Just need to talk to my friends (221)

Iris - that's a good phrasing about not liking wildlife in your home. I'm with you, 100%.

HB - Our weather is kind of like yours right now - yesterday and today were sunny with perfect temperatures. Next week? Rain every day. 😄 Ahhh, our 'transitional time.'

I did not know you could buy mouse-based cat food. I'm filing that away for future use.

I'm with you on the dark almond turtles.

Beth - Yeah, that X-ray was startling. It took me a minute to figure out what I was actually looking at.

Nanny - what a cute child! Happy birthday to him! Have a great trip.

Goodlife - Your comments about wasps reminds me of when we had the big murder hornet scare, although maybe that was only a Washington state thing? Murder hornets need to be napalmed into oblivion (imo) - they behead honeybees. (!!!)

Three things I learned about Dolly Parton:

1. She helped finance Buffy the Vampire Slayer
2. She wrote I Will Always Love You, that Whitney Houston turned into a mega-hit
3. She funded Black school marching bands. Turns out she was in marching band back in the day.

I also saw this article this morning about her being a gay icon, and then as I scrolled through the article, there was a photo of the Castro theater (in my old neighborhood), with the message "We Will Always Love You Dolly Parton." Very sweet. The photo is so very Castro neighborhood.

Then this morning, I read that Tim Curry passed away. 🙁 He's been in a zillion things, but I know him best as the "sweet transvestite from Transexual Transylvania", aka Dr. Frank-N-Furter from the Rocky Horror Picture Show. Like Dolly Parton, he was also 80. Bet'cha anything we hear the Time Warp at Death Guild on Monday night - probably at midnight. This (short) article lists his top 10 best performances.

Every goth girl who was into Rocky Horror went as Magenta - including me. I think I did okay. If you watch the first 10 seconds of the Time Warp video you'll see Magenta.

Good morning. First Day of School here. Fingers crossed.

Lorita— I do hope the pepper tape and daily drives discourage the nesting. Here's hoping the rats don't develop a taste for spicy wires and crave it. Otherwise, they'll be under there with Ron's Louisiana Hot Sauce.

I'm curious, how do you, as someone as a member of the ranching community, feel about imported ground beef being imported and sold for 25% less that market price to ease the shortage. It seems a little shortsighted and has the potential to make things worse in the long run.

Nanny G— that looks like one happy and handsome little guy. Enjoy your upcoming trip. I'm sure you could use a break.

Goodlife— That's where we differ. I'd rather make the pants than hem something ready-made. Except for jeans. Mom also has a larger bust but not the shoulders to go with which is a different kind of challenge. Plus, they're not symmetrical because of the scoliosis. I like a challenge but yikes!

Carl— Enjoy the jam. It's funny, the more you hear about Miss Parton, the more unique an individual she was. A national treasure for sure.

Even the UK's Cold Stream Guards got in on the tributes. <I tried to insert a clip but it was a no go>

Gothic G— Tim Curry was a favorite actor of mine. The man was in so many different kind of movies, television and especially West End theater. There used to be a joke that one could tell the age of a person by asking "How do you know Tim Curry?" Like you, he's always been Dr. Frank-N-Furter for me, but to DS, he was first Sir Nigel Thornberry (voice role) on a Nickelodeon. He recognized the voice from The Hunt for Red October.

Yum.

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I'm off to get mom packed for her trip to Rockport tomorrow. My niece drives a Mini, so it's a very curated capsule wardrobe only along with her DMEs. I need to swing by the pharmacy for her med packs, write care & feeding instructions for my niece (her request as mom is a lousy self-advocate) and get her a pedi. I swear it's more work to get her off for a weekend than to send my kid away to another country for a week or two.

I hope all have a pleasant day.

HB

There was a lot to Dolly that I did not know about.

Thank you HB for sharing that with us. That was a beautiful tribute to Dolly Parton. There is so many things I did not know about her. She will be missed❤️

The following is a 25 minute video sbout the life and accomplishments of Dolly Parton.

HB - you made me laugh recalling a jumpsuit I attempted to make in high school - home economics. It never did get finished but if I had it today I could get it done and it would even be back in style. 🕺 I loved sewing my son's Halloween costume each year. My best friend and I would plan it out and have a blast doing it together for each of our kids - more fun than the actual Halloween night for me.

GG - Tim Curry was also a favorite of mine. Just watched a recent interview with him on CBS Sunday morning, who would have known. First time I saw Rocky Horror and Harold and Maude was in San Fran. You made a great Magenta - Do the time warp again. Your picture of the Castro District brought back so many fun memories - it was 1980 in my head again for a moment.

Iris the backing soda poultice is how I usually handle bee/wasp stings. But Carl I am going to try your way next time, those wasps hurt way worse than my little honey bees. I always have some mustard so will keep that in mind. Will just need to keep it away from everything else it will stain 🤣 GG - murder hornets and killer bees on me oh my they are no joke. Someone in our valley introduced killer bees a couple of years ago. When it was discovered they had to bring a professional (our club president) to exterminate them. They were hurting cattle on the next farm over. He had to be in a bio-hazard suit much tougher than our regular bee suits and it was super dangerous. I inquired why someone would bring them here and was told it was because they produce honey at about 5x the rate of regular honey bees. You can't get near them to harvest the honey but you know……..

Lorita, you made me appreciate our 1/2 cow each year. We have friends that raise a small herd of 20-30 each year and we always get 1/2 of one, which is plenty of beef for us. I have always thought it was a little pricey but well worth the extra costs to know our cow was up on the Mesa eating healthy grass and living the best cow life possible. You made some really thought-filled points on the affects of current event, thank you.

Beautiful eclipse! A friend called and we watched it "together" texting pix back and forth and talking about Japanese moon pavilions and such. Next time we'll do it somewhere dark, not in town. Maybe a lake cabin like Ron's rental.

It's midnight and I've been up 20 hours, so good night. Sleep tight, and remember:

"The sex of a bee is hard to see, but he can tell and so can she. And that is why, in times like these, there are so many sons of bees."

More about Dolly Parton. I didn't know she was so funny.

Good morning

Ron

Good morning!

Nanny, best wishes on your camping trip and RV issues. Hope they are fixed soon so you can complete your trip. Loved the pic of your grandson! What a cutie! Is he the one you are home schooling?

GG, your Magenta costume was fantastic. Great job! Very good on the boxing, too.

Yesterday I helped out preparing for our historical society's quilt raffle in the morning, then went out shoe shopping - bought Brooks Adrenaline for the treadmill etc; will be stocking footed for the deadlifts cuz I don't want to buy a pair of barefoot shoes. Shoes are pricey! Saw some at the athletic shoe store for $240! Good grief! Next we went out for a Ruthie (brewery, remember Ruthie the barmaid that I spoke of recently?) and then to Salvation Army with donations.

Tuesday we went to a friend's house. He has abundant peaches on his 2 peach trees and he gave us a lot! I've been processing them for the freezer and also trying to eat some fresh every day. Healthy and delicious. Mmmm.

Wednesday I worked the Farmer's Market for our historical society booth. It was pretty fun. Lots of interest in our quilt raffle. Should be a good fundraiser for us.

Sunday DH and I traveled to my hometown and visited the historical museum. I've been there many times but like to go periodically. Nostalgia, you know. Memories. One of my classmates was working that day so I caught up on all the town happenings.

Monday I attended a funeral of a friend's husband. He was 73, fell at home and hit his head in May and never recovered.

Today I'll go to the gym (also went Monday and Wednesday - I need to get less busy with things so I can get there more often!). I'll also mow and get groceries and make a stop at Lowe's for some gardening supplies.

It was a busy week. I hope next week is quieter.

Beth

Back from Morgan Stanley. Seems I had a good year.

Ron…how are you feeling???

Good afternoon. It was a lovely day here despite humidity higher than I'd like.

Goodlife— Not a fan of jumpsuits. There's no way to use the restroom without some part of it landing in the toilet or on the floor. You can get the same effect by wearing a top and pants in identical fabric.

Carl— I envy you eclipse viewing. It was cloudy here.

Gothic G— You made an awesome Magenta. Fresh Air played an old interview with Tim Curry this afternoon. He talked at length about fleshing out the character and the reactions of others to it.

Judith— Congratulations on your good year.

Ron— I hope you're feeling more yourself.

Mint— If you're out there, know you are missed.

Eaglemom— You are so right about how different people with dementia can be from one another. When dad was diagnosed, I had 2 aunts, a friend's mom and my dentist's dad (DH former lab mate) with dementia. It was striking to compare how their personalities intensified or changed entirely and also what skills remained after others were long gone.

Nanny G— Seems like sometimes camping is like having all the work of home with fewer conveniences. I hope you were able to get things sorted out.
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Ugh. What a day. I started by drafting a Care and Feeding of Nana document for my niece. I'd already packed for mom and left niece a checklist of last-minute items to toss in the tote. A few minutes after hitting send, niece called to report the bi-pap wasn't working; the water tank would not separate from the unit to be filled. This has happened before and required a service call. Given it's summer Friday, that's not going to happen until Monday at the soonest. Figuring she could sleep with just her POC, I sent them on their way.

Yesterday DS came home from class and mentioned that he'd need an analog watch with a sweep second hand. When he went to his first orientation, he was given a list of things he needed to buy or have. The watch wasn't on there. I found one of DH's he no longer wears and they agreed DS could have it. I took it to get a new battery. On the way, I stopped at mom's and managed to fix the bi-pap. Alas, it would be $185 to overnight it to the hotel.

Last I heard, mom was tucking into a lobster.

HB

Good morning

Ron