Happy – What a bummer about the weather not being good for the festival. It’s really frustrating to live in an area where the weather is so variable that planning outdoor activities/events is a roll of the dice. == Interesting you commented “…we seem to have become intensely selfish with no regard to sharing space with others…” Today I arrived at the train station and found that some jerk had parked his bike across one of the bike racks, taking up almost the entire rack. And he made a point of locking the front end with a cable and the back part with one of those U-shaped locks – the bike couldn’t be moved aside for other bikes to be parked there. I locked my bike on a sign post nearby. I confess I took a moment to pull off the cap covering the air valve on one of his tires with the intent to let the air out of his tire, but he has a different kind of valve and when I couldn’t get it to release any air right away, I immediately gave it up. My other thought was to write “jerk” in lipstick on his bike seat. I’m ashamed of thinking these thoughts and am probably lucky not to have gotten anywhere in my actions….cuz then I’d be a jerk too. == I think you’re right about the physiology of some exercise movements, and I’ve heard that there are some yoga moves that aren’t all that good for the joints. And yes, a neck/head roll should only be to the front and sides, not the back. Margaret Richard, who does the Body Electric workouts, is a big advocate of changing the movements you do as you age because your joints just aren’t up to some exercises anymore, either from general aging or from injuries/abuse to the joints from types of exercise done earlier in life. I do think I’ll end up dropping the side planks from my challenge. It was funny that yesterday when I left work, my elbow felt fine, so I took it as a sign to do the side planks. I did, but they really are putting a lot of pressure on my elbow and even trying to pad my elbow with a pillow or folded throw, the pressure is just too much and it’s uncomfortable (not just difficult). And I’ve tried doing a side plank on my hand with my arm fully extended and that’s really difficult. I can find an easier variation, reduce the time, or drop it altogether. == I hope you’re not on your own at bingo tonight! I hope your partner can get some relief from his pain after that fall.

Annie – Hope the pap comes back good and no surgery is necessary. You called it getting spayed - snort, giggle. ==Yeh, the boys’ father is being a selfish jerk not to take J. to VBS. It’s for such a limited time and he enjoys going. == Yeh, any more digging, I’ll only use the other foot. It’ll be awkward, but it’ll get done. == Yeh, we have the hot and humid weather today, but no rain expected. I’ll have to water tonight. Three of my four plants have blossoms, but aren’t growing very tall yet…
==
Nothing much to report.

The tree people came back and ground out the stumps yesterday. They’d been delayed by emergency work in the northern suburbs following some storms last week. Bf and went out back to look at the area right after I got home from work. They left a couple small holes that could be real ankle twisters. We’ll have to fill those up. I noticed a cable sticking out of the ground where they were working and was hoping they didn’t cut a buried cable (it would be for our cable tv), but thankfully they didn’t. Now we can move on to removing all the vines, weeds, and tree seedlings that are running amok back there. Some weed killer and some manual digging will be required. And then we’ll try to turn the soil and grade it. Bf tried to get the tiller going last weekend but wasn’t entirely successful. He might have to take it in to have the carburetor rebuilt.

My third/last lottery ticket didn’t pan out, so that’s that. I must have used up all my luck on the raffle tickets I bought at the Relay event a couple weeks ago, LOL. I’ve heard that Illinois is being kicked out of the MegaMillions and PowerBall games by the other states because the state is in such bad financial shape. I think we won’t be able to buy those tickets here after the end of this month. No biggie for me, I buy lottery tickets about 3-4 times a year when the mood strikes.

I’ve decided I’m not going to the aqua class that I don’t like tonight. There’s a class on Saturday morning called “Ease” that’s classified as moderate, so I’ll try that instead. I need to keep up with my aqua pass so I don’t end up wasting any classes at the end.

Okay, that’s all. Everyone have a great day.

Hi ya all,
Been busy this week with tree stumps, fences, gardening and housework. Will be very pleased when I get all these trees out. I have cleared about half of the trunks and branches through the green bags and the rubbish bin, so I am happy with that. A whole lot more to go tho'. I'll put up some pictures soon. It looks a bit bare out there and I will have to do some fencing to improve the view.

