Getting ready to head over to the gym after some cheese dogs for lunch, which was about the total of my exertions so far today. Weight is still hanging in around 200lbs, which suits me fine.
And onward.
I share a lot of political things on FB, but today was all 
.
to Shoe, Boo and Nellie to.
Now can anybody explain to me why I decided to give up chocolate for Lent? Even had somebody pushing chocolate bunnies at lunch time. It’s just (counts on fingers) 4 more days.
We have plain m&m’s, dark chocolate Lindt bunnies, and cookies with chocolate chips on the kitchen counter. My husband’s eating them.
And there’s two bars of Lindt’s dark chocolate version of their Dubai chocolate bar. Never understood why somebody would make that with milk chocolate.
Okay, I need to stop writing about chocolate. Some people might think I’m obsessed.
(I haven’t told my mom - she would probably think I’ve gone off my rocker. She considers chocolate as an essential food group.)
Taking a break. I’ve pretty much hacked back all the wisteria that I wanted to hack. Now I need to empty the truck (15 bags of mulch) and load the wisteria debris. Tomorrow I’ll take it to the landfill. I’d love to just dump it in our woods but it would require many trips to get it all back there and the truck is too big for the path. Ah, well…
Our boat is coming out of the water to have a leaky thru-hull valve replaced and they’ve got to check our rear thruster. It was working before we got all the work done, including having its propeller painted, but it’s not now. It’s on the marina to fix that, but the valve is on us. FCD has gone down there to check things out. We had a big lunch - foraging will be supper so he can stay down there as long as he likes.
The house is open - it’s 83 Ferrets and I’m a sweaty mess. We’ll have 70s and 80s for the rest of the week, then 50s on Moanday, because weather is stoopit! But no threats of freezing nights, so I can put my spiders (plants, not arachnids) and croton outside again. I think I’ll also clean out the planters on the back porch and plant some 'mater seeds. Tomorrow.
OK, 15 more minutes, then the truck gets unloaded. Wish I had a strong young dude to do this manual labor while I sipped lemonade and fanned myself. My fault for not being born an heiress, I guess. Dammit.
WalMart has Lindt bunnies - for SIX BUCK each! They’re like 4" tall!!! I lurves me some Lindt, but not that much. Not that I’m eating much chocolate. I’m so close to my goal weight, I dare not risk activating my sweet tooth.
Ten more minutes to labor…
Texas Chainsaw Massacre part deux.
When I was dressing the toe this morning, I removed some dead skin and hit another gusher. While it didn’t bleed as much as the first time, I still had to take the steam mop to the floor where I left toe prints. I’ll be glad to get this healed up. Meanwhile, I ordered some old people diabetic shoes to wear on days when it’s too swollen or ouchy to get my regular shoes on. I’m tired of having to wear house slippers to walk Nelson.
I joined the call. It was mostly geared towards small business owners, which I am not. It was nice to see all the names and pronouns on the zoom - it helped make me feel less alone.
Thunderboomers and rain, here in western Mitten State.
… oh, and just now, a CRACK BOOM RUMBLE that shook my windows!
Power is still on, but imma keep my phone charged. { looks around } Yup, definitely have candles if needed.
Otherwise, just shoppin’ on Da Jungle for stuff I want need. Grocery shopping is soooo much more convenient whilst sitting upon thy tushie, instead of schlepping around the Walliest of Marts.
ETA: I wanted something scented for work, so I got some lilac body butter. It’s actually an experiment … my mother luuuurves lilac, so if this smells as good as the reviews say (and it better be goood and authentic) then I’ll order another for my mom for her birthday/Mother Day - they’re uncomfortably close to each other - since that’s her absolutely favorite flower. She’s in the “I do not need more stuff” phase of life, so something consumable is best.
I haz a proud feeling for you. 
Somebody, take this phone away from me.
I just ordered butterfly clip-barrettes. What am I, fourteen years old?!?
… in my defense, they’re cracking down on unauthorized jewelry/nail polish/etc that is a food handling violation, and also the “we ALL hafta follow the same rules” philosophy. Which is FINE BY ME although the “no pajama pants” rule is iffy … these pants have pockets, so are they PJs or no?
So no dangling earrings, even my stainless steel chain clasp bracelet had to go, per management. Sprinkles (being a silly 20 y/o) insists on nail polish, so has to glove up for every food interaction, even when she’s mostly answering the phone … we’re fucking blowing through gloves now.
Anyway, I hafta keep my hair covered (kerchiefs FTW!) so I figured a barrette would 1a.) keep said bandana in place, and 2b) still look cute while holding the official line.
