New Mattress

 Tommy woke me at 10:30, per my request, so that I could continue with the mattress search. We planned to go to Macy's if all worked out. Well, no one answered until 1 pm, then we talked as I shopped over the internet and phone. Finally, at about 8 pm, it was settled. I am getting a mattress, the base that raises head and feet, mattress pad to keep mattress clean, and set of sheets. All was on a sale that ends Sunday. Because of price of what we bought, delivery is free. I will also get a mattress pad for comfort. I really hate the feel of foam! It appears that is mostly what is available. The mattress is not flippable. It can only be rotated.

One doctor tells me to raise head of bed and another tells me to raise foot of bed. Now, I can sleep bent. When I was in the hospital for hysterectomy, it felt good to barely raise head and barely raise feet. There is a cordless remote, so I will probably lose that all the time. Well, it won't be lost, just behind the bed beyond my reach. I bought sheets, too, partially with $10 reward and 15% off. 

I knew we would not get out in rain tomorrow. So, I just did this today. I got the firmest mattress possible that was SertaPerfect Sleeper. It seemed Macy's was the best deal in mattresses. Plus, I don't think I could have slept on this mattress long enough to wait for another sale. When I find the bed I want that fits the base, I can get that, too. 

During the month of March, I plan to work with the mailbox conversion for Christmas. I need to clean it and spray paint. Hopefully there will be enough dry and 80 degree days to spray paint. There is sharp metal where the guy cut the wreath that needs a metal file used to smooth it so it will not injure me as I work on the wreath halves. I also will accelerate the vehicle hunt, hopefully having bought at least one car before April. 

It turned off cold today. We did not go anywhere. Tommy took clothes out to wash, got the mail, and took the garbage to the road. He listened to me negotiating, increasing his credit limit, and heated dinner. I hope this cold weather does not spoil trees blooming and azaleas. 

Dinner: chicken breast, slaw, one tiny carrot, two-inch red potato, slaw, broccoli. Now, we must cook again or find something cooked in the freezer. Tommy had Cuban (spicy) pot roast and the same vegetables.

Hopefully, we can now resume the vehicle search. Then, we can get it adapted to pick up a scooter and get a scooter for me. 

If you have an adjustable base for your mattress, how is that working for you? 

Do you like Serta Perfect Sleeper mattresses? It has been forty-four years since I bought one, but loved it for forty years. On each side I had two surfaces for a total of four surfaces on which to sleep. So, it worked out well for me. 

Flabbergasted--Another Death

 The Podiatrist appointment was today at 12:30 pm, We left the office at 3:30 pm. I was exhausted by the time we left. At 2 pm, I knew we would not be home for cleaner to come at 3 pm, so cancelled. Tommy carried crackers to carry us through. However, I had just eaten so made it fine. 

As Pod finished, I mentioned the big 'freckle' on my big toe about 1/4 inch from nail. I said I was going to have it removed to be sure it was not cancer. Pod looked at me and said, "Do you know how rare foot cancer is?" I asked, "Do you know that several of my father's brothers died from melanoma that was untreated?" Pod said, "No." "Do you know my father died from pancreatic cancer as did his mother, my grandmother? Derm said, "No" I supposed I schooled her! 

Funny thing--when I mentioned the spot, the freckle, or whatever it is, Pod tried to clean it off with alcohol and sort of scratched it. It was permanent. I thought it was dirty, too, weeks ago, but it was on to stay. 

I felt like I was not heard, like Pod was taking away my agency. Well, I had determined that I would have the Derm remove the freckle and test it. 

Pod came in limping with a boot, acting like walking was painful. It seems Pod was walking along and broke foot. Podiatrist breaks own foot while simply walking!

When we left the doctor's office, I took a prescription to Publix. I told Pod that Walgreen's said it was all the same, that they did not carry the drops she wanted me to have. She gave me another paper prescription to take to Publix. Publix Pharmacist said they could not order it and wanted me to take another iteration of the same med. Tomorrow, I will call another drugstore. 

On the way out of Publix, I saw a bogo that I bought. Knorr's Pasta Sides were 4/$5. I imagine a one-pot meal for dinner. I bought four. Tonight, I used Fettucine and Broccoli in a Chicken Flavored Sauce. I decided to put the rest of the frozen broccoli in and a piece of chicken breast. Well, there was not much broccoli left so I put in a new bag of frozen broccoli, well, most of it. 

Then, Tommy found two chicken breasts in freezer. The small one was only part of a breast and not enough for one person. So, the large one went into pot. It was only one vegetable, but it was delicious and easy to make. After I had a bowlful, I used Three Cheddar Shredded Cheese. Everything in this one-pot meal was bought bogo or on sale.

