Genuine July - 2016

[paulywogg]

Morning friends, Dill,what did you do for hubs' birthday? Hopefully something fun(dinner preferably) I'm obsessed with food for some reason lately,maybe cuz I'm counting calories with sparkpeople I dunno,I bought this shake called Almased and its supposed to be a natural metabolism booster,you're supposed to only drink that for a few days but I'm not using it like that cuz I don't need to lose much,plus I like chewing haha,I just drink onein the morning I've already lost 1 lb so that's cool,Star and Cyn you're both frequently traveling, I can never keep up with you two Lav,will you plant anything in the greenhouse? I'm glad you can watch the boys,I think I already told you all about my kids'horrifying babysitters, ugh,I started thinking that people just took on childcare thinking it would be easy money,my poor kids were neglected and actually injured in some of those places,creepy,I hope we all have a nice day

[dill]

Hello All,

Pauly, Spending the day on the boat, having a picnic lunch and lemon squares for desert was pretty much what we did for Mr. D's special day. We had a friend along with us and we did some swimming, too. I had a birthday candle in Mr. D's square and we sang to him. I think he really enjoyed the day! I got him some special chocolate and a few t-shirts, so that was fairly low key. He is really hard to buy for and at this point in my life I've pretty much given up trying! LOL Good luck and best wishes to you on the weight loss effort. I have really been frustrated trying to lose lately. I would like to lose just 5 lbs, but it just isn't happening!

Star, My stargazer lilies are in bloom and smell SO SWEET! And I thought of you yesterday on the lake bc we brought our floating chairs with us. The first time I ever heard of floating chairs was from you on this thread.
Glad your work week will be short.

Lav, do you know how big the greenhouse will be? Ours is small, probably about 12x24ft.

Cyn, safe travels!

We only got a quarter inch of rain yesterday and we needed much more. If we don't get rain today I am going to have to water the veggie garden tonight.

Have a peaceful af evening everyone.

[SnoopyC]

Good morning...

Dill, what a lovely birthday, on the lake, swimming, floating chairs and good food and company. That sounds like a little retreat to me. It must be fun to have a boat, I loved renting one on our time off and cruising around the lake.

Lav, it was ugly out here too yesterday, I did not mind working, when I came home I stayed in. Are these the dog days of summer yet?

Cyn, happy travels.

Pauly, isn't it funny, trying not to eat and all of a sudden, everything sounds extra good!

Have a great Friday, AF.

[dill]

Good morning friends,

Star, the dog days of summer is a funny term, isn't it? I looked it up just now after you mentioned it and here is what I found on dictionary.com:

the sultry part of the summer, supposed to occur during the period that Sirius, the Dog Star, rises at the same time as the sun: now often reckoned from July 3 to August 11. 2. a period marked by lethargy, inactivity, or indolence. Origin of dog days Expand. Latin.

I was completely surprised to learn all that. I thought it just meant the hot time of year that made dogs too lazy to get up and go!

Off to do my volunteer job soon.

Lav, Pauly, Cyn, have a great af Friday!

[paulywogg]

Morning ladies, Dill,sounds like a fun birthday for hubs,I love lemon squares,especially with black coffee,something about that combo just fits for me been feeling sort of down but I don't know if I'm depressed(hate that word) or newly sober(hate that too cuz I should be further) or just over analyze my thoughts too much,it's like I'm constantly checking my moods temperature and thinking about it too much I dunno,maybe too many changes going on,hello Star,Lav and Cyn hope we all have a great Friday

[Lavande]

Good afternoon friends,

Another hot & humid day is in the works here, ugh!
I stopped at Walmart after Curves this morning & saw an Amish woman walking in the parking lot barefooted. It was already 90 degrees out, only God knows what the temperature was on the blacktop
I usually see them with shoes on in the stores but not always. Her choice I guess.

My heart goes out to all those involved in last evening's terror attack in Nice.
My daughter & I walked down that very same promenade in April, 1995. We admired the architecture & the beautiful blue water of the Mediterranean Sea, never gave a thought to terrorism. These events are pure evil

Dill, I feel them same as the dogs in this extreme weather, no kidding.
The greenhouse will be 14X19 feet, not huge but still useful I think.

