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Old 12-06-2011, 02:44 PM   #16  
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Hey guys, just a quick flyby since I'm busy at work. I leave for vacation visiting my folks next week! In the meantime I got sidelined onto another higher priority project at work so I'm busy with that.

My Christmas shopping has not yet begun. I did manage to get all the December birthdays taken care of though. I plan to do my Christmas shopping once I arrive in LA so I don't have to transport stuff.
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Old 12-06-2011, 03:35 PM   #17  
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Megan I'm sure there's something in here that your BIL would love.

http://www.hammacher.com/

I still use my ping pong ball gun and my spider catcher - . Whenever I get this printed catalogue I page through it and LMAO.

Off for highlights and a trim for the holidays. Make-up thingee Saturday. My family will think I'm quite glamorous, I'm sure.

Dagmar
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Old 12-06-2011, 04:24 PM   #18  
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Oh, yeah, Christmas.

For the three Christmases that have occurred since my father's death, we've been very low key. My mother fled to my house for all of them. Now we're in her house and ill at ease. We were planning to go someplace, like maybe even Las Vegas, but my mother seemed ambivalent so I made no reservations. Now it's too late to get the time off. We are still not facing the holiday head-on. Because we're improvising. There's no cookie-baking going on. But she has put some boughs on the mantelpiece and hung up some big red ribbons.

Well, I began getting some gifts for my mother as early as the summer. Because she's difficult to buy for. (Once I gave her a Waterford perfume bottle, and after opening it, she handed it back to me and she told me, basically, "Here. I already have perfume bottles, I didn't need another one.") So I watch carefully for her to express a desire or need, make a note & follow through as soon as I can.

As for me, I'm one of the easiest people in the world to buy for, just now, as I'm missing so many things since the flood.
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Old 12-07-2011, 05:50 AM   #19  
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saef Your mom sounds a bit like my mom was. She would open my gift, look at it, and then put it away. Later she would cry. Or if I gave her a really nice dress (I did that twice) she would say "oh this is much too nice for me to wear, you better take it back". I learned to not really care about her reaction as I knew it would be negative in some way.

You are pretty particular about your home furnishings yes? Is there a "wish list" function on ebay? You might direct family and friends to that if they are shopping for you.

Dagmar
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Old 12-07-2011, 06:43 AM   #20  
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I found that with those elderly , picky people the most simple things are usually appreciated. I would get my mother, postage stamps, an assortment of greeting cards ( a few sympathy cards and birthday cards) ballpoint pens, an assortment of tea, maybe a robe or nightgown MIGHT be used. Those seemingly insignificnt gifts were appreciated and avoided the comment that saef and Mudpie would get.
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Old 12-07-2011, 07:00 AM   #21  
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Angry guilting me?

My dad had a medical problem last night that required him to be taken to emergency. I was working and couldn't be reached so he called my cousin the doctor. My cousin took him to emerg and then, after everything was sorted out, brought him home. It was already 10:30 at night and DH had to wake me up so that I could talk to my cousin. He said everything was stable.

So, during all of this, my cousin's wife saw fit to send me an email whose subtext was that they shouldn't be looking after my dad and how callous I was to not rush to the hospital etc. etc.

Both she and my cousin are aware of how abusive my dad has been to me and they have seen how he has treated me as his personal servant/slave. So now I'm supposed to embrace the old pr*ck and say how much I love him? Not likely.

Basically she doesn't want to be inconvenienced. But my dad has only me and my cousin as family here in Canada. And I need help and my cousin is a doctor.

I wish my dad would just agree to go into assisted care. My cousin is the only one he listens to. Maybe, so that he and his family won't be inconvenienced, my cousin should talk to my dad about it.

I think that will be my reply if the wife sends me another "guilting" email.

And I'm spending Christmas eve with this person. SIGH.

Dagmar
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Old 12-07-2011, 07:54 AM   #22  
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dagmar, my suggestion for a gift for your cousins wife, a lump of coal !
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Old 12-07-2011, 08:12 AM   #23  
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Bargoo, do you mean as in "coals of fire"?

