Mine was very quiet.
Today is laundry day, and I'm just about done. 2 loads to dry yet.

I've been taking summer clothes downstairs, and washing winter clothes (just because they've been stored for the summer. They're already clean! ) and bringing them upstairs. Oh my, .... change of seasons again.

I've been watching documentaries all afternoon about the human brain. The programs have been on the public television channel. It's very interesting, but, right now they're talking about alzheimers, and they have actual patients on there. It's scarey! I swear I have some of those symptoms! When they were asking one of the men all those questions, and I had to think about real easy ones. I think the more pressure you feel to get the right answer right away, the less you can think. But, I DID know what year and month it is. He told that man to count backwards by 3's from 17, and when he got to 8, he had to try like 3 times to get to 5. Poor guy!
Another man, 56 years old, had a stroke, and is normal in all ways, except he no longer feels any emotions. It's like he's walking dead.
They are saying that exercise is the best way to keep your brain young and working normally. They had white rats in cages, some in a plain cage and the others in cages with a tread wheel. The ones with the exercise wheel were healthier and their brains were much more active, to the point that they started doing little tricks on the wheels. Then they tested their blood for certain chemicals etc. Can you tell I find stuff like this interesting?

I made a big kettle of chicken vegetable soup today also. I love soup this time of year. Keeps the tummy warm!

I had all my windows open for about 3 hours this afternoon too, while I was cooking the soup. I turned the furnace off during that time. The house smelled so fresh with the smell of the soup and the fresh air. It was 55 degrees here today.

Puss, I never had my grandson come up to rake because it rained all day yesterday, and today I was still getting stuff done in the house.

My oldest son is going back to school right now. He's 41 and is an electronics technician, designing photo circuit boards. He's taking another couple years of college to get a degree in business. He continues in his job, taking night classes. I just hope he doesn't exhaust himself.
And my youngest son, 34, is a deisel mechanic, and quit his job to go to school to be an assessor. Big money in that. I just hope they like what they do. That's the most important thing.

Do any of you have presbyopia yet? I can't see for sour owl $h**.
I also have these little hairs that grow on my chin, and I don't want to shave them, so I pluck them. Well, I can't see them, even with my glasses on, and it gets so frustrating. So, here's a tip if you need it. I took my mascara brush and brushed on the chin hairs, and VOIL'A! All 4 of them stood out with that dark mascara on them and I plucked those little buggers right out!

You know, that may be just the ticket for your mother. To live near her sister. Do they get along well? That would be company for both of them.

Sheila, I'm glad the going away party went well. I bet you're getting a bit nervous too.
I guess I'm going to have to buckle down too here. I need maybe to set short, small goals of not pounds lost, but activity increases and things like that. My sister was talking about maybe going to WW with me. We'll see.

Well, I heard the buzzer on my drier so I need to take that load out and put the last one in.

Darnit! Work again tomorrow!

Hi Sue, Jacquie, Bluet and Charlotte.

I had a healthy breakfast.
veggie omelet with egg substitute, veggies, 97% FF ham, FF cheese and 1 sl. 100% whole wheat toast with ICBINB spray.

Now I'm off to work. ICK! Taking a sandwich of lite corned beef, 100% whole wheat bread, dijon mustard, 1 sl. FF cheese and baby romaine lettuce.

Gonna have chicken veg. soup for supper.

33 degrees here this morning. Nippy!

Have a good day!

