Now I really did it :((

[junebug17]

Hi all!

Missy, I love your poem to Marcy! You and Greg look terrific, I'm glad the weather was good enough to go cycling. Sorry about the discomfort and I hope you find the correct saddle soon. Sending hugs to you about the ferals, I'm sorry. I do think there's a chance they've relocated, or you just haven't seen them. It is a very tough situation and you've done all you can.

Marcy, it's great you had off on your birthday, I'm so glad you had a relaxing day and I hope you enjoyed your dinner. Good to hear you can wear your new bracelet! So generous of you to give your sister the sapphire bracelet. Lol to all the shenanigans that your bear was up to! A house right on the ocean would be wonderful - I think dh is in Marty's camp though, he'd love to be on a golf course too. It's a shame we don't live closer, the guys could go golfing and we could go bling shopping lol!

Austina, sorry to hear about all that hassle with the gate, and the added expense! Darn that slug. Hope the weather gets a little better for you soon.

Scandi, love that bikini! Great color. So happy that your furbaby is doing well.

Kristie, thinking of Maggie and hoping she's feeling ok.

Well, I'm back in town - and missing the warm weather! Spent today running errands and cleaning up a bit. Have a good night all! xox

 

[marcy]

Junebug, dinner was good and I brought a lot of it home. Supper and lunches are covered for the rest of the week. It would be nice to be closer together so the guys could play golf and we could go bling shopping. I hate to think about that bling bill though. We'd have to start a NIRDI bling fund. Darn that it's not as warm at home as it was at the beach. I cranked on our AC again today. Once the Sun is on the west side of our house it gets hot in here - we have more windows on the east side of the house but they all have thermal shades under the drapes so that probably helps keep the heat down.

 

[Scandinavian]

Good morning girls!

Good news Talked to the vet yesterday, furbaby was in for a check up, and everything looks good. She is healing well But even better – they had got the test results back for the tissue that was removed, and there was no sign of any spreading. So YIPPIIIIII for that

Re rescuing dog story, my DH is always very supportive, but he is just worried that I might get hurt running around in the middle of the road like that, lol.

Kristie, hope the acupuncture is helping Maggie?

Marcy, too funny that you put on the wrong bracelet without realising, lol, you have too much nice stuff, lol. I trust the snow is over for now though I hope? I love chips and salsa. And restaurants in general, lol. Saves cooking and cleaning If you are using the AC the summer must have begun at least a little You are a work angel, hope you know that. And I really hope they pay you well for the whole being on call thing! Do you play the lottery? My DH always tells me that I can’t win because I don’t play. Seriously??? Evil man. Let a girl dream. I’m very (!!) sorry I missed your birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARCY!!!!!!!!!!! Hope you had a fantastic day! Sounds like you and Marty always have a lot of fun together Would you like to be my sister too….???

Reminds me, our new kitchen is in the making now. That will be exiting. Light greenish blue as you might recall. But in a vintage kind of look. Hmmmm. Exiting and slightly scary. But I really want a blue kitchen, because the house used to belong to my grandparents, and originally it had a blue kitchen. DH is perhaps too kind, LOL.

Missy, your pictures of the deck is wonderful! No wonder the ferals are having a lovely time there! Even if their lives are perhaps shorter than for house cats, you never know. And I really do think the most important part is that they have a happy life. And you so contribute to that, I really hope you know that in your heart!! If not – let me tell you (LOL LOL): Missy, you are a wonderful person and your sun deck and your restaurant and pool bar and hotel are top notch and we love to hang out there! The bill is especially good! You always take a IOU Lots of love from your ferals! I do miss Cola, hope she turns up. Missy, I’m so glad you broke your ankle too! Not! But you know what I mean, lol. I should stop by you before the beach instead of the other way around! So you could have drill mastered me into shape! Perhaps I should buy you a bikini… I bet you would look just amazing. So no excuse, miss’ie! LOL

You have sooooo many nice cycling outfits!! But how on earth are you able to look that tall and long legged in cycling gear?? LOL perhaps you are tall!

June, so glad you had a nice time at the beach! You sure deserved that !! I hate to exercise, lol. No I don’t. But perhaps I do.. LOL every year, after the first skiing trip, I can hardly get out of bed the next day. Muscles have a very short term memory, at least mine do.

Austina, LOL to setters. They really are a bit whimsical! But fortunately, here at least, they usually know the word “sit”. So I use it frequently when trying to catch them, lol. And they are easy to scare, so if you run towards them with your arms in the air and yell sit, they might just sit down for a few seconds out of pure confusion and shock… LOL. I’m with Dottie, though, best to avoid strangers! My girl (an English Setter) is very sceptical to all dogs that are not (i) male (ii) dark haired and (iii) strong (read: big Gordon setters). Go figure. Perhaps she takes after her mama… LOL. Oh now to slug gate games.. Too boring!!