Star, TGIF, ha ha!

Pauly, I went through a period of overthinking everything myself when I was in my thirties. I think it landed me square into a decade of anxiety & panic in my forties & that's what eventually led me into trying to medicate myself with copious amounts of wine. Distraction works wonders, reading Eckhart Tolle's 'The Power of Now' also works wonders. Give it a try.

Cyn, I hope your trip os going as well as possible.

Peace to everyone!

Lav

[treegirl]

Hello all -

Well, I made the trip without any drama, and that's always good! But I left my house at 6:45 AM and got to my destination at 9:45 PM Eastern time. Really?!!? I'm getting too old for these trips, it really takes the starch out of me! But I shouldn't complain, as all the connections worked, and driving to JFK was not horrible, and so I'm happy for all of that. I'm glad to be here to support HB, (though I will not be seeing him today at all until evening, so I'm kind of wondering why I had to get here yesterday, but whatever.) We'll have a nice dinner together tonight.

Dill - I hope that your volunteer job goes well today! Thanks for the info on the 'dog days', that was fascinating. I laughed at your gdaughter's idea of a 'cut' flower. What do you grow in your cutting garden? I finally live in a place with enough sun to have flowers, so I should take advantage of it! The birthday celebration sounded fun...

Lav - I hope that Maxie made it 3 nights in a row! I swear that I have worse 'separation anxiety' than my dogs do... I just am worried about my girl dog, and I hope that the dog sitter doesn't have to stay up with her in the night. No text messages this morning, so all must have gone fine. PS - stars in your crown - You are winning the Great Grandma award for stepping in with the boys once again.

Pauly - ha! I think we DO have a tendency to over-think ourselves and over-react to our over-thinking! I do that a lot. A quick meditation helps me remember that our thoughts really have nothing to do with reality! There's light and peace all around us - a few deep breaths to fill up my mind with light and release any toxic thoughts on the outbreath is usually a good 'reset' for me.

Star - TGIF! I hope your project is proceeding smoothly - that's a lot of rain all at once. So glad your A/C is working - even at 6 AM yesterday morning, the humidity must have been over 90 percent where I live - there was literally a cloud just hanging above the ground, and the air could have been cut with a butter knife! Stay cool!

Well, it sounds like everyone is facing some really high temps and humidity in the upcoming days. It was 103 degrees when I arrived at the airport out here in CA last evening! (I know, Pauly - for you that's every day, but I had kind of forgotten what that was like!) Everyone stay hydrated and cool, please.

And once again, I am focusing on seeing the beauty in every day, and on sending love out to the world - let's make sure we notice and embrace all of our 'moments'. That's all we have, that's what our lives are made up of... Good AF Friday to all...

[treegirl]

X-post, Lav! I forget that I'm now 3 hours behind the east coast -- it's still morning here. I also have walked that Promenade in Nice, -- it's unthinkable that it was a place of so much horror. Just sending all the families there a lot of love..

[paulywogg]

I got my blackberries Cyn,I had to write "let it go" on my forearm at work yesterday just to be able to glance at it throughout the day and let all the thoughts,irritation with customers, basically all the b.s GO! Very sad about France,seems our hands are tied with all of this violence, seems like it's almost daily anymore, prayers for the victims and families

[Lavande]

I'm sure glad you made your destination safely Cyn
Enjoy your stay!

Enjoy the blackberries Pauly just pop them in like candy, ha ha!
You keep letting all the BS go & you will start to feel better. Just takes practice, you'll see!

Peace & love to all tonight.

[dill]

Good morning friends,

Lav, I think our greenhouse is more like 12x20, so very similar in size to yours. It is a good size for a greenhouse. I didn't know Amish people went about barefoot. I couldn't stand to do that on gravel and hot blacktop!

Cyn, we have all colors of zinnias, marigolds, snapdragons for cut flowers but we also have nasturtium, convolvulus, moss rose, petunias and lobelia. I enjoy my annual flower garden! It is such a delight to see all those beautiful colors. I will join you in focusing on the beauty this world offers and sending out loving thoughts.