Willow, if you watch any medical programme you'll convince yourself of all the symptoms. When I was a student nurse I was sure I had MS, diabetes, thyroid and even all the male symptoms!! As for the alzheimers.. last year DH thought he was coming up to his 59th birthday so last week DS sent him a card with '60? You must be joking!' on the front. Inside he had written 'sorry, Dad, not that you would know, anyway! One of the tests for dementia is knowing how old you are and you are in trouble, mate.' DD sent a card with 'Dad I've always promised to be there for you when you're old and grey and have lost all your marbles....(turn the page) and here I am!'. She asked if he had finally worked out how old he was now, said not to worry about it as it was time for his bath now, sir. She had written 'because you have funded my beer-swilling student lifestyle for the past 5 years I won't put you into a home. Mum was never going into a home but it was touch and go with you there for a while' - this was all because he forgot how old he was the last birthday! No respect in this house ha ha. Your two sons are very resourceful to re-train, Willow. I think people who employ respect that kind of determination in people, good luck to them. As for hairs on chins...I have one which keeps popping up every couple of weeks which I tweezer, yikes! Sheila, I am glad your DDs party went well, you will miss her. What's this about siestas being decadent? And what's wrong with being decadent at our age? Ha, once my kids are up and earning I plan to put the head in hedonism and bathe in asses milk - if I can find any asses milk sellers in this little town, that is. Your grandaughter sounds a little sweetie and I will probably dream again that DD still has that secret GD tucked away. I was browsing at WW cookbooks in my lunch hour but can't get my head around a points system. How are they gauged and how many can you have in a day? I only had a little lapse today - did really well compared to the feeding frenzy of rubbish the last few weeks - and hope to continue back on track. Hi to everyone else, hope you are all well and can join us when you have the time.

Whoa! We almost went off the first page again.

That's pretty cool that two of your sons have decided to go back to school, Willow. I know my DH, who was building walls at a mobile home factory in his late 20s, is extremely happy he made the decision to go back to college.

OMG, those hairs! I have one that seems to grow a foot overnight. I check it all the time, then, poof, one day I wake up and it's there. I get my eyebrows waxed every three weeks and have the waxing person pluck the darn thing because I can't ever see it. I have reading glasses, but they just aren't good for getting that close with a mirror. I'm not even going to get started on nose hairs! :-)

Puss, your kids sound like a lot of fun. I bet your family get-togethers are a riot. My DH always added a year to his age because he would forget how old he was. I did notice that now he's 52, he's been subtracting a year rather than adding. What does that tell you about his brain?

The brain is definitely an interesting, intricate organ. I'm not all that happy with mine these days. My neuro disorder is caused by some kind of misfiring in the basal ganglia or some such thing. There's too many things that can go wrong. I read that eating blueberries helps with Altzheimer's so I've been eating blueberries almost every day, along with playing Concentration on the computer, and working crossword puzzles (supposedly good for stimulating the brain). I have no idea where I read about the blueberries, but it really stuck with me. Oh, and I read yesterday that walnuts, which I've been eating to lower my cholesterol, is helpful with rheumatoid arthritis. So, Charlotte, you might consider upping your walnut intake to 1.5 oz. per day. I eat .5 ounces per day, but walnuts are a lot of points on WW. I should probably eat more, but it's 6 pts. for an ounce--too many!

So now I have a whole bunch of bulbs to plant, and I don't know where to plant them. We're not done with our planting beds, but I suppose I could put them other places. I want to put some so that my dad can see him from his window. He'll enjoy looking at them in the spring. We made sure one of his windows looked right onto the back garden that he worked so hard on over the years. Of course, then I took out almost all his roses because I couldn't take care of them, but, hey, he can see the other stuff.

I'm hoping I can survive 7 more days with my daughter before she goes into the Navy. I already told her that they have rooms at the YWCA. We get along so much better when she's not living with us! My son is hopefully moving into my daughter's apartment tomorrow--we'll see. My DH said we need to unhook the cable television and I need to quit cooking. We never had cable when they were growing up because it was too expensive. Once they were all out of the house, I decided to treat myself. Little did I know it would make all the kids want to come back and live with us! Yikes!

Hope everyone is enjoying their Tuesday. I had a massage today. I can take or leave the massage (they're rather painful), but I really enjoy talking with the massage therapist.

Where is everyone? I must confess I was good on foods today until a friend at work gave me a box of chocolates for a favour I did. I didn't want to take them, not only because I don't need repaying for something I was glad to help out on , but also I couldn't take the temptation. She wouldn't take them back! When I got home I saw they were too posh to open just for myself but the damage was done...I put them away until DD visits to share them ...but scoffed half a large bar of chocolate that was hiding in the fridge. I will pay for this in the morning on the scales. Where is everyone?

