Best Laugh All Year

 The year is drawing to a close. Of course, I am exhausted. So, Tommy is helping me as usual. I decided to make my favorite Jello concoction. I had Tommy bring me a cup of boiling water in a boil so I could dissolve a 3 oz package of no sugar Jello. When I finished, I had him put it in the refrigerator and leave the spoon on the counter. 

Later, I wanted to put apples, banana, and a can of sugar-free fruit cocktail . He had left the hot Jello water on the counter. I asked him where he put the spoon. "I put the spoon in the refrigerator, just like you asked me." Well, No!" He insisted I did not tell him to refrigerate the Jello, just the spoon." 

I laughed so hard, harder than I have all year, I do believe. I coughed and choked and kept trying to laugh through it all. I cannot imagine in what situation I would have someone refrigerate the Jello spoon and leave the boiling Jello on the counter. I asked him if he did not think that strange. He said he just did what I told him. 

Can you see it--spoon in the refrigerator and hot Jello on the counter? 

The Jello was a failure. How can Jello fail? The directions said to leave the Jello in the refrigerator about four hours. I decided that 30 minutes would be enough to make it thick enough to put in the fruit from previous experience. Well, it was done solid in 30 minutes. I had forgotten to add the cup of cold water, making the Jello very thick, almost hard. So, I chopped up the Jello and stirred in apples and fruit cocktail. I figured bananas would not fare well. Then, I stirred in 1/4 cup Cool Whip. It is not what I wanted, a failure, but it is okay. 

At this point, we are listening to fireworks, eating leftovers, and waiting until later to eat the few goodies I made. Tommy ate almost the whole bag of chips I bought for the onion soup dip. He volunteered to go get more. Nope! Staying home and making do. I may or may not make the sausage balls. 

So far, there are no fireworks in the sky. Sounds like firecrackers. Maybe at midnight. 

Okay, now it is almost midnight. More fireworks. I need to collect my kiss. 

How went your NYE? 

Happy New Year's Eve / Plans For Next Christmas

 

Plan for next Christmas--whipped cream, strawberries, and mini choc chips. I think a bit of whipped cream on the top of the cap is possible.

Deviled egg Santas

source Taste of Home

Cute?

I posted a previous post that you may not have seen--What Did I Eat Today.

What Did I Eat Today?

 So, you don't care? 

In the grand scheme of things, and ranking in importance, it is not really important.

But, I ate an orange. Why is that important? Well, it had been a while since I drank orange juice. It was mandarin time. So, I ate one. Immediately, I was congested, nose running, sinuses hurting. I have known for years that I was allergic to citrus. But, the swiftness and pain of this reaction made me swear off citrus. 

When the beautiful navel oranges appeared, I thought. Why not just one navel orange? 

So, I will note when and if, and how bad the reaction will be. 

Of course, I love oranges. But, I also love the pith, specifically the white pith of the orange. I deliberately peel the navel orange with a knife in order the neatly separate the orange part from the white so that I can eat the white along with inside of orange. 

I decided just now to see if the white pith had the benefits I once read. Lo and Behold:

"Recent research found that diosmin from the white pith (rind) of oranges can effectively increase micro-circulation in the body by increasing lymphatic contractions. That is huge, because your lymphatic system doesn’t have anything to pump it the way your circulatory system (blood) has a beating heart."

how healthy is the white part under a navel orange rind - Search (bing.com)

In the process of determining how healthy the pith was, I learned even more about the lymph system, symptoms, and ideas for 'curing' my problem with the pith.

When we eat Halos/tangerines, I have finished the whole thing while Tommy is picking every little string from the fruit. I actually like the stringy part. 

I did eat other things. When I wanted blueberry/vanilla goat cheese, I only ate four lightly salted Wheat Thins. Now, I could eat more crackers, but I determined I would eat reduced-sodium Wheat Thins and fewer. 

The orange, crackers, and goat cheese were what I ate while our late dinner vegetables were baking. 

Do you like the thick, white part under the zest of any orange, especially a navel orange? 

Did you know before this that it contained 30% of the vitamin C in an orange? 

Do you eat , as I do, the stringy pieces between the sections of tangerines? 

Solving a Long-Term Problem

 For several months now, I have been trying to solve a problem. Tommy was the person I turned to, and why not. I tried and could not. I only wanted him to clean the windshield so we could see through it when the sun shone on it. Even if the sun was not shining directly on it, we needed a clean windshield. 

He has one of the things like in a service station that he uses so he can 'clean' the windshield. I have him a bottle of water and vinegar plus a drop of Dawn. Well, he never cleans the sponge side. So, he smears dirt around. I tried with a rag and did a bit better, but could not stand for long and gave up. We went to a gas station and he tried their tool.

However, he insisted first thing to do was use squeege. NOOOOO! Then, he took the sponge side and wiped it in a straight line across like the squeegee side. There was no attempt to get off smears and grease. Next trip, I told him we were going to try Daddy's trick--Coke. Shockingly, he stopped at another service station and bought a Coke and poured it on the windshield. But, instead of using the squeeze or scrubber, he just let it run off. I decided to use the windshield wipers like Daddy did. However, the windshield wipers barely touch the windshield. He has refused to change those for two years. 

I am pulling my hair out over his money-saving tactics. Finally, I told him we were going to buy wipers at Auto Zone and have them put them on. He said NO. 

Well, I bought wipers and told him to go to the place back of the store where they put on tires, and they would do it. I had checked, and they said they would. 

The guy finally came to us. The whole place was closed for repairs, but our horn alerted them we were there. The guy had to get a screwdriver to pry the wipers off. He said they were so old they were stuck on. ???Anyway, he did scrubbing with the tool instead of wiping it straight across. I was so relieved that I had Tommy give me money for him. 

Now, we can see, making driving less dangerous. Of course, Tommy swore he could see through the sun blocking the view because of the grime and grease. 

He makes me crazy. 

We did purchase bags for the kitchen trash, so that was something. Plus, he made a return for me. That was our day. I could not sleep again on Thursday night after getting up after 2 hours, so I slept until 2 pm. today. It makes for a short daylight to do things. Once again, we had leftovers for dinner. 

Maybe you think I am being melodramatic, but I am so relieved the windshield wipers are changed. It takes a load off my mind. He is sooo good and sweet, but incredibly irrational about some areas. Just now, he told me it had been over four years since new wipers. 

How long between times do you or husband change wipers? 

Plumber, This and That

                 

 The water delivery part is much higher than it appears in this photo.                                                                                                                                                      

Twice today, I have spilled food on my new necklace! Once was milk that ran out of my mouth, down my face, dripped off my chin, and then onto the necklace. Actually, it did not run out of my mouth. I just tipped the glass up too far. The other time was something gooey to wipe off. At least I can give my new necklace/chain a bath and not worry about food making it turn permanently. My last good necklace was full of mends so it looked knotty. Gone.

Today was only 50F with a breeze, sometimes mild and sometimes stiff. Tommy came to the car complaining that he did not know it would be so cold. He had on a short-sleeve shirt. I told him to go get a coat. He did, but I am sure it was because he was so cold. The wind blew right through my clothing. 

The plumber was scheduled for 10 am. He called about 10:45 and said the job he started yesterday was taking longer than he thought. Finally, I went to sleep in my chair. Tommy told me he called and was five minutes from here. I had no idea where I was or what Tommy was talking about. I had only slept two hours last night and had Tommy wake me for when the plumber was supposed to come. So, I was discombobulated. ugh! 

I told the guy how it went down with the mess of water. No, I did not spill water. I checked for that when it happened. No, I could not see where it was running from. So, the four of us stood there and watched the hot water run full force for about five minutes, just like it happened when it flooded the counter. I had bought a faucet yesterday, so told them to put it in. We had the kind of long handle that controls hot to cold and turns from right to left. There is a joint there that sort of has a ball configuration. Usually, that is where this kind of faucet leaks. The plumber and helper kept wiping their fingers back there. They could only get a smear of water on their black gloves. We could not replicate the leak!

I meant to get a shiny chrome stainless steel faucet like the sink. The faucet is nice. I hate the pull-down sprayers. But, I ended up with the right faucet, just in a brushed steel. I was not going to sit around and wait for them to buy another faucet at Lowe's. I should have because this will be here a long time. Besides, it was installed before I figured it out. 

I asked plumber to show me where the filter in the dishwasher is located. He had no idea, even after looking. I thought he showed it to me when he installed the dishwasher. So, I can look on the internet since I have no idea where I put the manual. I miss my file cabinet. 

