Between my internet provider and this site it's getting very slow and frustrating. My post earlier was hanging - not sure it was going to take and I could not get back in for my second, more important post. It's still spotty but here goes.

Happy Birthday Shad Sorry you have to work on your birthday. I suggest you take a trip down the road to go visit one of those wineries all around and have a glass or two.

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Shad
Happy birthday.

I'm not working. It is a public holiday here - ANZAC day. Sort of Aus/NZ version of Memorial day.

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At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them. Lest we forget.

Anyway, I've been up since 5.00 for Dawn Parade and then got invited to a gunfire breakfast ($8.00 please) at the barracks and came back to do my walk for the day. Shortly I will check out the places to go and things to see around the area and spend the day looking at the sights and sounds. Let you all know later what I found.

I came in from my walk last night, showered and changed into pyjamas - very early I might add - and there was a knock at the door. When I opened it, one of the staff from the motel stood there with a candle, cake and card. Picture as shown. Guess I had better beat the Big T around the ears for that embarrassment.

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So I'll leave you here and come back later to tell you what you missed.

GOOD MORNING CHICKS.

I AM GLAD WORK GOT CANCELED FOR TODAY.
VERY SLEEP WITH 2 ALARMS. ONE AT 2, THE OTHER AT 4.
I NEED A NAP BEFORE TODAY'S MEETING I AM THINKING.

NOTHING NEW JUST GOING WITH THE FLOW.
LONG & BORING MEETING.
A LOT OF CHEST BEATING & BRAGGING. REALLY PITIFUL:lol3:
I CANNOT WAIT FOR THIS WEEK TO END.
HOPE YOU GALS HVE A GREAT DAY.

SORRY I HAVEN'T DONE ALL THE PERSONALS.
CAN'T GET TO THE PREVIOUS PAGE RIGHT NOW. :cry:




SHAD...I SEE YOU BIRTHDAY CAKE:hb: HOW CUTE IS THAT!!
GIVE T A BIG KISS FROM ALL THE CHICKS!!!
HOPE YOU HAD A SUPER DAY!!!:gift: :hug:



HAPPY.....IF I HAVE TO EITHER EDIT MY POST OR MAKE A NEW ONE.
I HAVE TO CLOSE DOWN 3FC AND COME BACK.
OTHERWISE THE PAGE HANGS UP ALL THE TIME.
I CAN'T EVEN BROWSE THE SITE SOMETIMES FOR THE SAME REASON. RIDICULOUS.

Really quick post as I have to prep for a meeting...

Laura - Yes, I would've liked to have gotten it over and done with...but at the same time, I think the postponement was a gift. At the time the meeting was originally scheduled, I was mostly feeling angry and victimized. But last night, DH and I talked about what I should say in more detail...point out the discrepancies in a professional manner, and ASK for SUGGESTIONS on how I can be a more successful and more valuable employee. Leave them with the opinion that I really want to stay here and they should REALLY want to keep me. :)

Shad - Sounds like a nice ANZAC day (thanks for the explanation of what it is - I was curious when I saw it on the calendar this morning). So thoughtful of T to work with the motel staff to give you a b'day surprise. Have a great day!


This morning, I came up with a great original saying...I think it's original anyway:

"Put all the B.S. you're dealing with into the "garden of life", plant the seeds of goals and dreams, and watch wonderful things grow."

I may work on making it more eloquent...or maybe not. It came into my head because: (1) life is handing me much more crap lately than lemons; and (2) I don't particularly like lemonade. :rofl:

BTW, tonight, I'm meeting with a life and career coach. She's been a dear friend for years, and after I called her last week and gave her a run down of the stuff going on in my professional life, she scheduled a special goal setting workshop tonight using vision boards. Should be a lot of fun! :)

Gotta go for now...I'll try and pop in later.

