Talent

You have all heard me moan about not having a talent. Everyone around me has so many, and I just want one damn it.

Kathy over at The Second Half of My Life made poker chip sacks to store her husband's poker chips.  She had a really clever idea. I am envious of people with talent of any kind. Being short sewing would sure come in handy and save me money at the tailor.

I can't sew. God knows I have tried. I enjoy knitting, but I'm not great.

Everything I have tried, just makes me realize I'm not really good at anything.

My high school boyfriend/1st husband was an athlete. I am so not.

He wanted me to jog with him in the mornings. Back in the day when there were no sports bras. He would wrap me with an ace bandage so I'd run with him. God, I hated it, but I did it.  I was young and stupid. 

Then he wanted me to learn tennis so I could play with him. Apparently his racket was da bomb and I just didn't get it.  So I tried. Oh how I tried.  He got angry at me and said I wasn't trying hard enough, no one is this bad.

Yes, there is, me.

He gave up in utter disgust. But that had nothing on golfing.

He was in a bowling league.  I lived in a town of Beer, bowling, and bingo.

I don't enjoy any of those 3.  My ex even bought me my own bowling ball with my name engraved so I could go bowling all the time with him. 

Oh he had many a 300 game.  His name in the paper etc.  I couldn't get past a 110. Usually less. I was great at the scorekeeper and they didn't have electric ones at the time.

He also liked to golf.  Again, I tried. "Put your arms closer to your body," he'd yell.  Okay, but you'll see that my boobs get in the way then.  He laughed when he saw that it was what happened, and he just threw his hands in the air and said, "Okay, I give up."  Whew.  I told him I could get a breast reduction, and he said, "No, you don't need to golf."  HA

He taught me how to water ski.  I was pretty good at that. But the only reason was that I hated being bitten by fish, and I didn't want to be in the water.

Yes, you heard me bitten by fish.  More on that later.

He was a good baseball player. Never made the majors, only the minors. 

Thank God he never asked me to throw a ball. I am certain he knew better.

Then I met Rick.  He can build anything. (before stroke) He can make things out of nothing. He can do everything but plumbing. Before he went into the white collar world, he was an electrician in the 70s.  So he can do that too.  So I have this man who can do anything he tries and does it well.

I want to feel that, just once.

I'm very good at being clumsy.  I am very good at reading.

Woo-hoo, great skills, right? 

I am not an athlete, and even if I were, I couldn't do most things with this chest.  And speaking of chests - Simone Biles.

I love Simone Biles. Everyone asks her if she is going to retire.

I know the answer is yes.  How do I know?  She just bought herself a new pair of Boobs.  If she doesn't retire, I am certain it will be an adjustment for balance and the way she throws her body.  So, to me, after seeing her, and she looks great, I believe she is retiring.  She's done it all and is the GOAT, so whatever makes her happy!

Now, back to water skiing.  Everyone was amazed at how fast I got this and how well I did.  I didn't blame them, knowing how pathetic I am at most things.  But again, I didn't want to fall into the water, so being above it was all I needed to do, and it worked.  

The first husband would get so mad at me and yell, "Nothing is biting you for God's sake, Margaret."

I gave up trying to explain.

Fast forward to Rick in the water with me. 

I'm telling him how those little fish bite me.

He laughed and said, Fish don't bite, Margaret. He was laughing at me big time.  I wasn't going to argue because no one believes me.

Years ago, when we were at our lake house, we went for a boat ride one afternoon.  

We anchored the boat in a cove and jumped out and put some lawn chairs on the sand. After a bit, we were both warm and went into the water. I was only waist-deep.  

Rick saw a fish come up to me and break skin - a sunfish!  I jumped and yelped, and he said, "OMG, I saw that.  It drew blood."  

"No shit, Sherlock," I yell as I am leaving the water to go back to my chair on land.  

He sits down next to me and looks at the mark.  

He saw the blood. The bite isn't big, but it will always break skin. 

He just kept saying, "I can't believe this. Those sunfish will always make bubbles around the hair on my legs, but I didn't know they could bite".  

