December 8, 2021

[Teresa]

Just starting a new thread and a new theme.

[judy]

Teresa, what is going on with the thread? I like the new thread graphics, but check out the way the "General Discussions" are listed. Very strange. The Christmas tree is nice.

Judy

[kathy]

I don't see the Christmas tree? Just some Christmas ornaments.

Winter has arrived here! We have snow and colder temperatures. Not the real cold stuff but it does go to minus temperatures,

The light came on the thermostat calling for a new air filter. I phoned the place who installed the furnace. For them to change the filter there was a $79.00 service fee plus the air filter which was $48.00 . I went on Amazon and got 2 for $84.00 suppose to be here early next week. That way I'll have a spare and when the light goes on I can order it. I think because of all the dust and stuff my air filter was used up. My place was cleaner before the construction but I am still cleaning up the dust. It sure is time consuming. I want to keep an amount back so they will come and fix their errors. What amount do you think I should keep back? Last time I paid the whole thing and they kept promising to come and I forgot about it. This time that's not going to happen.

Hope everyone is healthy and wise!

Hugs
Kathy

[judy]

Kathy, I wish I could give some suggestions about paying for the work you had done, but we haven't had significant fixes lately.  Maybe Ginny can give you some ideas.  It really is frustrating when workmen won't standby their work once it's paid for.

Yesterday, I got most of the family stuff in the mail so hopefully it will arrive before Christmas.  Now it's cards and letters.  I love hearing from people at Christmas especially when they include a Christmas letter (which I know some folks don't like, but I'm in the group that does.)

It was a crazy week. It started off on Monday with car problems, an early doctor appointment (yearly exam), and a Forest Service committee meeting that had not met in 5+ years (Thanks to Mr. T.) that lasted all day. It sort of set the tone for the week - my last writing class, lectures, a collections committee meeting at the museum, getting packages and letters ready to send, etc. I'm relieved that it's Sunday I just have cards to send. The car problem was resolved, but then we loaned Izaak (our grandson) my car for three days because someone backed into his, so Jim and I shared a car. It made me remember the days when that was the norm although now it is much easier because there are just two of us to keep track of. .

I have two get-togethers that I'm looking forward to this coming week. Our Tuesday Bunch is meeting. We have only met occasionally since Covid and all our previous meetings have been outdoors. We have had a traditional December meeting, and it's going to be fun to finally get together this year. On Thursday the guild's Secret Sisters are meeting and that should be fun, too.



It is my fondest dream to sleep in on Saturday and Sunday when I don't get up early to go exercise, but my body doesn't seem to understand that. So...Saturday was 5, but today I made it to 6...maybe next week.

Hope everyone has a good week.  Take care, Judy

[Teresa]

So, we got another amendment to our on going court case, it would seem that they are asking for a large some of money from us. These people better not leave me homeless. I am just for the moment putting it on the back burner in my brain and giving it to God.

We have had lots of wind, cold strong wind, some snow, some rain and just plain cold. I am so sorry for the people where the tornados hit. I gripe about hating wind, I could not handle the fear of hurricanes and tornados.

My brother might stop by tuesday while he is in Central Oregon. I told him only if the roads are not bad and it will put him driving home late. I am going to freshen up the house tomorrow just incase.

We have been going to play at the church in the morning because they have a live nativity at night. Trouble with that is Chibs feels like he hasnt gotten to go do anything come evening and he is driving me nuts.]

I am taking a break from tracking WW until after the holidays. I have to admit the new program kind of messed with more than I wanted it to. I am still eating healthy and not getting any bad foods, just not stressing about points at the moment. Then maybe I can go go swinging and in the zone.

I sure hope everyone has a nice Christmas. It is just going to be me and Brody but that is okay.

[judy]

So sorry about the court case, Teresa, good idea to put it on the backburner.  I agree about the new WW program.  What I am doing works, so I took the quiz until it pretty much replicated what I have been doing.  My goal during the holiday season is not to give myself permission to give myself too many food rewards.

After a weekend of wind and rain it just started snowing. NOOOOOO!!!  Traffic alert - watch out for crazy drivers.  I like snow, but not in our town where few people know how to drive in it, and all big trucks with four wheel drive seem to think they can stop on a dime!

