Maintainers Weekly Chat Feb11 - Feb 17
 

Recovering from Snowpocalypse Nemo. We had maybe 26 inches, but I was shoveling in drifts that reached four feet. The good news is that the shoveling is done and places were found for all the snow. Huge mounds fill the streets where usually there are spaces for parked cars. It won't be pretty for those who've dug out a space and leave to go somewhere because new spaces will have to be dug out of the mounds.

The good: It was a bunch of upper body exercise.

The bad: There was a snack during each break. Painful to think that I gained weight with that much work.

Dagmar: The dogs were wincing where they had to walk on the salted streets ; They weren't happy.

Bill Glad to hear :cp: you made it through. We already have rain :rain: here melting away the large piles on the street and the salt (I hope).

I have gained 4 lbs. since last weigh in. The house that I'm selling hopefully has an offer/offers tomorrow night and I sell it then. These two items are definitely related. As probably are the back spasms I've had all weekend and the panic attacks at 2:30 in the a.m. :eek:

We have a long weekend coming up this coming weekend. I get 2 days to relax :beach: and then start another sleep-over. I plan to fully enjoy those 2 days and do nothing related to housework, decluttering, moving, etc. etc.

I just bought a new book for my Kindle and I suspect that will take a lot of the weekend. And there are a couple of movies I plan to see. And it's DH's birthday weekend (we are taking offers on the house on the night of his actual birthday) so dining out, chocolate cake and wine will be involved. :hat:

Dagmar :tired:

Glad to hear you guys are digging out. There has been nothing but rain down here.

It's a long week-end for us, too. No school Friday or Monday. There will be many challenges, starting with school lunch on Valentiine's day, then my son's sleep-over birthday party. Sleep deprivation often equals overeating for some reason. Also, my 96 year old grandma is in the hospital. An unplanned trip might be in the cards.

Just trying to take it one day at a time ...

I had a bloody nose yesterday, it had just started when the doorbell rang I debated answering but holding a kleenex to my nose I did answer. A neighbor couple and their dog were at the door, I said I' m having a bloody nose , they wanted to talk about it asking, what are you doing for it, do you get them often,etc. I think they were expecting me to invite them in. I said I have to take care of this and they left, but I thought the whole scene was a bit odd.

Sorry about the bloody nose, bargoo. Reminds me of my secretary. She was doing payroll last Wednesday and I went in to talk to her and she had a kleenex stuffed up one nostril. I asked if she had a bloody nose and of course she did. I, on the other hand, would pinch my nose, lean forward and relax for a few minutes rather than trying to work.

Dagmar and Bill (and everyone else impacted by Nemo), I don't envy you at all. I remember huge winter storms in Utah and when young I loved it (sledding, staying home from school, building snow caves) but as an adult you have to really work to get on with your life. I had numerous friends from other chat boards who told harrowing tales of trying to get home during the blizzard and losing power. Not fun.

Weight? Yeah, up here, too. Saturday night we went to see Itshak Perlman (wonderful concert--just he and a pianist) and we went to a French cafe for dinner beforehand. I had a gratin of coquilles St. Jacques (scallops) with vegetables. And while it wasn't a huge serving the gratin was loaded with butter and bechamel sauce. Oh, it was divine!

Tonight we're going to go see Garrison Keillor. I look forward to his droll humor.

Good luck with parking spaces Bill! And good luck everyone with Valentine's Day! Karen and I don't buy each other chocolates; instead we spend time together doing things we enjoy. So we'll see a mastodon display at the Natural History Museum and an opera show in the evening. Happy hour together at a nouvelle-type restaurant where healthy low-fat nonsugar food can be ordered. The goal for both of us is not to gain weight that day; it would be singularly unromantic if we DID gain!

Poor doggies Bill! My dd has bought boots for her service dog for when she has to take him out in the snow/salt conditions.

Good luck with the offers Dagmar!! That would be so fast!

Good luck to everyone with Valentine's Day this week. Dh leaves tomorrow for Belgium so he made me a wonderful dinner on Saturday (shrimp and scallops). Yesterday we went to San Francisco to use a groupon I had bought for "Funky Door Bikram Yoga". It was fun and different to go to another studio, but it wasn't nearly as "funky" as I was picturing-- except for the outdoor showers-- that was a little interesting!! Afterwards we walked around a found a nice lunch spot and ordered a healthy lunch.

