Steel Magnolias #23
 

Good morning ladies! We are having a fairly significant rain right now. Jack just left for his first day back at work in 2 weeks though he is on light duty so all he will do is sit at a desk for a couple more weeks.

I had already gotten ready for bed last night around 8 or so and someone knocked on the front door (they can't get in the back because we keep the gate locked.) Anyway, I called Jack down to answer it and it was the nice young black woman from across the street. She said Wayne, our resident crazy person (I have told you about him before and the pool) he went on a rampage and tore off the side mirror on our Grand Marquis, tried to break the windows and tried to tear off the license plate. He also vandalized the car next to Jack's. We called the police and made out a report, but they don't do anything to him. He is well known in the neighborhood, though his sister, who owned a condo here sold it supposedly and put him in a group home but he keeps coming back here. Our neighbor said he has flooded the condo, when he had no keys to get in he tried to force the neighbor into breaking in for him (this guy is white and our neighbor is black so you know how that would have gone.) He is a total nut case and goes on and off his meds all the time and causes trouble. I don't know why the police don't push the issue with the family to have him committed since he causes so much trouble. This guy walks down the middle of the busy street out front, hassles people, gets into altercations, steals, vandalizes and is generally a menace to the neighborhood. I know he is mentally ill and I do have compassion for that, but only to a point. We here in this neighborhood should not have to suffer because he is not controllable. I mean, who's to say one of these times that he won't go into one of his rages and kill someone?

Jean: Glad your salad was a success even if for just the adults! Alicia still sounded like she was congested and such though I could hear Jackson in the background wanted something to do with Spiderman talking to his dad. I guess he misbehaved so dad had to have a talk with him so I didn't get to talk to him. I imagine the kids all being around the same age have a grand time together. That is what is bad with Jackson and Thomas. There are 7 years between them though Thomas enjoys Jackson and Jackson hero worships his older cousin.

My son and dil lost their cat Mo last night. Alicia has had Mo since she was in college so he is old, but she was very devoted to him. I guess he threw a blood clot and died about half an hour after I talked with them. They lost another of their cats about a year or so ago. So, they are now down to one ornery cat and two dogs.

We had a fun time with the kids particularly because Kelly and I got to talking about my mom and her penchant for taking all the "free" stuff at restaurants like sugar packets, coffee stirrers and such. My mom would clean McDonald's out when they would go. She took plastic silverware, the stirrers, salt and pepper packets, suger, etc. She never stole things, just took the freebies in abundance. She would also go to other tables and ask them for their steak bones, leftover rolls and such. She was a real character when you went out to eat. She would embarrass Kelly no end as Kelly was a teenager at the time and would go and stay with her grandma every once in awhile. We got some good laughs out of that. Then I told Thomas about how Kelly and I would have fun at the airport back when we lived in Indiana and Jack worked at a job where he traveled a lot. We would go to pick him up but couldn't go back to where the boarding was so we would sit up front and pick out a stranger and take turns inventing a life for this person. Like I would pick out a man and say "That's Edgar Allen Polecat and he is the world's most famous exterminator. Then Kelly would take up the story and have to go on with it. She would then pass it on to me to make up some more. The more ridiculous the better and the funnier it got the more we would laugh. It was a great way to pass the time. Kelly actually remembers some of the stories we invented. If the people only knew! :D

Well, I guess I should go. I want to get some work done today and have to take laundry to the laundromat. Have a grand day today and if it is raining where you are, stay dry! Faye

Good Morning, Flowers! It's cloudy and windy in my neighborhood this morning. Rain is on the way according to the TV weatherman. I need to finish putting my house back together again. I was too tired last night and just left the toy/coloring book piles where the kids stacked them. I can get everything into the same box if it is put in just right . . . kind of like puzzle pieces.

"Gma" -- Thanks for starting the new thread this morning! It is too bad that "crazy" character isn't in some sort of supervised living where he can't be out on the loose. I'm sorry about the damage to your car. :( I really feel bad for the death of Kelly's cat; it's never easy to lose a furry family member. At least he didn't suffer. I didn't realize they had so many pets. I had to chuckle at the thought of you and Kelly making up stories about people you would see at the airport. There are some real weird ones out there, that's for sure. I remember when people used to dress up in their Sunday best to fly; now a lot of them look like they just rolled out of bed and bought their clothes at the Good Will. :o

I need to put in another load of laundry and empty the dishwasher. Have a marvelous Monday and remember to :D !

Jean -- :wave: from Iowa!

Marvelous Monday
 

Good evening, ladies! Its been really cool the last few days, in the low 60s.