GOT ONE LOAD OF WASH DONE AND NOW IT'S NAP TIME. :rofl:
HAND & HEAD ARE TIRED ALREADY. MEETING BEGINS AROUND 5 ISH.
I STILL CAN'T GIVE THE FINGER TO ANYONE!! TOO PAINFUL :lol3: ;lol3:
SO THE MAINTENANCE MEN & MAYOR ARE IN LUCK THIS WEEK!
HOPE EVERYONE IS DOING OK TODAY.:moped:





SHAD...THE PICS WERE GREAT. LOVE THE VIEW!
I ALWAYS FORGET ABOUT ANZAC DAY. SO SORRY.
AND HERE I EVEN HAVE AN AUSSIE CALENDAR!!!
I WILL PUT IT CLOSER TO THE COMPUTER!!
SO MANY YOUNG LIVES LOST & STILL BEING LOST:cry:

I BET THE SERVICE WAS BEAUTIFUL AT DAWN IN KINGS PARK.............
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LAURA....HOW IS COAL DOING. THOUGHT OF HIM TODAY.





HAPPY.....40 FRASSING VOLUNTEER HOURS?!!? GOD BLESS YOU!!
THEY WILL LOVE YOU TO DEATH. HOPE IT GOES FASTER THAN IT IS NOW:hug:
WOULD LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT THE ITALIAN BEEF.
THE KIDS ARE THINKING OF USING A 5QT DUTCH OVEN FOR STUFF LIKE THAT. AND THEN JUST SIMER IT ALL DAY-KIND-OF.
SOUNDED DELISH....OIL AND ALL :hun:





MICHELLE.......SO GLAD YOU ARE RETHINKING YOUR JOURNEY AND HAVE A GOOD FRIEND TO HELP YOU OUT ALSO.
POSTPONEMENT WAS THE BEST THING AND I AM GLAD THEY DID IT. LOTS OF TIME TO CALM DOWN & RELAX.
SENDING QUIET VIBES YOUR WAY :yoga: GO IN PEACE TODAY!!

Afternoon
Not much is going on here.

Mel
Hold the fort at the meetings tonight.

Michelle
To bad your meeting was held back, but may you can have more ammo to deal with when the meeting is rescheduled.

Hi there ladies,

Today dawned grey, cool and rainy. Guess I should have spent more time outside yesterday...

DH has a tree stump in the yard across the way. Every time I see it, I think it's a critter. Today the yard is filled with turkeys and squirrels. DH likes the turkeys but not the squirrels - told him you cna't differentiate on who can eat here!

Talked to a former co-worker this morning. Did a little gossiping and it appears that karma is alive and well for some evil doers. Did my heart good to hear that I must admit. ;) I do believe in the "you'll get yours someday" it's just that you don't always get to hear when that happens and sometimes it's a long time coming. Just restores my faith that there is a balance in the world...

Mel - maybe your hand is resting but you can still mentally give the bird to anyone who deserves it - just blink your eyes instead :rofl: I guess you could use a dutch oven for the recipe - just a slow oven for 275 or 300 degrees for 4 hours or so. Here's the recipe:

1 thick chuck pot roast (about 2 inches thick), 3 pounds or more
1 jar of roasted red peppers in liquid
1/2 cup Zesty Italian flavor bottled salad dressing
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

My personal modifications after making this once: substitute -
1 pkg powdered Good Seasons Zesty Italian salad dressing mix
1 cup water

Wash the roast and put it in the crock pot. Add 1/2 cup liquid Italian dressing on top of roast or if substituting mix the powdered Italian dressing packet with 1 cup warm water and pour on top of roast. Drain the roasted red peppers (mine were in oil with garlic cloves), reserving the liquid. Place the red peppers on top of the roast. Add 1/2 of the reserved pepper liquid to the crock pot. Turn on the crock and cook for 6 hours. Beef is ready when soft enough to shred. When done, remove it from the crock place meat on plate. Take 2 forks and "comb" the roast to shred the meat and red peppers. Remove any excess fat if desired. Add 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese (the stuff in a can, not fresh grated parmesan) to the liquid in the crockpot. Stir for a few minutes to make a light gravy. Add the shredded meat back in. Serve on Kaiser rolls, Italian or French bread. Add mozzerella cheese if desired to the sandwich. Also you can optionally add the following to the crockpot when you first start cooking if desired for extra flavor - wedges of green bell pepper (very thick strips so they hold up to the long cooking), chopped mushrooms, an extra clove or two of garlic. The Zesty Italian dressing has more flavor and gives the meat it's Italian Beef taste. I cooked it with the the liquid salad dressing which contains oil and the red peppers which were packed in oil and while DH loved it, it was a bit too oily for my touchy stomach so I'd try it again using powdered salad dressing, water and perhaps use the entire jar of marinade in the red peppers to cut back on the fat. It did make for a delicious sandwich even if I had to take 2 Pepcid's afterwards :lol:

