Thursday Thoughts 8-11-2022

inkspiredmusings.blogspot.com-photograph not credited

Good morning! A more ‘regular’ summer day here. A definite relief from the record-breaking intense heat warnings or flooding downpours. Downright boring!!!!! :0)

Kidadl

Since I felt good yesterday afternoon, I started making the Christmas cards my dear friend asked me to make so she could send them to her friends. She liked the ones that I just finished, but she understands that I can’t make the same thing twice, so I’ll try to come up with something similar.

Lawford Mead Primary School

I’m still jubilant that our trash is GONE. I HOPE that one day I can almost take the trash being picked up on trash day for granted, but that certainly is not yet. I’m hoping that this was an awful glitch in the system and that it won’t be repeated anytime soon. Meanwhile, I don’t have to drive down, armed with another leaf bag, prepared to spend half an hour gathering the trash that has been strewn all over the place by animals overnight. Hooray!

40 Aprons

I told my husband that my plan was to make a huge tuna casserole for tonight – enough we can enjoy it tonight and have several individual serving meals for other nights. He liked the idea. :0)

House Beautiful

I checked to see if we had any ripe tomatoes. I told you earlier that the large planter of tomato plants was done. We still have a couple of plants in the ‘niche’ planter tucked in beside the house and porch. There are green tomatoes, but nothing ripe now.

Tenor

Today is DAY 27 of my daily yoga practice.

The Spruce Eats

A shout-out to Susy and Bobby. I hope they enjoyed every bite of their steak breakfast this morning. You’re both in my thoughts.

Thoughts on a Wednesday 8-10-2022

Cristall Harper – Astoria Fine Art

I’m feeling MUCH better today. :0)

I woke up in the middle of the night, thinking I never paid for Amber’s latest rabies shot. It was given July 6th in the vet’s parking lot by the receptionist and a tech who had been expecting us – but in the middle of a fire scare at the clinic. The fire marshal drove up right after we did and asked us not to go in. Fire trucks came as we left. We were told we would get the paperwork, Amber’s “medal”, and the invoice in the mail. I called later to find out that the smelling smoke was just a scare and nothing could be found by the fire department or their electrician.

In the middle of the night I realized suddenly that I hadn’t received anything, so hadn’t paid. I just called the clinic. As I was on the phone with wonderful Emma, she said another tech had put the envelope to us in her hand. It was packaged, but was never mailed.

M-M-M-Monday 8-8-2022

cesarsway.com

I’m having trouble talking clearly because my mouth is full of basketball…. :0) (I laughed out loud when I found this photo.)

Cleveland Clinic

Things are good here today, except that I developed a sore throat last evening. It hurts to swallow and ‘someone’ has been busy with sandpaper inside my throat. I have some Chloraseptic Spray and should be fine very soon.

Times of India

Meanwhile, we gathered trash this morning to add to the GROUP of bags the trash people STILL haven’t picked up. I’m pretty disgusted with our ‘service,’ having had to regather the trash down at the bottom of the driveway TWICE since the pickup was supposed to happen LAST Tuesday. Three phone calls to Customer Service and one to-the-point email have resulted in two work orders, but no action. They won’t be able to say we didn’t have the trash down in time THIS week…. 8 days and counting. HOPING the work order will result in them picking up the trash today, rather than having to have to leave it out there overnight again until ‘regular’ pickup tomorrow.

front

inside

On my Christmas project, the 8 tote bags are finished and stored until gift-giving time. I finished the Christmas cards to go with them yesterday and I’m now trying to flatten them. When I feel energetic, I’ll put things away in the art room and think about a next project.

Giphy

I’m going to take it easy today, spraying my throat, sucking on Sucrets, and being lazy. I’ll do what I can on my yoga practice this afternoon – DAY 24.

Lazy Sunday 8-7-2022

dogtime.com

Slow start to the day today. I got up before my husband, did our morning stuff, and he came walking blearily into the office to say “Hi” a few minutes ago. I slept well, but I’m not feeling like chasing any tigers this morning.

Awesomelycute

I’m happy all the way down to my toes because my husband again told me last night that he is proud of my yoga efforts. (Today is DAY 23. )

“What’s the 21 90 rule?“ (On forming a new habit)

“The rule is simple enough. Commit to a personal or professional goal for 21 straight days. After three weeks, the pursuit of that goal should have become a habit. Once you’ve established that habit, you continue to do it for another ninety days.” – if this is true, my yoga should be a ‘habit’ by now and I’m into ‘doing it for another 90 days.’ :0)

Austin Children’s Academy

I dreamed about a couple of tweaks to the Christmas cards last night. Otherwise, I left them flattening yesterday. I should be able to finish them today. Then I’ll work on cleaning up the art room to clear the decks for whatever comes next.

I wish you a happy Sunday.