Jimmianne, hello! Hope you are well!

Callie, I have the exact same closet that you do! It keeps shrinking my clothes EVERY WINTER! I’m going to buy a new closet now, to punish the old one for years of cruel intentions… LOL. I have started to eat a lot of protein and not so many carbs at all now. Should do the trick, I think.. or hope. I simply refuse to buy a whole new summer wardrobe! Easier to eat salads to when the sun is back in town Snow and salads are not good companions... I will have to add weight training too. I have been slacking that since Christmas. Bad me. So nice that your niece is already a little shopper You are going to have a lot of fun together I think

Sharon, hello! So good of you to go cycling!

 

[missy]

Good morning girls. I started feeling very tired and losing my voice yesterday afternoon and today woke up with almost no voice. Some would say a respite to all those around me but thankfully I still have a voice on the computer... I am still heading to work today and hopefully I can manage communicating with those I need to communicate.

Marcy glad you enjoyed a lovely birthday. And very pleased work could not interrupt your day yesterday. Finally something good comes from having to change our passwords a million times a month. We have to change ours every other week and I realized I already forgot my newest change from last Thursday. LOL. Yay to having meals covered for the next few days. And yes to fixing your bracelet at least for now. Also yay to finishing your June newsletter. You accomplished a lot in the last few days. I am impressed.

Austina oh no about a slug short circuiting your gates. How awful. I hope it is completely fixed now and just a one time weird occurrence and that you make up your missed Pilates session. That is sort of scary though to be trapped as well as what happened with your dh's computer. Hopefully no repercussions from any of it. And hoping your weather (and ours) improves very soon.

Junie, welcome home! Sorry the weather is once again cold and crappy and rainy. The forecast (with perhaps the exception of tomorrow) is looking unpleasant for the foreseeable future. Oh well.

Scandi what wonderful news about F! So happy about her diagnosis! YAY!!!! And you are too sweet. Seriously no bikini for me unless you want to scare small children and animals.
I do have long legs for my height but I am just 5'6" so not tall at all.

So I received more sad news yesterday. A long time neighbor and friend died after being diagnosed with endometrial cancer in January. The doctors told her it was curable and she had the necessary surgery and chemo and radiation over the past few months and last week the cancer returned with a vengeance and went into her bones and she died yesterday afternoon after a week in the hospital. My heart goes out to her family and her dh. They were very much in love and it is a great loss to everyone who knew and loved her. And to know her was to love her.

 

[jaaron]

Hi Nirdis-

Just back from a bunch of travel and feeling completely loopy with jet lag, and to top it off, my space key is sticking. Grrrrr.

Will catch up in the next day or so, but big a big hi and lots of love to everyone in the meantime.

Missy- I saw your post above. I'm so sorry. We just lost a close friend this week to a shockingly aggressive cancer discovered just under two months ago and we're still reeling.

On a lighter note, the NY weather was certainly conspiring against my summer-y packing job...

 

[marcy]

Hi NIRDIs!

Scandi, I am delighted to hear what the vet said about your sweet furbaby. We are with your DH - we don’t want you to get hurt running around in the street but I certainly understand why you wanted to rescue that poor doggie. Ssh don’t tell Marty I have too much jewelry. Yes, our snow is gone and it’s getting warm during the day. Summer might be here. I play the lottery sometimes. When I buy a ticket I get a quick pick for 20 times then forget to pick up a new one. It only takes one to win though. Thank you for the birthday wishes. Marty and I do try to always have fun. We both are easily entertained. Sure, you can be my sister too. Marty will approve of eating more protein, less carbs and doing strength training.

Missy, oh no to waking up without your voice. Hopefully you managed to make it through the day at work. My boss at my old job used to lose his voice when he had a cold and I was such a brat I would often say “what” when he said something to me. Do you feel okay? Have you had any more dizzy spells? That is a short duration for passwords at work. 2 weeks? Do they also have those silly restrictions that your new password can’t be part of the last 40 passwords or something like that? There are just a few passwords I can easily remember. I am so sorry to hear about your friend and neighbor. Cancer can be such a quick and aggressive disease. Big hugs to you and her family.

Jaaron, welcome back. I hope your jet lag goes away soon. The weekend Marty got back from Uganda I think the only time he moved for a few days was to go from napping on the couch to bed.

It was tough going to work today. I had one of my vision problems in that I didn’t see myself wanting to be at work. I but on my big girl pants and my new bracelet and went to work anyway (don’t worry I put on a top too). A friend of mine at work took me out for lunch so that was a nice break too.

We had another rain shower this afternoon but no hail. The rainy season lasts in to June then we get really dry with occasional afternoon mid to late thunderstorms.

I didn’t sleep well last night - mostly from too much food at supper and the fact I went to bed late and slept in for 4 days.