Michelle - kudos to you for getting some help from the life coach in dealing with all the stress you have going on right now. Having been there before, I can say that I wasted alot of good health on being angry and stressed about the job situation. You already have enough stress in your life and like I said before, some times I think they set us up to be angry so then they can justify their bad decisions knowing it's human nature to be frustrated. It's great that DH was able to talk to you and keep a better perspective on things. It's good to have a calming factor like that. I hope that the life coach can give you some good goals to focus on. If that doesn't work, don't forget about "crushing" the head of the offenders with your thumb and forefinger from far away when they aren't looking - at least there is a small satisfaction in that :lol3:

Shad - sounds like you had a nice birthday. It's nice that you always participate in the Anzac Day celebrations - we should never forget those who have served in our safety. How nice that you got a little treat at the hotel - too bad they don't know you'd have preferred some fresh fruit over a chocolate cake. But the thought was nice. I'm still wishing you a happy birthday because while it might be over on your side of town, it's still your birthday here.

ok, I hear Doc Martin and I think of boots :rofl:

Laura - hope Coal is doing better today. That's wierd with your friend and the hip pain - but sometimes I think that's hard to diagnose. Then again, I think doctors don't always listen to the patient and I'm finding that we need to do more investigating ourselves. Pity because we sure pay enough for medical care. DIdn't the Hawks win the Stanley Cup last year or recently? Been a while since Chicago had any championships teams.

Ceejay - glad you had a nice time in MO. I thought about having a big party for one of our milestone anniversaries since we had a tiny, tiny wedding but then I got to thinking about how much it would cost (a far cry from the $2500 I spent on my wedding no doubt) :lol: Shame that the baby was fussy but sometimes I think it's good for Mom and Dad to get the baby used to other people from the get go just to avoid the "daycare drama" syndrome. Has it been a quiet storm season out by you?

Annie - sounds like you are busy with all kinds of work around the house. How is the firepit coming along. THink you'll be done before Shad gets her castle built? :lol: We had white crown moulding in the house in TN. Painted the walls with a gray primer and I was pleasantly surprised at how nice the medium gray looked against the moulding and the white ceiling. It's a good color although you rae probably going almost white with a touch of gray?

Ok, I have to get dressed and off to the library to return some books and pick up the one about the dog. Also ordered books 2 and 3 in the Girl with the Dragon Tatoo series for DH. They show "in transit" I know that if I go to the library today they will show up tomorrow. Doesn't really matter since the library is on the way home when we go to town - so not really out of the way to go there.

Happy hump day chicks - have a good one.

Good Afternoon all. Long meeting this morning followed by a box lunch with the attendees. Having trouble getting back in the work groove.

Shad - Sounds like you had a nice ANZAC day and B-day. LOL, nice thought re the cake/ice cream - is Big T your co-worker??

Michelle - You're right, more time is good to work on your strategy and to practice at least appearing calm and collected. I hope your life/career coach meeting goes well tonight and gives you a bright outlook for what the future can bring.

Mel - No problems with Coal since Monday evening, so I think he's alright now. Still giving him his meals one half at a time. Poor guy doesn't like it, but he'll survive. I'm sure a dutch oven inside a low temp oven was the original slow-cooker, lol. Don't let the meetings get the best of you!!

Ceejay - No news is good news I guess. Hope you're week goes by quickly!

