May Mojo ~ AF

[paulywogg]

Sounds fabulous Lav Louie's aunt just picked him up,I'm singing"Its the most wonderful time of the year" Hahahaha, I love him too pieces but this week has been killer,plus Kells transfer is so far she doesn't get home til after 9 and I need to unwind,tomorrow I take her in the morning for her surgery,I'm sorta nervous about it, hope it helps,not make it worse

[SnoopyC]

Hey friends,

Got a blow yesterday, my son was let go from his job, and when I found out the first instinct was, "I want to drink," isn't that intense and scary? It hurts so much to see him struggle, treated poorly, feeling badly about himself, and I wanted the pain to stop I guess. However, it wasn't even a real option. It kind of surprised me that the thought/craving was so strong, out of nowhere. Have drink(s) stop the emotional pain. Just wanted to bring this up, I think it can happen when something difficult and painful happens. Drink, stop pain. So, the first thing I did was shut down the thought, no way, that will make things 100% worse, and pictured the worse hangover, then thought of positive things I can do, and I did them. So, feedback would be appreciated.

Cyn, thanks for the website with ideas for food and stopping inflammation,and Lav, like your recipes too, but have to stay away from nuts, darn it. Used my Vitamix last night, it worked so well, has a self-cleaner button on it, I enjoyed it so much. Made a great smoothie, and felt awesome. I want to make soup, and there is a recipe for cold soup too. Plus,the internet has tons of ideas. So, I am ready to go with that.

Lav, thanks for the list of allergy foods, that is very useful. Before I found out I was allergic to nuts, I really suffered. The weather here is supposed to warm up and get sunny/partly cloudy, at least for a day or two. Yay.

Cyn, I don't take any medication on a regular basis, not even ibuprofen, just once in a while. I know pills are bad for us except once in a while. I feel better eating low carb, healthy proteins, and staying away from sugar. I have to make good choices this weekend so planning already! Hope you had a productive day.

Dill, I am taking the B12 in sublingual, how did you know? I have been feeling better and sleeping better except last night with my son's bad news. Woke up today at 3 am. so I know it will be a longer day. I have never made jelly, it sounds interesting. Have a good volunteer day today.

Pauly, sometimes you just need a break so glad you got one. Babysitting till nine or after would be tough, especially after working all day. Little kids are so funny, they just say whatever comes to mind. Like some politicians we know. I do wonder if you have food sensitivities, I am telling you I know I do, and even after one processed food meal, I swell up, have pain, takes days to get back to baseline. I wonder if there are chemicals in certain foods that we could be sensitive to? Hard to tell, that is for sure. Hope your Friday is great!

OK, off to drink some more coffee and see what Mick has to say! Love his jokes in the morning. Have a good one.

[treegirl]

Morning all-

Star - so sorry for the news about your son. This is 'the dark side of the moon' for sure - but I bet that he finds a better fit for him - he just needs to keep at it. Great job moving away from the devil AL thinking. Maybe all the ways that you have practiced noticing your thoughts and habits of self-care really came in handy at that moment, right? I think when we have pain, we should maybe train ourselves to say 'I need to give myself some LOVE so that I can move on from this painful place'. Sounds like that's what you did.

Lav - can't wait to try that recipe, you mad healthy cooker! We all benefit from your 'test kitchen', that's for sure. Thanks -

Dill - I'm thinking of you at your volunteer job today - I hope it's going well!

Pauly - glad that you got a break from Louie, sheesh that's a long time to take care of a child! I hope you get some good rest - that makes the whole world seem brighter for me...

Long productive day yesterday. On to the same today - I'm enjoying the 'fruits of my labor' in my office - calm and peaceful. The dogs were ecstatic when I put their beds back in the room -- I think they thought they were going to have to sleep on the landing for the rest of their days. One dog got in his bed even before it hit the floor! Now that's comfort!

Wishing all a great AF Friday ---

[Lavande]

Good morning friends!

Pouring rain here, very ugly looking outside. This is getting tiresome, haha!
Not like we get much choice, do we??

Pauly, I hope everything goes well for your daughter today. Keep your thoughts positive

Star, I am sorry about your son's job. You most certainly did a fantastic job working thru the drinking thoughts, good for you!
I know it hurts seeing our grown kids being mistreated out in the world. I went thru all that with my daughter many years ago. She was working in a law office one day & put out the door the next day thru no fault of her own. I don't have the heart or guts for the business world after spending my life working in hospitals. They're two very different environments. I hope your son takes a few minutes to think about what he really wants to do & finds the strength to move forward. He knows he has your love & support & that's a big thing :hug:

Cyn, happy dogs = happy home, LOL
I hope you have another peaceful & productive day today!

My first task is to try to get my big old dog out for a pee, ha ha. She's not interested so far!!
Have a great AF day one & all!