Sheila, you must have posted as I was typing. I haven't heard of blueberries helping to prevent Altzheimers but puzzles etc I have heard is good. Also, cigarette smokers seem to get it less though that could be because we tend to die younger than the average Altzheimer patient I supose. You are so thoughtful planting bulbs at a site where your dad can see them easily in the Spring. I keep seeing some of the ones I planted lying on top of the soil where the squirrels have buried their nuts for the winter. I know what you mean about cable TV. We would never have it when our kids were young but as they got to 16 we had satellite installed. Now, whenever DS comes to stay I get over-ruled and DH and him have fishing or sports on. I only had a massage once years ago in my 20s and promptly fell asleep. Even then I was used to siestas I suppose. Have you decided what to do with your little love's ashes yet? When I was young my friend's father was a stone mason and their garden was littered with little crosses with the names of all their cats. It was really pretty but it never occured to me at the time that they went through an awful lot of cats. Perhaps the dad was just practising his art!

Hi Everyone,

I don't know what is the matter with me. I am so tired all the time lately. All I want to do is sleep. I think may be I am depressed. About what? I am not sure.

Hey Willow, I thought you were working on a program to lose weight to reward yourself with the River Walk next June. Next thing I know you are eating ice cream. I think I am chopped liver, you have to work harder than that if you are going to make your goal of coming to see me next June. Just kidding Willow I am excited to meet you whether you reach your goal or not. Of course I am jeolous, I haven't had any covert sugar since May 11, 2003. I haven't had my favorite glass of white wine since February 6, 2003. May be that is what I am so dang depressed about My favorite thing to do in the evening was to sit down and watch TV with a large Hershey Almond Bar and a couple of glasses of white wine. I had to give it all up though, it got to the point where all I wanted to eat was sugar things, not any healthy things. Then I went to the library and found Kathleen DesMaisons book Potatos Not Prozac, started her program and have not looked back, I have lost twenty-two pounds and weigh 138 lbs. now. I have hit a plateau and am pretty grumpy about that I get on the treadmill every morning, since I have been posting to you gals, but I am not seeing much progress. I log my excersie on www.presidentschallenge.com. You get a bronze star or something like that when you achieve a certain goal.

I was digging up some sedum that was growing in between the bricks on a little patio that I have. Had most of the bricks thrown to the side, when My SIL called me that he was meeting my daughter at the hospital when she had her baby. Well the bricks and sedum are still setting there undone. It is so blasted cold this week in Wisconsin (Jacquie) I think it has something to do with some Canadian air "reaching down" from Canada. I would just love to get some bulbs planted before it freezes, but I'll be lucky if I get the bricks back in place and the sedum transplanted. I still have to get out there and get that poor little pond taken care of before the little waterfall freezes in motion.

The five older grandchildren were here for the weekend and we cleaned up the pumpkin patch. They all worked like busy little beavers collecting the pumpkin, gourds and squash. The kids were fun to watch when they started pulling back the husks on the indian corn. Every ear was different, it was facsinating for DH and me too. Alot of plowing left to do, but most of the crops are off and stored away for the winter. A calf was born when the kids were here. One of the heifers we raise for a neighbor had her calf early, so the grandkids got to see that up close and personal. Always something going on it seems, I guess that is why they love coming here.

Well, I guess I have to head off to bed. Take care everyone, I think about you guys everyday...take care Charlotte, Sheila, Sue, Puss, Willow and Jacquie

Bluet

My heart is warm with the firends I make Edna St. Vincent Millay

Hi everybody,
I baby sat tonight again. I guess I will be every Tuesday until at least November because my son has classes and my DIL works every Tuesday evening.
I ate badly again today.
I had cheerios cereal with fresh strawberries and skim milk for breakfast, soup and a sandwich for lunch, some saltine crackers with natural peanut butter for a snack and pizza for supper.

My sister is going to start WW on Thursday. I know I've gained everything back that I lost, but, I'll just start again.

Puss, I love your family humor. Your kids sound like great people to be around.

Sheila, you're so good to your Dad. I hope my kids are that good to me if ever the day comes that I can't do everything for myself.

