Now I really did it :((

[missy]

Good morning girls and Happy Father's Day to all the fathers in your life!

LLJsmom, most veterinarian offices aound here are closed on the weekends and if they are opened they don't do surgery on the weekends. At least so far because I have been checking around. And most won't work with ferals. Also housing ferals is a whole different ball game and one I do not want to undertake with my 4 kitties always being with us. Ann has 12 cats she found out about at a warehouse in Matawan that the landlord is threatening he will evict so now she has to focus on that for her next project to save them. Greg and I are unsure what we will do next. I will continue contacting veterinarian offices around here to see if there is any possibility we can do some of this on our own but being here just weekends and also being that the ferals are unpredictable as to when we can trap them it isn't looking good. I mean you make an appointment and if you don't have the cats by the appointment that's not fair to the veterinarian office and they won't give you another appointment. That's why Ann traps in advance to give her plenty of time to trap the cats before the appointment so she has all the slots filled. It is a challenging situation. We have to trap them and have the appointment in place beforehand (once we find a vet clinic if we can that is) and not trap them and then make an appointment. Not sure I am making myself clear but that is part of what is involved so you can see why Ann said don't take this on ourselves especially because we are not here enough.

Hope you are loving the Hermes bracelet (are you keeping it?) and and enjoying your new Hermes scarf. And congrats to your kids on their graduations again. They must be over the moon it's summer vacation too! What are their/your plans for the summer?

Marcy, you were making me so hungry yesterday with all your baking. Glad Marty and his friend enjoyed the cookies. HA he certainly inhaled them didn't he. Hope the bake sale goes well! You had a very productive day yesterday. Glad you slept till 9AM and accomplished so much. Hope the boys had fun rock climbing. When is Marty's friend leaving?

I love your gorgeous yellow sapphire and glad it got to go out and show itself off this week. As for your new RGWG wide band it is better too big than too tight and see what happens as the weather gets warmer. I add bands as the weather gets colder and my fingers shrink but in the summer I wear the minimum number of bands (1) with my ER otherwise it is too tight. Perhaps your wide band will fit just fine when it starts getting hot and you will be pleased you sized it a bit bigger. If not you can either add a thin band next to it and see if that helps or if you don't like the looks of that how about sizing beads? They work great for me and one of my eternity bands and I love the fact that I can wear the ring comfortably even when it is hot as the sizing beads allow room for the ring to get over my fat knuckles.

Hope you enjoy today Marcy and manage to get some relaxation in too.


Junie, GOOD LUCK today with your mother's move!!! Sending you lots of smooth transition vibes and big hugs!!!

We are going for an early bike ride and then later this afternoon going to Costco as we had no time Friday or yesterday. Not looking forward to Costco on a Sunday or on Father's day or a beach day for that matter (going to be lots of traffic as that is the beach route too LOL) but we were too busy with the ferals on Friday and that is our normal Costco day. But it looks like a beautiful day for a bike ride so looking forward to that very much. Winds not too strong, sunny and just a lovely day. The sunrise this morning was awesome.


Have a good Sunday girls.

 

[azstonie]

Gypsy, I love me some book series, PLEASE share what you're reading. I'll share a fave, a 3-book series by Charlaine Harris, the Midnight, Texas series. Awesome. The last came out in May.

 

[azstonie]

Gypsy, I love me some book series, PLEASE share what you're reading. I'll share a fave, a 3-book series by Charlaine Harris, the Midnight, Texas series. Awesome. The last came out in May.

 

[LLJsmom]

Marcy, when I am overwhelmed with life, the crazy schedules, my lousy eating habits, my lack of exercise, I read your posts and I am transported to a place of calm. You and Marty cook something you both want for dinner. You do some chores. You meet with friends. You even bake cookies. You attend your astronomy meetings. Thank you for sharing about your day. I can't keep up with laundry. The kids' schedules keep changing. DH is traveling. We need to clean out old homework and recycle or sell. Gotta move the kids' furniture. I have to prepare a summer study schedule. My kids never like me in the summer. This summer it's advanced math for DH and algebra for DS. I cannot even start with how extremely HORRIBLE Common Core is, how it is doing such a disservice to all children, how it wastes my DH's time doing stuff that doesn't help her really learn and MASTER the basics of math, English, grammar, and writing. IT MAKES MY BLOOD BOIL.

So I'm taking it on to teach my kids the things they need not to be complete idiots in the work force, or life. OK. No venting here. It's too much for anyone to read.

So Missy, that is my kids' summer. I do feel a little bad to be the drill sergeant mom, but I will not be able to live with myself if I don't teach my children the correct way to learn and do things, if I do know better.

Missy, there are a lot of logistics involved with the feral project. I can see why Ann is not encouraging you and Greg to take it on all yourselves. You have done so much already, but it feels like it is never enough. However, it is so much more than if you didn't, so there it is. You guys are amazing. And hope tomorrow brings you and Greg good news.

Jimmianne, I must be really out of it. You bought a house, IN FRANCE? OMG. Wow. Really???? Did I misread? OMG. Congratulations!!!! OMG. That sounds like such an amazing, unbelievable thing. OMG. And those are the pics? wow..... What a fairytale kinda thing. What a beautiful, quaint house. I wouldn't mind more pics!

Junie, I'm thinking about you today. Sending you all good and peaceful thoughts. ((((huggggg))))

Gypsy, hope you had fun with the PSer yesterday, looking at bling.

I'm enjoying my ring you guys. I still like a white stone. Haven't cured me of that yet. So I do love it most when it's reflecting a lot of white light. I try to keep it as clean as possible. I admit. I could go bigger, but this stone does look so much bigger than my MRB. I think it's because of all the reflections I get from the edge facets. At some point or other, almost every piece of real estate on that stone lights up. Looking for a bigger I or J is still on my mind, but it will need to wait. I will keep focusing on what I love about this stone. And I still don't have a name. I find it hard to name it. It's just my OEC. Ehhh, not hard to distinguish as I've got only one.

 

[rainwood]

I wrote a long, highly entertaining and insightful post about my weekend, but the computer gods scarfed it down like a slice of rhubarb pie. I don't have the energy to go through it all again so will give you the Cliff Notes version:

- hot water heater didn't work
- nephew-in-law clogged the toilet
- had to leave a day early
- niece's 4-year-old stepdaughter was a nightmare
- all 3 adults hit their breaking points with her at different times
- other 2 adults had to walk on eggshells around said nightmare, but Aunt Rainwood decided this morning she did not
- 4-year-old nightmares can learn it's better to be nice than to be mean even if it takes an hour
- dads can learn to be better at the same time as their daughters learn the same lesson
- Aunt Rainwood is relieved she doesn't have children
- group family hugs at the end are the best
- big bald eagles should be named "Jumbo" and
- 'Finding Dory' is a very good movie.

Hope everyone had a less eventful but wonderful Father's Day weekend!