Have a great evening. It’s close to Friday already.
Marcy

 

[junebug17]

Missy, just wanted to pop in and send you some good thoughts that you're not coming down with something, hope your voice is better tomorrow. I'm also so very sorry about your friend, so sad. Such a hard thing for all those who knew and loved her. Sending hugs and comfort to you.

I'll be back tomorrow to check in with everyone!

 

[rainwood]

Hi, all!

Missy, I hope your voice returns soon. And I'm sorry to hear about your friend and neighbor. Life isn't fair and neither is cancer. I'm glad you got some cycling in when you were at the beach. I know how much pleasure that brings you - especially after you get your cycling "muscles" broken in. We used to have a stationery bike and I couldn't ride that thing for more than 15 minutes without my lady parts objecting even though it had a gel seat. I don't know how people do it in spin class. I'd be walking like a cowpoke for days. And just to echo every one else, you and Greg are doing all you can reasonably do for the ferals. And even if their lives were short, they were much, much better and easier because of you two. Your dedication is amazing!!

K, an update on Maggie, please! I hope Tuesday's acupuncture went well and the vet was able to get to the really tender parts. I want her to feel better and stop beating up my boyfriend, Finn!!

Scandi, I'm glad F is feeling better and her results are clear. Woo hoo!!!! And I'd probably jump out on the highway trying to save that doggy too. I did it once to save a saddle. And it wasn't even mine and no horse was involved!! And I will leave all the red bikini tops to you without further explanation except to say the world does not need any further torment from me.

Marcy, happy belated birthday! I'm glad you enjoyed your day, and neither your employees nor the killer rabbits ruined it for you. And maybe you should ask if you could set your employees' new passwords. Give them something to think about every time they have to log in.

Junie, it's good to hear you had good weather and a good time at the beach. You certainly deserve both!

Callie, we used to share frequent flyer miles too. Once we treated the entire extended family on both sides to Hawaii. Don't even want to think about how many miles that was, but it was a great time to have all of the family together. It was a long time ago, but we all remember it fondly. And now that I'm thinking of that, my DH must have had a lot more miles than I remembered. That was something like 12 people just on that trip!! And DH and I flew first class where the mai tais were so strong and free flowing I almost came off the plane sideways!!

Jaaron, welcome back from your travels. Hope you had a good time despite the weather not matching your packing strategy.

Sharon, your DH sounds like he's kind of like me. When I start something new, I'm all about the gear. And I have the stuffed closets and drawers to prove it. I'm glad you're enjoying cycling together.

Austina, you're still a kid. You ain't old until your age has a 6 in front of it!! And maybe not even then.

I had a quiet holiday weekend. The weather was beautiful, but holidays are hard and I wasn't motivated to socialize much. I did do a short hike and got a few tasks done, but mostly I dedicated myself to full-time, hard-core frittering.

And speaking of frittering my time away, I should have been working on work stuff last night but I decided that I should try getting some better shots of Elle. I'm a decent photographer, but my ring photos are worse than if I just handed my phone to a monkey and said "shoot." So I did a little better at showing what I like about Elle and what she really looks like.

This is a shot that somewhat captures what I'll call her soft, antique-i-ness. It's a little strange to call something as hard as a diamond soft, but it really does have that soft, romantic quality. It's just a whole different look that really speaks to me:



And here's one that comes much closer to showcasing her petal qualities or, yes, what I call her petal-i-ness:


I have to admit, I'm tempted to sell my MRB, even though it was my upgraded ER, because I never wear it anymore. I just love Elle so much more. It's partly size, I have to be honest about that, but it's mostly that she just feels more like me. Again, my thanks to Missy and Jimmianne for running reconnaissance and finding Elle for me. A match made in Manhattan, as it were.

Have a good rest of the week!

 

[missy]

Good morning girls and happy June 1st. I am officially under the weather. Pounding headache with barely any voice and itchy where my old shingles used to be so fingers crossed I am not getting shingles again!

Hey Jaaron welcome back to your home and I hope your jet lag is improving. Yes- our NYC weather is a lot like the UK weather lately. Cold and dreary and not springlike/summerlike at all with the exception of a few days. Hope your weather improves faster than ours is predicted to improve. Just heard the meteorologist say 2 more weeks of crappy weather. Great.
Anyway hope you enjoyed your trip here!

I am so sorry about the loss of your friend.

Marcy how nice your friend took you to lunch yesterday. Yes we have to change passwords (and we have two sets of passwords to just get into the system) and they cannot be something we used before. That is why I keep having trouble lol. I write down the passwords but you can imagine since we change them so often sometimes it gets tricky. I have been locked out before because if you try more than 3 times you are SOL!