Good Saturday Morning 8-6-2022

Unknown

I wish I woke up eager to start the day, a smile ready. Instead, I always get up reluctantly, grudgingly, putting one foot in front of the other, trying to get morning chores under control quickly and then enjoy a cup of coffee.

Today is much nicer because I just finished chatting with our son. Before he moved to Thailand, he set up a secure chat program for us, as well as a conference call program, so we can have good communications even though he’s all the way across the world. He has recently purchased a condo and is having it renovated. Huge new windows have been installed that will be much more efficient and make his condo much quieter from the outside traffic. He’s now going to set up a 2nd bedroom to be a combination office and music room. I’m eager to see how he sets it up. We can type-real-time with each other, plus send pics, leave messages and pics, plus actually visit on video when we’re all up at the same time, so I get everything but his stellar hugs. Can you see me smiling?

Empowered Parents

Yesterday I got the Christmas presents I’ve made for friends protected from the elements and stored safely until gift-giving time. I also got some work done on the inside of the Christmas cards I’m painting. I may be able to finish them today – except for flattening them again.

Now Cook This!

I’m using the chicken we brought home from yesterday’s Lunch Bunch and making what we call “Main Meal Salad” for dinner tonight. I’ll sneak some extra veggies in there. My scales are finally beginning to notice my efforts on eating – or NOT eating – and I’m on DAY 22 on my daily-yoga-practice goal. (Picture my husband cheering me on in his recliner while chomping on some Fritos . :0)

Enjoy your Saturday.

More Fun Friday 8-5-2022

topinspired.com

We are home now from our travels today.

Everyday Psych

Lunch Bunch was a joy. Everyone was there for the first time in several weeks. All were feeling fine. We enjoyed a fun conversation with lots of joking and laughing and just the happiness of sharing time together again. Bud and Kay both have birthdays in the coming week, so next Friday will be celebration day.

We did our errands without incident – the exception was that our trash has still not been picked up. The lady said with the heat, they are picking it up earlier and there was a note saying our trash wasn’t there in time. I told her that we put it out first thing and that usually it’s still there in the late afternoon. She put in a second work order and hopefully it will be gone tomorrow.

Sawyer

I’m about to head upstairs to play in my art room. I’ll store the finished tote bags and work on the inside page of the Christmas cards. Things are starting to come together. :0)

http://www.pinterest.ph – Cat GIF Central

I’ll do my DAY 21 yoga practice late this afternoon.

I hope your Friday is a fun one.

Fun Friday 8-5-2022

finehomedisplays.com

I hope you woke up this morning feeling good and ready for the day.

IndiaMART

I’m finally down a couple of pounds this morning. I had to look at the scales twice to be sure I was seeing them correctly. :0) Maybe my new regimen is starting to work. Since we are eating a fair amount of individual frozen dinners, I’ve made a list of the ones with the most veggies. I’m also serving a side veggie. We’re eating a LOT more fruit. I’m watching my husband’s blood sugar numbers, and so far, no problems. I’m on DAY 21 of doing my yoga stretches every day.

YouTube

We have Lunch Bunch this morning. I’m hoping everyone will be there. It seems that something has come up each week lately, so it would be really nice to see EVERYONE today and catch up on what they have been doing.

Yesterday I had gotten the mail and was starting to get back in the car when a car started to pass our driveway on the road and then stopped. I waited a moment, and then someone motioned for me to come on. I did, and then the window of the car went down. The lady introduced herself and asked if I was the one who made the mailbox decorations. I told her my husband and I did. She was really complimentary about our efforts and said she passed by our driveway to see what we had up. She said she is a teacher in Fort Smith and was asking if we would make her a ‘Snoopy’ or a ‘Roadrunner.’ I told her I would have to talk with my husband. I gave her my phone number. If she calls, I’ll be able to tell her that my husband agreed, what we would charge, and see if she wants us to go forward. I thanked her profusely for stopping and making my day. :0)

Colorations

My Christmas card project is coming together. I’m planning to start doing the inside of the cards this afternoon. The presents are now finished and I’ll bag them up to store until gift giving time.

We’ll leave for Lunch Bunch in about an hour and a half. We’ll get our mail, see if the trash has finally been picked up or if I need to call again. We’ll shop for groceries after lunch. And that’s our day.

I hope you’re having a fun Friday.

Thursday Thoughts 8-4-2022

Heartfelt – Artwork by Catherine Zarip

It’s quite overcast right now and we might get some rain. I couldn’t be happier about it.

The UCSB Current-UC Santa Barbara

In about an hour I’ll go down to get our mail (if it’s not raining), checking to see if the trash has been picked up. It’s supposed to be picked up on Tuesday. When I left yesterday to get my hair cut, I had to stop and use the trash bag I carry in the truck to pick up the strewn garbage. When I got to town, I called the trash people. The lady said she would create a work order so the trash would be picked up yesterday. I HOPE it was actually picked up. If not, I will call them again with some choice words.