 

[MarionC]

Rain wood I hear you,
Although my post was not terribly witty or insightful it too deemed to vanish
.
I feel your pain! Lol

Lljs your schedule sounds wild !
I don't know what's more ungrounding,
The stage of life you are describing or the later empty nest syndrome.
You are such a good Mom.

 

[marcy]

Hi NIRDIs!

Missy, I am still crossing my fingers and toes for negative test results on Greg’s biopsy. I am sending mega PS dust your way.

Those cookies were quite delicious yesterday. I need to figure out how to make them solid enough for cross-county shipping so I can send some your way.

I hope you can find more help with the feral kitties.

Marty’s friend leaves early in the morning. He’s pretty funny.

I will probably leave my WGRG band as loose as it is so I can wear it when it’s really warm here. A friend and I went in to that jewelry store today and I had on my yellow sapphire ring; it sure got the sales clerk’s attention. I need some yellow sapphire dangle earrings. I MUST quit buying things though.

I am delighted to hear you saw an awesome sunrise this morning. Did you get pictures?

How was your bike ride? How was Costco?

Kristie, thank you for the book recommendation. I am almost done with the W.E.B. Griffin series and I am kind of dragging my feet because I don’t know what author I’ll go to next.

LLJsmom, I am glad my boring life can help transport you to a calm place. You do have a busy, hectic life but I think that is because you have kids active in school and sports. I try to be really organized so I think that helps me. That is a very good thing you are making sure your kids get a strong background in math. IMO Math, science, English, grammar and writing are way too important to shove to the side for more politically correct curriculum. My sister bought the books every summer for what you should learn in such and such a grade and made her 2 girls go through them that summer. They are both engineers - one works for NASA and one works for Boeing so it sure didn’t hurt them.

I am glad you are enjoying your pretty OEC!

Rainwood, I hate when you loose a long response. I write them in a separate program now so I don’t loose them.

What a summary you have for your weekend. That little girl who was a nightmare sounds like what my NN was probably like at 4 years old. Oh no for the water heater and toilet issues. I am with you on being happy not to have children. I often ask my friends with kids is it okay to if I do the happy I have no kids dance now? I am anxious to see Finding Dory.

Jimmianne, I am still so excited for you! You have a house in France now.

I got up about 7:30 today. The guys went hiking about 9:30 again. I went to the cemetery then grocery store. Right when I got home and was packing in the groceries a friend of mine wanted to know what I was doing so I met her at the mall for lunch then we went shopping. She came over about 4 and we played cribbage until the guys got home.

Marty made lasagna, salad and garlic bread for dinner. The 4 of us enjoyed it thoroughly followed by some more cookies. I swear I will be full for 3 days.

After dinner we played a few more games then watched the NBA championship game.

I am down to 2 more batches of laundry. The last batch is 3 tablecloths. My friend is a spiller and Marty’s friend got tomato sauce all over a white placemat.

Have a great Monday.
Marcy

 

[Gypsy]

Hi everyone. It's still technically Sunday here. So it's still the weekend, darn it. Hope you all had wonderful weekends.

Had a really lovely day today. And I NEEDED IT.

We ended up taking parents to dim sum because the house was just stressing me out too much. My parents stress me out A LOT when they are in my home. Up until the last year every time they entered my house they would complain about something within the first five minutes of being there:

"Hi guys lovely to see you. Oh, I see you haven't hung anything on the walls... did you not have time to clean, do I need to send my house cleaning service to help you?... Oh, my I see the Christmas decorations are still up, isn't it a bit late... Oh my the cat smell is a little stronger today isn't?... Oh, are the cats shedding more this time of year?"

Seriously. EVERY TIME. John and I started taking bets about how many minutes they'd last before making a comment. Then I finally pointed it out to my mother and they've largely stopped SAYING anything, but they can say alot without actually "saying" anything. Still and all we did have several funny moments in the last year where my dad will start to say something negative and my mom will STOMP on his foot, or elbow him and he'll just stop. We all pretend to ignore it.

My DH and Neatfreak call my parents house "the museum" because they are just that way. You could eat off any surface of their home at any time. No pets. And it's decorated for company not comfort. And my house, even perfectly clean, still looks lived in. And I have a very high stress week this week and couldn't deal with them being here today at all. I haven't had a decent nights sleep in three days and had to actually put ointment to make the swelling go down on my eyes this morning cause my eyes were just swollen from night after night of not being able to fall asleep or stay asleep that I looked deformed. And I bit my nails to the quick too.

So, ANYWAY, today we went to Dim Sum, referred an argument between my parents about renovations to their house (they were both right and they argue CONSTANTLY about EVERYTHING), and then said GOOD BYE! And we went to a local winery we really like. Had a wine tasting, bought a couple of glasses of wine and sat outside on the lovely outdoor couches all over the winery and just enjoyed the GLORIOUS weather for a couple hours. So relaxing. Then we came home and again sat outside on our patio (pictures to follow) and enjoyed the day until the sun set. Then we had a quick bite for dinner and watched a VERY eventful Game of Thrones (twice we watched it, it was a great episode) and now I'm just waiting for DH and we'll go to bed. I don't know if I'll be able to sleep. Hope so.

I met a lovely new PSer on Saturday and helped her chose between three really lovely OECs she had been sent by a vendor for evaluation. It's surprising how when you meet PSers in person the 'uncomfortable meeting a new person' time is so short and before you know it you are laughing and time is flying. I am looking forward to hearing about her selection.

Okay so several people asked after the books I am reading. I read ALL THE TIME. Seriously I am never not reading. I only read fiction these days and try to avoid "thought provoking or tear jerker" and I rotate between cozy mysteries (regular and paranormal), urban fantasy, and different genres of romance including paranormal.

The book I was reading the other night I posted was "Allegiance of Honor" which is the 15 book in Nalini Singh's "Psy-Changling" Series. The series has mostly stronger books but there are several duds you skim through to get the major plot points.

The one I am reading now is the sequel to one of the best urban fantasy books I've ever read: The Rook by Daniel O'Malley. The sequel is called Stilleto. I haven't finished it yet, it's a much slower read than the first book and, so far, while it is very good it lacks the perfection of the original.

I am always reading though and love recommending books, and hearing about other's recommendations.

Missy, I'm sorry about your loss of your friend and walking buddy Harry. I love the tree, thank you for sharing that. It was heartwarming. I couldn't see his picture though, wonder why? Great news about Cola. ROFLMAO at Pepsi. He reminds me of my Whitey. No survival instincts and frankly, while he's sweet as the day is long, he's a dummy. He still gets lost in this (small) apartment's (one) hallway after 6 months of being here.

I have to admit, just reading about the adventures in feral and stray cats I can hear the stress. I am not surprised you are both emotionally weary. 4 cats is TREMENDOUS. I know how it is to always fret and want to do more. I feel that way every day with rescuing cats and helping animals and mine at the moment is passive participation not active like you both. I think you both need to listen to Ann, and for your own health, take a break. No telling what will happen. But I do think that you both need a little time for a break for now.