The caulk or whatever it is called was put around the commode, too. He thought it should not be there. He said if the seal failed, I would never know it and it would leak under the house. I know it would rot the support for the commode. ask me how I know. But, I know that roaches and fleas were coming in there. Plus, someone told me snakes could come in the house there. Tommy is deathly afraid of snakes, so he said nothing about that. They had to go to Lowe's for a tube of caulking. 

He put this commode in. One of the bolts holding the seat on is loose and the seat swivels. So, he tightened that. Neither of us can bend to reach it. We really know how!

Tommy got out a card to pay. The plumber only takes cash and check. We all looked at each other for a second after Tommy said he did not have enough cash and no checks. Then, I pulled out my checkbook. It is a good thing I did not make a payment today that I was going to make. 

Tommy ordered checks before they ran out. When he ran out of checks, he called again. Somehow, he will get the money back to my checking account. This has never happened before. He rarely writes a check. Nor do I. However, last week, forgot where, the vendor would not take a card. I wonder why. 

So, $389.00 later, we have a new faucet. The Moen faucet was on sale, probably clearance, for $89. That is $478.00 today. 

Then, we headed off to Belk's for something I wanted on sale. Somehow, I cannot order online at Belk's even though I have no problems ordering other places online. The woman helped Tommy order online by doing it for him. My card would not work! I panicked. It was only expired, so the lady did an override to update the card. Neither of my Belk cards worked. So, I had to take care of that when I came home.

We figured up how many boxes of freezer and storage bags in quart and gallon sizes--22 boxes. However, only one box has quart storage. hmmm...how did I do that?

I opened the coin bank jar where I put change all year. This is the rare coin I find and change that I get in transactions. I had a grand total of $6.98. Tommy has a penny jar and another for other coins. He has put this away for several years. He said he never has a chance to spend it. 

Dinner: last tiny bit of green bean casserole, baked zucchini, turkey. Tommy had the same and sweet potato. That is the very end of Thanksgiving.  We had four meals, and there is more turkey breast in refrigerator and some in freezer. Besides the meals, we have both been having turkey sandwiches and turkey on salads. 

How much of Christmas dinner do you have left? 

How much do you have in your coin jar? Do you have a method of saving coins?

Have you found places that no longer take cards, just checks or cash?

Sugar-Free Desserts

 11 delicious sugar-free desserts

You can tell where my mind is presently. I  have not even read this article, but it addresses a subject near to my heart. Hopefully, this article is all about chocolate.

I went to sleep sitting in my chair last night with my laptop on my lap, so did not feel like thinking. Right now, I am sitting and waiting on the plumber. I got two hours sleep, and don't feel like thinking again. Are these recipes worth preparing?

89 Diabetic Friendly Desserts

 Recipes for diabetic-friendly desserts. Some look delicious.

We went out to snag some bargains. Mostly, we bought at Publix, bringing home Christmas designs of Ziploc freezer and storage bags to use all year long. We have not tabulated exactly what I bought.

Then, we found more bargains at another store where we bought little. I was surprised the stores were not packed. 

Today, we had  a replay of Christmas dinner. It was even better today. 

I won't be sorry to put away the decorations. I do dread it, especially the tree deer. 

I turned the water on in the sink to warm it up, walked away. When I came back the counter on the left side of the sink was standing in water. I put a towel in the water. I threw out a whole large canister of oats which was soaked an inch up the side. Tomorrow, I will buy a new faucet and call the plumber. I have not looked under the sink of the counter that had water on it. So, no telling what is wrong. No water was flowing out of the sides or bottom of faucet. But, I am sure the plumber can find the problem. 

Did you shop at sales?

Return things? 

Find bargains or gifts for next year? 

If you cannot post a comment on my blog, please inform me at lgd113@yahoo.com. 

Rubber Chicken Was Here

Written Christmas Eve

 I got no cooking done until Christmas Eve on top of things I wanted to do or have Tommy do. The menu was going to be Turkey, dressing, giblet gravy, green bean casserole and some sort of potatoes. I ended up adding zucchini in olive oil and garlic in the oven and sweet potato pie. We have both been working on this. 

Turkey is done, and off bone in refrigerator and freezer. Eggs boiled to chop in gravy. Sweet potatoes are baked and out of skin, and spices are out to make it all into a pie. Stovetop Stuffing is sifted through colander to get the salt out. We may eat late on Christmas. The pie and green bean casserole and zucchini will all be cooked on Christmas Day. 

The count of Ziploc needed to be done. I will buy them reduced the day after Christmas, so I don't want to duplicate thing bought in 2022 and not used. While I was getting the bag from back bedroom, I bent over and saw an Easter tote bag under the sewing machine cabinet. Cleaner who was so good and moved away put it there. The Easter tote held 14 cans of tuna with date of 2025. Thankfully, it was not old date. Good news all around there. There were 6 gallon-storage and 5 quart-freezer. Now I know what to buy. 

Today, I bought two more large jars of peanut butter bogo and two almost quarts of Miracle Whip since the ad was not going to be good when Publix opens the day after Christmas. Well, had bogo rain check on MW, so not urgent like the pb. Tommy complained loudly when I bought two large jars of pb. Today, he said nothing. 

Since I have never seen You've Got Mail, I am watching that right now. Fun! Tonight, we watched Home Alone, again, maybe fifth time this season. 

I have heard nothing from crazy cleaner. I did see the woman who referred her. She is still apologizing to me. Tommy locked his car for the first time ever. He checked my deer to see if they were okay on morning after threats. 

Sunday, I sprayed my bluebird again. I still cannot find the cardinal! There were a few Christmas decorating items I kept muttering about wondering where they could be. Sunday, Tommy told me there was one more long box like the wrapping box in the bedroom. WHAT? I suspect all the items I have been missing are in there. However, it is late Christmas Eve right now, so they won't come out. Maybe I will just go look to see what is in there. I never found the stockings, either. Oh well! Too late. 

Tommy is doing things in the kitchen, like taking turkey breast off the bone, getting rid of bones, saving broth. He is a gem. It hurts by back so to stand. 

The tree is lit, gifts are under the tree, led candle are on as are the pillars. The poinsettia has lights on it. Candy dishes are full of ornaments...lol. Reindeer lights just went off. It's raining. House is warm and smells like good food.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Written Christmas Day

I awoke 1 pm because, even though I went right to sleep, it was daylight before I went back to bed and slept more. 

We made dressing with more herbs and minus salty residue in box of SS removed with help of colander. Zucchini are in oven and ready to come out. Pie ingredients are out to assemble. Gravy and green bean casserole are not even started. He saved the turkey broth without me asking. So, that will go in gravy. 

We opened gifts. I am wearing the gold necklace from Jared's. He mildly was interested in the box labeled windchime. He laughed and liked the rubber chicken with Auburn attire that was wrapped in the windchime box. He unwrapped his huge Auburn flag, admired it and looked like he was going to put on his Auburn shirt. Great Christmas so far.

On the website the chicken is described as a dog toy. Tommy pointed out that a a dog could choke on the fabric shirt. It would be a very noisy dog toy.  

Tommy is funny. Considering he has no prior cooking experience or knowledge, I can understand his gaps. He often forgets things I tell him, too. He was getting out all ingredients for the pumpkin pie. He noted to me that even though the recipe called for Carnation evaporated milk, all he could find was Pet. I have told him that Pet is better, better quality, fewer ingredients, and the only evaporated milk I will use. I offhandedly told him the whole thing again, and that Pet was what I used. 

As It Turned Out

Finally, I decided the pie could wait until another day. I will also get gravy tomorrow. We had baked enough sweet potatoes for pies and eating for a few days. 

Christmas Dinner: turkey breast, dressing, sweet potatoes plain, green bean casserole, zucchini, jelled can of cranberry sauce. It was delicious. We each only had a moderate helping. And, I needed a long nap. We forgot the brown n serve rolls, but those can be used another day. 

Christmas was a great day, great success, happy day. I finally sent Amazon egift cards to grandchildren. I slept well, napped well. 

How was your Christmas? Lights? Food? Family? Fun? 

Now, I cannot comment on comments unless I sign in with Google. If you comment, I will reply, maybe on tomorrow's post. Right now, I have to nap.

Christmas Day 2023

 

Christmas Eve 2023

 

Merry Christmas!

Threatened by the Cleaner

 This woman said I did not call her yesterday to say when to come. So, she called me today to tell me my phone went to voicemail like she had an emergency. I explained I did not keep my phone on while I slept. She was not happy.

I told her to come at 4 today, so we got home about 3 or so. She called at 4:05 and said she would be here in 5 minutes. She showed up at almost 4:30. 

The stick vacuum came apart. We spent the next hour, the three of us trying to put it together. Tommy was the the last to use it. She talked continuously! Finally, Tommy went to the kitchen to do something I asked. I had her go get the large vac. She came back lecturing me about how he was afraid of me, that he said to just get this done like I wanted, that I should talk nicer to him. Tommy said he was trying to get her to get out and shut up. 