I am sorry you didn't sleep well the other night. I too must be finished eating before 6:30/7 pm or I have trouble laying down at bedtime (which is about 9PM for me). So you can imagine it does affect our social life but generally I am OK with that. Though we do make exceptions and I am resigned on those evenings for a fitful sleep. Even if I don't eat a lot just being out late interrupts my inner sleeping schedule which is very sensitive. Annoying.
Glad you didn't get hail yesterday. That stuff is nasty. I remember very clearly when Greg and I got stuck out in a hail storm when we were cycling. It was painful.

LOL to your "vision" problems. I had some of those myself yesterday. AC was broken and I got into it with the admin and I just don't see myself NOT walking away very very soon. They got the maintenance guy down to our area to restart the condenser (he has to get into the ceiling so it is not simple) and he did and it worked but he cannot keep doing this. It isn't his job and he keeps saying that and the clinic admin is too cheap to really fix our unit and I am so TIRED of this. I wasn't going to go in today since I feel so awful but this might be my last day there period so I think I will go in and perhaps take some of my things. I bet you anything the AC won't be working again (it has to be restarted every day) and today the new head person of the entire corporation will be there so it should be interesting because they truly don't care and getting that confirmation face to face will cement my decision. I have been reluctant to leave my patients who I love and have been seeing for 17 years there so I think I need a shove to do so and today might be the day.

Junie, thank you honey. I am looking forward to hearing more about your trip and when is your next beach vacation?

Rainwood, Elle is stunning and romantic and perfect. I love her setting too. Though I don't think that is your final setting I love it anyway. Thank you for taking more photos of her. Haha a match made in Manhattan. LOVE it.


I ordered a number of different saddles some of which are coming today. And new cycling pants and shorts. Which cost more than the saddles! The most I ever spent on cycling clothes but the cycling expert I spoke with suggested I try it. Of course until the weather improves I won't be able to try any of them out but I am hopeful there is one in there that is comfortable. I totally get your description of how it felt on the bike and walking like a cowpoke for days. My "lady parts" just stopped hurting. Crazy. I fervently hope I can find a comfortable solution because the alternative makes me sad.

My advice-Hold onto your MRB until even more time has passed just to be sure you are OK with getting rid of it. You don't need the money so I would just wait. Better safe than sorry and just make sure you feel OK with selling it before you do.

A few days ago an old friend from grade school contacted me on FB and then a few more old friends who are friends with him on FB also contacted me the next day (my profile is on private as you already know for those of you on FB and who are friends with me) and so I have been reconnecting and one of the girls said to me but what will you do if you retire? Aren't all of your friends working? And that is my exact worry. My friends who are retired are out of state (HELLO girls you know who you are LOL) and my friends who are here are busy with work/kids/life. Trying not to get down about it. I think I need to give myself permission that if I quit work I am OK doing NOTHING at least for as long as I want before I do something again. And that something would be purely volunteering because I have no desire to work in my field ever again. I am burnt out. But mostly I worry if I am not contributing to the household will I feel useless and like a weight on the relationship? If I am not contributing to society will I feel badly? Like I am wasting resources?

Of course spending money is contributing to society right? Getting the economy going...
(but I will have less money to spend if I am not earning money)

OK girls, thanks for listening to my ramblings. I hope everyone has a good day. I may be back later if I leave work early today because I may need your comforting words and support if today is the day I leave work for good. (((HUGS))) to all.

 

[azstonie]

NIRDI Babes! June 1, hello summer! I am officially NOT swimsuit perfect but the pool is now open here so I'm taking full advantage. I just throw on a Land's End tanksuit, a rash guard and call it done

Here is Miss Maggie at her acupuncture appointment this morning, I finally managed to get a pic. This morning was nothing short of a miracle because Maggie was able to allow her arthritic knee to be fully needled and electrical current run through. This was supposed to be her 4th/4 appointments but we will go back for 1 more now that we can get to the knee. She has had a good improvement with the acupuncture. The vet told me not to get too concerned when Maggie babies that knee/leg.

 

[Austina]

Good evening ladies from a very sunny and warm UK.

Missy and Jaaron, I'm so sorry for the loss of your friends, cancer is such an evil disease, and these days it seems that we all know someone who is either battling or succumbing to it

Missy, do take good care of yourself, being poorly is reason enough not to go to work. I think you'll find that there'll be plenty to do if you give up work, I don't know where the time goes, but it certainly passes quickly enough. I work an odd day here and there, and I find it a serious crimp in my life when asked

Such good news Scandi, the waiting to hear is awful, so glad everything is ok.

Rainwood, Elle is absolutely lovely, so lucky to have such skilled helped in sourcing her.

To jetlag Jaaron, I don't tend to have a problem flying home, but visiting DS really messes with my body clock.

So glad you had a lovely birthday Marcy, 21 again?

Such a good good girl co-operating with the acupuncture Azstonie.

