Just need to talk to my friends (164)
Comments
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Hi,
Zetta, glad you're okay and not in the paths of any storms. Be very careful on that ice.
Yes, it's after 1 a.m. - I've been asleep in the recliner, then moved to the divan (bedroom's not finished yet). I've been watching Barney Miller and Frasier. I happened to think about that Chewy box I had on the front porch and that I had a case of 22 oz. cans of dog food in it and a 40 can case of canned cat food. Earlier today I read it isn't good to feed cats food that's been frozen so --- got up, put on my boots, trapper's hat, gloves and coat - got the dolly and went out and brought it in the house, opened it and opened a can of each - neither was frozen but it would have been if it had stayed on the porch. Then I looked for what I read earlier and couldn't find that part but did find that it's okay to use. Neither the cat or dog food was frozen so gave a can to the GPs and a can of cat food to the cats.
The wind is still blowing really hard and there's snow or sleet all over the porch. I don't think it's doing anything now and the best I could tell the ground isn't covered. We're supposed to get more this afternoon.
Now, I'm hungry so I'm going to drink some milk and try to get back to sleep. Never a dull moment. If that catfood is down by the road I probably won't feed it to the cats though because it'll be frozen solid. I hope all the girls and babies are in the barn, safe and sound. So happy they have that barn to get into. I realize everyone with big herds can't have barns for their livestock and I feel so bad for them to be out in weather like this with nothing for shelter but maybe a tree or a pond dump. I guess people up north keep their livestock in barns but not down here for the most part. I can't think of any other place that has a barn for their cattle.
I just wish the wind would stop blowing. Zetta, when I run water in the tanks and the weather's like this I don't stay out while it's filling. I hook it up, set my phone alarm and come inside until it goes off. I know about how long it takes to fill a tank so I'll be okay - just kind of dread going down to open that gate - maybe I'll let Toad open it.
I hope all of you are asleep and resting well.
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Good morning
27F, -3C. Could hear either freezing rain or sleet hitting window when I woke up, not hearing it now. Hopefully it has changed to snow.
Sorry to hear about Sarah, Todd, his partner and their family. We can pray for them and then we have to leave it in God’s hands. Some things are very hard for us to understand.
Well, fell to sleep early so now I’m awake. May be because mom likes heat left turned up at night. Like my heat set on 60 at night. Want her to be comfortable so left it up. She did sleep on the couch. Hope she slept well. Thank you Iris for your comment about couch. I have a very nice couch, she even commented about that. Glad she is here, one less worry. It would be much more stressful for me if I was there. Easier to handle some things here. Heard her up several times at first but she has been quiet, did not have to run my white noise machine.
Like lemon and lime too Beth. Drink very little though as it also irritates my bladder.
How lucky you are Judith to have a grandson with a big truck.
I adore snowmen. Made a few in my younger days. Always makes me smile when I see one.
Lorita please take Judith up on her offer if you feel you have to go out.
Glad you are able to stay inside Zetta.
Maybe you guys can give me some thoughts on this. Probably a month or so ago I noticed this man at WM and he stayed there in the entry way. He was shaking badly. Felt he was getting heat maybe. Did not know if he was shivering, or if he had Parkinson’s, homeless, or if he has mental illness or addiction problems. It bothered me. Yesterday when I came out from getting my masks there he was again, standing in the entry way shaking. Leaning up against the wall where I saw him the last time. It really bothered me yesterday. I feel like he needs help but I’m even afraid to approach him as a single older lady. Not approaching him makes me feel like a bad person. Don’t want to get into a dangerous situation either. Could give him some money but know that is probably like spitting in the wind, probably needs much more than that. Think when I go next time I’m going to talk to greeter and ask if they are aware of him and if they know anything about him. Any idea if there is an agency I could call to check this out? I don’t know if he goes there every day. Don’t want to be hard hearted but also don’t want to be naive.
Be careful each one of you. Praying for the safety of us all
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Hi,
I've been out - fed Tom and gave him water, then walked out to the barn to make sure everyone was out. As I started that way I saw Penny going that direction, too. I was trying to be quiet but the girls heard me and all were coming around. I went in and checked and everyone was out - except Penny had left Evan inside in the stall. She came in for him to nurse. Now, how smart is that! All of them were coming in so I had to walk among them to get out. I wanted to walk down and open the gate. I met Mickey at the gate - he just looked at me, so I turned toward the gate I wanted to open, then came back. The water in the tank in the garden was frozen so took the ax out and broke it - not more than half an inch. The one in the lot is frozen, too but I'll take care of that later this morning. I can't tell how much snow there is because it's drifted so much. I went through one or two stretches of snow up halfway to my knees - no bare places though. It really drifts around the barn and out that way because the north wind comes up the hill. While I was out I saw car or truck lights about a mile or so north of us so imagine that was Toad or Mike coming down from that direction, feeding as they go. Walking was easy except through the drifts - the snow is really dry and I swept it off the back steps so I was okay.
Sara - I'd call the Police and tell them about the man. I bet he is standing there to get warmed up a little bit. I don't know what kind of agencies they have in your town but call them and they can direct you. Do you all have a homeless shelter ? Tulsa has several warming stations where people can go. I saw on the news yesterday they were making the rounds of the places where homeless people stay trying to get them to come inside - many would not. I know how you feel - I've felt that way before. I vaguely remember many years ago (62 to be exact) I was going to business college in Muskogee. I was riding with a neighbor lady who worked at the bank so I often had to wait a little while until they balanced out so she could go home. I usually stayed around a drug store across from her bank. One time this homeless looking man approached me to ask for money. It sort of scared me. I don't remember if I gave him any - probably didn't have any to give but from that time on I was careful.
Snow amounts range from 4-7" north of here. There's more to come this afternoon. Sara - we got sleet for a long time before the snow and the wind is still blowing. It's minus 17 out in the Okla. Panhandle and 16 degrees here with I WC of 1.
I hope the girls stay in front of the barn until they get here to feed. There's still a few in the garden around hay and liquid feed.
I think I'll take a nap today - too much going on here in the middle of the night - but - I got the catfood and dogfood inside before it froze. I know if there's some down at the road, it's frozen solid - darn UPS anyway. It wouldn't take him more than five minutes more to drive up here, put the pkg. on the porch and leave.
Stormy and Sheena went outside before I did and came back in when I did. They're sleeping now. There's storm chasers out all over eastern Okla - has been all night - showing what the road conditions are. Glad I don't have to think about driving 25 miles to work. When I worked, no one worked from home. Doubt a secretary could.
Hope al of you are well and are staying safe. Sorry, Judith, I was outside before I thought about calling - but I felt safe - had my phone and medical guardian - if it might work (works off and on.) At least nothing froze on the trees and for that, I'm thankful.
Sara - I know you are a bit stressed having your mother there but probably less than you would be if she was at home alone. Hope your day is good.
News just said there's power outages in OKC - Judith, hope you're okay. Sarah is on oxygen all the time and has the electric feeding tube machine. So, she's in trouble if they get out of power. I told her to call the power company and police and tell them her status - if someone is on oxygen or something else they try to get their power on ASAP.
Thank you all for the good thoughts for Todd and Sarah and their friends. I've tried and tried to get him to get vaccinated but he thinks the vaccine is more dangerous than the virus. Sarah was vaccinated when she was in the hospital. I'm also praying all of them will be okay.
Need to stop and drink my juice and get some hot tea. Have I mentioned that I'm ready for Spring?
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One of the first things I did when Dick really began to fail was to put in a generator. Mine does pretty much everything except the air conditioning. Maybe you can find a small propane generator online to send to Sarah. Hopefully being given the vaccine so recently will do her some good.
I know how you feel about listening to someone with crazy, unfounded ideas about the vaccine. There is no presentaion of fact that they will understand.
Not a lot of snow as yet. So beautiful and quiet. A nicebreak from the hustle bustle. All that is missing are some marshmellows for my hot chocolate.
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Judith, they have a couple, or at least one, small generators if he can feel like hooking it up. Don't know if they're out of power now. Are you?
Thank you again for suggesting one to us. Really gives you a feeling of security instead of dread. Ours takes care of everything in the house, carport and barn plus three security lights and it cones on in seconds.
Just came back inside closed gate to keep Sally in(hope she isn't out already). Cut ice on water tank on barn and filled the other one. It's snowed more since I was out this morning. Girls have three bales of hay and looks like the licks are working on the liquid feeder. I'll go out again about four and refill tanks and get the snow off the feeder. Some came around to drink in the lot and probably go in the barn. It's as cold as kraut out there.
