24th March

[Mick]

hiya all how are we doing today then? hope all is well ..just got back in ..the sun has been shining all day..still cold but lovely .Was going metal detecting but my mate had too much work on ..so went for a walk instead .took the camera with me ..got some nice pics ,will put them up once I have downloaded them from the camera .how is everyone today then? what have we all been up to over the weekend?
Im on sausage casserole tonight ...yep I can eat that ok ..I dont know how I managed previously .
have a great day all

[wagmor]

Hey everyone! Sorry for my very prolonged absence. I was overwhelmed, and then was more overwhelmed, mostly with responsibilities for my dad and others. It's been a rocky several months since I last posted here and I need to read back to catch up on all your news. Glad to say I'm on more stable ground again and no alcohol was consumed during this difficult time.

I look forward to joining you all here with at least some regularity. Going to go read back now... <3

[Lavande]

Good evening friends!

Sunny & chilly today but nice after all that rain yesterday. Haven’t really done much but a little Spring cleaning but that’s OK.

Mick, thanks for the startup. It’s Palm Sunday, Easter next Sunday then the month is over already. Must be having fun, time is flying. Glad you got some sunshine too & got out for a while. So what did you end up eating? Mashed potatoes are good but get tiresome, for sure.

Wags, very happy to see yuo posting once again. I know life gets so hard at times, it’s understandable. Glad you remained AF all that time, be proud. I hope things settle down for you now.

Hellos going out to PQ, Slo, Cyn & Pie. Hope everyone is OK.
Have a nice night all!

Lav

[Mick]

hiya all..how are we doing ? hope all is well .was out with the camera yesterday..really good time and the weather was good too...and it failed today..pouring with rain .

hiya Lav.yep still on mash ,scrambled eggs and all that..nope dont get bored with it ..I chuck all sorts of seasoning in it ..Julie thinks Im a fruit loop..mash with curry powder in it ..garlic paste ,beef paste ..all sorts of stuff.

Hiya Wags how are you doing ? havent read your post but Ill check back ..nice that you are posting again ...and well done for staying orf the booze no matter how rough things get .

hello everyone else ..

My mate has a stutter and was telling that his nana had just died! By the time he’d finished we where all singing hey Jude!!

People I've just got back from the doctors and they have diagnosed with bipolar disorder! To be fair I got mixed feelings about it!

Told my boss that three companies are after me and they need to give me a pay rise! He said which companies?


I said gas, water and electric!

[Slo]

Hello to my peeps!

Wags, welcome back! Is your dad still alive then? How about your dog? My cat died. Did you put on the seminar at the college?
The main thing is that you stayed AF through the rocky times!

TG, all good news about stepdaughter!! I wouldn’t even be able to work such a physical job like you are doing. No wonder it’s taking all the starch out of you.

Mick, at least the weather cooperated for one day anyways, for your excursion out to shoot nature photos. We’re gray, damp, & cold here too.

Lav, YB is generous to give a loan to the Amish customer. If they are that trustworthy, then it works.
I did make the banana bread! I put chocolate chips in it too. And thought to freeze half of it for my company on Wednesday. Hopefully after the full moon tonight, then maybe I won’t have such intense sugar cravings.

I’m still grappling with the fact that I will go through the rest of my life semi-hobbled. I’m still trying to find the balance between trying to keep up with my activities of daily living and cleaning, trying to figure out how I can exercise a little without making things worse, needing to rest & sit a lot, but trying not to suffer the consequences of not enough mobility. I need to find a new cobbler too (the other one retired), and get some more left shoes altered.

Off to my appointments! (acupuncture, laser therapy, chiropractic, knee massage)

[Lavande]

Monday greetings,

Nice & sunny today but the clouds move in tomorrow bringing more rain Wednesday & Thursday, ugh. Still better than snow I say. I hit the grocery store & Walmart today to restock on necessities, so exciting haha! I hope to get to the cemeteries tomorrow to leave some Easter flowers for the relatives. I haven’t made any plans for Easter, the family doesn’t seem interested so I’ll save my energy. Tomorrow, March 26 is my 15 year AF anniversary. On the one hand it’s hard to believe it’s been 15 years but on the other this is just the way I chose to live the rest of my life & I’m quite happy with that decision.