THAT SAID. We found that Jersey Shore Animal Center was a HUGE resource and helped us find vets and clinics when we were doing TNR in NJ, so give them a call. They are in Brick Township. At least they can provide you with ideas.

I can NOT watch horror movies. I watch a lot supernatural and paranormal and fantasy stuff. But horror. Nope. The TV show Supernatural is as "horror" as I get.

Praying for great news on Greg's health tomorrow.

LLJ, what a stunning scarf. It's beautiful. I will in be in SF on Wednesday and Thursday this week. Thursday is going to be quite busy. Wednesday though, if you are available I am going to at the Ferry Building area as of just before 1:00pm.

Marcy, Yeah the sleep medication thing is a crap shoot. Ugh! I am so sorry you have so many adverse reactions to medications. I often have adverse reactions too, but not nearly as bad as you. Can you BELIEVE that with the except of ONE medication DH has never had a drug allergy or adverse reaction! SO funny about Penicillin clearing up your sinuses. Antibiotics are really hard for me. My Doctor always gets really stressed out when he has to prescribe me meds cause they are what I most have adverse reactions or allergies to.

Why can't you eat chicken? How did the bake sale go?


Junie, I hope your mother's move went smoothly. I was thinking of you today.

Much love to all.

Oh, here are some pictures of the glorious day and the beautiful sky today both while the sun was out and at sunset. I didn't think to snap pictures at the winery, but did take these from the balcony-- it's our view (which is quite lovely at this apartment). Our patio is totally enclosed so the cats are allowed out there are ADORE spending time on the patio, especially Penny, so I included some pictures from her too on her daddy's lap (it WAS Father's Day after all). It's my favorite part of this apartment and I spend quite a bit of time out there, admittedly.

 

[Gypsy]

Sunset sky with gorgeous clouds:

 

[Scandinavian]

Hello and good "morning" from Scandinavia!

If I type this up fast, I might beat Missy, lol.

Been sooo buzzy, but not much going on, just children stuff. Wednesday, it was summer party at the kindergarden And then our oldest had her last day at school before the summer holiday on Friday. The children wanted to end the year doing something fun, and the "horrible" teachers found out that oh what fun it would be to go on a hike + sleep over! And then some of the buzzybee parents decided how wonderful it would be to combine that with a "class club" (social get together with children + parents + siblings (optional)). So Thursday, had to start the day by driving DD into the woods to the "start walking from here" place. Then, back to DFB (darling fur baby) and walk her. Then collect DS from kindergarden. Drive to store to buy barbeque things. Drive back with DS to "start walking from here" place. Start walking. With 4 year old DS. Not 2km as promised. 3.5 km. (about 2.5 miles?). Still with DS who was more than tired enough from the day already. Oh and backpack. Forgot to complain about that one.. LOL. Big and heavy backpack, because I did not want DD to carry so much so I took all her overnight + Friday stuff with me. Including water etc. No drinking water in the woods. At least not that I trust her to find on her own. And the note said to bring food + to drink. So assuming they did not imply that the children would need alkohol to survive the experience, I brought water. Then barbeque. And swimming in a pond. I refused that one. Just took off my shoes and waded out a bit to keep the children safe. Didn't feel like strutting around in a bikini in front of all the other parents, lol. One of the moms was actually running around in a swimming suit through coffee + cake afterwards. Is it just me or is that a little bit weird...? I'm obviously old fashined Then walking back. Did I mention that my DH has been traveling (work )? Really did not help...

Reading all your posts this morning, I could have had a heart attack. So much stuff going on!!

June, best of luck, thinking of you and your mother, crossing fingers and hoping for the best. I do not have any good advice so just hope to hear from you and thinking of you!

Missy, have you got the results from the biopsy yet? All my best to you and Greg! And yippi for trapping Cola - "my" feral You are doing such a GOOD job!!!

Marcy, always love to read your posts! How are things going with work? Fingers crossed for a good week! I would love to live in your house, if I was a house guest and you kept baking cookies, you would have to call the police to get me out again

Gypsy, Callie, hugs! Read the other thread briefly, cannot believe what some people say.

For now, my little part of the world is safer than most places, I hope it continues, but it probably will not.

Gypsy, and so happy that you had a good interview, even if it does not work out, that sure is the first step is it not?

Jimmianne!!! A house!!!! Congratulations!!! That sounds like SO MUCH FUN! NIRDI get together, just need to convince Missy to start flying again...

Hope for a good day for us all!

 

[Scandinavian]

Have I showed you this one? Just wanted to tell you Jimmianne that our summer house needs a lot more work than your French house, LOL It was built mid /early 1800. And it really needs work. But I just can't do two construction projects at once, so it will have to wait a bit

EDIT: the water is a bit cold, yes but on the shallow, it is about 20 C (68F?) now so that is doable

 

[Scandinavian]

And Missy - work - what is happening?? I'm sure you deserve better. Hopefully the not-so-nice person remembers this on her sick day... Let us know what happens!

 

[missy]

Good morning girls and happy Monday!

Rainwood, Oy, and yes, kids are unpredictable. One minute they are a joy and pleasure and the next little terrors wreaking havoc.
I have to say while I mostly enjoy my nieces I am usually quite relieved and happy when they leave because after a full day or 2 with them I am ready to say bye bye. You are not alone. Funny this topic comes up now because just last night and I don't remember why I asked Greg if he ever regrets not having kids and he says he has moments when he wonders what it would have been like and then he comes to his senses. Seriously though I know if we had kids we would have loved and enjoyed them and it would have been a wonderful thing but not having them is also wonderful. Either way we would have been happy I think but mostly better off we didn't because it worked out the way it was supposed to though we would have made the best of it either way.

Hugs to Jumbo. I love bald eagles. So regal, so fierce, so beautiful. And hugs to Auntie Rainwood. Hope your recovery is complete and you enjoy a lovely relaxing quiet Monday.

LLJsmom, your kids are lucky to have you directing them and being a role model. Never apologize. I'm ready for your visit to Adam's for a white OEC. Anxiously and excitedly waiting and hoping the timing works out. In the meantime enjoy enjoy enjoy the heck out of your nameless as of now OEC. No rush re naming. When the right name hits you will know it. Thank you for the continued good health wishes for Greg. (((Hugs))).

Gypsy, thanks for the book recs. I am going to share them with Greg and check it out. I want to do more reading like I used to do. Like you I was always reading a book or 2 or 3 at any given time and not sure when that all stopped. So happy you had a good visit with the PSer and helped her choose some beautiful OECs. Looking forward to hearing more about it. And also so pleased you had a good weekend and Sunday with your dh and that your folks were out of your hair early in the day. Yes my mom pushes my buttons too like no one else so I get it. I am so sorry they were so exhausting that way. Why? I bring it to my mom's attention too and then she is good for about a minute and then reverts back to her old criticisms etc. My parents were supposed to stay overnight at our beach house this weekend but canceled and I was sort of relieved. However, they are all coming (with sister and BIL and nieces) next weekend for a belated Father's Day celebration so I am sure my calm peaceful feeling will be gone when they are here. So enjoying it while I can.

