Worldly Chicks Remembering Melody at Christmas
 

Okay here it is December.
Due to popular request I have dedicated the thread to Mel. You will forgive me if I don't join in too much with this one, since I don't grieve out loud or in print. My memories are private and deep.

But to set the ball rolling here is a picture that I know Melody used on the thread once or twice and the second picture is one where I hope she is now sitting and enjoying the fragrance and fresh air. Go free my friend.]

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b1...psb9c0ca65.png

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b1...ps8502fa49.jpg

To take a sneak peek at November click http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/supp...endship-6.html.

The weather over the past couple of days has been atrocious. High winds and driving rain and pretty darned cold as well. However late yesterday afternoon, it cleared to a beautiful calm evening. Today has been a bit breezy but at least I didn't get blown into the sea when I went to the markets. I got my fruit and vegetables and some flowers and then wandered along and bought some Prosecco (Italian bubbly). Yesterday I went out to my nieces place and had lunch with her in-laws and my sister plus the niece and nephew. Niece is about to give birth any day now. It's supposedly due 6th of December. M the nephew (IT Geek) has put together a sweepstake for the baby. You pay $5 and select the answers to the questions. My guess is that the baby will be a boy. He will weigh in at 3.5kg (about 7.9lbs), he will be born in the AM (early morning) on the 9th December and he will look most like M but have the same temperament as R. Apparently the winner will be from the date, then the sex, then the weight. Can't tell looks or temperament at birth really. That's just a trick question. The winner takes half of the prizemoney and the other half goes into the babies bank account. A bit of fun.

I was thinking of going to the zoo today, but I am feeling just a bit too lazy and besides which I really should do some housework and I have some soup to make (red pepper and tomato with a bit of basil thrown in. And I need to start looking at other apartments as well. I'll start the list next week. Although I did see a few on the 'net this morning.

There is sirens screaming around the place at the moment. Don't think we are on fire or anything. Never quite know around here.

Michelle, I am sorry to hear that your stepmom is moving you out. But at least you have a place to go. Hope the job hunt will come up with something soon.

Happy - so nice that you had a good break with Mum and that you got to see the family and some friends. I know what you mean about the shopping in major centres. It just is!!!!!! But the advantages to living in the wilderness are great as well.

Laura - good to know you had a good Thanksgiving with the family. Slothing is a vastly underrated pastime. I'd love to do more of it.

Ceejay - don't the family ever come to visit you???? You always seem to be driving up there. Are the tenants behaving themselves with the rubbish now??

Annie - Your poor son. Not a pretty sight that. But at least it isn't as serious as it could be. Guess he will be looking for a new car now. Strange that the airbags didn't deploy. I had heard, like Happy that seat belts sometimes need to be checked and/or changed. I sincerely hope C is okay. Not a good sign but it could just be something quite simple. Fingers crossed anyway.

Susie - hope you are not working too hard. Maybe you are having such a great time with the family that you haven't had time to post. Hope SAP is working properly for you and that your reports are reporting the correct bits and pieces. One I was trying to document the other day wasn't co-operating very well. I think the wrong infocubes were attached somehow. There was a fair amount of swearing going on that's for sure.

Anyway, I will buzz off and make my soup. I might even make the pizza that I bought the bases for as well. Not sure what I will do with the Mountain bread since it is probably out of date now. Maybe I will brush with some flavoured oil and some spice, cut it up and make chips out of it.
Can't waste food. It is too expensive these days.

Good evening ladies,

Thank you Shad for setting up the new December thread. I will start with my Mel memory for the day.

Mel first joined us in January 2004. Here’s a snippet from her first post “I guess I should say my name is Mel and am almost retired and looking forward to full retirement. I could use more time for Mel now. I love all these smilies!!! :cp: They alone are worth the trip. (And so began the love affair with smilies which became our new punctuation.)

Shad convinced her to join our little international group and in a tip of the hat to her Mel posted “I lost my drive but Shad helped me find it again. I only temporarily misplaced it! You, Lady, have done more for me than anyone knows.”

I remember Mel having a bird which she called her grandson but I didn’t realize she had a whole flock at first. Her humor and her unique way of looking at things is what really drew me to her. “One of my finches died last week. The other 5 didn't even stop eating! he was dead in the nest and they were all eating and taking baths!! So much for birdie love!”

I made it through the first of 2 days volunteering for the Santa photo benefit. Rose quite early on a minimum of sleep and headed out on a cold and crisp day. I did wear 3 shirts - turtleneck, long sleeved and a logo sweatshirt and I'm glad I did because it was very, very cold in the storefront. They said they were having trouble with the heat. I was glad I brought a mug and after 2 cups of tea I just kept heating water and cupped my hands around it to stay warm. Outside of that it was a fun event - we had 2 Irish Wolfhounds come in - talk about BIG animals. One of the ladies said the owners had to have arms like Popeye the Sailor Man to hold those babies in place. But they did get them to sit with Santa. We had several cute dogs and even one cat. It was a nice fund raiser for the Humane Society. The ladies who sponsored the event had trays of goodies - both sweet and savory so we were able to snack a bit. Tomorrow will be a shorter day - 11am to 2pm and then the rest of the time is mine again. I came home and wound up sitting in a hot bath just to warm up.

My sinuses are really bad with the water in the nose feeling. I have the humidifier running constantly with a warm mist. I also got some saline spray which seemed to work for 10 minutes. I don't really want to take an antihistamine which will dry me out even further. I only have the water in the nose aggravation - not stuffed up or having a runny nose.

Shad - what a cute idea your nephew had for the new baby. A chance to have some fun and start a little fund for the wee one. Very clever! So what did you do with the Prosecco? I have seen it on the cooking shows - is it just a sparkling wine? Generally they add it with a juice of sorts. The soup sounded lovely also. I am a big fan of roasted red pepper soup.