Called Mr. K. about fencing. He's out of the Country until Monday evening - I think in Belize. I know he went there last year.
Just had a call from Medical Guardian. New device should get here tomorrow. I tested this one a while ago and it worked.
Stay inside and stay warm.
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What a day for weather for those who are in the cold climates; especially in the path off the huge storm system. I am so sorry; what a horrible tribulation.
Zetta; glad to hear you are staying inside and avoiding the ice - best idea and safest. You mention thinking about looking for a medical alert system. Here are a few links to read regarding systems and what to look for, etc.:
Lorita; I enjoyed the photos. Sally is adorable; she is a smile maker for sure, but I know you are concerned about her wandering and what her future holds. I see you mention that the vet said the calf needs to be, "lotted;" does that mean weaned from his mother? Wonder how Sally would tolerate that since she is attached to her baby.The picture of Storm sleeping on your pillow was sweet. How very utterly relaxed he looks. Guess he loves the softeness of the pillow and it has your scent on it; no wonder he looked so serene in his sleep.Dear Sayra; so hope all continues to go reasonably well with your mother. She will probably be looking forward to going home again as soon as the weather risk is gone. She is one fortunate person having a daughter such as yourself; it is a loving thing you are doing for her. Judith is blessed to by such an attentive grandson; it is good to have that sort of backup and caring. My kids are mostly out of state, so we are not in the same ballpark for that sort of dynamic and we are not wanting to move from our home. Sayra; bet your mother enjoys your wonderful cooking. If she does not, I would be happy to take her place and I can sleep on a sofa; no problem. Ha.Gosh Judith; I am so sorry about the Neuropathy. Is it secondary to diabetes or another cause? That is a difficult thing to have to live with. I can only imagine how uncomfortable the pedicure must have been. I have had a pedi only once and hated it. Don't like my feet being messed with and the massage caused a lot of discomfort; far too harsh. The salon I went to at that time was a very excellent salon - used to get my hair cut there and they also have several mani/pedi stations. They use large footbaths with hoses that fill and empty the bath - BUT - even though they wash it out each time used, I never got over the concern about someone leaving behind a fungus I could catch . . . this was a humdinger because I heard the manicurist with her client . . . "Oh; you still have that nail fungus, guess the treatment did not work . . ." Client said doctor had tried everything and nothing was helpful. Gads! I was not about to put my feet into anyone's pedicure bath after that. Chicken little, but do not want anyone elses fungus.Well, you know me Lorita; I am worried about you going out in the weather with snow and ice to form. Is there no other way to get the water taken care of? I mean; Mike now owns the herd and Toad is his employee. Would they not take care of the water issues instead of continuing to have you do it for them?Do you think your medical alert button will work well outside in the freezing weather? I know; I worry too much and I do know you have done this for many years, but now that you are turning 80, a fall on the ice or getting caught outside and not being able to get back inside in a freeze is a whole different scenario. I shall now shut up on that topic. Be ever so safe.Sorry to hear that Todd has contracted COVID. You mention Sarah told you she got vaccinated when in the hospital - did she get all three vaccinations do you know? So hope so for her sake. They are well into middle age, but no matter how old our LOs get, we still worry about them.Sayra; I am sorry to hear about the shaking man at WalMart. It is so hard to know what to do. Trust your instinct; if really worried, you can contact the local police department and ask how they refer homeless people in the cold danger AND if not homeless, they would more than likely take him to his home. I do not give money to those who are homeless and on the street. Have worked with that sort of dynamic from time to time and the majority of the time the money goes directly to alcohol or drugs. What I do is to buy the person a good takeout meal, or buy a pair of shoes or whatever directly rather than give cash. If I feel a person is not competent and in danger, I can call the local police station and ask for a check to be done for need to transfer to a shelter or to medical care if needed.One night, we had stopped at a local takeout chicken shop; "El Pollo Loco." I noticed a very shabby appearing man with dirty clothing and lack of cleanliness of his person sitting on the curb. He was so thin and had a couple of bags at his side that probably held what few belongings he had. No way was I going to buy myself dinner and not feed him. I ended up buying a large full meal for him with extra chicken, a cold drink and a hot drink; I got extra wet wipes and plasticware and napkins to put in the bag. When we left, we stopped the car and I told him we had just bought chicken dinners and that we overbought as our company called and was not going to be at our house and wondered if he could use the chicken dinner. Could he! Oh yes, he certainly shared that he could. We have done that sort of thing when we come upon it, but never cash. Also donate needed items to shelters. In fact I have some packages of ladies new cotton underwear and some new shoes as well as socks I need to get donated this week. When donating; do not forget that needful people come in all sizes, hardly anyone donates to those who are larger sizes. The need is not as much as for thinner folks when homeless, but it is still there.Weather here is in the 60's in the daytime and about 43 at night. I think that I am very happy we do not have lizards falling out of our trees; that would pretty much undo me. EEEEKK!Did nothing much yesterday evening except watch the second episode of, "The Gilded Age." It is written by Julian Fellowes, the same person who wrote, "Downton Abbey." He also has some good books he has written. I also caught part of a Bette Davis film; she is probably one of my favorite actresses; she sure could play a part and each character was different from the last, she was not a one note actress. Love those old movies.Zetta; my friend who lost consciousness and fell in Target has bone against bone and fractures in her knee; she will need replacement. Eventually. Very painful, not able to weight bear. She has a stubborn streak and forgets the difference between "need" and "want." The doctors want to do a 30 day cardiac monitor to see if they can catch the problem issue they think has caused her to now have two episodes of losing consciousness, they think it may be cardiac in origin, and she has refused. Reason is; she wants to have cataract surgery FIRST; she wants both eyes done at the same time and will not do the cardiac monitor until the eyes are done. Omigosh. Can't natter at her, she is an RN and she has the knowledge, but boy; it is worrying. She also has that gastroparesis and cannot eat but tiny bites and has lost over 50 pounds; they do not know why that either except it can happen after food poisoning and she did have that happen. Because she is not getting in sufficient food to supply her body what it needs, she also now has pernicious anemia and must inject herself with B12. Sure wish she would put off the cataract surgery until a bit later which can easily wait and get the monitor done to ensure her safety on a cardiac status and hope they will be able to help the gastroparesis. Gads; can't imagine having the inability to walk or move about, weakness from the anemia and not able to eat and then not able to see well for a little while having to fuss with both post-op eyes on top of it. She will not let them do just one eye at a time, she wants both done at the same time. Period. I will just be a friend and hope for the very best outcome.Goodness; went on too long again, best get going before they delete my Post for being "timed out." Stay safe, warm and snug; J.0 -
Well quite the day. Shoveled at 6, 8,10 and 12. Snowblowed at 2. Starting to blow and drift. Did not do it again. Snowblower and I will tackle it in the morning. At four when I went to get mail there was more snow on drive than there had been all day. I’m guessing maybe nine inches. Not sure how much we have had but we just got made a level 3 snow emergency which means you can be arrested if on road and not an emergency or going to an essential job. This rarely happens in our county as we have two prisons and they have to give them hazard pay when this happens which they don’t like to do.They are giving several more inches overnight.
Mom has been a challenge but not too bad. Will be glad to get my quiet house back though. She talks nonstop and it is the same things she was saying when I lived with her. She is finding her way around now. She did tell me this morning that she slept good and that my couch is as comfortable as her bed. That made me happy. She don’t like my cornbread though lol. Says it is too thick. She has told me what trees need pruned and everything that is good or bad about my house. She does like my light purple kitchen lol.
Two of my neighbors got stuck in their driveways when they came home from work.
Think you are right Judith. If you didn’t reach a decision by reasoning about it, probably can’t be reasoned out of it. Heard an infectious disease doctor from Mayo Clinic this week talking. He said maybe this was mean, but he said after two years of watching this same movie five times (five variants) times I’m losing patience. He said I asked a young man who had no vaccine, still refusing, what risk are you willing to take so you can see your child grow up? Said the guy said I guess you’re right. Took it he’s going to take his vaccine.
JoC that’s my fear, don’t want to give one penny to a drug pusher of any sort. The food is a good idea. Going to try and talk to greeter if I can to see if they know. Thanks for your thoughts.
