[teel]

Hi chickies...
A disappointing weigh-in this morning. I had gained 1 pound in the week. Bah humbug. Sometimes I wonderw why I bother with this I must lose weight stuff. I have a good week and then the following week it all comes back to kick me in the face. Mind you I have got rather a low mood at the moment so I am not happy about anything. I am b~+#$y tired and my chest is uncomfortable. So is my back. In fact I feel a complete wreck But being awake in the middle of the night does have it's compensations...I had a good chat with Miss Shad.
It is hot here today...still 20 degrees at 18:00hrs. I went swimming for the second time this week. Did 12 lengths. The water was beautiful and the jacuzzi almost too hot!!
2 weeks today I shall be in London. I confess I am not looking forward to this trip as much as I thought I would be. Ho hum. We shall see.
Mel I have a Lexmzrk Z708 printer which I like very much. The 9ink cartridges seem to last a good while, but I suppose it does rather depend on how many hundreds of sheets you print off in one week!!
Shad I think you could always get a job as a firie if there is nothing around in the IT department! Good to talk to you this morning!
Happy sorry you have had to have a change a plans for the weekend. Cannot be helped but disconcerting all the same. Hope you and DH get a weekend away soon. Continued good wishes for the job interviews...
Meadow, what gorgeous pictures you come up with! How do you get them to download when they are so big?? I thought you had to convert them into miniatures or thumbnails??
Linus...what's happening with you at the moment? Hope the funeral went off without a hitch and that you have time to r & r now before you get so overtired your body doesn't know which way is up!!!
Right enough from me for now...back soon. T.T.T.T.!!!!

[linus]

hi all im here sort of in a cleaning frenzie decieded that i need to get the house organised before the kids go back to school on tuesday so thats what im doing took the little darlings for there clothes for going back to school conner was not bothered his backside and said he had enough clothes and liked the trainers he has so craig and i picked his and then when i tiold him to try his trainers on he said he couldnt because he had odd socks on now i dont put single socks back in the drawer which meant the little darling had deliberatly put on two odd socks on so i wouldnt make him try on new trainers so what did i do made him try them on anyway criag bless walked into next and said ill have that ,that and that and that was that so 1 hour for conner and five minutes for craig then yet another half an hour for conner to pick a new school bag thank god he just had to sit and shut up while getting his haircut or that would probably have taken two bloody hours the funeral was bad not ready to talk about it yet will later on so im off to start on the hall {junk}cupboard because somewhere in there is a pile of ironing that needs to be done back later
kirsty

[Shad]

Morning all.
Better day eating wise yesterday, but I still had this eat, eat, eat syndrome going on. I think it is mainly a bit of cabin fever and I need to do something about this. Too much computer, too much tv, too much reading etc etc etc. So I am about to plan out my week to get me out and about and doing things other than peering into the fridge and freezer.

Linus and Teel - what am I going to do with you two. Linus, at sometime my friend you are going to have to sit down and think about this life and this death. You are only storing up pain and grief. It will not go away until you are prepared to face it and accept it. Grief like this has a way of upsetting the physical body balance as well. It's tremendously hard for those who love like you do. But my friend work is not going to make the hurt go away or make it any easier to face.

Teel, you need to insist that that doctor looks for alternatives to that oxycontin. The lack of sleep, the pain, the hopelessness is all conspiring to draw you down to the abyss again. We do not want that. Neither I suspect do you. Exercise is good, and will in the long run help, but it can't take over from a drug which is giving little or no benefit whatsoever. So gather up the courage, see if there is an alternative (internet is usually quite helpful for this) and when you go next time, ask about anything you see that may do the same job. Name it, get the doc to think about these things. They are not gods, most of them are overworked and don't always have time to think unless the right question is asked at the right time. Keep that exercise going too, because it will help overall health. Of course it is worth keeping on with the diet and exercise - one pound is not a lot. Just go back to the point where you were losing and keep a tighter control on the food again. It will probably be one too many slices of bread, or one too many potatoes or something like that.

Mel, printer cartridges do last fairly well as long as you are printing out documents and small things. Photos take a lot of ink. So if you are printing out mantras and inspirational things you should get plenty of life out of it. Is the black one separate from the colour cartridge?? because the black needs changing more frequently - unless of course you change the colour of the print!