"Now, do you believe me?"

"Yes, I do, and I'm sorry I made fun of you before. I told you that you were sweet meat"

Oh brother.

I told him he needed to call my ex and tell him for me.

Now he understood why I could ski so well. Rick couldn't ski for shit.

I finally could do something he couldn't. It was a nice feeling for a change.

I was offered a job as a stager right before we were leaving N.VA. It's something I would have LOVED to do. She was sent to our home by the realtor to stage and change anything that needed to be changed.

She walked through the house with me and said, "I wouldn't change a thing." She asked if I had a designer. Nope, I did this.

We went back downstairs and asked if I had ever taken design or staging classes. No, I just enjoy that type of thing. 

"Would you like a job?"

I said, "My God, I'd love to do that, but I'm leaving the area."

She then said, "If you decide to stay here or come back, please call me. Youre very good"

She made my day, month, and year. So maybe I could have gotten good at that, who knows?

I was great at my corporate job.  I know that, and I was paid well for it.  

But it's not a talent.  I'd prefer to sing, but that's hopeless except in my car, sitting in traffic. 

One of these days I'll find one, but time is running out.

What is your talent?

Rain Rain Go Away

It's been stormy here. Most of the East and Midwest are dealing with flooding, various storms, and general misery. It rains every afternoon around 5p for hours. Not like in Florida, where it rains in the afternoon for a quick sprinkle.  

When I was a kid, after a summer rain, it smelled so good to me.  

The weather was a little cooler, and the humidity seemed to go down.

As an adult living in the south, I don't find any of that statement to be true today.

It was only 100 the other day, and it stormed. Power outages, several inches of more rain, and wind.  But when it stopped, we went outside, and it was hotter and more humid.  The temp that night went to 89 as our low.  So much for hoping for cooler weather. I don't know that there is a place that is cool right now. 

We are thankful we are not in a flood zone, but then again, some areas like Chapel Hill are considered a minimum risk, and they were underwater, and several businesses and plazas are completely shut down and/or lost.  

I hope wherever you are, you are high and dry and you have blue skies and sunshine. (and cool temps like 75)

Due to all this rain, we've been indoors a lot more. 

We made popcorn one afternoon and watched a movie.

Oh boy, did I make a bad choice. Yep, it was Peg's choice, and I messed up.

It was called The Watcher.  It was on Netflix.  Have you seen it?

I saw all the great actors in this and thought, let's give it a try.

I should have assumed it would be creepy, but apparently I am a ditz.

Rick said, "The name didn't give you a clue?"

As it got more and more creepy, I couldn't sit and watch this. I had to move around. I folded clothes, did laundry, etc, all the while listening to this.  

I played a game on my phone while Rick was so entrenched in this show. I'd watch but with one eye kind of thing.

I watched it all the way through with him. Well, sort of.  He loved it. I knew it was based on a true story, so I shared that with him. His response was, "OMG I'd have moved out of that house the first day all that shit happened."

I reminded him of when people told us that same thing when we lived in a haunted house.

Well, that's different, he explained.  Those were annoyances from dead people. These are people who are alive and want to hurt us.

I actually saw his point, which made me laugh a bit. Yes, I'd have moved out probably before the letter arrived. LOL

Have you seen this?  Still, it was less frightening than the news, that is for sure.

Gym Day

Ever since Rick had a stroke while driving, I've been paranoid when he drives somewhere alone.  The first time his life was saved was only because someone (me) was in the car to take the wheel from the passenger side of the car and get us to safety.  Over a curb, but better than the traffic hitting us that was coming right towards us.

So, we have this little ritual, which seems silly to all but me.

Rick is thankfully cool with it. He leaves for the gym, and he texts me when he arrives.  He also tells me when he is leaving and heading home. 

Wednesday, he texts me, "I'm here."

I respond, "Yeah! I think I have Rick disease, though. I can't stay vertical for long this morning!"

A couple of hours later, he sees my text, and he texts me the following, 

" I know the feeling, my bass is dragging by O'Day"

WHAT?

