Nuts and Slush

Jan 18

Steps 10,350

I keep nuts in the freezer and a little container of thawed ones on the table beside me. No matter how healthy a nut is, I am totally devoted to pecans. When I was seven years old, we lived on 10 acres and half a dozen pecan trees. Pecans were work, entertainment, food.

We went as a family to the pecan trees. Days before the pecans were ready, Daddy mowed and picked up all fallen limbs. My brother, at least, went with him.  Then, one day, after picking up pecans every day, Daddy would hoist my brother up in the tree where he shook the limbs. He was young and light, so more brawn was needed. Daddy took a two by four and put one end under the limb and pushed hard enough to dislodge gallons of pecans. We were all present for this event, armed with empty paint buckets and five gallon buckets. It was always a happy day for us. Yes, it was entertaining. (I forgot to say that Daddy took heavy tarps he had used when he was a painter and spread them on the ground. He had about three. The pecans were easier to pick up. Some bounced off the tarps. We could easily look beyond the tarps for those.)

We loved shelling pecans and eating the meat. Daddy would sell many five gallon  buckets of pecans. But, we saved enough for snacks. Mama made old-fashioned fudge and pressed half a pecan in each piece of fudge. I have never used any other nut in baking. I substitute pecans for any nut in a recipe. 

 Click HERE>>  Nuts to Eat. Nuts not to Eat.

Tommy prefers peanuts over any other nut. Of course, peanuts are not really nuts. ( Tommy came in and said pecans are the least distasteful nut if he has to choose something beside peanuts.) I have always loved cashew nuts, but learned early on of the calories, so I limited my consumption. Pistachios have long been a favorite nut, a preference developed before we had pecan trees. Now, I find they are too hard and often hurt my gums. Then, I discovered that I am allergic to cashews! So, no more of those no matter how much I like them. 

Today, I have done little. Tommy planted daffodils and a dark pink tulip in the same two pots, washed a lot of dishes in the sink. I did my steps, napped, and ate poorly. 

It is supposed to rain and snow tomorrow. So, the forecast is slush? We will see how that works out. We have nowhere to go and no desire to go anywhere so we can watch the snow/rain. I do have calls to make and fires to put out. I will be busy. Will the ice be on top or bottom? 

What is your favorite nut? 

What is your weather forecast?

It's About Time and Freezing Eggs

 Feb. 17

steps 12,000

Danish Pastries...lol

The hit and run occurred on December 19, 2024. Finally, on February 17, 2025, the insurance company is working. A guy called, wanting to come by between 1:30 and 2:30 to see the damage on the car and write up an estimate. 

He actually showed up. He does agree with me that the car should not be making the noise it is making. That lasted about 45 minutes with me sitting on my walker with hair still dripping from being washed. It was about 40 something and a breeze. At least my hair dried quickly. Tommy said my head felt warm...lol. 

An hour later Tommy got a call from a guy wanting to come out and see if the first guy had done the estimate correctly. Tommy said he is happy with the first guy's estimate. I want to have the first guy's work approved. So, I have that to deal with.

Tommy uncovered all my bulbs he planted. They are no longer ghostly white. They are a healthy green and putting out more sprouts. These were the free bulbs.

We have done absolutely nothing today. We went to grocery store and got two half gallons of my milk white it was still cheap--$9 for two half gallons and a few other items. I always need bananas! We ate leftovers, so no prep and no cooking. Tomorrow, Tommy will find my bought bags of bulbs and plant them. He does not know it yet.

Tommy and I talked it over, and I think I will freeze a few eggs even though I have found no shortage and eggs are a bit over $5/dozen. At this point, the bird flu is not waning. I have a package of Ova Eggs that I need to locate and try. I wish I still had hens! I have frozen eggs many times, so no experimenting or learning. I freeze in Ball jars of all sizes. Are you freezing eggs?

Poison Control

 Feb 16

steps 10,345

On Saturday night, I was so sleepy and was going to bed at about 10 pm. I was sitting on the bed and putting toothpaste on my toothbrush. I sort of wondered why the toothpaste was not the right color--white instead of Crest colored. As I brushed and sat on my bed, the taste was not there either. I kept my mouth wide open as I grabbed the tube and saw it was Lamisil. Obviously, I had grabbed the wrong thing. 

There was no way to get it out. I took a wad of toilet paper and brushed at my teeth with Crest. I managed to get back to living room and had Tommy look up Poison Control. I had swallowed nothing and only had a smear on my toothbrush when I started. 

The woman wanted to call me back in an hour to see if I was okay or for me to call back. I told her I was on my way to bed and felt I would be okay. 

Well, I finally fell asleep at 4 pm on Sunday.

