Location: A beautiful and peaceful place in the woods
Posts: 8,905
S/C/G: Stuck/Working on it/Good 2 Go
Height: Fun Size
Hi there ladies,
It's been a while. I admit since we are randomly posting, I have gotten out of the habit of coming to check here.
Things are going slowly. It's been beastly hot here and very dry. We had a bunch of trees taken out to give more of a firewall around our house. I hated it at first but I am used to it now and it does look better in the back yard. Some of the trees were starved for light so I hope they recover. The funny thing is we removed the trees not only because they were too close to the house and a possible problem with fire or trees falling but we also took some out to open up the garden area. It was only getting about 4 hours of direct sun in the summer, not enough for the plants. So now that things are opened up, we didn't really do a garden this year. I picked up 5 tomato plants, one that I am finding out now was a plant that someone put in the wrong bin. Thought it was red cherry tomatoes and DH said there are 3 bright yellow ones on the vine. We planted fewer flowers in pots this year also. Enough to be decorative. After they took the trees out, they ground the stumps down, dumped dirt and then laid grass seed and hay on it. In some places this was just too much fun for the wild turkey who love to scratch and dig. They tore up sections. Most of it though, the guys did an awful job. They just mixed the wood chips from the stump grinding into the dirt - large clumps of chips. The dirt they laid was very uneven - thick in some places, sparse in others. The spread seed by hand so it was unevenly applied and in some cases the hay was so thick instead of mulching, it suffocated the grass like a thick coat. $15,000 for this. And they sell the wood from the trees they cut down. DH was ticked off. To top it off new seed needs lots of water. We don't have endless city water - we are on a well. In a drought. DH was watering for upwards of 8 hours each day. We had a lot of land redone all around the house. The first 10 days I didn't say anything because Mother Nature was not giving us any rain but finally I gently approached him with my concerns that he was either going to dry our well out or burn out the pump - both of which are very costly replacements. This was about the time he went on his trip last month and no way was I going to go out and spend my day moving the hose every 15 minutes so some of the shady parts the grass took and other parts it dried up IF it even came in at all. So he has a lot of work to do on the lawn. I said we live in a forest, not a golf course. He could not mow the new stuff so it grew quite high which the deer loved, especially the new mommas who eat greens to feed their milk supply for the new fawns. We have 2 moms who bring their 3 fawns here - one single, one set of twins. They are so tiny and cute. We also have a small black bear cub we are worried about - it appears to be orphaned at much too young an age. It wanders around here in search of food but has not learned to forage like it needs to. It passed by some leftover piles of corn we had out for the deer but did stop to get a drink out of the watering bin we have out for the animals. If it starts to look in danger, we will call the DNR but they have to get here in enough time to get it which is highly improbable.
DH announced to me last week he found another photography workshop he wanted to go to in October. This one is in Bar Harbor, Maine right in fall color season at the gateway to one of the country's loveliest parks. From October to April, the top of one of the mountains is the first point in the USA to see the sunrise. Allowing time for travel it's an 8 day trip. And everything is really pricey - the airfare, the conference, the area is very touristy and it's the height of the busiest season - New England color. He asked if I wanted to go and I said yes, I'd love to go but what do I do with the cats and what do I do while you are going from sunrise to late evening at this conference? They go in groups for various photo shoots - you have to get on this mountain at least an hour before sunrise to accommodate the crowds and they also plan some night shoots. So it's an erratic schedule with weird times to sleep. I told him no, I'd stay home and then I found myself resenting him going. I have ALWAYS wanted to see the New England colors and can you believe even though my husband is from Rhode Island in almost 50 years we have never been there is the fall?? So I was sitting on the deck feeling sorry for myself decided to start looking things up on the computer. I sent an email to a lady I know from the Humane Society who said she would come stay at our house and cat sit. The first 2 days we get there, DH will be free for us to do things. The next day the conference starts in the evening so we have the daytime for us. The 2nd day there is a shuttle bus that runs from the hotel into town so I could go into town or call a taxi. The shuttle bus shuts down for the season after that but there are taxis. I would have the 3rd and 4th day on my own. There are several harbor cruises, one line that departs right from the dock at our hotel. Depending on the weather - it averages 57 - 41 degrees (F) that time of year and it's a good 20 degrees colder on the water, it's also one of the foggiest places in the US. So weather might not be conducive for a cruise. They do have an indoor pool as well as a workout room at the hotel. Or I can just take a blanket and sit on my patio and listen to the ocean surf which is ok by me. I decided to buy a new iPad so I can use the internet, read books with less problems (larger print). And there's all that wonderful, fresh seafood to enjoy. The last day of the conference ends after a morning session, we will have to pack our bags and drive across the street to spend our last night at another hotel. This trip is mid October and I snagged the last 2 of 3 seats on the airplane on our preferred departure time (late afternoon). Also was unable to book the hotel online and when I called they said they had no rooms I told them we were attending a conference and had already booked my airline tickets the night before. They said they only had rooms for the days of the conference so that left us no where to stay on Friday and Saturday. The lady at reservations went in the "back door" and got us a room for all but the last night we will be there. It took me a heckova time finding a room for that last night. It's the height of busy season and most places wanted a minimum 2 night stay. Some of the single night rooms were going for $600 a night!!!!! NO way. I was just about to change our flight ( I had 24 hours) when I found this place across the street. No ocean view but we'll have had 7 days of that. Altogether we have about 5 days for us to tour around. I am really looking forward to it. Haven't been on a vacation in over 13 years. I just hope nothing happens to my cat sitter or we're screwed. We'd have to board the cats at the vet and that would be incredibly stressful to nervous Nina and all of them frankly as all 4 outside of starting life at the shelter as kittens have never lived anywhere but the free ranges of my house save for an overnight vet stay which they hated. My sister is coming up in mid September - they rented a big, beautiful house on the lake nearby so her DH can go fishing every day and enjoy a break from caretaking 2 elderly parents (mine and his Dad). I have not seen my sister or Mom in almost 3 years so I am looking forward to that. I am trying to plan a driving trip to go see my Mom early August. There are lots of things going on so I only have a small open window in which to be away. Sis said she'd drive part way so DH didn't have to drive me all the way in. We are trying to work out the details, if not, I will fly in to see Mom. There is the option to drive back with Sis after her September trip but that would not leave me much time to prepare for my October trip so it's August or nothing.