My response:  "Are you trying to speak like an Irishman?"

Then he sent me this meme from the car.

I couldn't disagree.🤣

 

Sad Conversations in Our Home

Rick was working in his woodshop, and he came in to cool off for a few minutes.  (No a/c in the garage)

As he walked from the kitchen to the bathroom, he left a trail of glitter as well as it was all over his chest and face.

I asked, "What the hell is with all this glitter everywhere? Is there a stripper named Misty out there?"

He said, "No, it's Candy. She's a hugger"  as he wipes the front of his shirt.

I, as usual, laugh. 

Pretending that I was angry, I told him to not talk to me as I walked out of the room.

Smart ass says, "Gee is that all it was gonna take?"

A finger may or may not have gone into the air at that point as I was walking away.

Selfies

 First picture of us together. Not a selfie. 

 No such thing back in the olden days.
1987. We were 30 and 31. (I was almost 31)

I guess if I hadn't been on his lap in this pic, we'd never see my ugly mug. (which is actually just fine)

The last few pictures of us together are below. 

In Ricks' defense, he looks awful in all of these photos, but at least you can see him.  I have so many of these "head" shots that my cousin took them all off Instagram and made a collage and sent it to us framed for Xmas.  

It made us laugh so hard.  

This one below was so long ago I had brown hair. LOL 

Actually, it was right before covid 2020. He was kneeling in this one so I got my ugly mug in this shot.

Honestly, I have only taken one selfie of myself to send to my sister about my gray in the front of my hair.  She said she couldn't picture me with gray hair, and please, whatever you do, do not go full on gray.  Oops!

Other events this week - 

I climbed onto the countertop this past week from my step stool to reach something. As I turned around to get down, my shirt caught on the door handle. I had a hole in this shirt, and of course, it went right through the hole!

I began to laugh.  I twisted and turned and couldn't remove it from the handle. I just couldn't.  I had to get down before Rick came in or he'd have a helluva time making fun of me, and I didn't need that.

So what did I do?  I took off my shirt. I literally wiggled out of it somehow. Damn if he doesn't walk in right then as I am on the 2nd step of the stool with my shirt off.   He says, "Hey, it's not even naked Tuesday!"

(We have never had naked Tuesdays yet he continues to hope)

I told him I was really warm and had to take it off. He bought it. Whew.

But not without copping a feel. Honestly this man loves boobs. 

Thankfully, he doesn't come to my blog, so he will never know I was stuck.

The last time I did this was in the early 90s and he took a picture of me before he even helped me down, the ass.

I get made fun of and teased all day long. It's Rick's favorite sport.

I do not need to add to his list of things to tease me about. 

So been stuck on the countertops lately?

Taken any selfies?  

But I'm Only 35!!

For some reason, the song by Delbert McClinton that says, "I used to worry 'bout being rich and skinny, til I wound up poor and fat,"  This song played in my head as I pretended I was still 35 and making $$$$ and was not chubby. Ah, but I wound up poor and fat and OLDER than my mental capacity can grasp.

Look, I know my chronological age. But honestly, I feel like I'm still 35.

Then, of course, my age hits me in the face. HARD.

This week I got glasses. Not readers, glasses. WTH?  

This week I got hearing aids.  What is happening?

Why does a 35-year-old need either of these?

My ENT doctor said my ears looked great. Big deal, they look great. 

But they aren't great. Rick said," But you have cute little ears."

Oh, please, they are not cooperating. Cute means nothing, buddy.

Because my hearing loss is moderate, he suggested that over-the-counter would be fine for me.  He and the audiologist felt that I didn't need the ones he sells just yet.  He said I should have my ears checked in 2 years.  He gave me 2 companies over the counter that he recommends. 

I also checked BBB and Consumer Reports, and both of the companies he recommended were the top 2 on both lists. So I am getting an over-the-counter type, which is far easier to buy than the big deal ones, money-wise.  

Glasses and hearing aids.  All in one week.  Talk about my age hitting me in the face.  I am going to go back to being delusional.