DepositPhotos

I’m on DAY 20 of my daily yoga practice. My husband told me I was “doing a good job” yesterday. I tried to get him to practice with me, but he scoffed at me, eating some Fritos…

everymum

I still don’t know if the Christmas cards I’m trying to paint will turn out reasonably or not, but I look forward to working on them each day.

I’ve been finding a lot of talented people’s work lately. It’s such a joy to discover someone creating breathtaking art in all its forms and be able to share it with you.

Have a great Thursday!

Wonderful Wednesday

PBS – Shutterstock

I say, “Wonderful Wednesday” because I’m leaving in less than an hour to get a haircut. I look like a dandelion gone to seed right now and saying that I can’t wait to be ‘healed’ is a vast understatement.

It’s going to be hot today (102 degrees F.) with unknown heat index – SURPRISE! – but we might get RAIN tomorrow, so I have hope.

I’m looking forward to playing in my art room this afternoon. The jury is still out on whether the cards I’m trying to paint will be ‘keepers’ or not, but I’m having a great time experimenting with different ideas and techniques. One of the reasons I start making presents and cards for Christmas so early is that what I’m ABLE to do doesn’t match what I would LIKE to do, and so several false starts are inevitably involved.

Our tomatoes are mostly gone now. I have a few that may ripen, so I check the plants every few days for treasure. I will soon pull up the sweet red onions from the garden to start them drying.

I’m on DAY 19 of my yoga. I’m determined to keep on keepin’ on until this practice becomes as ingrained as brushing my teeth in the morning. This practice, I think, is one of the keys to my health, my ability to do what I want without a lot of pain. I want to live a long time so I can continue to annoy my husband. (53 years and counting…)

I hope you have something fun planned for today, or if not – you have a pleasant, happy Wednesday.

Quiet Tuesday 8-2-2022

todolwen.ca.

I’ve been busy this morning, just now taking the time to write. My font got smaller, and I’m working on how to fix it.

In my next life, I’m going to be very tall, so I can reach things instead of having to get up on a box, ladder, etc. I’m going to be VERY strong so I can do my share on lifting and moving things. I’m going to be tech savvy, so I can understand and use all technology without snatching my hair out. I’m going to be able to look at something, figure out how it should work, and fix it. Of course, I’ll also be slim and beautiful, be and exercise fanatic, and will have to REMIND myself to eat… :0)

I just looked at ‘preview’ on this post and see that YOU will see the normal size font, so that’s good. I’m still working on how ‘I’ can also see it, rather than having to strain to read the small type…

I just came back in from taking our trash down for pick up at the bottom of our driveway. I also got our mail, and actually LOOKED at the arm of the robot to see if there were any UPS packages there. There WAS, so I got that, too. I guess I’ll have to train myself to check that daily.

Our wonderful driveway guy came back from vacation and came to the house yesterday afternoon. He has an idea of a better crusher stuff to put on the driveway and recommends three truckloads to be spread by his partner, whom we met yesterday. He also thinks we should have kind of a ‘ridge’ down the middle of the driveway that will encourage the water to run to both sides, plus channels for the water every so often, getting any water off the driveway as soon as possible, delaying erosion and damage. We have agreed to the upgrade and they will do it when they can get everything together. Mark, the man who has the tractor who will spread the material, will arrange to be here before the first truck arrives, ready to spread the stuff while the truck goes back for more, so we don’t get stuck in our driveway this time. Hopefully, this upgrade will last for quite awhile. Help is on the way!

We got sprayed for everything including elephants recently. We received an invoice and I paid it electronically. Yesterday we received another invoice with the same charge plus another charge added from last year! The company has changed ownership, so I called this morning to see if we could make sense of things. The lady was very nice and agreed to take off the extra charge.

I did July bookkeeping on my computer this morning and got things filed! I patted myself on the head because I’m keeping up with things rather than putting the bookkeeping off over and over and getting buried.

I hope your Tuesday is calm, safe, and productive.

Oops

crescentmoon066.tumblr.com

I’m sitting here at the computer, getting ready to write to you, and just now figured out today is NOT Saturday, as I thought it was. I have no idea why I ‘felt’ it was Saturday. I’m trying now to adjust now to a new new day, new month, new to-do list, new set of goals as I drink my much-needed coffee.

Matt Dixon

Thanks to Susy, we have a Matt Dixon image for August.

Thanks to the Australian Fire Fighters fundraising efforts, we can start August with Mal. I feel better already. :0)

1st of a new month means several first-of-the-month chores, plus end-of-the-month bookkeeping. Today is DAY 17 on my daily yoga efforts, and I’ll make a decision later today on whether to go forward with my Christmas card efforts from yesterday or pitch them and start over. Vacuuming of the first floor will suck up the ‘whole dog’ Amber has left on the carpet and tiles. Since hope springs eternal, I’ll check to see if we have any ripe tomatoes.

Enjoy your MONDAY, the first day of AUGUST!

Happy Wet Sunday

topinspired.com

I’m a happy camper this morning. The doors are open. The ceiling fan is on, spreading fresh, cooler air all through the house. It’s only supposed to get to 89 today, with a chance of some good rain. Yea!!!!

Ben Grantham-Getty Images-iStock Photos

Today is Day 16 of my attempt to make daily yoga practice a habit. Yesterday I was running out of time and chose to do yoga practice over spending time in my art room – an amazing decision for me! I ended up making a smaller-than-normal space in the office because my husband was watching a rented movie in the living room where I normally practice. The practice went well and I was happy to add my sparkly star to my desk calendar. :0)

Today is the last day of July. My only ‘accomplishments’ for the month are

• the decision to try to get into a ‘yoga habit’, plus 16 days of yoga practice so far, increasing the time
• I made 8 Christmas presents for my friends
• I changed to the Mediterranean style of eating, deciding to significantly increase veggies and fruit
• My thyroid hormone is under control again (actually took 8 weeks)

Make this a good day!

Last Saturday of July 7-30-2022

Nicky Litchfield Animal Artist-TheRoseGallery.co.uk

I love this painting!

We got rained out (hooray!) yesterday on grocery shopping. We’re supposed to get more today (HOORAY – AGAIN!) so we’ll leave soon to see if we can get our mail and replenish our food supply before the rain starts. We actually have the doors open this morning and the a/c turned off! This won’t last, but I’ll sure take it right now. :0)

americasbestpics.com

We tried three places yesterday to buy Mega Millions tickets. One place didn’t sell them at all. The two places where I’ve bought them before have changed ownership recently. They have applied for their licenses, but don’t have them yet. I was disappointed, then learned this morning the winning ticket was sold in Illinois….

Free Arts

I had fun experimenting in my art room yesterday afternoon, but only made messes. I have another idea to try today…

I hope you’re enjoying the last Saturday of July.

Rainy Friday!!!!!!!

Rover.com

It rained, with some lightning and thunder, last night. It’s raining right now, and is supposed to continue today. HOORAAAAAAY!

I don’t care if we drown during Lunch Bunch and our errands today. The rain is BEAUTIFUL! Everything in our yard is saying, “AHHHHHH. THANK YOU!!!!”

Today we’re planning to –

• Get our mail
• enjoy seeing our friends at Lunch Bunch
• shop for groceries, and
• stop to buy $10 worth of Mega Millions tickets

The overcast skies and light rain are truly great for my soul. I’m going to enjoy every minute!

I hope things are good where you are today, and that you enjoy your Friday – rainy or not.

Thoughts on a Thursday 7-28-2022

Helen

Isn’t this sweet? My heart just melted when I found it.

I’m leaving for a massage in about 20 minutes and I’m READY for it. I have a bunch of sore and tight places all over me, just crying out for Lynn’s expertise. Between the massage this morning and my yoga practice this afternoon, my body should be smiling.

We actually have a chance for some isolated showers today into Monday! I’m ready for THAT, too. Everything is really stressed, even with our daily watering. If we DO get some rain, don’t be surprised if you hear a big, “AHHHHHHHH!” from Arkansas.

If things work out as I plan, I’ll start making some Christmas cards this afternoon. I have an idea for what I’d like to do, but I have no idea if it will actually come together or not. I love being able to experiment in my art room.

Have a wonderful day!

Thoughts on a Wednesday 7-27-2022

Svenja M

I hope your Wednesday is starting out nicely.

Amber and I are having a recurring ‘discussion’ about whether or not I have dog biscuits in my jeans pocket. Since I usually do, Amber is convinced I’m lying when I tell her I don’t have anything. She is doing a combination of lying down just to the left of my office chair, staring at me, moving every few seconds so I don’t ‘forget’ she’s there. If I make eye contact, she is up and climbing up into my chair with me before I can get out the words, “Get Down!” She has had breakfast, but she thinks she should get cookies on demand. I’ve decided to fill my pocket with dog cookies when I go to refill my coffee cup…

Heat index of 111 today. Wonderful, right? We may get some rain toward the end of the week. I won’t believe it until I see it, but there is hope. I’ll check for tomatoes in a minute, but I think the plants are simply giving up with the heat.

The big planter of tomato plants is almost completely done now. The niche planter (in the corner formed by the back of the house and the deck) is still okay, and produced these two tomatoes. The top side of each has deep grooves, again pointing to water issues, but the plants ARE producing slowly.

No big plans for us today. I couldn’t sleep, so I’m happy we have a quiet day. I did the finishing touches on the last two Christmas presents this morning. As soon as they are dry, the next step is spraying all of them with a protective spray to prevent stains as much as possible. Next, tissue paper, gift bags and the making of handmade Christmas cards – (I have an idea for them) then pack them away until the holiday.

Enjoy your day. Stay safe and cool.

Terrific Tuesday 7-26-2022

Olga Gorbacheva-redbubble.com

boredpanda.com

Good morning! I’m hoping my coffee will perk me up. For some reason I’m still feeling groggy. I’ve never been the type of person who comes bounding cheerfully out of the bed dispensing smiles and laughter, but I’m not usually quite so sluggish. Writing to you is a great way to make me embrace the day.

123RF.com

We’ll leave in a bit to run our errands for the day. Since we’re still in the middle of our big heat wave (105 actual temperature today) we’ll be IN for the rest of the day when we get back. We’re supposed to get some rain starting Wednesday the MAY cool things off a bit. If we do, THAT will bring a smile or six from me!

Sawyer

I finished painting my Christmas presents yesterday! I’ll share pics of them with you before I store them for later. I’ve had a truly wonderful time working on them. I’m planning to clean up the art room, then scheme on what to tackle next.

Have a terrific Tuesday!

Sunny Sunday 7-24-2022

boredpanda.com

This wonderful photo and our weather are at war for who can make me melt into a puddle first. I say the sweet puppy, but our heat index will be 110 degrees F. today… UGH.

The Guardian

I’ve really been enjoying the time in my art room. I may finish the Christmas presents today. It’s so much fun to try to make things my friends will enjoy. They’re so good to me, and I want to give them at least a little something back. So there are lots of warm feelings, memories, appreciation and smiles in that room lately. The time there really helps me keep my cool about the rest of the stuff happening in the world and in my life. too.

Amber

Our dog has quite a sense of humor. She now thinks it’s funny to wake us up in the middle of the night barking at what my husband calls, “ghost gophers.” When we get up to check on things, there is never anything there. We don’t know if she smells something on the deck, or in the garage, is dreaming, or what, but it’s irritating when we are in the middle of some good rest and are jolted awake. Sometimes my husband goes downstairs and threatens her verbally. Sometimes we can ignore it and she stops. This morning it was closer to the time we normally wake up and she only did it for a few minutes, so we were able to catch a few more zzzz’s. It’s a good thing, with our own ‘old people’s weird sleep patterns’ plus Amber’s sense of humor, that we can take a nap during the day if needed.

Hoping for a quiet Sunday.

Happy Saturday 7-23-2022

yougottobekidding.wordpress.com

I hope your Saturday is off to a good start.

It’s supposed to get to 105 F. actual temperature here this afternoon, so we’re planning to stay inside for the most part.

I made spaghetti last night, using Rao’s for the sauce base. My husband won’t even consider eating ‘zoodles’ (zucchini spiralized), so I sneakily used Banza Spaghetti (made from chickpeas -shhhhh!) It’s better for us in several ways. My husband complimented the spaghetti, even asking if there was enough for leftovers. :0)

Today is

• laundry day,
• change the sheets day,
• pay the bills day,
• play in the art room day,
• yoga practice day,
• listen to music for awhile day,
• read part of a book day,
• maybe take a nap day,
• vacuum the equivalent of another dog from the tiles and carpet day,
• enjoy life day.

Enjoy your Saturday!

Ahhhhh!

Medium

Crossing all of my appendages – including my eyes – worked! We finally got a bit of rain yesterday evening! It was mostly gusty wind and bluster, but the dining area windows finally had water on them. I don’t know how much rain we actually got, but we’ll take it. The high is only supposed to be 97 this afternoon. I may take my coat! :0)

Shutterstock

We’ll get our mail, go to Lunch Bunch to catch up with our friends, then drive to Ft. Smith to return my “too-large!” tops to the UPS Store, and finally hit Walmart on the way back.

I’m starting to see the end of my project to make Christmas gifts in my art room for my friends. I think I’ll finish in the next day or two. It’s been a wonderful time with lots of happy thoughts.

Tenor

Today will be DAY 6 on my daily yoga practice. My sweet SIL pointed out that building a new habit MIGHT take as little as 18 days. That sounds a lot less intimidating. I’ll still just keep my head down and do one day at a time until it becomes ‘automatic,’ – assuming I live that long…

I hope that you have an enjoyable Friday and a fabulous weekend.

Good Thursday 7-21-2022

Petr Vaclavek – Zazzle.com

I have a nice book. We certainly have the heat (105 F. today with a heat index of 110+). All I’m missing is the beach!

Salvasomo

I even have a photo of beautiful sandpipers!

sayingimages.com

Thankfully, we have good air conditioning and only go out if we choose to.

Yesterday was a wonderful afternoon. We ate our lunch and relaxed a bit after errands. I did an early session of yoga, since the wonderful bug spraying guy was coming at 5:30. I then went up and played in my art room, making good progress on the presents I’m making for friends. I finished up there and was coming down, meeting my husband on the stairs. He was coming up to tell me the buy spraying guy was here. He does such a good job for us, although he won’t spray for elephants…

iStock

I had a very unusual thing happen. I ordered some new tops recently. (That isn’t unusual, but the result was.) I tried one of them on this morning and they were WAAY TOOO LARGE! This IS unusual! We will take them to the UPS Store today or tomorrow so that I can obtain a refund and then I’ll reorder, ordering two sizes smaller. (I have the feeling this brand runs really large, but it feels really good to have something be too large for me to wear. :0)

I hope you have a terrific Thursday.

Quiet Wednesday 7-20-2022

Snack Time-Christina Bass-betterphoto.com

IndiaMART

I’m starting to see some good differences on the scales finally. That has been lower on my list since we changed from low-carb to the Mediterranean eating plan recently after my system got out of whack and I had to focus on getting my health back and eating differently. All is good now and I can focus on only stuffing GOOD things in my face (using moderation), doing my yoga practice daily (4 sparkly stars in a row on my desk calendar now), drinking lots of water (trying to drink 3 bottles of water daily), and generally trying to stay out of trouble. :0)

BugGuide.net

Yesterday was ‘bug day’ around here. I’ve been annoyed by gnats flying around me lately. Yesterday I was working at the computer and a WASP landed on my leg! I leaped up, got the fly swatter, and the NEXT time he was in the area, I beat him to a pulp before disposing of his corpse. :0) I noticed something on the floor just under the buffet in the dining area. When I leaned down to see what it was, I found a scorpion! It was a DEAD scorpion, but one can’t be dead enough for me. I picked him up with the forceps we keep on hand (fearing he might be playing possum) and disposed of him, too. I then called Tri-Hill Pest Control in Fort Smith and our good tech will come out late this afternoon to spray inside and out.

iStock

Today we actually have a CHANCE of rain! We MIGHT get an isolated shower or two! I have all appendages crossed, since it’s ALSO supposed to get to an all-too-hot temperature with a heat index of 111 this afternoon. If we get the rain, you can be sure I’ll take the time to go out and dance in it.

Tenor

We’re going to leave in a bit to get our mail and replenish our food supply at the local grocery. My husband tried a new Healthy Choice frozen dinner last night, “Pineapple Chicken,” and he wants to get more. He has also requested another ‘tuna casserole’ (with extra veggies) that I made recently. I’m also trying several different salmon recipes.

I hope that your Wednesday is a satisfying one.

Tuesday 7-19-2022

Gustavo Velaon – Twitter.com

Today we woke up to our dog, Amber, going nuts in the utility room where she sleeps. My husband went downstairs first, letting her out. The barking increased. I thought we had finally trapped raccoon #8. It turned out to be a squirrel, who probably was trapped this morning, since they are early risers. We’ve never caught one before. Instead of letting it out and getting on with business, my husband decided to sit on the deck watching the squirrel and listening to Amber go nuts. The barking makes me crazy, so I asked my husband if he was going to let the squirrel out. He just said, “In awhile.”

I did the morning chores as quickly as I could because the noise was really getting on my nerves. When I finished, I came into the office, as far away from the barking as I could get. Finally it stopped. Amber came in panting like a fiend and drinking water. My husband left me alone for awhile – smart man! – and then brought me a cup of coffee. I’m giving both of them a wide berth this morning, still teed off that the morning started so unpleasantly.

I took our two weeks worth of trash down to the bottom of our driveway, so I’m sure it’s out there early enough – just not sure they’ll take all of it. Fingers crossed.

The heat index will be 105 today. It’ll be the same, with little or no rain, until further notice, the weather people say. We’re under a burn ban and actually had a wildfire north of us recently. Happily, it was controlled before it burned any houses and no one was hurt. We’ve had heat waves before, but usually in August. It’s disconcerting that the heat is so relentless early this year. It will be amazing if anything lives, even with our irrigation systems working now.

I’m hoping for a nice, quiet afternoon. I wish the same for YOU. :0)

Monday 7-18-2022

rajiv weli-flickr.com

I’m late getting to the blog today. I got a blood test first thing this morning (after having to wait a LONG time at the clinic) and then celebrated it being over with a fabulous breakfast at The Dari. We’re home now for the rest of the day, trying to catch up with our various activities.

I hope that you are having a good Monday. We are ‘in-the-frying-pan’ as usual here in summer, very thankful that we can live through it spoiled by good a/c. I’ll wait to check on tomatoes until this evening before the sun goes down or tomorrow morning.

Giphy

I ALMOST didn’t do yoga yesterday. Things got busy and I missed my normal time. I finally ended up doing my session at around 9pm last night, so I did get my sparkly star on my desk calendar. I’m hoping to get to my yoga in the late afternoon, as usual, today. My body is beginning to respond to my renewed efforts on yoga practice. It still takes me awhile, just lying on my back on the mat, for my back to calm down, but yesterday it was a bit quicker. Each day I’ll get a little looser.

Other things for the day are gathering trash for the week to ADD to the trash that didn’t go out LAST week – thanks to my husband trying to avoid it ‘going-out-too-early.’ I just hope the trash people take it all tomorrow. I’ll also play in my art room.

Dog’s Best Life

At the beginning of last week I vacuumed up an entire dog’s worth of hair from our tiled areas on the first floor. Yesterday I vacuumed the carpeted areas of the first floor, sucking up ANOTHER entire dog! And yet Amber still has a full, lush coat of healthy-looking hair….

Enjoy your Monday. Stay safe and cool.

Saturday

We’re moving a bit slowly this morning. Amber woke us up three separate times barking last night. When we got up this morning, the humane trap we set for raccoon #8 was empty, the door shut, and the side busted out. So we have no raccoon and a trap that my husband MAY or MAY NOT be able to repair. We still have a raccoon eating our seed and can’t fill up the bird feeders. UGH.

The weather forecast for the next 10 days fits right in with the above. Above 100 degrees – not even THINKING about the heat index – for 9 of the next 10 days. (Only 98 tomorrow). Heat advisories and excessive heat warnings every day.

Tenor

On the good side, I have some coffee. When I am finally fully awake, I have a good book to read, I can play up in my art room, I can take a nap if I need to later, I can write on my blog, we have air conditioning, and I can exercise where it’s cool. Not much to complain about after all…

Thoughts on a Friday 7-15-2022

kanderdoodle.blogspot.com

I just love this photo. I WANT this sweet animal!

As far as I know, everyone will be at Lunch Bunch today. It’ll be a nice reunion. We have a few errands to do, but won’t be out long.

DepositPhotos.com

I’m having a lot of fun in my art room, working on the presents I’m painting for my friends for Christmas. I’m making 8 things, and I’m almost finished with some of the first sides. Apparently I smile while I’m painting – I’m finding my cheeks are hurting a bit in the evenings. :0)

Lucia Heffernan – MyModernMet

I’m going to do an extra-long session of yoga this afternoon. I missed it yesterday and my body is reminding me about it today. You would THINK that after so many RE-learnings of this lesson, the message would stick. All I can say is I’m fighting sloth, stubbornness, and stupidity – a pretty lethal combination.

This morning’s harvest. We went into withdrawal yesterday because we didn’t have any ripe tomatoes from our garden to eat. Today makes up for yesterday, with more coming, probably tomorrow. YUM.

Hoping for a safe, quiet day for all of us.

Heh, Heh, Heh…

compliments of my SIL

We are foiled once again in our efforts to catch racoon # 8 in our humane trap. He ate the seed all around the trap, but didn’t go inside. We are frustrated, but persistent. The birds will be happy when this one is caught and we fill up their feeders again.

When we went to do errands the other day, we had to slow down to give two young deer room to run along-side us and decide if they would then run into the woods or try to cut in front of our truck. Happily, they ran into the woods.

To finish off our ‘wildlife report,’ there were two white-tailed rabbits who sprung out of the way in huge leaps across the grass yesterday when I walked out to check the garden. Living outside the city limits exposes you to a whole life full of possibilities and joy.

Now I’m fighting happy tears. My husband is at his computer across the room from me. He asked me to check an email he was going to send to our son, who had written to him via email because my husband hasn’t taken the time to write to him on the chat program our son set up for us.

Several times a week our son says to me, “Please tell Dada I love him.” I always do. It isn’t the same as hearing from someone directly, though, so our son reached out more directly to him, thanking him for all the time and effort he spent teaching him about computers and programming, etc. He was thanking him for making it possible for him to enjoy the lifestyle he has now.

I teared up reading his email. And then again, when I read my husband’s answer. I talked to him about how lucky we are that we’re close to our son – other than in geography – and how special the love is between our son and him. I told him that I see so many people just doing ‘duty’ things, or not feeling close at all. We’re lucky that our son not only FEELS the love, he reaches out to give it back tenfold. My husband has been a wonderful dad and is now reaping some well-deserved rewards. Simply beautiful and overwhelming.

Good Morning!

Brenda Metheny

Happy Wednesday!

We started our day off at around 1:30 a.m. this morning when Amber started barking. She did this two or three times before she finally settled down for the rest of the night. The next thing we knew, our driveway pad alarm went off several times in succession early this morning, usually indicating a vehicle. We got up and dressed, but when we checked outside on the garage pad and then at the front door, there was nothing.

CuriOdyssey

We tried, but failed, to catch raccoon #8 overnight. That was probably what had Amber barking. The trap had been triggered. The seed was all gone, but no one was inside the humane trap. So we’ll set it again tonight and hope for the best.

There was a wildfire between Fort Chaffee and one of Greenwood’s neighborhoods north of us yesterday. Fire departments from several surrounding towns helped to try to contain the blaze. About 35 homes were evacuated. The fire is about 80%+ contained this morning. No damage to houses. No people hurt that we know about. Scary.

The Christian Index

I’ve had TWO character-building exercises over which I have been victorious so far this morning –

• I was trying to call in a refill for one of my husband’s medicines, but the pharmacy was having some kind of a phone problem, then I got a recording, and FINALLY reached a real person and was able to request our refill. Only took about 5 calls over 90 minutes, but I prevailed. :0)
• I was attempting to pay some bills online yesterday. When I tried to log in, I was told my username or password was “incorrect.” I fought with it several times, finally deciding to give it up until today. Sometimes these things heal miraculously, and so I had hope. No such luck. They still didn’t like me this morning. I finally went through the process of saying I ‘forgot’ my password, jumped through several hoops on proving I was who I was, including a text sent to my phone, and was finally put onto a page where I could change my password. THEN I fought with all the requirements they had on a new password. I finally passed muster, was let into my account, and was able to pay the bills. WHEW!

We’ll do errands in awhile, but nothing exciting going on today – I HOPE. I’ll be very happy if I can do what I’d like to do with no drama. I would LIKE to continue painting my Christmas presents for friends, do some vacuuming, and read my current book….

Happy Wednesday!

Tuesday 7-12-2022

Holly Kildreth Photography-Juan Carlos Rodri On Twitter

We’re about to leave for lots of errands this morning. Our news and weather website reported that we should expect it to be 2 degrees cooler today due to a ‘cold front.’ Oh, the relief!!!! Only 101 plus heat index today. Be still, my heart!

I’m hoping we’ll have more ripe tomatoes for me to gather when we get back. We ate the last one yesterday and may go into withdrawal if we don’t have more…

I’m having a truly wonderful time working in my art room on the Christmas presents I’m making for friends. Each day brings a bit more progress. Yesterday my husband came up to say, “Hi,” and remarked that I was smiling while I was painting. YEP.

No exciting news today – just deep down happiness that things are going nicely here.

Take care and have a wonderful day.

Monday

I wanted to sleep a lot later than I did this morning, although I can’t say I got up with the sun. I’m gathering my energy slowly the past few days, getting energetic after lunch, rather than in the morning. I’m not sure why. It’s just different.

My husband thinks we have another raccoon. He just refilled the bird feeders and we’ll see if they’re empty again tomorrow morning. We’ll probably end up setting the humane trap again, trying to catch raccooon #8 of the season.

We’ll leave in a bit to run to the hardware and grocery stores to replenish supplies, get our mail, etc. No big plans for the day. There is the CHANCE that we might get some rain tomorrow or Wednesday, though my husband really likes our grass brown and crunchy, as it is now, so he doesn’t have to mow. I can’t blame him. The Christmas presents I’m painting are coming together now. I’ll work on them more today.

Our son sent us these pics with no explanation this morning. I’m assuming this is a new fruit he’s found. I hope it’s as delicious as it is pretty!

A quiet Monday morning for us. I hope that your day is a pleasant one.

Feeling Lazy Sunday 7-10-2022

Reddit.com

I slept well – in fact, we even slept late – but I’m feeling lazy this morning. I have no excuses. I’ll have to push myself to get something done today.

I did go out a minute ago to get a pic of our elephant ear plants and to see if any tomatoes were ready to harvest. It’s warm, but cooler than yesterday.

The poor elephant ears have had a tough time this season. The main problem was that we needed to have our well house set up modified so we could have TWO irrigation systems, one for the back and the 2nd for the front. The one in the back was working, thank goodness, because the two tomato planters are on that one. We just got the 2nd one – the one for the front – Friday morning. The elephant ears are starting to perk up, and they look better since I cut off the dead stuff and cleaned up the planter. Hopefully, they’ll have an easier time now.

We had two tomatoes ready to come in this morning, and they’re beautiful. We’re becoming totally spoiled, enjoying ripe tomatoes for lunch and dinner each day. :0)

YouTube – Suda the painting elephant – uploaded by F. Schleyhahn

I spent a good amount of time in my art room playing yesterday. The presents I’m making are starting to come together now. I really get into the zone when I’m up there, listening to wonderful music, playing in my paint, enjoying when our dog or cat come up to visit. Having some ‘alone’ time is what my soul needs sometimes. I’m lucky I have a place I can get it.

MyRecipes

I don’t have to cook this evening! We’re having “Main Meal Salad” tonight with leftover chicken from the Lunch Bunch. We both enjoy this every once in awhile. I’m even able to sneak in a couple of extra veggies without my husband complaining…

We’re looking at what I hope will be a quiet day. I hope yours is enjoyable, too.