I’ll probably gift Sprinkles a barrette or two. We girls gotta stick together on this whole “lookin’ cute” thang.
Are you my sister? My mom’s birthday was at the end of May and anything lilac was always a hit. 
Good for you!
That’s sweet of you to think of sprinkles, shoe. She’ll like that.
I haven’t received yet, but reviews say it’s really thick (butter, not lotion) and more heavily scented towards lilac, not lavender.
I’ll post what I think, and - if I deem it “lilac-y” enough - I’ll send some to dear mum.
Howdy Y’all! Laundry got hydrated and dehydrated then put in all its proper places. Much sloth then ensued. Sup got fixed and et as well. I didn’t go to the service this evenin’ as sinuses are botherin’ me and I didn’t feel like drivin’. I shall sleep with Ben tonight.
BooFae I always imagined her late lamented Majesty havin’ a cheese and pickle sammich or perhaps a jam tart in a wee Tupperware container inside her purse.
MOOOOOOM I think grandmas are supposed to be squishy. Also, of course the Tobester thinks the doggy door is a hoot. Why open a door when there’s a perfectly good hole to crawl through!
Sensei glad your mom is better. Haven’t been to The World of Coca Cola in years. I grew up just over a hour south of Etlanner. We used to do stuff like that just cause.
Mollie our current Bishop is really down to earth. Mind you, he will be tough if he has to be, but mostly he is a decent and humble guy. I like the fact that he moved the Diocesan office to a much more accessible place than the old one. Yeah, Michael Curry would be a tough act to follow. If the conference made you feel a little better then it was worth it IMO.
Dicey I once gave up chawklit for Lent. Worst millennium of my life! The time I gave up salty snacks was pretty rough as well.
red YIKES! Hope the toe heals soonest.
shoe just remember lilac butter would probably not be good on toast.
Up from naptime, watching hockey. Dinner tonight is a Manhattan and a burrito bowl.
Thanks, Mollie[1]^
And glad you were able to do the call
Twinsies!
[Mom]Don’t pick at it.[/Mom]
I just learned something ↩︎
Do storms scare Arial? I’d guess horses don’t like them much, but she’s safe in a barn. Do instincts override domestication in storms?
I hope everyone stays as dry as they want/need to.
No rain here but it got up to 86F. My lemon tree is so happy, I think it grew a dozen leaves since I put it out this morning. We are supposed to get a thunderboomers tomorrow so maybe it will get some rain as well. That would be nice.
The USPS thanks you for helping to keep them in business. I am not as loyal, my last package was delivered by UPS because they would do it for less money.
I read forward to your toe mishap, are you in a bleeding contest with my husband? He thought he should change the oil in his bike and stabbed himself with a screwdriver. I’ve learned that concrete is porous and peroxide doesn’t work well to get the blood trail up. Its just a little bitty cut too, the sort of thing that would make me say “darn”, hold a tissue over it for a minute and then go about my day.
Perfect! I could hear his voice while reading your words 
I agree with your mother, she is a very smart woman!
I screwed that part up too.
For a while my Dad had a steady supply of strong young dudes hanging around (four teenaged daughters will do that to a home) and he took full advantage of them. It used to tick me off so bad, I’d ask my bf of the week what the plans were for the weekend and over half of the time, they had plans to help Dad with stuff.
Linky please. I want him in better shoes, he’s complaining that his shoe makes his foot hurt when its swollen and I’m getting tired of listening to him when I know there are options.
I’m proud of you. I know it took a lot of effort to click the enter key but you did it and learned that you really are not alone.
I hope its good enough for your mother, I know how important it is to buy the perfect gift when needed. I also hope you enjoy it, but wonder if you will even be able to smell it over the pepperoni?
Back in my floozy days, I had my own signature perfume - rose oil mixed with a little 60 weight. It worked great to attract the “right” sort of men (bikers and gearheads).
Of course they aren’t, sleeping with stuff in pockets would be super uncomfortable so the makers won’t waste the money putting pockets in PJs. Pockets are for comfortable, flowing work friendly pants cause people need pocket stuff then.
As to my day, I had a nice drive to St. Albans but all drives in WV are beautiful. Except the turnpike, then you are going to fast to see anything.
I had a patty melt at a diner next to the thread shop and didn’t feel guilty about Hubs eating a baked chicken breast for lunch. I was able to exchange my threads for something I like better and am planning an exciting day of frogging my canvas in the morning.
I went to a plant nursery and asked about milkweed. They don’t sell it but suggested a shop in Charleston. We discussed butterflies and plants for a bit then I got distracted by their tulips. I picked out a pot - 12 bucks - and asked if he took plastic.
