JayEll Many things at our house are breaking or failing too. We've been here almost 8 years now so I expected some things to go but not this many. DH is very handy with fixes and installations so he has done the dryer door latch, front door handle, top boards of the deck, and the shed door.

I am painting same shed this weekend if the weather is sunny. Going to be HOT but I have no complaints. My garden is lush and everything is growing like crazy so I'm happy to sit outside and take it all in.

Dagmar

Lovely cool day here. Sunny but not humid. Going to try to get some of my yard work done today as I have some holes in my dog walking schedule.

Did my June weigh in yesterday - 139.6 lbs. I will now make a determined effort to lose the COVID weight as I got my first email for buying tickets to an event. I was so excited - somewhere to go at last! Have to fit into my "party" clothes by fall and now I have hope that there will be places to go again. I need a carrot to lose weight - always have - and now that has been provided.

Dagmar

I've been sick since last Tuesday. Something viral. I won't say any names, and I can't be sure, but I had a lot of symptoms that "might" be it. I don't plan on being tested because it just doesn't do me any good to know.

And I am fully vaccinated. Johnson and Johnson. On the other hand, I've never had a "regular" flu vaccination.

Very irritating! But I'm almost all better at this point.

Oh, JayEll! So sorry to hear you are sick. I would be too curious to NOT get tested Plus, if you do have ***** it would be a data point to help the experts evaluate the vaccines better. But I certainly don't blame you for not wanting the test, especially if one would have to fork out $$ for it. California is set to open up in two days, but I think I will still wear my mask in crowded stores like Walmart.

Dagmar, we've had lovely weather (high 80's, low 90's with a breeze) for several days, but now it will be getter hotter -- 110 by Friday

I hit 130 on the scale this morning. Some of it might be water retention due to taking NSAIDs for my chronic foot problem and hiking on Friday, but I'm still feeling motivated to see that number go back into the 120's.

My niece in Chicago got married on Friday. I got back into cell service after my hike just in time to catch the wedding via Zoom. Looked very nice, but I'm glad I did not attend in person! Zoom gatherings are the wave of the future!!

Sorry to hear you are sick Jayell. Here the symptoms from a common cold, allergic reaction, pink eye, all could be COVID according to the guidelines. If anyone coughs we all still duck and cover. We get tested for free at the local hospital and now the interval for a result is very small - one day. DH and I had to wait almost a week for our results last spring. We did take the tests because we were terrified at that time. I guess it's up to the individual to decide.

Our interval for the second shot has now been shortened. The provincial booking system is mess and totally overloaded so I'm not even going to try to book a new appointment until sometime next week. Nowhere to go so I'll wait.

Alice I like crowds. Having grown up in the largest city in Canada and being a very urban person I really miss being in a crowd. I seldom am invited to things like weddings etc. but I always enjoy attending. Zoom is just not the same for me, though it does enable people to participate in events in far away locations. We were invited to a wedding in California several years ago and could not attend. No Zoom back then so we missed everything. Oh well.

I had a major scare with our dog Trixie these past 4 days. I found a lump on her hip. Got a diagnosis from the vet yesterday and she has a benign lipoma. WHEW! I sat in my car waiting for the vet's call and could hear my own anxiety buzzing through my head. Slept for 7 hours last night, the first real sleep I've had since finding the lump.

The really weird thing is last night, after being so relieved that Trix was OK, I suddenly found myself ravenous and ate a lot of crap food. My appetite does not go away when I'm anxious - the opposite is true - so I wasn't hungry from lack of food. I've had this reaction after going through other stressful events too. Something to do with adrenaline and body reactions to stress probably.

Dagmar

I'm almost well again from the cold. I've decided it is a "cold" in the absence of contrary information. My partner has now come down with it. We are both fully vaccinated, and she had the Pfizer 2-shot version. Also, she gets regular-flu shots. So... it's a cold.

Glad Trixie is OK, Dagmar. Yeah, I wish I were someone who loses their appetite under stress, but no.

I don't like crowds and stay away from them. But I do remember walking through the streets in Manhattan at night when I was much younger, long ago. It seemed like everyone was out and having a great time. I was pretty oblivious to dangers then--and I don't think it was as dangerous. Still, no crowds for me now.

Alice, we have heat plus humidity which is terrible. I just stay indoors these days in summer. I can't handle the heat like I used to.

What with one thing and another, my weight is down about 9 pounds at the moment.