Tonight as I arrived at my sons house I heard someone calling, " HEY! GRANDMA!" It was my 12-year old grandson just coming home from band practice. I walked up to meet him and we walked together back to their house. He's such a cute kid.
He plays the trombone.
So, for a half hour tonight I listened to him playing the school song about 3 feet away from where I was sitting. It was a bit loud, ..... but he's getting pretty good on that thing.
His older sister plays the clarinet and his little brother (7) wants to learn how to play the piano but he doesn't want to take piano lessons!! They have a piano, and he wants his mother to teach him, but she wants a professional to teach him.

I better get going and get ready for bed.

I printed out calendars for the rest of the time I will be working, up to retirement. Then I crossed out all the weekends and holidays and vacation days. Then I counted up how many days I have to work until retirement. I have to work 575 days yet. Now, that's actual working days. 29 months. I told the people I was working with today, " Now just watch me kick the bucket a week before retirement!"

Have a good night girls!

Hello to those who haven't posted recently! Thinking of you and hoping all is well.

Bluet, you were posting at the same time I was.
I promise, I'm trying to get some weight off. Maybe going to WW with my sister, (or vice versa) will keep me honest to myself.

That is so cool that you can give your grandkids all those experiences. I'm sure they DO love it at your house.

It sounds like you've been busy lately. Things I should be doing.

How's that grandbaby doing?

P.S. You can become depressed from menopause too. I think that's what my problem has been for the last 8 or 9 years. Caused by menopause and thyroid.

Lamentations of the Father



(by Ian Frazier)



To a child:



Laws of Forbidden Places-



Of the beasts of the field, and of the fishes of the sea, and of all foods that are acceptable in my sight you may eat, but not in the living room. Of the hoofed animals, broiled or ground into burgers, you may eat, but not in the living room. Of the cloven-hoofed animal, plain or with cheese, you may eat, but not in the living room. Of the cereal grains, of the corn and of the wheat and of the oats, and of all the cereals that are of bright color and unknown provenance you may eat, but not in the living room. Of quiescently frozen dessert and of all frozen after-meal treats you may eat, but absolutely not in the living room.



Of the juices and other beverages, yes, even of those in sippy-cups, you may drink, but not in the living room, neither may you carry such therein. Indeed, when you reach the place where the living room carpet begins, of any food or beverage there you may not eat, neither may you drink. But if you are sick, and are lying down and watching something, then may you eat in the living room.



Laws When at Table



And if you are seated in your high chair, or in a chair such as a greater person might use, keep your legs and feet below you as they were. Neither raise up your knees, nor place your feet upon the table, for that is an abomination to me. Yes, even when you have an interesting bandage to show, your feet upon the table are an abomination, and worthy of rebuke.



Drink your milk as it is given you, neither use on it any utensils, nor fork, nor knife, nor spoon, for that is not what they are for; if you will dip your blocks in the milk, and lick it off, you will be sent away.



When you have drunk, let the empty cup then remain upon the table, and do not bite it upon its edge and by your teeth hold it to your face in order to make noises in it sounding like a duck: for you will be sent away.



When you chew your food, keep your mouth closed until you have swallowed, and do not open it to show your brother or your sister what is within; I say to you, do not so, even if your brother or your sister has done the same to you.



Eat your food only; do not eat that which is not food; neither seize the table between your jaws, nor use the raiment of the table to wipe your lips. I say again to you, do not touch it, but leave it as it is.



And though your stick of carrot does indeed resemble a marker, draw not with it upon the table, even in pretend, for we do not do that, that is why. And though the pieces of broccoli are very like small trees, do not stand them upright to make a forest, because we do not do that, that is why.



Sit just as I have told you, and do not lean to one side or the other, nor slide down until you are nearly slid away. Heed me; for if you sit like that, your hair will go into the syrup. And now behold, even as I have said, it has come to pass.



Laws Pertaining to Dessert



For we judge between the plate that is unclean and the plate that is clean, saying first, if the plate is clean, then you shall have dessert.



But of the unclean plate, the laws are these: If you have eaten most of your meat, and two bites of your peas with each bite consisting of not less than three peas each, or in total six peas, eaten where I can see, and you have also eaten enough of your potatoes to fill two forks, both forkfuls eaten where I can see, then you shall have dessert.



But if you eat a lesser number of peas, and yet you eat the potatoes, still you shall not have dessert; and if you eat the peas, yet leave the potatoes uneaten, you shall not have dessert, no, not even a small portion thereof.