I had to go to the Doc the other day since the hospital had written her that I had what appeared to be a black freckle on my forward. The thing has been there for years and never changed, never the less off we went to get it checked out. I now have a stitch in my head from a biopsy taken. Going back today to get it taken out. It seems to have healed well. Then I had to have a blood test to check out the levels again. This is getting boring. I should have an answer to that today as well.

DS2 and the ODDU have gone away to the other house for the weekend. It's very quiet. I should be out working but I am having a cuppa and will probably get some lunch before I have to go to the Doc and then I can get out in it.

Happy - I'm glad you have decided not to enter the realms of the employed again. There comes a time when you just know you can't put up with the bullsh*t anymore. I hope DH enjoys his fishing and brings home something to ease the food budget.
Sorry to hear about the co-worker falling off a ladder. Can be very dangerous for us oldies. Wish him a speedy recovery. And DO NOT attempt to do the Bingo on your own.
Did you get to sell the ATV yet.
I have to agree with your opinion on the *******s of today. Used to be when communities cared about each other and you knew everyone in the street by name, including the kids. Doesn't happen like that today. What with a lot of people on the breadline due to rising prices and bank foreclosures and lack of jobs and NO pay rises in years except for the politicians it's not easy. I'm having a lot of fun applying for the age pension. It's interesting to say the least and I am picking they will say I can't have a full pension because I am too rich. Yeah how I wish.

Annie - hope the pap smear goes okay. Don't need anymore here because it is not there anymore. One thing down. Glad to hear the car is looking good. When you spend that sort of money it needs to be good.
Shame J could not go to VBS. Different strokes for different folks, but it wouldn't have hurt his dad to take him.
Congratulations on the size 8 pants - great victory.
Would C bring home enough pay if he was to be a relief driver? Sounds good in theory though. Not always easy to work for yourself.

Laura - what a jerk to fix his bike that way. No thoughts for other people at all these days. Sorry that you weren't happy with the Aqua class. Hope the new one on Saturday is better.
Good work going on in the garden.

Ceejay - hope the odd jobs are now all complete and your lawns are looking good. Nice to have lunch with friends once in a while.

Hello to Susie and Ellen

I'd better get on with the day. Not long before I have to go down to the doc and I have some things to get done before then. So I will catch up later.

Garden hedge as it is and was.

Howdie Dutie as my dad would say....TGIF for sho.

The VBS programs was really really cute last night. Jacob just kept waving at us from the stage and would get frustrated if we didn't respond. What a hoot! He did very little to no singing or the motions to the songs. Too busy waving and making faces. Good grief. I said on the way home, Jacob, why didn't you wave to us from the stage? Well duh Nanna, you just were paying attention. I about died laughing. We waved our fool heads off. Of course Chris came. I am such a snot and need to ask forgiveness, but I very loudly said, NO WONDER HE DOESN'T DO THE MOTIONS, HE MISSED REHEARSAL LAST NIGHT.

Crap hit post before I was done. I am sure Chris got the jest of what I was saying or maybe not he is so self-centered. Bleh. After we dropped Jacob off we went next door for dinner at Bonnie and Clyde's Hideout. I had salmon, greenbeans and slaw. Not bad. Ran into my nephew, Georgie, Michael's son. He was a breath of fresh air. So handsome and looks so much like Michael. We went to pay and he had gotten our check and left the restaurant so we couldn't argue. I texted him and thanked him for making my day perfect. Great night even if Chris showed up to the program.

This weekend is a mish mash of commotion. Tonight is pretty calm. Tomorrow is Jacob's last 8 am ballgame. Done with that. Then off to breakfast with bro and SIL. Then errands. Then house stuff. Hope to get out in the yard a bit to catch some Vit D. DS is supposed to come up that night, stay over then go to Cs parents house with us on Sunday. Cs momma is healing nicely from her hip replacement surgery. Cs sister and dad put her in a rehab place for two weeks so we will have to visit her there. She was madder than a hornet about it as they did not even tell her. They just loaded her up and took her there. To me that is just plain mean. She would of gone had they told her. Anyway, we are not in on that drama so we feel safe to visit her. She is not invalid and very aware of on-goings and spry-normally before hip surgery. I would be tee'd off too.