My Mom went into the hospital about 2 weeks ago. Her legs swelled up pretty badly. They gave her strong diuretics which brought things down. She has a leaky heart valve but surgery is out of the question. The procedure they are recommending her younger sister had and had a major stroke 2 days afterwards so not only did the surgery not help, she is worse off than before because of the stroke. My Mom will be 95 in October, she is old and worn out. Her macular degeneration and cataracts affect her eyes and she is quite deaf although it's amazing what she can see and hear when you catch her off guard! She does not eat properly or drink enough water and she can't be on her own any longer. We are going to see more frequent bouts of congestive heart failure where the fluids build up and she will be going in and out of the hospital to bolster her up, just like my Dad. It's a 70 mile round trip between my sister's house and Mom's and Mom's house is old and rickety and needs so much work. We need to dump it. There are some really nice senior apartments less than 5 minutes from my sister's. I told her she needs to apply for a place for Mom. My Mom said "she's NOT READY" to go anywhere else - fighting her like a stubborn toddler. But we said too bad, it's time. Neither of us can take her in, she fights with you over everything and we both agree that it would make it too tense and we'd both be divorced if she lived with either of us. This apartment is ideal. But it's subsidized and well maintained and the waiting list is long. My sister really should have applied 2 years ago when I tried to move my Mom up here and my Mom threw a fit and Sis just caved in. The problem is that Mom needs to go with when they apply for the apartment (and she can blow the interview) and it can be 2 years before something would open up. You have to commit to paying a full year's rent, even if the tenant passes within the year. Doesn't make sense to do that since they have a long waiting list but it's there rules and you have to stick with them. I could get some housing up this way sooner but Mom would never make the move. I wish my sister had not procrastinated for so long but she is the one who has to deal with Mom and will have to take her in if heaven forbid something happens. We talked about her putting in an application a month ago and she hasn't done anything yet. Meanwhile my Mom the Artful Dodger thinks she ain't going nowhere. My sister is terrified that my Mom will decide she needs a hospital visit right before S's vacation up here. She isn't telling either of the parents until a week before the trip.
Nothing is happening on our renovations. We decided to apply for a home equity loan rather than pulling out of our savings and paying taxes on the withdrawal. Takes about 45 days for the loan to be processed so I'm glad the home improvement place is dragging their feet. After living conservatively for the most part for the last 10 years, we are spending a bundle this year. All is well - why leave a bunch of money to a bunch of charities and deny ourselves? With the way things are going in the world, not sure how much longer things will last anyway. Everywhere I go people are talking about how people are nasty and you can't say anything without fights breaking out. We all agree we'd rather be isolated. Sad but true.
Susie - I guess there will be a big uproar as companies push people to return to the office. I think people took dressing down for Casual Fridays a bit too far and now they are doing the same balking about returning to the office. I don't buy the excuse about childcare either - you have a choice to start a family, it's up to you to deal with it, not up to your job that pays you to bend over backwards to accommodate you. We'll see how that rolls out, especially with the holdouts on the vaccines and the possible variants in the fall. I'm glad you are getting everything in place for your shoulder surgery. Best to put all your efforts into post surgical recovery.
Annie - hope you had a nice cookout and vacation. Enjoy the day at the waterpark. Looks like the much needed rain is all up our way so hope you have perfect weather for being outside and getting wet. Nice garden you have there too. Nice to hear that C got a new job that is less stressful for him. Hope things are more relaxed at home now that you both like your jobs. That helps a lot.
Shad, how is the vaccine rate by you? We are a politically divided country - you can see the blue states complying and the red states balking so we will never get rid of the virus here. Many young people also refusing to be vaccinated. At this point, we are protected, it is they who are taking the risks of getting seriously ill. I'm not going to worry about it. They say we should be protected from the variants so they are not talking about an autumn booster. But if they have one, I will get it along with the seasonal flu shot. I am suddenly having problems with my computer accessing internet sites. I tried to enlist DH's help but he has a Mac and "not having any problems" so I guess I to figure out how to fix it myself and hope I don't screw anything up. I think it has to do with the fact we are trying out a new satellite dish in addition to our current satellite subscription. Glad you are getting a good bounty on your garden. Are you still doing flowers also?
Laura - sounds like a busy mess around your house with the plastering. All that drywall dust that gets everywhere! At least things are getting done so it's nice to see the after results. I am not looking forward to the renovations. With them removing the built in closets and demolishing so much it's going to be an awful mess. I can hang a curtain between the back and front halves of the house to try and minimize the mess but still will be terrible. My friend went and rented another place for 2 months while they gutted her home - wish I could do that but my money tree in the back refuses to take root! It's nice to hear you are enjoying your bike this summer although my sister and Mom said it's terribly humid and warm. That can be very tiring, saps the energy right out of you.
Hello to Ceejay
Time to get off the computer and get some things done. We are having a stormy day, the rain is just moving in. We desperately need the rain. I have to temper my time on the computer - too much sitting and I get a back and chest ache from bad posture. I also have an ambitious list of things to do - but don't I always? Going to try and get walking more to build up stamina for our October trip as well as try and lose some weight but it's stubbornly stuck on. Annoyingly stuck on. The only thing that remotely seems to work is only eating one meal a day. And I can't do that so I will try and add more physical activity to balance it as much as my knees will let me.
Hope you are all doing well and enjoying the summer for us on this side of the world. Are you in winter yet Shad?
Last edited by happy2bme; 07-06-2021 at 11:21 AM.
Reason: typos
Hello all. How time flies. Another 10 days since posting.
I had a nice 4-day holiday weekend. One of the days I took a nice bike ride as it was really beautiful day. We went to fireworks on the 4th. Set up our chairs in a different spot this time and from our vantage point, also saw several other fireworks shows going on in the distance in neighboring suburbs. Didn’t do anything special for my b-day except lunch at a favorite seafood restaurant.
As for home projects…they continue. I painted the one patched wall in the spare bedroom this past weekend, so that room can now be set to rights again. There are a couple patched spots in the home office yet to be primed and painted. Bf is just about done with the half bath work – he painted the floor tile grout, installed the new toilet, vanity, & faucet, re-installed the light fixture & TP and towel holders. All that remains is installing two small shelves that’ll hold little decorative things – maybe a plant, candles, or whatever. Oh, and I ordered a nice, new cellular blind for the window in there. Just so glad it’s 95% there, and so much better with the new paint color.
We bought copper fence post caps that still need to be installed. The basement has yet to be cleaned up from the plumbing work. Will need to wear a hat, mask and maybe goggles when trying to put the !@#$% drop ceiling panels back in place. Can’t wait!! NOT.
Bf was making trips to the hardware store for the half bath work and kept seeing the window company guy outside hawking a raffle for $10,000 towards windows. He entered, thinking may as well get a quote on our 3-season room window replacement project. A sales guy came today and gave us a quote. It was astronomical, even knowing it was for a top of the line product and company. Obviously, we’ll get other quotes, but probably not until next spring. We’re kind of burnt out on projects right now.