Well, we are in the grip of election fever, and I'm feeling really depressed and worried about the outcome (join the club I hear you all shout!). Our current PM had a huge majority, which is now slipping away fast. We face the real possibility of an anti establishment, communist, whose party are a complete shambles and have been trying to get rid of him, who will lead us in to financial ruin. We will go and vote next Thursday, before heading off to the airport.

A big to you all.

 

[azstonie]

So Rainy, check out your OEC soli. Sigh. Elle is perfect. I love a soli, really features the diamond imho. I'm glad you got out/about for the holiday weekend Developing interests, talents and skills is always a worthwhile way to fritter your time. I think its funny that you used a "donut" description, considering you are NOT a donut girl!

Marcy, glad the birthday went well and you were not at work! Good decision

Scandi, YAY for Fifi and her excellent recovery!!!! Those are wonderful biopsy results indeed!!!

Austina, Pilates, way to go! I hope the gate is good to go now Hahaha, you want to be able to come and go at your convenience! Hugs to your adorable girl. Crazy times in terms of politics, isn't it. Mind boggling in a lot of ways both our countries. It used to be the *Italians* were the ones who would put crazypants in office, now apparently its us too.

Hi Jaaron, glad you're safely back home!

Junie, glad all is well.

Jimmianne, Bonjour ma chere!

Missy, honestly, the time will take care of itself. And also, along the lines of "When the student is ready, the Master will appear," when you make that change the opportunities and new roads will appear.

I'm taking on some part time work, I have a "retail" opportunity coming up in the fall that I want to take advantage of. I'll be reviewing enviromental clean up documents and providing comments and recommendations. I won't have to go in to an office, the docs will be forwarded to me and meetings will be teleconference. It is slated to wrap up by the end of the year, which is just about right for me.

 

[Calliecake]

Missy, I was so sorry to hear about your dear friend. It's never easy to lose anyone we love and care about and we are never prepared no matter of much we think we are.

Scandi, Thank Goodness someone else has the same closet I have. It used to be my very favorite room in my house (I am being serious). Now I avoid the darn thing at all costs, Nothing is more depressing then having a room with so many closets full of clothes in it and not a darn thing fits. I'm trying to really cut back and see if I can lose these nasty 10 pounds. Poor Missy has to listen to me cry about my ever expanding waistline.

Donna, I love your Diamond. What a beauty!!!

 

[Calliecake]

Rainwood, I was told I was wrong about the miles. It was only 3 million miles. For years family used the miles way more than we did. My MIL went on many first class trips. My BIL and SIL went to Europe and a few other vacations. Another brothers whole family went on vacation using them. At one family event I attended (husband was traveling for business), MIL said I needed to book her and a friend first class tickets to an island. I told her I would be happy to book her ticket but I wasn't using our miles for her friends to go on vacation. They would have to pay for their own ticket. My SIL's sister looked at me and said that I didn't travel often and I needed to book these flights. I told my MIL she would have to talk to my husband when he returned. My husband put his foot down and put an end to the free trips for everyone every year.

Marcy, I'm so glad you had a happy birthday. Keep repeating "A girl can never have too much jewelry"

Kristie, Great news regarding Maggie. FInn is probably celebrating to!

Junie, Are you glad to be home? Do you bring Zoe with you to the beach?

Jaaron, Welcme back!!! You were missed!!!

Austina, I feel your pain regarding your election. It's not a good feeling to wake up every morning and wonder what stupid thing your leader will do to day. I'm sorry but please know you can come here to vent about it and you will get lots of support.

 

[PintoBean]

Ermagherd I just clicked in here on a lark and Elle is a beauty!!!!!!! I love the petals!!!!!!!!!

 

[Calliecake]

Yay the beautiful Pinto Bean is here!

 

[marcy]

Hi NIRDIs!

Junebug, are you missing the beach? I sure am; it’s a long way from here though. I’ll have to watch some of my videos from last summer soon.

Rainwood, I did chuckle at your comment about walking like a cowpoke. Pretty funny. Thank you for the birthday wishes. I did have a nice day. I like the idea of setting my employee passwords - I could definitely come up with things that hit home. Good plan. I am glad you had a quiet weekend; yes holidays are difficult. Elle is very photogenic; she is gorgeous. I can see why you love her.

Missy, I am sorry you aren’t feeling well. I hope your shingles aren’t coming back. Get better soon. We get locked out after 3 tries on passwords too but they reset themselves after 30 minutes. I’ll often wait it out rather than call IT. I guess it’s better for us we don’t eat much at night; I don’t sleep well on a full stomach either. That is too bad you had such a rough day at work yesterday; it sounds like more things are pointing towards you moving on. You seem to have a lot of headaches to deal with there for sure. I hope one of the new saddles works great for you and woo hoo to new cycling pants. That’s nice to catch up with some friends from grade school. I am sure you’d find something to do if you retired. Maybe involving kitties.