Lav

[paulywogg]

Morning friends,Star,I'm sorry about your sons job too,the work environment is so different for these kids these days,everyone is expendable and can be let go and replaced in a heartbeat,I'm glad I'm not just starting a career these days,wonder why drink thought popped up,I'm not sure how many years AF you are but you'd figure the wiring would change eventually, Cyn,so cute about the dogs,maybe they thought they were being punished and alls cool now,what kind are they? Dill,you're probably at the volunteer job right now,hope its an easy day for you,Lav,I'm trying to be positive, I've just never heard of cauterizing nerves before and I wonder how long she'll be in pain,if she even will be,anyhow I've got snacks,coloring book,magazines stashed in my big purse(better than beers!)for while I wait, oh Brady got his drivers license yesterday,so proud but scared too! Hope everyone has a great AF Friday

[Lavande]

Pauly, I hope your daughter's procedure went well today.
Hopefully she will get pain relief for a year or two until the nerve regenerates itself. It's rough living with chronic pain. Congrats to your son on getting his license - a scary time, for sure. But in this country it really is a rite of passage

Still raining here & one of my chickens dropped dead today - not a fabulous day so far.

[SnoopyC]

Good morning...

Busy yesterday too!

Lav, so sorry about your chicken, yikes, that was a little unexpected. I agree that you have to really find a place to work that is caring. Not easy.

Pauly, whenever I am in emotional pain, drinking would be an escape. I want my son to be settled, he has not had an easy life, lots of trauma, actually, and I have been traumatized too. So, it not only brought up the current situation, but the past came flying back too.

Cyn, glad you accomplished what you wanted in your house and now are reaping the rewards. I am going to clean later in the morning, and it will look so good, and I love things in order. Animals are so smart,they notice things too.

Hey Dill, shout out to you.

Going to enjoy my Saturday! Have a good one.

[dill]

Hello All,

Pauly, I had never heard of cauterizing nerves to reduce pain so I googled. Apparently it is a common procedure and relatively safe. I hope all went well with Kel. But from what I read, the nerves can regenerate so the procedure might have to be repeated in the future. Lav was right about that. It's funny but I did not know you had a son! You talk about your girls so much, I thought they were all you had. So, tell me. exactly how many children do you have and what are their ages? I have two. My daughter is 36 and my son is 33. My daughter has one 4 yo boy and my son has a 10 yo boy and a 4yo girl.

Star, I can imagine how upsetting it is to you that your son lost his job! He looked so long before he got it! He must be demoralized too, poor thing. All you can do is be positive for him and support him in any way you can. Try to let go of the worry feelings. They will not help you. We have had lots of upsets with my son recently. I haven't mentioned them here. Mostly they are financial which of course then becomes a burden on us. The problem arises from his GI bill money. The gov. did not give him the check for a couple of months. I won't go into the reasons, but it was just technicalities. Of course that makes things hard and it is so stressful on him. At one point in the middle of it I told him not to worry, he would get it worked out. But I really wasn't sure he could! I just wanted to ease his worries so badly. I am so grateful that in spite of it, he has maintained his sobriety. I wish his life was not such a constant struggle. Raising two kids alone is not easy, that's for sure.

Lav, did you see your hen drop dead or did you just find her after the fact? You reminded me of a time when our rooster died. We allowed the chickens free range in the summer and one time I was watching them pecking and scratching. I had my eye on the rooster when he started acting strange, and then just fell over dead. I assumed he had a heart attack or something. It was sad tho. I missed his incessant crowing for a long time after that!

Cyn, so glad you are getting to enjoy the fruits of your labors! How long had your dogs been sleeping on the landing? You are so lucky to have a nice office space. There isn't a good room in this old house for an office. I have turned one of the upstairs bedrooms into a craft/play room and it could be an office, but I just don't like going up there. It's too remote somehow. So, no office here, but I do have a nice oak roll top computer desk in our sitting room, so I'm happy about that!

My volunteer job went well. I really enjoy it very much! I am probably going to be switching the hours tho because the woman I was hired to replace has decided she isn't quitting after all. But the woman that works the afternoon shift suddenly has to move to Virginia bc she no longer has housing here. Her brother-in-law died and he owned the duplex they shared. It has to be sold to settle the estate so she is going to move to Virginia to be with her daughter. So I will be taking her shift which has much more humane hours! LOL. 11:00-4:00. Sometimes I'll still have to fill in in the mornings, but not often.

Let's all have a nice AF weekend!

[treegirl]

Happy Saturday all -

Pauly -how is it going with Kell? You were well prepared for being a great care-taker yesterday! I really hope that this surgery helps --

Lav - so sorry about your chicken - that must have been a shock to come across and to deal with... hope the sun comes out and the girls rally.