Michelle - sorry to hear that you'll be finding a new place but at least you have something in mind. Sounds like step mum was willing to help you get a leg up but then she also had a busy life herself. Will D keep you closer to SF than SD or are you keeping your options open? Sending you good vibes :hug:

Annie - I'm sorry to hear about C. Hope his issue is something treatable like a hemmoriod which can be scary at first. Glad he's getting it checked out. Sending good wishes his way too.

It's getting late and I still have to rise early tomorrow so I'm going to call it a day/night.

Sleep well good chicks and I'll touch base tomorrow.

Ha, yes I remember. I also talked her through making the font size bigger permanently on her old computer. I think she thought a miracle had happened. Never had to tell her anything twice tho'.

Morning all,
Not much to report since I posted the above last night. Nothing much happens while I am asleep (that I know about).
I have given my notice at the apartment I am in. I think I said all this yesterday. I found cockroaches and some form of ant in the dishwasher. That was the last straw.

The soup turned out great. I have some for lunch today. It's pretty easy to make, just roast the peppers (many as you like) roast the tomatoes (many as you like).
Saute as much onion as required (I used half a brown onion) and a couple of cloves of garlic in a light splash of good oil or just spray the bottom of the saucepan with oil. Add a touch of salt.
Peel the skins off the tomatoes and peppers and chop roughly. Add to the onions and garlic. Add as much stock (vege or chicken) as you want - less equals thick soup, more equals runny soup. I like mine thick. Simmer for about 10 minutes and blend in the food processor or with a blender stick. Eat. Very few calories there.

Then I had some Mountain bread that needed using up. What's mountain bread? It's that flat bread you use for wraps and things. Very thin and flat. Anyway I sprayed it with Olive Oil - although a flavoured oil would have been good, sprinkled the sheets with a Moroccan spice blend and baked for about 10 mintes. They are crisp and and tangy and better than the packaged chips.

Finally I sliced up an eggplant (Aubergine) and sprinkled it with salt to get some of the water out. Sprinkled those with spice and baked until crisp. They are yummy as long as you don't cook them too long. They need to be just crisp.

So that was my afternoon. Evening was watching a couple of programs on TV. Doing some puzzles on the computer and going to bed to read. My book at the moment is The Paris Architect. It's about an architect in Paris during WW11 who built secret hideyholes in houses and apartments in Paris to hide the Jewish people. How true it is I don't know, but some of it sounds plausible.

Happy - I love the Irish Wolfhounds. They appear so dopey, but give them a target and they will run for miles. A friend who used to live around the corner had two of them. She walked them on a duo frame. Her mother always said that they looked sort of unkempt and dishevelled - a bit like Bob Geldoff. So we nicknamed them Bob and Geldoff.
The Prosecco I DRINK. You can put it with Peach Nectar (and make a Bellini) or you can add it to orange juice (I think that is called a Mimosa) or you can add gelatine to it and make a champagne jelly with grapes set in it, but it is nice just straight up after a hot day in the kitchen or garden. The local store also has a good cider as well, but one thing per week only. Prosecco is this weeks treat.

I am having a push to get some of this weight off. It's my last effort I think. If it doesn't move then I will be around the 180 mark for the rest of my days. It's becoming increasingly harder and harder to get rid of this lard. I don't like it, but short of starving myself (and that probably won't work) I don't know what else to do. I eat well, I walk to work, I don't eat much in the way of junk food, I cook my own stuff and count the calories. I climb stairs and hills and still nothing moves. So for the next month, it is a case of up the exercise, and control the food. Let's just see if something will happen.
Let this be a warning to those of you under the 55 to 60 mark. Once you get to this age, it is progressively harder and harder to lose. It is progressively harder to tone up. It is not a pretty sight with all the lose skin and droopy bits. So my advice to you is to DO IT NOW.

Gotta go. See ya

My Mel moment for the day...

We all remember how Mel loved to sing. Next to posting graphics I think her next favorite thing was Googling song lyrics.

Bet you didn't know this...

She wrote "Yes my Dad gave me this name and I have been singing ever since! When he worked the late shift, he used to listen to a radio program called MILKMAN'S MATINEE.(1947) It was musical. The announcer had a daughter and named her Melody-something but my Dad liked Melody-Ann better. Long ago the hyphen got lost in the shuffle."

Greetings and salutations,

I finished my stint at the photo fundraiser. We made over $600 so it was a nice turnout. We had a lot of huge dogs - Great Pyrenees, Great Danes, a couple of huge lumbering mixes, a couple of Chihuahuas - one that was dressed in a red salsa dress along with her mixed breed sisters but my favorite was Lucky the cat who had the best looking reindeer sweater I've ever seen. Lucky was a stray the owner found caught in an animal trap - poor lucky lost his leg due to the severity of the injury but was one of the most docile cats I've ever seen. We thought the sweater was cute but when they pulled out the reindeer ears and strapped them on his head with no objection, we all had to gather round and awwwww. I will post a picture later. The people who sponsored the event brought in their 5 dogs at the end and it was literally a scene from the movie "A Christmas Story" when the Bumpus dogs from next door got into the lead character's house. I just sat behind the table and watched the melee. I also had to guard the basket of dog treats on the table next to me. They were all laughing at me but I said this is why I was a cat person. :rofl: All in all it was a good time and I'm glad I did it.

DH is watching the end of the Bears football game and then we'll figure out someplace to go and eat. I have to type up the list of contact info for the clients to give to the photographer and hope to get that off before DH is ready to leave.

Thanks for the soup recipe Shad - I think I will try that. I will have to add some cream or at least fat free half and half (half cream half milk), otherwise that would be too much acid for my wimpy tummy but it sounds delicious. How wretched to find roaches in the dishwasher of all places. If they are there, they are in the cabinets for sure. Ugh. Hope you find another, more suitable place quickly.

Ok, I'm off to type up my list.

Hi ladies -

I've been spending most of the day working on a project for my step-brother. I also need to finish my online website portfolio so that I can present it tomorrow in an interview. Santa is resting right now. I'm taking him to the vet later. His paw is getting worse not better...he doesn't even put it down now...just hobbles around on 3 legs. Poor little guy.