Dagmar Is there scope in talking to your cousin (just you two, without his wife or your husband) about what to do?
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Old 12-07-2011, 09:10 AM   #24  
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Life is slightly sunnier today as I got some more sleep last night. Yesterday I was dead on my feet by afternoon, but I managed to get Emma out for some exercise and through my choral rehearsal, which actually revived me a bit. Today I'm in the office but will go to the gym at lunchtime to break up the day.

You're making me glad that even though my family is hard to shop for, at least they are all well-mannered and appreciative when we do exchange gifts.

Dagmar, I don't think she deserves a reply at all! Since she has chosen to put herself in an "outsiders" position, this is between you, your cousin, and your dad. But if you really want your dad to go into assisted living and he (cousin) knows your dad doesn't listen to you, I think you're right and it would be worth asking him to speak with your dad about it.
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Old 12-07-2011, 10:09 AM   #25  
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bargoo~that is exactly the kind of present I used to get for my elderly relatives. They were so appreciative of it, too!

These days the gift of food is also welcomed. Harry & David or Wolferman's will by my Dad's present this year.

When I was young, my Mom would NEVER buy anything that wasn't on sale. My birthday is in March--when, in Salt Lake, you are starting to see grass poking up here and there amid the snow. You were able to go out once in a while without a heavy coat. Spring was in the air! You wanted bright colors again. So for my birthday, I always seemed to get brown corduroy pants and sweaters. Just the type of thing that would have been great for Christmas, but alas, I got them later (after the sale). And I'd never wear them. And the next year, when I needed them, I'd have out grown them. Thus the sale tactic that my Mom used obviously didn't work.
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Old 12-07-2011, 10:22 AM   #26  
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My mom always used to get my grandma pajamas, socks, slippers, and sweaters as presents, sometimes books. I think those are pretty good presents for more infirm elderly folks, since they often have no use for other things. Of course if your elderly relative is still as spry at 85 as they were at 55 I think there are more options.

I have trouble buying things for my dad. Lately I've resorted to buying him DVD sets of TV shows and movies he used to watch years ago. My mom recommended a book he might like for this year so I'll see about that, but it's only like $5 and I feel like I should buy something a little more significant.

My sister is easy because she always provides us with a list of everything she wants. I can usually get clothes or something for my mom. DH is also difficult since he doesn't usually want anything and his birthday is so close to xmas. This year he's getting a Garmin Forerunner GPS watch for his birthday (at his request) and I'm planning on getting him slippers and gloves for xmas. I told my mom to get him a RoadID and socks. I saw some shearling gloves from Ugg at the store the other day which looked nice but were $$$, anyone know if they are any good or if there are some better warm gloves out there?

Also, I never updated on my cell phone situation -- it's all resolved now, only two phones and two contracts, new phone numbers, and hopefully the bill won't be nuts. So far I really like my new phone (t-mobile mytouch Q).
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Old 12-07-2011, 12:00 PM   #27  
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Do your people that you buy for have hobbies? My aunt was a knitter. she was happy to get an assortment of yarn, another of those people who don't need or want a new bottle of perfume.
My son gave me a Keurig Coffee brewer for Mother's Day, he hit a home run with that one. I fully expect to get an assortment of KCups for Chritmas and will be happy to get them.
Generaly I don't agree with givng household appliances, but the Keurig is in a class of it's own, not the same as a toaster or blender.
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Old 12-08-2011, 08:52 AM   #28  
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Morning all,

The weather has changed here. It's once again cold, windy, and freeze watches issued, though I'm glad it's not cold enough to haul the plants inside yet. I haven't had time to make progress on the gifting front, but will get back on it this weekend. I did tell my sis that I will bring Gulf-coast shrimp and oysters with me when I go up there that everyone will enjoy, too, and will bring a few homebrews for my dad to enjoy. It's not an official gift but something nice I can provide, since we get really excellent seafood here and I make the beer, which my dad likes to drink. Last night some friends were meeting at a new beer pub and told me to stop by after rehearsal. Rehearsal went longer than expected, and I ended up just heading home. After being tired/stressed earlier this week, I thought it a better decision to just head home and get more sleep, and skip the beer and its calories. I gave myself a small pat on the back for making a good decision. I will see these friends Friday night anyway.