Happy - Yes, knowing someone got their just desserts can be satisfying. Unlike seeing a driver doing something really illegal and dangerous and only being able to say "Where's a cop when you need one!?" I think it's been a couple seasons now since the Hawks won the Cup. Re my friend's hip, she did have some herniated disks, so I'm sure that didn't help with the diagnosis. I texted her to see how the doc appt went and she's got surgery on 6/12, not as soon as she wanted, but at least it's scheduled. The hip problems caused one leg to be 1 inch shorter than the other. I just hope this surgery greatly improves her quality of life!!

Annie - Hope the colonoscopy went well and you're again clean as a whistle. Well, we know you were already if you did the prep right, haha, but I mean the no polyps kind of clean. :D

Hi Java, Hi Patty!!
===
Nuttin' much to report. The admin distributed our "absence reports" this morning and it turns out I've only taken two vacations days so far this year (plus one sick day). For Pete's sake, I haven't even used up the days I carried over from last year, let alone this year's floating holidays and vacation days! Time to take some time off!!! :carrot: I might just try and take this Friday or Monday off! However, this morning's meeting was a kick-off of sorts for a couple large and a couple small projects, so I will try to achieve good progress on data requests the next couple days before taking any time off. Otherwise, there are about 5 days I picked off the top of my head to take off over the next three months, and I'm sure there will be more.

I did a BE workout last night - my biceps are winning the soreness competition at the moment, and then triceps next. I think my quads will overtake both a little later...

Cheers!
:cheers:

Sorry guys, got taken out to dinner and only just got in. It's bed for me. I'll be back in the morning.

https://encrypted-tbn0.google.com/im...OegCprFGPiObfg

:coffee: MORNING ALL

WE'RE CATCHING UP ON OUR MUCH NEEDED RAIN.
VERY HARD TO STAY AWAKE THIS WEEK.
ANNOYING ODDS & ENDS.
HOT WATER TURNS OFF IN CERTAIN APARTMENTS AT UNCERTAIN TIMES.
NO LOGICAL REASON AND WE'RE ALL STUMPED.
I LOSE IT IN MY KITCHEN ONLY. WEIRD.
PLUMBER IS RUNNING AROUND TRYING TO FIND A LOGICAL REASON :lol3:

TODAY'S MEETING SHOULD BE THE LAST OF IT. PRAYING HARD.
NOTHING NEW. JUST RESTING IN BETWEEN.
JEN AND I ARE GOING TO THE STORE TOMORROW MORNING.
SEE Y'ALL WHEN WE GET BACK AFTER LUNCH TIME:moped:




CEEJAY....NO NEWS CAN BE GOOD NEWS :hug:
ENJOY YOUR DAY!




HAPPY.......THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE RECIPE. JEN IS LACTOSE INTOLERANT SO MAYBE THEY CAN TWEAK IT. IT REMINDS ME OF ANOTHER RECIPE I READ SOMEWHERE. I'LL PRINT THIS ONE OUT.
HAD A LAUGH AT DH AND THE SQUIRRELS AGAIN:rofl:
I AM GLAD TO HEAR THAT THE RULE "WHAT COMES AROUND GOES AROUND" IS STILL ALIVE & KICKING:encore:
I ALWAYS TELL JEN....DON'T LAUGH AND CHEER TOO LOUDLY
LEST THE DEMONS HEAR YA AND SMACK US TOO!:lol3: :lol3:




LAURA......YOU COULD USE SOME TIME OFF JUST TO KEEP THE HEAD IN GOOD SHAPE.
GOOD LUCK WITH THE NEW PROJECTS.
HOPE YOU GET AHEAD SO YOU CAN HAVE THE DAYS YOU WANT.
I MLOVE LONG WEEKENDS & I DON'T EVEN RIDE A TRAIN EVERY DAY!!!
GLAD TO HEAR COAL IS DOING OK. WAS HOPING HE DIDN'T EAT ANYTHING TOO DANGEROUS:hug:




SHAD.....JUST FOUND YOUR POST....HOW NICE TO GET TAKEN OUT TO DINNER!!
HOPE YOU HAD A GREAT TIME:hug:

Hey guys...