Thought I would drop a line tonight in case no time in am.
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No diabetes.
Think I will get Bay Alarm.
Still snowing.
Grandson is making cinnimon roles...I gues they will be for dinner... lol.
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Good morning
18F, -8C. Have not looked out yet. Will report in on that later today or tomorrow morning depending on how my day goes. Local station says 18 years since we had a level 3 in our county. Will be waiting to hear how everyone else did with the storm.
Those cinnamon rolls sound good. Maybe he can make some for the porch.
Hope to take mom home this afternoon sometime. Will be very thankful if that man I contacted gets the driveway done. If not will find a neighbors drive I can park in. Will shovel a wide path to her door. She told me the other day that five neighbors have told her not to come back anymore. It is so sad that she has lost all boundaries. I stressed to her that if she went out any of my doors security alarms were going to go off. I set them even when I went out and shoveled. She does not like alarms. She told me I don’t get near those doors.
As far as I know no loss of electric, very thankful for that. It wasn’t as wet and heavy as I thought it might be. My electric is underground here. The neighbor told me she has lived here 12.5 years and that electric has only been off one time for a very short time. That was nice to hear.
Take care everyone
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Morning,
It's 16 degrees with WC of 3 or 4 but the sun is shining and there's very little wind. It seems warmer than that - and it is beautiful!
Got bundled up and went out to feed Tom. Of course his water was frozen but I had taken a bottle of water for him. Then, to the barn - Billy was by the water tank so knew it was frozen. I had the ax so broke the ice - didn't have to cut it so that was good. I always want to check the barn to make sure everyone is out or okay. Two girls were still in there - one big girl laying down but she's just not ready to come out yet.
I did go out before I went out to feed Tom and hooked up the water to the tank in the garden. Oen of the girls was trying to get the last little bit of water. There were big chunks of ice so they had water all night. Several were around the bales of hay, some around the liquid feeder, some waiting for water and some just standing in the sun warming up. I saw a couple who didn't go in the barn last night - had snow on their backs. I think we had a couple of inches of snow during the night - drifts were deeper - had to go around them so it wouldn't get in my boots.
While the water was filling I filled the bird feeder I have on the black walnut tree and when I came in filled the one on the porch. Hadn't filled it because the wind was so strong. I had filled the one at the tree yesterday but almost all of it was gone.
I saw little Evan and another baby at the liquid feeder licking the feed off of it that the girls left so walked out and cleared all the snow off the licks. Came back to the yard and while the tank was filling I saw down on an upside down flower pot and just enjoyed the beautiful morning. I didn't take my camera but may take some pictures later today.
More snow this morning and lots more drifts but so much better than yesterday when the wind was blowing.
Sara - be careful driving if you take your mother home today. On our weather this morning they were showing roads all over this part of the state - snowpacked and slick but traffic was still moving - slowly. I think it's supposed to be about 29 today. How much snow did you get and is it still snowing. Just heard far eastern Oklahoma is still getting a little bit of snow but it's moving out.
I swept the snow off the back steps before I went down them and off the back porch as much as I could - also the front porch. It's easy to sweep until you step on it, then it packs.
Judith - how were the cinnamon rolls? I've never made them but love to eat them. Some day I'll try. Is he staying with you or did he just come over to check on you and decided to make the rolls.
What are the features of the Bay Alarm that you liked? Is it one you'll wear around your neck?
I tried to stay awake last night to watch the USA play someone in Curling but went to sleep - it was on at 12:30 so TV was on all night. I watched quite a bit of curling last night - really do enjoy it. The Opening Ceremony is on tonight so guess I'll watch that.
Hope everyone's well this morning. If you're in the path of the storm, please stay inside and be careful.
Back later.
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Sayra, been thinking about you today. I hope that everything went well when taking your mother back to her home and that you did not have to shovel a path to her door. You did well in managing the challenge.
I am feeling concerned for those who are in the worst of weather; to have power go out in the midst of it - horrible. Watching the weather reports on the news and so hoping that all Front Porch folks are doing okay and hope things improve soon. Saw on news that in Texas, there were miles and miles of cars and trucks stuck for 13 hours on the highway in freezing temps and no way to get off of it. I cannot even imagine the dynamics of that and how cold everyone must have been.
I feel it is strangely strange what our weather report is projecting, (and wish we could send some warmth back south, midwest and east), we are supposed to be in the 80's this coming week. What in the world? We had been mostly in the 60's in the daytime, but this heat will be an abrupt change within a day and last four or five days as of this weather report time. So difficult for so many living in the freezing weather and I especially feel deeply for those who are not well or whose LOs are not well and who are facing the storms. If only all power could be kept on. Not everyone has a generator or lives in a setting that can have generators such as apartments, etc.
Lorita, it has become so cold for you; I am sorry you are having to get outside multiple times in a day to get things managed; especially the water. Poor Billy looking for water and the birds sure are hungry. You are so good to all of God's creatures. Bet you make St. Francis smile.
I also have been watching a bit of the Olympics. I too like Curling. Something rather funny crossed my mind. I was recalling the Summer Olympics with volleyball and how the female teams had only tiny scraps of clinging fabric covering their private body areas with SO much of their skin exposed to the heat, the sun and possible skin cancer risk as well as falling hard on the rough sand getting abrasians . . . the men have boxer type shorts and shirts that cover them . . . . so last night I was watching couples skating qualifications - the men covered in shirts and long pants . . . the females in short, short skirts or short shorts and quite a few in revealing tops. Then it dawned on me and made me laugh . . . WHAT IF . . . what if the MEN were mandated to wear tiny scraps of cloth for volleyball and the women able to wear more protective clothing and in skating if the men were mandated to wear short, short tiny bottoms and revealing tops and the women to wear the long pants . . . etc. Laughed.
Well; while it was amusing to have that pop into my mind, I could just not picture it, but would love to see it happen just for the absurd effect - especially in volleyball. Ah well; humor is just where you are able to find it these days and sometimes it is just silly.
Watched some of the opening ceremonies; really liked the presentation of skaters with design to the music of John Lennon's, "Imagine." Always love hearing that piece. Also enjoyed the children's presentations. Remember the year that Muhammad Ali lit the flame? That was awesome and really touching.
Well Judith, I bet those cinnamon rolls smelled like heaven. I love a good big cinnamon roll with a lot of cinnamon layer and light frosting but haven't had one in years. We could sure use your grandson for our Front Porch gatherings. I can imagine you did enjoy them.
I sinned. Oh my did I. DH ordered red velvet cupcakes - HUGE ones - each topped with a very deep layer of cream cheese frosting. Did not mean to do "it", but I did. He brought me one. I looked at it askance, but it smiled up at me while calling my name. I intended to cut it in half, but alas on that. I ate the whole huge darned delectable sinful thing. That frosting was amazing; a bowl of it would be great. So now I have to repent and not repeat that. Would prefer tinier sins of commision, not big jumbo ones. My ampleness does not need any more ample. Sigh.
Big spreader events taking place out here. Of course the biggest one will be the Super Bowl with people coming in from all over the country, masking not enforceable. Got several other huge events coming in the next few weeks too; all of them expected to be super spreaders. Got one LA City Council person touting NOT having any more mask mandates as it is not enforceable anyway . . . .well; some folks will take that as gospel and that they do not need to mask any longer. Oh boy; some people in public service just do not think about the power that words can have. Of course, there may well be a political reason why such a stance; who knows any more.
Wonder how Ron is doing; sure hope he is doing okay and that his sister has been able to come in and lend a hand; she sounds so dear and helpful, what a blessing she must be.
Warm; really warm wishes; especially in snow country being sent to everyone,
J.
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Good morning
10F, -12C.
We got around 12 inches. Took mom home after lunch. That was an adventure. The drive had not been plowed yet. Found a place to park and got a spot big enough to park my car shoveled out. Then shoveled a path to door. Took me a bit. The snow was probably 3feet deep on porch. We had some significant drifting. Not long after I got back home she called and said someone was there plowing out drive. Very thankful for that. Also no electricity loss.
Think I will cook a few things today. Mom liked my zucchini muffins. She took all of them home with her.
Take care
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Jo - you reminded me about "The Gilded Age" - I've been meaning to watch it so this is what I will do today. I also found another HBO show called "Somebody Somewhere" which has made me laugh and made me cry at times. Very dysfunctional family, main character finding her way after moving back home to Kansas (?). The language is adult, but I just love the actor who is playing Joel - Jeff Hiller - in this. I watched all 3 episodes, they are 30 mins each, and I think I cried in 2 of them - but all 3 are funny at times.