I chose three more sides:

Four Cheese Pasta. I did not mean to buy mac and cheese. But, I will either eat as it is or add enough to make it a meal for two.

Herb and Butter. Why did I buy two pastas like these?

Fettucine in a Savory Chicken Flavored Sauce. Okay, this pasta is better choice. All four will probably be made into four one-pot meals. I thought all four were fettucine!

I decided to call R, female friend who bought a fancy storm door that was a security door. I mentioned S, a friend of ours. She said he died, sort of as an aside. I knew he lost one toe to diabetes and his penchant for sweets, but I found out he was losing one toe about every two years. One lost toe would certainly wake me up. When they went into his house after he died, there was a three-pound bag of candy corn in his chair that he had taken to sleeping in instead of bed. 

You may remember a friend's antique store that we ate in for Thanksgiving. I was looking for pictures just now, but cannot find them. 

I asked R if anyone else had died that were our friends. She said T almost died but did not. S is gay man, longtime friend. Well, T and D are a gay couple. D was antiquing at an estate sale. He went into cupboard or closet, picked out some things, bought them, went home. The next day he went back to the cupboard/pantry and stepped in. Little did he know someone had gone in there and opened a trap door in the floor and did not close it. Of course, T fell through hitting many things including a wall. He was taken to ER. He suffered many injuries. 

His arm suffered a trauma that was treated. Months later, it was bothering him but since the ER doctor had treated the arm, he assumed it was going to get better and did not seek further treatment. Well, months later when he did go back, doctor found staph infection. Soon, they discovered that he had staph in arm. It was in his spine. R said, they opened up his spine and vacuumed out the staph. It had damaged his spine so two rods were put on side of his spine to stabilize it. Then, the staph was found in bones of the arm. He cannot use his arm. 

Since his husband, D, has dementia, he could not help care for him at home even with nurses coming in to treat him. Now, T is in nursing home. I am flabbergasted that one misstep could cause such damage. 

S's death horrified me. The accident T had is almost worse. So, I am feeling emotional right now. It is hard to lose a friend and hard to think another almost lost his life. Today was a physically hard day and emotional. I am exhausted.

The Park

 Today, I recovered from sleep loss and the malaise I have felt. It was weird. 

Today, I tried to reach Macy's, but nothing worked. So, I will try again tomorrow, try a different tack. 

I spray a section near my chair where there were/are still more fleas. We went for a drive, stopped at the park to watch tennis, walkers, kids playing and two baseball games. A guy went into the walking area. We saw what he carried, thinking it was some sort of bat or racket that he was carrying and maybe going to another place after walking. 

The thing he carried was a 2x2x24" stick. There were pieces of metal, maybe brackets attached to both ends. I concluded it was meant to be a weapon. Eventually, Tommy came to the same conclusion. Maybe he is afraid in this park mid-afternoon. Since the whites were greatly outnumbered, maybe he was afraid of black violence. The way things are going around here, he should carry a gun. If we ever see him again, I want to ask him what he is carrying. Of course, he may be the violent one.I was not fearful at all. Neither was Tommy. 

Buds were swelling. Birds were out and about. A bluebird sat on a birdhouse. I wonder about that since bluebirds don't like their houses close to things. This was six feet in front of the car. Dandelions were in abundance. Soon, it will be time to mow. 

Near Christmas when we drove through the park, I was surprised by a cache of bikes. Some were tiny; some were the size a ten-year-old might ride. Earlier in my life I might have claimed on of the dumpster bikes to paint for the yard to hold flowers. Maybe if it had been warmer and drier in December, I might have gotten one for the yard. A can of spray paint would fix it right up. 

People use the park dumpster for their personal dump. I have found things that I got for myself, but right now, I have forgotten. There are things in good shape that I don't get, but someone should. People leave the large things by the dumpster not inside. 

Dinner--I had chicken with Vidalia bbq sauce from Sweet Baby Ray's, slaw, lettuce, tomato, huge plum. Tommy--honey baked turkey breast, slaw, carrots, peas, broccoli. 

I may have broccoli later as a snack. Right now, I need to wash up a few dishes before the 10pm news.  It has been five hours and there are no fleas jumping on me. 

Not much was done today. Tomorrow, I have a doctor's appointment. That will exhaust me. Then, a woman comes to vacuum. UGH

Today, Tuesday, was not exciting, got a bit of decluttering done, but there was no drama. Today was restful. I needed that. 

Was there any excitement in your life today?

Decluttering? 

Creativity? 