Next, it will be antidepressants.

Out from under the Covers

 I am going to talk about a few things today.

1. Why do crime shows calm me?  I hate all violent movies, yet Dateline, 48 Hours, 20/20, or Someone You Know are relaxing for me and shut out the world.  

You know it's always the spouse or piece on the side but I still enjoy it. 

I tell Rick if he wants out, don't kill me, just leave.

He always says he can't leave because he will never be able to watch TV again or know his medications. 

I used to say, "Oh, you can leave me, but I'm going with you. "

So basically, that means we won't be killing each other. :-)

I am not fond of the world or the USA right now, and it makes me very unsettled and anxious, yet a crime show makes me calm and relaxes me.  

I do believe I may be missing an important gene.

2. Speedos are back.  They should not be. NO, just NO!

They look horrific on Olympic Swimmers. No, just no.  We called them Dick Suits in my youth.  I don't care how ripped you are - they are gross!  Put on a real pair of big boy swim trunks for God's sake. 

3. I don't believe in violence. I have never hit anyone. 

Okay, my little sister when I was 10, but no one else or ever again. (because my mom would have killed me)

But if one more person asks me if it's hot enough when the temp is 102, I will personally hit them. Then hit them again with my sweaty shirt with boob sweat.  Hey boob sweat is real people and it's alwful.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DLQTxN6JLhS/?utm_source=ig_web_button_native_share

I can not embed this, no way, no how.  If you want to see one of the best commercials from Canada, please click on the link if you have an Instagram account. It's worth it!

It's Friday, so I have posted my Friday memes. Have a nice and relaxing weekend.

There is a theme here -

Rick and I are going to get a side hustle here at Saggy Aggies for some extra cash.  

What do you think?

My Mental Health

Anything exciting happen since I was here? 

An illegal war perhaps?

I'm taking some mental health days. 

The world is heavy and scary right now. 

I think I need to go under the covers for a bit.

Be back soon.

Hot yet?

My annual bitch of summer.

As you all know, I don't like summer since moving to NC.  It's just too damn hot and humid.  All summer, you hear, "feels like."  Up north, all you'd hear in winter was "wind chill."  Do we really need that info?  I mean if you tell me it's windy and 12 F I know it's damn cold I don't need to hear it will feel like 2F.

Same with heat.  Today, for instance, it's 100.  The feels like is 105.  So what?  
The humidity is at 93%. I know that it's 100 and humid. I don't need to know any more than that. I need to stay indoors until October.   

It is supposed to be in the high 90s and 100s for the foreseeable future. Yippee. 

Now, young Peg would be out there with baby oil soaking up all the sun rays I could and fry my skin.  Old Peg hides now when it's hot and prefers not to fry her skin like a chicken wing. I have a stand-up fan that one attaches a hose to. It oscillates and mists you.  I love it.  The only way to be outside these days in NC.

I have seen photos and videos from around the world on the news and on social media. The world hates this man as much as us.  I am always happy to see the world not support him.

One day when Rick and I were on the boat on the lake this big ole cigarette boat went by at such a high rate of speed it felt like we were going to capsize. I was scared and Rick calmly said,

 "ha,little penis"

Laughter

Have you ever laughed so hard that you can't breathe?

Well, the Big Guy and I did that very thing yesterday.

We have these zero-gravity chairs that we like for the beach, etc.

Yesterday afternoon, in the 'feels like' 105 heat, my husband wanted to clean the chairs up. We got them out of storage because he thought we'd take them to the beach. I told him the resort would have chairs.  Goofball.

Apparently, the chairs sitting there were a task he felt he had to tackle.

Of course not one task on his honey-do list.

I saw Rick on the patio trying to unfold them.  A 3-way fold, shall we say.

Well, I saw him struggling and, assuming this was an issue with his left hand from the stroke, I went out to assist.  I tried and I couldn't do it.

Rick asked if I had a stroke.  We both laughed.

Now I have one of the chairs as he is working on the other chair. 

I am not looking at him.  I am focused on this damn chair.