My weight is just *barely* under my redline which is a big win for me after a weekend. Now I need to stay focused and remember it is a redline, not a pink line or a grey line! I really want to be 5 pounds under this weight so I've got a ways to go!

Bill, glad you made it through the storm okay. One of my friends lives in the Boston area and they took their little kid sledding . . . on a hill formed by the snowfall on top of their car! Apparently the drifts and snowfall were enough that they put the sled on the snow on the roof of their car and there was a nice slope down to the ground.

We've been having a lot of wind here, some rain yesterday, but nothing too cold. Of course the 10-day says it's going to be 47 on Thursday and then snow this weekend, so who knows?

For Valentine's Day, DH and I are both taking the day off work . . . so he can drive me around to my multiple doctor's appointments. :lol: Maybe we can squeeze in a "romantic" lunch in between the endocrinologist appointment and the ultrasound.

Bill, had to LOL at "the good" and "the bad." I'm sure all that shoveling took care of any snack you might have had. Shoveling snow, especially that wet, heavy stuff, burns up lots of calories.

Dagmar, house selling/buying is stressful. Hope you get offers today so that you can go back to a bit of normalcy and fully enjoy your long weekend.

Bargoo, that's just weird. Unless they're hematologists or vampires and into blood.

Wardhog, sleepover birthday parties--I remember then fondly (not!). I think we eat when we're tired to gain a bit of energy. Hopefully you can take a nap at some point. Sorry to hear about your grandmother.

Allison, sounds like a fun (and yummy!) night out.

Chris, those are great V-day plans.

Michele, me, too, on the 5 lbs. under the redline. I was there at one point--seems so long ago now, but it really was only last November.

Jessica, romance is a state of mind! :)

I had a great time at the animal shelter with the dogs coming back from the prison. It was a lot of fun to watch them respond to hand commands and do tricks like crawl, bow, high five, wave. It's always a crapshoot if the adopter will keep up with the training, but as long as they keep the dog, I guess it doesn't matter. Only one dog didn't have an adopter, and he was, frankly, the most, uh, exuberant. A really happy dog, but unruly. And funny looking--a German Shepherd stuck on a Corgi body. Definitely have to be leader of the pack with that guy.

There's nothing like starting out the week with fresh sheets, a well-stocked refrigerator (healthy stuff, of course), a clean car and a whole lot of sunshine!

Hi all,

I had a hectic weekend here. The art show Friday night was GREAT, and I had more people than I thought curious about the plankton. BF and I picked out the pieces we'll buy each other for Christmas - if we hit the lotto, anyway, since we can't really afford them.

I spent the rest of the weekend buying and prepping food for the cast party I catered on Sunday evening. It was nice to make some extra $, but I ended up stressing myself out getting everything done and standing on my feet for about 12 hours straight yesterday. I like to cook but would not do well as a professional caterer. The pressure takes the enjoyment out of things, for me at least. I keep thinking about how I don't feel I've made much headway in dealing with stress better even though I say it's a goal of mine over the last 1.5 years. I go to yoga, and for that time I can destress, but haven't really learned to apply anything to my everday life, other than decline activities completely. Unfortunately some things, like work, you can't decline. Or activities like theatre or cooking that I enjoy, but when paired with everything else become stressful for me. Hmm... I wonder what I can do differently.

I have nothing planned this coming weekend and I am looking forward to being a homebody and cleaning. Sheila, you're starting your week how I would prefer to start every week. Sounds nice! Ahhh.

Glad everyone survived the winter storm.

Michele, my parents' dog is a big, fluffy lab-retriever. He loves his booties! He wears them for salt in the winter, and he wears them for sand and sand spurs when he comes to visit me. It's funny to see such a big dog wearing them and daintily picking his way along.

Chris, I like your Valentine's plans. My BF and I will probably just eat dinner together, but a normal (read: healthy) dinner - the point will be quality time, not the food. Quality time is really what it should be about, isn't it?