Well, I told her not to lecture me on how to talk. She said I would never get away with talking to her like that. Well, she blew up, cursing, F you, my friends and I will F you over. You will be sorry. No one in this town will ever work for you. I have my own business. I don't need your piddling $30. (for 1.5 hours, sitting and putting deer together and 1.5 hours late.) No cleaning got done!

Police said she had done nothing wrong. So, I could not file a report because someone would laugh at them. I told them about her taking gun in, breaking into house to kidnap her daughter. 

Sooo, great way to start Christmas. What would you do? 

Scrinch

 As usual, I got four hours of sleep, if Thursday night. I went right to sleep, awoke four hours later and was up for the night. I finally went to sleep thirty minutes before I told Tommy to wake me at 10 am. I ate cereal for breakfast, washed my hair and dressed. Tommy wanted to go buy me a necklace/chain. Jared's was where he chose to purchase it. I was shocked at what he was willing to spend with no hesitancy. It is wrapped and under the tree. I am so happy. I cannot wait to open it on Christmas Day.

We were right at the Galleria so he took something back to Belk's for me. 

Cleaner was supposed to come at three. We got back about 3:05. I tried to call and she had phone off. So, we left to go to Lowe's and Publix. The flea sprayer that got in my face was going back. Well, there were nine people in line for refunds and the line was not moving. 

We then went to Publix. I changed my mind. I do want a turkey breast. They were out with more coming in on Saturday. Maybe we will have chicken breast. Maybe not. 

My deer were lit up at 3 pm even though I set it for 6 pm. Tommy later tried to explain it to me. I don't understand what the problem with the timer was, and don't care. He fixed it. 

I know I have more Christmas decorations because I found no ornaments or the fake mistletoe for over the door. But, maybe I will find them during the year for Christmas 2024.

I tried to call the cleaner about five, thinking she might come at night. She had said something about cleaning at night. No answer. 

Today was a nice day, 61 and sun, no wind.  We gained ten seconds today after the winter solstice! YAY! We are headed toward Spring and Summer. 

The cleaner not coming is okay. I will only allow her to clean the bathroom. She bites her nails to practically nothing. Her fingernails have black dirt around the nail, even on the quick that is showing. Biting her nails is not a problem, but the dirt is.  Even if she washed her hands after going to the bathroom, she would get this off her hands. So, she is too nasty. I don't want her making my bed or helping to sort the freezer. The search continues. I will call her for a few outdoor things. She did not call or answer the phone. So, I assume she does not want to work. 

She said she cleans houses that are going on the market or after they sell, not sure. Maybe is when they are built and she preps them for sale. Her hands stop when her mouth moves, so not sure how long she worked Thursday. She also said she does only two or three each month. 

It seems she went in with a gun and kidnapped her daughter who is manic depressive schizophrenic. So, she carries a gun and will use it. Great! 

The woman who gave me her name said she carries snacks only, never food. She offered cleaner a sandwich of meat and bread. Cleaner said, "Are you trying to kill me? You know I don't eat food like that." When she first came here, she had a Pepsi. I told her there was bottled water in the kitchen. She told me she never drinks water, just Pepsi and coffee. I exclaimed. She said, "Well if I am sick and think water will make me well, I drink water then." Okay, folks, I could never think this up. 

Oh, she knows one of the women next door.

She has 11 dogs in the house, so smells like dog. She said she has never seen a flea, but when she does uses a certain product. I told her about the stray fleas here. She agreed that vacuuming was the thing to do first. Maybe I can convince Tommy to vacuum. 

That's what Tommy said--"Scrinch." I asked him what and he repeated it two more times. I said, "You mean one of the mean guys?" Finally, he got it untangled from Scrooge and the Grinch. That was the day of the parade. He laughed at himself. So, now we have a new word. 

While we were at the Galleria, Tommy could have returned something to Belk's if we had known cleaner was not coming. 

Sorry this post is mixed up. I am tired and this will be last newsy post until after Christmas. I am so excited to open my gift from Jared's.

Would you have this cleaner in your home, changing the bed, and rearranging the freezer? 

Good Things Gone Wrong Then Great

 The cleaner was supposed to be here at noon. I called her number about forty minutes early and asked her to wear a mask. Well, this was the number of the woman who referred her to me. Sooo, she did not find out early enough and had to go to the original woman's house for a mask. Cleaner said she did not use a mask because of her health. She has asthma and cannot wear a mask. I told her I wear a mask because I do have asthma. I wear it for my health. I have no idea where this will lead us. 

She finally showed up at 1:30. I had gotten up at 11 since she assured me she would be here at noon. So, I was exhausted by the time she arrived. Now, at almost 6 pm, I am nodding. 

The first thing I needed help to do was to assemble the deer family and help run the extension cord from the deer to the utility room. We worked on that from 1:30 until 3:30. Those deer could not be assembled in ten minutes for all three as one guy on video said! No way! 

She needed to get home to her eleven foster dogs, so Tommy paid her $30 for two hours. There was no cleaning, but that is okay. He was okay with it. He was dreading putting the deer together. He went shopping for us. She will be back at three o'clock on Friday. 

He bought the four things I wanted, all bogo. However, the size on bogo was not in the store. The manager gave him two of the smaller size free. That was a surprise. He also got two other things we need that he had reminded me to get and forgot.So, he did well. 

Tommy peeled sweet potatoes yesterday for a sweet potato pie. I trimmed them and he put them in a pot with a bottle of water. Then, we let them burn! I stupidly poured water into the pan of badly scorched sweet potatoes, and, of course, everything then tasted burned, even the parts that were only barely scorched. Soooo, tonight, we will do it all over again. I was so disgusted that I did something I knew better than to do. 

The lights are set with a timer to come on at 6 pm. It is 5 pm and pitch dark out, so I am antsy to see them deer lit. Tomorrow, we will reset the timer to come on at 5 pm. 

On Wednesday, I tried to spray flea killer in the bathroom. It sprayed me in the face. Yes, it was not pointed at me! I kept trying and sprayed me and everything I was not trying to spray. So, that goes back and I complain to the company. 

Thursday night, we went out after dark to see my deer family from the street. They are so beautiful and bright. Then, we checked out our neighborhood lights and a subdivision across the big road. It was fun until I could not stand Tommy driving into the opposite side of the street, almost into yards. I needed to come home...lol. The deer look great but lonely. 

Cleaner is coming tomorrow at 3 pm. Tommy wants to take me to a jewelry store on Friday! 

He cooked three pounds of ground beef while I chopped onions to cook with it. Then, I put one bag in refrigerator and two in freezer. 

I am waiting to see the deer lights go off at midnight. I am like a little kid that way. 

Does it bother you when workers don't show up when they say they will, especially if you will lose sleep getting up early? Plus, we had something to do and she thwarted that. 

Does a day ever start off with things going sideways and then, to your surprise, straighten out?

Do you know how bad burned sweet potatoes smell and taste?

Good News! x 3

 First good news--The reindeer were on the front porch, not a victim of a porch pirate, thankfully. It took both of us, me inside and Tommy outside to get it into the house. I walked it across the living room and put it in the space behind a table that has to be out from the wall for me to use it from my recliner. 

Second good news--Someone is coming tomorrow to help clean. So, she will put together the reindeer. It would be a real struggle for us. If we had an attic, this would be left assembled and stuck there. Well, he does have an attic, but went up there once forty years ago. Neither of us can climb a ladder, anyway. 

Tommy brought in the little flag and the holder that goes into the ground. I took a Dollar Tree scarf I bought for $1 several years ago and tied a big fluffy bow. I have a large, spiky ornament, think six inches across. There is a loop from the cross bar at the vertical rod that goes to ground. He forced the metal loop enough so the ornament is held sturdy. It is not much and did not cost much.

Third good news. If you want Christmas for 75% off, Lowe's is the place for you. I would have bought a little yard flag, but none of the ones left appealed to me. So, I decorated the little flag holder for free. I was shopping to get the reindeer plugged up, so did not pay much attention.

Oh, there was Halloween left over that was available, too. 

I went to the bathroom and there was a mysterious little black speck on the commode seat. I leaned and flicked it into the commode. As I was flicking it, it looked just like a flea. I immediately leaned way down, and it was a flea! Last week, I sat in my chair and as my feet rose up, I saw what looked like two fleas on my foot. I managed to pinch one, put it in a glass of water with a tiny drop of Dawn. It was a flea!!! If you try to look at a flea as you pinch it up, it can escape and it can escape if you put it in the commode or try to drop it into the commode. 

Listen, I am an expert flea catcher and destroyer. I lick my index finger to glue him to me. Then, I immerse my fingers holding the flea into water with soap. It works every time. You are welcome. Now, you will never lose a flea to bite again. The best flea deterrent is an aerosol that on the front states--kills eggs. So, I have it and will spray before the carpet is infested. 

I had Tommy wake me early--11 am. I was exhausted but we left for Tiger Pride. I thought it was Tiger Rag. Tommy said it was that name. Of course, we did not venture to Bama Fever side. He got to pick out his Christmas present. I was disappointed he chose a t-shirt. I wanted him to get another shirt--collar and three button placket. I told him to pick out a jacket. He refused. He said he would rather have a flag or something. He picked out a flag 28" x 40". It is huge. He wants to hang it on the door before football games. I am glad he did not plan it to be living room decor. 

Someone behind me squeaked something. It was a rubber chicken, Roll Tide kind. So, I had them hide as Auburn rubber chicken for me to buy. He left to get the car, so we no longer had to hide it. The woman was so nice, looking for a box so it would not squeak in the car. So, the chicken and flag are wrapped and under the tree. He is going to wash the t-shirt first. Then, he said he wants to wear it new. So, it was dropped into a small gift bag. All done! 

The woman found a box for wind chimes to hold the rubber chicken. She was intent on his not hearing the squeak before Christmas morning. Very nice woman, all smiles at hiding it from him. Tommy will be mystified at wind chimes since he knows I would never purchase wind chimes. 

Tommy was peeling sweet potatoes because these are old--Sept 2022--and they have small black specks inside. I dig them all out, even though most people would eat them. I heard a tremendous noise from the kitchen as the baking pan clattered and potatoes thundered to the floor. I told him I would pick them up. Once he washed them, and I sliced them to encourage them to cook more quickly, he put them in a pot to cook. These will make a sweet potato pie. 

At Lowe's I bought flea killer for adults and eggs, Amdro fire ant bait, 100' extension cord, and a timer. If we did not have a timer, Tommy would have to go outside, down the ramp, around his car, beside mine on a carport off which he could fall, and into the utility room. He has nothing in which to plug anything outdoors! He paid for all this.  At my house, I had an outdoor plug installed at my house. 

Now, I have started to worry that he will accidentally squeak the chicken while I am asleep. 

I remember hiding Santa gifts with children with me while I shopped. That was fun. When the two older were about ten or thereabouts, I knew they would look for their Santa loot, so I put it all in the trunk of the car. That meant for about a month I had to carry three kids in the back seat of a two-door car AND many bags of groceries. They would complain. I told them Daddy had not gotten the lawn chairs from the trunk so there was no room. They complained to him. One day, the older, a boy said, "Just give me the keys and I will remove the chairs!" I had to make excuses--too dark, raining, never mind. It was fun. Twenty years or more later, my daughter asked me where I hid their Santa presents. "In the trunk of the car." She remembered that year when they had to sit crowded with brown grocery bags. 

Dinner tonight will be either chicken, sweet potatoes, and salad or loose ground beef, salad and sweet potatoes. Who knows. Maybe spaghetti, salad. 

Tommy does not know it, but he is making roux for my giblet gravy. I will not be denied. 

What kind of subterfuge happened when you hid gifts from children or spouse or someone else? I think we all have had to hide gifts from someone, especially as children grew up and realized toys might be around the house. 

I know you all have funny stories. 

Reindeer and a Beautiful Song

On their way. These were gotten using credit earned shopping on Amazon. For four years, I have resisted the urge to spend it. 

This was always a favorite Christmas song of mine. However, as the years went by, it was no longer played at Christmas or any other time. I wish it were played more often. 

 Harry Belafonte is always great. Scarlet Ribbons

Today, I got out of the car after Tommy. I have him go up the ramp first. When he is in the house, I get out of the car so I won't have to stand on the ramp. At 4:30 we came inside. At 10:30 he went to take trash out of house. The car was still running. I am mortified. I need to be more careful. He did not even sound angry I had wasted so much gas. Ack!

Nothing has been cooked for Christmas. All the decorations, few as they are, are not up, just sitting here out of the tub. Oh well. If we get the reindeer up, I will be happy. If I could sleep except for all day, I would be even happier. 

Are you familiar with Scarlet Ribbons?

Santa Charcuterie Board

Santa

Santa Charcuterie Board 

I really dislike what she uses as a base, I have a large glass cake plate I would rather use than the woven mat. 

There was text here, but in order to get rid of the code that somehow replaced it, I had to get rid of the text. I don't know. It makes no sense to me. 

But the charcuterie board is adorable. 

Yesterday, Blogger or something would not allow me to reply to comments on my own blog! Very slowly, we are getting what few decorations we have up. Wreath is on the door at last with new poinsettias on it, ones that won't be ruined by the dampness. Well, maybe they will, but my favorite, fake poinsettias will be used inside. 

So far, I have found directions to make two items for the yard next year, rather than buy. My reindeer are on the way. 

I think I may have found someone to help in the house. And, I met a woman moving out who would potentially have been a good friend candidate. Just my luck--moving out.

If I were to make a charcuterie board, it would be our dinner. 

Have you made any kind of charcuterie board?

Light Fight in the Neighborhood.

 We drove around the neighborhood at dusk to see what neighbors were putting up. The inflatables were mostly flat. One person had maybe a dozen items on their front yard. Best display ever and makes me want to have one. 

I am going to use the credit I earned on Amazon by to purchase reindeer family of a buck, doe, and baby. However, it is the cart, and I cannot push the order button.

My deer I had before cost me $1 at a yard sale in July or middle of summer in Decatur. Then, I found a $1 Christmas tree with lights for $1 later. I had that in my yard outside the picture window on the side of the house where I could see it and people driving by could see it. 

Then, I decided I want the huge candy canes across the front of the porch. I have one year to accomplish all this. Things may be added to the plan if I can buy them for $1, no matter what I find. I have a three-food blow molds and a six-foot Santa with a Coke in his hand. But, it would ruin even under the porch roof. There are one-foot blow molds in my other decorations in storage.

All this excites me. Silly me? Maybe. I could change my mind, okay? 

Tommy is so funny. I had him put out three candles on his short bookcase. Thee were on the table where I was going to put the tree. Immediately, he started cleaning junk off the bookcase, but only on one end. The other end had a mustard bottle that he keeps there and four empty Diet Pepsi cans, plus assorted junk and a coffee cup. sigh....

Do you have or have you ever had a big display in your yard? Even a modest display?

Tupperware--Yay!

 

Friday, when I went to the Tupperware lady in the parking lot, I was reminded of a long-ago memory. My son had the Tupperware Shape O. I loved it. He did not know how to get the pieces in the holes. He was frustrated and never played with it. Well, his sister figured it out right away. He was so smart, but could not get the hang of this toy. 

I found a key ring of the toy on Friday with one shape inside. It, of course, does not open. But, I love it because it reminds me of baby days. 

Saturday. I awoke at 11 am, washed my hair, ate cereal, and we were on our way. The Tupperware lady thought it was going to rain, so did not set up because of the chance of wind. I wanted another key chain.

The search for the closest Birmingham precinct was an ordeal and took too much time. But, the two coats have been donated. 

Then, we went to only one store where I found three things on my list of nine items. However, I bought other things that tempted me. The one item that shocked me when I arrived home was the ads for Coke right on the front of the card with Santa. Strange. He is holding a Coke, too. Maybe I can find my gold seals to stick over the ad. I also bought a pack of Christmas napkins I did not mean to buy.

Tommy had fluffed the tree on Friday, so I asked him to plug it up today. I cannot bend enough to get the electric cord. 

We were out after dark which stressed me! I called him for thirty minutes to come and use the self-check-out. I cannot reach it from the electric cart. He will get a new phone since this one only twitters and he cannot hear it with it on the console or in his pocket. I have no idea if it has a vibrate mode. If it does, he cannot feel or hear that. I worry about what if I needed him. 

We ate the last of the chicken and vegetables and salad tonight. Tommy will cook the 3 lbs. of ground beef when I chop onions. I found two huge bags of blueberries in the refrigerator that need to be cooked since they have thawed. 

Tonight, we watched Home Alone for the third time this season. I absolutely love it again. We watched Home Alone 2 once this season. 

My referral for lymphedema therapy is being held up. Lack of PA is holding up another med I was prescribed. So, what's new with my healthcare?

We are both exhausted. so I may make this an extra early night. Of course, this exhaustion has nothing with overdoing it because of Christmas. It's just me. 

Did your child have a Tupperware Shape O? I think that is the name. 

Since I cannot find mincemeat, I may make a blueberry pie. 

