Now I really did it :((

[Austina]

Hello lovelies

It’s cold!


Yum muffins @marcy, stop now, I’m trying to be good Your saga with the optician reminds me of the numerous times our bank screwed up. Without fail, every single time we went in for currency, they managed to get it wrong :roll The manager knew us well, because she was called each time there was a problem. Funnily enough, when we moved here, the first time we went in to the new branch, there she was - the look on her face when she saw us

Hi @CJ2008 I’m glad youv’e decided to write, it’s important that whoever’s in charge knows what’s going on. Even though it won’t make a difference to you this visit, hopefully it’ll mean subsequent visits for you and other patients are dealt with better.

Glad Greg got there and back safely and you had fun playing games and keeping warm @missy. On these cold mornings, we’re staying in bed a bit longer in the morning with our cuppa Dottie doesn’t get on the bed, if she did, there wouldn’t be room for us. She has her own cosy bed in the bedroom though.

Oh no to frozen pipes @Jimmianne , hope it that’s out soon,


We took Dottie out then came back, and I put up a new light fitting. For once it was a well designed fitting, and easy to install.

I had to take the picture with it off, otherwise all you see is blurry light



Big wave to all the NIRDIs, keep warm.

 

[marcy]

Austina, great light fixture. It’s nice it is made well. We were just talking about that a while ago - it would be nice if our canned lights were a better design. Not that any of them are a great design. Marty had to replace one of the canned lights in our kitchen that’s at about 10 feet high and those devices to remove and replace a bulb are not the easiest thing to use. Oh well. I have light again! Too funny about the bank manager moving to your new bank. How frustrating though to always have problems with your money.

 

[marcy]

I logged on earlier then was distracted (i.e. ooh shiny) but Austina's new light fixture.
What I was going to say was - I just looked at some of the pictures of JFK. Holy cow; I am glad I'm not stuck there.

 

[marcy]

Oh and Missy rumor has it Daniel Craig bought an apartment in Brooklyn. Maybe James Bond is a neighbor.

 

[MarionC]

Austina, love the fixture. Too bad it won’t let you take its photo with the light on. I would like to see how that looks.

Marcy. Yay to new cookie cutters.
Did you say bears and bunnies? That would be great for making a cookie battle scene, but I don’t hear much recently about them scaring each other.

Missy, I didn’t get anything from you about creams. My email is weird in that mail disappears, sometimes as I am reading it! The DNA allergy tests come back today. It shouild be interesting, and I’ll report if it was a useful exercise.

This is the day things start to warm up again, thank goodness. It really has been a challenge As the horses need about 50 gallons of water a day. Yesterday I remembered that I had bought a water purifying pump years ago for just such an emergency and started pumping water from the pool for the horses. By noon it was a balmy 20 degrees and felt warm! And the pipes unfroze. Today I can take the blankets off the horses...they get sores from the heavy blankets if worn too long, and then can start cleaning stalls. Oh boy, fun project if anyone wants to come help (?).

I read the Fire and the Fury over the weekend. I felt it was fairly MEH, but then could not stop reading.

Happy monday everyone : )

 

[missy]

Good morning girls! Happy Monday!

CJ big hugs and I am glad you are writing that letter. It will help IMO. It will help you feel better and perhaps get a more suitable answer and confidence in your evaluation or a repeat of your tests if necessary and it will help the office provide better care hopefully. Let us know how it goes. And good luck on your new eating plan. I feel you and it can be challenging. I am here for you for support if you want it...it helps to have team support and team NIRDI is always here for you. (((Hugs))).

Marcy oooh I love that you ordered rabbit and bear cookie cutters and cannot wait to see your cookies once you use them lol. Those are the kind of cookies anyone would love. Yummm blueberry muffins. OMG I love those and I love scones too. I don't want to tell you guys how long it's been since I enjoyed anything carby like that. But oh I so want to and if it wasn't for my skin I would! Though I question that is my problem at all. What I eat. Because generally I think I eat well but honestly who the heck knows. I feel like it is something else do you kwim? Anyway I think I am about to stop being vegan and be Pescetarian again because of recs made in that medical mystery thread. Sad but if it makes a difference it is worth it. If it doesn't I can go back to beans.