Shad - I love that idea for the baby sweepstakes. I've worked in some companies where a similar thing is done for expectant parents. I hope you find a better apartment and are able to move into it very soon.

Annie - I really hope C is doing ok. Sending hugs and healing prayers.

Happy - The photo fundraiser sounds like a lot of fun. I'm hoping to find something like that around here for me and Santa. I'd like to include a photo of us in the Christmas cards. I love the big dogs like wolfhounds, pyrenees, danes, newfies. I don't think I could/would own one...as I prefer lap dogs. Of course most of the time those big guys think they're lap dogs and crush you under their 150 lbs body. Thanks for sharing the Mel memories. I know I joined the Worldlies after you'd all been around awhile. I do remember Mel's grandson though and how much she loved the lil guy.

Gotta get back to website work.

Much love to all,

Shad
I do most of the driving to visit with the relatives. Seeing that they are in their 80's I don't expect them to travel. Ugh on the roaches in the dishwasher. And yes the neighbors are better at putting out their garbage.
Love the picture. I wouldn't mind visiting that place myself. I fully understand about the weight problem. I'm their too.

Happy
Sounds like you had an interesting day at the fund raiser event. $600 dollars is not bad.

Michelle
Poor Santa. Hope it isn't any thing to serious.

------------------------
Yesterday was working in the yard. I mulched most of the leaves with the lawn mower but there was several around the bushes that needed to be raked to the curb and the driveway had almost as much as the front lawn did.
My aunt called last night and told me she really liked the Christmas tree we bought. And that she had it decorated already.
I did relent and go back over there today to go to church. But that's to far to drive for a church service.
My next trip over there will be after Christmas. I'm working on one of my long week ends and of course Christmas Eve and Christmas day is on my day's to work. At least I'll have a bit of rest from driving.
My weight loss stalled due to some medical issues and the only reason I've lost some weight in November is because I've been more diligent in taking my fluid pill. I eat to late at night also due to the 12 hour work day's. Some things I can change though and will.
More later. Need to charge the tablet.

Good Cyber Monday/evening.....

Did not take C to the ER. I decided that he had been eating terribly and with a irritated colon that he has and his hernia, it was time to regroup his food choices. It really was not what I was feeding him and it was the junk he eats all day long on his route. He is lactose intolerant and continually eats chocolate, drinks soda, and eats sugary cakes off of his route truck. Now you are going to laugh, but I found him on Saturday at one of his stops and snuck/sneaked up on him. Caught him eating a Reeces PB cup. Well let me tell you I ripped him a new arse. Told him that I had worried myself to death about his issue and was thoroughly hurt that he was not helping himself. He promised to not eat that stuff anymore, and I confiscated 2 snicker bars from him and gave them to Sissy. Well low and behold, the bleeding has stopped and he feels so much better and the bloating is gone. Well duh! That is the first time I had to be rather harsh with him on anything and I think my wicked witch of the west attitude scared the bejeebers out of him. It is also helping me eat better.

My funny memory song of MELLIE is she and I going back and forth singing lines of Gilligan's Island theme song. Or music from the 70s.

SHADDIE...have you found a new place to live yet? Man all the hustle and bustle-ing you do wears me out.

CEEG....sometimes I find yard work refreshing. We had good temps but being a young neighborhood with very young, small trees, we had no leaves to rake. C did one final grass cut last weekend in the back so Sassy wouldn't have to jump and hop around to go potty.

CHELLE...any news on the work front to report? I just know you will hear something this week. Fingers crossed and prayers going up.

HAPPY...good job on the fund raiser. I am very proud of you and impressed with all the volunteering you do. You are a good woman, Ms. Happy. So cute on the salsa dressed chewie hewie and the reindeer cat. Can't wait to see the pixs.

Hellos to LAURA and SUSIE

And a great big HEAVENLY HELLO to our MS. MELLIE.

Have a marvelous MOnday all.

Loves and hugs

Do we have a new APT # for Jen yet?

I found this in one of MELLIE's older posts....

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/images/icon/icon10.gifDashing in the snow to Lapland in a sleigh.......
:elf: Sleigh bells ring
are you listening
in the lane
snow is glistening
A beautiful sight
we're happy tonight
walking in a winter wonderland

Gone away is the bluebird
here to stay is a new bird
He sings a love song
as we go along
walking in a winter wonderland

In the meadow we can build a snowman
Then pretend that he is Parson Brown
He'll say: Are you married?
we'll say: No man
But you can do the job
when you're in town

Later on
we'll conspire
as we dream by the fire
To face unafraid
the plans that we've made
walking in a winter wonderland

In the meadow we can build a snowman
and pretend that he's a circus clown
We'll have lots of fun with mister snowman
until the other kids knock him down

When it snows
ain't it thrilling
Though your nose gets a chilling
We'll frolic and play
the Eskimo way
walking in a winter wonderland

Walking in a winter wonderland
Walking in a winter wonderland

Morning all.

Annie – Cool you have a new tablet. What a nice gift. Will you read books with it?? How’s DS? By now he probably looks worse than he feels. How’s C – I hope the blood is not an indicator of anything serious. Ah, just caught up with your latest post and see that it might just be his diet. I have to say if I were around all that junk, I’d have little resistance. But now he has you watching out for him and guilting him into really taking care of himself, so I bet he’ll be more conscious of what he puts in his pie hole. Or else... :D

Happy – Glad you had a nice visit with family. Yes, it’s a shame we couldn’t get together this time, but maybe next time! Too odd that you have trouble getting a good pork roast up your way! Enjoy this one. I’m tired out just reading about your drive home and your weekend activities! The photos with Santa sounds like a nice event. I just love the extra big dogs, especially the Irish Wolfhounds – that commercial on tv with the military gal and her IW is a favorite. Too funny about the 5 dog melee and you guarding the treats! – I just love that scene from A Christmas Story!!! :D Glad to hear the cats did well on their own.