How was your Saturday?

Any deals? 

Any progress on Christmas?

Busy Day

 Of course, I was busy sleeping since I had trouble sleeping Thursday night. You all might guess that is how my day goes. 

Tommy woke me at noon as I asked because we had an appointment later. When that appointment was cancelled, we had other things to do. 

A woman selling Tupperware sets up in a parking lot. So, we went there and I bought a form for a Jello salad or dessert. I also found a toy my son had, only this was tiny and on a keychain. Cute. Reminds me of his baby days.

We went to Publix and got milk and bread and cheese. Tommy bought Vicks and pain reliever otc that is 4% lidocaine. 

In Walgreen's he used my points to buy Kisses, the red, green, and silver ones. These are for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and thereafter. One med is still not ready after four days but not their fault.

While sitting outside Walgreen's I saw a little girl who was so precious, maybe three. I had stuff in my hands to give away. When she came out I got her mother to come to the car while I gave her things.

Remember the $2 grab bags I got at the grocery store? They had puzzles, panties, and Christmas socks. I did pay a dollar or two for a red sweatshirt. 

I showed the red sweatshirt to the woman and asked if she would take it, then pulled out socks for age 8-10. She said she had a 10-year-old at home, so I gave her those and then shoved a set of lights to her. She laughed and took the lights. So, I was able to give away items I had and could not use. My youngest grandchild is 16, so nothing I could use for them. 

When we came home, we got out the two coats and will give them to the police precincts collecting coat. 

For the last four days, I have been putting recipes in my favorites folder. I will not want to make all these. Some will have too many carbs, and some will just never make the cut. But, on a blah day, I can read recipes and decided what recipes to keep. Some of the sites are things like "Grandma's Cookies, " "Seven Desserts for Christmas Day," "55 Christmas Cookie Favorites."  I have saved over 1000 recipes at this point. 

Tomorrow, the search will be on for "Nonesuch Mincemeat" since we both want a mincemeat pie. I want the block of mincemeat, but that is no longer made, I suppose. Deliver coats. Maybe buy a mattress. I am sure we will put other things on the list before morning. Tomorrow, we have a longer list of places to go, things to do. 

Dinner tonight will be leftovers. Two days ago, I asked Tommy to dig around and find frozen, cooked meat. He did, found two breasts. I had him bring them to me. Well, the date on the chicken was 1-21. January 2021. There was no frostbite and it tasted fine. I am surprised. Sites say not to freeze chicken for that long. So, I am wondering if we are eating spoiled meat.

We will have chicken with choices of carrots, potatoes, salad, green beans and broccoli. 

Have you ever eaten meat that was cooked and frozen for almost two years? 

It was certainly and good and productive day. It made me happy to give things to the little and girl's sister. I will be buying a toy for a child. Maybe Tommy will. 

My busy day has only been five hours, but it exhausted me even though I never got out of the car!

How are your Christmas festivities and preparations going?

I Have a Lisp or As I say, "lithp" and Cool Whip Candy

Friday night, I made a meatloaf from a pound of ground beef. To make it healthier, I made some substitutions. For a long time, I have used old-fashioned oats, and still do. I used 1/8 tsp of salt and lots of spices. Instead of catsup, I used tomato paste. I wanted the small can, but Tommy brought me the large can, maybe 15 oz.??? I have used catsup only on the top and just a bit, a smear. But, since I had so much tomato paste, I used a thick layer of tomato paste with a tsp of brown sugar. That is much less than catsup has in it. I also used more pepper than usual Also, lots of onion and bell pepper. I love the tomato and bell pepper taste. Hopefully, it won't be bland without all the salt I have used in the past. Oh, one egg even though I should have used two. I didn't want Tommy to have to get me another. 

I usually put this in a brownie pan or Corelle casserole. This time, I formed it on a piece of non-stick foil. The loaf is about an inch from the sides of the baking/cookie pan. There will most likely be lots of fat that floats out. I will get rid of that before it reabsorbs into a cooling meatloaf. 

With the meatloaf, we will have broccoli and green beans. I know it is two green vegetables, but the broccoli needed eating NOW, and he already had the can of beans open. We have already cooked carrots, but we will just have the two green things. 

The top of the meatloaf scorched but came off in a sheet, leaving the meatloaf fine. I think it was the bit of brown sugar mixes with the tomato paste. And, I did not cover it. I know better. We have enough left for another meal.

I did not have an apple or banana on Wednesday and felt abused. So, we went out for that and other things, just a quick trip to Publix. I do have my requisite bowl of Cool Whip...lol.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Late Thursday, I was sneezing huge, hard sneezes about thirty seconds apart. These were debilitating, leaving me breathless. The last one caused me to bite my tongue, way far at the back of my tongue. It bled profusely. 

Several hours after when I went to bed, I could not lie on my left side without extreme pain along my face and into bones, as it seems. I finally could lie on left side instead or right. I cannot sleep on my right side at all. It was an agonizing night.

When I finally awoke at 2:30 pm

., I had a lisp, a really pronounced lisp! I need to make calls to people I have never met or talked with on the phone. I hate to make an excuse that probably will not be believed. Besides the lisp, there is another sound. To say, "I hurt," I say, "I hut." It is annoying as I keep biting my tongue. The place I bite is waaay back on my tongue. No doctor on np that has looked will acknowledge there is a problem with tongue being swollen. But, this is a symptom of Hashimoto's that is not being treated.

 

I know people get tired of hearing about my pains! But, my tongue hurts way down into my throat below tonsils. I have bitten my tongue more in the last two years than in the last 75 years before that. 

I found a recipe for Cool Whip Candy at How to Make 3-Ingredient Cool Whip Candy | 3 Musketeers Copycat (tasteofhome.com) 

Have you ever made this candy?

What kind of candy do you make, if any? 

Do you bite your tongue ever? Isn't it painful? 

Are you ever 'f'orced' into eating two green vegetables you would normally eat with another vegetable?

Health Update and Breakthrough and Food

First, I skipped the brushing for three nights. One night Tommy did not want to and grumbled. It is the only thing about my health that has caused him to grumbled, so I did not mention it again.

 Well, things got worse. The swelling in one leg made it so I could not bend my knee at all! The other was swollen a bit and both feet tingled and hurt. I told him how bad it was, and he could see my knee and foot. So, I disrobed and he brushed me on Tuesday night. I slept until 1:30 pm on Wednesday. My leg was almost normal size and feet did not hurt at all. Obviously, brushing is good for many things. 

 We had things planned for Wednesday, but it was too late. We collected the three grocery ads.

 Water and Diet Caffeine-Free Cokes were cheap at The Pig, and I wanted coconut and Kraft Sandwich Spread. So, that was the only store where we shopped. 

We also gave away food to a woman in the parking lot. Dinner was ready and waiting--baked chicken breast, potatoes, carrots. Lest anyone worry, I ate two small pieces of potato, and three pieces of carrot. No sodium was added. We could both eat several potatoes but don't. 

 Belinda gave me a link for lymphedema and lipidema. I left a message in the 'contact us' section. A woman called today from a company that makes and sells compression items. She gave me the number to call a therapist for either condition. I feel so grateful, like my life has been saved. So, I have a number to call in the morning. 

 I made a decision. If I do not have a turkey breast in the freezer or don't find one on sale, we will have chicken breast for our Christmas feast. The sides are the important part, anyway. Speaking of sides, I had better start making and freezing them. I have three bags of cranberries right now. Tommy does not want sweet potato casserole because--he said it just doesn't sound right...okay. But, he does want green bean casserole. I want some sort of Jello side, too, made with sugar-free Jello. Oh yes, giblet gravy.

 I came back to the post and discovered there were no paragraph breaks. I never post anything this long without paragraph breaks. So, I put in a long break. It still show one long mess of text. Anyone having trouble with blogger like this?

Okay, I fixed it, I think. I had not changed one setting but figured out how to change back to paragraph breaks.

A Cookie Press

Reading an article, I was reminded that I made cookies with a cookie press as a young teen. I am not sure why I quit making them. But, it was fun. Having thought about it overnight, I think I got tired of cleaning the cookie press. Mama expected me to wash it with all the dough in crevices. Imagine her wanting, demanding I wash it after using it...lol.

As I recall, it was fun and easy. I would not get a plastic press, but I would get a metal one at least as good as we had. 

Have you ever made cookies with a cookie press? Did you enjoy the process? Anything seems more fun than using a cookie cutter. I have no talent for using a cookie cutter. Drop cookies are more my style. It is even better if they are no-bake. 

How about you? Are you a cookie maker or do you prefer making cookies from the freezer department of the grocery store? 