Jessica, speaking of quality time, well, at least you'll get to spend some extra time w DH Thursday. Lunch would be nice. ;)

Bargoo, strange. Did the neighbors say what they had originally rang the bell for?

Dagmar, sorry about the stress and trouble sleeping. It's no fun lying in bed worrying. I'm keeping my fingers crossed you get some decent offers and can move this house quickly.

Alison, enjoy GK! I grew up listening to A Prairie Home Companion. One time my BF called me and told me to turn on the radio. There was a show "he thought I'd like bc I like theatre stuff". It was Guy Noir. I laughed and told him I did like it, and had heard it before. Let us know how the show is!

SIGH. Found out this morning that a dog who has been with me for close to 15 years is going to be put to sleep tomorrow night. This has been a long time coming and she has been suffering for a long time. Still makes me sad to think I'll never see her dear old face again. I had to say goodbye twice today - I let her out for 2 potty breaks and gave her a big hug and kiss and treats both times. Then I had a good quick cry in the car and went about my work.

She was the first lab puppy I ever walked and I fell in love with the breed due mainly to her. I will miss her for a long, long time. She will always have a special place in my heart.

I have warned the realtors that I will probably be crying tomorrow night but it won't be due to anything connected with the house.

Going to be quite the day tomorrow.

Dagmar :tired:

Dagmar, I'm so sorry about your loss but I'm glad you got to see her today. I'm still actively grieving for my cat Grommet which seems unusual to me. Perhaps it's because I'm older and the losses are, inevitably, piling up. Or perhaps it's just been a tough 6 months. Anyway, I hope your house sells and you can at least put that particular stress behind you.

Megan, I too enjoy cooking or organizing events but then get too anxious to really enjoy it. I think I still prefer doing such things (including the anxiety) than not doing them, though I don't do them with much frequency. I think that's how the anxiety is self-limiting. I'm glad the art show and the party went well!

Sheila, most of the Corgis I have known have German Shepherd attitudes. You can't let those little legs fool you! (There's a great Corgi over on Cute Overload a lot - Max Stubbular.)

Jessica, good luck with all your appointments. At least you'll be together!

Allison, that concert sound divine. I enjoy Perlman and a violin/piano duo sounds wonderful.

Bill, I know what you mean about snow and parking. I live in a densely-populated urban neighborhood with very little space to put the snow so I was happy we got less than 10". And much of that has melted, although my new neighbor cleared his sidewalk and driveway of every speck of snow by putting it in the street, leaving a 4 foot wide pile of snow about 2 feet high making it impossible for anyone to park there.

I've not been coping well with my sadnesses and stresses and haven't weighed myself for a few days because I know how much I've been eating. Not good. I've made an appointment with a therapist because I feel like I'm losing my grip and I need help, although I'm not sure what that would be. I've never tried therapy before so I'll see how it goes.

Dagmar, so sorry about the loss of this dog. I know how painful this is.

Aw, Dagmar, so sorry. Although not your pet, it is still hard. And I'm sure you know that those that do belong to you are just has hard. RIP, baby Lab! (Because, they really all are our babies.)

Mardi Gras
 

Dagmar - Sending supportive thoughts as you spend the day remembering the good fifteen years of your dear Lab friend.

Steph - Good luck with your new direction to find your peace.

Jessica - LMAO at the romance of your Valentine's Day plans. Hope all the testing goes well.

Megan - Congrats for your success as spokesman for plankton - they don't have many supporters, you know. Love the thought of picking out presents to buy each other when the ship comes in.

Happy Mardi Gras to you all. I'm feeling like Fat Tuesday right now. It wouldn't do me any harm to give up unmindful eating for lent. And for unlent also, LOL.

I did one last pass of shoveling by moving my car out of the driveway to clear away the snow that had blown underneath. Kinda amazing that fierce winds can get that much snow underneath a car. DW reminded me that the blizzard of 1978 was so difficult because it landed when we were already covered by a previous storm - making it even more challenging to find spaces to put the new stuff.

DH received a jar of home made strawberry jam (with rum) as a thank you from one of the neighbours yesterday. DH snowblows out a bunch of parking spots on the street after every storm. He was quite pleasantly surprised that someone positively acknowledged his actions (other than me of course).