SHADDIE...sheesh that is a LOT of hedges and scrubs to remove and get rid of. I do believe I would of hired someone. No thank you. You are remarkable and amazing. I think the docs just look for crap to do to us to make money. Hope your head heals quickly from the mole removal.

LAURA...ha on the lottery tickets. Guess you will have to get up and go to work like the rest of us. Shame on the guy for hogging the bike rack. I would of left a nasty gram for sure. Altho that is not following the steps of AA to do that and would have to somehow make amends to him for that. Hopefully my head would of known better than to do that. That is the thing with AA. Before doing something not quite so kosher, we are supposed to ask ourselves, is that something we would have to make amends for, if so don't do it. Hmmm, a lot of thinking to this way of life. Hope your aqua class is better for you tomorrow.

Hello to all. Better end this before I say something I shouldn't. Not that I have anything to say, but my mind is on go for some reason. hahahaha

Afternoon all. TGIF!

Shad – Wow that’s a lot of hedges you removed and looks like there are still some more to remove!! The size of those trunk/stumps – pretty big shrubs/trees. You are something else doing that on your own. Are you a closet lumberjack?? I would have hired someone to do that kind of job (and actually have a couple times)! Yeh, it’s bare where the trees were removed, but I guess we’ll get used to it. == Good to get that mole tested!! == Enjoy the quiet time while DS and ODDU are away. Bet you miss them!

Annie – Yeh, getting C’s mom in rehab on the sly was a sneaky thing and she deserves to be ticked off about it. She would have understood and agreed that it was for the best for her that she go to rehab to recover if the family couldn’t take care of her properly. I hope your visit with them goes well!

Hellos to the rest of you. Susie, how did your TOPS WI goes this week? Happy, how did bingo go last night? Ceejay, what’s up for the weekend? Any organ performances/gigs in the near future? Ellen, Dee – stop by and say hi!

==
Nothing much to report. The bike rack hog just happened to be at the rack after I got off the train yesterday and I gave him a piece of my mind (loudly) over the way he parked his bike. I hope that deters him from doing that in the future. He did seem kind of sheepish. It was satisfying for me, LOL. It was rainy this morning, so there were fewer bikes at the train than normal and none that were hogging the rack, so that was good.

I did modified side planks yesterday and they were better, but still uncomfortable for me, so I’ll do no more on my elbow.

Bf is over at my mom’s trying to replace her kitchen sink. He phoned me a little bit ago. Of course right off the bat, her kitchen’s hot water shutoff valve won’t close all the way. So much for that. Nothing else can happen until bf can replace the valve, which will be next Wednesday. The building will have to shut off the water for a section of her floor of the building. and they have to give advance notice for that. Nothing is ever easy.

It rained a lot overnight and early this morning (of course it did – I watered after work), so I’m not sure I’ll be able to dig out any more day lilies this weekend. We'll see how quickly the soil dries out. I have plenty of other things to do outdoors. I want to prune the lilac bushes in front, and maybe pull some weeds. And spray the weeds alongside the house and in back where the trees were removed.

That’s it for me. Okay, back to the grind.

Afternoon,
I made it down to Arkansas. Had no problem but the traffic was heavy in places. BFF declined on the stay with me this week end. Says she is sick with her ailments.
My handyman came yesterday and put up the ceiling fan in the spare bedroom, my nephew's room. And replaced a light switch in the entry way. The fan my nephew and I chose is a bit big for that room but it's well worth it.
I dodged the rain today. Last night's rain was in Paragould this morning and Paragould is just now getting here. The rain was hard at first but now is just a light rain.

--------
Shad
You are doing a lot of work, but it looks really nice. Glad you had the "mole" taken care of. It is a bit much for me to mow the lawn but I'm taking it 30 minutes at a time. I fell like I've accomplished something afterwards too.

Shad
Don't blame you for giving that person a piece of you mind. That was very inconsiderate of him.

Happy
Did you enjoy your day at home? How is your mom?