I have a hair appointment at 1, and I really want to go or my bangs are going to get so long I won't be able to see.    With any luck the snow will stop, or it will turn to rain, and the roads won't be too bad.

Hope a good week.  Take care, Judy

[judy]

Ginny, I have a question.  Do you get the magazine, Birds and Blooms?  I'd love to share my copies with you if you don't, I think you would enjoy the magazine.  You can pass them on or recycle them if you would like them.

Take care, Judy

[Teresa]

Well I didnt get to see my brother. The weather turned bad and they had to get home. My sister in law kept me updated along their way. She counted 30 wrecks at least from Bend to Klamath Falls, I am so thankful they made it home safe. Took a while they had delays from having to wait for wrecks to be cleared.

Looking forward to warmer weather.

My sister is in Texas for Christmas and my brother and his wife are going to Hawaii a little after Christmas. I am more than a little jealous that they will be in nice weather. Happy for them though.

My dog wants to go play, my computer says its 29 degrees, I dont want to go play.

haha sorry guess I am just griping about the cold. Maybe if I go put on my slippers I will feel better.

I had taken a break from tracking but the other morning I got on my scales and it said 324 pounds, I was just woke up so I was groggy so I flipped out. Of course my scale was malfunctioning but it was enough to get me tracking again haha. I am up 4 pounds so its good to be back to tracking. Just trying to get a better feel of the new program. I am a little confused about the points we earn back dailly from eating veggies. Do I eat them or try not to eat them, I can easily add 10 points back a day from my veggies.

[Teresa]

Where is everyone?

I hope you all have a beautiful Christmas

[judy]

Merry Christmas, everyone!  Hope you are having a nice day.  We began the day at my grandson Izaak's new apartment with gift opening.  It was fun to see what everyone received.  BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!!!  Our granddaughter Bridget got engaged yesterday to Jacob.  They have been together for quite awhile, and we wondered when they would decide to get married.  Bridget's ring is lovely.  I think a late summer or early fall is in the plan for the wedding.  It will be fun to hear about the wedding plans.

Best wishes to all of you, and please take care, Judy

[judy]

I really like snow...but in the mountains!  When it snows here it's always a mess.  We have snow so seldom that people have no idea how to drive in the snow. And then there are the big trucks with four-wheel drive who think they can stop on a dime--not happening if there's ice or it's slick.  So the best thing to do it stay home.  I am relieved that if it had to snow it waited until Christmas night.  Yesterday was cold and we had occasional fuzzy rain, but no snow that stuck.  Now we have 3-4 inches with 8 inches predicted.  YUCK!

My job today was to go turn on the outside faucets so the pipes don't freeze.  The temps are predicted to be in the teens and twenties for the whole week.  My son-in-law appeared like magic as I was tramping around in my big rubber boots turning on faucets, and he offered to finish the job.  I don't know if I told you that he and my daughter Bryn are getting a divorce, so he is no longer living on the farm.  He happened out today because he needed to get some stuff to fix a fence at a rental they own.  I'm so glad he did.  

Sadly, I had plans to have lunch with a friend tomorrow and with another friend to see the VanGogh exhibit in Portland on Wednesday.  Both will need to be rescheduled. 

Time to close.  I hope your weather is MUCH better than ours...take care, Judy 

   

[ginny]

I don’t see a tree either but I love the blue ornament theme.

Kathy, our weather is so weird here — it is freezing here one day and warm the next, from 20 F to 60F. I have my Family room door open to the deck this morning to get some fresh air in. We had a light dusting of snow one evening, but nothing more. I think if I had had the experience you’ve had I’d find someone new (if possible) or perhaps tell them they will get the check when they arrive to do the job. Seventy-nine bucks to put in a filter seems outrageous, unless it is in a very difficult place to get to. Mine is in in the hallway next to the AC controls and Karen just unscrews the cover, takes out the old one and puts in the new one. I got my filters from a local place initially so I could see/touch/read the package. I don’t buy the cheap ones because it is just like throwing your money away. I do buy a lot of my stuff from Amazon though, once I know what I want. Do you have the Better business Bureau up in Canada? I usually check companies out on their website. But even that isn’t foolproof. I’ve had bad experiences from places with a triple A+ rating. Do you remember the roofers who cam to my house with a crew that didn’t speak English and started ripping and tearing off the old roof shingles and making a Heck of a noise and when they had exposed the whole roof, the man who did speak a little English came and pounded on my door and complained the company that had hired them wasn’t treating the workers fairly and they were going to leave my roof in its present condition unless “the boss” came to bargain with them. What a mess that was. That has probably been 30 years ago, but I remember it like it was yesterday. Time flies and I’ve long since had a new roof from a different company.

