Delta Diary

Somehow I just can’t get into this again.

Today I’m feeling like I’m getting something - not the Black Death, I hope.  I’ve had a semi-cold for the past few weeks and at noon today it seemed to settle in - not so much a cold as headaches which is not like me.  I tried for a sort of nap but felt to cruddy to fall asleep properly.  Earlier bed tonight.

Weight has taken a few blips in the past 6 weeks - even saw 198 again one morning.  I think my body’s set point is over 200 but I’ll fight it.  A few too many carbs have been sneaking in and there have been a couple of major deviances - blasted Chinese food!

Next Monday at this time, I’ll be packing to go to the States to celebrate my first American Thanksgiving with a 3FC friend.  Of course, this has to be one of my most hectic weeks!  I should have done a bunch of stuff today but felt too crappy although I did do my 90 minutes at the gym this morning.   Tomorrow I need to force myself to get it in gear.  I have Good Food Box in the A.M., some school stuff to deliver, posters to put up regarding the meat pie sale and pet therapy mid afternoon.   I need to work in some cooking too - baking and rum cake for the Bishop’s visit on the 29th which I will miss.  And then there’s Christmas shopping and mailing.  This will definitely be the year of the gift card and charitable donations although I do want to shop for the kids and for my Secret Santa.

I’m crabby today.  Tomorrow WILL be better!

The dogs are fed so I think I’ll read for a bit until it’s time to get dinner.

At least my blog is still here and I remembered how to get into it!

Where does the time go?  It’s been four weeks since I wandered in here.

Work on the addition is nearly complete and I am so glad!  The guys have been wonderful but there has been someone here nearly every day  and “I vant to be alone”!

Wonder of wonders, I joined the gym the last week of August and have gone every day except when I was in Asheville.  It helps that Donna joined with me and we share the driving.  I still can’t believe that Slug Sheridan at 70 is doing a 90 minute workout three mornings a week.  It has certainly helped with weightloss as I am now 193.  There have been a few blips along the way but I’m holding.  Is it possible I have found the “secret”?  Darn right I have!

I’ll try to pop in here more often but the Forum and other stuff is keeping me really busy these days.

July actually!  I am wondering where the heck the summer went.  Right now I’m in the midst of construction chaos - my life seems covered in plaster dust.  This week should see a major improvement though.

Can’t remember what I weighed last time I posted but know I have seen 200 over the past few months.   The food is good but too much wine and scotch are adding to the daily calorie count.  I KNOW this but it keeps happening “just once”.   This morning I was 197.  I go for bloodwork next week and hope the cholesterol and HA1C are improved.

I must try to get back in here.  It forces me to be introspective.

Not using this much although I do keep a diary on my PC.  However, I’ll do an entry every so often in case I decide to revisit this.

Seems to me it was just yesterday I wrote last but guess not.  It was a very, very full week and I have another one ahead of me which includes an interview with the local media about heritage homes in the village!  That’ll take some pulling together.

Weight has stayed pretty much at 195 the past week.  I hope that’s not my new set-point.  For years it was 212, then 206 and then 201.   Last June I got down to 189 and sort of nibbled it back up with summer parties.  I’m certainly going to really watch it this summer. BGL has been just fine.

As predicted, it rained most of last week.  By Friday it had dried enough for Moel to till my veggie garden.  Why I need a 40′ by 100 ‘ veggie plot baffles me.  I struggled a lot putting 1/4 of it into landscape fabric yesterday but did get my zukes, cukes, spaghetti and acorn squashes planted.   After 7 hours of physical stuff I was pretty tired last night but woke up feeling fine, rather than stiff.  The knees even feel a bit better this morning for some reason.  They usually ache when it’s going to rain but missed the boat this morning.  Tomorrow, rain or shine, I must plant the lettuces and maybe some herbs.

I think I’ll make some tea and relax with my book for a while.  Right now I have no hand sewing on the go for TV watching - the quilt binding and the Block of The Month are done.  The BOM blocks need to be squared and then put together but that won’t take long.  Not sure what to do with it when it’s done but it certainly will not be quilted in time for Delta Fair.

OK!  Write a list of those pesky niggles and then just DO them.  Dinner tonight will probably be salad and cold beef - leftover steak - but it really feels like a meatloaf night as it’s damp and cool.  The dogs just came in out of the rain and waited until they were beside me to shake.  Most refreshing!