Haha yes Greg told me about Daniel Craig. Also a few other "stars" live in Brooklyn. You also might remember many old time "stars" were born here. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Neil Diamond, Barbara Streisand, Woody Allen, Spike Lee, Joan Rivers, Eddie Murphy, Bernie Sanders, Clara Bow, Joy Behar, Tony Danza, Anne Hathaway, Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel (he was in my sister's classes through grade school and lived right near us), Mary Tyler Moore, Lou Reed, Larry David, Colin Quinn, Mike Tyson, Michael Jordan...to name but a few. Brooklyn rocks.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_from_Brooklyn

What a mess at JFK is right. I told Greg if they cannot even keep their pipes from bursting am I going to trust them to fly me anywhere? Heck no. I mean yeah pipes can burst on anyone that is true but it really doesn't do much for my confidence in their ability to safely fly me from point A to B. Plus I watched a show on the weather channel during the holidays about airplane disasters. Scary human errors over and over again. Nuff said.

Austina cool light fixture! Yes I love staying in bed with the fur babies especially in the colder weather. Oh sweet Dottie could make room on the bed with you no? She could just lay on top of you guys and in this weather it is good for the fur babies to share their body heat. I love it when the cats just lay on top of me for my body heat as it is a symbiotic relationship for sure. I get their warmth and they get mine and in the winter it feels so good. The summer is another matter and sometimes they burn me up when they lay on me in the hot weather haha. But it is all worth it. Hope you enjoy the lovely day and that the weather has warmed up by you.

Jimmianne I have no idea where that email went but I knew something was up because I didn't receive a reply from you. Sent it again. Hope it helps! And yes please let me know what the DNA allergy testing shows. I am seeing David tomorrow and I don't think he offers it but probably can recommend someone who does and I will see what he thinks of it in general.

Glad you got the water sorted out. I feel for you being there doing all those chores in this weather. Sending you warm hugs and good vibes dear Jimmianne.


We enjoyed a short walk yesterday of about 45 minutes before I cried uncle haha and then we went back home and played cards and it was a nice Sunday for a frigid day. Animal rescues were not out yesterday as the weather was too cold to bring them to the Petco even and I don't blame them. They let me know before we went but we went out anyway for the walk. I was starting to feel like a real hermit and needed to get some fresh albeit frigid air.

Greg left with Tommy an hour ago to bring him for his dental work with Debbie at her practice. I am nervous as he has to go under general anesthesia. Poor baby! I wanted to reschedule but Greg insisted we get it done. Tommy didn't seem to have any teeth trouble and was eating fine but Debbie saw an issue at the last check up so fingers crossed it is taken care of today and sweet Tommy is A OK. He was so scared this AM when we got him into the carrier. Poor sweetie. I love Tommy so much. Anyway please think good thoughts for a good day today.

Hugs to all of you and enjoy this Monday. One day closer to the weekend after today. Woohoo.
Oh and yes Oprah for President!!!

 

[missy]

Just letting you guys know sir Tommy is back home one less tooth in his mouth. He’s very stressed understandably so but he did very well according to my sister. Patient is resting comfortably. Well, hiding under the couch in the library. He’s a bit out of sorts.

Pic of him in the new Loofy right after the procedure before the ride home.

 

[Austina]

Hello lovelies

Awwww, so glad your little boy is home safe and sound @missy. It’s always such a worry when they need an anaesthetic, I know you’ll have been on tenterhooks all day. Hopefully tomorrow he’ll be feeling more like his old self. Did I ever mention we had a ‘Tommy’ when we were children, called Tig ? He looked so like your boy.

So glad you’ve got running water again @Jimmianne and things have thawed. I didn’t know that horses could get sore from wearing their coats I hate when you read a book or watch a film and afterwards wonder why you bothered. We recorded a show called The Miniaturist and watched it over the weekend. I didn’t enjoy it at all, and really couldn’t tell you what it was all about.

Hi Marcy, the cookie cutters sound cute, I bought some bone, poodle and paw print ones for making dog biscuits for the Spin Christmas party We saw the chaos at JFK on the news, yikes, so glad we don’t have to travel through there, it looked horrendous.