He asks, Hey, can you pull this for me. (and he laughed).

Oh, not now, mister!  I turned around, fearing what the hell he was asking me to pull the dirty old man, but it was a leg of the chair.  Oops. :-)

I did pull as hard as I could to the point I fell on my backside. 

Of course, that freaked Rick out because of my back. I told him I was fine.

So we tried again and again, and we just started laughing until we couldn't breathe. We tried every which way we could. We are both on the floor rolling around, and I admit I was howling.  I may have peed a little.  

Honestly, Rick's comments during this only made it funnier.

My neighbor, who cuts through our yard and down our driveway to get to her brothers, heard us.

She thought we were hurt.  She came around the garage and saw us on the floor.  She thought we were laughing, but wasn't sure.  She came onto the patio and said, "You two okay?"  That only made us laugh harder.

We told her we were fine.  Told her what we were trying to do.  She thought we were fighting or hurt.  She wasn't sure what she was hearing.  

Just snorts, laughter, a bit of howling, a scream, and more laughing.  

Then she said, "Oh, is that a zero gravity chair?  I've always wanted one. May I try sitting in it?"  

Rick smirks and hands her the one he was trying to undo.  

She unfolded it like that!  Holy shit she did not just do that. Rick said, "Sharon, I've had a stroke, and as he pointed to me, he says, I don't know what her problem is"  

How long does he get to use this excuse? They thought it was funny.

The chairs are now folded back up and leaning against my potting table.  Will we ever be able to unfold them again?  Who the hell knows? 

But I'll tell you we haven't had a laugh like that for a long, long time.

In other news....

I tried to show you a video of this, but I'll tell you instead.

I really liked some things about the protests, aside from the protests themselves.  The signs were clever and smart. But then those people read books.  

I absolutely LOVED that the Canadian National Anthem was played on huge speakers outside of the white house for most of the duration of his "parade." I also loved how giddy the man was in the video.

Friday, I'll post some signs that made me chuckle.

Betty

Due to the rain on Monday, I decided to give myself a bit of extra time and left at 7:55am.  The drive was a bit worse than normal due to the commute and rain up to Durham during 'rush' hour traffic, but I made it there at 9:38 am, and my appointment was at 9:30am.

Thank goodness my doctor was running late. When you go to the Eye Center, your appointment is never less than 2 hours, generally 3.  

I had pictures, tests, and drops to view my mass (Betty) on my retina. 

She is holding steady and not growing.  

It will never go away; we just have to keep it at bay. 

But there is scarring on my eye that had the cataract, the Betty eye. 

It happens, they tell me, after cataract surgery sometimes. I have a friend who told me this after her husband had to do the exact procedure on his eye. 

So I knew this was a possibility.  

Anyway, Dr. S. said he wanted to remove it, and I was told it would be a snap, and less than 5 minutes to do.  But he left out a few things.

Now I knew I was having this done on this appointment, but I was told this was no big deal. I was told I could drive home. 

Since I was there for 3 hours, I didn't want Rick to have to sit there for something so minor.

The doctor applied a gel substance to a contact lens that was attached to a contraption, allowing him to move and manipulate it if necessary. It also keeps my eye still.  (By the way, my doctor was watching, but his resident did the surgery)

It was done with a laser, and it was indeed quick. My dr. was called out and left the room when someone came to get him. He apologized and told me I was in good hands and left me with the resident.

When it was over, I told him I couldn't see; it was like vaseline was on my eye. 

He said, "Yes, that is the gel and it will go away by the evening or early morning."  

" Well, that's fine, but how do I drive home?"

 " You have another eye."

" Yes, but you dilated it, and it's blurry too."

He laughed and told me to go to the cafeteria or Starbucks in the building until my good eye calmed down. It shouldn't be too long, he assures me.

It was already noon. There was no way I was going to hang out at the hospital. Although a coffee sounded good since I had nothing to eat or any coffee that morning.  

I got in my car and drove an hour home. I stayed in the right-hand lane so as to not annoy other drivers and went the speed limit. Rare.