Mick, I know you got some excellent pics with your camera. Sunnier days are coming I’m sure.
Keep that diet soft & avoid anymore mishaps, please.

Slo, it’s good to bake & immediately freeze half. If I let things sit long enough to get stale then they go right to the chickens, Lol
Ihope your appts went well. Your Chiro should be able to suggest appropriate exercise for you. I’m afraid to stop moving for fear I’ll just stiffen up like tin man if you know what I mean. I stopped using my stationary bike a fe weeks ago because my knee was acting up but I’m trying to stay mobile other ways. It’s not easy, that’s for sure. Good luck in your search for a shoe cobbler.

Hello to PQ, Cyn, Wags & Pie. Hope everyone is OK.

have a nice night all,
Lav

Have some cake.

[porqoui]

MAE ALL...survived the weekend without getting called in to work, boss not so lucky. Had the University Mechanical Engineer Students Friday night and they trashed the place. Boss forwarded an email from the staff on that night and said we'll discuss how much we take out of their damage deposit on Monday. I just said we keep it all. LOL This group had rented before and the same staff person was working. He had said to the boss, last time they were here they were out of control. Boss finally looked through his emails and admitted he missed flagging them as not to rent to. I'm sure he won't forget again after having to go in and mop floors on Saturday before the all day renters showed up. I am so sick of this snow, it's been unbelievable. Finally stopped snowing Sunday and the sun came out but I didn't have the energy to go outside and deal with it.

Wag...nice to see your post. Sorry it's been a rocky few months for you but am so proud of you for not turning to AL. Hope everything gets sorted out and calmer days are ahead.

TG...sounds like you had a good time with your DIL and the apartment hunting was positive. Hope you're able to get some down time soon.

Mick...I don't think I've ever heard anyone referred to as a fruit loop. LOL Glad you're sticking to a soft foods diet for now, give those teeth a rest. Sun was out today, no snow, but it was bitterly cold. Things are supposed to improve starting tomorrow, can't wait!

Slo...I wish you luck with a new cobbler. Hopefully with better footwear and some exercise advice things will improve. Just don't over do things, listen to your body.

Lav...CONGRATS ON 15YRS! what a great choice you made and thanks, I'll have a piece of cake. I didn't go anywhere over the weekend, just couldn't deal with all the snow if I didn't have to. I need to restock too but wasn't doing after work today. I have to launch the Craft Sale and Community Garden registrations by Friday so I'm stuck in program mode again. Online event bookings and the fall Out of School Care programs have to go live mid April so I'll be busy when I get back from the Easter break. I think it's good that you can save your energy and not organize anything for Easter. Hope you get to the cemeteries tomorrow.

Shout out to the rest of the gang. Have a good night all....PQ

[Mick]

mae all how are we doing then?hope everyone is doing ok,Sleeping a bit better now ..taking iron supplement dont feel as tired.I dont get physically exhausted just weary if that makes sense .anyways we shall see .taken a few decent pics with the camera ..different settings and lenses etc...apologies Lav !

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as you can see I havent quite got the hang of unloading pics!!

hiya Wags ...how are you doing ? glad things are on a more stable footing for you ..Julie has been going through the mill too...what with arsy doctors , assessments and not last week the previous one she spent 15 hours in a and e alone .before even seeing a consultant .its enough to drive anyone to drink ..though a big well done for not so doing .

hiya Lav Congratulations on 15 years well done to you...thank you for all those you have helped along the way ..and also on a personal basis for your friendship.I love your no nonsense approach .are you doing anything special? we were supposed to get sunshine on Wed ...but its suddenly giving out rain ...did you have anything to do with that?Im going up to clean the gravestones this week .I was going to get one of those battery operated jet washes but the reviews say they are rubbish ..so back to the scrubbing brush.I hope you have a great day.