Sorry about your sleep and your eyes swelling. Have you tried the cool gel mask for your eyes? They carry them at drugstores and you keep them in the fridge and put them over your eyes for about 10-15 minutes and they help with swelling.

Love your sunset photos and I love your view from your patio . Beautiful and peaceful. Lucky kitties get to enjoy it too. Penny is so gorgeous.
We need to build an enclosure outside so our kitties can enjoy that too. Our 4 are all indoors and never get to go out and I love your setup. Thanks for understanding what we are going through re the ferals. To date we have trapped Sammy (already released and spayed), Sprite (about to be spayed and released soon who gave birth the to 3 kittens who need to be neutered once they are old enough and her babies will be house kitties), Squirt (released and spayed), Pepsi (released and spayed), Cola and Fresca-both who are about to be spayed and neutered then released. We still need to trap, neuter/spay: Seven Up, Fresca 2, Rootbeer, Ginger Ale, and I cannot remember if there is another right now...

THANK YOU so much for the recommendation for the Jersey Shore Animal Center. I am going to check it out! I have no clue what is here and that is such a promising recommendation I feel a renewed sense of energy now. Thank you!

Thank you for all the love and good wishes for Greg re his health. Fingers crossed. I am nervous but hoping for good news today.

Marcy, thank you for the good luck dust for Greg! Really appreciate that and I am so glad you had a good weekend and your life does not sound boring to me at all. You always have a lot to do and to enjoy and many interests. Now the house must feel so quiet with your guest gone. Thank you for good wishes for Greg's biopsy results. As you can imagine I am quite nervous and my stomach is hurting right now waiting to hear the results. We had a great bike riding weekend and managed to ride about 142 miles total this weekend but that includes Friday so reasonable. All in all we are not getting as many miles in as last year but all due to the late season start due to inclement weather re bike riding. Still we are enjoying the days we do cycle and this past weekend the weather was as perfect as it gets. Costco was good too. Not crowded at all and we were pleasantly surprised. Worked out well. Hope you have a good Monday.

Scandi, aww honey, thank you. We all deserve the best re work and personal life and I wish for all of us laughter and joy and health and happiness. We haven't moved offices yet (just across the hall) and this is a separate issue. Next week I will decide if I hand in my letter of resignation or not as I am meeting with the Clinic chief Wednesday morning and I will see how it goes. If I am truly not pleased with the way the meeting goes I will hand in the letter already typed up and ready to go. If we can work out our differences I will gladly stay. It is all temporary anyway as I cannot see staying for another couple of years no matter what but I hate to leave right now as I would like to continue for a little while longer at least. But we shall see. I am ready to go if I feel I must but ready to stay if they work with me in resolving my latest issue with them.

Wow you had a jam packed week with your kiddos and yes that sounds exhausting especially camping and carrying such a big backpack. LOL glad you survived to tell the tale. LOVE your latest pics. And thank you for all your good thoughts re Greg and his health.

Oh Ann told me yesterday that she thinks Cola was a house cat and was abandoned because she doesn't look at Ann with the feral look the ferals have but instead with curiosity. So I am very upset of course! Who does that? Grrr
And now what do we do??? If she is not a true feral I cannot release her but finding a home for an adult kitty who is not super friendly is going to be challenging to put it mildly. Sure you don't want a kitty Scandi? Cola is your favorite remember.





Junie, thinking of you and hoping the weekend went smoothly and your mom is comfortably settled in now at home. (((Hugs))).

(((Hugs))) to all the NIRDIs and hope you all have a lovely Monday. We are headed back to NYC in a few hours and back to the real world.

 

[LLJsmom]

Gypsy, I tried to look you up as Plizzard on DiamondBistro but could not find you. I'm daftrocker on loupetroop. I just posted a paper airplane necklace that I am selling for $12. You can contact me there. I hope to hear from you. I can make Wednesday work! Btw, your parents sound like my mom. She can't walk by any part of my house without picking something off the floor, even if it's LINT!!!! And straightening stuff on my desk. Stacking things that seem messy. My mom's place a far from a museum, but everything is STACKED. In her mind, I think that is equivalent to NEAT. If I stack stuff, you can forget it. It's GONE. So stuff gets scattered everywhere, because I don't want to forget it. Hmmm, not sure what's worse.

Rainwood, you are hilarious!! Sorry you had a nightmarish day, but you sure made it sound funny! Yes, Auntie Rainwood "don't play dat".

Scandi, hmmmm... play group in the woods. I would probably pass, but you are a brave soul. Uhhh... yeah, I don't go where there is no cell reception.

Ok, NIRDIs. Got a crazy day. Check back in later!

 

[rainwood]

Missy, as always my thoughts are with you and Greg. You’ll get through it no matter what. I didn’t realize you’d TNR’d so many of the ferals. And it will be great if Cola’s kittens can have a different life and maybe even mom if she can adapt back at least somewhat to being a pet. I know it’s stressful especially with all the rest you have going on, but you really have done so much for them.

And I loved the photo of Harry, the dog who loved Christmas. Nina loved it too. She especially loved tearing off the wrapping paper on gifts. She didn’t do it if the gifts were still under the tree, but once they were in someone’s hands, they were fair game! Here she is helping my DH play Santa:


She also liked helping him around the house so here she is being the plumbing assistant:

And then her favorite, which was napping together.

So cute, both of them, and greatly missed.

Marcy, I was looking at an ad in the Sunday paper and wanted to make sure I remembered to tell you. We have a local jeweler named Marci Jewelers (great name, right?), and they were running an ad called “Marci for Men” and it had 3 men’s wedding bands pictured. The one in the center was your DH’s new band! What a coincidence! I would have included it here but because it’s an ad for a non-PS vendor, I knew I shouldn’t. Made me smile when I saw it though. Oh, and I’m doing this post in Word so I don’t lose it. It rarely happens to me, but has twice in the last week so thanks for the suggestion. Last night, I think I wasn’t logged in and when it asked me to do that, my post went “poof” into the night.

Jimmianne – glad you’re able to check in from la belle France. And hope your second B & B or inn or whatever is as much fun as the first run by the Brits. Are you close enough to make frequent trips to what will soon be “la maison de Jimmianne?”

Scandi – love the summer house, especially the traditional red and white. It may need work but what a lovely location and a wonderful place to build family memories. And the overnight trip sounds like it came at a time when you needed something much more relaxing!

LL (Cool) J – thanks for laughing about my weekend. I had to, because, at some point, that’s all you can do. More details are in a separate post. And you, like Scandi, seem to be in the Mom Overload portion of raising kids and doing a fabulous job of parenting. You deserve a 5 ct. OEC in whatever color you want!