I've been sick for 2 days. Glory and I went out to eat and we both got some sort of food poisioning, I thing. We think it was the salad but I'm not so sure it wasn't the chicken. We both had leftovers of the chicken and when we started feeling better yesterday evening ate the leftovers and I had another bout but she didn't. I didn't even go to applique today. I layed on the sofa and slept and read all day - finished a whole book. I'm feeling better again and just ate a couple of soft-boiled eggs.

I'm glad you all had nice mother's days.

I'm going to call it an early night and go to bed soon.

Tuesday
 

Good Morning, Flowers! I got up to pouring rain, and it was so dark outside! Right now it is just windy -- the rain gauge shows 1/3" however accurate that might be. I have lunch bunch this noon, a "business after hours" open house at the nursing home where Bob is on the board at 5 -- he feels we should go, and a preview of Christmas ornaments at the Hallmark store this evening. We can order them in advance if we choose rather than wait for the July showing. Our store doesn't get the full selection and sometimes I have to buy out of town.

Maggie -- It sounds like you and SB are getting along very well! I love potatoes and could eat them in any way shape or form every day. :yes: We had strawberries when the kids were here -- they were bigger than my first batch and not quite as good. Kolby has a fit because he likes them but doesn't like the seeds in his teeth. :lol:

"Gma" and Susan -- Missed you yesterday! :jig:

I have a load of undies to fold and need to get busy. The paper pile I cleared off the counter over the weekend is still waiting to be sorted. Have a wonderful Wednesday! I hope the sun is shining on you! :D

Jean -- :wave: from :rain: Iowa!

Good morning to you all! It isn't supposed to rain again until Saturday, but it is sure cloudy here this morning. It continues to be very warm though and muggy, which is definitely Memphis. We were watching the Cubs game last night and it was 48 there and you could see the pitcher's breath! I wonder if you northern ladies are going to have a cooler than normal summer this year.

Jack just called and said it is quiet there and he is bored. I don't think he took his laptop today so I wonder what he will amuse himself with. He is leaving work at 11:30 to come home since he has therapy again today. He was moaning last night because they are really working him over and the inside of his thighs were really sore. He was having to do all these exercises with a two lb weight on his ankle. He said his "warm up" was 10 minutes on a stationary bike so he is getting toned up as well as a stronger knee! :D

I was sick yesterday. I must have had Susan sympathy pains. I was really sick at my stomach, but no reason for it because it didn't come on until morning and nothing was in my stomach. I have the same queasy feeling this morning but not as bad. I am going to get up in a minute and fix some breakfast.

Jean: Sounds like a job redoing the tub. We have so much here to do but really no one to help. We don't want to ask Tom to have to help with it, it isn't his responsibility. I can't be much help either so it just doesn't get done for now. A yummy way to have corn on the cob is to take a little melted butter and add fresh garlic then spread it on the cob and cover in aluminum foil and roast on the grill or I have even put it in the oven that way and cooked it. I used way less butter and like the flavor the garlic gives. Oh, and it was Alicia and Jay's cat not Kelly's that died. Kelly's cat is a female with a male's name and I think she resents it so she is ornery!

Susan: Hope you are feeling better. You sure take your life into your own hands everytime you eat out because you don't know what is going on in the kitchen, how clean it is, etc. I noticed the new Janet Evanovich book comes out soon and she is starting a new series with Diesel as the main character so that should be interesting.

Maggie: I wish you much good luck with South Beach. I just couldn't stick with it. I guess maybe because Jack is picky and wouldn't eat a lot of the stuff and I knew if I cooked it, I would eat it or pick at it. I know I would go back into the fridge and get the leftovers so we always throw out leftovers. I have tried to pair food down so there aren't much leftovers to throw out.

Everyone have a good hump day! Faye

Humpday
 

Good evening, ladies. Thunder and lightening are happening now but it's still in the 80s. We desperately need the rain or water restrictions will be starting sooner than the middle of June this year.

I worked yesterday and went to quilt guild last night. We had a guest speaker, a quilter from Washington State who told us how she helped women in Mongolia start a co-op for the woman to make money by quilting items. It was very interesting. There is 40% unemployment in that country and women are often mistreated.

Donna, morning sickness 2 days in a row? If I didn't know better, I'd be wondering if I need to make a baby quilt. I have a lot of small things that need doing so I went to the library and got a book on home repairs and such and do it myself. It gets too expensive to have to hire everything done. How's your knitting going?