Using a Cookie Press 

I barely slept last night, got up at about 6 am, sat here until 9 am, tried to sleep and got up about 11 am. I made scrambled eggs and had a glass of milk. My stomach never did feel right after that. I tried to sleep again, and finally jumped up, losing the eggs and milk. It has been a miserable day, stomach wise. We had to go to two stores. Tommy came in one to help me because I was too weak. 

Right now, I still have outside clothes on, shoes and coat. Tommy turned up the heat, and I am freezing. I really need food, but am afraid to eat anything. 

Now, I need cookies! 

Tommy's Birthday and a Parade

 Like I said, he did not get anything from me because we did not go out to shop for him. I will get him the book still, and the trip to Tiger Rag is a long trip from here. 

However, the day before his birthday, a huge box was on the porch when we arrived home. He had a load in his walker to put away. So, I came behind him and read the box--

HONEY BAKED HAM

I was excited because I have been thinking about getting one. 

Well, this was a turkey breast, 40 ounces. So, he got 2.5 pounds turkey breast. I have had Honey Baked Ham, but never turkey breast. It came in a huge box, large enough for a ham. The cardboard box had a Styrofoam cooler in it, plus two of the largest ice packs I have ever seen. So, we have a new cooler. I always save these type cooler boxes.

Sunday night, we opened the package of turkey breast that had been thawing in the refrigerator. I did cut the slices in half just to make it all easier to handle and store. It is delicious and what we are having for dinner on Sunday. 

This was a gift from some sort of retirement fund guy with whom Tommy deals. The cost (yes, I checked) was $55. This is listed under corporate gifts. I had a huge salad with it and will continue to eat it with salad, probably. Tommy will enjoy this on rolls and wraps, I am quite sure. Yes, he just came in with a huge sub roll and slaw on the side. 

Hopefully, on Monday, we can go shopping for him. 

We got up early on Saturday, his birthday, to go to the parade. We both packed a sandwich, mine the night before, so we would not have to take time to eat here or buy something. Since we were right in front of McDonald's, steps away in their parking lot, this would have been so easy. I took an egg salad sandwich and water. Tommy took a turkey sandwich from the turkey I baked on Monday or Tuesday. 

Of course, it may have started on time, but not where we were on the route. I called and found out the route. I chose to park at a corner where it turned, right between Arby's and McDonald's and down the street from Taco Bell. Krystal was also on the parade route, right behind McDonald's. As you can imagine, people were streaming in and out of these establishments the hour and a half we waited in our great place to watch.

McDonald's was an ideal spot. We were on a corner at least 15 feet up and on a scary steep slope. No one could stand in front of us...lol. The Pig parking lot had people in SUVs lining the road, most backed in with children and food they brought in the back. Some people watched from their places in the back of their SUVs. Most came out with chairs eventually, place holders next to the curb so they could later sit there. 

Children were all over. One little boy who insisted on running and at one point was saved from traffic in the street by his frantic mother was deposited in the back of the SUV and guarded by a father who refused to let him out. When the parade came within hearing, he was allowed out and held onto firmly, even when candy was thrown. 

We also watched the little girl (2-3 yr) in pink rain boots. The ground was damp from recent rain. I was freezing with a jacket on and the car heater on. Tommy did not even bring a jacket. He was fine. People in the damp grass had on shorts, short sleeves, and one was barefoot! Another was sitting on the ground!  At the end of the parade, walkers in the parade were gasping and fanning themselves by flapping the bottoms of shirts and wiping perspiration from their faces. 

The first person in the first vehicle in the parade was a child who threw about one piece of candy every ten feet. Most of the people threw one piece at a time and looked to be targeting one person to catch it. Thankfully, a little girl on a float for some sort of beauty pageant was throwing handsful very quickly to both sides. Eventually there were adults who did the same, thankfully. 

The fee was only $25 to enter. There were 100 floats, a very long parade. It was a very good experience. Floats were mostly black trailers with the ramp that folds up to a high back. 

About ten entries in I asked Tommy if there were not a lots of Grinch costumes, male and female. It turned out that Grinch was the theme of the parade this year. 

This was lots of fun. Antique cars, motorcycles, big industrial trucks for cleaning septic tanks, realtors, politicians, everything imaginable for Christmas joy. One woman I suspected of drinking early yelled 'Merry Christmas' multiple times to each and every entry, hoping to get candy thrown her way. 

Tommy said one little girl on our side was putting her candy down her shirt in front. I was sure this was a bad idea since it would fall out. She was not two, but near nine, so she could figure this out. Well, she finally turned around, she had her hoodie on backwards and was filling her hood. A little boy with her was doing the same. Good idea. 

We left here before 8:30 am and came home at noon. I went immediately to bed, hoping for a long nap. I awoke at 2 pm and took another nap later...lol. 

I sang Happy Birthday again. 

We went to a BBQ place to get two meals. He went into Publix for two slices of Carrot Cake. He had a good birthday he said. 

It was nice of the town to throw a parade on his birthday. I asked Tommy how it felt to be 70. He said he did not want to think about it because he would always be 69. It was a good day. I took two naps since I was not getting a good sleep even with naps. 

Have you attended a Christmas parade this season?

Have you ever been in a parade? 

Cream Cheese Penguins

 Cream Cheese Penguins are so cute along with other Christmas appetizers. Click the link for more instructions. Go ahead and play with your food.

These are so cute that I may make a few. However, Tommy does not like cream cheese or olives. I could have him eat the feet and nose. I could eat the rest. Silly me. 

Do you enjoy making items like this? Okay, do you enjoy the idea of making items for Christmas that are edible animals? Do you play with your food?

Do you make vegetable or fruit animals?

Catching Up and Maybe a Heart Attack or Reflux

 Thursday

When Tommy did the brushing for me, I had to turn onto my stomach. The bed is so saggy and lumpy that lying on my stomach is very uncomfortable. I was thrashing around trying to turn back onto my back. The mattress still moves off the bed. I told Tommy to hold my hand and help me. Well, my feet never could stick to the carpet, so I was sliding as though on ice. He kept pulling after I told him to stop. I was getting hysterical because I would not be able to get up when I sat on the floor.

All the rolling around on the bed and struggling not to fall upset my stomach so that I had awful reflux, I finally got to the living room and my chair. I thought I was going to throw up and was salivating. Then, my chest started hurting. I truly thought I was having a heart attack. But, reflecting on the reflux occurring, I held on and moaned and groaned while wanting to throw up. After sitting up half the night, I finally felt i could go to bed without more reflux. 

Friday

Tommy found the Christmas tree box. He brought that and the artificial poinsettia into the living room.

I tried on the three pair of house shoes we brought home from Belk's. None fit. So, back they go.

Dinner was chicken sandwich with BBQ sauce and slaw. 

Tommy has really changed his mind about fast food. We no longer go to Hardee's for the sausage and biscuit. He won't carry food to eat in the car....until today.

I bought some red Rubbermaid  (I think) plastic boxes about the size for a sandwich. He was not happy I bought them because we have so many storage boxes. But, they are not just the right size for a sandwich. I have carried the square glass snaplock ones. But, they are so heavy and breakable. These were bogo, too.  Today, I was making a sandwich to eat in the car while we had a wait. He came in with a box with a sandwich for himself. He always asks me if we should take drinks. Well, I would have to go to the bathroom, so said, "No." He decided not to carry a Diet Pepsi, either. 

If we are out and I say I am hungry, he gets me whatever I want. So, he is not being stingy with me or himself.  It takes him a while to take up my good habits. But, he picks up my bad habits immediately.

Friday night, we were up when it turned to Dec 9, his birthday, so I sang Happy Birthday to him. I have gotten him nothing because we never got to Tiger Rag. It is so far. I told him I would buy dinner for him wherever, but won't go in. He was fine with that. 

On Saturday, we are going to go to the parade. I cannot sleep and my left leg is swelling and itching so I just came in here to the laptop. We won't be shopping for him because the weather will be bad tomorrow. Well, that was the forecast. 

My Kind of Bib

The bib above can be found on classypals.com. Plus, it is on Amazon, too.  There are men's styles.

 My Kind of Bib

I don't have a bib yet, do you? Now, some days I do need one. What I like about this one is it is over 30" long. Of course, at the dinner table, I have no problems. Sitting in my recliner is another thing. Also, I use a dishtowel across my chest. If I sit at a table, I have no problems and do not use or need a bib.

This is just something short for Saturday since I know everyone is busy cooking, decorating, wrapping or shopping.

No Means No! STOP Means STOP!

 We went to Cullman today and took a Christmas gift to our friends in their nineties. Since theyhad a yard with many trees, they could hang the two bluebirds and the cardinal in the trees. At the duplex where they are moving this week, there is not one tree. I was afraid of that. So, I bought four chains with hooks on the end for hanging whatever. 

