Good morning all! Well, I guess fall is just around the corner for us. It is supposed to be 84 today then drop 20 degrees starting tomorrow. I am not ready for the cold weather yet!

Well, I guess we spoke too soon. Jack's left thumb and fat pad and under one foot is totally swollen, itching and bright red. I told him we have to talk to all three of his doctor's and find out what is going on. Dr Powell to see if it could be something related to surgery like some circulation problem, Dr Anderson about his current meds etc and his regular dr about what it could be and testing for it. We need to find out what is going on here. The poor man is ready to go back to work and this would really mess with his head if something prevents that. Sure wouldn't help the money situation either. Bless his heart, he is so uncomfortable with it. Nothing seems to relieve it except heavy doses of Benadryl helps the itching, but zonks him out. Ice packs have no effect on the swelling or redness, nor does heat. We thought the increase of water was helping, but we aren't even sure about that now. He is still drinking lots of water just in case, though.

Jean: Jay was telling us about some of the horrible things they do back in the cooking area of restaurants to people who send food back and complain. Years ago he worked in a restaurant and some of the things the cooks did were awful and he said it happens more than people think. It is disgusting to think you can't go into a restaurant and feel safe to eat.

We have the guy coming to clean our dryer duct today. In fact, he is supposed to be here first thing this morning. I hope they don't have a bunch of trouble seeing as how this is a condo and not a single dwelling home. Our duct runs up the wall, between the first and second floors through the laundry room and dining room and out the front. I don't even know how they clean the darn thing. I will be glad when it is done though as I have been nervous about it since it clogged up. Unfortunately, it happened just when all the heart stuff with Jack happened and the money was better spent elsewhere. It is not cheap to have it done. Ours is going to cost around $150. Our son and dil sneaked around and made the appt and paid for it for us. The other day they were upstairs in the bedroom and my dil called down and verified my address, then a couple minutes later our zip code. We were puzzled by it, but thought she was talking to her sister about something she wanted sent here. When they came downstairs they told us what they had done. It was such a sweet thing to do and Jack and I really appreciated it a lot.

Well, I need to go and get a shower and make the bed upstairs. Have a great day gals and stay dry and warm today!

Faye

That's funny, Faye - that was my project last weekend - cleaned out the dryer vent. Got it from the dryer to the outside, too. Took all Saturday afternoon but the dryer is working better and I feel a whole lot safer. I also changed the furnace filters since we finally had to put the heat on.

Jean, sounds like your husband has a good plan for the schools. I think we are coddling these kids too much and the real world is going to be a terrible surprise.

Where the heck did my post go? I know I posted this morning! Ahh, well, who knows?

They came in today and did the ductwork because they had to cancel yesterday. The guy said it was full of more water than anything, but the dryer is STILL not working properly so I emailed our home warranty company and raised the roof because the technician said it was the ductwork so the darn thing should be working properly and it isn't. I will probably get no where with them, but I have to try.

I finished my very first sweater. I am posting it and the hat I made for the baby. It is a 6-12 month size because the baby will be born in the summer. I have the blanket halfway done, am starting another sweater and blanket for the baby and something for my grandson for Christmas.

Jean: Have a great half day off and a fun weekend. I know you are ready for a little time off. Just a few more weeks until Thanksgiving though.

Susan: Hope you and Stan are doing well today!

Gloria: Haven't seen you in awhile. Hope you are buried underneath snow yet this year. I know my son said they have gotten a couple inches already in Indiana so they are expecting a hard winter this year.

Did you ladies read the article about a casket company that is in contract talks with Major League Baseball to put team logos on caskets? I guess they are trying to get the NBA, NFL and NASCAR on board too. The ultimate tacky way to go! I wouldn't be surprised if we are only a few years off before we sell our casket for advertising purposes. I mean, you can sell your body, your car, your home, etc to someone who puts advertising on it so why not your casket??? Short advertising life except for those worms who are interested in a vacation home in Florida or something..... I know, that was bad!

Well, I think I am going to go and sit and knit on the blanket. Everyone have a good evening and I will talk to you tomorrow.