So it's a big day today. DH's 51st birthday, house offers, Miss Poppy's (the dog) last day, and I'm walking 21 dogs today. Whew! I'm going to try to keep breathing and keep moving and get through all of this and still be standing tonite.

Dagmar :cheer2:

As someone who's such a regular on their futons that she's probably helped several professionals in that line of work buy new cars, I can tell you that a good therapist has helped keep me remarkably functional through some awful bouts of stress. I hope you get a good one right off. Otherwise it's a bit like dating till you find the right one. When I first got one, it took me a few sessions to figure out how to use my time with her most effectively. This will probably surprise you because of the way I post here, but at that time, I was not used to being so honest and forthcoming. That was something I learned, to allow myself to be vulnerable before others. But I had to do it in a completely safe atmosphere first. Therapy has offered me an objective reality check: If a behavior sounds extreme when I am describing it to the therapist, probably I ought to take a closer look at it. I've used therapy for rehearsal of difficult situations, for strategizing, for venting, for breaking down. When I'm most resistant to going is when I most need to go. Your experience will differ, I am sure, but that's how it worked for me. I try to bring the fearful and painful things to each session. The most time-wasting session are when I've got nothing and feel just neutral. Usually I'm burying something then that I don't want to look at. The therapist won't do all the work for you: You need to work the therapy sessions to get the most from them.

Morning all,

I'm a bit frustrated by the weather this morning. Dense fog kept us from heading out to do field work for a project that I'm in charge of, and due many other responsibilities, I have not idea when/if we can go out again anytime soon. It happens a lot this time of year. Grumble. I'm trying not to let general tiredness get to me today. Once again I'm a bit behind on sleep. In short, same old, same old here. :blah:

Steph, I guess I would rather be doing the activities even if they stress me out, too, at least some of them. In an ideal world I'd have more time to slow down and process and enjoy the experience in the moment. But I suppose I'm not the only person to have this problem.

Sorry you are experiencing so much right now. I hope you find a therapist you can connect with and find help from. Making an appointment sounds like a good first step. :hug: Did you ever hear back from the job interview/find out if they could offer you more money? (Did I miss it?)

Dagmar, it is nice when some one gives you a genuine thank-you, isn't it? Good luck getting through the day today.

Bill, I could use some mindful eating skills right now. Easier said than done.

Anyone have any new healthy slow cooker recipes to post???

Have a good day all.

Happy Birthday, Dagmar!!!

I'll have to look for some healthy slow cooker recipes. It'll give me something to do today!

We're getting closer to moving day! I've been making mental notes of what needs to be done, what should be moved first, etc. It's exhausting and we haven't even started! Today we're meeting with the guy doing the network wiring so we can tell him exactly where we need this, that and the other thing. I hope it all gets done to my tech guy's specifications as I don't want issues when we go to move our equipment. I really should have had my tech guy do this part, but DH chose the guy who is there to do phones and security (he owns a company that does all that kind of stuff and he did our house).

Megan-- I could have written this. I definitely destress in yoga-- sometimes I feel it carrying over to the rest of my life-- other times-- not so much. My endocrinologist changed my thyroid meds a couple of weeks ago because my levels were too high-- he asked if I was feeling anxious-- I almost laughed.... no more than usual!

Steph-- hugs to you. When do you see the therapist? Saef gave you great advice about finding a therapist you like. We found a family one that has been a godsend for my two daughters. When we originally went, we thought we were going for one daughter, and the other daughter broke down and opened up, and we realized she was having more issues! Now that they are both at college, my older dd still has phone sessions with him, and sees him when she's in town. My younger dd hasn't spoken to him, but knows he is there if/when she needs him.

Dagmar-- wow! You will be emotionally drained after today for sure! Good luck with everything and I'm so very sorry about the loss of the doggie. I'm glad you were able to give extra hugs and kisses yesterday.

I jinxed myself by saying I was a tad under my redline because I shot up 1.5 pounds overnight. Sigh.... weight lifting yesterday at the gym which I haven't done is several weeks due to my cold/cough so I'm hoping that is the culprit.

Dh leaves today for Belgium so I'm on my own for awhile again.....