Okay, off to seize the day I go. I've got to limit my time on here. Too much else to do before the hot weather hits - and that's not that far away.

Here's some snaps of the DS House.

Don't you just love the shiny floors.

[MELODY525]

Teel~ sorry about the weight thing. I try not to think about the pounds gone but the HEALTH side of it. Sitting a lot, I don't lose much or fast and was getting very disappointed in no #'s lost so I have been trying to re-adjust my thinking to health issues and hope for a loss! Nice swimming!!! I look into drugs and treatments all over the net. Then everytime I go back to the hospital I am armed with new info and ask to try that. quite honestly, we have a drug called oxycodone and I don't know anyone who can take it all the time without sleep disturbances and side effects. Do you have herbalists in London?? Maybe you should investigate alternative practices while there if you have the time. Also......feel free to say F*ck you Mel if none of this is any good or you did it already or just to make yourself feel better! Hope there is a WAY out of this. good luck.

Linus~ ((((((((((((HUGS))))))))))) I do a lot of cleaning etc when things are upside down. Time heals all wounds. I need scabs on mine before I can usually talk too. I did love the story of the shopping spree for school!!! Reminded me of every Spetember we would get out the old Montgomery Wards catalog and "shop" for school clothes with my Grandmother. And a trip tp Sears was always on the agenda too. i was always Chatty Cathy and my brother Barry was a MIME!!! Family always said I did enough talking for both of us! (((((((((more hugs))))))))))

Shad~ i went from wanting tons of food to now not wanting any!! You may be right and cabin fever has set in again. Thanks for the idea and I will be aware of how many hours I am spending alone. The floors look great as I said and the hard work of setting it all up, painting etc has really paid off. DS is lucky to have a great Mom like you. As we are to have you as friend.
Now get your butt out there and find something to do and other people to do it with!!! if that short job come true then you better take it just to get OUT!!! I will tell you about the printer cartridges....I don't think the black is separate. One cartridge says #20 color lexmark and the other says #90 photo lexmark.
Now if I press the button for just black print and the black runs out will it then print in color?? OH I see on the sides that they both say color print cartridge. I have the better computer now and they have a digital camera so it's the photo part they like. We have been buying things to share as none of us are rich and it's working out better this way. I have a heavy vacuum and Jen a light one. We needed both and trade from time to time..... cheaper and easier too. Each of us only have to store one in our tiny apts! I await further instructions my mentor! Maybe we should have asked questions before buying?!?!? LOLOL

Off to webshots with the pedals. I haven't talked about the map cause I haven't really been exercising!!! I must decide how many miles to put on the map and the scale!!! Have to get Jen to read the scale cause the hospital has my glasses and I cannot see sh*t!!! More crappy weather so I best find something to occupy the mind today..............Happy Sunday.

[MELODY525]

PS~ I have asked Lyn to come and join us. She used to be in the Journals and we have been e-mailing for motivation and support for a while now. She has since stopped posting there and just started Weight Watchers. the journals as we all know can be a bit overwhelming and "chatting" here is sooooooo much more........well.....like family! I hope she comes. I didn't know how to get her here so told her to track my last post......and here it is!
I just copied and pasted the http. Hope that works! LOL

[Shad]

The Journals seem to be going through a bit of a transition period where a lot of the older (chronologically speaking) have dropped away to leave the younger ones in charge. This is a very generic evaluation of the journals you understand. Most of them are fine, upstanding people who are doing their best and trying for understanding. They can be quite good at support and help, but I find not a lot for motivation. They simply don't understand how hard it is when you get older. I can understand why a lot of people drop off the journals.
Funnily enough, (yes my mind works in mysterious ways as well) I heard a song played on the video clips at the gym (all that noise and banging and gyration is obviously meant to inspire me) called 'I have a dream'. I think it was ABBA. Now some of you may remember it from the 100 or so years back it is to my youth. A haunting ballad probably dreamed up because someone was getting into a cause or something. It sort of came to me as I pushed those weights that we had dreams and we mostly brought a lot of them to fruition - all those things we wanted - we went right out and invented. Labour saving devices, automatic gears in cars and cheaper cars, computers, internet, space travel, off the peg fashion. We did that - our generation. We probably haven't left much for this generation to dream about. We gave it all to them. No wonder they sometimes seem so lost. Okay enough philosophy for today.
I came rushing home from the gym to ring this man about that job. Only to find that he starts work at 8.30 and not 8.00 as I assumed, so I've had breakfast and here I am while I wait for the time to pass.
Much better day with food yesterday and water as well. I did have some baked chips with my fish and salad last night but very few so I don't mind that and they were really nice - I had a mixture of different types of potatoes in the bottom of the bin, including sweet potato and I just cut them into wedges, sprayed them with an olive oil and garlic spray, sprinkled them with a Tuscan herbmix and baked them in a very hot oven. Crunchy on the outside, floury and soft on the inside with a hint of herbs and spice.