On to personals…
Shad – Are the tomatoes being harvested yet? Oh how I’d love to have some really good homegrown tomatoes!! I’ll have to put a reminder in my calendar to get to the farmers market on Sunday mornings to try for some there. Your neighbors are lucky to benefit from your plentiful yield. ==Are your computer problems in the past, for the time being? I’ve been going in fits and starts with my mobile phone – the music-playing app that I used was discontinued a while back, so I tried a new one (no choice), but my downloaded music didn’t load on that app with proper artist, song, album, and track # info. So frustrating!! And I’m trying to find where all my music is stored. Not neat and tidy in one spot, unfortunately. Sigh.
Annie – How nice your garden is doing well also. How are the pumpkins doing?? Or was it zucchini after all? Or cucumber? == Your cookout sounded tasty! Did you end up making potato salad? Those kind of salads have never been my thing. It wasn’t something my mom made – egg/tuna/potato/pasta salads. I don’t care much about egg or tuna salad. I appreciate a good potato or pasta salad but not enough to perfect my own!! == Did you have your water park day? How was the lazy river – that sounds nice.
Susie – Nice you got out to see a movie – in a theater. It’s been forever for me. == Our office started a pilot return to office program this week (RTO). Only for fully vaxed people, strictly voluntary. I’m not participating – I really don’t need anything from the office. And even though our company’s prohibiting the non-vaxed right now, who knows what the rest of the tenants in our building are doing? So I’ll stay home for now. The pilot will likely run through September. ==I hope you’re enjoying your vacation time. Any special plans? == Best wishes for your surgery next week!!
Happy – How are your tomatoes doing? I think I’m the only one here who didn’t grow tomatoes this year! And I still haven’t planted any herbs…just put a couple of my basil plants on the window ledge. Only bought a few potted annuals – a couple for the front stoop and a couple on hangers for the back yard. == My sympathies to you trying to grow grass in the middle of summer during a drought. Well, recent rains here have helped green up our lawn, so I guess we’re okay for now…but the bare area in back is going crazy with weeds…bleh. == Oh, how great you’ll be vacationing in Maine during fall color season!!! Awesome. Fingers crossed your cat sitter plans don’t fall through! == Sorry to hear your mom’s having health issues. I hope your sister and BIL can get their long-awaited vacation in without any parental medical issues. As for your mom’s living situation – big decision that won’t be easy at all, but it’s certainly necessary. My friend B and her sister made the decision for their mother when she was in the hospital and then rehab – essentially telling her “you’re not going back to that house”. It was a battle with their very feisty mother (like yours), but it was the right thing to do. I hope you and your sister find the right housing situation for your mom. == I agree that you may as well spend your money on things that make you happy in your home, especially since you haven’t taken any big vacations in a long while. You can’t take it with you!
Okay, so I am making a coffee and some time to get on here and say hello.
We seem to be on the verge of another lockdown as the Delta variant hits NSW and Victoria again and we have a couple of loose cases as well. That will be fun NOT. Getting tired of it now. I appreciate the lengths Queensland politicians have gone to keep us safe, but it does get boring after a while. And I don't appreciate the fact that those same pollies have allowed the NSW and Vic football teams to relocate here until it is safe for them to go home. And they want to bring their families. Since the players have never been known to a: keep their pants zipped and b: obey the rules we are all expecting another outbreak up here. They do not understand any form of discipline whatsoever.
Laura: some of my tomatoes have ripened and there have been enough for me to eat reasonably regularly. There are a lot of green ones on the cherry tomatoes which are slowly ripening, but the big Black Russians are huge but not yet ripe. Those ripe ones taste good tho'.
My computer problems seem to be fixed for the time being and the man who came out was very good. He took off some old files and removed a program that I had never used but which was taking up a lot of space and then repartioned my C and D drives so I have space. It's much better.
I've got some music stored somewhere on my phone as well although I have no idea where the playlist I set up has gone.
Good to hear that the renovations are moving along even if it is slowly. Things just take time.
Happy - I know what you mean about us randomly posting. I come here when I am on the computer and check it out, but think to myself I'll post after I've paid the bills or I'll do it while tea is cooking and something else always comes up.
Your trip away sounds nice. I guess we will see lots of photos after it. Sorry to hear you Mum is not well but I guess that at her age, something is bound to go wrong - usually at the worst time. Yes she should have moved a while back, but it didn't happen so it is now time to start doing something about it. If your sister can't do it then you will just have to start banging on desks and telling everyone what is what. Or go down there and do it yourself.
Susie - good luck with the shoulder surgery. Hope all goes well next week for you. Take your time before going back to work. You could make recovery worse if you don't do the right things.
Okay, that's it from me.
My DS2 and partner are going to move to Cairns shortly. She has a job up there and will be moving up next month and he is not going until November when he gets his long service leave and with all his benefits and holiday pay he will be able to look around for something to do for quite a while. He's not one to be out of work for long anyway so will find something to do fairly quickly. He has his electricians ticket and air conditioning certificate so shouldn't have too much trouble. I shall miss them and the dog - no more doggy day care.
Can't think of much else. Life goes on here as usual. We are having some lovely days but it has been cold and today we have the freezing westerlies blowing. I'm ready to go and mow the lawn, that's practically unheard of here in the winter but since we have had a lot more rain than normal, everything is green and lush. Never been so cold here at night time. I'm outa here. Good to talk to you all again.
Hello! I enjoyed a whole week of vacation last week and this week I am on vacation until Thursday and then I am on DB for the surgery.
I saw my doctor for a pre-OP visit last week. I have everything done with the paper work and the initial assessment of my health in place so I can arrive at the hospital on Thursday.
I will know on Wednesday when I need to be there. My surgery will be later in the day as they said "shoulders go last"
We are still planning I will do it with a nerve block and maybe some twilight anthesisa if needed. Of course if needed, I had to sign papers that they can fully sedate me if I am not tolerating the surgery well.
It is outpatient and I am glad I dont have to stay overnight unless something changes.
I was surprised that I dont have to have a Covid test before surgery but I don't.
Monday, DH and I are going to a evening Reds game, it will be fun, I love going to a Reds game.
Tuesday and Wed is for getting everything in place with the house and such so that everything is clean and tidy ,
even though we deep clean every Saturday
I have a ice machine that I had to buy (not covered by insurance but told it was something I will really need after surgery) we are going to set it all up tomorrow and use it to ensure we know what to do with it before I need it.