Speaking of recipes, does anyone know of good ones using PB2? I bought some on a whim and now I'm not sure how to use it. Most of the recipes I have seen online involve PB2 and then a cup of oil, which kind of defeats the purpose, imo.

My weight is up today, it is 8:30 and I'm already starving. It's going to be a long day!

I have slow cooker recipes to put up, I've just gotten caught up in crazy since last week and haven't gotten them perfected yet. I'm working on them today. :)

So I've been searching for healthy slow cooker recipes and really dislike the fact that some "only" cook for 3 or 4 hours. Um, I thought the whole point was to put it in before work to have it ready when you get home from work. Who works only 4 hours?

In other news, we have our sign up at our new building! sign Our guys are all in the shop and are making a HUGE amount of noise and dust as they load the first truckload of stuff to take over.

I'm back from vacation. Got back at 5 AM, slept until 10, went outside and saw my car had been towed, so that was fun. Got to work and NO COFFEE ANYWHERE - at this point it was just farcical. Drinking coffee now and life seems manageable.

We had an amazing time. Garbo's Grill tacos were great, thanks michele for that recommendation. I had Key Lime pie every day and got too much sun - my fav winter lipstick now looks garish and strumpetlike.

alinnell That sign looks great! Do any slow cookers have self-timer options, where they start at X o'clock?

WardHog I love PB2 - I like to make peanut sauce for stir-fries with it. I mix it with water, a little soy sauce, a drop of chili oil or hot pepper flakes, and lots of lemon or lime juice. I also find stirring it into Greek yogurt is good.

michele Sorry you're off to a rough start today...may the rest of the week go better for you.

Megan I had a lovely time in your home state. I hope the fog and workload both lift soon and you can catch up on sleep, life is so much more manageable when you've gotten enough winks...

Dagmar Gracious neighbors you have, and now delicious jam. I am sorry to hear of the loss of your long-term labfriend.

Steph I hope you find a good therapist. I don't know any recs for our area but if I find any, I'll shoot you a PM. Hugs

Sheila Your week sounds like it started off great! Hope that continues.

bargoo Your neighbors sound a bit socially stunted. Who stands around expecting someone with a nosebleed to engage them 100% in conversation?

Bill Holy moly! 26 inches! My boyfriend is from northeast CT and his family were sending tons of "F U for being in sunny Key West" texts while we were in the Keys.

saef, thanks for the input. Honestly, I think I've avoided therapy because I know it will be hard. And all my problems seem either banal or embarrassing, so I am loathe to pay someone to listen to me talk about them. But I'm trying to make positive changes and I know change takes work.

krampus, I'm glad you had a good vacation. It sounds like you had a worse than usual first day back, though - sheesh!

Allison, lovely sign! I hope your new digs work out well.

Michele, your upward bounce was probably a result of weight lifting. But at least your cold is finally gone!

Dagmar, I hope you made it through what had to be an emotional and tiring day.

Megan, here's wishing you clear skies and more sleep.

I thought of you all today when I saw a slow cooker recipe magazine at the grocery store checkout.

Still no word on what I was hoping would be my new job. I got an email from the partner last week saying he was busy and hadn't been able to meet with the others to discuss my counteroffer (which really wasn't unreasonable!). He asked me to be patient but - AARGH.

I've got the State of the Union on and all I'm going to say is that I like Michele Obama's bangs. She is such a beautiful woman.

Allison, I like your sign and the neighborhood looks great, too.

Allison, great sign, and I like the name of the street. How cool to be on Entrepreneur Lane.

Dagmar, 21 dogs--that sounds exhausting. I'm so sorry about Miss Poppy. Losing our animal friends is so hard.

Megan, too bad about the fog. I know you want to get out there and get going.

Michele, weight lifting always make the scale go up for me.

Steph, I agree about Mrs. Obama. And her arms. . .those arms are what I'm working toward.

Krampus, bummer about the car being towed, but it sounds like you had a wonderful time in FL. And you got in plenty of fruit, I see! :)

Our regular TRX teacher was back after a week of substitutes, and I'm sore today. That's a good thing. Tomorrow is my last TRX class (our LiveStrong program ends) until I get a Medicare advantage or supplement plan that includes the Silver Sneakers program. That way I don't have to pay for a membership. My DH is going to join, though, because he needs the structure. I have a lot of home equipment, and I was exercising on my own up until the LiveStrong program started anyway. And now I know a lot more TRX exercises. So I should be okay for the (hopefully) short time before I change insurance.