It's 7 degrees so the snow isn't melting. I live in a condo complex so the walks and roads are plowed and salted, though with the wind as soon as they would do the walks it was covered right back over.0 -
Morning,
It's bright and sunny here this morning but cold - WC was 2 when I was out a while ago. Broke the ice on the tank in the garden so didn't have to run water this morning. I didn't have the ax with me when I was at the barn so I'll do that later. I walked down to open the gate so the girls could get through when Toad came to feed and a couple of the girls saw me and here everyone came. The GPs heard something just now and I looked out and it was Toad leaving.
Someone asked (sorry I don't remember who) why I'm still running water when the girls aren't mine now and shouldn't they be doing it? They don't have time to cut ice on all the ponds - and I don't want them around the pond when it's frozen either. All ranchers, us included, have lost calves or cows in ponds. The ice looks solid and they walk out on it and fall through and it's hard for them to get out. I remember going in after a calf years ago. So, if I can keep water for them at the house - all the better - and it makes me feel better. Not many are fortunate enough to have their cattle just over the yard fence with access to city water for them. I did go into the barn to make sure everyone was safe and out - Little Bit was still in so he came over and wanted me to pet him - he's too friendly and pretty big. I took a few pictures of the girls in the snow yesterday so I'll get them into the computer and post them alter today.
I was careful walking and did take a sorting stick with me for support. I tried to walk in the snow instead of where I walked yesterday because it was slick and frozen. No problems.
Sara - don't you wish you'd waited an hour longer to take your mother home - would have been lots less work for you - but, you didn't know someone would plow the driveway - if we only had a sense of what is going to happen. I need to make muffins today - haven't made those pumpkin-spice ones lately. I have a couple of loaves of quick bread but they're frozen so maybe later today. I kept thinking about a peach cobbler yesterday but didn't make one. Is it supposed to warm up for you today and how much snow did you get?
Jo - those red velvet cupcakes and cream cheese icing - sounds wonderful. They are so good and so pretty. We used to go the Sam's Club in Tulsa occasionally and they had big pkgs. of huge cupcakes - couldn't resist them.
I didn't watch much of the Opening Ceremonies because curling was on another station at the same time so I switched back and forth. To me, it didn't seem as pretty as many of those in the past - but, maybe that's just me. The commentators did say there would be quite a bit of propaganda going on - guess I missed that. I watched some snowboarding (girls) - and it was astounding at what they can do on snowboards. I wouldn't be able to even stand up. I've often wondered how they learn to do those things without killing themselves in tiee process. I want both feet on the ground.
I think curling looks like it would be fun but you'd have to have really good leg strength - arm strength, too. If I got down like they do, I wouldn't be able to get up - I'd probably go down the sheet with the stone.
I also like the ski jumping - not sure when that will be but I do want to watch.
I had Malt-o-Meal for breakfast yesterday - really good. I had a full box so opened it and it had been here too long - had little things in it (not bugs) so threw it out. I have enough that was in a LocknLock for breakfast so think I'll have that.
Judith - those cinnamon rolls sound soooo good. I'm going to attempt to make some someday. My bread machine has a dough setting so could use that and go from there. Sandy reminded me that the Pioneer Woman uses those frozen loaves of bread dough to make hers. There used to be a restaurant in the town where we go and a woman who went to our Church cooked there. She made huge cinnamon rolls - would almost cover a whole plate and they were so good. Now I'm making myself hungry so I'm going to get some hot tea and something to eat.
It's supposed to be near 40 this afternoon - thankfully, didn't get as cold as they thought it would. Stormy and Sheena stayed out all night beginning about MN so they're inside warming up. I saw Little Evan going with his mom to the feed area this morning. She takes such good care of him. Also saw him yesterday with Sweet Pea so maybe they're making friends.
They're showing and talking abour how rough the streets are (from the ice) in Tulsa. Says it feels and sounds like you're driving on big gravel. When I first started working at the VA Hospital I remember us going to work on highways that had big chunks of icie on it.
Be careful driving today until the ice gets melted. Jo - we can all dream about the 80 degree weather you're going to have. Yesterday, in Tulsa, there were kids sledding on a big hill in Tulsa. One little boy came down on his sled and went into the street and a PU ran over him - he died at the hospital. It's private property so the city should put up a fence to keep the kids out or at least protect them from sliding into the highway.
Back later.
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12 inches Lorita. Suppose to be in twenties, forget exactly. They gave it cloudy but sun is shining beautifully. We had a little more snow this morning. Pushed it off, hope sun will start melting what is stuck to driveway. Yes Lorita I should have waited. Was afraid to because if they didn’t come didn’t want to be doing it late. It all worked out, I’m thankful, would have had to do the porch no matter what and that was the worst area.0
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Sara, you are a wonderful daughter. You do so much for your mother and others. You will be tewarded.
I can't get in touch with Jack. Been trying for over an hour. Can't leave a message. I can't imagine him getting out and going to town. I'll wait a while and try again. If something does happen to him I have no idea how to get in touch with his daughter. Maybe I should talk to him about a plan B. It will irritate him.
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There is an easy way to find one of Jack's neighbors. All I need is for you to text me his last name and town.0
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Hi,
Jack is okay - his phone wasn't ringing. Judith was able to get a phone number for my cousin, Patsy's brother, who lives closeby so called him and he went over to check on Jack. For some reason it just wasn't ringing. He did something (he didn't know what he did) and it's now ringing. He was really thankful that we cared and checked on him.
Judith, not sure that would be Jackie's number now but it might still be a cell phone. She lived with her daughter in Lake Tahoe for a long time but has been in California for a couple of years. Thanks so much, again for your help.
I got two of my covid home tests today - the other two is supposed to come Monday. Wonder why they sent it in two orders - in case one got lost?
I had ordered a box (I thought) of Alka Seltzer Plus from WM and it came in the mail today - two tablets for almost $7.00. They will go back for a refund. Who in the world orders two tablets? Me, I guess, but didn't mean to.
It was good to talk with Johnny for a minute - hadn't seen him since last summer when he came by. He said Jack is about 85 - he's five years older than Patsy so guess that's right.
Daniel called a while ago to check to see if I had made it through the storm. So, good to check on people.
FedEx delivered some things today and Colton told me there were boxes at our gate left there by UPS. He apologized but said they weren't allowed to pick them up and deliver so I went down to get them. I'll have to check to see if it's safe to use the catfood since I'm sure it froze.
Just filled the water tank again and I'll check it before dark. The girls are south of the house trying to graze. Snow has melted quite a lot so now we will be dealing with mud but at least we got a little bit of moisture.
I'll try to post those pictures. One is of Sweet Pea (white-face) and a couple of other at the water tank. Took a couple of long shots looking toward the hayrings and one of a cow at the liquid feeder. I watched one this morning at the pink feeder (it's empty) but she was licking it and when it wouldn't turn she tried moving it with her nose - and it worked. One other is of Billy the Bull (facing away from the camera and Mickey looking straight at it. The cow in front of Mickey was his girlfriend yesterday. Sorry they're not in order.
I'm getting hungry so I'll stop and find something to eat. Thanks, again, Judith - that was so nice of you to do that for me. So glad that Jack is okay.
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So hope Jack is alright. To be frank, I have even wondered if a social worker needs to go out to the house to assess what is urgently necessary to be done for him since his daughter is pretty much in absentia, and I have even wondered if the poor dog who is kept caged would be better off with a visit from an animal protection group to re-home him/her.
I feel concern for Jack's well being and feel terrible about that poor dog who must rely upon a human to provide adequate care, food, etc.; and to be kept caged most of the days is just not acceptable. Wonder what the inside of the house is like as far as reasonable cleanliness and adequate food. The entire situation is very sad, but before she died, Jack was dependent upon his housebound wife to do what needed doing and make decisions. He does not seem well suited to do so. I cannot help wondering, if he was in an apartment in Assisted Living, if he would not do so much better with that oversight, with meals, assistance as needed, cleaning and laundry done, socialization as much as he would wish, etc. I also sometimes wonder if a neighbor might decide to make a call to APS. If you do not hear from him and if you cannot get a response from his daughter, a welfare check may be in order. If something has happened to him, someone would have to get out there and rescue that poor little dog.
Let us know if he is alright; it is really cold outside; so hope he is safe.
No more giant cupcakes for me; that was far too much . . . DH now upset, "What am I going to do with the other four cupcakes if you do not eat some?" He was not kidding. On top of it, he bought little cookies that are buttery and powder sugared and are filled with a carmel sort of filling, and also got some big Snickerdoodle cookies. AND . . . he is a diabetic. Oh my stars and garters!
Going to have salmon with couscous and green beans for dinner tonight. That fish will make me feel better about the cupcake that is still racing up and down my blood vessels chortling at the thought of making gooey red velvet, cream cheese deposits. It was really a humdinger in size.
Sayra, it is good to hear your mother is home safe and sound with your yummy zucchini muffins wrapped to go. I am sorry you had to shovel; I do not know how you do all of that. You now have your peaceful house back again.
Lorita; those Curling stones weight 40 pounds each! Well; we Front Porch folks could form a Curling team . . . but . . . I can see it now. You are right; we'd get down to get the stone shoved, but we would not be able to get back upright again; our sweepers would lose traction on the ice and down they'd go. They would find the group of us lying on the ground in a heap; unable to get back up, panting with tongues hanging out, faces red, and hair on end. Guess it is better to watch it rather than to do it, but it really does look like fun and I would enjoy doing it at a more youthful age. Wonder why it is so appealing; there is sort of a choreography effect to it in how it is approached and the people in the sport seem so very nice. Nice counts for a lot.
Having the electric lines underground sure is a help, Sayra; it must feel really good having that. We too have our electric lines and TV cables underground which is great. Sometimes we have had power outages, but they come from somewhere else quite a far distance away and sometimes it is a planned outage during time of large electricity use in the summertime. I think if I lived back east where the huge storms hit every year, I would buy one of those great big whole house generators; the big Generac. They keep everything in the house going because the are linked right into the natural gas lines. We have no room for something like that in our small yard, but we also live in SoCal, and do not have winters of weeks of ice and snow, but sure could use it in the heat of summer for the AC when the power goes out.
DH wants to put solar power on our roof but I am at all sure about that. It is dreadfully pricey and would take years and years to get our money back and we are not young adults any longer. If I were in my 40's, I'd say okay; but we are not. As it is, our house is two high stories and 50 years old, the roof may even need bolstering to hold the weight of the stuff they would have to put up there. I understand someone has to clean the panels off several times a year, and no way is DH going to go up a ladder to that very high second story. Would be nice not to have an electric bill and to have power if there is an outage; but it is thousands to get it done AND they would have to replace our roof at the same time which is another big heap of money as in thousands.
Last night, watched the film, "The Madness of King George." So well casted and acted. It really was awful in its own way. Today we know that he had porphyria that caused his bouts of madness and it is hereditary; but back then they just thought he was insane. The "treatments" were horrible and ignorance abounded with the physicians. I likened it to dementia patients who used to be put in the insane asylums; Bedlam being one of them. Horrible times and the suffering was severe. No one knew what we are now aware of. Some day in the far future, we will be looked at as backward for some things we are currently dealing with today. Progress . . . can't come fast enough for so many conditions and diseases.
Our Homeowners Insurance went up $800 this year. Shock. So many losses nationwide, everything is going up, up, up. Amazon Prime is also raising its prices, but only for $2.00 a month. Heard on the news that pretty much everyone got hit on their Homeowners Insurance ; don't know if that is just California or if it is nationwide. Food is rising in cost; bacon is running almost $10/pound. Yikes; we do not use bacon often, but that is so expensive. WalMart has it for just about $9.00 a pound. Everything has gone up. For those families who have very low income and especially if there are children to feed and for those elderly living on Social Security and trying to buy their meds and still pay for cost of living and food . . . .
Off I go to get some things done needing doing, will be back later to check and see if Jack is okay. Also hope we hear from Ron soon, hope he is doing okay; he has not been up to snuff lately and I am sure that all of that coupled with Lou's needs must be pretty stressful. Hopefully we shall hear from him this next week.
J.
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Hello All,
Its 51 at my house today the sun is shining, and the snow is melting. it's supposed to be in the high 60s next week.
Maie. I have not herd much about your furnace so hopefully it has been fixed and your keeping warm.
Sara. You are so sweet to your mother she has raised a very loving daughter. I agree with you it is hard to sleep in a real warm house. Dan always kept the house at 70 degrees and slept without covers. Did not make much sense to me, so every chance I got I would turn the heater down to 65 I think 60 would have been too cold for me. As far as the strange man at Walmart I think the best thing is just to make sure Walmart management knows about it. When I go to our WM there are always a few homeless sitting at the entry way into the parking lot but I have never seen one inside the entry way to the store. One time one had a dog with him, so I bought a bag of dog food and gave to the man when I left the parking lot. Please be careful when your shoveling snow.
Jo. Thank You so much for the links about the alert buttons. There are so many to choose from I think I will just flip a coin and go from there. I have read places where they say the fall dictation does not always work so that's something else, I have been thinking about. Just too many things to think about.
Lorita. What does it mean when you say calf, Lotted? I hope you always ware your alarm when you go outside. I don't worry about you coming and going I worry about you falling while outside and not being able to get back to the house. Would it work if you left a sign out by the gates asking those that deliver to please bring the packages to the house. I use my heated throw a lot it works better on my back then the heating pad. I have a throw on the back of my recliner I can lean back against it and pull the sides around my shoulders. Right now, I am dealing with a sore shoulder I think it is from me tossing my heavy blanket off of me when I get out of bed. I have really been babying that shoulder for the past week. I had to go in for my annual mammogram yesterday and I had to have the lady pick my arm up to lay it on the machine it was too painful for me to lift. It seems like all the old people stuff is creeping up on me. I had some mussel relaxer, so I have been taking that. I think I need to slow down for a while and stop moving my furniture around all the time. So please be careful when you're out swinging that ax around.
It's nice that you found someone to help you keep an eye on Jack I really feel sorry for his dog. It would be nice for him if someone from a senior agency could go out and check on his living conditions. Iam sure if senior services are aware of his needs hopefully, they would see if he qualified for some aide.
Not much going on here today I have been watching the Olympics most of the day.
Hugs to All, Zetta
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Zetta,
Thanks for asking about the furnace. After a short delay it got fixed on Wed. They had to order the part, so delay was not their fault.
My older neighbor was one of those whose family didn't have time to look after her. After her husband died, I had her call me every day at a certain time. If she didn't call, I would call her. She had given me a key to her house, and there were a couple of times I had to use it just to make sure she was ok. One of the last times, I called the police to do a welfare check. That started the ball rolling for adult services to make an assessment. Her home was neat and clean, but even with Meals-on-Wheels she was not eating enough. She had a medic alert pendant with fall detector and it went off a number of times and EMS had to come help her up. The last time she fractured her knee cap and hit her head. She was admitted to hospital for over 6 weeks, and while there it was determined she had dementia and could no longer live alone. Due to Covid they were not allowing non-family visitors. I saw one of her grandsons later and this whole process had really caused her to go downhill mentally. Her son lives about an hour away, he is a piece of work and cannot be bothered to visit her. He should be the one locked up!
My grandfather always told me "don't ever get old"...and I sure understand what he was talking about as my parents and I face various aging issues. My daughter and I have had many conversations about decisions to be made should I be unable to make them.
We got bypassed on the worst of the last storm...more rain than snow. Hope the weather holds this week as I have to take my folks to the eye doctor on Thurs. It makes for a long day of sitting in the car and sitting in the doctor's lobby. We do try to work in a meal together if the appointment time permits.
As for those luscious cupcakes...how about cutting them in half or quarters and try freezing them? Might work and lessen the temptation and make smaller portions for latter.
Thanks Lorita for sharing the pictures of those precious babies of yours.
Hope all in the storm's path are doing well and are warm.
Hugs to all,
Marie
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Hi again,
Jo - I was going to suggest the same thing Marie suggested - cutting those luscious cupcakes in half or quarters and freezing them. I think the cream cheese frosting would freeze okay - then, when you were craving something sweet it wouldn't be so much at one time.
When I worked at the VA Hospital we had a canteen where the employees or patients could take a break and also have lunch for the employees. Quite a few patients did come down for a cup of coffee or something during the day. You could spot a patient with diabetes easily - they were the ones who always had something sweet to eat. Same with Charles - he loved sweet things, too.