Location: A beautiful and peaceful place in the woods
Posts: 8,905
S/C/G: Stuck/Working on it/Good 2 Go
Height: Fun Size
Hi kids,
Laura I am so sorry to have missed your birthday I do hope that you had a nice one. Is your favorite seafood restaurant a chain or a single restaurant? We used to have a favorite in Hoffman Estates, I doubt it's still there. Sounds like you have done quite a bit around the house. I'll bet it's looking great. I stopped at a friend's house to pick up a lamp of hers I bought and she bought a duplex recently and gutted and renovated the whole thing. She did it in shades of white and gray. She hired a designer. Every room in the house is gray tones. I didn't think I'd like that but it looked quite sharp and not too neutral at all. She had the wall decorated with gorgeous pictures of her trips to Alaska so that's a nice pop of color. Interesting to see what others do. My house is in sad need of an update but I can't make up my mind. The whole laundry room / master bath was an ordeal! So kudos to you for getting things decided and done. My sister had Anderson windows and a new front door replaced in her home. She loves the windows, very well sealed (hard to find these days) but the cost was close to a new mid sized car She said it's worth it though and unlike her big sister, she actually gets to ENJOY their investment rather than fix up the house for someone else as you are getting ready to sell. My beefsteak tomatoes have blossoms on them, hoping with the warm summer days we get some tomatoes before September. Don't know what happened to my cherry tomato plant - the first 2 tomatoes were yellow (a surprise to me, not the red ones the tag said) and they were really tasty. But the next 2 tomatoes were orange and VERY bitter. Yuck. If the plant doesn't improve I will just dig it out. DH planted flowers all over the place - last year and this he is the gardener. I am happy with my herb garden box and the farmers market produce
Shad - oh that's unfortunate about DS2. Does this mean you are going to be alone again? I suppose one must go where the work is. Is this the son who broke up with his last partner or did he find a new one or did they decide to make another go of it? I know you will miss the dog. Maybe it's time for you to get another. I am having several problems with my computer. I may have to find someone to call as my personal I.T. expert keeps telling me "I don't have those problems". that doesn't help me any at all... My sister did take my Mom to sign up for the senior apartments - the lady was quite shocked at my Mom's advanced age. I hope this means they will bump her up higher on the list of availability My poor sister is running on her very last nerve. That's unfortunate that you are going into lockdown again. Same here - as they opened up again, cases just zoomed back. And we are surrounded up here by the stubborn unvaccinated. My hairdresser supposedly left my salon over her refusal to get vaccinated. I am hoping our autumn trip doesn't get compromised over this. And with more cases of vaccinated getting Covid, I am going back to steadfastly avoiding those who tell me they aren't vaccinated.
Susie - I hope all goes well with your surgery. Sending you good thoughts and a speedy recovery. I'm sure you will put your all into rehab. I think you are going to find that you made an excellent investment in the ice machine. Many people I know who had one for knee surgery and one shoulder surgery said they really helped with recovery. Ice will bring and keep the swelling down more than anything else. DH was kind enough to get up every 2 hours for a while during the night to change my manual ice packs. Maybe you could rent one? Hope the baseball game is exciting!
Hi Annie and Ceejay
Well I am on day 3 of DH's trip. I got some things done but no where near what I wanted to do. Today and tomorrow I am at home totally so I am focusing on getting projects done. In between playing with the cats who are very needy since DH is not around to play with them. And I have about 2 hours of daily chores to cover for him while he's gone. He said the trip was interesting but very tiring with an on the go erratic schedule. Since they are doing early morning sunrises or late evening sunsets and then in person classroom training, you have to sleep on demand which he is not. He said it's crowded there, they don't have much in the way of restaurants and so lines are long to get in to eat anywhere. I thought these last 2 places were going to be fun but it sure doesn't sound like it - EVERYONE is travelling ALL businesses seem to be short of staff so it's not pleasant. I told him I will have to steel myself for our Maine trip to one of the most popular places on the east coast in the midst of the mobs with long lines and heavy traffic. It may not be that relaxing. Pity because it's going to cost us a ton of money. Well I figured I will check in quickly. I have to water plants and animals and figure out something for lunch.
Morning all,
Sitting here waiting for the dog to arrive and it is very cool. I'm sure this is the coldest winter we have had for a long time and it has also rained during the winter which is not usual either. I don't want to see my next power bill.
The garden is coming along. I pulled out the peas and butter beans this week and have replanted carrots and beetroot. I want to put some corn in this week too. Haven't found any seedlings at the stores but I guess I should be able to find seeds if I look hard enough. Tomatoes are coming on and I have a bowl full of the cherry varieties to eat. They are delicious.
Happy - We haven't gone into lockdown, and probably won't now as they appear to have traced the contacts and super spreaders, however NSW and Victoria are again in a bad way. The population of Sydney does exactly as it wants and doesn't give a damn for anyone else except themselves so they will be locked down for some time to come. The Rugby League fraternity has re-located to Queensland for the duration of the lockdown, and we will see what happens there since they are not known to follow rules. Personally I would rather see the sport locked down and stay at home than be here because there will be trouble. Which brings me to the point I was going to make before I started ranting about sport. NSW currently has 85 people in hospital with the Delta strain of the virus. 17 are in ICU and more than one of those people have been vaccinated with at least one shot. I don't think the vaccination stops you from getting the virus only lessens the effect, so be careful of everyone out there - vaccinated or not.
I hope your sister and your mother can come to some arrangement about assisted living. Pity you aren't over here where we have the Aged Care system - you can for a small fee, get things done around the house and yard so that you can stay in your house. This includes cleaning, cooking, lawns and garden care, maintenance of the building etc. The lady over the road has a lawn mower man come in and some cleaning done (once a month) - although the cleaning is limited because of various things that have happened over the years.
Yes this is the son that broke up with his partner (whom he is now dragging through the courts since she wont agree to any proposals and suggestions). He has found another lady - she is from up north originally and has landed a well paying job in Cairns (where she thinks it will be quieter and with less traffic - hah) and she moves up there in August. He will follow in November. I'm considering getting a dog of my own, but I am dithering. I have to find a rescue dog who is not a young puppy and hopefully not a sick old dog. I don't have enough years left to get a puppy. And it has to get along with the cat who has lived here for the past 4 years or so. I'll just dither along for a while and check out the RSPCA and other organisations until one takes my fancy.
Okay, that is it for today. I'm sitting here waiting for the dog and son to arrive. They may not get here till much later so I will get a text message telling me to go back to bed if that is the case. Haven't heard yet.
Hello all. It was a nice weekend here in terms of weather. I got out for a bike ride on Saturday. Finally got to the farmers market on Sunday. Good to see all the dogs and kids back!