Shad – Glad the tests came out alright. Seems like a lot to go home for, but it wouldn’t have been good to put it off, and this assignment isn’t a short one. Thanks for starting the new thread for us. Very fitting title. I’d saved a bunch of Mel’s graphics to dropbox, but when I tried to post one here, I was having trouble resizing them small enough to attach. Maybe you (or Michelle or Happy) can insert some of those directly into the post throughout the month? I’ve never set up a shutterfly account or learned to insert the photos into the body of the posts. I used to love seeing the graphics Mel would post. Re the baby prize pool – great idea. Not long now!! Your soup sounds delish. I think I agree with you about not wanting to starve myself to lose weight. I was talking about my final ww goal with bf last week and while I lean towards the top of the ww healthy range for my height/age as my goal, bf is thinking I should try for something lower. I think lower would be nice, but I honestly don’t want to have to struggle much more than I do for the rest of my life to maintain. I might strive for what my drivers’ license actually says, but beyond that…dunno. I don’t think there’s any ww rule that would prevent me from continuing to lose weight even after I were to achieve a reasonable goal and lifetime status.

Ceejay – Nice of you to help with the aunt’s holiday decorations. I don’t know why, but this year it seems I’m noticing how early the decorations are going up everywhere. I enjoy seeing them. As for our own…I’m not too thrilled to wrestle our giant artificial tree out of the attic, but after it’s set in the stand, plugged in and fingers crossed that all the lights will light, I’m fine with decorating it. I didn’t do any exercising the entire week, Monday through Saturday.:blush: I have, however, done all the daily dogwalks from Wednesday onward. Gives bf a break and me some exercise. Yesterday I went to the gym for a yoga class. Good instructor and I enjoyed it. It’s a nice thing to do for myself on a Sunday and not too strenuous. Mmmm, cornbread. Funny how some foods taste much better in our memories, LOL. Good for you getting the leaves raked//mulched. Our tree in the back still has a ton of leaves, but enough have fallen to require some raking. It’s a nice day today, I might do that in lieu of an exercise class. Just have to remember to use my inhaler and maybe wear a mask…

Michelle – I hope your moving out is on an amicable basis with your stepmom. It was nice of her to have you and Santa stay for all these months. Not the best timing given your job situation, but you’ll be back at it in no time, and I’m glad you won’t be out on the street! Lucky you, moving in with a cook!! :) I must have missed you mentioning Santa’s paw – I sure hope it’s nothing serious. Coal was hobbling on his walks for a couple days this week, but was just fine yesterday. I think he must have pulled something in a paw when he scrambles around like a nut when he hears the mailman at the door.

Hi Susie!!! Hope you had a fabulous TG holiday!!
--
Nothing much to report. Why do I always type that?? Saturday was shopping for the bday gift, then my hair appointment. Touch up, cut and actually had an excust to have her style it - the party. It looked nice, wish I could do that myself. Saturday evening’s party was fun. So good to see a couple friends from HS that I haven’t seen in way too long. So the honoree was the first of our group to turn 50. Another friend’s milestone is in January. Oh boy, hard to believe. But it’s just a number…

Yesterday was mostly lazy. In the morning, I watched the end of a dvd - I watched the first part w bf when I got home Saturday night. Then a bit of tv and reading. Went to an 11 am yoga class, showered, puttered, walked the dog. Early dinner with bf and back home for more loafing. Pinned up the hem of a pair of his nylon sport pants. He had them hemmed by the dry cleaners but they’re still too long.

So I took a vacation day today and have no real plans. I will renew my Art Institute membership (it expired 10/31) today since they are offering a cyber Monday 20% off special. Other than that, nothing on the agenda except maybe a visit to the thrift shop, raking leaves, a dog walk, reading…It’s already nearly 10:30 so it’s already flying by. Typical.

TTFN.
:wave:

Just a quick one.

I had a note back from Jenn last night. She did mention the new number of the apartment but she won't be in it until January. I can't remember what it was and I will get back to you with it tonight.

Hello everyone!

Busy morning of applying for jobs. Now Santa and I are off to an interview. I'm taking him with me because stepmom and stepbro both had appointments today. It's cool enough outside to leave him in the car for an hour or so while I dazzle my way through the interview!

I start a new job on Thursday. It's a decent job...the pay is lower than I'd like and the benefits and vacation are practically non-existent...but it's income. In case some of you saw my FB posts from a week or so ago, this was the bird in the hand I was referring to. I'm still trying to catch me a much better bird in the bush...but income is income.

My stepmom would like me to move the week between Christmas and New Years. I'll have to coordinate that with D. It should all work out ok.

Anyway, I've got to get going. I'll let y'all know how it went. Please send prayers, luck and keep your fingers crossed for me.

Much love to all,

Give me patience
RIGHT BLOODY NOW

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b1...ps1dbe9a69.gif

Here is a Mel-ism for you Laura. Picked it off a thread from ages back.

hmmm
 

Michelle
Wishing you the best on the job hunt/interview's.

Annie
Good thinking on regrouping the food C eats.

Laura and Happy :wave:

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I'm at work and just finished with the November reports. I feel worn out from the week end. I started to decorate the small tree but decided against it last night. I'm putting out a few decorations and that's it.
We have a cold front coming in Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. They are predicting a low of 16 on Friday night. :brr: The high on Saturday is 30 degree's. I'm already shivering.

Hi Everyone :wave: I had a wonderful holiday with my family. The sweet potato casserole turned out well.

I don't feel that I overdid on the food on Thanksgiving, except I did have two desserts but I spread them out through the day.

I have my decorations up and I have done some shopping. I will do a bit on-line shopping here in just a little while. My goal is to be done and wrapped by December 14 in case on December 16 they tell us we should/can do the ablation for DH before the end of the year.

I am enjoying your "remembering Mel" posts. I am getting to know her and you all as well as I see how you each remember her.