hiya ppqp ..how are you doing? nice one with the boss ...his mess ,his screw up .his to fix .Fruit loop?slang for eejit ,bampot tube zonk ,bam which in turn are slang for idiot Yep still on soft foods .The dentist was supposed to phone me yesterday ...and didn't so I phoned them ..turns out the receptionist wasn't in ..so why tell me she was going to phone when she knew she wasn't in ? one of my pet hates ..If you say you are going to do something then do it ..I would rater they said no ..or arrange a later time /date ..glad the snow is on the way out for you .

hiya Slo ..how are you doing? hope you are ok .sounds like you went through the mill yesterday..as for exercise ...you dont have to go running marathons ..a wee bit of exercise until you get tired and then rest ...also have you tried isometric exercise?you can make your own routines up with that...still grey and damp weather there?

hiya teegee ...how are you doing hope things are ok .


right good people its 06.30 ..brew time ..

[Lavande]

Good evening everyone,

We had mostly sun today, nice for a cemetery run with Easter plants. I need to take new American flags next time we go, my dad & YB’s dad were both veterans & have the flag holders next to the headstones. The winter really did a number on the flags we put there last year. I buy them online by the dozen, just need to remember to take them along.
I celebrate all my AF anniversaries in silence, always have. It’s not a topic I care to discuss with YB, he doesn’t understand or see things my way, Iknow that so there’s no point. I am happy with myself & that’s all that really matters.

Mick, your pics are really fabulous, I don’t mind seeing them again. I’m glad you are getting out with the camera & getting some great shots.
Thank you for the anniversary thread over in General too. Don’t know how many will see it, there’s not a lot of traffic over there anymore the way there was in the past.
The news is still filled today with the bridge collapse outside of Baltimore overnight. Such a shocking video to watch. Prayers to all involved in this tragedy.

Hello to PQ. Sounds like your weekend guests were a bunch of bums, what a shame. Surely they will not be allowed back in the building!
Glad your snow storm is over, wishing you a quick melting. You’re going to be one busy lady getting all those projects done in the coming weels. Good luck!

Hello to Cyn, Pie, Slo, Wags & anyone stopping in later.

Have a nice night all!
Lav

[porqoui]

MAE ALL...quiet enough day allowed me to work on the boss's online facility rental programs. He's got it 98% there, just a few tweaks. We moved the rental bridge group (not one I played in) into the main hall as they were getting too big. Of course the director of Civic Affairs decided she needed to hold a public meeting (the city is changing it's default zoning allowing people to build 4-8 unit housing on single house properties without having to go through city council for approval) so as soon as we got the bridge group out we set up for 250 people. I definitely got my workout in today.

Mick...totally know what you mean about feeling weary. I was going to load up on an extreme Iron sup until Lav told me to be careful, so changed to a lesser sup. Your pics are terrific, you're getting it figured out. Wondered why you apologized to Lav, was there a chicken being eaten in one of the photos? And then I saw Lav's post, ah, she'd actually seem them already. LOL Yup, if you say you're going to do something, do it. That's a pet peeve of mine too, especially with the accountant. LOL

Lav...glad you had nice weather for the cemetery run. When you said you need to remember to take the flags it remined me of I need to remember to take my reusable bags when I go grocery shopping. I totally understand about celebrating your anniversaries in silence, that's why we're here! We get it. LOL Oh yeah the weekend bums are definitely on the "No Fly List" I've really got to get my time management in line to hit some of my deadlines. It'll keep me busy and the days will fly by.

Waves to all else. Have a good night....PQ

[Mick]

hiya all how are you doing today then?hope all is well.Its really sunny now ,but went out earlier on ..and got absolutely soaked .took a load of photos but havent looked at them yet .

hiya ppqp..how are you doing?so you had a quiet day yesterday? Good ..sounds like you have a lot going on at your place .take it easy ...


hiya Lav .how are you doing today? 15yrs and a day ...was going to go up and clean the headstones today but the weather was a bit brutal.I will do it this week .I put a load of plants in ,and to be honest I could have ooubled it ...only pansies and violas ..20 plants for 1.79 .you cant grow them for much less..heres a cracking story and it genuine

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13241783/Kind-hearted-woman-nurses-stricken-baby-hedgehog-overnight-discover-fluffy-hat-bobble-took-animal-hospital.html

[Lavande]

Greetings everyone,

We had our rainy day just as promised. Used the afternoon to bake up a double batch of oat flour waffles, gluten &dairy free, yum. I’ll have them for breakfast for the next several days. They toast up nicely in the mini oven. Such excitement haha!!