Star -congrats again on seeing what triggers were firing the other day. Good luck to your son -- And congrats on all the household plans, they sound great.

Dill - I had an appointment at my local hospital yesterday (follow-up labs), and I stopped into the Gift Shop, thinking of you!

Another big day today to get ready for everything. I ordered some cool bookcases from Crate and Barrel, very open construction and not too $$$. (I've lived since 2011 without my books having a home, so this is a major thing!) The bookcases arrived, but it's 'some assembly required', so I guess that won't get done before my brother and SIL visit, oh well.

Off to get more of The List done --- wishing all a great AF Saturday ---

[treegirl]

X-post, Dill! The room I worked on is actually a third bedroom, with a sleeper sofa in it. I had a desk in there, and a million files: I take care of my organizing business and my husbands' business along with all the household stuff, so I have to have some kind of an office. But two huge dog beds (when HB kicked them out of our big bedroom) and all the business files made it super-stuffed! When I started meditating and doing yoga, I realized I had to make a change in that room. So I've devised a system where I don't need a desk (although one is still in there temporarily) and though I'll still do business in there, it will mainly be used for dogs, meditation, yoga, knitting and other comfort activities. At least enough to balance out the business part! Yin and Yang...

Glad to hear that you'll be working better hours!

Cheers all --

[Lavande]

Saturday greetings friends!

Still dark & damp here - how boring after all this time, yuck.

I'm sure it's sudden cardiac arrest when the chickens just drop over like that. It's happened many times over the years, weird.
There was a brief break in the rain yesterday afternoon so I went out with a bowl of kitchen scraps, placed it in their fenced yard, stepped inside to collect eggs & one minute later stepped out to find the dead one. That was quick!!

Star, I hope everything settles down with your son soon. Keep the faith he will find his way. Sometimes it seems like it takes forever, I know.

Cyn, my SIL is using the third floor of their old house as an office too, ha ha. I think he needs to be as far away from household & kid noise when he works remotely from home on Fridays. Make it comfortable & your own, right?

Dill, you're going to be dealing with the lunch crowd at the hospital so you will be busy, LOL
I hope you enjoy your new assigned hours

Pauly, how's it going?

OK, I have lots to do so I'll get going myself.
Have a great AF day one & all.

Lav

[paulywogg]

Morning friends,anxious this morning, so sick of this b.s! I have 4 kids Michelle is 25,Kells,24 Bobbi(Portland) is 22 and Brady is 18, guess I don't talk about him much cuz he never gives me any grief haha,mellowist kid ever since he was born ugh any cures for anxiety that I'm overlooking? Tried Valerian,passion flower all the old stand bys,seem to make it worse! Alrighty just gotta breathe,grrr,hello to all hope we all have a nice Saturday

[dill]

Thanks Pauly, now I have a better picture of your family. Nice that Brady got his license! Sorry you're dealing with anxiety. I think we have talked about 5-HTP at some point, haven't we? That is supposed to help with anxiety. Have you ever heard of Calmes Forte by Hyland? I used to use that to deal with my anxiety in the early days. Hope you find something that works!

[Lavande]

Pauly, try some of these apps....Calm: Meditate & relax with guided mindfulness meditation for stress reduction on the App Store
I know you don't like the supplements we've been discussing & major lifestyle changes take a lot of time & effort. Guided meditations are quick, easy & very effective. Try them :hug:

Hi there Dill!

[SnoopyC]

Good morning...

Had a great day yesterday, worked out, cleaned house and grocery shopped before noon, so had the afternoon for fun stuff.

Dill, thanks for sharing about your son, the financial piece is big for us too, and creates a burden and just makes everything harder. Luckily he had an interview on Friday, it went well and he is hopeful. The other job was a really bad fit, but he was wanting to work so gave it a try. Today we are traveling an hour away for a Mother's Day celebration, so I am staying present and making the best of my day. Hope yours is wonderful.

Lav, any special treats for you today as it is Mother's Day? Hope so, and we had a nice sunny day for part of the day yesterday. It was good. Hope it goes your way. Thanks for the support re: my son, I need it. It is especially hard for me right now because my good friend is gone, the person who totally got it, and who I could talk to about it. I miss her so much. I have other support though, my husband and daughter are great.

Pauly, so sorry the anxiety is getting to you. I usually get anxious at home, so have to get out of the house to shop, walk, work out, whatever just get out of the house. I get into my head and get into a tunnel of worry sometimes. Are you worried about something particular or just generally? I will worry about money, the future, my son, health, nothing that is currently going on, but what may happen. If I get back to the present moment I realize that things are just fine, right now. The meditation apps Lav offered could be helpful. Thinking of you and hoping it gets better.

Cyn, you take care of so much, hope you got alot done yesterday. Are you having springlike weather yet? Hope so.

Have a great Mother's Day all.