Annie: Your C is very lucky that you are going to be there to help him get on track. I do think that he should schedule a doctors visit and be assessed. A hernia can go bad quickly. My Father-in-law had to deal with that this past fall. All turned out well but it could have been very scary.

I am about to go get some laundry out and get some online shopping done before the Country Christmas show comes on at 8 p.m. I will be singing right along with them.

See you all tomorrow.

Dear Shad, I have been thinking of all of you on this thread for sometime now and could not use my old registration. I am saddened to hear about the loss of sweet Mellie. She was so kind to me and we exchanged some good pieces of advice with each other and mailed a few things back and forth. My heart is with all of you here and she was able to show such great support and encouragement to all.
Shad, this is Renae from Idaho. Sending blessings

My interview went really well. I think I'm precisely what they are looking for...a combination of programmer, graphic designer with email, search engine and social media marketing savvy. They have more candidates to interview, but hopefully they will decide (and choose me) by the end of the week. Even though we didn't talk salary, the pay would undoubtedly be better than the place I'm starting on Thursday...and the benefits package is REALLY good. :D Please keep your fingers crossed for me, and keep me in your prayers if you do that sort of stuff. Otherwise, any good vibes are greatly appreciated!

Much love,

Is this Renae who once sent me a knitted duster cloth of all varying hues and stripes?
Really??????

Yes it is.... I am having trouble posting here. But I wanted you to know I have thought of you gals so often... I can only imagine how this loss will effect you Shad and wanted to let you know I am thinking of you. Thoughts for Jenn and her family and all of Mel's friends here.
Blessings,
Renae

Thank you so much. Please don't be a stranger. Come back and check on us anytime. Are you still living in the mountains? Didn't you have a wee dog Toby?
What's been going on in your world?
BTW, I still have the duster. It's not quite as pristine as it used to be! :lol:

Jennifer's address - note it is from January 1st. She is not there yet.

Hey there....I'm at same address different apt #...will be jan 1st 2014 will be...APT.3F The apt is much bigger walk in closet...also have the trailer for storage...the kids will be here to help move...the don't know yet...finally be able to put up a x-mas tree...have the room now. gonna put a mom's stuff on it...i'm here right now boxing things up...feels funny...horrible actually...thanksgiving was heard...rich
s cousin his step kids dad dies 2 days after my mom...not a cheery day this year...I couldn't believe it he had a heart attack. very nice man...it's a shame. but...life goes on.....happy or not. i'll write you soon....love you...jenn

Happy Tuesday everyone!!!

SHADDIE...thank you for the update from Jenn. I did send out my C cards yesterday and put the old apt # on it per instructions. I also sent her a book of stamps. Don't know if she uses/needs them but it is the thought that counts. Haha, on the patience, I do know what you mean by that. Some days are better than other days for those coming in contact with me. I try to show kindness first and grumble inside, and also pray on it.

CEEG...for the first time in 7 years C has talked me into a real tree. Although the prices are scaring me away somewhat. The cheapest I can find is 35.00 at Kroger's. May just have to go some time during the night and cut someone's shrub down. lol. I don't want a very big one, just a small cute one.

CHELLE...more good vibes being sent your way. More prayers going up. I am sure you will get this job as Santa went along for goodluck. Santa was very glad you just didn't take his foot only for good luck. lol. When are you moving out of stepmums?

RENAE...do stop in when you can. I went back years past from the Worldlie posting and read some of your posts. We all miss MELLIE so very much. She was such a hoot and dear sweet lady.

SUSIE...good job on the Thanksgiving feast and not overdoing it. Hugs! C has had his hernia for the past 3 1/2 years. It comes and goes however thank God it is in a fatty tissue and not sprinting out between intestine and muscle. He has learned to deal with it. Also not lifting 4 trays of product at once is helping. I told him no more than 1 or 2 trays, so far he is complying. I have most all of my C shopping done, with the exception of a few gift cards. I did a lot of cyber shopping yesterday, that about finished it for me.

LAURA....so far I love the tablet. Just messing around with it right now, took a few pictures. I might read books with it, there is just something about holding a real paperback in my hands that I like. You always have something going on every weekend...exercising, shopping, walking the dog, sewing something, you are one busy person. Good on Ya!

Nuttin much going on last night. Dinner, dishes a little tube and bed. BORING!! I did stop on my way home and purchased Cs cologne he likes. Walgreen's is the only place I can find it since it is an older type from year's back. Lagerfeld - original.

Make it a terrific Tuesday all.

loves and hugs

Morning
Not much happened last night. I dug through the Christmas decorations and decided against putting up the small tree. I've got some 6 inch fiber optic tree's I'm going to use instead. The rest of this stuff is being boxed up and taken to Goodwill.

Annie
What size is your tablet? I love my 10 inch. I couldn't get used to the 7 inch. It was like a big phone to me. Good for you in having your Christmas shopping done. I'm not shopping this year. There's really no reason to do so.

More later. I'll post more later.

Morning all,

Quick post for me. 6 inches of the white, fluffy stuff overnight with possibly another 10 more by Wednesday morning. Then we are going to drop like a rock with temps. Predicted high of 1 degree on Friday - low of minus 16. Brrrrrr.

Can't stay - got a call from the Tuesday morning Thrift shop volunteer asking if I can cover for him as he lives 25 miles out of town and the roads are not yet cleaned.

Be back tonight. :grouphug:

Morning all. Back at the office today and will have to wade through yesterday's e-mails. Bleh. And we'll have the monthly report to do as well. Ugh.

Happy - Wow, 6 inches snow and possibly 10 more!!?? Our temps are supposed to drop a lot by Thursday, don't recall the precipitation forecast. We got rain last night. Be careful out there!

Ceejay - Ooh, I like the fiber optic trees - so pretty when the other lights are dimmed. Our tablet is a 10 inch iPad I believe. BF reads books on it and does internet surfing on it. I did a little bit of online shopping on it (well, no purchases, so I guess it was just browsing) and it's good for that.