Kristie, yay for summer being here. Maggie looks like she takes the acupuncture well and I am glad she let them touch her bad knee; I hope that means she is feeling better. Thank you - I did enjoy my birthday. Your part time work sounds fun and interesting. Very cool. I like that you get to work from home and do teleconferencing. Sweet.

Austina, I bet you are getting excited about your trip. I was reading about your election. It’s a crazy world these days.

Callie, I am glad your DH put his foot down about family using his miles. Marty bought his sister tickets once and I don’t think she even thanked him for it. Okay, I like that - “a girl can never have too much jewelry”. Thanks! How is your shoulder doing?

PintoBean, glad you stopped by. I am thinking about you.

Well it’s late and I’d best get ready for bed. It takes me longer to clean my jewelry than it does for me to get ready for bed but those minutes add up. I wanted to paint my nails tonight but didn’t get that far. I at least got the old polish off yesterday.

I spent time trying to decipher Marty’s work credit card tonight. He’s had 4 trips already but he’s only submitted 2 of them so all of a sudden I had to rob Peter to pay Paul, I nagged sufficiently about using our money for that so he went down and submitted trips 3 and 4 tonight and hopefully his boss approves them quickly. He leaves Sunday for a 2 week stay so maybe I can get trips 3 and 4 wrapped up before trip 5 is due. Such fun!

We had rain again with small hail. I was wincing on the way home but the hail quit about 1/2 way home so I quit speeding.

Take care. Have a great Friday.
Marcy

 

[missy]

Good morning girls! Happy Friday.

Callie sending you lots of love, hugs and good thoughts and good luck!!!!! Please don't worry!!!! And LOL you can talk to me all the time about anything you want. XOXO.

Junie thank you for all your kindness and comfort and support. (((Hugs))).

Austina I feel your pain about the election. Has the world gone mad? Thank you for your wise words. And sending you (((hugs))) across the miles. We are all in this world together and it does give me hope that reason will prevail. Eventually. I fervently hope.

Kristie so pleased for you and Maggie that all went smoothly yesterday. Go Maggie! Go Finn! Go Kristie!
And the "master" has not yet appeared. All went well at work yesterday despite the AC once again NOT working when I arrived. The AC guys got there quickly and were able to start the condenser again. They haven't figured out what is going on and I know it's complicated but OMG need AC. Thank goodness I am off for a couple of weeks though I am not hopeful about it working when I get back. So that so called master might appear soon enough LOL.

Marcy be careful driving when it is hailing. And yes get Marty to submit it all. The sooner the better no? Where is he going next for business? Hope you slept well.

Hello PintoBean, hope you had a better night's sleep last night honey. (((HUGS))).

So no better today and in fact I was coughing all through the night. Deep coughs that hurt my chest. But we are off to the beach today and fingers crossed I can manage cycling and that the saddle is comfortable. 2 of them arrived yesterday along with my new cycling pants/shorts. Good news they arrived. Bad news the cycling pants are a bit too big. Good news I might need an XS since the cycling pants and shorts I ordered were size small. JK about that last part of good news. I have not lost any weight at all and in fact gained. It's that darn vanity sizing again Grrrrrr and I would really just have liked them to fit yanno? For $200 for one pair of cycling shorts and $200 for one pair of cycling pants it would have been nice. Now must send them back and decide do I want to try an XS. Not sure because like Goldilocks one size too big and one size too small and perhaps no size will fit...


Have a good Friday girls!

 

[Calliecake]

MIssy, The company figures if you are spending $200 for a pair of cycling pants they damn well better at least make you feel like you are a smaller size than you actually are. LOL. I hope your new seat works well and you have a great day cycling today. Thank you for all the support. I'm giving serious thought to our conversation today.

 

[azstonie]

$200 for polyester?????? I'm with Callie, they damn well better vanity size those suckers!!!

Missy, your Student is not yet ready, therefore the Master did not appear!!

 

[Calliecake]

Missy, On second thought those pants aren't vanity sized at all. There is NO way you wear a size small!!! Silly girl!

 

[missy]

Good morning girls!

Haha Callie and Kristie you 2 crack me up.

I am going to have to swallow the $ loss as I already took the label off one of the cycling pants. My bad. It cannot be altered properly to make the padding fit right so that's that. I did order an XS due to arrive Monday though I am questioning my wisdom in doing so just because I am not sure I can actually continue to enjoy cycling. But the loss of money on the saddles and cycling clothes is nothing compared to the cost of all our bikes- and especially the Calfee. Just adds insult to injury if I have to give up cycling.

Some rambling thoughts ahead and please feel free to skip the whole shebang. I am sure it is boring to most but just getting it out to help me deal with it.

As most of you know from yesterday's text chain (and thank you everyone for weighing in and for those not on the text chain because of out of country texting being not efficient I am sorry but posting it here so you are not out of the loop) I seriously might have to give up cycling. Trying to come to terms with this issue and putting it in perspective it's just what it is.