Kristie – I love to hang out with people who are readers even if we don’t have the same tastes. Reading makes people even more interesting than before. I’ve stopped doing book recommendations because I often seem to guess wrong about what someone would like, and I’m guessing this might not be up your alley, but if you are a Jane Austen fan and particularly a ‘Pride and Prejudice’ fan, let me know and I’ll give you the name of a book that recently came out you might like. I’m very picky about anything trying to draft off Jane and particularly off ‘P&P’ but this was a really enjoyable read (and is what I was reading when I was unaware there was a SWAT team steps from my house!)

Gypsy, sorry you aren’t able to sleep. I’m sure you’ve tried almost everything, but if not, let me know and I’ll give you some podcast recommendations that are interesting enough to help me disengage from what I’m thinking about and calming enough to help put me to sleep. It’s a tough combination and also needs to be suited to the particular person, but I find that words are better than music to help me sleep. And such a lovely view from your deck. I'm glad you can share it with your kitties.

And what a lovely thing to do – helping a PS’er pick out an OEC. But, you’re also on my naughty list because of your 5-year plan post. I don’t usually think in those terms for jewelry, but your post caused me to remember a couple of items – like the Brian Gavin x-prong huggies – that I’d forgotten about so if I end up buying those, it’s on you! I have one big ring project that I’ve been pondering for at least a year, and maybe a few earrings like the huggies but that’s it. From an aesthetic standpoint, I’d love some pear diamond drops to hang from my larger studs, but I hardly ever wear the studs themselves (2 ct tcw) because I live quite casually. I would have even fewer places to wear them with pears dangling from them! Plus, I can’t see them unless I’m driving . And that’s the problem. If I’m going to spend that kind of money, I want to see them. I’d also like a pair of bezeled AVC studs, but again, I can’t really see them so don’t know if I’ll ever pull that trigger. I have my everyday size studs which I do, in fact, wear almost every day unless I’m dressing up to go out. And some lovely pearls in various sizes and hues so I’m mostly set. Until I decide I’m not! And then it’s your fault, Gypsy!

I'll do a separate post with some of the details about my brush with parenting.

 

[azstonie]

Rainy,are you describing "Pride, Prejudice and Zombies?" I loved both the book and the movie!!!! I have wide reading range, please recommend!!

Love the pics of your DH and Nina

 

[Calliecake]

Missy, I'm sending lots and lots of dust and good thoughts to you and Greg. Hopefully you will receive good news tomorrow and you can take one thing off your plate that has been troubling you. I hope your feeling better about the job situation. You will know what the best solution is after your meeting this week. I love the pictures of the kitties you posted recently. We took my brother and SIL out to dinner Saturday night. As we were eating dinner I looked at my brother and was just so grateful that we were all able to be out together. What a difference six months has made. These hospital scares really get to me. Saturday was a good reminder that things also change in a positive direction. We also had a Rainwood moment or shall I say 30 minutes. I'll get to that later.

Gypsy, I'm sorry you have been having trouble sleeping. I also reacted terrible to sleeping pills. I wish I could take them because there is nothing worse then not being able to sleep night after night. My doctors nurse told me that she hasn't had a good night sleep since she was 48. She told me that very few women she knows sleep well after peri menopause sets in. Unfortunately that has been true for me as well. The pictures of your view from the patio are gorgeous. Penny looks very happy sitting with her daddy. You aren't alone about your mom saying stressful things. I have no idea what happens to moms as they get older but their filters sure disappear. They have no problem saying anything to their daughters no matter how hurtful the words can be. At least that's been the case with my mom. My girlsfriends say my mom has always been like this I just seem to notice more now that I'm getting older,

Marcy, it sounds like you had a good weekend. As always your food selections sound delicious. I'm surprised any of your visitors leave! I hope things have been going better with your problem employees. I'm not one bit surprised your yellow sapphire received a lot of attention at the jewelry store. That ring is gorgeous Marcy! It was probably the talk of the store when you left too.

Junebug, I hope your weekend went well and you mom is adjusting to being at your home. I know the move must have been terribly stressful for you and I'm sorry I haven't been on here more to offer my support. Were the doctors able to give her anything to help with her sleeping? Hopefully you can get her schedule straighten out so she sleeps at night. Were you able to find a caregiver to help out so you can get breaks a few hours during the day? I'm sorry you are dealing with this Junie. I'm glad your husband is so supportive.

Rainwood. Your summary of the weekend had me LOL!!! We went to dinner with my brother, SIL and their granddaughter Saturday night. My grand niece is two and normally the sweetest little girl. Well Saturday night my husband wanted to know who this demon child was. She ran up to me when they arrived and sat happily on my lap for about a half hour. They rest of the evening was a disaster with everyone taking turns walking her around so everyone else could eat their dinner and talk in peace. It was tantrum after another for no apparent reason. Believe he the next time we all go out to dinner we will go on a night they are not babysitting! When we were driving home my husband said he was so glad we didn't have kids. He also said he was in agreement with my brother that if people had dogs first, no one would have children. My brother has joked about that for years. Thank goodness she is normally a very happy little girl. We have watched her for an entire weekend where she didn't cry once. Saturday was the worst we have seen her act up and we spend a lot of time with her. I loved the pictures of your dear husband and Nina. Nina sure loved her dad. I know this must be so hard for you and am so sorry you are having to deal with missing them. I wish there was something I could do to make the hard times easier for you. I'm so glad you were able to spend the weekend with your family. I can't wait to hear you thoughts on parenting. You are such a great writer.

LLJsmom, You are such a great mom! Thank you so much for your kind texts this weekend. You made my day Friday. I hope you know I treasure your friendship.

Kristie, I hope you are staying cool Sweetie. Jeff wanted to know how you were today and if you were staying cool. First words out of his mouth tonight were "How was your conference call?"

Scandinavia, Your stories are so amusing. Did your furbaby go along for the hike? I agree with you about wearing the swimsuit in front of all the parents. It would make me uncomfortable too, but to be honest, if I had your figure I would probably live in a bikini!

I'm sorry for writing a book girls.

 

[LLJsmom]

Rainy,are you describing "Pride, Prejudice and Zombies?" I loved both the book and the movie!!!! I have wide reading range, please recommend!!

Love the pics of your DH and Nina

I just downloaded the audiobook. The movie was quite funny in a very deadpan kinda way, and a lot of fun. Bingley was CUTE but somebody teach that boy some skillz! Luckily Jane was such a badass. She is the prettiest Jane I've seen.

 

[Calliecake]

Jimmianne, Great News regarding the house. It looks Gorgeous!!! I can't believe it happened so fast.

 

[marcy]

Ha I lost my post but have it in Pages.

Hi NIRDIs!