Bargoo, I agree - gifts of coffee or tea or their implements are much better gifts than say, a toaster oven. Unless one really needs a toaster oven and specifically asks for it. I actually asked my sis for tea this year. I've been thinking of trying looseleaf and she's already a convert. And she does knit, and will probably be getting some knitting stuff, which she asked for. She's easy!

Jessica, glad your cell phone situation got resolved and you like your new phone. Bad phone company!

After a few social gatherings they've slowed for now. My only party isn't until Dec. 17, no goodies have shown up at the office yet, and exercise is still on track. Is anyone else dealing with the rush of holiday parties, cookies, etc. yet, and are you thinking how you will deal with it?

Last edited by Megan1982; 12-08-2011 at 08:53 AM.
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Old 12-08-2011, 09:52 AM   #29  
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I've been so busy entering my recipes in my software this week. It feels really good to get organized and throw away all the loose papers that I've accumulated. I imagine I'm close to half-way through so at this pace I hope to finish the loose stuff by the end of next week. After that, I can go through all the magazines I've kept, decide what I want entered from those and then toss the magazines. I should have so much more storage room when I'm done! And then I'll have my kids download the same software to their computers and I'll send them the files so they'll have my recipes as well. Even DS is excited about that! (I haven't told DD yet, but I'm sure she'll like it--I gave her a recipe book full of my stuff when she went to college and she's used it once. She's more likely to use this on the computer.)

In other news, my weight is finally going down! I don't know if it's because I've been so engrossed in this project that I'm not constantly thinking of food, or if I'm actually finally doing something right with my diet, but it does feel good.

Oh, and cold? Yeah, it's cold! The pool pump has been coming on nightly to prevent freezing, so that's our indicator that it's cold.

Did I tell you one of our hot water heaters cracked and saturated the carpet in the cat room? We've been leaving the door open in there, with the ceiling fan on high in hopes of drying it out without having to pull up the carpet. It seems dry to the touch, but we're not sure about the pad and the last thing we need is for mold to grow, so we'll continue that for longer.
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Old 12-08-2011, 10:13 AM   #30  
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Speaking of cold, it's finally turning into winter here. 24 degrees when I went out for my wog this morning. I was laughing because I was wearing two pairs of pants, two long-sleeved shirts, a sweatshirt, mittens, and a hat. DH was out running wearing one thin pair of long pants, one long-sleeved shirt, gloves, and a balaclava. Up until it dropped into the 20s he was wearing shorts! Still too warm for Carter to need his coat, but he wore his reflective vest and his one boot, as usual. I think this outfit will keep me warm enough down to about 20 degrees. After that I may need to consider another layer. But then again, I'm a cold wuss.

Now I have to decide what workout clothes to pack for our trip to LA. Obviously I don't need enough clothes to handle 20 degrees, but I'm not sure how cold it is going to be before sunrise, or even if I'll be awake that early while we're there.

Okay, I have to rant about invisible fences. I have issues with them in general (mostly two things: 1. a dog can easily jump them, and 2. if a dog comes running toward you, you don't know where he's going to stop). But the one thing that bugs me the most is when people set up their invisible fence so that the boundary is on the far side of the sidewalk. Setting it up so your dog can walk unattended on the sidewalk is really a bad idea.

This morning while I was running with Carter, first on our left was a woman walking her dog back to her house. The dog was freaking out and tugging toward Carter. The end of his leash was only a couple feet away from where I was holding Carter. I had hoped the woman would back up a few feet but she just stayed put and Carter and I ran past with me yelling at him to leave it the whole time (of course, any time a dog tugs toward Carter, he gets all huffy and has to act tough). Then 5 feet later this yellow lab on a too-large invisible fence comes trotting over. Carter, on his leash, is still freaked out from the previous dog and gets all huffy about this new dog, and I realize the dog is not going to stop before reaching the sidewalk.

Luckily the dog was more well-mannered, came onto the sidewalk behind us rather than coming straight for Carter, and just followed us to the edge of his property without any aggressive body language or barking or anything. I've seen this dog out on the sidewalk multiple times though and it really bothers me that the owners set up their fence like that. The first time I was running on my own (this was over a year ago) and had a terrified moment when I saw the dog step onto the sidewalk where I thought he was going to chase me.
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