Annie
How nice that your nephew paid for your meal?

-------
Oh and speaking of nephews, Mine has been at his home for the past several days. He told me Tuesday night that he didn't know when or if he would be back. He still has clothes here though.

Bff is now wanting to visit! Think she didn't want to get out in the rain but that's okay. I haven't heard from the uncle so I will go get bff and eat in Jonesboro for lunch. Tonight is our reunion. I will go visit with him tomorrow.

Hi Ladies, I am popping my head up again to see what os happining in the world around me.

Work was off the chain last week. I worked 12 hour days all week. I will need to do about two hours of work today.

We didnt go to church this morning. We met my brother and his partner and the boys for dinner last night and then went to Kings Island for the evening. We stayed until it closed which was midnight. It was such a beautiful evening and I had so much fun.
I finally got on a roller coaster becasue now I fit in the seat! And could get the lock bar down. I will be checking out the other coasters to see how I fit. NSV for sure!

Annie: Wow! A size 8! I havent been there since highschool. I am now wearing a 18 in most things. At my highest weight (315 which was last summer) i wore a 24 or 26.

I still am not finshed. My goal weight is 180. M doctor and I both think that is a good weight for me. I am at 245 now. So when I started at Christmas I was 305.

I loved the Vbs program story! Kids are so cute! I would have made that same remark about him not knowing the hand movements since he missed practice the night before. I am be very pointed with my words too!

Laura: how rude of that man to park his bike that way! Sorry you didnt win the lottery!
Did you make it to the aqua class you were going to try out?

Happy: i am glad that DH found the paperwork. Any luck with the lens cap?

Ceejay: how long will your BFf be staying?

Shad: Prayers and hope for good outcomes with the freckle.
You amaze me with all your DIY home and garden projects. That was some major ground work you wete doing.

It is time I get to cleaning the bathroom and kitchen. The a nap I think, them work for 2 hours and get a treadmill workout in to. I believe I will do the workout before I take care of the work.

Good afternoon,
Picked up the bff but she has been in her bed since we arrived at the hotel. I left her while I went to the reunion last night and really enjoyed that. However, there were more teachers than students last night. Only three from my graduating class showed up. Kinda sad in a way. I was in Walmart yesterday and ran into a classmate who said she was not going. I'm getting better at mingling. Their was only one class member present that celebrated his 50th year.
Friend is asleep.
Ladies after seeing the pictures I posted on FB last night I more than ready to start my healthy eating habits again. If Susie and Annie can do it so can I.
Friend is asleep. She must be dreaming. She's talking in her sleep!!!!!!
------------------
Susie
Have been wondering about you. Glad you had an enjoyable night.

Susie
Guess I will take bff home when I leave in the morning. I asked her if she was comfortable and she said yes. I can not live this kind of a life style.

and here we are again...Monday, Monday! It is a bit chilly this morning. 57 on the car temp. Yee, I even ran the heat on my feet as my toes were freezing. Today's high is only like 68 or 69. This weather is just weird.

Samantha left me the sweetest/orneriest note. I got up and it was stuck to the Keurig. Momma, Coffee is ready. Make today your Beeeach! I love you. Sis. Gotta love a note like that and must comply. lolololol. I wrote back. Ditto on today. I love you baby girl and the boys too!. Momma. We get along so well. hahaha.

The weekend was very busy as predicted. We even drove downtown Saturday night as Sam let Chris have the boys on HER weekend for the day. Oh how she is accommodating and he is such a B......!. Chris's cousin got married and the reception was downtown at the Columbia Club. He wanted all the out of town relatives to see the kids. Anyway, I am glad I don't have to be downtown in the evenings or weekends at all. It was a mad house, traffic, people and on-goings here and there. Both the boys were exhausted. Chris did say when he brought the boys out to the car that Jacob is a dancing machine. Sam and I both already knew that. He dances to all the music on the kids dvd's. Especially the movie "Trolls", which I highly recommend if you want to smile, sing and dance. The music is from my era and the kids love it. Earth Wind and Fire's "September" is a good one. Justin Timberlake sings his hit Dance, Dance, Dance which I love and Royce jumps up and also dances. One Saturday we watched Troll's 4 times. Sam and I were busy doing other stuff but the kids were glued and also played during it. Trolls is on Netflix right now if you all have Netflix.