Gypsy, I am glad you enjoyed the weekend longer than we did. Sweet. I am glad you had a lovely day. Good idea to prevent parental criticism (or almost) by meeting them for dinner. And even better to say “bye” and go on and enjoy the rest of the day by yourselves. I hope you got some sleep last night. How fun to meet another PSer in person and have fun shopping for OEC diamonds. That is wonderful you love to read so much. Thanks for the book recommendations.

That is great your husband does so well with meds. I know exactly what you mean about the doctors trying to find something to prescribe to you. I even always check with the pharmacist as well. There is a lady at a local grocery store that is really good and knowing what might bother me.

Turkey makes me deathly ill; I should probably go to the hospital if I eat it. Chicken gives me abdominal pains and then makes we sick for about 1/2 a day. I get hives the next day. I would rather eat chicken than anything else.

The bake sale went okay but there are still things left for tomorrow. I spilt a little pineapple upside down cake with another lady.

Beautiful view from your patio and Penny is very cute. Great cloud shots.

Scandinavian, you and the kids had a very busy week. What a way to end the school year.

We have liquor, cookies and plenty of room so come on by! It’s even nice here now.

I am glad you are in a safe place of the world. It is sure scary the stuff that goes on.

Your summer house looks great!

Missy, Marty and I are like you and Greg about kids. I agree things turned out as they should.

I hope your family GTG this weekend will be fun and peaceful.

142 miles this weekend is lots of miles. You were busy with the Soda gang too. Glad Costco wasn’t too busy. Our Sams club is usually insanely busy on weekends (okay probably not as crowded as where you live but for here it is).

I hope your discussion goes well on Wednesday. You are in good position with the Clinic Chief. They either agree to some of their terms or you can resign.

Grr to someone who would dump a pet.

LLJsmom, I am glad your non-stacking method works for you. If I put stuff away where it’s “safe” I can never find it again.

Rainwood, I love the photos of Nina and DH. Hugs to you but it’s nice to have enjoy those memories.

That is too funny about Marci Jewelers and Marci for Men. Small world that Marty’s ring in the photo with the men’s bands. I actually did a search for it and found their website. I’ll show Marty when he gets back from the gym.

Glad you are using Word. I hate to lose my posts.

BG Huggies would be fabulous.

Kristie, Pride, Prejudice and Zombies sounds great!

Callie, that is nice you enjoyed dinner with your brother and SIL and know that things can change for the better. That is kind of funny your grand niece was quite a handful the other night. It does make us couples no kids be grateful for what we don’t have, right?

People do get fed well here. Marty told me I was evil for making cc cookies since he is on such a strict diet.

I can safely say my yellow sapphire ring is my favorite right now.

Write a book anytime. It’s good to hear from you.

My new quiet employee of one week sent me and my boss and email on Saturday complaining about his new work environment. He isn’t comfortable there and feels he won’t be as productive as he could be and wants us to move him back to the job he had before. He is more vocal in email than in person. He told us today he has never been in an enclosed, confined space before and doesn’t like it. He has a cube but since he is being trained he and his trainer obviously work side by side. I’m like really? How do you expect someone to train you? I think he doesn’t like the more structured workload he has in my room. The fun never ends.

I only did dishes once today. Woo hoo! What a treat. The guest bedroom can wait until later this week. I am enjoying being lazy tonight.

Have a fabulous week.
Marcy

 

[rainwood]

Rainy,are you describing "Pride, Prejudice and Zombies?" I loved both the book and the movie!!!! I have wide reading range, please recommend!!

Love the pics of your DH and Nina

Kristie, no I'm not recommending the zombie book!!! I haven't read the zombie book, as zombies/horror are not my thing.

A publisher (Random House if I remember correctly) asked successful women novelists to do modern uptakes on each of Jane Austen's major books. Four of the authors were British and most people said they were not very good. They asked Curtis Sittenfeld, an American novelist, to do the modern take on 'Pride and Prejudice' which is my favorite of all them. This sounded like a terrible, terrible idea so I was skeptical. I got burned by 'Death Comes to Pemberley' by P.D. James which was awful and I didn't want that to happen again. So I waited to do a little research, saw the reviews were generally good, then bought it. It's called 'Eligible.' Loved it! I'd recommend re-reading 'P&P' first then read 'Eligible.' She comes close to matching Austen's wit and humor, and her take on the Bennet sisters, their parents, Bingley, and Darcy is quite clever.

 

[missy]

Good morning girls! Happy first full day of summer and summer solstice!
Thank you all for keeping Greg in your thoughts and sending good vibes his way. I appreciate your good wishes so much. No news yet. I am nervous just waiting. How can biopsy results take so long?

Rainwood, Pride and Prejudice is one of my favorite books and Jane Austen one of my favorite authors. My next book to read is Eligible and thank you for that recommendation!

I love the photos of Nina and Michael. Love that you got an action shot of Michael fixing something and Nina being helpful.

The idea of hanging pear drops to your diamond studs? Fabulous. I hear you on not going anywhere you would really wear them but I don't need an excuse to wear my pretty earrings. Just saying. I wear earrings just going to the supermarket or taking the car trip to and from the beach house. Earrings always make the day a bit nicer...I know you cannot see them like a ring or bracelet but you can feel them when you move your head and I love that. Also when you catch your reflection you catch glimpses of the earrings. I know it sounds silly but I love wearing earrings as long as they are light enough and comfortable. But know everyone is different and if they are not your thing then you should get whatever bling would make you go .


Callie, I'm glad you enjoyed dinner with Bill and his wife Saturday night even though your (usually) sweet grand niece was acting up. She's a little kid and they are not predictable and have their moods too with less of a filter than (most) adults (with the exception of our moms that is LOL) so it is to be expected that it won't always be smooth sailing. I'm with you. Next time nice restaurant child stays home till child is old enough to behave. Sort of like the movie theater scenario. Not fair to other people in the restaurant or movie theater when a child gets all loud and starts acting poorly. Not the child's fault but the guardian's fault. Back to the fact that Bill is doing so much better and that you have much to be grateful for! You are right- a lot has happened in the last 6 months and the best outcome is here. So happy for you and your brother! Thank you for allowing me to talk things through yesterday and as always I enjoy our CCs. Hours fly by and feel like minutes.

Marcy, Oh no, I'm sorry your new employee wants out. Especially because that employee had potential. You deserve better employees Marcy. They are lucky to have you helping them do their jobs correctly but so ungrateful about it. Petulant children.
Haha I second that-if I were your guest I might not ever want to leave. You are a terrific hostess and it is no surprise you have so many happy guests!

I am glad you are taking a short break from all the housework (minus doing the dishes) and hope you enjoy relaxing a bit! Maybe catch up on some good movies. Last night we started rewatching Igby goes down. Funny and I don't remember watching it in 2002. Sweet. One good side effect of having not the bet memory. I can rewatch movies with Greg and we enjoy them as it is the first time we are watching.