Not much else to report here. The weather is fine - again - and the whole place smells of woodsmoke. We've been having bushfires again and those that have neglected the land over the past 12 months have been hurriedly burning off the undergrowth to reduce the risk of the lot going up. For the life of me, I can not understand why we burn off! We have enough unemployed to go out there and cut it - less smoke - less hazard for those with asthma and bronchial problems - less loss of life of the wildlife in the bush either from burning or starvation. Geez am I on the today or what.
Anyway, time to go and do what has to be done. There's plenty of washing there and the garden needs a mulch, ds's place has a tiny bit more painting to be done, cupboards need to be cleaned out and I need to catch up with some friends - with a view to lunching out somewhere. So it's time to vanish again into the smoke (literally) around here.

[happy2bme]

Must be that time of the season Shad, as I am just about bursting off the soapbox myself - for a number of reasons. As I believe I have said before, I am tired of so called civilization and ready to move up by Rose in the wilderness.

Our govenor has signed into law a bill allowing women to breast feed anywhere, anytime. Really, I support a person's choice to breastfeed but I have found that people who breast feed insist on literally pushing it into the faces of those around them. And frankly, I don't want to see that. We have a wife of a friend who has no problem breastfeeding smack dab in the middle of our holiday parties in mixed company. Tho she covers herself and the baby, it makes us uncomfortable - especially the men. The guys said they don't want to say anything, lest they launch a war with the women. But really, you can feed in another room, PLEASE. Next some woman will be insisting on birthing her baby in full view on the train because hey, that's natural too. I'm really so completely and totally frustrated with people insisting on doing their own thing that I could just scream. We were heading north on the highway today to the funeral service and traffic was horrid as it is prone to be around here lately. There was a sudden braking for who knows what reason and I happened to look in the rear view mirror. Apparently the car behind us - doing about 75 miles per hour at least was not paying attention - probably talking on a cell phone. We were all stopped and I could see him hurling at our backs, finally shimming and shaking in a not very good attempt to suddenly stop. My hair stood on end and DH and I both prepared to get rear ended in the worst way. I swear by the grace of God we started rolling along again at the last possible moment and just narrowly avoided what would have been a terrible accident.

I know you ladies are all wonderful and good and kind and would never do things like this, but at the moment I am in such a foul mood that I just wish to sit quietly for a bit. Like Linus for some similar and different reasons, it's time to assess a new course - sometimes you just need some time to think things through... and at the moment I have nothing encouraging or cheery to say. Mostly just moaning and complaining and who wants to hear that?

[happy2bme]

Well the sun has risen on a new day and yes, I am still annoyed over the general lack of manners in this world. Then I turn on the television and see people helping each other out in Florida after the devastating hurricane. Could it be that we have too much and the great leveler is that we are our best in a crisis?

This will be a busy week for me, I think I will have to stay away from the computer and focus on getting some important priorities taken care of. We'll be leaving on our weekend trip/ interview this Friday. I have some research to do to prepare for both the interview and taking a look around the area. The clutter has built up a bit around the house and it's time to pare back - a few 27 fling boogies are in order I think. And lastly but not leastly there is the food and exercise thing to tackle. There's a chance for rain everyday but I will do my best to get on my bike each day for at least 20 minutes. Food needs to be planned out - will try to use what's in the refrigerator and freezer so there is nothing left to spoil when we are away. Good excuse the clean the refrigerator even if we will just be away for a short extended weekend. I will do my stretches each day to pull out the stiffness in my joints and will get at least 2 bottles of water down a day. I think I'm supposed to go into the office for some outplacement counseling sessions this week too - better go check my email - yep, Tuesday and Thursday of this week and next. And I will take my vitamins each day - been forgetting to do that lately for some reason. Sometimes it's best to just do things the minute you think about them. Anyway, that's my pledge for the week - do the best I can at any given minute. I think I can live with that

Teel, I know it's disappointing to see a gain on the scales but there are many things that can influence the scales slightly. Try not to let that discourage you and instead keep up with the good habits you've established thusfar in the 2 weeks of your challenge.