Pants, remotes, vacuum, burger, slaw, weather, mattress, walker

 For a few days, I have been so sluggish. Nothing seems bad, but I am in a haze it seems. 

When I went to the grocery Saturday, I came home with two of the largest plums ever. Nope, did not buy them. I ate one. Was that bad of me? They would have thrown it away. 

I found someone to come vacuum Wednesday. That is too long to wait, but at least it is something. She want $25 to vacuum. I wonder if that is per hour. She had husband speak to me. She will bring daughter to translate for her. I wonder if the daughter helps. We will see. I do doubt I will have her again. 

We sprayed the house today and left to do things. I wanted to see if this guy in Bessemer who sells produce from his truck had things out. No. He will. I am sure he gets produce from the big Farmer's Market on Finley Ave, but I don't care. It's always delicious. The church was selling food, but I did not want to stop.  We had a small, plain burger in a parking lot with drinks we brought from home. Basically, we kicked around, wasting time until the stench from the Raid dissipated. 

Dinner--burger, slaw, lots of slaw for both of us. I only put a smidgen of salt in coleslaw, but put too much in today. Then, I over-poured apple cider vinegar in the bowl. I had already put lots of mustard in the mix. It was a spicy coleslaw tonight. Tommy thought the salt was just fine. Ick I suppose I should have put the other bag of slaw mix in with the strong one. 

Due to the beautiful weather and high temps, I did not wear a sweater, jacket, or scarf yesterday or today. I wore an airy, loose blouse that was not warm in any way. In the house I have not had to cover myself with a throw or use a jacket. Next thing we know, we will need ac on and I will need a throw again! But, for now, the temps inside and out are perfect. 

I think we will go mattress shopping at Macy's on Tuesday. They are having a sale as is everyone else. They do carry Serta Perfect, the kind I had last that I loved. I almost fell off the bed again. It seems I just sat on the bed, lay down and turned toward the other side of the bed. When I decided to turn back, I was too close to the edge of the bed for my comfort! It actually frightened me. I have a stool with a boom box on it beside the bed. I would put the boom box on the end table, but the boom box has an eerie, bright blue light that would keep me awake. So, it sits on the stool facing the box spring. 

Tommy's last walker weighed 10 or 15 lbs.; this one--25 lbs.  I am not sure how wide the last one was, but this one is 22 inches wide. He is ruining the corner of the wall. I put thick gorilla tape on the bottom where he was ramming the last walker. There was sheet rock all over the floor. He said he did not care. He manages to hit the corner higher with this walker. Plus, the tires are 10" and not 3". This time I will get one of those rubber/plastic corner protectors and figure out how to install that. He never runs into things in others' houses or in stores, but here he is not careful or caring at all. Of course, I will purchase that at the hardware store in Cullman. 

His pants are getting too tight, so he needs new pants. I had to point it out before he even acknowledged it. Is this a guy thing? If my waist band were two inches too small, a person would not have to invite me to buy new pants. Of course, for the last 40 years, I have worn elastic waistbands for health sake only. 

When I moved here, of course Tommy manned the remote. I had no desire for him to share it with me. Besides, it takes two remotes to work the TV. When he went to sleep, I would wake him to turn off the TV. One night about two weeks ago, he handed me the one remote and told me to keep it low, turn it lower so it would not wake me in the morning, and then turn it off. 

In the meantime, he has 'allowed' me to use the other remote to change channels. I wrote how where different channels can be found. I think I know how to use both as well as he does, maybe. I suppose this is a breakthrough. We use a soft, zippered pencil bag to toss the couple back and forth. I leave the bag on his walker when I go to bed. It works for us. 

I asked why two remotes. He said he never could get one programmed. I hate remotes I have to program. The next tv, we will each have one remote, not two different remotes. When he goes to the kitchen and we need to talk, if I mute the sound, we don't have to scream back and forth, not hearing each other anyway. 

Does it seem all guys want to man the remote? 

Do you know anyone who destroys corners, furniture, anything by hitting it with a walker or wheelchair? 

Cleaning a Hoarder's House

Cleaning a hoarders house that is gross.

Cleaning a hoarder biohazard kitchen for FREE - YouTube

This guy cleans houses for free. He is very compassionate toward the people whose houses he cleans. He points out the reasons houses get into this condition. 

I suppose I have watched about ten hours of his videos. It is appalling how these houses look. Even at the worst, I have never seen a house like these. 

Once you watch one of these, you will hear more about him. In a few of these he is very disrespectful to his son, calling him awful names. But, apparently, he quit that nonsense. His son and daughter and another young man work with him. He will tell you he is autistic, has a cleaning company that he does charge for his services, is 6'5" so he can reach the high stuff. 