Jean, I hope you enjoyed the Hallmark preview. I love their Christmas ornaments. I'm still doing Fly Lady and getting organized.

Maggie, I've done SBD in the past and had good results. Those first 2 weeks really knock the sugar cravings into oblivion. SuperCharged has the newly revised food lists and exercises. I have the cookbook, too and the recipes I've tried were very good.

Have a good evening, ladies. I'm going to put TV on and do a little crocheting.

Good morning to you all! It is another hot sticky and cloudy day here. I went out and moved the grand marquis into the garage in my nighty and a coat sweater and was sweating by the time I got back into the house. I have to take Jack's car to the insurance guy this morning for the estimate thingy or whatever you call it. Jack was going to take a day off, but his vacation days left are pretty puny and we already have them all planned so I said I would just take it over there. I did it last time when the deer ran into me (sounds better than me running into the deer!)

Jean: You should be well on your way to colating, stapling and such this morning. I wanted to get showered and such early so I could get the heel in my sock and then it is foot knitting that I can take with me and not have to worry about screwing up because it is just round and round. I did a load of laundry this morning and will take it to the laundromat.

Susan: For all I know I could! Well, no, that isn't possible since Jack had a vasectomy 30+ years ago but since I am still doing what gals who can get pregnant do, I feel young enough. I go to the gyn tomorrow to discuss why the d and c didn't solve the problem. I am so miserable with it and my lower legs are terribly swollen and gaining weight even when I stay on my program and such. I think they are going to have to change my bp meds again as I think that is where the swelling is coming from. My hands, face, etc do not swell, just my lower legs and they are huge all the time now. I can't wear some of my sandals because my feet are too swollen so I am going to get some answers tomorrow or at least more tests done. I will have to make an appt with my regular dr about the swelling though.

Maggie: What are you eating for snacks if not fruit these two weeks? I have never tried gazpacho and am not sure I would like cold veggie soup but who knows? We have had so many business go kaput here in the last few months. Some have just moved to better parts of town than where we live and others just couldn't make it in this economy. I drove by one a few days ago and it was gone and I hadn't even realized it was moving or going belly up. We have a couple of restaurants that moved in and never opened up!

Jack has an all day workday today so he took his laptop. The only thing he has done workwise was to help one of the other techs to teach him how to read a schematic backwards from the problem to the start. I don't know why this guy wouldn't know how to do that, but Jack says he had to help him so he could fix something. I guess the other guy who is a real racist and a pain in the patut will be leaving in a year or so. He will more than likely move to the north plant. Jack used to want to move to the north plant, but nothing ever came up but a guy put in his retirement papers so there will be a control position open. He said this guy he works with is so obnoxious that Jack is going to jerk him around a bit by getting the transfer papers and filling them out where this guy can see what he is doing (Jack is senior so would automatically be moved there once this guy retires if Jack requested a transfer.) He said he wants the little jerk to sweat abit thinking he won't be able to go to the other plant. I feel for Jack's friend up there that would then have to work with him as he is a real pistol. He has filed claims not only on whites but on the other control tech (who is black) and an female electrician. He can't and has refused to work with anyone so Jack's boss has trouble finding work for this guy to do that he can do singly.

Well gals, I better go so I can get that heel cup finished before I head out this morning. Have a great Thursday and hope wherever you are, the weather is fine! Faye

Titilating Thursday
 

Good evening, ladies! Cloudy today and cool - but tomorrow it's supposed to be 90 and then back to the low 70s.

Nothing but work today.

Jean, I'm working on my control journal for fly lady. It's silly, I know - but I do a lot better with the timer. I set it for 30 minuts and then take a 15 minute break. I do 3 of those sessions a day and at least 15 minutes on decluttering the sewing room. It's working, and it all started with a shiny kitchen sink. If you didn't get the SBD SuperCharged, go to the SBD thread here and get the revised food lists. They have changed since the first book.

Maggie, I did SBD for 5 months and then the Core Plan came out so I went back to WW. The first 2 weeks can be difficult. Be sure you are eating at least 1/2 cup of beans a day those weeks so you don't get the SBD "flu", better known as carb withdrawal. They sure are taking a long time on the church roof. Even on WW, I eat the SBD-type snacks + fruit.

Faye, the heat arrives here tomorrow so I suppose you'll be cooler tomorrow and then send that on to me the next day. Your regular doctor will probably order and EKG, Echocardiogram and Nuclear Stress Test, at least that's what they always do to me when the swelling gets really, really bad. I always have a little. I do wish they could get you straightened out.

Well, time for Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice so I'll be crocheting tonight.