Adam has very high ceilings in his house, I’ve no idea how he’d change the light bulbs. We changed all our lights from halogen to LED when we moved here, but fortunately they’re all just regular ceiling height, so a small step ladder is sufficient.

Another cold day today, my feet were frozen in my walking boots. We had to pop into town for a few things, and I wore my Uggs. Inelegant they maybe, but at least my tootsies were toasty

Keep warm lovelies

 

[CJ2008]

Tommy, so glad you're OK sweet boy! You won't miss that tooth at all (((hugs)))

missy - guess what I had today? Fermented veggies! Yes you read that right. hehe My diet was way better in general today than it's been for the past several weeks, I'm so proud of myself. I skipped the bagel and got my bread from Whole Foods (which has no sugar in it - I'm sure the bagels do), and then while I was there I noticed bags of fermented veggies. I was really skeptical to buy without knowing more but I took a quick look at the label and didn't see anything two weird or sugar expressly listed (although it says "ginger juice" and they don't break that up so who knows.) But anyway I figured at least I would have an idea what fermented veggies are all about. I got beets and carrots. They were interesting - I can't say I loved them - but I didn't hate them, so it's a win LOL That's how I feel about most food I eat for health reasons. If I don't hate it and it's good for me, it stays. Having said that - are fermented veggies sometimes fermented with other things (for example, other than ginger). And are some better tasting than others? So anyway, I had brown rice, organic red kidney beans, and I threw some fermented beets and carrots on top. LOL. And today, when I was hungry, I reached for the plain walnuts which I hadn't reached for in ages, choosing cookies and things like that instead. So anyway girls I hope this lasts. I also bought some different kinds of sweet potatoes and plan on making those tomorrow. I did just grab two slices of cheese that is my go-to snack that I *know* I need to replace. I used to be able to eat just one slice but lately it's out of control.

ANYWAY now that I've bored you to death LOL

Glad you took a walk even if a short one yesterday (<<<< actually, 45 minutes is not short! you did good!)

marcy - your dealings with the eye place sound so annoying. I could see why you blurted out what you did you've been holding it and dealing with mistakes and annoyances several times already. But glad you apologized anyway (not for them, but for you) and glad you got a freebie.

So glad you got the cookie cutters! yay! I hope you'll post pictures!

Blueberry muffins sound delish I don't know that I've ever had a made from scratch muffin like by a friend. Must be so good.

austina sorry still cold by you (and yes to everything you said about the letter!) Very cool light fixture

jimmianne, glad it's getting warm by you! Hope DNA test was worth it

OK girls gotta run I have to try to dye my hair tonight I have been putting it off for weeks.

Have an awesome night!

 

[marcy]

Hi NIRDIs!

Jimmianne, thank you for the holiday card! It made my day. Yes, I got a bear and bunny cookie cutter. Trust me the shenanigans continue around here. Marty got me a baby bear that has a bell inside so he picks it up, rings it and the rabbits know it’s supper time. One of the bears on the banister now has a toy gun to keep me from taking the rabbits food. Next time Marty comes back from LA I should have the banister full of new bears! Ha! I see stores have a lot of teddy bears out right now. Glad it warmed up enough that your pipes are no longer frozen. I am glad they didn’t break. I hope the horses are okay from wearing blankets.

Missy, I have a sour cream sugar cookie recipe that I’ll use for the bears and rabbits. I was going to make them for Christmas but my niece was bringing sugar cookies so I didn’t make that kind of cookie. I’ll get a picture when I make them. I would have a hard time giving up carbs; it may not be a bad idea to try a different diet to see if that helps some of your skin problems. I know food does all sorts of crazy things to me - hives, rashes and itches. Good luck if you decide to try it. That is some list of people who have lived in Brooklyn; you and Greg are the coolest by far though. I saw that mess from the burst pipes at JFK. People are still trying to get out of there (or at least earlier today). Good for you guys braving the cold for a walk yesterday. I can last about 3 days as a hermit then I’m ready to go somewhere. Hi Tommy! Get better soon.