Linus, I hope you got everything you wanted cleaned up over the weekend. I find that sometimes when life is in a state of turmoil such that you've experienced, there is this urge to clean up - I don't know if it has to do with mentally restoring order or it's just a way to burn off nervous energy, grief, and uncertainty. But to me it's like I always feel ready for a fresh start after I get the groceries and make my food list for the week - a nice orderly place to start rather than wandering around hungry going, what's here to deal with?

Shad, meant to tell you that the floors look terrific at the son's house. Love the subtle shadings in the floor and the deep blue of the walls. I hope this job in Melbourne comes through for you.

I'd best get on with the day, hope you all have an enjoyable and productive day today. Mel, make you a deal - you put some distance on the pedals this week and so will I, ok?

[Shad]

Sounds like a down time for all of us. I'll try to be positive in my post.

First, lets deal with Happy's whinge about breastfeeding. Like you I have no problem with women breastfeeding. I don't mind if they do it whenever as long as it is discreet and not - hey lets hang out the boob and see if the sucker wants it. I can do without that over my coffee and bagel. Or dinner for that matter. When I was in Townsville, I went to a party where one woman did exactly that - it then gave another woman the courage to do the same. Some of the men were embarrassed, I guess some of us women were as well, so a couple of us got up and moved the party to the other end of the pool on the pretext of it being easier to dance up there. These breastfeeding women were highly indignant of their rights to feed in public and how we were snubbing them, we came back with the rejoinder that it was our right not to have to watch and that it may be natural, but it still causes some people embarrassment and that we were being polite and giving them the privacy to bond with their babies. There are rights and rights. I tried to bring my kids up with the idea that for every right they had, there was a responsibility to go with it. Sometimes I think the responsibility flew out of the window a while back.
I'm glad that you avoided the rear ender Happy. Some people are total idiots on the road - it's like the saying I saw on a t-shirt. "Instant A*sehole, just add alcohol." In this case just add vehicle. As for talking on the phone, well as you know it is illegal over here to talk and drive, bike or otherwise perambulate (well not quite but you know what I mean). There is an instant fine of $256AD, but they still get caught and they still get away with it. There was a woman at the gym yesterday who was a positive danger as she changed gears, steered the car, smoked with one hand and talked on the phone with the other. I stayed in my car, in the car park not moving until she had gone 100m down the driveway. Then later I saw she had the cheek to throw the butt out the window. Are we in the middle of the driest winter on record, and are we in bushfire conditions? Are we on dangerously high fire alert? And she throws the butt out of the window. Words almost fail me. I took the Registration number and reported it to the police. Okay so I am what the Australians call a dobber, but I hope she gets done.
Happy, I think a crisis will always bring out the best in people. It's human to show emotions and to care for those worse off than yourself - to share in those conditions. Yes we have too much - we need to go back to basics to appreciate what we have or have had.
Teel, stop sulking about the weight gain and get back in here. Yes I am being tough on you. You told me where you are at, and it's not good, but guess what happens when you stop fighting? Guess what happens when you block off the support? I wish I was closer, I'd come over and we could do a few things together. We could get back out there and walk the dog, watch the sunrise or sunset, or both, we could go to Norwich and I could push you up the hills again. Talking of Norwich, I got a catalogue in the mail from Colman's last week. All those things I can't live without. I've now passed it on to my Sister. She has a big collection of Colman's stuff including some posters I haven't seen in their collections. I should scan them and see if Colman's can come up with some more information on them.
Linus, where you got to love. Hope all is well with you and you will be back with us soon. Roseblush is obviously having the same sort of grief as she is not back either. I do hate it when our wee group is under pressure and turmoil.

Well I do have some news. I have a phone interview today for the job in Melbourne. If all goes well there, I get to start next week. Life will be very hectic for me. Lots to do. But lets not get ahead of ourselves, just get me through this morning first. The man at the agency is very hopeful and they do need someone asap. Fingers crossed please ladies.