BF and I bought an air mattress yesterday to take with us to a house party at the end of the month. The couple hosting moved about 100 miles to the west last summer to a large house in a small-ish town. The occasion is a 60th b-day party for a family member. There’s plenty of room in their house, but not enough beds for everyone staying overnight, hence the air mattress. We considered renting a hotel room for the night, but don’t want to count on getting around via Uber or Lyft out there. And we want to enjoy ourselves and not worry about designated drivers, etc. Not to mention finding inexpensive/decent lodging nearby that isn’t a dump. So the mattress was a good idea, and we’ll have it for similar occasions in the future. Maybe now that we have it maybe we don’t need to keep our daybed in the spare bedroom?? Hmmmm. ==
The half bath is finally 99% done. The only thing that remains is to install two small shelves. Next is the installation of the fence post caps. For whatever reason the height of the new posts isn’t very consistent and bf had to cut one shorter that was noticeably taller than nearby existing ones…I hope the rest are “close enough” in height to not need trimming. The one that bf sawed shorter just happened to be very close to three other posts (by a gate). The rest are spaced between 6 foot fence sections and slight variations in height probably won’t be very noticeable.
On to personals:
Shad – Looked up the distance from Brisbane to Cairns – what a distance! Sorry your son and his dog won’t live close to you anymore. Guess you’ll have to make a point of savoring the time between now and November!! == The Delta variant is making itself known here now and I’m concerned. I see quite a few people wearing masks and I wonder if they are unvaccinated, just trying to protect unvaccinated young children, or other family members who are unvaccinated for whatever reason. Today’s financial markets are dropping quite a bit over the concerns too. Sigh. Anyway…I hope the sports teams holing up in your province don’t make things worse. I’m also interested in how the Olympics will be affected, on top of no in-person spectators being allowed, which is awful enough. == Never heard of a Black Russian variety tomato – had to look that up. Yep, definitely darker. Glad they’re tasty! == Good your computer’s doing better. Save the name of the man who helped you! ===I know what you mean by hitting the right balance as to the age of a dog you may adopt. I’m waiting for how the permanent RTO – Return to Office – will shake out before taking on a dog again. I don’t want bf to feel he has to take on all of the dog walking (and companionship) duties because of the time I might spend away from home commuting and at the office. If/when it happens, it definitely wouldn’t be a puppy or very young dog.
Susie – Glad you’re enjoying your vacation time and that everything is set up for your surgery. Bummer you don’t have a set time yet, and also that it’s not going to be early in the day. == I hope you enjoy the Reds game today! == Ice machine? Huh. Had to look that up too. Okay, I can see how that would do a good job keeping the shoulder iced and hopefully keeping the swelling down. Much better than trying to keep multiple ice packs in place. Best wishes for the surgery going as successfully as it can and same for your recovery.
Happy – The seafood restaurant is actually part of a huge fish/seafood distribution operation in Des Plaines. They do retail sales there and also have the restaurant. I like it because it’s essentially the closest you can get to fresh fish and seafood in a city that’s not on the coasts!! They also opened a restaurant up in Wheeling where all those upscale restaurants are, but unfortunately the Yelp reviews aren’t encouraging. So we just go to the Des Plaines location, which has a small indoor eating area but a huge outdoor eating area. == I’m not a huge fan of the gray trend, but I suppose it’s a neutral that can be brightened up with accents in the décor. I guess I lean towards the warm neutrals more than I would the cool ones, though I’m tiring of the very warm colors we used in our LR/DR and our bedroom. ==Yes, the people that quoted us the large figure for our 3-season window replacement was Andersen. You’re definitely paying for the name – they are a very well-established company and they do their own installations, so it’s definitely the safe bet, though a big dollar one! =I’m not getting ready to sell by any means, at least not in the near-term. So there will be time to enjoy some of the improvements. The new neighbors to the south of us still haven’t moved in, but there is always someone there doing work inside. It’s super outdated inside AND outside, but I guess they’re trying to get the inside done so they can move in? I honestly think they probably paid top dollar in this market and with all the money going into improving it…it’ll be over-improved. Oh well. Hope the bubble doesn’t burst anytime soon…but our neighbor on the other side is still at a loss from overpaying in the hot market of 2003. Long time ago!! So I’m glad we bought at the right time and don’t have to worry about that. == Hope your tomatoes keep coming on strong through the end of the season. == Glad your mom’s on the senior housing waitlist. Hope she can get up to the top quickly…if they work that way. ==Poor kitties missing their dad. He sure is getting some pretty photos where he is in spite of the schedule and crowds.
Hellos to Annie & Ceejay!
Okay, gotta get this posted and eat some lunch before time runs out. TTFN!
Hello Everyone,
The surgery is over and I am happy that I did it and it is over and now doing rehab and resting for healing.
I did not have to have rotator cuff repairs so I am happy about that. I had the bone spurs shaved down, debeiment and arthritis cleared out, the hurmeral head of the shoulder cleaned up and out, and I think he did the bicep tendon release. He told DH something about that but DH doesn't remember it exactly.
I will ask when I go this Friday to have the stitches removed on Friday. I have 3 small areas with stitches where he went in to do the arthroscopic surgery and check the rotator cuff.
I started rehab on Monday and go tomorrow and I have exercises to do at home
The IceMan machine has proved to be very helpful and good to have. Iceing is very important to this recovery and helps alot with the recovery.
I took a short walk last night , DH went with me
I.want to do that twice a day, my route is about 20 min. So I went this morning while it was cooler and will do it again this evening
You all were talking about tomatoes. Our plants are producing them but they arent turning red at all. Is it too early for that?
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Good morning ladies,
Susie - glad to hear your surgery is behind you. You sound like you are doing well. Yes, doing the ice is so very important to getting the swelling down. It's something most surgical patients don't do as much as they should. It was a mistake I made after knee surgery - not enough of it. Unless you feel like a popsicle you're not doing it right! That's great if you are feeling up to taking a walk. I had to laugh at your comment about DH not remembering what the doctor said. My problem also! At least you can ask when you see the doctor next. Now just be a good girl and focus on your healing and recovery!
Laura - good luck with the air mattress. Try sleeping on it 2 nights before you leave. We got them when we were in TN and when we bought the house here, DH slept on a twin bed he brought up here and I slept on a blow up mattress - a good one which was a double mattress - before we moved all the furniture here. It was ok for 2 days but after that, we had to keep switching mattresses every other night for the 10 days were were up here. They are not great if you have back issues. We kept the daybed and got rid of the air mattresses. You bath renovation sounds really nice. Isn't it good to have something all done instead of just a few more things to finish up? You talk about your neighbor's house being overimproved. It does remind me in this booming market of what happened when we sold our house in AH in 2004. The market was so crazy it was rising every week and people overpaid for homes (we got more than we should have but also lost a bundle on the house in Memphis for the same reason). People paid a lot of money, only to find they were underwater on their loans once the market stabilized to more appropriate prices. I wonder if the same will hold true again.