Yesterday's visit with Cs momma went really well. She looked great and was getting around especially good. I imagine she is putting all her effort into it cause she gets to come home on Friday if all goes well. Bless her heart. She is a trooper. She smiled and was in a good mood while we visited and talked our heads off. She was excited to see Sam and the boys too. The boys did well with hugs which surprised me because they have only been around Cs family maybe 3 times total. We stopped in Kokomo, In on the way home and ate at Grindstone Charley's. YUMMY...Sam and I had steak, grilled asparagus and side salad. Very delish. C had the tenderloin that they are famous for as all the meat is Indiana home grown. The kids ate free on Sunday. They each had cheese quasadilla and applesauce, milk. Once we got home I took a nap with Royce even if it was late in the evening when we went to sleep. 5pm. I woke up at 6 and Royce at 6:30. I was exhausted. Guessing from not taking my iron and from doing all the driving. 3 hours worth. blah blah, I am rambling.

CEEG....glad you got to go to your reunion. Bummer on the friend. Sounds like you just picked her up and took care of her all the time. Bleh. Next time I would just visit her for a bit at her house and be done with it. How is the organ playing coming along? Did nephew move back in with the family? You will miss him being there but also get your time back to yourself.

SUSIE....hopefully you can work less this week. Vacations are great but heck when we return. Funny how we fill for others on vacay but come back to all of our own work. Glad you had a great time at KI. Sis and I are wanting to go but not sure when or what to do with the boys for the day. We want it to be an adult KI day. We haven't had one since before Sam got preggers with Jacob, now 5. Way too long. Your goal weight sounds reasonable. I bet, like me, once you reach it, you will want to keep going. I am at my goal weight but want to go another 10 to 159. I am half working at it. I suppose if I truly worked at it I could get there quicker. At least while I am slowly working on it I am not going in the wrong direction on the scale. I probably shouldn't have made that remark loudly and intended for Chris as it is a huge no no in AA. Do nothing you SHOULD have to make amends for. Not perfect I guess.

Hence....

No one among us has been able to maintain anything like perfect adherence to these
principles. We are not saints. The point is, that we are willing to grow along spiritual lines.
The principles we have set down are guides to progress. We claim spiritual progress rather
than spiritual perfection.

LAURA...glad you could do the modified plank but to hard on the elbow. Funny about giving the bike rack hog your 2 cents. I am always afraid when I do that to a stranger in public they will pull out a gun and shoot me. You just never know in today's society. Pray instead. I need to listen to myself. lol. Bummer on the momma's kitchen sink. It is always something else that gets in the way of doing what we need.

Hello to the rest of youse. Let's get this Monday party started. Woot Woot!

HUGS>>

Hi all,

Sorry I have been absent. I had to bingo pretty much by myself Thursday - my partner didn't stay because his leg was hurting badly and the other guy who helps - he has IBS issues and had to excuse himself several times which left me to do the bingo call backs, the payouts and all of the paperwork. I was beat when I got home at 9:30 and headed to bed at 10pm which is rare for me. Friday I went into the Senior Center and they had hired a new young girl who was there. When I walked in I asked "do you need me here?" and they said yes, the other hire (the one who can't remember my last name) was supposed to call me and tell me not to come in but she didn't and since I was there and the new girl M was only there for 2 days before could I maybe help her out (train her). I had to make extra sheets for the bingo patterns anyway. M is nice - she is about 30 years old and has about a 45 minute ride to the office. Like many people up this way working minimal wage jobs, she has another job bartending. Said she gets up at 5:30 (we were commiserating about not being early risers), comes into the office to start work at 8am, leaves at 4pm, hurries home to change and grab a bite to eat and then goes and bartends from 6 to 10pm or sometimes 2am (bars tend to close early if no customers and stay late if there are so the hours are erratic. And with this being summer busy season, there will be long hours for sure. She is nice and responsible but I can't help feeling that the director is 50, one lady is 58, one is 28, one is 39, and this one is about 31. Do these people REALLY understand the issues related to senior people? Can they empathize? One said - well I have a grandma. Yeah, I had one too BUT now that I am getting closer to grandma's age I sure do understand a lot more about cost of medicines, aches and pains, age bias, will I run out of money before I die and the high cost of more and more required medical procedures.