He said he would have to go and fetch the card reader so I said I did have some cash. I guess fetching and powering up the card reader was a PITA because he sold me the tulips for 7 bucks instead.
I was mostly cashless in AZ, but would be sure to have cash when going to craft shows. I’m carrying more cash here because there are more than a few places in the hollers with really iffy internet connections. If starlink goes down, they can’t use their card readers.
Plus dispensaries still need cash but the ATMs here have a 3.50 charge that the ones in AZ didn’t have so I didn’t worry about cash for them.
I do have to be mindful as to how much I have and where I can get more. If I was buying something from a private party, I would expect them to want cash so would be sure I had it available.
What happened to your spirit of adventure? Baking shows are all about flower essences in wedding cakes yanno?
I know it wasn’t me you asked, but Mr. brown found these shoes to be invaluable when he was having a gout attack. You can adjust the big strap to accommodate a temporarily swollen foot and it has great arch support as well. He could wear these when he couldn’t bear any other shoe touching his foot.
hii yo cool forum yo, how active is it normally?
XD luckily i don’t have that problem, worst we have is the occasional deer or spider-cricket, luckily they havent figured out how to work a car yet…
Happy Chooseday, everyone!
The appointment went OK. The doc did NOT say to give it another month. He said I’m in the 20% of patients who don’t get relief from the surgery. I have a long history of being on the wrong side of the odds. so that doesn’t surprise me. He said the issue seems to be the multifidus muscle in my lower back. Apparently, pain, injury, or surgery can inactivate the muscle, and there’s no way to reactivate it through PT or exercises. He wants to surgically implant a device that stimulates the muscle (when you manually turn it on through a remote. What happens if you lose the remote? What happens if you lose it on the street right before a troupe of tap dancers thunders past?
Does anyone know of someone who had this device implanted? (It’s not a spinal cord stimulator.) It’s fairly new, I guess, and only about 60,000-70,000 have been inserted so far. It makes me a little nervous. I said yes to the surgery because I’ve finally learned that it’s easier to cancel a surgery than it is to think it over and try to schedule it later. Also, there are no other options.
In other good news, I will now be walking Charlie three times a week (plus some Saturdays) because his person’s schedule changed. Yay! Income PLUS Charlie time! The doc said I’d be able to walk the same day as the surgery, so hopefully that won’t be an issue. He said I’ll be in more pain for the first few days, but 
And to top it off, an old friend sent me a big, beautiful flower arrangement, and it’s not even my birthday!
More later.
And it’s approaching 9pm, so time for a late-night final. Been to the gym, made a quick stop and shop and had the usual Tuesday night Mac-n-Cheese. Called Brother while I was thinking about it and we had a good chat. Watched the USA soccer team lose 0-2 while moaning that there is not a shred of imagination in any of the attacking players, then did some Preventive Maintenance on my hearing aids and that is about all I am up for this evening. Have made a vow to give the main bathroom a good cleaning tomorrow, so we’ll see if I live up to that.
JtC, much thanks for that handy tip on how to keep kangaroo rats out of your car…and I’m sure the lemon tree is very pretty. Hope Hubs has stopped bleeding by now.
wet one, hope you survived the bad weather and didn’t live up to your Mumper name…
Mollie, will have to look into if the gym offers any sort of yoga exercises.
Dicey, you can take our lives, but you can never take our Chocolate!!! Had a Snickers and KitKat after gym time today just because I could.
FCM, happy landfilling.
red, hope the bleedin’ toe stops with the bleeding already. I don’t have diabetic shoes, but do have a couple pair of slip-on Sketchers that do the trick.
shoe, nice idea for a gift for Mom. And never have had enough hair on my head to even look at barrettes.
Feel better, swampy. Or feel OYKW, whatever helps… 
nellie, afraid I can’t be of help on that, I just hope it can give you some relief.
And it’s 9:30pm, so need to finish my Internettin’ and make ready for bed. Catch up with y’all on April Fools Day…
EVERYBODY NEEDS TO STOP BLEEDING! AND GETTING WEIRD MEDICAL SHIT! 
Yes, brainless non-sentient bot, this is a fine post even though those are Not Complete Sentences.
These are the ones that I ordered. I just wanted something a bit more supportive than house slippers to take Nelson out on bad days, so I didn’t spend too much. Brooks running shoes are my usual go to and I was able to get them on this afternoon. They have a good sized toe box.
I learned to always carry enough cash for a tank of gas when SIL and I would ramble in the hills for the same reason.
I had a nice phone visit with SIL this evening. My nephew is now taking her on a ramble about once a month because she misses ours. We used to discover some unusual stuff.