They were not home, so we left. Before we came home, I decided we could leave it in the mailbox which is on the porch. Since their daughter owns the house, we thought maybe no one would come on the porch. 

Well, the second time, they were there and came out to the car. I also gave them their Christmas card that was ready, in the envelope, and stamped. I did remove the stamp before I handed her the card. Sixty-something cents is a lot to pay for nothing. 

Tommy tooted the horn and the husband came out when he saw us. 

The last time we were in their house, he started poking my arm just below the shoulder where there are bone spurs. I said OW and pulled away as he came back at me, declaring that could not hurt. After a half-dozen times, I raised my voice. He would not let up until his wife told him to stop. Boundaries were crossed and he would not give up!

Part of his problem is he is a minister who thinks it is okay if he does anything. He may have been embarrassed as well he should be. I have to tell you, I cannot stand most ministers. They act so entitled and push back against any autonomy you may wish to hold for yourself.

Then, another time, they came to the car and he was poking me again, and sort of squeezing the shoulder joint. I was upset and continually pulled away. He finally went to Tommy's side of the car. 

Today, he gave up and said he would just bonk my nose. I yelled at him as he was reaching into the car and trying to get to my nose. He said, "Oh, you don't like that?" 

"HELL NO!" That response from me did not faze him at all. He tried twice more with me blocking him.

About that time, today, his wife came out, and finally told him to stop. Tommy raised his voice after the third time trying to reach my nose. This is not senility. He is sharp.  Neither time did he stop. 

I was so upset. This went on for more than five minutes, about 4 minutes and forty-five seconds more that teasing should. 

The next time, I will direct him to Tommy's side of the car. It seems he is obsessed with touching me to annoy me and to get his way. 

Men who assume any kind of touching with me objecting is okay, really don't know me or respect me.

Enough of that.

We went to a grocery store that carries Dromedary pimientos. I bought four for $1.19 each. At the Pig, I paid the price + 10%, making the total $1.44 each.

At Publix, I bought goat cheese with blueberries and the last bag of Ocean Spray cranberries. At the store with pimientos, I bought another two but for $0.29 cents more. 

We ate lunch at Chicken Salad Chick. I had a scoop of classic Carol and potato soup. It all seemed too salty. I asked Tommy if we had thought salt was tasty all along. He had Fruity Fran and Potato soup. They discontinued his favorite--Chicken Noodle Soup.  I did not eat the crackers or cookies. Both of us asked for the pickle to be left off our order.

At Belk's I could not find house shoes, so brought home three pair to try on since it was time to leave to get home before dark. But, it got dark before we came home.. There was no scarf like I wanted. All the decorations were so pretty as we walked by. 

We are exhausted.  

At what point should I have hit this guy? 

Just My Toenails and Christmas Cards

Addressing Christmas cards continues, just a few cards at a time. It will get done eventually. I love cards but refuse to buy full price. I bought more stamps, some Christmas and others just to use. They are flowers in the snow sort of thing. 

The last time we had appointments with the podiatrist, I did not go because I was ill. Same with the time before. Even though I slept less than three hours on Tuesday night, I got up, bathed and got dressed. My toenails had gotten so long that they caught on my pants legs when I put on pants. I lay down for a nap afterwards and could only sleep one hour. So, I am fading fast tonight. 

I finally got a package into a box and taped up. Yay for me. 

Tommy brushed me again last night. I am now wondering if that is enough. It helps my swollen legs and feet. Maybe twice would be better?

Dinner was Stove Top Stuffing, cranberries, and turkey casserole. I put the SS into a colander and shook out all the powdered spices, ALL. I put cranberry sauce and brown meat turkey in it. That and vegetables were dinner. I left of the soup. It was okay, not a winner, but turkey roasted after Thanksgiving is gone. 

Tommy pulled out two 1-pound chubs of ground beef. I am thinking spaghetti and a meatloaf. Maybe soup? Who knows? Planning ahead, he will pull out a package of bscb to cook with vegetable. I want to watch for a cheap turkey breast, too, and buy several for the freezer for next year. However, bscb is fine for my taste.

Plus, I am in the mood for steak. I love round steak. It is tasty, thin and easy to mash out all the juice, dry it out. I know others don't care for my method of grilling steak, but I love it. 

Remember stamps go up in January or February, forgot which. I will buy more Christmas stamps since I bought the last pane/sheet.

Okay, time for my brushing.

What cut of steak do you like?

Anyone love round steak like I do?

Christmas Tradition that I Despise

 No, I am not a Grinch at all. I love Christmas as much as anyone does. But, I suffered through one Christmas tradition that I hope to never participate in ever again. 

A guy invited me to go to his mother's house where his whole family was celebrating Christmas. Of course, we arrived early. I had a basket with a cake stand in it. I had brought tiny cupcakes to put on the stand. I went into the kitchen with his mother and got out my contribution. Not thirty minutes later, I noticed the cupcakes were on a styrofoam Christmas plate. 

I went into the kitchen and asked his mother why? She said she washed the cake stand and got everything ready for me to leave! I was incensed but did not react with the fury I felt. I doubt she was trying to get rid of me. Maybe? The thing is, she had nothing nice out for the Christmas table. I told her not to ever pack my food and serving dish ever again. Oh, I was livid, but did not express myself in a way to ruin the spirit of the occasion. 

Now to the despicable tradition in their family. First, the cast.

His mother, my friend was her son, his single sister, mother of the nephew who was a veteran, nephew's wife and two young teen boys, friend's two daughters, one a bratty fourteen-year-old, the other daughter was the mother of the most obnoxious four-year-old I have ever seen. The wife of the vet made a show of asking me if I needed to go to the bathroom since both of her sons in braces would need the bathroom for a bit to brush their teeth. ??? It turned out that the time the boys needed was three minutes.

Okay, all these people with their peccadillos were just people who were in his life, people I would never have to be with again. Besides, we were here to have fun. We did.

Then, the horror began. Their tradition was that only one person at a time opened a present. Some of the guests have half a dozen gifts under the tree. It was so painful and loooong. That was 11 people to open gifts. The four-year-old could not pay attention to opening a gift so g-grandmother, grandmother, uncle, aunt, cousin, and at times, others urged her to open the gift instead of running around getting in between anyone who tried to have a conversation with each other. I am telling you it was slow chaos. It just went on and on and on. 

This was in 2005, and I have still not recovered! Until then, I had never come across a Christmas tradition I disliked in the least. I know people love their traditions. We had ours, some silly, but nothing painful. 

Don't pretend you have never come across a tradition that you did not like. Okay, maybe you did. But, anyone, let me hear a tradition you do not like or would prefer to eliminate or change. 

This was my first and last Christmas I had with this man. I would have gone with him again, but I would steel myself for the occasion. I know some people have said this is a tradition at their house, so I wanted to post this before I stepped on toes. Okay, I am not stepping on specific toes this way, just generally. 

What tradition do you or did you not like? Or, prefer not to happen with you there?  

Play nice. This a 15-year trauma. 

Brushing my body--did it last night and will do tonight. I have had a severe pain in my left leg, so painful that I fear I may lose my foot or leg!

Exasperated

 

Okay, tonight, I cannot get rid of this picture above. But, you can see what ribbon candy mix looks like. the stripes are ribbon candy.

After Tommy brushed my body last night, I yawned for hours. Then, when I went to sleep at four am, I slept soundly until 1:30 pm. I was shocked because my feet were almost back down to normal size. Then, a few hours later, only then did my feet swell much at all. So, brushing is a part of his life whether he likes it or not. 

This brushing calls for a natural hair brush moved lightly over the body, all in the direction of the heart.=. I avoid brushes on my body and any animal hair on bare skin. So, I used a soft brush I use for washing my feet. I wrapped a softer washcloth around that and securing it with a hair claw. I had to keep telling him 'not so hard.' He got it done. Boy, that puts me in mood to sleep. I have known about this for years, but he always said no.

Plus, I forgot to take diuretic, and my feet still did not swell. Maybe brushing could take the place of a pill. I will discuss this with my doctor. Or, maybe I will experiment on myself. lol

The rest of the day was wasted because of his vile temper. 

Yesterday, I put out a new candy box, a crystal Christmas ornament. Inside I put colored balls for the tree. It looks festive and will not tempt me to eat it. 

At Christmas, I always put ribbon candy into a covered candy dish. I hate the stuff, but it is pretty and Christmas festive. It is always given away sometime in the spring. One year, a young guy was helping me move something. I offered him all of that candy he wanted. He was polite and would only take two pieces. The dish was six inches across and candy was three inches deep. Finally, I said, "Wait." I took a quart storage bag, dumped the candy as well as I could because it had stuck together. He was shaking with happiness as he stuffed it into a pocket with much work. It was June, time to get rid of all of it. 