Pauly, I used to have those racing thoughts too. I do wonder if it is just something we all go thru. I used to have to distract myself with audio books and podcasts when I was starting this journey of being af. Lots of movies, too. Yesterday I had terrible feelings of foreboding. I think the events in France have shaken me to the core.

Star, I hope your landscaping project is coming along nicely. Do you have big trees that need to be removed? I remember sitting and watching as workmen removed a large spruce and a large maple that were too near the house. It's really something to watch!

Grandkids will be here today. We put up a small backyard pool yesterday to try to beat the heat around here! Let's all have a great af Saturday.

[SnoopyC]

Good morning...

Dill, we had 12 trees removed, medium sized, overplanted in a small back yard. It was awful. Now, a totally new look when it is done. Thanks for looking up the dog days story, we have certainly been experiencing it lately!

Lav, had a good Friday, routine is good for me. You are a busy grandma, but I know you will never regret the time spent with your grandkids.

Pauly, enjoy your blackberries, I too need to continue to fill my mind with light and peace, not anger and fear. This morning I was thinking crabby things and realized I can choose differently, did, and felt better pretty quickly. I guess it is ongoing practice to become good at it.

Cyn, have fun on your trip. You are lucky to get to travel often, opportunities for adventure. Thanks for the reminder to fill our minds with all the beauty surrounding us, no matter where we are.

Getting my hair done today, already cleaned most of my house, then want to read and relax, maybe take a walk, it has cooled off a little. Have a great AF Saturday.

[paulywogg]

Morning friends, I'm excited to make my blackberry smoothie here in a bit Dill,have fun with the kids,yesterday Louie brought over those water balloons that you can fill up with the hose,Bunch o balloons I think? Anyways you don't hafta tie em or anything very easy so I filled them and we threw them against the wall,each other but it made a muddy mess and his puppy was having a blast running through it,then through the doggie door,then back into so after they left I had to mop,Dottie(puppy) also got mud on my couch,I'm so glad my cleanliness standards are low cuz that would have drivenme nuts! We had fun though, all that matters Star,enjoy your walk,I got 21,000 steps yesterday, I just figured if I'm feeling frustrated I'll just walk it off hello Lav and Cyn,hope we have a great AF Saturday

[Lavande]

Good late morning friends!

Had to get a package to the post office this morning for a customer. I don't always trust the regular mail carrier around here. Nice lady but I think she leaves Priority mail packages in tge back of her truck for a day or two before actually taking them in the PO, ha ha.

Still terribly hot & humid here, yuck.
There was a large hay fire at a mushroom farm in a neighboring town this week. Happens almost every year in this heat, ugh.

Everyone sounds good & that makes me happy.
I have to run out & try to coax my big dog out from under the deck. It's too hot for her to crawl under there

Have a good AF day everyone!

Lav

[SnoopyC]

Good morning...

Well, up early on Sunday morning, thankful for everything including sleeping well and have a day off to look forward to. Going to exercise, grocery shop, and relax. Maybe warm enough for the pool or a bike ride later in the afternoon. It is so wonderful to feel healthy and not hungover, life is so much better this way.

Pauly, your smoothie sounds delicious and water balloon fight sounds fun. You have sure been getting in alot of steps, good for you. Does it help your mood to get more exercise? I notice that it helps me when I move more. I wanted to comment on your husbands new job and getting home late. My husband always gets home around 7 too and it is really hard, I feel for you. I am just happy my husband has a job as in the past it has been up and down at times, which puts a financial strain on the household budget and stress for evreryone. I just try to have dinner ready and am thankful my job ends at 5. But, it is still hard, so supporting you all the way.

Lav, I know, it was so hot yesterday I just did indoor things mostly. I do love summer though. The contractors for the backyard are not showing up as much as they should and now it is supposed to rain on Monday, the idiots. I want this project done so I can enjoy my backyard some this summer.

Hello to Dill and Cyn. Have a good one all.