And if you try to deceive by moving the potatoes or peas around with a fork, that it may appear you have eaten what you have not, you will fall into iniquity. And I will know, and you shall have no dessert.



On Screaming



Do not scream; for it is as if you scream all the time. If you are given a plate on which two foods you do not wish to touch each other are touching each other, your voice rises up even to the ceiling, while you point to the offense with the finger of your right hand; but I say to you, scream not, only remonstrate gently with the server, that the server may correct the fault.



Likewise if you receive a portion of fish from which every piece of herbal seasoning has not been scraped off, and the herbal seasoning is loathsome to you and steeped in vileness, again I say, refrain from screaming. Though the vileness overwhelm you, and cause you a faint unto death, make not that sound from within your throat, neither cover your face, nor press your fingers to your nose. For even I have made the fish, as it should be; behold, I eat it myself, yet do not die.



Concerning Face and Hands



Cast your countenance upward to the light, and lift your eyes to the hills, that I may more easily wash you off. For the stains are upon you; even to the very back of your head, there is rice thereon.



And in the breast pocket of your garment, and upon the tie of your shoe, rice and other fragments are distributed in a manner wonderful to see.



Only hold yourself still; hold still, I say. Give each finger in its turn for my examination thereof, and also each thumb. Lo, how iniquitous they appear. What I do is as it must be; and you shall not go hence until I have done.



Various Other Laws, Statutes, and Ordinances



Bite not, lest you be cast into quiet time. Neither drink of your own bath water, nor of the bath water of any kind; nor rub your feet on bread, even if it be in the package; nor rub yourself against cars, not against any building; nor eat sand.



Leave the cat alone, for what has the cat done, that you should so afflict it with tape? And hum not the humming in your nose as I read, nor stand between the light and the book. Indeed, you will drive me to madness. Nor forget what I said about the tape.

Ah, Bluet, a glass of white wine. Sounds really good right now. I can skip the Hershey bar, but a glass of wine would be very relaxing. When we went out to dinner the other night, I had a $7.50 glass of Chardonnay--definitely worth every penny.

Sounds like you had a great time with the grandkids. Pretty cool that they got to see a new heifer.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with PD's ashes, Puss. Right now they are in the closet next to my mom's ashes. She would have liked that--she had a soft spot for little white dogs. She always wanted a Westie. I'm thinking I'll just wait until they all go, and take them with us when we move to Oregon after my dad passes away, and bury them at what will hopefully be our last home. Had to laugh at all the little crosses--definitely makes you wonder! I have a friend who lives in the country and has a pet cemetary. She had 16 cats and a bunch of dogs and they've all lived well into their teens.

Willow, I'm glad you're still going to go to the WW meeting even though you know you're probably gained weight. That takes real courage. I usually take a pass on weighing or don't go, which really isn't good. A half hour of listening to the trombone--you're a wonderful grandma!

Speaking of grandkids, my granddaughter had her first day of preschool on Monday. My son wrote me that she did so great on her first day of school, that he was really proud of her. The teacher got emotional because she thought my little sweetheart was doing so well, too. My granddaughter is doing "home schooled" preschool with the teacher and a speech therapist (isn't that a great teacher to student ratio!). After cold and flu season abates, hopefully she'll get to go to the real classes with the other special ed preschoolers, unless one of them has the sniffles. She's so medically fragile that catching a cold can land her in the hospital. It's a bummer because she really loves other kids.

My daughter wanted to run on a track today so we went to one at the nearby high school and found it all locked up. Then we went to another high school, but couldn't find the track. We're going to try again tomorrow because I know where there is an open track, but it's quite a ways away. My DD has to run 1.5 miles in a certain time and needs to check how she's doing on her running. I will just walk it, though--these knees aren't made for jogging!

Hope everyone had a great Wednesday.

Hi all!

Sorry for not posting the past several days things....just been too stressed out with mothers move and trying to control what goes into my mouth. I think I had better just back off until things settle down and I can concentrate better. I can relate to what you are feeling Bluet......I once saw a book at the library " Menopause and The Mind" I think I had better read it....maybe I can figure out what is going on in my head, why I can't take things in stride and not get all stressed out!! Sheila I so think I read something about blueberries and Alzheimers.