Austina, i like the idea of your bone, poodle and paw print cutters for dog biscuits. I bet they were a hit. I bet Adam has one of those light changers too. Most of our ceilings are 10 feet but the kitchen and living room has a peak maybe 3 feet higher. We’ve changed quite a bit of our lights to LED too. I don’t think any of the canned lights are LED though. Maybe we should look in to that. Sorry it’s still cold. Glad your Uggs kept your feet toasty warm on your errands. Sorry you got cold on your walking boots.

CJ, glad you didn’t want to spit out the fermented veggies. Sounds like you have a solid plan! Marty eats a lot of sweet potatoes, protein, almonds and cheese. He is way better than I am staying away from carbs. I did just crack when I talked to the eye doctor. I was telling people at work about it and I found about 6 more people that had bad luck at the same optical shop. Muffins from scratch are quite tasty. Marty made homemade apple sauce one time and I used that to make some apple sauce muffins and they were the best. I like to bake. How did your hair turn out?

Not much going on today. I didn’t sleep well but still went to work. I picked up some groceries on the way home. We had decent weather today. Not bad for January.

Take care.
Marcy

 

[MarionC]

A quick stop in. The DNA test showed nothing...I have zero allergies. Which is odd because I have had allergies and had to get shots in evey single other place I’ve lived. Either living here has produced a miracle or the test is useless!

 

[missy]

A quick stop in. The DNA test showed nothing...I have zero allergies. Which is odd because I have had allergies and had to get shots in evey single other place I’ve lived. Either living here has produced a miracle or the test is useless!

Awww sorry Jimmianne. I have a feeling it isn't a very accurate test then...I belong to an eczema group and yesterday a few of them said the DNA test showed they had no allergies but they have lots of allergies IRL so after talking with them I am guessing it is not the most accurate test.

Hi CJ yes! Good for you! Fermented veggies can be an acquired taste but there are definitely better tasting veggies out there. Go to a Whole Foods Market or Fairway Market and buy a few different fermented vegetable options to see what your taste buds prefer. I am glad you are feeling good about your new eating plan and I predict you will be feeling healthy and fit very soon! I also have been making a few changes in the past week or 2. Adding olive oil and Apple Cider Vinegar to my salads and Greg started cooking with Avocado oil for me. All in my efforts to add healthy fats to my diet. I'll keep you posted and please let us know how it's going for you. Hope your hair color turns out well. I am terribly gray but leaning towards letting it go gray for now.

Austina oh how sweet your Tig looked like Tommy...do you have any photos you could share? I am wearing my Uggs too style be darned haha. Though they are stylish in their own right I think. Speaking of which you should see me and my huge Marmot mittens. Those are quite the sight lol. The young people tell me they are very fashionable the huge ski mittens. Who knew in my chilblain protection I was being stylish. Hope you are staying warm and cozy. When is your cruise?

Marcy good for you going to work and getting through the day sleep deprived though you were. Hope you had a good night's sleep last night and wake refreshed. Yumm to sour cream sugar cookie. And I would love to see pics of your new cookie shapes when you are baking next. I love apple sauce and homemade apple sauce sounds awesome. Or should I say saucesome.

It's a busy morning... off to the doctor with Greg and I hope everyone has a lovely day.
Sir Tommy sends purrs and love to all who wished him well yesterday. You girls are the cats meoowwwww.

 

[PierreBear]

Hi Ladies! Just a quick hello as it's still a busy time at work and I'm also feeling under the weather. I'm looking forward to catching up with ya'll soon. Hope everyone has a great week and that all is well.

 

[junebug17]

Hi everyone! Sorry I’ve fallen behind, I’ll try to catch up...

Missy, such pretty pics of HRH! I’m glad Tommy did ok with his procedure and I hope he’s feeling more like himself, he had a rough day. He looks so sweet in his carrier. How great that Greg did the laundry, what a good guy! Love the pics of the kitties snoozing away, really cute. Hope your doctor’s visit goes well today. Good idea to add some healthy fats to your diet, worth a try anyway - can’t hurt and who knows, maybe it will help.

CJ, writing a letter to your doctor is a good idea - I agree, I also find that doctors tend to be short and abrupt on the phone. You’re off to a good start with healthier eating, you sound motivated so that will help you stay on track. It’s great that your hairdresser is willing to help find Mousey a home, the support and concern she showed was probably very comforting to you. Hope your hair color turned out well.