Shad - were you able to find seeds for the next version of your garden? I think we are also headed to more restrictions with the virus. I am so over people who are fully able to get vaccinated and just stubbornly refuse to. Time for them to stay home. I am making it a point to tell people I know who are refusing for political reasons to just stay the heck away from me. I was at a party this weekend and a notorious trumper who's had Covid twice kept trying to talk to me, the more I backed away, the closer she got. I told this to my friend who said she kept creeping in because she can't hear! I do hope you can find a good puppy companion. I hear you on not wanting a boisterous puppy or one who is expensive with medical issues. A new dog will find you soon.
We had our house appraised for the loan, I wonder what it will come back at. We bought this house on the lower side (foreclosure from people underwater on their loan) and we have sunk quite a bit of money into improvements so will be interesting to see what it appraises at. And then we can add the remodelling upgrades. DH was sitting on stuff for the loan papers so we are about 3 weeks behind where we should have been with processing the loan - now the bank officer is out for 10 days. I think we won't get the loan approved until end of September so I'm not sure I want this work to begin in the dead of winter. Will be messy tracking snow in AND cold with doors being opened. I don't know if they will let us book it until spring although we have to do something with that tub.
The back half of summer will be busy for us. August we have the garden party we hosting, a private catered dinner for DH and I, bingo for the shelter (IF it doesn't get rained out again), DH is taking another photography trip this time for night skies which should be interesting. Something on the bigger side is going on each week. THe butterflies and hummingbirds are really flocking to our house. I hate to think that the hummingbirds are swarming and will be gone by the end of August as autumn returns after a quick summer. I am looking forward to my trip to Maine but worried about the Delta variant although New England has the best vaccination rates in the country. All you people heading south or to warm places for the winter - you are the ones who will have to deal with the worst of it I think.
Going to get my hair done shortly. It hasn't grown much since my last cut - rather I had them hack a whole bunch off last time so pretty much a light trim now. I don't like the color - have noticed I am looking older - my hair is more grandma white than blonde and I don't like it so will have to do something different. I think the color looks different too since I softened the underneath that used to be black to a softer brown. I wish I had more hair and a different face structure so I could change things up more often.
Nothing much else going on so I will post this and wish you all well.
The cookout went well. The waterpark was grand, a little hot but great. My brother got a little dehydrated afterward and had a bit of a episode. Got him into the cool air and forces gatoraide down him. He recovered well and we played 2 games of cards.
Our floors are installed. We have wonderful wood floors throughout. Living room kitchen, bath. and laundry room The bedrooms we got carpet. The carpet is a little lighter than I would of liked but very nice. Beating everyone with a stick that doesn't take their shoes off at the front door. lol. They are learning.
Lo and behold the 3rd IUI treatment for fertility that my son and GF took. She is pregnant. Very scary she had 6 eggs release. The IUI is not IVF. They monitored her for ovulation then gave her a "booster shot" to make sure the egg(s) released. She had 5 perfect eggs and one egg a little on the mature side to make 6. Hopefully one of the good eggs fertilized. and only one, not a litter.. Anyway the evening after the shot she and my son had to be at the docs office at 9 am the next morning. My son made his "deposit" then they somehow did a procedure to get the "good" sperm out of all the sperm. His sperm are mostly misshaped, slow and not many of. Then the doc "shoots" good sperm into Morgan. Hopefully she gets preggers. The first two times did not work. Third time is the charm. She goes on August 6 to get an ultrasound. TO make sure all is good and if it is a multiple preg. She is due March 26, however Raelynn was 6 weeks early due to blood pressure issues. I am excited for them but also worried. Let the good Lord handle it I suppose.
My job is going well. C loves his job. He leaves for work about 4:00 am and gets home anywhere between noon and 3. No more heavy lifting, pushing or driving the big o box truck. He get paid mileage, has benefits, retirement, and the pay is decent.
The boys start back to in person school on Monday, Aug 2. Jacob will go to the middle school, geez where does time go, he will be in 4th grade. Royce will be in 2nd grade and still at the elementary and Raelynn (Morgan's daughter, son's person) will be in 5th grade.
Still planning on the siblings vacation in October. Not sure what will be going on as this covid thing keeps getting worse across the country. Dang thing get over already.
Read everyone's posts. Not really going to do personals. HAPPY..I do hope things go well with your momma. Do go with DH to Maine. I hear it is beautiful. A friend just got back from there. SUSIE...glad the surgery went well and not as invasive as it could of been. LAURA...you are always busy. SHADDIE...sorry you are having such a cold winter. Bleh, I hate cold weather. Hello to CEEG.
Oh coming up on my 6 year anniversary in September for heart attack and will also be 6 years sober. Yeah me. Can't wait to get back to in-person meetings.
Make it a great week all, I will try to get back here sooner rather than later.
Morning all. Lovely Sunday here. I'm sitting in the 3 season room, drinking tea,, reading the paper, and looking out at the back yard. Magenta and white phlox in bloom along with the orange daylilies. Oh, and the hibiscus is blooming too. Late yesterday afternoon, bf installed the fence post caps on the fence posts on the north side fence. He quit when he started getting bitten up. He'll do the other side today, and it'll go quickly since that side's fence is along grass, not garden borders. Yay for aother project getting done. They look all shiny copper new right now. It'll be nice when they weather and darken a bit.
I took Friday off work and got together with my friend B. We rented a pedal boat at a forest preserve and paddled around for an hour, enjoying the beautiful day. We saw a blue heron and an egret and a lot of other birds, some fishermen, and other boaters. I would have liked to get a canoe or even tried a kayak, but B was a bit nervous, not having done that before, and wondering if her upper body strength was sufficient. But the pedal boat was fine and easy and a workout for our legs. We went to the nearby nature center I'd discovered last summer and walked the paths. Had a nice lunch at a burger place. Great day. Friday night bf and I ate dinner on a patio at a restaurant in the shopping mall ( converted from an indoor mall to a "lifestyle village".) Sad to see the low level of people on a Friday night with the restaurant across the way now shut down and not the movie theater crowds there used to be...
The Saturday birthday gathering and overnight stay didn't happen yesterday. Drama arose over concerns due to the delta variant and a non-vaccinated sibling who lives with the father, who is in his 80's & just diagnosed with lupus that week. Another sibling has 2 unvaccinated kids that live with him. There was some drama on the phone as bf spoke to a couple of the siblings...so bf and I and four family members opted out. Hopefully the siblings press the brother who lives with the father to get vaccinated. I was sort of glad to stay home... I wanted to relax and also get some of my accumulated laundry done...
Watched a few hours of the Olympics coverage last night...caught little bits of several events.. Ho hum. Some events that must be new...hammer throw, steeplechase, the latter of which is a track event, not equestrian! Speaking of equestrian, still have to look up what dressage is.....
Finishing my last load of laundry today, might figure out how to use the new pressure washer....or just enjoy the day and get out for a bike ride.
Gonna post this now and hope to get back later for personals. TTFN!