These videos are fascinating to me. 

Oh, we went to Publix. As I switched carts in the lobby, I felt a flea jump onto my wrist. Conflicted as to what to do after I caught it, I went back outside to trash and put it in there. I did not want to infect the store or the outside. It would have jumped on someone else. 

Have you ever seen a house in the condition of the kitchen or bathroom? He even had to wear a hazmat suit for the bathroom. 

Leprechaun Balls

St. Patrick's Day Dessert: Leprechaun Balls (momfoodie.com)

and another

40 Green Foods to Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day (msn.com)

Since I did not feel like posting anything today, I thought this was cute.  

Today was a nothing day in an effort to regain some strength and ooomph. I probably slept enough. Then, I slept about three hours in my chair as did Tommy but not so long he said. We did not go car shopping. 

Dinner was ready in the refrigerator, but we added other things. I made tuna salad sandwich without eggs and had potatoes, carrots, and broccoli. He had some pork he said he found in the freezer, carrots, potatoes, and broccoli. 

I did manage to put color on my hair, so feel better about my looks. Tomorrow, I will cut Tommy's hair.  I keep putting it off but will get it done eventually. Okay, I will get it done tomorrow. 

The recipe for leprechaun balls emphasizes it is for adults. I am quite sure you can sub other ingredients to make it child friendly. 

My one St. Patrick Day decoration is a large Shamrock to go on front door. 

Will you make something green to eat? I doubt I will. Do green beans count? 

Do you decorate for St. Patrick's Day? 

Wear green or a pin? 

Alice Sent This Picture

 

It is made specifically for cleaning the windshield on the inside. I think I will give it a whirl so as not to hurt my shoulder and hand. Have you ever used one of these?

I received two checks in the mail, both for less than $10 one from a bankruptcy case$6.60. I would give you the details, but I forgot what one was for but it was $8.60. There is still a $5. check to cash. 

Today was a beautiful day, but I was still hurting, not wanting to go anywhere. I hated totally missing the pretty weather. 

This afternoon, I felt a feeling on my foot and quickly got lotion to put on it. As I looked at my foot, I thought I saw a flea. Immediately, I put the lotion on it to immobilize it. As I got it up with the ointment/lotion, it tried to get away. Thankfully, it was mired down and could not escape. I had a bowl with leftover milk where I had emptied all of the milk possible. Immediately, I put water in the bowl and ended up with murky liquid. I put my index finger and thumb that had captured the flea and got the flea into the water. A little later, I found another flea on my foot and likewise disposed of that one.  The thing with the second flea was that I was trying to kill it with my thumbnail and it jumped. I figured it jumped on me. I bent over floor and shook my hair. The flea fell back on my foot. I got more lotion to help capture that one. About thirty minutes later, a flea was on my wrist. So, I drowned another flea. 

I had Tommy spray the floor in front of my chair and under it. I had a basket of clean clothing nearby, so could not spray much until I get up shoes and laundry. I really hate fleas.

Two hours later I went to the kitchen to see if I really had three fleas since the murky liquid made it hard to see anything. Yes, as I poured it out slowly, I could see three fleas. Miraculously, they were still moving. Now, they are down the drain. Hopefully, they die. I am shocked they were still kicking around after all the lotion and water. I hate fleas. Fleas love me. 

While I was taking photo from email to send it to my blog, somehow, I put it into Paint and was able to do all sorts of things to the picture, mainly write on it. Cool!

Afterwards, I put a pink towel on the floor in front of my chair, sort of like a rug so I would not step on the wet flea killer. Just now, I bent over and could see a flea crawling on the pink towel. I sprayed it with flea killer which blew it elsewhere every spray. I also put OFF on my legs. 

Nightgowns and underwear are hung in doors of bedrooms. Towels and washcloths are ready to fold. That is my sole contribution today. Well, I did cook two hamburgers and took eyes from red potatoes. And, I did declutter a smidgen. Now, I know which receipts to save and which are not in recycling. 

Dinner--hamburgers, carrots, potatoes, broccoli (which we forgot in microwave).

We decided not to go to Cullman tomorrow since I am still bone-tired. 

We are both looking pretty skaggy--his hair is too long and mine desperately needs color. So, maybe we will do that tomorrow.  We cancelled an outing today. We do have another planned for Saturday. 

Resident Alien is back!!! Do you watch this?

I hope everyone's weekend is predicted to be as pretty as our weekend will be.

Do you have a car windshield inside tool like the one in picture? If so, how is it?