Austina, how fun to be packing for a trip, so nice to have that to look forward to in this cold weather. I love the light fixture. Lol to the clothes breeding, I think you’re right! I’ve been wearing my Uggs too, imo they are miracle boots, I can’t believe how warm they keep my feet.

Marcy, your cookie cutters sound cute, good find! Too funny about the bear packing a gun, with those rabbits around he needs it lol. Sorry you didn’t sleep well, makes getting through the day very challenging. Hope you caught up on your sleep and you’re feeling better.

Jimmianne, sorry about the water situation and I’m so glad things are starting to thaw out, thank goodness things will be warming up this week. I forget about all the responsibilities you have with regard to the animals, and particularly the horses, and that this very cold weather makes things so difficult for you. It’s great you were able to use that pump, pretty resourceful of you! Yeah, not sure whether to congratulate you or not on the allergy test results lol - sounds like it might not be a very accurate test.

We’re in the deep freeze here and everything outside has a layer of ice on it, the cars are encased in it, ugh. Heading out to the dentist in a bit and I hope at least some of it melts by the time I have to head out. I’ll try really hard not to break a hip on the way to the car I really, really hate winter, it’s official lol.

Have a good day everyone!

 

[MarionC]

Oh June, just as we are getting better weather, you are getting worse!
I’m sorry. I swear NC did not send it to you. And please be careful, or course i know you already are, but your NIRDI mom had to say it anyway.
Missy, yes sadly i think the blood test for allergies is a joke. I hope my insurance covers it!

To both Missy and June, thank you for your nice responses to my weather complaints. Someone i know in france wrote to say
« Why would you live there? »
Not very helpful when you are in the middle of it lol

Tommiy looks beautiful no matter what his mood. I hope he has recovered from having a tooth pulled. Poor sweet pets can’t tell us about their aches and pains, but at least we can try to keep life good for them.
Marcy, glad you got it! I was a little late, but i will blame it on the snow.
Pbear, don’t work too hard.

I will say again how much i hate my ipad. It misepells wrds, highlights the last word in every sentence and then deletes it. It makes writing more than a fw sentences a hed@che.

Damp it!

 

[Austina]

Hello lovelies

Oh boo that the allergy tests didn’t show anything @Jimmianne it certainly sounds that they’re not really that reliable. Hope you’re not out of pocket.
Hope you and the animals are all safe and the weather isn’t causing you any more problems.

Be careful @junebug17 I hate ice, especially black ice. Hope your dental appt went well today and you didn’t need any nasty treatment.

Hi @PierreBear hope you feel better soon and that works isn’t too onerous.

Your sour cream sugar cookies sound interesting @marcy , does the sour cream counteract the sweetness of the sugar? It’s not something we have here. It’s awful when you don’t sleep well and wake up feeling more tired than when you went to bed. Hope you got some zzzzzzzz last night.

Good for you @CJ2008 to trying new things and eating healthier. I’m trying to be good in anticipation of the cruise, although I think I eat less because it’s all portion controlled, and I rarely have more than 2 course. There are those, of course, who’ll always have the whole 5 or 6 courses

Unfortunately, I don’t have any pictures of Tig to share, long before the digital age @missy. Hope Tommy is feeling fine today. Two weeks today we set sail, and I’m really looking forward to feeling warm without being bundled up. Who knew we were such fashionistas in our Ugg boots

I do wonder if having a restricted diet is affecting your health, and it’s certainly worth trying adding some fats to see if there’s any benefit to you. There are lots of things that I don’t eat, purely because I don’t like the taste, but on the whole, I eat from every food group. Fortunately I don’t have any allergies or health issues to contend with, it must be so difficult for you.

I’m absolutely fuming because I ordered some soup coupes to match my my ‘special’ dinner service. Despite being well wrapped and marked Fragile, when I opened it, they were smashed to bits. They’re extremely difficult to source as they’re discontinued, so I was thrilled to find them. I feel sorry for the seller because they’ve issued a full refund so are out of pocket because of Royal Mail’s incompetence



I had another dental appt today. Purely vanity this time as my upper left 4 was a bit set back, and I felt at certain angles it looked like I had a missing tooth, so I went and had it built up so it’s evened up my smile .