Sold!
 

And $100 (yes that's one hundred dollars) over asking too! :lol3:

I feel like someone has lifted a 200 lb. rock off my chest. Fingers crossed :crossed: everything proceeds smoothly until the end of March - closing - and then the adventure of buying my own first house ever begins! :woohoo:

Now DH and I can both start dieting in earnest :D. After the wine and cake on Saturday night. :p

Dagmar :dance:

Dagmar , congratulations on the house sale ! That went amazingly fast !

Woot Woot for that house sale, Dagmar. That's FAST!!!

Two days of above freezing temps have reduced the snow problems a bit. But the mounds remain so that another storm would be a major issue.

My goal now is to remember that snacking every hour between shoveling isn't valid when not shoveling, LOL.

Jacksonville, here are additional facts re : DS moving to Florida. Tax Breaks ! Florida has no State Income Tax. It is warmer in Florida, DIL is freezing to death in California. Housing is cheaper.No problem job wise as he is self employed as long as he has a computer he's good. The change in time zone will be a benefit for him.

Congratulations on the sale of the house, Dagmar!

bargoo, yes Florida is warmer than up there in California, but it is also humid. I prefer the desert heat. And yes, housing is much cheaper.

Off to work to do more moving. We got huge equipment moved yesterday as well as three empty desks (we have 8 desks in all and are keeping only the four best as that's all we have room for). We'll have to consolidate a lot of stuff or build more storage in the small warehouse. Cully was rather concerned yesterday watching stuff move out the front door where his carrier resides. He came in to inspect the fact that "his" desk was gone (when I'm not there with the dogs, he comes in and likes to sit in the chair at that front desk!). I also need to direct FIL to go to Home Depot and purchase some cabinets and get them installed for where we'll place our copier and fax machine. Right now it's just a blank wall and we need a good cabinet there. So much to do!

CONGRATS, Dagmar!!! Check that one off your list! :)

:wave: to everyone - I've been lurking while I get rid of this cold/flu/whatever bug. I'm really annoyed that it caught me, and now I'm sulking. :s: I will be back when I'm over myself. :lol:

Congrats on the house Dagmar!! That's awesome!!

Bargoo-- are you slightly happier about their decision now, or do you still feel it is a mistake? We are definitely not planning on retiring in California-- the taxes are killing us....

My weight is down ever so slightly today but I'm still quite sore. My exercise will be a little different today most likely so I hope it all works out. I usually go to yoga at 4:30 but I have a work meeting that will last till about then. So, my plan is to come home briefly to take care of the dogs, and then go to the late yoga-- it is from 6:30-8:00-- my issue with late yoga is trying to figure out what/when to eat dinner. So, I'll likely have an extra snack before and a very small dinner after unless I'm starving.

So glad it looks like the ordeal with the cop killer in California is over.

Oh, yes I am aware of the humidity. My cousin moved to Florida, I said "Isn't it buggy and muggy?" She said "Yes , but I don't mind it".
I was at a show in Las Vegas one time, Las Vegas is desert and hot but dry. At the show I was sitting next to two ladies from New Orleans, they were going on and on about Las Vegas weather,"OMG, it is so dry my skin is drying up like a prune." I prefer the hot and dry over hot and humid., myself.
Michele, not sure how I feel about the move. DS said he would prefer Mountain View or Sunnyvale, Ca right in the heart of Silicon Valley and sooo expensive. I still live in California, I am in a college town (UC Davis) and it is not cheap either. California is expensive no matter where you live. I don't plan on living anyplace else, though, but I will visit Florida.

Here is a Floridian who hates the heat & humidity. It is true we have no state income tax. Bargoo, I will say that the Jacksonville airport is a pretty big hub and you can find fairly cheap flight into/out of it relative to smaller airports. It should be easy for you to visit. Jacksonville Beach & St. Augustine are lovely, too.