Willow I know what you mean about chin hairs....I pluck mine in the car you can see them better in the natural light !!

Well the weather here is so beautiful we have decided to give the camper on last trip. I think my brain and body needs the break.We will be gone 4 or 5 days so I won't be posting until next week.

Hope everyone has a good weekend Charlotte, Sue and all I have missed!

Jacquie

Hey Guys,

Just because it snowed yesterday in good ole Wisconsin, don't run for the caves and stock up on food yet. There's gotta be some Indian Summer coming or at least some nice days ahead so we can enjoy fall.

Puss I just finished reading another bodice ripper. I'll have to head to the library or the book store to stock up on more of my addiction. Haven't had a lot of extra time to watch my two favorite shows, Ground Force and Changing Rooms lately. I have picked up a few shows of Trading Spaces on the American Channel. Trading Spaces has some new designers. The rooms they redone have been absoluetly darn ugly this season. I hope Changing Rooms hasn't changed at all. Except this is Carol's last year as hostess. I am disappointed, I really like Carol. Has your DH returned from his trip yet? Oh well, when he does we probably won't hear from you at least a week. Especially if you model just your new coat again.

Shiela, I have been meaning to tell you that I am enjoying your Dad stories too. I think they are really cute in a humerous way. Two of our kids ran Cross Country in high school. How grueling. They practiced all summer in the heat and then ran competion all fall in the cold and freezing rain. I shouldn't complain, at least they have character. Of course DH and I had to follow the team every where they went. Well, it got us out and about. They always competed on Golf Courses, so I got to see every Golf Course in a 100 mile radius.

Jaquie, hope everything goes well in your Mother's big move. There is a lot to deal with isn't there? I hope you have other family help, it will ease the burden somewhat for you. Let us know when you get back.

Willow, how are you doing? That sure was a cute article you sent about children. Man it all applies, doesn't it? Especially to those two Irish Twin grandson cousins of mine. Your grandchildren sound cool too. You are even cooler for listening to your grandson play in your ear for so long. Tonight I get to watch Survivor. I know, I know, it is a stupid show, but I get such a charge out of it and it is really the only show I watch in the evenings. I get such a charge out of some of the dumb things those people do to be one of the last survivors on the island. It is kind of like junior high school all the back stabbing and stuff. Of course the one who wins the million dollars is never the one I pick to win. It is suppose to rain tonight and tomorrow, so when I get home I suppose we will have to cut all that lawn that we cut. We have been cutting every other week the last while it hasn't been growing so fast. I would rather cut grass than shovel snow though. Well I am typing this at work, so I guess I better, get busy and look like I am doing some REAL work.

Take care everyone. How are you doing Charlotte and Sue. Hope you are both o.k.

Bluet

P.S. I am still at my stupid plateau.......Help!

My heart is warm with the friends I make. Edna St. Vincent Millay

Just a quickie to apologise - been very busy last two days - baking cakes for 'Jeans for Genes' day tomorrow at work and having to email DH in Middle East. Promise to do better tomorrow, best wishes to all. xx

I bit the bullet and went back to WW tonight. My sister joined also and Rita went too. So, it's kind of nice to look forward to having someone else to talk things over with and compare notes with. Although Rita hasn't been all that chatty about it up until now. Maybe things will change now.

I gained 5 of the 6.6 pounds back that I had lost several weeks ago. I haven't had this WW leader before and I really like her. She's very upbeat and gets you all enthused.

I was watching the Senate hearings on c-span on nutrition and weight control and how the food pyramid needs to be changed. It was quite interesting. They had very reputable Doctors and professors and scientists testifying, like Dr. Dean Ornish, Dr Willet, etc. I can't even remember them all, but, it was most interesting.
They all have one thing in common in their recommendations, ... To get more exercise, use less of the high glycemic foods like white bread, pasta, rice etc, and even be careful of how much whole grain carbohydrates we use because they take longer to digest, therefore releasing the sugar in a slower way, but, none the less, they DO turn to sugar eventually. We need the nutrients from them though.
They all say that exercise should be at the bottom, widest bar of the pyramid. And they recommend that recess or phy ed be a part of our kids regular curriculum through their senior year.
Anyway, I found it to be very enlightening.