PQ, my reusable bags are always in the back of my car but do I ever remember to take them in the grocery store??? I still hand write a shopping list so I should just add a note to take the bags inside, LOL
Hope you had another quiet-ish day at work & the snow is disappearing.

Mick, our weather has a tendency to change quickly too. Pouring rain one minute & a sunny as you like the next. We really need to do some stone cleaning on YB’s family headstone too. There’s a large cedar tree near it that seems to be encouraging the growth of some fungus looking stuff. We’ll get it done next trip out there.
so the kind-hearted woman thought she had a hedgehog, haha!! Didn’t know anyone was that stupid. Nice of her though. Our outside planting has to wait about another month or so depending on what the weather/temps look like.

Hello to Cyn, hope all is well with you.
Hellos to Pie, Slo & Wags too.

Have a nice night all!
Lav

[porqoui]

MAE ALL...it felt like a Friday all day today. Probably because the boss and accountant are off tomorrow. YAY Weather was above freezing and sunny so that was good. Tomorrow cloudy and more snow on the way.

Mick...oops, sorry you got soaked. At least the woman's heart was in the right place. LOL

Lav...lol I hand write my shopping list as well. The roads a clear but there's a lot of snow still out there.

Not much to report so will say Hi to everyone else and hope we all have a good night...PQ

[Mick]

mae all .how are we doing today then? hope all is good ..been out in the garden this morning ..strimmed the edge of the grass ,and yet again picked up cat crap..not impressed the next door neighbours are sound but their cats aint going to use my garden as a toilet .Ive got 2 sensors in the garden which do work ..the trouble is they dont cover the whole area .Ive already talked to the neighbour about it ..to be fair there isnt a lot he can do ..Ive just got to make them understand that my garden isnt their toilet and it will come with a risk .of some description.Im sure it will get sorted eventually .

hiya Lav how are you doing today then?yes like you I have a car full of reusable bags ..and always forget them.....and yes I write shopping lists (or message lists as they are called back home ) but I go a stage further ..once its written I take a pic of it on my phone,so that if I lose or forget it ..I have still got it ..Yes I thought that one about the hedgehog was a belter .her heart was in the right place ...evn if her glasses werent !

hiya ppqp how are you today then? all good I hope .You still got the snow?Some parts of Britan down south got it last night and so did Scotland.It feels like a Friday to me too.Are you off tomorrow?

hiya Slo ,pie ,teegee wags etc all the best to you for Easter

I'm combining Easter and April fools day together this year.
I'm sending the kids out to look for eggs l haven't hidden.

A Scottish friend of mine sings in a Swedish tribute band, I call him abba Dean.

[Slo]

I’m less fatigued now that the full moon is over. I get so tired in those two weeks leading up, plus depressed & irritated, and lots of sugar cravings. Haven’t gotten over those yet!

Mega congratulations, Lav! 15 years is a big, round number. I celebrate my sober-versaries quietly by myself too -except for on this site. Thanks for the cake!

Yesterday my similar-aged (to me) aunt & uncle came up to visit me & my sister during their Spring Break (they work in a school), and to see my condo; and we went out to lunch at a delicious farm-to-table restaurant. They wanted to see her sister too (my mother), but another resident crashed into the underground parking garage door of her senior living apartment, and she couldn’t get out!
We had a nice day.

You’ll have a good Friday on Good Friday, PQ; if both the boss and the accountant are both gone!

Yeah, Mick: how do you keep a cat from using the neighbor’s garden as a toilet? An Invisible Fence? Or is the onus on you: taser gun, squirt bottle, paintball gun?
I do do a bit of isometric exercise regularly, and a bit of a modified yoga/ Pilates combo regularly.
Your wildlife photos were a real treat to see.

It’s sunny today for a change!