Butt hurts, got internal hemrroids (sp), they took a biopsy of one place on my colon, couldn't tell if it was a polyp or just a fold in the colon. If a polyp, I will have to go back in a couple of months for removal. My personal opinion is that it is a fold in the colon since I had all that rearrangement from bariatric surgery. Other than that it looked good, (YUK) to me. Anyway, unlike last time...my body aches all over, I am tired and my belly is bloated. Guess age does make a difference. boo hoo hoo, whao is me.

May go home and through soup stuff in the crocker.

Will post more tomorrow.

hugs

Morning all.

Shad - Taken out to dinner - how nice. :)

Mel - What a bizarre thing with the hot water cutting out in random locations at random times. Never a dull moment!! Hope the meetings today go smoothly with no long-windedness making them go long. No :soap: allowed!! Yeh, been trying to keep an eye on doggy when he's in the yard to ensure that he doesn't eat anything out there. Gonna go out by the back fence this weekend (weather permitting) and rake out the last of the leaves accumulated there and clear out anything foreign or funky. I was pretty happy a few years ago that the neighbor's vines had been growing over into our yard and serving as groundcover in the soil below our row of arborvitae trees along the fence because they help keep weeds at bay; Now it's sort of a mixed blessing because one can't see what might get nestled in the vines for doggy to sniff out and scarf down. It's always something!

Annie - Sorry you're worse for wear after they rooted around inside you yesterday. :( Hope the biopsy comes back with good results. I say go home now and rest up so you can enjoy your long weekend. :yes:

Hellos to the rest of the gang! :wave:
===
Did a BE workout last night - deltoids, back, glutes and outer thighs. These are pretty quick workouts. Probably should double up on them, or add on some Pilates moves or hula-hoop time.

Going to ask the boss if it's okay to take Monday off work. Have a massage in mind. Also going to see if there's any reason I can't take a couple days off the first week of June - planning a weekend getaway with a friend.

That's about it. Better get to it!

Toodles!

Hi all,
Bright and sunny day out there - much nicer than yesterday's gloom although it's chilly. DH said it was actually snowing very early this morning. I missed it. Boo hoo. NOT. :lol:

Mr. Bear who we thought headed out showed back up again late yesterday. DH decided to sweep up the corn piles we put out for the deer - especially when the bear came back 3 times. So I had to stand on the deck and keep watch in the yard so Mr. Bear didn't surprise DH while he raked up his food. That was a first for me.

DH reminded me that it's about 3 weeks until my Mom and sister come to visit. I hope it warms up a little more by then. Also means I have alot to do to get ready for them. I want to finish this museum volunteer stuff so I can focus on the house again.

Laura - a getaway weekend sounds like fun. Better to spend the vacation time doing that instead of just hanging around the house.

Annie - so sorry to hear about your sore bum. I hope that's a fold too and not a sign of more trouble. Are you prone to potentially more issues after the surgery?

Mel - that's a real mystery with the water. How crazy - hope they find a fix. I didn't quite understand the lactose intolerance for Jen - could there be milk solids in the powdered salad dressing? Or is it the cheese at the end that's an issue? You don't really have to add the cheese it, it just thickens the juice from an au ju? (still good dipping the bread) to a slightly thicker gravy with an enhanced cheese flavor.

Shad - hope you enjoyed your dinner out. We're going out tomorrow and I'm looking forward to that.

Hellos to Ceejay, Michelle, Patty and Turtle. I'm off to get busy. :wave:

I DIDN'T WANT TO MISS OUR FRIDAY BIRTHDAY GAL WHILE I AM OUT IN THE MORNING.......................



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HAPPY BIRTHDAY MISS HAPPY!!!
HOPE YOUR BIRTHDAY TOMORROW WILL BEGIN A WONDERFUL LONG WEEKEND OF CELEBRATION.:cheers:
HAVE YOURSELF A WONDERFUL FRIDAY :hb: :gift: