This and That

Hello, Blogger Friends.

It's November, and I'm back.

Wow, what a month already.

Yes, of course I voted. Yes, I am happy with the blue tsunami.

But something inside tells me it's gonna get ugly until he dies or is gone.

The morning of voting, I got up very early for me. I showered/brushed my teeth, and did what needed to be done, and off I went. We agreed Rick would go later since he can't get up early.

I got there at 7am. In public at 7am, that alone tells you how much I wanted to vote!  I came home and crawled into bed for an hour, and then Rick got up to vote.  We were happy of the outcomes, as well as the stupid commercials we've all had to endure.

Did you see what DC did?  OMG I love them. First they erected a statue of Epstein and Trump. 

Now it's of trump and his bone spurs.  Too Funny.

** In other news over the past month.

I saw a meme of Joe Walsh. You know the musician from James Gang and The Eagles. I couldn't agree more with this statement.

**A trend happening is wide-leg jeans/pants or bell bottoms.

I have a rule that applies 90% of the time. 

"If you wore it the first time it was in style, you're too old to do it again"

I can't believe I wore wide-leg jeans. I put them on now, and I look like I'm drowning in fabric. I look even shorter.

What was I thinking?  Oh sure, at 15 it was the cool look. 

A person 5' or under does not look good in wide-leg pants.  

If I wear a pair of Levi's straight-leg, I don't look shorter or wider.  

That is what I learned for me.

**Every time I turn on my phone, another rock singer or band member is dying.

Donnie Iris.  I think he may have been more regional.  His band played my hometown a lot, and I met them while at the beach. He gave us tickets to the show. 

Happened with the Michael Stanley Band too. Same scenario. Frocklicking at the beach, these guys approached us, and we hung out all day, and then they told us who they were and gave us tickets to the show. And my father was worried about bars and the like. The beach was happenin' in the summer!

Then I read Gerry Rafferty and Billy Squire died.  This is a sign of old age.

All your favorite musicians dying. I don't even understand how groups of my generation are even touring. My God, the Stones are well into their 80s.

Sex, Drugs, and Rock 'n Roll did very well for them.

**We had a scary night a few weeks ago. We were sleeping.

I heard commotion and opened my eyes. I saw Rick holding something to his face. His back was to me.  I asked what was wrong, and he said he had a bloody nose.

Oh, this was not just a bloody nose. It was Niagara Falls out of his nose.

It was pouring.

Our master bath looked like a Dateline episode. The sheets looked like a homicide had occurred.  He refused to go to the ER.  Yes, It was 1:30am. He insisted it would stop. He is on a blood thinner. The stuff you put on a cut, should you receive one, is called Blood Stop.  He dipped a kleenex in it and put it up his nose. It did not work. Nothing was working. My stubborn husband still refused to go to the ER.

I got dressed as if we were going because, well, damn it, he was going.

At 3 a.m., he agreed to go. I think I wore him down.

They stopped it with Afrin. The nurse was great, and the doctor was the cutest little blonde pixie of a woman. She was so perky at that hour.

Rick liked her, of course. 

They were concerned about the amount of blood he was losing. They did some blood work and told him to follow up with his doctor.

Who he sees next week. But he hasn't had many more. Just one, and we stopped it with Afrin. 

Talk about scary.  They gave us a plethora of things to take home if there were issues.  Afrin was one of them. 

I have not had a bloody nose. I don't count when I broke my nose. Just a random bloody nose never happens to me. Thank goodness. It was scary, and I told him I've had enough of him scaring me over the last few years. He is done with that shit.

He laughs and says he'll do his best.

**It's the time of year I dislike with a passion. I do not enjoy the holidays.

We are not going north for them, and no one is coming here, so there is no reason for all that fuss of cooking, thank goodness.

I hate turkey; I can't have stuffing and the rest is eh.😝

Rick likes turkey, so I will buy a butterball turkey breast. No sense in a big bird for one.

I only liked sweet potatoes at Thanksgiving. Thank God half the table was American and the other was Italian. I ate lasagna, antipasto, etc. Rick happens to love this horrible carrot casserole my mom would make.  I will make that for him too. His stuffing is great, but now since I can't have it we will make it for one.

Dessert too. 

We do our blessing of thanks, and that's it for us. We don't watch football so it's not our holiday. 

Then the big dreaded holiday next. Ba Humbug!

**I attempted to go to the library, and it was closed. There was a sign saying closed until November 6th.  But it's still not open. 

Apparently they were working on the roof, and everyone in the library was getting sick. Employees and readers. The fumes started first, it was stated then everyone became ill. So it was closed until this was fixed.

There are boxes in front to drop your books, but since no one is working, they aren't being emptied.  That's kind of nice if you didn't finish your book and needed more time. I dropped mine in the box because I was finished.

**Rick and I loved the Netflix show The Diplomat. 

But season 4 was da bomb!  We binged it. We stayed up so late to watch this. I wish we did not have to wait a year for the next season!  

Are you watching it?  Ooooh, in season 4, Alison Janey is an absolute bitch with a capital B. It is so damn good.

I hope everyone reading this has a super happy Family Thanksgiving!

My tip: Wear elastic pants 

Fall is Finally Here!

It's finally fall. It happened today.

2 days ago, it was 90 degrees.

Today it is a lovely, sunny 60 degrees.  It makes me giddy. Low 70's all week. Air conditioning off, doors open, and fresh air!

This is my kind of weather!!

Here are some things that have taken place in my deaf home since I've been away from the blog

Rick and I were watching a TV program when I laughed.

Rick knew why I laughed because he knew what I heard could not be what was said.  Rick paused the TV and said, "You didn't hear him correctly, did you?"

"Well, if he said 'Hiney Hole' to get away from his wife, I heard him"

Needless to say, that made Rick laugh. It was a hiding hole to hide from his wife. Weird way to say Man Cave.  Oops.

Then once again, my hearing told me Rick was asking for his slippers. So I got up and got them. When I came back, he was laughing too hard and said,

"Margaret, I wanted the nippers in front of you on the table. I will take my slippers, though, since you fetched them."

I see the ear dr again this week.  But boy, if I get a solution, what fun will that be in our home?  Rick walks around saying hiney hole all day now. 

___________

As you all know ad nauseam, I bleed pinstripes. I love my Yankees. But they suck. And have for a few years now. We need new management big time.

So in the meantime, I prayed for the Dodgers to lose. And they did, and they got swept by the Milwaukee Brewers. So that made all things right with the world for me.

I have never rooted for National Leaque Team before, but they play such good ball that I think they deserved the World Series, and I'm rooting for them!

When I was at my former corp gig my boss asked me to go to Milwaukee for a week. He said the rep there was on maternity leave and her customers needed some help. He said he was going to ask Joan as well. Joan and I were friends. We talked, and I said I'd go; I'd never been there.  She said, " Okay, then I'll go. I said," Joan,they make beer there how bad can it be.?" 

So we told our boss that they make beer there, and so we said yes. We knew Bill would laugh.

We were each given half her territory and maps. Can you believe no GPS. I did this with maps in a city I'd never been to before. She had the east side, and I had the west. We met up at the hotel after our day was done and grabbed beers and food. We both said the same thing. It was a nice town. 

We met some fabulous people, and we both told Bill if he had to send someone back there again, we'd both be happy to go.

One of my account owners that I had visited was a huge Brewers fan. He had pennants on his wall and baseballs, etc. He asked me what team I rooted for, being from DC (before we had the Nationals). I hesitated. 

He jumped on that and said, "Don't say the NY Yankees."  

All I said was, "Okay," and smiled.  

Before I left, he shook my hand and said, "You're okay for a Yankee lover"

I responded with, "And you are pretty great too for being a Yankee hater"

We both laughed and said our goodbyes.

He told my boss he liked me, and if he had to send outsiders again, he would love it if he sent me. I heard this and thought, if I go, I am buying a NY Yankee pennant and telling him he could put it on his wall. He would howl!

__________________

Weird things go through my mind. 

Well, I guess y'all know that now, don'tcha?

For some reason I heard the name Winston-Salem on TV. For some reason, my former life/mindset went to what is their airport code? That was in my head as I made soup from scratch. Then, as I did the dishes. Why does it matter? I don't work in the airline industry any longer.   I know it was something that you wouldn't think it'd be. You know, like Raleigh-Durham is RDU. Makes sense. But this was not what you'd think and it was driving me crazy that I couldn't remember this.

When in travel school (and as kids), we girls did things to remember these for tests. We made up little clues. Charlotte was CLT.  For the love of all things good, this young lady couldn't remember this. There were 5 of us in a circle testing one another with flashcards. She was about to cry. 

Then this girl told her to remember it like this: 

CLT - clit - Charlotte has one.

OMG we all laughed like crazy. She never forgot that one again.

Neither has Rick. :-)

And just in case you were interested, Winston-Salem is INT. I googled it.

Go Figure. I'm sure it means something, but since I no longer work in travel, I don't need to know. 

Now tell the truth, you'll never forget the airport code for Charlotte now, will you?

It's Still September 😁

 Hi. I did not mean to be away this long. I said I'd finish up September.

Then I plan to do it once a month from then on. It was my compromise from you guys and my husband. 

In the meantime, I got very sick. 10 days of hell. Today is the first day i feel somewhat like myself. 

First, some housekeeping.  - I know I have comments to respond to and I will!

I just couldn't the last 2 weeks.

2nd  - of course ya'll can email me any damn time. I love it.

Denise, I'm gettin' to you.

Now, what I've been up to.

More pain than I am going to share. I know in the archives I've shared this muscle thing with glutathione before, so I won't go into it again. But I will say it is more painful than anything I have ever endured in my lifetime. Bar none.

Opening anything anymore has become a major ordeal for me. Is it age?

I had to open Imodium. They were tiny gel tablets in a small individual pack like this.

Rick tried; I tried. Scissors were used as well. Then he laughed and told me I may just have to shit my pants. Very funny.  I went back to the cabinet, and I had some Kaopectate tablets and took those. I even got the cap open.

I was craving a glass of milk one afternoon. I went to the refrigerator as one does and got the milk out. Rick had purchased a new bottle of milk, and so it wasn't opened yet. I took off the cap and had to attempt to open the silver "thingy" over the milk jug. Why the hell is this necessary?  I had to rip the lid apart from its hard form cap, then I had to remove this thing. I realize milk isn't cheap, but c'mon. I finally got a knife and stabbed it; I could not, for the life of me, grab hold of that itty bitty little tab.  Argh!

This was a theme to my sick days.

Just before being ill, I attempted rice paper egg rolls, or so I thought I was. 

I did exactly as the rice paper instructions told us to do. Rick read, and I did the work. You dip them in water. (lightly)  Then dry them off well. Then fill. Then fry.

The rice paper looked horrific.  I took one out of the oil and said to Rick that this indeed was not working. He said, "Well, maybe it tastes better than it looks."  I was just going, nope, looks too gross.

Well, I was correct.

Rick said, "This tastes like a condom"

"But how do you know what a condom tastes like Rick?"

Rick's face is very serious as he says, "I don't think I thought that through."

He was right thought it did look exactly like that.

We ended up eating the insides over rice. It was a save but not a great one.

So much for rice paper egg rolls. It must have still been too wet.

But I'm still me, so here are some things that annoyed me or confused me.

I was in Rick's ugly chair for days. Sleeping and while awake. Just a horrible state. But I never really slept. An hour here.  The pain was so bad I couldn't sleep much. One night I took NyQuil just to knock me out. It worked for a couple of hours, and I was thankful for that.

But while I was awake, I watched a lot of dumb tv. My head hurt so that reading or looking at my phone was just too much for me.

So I watched stupid shit on TV.

I saw a show called House Shock.

There is no way this is real.

There is no way that a husband could really do this.

Never gonna believe otherwise.

A family member or a friend nominates a homeowner to secretely renovate a neglected or disliked space in 2 days while using cover stories to keep the owner away

A huband nominated this for his wife. Her over the top return reaction made me really feel that she knew about this.

There is NO WAY Rick could get away with this. No way. Rick doesn't know where anything is in the house. Rick doesn't know the schedule. Rick couldn't tell you what I like. He could tell you what I don't like so that would be good.  It was fun to watch but I just found it hard to believe. Next one could be a husband getting the remodel like a man cave or something and that I know a woman could pull off. He is out of town for business or a fishing trip. He is clueless to what is happening where as a woman would be checking in etc. He will be surprised. Go ahead tell me how wrong I am. 

______

I go back to my hairdresser who is good and expensive tomorrow. I'm looking forward to a cut but the money kills me. 

Rick told me to drive up to DC, get a cut, stay overnight and then drive back. It's only $100 more and you'd have fun. Valid point.

In the mean time kids I'll be back in October. 

And you thought you got rid of me. 

I'm hoping the next time I speak to you it will be in the 70s and not the 90s and the Cornell 7 are all castrated. :-)

Hair

Okay, blogger buddies, thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Your words were so kind. Thank you.

Like my husband, it appears a lot of you think I should just do this monthly after September.  His reasoning isn't as nice as yours.

When I told him I wanted to wind down, he told me that when I need to vent, you guys get the brunt of it and not him.  Then he laughed like a lunatic.

I told him I will still vent to you, buddy, so be careful.  Then he hugged me like that made his words better. I'm going to think about the once-a-month thing.  

I'll let you know.

In the meantime, allow me to share something that has made me feel like shit.  

Just the opposite reaction to all your kind words.

I saw a new salon open near me. It was Salon Suites.  If you don't know what that is, it's a building with several small rooms that are rented to stylists so they are not working for someone else.  Their room is their salon.

I made an appointment for a consultation.  I got there in 5 minutes. That alone thrilled me. I sat in the terribly decorated waiting area with 3 other women.  

Heather, who was to be my stylist, came out all smiling and told me to come back.

I followed her into her tiny studio.  

We began with what I do like about this cut and what I would like to change.

We talked about hair, products I used, etc.

Then the dreaded question: where are you from?  Where did I move from, or where did I grow up?  Both.  I told her.  She nodded.  I know that nod. I silently observed her. She said nothing else.  I knew enough to shut up. 

She was all smiles while I was there.  She booked me an appointment for Sept 11th.

I was thrilled because she seemed to understand my hair, using a razor, etc.

2 days later, I received a text telling me my appointment was canceled. Then a 2nd text telling me, "Peggy, I don't think we are a good fit.  You were very friendly and familiar, and I just don't think this is a good fit because of that. You acted like you were my friend."

That's all she wrote.

Friendly and familiar?

I get friendly; they sure don't like that here, but I can't change that and wear a puss face for them. It's not who I am.  But Familiar?  What the hell does that even mean?

I show this to Rick.  He hugged me. He knew I was hurt.

He asked, "Did you share stories or ask her personal questions?"

I said, "NO. We talked about hair. The only thing outside of hair was that she asked where I was from."

Rick just went, "Ah. Bingo. You Yankee, you." 

God, if they had won the damn Civil War hundreds of years ago, would they be nicer?

Rick again asks, "No stories of your life or anything to make it familiar?"

"NO, just my hair."

So, if you can be blunt with me, what did I do wrong?

I wore a smile. I did not talk about anything other than my hair and answered her question about where I was from. 

I hate the South; I really do. I wish I weren't stuck here now. They never fail to show me who they are. I wish it were like the movies where they are so nice.

In the meantime, I still have my very expensive gal who treats me well and is super nice. Guess what? She was born here, but her parents are not southern. I think that is why she is so open-minded to all kinds of people. 

Oh well, such is life.  I'll get over it eventually.

Winding Down

Yesterday Rick made me very angry. I said nothing because I thought it best to walk away first and cool down.

He came into the room I was in and pulled up his shirt.

Me: What the hell are you doing?

Rick: Showing you my boobs.

Me: Why on earth...

Rick: It always works when you do it.

Damn him anyway.  I laughed, and he was right; it defused the situation.

In other news.

To the 3 or 4 readers I have left, I wanted to share that I will be winding down my blog this month.

I started it once I was downsized and went into our own business. 

I missed the camaraderie and my friends. Most stories had humor.

Now it's just old lady issues.  No fun in that for you or me.

I also feel as though the Canadians are boycotting American blogs, along with everything else, and frankly, I understand it so very well.

So I will be here in September, and then I'm retiring. 

I will continue to read you all, but I won't be writing.

In the meantime, a couple of memes.

This is my favorite place from my hometown of Erie, PA. It is one of the 11 beaches on Presque Isle State Park.  For those not familiar, it's on Lake Erie. We are still calling it Lake Erie right?  He's not changing it because it is an Iroquois Indian name for long tail is he?  Oh wait he isn't that smart to know that. (presque isle is a long tail land mass that juts out from PA into the lake)

                                    Who says I don't have culture?

                                

                           
                        Oh please!! It feels very dark and heavy here.

Reading While Moving Your Lips

I had an amusing incident at the doctor's yesterday.

A bit of the backstory, which of course is TMI.

I had to get Rick back to the doctor's to follow up on his E. coli experience.

Whew, that was bad.  He is feeling darn good today.

In fact, this morning he shared that he finally had a solid BM. Gee, thanks, Rick.

He said, "Nothing says you're old like worrying about BMs"   Sadly true.

He had explosive diarrhea and severe stomach cramps that knocked him out for 10 days. Nothing worse than a sick man, let me tell you!!!! 

While I waited in the waiting room, I was just people-watching as one does.

A lady sitting across from me was reading a book.  A real book in her hand.

That made me happy to see.

Then I noticed she was moving her lips as she read. 

I smiled and thought to myself, well, I talk to myself, so she reads to herself. 

No biggie.

But then she turned the page and began to shake her head vigorously back and forth like she did not like what was on the page, then up and down as if to say, that's better.

I looked away for a minute, and then I heard loudly, "Oh, no, he didn't!"

I looked up, and it was her, but she just continued to read her book.  

She never looked up from the book. 

At this point in time, I was behind her to her right, and there was only 1 older man left in the waiting room who behaved like her heard nothing. How could that be? Or he was more polite than me and just ignored her outburst.

Honestly, I loved that she was that into her book. 

I tried to see the name of the book, thinking I may need to check it out of the library. But I never got a look at the front. When she was called to the back, she pressed the book to her chest, so I didn't see it then either. By God, I tried. I should have walked over to ask her.

I also loved that she made my time in the waiting room so much better.

She honestly entertained me.

Flashback Friday

It has been awhile since Ive done a flashback. 

It has also been a difficult week so let's go in the way back machine. (Yes that's a reference to Mr Peabody)

Can't wait to hear your answers.

_____________

Can You Tell Your Life Story In Exactly Six Words?

I was reading this article on 6 words Memoirs.
It got us all talking here today. 

I thought some of them in the article were pretty funny and clever.
I, however, am neither that clever or smart.

I came up with two right off the bat that are pretty spot on for who I am.
Want it All, Wanted it Yesterday.
Great Childhood, major hiccup, blessed adult.

So I am asking you all to not be shy and tell me your 6 word memoir.
C'mon,  come play with me.

Dr. Helpful

I spent an hour with Dr F.  He met me in the lobby, shook my hand, and walked me back to his office. 

The first thing that he asked me was, "Boy, you said my name correctly.  Do you know someone with my last name?"  

"No, but I'm Italian American, and those types of names are easy for me."

He said my current last name and then said, "This must be your married name."

Sure is.

Then he asked me to tell him my story. WHAT? A doctor asks questions, looks me in the eyes, and HEARS me?  What the hell is this?

We went over everything.  He and I didn't agree on some things, but I'm willing to go with him until I see he is wrong, I told him. He had such a hearty laugh when I said that. He said that was all he asked of me. 

We chatted a lot about all this stuff, and sometimes he would just laugh at me. He said, "I know how this is upsetting you. I've seen the tears come to your eyes a few times, but Margaret, you're damn funny, and I appreciate the humor through the pain. Have you ever thought of being a stand-up comedian?"

Ah, if only I had a dollar for each time I've been told that one.

I just laughed off his comment.

Towards the end, he was asking about how much I drink alcohol, smoke, drink pop, etc. When I used the word pop he asked if I was from New York.

I told him I am asked that weekly. 

No, I am not; besides, people in NY say soda. I'm originally a Midwest gal.

May I ask why you think I'm from NY?  What am I putting out there?  

He said it was just a feeling, not a bad thing at all. Then he told me where he was from. Then he shared that his brother lived where I used to live in VA. He said it's beautiful there, and everyone is so friendly, but he couldn't live there because it was so expensive. Yep, that is why I'm here.

Those who don't speak with a southern accent here are from outside the area. Most of the people in Raleigh speak just like me. It's not until you get to the outer suburbs, like where I am currently residing, that you hear the accent.

We went on and on. He even drew on a whiteboard to help illustrate some things going on with me. He told me why we were doing some of the tests we were about to do and what was going to happen going forward.

He asked me to be patient, and we would get his worked out.

I can't really ask for more at this point, right? 

I just had a doctor listen to me, hear me, look at me and not his computer and asked about me. WOW. I haven't had that since I left N.VA and my former doctor.

So we shall see, won't we?

Everyone here asks me if I moved here from NY. Most say it like it's a dirty word. NY is a big state. Do you hate the whole state, like the Catskill area or the Adirondacks, Lake Placid, Rochester?  Or is it only New York City? 

They stare at you when you ask them this. Most think NY is only Manhattan and the burbs; it is so damn weird. It would be like me thinking Texas is just Dallas.  Sometimes I want to ask people if they went to school and had geography classes, but that is frowned upon, so I just stare at them and assume they voted for the diaper-wearing orange pedophile.

How's that for turning the judgmental tables?  

So to those who know me, why do all people here think I'm from NY?

I don't get it. I don't even speak like someone from NY. 

Now, my father was from 'da bronx' after coming to America. 

He was the one who talked funny. Mudder and fadder were his parents.

He was a plumba who worked on turlets.

When Rick met him, he said, you told me you had to go to speech classes; now I get it. I laughed, but that was not why I had to go, I explained. 

Thankfully, my mother spoke great English, no accent, and would never allow us to say words like my father. (although she said sangwich)

It became a joke in our family. And my father's humor went along with us all making fun of him. He was quite successful in his field, so it didn't stop him, but it was funny.

Yesterday was long, but hopefully we'll get somewhere. If we don't all die before that. Rick ate watermelon that we got at the Raleigh Farmers Market. Supposedly grown on this guy's farm. Rick got severe cramps and severe diarrhea, and it's been 3 days of him being ill. We are now calling his "walk" down the hall to rush to the bathroom the Stroke Boys Shuffle. Poor guy can't walk fast, and he then shuffles down the hall as fast as he can, and his mean, mean wife laughs listening to his big feet going as fast as he can.  I recommend getting him a pillow and having him stay in there. He said I may have to. This was on day 1, the worst day.

They say this should be over in a week. We did go to Urgent Care. 

He's gotten better on day 3, but it's not good. He can't eat, and he has gained a few pounds, so I told him to think of this as a really awful diet. I am thankful we have two bathrooms and that I did not eat any watermelon.

It's going to get better, it's going to get better, it's going to get better.

I think I'll say this until it does. 

Library.

I stopped at the library to pick up reserved books. I called Rick to be sure all was OK. I had been gone for a bit already. I told him where I was and that I'd like to stay a bit. Did he need anything? I asked him not to cook. He laughed and promised he wouldn't.

Sometimes 30 minutes alone gives this caregiver the ability to decompress for a minute. Or sit in my car and cry so I can then move forward with a smile and be a good care giver.

There are big comfy chairs in the back to sit and read.

I grabbed a chair, exhaled. After a few minutes this man who sat across from me kept staring. Just as I was thinking that I should leave he leans in and said," i feel like I know you from somewhere."

Nope, don't think so, I'm not from here. He said he wasn't either. He asked where I worked. Ha ha, the white hair wasn't a give away? "Im retired."

May I ask you where you worked? 

Galileo

Never heard of it.

I smiled and went back to my book hoping he was done.

May I asked what you did there?

I was a senior sales executive/contract negotiator.

I was hoping like hell that was it.

Nope.

He said ah. Car salesman?, eh?

I wanted to scream or punch him, but I just nodded my head and looked back at my book. I did not ask him about himself. I just wanted to be alone and who'd have thought I'd have this maga creep to deal with at the library. Perhaps if he opened a book instead of his mouth he'd learn something. I didn't do or say any of that Im proud to say.

Sir, I'm just here to relax and read if that's ok.

Hopefully that would shut him up. Then he started on another woman. That did it. I left. Does this man think it's a pick up bar? She looked at him with such disgust.

But being the wench I am, I went to the front desk. These ladies know me so I felt safe doing this. I told them about this dude bothering us all quietly reading and enjoying the peace. In unison 2 ladies said, "Oh God, not again.  They said they'd take care of it and i left.

In my car I sat there and thought maybe I was being petty. I had then decided I don't care. I'm tired of tolerating everything.

I drove home. The house was still standing. Leaving Rick alone can be scary. He leaves the stove on, water running and lights on in rooms he's not in. The stove and water are the ones that concern me. And the falling of course. All were in one piece. 

I stopped and got him a peanut butter cup. He laughed like crazy. You see he always would buy me  chocolate when he went on a work trip, 

So I knew this would make him laugh. And it did as I hoped.

In other news....a cancelation opening was available so I see the endocrinologist late today. Fingers crossed i get answers!🤞 

Happy Hump Day!

Oh, Canada

I would like to sincerely apologize to Canada!

Our demented diaper wearing pervert is slamming you all again. It's him...NOT US.  The red hat wearing cult members but NOT normal folks with an education and teeth. We LOVE our Canadian neighbors. 

In other news a very good friend of mine sent me this. She thought it fit me perfectly. While its damn funny I'd never wear it. But it is nice to be thought of I suppose!?

Speaking of Canada I saw where SCTV is now going to be streaming. It will be on Netflix beginning Sept 1st. We used to run home to watch this show. No VCR's back then

It's going to be cool this week only in the 80s. This morning it was glorious outside. If I hadn't needed t. o go to the doctors I'd have just sat my butt on the patio with my morning coffee. It was only 65 degrees! Happy happy happy.

I'll leave you with this--It's a thriller on Hulu called Furious. 1 episode left. Emmy Rossum, who was in Shameless, is the lead here. I have a feeling I know the twist but I won't know until Monday darn it. 

Any of you watching this?

Grocery Shopping

 Hello Sunday.

I was at my favorite store, Wegmans, doing my grocery shopping. 

I know enough to not go to the grocery store on Saturday, but I went anyway.

Note to self.  DO NOT DO THAT AGAIN, STUPID. 

The wine aisle was impossible to peruse, so I didn't, damn it.

For someone who always feels it's a bit too peopley out there, this was a lesson in patience and in holding my thoughts inside.  Also, not running over children who were not being supervised or parents who stopped to talk on their phone mid-aisle.

She was saying, " Oh, he was cute, but too many red flags.

I wanted to scream, move to the left or right or get off the freakin' phone.

How did people shop before they had a phone in their hand?

I get the husbands who are talking on the phone in any given aisle: "Honey, I don't see it. No, there are no red cans....
How many times have you seen or heard that? That makes me giggle.

But personal calls can wait, can't they?

Sorry, went off there.

I was in the gluten-free aisle looking for things as one does. 

This couple who appeared to be about my age were going back and forth about a brand of bread they were holding. They were struggling. Think it's good? Worth the price? Should we try it?  That type of thing.

I took a chance: "Not that you asked, but that's pretty good bread. I am not a big fan of sourdough, but it's good. Their deli bread is like a light rye. Great for Reubens and Ruben casserole. Stay away from anything UDI.  Terrible.

This guy asked if he could go home with me.

Ha! 

I asked if being gf was new to them. Yes, indeed it was. It showed. 

He said, "It's so overwhelming, but being sick sucks too.  

I nodded because I certainly understood. I told him it does get easier. But it always will be a pain in the butt.  He laughed and said I see that. 

Feeling good is the reward, so there is that I shared; hang in there.

Then I asked, "Have either of you seen rice paper? I did not see it in the Asian aisle. The gentleman asked me to repeat what I was looking for. 

I repeated, "rice paper"

He made a hand gesture as if he were rolling a joint.  

I had a hearty laugh in Aisle 17a.

No, sir, not rolling papers, rice paper to make egg rolls. They look just like egg roll wrappers, only clear. 

His wife jumped in and asked, "You can do that?"  She was now excited.  

I told her I sure hope so.  I make a mean egg roll but can't eat those pesky wrappers, so I saw where someone made them with rice paper, and it worked. My tip to you is--Just remember soy sauce is gluten - use Tamari instead. He said, "dear lord, soy sauce is gluten too?" He made such a face I wanted to laugh. But not at him, only because I've been him. It sucks to find out that you can't have malt vinegar on your fries or soy sauce or ever go to a Chinese restaurant again.

The gentleman now put what he was holding in his cart, grabbed my elbow, turned me a bit, said goodbye to his wife, "I'm going home with her; she has this gluten thing down, and I won't starve."  LOL

Omg, people are funny. I saw them later in the ice cream aisle, and I smiled.

I saw him coming towards me, and I feared what was coming next.

He asked me where I was from. Whew, better than I imagined; I thought I might get some Yankee bullshit coming my way.

I responded, "My accent gave me away, did it?"  

He replied with a resounding, "NO, your friendliness"

Ah, thank you. They thanked me again, and off they went.

See, I'm not the only one who sees how unfriendly it is here. 

Southern hospitality, my ass. 

It's always a good day at Wegman's!!

Dinner by Rick

If you're keeping up here on the blog, you all know Rick said he would make dinner Friday. Yes, he did make dinner for us.

He made stuffed peppers. They were great. 

I must admit that 50% of that was because I didn't make 'em. Haha

Saturday he made meatballs. He had my Grandmother teach him how to make her 'famous' meatballs. He mastered them.  So we had meatball hoagies with melted mozzarella. Yes they make gluten free rolls and they are awful. So I skipped the bread. Rick's looked so good. He put it under the broiler for a minute and when I brought it to the table I was drooling. This is when I really miss bread. The melted mozzarella didn't hurt.

So that was two days of only having to clean up. I like that! And we have left overs to boot.

Then on Sunday we used the meatballs again. It's a good thing we like left overs.

Back in the days of going out and drinking there was an infamous diner type place. After the bars closed everyone wanted food. This place was famous for their meatball omelettes. Oh they had all kinds of food but this is the only thing I'd ever had there.

Rick told me when he first moved to my hometown he was out with friends and they took him there st 2am. He thought the whole meatball omlette idea was gross. So I asked him why then would he order it? He told me because they all raved about it and I was drunk.

Ok, good reason. 

He LOVED it and now understood this tradition.

So this morning I asked if he was interested in a meatball omlette? His eyes lit up. Yes!

I made them and we both sighed after our first bite.

Ah, memories.

I don't know what's for dinner tonight but I can tell you its not meatballs. 😀

Aging Backwards

 I'm aging backwards. Yippee!

As you all know I've been dealing with medical,shall we say, 'shit'

Nausea off the charts, dizzy, falling, fatigue like never before to name just a few of my symptoms. Then I got spots on my arm. I went to see a dermatologist who told me it was just old age. I didn't believe her but what could I do?

Now they are going away. So does that mean I'm getting younger? If so I'd like to be 44 again please. You know where everything is up where God originally put them.. 😇

Last night a good friend called and we got caught up. I showed her the spotted forearm and she told me a co-worker had this. It was her adrenals. She gave me more info that sounded like what I've dealt with over this year.

I immediately called an endocrinologist. I go the last day of September. I hate waiting so I asked if there was a wait list I'd like on it!!

                           

Old age.....

Getting younger....

Next time I talk to you all, I'll have my old Auburn hair return, pert boobs, and nary a wrinkle. 44 it is baby!!

🔥🔥🔥

It is to be a 'feels like' of 105 with your standard southern thick humidity on Thursday. 

I think this may feel like being cremated alive.

I've always been hot in temperature compared to everyone else. When I was a kid I had to share a room with one of my sisters. She was cold and I was sweating like a 50yr old in menopause, but I was only 9 years old.

The first night I slept over at Rick's, I got up dripping in sweat and opened a window. In the morning he asked if I opened that window. I said, " Yes, sorry I was just so warm" 

He said, "it snowed inside." Not a good impression but his water bed was so hot and his house was warm, I was dying. 

I suggested he stay at my house next time. He made me promise not to open the window and let it snow inside. I promised.

So as you can imagine menopause was fun for me. Wednesday felt like that! Hot flashes galore kind of heat

I had to go to the pharmacy, grocery store and gas station. 

I could feel sweat running down my back as I got gas. I did drive thru pharmacy so I could sit in air conditioning. Then the grocery store. It was hotter than hell. Then the lights flashed on and off. I wanted to hurry because I thought the air was dying, it felt hot to me.  The check out woman was dripping in sweat. She kept wiping her face.

As I was walking out I heard them say they may have to close the store. No A/C is a good reason to close in high 90s if that was even the issue.

By the time I got home, unloaded it all, I looked like I went swimming in my clothes.  Rick took one look at me and saw my wet hair and said, "Is it that hot out?"

Nope, just being dramatic.😀

I took off my tee-shirt and wiped my face, hair and cleavage. Rick came into our room and said, "Just cool off,I'll put things away" I gave him a kiss and said thanks and jumped in the shower. Cool shower. It felt so good.

I walked into the kitchen, cool, refreshed and then I saw it. He was standing there holding things & looking around. 

I asked, "Don't know where it goes there Ricky?"

He laughed, "oh I knew you'd come out here too quickly."

He held up the gluten free puff pastry-"Pantry or do you freeze this?" 

I thanked him for trying but I think its better if I put things away so it won't be a hunting expedition when its time for me to find something. Rick was always bad at this but since the stroke it sure isn't better!!

He said,  "I'll do what I do and take out the garbage." Agreed. At least we remembered to do that this week.

When I was younger, about age 30, I'd say the perfect marriage for me would be to have him live next door. He could take out the garbage, car maintenance, service me and fix things....tee hee

I would have him over for dinner and even do his laundry. 

But the TV and remote would be mine. No sasquatch or alien shows. No violent so called action films. In fact music would be on more than TV!

Eat ice cream for dinner or no dinner at all. Okay, a glass of wine or a Tanqueray for dinner. 

When I lived in Ohio  Rick called me from PA. We were just shooting the shit and he asked what I had for dinner. I told him a chilled Tanqueray with 3 olives. 

He told me gin was not food. I told him I had 3 olives. He just laughed.  I would have a drink, do my paperwork and call it a night. I hardly ever cooked for myself. 

Then I met Rick who always cooked. I moved in with Rick and he continued to cook. He said he loved it. Great because I hate it. Then I married Rick and he did most of the cooking.

Then Rick had a stroke. Ah, we are going to starve. 

I do almost all the cooking now. Rick does from time to time but as he has said many times, He's lost his mojo.

He says it all the time in frustration. So I suggested he just cook more and it will get better. (See what I'm doing there?) He told me I was probably right even though my intentions were evil. I laughed like a fool. 