I tried 10 different saddles yesterday-none of them comfortable. And Greg (bless his heart as they say in the South though I believe it means something less than bless his heart there when you say it I really mean it lol) just ordered 3 more saddles. He is persistent. I am not giving up per se but just facing reality. My anatomy has changed pure and simple due to menopause/aging changes and it seems I just cannot tolerate any length of time in the saddle. And by length of time I mean more than 20 minutes. Without going into graphic detail (TMI) I examined the area after our (my) torturous cycling yesterday and the area is red and inflamed and I understand why I am in pain when cycling now. What I don't get is why now I cannot tolerate it and it has to be due to changes that occur from aging. Aging isn't kind on us as women especially.

I am very sad about it but I do have to face reality. I will try the new saddles Greg ordered (getting here beginning of next week) and we actually did buy another saddle yesterday afternoon from the local bike shop that I will be trying this weekend but it wasn't terribly comfortable when I tried it yesterday afternoon. I bought it because it was the least uncomfortable of all those I tried. Now I know my "lady parts" were already irritated when I tried the last few saddles at the local bike shop (and thank you Tom of Atlantic Cyclery for allowing us to be there for hours as Greg kept changing saddles for me to try before buying and also for entertaining us with all your wartime cycling stories LOL) so maybe it will be more tolerable when I am not already irritated. That's the reason I bought yet another saddle (I have 7 new saddles now and 3 more on the way) at his shop yesterday. Plus I wanted to buy something from him because of how kind he was to have allowed us to monopolize his shop all afternoon. Though I know he enjoys the company and Greg did all the bike work.

So the practical side of me is trying to figure out what I will do now if we have to give up tandeming. I cannot run anymore (because of my hardware in my leg plus I have no interest in running anymore. Too hard on the body in general). We see people doing the elliptigo around here but I don't think that is something I want to do. We can enjoy hiking and nature walks but it won't replace cycling so still trying to figure it out. I would love to find an activity where we can remain active outdoors and enjoy together if we have to give up tandeming.

Healthwise my body is taking its sweet time getting over this virus. My voice is worse than before (barely anything but a whisper now) and my coughing is alternating bw dry and loose. Weird. Just want to get over this already. Heal body heal!

Callie I am sorry yesterday was a bad day for you honey and I am sending so many good thoughts and hugs and love your way and I know everything is going to be OK!!! (((Hugs))).

Kristie hope Ms Maggie and Finnie boy are continuing to do well. (((Hugs))).

Hello everyone else! Hope you have a wonderful Saturday.
Sorry for the large print. As I was typing the font size went schizo on me again. Much like my cycling experience.

 

[missy]

OMG thank you again girls! Just read all the texts from overnight. I love you girls so much. Seriously I could not have hoped for better friends. (((HUGS))).
And though I only took one photo yesterday will share it here. I really should have taken photos of each saddle Greg put on the bike yesterday but Tom was chat chat chat the whole time and I didn't want to be rude. He really loves to chat. He even did his bike dance for us LOL and I am going to go back and see if he will do it again so I can share it. On IG cause I cannot share video here. But OMG Tom (Atlantic Cylery) is a riot.

 

[Austina]

Afternoon lovely ladies another beautiful day here, although rain, rain and more rain forecast. Honestly @missy, do please have a word with your weather and tell it to confine itself to your side of the Atlantic, we don't want it

So sorry to hear you and your lady parts are suffering, not much fun being a woman of a certain age at times, is it? Hopefully you'll find a nice comfortable gel saddle and won't have to give up riding. I feel your pain, I had to give up kickboxing and jujitsu when I shredded my medial meniscle cartilage in my right knee, and I loathe running, I just don't think it's good for our bodies. My lovely toned and fit body has gone to pot since I hope you're soon over awful virus.

Thank you @marcy, we are very much looking forward to our upcoming trip, spending the weekend getting everything ready in the house, as I wouldn't want the burglars to think I'm a slattern

I'm sorry to complain, as I'm not normally a stressy person, but all this uncertainty over the election is really getting to me, and playing havoc with my stomach. As DH keeps reminding me, we can do no more than vote and hope and pray that the terrorists sympathiser doesn't win.

A big wave to you all, have a lovely weekend, whatever you're doing

 

[junebug17]

Hi everyone - just wanted to check in quickly with everyone -

Missy, I'm so sorry about the problems you're having with cycling, I know you love it and it's very disappointing…but I'm not giving up hope that you'll find a saddle that works. I hope you heal quickly and I'm sending lots of get-well dust that your nasty virus clears up soon. Hang in there and try to enjoy your vacation as much as possible, (((hugs)))

And try not to worry about retiring, I'm sure you'll find lots of things to do to keep you busy. You'll figure things out as you go along, and I'm sure everything will work out.