Okay, best be off to prepare myself for this interview as best I can. I refuse to tell lies but I have to work out where I can fudge a little. Back later

[MELODY525]

Boobs and boobs!!! I had a cousin that whipped out her breast for her son at a family thanksgiving dinner and we all almost !!! I had brought the latest beau with me and Jen......you can imagine what he thought!
The other boobs are the A-holes who cannot drive!! I of course was and excellent driver both in the past and now. I have the scars to prove it!

I had a great day. Mall shopping again. boutht South Beach Cookbook, Low fat/ Low cholesterol cookbook and Tai Chi in a Chair. Jen's BF has bad health issues in the family and he himself is not all that good. Been on Lipitor for several years now and is only 36. Ulcers etc. So he 3was impressed with my 30 lb loss last year and how it has stayed off.....well25 of them. So next weekend we will take a look at all Mel's goodies from the book stores and past trips so they can get a handle on the problem. Both of them have no clue.

Shad~ Hope as you already know....that today is a good day for you and the interview!!! I could but will not be crossing my boobs like Ruth did for someone. And NO, I do not know if they ever got UNCROSSED! You cracked me up with the comment!! LOL
I am praying all the time for you and Happy to have something spectacular happen in the job field! Hope some of my wishes come true!!!

Happy~ I agree with all you and Shad said but cannot voice an opinion tonite. Too tired and can't muster up the energy! Good luck to you and your interview too. Get the house and everything else in order so you can leave with a clear head. Always best that way. Sending good vibes to you also!!

Well Chicks...Monarch of the Glen is coming on in an hour and we all know how I want to screw this guy!!! so I must shower and dust on my powder and get ready for him!!! Every Monday night at 10!! Have a great night and a wonderful day Miss Shad!!

[Shad]

Phew that's over, and it went quite well. I should know by tomorrow what gives. Okay, think I will have a coffee and get to work. That should shake the shivers away.


Now we wait some more. Happy, this is not a good way to earn a living. Good wishes to us both for good outcomes this week.

[happy2bme]

and a bit of magic dust to you Shad I hope you are the recipient of a new job come the early morning.

As for the woman flinging the butt out the car window, I applaud your efforts to turn her in. We don't have such dry conditions here but there is exactly that fire danger in the western part of the country. When you see what devistation can be done by a simple spark, there is no excuse for such ignorant and dangerous behavior. She should be fined to the maximum. And this comes from a former smoker who would snuff out my butt and toss it in the rubbish can if there was no ashtray around.

Tai Chi in a chair Mel? That sounds quite interesting actually. Let us know if you find any good South Beach recipes. Many of them were a bit over the top for me and DH. I am trying very hard to avoid the swelling in the feet which happens daily it seems. Am trying to chug water like mad and I thought it was hard to avoid sugar and fat but sodium is even worse.

I can't stay long here tonight, have to get up super early to go into the office for ha ha outplacement counseling. It will take all my strength not to spout out what I really feel. I find that stuff so out of touch with reality it's not funny. But it's a break in the day and only a half day so I will go and joke with my friends and be the nuisance student in the back that Shad hates so much I have to get the trash pulled together and wash a few dishes so that everything is tidy and good to go tomorrow.

to Nae and Linus. I sure do wish it was easier to stop by for a real visit Teel, I expect a report on how many laps you have done this week, otherwise we'll be sending you to Mel's for some Tai Chi lessons!

DH and I were watching the Olympics tonight - go Australia which is doing quite the decent showing at the games. We were watching gymnastics and both of us were on the floor stretching our old bones. I'm sure they will rest easy knowing neither one of us will give them any contention for the medals. In fact I was showing DH a greatly modified version of what could be expected for a routine if WE were part of the team. Pretty funny as I can barely get off the floor without holding on to the couch to steady me. Was a time when I could jump to my knees from a seated position 1-2-3 and briskly walk away.

Anyhow, have a good one, hope your telephone rings bright and early with good news Shad

[Shad]

I HAVE A JOB. No waiting until early morning here. I'm due in Melbourne on Monday morning - so it is all rush from here. Back tomorrow with details.

[happy2bme]

Hooray Shad!!!!! Hopefully the start of a very long adventure (I know this particular contract is very short term ) but.... one step at a time. Just as you said, something comes along eventually.

[MELODY525]

CONGRATULATIONS!!

I am so pleased for you!!!
good luck and let us know how Melbourne was! LOL