca (chihuahuas). He was asleep by the time that we got to the stoplight on the way home. :slight_smile:

Has anyone heard from bumba or sari lately? I haven’t seen either of them around and I miss them.

Stay safe and healthy y’all!

Yesterday I took Sunflower to the Eye Surgery Center. She had cataracts removed, new lenses implanted and Lasik surgery to correct her astigmatism in both of her eyes. I took her to her follow up visit this afternoon. She is doing well and everything is as it should be.

I have known her almost fifty two years and it is hard to get used to seeing her without her glasses.

Short heaving. Watching the #3 FT Sup and one of the Shop Stewarts chat in my department is now unnerving. But I had a Mai Tai and some smoked paprika chicken.

I read this, and no longer know what day it is. :crazy_face:

Awwwww.

Both at once? My friend J had her’s done one at a time.

Late on Thu night and I should be in bed. A couple quick catch-ups …

To each their own. But IMO a meal of dead sea monsters is great. Tastes like … revenge. For all the attacks(s) on Capt. Nemo that is. :grin:

FYI all, I have not been able to see any of the pix in the thread while on board this silly picture-hating boat. So I’ll be commenting on all those tomorrow from the picture-friendly train.


Narrator sez: Leaning towards whichever is easier.


Ouch. Managing the catastrophizing paranoia is / will be by far the hardest part. Major hugs to you both as you drive down this road. I’ve only had to watch it from next door, not live it. I do not envy you the duty ahead. But I do salute you for how well you have, and will continue, to do it.

Very wise. Are you short? Both my late wife and the recent unlamented HL were small women who were easy to lose in a department store since they were shorter than any of the racks. I often thought about getting them an orange flag on a long stick to attach to their backpack or whatever so I could find them again.

Ouch!!

Late aged MIL was famous for telling us of serious falls she’d had (and ignored) 3 weeks ago. Sigh. Or not mentioning anything despite prominent scrape scabs all over her face. BTDT, have the t-shirt, and don’t enjoy wearing it. Best of luck there JtC.

My late Mom at age ~75 fell in her front yard, hit her tibia awkwardly on the raised edge of the sidewalk and fractured her tibia all to pieces. The docs said this was a genuine case of fall-then-break, not break-then-fall.

She laid there immobilized and scared in the Phoenix summer sun for 2 hours until her neighbors came home and saw her. An advantage to living in patio townhomes, not out in ruralia.

We figured she was done walking, but she fooled everyone and recovered normal use of the leg and went on to live (and walk) another few years till the final heart attack sealed her deal.

Hope your Mom has close neighbors who can be enlisted to help watch over her when she’s outside.

And a good late (after 10pm here) evening to all. Been to the gym for awhile and then made a quick stop at Wal-Mart so I don’t have to tomorrow, just waiting to get tired enough to head to bed. Been sleeping well, even with the exercise I’m doing my nappage percentage is way down, so maybe those workouts are helping me to sleep better at night.

I read about the ‘old’ folks falling down and do worry about myself sometimes, living alone is nice but with no one that regularly checks on me, a fall/broken leg/hip could be disastrous. I said that this year I would look into some type of alert system, but sloth has gotten the better of me. Maybe once the plumbing works well I’ll visit that thought again.

Did some thinking about vacations while reading Pilot’s adventures, not really up for anything major this year, but some smaller trips might be worth looking into. Haven’t been to Cedar Point and it’s multiple roller coasters in many years, with my weight reduction I can probably fit comfortably in most of them now and haven’t been up Detroit way in 50 years. And an Amtrak ride (the Piedmont from NYC to Charlotte or maybe the Capital Limited from Washington to Chicago) might be fun. Still haven’t committed to anything yet.

Not a meatball person, but in the discontinued items I am looking to get back to the cereal habit and found out that Alpha-Bits, which was one of my favorites growing up, was discontinued in 2021. Well, Cheerios, Corn Flakes, Frosted Flakes, and Rice/Cocoa Krispies are still around.

Yeah, that was not a good choice of words on my part. The gas bill comes due on the 10th of each month, so this bill is for parts of Jan/Feb and due 10 March. I often tend to mention the month I pay, not the month that is billed.

red, sounds like Nelson had a great time.

hippie, best wishes to Sunflower, that was a lot of work on her eyes, hope it keeps going well. I’ve had glasses since I was 7 years old (71 now) and wouldn’t know what to do without them or how I would look.

Getting a little weary, expect once I hit the sack the sandman will be mugging me, so off to dreamland. Catch you all on Firday.

Holy hell’s bells. How’d I miss that?!

Imma borrow this one.

This was far too amusing.

Thanks, sugarplum. I actually felt much better after getting some more ZZzzs, so hopefully it was just some temporary nasal irritation.

:people_hugging:

That seems bass-ackwards to me.

Shit, we were waaayyy busier than I expected. Didn’t help that we were short-handed and some roster scheduling got hastily rearranged.

We were actually short a Closer AND one of the other Closers showed up limping with a knee injury (I missed the details) so two of the other Early-Outs covered for each.
Frankly, I’m surprised - but not exactly sad - that I wasn’t tapped to close, but then again, I closed the last two nights.

Hell, I stayed till nearly 11 pm anyway - usually Early Outs are gone by nine-ish - so a coupla extra bucks floated my way.

Don’t fall over.

This time, I didn’t get the lovely ice wall, so all is well.
I will say that Current Shoe is exceedingly grateful for *Past Shoe shoveling out those two tracks. As expected, the slush is turning into slick and/or crunchy ice.

… matter of fact, I really oughta scrape off my steps before I bust my ass on 'em.

Well … that’s sweet, at least, I guess. So often creeping dementia comes with anger and bitterness instead. (Although I totally get your ire at Fox News putting scary-silly ideas into his head. Not helpful.)

Jesus.

Dang! That’s … a lot.

I bet her world looks so different now.

If they ever discontinue friggin’ Cheerios, you’ll know the world has officially ended.