I just watched a really good curling match between the Czech Republic and USA - sadly the USA lost by one but it was really good. Watching Luge now - this is another sport that I don't see how they train for without killing themselves. The course is a mile long and they're completing it in less than a minute. Lots and lots of turns and the ice is so slick. Someone just went down and now I realize this is a rerun from earlier today.
Jo - just heard the Men's Curling will begin the middle of next week. I love to watch the men curl, especially the USA - John Shuster is the skip - really good at his sport. I laughed at your description of all of us trying curling. I can see it now. Just think how sore they must be when they first being curling. I know each year when we'd first start bowling how sore my legs ewre - could hardly walk up stairs. We used to bowl in ai league - I think it was the VA Hospital vs. VA Regional Office. I really enjoyed that until I got arthritis in my thumb so it hurt to have it in the hole in the bowling ball.
Well, that was strange. I was typing and the post disappeared but posted - so I'm glad it wasn't lost.
About lotting the cow or calf. If you want or need to get a cow and calf together to move or whatever you need to do and you don't have tags in their ears with matching numbers (I don't - we used to but not now), you put the one you know - in this case it would be Sally - up in the lot (the lot is the same as a corral - but we usually say "lot") and the baby will come to her. We had twin calves years ago and we couldn't find one of them - so we put the cow up in the lot and she kept calling one calf and that brought the other one to her also. The calf we couldn't find was a quarter mile away but came right to his mom when she called or bawled.I really don't want Sally to be moved so that's why I'm closing the gate about noon after they feed and opening it again before they come to feed. I think I mentioned I talked to PK Fencing about building a new fence. It needs it anyway - don't know why I didn't have him do it when he was building the others. He and his son do the fence work and they are so fast and good so it won't take more than several hours to build it.
You know I don't think Jack would be receptive to anyone coming into their house. A niece did come by this past summer and he let her in but I don't think he ever lets anyone else in - neither of them did. Remember a couple of years ago he found someone to clean out the house - but, they only let them do two rooms - so, that's why he's sleeping in the LR in the recliner instead of in the bedroom where Zelda is. I've never been in the house so I really don't know what the condition is.
I think I've asked him about Meals on Wheels and he rejected the idea flat out. So, I don't think it's something that will happen unless an emergency comes up and someone has to come into the house for that. But - the ambulance people were there for Patsy and nothing was done.
Jack used to be a dog trainer shortly after they were married so I don't think he feels he's mistreating Zelda. He lets her out several times a day and lets her play and he also feeds her outside. He used to walk their dogs twice a day, a mile or so at a time, but since he's older and also after the hip surgery he isn't able to do it. I have an elevated feeder for each of my GPs in the LR.to illustrate the difference in people. Zelda is a big Boxer - a Flashie - and they have a big cage - but, I feel like all of you do that she should be out of it and in the room with him - think about how much company that would be for him.I've said that very thing to him and he rejects the idea - says she'd tear up everything. They got her a day or two before he fell and broke his hip. I remember what a hard time Patsy had with Zelda while he was in the hospital - she'd be sitting out on the front porch in the middle of the night for Zelda to go to the bathroom. They've always had dogs so I doubt he feels she's being mistreated. Patsy told me her daughter had tried to get them to let her out of the cage.
Much of our snow melted today but still quite a lot around - I imagine it'll be gone by tomorrow evening and I hope that's all we get this year.
I'm concerned about Ron, too. We haven't had a post from him in several days. I always worry when we don't see posts from people on our thread. Maybe he's reading and is just too tired to write. I doubt any of us know how to get in touch with him.
I'll stop and watch some more of the Luge - even though I've seen it. Scary stuff - at least to me.
Zetta - when you have the fall detector on your alert device, they still tell you to push the button if you can - that all falls can't be detected. The two or three times I've fallen with it on it was detected and they asked if I needed help.
Hope all of you sleep well tonight.
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Good morning
15F, -9C. Suppose to get up to 33 and be sunny. Means it will melt some more on driveway and sidewalk. Starting to see concrete in places on my driveway, yes!
Thank you Lorita and Judith for finding a way to check on Jack. You know sometimes that is all we can do is check on them. They often prefer to live how they are, over going into a home, understand that somewhat. The problem is sometimes they get to a point that is very dangerous, but they are clueless. Have only had one experience with APS and it was not too impressive as my Aunt was in a dangerous condition. That being said I’m sure it is like any other job, some workers care way more than others.
Zetta thank you on your thoughts about the WM man. I’m going to try and find someone at WM to talk to about him. In the town right next to me, the downtown is trying a new program to help the homeless. It is a pilot program in which a policeman and social worker are working together. The social worker will try and provide resources and policeman there in case of violence. They said they realize some will not want help. Guess I hadn’t really thought about that but should have. Sometimes we cannot fix things. Glad l have a tender heart and want to, even though unsure how to go about it. Maybe if I can find out a little, possibly I could approach him and ask him if it would be ok for me to try and involve people to help him. He is not a young man but due to situation hard to guess his age. Will just see how I feel after I talk with someone.
My neighbor at my other house said getting old is not for sissies.
Marie that is a great idea with the cupcakes. I do that all the time.
Made pumpkin bars and tortillas yesterday. Going to make stew this morning if nothing happens.
Take care
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Morning,
It's beautiful this morning - calm, sunny and warming up. Most, if not all, of the snow will melt today. The weather said it may get up into the low 70s this week. Oklahoma weather for you - but seems like everywhere is having odd weather this year. It's already about 35 degrees - Mike called and said that's the reading on his truck. He was moving hay this morning.
I'm filling the water tank so this will be short. Girls seems to be okay - checked the barn and no one was in there, fed Tom and that's all I've done this morning.
Sara - you're right. I think all I can do is check on Jack from time to time. I'm 90% sure he wouldn't accept any help, especially someone coming into the home and I doubt he'd go for Meals on Wheels - if it's even available around here. As long as he can get around and make it to town off and on he'll probably be okay. I know he's depressed so maybe someone calling to check on him will help. He talks to a friend of theirs in California and one in Connecticut and I think he calls his daughter almost every day for a very short talk.
Nothing going on here today. Daniel and his crew will be here tomorrow to work on the room and after that the utility room. It may be a few days on that because he'll need to check what he thinks has to be done against what the adjustor decided. I imagine some of the joists may need to be replaced and the adjustor didn't include those. Then, after he figures that, the insurance company will have to approve the additional cost - so it may be a while. I think he'll need to get it done fairly quickly because things will be outside.
Alarm's going off so I'll stop for now. Be back later. Maybe Ron will post today. Does anyone know how to get in touch with him?
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Hi Lorita, did you ever get ahold of Jack? Hope he is safe. I so remember when his wife was still alive; she was the one making decisions for them and doing the bill paying. I remember they were hoarders and could not use much of the house and that was the reason why they could not sleep in the bedroom, it was filled with so much other stuff and junk that they could not access the bed or the room.
It is understandable that Jack would not accept Meals on Wheels, he wants no one to come into the house. That is what both he and his wife did for quite some time as they evidently did not want anyone to see how they were living. I remember when she was in the hospital how she refused any home health nurse to visit the house as it must have been a threatening risk for them in fear that they would be mandated to clean up the house. As I recall, that was an issue with a social worker or nurse who had been out to the house some time before. The helping entity had arranged someone come in and get a start on removing the junk; for some reason, that never got fully finished. There may also have probably been a fear of APS being called out if they let someone inside who would see the level of the hoarding mess.
Jack no longer has his wife to figure out the finer points and finances; he is alone; it truly is a sad situation. The isolation must be awful. My guess based on professional experience, things may possibly be even worse in the house. Evidently no one allowed in the house also includes no relatives. If the daughter has tried to help but could not get cooperation and feels it is hopeless, she may have given up in frustration that she could not accomplish anything. You are right, there is nothing you can do; just making a call contact is the best that can be done.
From how you have Posted about it, it sounds as though Jack would never intentionally cause harm to the dog by beating it. However; there really IS abuse. Plain and simple. That dog being put into a cage most of each and every 24 hour day of its life is abuse. Having a larger cage does not make it appropriate. I pity the dog for the life it must live; it has no advocate nor does it have loving care. Feeding it outside? Awfully cold weather not to mention sure do hope he gets the appropriate type of food for dog condition and age and that Jack does not forget to feed and provide water when he does not feel like it or has lapses of time or memory for that responsibility. Letting it out to do its business several time a day is not good care. That dog is not a pal or comfort to Jack; it is not a companion, it is just there and he does not seem to have the wits to contact a helping entity that would accept the dog and re-home it.