He said, I've had a stroke, I'm not stupid Margaret. 

See? I told you that you were doing better!

Nice save, but I  call bullshit, he says through laughter.

Not buying it eh?

I think I'll started Friday. Dinners on me!

Okey dokey!

In the meantime I have gf pizza dough just in case.🤣🤣

Smile

Now our food is killing us or giving us explosive diarrhea. Lovely.

No lettuce, no jalapeños, and more. Now, as a Celiac, my foods that I do eat a lot of are salads, homemade Pico de gallo, and eggs.

I never ever buy bagged lettuce, which was the first culprit. Then they suggested lettuce by the head. Oh great. We were told to take the outer leaves off and throw them away, then thoroughly rinse the head of lettuce. Nope. I still fear it all. I don't want Cyclospora, which causes weeks of severe pain and explosive diarrhea or death. Not worth a salad. 

Now they say Salmonella for my jalapeños from Mexico.  

I seeded a jalapeño I had purchased some time ago. I put the seeds in a pot on my patio to see if they would grow. I eat my homemade Pico daily, until now. So no salads, no spice, no wheat. What's a gal to do?  

You'd think I'd be skinny, wouldn't you?  Rick tells me all the time he doesn't see how I don't lose weight when I hardly eat. My thoughts exactly, buddy!  

I watch him eat ice cream, candy, and junk food every night as I drink water. 

Oh well. God made me chubby so I'd keep my clothes on, I swear. 

We are heading to the big Raleigh farmers market to buy produce not from Mexico. We want homegrown food. Our world is crazy. I got bell peppers from Canada as well as mushrooms. Plz Canada, don't give me salmonella or explosive diarrhea.

I'm not in the mood to die either. 

I went to pick up rice paper in the Asian department.

I was going to make egg rolls, and since I can't use regular egg roll wrappers, I saw a man who made egg rolls with rice paper.  YIPEE. 

Gluten-free, and I already know how to make the insides. But my store had no rice paper. 

I asked the woman who worked there, and she told me to just use egg roll wrappers. 

I smiled and thanked her and went along my merry way. 

I always smile, but inside I'm thinking, "Did I say egg roll wrappers? If I wanted egg roll wrappers, I'd have chosen one from the 3 piles of them you have in front of me. I don't fucking want egg roll wrappers, lady" 

But I only say this in my head of course. 

It makes me feel better so I can smile at this woman and thank her

It's what we refer to as my Peggy face.  I was given my Peggy face as a child. It's served me well, I suppose. Rick got it from the first week he met me, when we were with other people.  He asked why I did that. 

I told him, why make others feel bad?  Just smile and move on. 

But did I move on or just add it to a pile of shit I was stuffing down?

When my mom was sick, I never wanted to upset her or make her worry about me. So I smiled and always said things were fine or great, no matter how heavy this all felt to me at the time. (I was 10.)

 

When my mom died, my father told me not to cry at the funeral because it made others feel bad and uncomfortable. (I was 13) When people talked about my mom or came to our home, I served the coffee and pastries and smiled because that is what I was told to do. Stuff it down and smile. 

Be kind to everyone but myself was what it felt like it was about; I just didn't know it then.

So there have been many difficult times in my life, and I just put on my Peggy face. Make others laugh, make others comfortable, and smile, smile, smile. Today I didn't want to smile, but I did. She didn't deserve my anger; I was just in a bad mood. 

It's been 60 years of that shit. Smile! I am getting tired. I fear all this pent-up smiling will explode one day, and I won't be kind to someone, and I'll say what is on my mind. But I continue to practice kindness, keeping it inside and smiling. Eventually, there will be something worth smiling about, right?  

Scared Pantless

I wear a bone conducting headset like the one below.

Last night Rick fell asleep in his ugly chair. It was late but I really wanted to finish something I had recorded on HGTV.

Since he was asleep I changed the channel and using Bluetooth on my TV I put on my headset. This way it could be loud but Rick couldn't hear anything.

When my show was over, I woke Rick to go to bed.

Off to bed we went. I fell asleep pretty quickly.

Around 2AM Rick heard people talking in the house. It was faint but he was sure it was people talking. He grabbed his baseball bat and began to go towards the hall as quietly as he could. 

Now you need to know this, Rick sleeps naked.

So with his bat and naked he walks into the hall.

As he's telling me all this, this morning, I am snickering, "so you're naked, holding a bat with a big stick,eh?"

At least it made the man laugh.

As he got into the hall is when he heard a TV commercial. When he got into the living room he saw that the TV was off, No one was in our home. However I did not turn off my headset last night. I just took it off and went to bed. I put it on the coffee table. He was hearing my headset. How he heard this I will never know. It was so faint and not close by.

This stroke has given him the ability to hear and smell like a dog...except when I talk of course.

Needless to say he was thrilled no one had broken into our home. But I got an earful. We had some good laughs this morning about it. Thankfully for the insipid TV commercial with the lawyer on top of a semi screaming "I'm on top of it", he could relax.

As he was enjoying his morning coffee, he turned to me and said, "This is going to be blog fodder isn't it?"

He knows me so well