Morning all,
Been meaning to get back in here for several days. I've had the dog since last Thursday and that usually accounts for some of my hours as well. DS2 took his partner and drove up to Cairns over the weekend (1900kms - just over a 1000 miles) so she could start work at her new job today. He flew back and will pick up the dog tonight and I guess he (the dog) will be back tomorrow.
We are back in lockdown because the delta variant of covid-19 has now appeared in our town and is gathering momentum amongst the school kids. I've been on to the doctors surgery to get the bloody vaccine, and I can only get the astra-zenica because that's all they will give to the over 60s. No choice what so ever and AZ is not my choice. The lockdown is only for 4 days and is supposed to finish tomorrow however, the way that it is spreading about the community and the number of people who are getting it without a known source is not encouraging and I suspect it will be another 14 days before we get out of the lockdown.
On a brighter note, I went to Mt Tamborine on Friday to the Camellia and Magnolia festival. There are some magnificent gardens up there. While there I picked up a couple of things for Christmas presents. It's a very arty crafty area and you can always find something to suit up there.
Laura - sounds like you had a nice weekend doing outdoor things and isn't it nice to see some maintenance and repairs being done about the house. Any further developments on the 3 seasons windows?
Annie - good to hear from you too and know you are okay. Hope you get to do the siblings weekend. So nice to have a catchup. I will have to check the family here to ensure they are all okay.
Susie - good to hear that you are healing well after the operation. Do make sure that you ice regularly, exercise that arm as well and heal fully.
Happy - The garden is doing fine at the moment thanks. I'm still thinking of another dog. The cat certainly won't like it. He gets very anti when Ruger is here and positively roars at the Marli, Trina's little dog. So I will take it easy. Maybe foster one or something for a while, but that won't be until Ruger has gone to Cairns with his dad.
I must have missed something - what are you doing with the house this time - is it the laundry or the kitchen or something?
I'm harvesting tomatoes and cauliflower, rocket and spinach from the garden at the moment. The broccoli went to flower very soon after it started forming heads so I didn't get much of that. Potatoes, onions and garlic are coming on. I need to get out there to put in some more beans and get some corn to plant as well. Hanging out for a good cob of corn. Not the same getting it out of a tin or from the freezer. I did plant some beetroot and carrots a while back and they are starting to grow - despite Ruger sitting on them to 'hatch' them and my nice straight rows are somewhat confused now. While we are in lockdown I have been also getting through some of the smaller jobs around the house. Kitchen corner cupboard doors had the hinges coming loose and making an awful noise when opening and closing. That's done. The door closer on the screen door is now up and working. My goal today is to shift some of the shelving furniture into the spare room and getting that organised - although I can't go out and buy anything for that room to finish it off. I'm also looking to put two shelves in the entry hallway to hold shoes (off the floor so I can sweep underneath) and to hold some bits and pieces that I won't have space for when I shift the shelving furniture into the spare room. There is always the sorting, keeping, chucking out, donating to do. That comes about every six months.
Anyway, I think that is enough about nothing in particular. Nothing happening here because we can't go out to make anything happen. Well that's the case for some of us. Naturally enough the 18-35 year olds are immortal and don't think the rules apply to them, which is why we are in lockdown. There is a race on to get them vaccinated now so they are less likely to spread it around so easily. Wouldn't it be nice if we all played by the rules.
Hello all. Another beautiful day here today. Too bad I’m inside…
Susie – I’m glad your surgery wasn’t as drastic as it might have been. How did the follow-up appointment go on Friday? Probably felt good to get the stitches removed. Well, not the actual removal, but afterwards. And how was your PT session yesterday? I hope everything is going as it should with your shoulder’s healing. == As for the tomatoes…it might be a bit soon for the tomatoes…what kind are they? I believe the larger varieties take longer to mature?
Happy – I’ve heard about sellers accepting really great offers on their houses only to have the deals fall through when the lender’s appraisal is below the buyer’s requested mortgage amount. So sellers just can’t accept the highest offer…they might be better off accepting a cash offer to avoid all that. == Did your appraisal come back okay? I agree that doing the remodel work in the colder weather would be undesirable. We had the guys going in and out of the house constantly to get materials, etc. == Oh, a garden party, sounds nice. I hope the weather cooperates for it! == Oh, night sky photography. I agree, should be interesting for your dh. Looking forward to photos! I need to take a trip somewhere in the middle of nowhere just to see a nice dark sky with all the stars. I’ll never forget driving up Mt. Haleakala in Hawaii (Maui) to wait for sunrise and being astounded by the night sky. It was amazing. == I hope the Delta variant doesn’t interfere with your trip to Maine!! == You’re so creative with your hair – I do the same color & cut all the time. Currently the color’s actually a bit darker than my natural color, but when I ask my salon girl if we can go a shade lighter, she reminds me that it won’t cover the gray as well…I did highlights (and lowlights) years ago and it just seemed to wash me out…
Annie – Scary about your brother being brought down by the heat at the water park. I tend to be a hermit when it’s so hot and humid. I hate that, but I’ve had issues a couple times when I’ve forged ahead with outside activities (yard work, cycling), so now I try to be more cautious. It’s one thing to be accustomed to being physically active on a regular basis in those types of weather conditions, but I’m definitely not. Glad he recovered quickly. == You must be so happy with the new flooring. Okay, great that you can train everyone to take off their shoes…but what about the doggies?? == Fingers crossed your son’s GF’s pregnancy goes smoothly!! == Glad to hear both your and C’s jobs are going well. == Oh boy, school started this week for the boys – hope it hasn’t been too difficult the past couple days. == Congrats on 6 years sober!! I’m sure your health is better for it.
Shad – Hope the vaccine didn’t cause any negative side effects for you. == The festival sounds nice. Nice to get away from your own garden for a bit, right?? I yanked out a bunch of pre-bloom goldenrod and milkweed from my mish-mash garden bed so they wouldn’t re-seed all over the place, but I was just fine seeing them at the nature center in their native prairie habitat, LOL. ==No development on the 3-season room windows. I’ve pretty much pushed that project off until next spring. As with you – plenty of smaller jobs to get through over here as well. We have a bunch of project items lined up on the floor under the window in the living room – once those get cleared I want to set up one of my ottomans in that corner adjacent to our front door entry hall for sitting to put on/take off shoes. Our entry is too small for a bench, so that spot will have to do. Quite a bit of stuff to go through and toss…need to commit to some kind of “toss five things a day” regimen. There’s a tv show here called “Hot Mess House” and it’s probably a good thing to keep watching and keep my purging intentions at the front of my mind. The organizer comes and does her thing, but what really makes the difference is the big purge she has the people do before any pretty cabinets and shelves are installed. People just have too much…
Hello Ceejay!