Rainy days really get me down - especially this time of year when I want to garden.   The forecast shows rain right through until Wednesday which means it will have rained every day for a week!   I have a couple of bags of black earth in the barn and may slit the side off and plant my poor lettuces who are becoming potbound.  My back garden won’t be tilled until next weekend at the earliest.

Went to Elgin yesterday and picked up my sandals (too big) and the Pollinex shots.  They are now $356 which is getting up there - awfully expensive but worth it to not have hay fever.   Rain stopped midafternoon so went to pick up flower boxes and dropped off silent auction items for the soccer club spaghetti dinner.  Anders dropped in with bank stuff for my new treasurer job.  He seems in a perpetual panic which I hope I can ease.  Had a scotch and relaxed before cooking dinner - roast asparagus and veal cutlet - yummy!   Need to get on top and keep on top of this Sweden money thing as it looks like I’ll be doing bingo deposits too although I can’t see working a Bingo every Tuesday night all summer.  They need a $700 float too which I’ll need to get at the bank.

Next week is jam-packed with stuff and I am not looking forward to it.   Instead of griping about the damned weather, I will try to get some order back in my life this weekend which means making lists of tasks and niggles.  I had hoped to have that last quilt finished by Monday but it may not happen.  My block of the month quilt needs just an hour and it’ll be done.  Maybe I’ll get another coffee and just finish the thing right now.  Then I can get on with other stuff.

On a less grumpy note, my weight is 195.4 - down a wee bit since yesterday despite having a Reuben for lunch.  I’d better not push it though - bean salad for lunch today.   Putting things in perspective, it was 195 last September and I’ve spent the whole year farting around with ups and downs and the same six pounds!

It’s brightening up a bit and the forecast says the sun will shine this afternoon for a few hours.  Small blessings!

So much for planning!  I said I was going to limit my time online and it sure happened.  The power went off three more times today and has just been back for 20 minutes.  Since I couldn’t sew or cook or vacuum the porch, I went to town for paint and stuff - the power was out at Home Hardware!  Got a few groceries (mainly for the Food Bank) and then went back when the power was back on at HH.  It’s been off and back on twice since I got home.

I have a Fair Board meeting at seven and am not sure whether to cook dinner now when the power’s on or wait and cross my fingers.  I could eat later.  I may just thaw the last meatloaf from the stash and have it cold with salad if the power’s out again at regular meal time.

Jeez this is boring!  I even bore myself.  I think I’ll have a scotch and bitch to the dogs.  They are very tired today after the hectic day yesterday.  When you are at the kennel, you have to stay awake all day in case anything exciting happens - like a car driving in the lane or another dog barking.

Tomorrow has to be a better day!  This one was a wash-out although I did NOT go to the Chinese Buffet when I was in town.  ** Sigh **

I seem to be getting in here every second day.  First thing in the morning seems to be a good time to review the previous days and plan the current one.

I did accomplish a lot on Tuesday afternoon - the biggie was talking to Moel about ploughing the back 40.  Too bad we are in rain now or it’d be done.  I managed to work outside right past my pet therapy time - felt badly and had to apologize and re-book for next week.  Donnie came around and told me he can do some outside work despite being on disability - he just needs to avoid too much walking.  He also mentioned he knows he still owes me $40 of work since last summer.  Good for him!  I can use him for some painting - porch and steps plus the formerly red back door of the barn.

Yesterday was a longish day with dropping off the doggage at doggie day care and then driving to Ottawa in the pouring rain.  I did go into Richmond nursery to try to get a clematis but couldn’t find one - that place is huge!  Had a good visit with Shirleyanne and Ross and introduced S. to the joys of roasted asparagus.  Went to Farm Boy on the way home and found those low sugar dried cranberries.   Not home until after six and still raining.  Had lobster for dinner and not much else except for dried cranberries.

Woke at 5 to no power!  Was just about to light the propane stove to make coffee when it came back on.  It’s going to be chilly and rainy so I need to get my brain in gear for an indoor day. I can get the front porch tiddled up and could sit out there to sew later if it’s not too cold.  I have ground chicken and can make some Italian Wedding soup.  And then there’s sewing - silk blouse and two new cushion covers for the porch.

I must try to limit my time online and focus on real life.

Yesterday ran away from me!  I woke to 196 pounds which was great.  Obviously I dropped water weight overnight although I don’t know how - the bed was dry.  That’s always a good start to the day.  I’m also smartening up about being cold in the mornings and putting on a sweater over my robe if I’m cold rather than turning up the heat.  I am such a slow learner sometimes.

Did the bank crap for the soccer club at noon and now need to wait for the lads to go in and do their signing.  They’d better get their asses in gear if they want all this free financial management stuff from me.    I shopped for salad stuff when I was out and avoided having lunch out.  I should have though as my bean salad at home just did not satisfy so I ate leftover meat from Sunday!

I made my broccoli cauliflower salad for the pot luck and went there fully intending to eat it and some of Claire’s meatballs.  However………   We sat on Susan’s deck because her kitchen table was too small to accommodate ten of us and it was darned cold out there!  A good meeting but I sure have lots to do before the big supper on the 5th of July.  We are having a pie-making bee in my kitchen, date to be determined.

Today I meet Linda at the Elgin Bank to invest 4K of the Cemetery Board money in a GIC.  More clerical rigmarole but certainly necessary given the criminal performance of the previous treasurer.  (She absconded with $30K of money from plot sales, was charged and did pay some of it back.  The township took back the administration of the funds for two years and then handed it over to me as my “civic duty”.  That mayor is a smooth talking SOB.)

This afternoon I have pet therapy and am considering taking both dogs for the visit.  Disney’s ears are not cleared up but she isn’t as bothered by them.  I have been taking Jazz by himself but it’s time to get my white darling back in the groove.  Yesterday was our “anniversary” - it’s exactly a year since we fell in love at the rescue kennel.  She certainly worked out well and seems pretty grateful to have a forever home.   I wish she could tell me some of the stuff she went through during Katrina.

I have an hour before I need to leave for the bank so will see what I can cram into that time.  I have permission to pitch some stuff into the dumpster next door (they are renovating) and will ditch the broken plastic shutters from the porch.  That should inspire me to finish it.  It’s supposed to rain for three days but be warm and that would be a good place to sit and sew on a rainy afternoon.

“A field is not ploughed by turning it over in your mind.”

Woke just after four again.  I was very tired last night and thought I’d sleep late but no go!  I expected to be very sore this morning from all the planting yesterday and working the supper last night but the knees were fairly quiet.  I fully expected a gain this morning because yesterday was NOT a good food day.  I had hot dogs (2) for lunch and for supper, had a Turtle Bar mid-afternoon and some cheesecake at the supper but the scale was down a pound.  WTF? Today I will focus on healthy foods and work in many more veggies - managed to eat none at all yesterday!

Church was lovely this morning.  Shirley showed up - her annual “appearance” with the usual sweetness and light.  She is jusy waaay too much!  She is insisting I should join her grieving widows group whuch I am avoiding like the plague.   Somehow I think my head is on straight.  After she left I asked my pals if I needed it and they just laughed.  John said I’d been nuts since he first met me which was very comforting.

I’ve done a load of laundry and have also started sorting out my t-shirt collection.  Somehow I don’ think I need 20 of them but will do a sort and count later before I cull.  The only colours I don’t have are the oranges and browns!

Another niggle that I am going to tackle right now is the frassing Cemetery Board Report which was due in January!  (I hate it when I am such a procrastinator.  It’ll take less time to do than I’ve spent reminding myself about it.)  This afternoon, if it’s dry enough, I’ll work outside - either on the patio cleanup and barrel planting or finally setting up the front porch.  I need to zip up two additional cushion covers but that can be a job for during the week.

I’m feeling pretty darned good these days and am going to work hard on making it last.  This week I hope to  get started on the veggie gardens behind the barn.  Monroe is at loose ends and may help me by tilling it if Moel doesn’t have time.  I’m wondering if I can get him to build me some raised beds - I think he’s pretty handy.  I must ask Doug and Claire.

Time to just do the damned report and get it ready for the mail.  Gather together the stuff for the Audit and print off the bank statements.   It’s nice to know the Township treasurer will audit the damned books.

Off your butt, Ruthie!  Do the report and then have lunch!