Junie, glad your mom is settled in and it wasn't too difficult getting her to come to you. Glad your sister was able to help in that regard and hoping you and your mom had a decent night's sleep last night.
Hi LLJsmom, Kristie, Scandi,Gypsy.



CJ and Sharon, hope things are going well.

Jimmianne, how's the house buying process going? Any more pics you can share with us? I loved those tandem pics. So lovely and reminds me of a gentler and softer time.

I hope I didn't leave anyone out and that everyone is having a good week.

Sharing a few security camera pics from last night. One of the smaller (baby?) raccoons who gets into the feeding station eating side by side with Fresca 2. Really adorable because they are peacefully eating and were very polite about getting into the feeding station. And I think that is the first time we saw a raccoon politely eating side by side with a feral kitty. LOVE that.

 

[Scandinavian]

lost my post. a really long one. mad. I actually closed the window by mistake.

 

[Calliecake]

Missy, WOO HOO on the great news about Greg!!!!! I'm always a phone call away Missy. I love the pic of the Kitty and raccoon. Too cute!

Marcy, This employee sounds like a piece of work. The guy Is actually getting one in one training and he is complaining. What the heck would he do if his training was baptism by fire. I've never had one on one training. Everyone was always just thrown into the fire and you either sink or swim. Honey I'm so sorry your have had more than your fair share of prima donnas working for you. You truly are a saint Marcy! I wonder what he would do if you told him it was about time he started actively looking for employment at other companies. Maybe that would change his attitude. You can't make this stuff up MarcyI!

 

[Calliecake]

Scandi, I'm sorry. We have all been there. Believe me we all know how frustrating it is to lose a long post. I swear they made the head banging icon for this very thing!

 

[junebug17]

Hi girls, there's no way I catch up completely but I'll try! I actually started this post yesterday lol.

Missy, sending lots of good vibes and positive thoughts about Greg's test results, sorry you have to wait so long, I know it's nerve-wracking. Thinking of you, and Greg too of course (((((hugs)))))

Ok, that pic of the cat and the raccoon eating side by side is just amazing! It's like they've called a truce and have come to an understanding that they are just both there for the free food ha. I can see why you and Greg would be tempted to try TNR by yourselves but I also see that it would just be too difficult to coordinate with you guys not being there full-time. Ann is such a great person for all she does, I am just so glad you found her. And hang in there sweetie, I know you feel overwhelmed sometimes but please just keep reminding yourself you're doing all you can, you're doing the best you can, and you're also doing a hell of a lot more than most people would do!!!

Rainwood, LOVE the pics of Nina and your husband, so cute!

Oh my goodness, what a weekend you had! Well, you can definitely say you weren't bored lol. I'll bet you're enjoying the peace and quiet now though. Yes, there's just something about restaurants and two year olds. We had to stop going out to eat when my son was 2 to about 3, he was usually well-behaved but he would just lose it in restaurants. So we just did take-out for a while ha.

Gypsy, sorry you have sleep issues, I do too so I can relate and I'm so sorry you haven't had a good night's sleep in days, believe me, I know how hard that makes it to function properly and feel well. I'm usually ok once I'm asleep; my problem is falling asleep. Melatonin seems to help me but I know it's not effective for everyone. I'm so sorry about your eyes, I hope they improve soon - now that you mention it, I've been getting some sleep because my sister is here and I'm functioning ok, but it really hasn't been enough and my eyes are bothering me now.

Your sunset pictures are amazing! You're a great photographer. And love the pics of Penny, she's so cute.

I love to read to and we have similar taste! I'm going to read The Rook, it sounds like a book I'd like. I also do like historical true crime, I know it's a bit ghoulish but I enjoy learning what life was like in the past and I find it interesting to read about how crimes were solved before DNA testing, fingerprints, and other modern methods. As a matter of fact, I just got an email telling me I have a credit in my Amazon account for a settlement by Apple in an antitrust lawsuit over the price of ebooks, woo-hoo! More money to buy books lol.

Good for you for not stressing yourself out by having your parents over - at this point we have to do whatever is necessary for our peace of mind and I'm glad you ended up doing what was best for you. I think we're reaching that point in our lives where we've earned the right to do that once in a while lol! I'm so glad you had such a relaxing and pleasant day at the winery and at home, you deserve it; I think of days like that as mini-vacations from life and they are very refreshing. So nice to just have a few hours of relaxation and a break from the stress of life.

Scandinavian, your post made me smile! Lol to horrible teachers coming up with the idea of a hike and a sleep-over. It sounds exhausting lol, but I'm sure the kids had a great time. You're a great mom. Lovely pic of your summer house!

Calliecake, I can't tell you how happy I am that your brother is doing so well! I can only imagine how relieved you are and I'm so glad

LLJsmom, you are such a conscientious and devoted mother - I think it's great that you are going to add some structure to your kids' summer and keep their minds active with academics. It's really good for them, and they'll still have some down-time and fun during the summer months too. Ugh, I did a terrible job in that department and every summer I would vow to make my kids do some schoolwork and I just never followed through I know how busy you must be and you are going a fantastic job of juggling everything, hugs to you and hang in!

I'm glad you're enjoying your gorgeous stone and focusing on all the things you love about it - you can always look into a whiter diamond down the road if that is where your heart is but in the meantime you have a beautiful OEC to enjoy. It's great it has edge to edge brightness, that really does help with the finger coverage and visual size.

Oh no Marcy, boo to your good employee wanting to move back to his old department - sounds like he's the kind of person who doesn't deal with change very well. Actually, that reminds me of my son too lol - thanks for asking about him, he was unsure about the new job at first but seems to be settling in a little better now. Glad to hear you had a good time with friends, lunch and shopping sounds really fun.

Jimmianne, thinking of you and hoping you're having a blast!

Things are going as well as can be expected here - my sister and I drove up on Sunday and got my mother. She was resistant at first but my sister did a great job of getting her to come and my mother agreed fairly quickly. She handled the trip well and seems to be doing ok so far, although occasionally seems confused as to where she is. Once we explain she seems fine. She's a little more alert than usual, although that will probably change as she gets used to her new surroundings. She's getting around better than I anticipated. My sister is very excited and pleased that my mother is in a more pleasant place; my mother's home is just kind of dark and drab. I have tried very hard to have things set up in a similar way to what she has at home, although I couldn't match it exactly of course. My mother did ask yesterday when she was going home. my sister and I were honest but gentle with her and she seemed ok. I know it's a big change for my mother and she has lived in her house since 1958 but I'm kind of hoping her memory issues will soften the move and she'll just get used to being here fairly quickly. I'm still trying to figure things out, although I'm used to taking care of her so I'm used to some things. My biggest worry is still her sleep schedule, right now I've been able to get some sleep because my sister is here. She will probably stay for 2 weeks. My mother didn't get up as much last night but is still getting up during the night to use the commode, and her most sound sleep is from 7 to 2 in the afternoon. We're going to try to switch it around. Right now we're keeping a very close eye on her because she does seem to be confused at times, but I'm pretty sure that will wear off after a while.