Marcy, I do miss the beach a little! Good luck figuring out Marty's work credit card, hopefully you can get it straightened out soon. Oh no to hail on the way home, I'm glad it didn't last long.

Calliecake, we didn't bring Zoe with us - it was a quick trip and my son was home so he was able to take care of her. We're taking her with us in July since we'll be there for over a week.

Jaaron, welcome home and I hope you're over your jet lag . I'm very sorry about the loss of your friend, just awful.

Scandi, it's very understandable that your dh was worried about you, I was kind of nervous myself as I read about your adventure lol! I'm glad things worked out well and everyone ended up safe and sound.

Rainwood, I'm glad you had a nice weekend and enjoyed some quiet time, I think it's very healthy to occasionally just hang out and not do much of anything lol. Elle is just fabulous!!! What an amazing diamond, what a joy it must be to have this stone on your finger…thank you so much for the eye candy! How about making your MRB a pendant? Just a thought.

Kristie, I'm glad you were able to treat Maggie's knee and I hope the acupuncture helps. She is being such a trouper in that pic! Your upcoming part-time job sounds great.

PintoBean, so good to hear from you, I'm keeping you in my thoughts.

Austina, sorry to hear you are feeling so stressed about your country's election. It's a terrible feeling and I hope you can find ways to relieve your worry. I'm glad you have your upcoming trip to look forward to.

Spent the day running errands with dh…he needed his car serviced - he has a Tesla and had to have a battery replaced so it only took an hour or so. Unfortunately the service place is an hour away lol. Then to Costco and the Tumi store at the mall - an action-packed day haha. Went out for dinner and then watched 2 episodes of House of Cards. We love it but I'm having trouble figuring out what's going on!

Ok, it's pretty late so I should get to bed - I hope everyone has a good day tomorrow!

 

[marcy]

Hi NIRDIs! How are you doing?

Missy, how is your crud now? I hope you are feeling better. Those summer viruses are nasty. I am sorry you are so sore and irritated and can’t find a comfortable seat. I hope once you feel better you can find something that doesn’t make you sore. That is wonderful the guy at the bike shop was so entertaining and let Greg change out so many saddles for you to try. I am excited for you to have a few weeks off from work. Marty is headed back to LA tomorrow for 2 weeks. I am not looking forward to him being gone so long. He got tired of coming home late Thursday then heading back on Sunday. Try not to worry and stress about the uncertainty of the future. I know that is easier said than done but we are always here to help and offer our 2 cents worth. I always believe things do work out. Big hugs do you. Enjoy the beach for me.

Kristie, good point that for $200 polyester pants they should have vanity sizing.

Callie, I did plant my flowers today. I picked up some pansies, petunias, geraniums, a few spikes and some African daises.

Austina, I was saddened and horrified to hear of some more terrorism this time in London. Good luck getting everything ready for your trip.

Junebug, I did figure out the work credit card and paid the June bill already. It’s not due until about the 15th but I always pay my bills ASAP so I don’t forget. I am sure you do miss the beach a little bit. Marty said he was going to probably go to the beach in LA since he’ll be there over a weekend. Does DH love his Tesla? Marty says I shouldn’t try to race one of them. Did you get anything at Tumi? I love their stuff. I think House of Cards looks interesting but I’ll have to watch all the back issues to figure out what is going on too.

I did go out and pull last year’s flowers this morning (and a few weeds). Marty got home from golf about 1 so we went and picked up our flowers. We picked up some of the Miracle Grow potting soil to replace the top soil. Marty dug out several inches on the top of the pots then I went from pot to pot arranging the plants in them. Marty dumped new soil on top, got the drip system going and we were done. Woo hoo! Now I am hoping both of those white things that fall from the sky stay away.

We went out to supper at a steak house north of town. We both went for the 1 1/2 pound T-Bone steaks. Marty ate all of his; I brought home 1/2 of mine though. This place’s signature dessert is bear balls. It’s a ball of vanilla ice cream rolled in crushed Oreo cookies. We split one of those for dessert. It was a nice evening and Marty of course enjoyed the short drive because he got to speed both going and coming home.

Have a fabulous Sunday!
Marcy

 

[Austina]

Waking up to more terrible news, when is it all going to end? Thank you all for your good wishes.

 

[Snowdrop13]

Missy, I sometimes visit this thread and thought I'd quickly butt in- I recently heard a BBC Women's Hour programme about women in cycling. There was a very interesting piece with a dermatologist about the issues with the 'saddle area', some of it might be useful? It's near the end.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08njtjj

 

[junebug17]

Austina, I am so sorry about the attack, such a nightmare. Keeping everyone in my thoughts. (((HUGs)))

 

[Calliecake]

Austina, I've been thinking of you and Jaaron since hearing the awful news last night. I'm so glad you are both safe and so sorry you are going thru this. Be safe sweetheart.