Faye

Good morning ladies! Hope your Saturday is turning out better than our Friday went. We had the dryer guy here (I threw a fit about the fact the first guy that was here didn't even open the dryer, said it was the wall vent and left and charged me $55 for it) and so they sent this guy out. He was really good, but after taking it apart and seeing that it was full of lint and some water, which HE wouldn't do because he said it wasn't covered, Jack and I cleaned it all out while he went and got some switch that needed replacing. When he had it all together it was still overheating and come to find out, the outside vent had no air coming through so they didn't completely finish the job! I guess I should contact my son or contact Service Pro because we have to vent into the laundry room so it will work ok. Sheesh, I knew there would come a time a condo was not such a great idea! I put the vent hose next to the dryer with a lot of room, put a towel under it for any condensation from the wet clothing and it now works fine. It doesn't cause any problems except for humidity in the house and that's not all a bad thing going into the winter months.

Jack put in a call to his regular doctor yesterday and then never called him back until the office was about to close. The triage nurse got really snotty with him and said because they hadn't prescribed his medications they WOULDN'T see him!!!!! He needed to go see his surgeon and his cardiologist. I have told Jack for over a year I wanted to change practices because I hate the darn one we belong too, all Medicaid patients and such and you cannot get an appointment for at least two weeks! He kept dragging his feet because he said he would have to have another physical with a new one, it was convenient, etc. I told him yesterday because I was mad, "See what convenience got you, NOTHING!" I want to change practices, but we don't have much to choose from that isn't the same kind of thing. I refuse to go back to them unless I am ill and so far so good. I had 3 different doctors in 6 months and they rotate in and out. Come to find out, UT uses it for resident experience so they are all residents and that is why they don't stay!

Jean: Oh my gosh, what a mess to the families of the loved ones to have this going on with the church. Hope all turns out alright. Did I ever tell you our school system let's the kids off school for a day at the fair every year? They don't TAKE them to the fair, they just get the day off if they want to go. That should give you a clue as to how stupid our school system is.

Well, I need to go gals and get some work done. The dryer guy was here all morning so I got not a thing done!

Faye

Good morning ladies! Jack slept downstairs last night then came up and crawled into bed to try and sleep on his side around 5:30 AM. He said his chest muscles still feel sore so back on his back he went. He is sound asleep upstairs at the moment. One good thing is yesterday and today he has no swelling anywhere. We are wondering now if it is his Accupril, which is his ACE inhibitor, as he forgot to take it Friday night and woke up Saturday with no swelling. He took it last night so we shall see. He has been on it for 3 years, but he called his sister, who is the cardiac nurse, and she talked to someone at her hospital and they said Accupril can cause problems even years down the road. Guess we just wait until Tuesday at his appts to see what they can try and do.

I started on a really pretty pullover sweater for my grandson for Christmas. I am still working on the one baby blanket, have a second one in the works and another baby sweater, but I am going to work on them after Christmas. I do want to get the current one off the needles though so I hope to have it complete in the next couple weeks.

I got one of those nutty Lillian Vernon style catalogues in the mail yesterday and they had this tool to trim mens' nose hair. It was shaped like a finger and you stuck it up your nose! UGH, what will they think of next? There are some pretty kooky things people invent and sell. Of course, Jack thought it was funny. My tacky sailor boy!

I may have to get on the stick and contact Gail and see where she went. I have her email address at the college I think. Wish Maggie could check in once in awhile just to let us know she and Cowboy are a-ok.

Jean, do you ever hear from the lady who referred to herself as Bubbles? I was under the impression that all you beginning ladies knew each other. It has been several years ago now that she quit posting.

I am going to try and get some cleaning done today then the NASCAR race is sometime today. Yesterday was all day college football and all evening World Series. I sat and knit during the day, but my shoulders and hands were sore by evening so I went upstairs early and watched a bit of tv then went to bed. I like that series "Big World, Little People" and it was on last night. They took a vacation to Hawaii. I have to tell you, that is the sloppiest family I have ever seen. I cringe everytime they do an episode in their home wondering why the parents don't make their kids clean up the house! They have a beautiful house, part of which was just remodeled to make it larger and the kitchen more dwarf friendly, and it still looks like a pig sty all the time. I guess people have different levels of comfort zone, huh? It is a cool show to watch though.

Well, I am going to get to it. I am washing Jack's sheet and blanket that he sleeps with down here in the recliner while he is snoozing upstairs and I think I will knit for a bit until he gets up.