The last time I used the wrong product was long ago when I used my hairspray instead of my spray deodorant. I even got another toothbrush to brush my teeth again. 

No need to tell me how not to make this mistake again. 

There was a very strong storm happening last night. I knew I heard something being blown about. Tommy told me I was imagining things, that I was always afraid. Not so. He tells me it is my imagination! This morning, a huge planter was on the concrete in front of the car where it had been blown off the porch, Tommy said it knocked off several small pots of dirt and dead plants. There were tornadoes elsewhere with damage. Many people lost power. Today was a beautiful day, but it is getting colder and there will be rain, possibly snow. 

As I was reading on the internet, I discovered an article that stated red light therapy could lessen the chance of a stroke or heart attack by lessening blood clots. I cannot find the article right now. I am too tired to look tonight. Have you heard of this therapy?

For some reason in the middle of the night, I stepped into the bedroom across the hall and looked around without stepping further into the room. I saw a Tootsie Roll bank that I bought many years ago. It was in a large bag. I brought it into the living room to examine since it seemed full of change. It was too loud to handle because Tommy was asleep. When he awoke, I opened it and dumped the change out. It was full of coins I don't remember having. There were only pennies, dimes, and quarters. 

Tommy said he had counted them for me several years ago and decided to divide them by coin. The quarters were state quarters. I barely remember seeing those and certainly not dozens of them. The pennies were mostly the new, ugly shield pennies. The dimes look fresh off the mint. The state quarters look new, also. I cannot imagine how I came by these. I do have two more little banks. I know one is in the bedside table where I put spare change. 

Okay, it is almost dawn, so time for me to go to bed.

Okay, I accidentally found the article. 

Red light linked to lowered risk of blood clots

Saturday

 

Feb15

steps 13,545

Last month, I had a week of normal sleep. I wish I could get that back. Right now, we are being buffeted by 60+ miles per hour wind. The lights flickered momentarily. Well, it is all gone just that fast. I hope my deer are not blown all over the yard. 

Finally, I have long and skinny spatulas. They are nine inches long, could be longer to suit me. The pink/green/yellow set is in the dishwasher, ready to be washed. I have been searching forever for something like this, but longer. I hate getting contents on my hands but hate waste. So, this will work. I think I have seen these before and rejected the idea because they really need to be longer.

Because I over-ate the wrong things, I gained back seven pounds. Now, I have come to my senses and eating more normally and hopefully losing at least that weight and maybe more. I don't feel like going to weigh right now, so that will be in a future post. 

For dinner I had a large bowl of soup. Then. I made brownies, ate a few and put the rest away. Other than the soup and brownies, I had one piece of bread and about 6 ounces of milk today along with part of an apple, banana, pecans, and three prunes. That is not a lot of calories in my opinion. Tommy had a small bowl of soup and a ham sandwich. 

Sunday will be the last soup, a bowl for each of us. However, there is a 3-pound package of ground meat. I want more soup. This is a small oval crockpot. I have an 8-quart crockpot in storage. I won it, never used it. I have trouble picking it up empty. So, I am sure I could not handle it with food in it. But, it would work better for cooking pots of anything for freezing. 

The storm was terrific tonight. I wonder what new Sunday will bring. 

Happy Valentine's Day

 

We wanted to go somewhere, so I had Tommy wake me at noon. I was too tired to go. I said, "Happy Valentine's Day." He returned the wish and told me my present was beside my table, so I had him bring it to me. It was a little bank with Tootsie Rolls. I laughed so hard I was no longer able to sleep. I gave him a book:

"Complicity: How the North Promoted, Prolonged and Profited from Slavery." He likes it. 

Happy Valentine's Day!

Drugged

Yesterday, Thursday, I felt drugged all day! Finally, after lying about in my chair, barely able to hold up my head, I realized the problem. Long ago when I first took Melatonin, I only took 1 mg. I gradually went up to 3 mg. Then, I took several 3 mg. I was overdosing. 

I went about ten years or more taking none. Then, I bought more and rarely took them. Now, I have a 3 mg bottle, way too much. 

On Tuesday night as I usually do lately, I bit off a bit of the chewable pill. Then, not able to sleep, I took the rest. I slept but then was groggy all day Wednesday. Finally, at midnight on Wednesday night, I was groggy no more. I lost a day. Finally, at 3 am Thursday morning, I recovered and slept. 

I think I should never take Melatonin again. I slept all day today, Thursday.

The day, Thursday, was beautiful and cold. Tommy covered up the pots of tulips. I agreed to it. But, I was not thinking straight, fresh from a daylong sleep as freeze does not hurt tulip bulbs. They need the freeze.  