Judy I know you must be relieved to have all your cards, etc. out in the mail. I did get your card and the refrigerator magnet inside has joined the collection on my ‘fridge. It is adorable and I love the Kitty on it—it looks just like my outside cat, Spotty. I have not gone to anything public other than my church service for nearly 2 years, and for awhile we didn’t even have that. The church is creeping back towards almost normal. I wonder if it will ever get back completely to what is normal to me. We did have a beautiful Festal Christmas Eve service with candles and incense—although one of the changes seems to be that although the acolyte in charge of swinging the incense ball around did a wonderful job, I think the rector limited how much incense was put in the ball, and I couldn’t smell it at all. The incense is one of the things I love about the special services. Our rector definately leans toward the protestant side of our church, and if he could take it all the way there he would. Hey, long bangs or no, just be glad you have hair. I have worn a wiglet in the center front of my hair (no bangs at all) but the width of no hair is getting wider, so the wiglet clip has nothing to grab on to and hold it on my hair. My hairdresser can skillfully do it without the wiglet, but I can’t. I’m thinking seriously about a full wig that fits on like a swim cap and would cover it all up. Years ago I thought about having a hair transplant, but i’m thinking a full wig would be cheaper and easier. Yes, I do get Birds and Blooms, it is a lovely magazine that I really enjoy. I frequently stick it in my purse if I think I am going to have a wait. It is something you can enjoy whether the wait is long or short. As I think you have discovered, the problem is that they are so beautiful you don’t want to throw them away. As of now I am just storing mine and looking back thru them once in a while.

Teresa, I must have missed something. What kind of court case are you involved in? Who do you owe money to, and why? Re the weather, tornados are the only thing we have around here, and thank God they have come close but never hit us.. I think, but I’m not real sure, if the Kentucky tornado had moved northeast, about 50 miles, we would have been in it. As it was, the wind was frightening. I was prepared to take cover in the bathroom in the tub, but that wouldn’t have done much to protect me and the kitties. We have several huge trees and when we have high winds it scares me Of course, in a tornado, you not only have your own tree to worry about crashing down on your roof, but all the debris it picks up and dump on you. Re the live Nativity, we are having one this year, and for the first time, even live sheep. I think the Rector’s 2 children wore him down. And re the new WW plan, you have done so well on the old one; why not just stick with the old one? If it works, why change it?

Hope you are all preparing for a safe New Years.

Hugs,
Ginny

[Teresa]

Ginny it is still the on going mess of my Moms estate

[kathy]

My computer says -23 F. It's sounds better in F then C. C is -36C. They are forecasting temperatures to -51.
It doesn't matter what it says: It's cold out there. My basement windows have frosted up. I guess that's next on the list of Renos. Each window is about $1500 give or take. & I 3. Two are slightly smaller then the other one so possibly it's not that much but It's still a cost.

Christmas was very quiet. I didn't but up a tree. No one came to visit or is coming. I cooked a stuffed turkey breast and had a baked yam. Bought 2 bags of Parker house Buns. They are so good. I've had them with butter and jam for breakfast. I bought them to make turkey sandwiches which I've had a few too.

Talked to my son & girlfriend for an hour, My sister for 2.5 hours and my cousin for 3 plus hours. So spent some time with people through it was on the phone. A guy I was seeing in 2019 texted me and I texted him back a few times. Not expecting anything from him.
The Province has cut back on all activities and cancelled quite a few events. I was going to go to a Christmas Eve Service that was outside but didn't get there, I fell asleep and woke up around midnight.

My car is running good. Sometimes the remote start works and other times I feel like the car is laughing at me.

I'm still tidying up and putting things back into place. I'm finding it hard, if I sit on my couch and look at my phone I usually fall asleep for a couple of hours and then it's late and it's almost time to go to bed so I can get up in the morning. Viscous cycle.

Not doing too much as it's so cold outside. Just want to stay inside and snuggle with a blanket and a hot cup of tea!

Hope everyone is safe!

Hugs
Kathy