Have a good Sunday girls! It is cool and pretty windy here today and looks like it is only supposed to get into the high 50's.

Faye

Good morning girls! Cool and clear in my part of the world. Most of you are probably getting colder weather than us by now. I imagine snow flurries a little here and there are coming soon for a couple of you.

I checked my email and found one that was a total surprise. It was from a man at the church we left (I think I have told you repeatedly about the church in Indiana that has the pastor that in my opinon is a nutso) Anyway, before Jack had his surgery, I sent an email to the church and ask for prayer and to let the church know the situation as we still have friends that go there. I hadn't heard anything, not even get well card from anyone so I thought maybe the email address was incorrect than I get this email from one of the newer members. Very nice man and his wife and they have like 8 or 9 kids. I imagine the majority of the church want nothing to do with us as Jack pretty much put the board in their place before we left there so I guess I can't blame them if they want no contact from us. For all I know, the other couples may not be there any longer, but I seriously doubt that situation. They are all members of the church for at least 50 years and were stubbornly refusing to leave when everyone else did.

Jean: Boy, what a whirlwind weekend you had. Glad you found the outfit you like for the wedding. Seems like you are going to have a busy start to your week too! I like you, would NOT have gone to live in the wilderness for any reason. I love my husband but I would have put my big fat foot down about that! I know the last time I talked to Gail she was totally swamped at work.

I have some downstairs cleaning to get down this morning and haven't done a single morning chore so I had better get to it!

Have a great day everyone and Jean be careful traveling today!

Faye

I guess I can say good morning since it is after midnight, but to me it is still night so....I am so dumb. I slipped just a tad on the kitchen floor (because I had socks on I imagine) yesterday and must have turned my ankle some. My stupid right ankle is swollen a bit and really sore. So much so, it is hard to walk on when I get up on it. I couldn't sleep with it and the animals stepped on it a couple times so I gave up and came downstairs to get into the recliner. So, what do I do? I sit at the computer with my foot down instead!

Jean: I hate it when you go into a store and find a situation like that where stuff is just a huge mess. Walmart can be that way sometimes. The aisles are stuffed and bins and such are a mess. People just don't care. I, like you, don't like clothing a big mess either to look through. At least, if I don't feel I can fold something up, I try and put it to the side neatly so it will be seen by a sales person. Hope the second funeral goes smoothly. Sadly, some of the best food comes from funerals or wakes.

The phone rang last night and Jack answered it. He said, "Hello," then a pause, then "Who do you wish to speak to?" then a pause and then "Who is this?" then "I don't think we have anyone by that name here." The conversation on the other end was "I want to talk to Nonny." "This is Thomas Fleming." I think Jack got a little GRRRR or something when he said he didn't think that person lived here. He then proceeds to tell me he made straight A's, is on the principal's list, got 4 tokens and a free game of Putt Putt, some kind of gold card, a bunch of coupons, his mom owes him $30 etc, etc. It was like this big rush to get it all out! I told him that Granddad and I would figure out when we could take him to Chuck E Cheese (that was what dd said we could do for him if he got good grades) for getting such wonderful grades and we were proud of him. We then had to talk about all his helping put down the new wood floors at his house. I now know exactly what we have to do when we take up the carpets from the 6 year old flooring expert!

I guess I better get an ice pack on this ankle and get into the recliner and try and sleep. Jack has an 8 AM appt for his xray so we need to be there early and get that done so it is up early for us. Keep a good thought that the dr will release him to go back to work tomorrow after seeing the xray. Jack will be crushed if he can't go back to work. I surely hope this swelling shows up this morning so he has something to show the doctor. Yesterday his upper arm swelled all up, his thumb on his right hand started then on his foot. Usually it is one thing at a time. I told him I hate for him to be miserable, but I hope it is really bad so the doctors can see what he is talking about. Nothing worse than having a problem and when you get to the doctor it is all gone!

Have a good Tuesday ladies!

Faye

Doing the happy Jack can go back to work tomorrow. With regards to the swelling issue, his cardiologist thinks it is one of his current meds so is removing him one at a time to see which one it is. Hopefully, it is the first one he picks and we don't have to go through this for another month! You should see Jack's right hand today. It looks like Mickey Mouse's white gloved hand all blown up!

Faye