I could not read a single sign, and I was thanking all the powers that be that it stopped raining.  My sight was now horrible, and I had no business driving. I imagined this would be like Rick driving without his glasses. 

Glasses were of no help to me. I was scared, I admit. 

When I got home, I collapsed.  My eye was throbbing; it felt heavy.

I just wanted to sit and close my eyes.  I did and fell asleep for an hour.

I can see now that removing the scarring has made the cloudiness completely go away. It worked. 

But, I will never ever do that again. Drive that is.

I will make Rick drive me, and if sexual favors are the ploy, so be it.😁

______________________

As for my post on my favorite Canadian things that happened this weekend.

Every time I try to load an Instagram video, it won't load.

So if I put a link to it, you all tell me you don't have Instagram.

Would you like the links tomorrow? As well as some of the memes and stories to share.

Monday Morning

I have so much I wish to share about the weekend. But I'm exhausted. 

I have to leave here at 8:15 a.m. to be at the Duke Eye Center in Durham.
Not fond of the drive, let alone at this hour.  Besides, since my retirement, I don't do anything at 8:15 in the morning.  Oh, I may have my coffee and try to wake up, but I am certainly not ready for human consumption.  

Wish me luck.

I will fill you in on all the laughter and happiness from our friends up north!
God, how I love me some Canadians!

If anyone knows how to put up a reel from Instagram here, please share with me.

Okay off to bed so I can get up early - ha, like I'm going to fall asleep. 

😇

 

Weekend

 Got Weekend Plans?

Our plans are not exciting. 

We were discussing how, when we were in our 30s, our weekends were jam-packed. We were in constant motion and yet never tired. What a difference 30+ years makes. 

There is a gluten-free bakery that we drove to when we first moved here. 

Before the dog died, before Rick got sick, etc. We were exploring the new area we moved to. Rick had heard about this place and decided we should take a drive.  Well, it was further out than one would drive to regularly. I bought some bread and 4 cupcakes, and never went again.

Everything was so damn good too.

So Rick read that it was opening a store in Raleigh right by Wegmans (the best grocery store in the US). Rick asked if I'd like to go have a coffee and something sweet. He read that they have a cafe there as well.  

My God, we live on the edge, don't we?

The world as it is scares the hell out of me.

The US is a hot mess. We have Hitler in office, who didn't win but stole the election with the help of Elon.  He is killing everything and everyone.

Kennedy is an idiot. He has cleaned out the CDC.  God help us.

I am praying for severe thunderstorms and lightning all day tomorrow in DC for his $#@! parade.  

If we are all lucky, Mango Mussolini will be struck by lightning. Then a bldg will be struck and fall on them all and kill the whole lot of those assholes.

Again, I go back to the movie I watched in the 80s with Orson Wells narrating Nostradamus.  All the things said for this year are happening. 

I fear the last one he talked about will be soon.  

I no longer watch the news. Rick does, and I leave the room.

Things stick with me and I can't shake them. I have to stay away from a lot of this shit. I am a Pisces and I will stick my head in the sand.

In the meantime, I plan to eat some sweets tomorrow and have a great cup of coffee, and enjoy the day with my guy.

Hope you have nice plans.

Heat

We spent Sunday planting flowers in the window boxes and planter boxes, as well as all the things outside, in over 90-degree heat. Weeding is fun in that kind of heat. 

When we finished, we came inside. It felt cool, but then anything would after hours in that heat. We both showered and met in the kitchen. We got something to drink and collapsed on the sofa.

Baseball was now on, and we settled in for a truly horrific game. 

I asked Rick if he was warm. He said he was comfortable. 

I was dying, so I turned on a table fan to blow air on me. 

Now I am just sweating bullets. Rick finally says, Gee, it's warm in here."  

I go to the thermostat and it reads 79 degrees. Geez Louise. 

We realized our air conditioning is not working. 

Rick fiddled as he is prone to do, but still not working.

When it reached 83 in the house, we tried going out onto the patio.

(That's how bad the game was)

We sat on the patio for quite a while.  It wasn't a lot cooler, it was in the high 70s at 10p. But cooler than the stagnant air in the house.. 