I wanted to make soup today, but is still not on at 7 pm, but we are working on it. Needless to say, it won't be eaten today. This is the soup my kids loved after one little tweak. When I quit putting chunks of soup meat in it and put ground beef in the soup, they loved it!

Tommy did get the meat out of grease from hamburger. Then, he poured the grease into the soup, "just like you told me to do." Does anyone believe I wanted meat left out of soup, but that I wanted the grease in the soup?  He did tell me later it was a low-fat ground meat. 

My pedals have been abandoned for the day along with posts for several days. 

It was not such a burden to comment, so I have just been reading and commenting other blogs. This has been a horrible experience. This is why I hate pain killers.

We were discussing where to eat tomorrow. I still have not treated him to Bright Star, Greek restaurant, for his December birthday. He keeps putting it off. I suggested Bright Star, KFC, BBQ restaurant near here. He can add anyplace he wants. This is not for Valentine's Day, just because. Of course, we will go wherever in the afternoon or lunch, not for dinner. A couple of weeks ago, he mentioned he had not had Chinese in a long time. We will eat somewhere, maybe soup at home. 

I am just glad to get Wednesday behind me. 

Tommy told me he got something for Valentine's Day for me at the Dollar Tree! I cannot imagine! I think he has learned to get me something instead of waiting for me to wish for something. It is cheaper...lol. Surely, he spent more than $1.25. 

Warren Buffet

 Buffett has a very simple diet and doesn’t like to go out much. In Buffett’s biography, “The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life,” author Alice Schroeder quoted him as saying, “I like eating the same thing over and over and over again. I could eat a ham sandwich every day for fifty days in a row for breakfast,” Mashed reported. 

Warren Buffett: 10 Things Poor People Waste Money On

I did eat the same thing every day for three months and lost 30 pounds. I suppose eating the same thing every day is not as weird as it seems if Warren Buffet can do it. 

At midnight we had a very small bowl of soup. Delicious.

What do you have planned for Valentine's Day? 

Monday, Another Week

 

Jan 10

steps 19,998

This is interesting article about how the temperature of the room can affect cognition in the elderly.

I complain about the temperature of the room, so maybe I am helping my cognition unwittingly.

temperature of the room for sleep

I think it was Thursday or Friday that I sneezed about 30+ times. They were the kind of sneeze that leaves one breathless and hurting from the force. Immediately afterwards. It felt like my whole head was swollen with congestion, sinus congestion. I was so exhausted and never got over it for several days. I suppose my spring allergies are in full force. Allergy reactions in the spring and summer are a bummer. 

Since December I have been asking, begging Tommy to plant my bulbs I got free at the ag center in October. There has been a huge plastic bag in the refrigerator all this time. So, finally he got them all out. There is a table in the yard, so he got pots of old dirt and got busy. I pointed out which end was up. That was not necessary since they had all sprouted. I am not sure if the ghost-white sprouts will ever live.  I did not tell him that I had two purchased bags of tulip bulbs. I will mention that another day...lol. 

The Christmas wreath has been down since right after NYD, but it was in a corner behind the door. I got the wreath holder out and that is gone from the living room. Tomorrow, I will have him get the Santa and two reindeer from where I cannot move, blocked by his junk. I can get those in their boxes and into the bedroom. 

Finally, I resumed the lymphedema therapy. My ankle was hurting me because of an injury suffered Tuesday at cardio by personnel there. So, I have been living with a sprained ankle and hurt feelings. 

Monday night, we opened two cans of salmon. I wore myself slap out breaking it all up with a fork, added a chopped onion, four eggs, almost two cups of oats, and pepper. It was so salty, I did not use salt like I usually do. The salmon croquettes were delicious. I had cabbage and green beans with the croquettes. These were the cans of salmon that were so cheap and my favorite brand. I think they were bogo at Publix. 

When I saw my Tupperware lady, she talked me into buying a chopper. Then, I think she just gave it to me. The onions I was chopping were hurting my eyes so that I got that out. When I could not figure out how to use it, I gave it to Tommy to figure it out. He did and chopped the onion with a few pulls on a rope like a lawnmower. This thing does not chop, it goes way beyond a chop. I like it. No tears!

Usually, I cook all the mixture. This time, I had Tommy store it for cooking tomorrow. One time, I tried baking them. They were awful, and I don't know why.  

Monday night, I did an extraordinary number of steps. I just felt like doing that many. I stepped until the machine stopped twice, so 2x 9,999 steps.

Once Sunday rolls around, I feel like it is time to start all over. I need to check ads online and then get ads in my hands. So, Monday shows up and it is a new week. I only have one appointment that I will have to cancel. Then, there were things we planned to do that will be cancelled, too. 

This week is rainy and cooler than last week, still very acceptable.