==
Nothing much new to report since my last post….except…My employer has extended the voluntary return to office pilot program through the end of this year due to the Delta variant causing an uptick in the virus. I haven’t participated in the pilot RTO at all and have no plans to, so I’m happy to work remotely for another 5 months. That said, I’m sad to see us going backwards with this pandemic stuff.
Okay, gonna get this posted and get a quick lunch in before I get back to the grindstone. TTFN!
Morning all,
Back more or less in the land of the living again after the vaccination on Tuesday. I don't think I have ever suffered a reaction like this to any vaccine previously. I really wanted to be dead yesterday. Today seems better so far, however the aches and pains are still making themselves felt and I don't think the nerve endings tics are going to go away anytime soon. Very annoying. Quite frankly I think chemo was easier than that and chemo wasn't good. Today its the muscles turn to ache and everyone of them is making itself felt. To make matters worse, the back has decided to go into spasms and the normal daily bodily functions don't want to work as normal. So generally I am wandering around but can't go too far from the loo since I never know when I want to go. Isn't it lucky we are in lockdown so I can't go far anyway.
Enough of that. Rant over.
Laura - yes it is good to get into some sort of habit of sorting through the masses of stuff we accumulate in our lives. It's a pain, but at least I will know that when my turn to go comes, the kids won't be faced with a mass of junk. I haven't heard of the Hot Mess House show. Don't think we get it over here - well not yet anyway. There is a lifestyle program called 'The Lounge Room' which has something similar on it's show. The man goes into the house, boxes up all the stuff (junk) lying around and takes it down to a hall or community centre somewhere close. The owners then have to sort through and decide what to keep, what to dump, what to donate. It's interesting that on the first go through they can't throw anything away. The second go-through he tells them that they have to get rid of 85% of it. Eventually they get to the things that actually mean something to them. It's to be hoped that when they get back to the house, the second part of the show is finished and the tradies have cleaned up, painted, repaired and tidied up the house. I sometimes think it would be a good idea for the show to go back in say six months time to see how the people have got on and whether they are still hoarding things or making decisions on keeping tidy.
And isn't it good to get some of those minor jobs out of the way. Today, if I can, I will get into the garden and pull some weeds and dig some soil and mulch a few things. Maybe even repot a few things. When it warms up that is. Still very cool in the early mornings here, but lovely days to follow it. Today should go from a low of about 45F to a high of about 71F so that should help matters somewhat. Everything seems much brighter when the sun is shining and it is warm.
The magnolia and camellia festive was lovely. We can't grow much of the spring stuff down here on the flat land but it does well up on the mountain (which by New Zealand standards is only a hill and not a mountain) Mt Tamborine is always about 5 to 10C degrees cooler than down here. Great place to go in the summer.
I was trying to attach a couple of pictures of the festive, but the phone and the computer are refusing to co-operate. I'll try something different.
I told them we were attending a conference and had already booked my airline tickets the night before. They said they only had rooms for the days of the conference so that left us no where to stay on Friday and Saturday. The lady at reservations went in the "back door" and got us a room for all but the last night we will be there. It took me a heckova time finding a room for that last night. It's the height of busy season and most places wanted a minimum 2 night stay. Some of the single night rooms were going for $600 a night!!!!! NO way. I was just about to change our flight ( I had 24 hours) when I found this place across the street. No ocean view but we'll have had 7 days of that. Altogether we have about 5 days for us to tour around. I am really looking forward to it. Haven't been on a vacation in over 13 years. I just hope nothing happens to my cat sitter or we're screwed. We'd have to board the cats at the vet and that would be incredibly stressful to nervous Nina and all of them frankly as all 4 outside of starting life at the shelter as kittens have never lived anywhere but the free ranges of my house save for an overnight vet stay which they hated. My sister is coming up in mid September - they rented a big, beautiful house on the lake nearby so her DH can go fishing every day and enjoy a break from caretaking 2 elderly parents (mine and his Dad). I have not seen my sister or Mom in almost 3 years so I am looking forward to that. I am trying to plan a driving trip to go see my Mom early August. There are lots of things going on so I only have a small open window in which to be away. Sis said she'd drive part way so DH didn't have to drive me all the way in. We are trying to work out the details, if not, I will fly in to see Mom. There is the option to drive back with Sis after her September trip but that would not leave me much time to prepare for my October trip so it's August or nothing.
Meanwhile my Mom the Artful Dodger thinks she ain't going nowhere. My sister is terrified that my Mom will decide she needs a hospital visit right before S's vacation up here. She isn't telling either of the parents until a week before the trip.
I don't screw anything up. I think it has to do with the fact we are trying out a new satellite dish in addition to our current satellite subscription. Glad you are getting a good bounty on your garden. Are you still doing flowers also?
I've just got so much on at the moment, I forget to get on the computer much.
I do hope that you had a nice one. Is your favorite seafood restaurant a chain or a single restaurant? We used to have a favorite in Hoffman Estates, I doubt it's still there. Sounds like you have done quite a bit around the house. I'll bet it's looking great. I stopped at a friend's house to pick up a lamp of hers I bought and she bought a duplex recently and gutted and renovated the whole thing. She did it in shades of white and gray. She hired a designer. Every room in the house is gray tones. I didn't think I'd like that but it looked quite sharp and not too neutral at all. She had the wall decorated with gorgeous pictures of her trips to Alaska so that's a nice pop of color. Interesting to see what others do. My house is in sad need of an update but I can't make up my mind. The whole laundry room / master bath was an ordeal! So kudos to you for getting things decided and done. My sister had Anderson windows and a new front door replaced in her home. She loves the windows, very well sealed (hard to find these days) but the cost was close to a new mid sized car 
She said it's worth it though and unlike her big sister, she actually gets to ENJOY their investment rather than fix up the house for someone else as you are getting ready to sell. My beefsteak tomatoes have blossoms on them, hoping with the warm summer days we get some tomatoes before September. Don't know what happened to my cherry tomato plant - the first 2 tomatoes were yellow (a surprise to me, not the red ones the tag said) and they were really tasty. But the next 2 tomatoes were orange and VERY bitter. Yuck. If the plant doesn't improve I will just dig it out. DH planted flowers all over the place - last year and this he is the gardener. I am happy with my herb garden box and the farmers market produce 
My poor sister is running on her very last nerve. That's unfortunate that you are going into lockdown again. Same here - as they opened up again, cases just zoomed back. And we are surrounded up here by the stubborn unvaccinated. My hairdresser supposedly left my salon over her refusal to get vaccinated. I am hoping our autumn trip doesn't get compromised over this. And with more cases of vaccinated getting Covid, I am going back to steadfastly avoiding those who tell me they aren't vaccinated. 
I do hope you can find a good puppy companion. I hear you on not wanting a boisterous puppy or one who is expensive with medical issues. A new dog will find you soon. 