Didn't go to work today. Just couldn't make myself go in. I was so very tired. Discomfort in my right chest and back again.

Sheila, I like wine too, but I haven't had any in years. It makes me horny. And when I did drink it regularly, I couldn't afford the expensive stuff, so I drank Boones Farm. And had just as much fun on it as the expensive stuff. One time I was with a girl I grew up with but hadn't seen in years, her husband and another guy. They stopped at a party of someone they knew and everyone was passing around a big old bottle of wine, (I have no idea what kind, it was kind of dark in that apartment) remember when we could do that and not have to worry about "catching something"?
Anyway, I started to notice this one guy sitting up on the back of the couch, and he was chewing gum, and it seemed that his jaws would open impossibly wide, and very slowly, kind of like an aligator yawning in slow motion, over and over, and I started to laugh. Steve, my friends husbands buddy, told me to not laugh at the guy, and I held it under control until he got down off the couch and walked across the room, and then his legs went up real high, like he was stepping over a log with each step, and I just found that so fascinating. Sooooo, .... I don't know who was higher, me or him, but somebody had put "something" into that wine, because later we went to a bar, and I had my favorite, a beer, and it tasted like chocolate, so, as I was sitting by the door which was open, I tossed the beer out of the glass out the door to the sidewalk, and just then someone walked up and they got the beer right in the face.
Then we went to another place and when we parked the car, we were all quiet for a while, then my friend said something to me and I said, "Shshshshsh! I think I can hear gas!" What an experience that was! I never used drugs, and it was something I wouldn't particularly want to experience again, yet, I have to laugh about it now, looking back.
I remember a yellow light at one bar fascinated me because it seemed that the light just filled everything.
Even the next day, I was sitting on the couch and suddenly the door frame jumped out, then back into place. I thought it was a trick of my eyes, and then it did it again.
I've never shared a bottle with anyone since, and I don't leave my drink out of my hand either.
But, it didn't stop me from drinking wine or beer.
I bet you guys are laughing your a$$es off at me about now. Those were the good old days.

So your little sweetheart granddaughter started preschool. They are so precious, aren't they? I have a 5-year old granddaughter who has special needs. She has speech therapy and a couple of other classes. She's in kindergarten now.

Jacquie, I hope things are getting back to normal for you now. Don't worry about keeping up with any of the diet stuff for a few days until you get settled back in. Just know that we hope you're doing well, and there's no pressure from us to lose right now. Just post when you can and we'll look forward to hearing from you when you get the time. I know how it is.
Thanks for the tip on chin hairs! I'll keep a tweezers in my car from now on. Ah, ... uhmmm, ... you don't pluck them while you're driving, do you?
Hope your trip is a wonderful one!

Bluet, I don't know what to tell you about your plateau, except maybe the Wendy concept would work for you. I have it in it's entirety if you want me to send it to you. It's concieved on the Weight Watchers plan, but, I would think you could put the principal to work on any weight loss plan you're on. You eat high calories one day, low the next and normal the next, etc, etc.

Puss, what's jeans for genes? Something to do with genetics? Or men named Gene wearing no jeans?
Anyway, I'm betting you're missing the mister about now. How long will he be gone again? 6 weeks? That's a long time in a way, but, just long enough to make the heart grow fonder.

Well, I suppose I should end this and get to bed. Don't know if I'll go in to work tomorrow or not. Suppose to rain tonight I think. If it is yet tomorrow, I suppose I might as well go in to work. Can't ride my bike in the rain anyway.

Have a good night all.

Hi everybody....hope you still remember me!

I had a treatment yesterday, so I'm too crazy to work on papers. I figured you already know how I am....so it doesn't matter. Gee, I didn't know it was going to take so much work! Maybe it'll pay off in the long run. We sure could use a break.

My pc's acted up again, too. Someone went in & corrupted my files! This is all getting too weird!

I went back & read a few of the posts. Very interesting....especially the wine story.....

Well, the more I type, the sicker I get. Guess I'll wait til another day. Take care, & I'll be back.