Okay, have to restart the computer, so I'll be back shortly.

Shad - Hope you got the patience you needed. Thanks for the Mellie graphic. :) And thanks for the update from Jen. Will take note of the new apt. number effective Jan. She sounds very busy. Must be so hard for her to go through all of her mom's belongings. :(

Susie - Glad you had a nice holiday and the sweet potatoes turned out well. Good for you getting the shopping and decorating started/done. I'm finding that the weekends are filling up quickly, so I better find time for all that very soon!!

Michelle - I hope you get the job you really want :crossed: - but it's good you have some income in the meantime. :) How's Santa doing?

Annie - Enjoy the real tree - sap, needles, etc. :D Other than that, they're nice - the scent is awesome. :yes: Re real books vs. e-books, yeh, I'm still partial to the paper & ink ones. But it's convenient to have e-books on my phone - I know I'll have at least a couple loaded when I go on my cruise in Feb. Re being busy - I don't seem to plan much for my weekends/time off, yet the days just fly by...don't get it. :?:

Renae - I seem to recall a few posts here and there by you when I first joined this thread a few years ago. Hope you'll stop by every once in a while to say hi. :)

==
Yesterday morning I'd decided I'd get out in the yard and do some leaf-raking. I even put on my "yard work" clothes. But then I decided that since the temps were mild, I should complete my zipper replacement project so I could wear that jacket to do the raking - perfect weight for that. Had to fill a new bobbin for the bottom thread color, and then I did the 4 rows of stitching. Happily, no problems like I'd feared, and so that project is finally complete. :) Since I was already at the sewing machine, I re-hemmed two pairs of bf's sport pants.

By the time I was done with the sewing, it had clouded over and I didn't want to be outside doing yard work. And it was lunch time...went out to lunch. (With all the leftovers in the house, why go out? but we did.) Back home and out for doggy's walk. After that was a lot of slothing - on the sofa watching bits and pieces of hallmark movies and hgtv shows, doing online browsing, etc. No exercise class or nuttin'.

For movie night tonight, they selected the movie Catching Fire, which is the new Hunger Games movie. Not interested, going to skip that one. And since I skipped exercise yesterday, I will go to an exercise class tonight.

WW meeting and weigh-in today. Scale at home this morning was down a pound, so I expect a loss at ww, but we'll see. I know I did alright over the long weekend with the exception of Thanksgiving when I ate too much of the cheese/sausage/cracker tray my friends brought over for the appetizer.

That's about it for me. Have a good day everyone!
:goodvibes:goodvibes:goodvibes

Laura
I wish I had your skills in sewing. I didn't have and still don't have the patience for it.
You can't tell I've cleaned off the yard this week end. The leaves are not as deep but they are covering the ground.

Susie
Thanks for mentioning the Christmas program. I'm going to watch that also.

Shad
Hang in there.

Happy
Be careful while out and about. Will the DH take you in the ATV?

-----
Work is going well today. Hope it continues. We're supposed to get that cold air Happy is experiencing today but if anything we'll probably get the ice instead of the snow. I'm dreading it.
I've been going back and reading some of the threads from the past.

Hi Ladies -

I'm exhausted today. I didn't sleep well last night. Santa is getting used to the cone of shame, though he still doesn't like it. He's not putting any weight on his sore paw, but the swelling is coming down a little I think.

Today, I learned that I am being offered a job in San Francisco as a long-term contractor with the Federal Government. It's a good job, except for the commute...but the pay and benefits are good. I'd still prefer the job in San Jose...and I've got a second interview for that position on Friday.

Tomorrow, I'm interviewing for a short-term contract job with Apple. The pay isn't great...but it might be a way to get in the door with Apple.

Laura - I saw Catching Fire on Sunday. It was very good. But then, I really enjoyed the Hunger Games book trilogy, and the first movie. You really are good at sewing. I can sew crafty things...but I'd never try making clothes or replacing a zipper.

Happy - That's a lot of snow. Be careful, okay?

Annie - I'm saying prayers for C (and for you sista). :hug:

I'm going to try and get my Christmas cards out this week. I just sent out a PM to most of you to make sure I had your correct mailing address. Laura, I sent yours by FB message.

Gotta go for now...gotta help get dinner ready.

Much love,

Evening all,
Feeling a bit depressed. I went to have a look at two 'apartments' today. They were dark, dreary and depressing. One was so tiny that you had to wonder why they put two bedrooms in it. And it was supposed to be one of the 'better' places in town. Guess I will have to think about forking out a bit more money.

Not much else to report. Run out of work until some queries can get sorted. But they tell me they will be on to it tomorrow and have plenty of work lined up.

Feeling tired and not too well so I might call it quits for tonight.


http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b1...psbe4e7d93.png
This is one of Mels Christmas graphics that Laura put on the dropbox.

Annie
Sending good vibes and prayers for C.

Michelle
I pm'd my address to you. I need to get out Christmas cards myself this week end.

-------
OOhhhh I'm not liking our weather forecast. They are predicting very low temperatures and an ice storm to boot. I'll be off work until Sunday but another round is supposed to be here that day. Guess I need to take a whole med for panic attacks for this week end.
I got the living room semi decorated. I am glad I chose the smaller fiber optic tree's. I made a small village using them. Don't know why but they relax me.
My friend called me last night stating that she was sick, and asked if I could bring her a coke. I took her a coke and a sprite. Sprite's do me more good when I sick. Of all things I forgot to put my phone in my purse. She was going to call me to let me know how she was feeling this morning. ughh. And I can't remember her phone number. I'm used to texting and scroll down to find her number.

Morning all.

Ceejay - I'm not liking our upcoming forecast either, and we never did rake the leaves in back. And I still haveflowerpots on the patio with dead flowers in them. After work I'll try to remember to dump the contents and put the empty pots in the basement slop sink for washing. I hope you don't get an ice storm!!!

Shad - Sorry your current apartment and your apartment hunt aren't going well. Hope that changes soon. :crossed: Thanks for posting the Mellie graphic. :)

Michelle - I responded to your message on FB. And I deleted some of my 3fc pm's here - I keep too much! Re sewing - I don't do much with sewing as to clothing anymore - I'm not as good of a sewer as I'd like. But stuff like crafts and home dec items are fine. My next projects will be fleece boot socks for my rubber wellies and a pair of flannel pajama pants. Glad Santa's paw is on the mend.

Happy - How did the podiatrist appt go??

Hellos to Susie & Annie. :) :wave:

~~~~~~~~~
I went to the "Body Works + Abs" class last night at the gym. I felt like I eased up a bit during this class so I could avoid the soreness in my quads like I had last time. There were still a ton of lunges and squats, but I made sure to use the lighter weights for those, and switched to the heavier ones for the non-leg moves (upper body). However... walking to the office after my train commute this morning, I can tell the soreness is starting up. Just hope it isn't too severe this time.

I had a loss of 1.2 pounds at my ww weigh-in yesterday. No gain after a long weekend that included a holiday meal and a party - whoo!

Nothing much else to report. Aside from emptying my flowerpots tonight, i also need to go through my mail basket. BF knocked it over while cleaning last week and everything's a mess.

Okay, that's about it for me. The work won't do itself, so I'm back to it. TTFN!
:cofdate:

Morning all,

Mel Moment For the Day -

In regards to decorating for her most favorite holiday in her most favorite month of the year...

...Nothing is safe when I started to decorate in the past. I have toned down quite a bit. Jen and I used to share this tiny apartment and one year we decided to use everything we had collected over the years all at once. That year there was a surprise inspection from the State Authorities for Housing. 2 young fellas. 1 came in, ran out and called to the other one....You gotta come in here and see this. It looks like F*cking Macy's in here. They should put up a rope and charge admission." The 2 of them were in such awe that the inspection came to an end and they stayed here till they left. We had a great time while they pointed out things to each other. I must admit it was a tad over the top and we never did it again... but it was a great year to remember! Have fun with it. We only go through life once! :xcheer::hohoho:

Happy - What a great memory! Thanks for sharing it with us!

Well we have quite the winter wonderland out my windows this morning. At least 6 inches of snow yesterday. It's snowing quite heavily now - 2 to 4 more inches expected and if it keeps up like this we'll get more than that. I'm hoping it keeps to all snow because they were predicting freezing drizzle or rain all afternoon long and that would make it darn treacherous out there. :yikes: We're supposed to get the cold blast starting tomorrow which will send us into the bottom of the deep freezer. Time to haul out the longer towels to block the draft at the bottom of the doors.

I cancelled my physical therapy appointment this morning in anticipation of the bad weather. Supposed to work the thrift shop tomorrow afternoon but if it's going to be icy out, I'm not leaving the house. The lady who I gave up my usual Tuesday afternoon volunteer slot for was grousing yesterday afternoon that the shop should not be open in bad weather - it's dangerous for customers and the volunteers. Considering I had a good run of customers yesterday morning and only made $35 - $11 of which was my shopping ;) I'd have to agree with her.

Monday's podiatrist appointment was a bust. I got there and as usual the doctor was running behind. DH drove me there and was sitting in the waiting room as he was going to help me with the grocery shopping afterwards. I sat in the waiting room for over 45 minutes - they kept coming in and telling me it would be 10 minutes more. I finally got up and walked out. I told the receptionist I was leaving and she went to check with the doctor who was not done with the previous patient and would have been there even longer. Which meant I would have waited over an hour before I even got a chance to see her. I am debating about going back - my foot was bothering me but the cortisone injections for my hip helped the foot somewhat. I am disappointed that the expensive custom fit orthotics I purchased don't seem to be doing anything to help the feet and I wear them regularly now. So I guess I will keep my appointment for next week after all. I am also disappointed in that I felt pretty good with my back and neck sleeping at my sister's and now the pain is starting again. I'm thinking it's partially due to the bed, my sleeping position and bad posture at the computer desk so I will have to be mindful of that.

I bought a new shower curtain and thought the pattern looked familiar. Turns out it matches a set of towels I purchased in town last year on closeout. I loved the trim on the towels. So even though this color scheme is quite similar to what I have right now, with the towels (which I stole back from DH's bathroom :lol: ), will give my bath a fresh updated look.

I am wanting to decorate for Christmas this year. Would love to have a real tree - not sure how Nina who thinks everything is her personal toy to play with will deal with it. She has little fur mice and especially likes a black one. Every night she trots in with it in her mouth and drops it at DH's feet. They then have to engage in a game of toss and fetch for about 20 throws before she gets tired and snuggles into his arms for a while. She had to get her teeth cleaned. Apparently Siamese mixes like her have issues with teeth as the vet said genetics are against her. She does not like having her teeth brushed but the doc said it's crucial as she will get rotted teeth, gingivitis and oral infections. This poor bow legged, crossed eyed, snaggled toothed mess sure got the bottom of the gene pool. But on the other hand she is love in a fur bag and is so affectionate, full of energy and cute that you can't help but love her. I just wish she would not chase her older sister all over the house. DH is spending a lot of time with Meadow and she is slowly coming around. She even came to me last night and allowed me to scratch her head. That girl has some thick fur on her. But she is a shedding machine.

Other than that I have a house to clean and still stuff to put away from my trip as well as Mt. Washmore to tackle. Good day to stay inside and keep busy. After that I have to review the next raping ... um increase in health care for next year's sign up ;) and work on finishing up my class. I told the president of the Humane Society I would be willing to write articles for the weekly local paper column as well as for the quarterly newsletter which will help me to hone my skills on writing "tight" ie. less wordy.