Dagmar, I'm glad to hear Trixie is okay. I seem to always be worried about one of our animals. This week it's Patrick the cat, who has been losing weight for a while and throws up a couple of times a week. He also pees a lot. His bloodwork was all normal but my vet said his kidneys could be going bad, just not bad enough to show in the bloodwork yet.

JayEll,, I'm happy to hear you are on the mend! This time of year is good for almost nothing! It has been 115 here for two days in a row, and today will probably be 109 or 110.

I leave Tuesday to visit my son & family in Washington, and see Baby Atlas in person for the first time. He just turned one. I'm not much of a baby person, except for baby animals. I'm taking Greta the dog with me for company. I'll be back Monday the 28th.

Alice Enjoy your trip and meeting baby Atlas. Are you driving? I'm not much of a "baby" person either but I will be excited to meet Theodore Charlie hopefully at Christmas. He will be 9 months old at that time. Something to look forward to to keep going.

JayEll glad to hear you are feeling better and I hope your partner does too soon.

I am down 1/2 lb. from last week. : I think i will weigh myself once a week until the end of August. I'm hoping that will help to get the number under 135 again so I can fit into my fall clothes when there are places to go.

Dagmar

Booked Dh and me in for 2nd vax this coming Saturday. We are both "mixing and matching" though my second shot (Moderna) is similar to my first (Pfizer) and DH's are different (Astra and Moderna). Our chief public health officer in Canada just got the same combo that I will have. Hope we all do well with it.

I'm booked in for a legal haircut the day after and will keep the appointment, even if I feel like death warmed over. I can't remember the last time I got my hair cut legally - maybe last October?

Dagmar

My partner is still recovering. The cold morphed into bronchitis in her case. Just a reminder, I guess, that Covid isn't the only thing going around.

Alice, are you back from visiting? How did it go?

I got back yesterday, and yes, I drove. 16 hours each way. Driving south In southern Oregon, my truck's outside thermometer registered 114 for a couple of hours.(that's 46 c)!

I had a good visit and enjoyed baby Atlas. He will be 13 mo on July 4. His mother still drives me nuts, but I'm good at holding my tongue and not disagreeing with her. After all, she is attending the university of YouTube and knows everything. My son detailed my truck while I was there and they loved Greta. Greta was nervous about the baby but she got better as the week went on. What I didn't like is that my DIL has taught the baby to "Give the dog a kiss" (her mother has a dog that visits), and he runs right up to stick his face in the dog's face. I did tell her that it was very dangerous to encourage him to do that, but I doubt she will listen. My son does listen, though, and hopefully he will deal with it.

I actually lost 2.5 pounds on the trip without even trying. Most nights I felt pretty hungry when I went to bed and I was not eating my normal foods, so maybe I just ate less.

Alice You and Greta truly are road warriors! 16 hours one way - wow! Glad your visit with baby Atlas went well and that your son got the heads up about the baby and proper behaviour with dogs. "Attending the university of YouTube" is a keeper for me - And congrats on the weight loss.

JayEll I hope your partner recovers well from her bronchitis and yes, there are other illnesses besides COVID.

It's our July 1 holiday here, formerly known as "Dominion Day". I decided to celebrate by taking today - stat holiday - and tomorrow off so I'll have a nice 4 day block of down time. Going to go kayaking tomorrow - first time in close to 3 years I'm really looking forward to that. Second vaccine on Saturday and haircut on Sunday. Things to do rather than things to eat and drink are my focus this long weekend.

Dagmar

Happy Dominion Day to Dagmar. (I like the old name better - reminding me that Canada, itself, in 1867, chose to bring all its pieces together.)

And Happy Survival Under the Circumstances to all the other maintainers - especially those experienceing 100+ degree F temperatures.

We're surviving here in New England. I'm lucky that the heat makes me want to avoid eating. Dinner lately has been deviled eggs and various cold salads - eaten indoors which is a few degrees cooler than outside. We just had rain to get us back into life-sustaining temperatures.

So good to hear from you Bill. And I'm glad that you are able to cope with what are very unusual circumstances.

Dagmar

Hey Bill!

Alice, I don't know what to say about the in-law situation. Seems like these sorts of conflicts are pretty common. Just remember she's young, and your son probably isn't a total fool... ? Things may get better as time goes on.

We've had rain for days here, and there's a tropical storm down to the southeast. Sigh... But at least my partner is better now, after her cold.