Saturday we went out to breakfast at a popular local place then headed into town to visit with our friend who works Saturday mornings at the shop. They were having the summer carnival / street fest and town was jammed. DH went to go see a car show and I meandered the streets looking at the art and craft booths. I got a couple of those towels that have the knitted tops you can hang on a cabinet door - I use those alot. Picked up some local honey - I always try the local stuff and got a companion piece to a large craft item I bought last year at this vendor. She uses birch bark and fashions canoes and puts small black bears and pine cones and greenery into I don't know - arts and crafts displays? Anyway I have a large one on my mantle and bought a smaller piece this year. I have transitioned my house from Memphis chachki's to black bear decor

We are innundated with rain and chilly weather. Not the best for festivals or summer outdoor recreation. The baby animals are showing up. Yesterday we got the first sighting of turkey babies. 9 of them with one momma so far. And we have at least 5 fawns possibly more with various moms. We have seen one fawn with one mom, a pair of twins with another mom and DH thinks there might be one mom with 4 fawns which is highly unlikely as that is too much of a litter for them and they are not the kind to "adopt" babies that may have been abandoned if the mother was killed. He said he saw 4 fawns in the yard with one doe and two of them went to nurse on her. We also have several baby birds - baby woodpeckers and we should see baby hummingbirds (just a smaller version of an adult) soon enough.

I need to make a grocery list and head out to the store as the cupboard is quite bare and it looks like the clouds broke enough where I might get my shopping done and not get soaked. DH just took a phone call - he didn't get a nibble on the last fishing trip and the guide guarantees a catch or he keeps taking you out. Sounds like they are going out this evening - apparently the time to catch Musky is at night So I will have the evening to myself.

Let me post this and see who's checked in to catch up on personals.

Laura - good on you for saying something to the bike guy. I think people do things because they are selfish and no one calls them on it. I am the kind to say something and yes, one day I might get shot for it. We had a festival in town, we have a large parking lot next to the shop that is our private lot which we could rope off if we wanted to. But we saved 5 spaces for our workers and let the rest of the public park there (prized spots as we are 1/2 block from Main street). Don't you know some ignoramuses HAD to move the ropes and go and park their cars there. If I had been working that day, I would have parked my car perpendicular to theirs so that they could not get out until I was done with my shift at 5:30. We also could have called the police and had them ticket them. People are just ignorant. Did BF get the plumbing job done? We had a lot of calcium in our water in Memphis - the lines would always get clogged with what looked like egg shells (calcium deposits). It prevented us from shutting off the water too. Keep it going on the plank challenges.

Annie - One of the sad things about divorce is that the kids are put in the middle of warring parents. I'm sure C does not like things Sam did and vicea versa - no matter what - keep it from the kids. That was the hardest thing on me when my parents got divorced - not wanting to "take sides". Just sayin' ... It's just good that they are both active in the kids lives because they will always be the original mom and dad and if they can keep from having a strained relationship later on, all the better. That's good thinking from the AA - think before acting and do nothing you should have to make amends for... I need to adopt that in my own life.

Ceejay - why did your friend agree to come along if all she does is lay in bed? Is she depressed as well as sickly? At least you are enjoying your life. Too bad more people didn't show up to the reunion.

Susie - what a great NSV to enjoy the roller coaster!!!! Have you had any health checks since your weight loss? I have to believe your medical numbers have improved substantially too. Keep up the fabulous results!!!!

Shad - I hope you get as much as you can with the full pension - I'm sure you have paid your due working as hard as you have over your lifetime. Now that the hedges are gone it's time to rearrange the yard. Always a project to do isn't it?

Time for me to get my act together and get on with the day. Have a good week everyone.

Oh, almost forgot. Thank you SHADDIE for the sweet birthday card. It came on Saturday and still celebrating!