I am sorry for being a bit steamy about this; we have had dogs throughout my and our life and our nearby son and DIL have four rescues and our DIL is also a Vet Tech. I am touchy about mistreatment of children, the very frail elderly, the infirm/sick and animals. They all are helpless and must depend on others for their well being.
As for the homeless, it breaks my heart for those who are truly unable to care for themselves. Out here in SoCal the issue is ongoing. Much really good housing has been built in multiple areas. Some are fully furnished apartments, others are single standing small housing units that even have air conditioning and are furnished. Roaming Social Work Teams have been formed to be out on the streets to help the homeless and such services are also available for the people who have been housed. Not perfect, but so much better than a tiny tent or cardboard box or leaning against a wall, BUT so many of the homeless refuse the housing choosing instead to stay on the streets. A number of these who refuse are based on mental illness dynamics for the inability to make decisions for themselves. A larger number of refusal comes from a different segment of that population. One of the biggest issues is that to be in housing, there are rules to be followed and the issues of significance are no drugs and no alcohol. The most significant problem issue according to news reports from those working with this population appears to is the "no drugs" policy. I have no idea what the answer is to all of this.
One of the med centers I worked at had a small group of homeless that would be at the front door of the hospital every morning. I always went to work early and would see them. One woman and four men. I always greeted them a good morning and made light conversation. The CFO of the facility permitted them to come in and get free coffee in the cafeteria and looked the other way as they used the bathroom facilities to do a quick wash. The small group was polite and reasonably clean; no acting out or drugged behaviors. If that had been different, I imagine they would have lost the privilege of being where they were. I was so glad they were treated kindly but oh, how I worried about them when it rained or was cold weather.
Sayra; once again based on experience; this time based on experienced law enforcement in the family, I would suggest it would not be a good idea to approach the man outside WalMart by yourself without knowing anything about him. It sounds awful to say that, but sadly the news out here have had such awful things reported happening to kind people who tried to be helpful and ended up losing their lives or being greviously injured. I feel pretty sure the store managers know the man is there. The only thing they can do is to call law enforcement and depending on the policies of the department, they will either try to get him to shelter by offering it if he will accept, or get him home if he has one, or roust the fellow and get him off the WalMart property if he is considered a nuisance. The fellow may be there because he is not in violation of the law because he is not openly pan handling, but considerate people may give him money just by seeing him.
Only a couple of weeks ago, out here, a kind man saw a homeless person; it was cold. The kind man took off his coat and gave it to the homeless man who abruptly jumped up and stabbed the man multiple times. I do not know if the attack was survived. Also a couple of weeks ago, a young woman working in a furniture store was stabbed to death for no apparent reason by a mentally disturbed homeless person who wandered into the store. Those are only two examples of recent occurrences of such violence against people trying to be helpful.
NOTE: Sayra, this is NOT a diabtribe against the homeless; some are very nice people really in a very bad position who accept assistance without issue . It is simply not wanting you to get hurt by the kindness in your heart. I personally have made outreach and done concrete things to help multiple times and on several occasions have been taken advantage of; once in a very large way. Such things happen, but I will not stop being helpful, I just will do it in a different way.
Oh gosh, what a terribly negative Post, I will do better. Must have been that gigantic cupcake affecting my brain . . . ha!
Off to an egg and some toast with a nice cup of tea,
J.
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Good morning. Not much going on here except cold weather. We haven’t had any recent snow on the Western side of the state. Still have a lot of snow on the ground and cold days will keep it from melting. Our drought situation seems better this winter so I’ll not complain about the cold, and hope we get a few more heavy snows.
The cattle are so pretty in the snowy pastures. It’s nice they have the barn for protection and warmth. I hope Sarah and Todd are feeling better this week. We can only hope and pray this virus gets to a manageable level and we can all live in a more normal way. I wear my mask and try to go to the grocery store during less busy times. It’s not always easy because since Safeway closed, we only have one grocery store open. We do have a small Vitamin Cottage here, but things are over priced and produce is not as fresh.
Sara, glad you and your Mom made it through the storm. You’ve been a blessing to her and you go to great measures to keep her safe. I bet she enjoyed your cooking while at your house.
Marie, my sister’s furnace went out last week, and she wasn’t so fortunate. She has to replace the furnace. The new one is on its way, but could be another week to get it installed. She’s been staying somewhat warm with space heaters. I told her to stay with me, but she refused, so I guess she’s doing ok. She has a tankless system, so has no hot water, so goes to the community center where she works out, and showers there. Don’t think I could handle the cold nights. It’s been in the single figures and teens here at night, and stays in the 30’s during the days. Glad you are safe and warm.
Jo, don’t feel guilty about the muffin. I had a couple days of grazing on sweets too, which is odd for me. I usually go for chips and salty treats. I think I’m past the urge, and will keep the rest of the goodies in the freezer until the next time. Freezing the remainder of those yummy muffins is a good idea. Maybe you and your hubby could share one when you get the urge for a treat.
Zetta, glad you’re not getting heavy storms for awhile. It gets old being stuck at home. I’m ready to volunteer again, but can’t because of covid. Maybe one of these days I’ll be able to do that again.
Speaking of covid, I ordered free tests and two weeks later, I got them in the mail. I have a full box of KN95 masks, so don’t feel I need to get free ones. I hope I never need the tests, but makes me feel safer to have them on hand.
Judith, I hope you can find help with your neuropathy. I recently saw an ad in a magazine for frankincense and myrrh cream that is supposed to be good at relieving inflammation symptoms. I’ve heard that frankincense is good for many ailments. I have a bottle of the oil but don’t use often because I hate the smell.
I hope everyone on here is having a good day. Hi to everyone. A checkin from Ron would be good.
Take care, have an easy Sunday, and stay warm and safe. Joan
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You guys are right and I’m glad I asked. Feel like such a bad person when I just walk by and see him in that condition and get into my car, drive to my warm house, eat food. I will not approach him as that is why a policeman is going with the social worker. That’s why I asked you guys because I did not want to do something stupid. I know why many people are homeless. He causes no problems that I observe. I was approached once several years ago by a lady with a child telling me she did not have enough gas to make it home, asked me for $5. Did not want to give her drug money. It’s so terrible you have to feel this way. Thankfully the Lord helped me to know what to say quickly. Told her I’ll meet you at the gas station and fill your car up. It was real close to where we were. She did not come up to the gas station. The attendant told me to never give them money, said this happens all the time.
Guess where I’m sitting. On my porch. Sun is shining beautiful again. Thought I’m going to see what it is like on the glassed in porch. It’s a beautiful 70 degrees.
Watch a YT channel called MedCram. The doctor is totally main stream, is an intensivist and pulmonologist. Recently I ordered an infrared heating pad. Bob and Brad recommended it saying it was very healing. Watched a video MedCram did on sunlight today. It was very interesting. I learned a lot. Think I now know why infrared heating pads are do healing. Also understand why sunshine is so very important. Probably why I have certain issues worse in winter I’m guessing. Get so much more sunshine in the summer.
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Joan,
So sorry to hear about your sister's furnace. I had to replace my furnace and a/c about 18 months ago for a big price. It was during the hottest days of the summer and took over a month to get it, installed and inspection approved. Hope she can get it sooner than she expects and has no issues with frozen pipes and such.
It is so sad that we have to be on guard when wanting to help someone in need. I do my giving locally to the women's and children's shelter, nursing homes and the like, and even at those I try to do something other than cash. You hear so much about donations not being used for folks as they should. I live near an interstate and there are always folks standing around with signs asking for handouts. You just don't know who to trust any more.
Working on the afghan for soon to be great granddaughter...the first girl in that catagory...lol. Her mother has picked Llamas as the decor for the baby's room.
I love doing the afghans but it is too easy an excuse to not do other things around the house. I have to get done what needs doing first thing in the morning, or I don't get it done...no will power!
Hope all friends of the front porch are well and warm.
Hugs to all,
Marie
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Must have been Posting around the same time as Lorita. I am so glad Jack is okay, that is good to know someone would go out to check on him. Wonderful that Judith found a way to get communications. Would be nice if Jack would let someone lend a hand now and then, but it is not his way and this is his comfort level. He must think of Patsy and miss her so much. Glad he is eating; that is always a concern when in such a situation. Meals on Wheels is pretty much everywhere and they can be really wonderful support, but it is not in his comfort zone.