There was a bit of a breeze that was not in the house, and it made it all tolerable.

I knew that our AC company had an after-hours line, so I called. 

They would call first thing on Monday, their voicemail said. They actually did!

In the meantime, Rick spread out on the outdoor sofa and was snoring in no time. 

At 1a.m. I tried to wake him, but he asked to let him stay there. 

He slept there until 5am when a neighbor's rooster woke him.

I slept on the sofa inside because it was cooler than our bedroom. But my God, it was still sticky and icky! At first, the leather sofa was cold, but it wasn't feeling that way any longer.

We took cool showers in the a.m. and waited for our AC Man.  

He arrived on time - go figure.  He was so damn nice.  He told us the issue and proceeded to fix it.  Something was stuck in the line so they blew it out.  Sounds easy enough but it took a while.  I was standing by an air vent when all of a sudden I felt it blowing on me.  It's fixed, I yelled while jumping up and down like a kid.  

Monday night, we had cool air.  It was wonderful to sleep in bed and to be comfortable.  How did we all survive in 90+ degree heat with high humidity?

They were a tougher stock back then. 

My Dad did plumbing/heating, and air conditioning.  

On a hot summer day, he brought home an air conditioner. 

It was 1973, I was a junior in school, and my step-mom had just given birth to my 2nd new sister.  The youngest two were a newborn and a 2-year-old. 

The heat was tough on them, and on my new mom. I saw it before my eyes.

The poor 2-year-old would be so hot that she would just remove her clothes.

I believe this is why my father caved and we got air conditioning.  

We older kids were excited; we didn't care about the reason it was happening, just that it was happening.

I am certain Dad got this for a great price, and since he was doing the install, this didn't cost us much.  Then, good ole Dad never let us turn it on.  

He'd tell us to open the front and back doors and get cross ventilation.

As a kid, I never knew what the hell that meant except he was not turning on the air.

Granted, hot in Erie, PA, where I grew up, is all relative. 

To us, it was hot in the 80s. To me, living in the south for the last 30 years, 80 is lovely to me now.

Come August, my father had a different tune. That was the hottest month of the summer in Erie.  He would finally turn on the air.  

My baby sister kept her clothes on.  

The relatives came by to just get cool. 

My uncle would show up (my dad's brother) with his 5 kids.  

He brought his crew along with pizzas and beers.

He was there to allow his family to be cool.  I find that so funny today.

But as a kid, it was what it was, and I never thought a thing of it. 

My parents knew this was why they were coming, and they were okay with it.  

In fact, they seemed to love it. 

Card playing commenced, and all the kids were running around being loud.  

I've been spoiled. I've had air most of my life. 

Then I got a VW bug in 1974 after graduating.  

No air, no heat, no defrost.   

Oh, but I just loved that car. 

Summer

 Summer is here.

Yesterday was 91 degrees with humidity you could cut. So of course our air died.

I had a drs appointment at same time as the appointment for Mr. A/C. They were squeezing me in so I had to take it. It's miserable inside and out.

So I must run. Hopefully I'll be back and will be 'chill'

Pride Month 🌈

 

Why is this difficult?

Printers

I have been having printer issues.

I spent so much of my day downloading drivers, firmware, and updates.

I don't know what the hell I'm doing, but trying it all. Rick is of no help with technology. He can build a desk for your computer, just don't ask him how to use the computer. 

I began to walk through steps I found online.

It told me to pull up MS Word. I thought this was stupid but I did it. 

I attempted to print something - no go.

Back to the drawing board.

Then it suddenly printed out something from Word. I touched NOTHING.

I picked it up off the printer. 

It was a blog post from 2009, and it made me laugh. 

I remembered this. That in and of itself is amazing for me to remember.

I read it to Rick, and he said, "I remember that conversation." 

So I am reposting - nothing has changed or improved.

But seriously how did this friggin' print? 

It was not open in MS Word!

Insert Twilight Zone music here

Poltergists...again?