Michele, my yoga class is 5:30-7:00, and I don't get home until 7:30, so I also have an awkward meal time. I usually do as you suggested, have a snack before I go to class and have dinner ready to go immediately afterwards. I'm trying to get a friend to come to class with me tonight. I saw her Monday and she said she needs to relax and unwind, and has been trying to do yoga 2x per week. I told her, "great! I'll pick you up at 5:00 on Wednesday!"

Becky, I hope you heal quickly.

Dagmar, what a relief! I hope all goes well with the closing. :hug: for your furry friend.

Krampus, sounds like a great vacation! Glad you enjoyed it! :sunny:

Steph, sorry about the job front. That's really frustrating you haven't heard much. Hang in there.

Funny the things you find when you're going through stuff. I found a stash of keys. All with tags marked "file cabinet" or "new file cabinet" or "lateral file". Funny how NONE of them fit any of the file cabinets we have!

I also found some mono-color laser print cartridges for a laser printer. We've never had a laser printer. And legal sized hanging file folders and legal sized printer paper. We utilize standard size stuff--not legal! I did find a home for those things with the office next door who were happy beneficiaries.

As for hot and dry vs hot and humid: I really prefer mild and slightly humid--aka Hawaii! I appreciate not having to wear moisturizing lotion and like the more normal temperatures. The extremes we have to endure here are not that fun.

bargoo~my DS applied to UC Davis (he hasn't heard yet). I asked him why Davis as it is my understanding that they're best knows for veterinarian training rather than computer science which he wants. His #1 is still Berkeley (he hasn't heard on that one, either).

In other news, DD's boyfriend left on Monday for his 10 weeks of basic training in Jackson, South Carolina. Of course he doesn't know where he'll be stationed after that, but his MOS is cryptology. Hopefully it'll be a job that keeps him in the US rather than being shipped overseas. DD is coming home in about 3 weeks or so. I'm hoping she holds up.

Dagmar, congrats on the house sale! That was really fast! My MIL is still trying to sell DH's grandma's house and it's been months. Sorry about your lab friend.

Having grown up in SoCal and then lived in RI and IN, I have mixed feelings about dry vs. moist heat. On the one hand, I really hate that sticky sweltering feeling when it's hot and humid and you have to put on sunscreen but it just drips down your face. I also hate having to use bug repellent. On the other hand, since moving away from CA I no longer have cracked, dry skin and lips. Also, the number of sweltering days during the summer here is far fewer than the number of 100+ sunny days back in LA. I get far fewer sunburns here (and I do use sunblock regularly in summer no matter where I live), and I appreciate being able to go do outdoor stuff in the middle of the afternoon in August. Back at my parents' house if you want to do anything outdoors in summer you have to do it before 9am or after sunset, otherwise it's just too hot.

They live inland a bit though -- it is much nicer on the coast in SoCal. Probably why it costs $$$$$$$$ to live on the coast! :lol:

Allison, that is funny about the filing cabinet. I think Davis is probably decent for CS, one of my friends went to grad school there. When I was applying to colleges for CS the UC's I picked were Berkeley and San Diego (I didn't go to either of them though).

Becky, I hope you feel better soon!

DH and I went to our first childbirth prep class Monday night. The instructor and the other students seemed nice enough. I'm not entirely sure about relaxation practice -- the key point seems to be "find a comfortable position" and then relax, and there is basically no position that is comfortable for me at this point. I also thought it was funny that to visualize a safe and relaxing place, her examples were like "the beach" or "the mountains" or something like that. DH and I both thought of Carter's doggie bed by our back door where the sun shines in. :lol: That dog has the right idea, it's the nicest spot in our house!

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bargoo~my DS applied to UC Davis (he hasn't heard yet). I asked him why Davis as it is my understanding that they're best knows for veterinarian training rather than computer science which he wants. His #1 is still Berkeley (he hasn't heard on that one, either).


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Read in the local paper that UC Davis has 70,000 applications for fall 2013. I believe that years back they were known mainly as an agricultural school. GO AGGIES ! That has changed over the years in addition to the ag school they have a school of medicine, a law school, a school of veterinary medicine in addition to others.
My brother is a grad of UC Berkeley as is my nephew. GO BEARS.