I enjoyed the photos of the cattle and the snow on the ground. Br-r-r-r. They sure do look healthy. Do they make water tanks that have some sort of heat source to keep the water from freezing whether electric, propane or ??? I would imagine if there is such a thing that it costs a huge bundle to buy. Glad to know what "lotting" is. I was perplexed and thought it may have meant weaning.
As for giving money to strangers. It is sometimes difficult to know what to do regarding giving a stranger money. Usually I will provide food or needed item instead of giving money. One of the nearby town's shelters stopped donating boxes of food to needy families as they were in larger numbers being sold on the street for cash. I am pretty sure at least one time I may have got suckered, but there were children involved . . .
We were on our way up to Oregon from California and had stopped about half way at a rest stop in an isolated area to use the bathrooms. In a car next to where we had parked was a woman with three young children. When I was in the bathroom washing my hands, I saw a note placed on the mirror above the sink. It said that it was from the woman in the such and such car which she described. It said she was traveling to escape her abusive husband to go to her parents in Oregon but had run out of money and had no way to feed the children and was just about out of gas for the car.
Well . . . the rest stop was far away from any places with food where I could go and buy some, and heaven only knows where the next gas stations were. I thought about it from all sides. The kids looked to be early elementary school age. What if they really were in such a predicament and they were hungry? Yet; she may have been a scam. What to do. I had $40 spending money in my purse and decided that I could afford to donate that and even "lose" that amount if the woman was scamming. I did go to the woman's car and gave her the money, and shared that I hope and pray that it was being used to help her and the children and in such a case wished her well. Heaven only knows, but when it comes to children, oh my. I wish I had the number for the Highway Patrol just in case she really needed assistance to get to the gas station if needed. I will never know; if it was real, may she have got herself and the children to her folks and had a better life. If not, then who knows. In any case, may those children have had a good and safe life.
When I was in nursing school, while I was in my psychiatric training, I did my experience in the maximum security male ward in a state mental institution. What an experience that was; talk about adventures! So many of the men did not have adequate decent clothing and there were SO many of them. It was heartbreaking to see what they suffered and how it was for them. Some of them liked music and a few had the ability to play a guitar or other instruments. Well . . . there I was, in for a penny, in for a pound. I decided to get the group of students together and get slightly used clothing in really good condition donated. I got everyone in my family, and went to all my neighbors and friends and got some really good items together; even got two guitars donated. We had collected so many really nice items; slacks, jeans, shirts, sweaters, sweat shirts, packages of new socks, etc.
When arriving with the donated items at the ward, the supervising male RN assigned one of the very high functioning long term patients to manage everything through their store room. We students were pleased that our patients would have better clothing to wear. However; next time we came back the following week, there was not a single item to be seen nor was there an instrument anywhere. Found out that the person in charge sold everything; he had rare grounds privileges and that place is on acres of land with multiple patient buildings. I would not have been surprised to find out if some staff may have been involved. Very big disappointment after such hard work for all of us students, but one learns. Doesn't hamper giving, just teaches to be more careful.
Good going Sayra to get the team out to see the WalMart fellow; hopefully he can be helped. I know that not everyone can be helped, but if even one can find what the need is for a hand up and care and obtain it for a single person, well; that is a good thing and worth the effort of trying.
Marie, it must feel really good to have that heating system fixed once and for all. I feel that way about our AC in the summer. We have had it for siuch a long time. We have it automatically serviced each springtime, but it still makes me feel a bit vulnerable when the worst of the heat hits. I can only imagine the poor pioneer folks and what they endured during the worst seasons.
Wow, Lorita! Two Alka Seltzer tablets cost $7.00! Amazing prices for so much. Sure do wish you could get your boxes delivered up to your porch. If they won't do that, would the drivers be willing to call you and let you know the delivery has been made at the gate? I can imagine it can be a tribulation with big boxes and in dicey freezing or wet weather.
Zetta; it is quite a big deal to try and figure out which item to buy for the medical alert systems. What I like about Consumer Reports magazine is that it teaches what to be looking for. Many times they will mention something about items I never would have thought of but that is important; I find that helpful. Comes in especially handy when needing to purchase a large appliance. They recently did an entire large piece about food seasonings and herbs . . . little did I know what was really important about that and which ones were more contaminated and which ones were far better and purer. I sure got an education; now if I can just remember it all.
Won't be freezing the cupcakes. I have often frozen items to use only on an, "as needed or wanted" basis, but do not need these. Do not want to leave them around long term for husband either. Sometimes I have taken items like chips out of the large bags and put them in single serving zip top bags, but lately am lax about that and just take out four chips and call it a day; mostly I do not eat chips. What I miss are the tiny Kashi whole wheat crackers I used to love with a small cheese stick for a snack. They were wonderful, low in sodium, healthy; but Kashi was bought out by Kellog for $32 million dollars and then Kellog decided to no longer make the Kashi crackers. They tried to replace them with a cheaper made cracker," but it was a dismal failure as they were dreadful. Ah well.
My 87 year old neighbor called yesterday. Her husband had Alzheimer's Disease and she was widowed several years ago. Well; a couple of years ago, she met a gentleman from Texas who was visiting California to visit a mutual friend. She met him and something clicked and now my neighbor has a long distance, "boyfriend." She does not want to get married again and surely does not want to move to Texas. So; she has a long distance romance. He flew out this last week to visit and next month she will fly to Texas to visit him. They talk by phone pretty much every day. She kept saying, "How in the world did this ever happen; in a million years I never would have thought like this would ever be . . . " Made me smile. I just told her, "Heaven sent him." Lovely for her and I am happy for her. Never too old.
On that note, have a good rest of the afternoon and evening,
J.
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Dear porch friends,
I will catch up on all the news I've missed here, and then chime in to the next thread.
Loveskitties -The one thing I read last night and must say "THANKS" for, is the smile from your mention of one of my favorite musicals. Yes, there has definitely been "trouble in River City" and I've been knee deep in it.
What's up with the furnaces going on strike? And all the repairmen/ladies are booked. But they came out for an extra fee, and what to do when its cold? I paid up and at least we are warm again. But also have a long wait for the refrigerator fix-it folks as well apparently. Yes, my 2 year old Kenmore side-by-side quit, and was out for days (>a week now?). And they stood me up. Did not expect that, or I surely would not have ordered replacement groceries for delivery.
RescueMom, it wasn't my DH this time, though I am searching for a refrigerator lock to stop him from opening the door incessantly letting the smell out (though I cleaned, scrubbed, and put baking soda in both sides, it still smells terrible. Yep, I was right with you, throwing out all the food. Including defrosted/spoiled meat and seafood. Guess we didn't need it.
I've been slow to post because I'm swamped and did not want to be a Debbie Downer. So many other folks are dealing with the same or worse challenges, so I am going to get through this I know. But it feels like some planet or another must be in retrograde, the rate that things are going here. I have been nose to the grindstone working on veteran's benefit quest for my DH. Got him enrolled for health benefits finally, and might (might) get additional help that way through Priority 4 Catastrophic Disability status if the hospice SW and VA SW are successful with that application. So glad to have help with this finally. But, I was little bummed to learn out DH is not eligible for any Aid & Attendance homebound assistance since he missed the pension eligibility status by <5 months of his wartime service (was stationed stateside and that makes a big difference in the dates they consider); and then he fell yesterday (no injuries thank goodness...but I think its another UTI). Trouble in River City indeed.
So...I just wanted to say Hi. I'm glad you all are here, even when I can't drop by and stay long. Will read and comment more soon about the seed catalogs that have been ordered; Ms. Sally the wanderer; the return of Tom (?); the 87 year old with a new love; the good example you all are setting with self-care and Dr's attention to your own health (my 2022 resolution!); and all the comfort food news that brings me joy just reading about it (I understand now why my mother read recipes for fun, even ones she never prepared). We find the good when and where we can.
Wishing everyone well.
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Commonly Used Abbreviations
DH = Dear Husband
DW= Dear Wife, Darling Wife
LO = Loved One
ES = Early Stage
EO = Early Onset
FTD = Frontotemporal Dementia
VD = Vascular Dementia
MC = Memory Care
AL = Assisted Living
POA = Power of Attorney
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