_____________________________________________________

Thursday, January 8, 2009

HUH? 

I have seen the future and it’s really both sad and funny.

We were watching TV last night and saw a man at a cotillion, and he was sipping his punch with his pinkie in the air, and they made fun of him. 
That reminded me of something I had just seen on another show during our vacation. It was Miss Manners, along with the British Miss Manners, saying that raising your pinkie while drinking is considered poor etiquette.
So, upon seeing this scene on TV, I immediately said to my husband…..

"You know that raising your pinkie is considered poor etiquette? "

(chuckling) "Raising your pee pee is considered poor etiquette? Since when is a boner poor etiquette? Well, in public I suppose….. "

laughter.

"How the hell did you come up with a boner? 
Who said anything about a boner?
God, you’re a pig! "

"You said it first. You just said raising your pee-pee is poor etiquette. "

"No, I didn’t! What the hell are you talking about, Rick? "

Laughing through tears now, he says….

"Margaret, you just said that raising your pee pee is poor etiquette - why did you say that then? "

Now realizing that he didn’t hear this correctly, I too am laughing.

"Are we going to be like this as we get older and really can’t hear? "

So very loudly I say….
"I SAID THAT RAISING YOUR PINKIE IS CONSIDERED POOR ETIQUETTE!"

"Oh. Well, okay, but why did you bring that up? "

Ah, shit I give up!

Dark Comedy????

I read that the show Sirens was a dark comedy on Netflix. Julianne Moore was in this, and I love her. Truth be told, I also find dark comedy great.

So imagine my surprise when we sat down to watch this show, it was nowhere near a comedy, dark or otherwise.

I kept saying, "Where is the comedy?"  

Did any of you see this? Did you see it as a comedy? I'd really like to know.

 

Next time up, it was now Rick's turn to pick.  He chose Better Sister.

This was NOT a comedy.  A murder mystery. 

I went back and forth, who was the real bad sister?  

And finally, a word on retirement.

We retired 3.5 years ago. It has never felt like it. We were running on a treadmill or a hamster wheel, I suppose. 

We thought we'd have all this time to travel, explore, and do things we wanted whenever we wanted.  Then life happened. We only had time to keep our heads above water...barely. Stress from illnesses, money woes from illnesses, etc. It was such fun. 

His 1 medication is $850 a month? Or, sure, we don't need to eat on top of his other medications.  

When we got home from Rick's birthday at the shore, we realized that from now on (hopefully) we will be in retirement. No strokes, chemo, surgeries on spine or colon, PT, or trying to learn to walk or eat, etc.  Rick is as well as he is ever going to be.  He is self-sufficient more than not.  Okay, he forgets to turn off the water, the lights, and the stove, so I hate leaving him alone. (he hates when I say that)

I am feeling as good as I am ever going to at this age.  So now we can begin all the things we wanted to do to the house and spend some time doing things for fun.  I wish we drank beer because there is a train that takes you to breweries in NC.  Too bad it's not wine. We can begin to explore, and hopefully, we will stay just fine for a while or even longer.

Spousal Figure

My husband has taken to sending me memes.

Recently, Rick woke up and asked me 'What hell was with your fingers in my armpit?"

"What on earth are you talking about?" I ask.

Well, bloggers, I apparently rubbed his back and then put my fingers in his armpit and tickled him. Needless to say, I woke him.

Let me explain: I don't remember this because I was asleep. I have no idea why the hell I would do this, I tell him. He hates to be tickled, so I'd never do that. Well, at least not while awake.  We were laughing about all of this. Two nights earlier, Rick was apparently fighting with squirrels. Covers came off me, and he kicked me, his legs thrashing about. I shook him and he stopped. I told him we are now even.

He sends me this.

These are a few he sent me this past week. 

ok, i confess this is true about me. 

I HATE THE WAY THIS MAN DRIVES!

Those were the clean ones.

I admit the dirty ones are better, but not for everyone, I know.

Since retirement and his stroke, he uses his phone a lot more than ever before.  I think I may have to limit screen time like a parent does to their teens.