On the plus side I'm enjoying being in my own home and getting to see my husband and son a little more. It's nice to cook in my own kitchen. I feel a little more at peace in my own surroundings, even though I'm still stressed as to how this is all going to play out. As I said, everything is new and time will tell how doable this is so I'm just taking it one day at a time. It is definitely a full time job lol. I haven't hired help yet, my sister and I were thinking we should give my mother a chance to adjust to her new life for a bit, about a week, before we spring a big change on her. My sister and I are working well together and we make sure we give each other breaks.

I want to thank all of you for your good thoughts, support, and comfort, it has been such a big help to me to know you girls are here for me. Now that things have settled down a little here I can participate more in the thread. I've missed you all!!! xox

 

[marcy]

Hi NIRDIs! Happy Summer Solstice!

Rainwood, I chuckled again as I scrolled by the picture of Nina “helping” your DH under the sink. That is so cute.

Missy, biopsy results can take weeks depending on what they are - its such a painful wait.

I totally get why you love to wear earrings. You can’t see them on me but I like catching a glimpse of them in the mirror. It would be a toss up whether I love rings or earrings more. I have more rings now than earrings but that’s because I sold most of my earrings I don’t wear.

I tell you I am so frustrated with my position. I have 6 employees and one of them applied for the job. The other 5 were “given” to me from other positions. I had one great employee that was head hunted away from me about 2 years ago. It’s a weird job, certainly not exciting, your work is never done, you can do hundreds of things right in a day and yes will have a single mistake pointed out to you and the pay isn’t awful but it’s not great. It’s not like people are handing me resumes in the hallway asking to work for me. As I said before if you only pay people peanuts you are going to end up with monkeys.

I am glad people like to come visit us. But once company leaves all the Teddy Bears come back out. Ha!

I’ll have to look for Ibgy Goes Down. I love funny movies. I definitely laughed that having a bad memories means watching a movie again is like watching a new movie. I swear my mind is going every day.

I love the raccoon and kitties dining together. That is awesome.

Scandinavian, I am so sorry you lost a long post. So in my mind I am seeing some of your pretty pictures and know you had a fun and busy day.

Calliecake, no I can’t make this stuff up. When I used to have awful students at least I got rid of them in 16 weeks. Maybe I will turn in to Gordon Ramsey on them and they’ll realize I am not messing around anymore.

Junebug, that is awesome you got some credit at Amazon for books. Do you use their Kindle App? If so maybe we got one. Marty buys so many books I rarely have to buy something, I just ask for his recommendations and go browse through our library.

I am glad your son is starting to like his job better now. I talked to the lady who is training my new employee and without prompting she told me he doesn’t like being there and she thinks it’s primarily because he has to work all day. As Dee Jay said in my other thread - that’s why they call it WORK!!! You do what they tell you to do. I am slow to change as well but I sure never went back and whined to my boss to put be back where I was because I don’t like this.

Thank you for telling us how the move went with your mom and how things are progressing so far. I hope your mom adapts and adjusts soon although she’ll occasionally ask when you are taking her home. That is good you and your sister are taking turns and breaks while everyone gets used to this. When you hire help are you going to have them come in for the day or night shift? I am glad you are enjoying cooking in your own kitchen and being able to see your husband and son more. Sending you all hugs adjusting to this big change.

My day was a bit crazy. 2 people from corporate showed up to demonstrate how they are going to make our lives easier this fall - only for me to crush their excitement within the first 5 minutes by saying - well that saves me a few minutes a day but what about this other stuff we have to start doing? You know why bother to spend time with the end user before you design a system for them to do their work? Oh wait, we didn’t think of that!

It’s really smokey here today. There is a fire about 200 miles away and the smoke must be coming this way. The Sun was orange and visible in the sky like you’d see it at sunset. I bet our sunset is going to be gorgeous.

Marty is out playing golf. He had a rough day. The company I work for pretty much said today Marty couldn’t be on site. His company is demonstrating some equipment there (salesmen) and they need technical info but my company (Marty’s former company) said he couldn’t come out there because it wasn’t fair to other vendors. That’s smart to ignore the guy who designed your system and knows how it works just because he works for a different company now.

Maybe I’ll retire. Ha! I could spend my life shopping for Teddy Bears.

Have a great Wednesday.
Marcy

 

[MarionC]

Good morning nirdis
June thank you for posting your experience of the first days of your mom's arrival
I hope she settles in quickly.
Glad your sister is there now for you.

I start home on Thursday. Ready to come home as my brain is full of things to process and I miss my working routine.

Most times I attempt to post I get an error message
so forgive brevity,
Thinking of you all
Hugs!

 

[LLJsmom]

June, quick post. I'm so glad it seemed to go well. I hope your dear mom will eventually adjust to the new sleep schedule. You and your sis are doing a great job. Big big hug to you! I hope you sleep well and tomorrow will be even better.

 

[rainwood]

I'm sorry to hear so many of us are in the 'Losing My Post Makes Me Lose My Mind' Club. Is it something in the water?

Missy, you know I'm so happy for you and Greg. Hope Wednesday goes well with 'well' as defined by what I said earlier.

Junie, I'm glad the move went well and your sister is with you for the first few weeks. Such a big change is hard at any age, and I consider anything short of your mother wandering out the front door to find her way home to be a major victory! From what I know, being active at night is common for Alz patients so it may be for your mom's form of dementia too. And having to get up in the middle of the night because nature calls is definitely common once we hit a certain age. My thoughts are with you still, and I'm glad you get to spend more time at home with the rest of your family and cook in your own kitchen. Hang in there.

Marci, I'm so disappointed your new employee isn't willing to go the distance or even the first 100 yards. Makes it worse than if he never came at all because he had such potential. And I'll see if there's a way I can get you a copy of that Marci for Men ad with your DH's ring. It's such a funny coincidence.

Callie, sorry to hear you're also a member of the 'Take A Holy Terror to Dinner' Club. We went to very family-friendly places but sometimes that's not enough, or in our case, not even close to enough. I don't know how parents do it.

Jimmieanne, I can't believe your time in France is passing so quickly. It seems like you just got there! And it's interesting to hear that eating our posts is an international phenomenon. I'm sure we all were much wittier and entertaining the first time around.

Scandi, I hope you don't hit any more PS brick walls. Is there a good swear word in Swedish to cover this situation?

As for me, I thought I'd post a not very good photo of the big bald eagle we named Jumbo. It's a little bit of 'Where's Waldo?, but he really is big. The tree is just a lot bigger. And his wings are folded over his tail feathers so you can't see much of his white butt. Or whatever you call it on a bird.



Oh, and I want everyone to remember I am not the one who recommended Pride and Prejudice and Zombies so if you don't like it don't blame me. But if you don't like Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld, you can blame me although I will think it's mostly your fault!

Hope everyone has a good Wednesday!