Laura - your comment about the flowerpots reminded me that before I left I put a few pots of herbs that managed to make it through the cooler nights out on the deck. Didn't have time to transplant them indoors before I left and now they are flash frozen :lol: I have to agree with the others that you are quite the masterful sewer. I made most of my clothes freshman year of high school but didn't do much more after that. I see your work with jacket zippers, throw covers and other such ambitious projects and you are quite the seamstress! Congrats on maintaining a weight loss over the Thanksgiving weekend! That's wonderful. Hope you are not feeling too sore this morning. I can say that the stretches they gave me for PT are really helping with the soreness in the upper thighs so you might want to consider a few if you are feeling tight.

Ceejay - you poor thing - I see that they are predicting ice down your way. Particularly in your area. I sure do hope you don't have to get out and go to work in it. Seems like it will hit on Friday AND Sunday to really mess things up. Ice storms really knock things out down your way, including a lot of wires for power and telephone. I hope you will be ok. To your question about the ATV - we cannot drive it on certain county roads - many of which intersect our area and we can't drive ATVs or snowmobiles into town for "commuting" purposes. That is probably a good thing as there are lots of bars in town and drunks on snowmobiles are a bad enough issue on the less traveled trails. But we have a 4Runner and the 4 wheel drive works well except on ice - for that I need a tank with treads or one of those rover machines they use for driving out on the lake for ice fishing :rofl:

Shad - I am sorry the apartment hunt is turning into such a bust for you. Hotels here have long term furnished living suites with small kitchenettes, a small living area, bed and bath and since they are designed for staying for weeks or months on end they are priced competitively to a furnished flat. I realize that every dollar spent on living quarters cuts into the pay profit so I hope you can find something reasonable soon. Thank you for the Jenn update.

Michelle - I am a bit confused with the jobs - I know you are applying to many. So you are starting a job tomorrow? And the job you said you were perfect for - is that in San Jose? Yikes I would not want to have to commute into the city SF over those bridges each day with all that traffic or could you take BART? Good luck, keep at it, something will come through soon. Are you moving in with D sooner now that you have the time off or waiting to see what comes about? What happened to Santa's paw? I missed that post.

Annie - I hope all works out well for C today. Is he still having bleeding issues despite the crackdown on his eating? Sending good thoughts and healing prayers to both of you. :hug: I think sending Jen a book of stamps is a wonderful idea. That will certainly help cut costs with some of the correspondence she is doing. Sad that she is sending out sympathy notes instead of Christmas cards. :(

Susie - I see DH is having an ablation. Mine had one earlier this year and except for the night of the procedure in which he was in a lot of pain - due to the nature of what they are doing, he did great and :crossed: things are in steady rhythm as they should be. We are both relieved as he was not responding to the usual medications. So I hope all goes well for you both. Just a busy time of year for that sort of thing but the recouperation is quick - he just won't be able to lift much for a bit.

Nae - was good to hear from you again. When I get up in the morning and the house is cold and I look out on the snow covered trees in the yard, I think of you as it reminds me of what you have described in your posts. I can see why you love it so much now. Hope you are doing well. How is Toby the dog?

Yikes - looks like the snow has eased up - I hope this doesn't mean the frozen drizzle has moved in. DH was enjoying his morning coffee - if stuff is going to glaze over we both have to get out and shovel/plow/sweep before it freezes into chunks. Just when I had other plans.... :shrug:

Have a good one ladies.

Morning all,
Feeling somewhat better this morning, but am getting hacked off with this post nasal drip and the morning episodes that make me think I have a rotten cold. I suspect a sinus infection. However the darned thing has probably been there that long it will take a mammoth effort to get rid of it.

I have a list of apartments to ring up about today. Fingers crossed that one of them works. There is one I would love to have, but I'd better get on the phone asap this morning as I suspect there will be a few after it. My downfall will be not that I can't pay for it, but that I only want it for a small space of time. They have fixed ideas here that you should sign a six month lease. My time span is 5 at the most. Of course I don't have to tell them that, but I like to be upfront and as honest as possible. It generally pays dividends with the New Zealanders.

Raining this morning, but not blowing at all. I don't mind the rain, and I don't mind the wind, but I hate both of them together.

Happy - lovely memory of Mel this morning. I can just imagine that tiny apartment with every inch decked out in Christmas stuff. Jen seems to be coping reasonably well. Sure she is not happy but ........... what can she do about it.
I am starting to look at Hotel apartments. The one I saw yesterday was just dreadful. But it was cheap. I am now thinking that I have to go upmarket to get something I can live with. Not that 400+ per week is exactly cheap, but you know what I mean.
Having a real Christmas tree brings back memories of Shad the dog. He loved them. He used to sit by the tree waiting for us to decorate. As soon as the box of decorations came out, he was in there looking for his favorite decoration. We had a bunch of red shiny apples (not real) and one year we came into the lounge room and there was Shad next to the tree with a guilty expression on his face and red foam drool dripping from his mouth. We rushed him off to the vet, but halfway there, he sat up in the car and spat out an apple - still with the guilty expression. He was fine. Took him back home, gave him lots to drink and he tried to get into the apples again. Maybe the red shiny stuff tasted good. Nina will have a fine time batting the decorations around so make sure the lower ones are well stuck on.

Laura - I am sure your sewing skills are great. They sound good anyway. I used to make all my own clothes however these days I don't really have the time or maybe it is the inclination really. However the way these stupid Chinese clothes are fitting, I may very well have to either find a dressmaker or start making things again. Bet my sewing machine (hidden in the back of a wardrobe) has seized up and doesn't work anymore.

Annie - hope C is okay. Sometimes it is just haemorroids and polyps but whatever, he should get them seen to. Please let us know how it goes.

Michelle - good luck with all these jobs. Hope you get a good one. Are you actually starting one today??

Ceejay - seems strange that the South of USA would get snow and ice. Let's hope they miss you completely. Drive safe if you are driving.
I forget my phone frequently. Maybe that's because I hate it.

Better go sort out some work for myself. And start ringing these people. Today will be a good day I am sure.