I am telling you, I won't eat that stuff as it is too sweet. If I wanted to gain weight, I would eat chocolate. There were days I was desperate for a sweet, but I never touched it. The ribbon candy always had round pieces that were pure sugar, too. 

Tonight, I was desperate for an apple. I depend on fiber and apple fiber works best. I had not had an apple on Sunday. We went after dark to Publix. Someone brought me a cart. It stopped at the seam of the ramp to Publix. It stopped when the front wheel touched the threshold. It stopped when the back wheel touched the threshold! Inside the store, it never went over 6 feet while I moved about. Often, it only moved six inches or less and stopped with a lurch to my neck. 

Finally, it stopped as I was turning from a main aisle to the aisle across the front of the store, and would not go again. I was blocking people who wanted to go across the front of the store and down the one aisle. There was quite a bottleneck. I was so disgusted! I finally got the attention of an employee who was going to try and make it go. NO! It was on and charged. I asked fobnanar another cart. That cart was set where my knees hit the basket. So, I had him get another. 

I watched as the Public employee took the cart back where it belonged. It did not stop once!!! grrr

Bananas, apples and bread is all I needed. But, it took me almost an hour to collect what I wanted. I did find the Ziploc pint freezer bags that were bogo. My raincheck had almost expired, only 4 days left. Bread was bogo, at least. The use by date is December 21. I wonder how much preservative it contains. 

I rehurt my knee trying to get into the electric cart. It was recovering from the fall. The cart was so tight, my left knee would not go in. I had gotten into the cart with right foot first. When I tried to get out, the knee would not slide out as usual. I had to try to raise myself enough to get past a center part that supported the cart. I hope I never, ever get that cart again.

About two weeks ago, I used Elmer's school glue. Saturday, I found it. I had not missed it, yet. It was open in the chair I sit in and had oozed out an area about six inches in diameter. So, Tommy washed it for me tonight.  If I did not keep this chair covered with a quilt, it would be nasty, sticky, disgusting. 

No decorating done today.

In a bit, I will get brushed again. I am looking forward to improving my health and sleeping. 

Do you ever use brushing skin to achieve better health? 

If you ride electric carts in the store, are you sometimes exasperated by their eccentricities?

Tommy had never heard of ribbon candy. Do you like it?

Missing

 On Thursday or Friday, I needed the black egg turner. Some people call it a spatula, but it is bent and just right for turning eggs over. Well, we looked. In the bottom of the dishwasher? All the drawers? Upper cabinet doors? Between stove counter and refrigerator? On the little kitchen table? On the dining table and why it would be there? 

Of course, I did not wait for all this searching, I just used the green one. We have discussed this a few times. Sunday night, I was going to make hamburgers. I muttered about no black egg turner. Tommy said, excitedly, "Oh, I found it!" "I found it in the refrigerator." "Why was it there?" "Where is it now?" I was searching in the utensil holder by the stove. "Right there." He was searching the same holder. 

He decided he must have put it back. I asked him why he put it in there. He said it was under something, and he must have been trying to push or pull something he could not reach. 

Now, we did not know where it was and he started searching, saying he must have put it back in the refrigerator.  As I left to go sit because of my back and let burgers start cooking, I saw it on top of the oatmeal box that is on the counter. 

Moments of levity come from odd places. The hamburger is done, and we are eating it with a massive salad. Now, I need to put the other two in the skillet and cook for another day.

This weekend we each bought a coat for giving away. It was that or a toy. We both wanted to give a coat.  I told Tommy that items for older kids are not given by many people. I told him that probably heavy kids never got a coat. What size should I get? He said xl. When I got the xl, he said that was too large even for him. I tried to shop for something sturdy and warm. All I could find for a girl that I liked was a white furry coat that was lined with a shiny lining. It did not look practical in a way. But, some girl who wears a size 13 will like it. Of course, we have receipts if we have a change of mind about the purchases. 

Belinda sent me ideas for physical therapy for lymphedema. Her doctor ignored her, too. So, now I am doing deep breathing. I already drank lots of water. However, I always have done that. I decided while Tommy was in Belk's that I would step outside the car, hold onto the door and step in place for 10 minutes. Well, I was about the pass out, so I got back into the car after 2 minutes. That was 2 more minutes more exercise than I would have had. 

Since I have had an earache for over two years, I decided a month ago, it was a lymph node problem. In the past I have stroked very lightly from under my ear down my neck and relieved terrible pain and congestion. I seemed to have forgotten that. So, I am stroking my neck. I told a nurse friend what I was doing when she came by one day about ten years ago. She said, "Oh, yeah! That is called milking the gland." Or something. I was shocked it was a thing. 

We spent the best part of the day fighting traffic on roads, Belk's parking lot, getting out of the big parking lot at Galleria. Once, Tommy and I were not looking, just laughing. He was explaining it was a vein in his arm that I thought was a scar. When he saw the light was turning, he blasted into the intersection to only have the light turn red, frightening me. It is a wonder he did not get a ticket! I regret going out today when tomorrow might have been slightly less hectic. 

Tommy will be 70 on the 9th of December, and I want to do something in the yard for him, but I have no idea what. I am going to get him a book and something from Tiger Rag to wear. But, the yard? Maybe a 7 and an O? The Great Christmas Light Fight is coming on now. "Chowchilla" will come on after that. I remember the incident well, so scary. 

Have you ever lost something and found it in an odd place?

Have you tried to shop in crowds yet? 

Do you remember Chowchilla?

Have you ever done the stroking for any medical problem?

Saturday Was Slower Than Yesterday

 We have almost finished all the Thanksgiving food. I didn't realize that anything was left. Tommy pulled out the remainder of the gravy. It had no broth in it, so I figured it was okay. I added a bit of the broth from the turkey we cooked this week. It still was just a bit, so I cut up the turkey breast this week and ate it in the bit of gravy. I also had slaw and mixed greens. 

I awoke before Tommy this morning. He got up and made no motion to go for my apples! Finally, when the Alabama--Georgia game came on, I went to bed for a nap. 

Before I went to bed, he hurried from his chair to kitchen, clutching a plastic bag. That looked suspicious, so I asked what he was doing. He was going to remove the bones from the turkey, put them in the bag, and then bring the rest of the turkey into the living room, probably with a few small bones left and get the meat ready to eat. Okay. He brought the pully bone and we tried to break it. Unfortunately, just a bit of the wider side broke, hanging. So, he said we would both have a little luck. Clever and okay with me.

He remembered to get rubber gloves. Otherwise, we would have grease all over the house. When I awoke, everything was finished and put away. I absolutely HATE taking meat off the turkey bones. I rip off the breast off as soon as it baked because leaving it on the bone makes the meat taste funny to me. I am lucky to have him and thank him and tell him so all the time.

I will use this dark meat in several ways. 

  First of all, he will eat dark meat instead of the breast. 

  Second, I will put it in my Christmas giblet gravy along with chopped boiled eggs. I will not eat the giblets. 

  Third, I want to make a casserole of turkey meat, altered (less sodium) Stove Top Stuffing, egg, broth, green beans, raw cranberries, lots of celery. I will put gravy on top when I eat it. This will be a meal for in between Thanksgiving and Christmas or after New Years. Now, I need to freeze the broth for both needs and in separate bags. 

We put nothing out for Christmas decorating today, so even though it is almost 11 pm, I will bring out at least one thing AND find the Christmas cards. I think I will put a red bin in here so I can just plunder through it. 

We watched Home Alone this evening, and we are now watching the Home Alone New York one. I would like to see the third one without Culkin in it. I think this is the third time we have seen Home Alone this season. It is sooo funny. Now, we are watching The Christmas Story with Ralphie grown with a family. Don't know the name.

There is a drizzly rain on the lemon and lime. Sunday, we WILL fertilize the trees. YES, WE WILL! The trees will stay out for a couple of days since it will be warm at night. 

I made my plans for tomorrow, getting apples and shopping, known to him tonight just like I did on Friday. Hopefully, he won't get side-tracked by a football game he does not really like. At least we will get apples. 

Yesterday, I was going to mail something and needed a box. I decided to turn an Amazon box inside out to use. (After that failure, I learned the box with Amazon logs can be used.) I had cut it up so that it could not be secure because I was mailing something heavy. Thankfully, I found one smaller. So, there is that chore. The main chore is copying a recipe with additions. 

That is all the news that is no news.

Do you enjoy Home Alone? 

How about The Christmas Story? 

Are you finished with Christmas decorating?

What do you do with Amazon boxes?