Hope you’re all doing well in this cold weather

 

[marcy]

Hi NIRDI’s!

Jimmianne, I bet the DNA test was what they did to me years ago and it was worthless too. It’s so much easier than scratch tests and not very cheap. You have a lot of nice weather there too. I hope it warms up soon. Darn that you hate typing on your iPad, maybe get yourself a keyboard for it. Marty has the keyboard case and loves it.

Missy, I really like applesauce too. I need to pick some up or convince Marty to make us some. That would be better. I hope Greg had a good report card at the doctor.

PierreBear, I hope you feel better soon.

Junebug, I was telling Marty tonight I’m nervous to know my bear is packing a gun. Those rabbits are the ones who need watched. I hope the ice was melted by the time you had to go out; I hate ice too.

Austina, I hadn’t thought about the sour cream countering the sugar in those cookies but it does. They aren’t as sweet as regular sugar cookies. It also has nutmeg in the recipe so a nice mixture of tastes. I used to send them in to work with Marty and we ran in to his old boss one time and the first then she said to me was - do you still make those sugar cookies? I am so sorry your dishes arrived smashed. When we bought our china a few years ago we had some pieces arrive broken; the company sent us replacement pieces without any hassle at all. Since you are getting a refund does it mean they can’t get more pieces for you? I like your dishes; very classic and elegant looking.

Today was interesting at work. My boss called us all together to let us know management said they aren’t laying anyone off this year but plan on moving some people around and if someone quits they won’t be replaced. We could get moved to other departments as the need arises and without much notice. Some departments are swing or mids including weekends. Of course my employees were told last year to grow or go and make yourself indispensable. I think some of them are worried now. My boss actually sent out a list of 10 questions we are to answer and bring to a meeting with him. One of my whiners had her meeting today. She showed up 8 minutes late and hadn’t answered her questions. He tagged her right off as that doesn’t show me initiative of communication sills. She naturally fingered pointed all of her problems at the world (I am sure I was in there). He told me my team will step up or I’ll be busying working with them on performance plans. I also am going to train with another department and then those 2 employees will probably merge with my team. If I sell my car maybe I can retire.

I went to lunch with a friend so we went to our favorite Mexican restaurant. While eating my taco I remembered that was what I was making for supper today. Good thing I like tacos. At least lunch was soft shell and supper was corn shell.

I slept better than Marty last night. Poor guy got up at 3:30.
Take care.
Marcy

 

[PierreBear]

Hi Ladies! I didn't do a full catch up but the picture of the dishes caught my eye. @Austina - I'm so sorry that the product didn't come in the condition as expected. Very frustrating. You mentioned that they are discontinued so does this mean that the seller has some more to replace the broken ones or you have to return them all?

This past weekend I accidentally broke a wine glass. I don't drink wine because I'm allergic to it but we were trying to remove a rug to see if we should go without one in that area of the house or replace it. Two wine glasses hit at the very same moment and one shattered. I've never liked these wine glasses but they were the least expensive ones at Bed Bath and Beyond and we were modest doing our wedding registry back in the day. They are at least crystal so it feels good when you hold it in your hands but the shape is so narrow that it makes cleaning difficult. @Austina - I've though about getting rid of all of them and then buying the ones I actually liked but just can't bite the bullet since it's just cheaper to replace one instead of getting a new set. Will you be in that similar situation?

OK still have a light cold and work is full speed ahead. Doing my best to stay in touch. Hello Hello again! Take care my beautiful NIRDIs!

 

[missy]

Good morning girls!

Junie hope your dentist appointment went well yesterday! How are you feeling? And the ice and snow is all melting by us and hopefully by you too. I think it might be in the 50s tomorrow woohoo. Here's hoping it lasts. Hugs to you and Sweet Zoe!

Jimmianne my derm confirmed that the DNA allergy testing is unreliable and inaccurate. Sorry about that. I hope it is warming up by you like it is by us. Days keep getting longer and soon (hopefully!) Spring and the milder temps will arrive. Hang in there and hugs.

Marcy I love mexican food and especially love tequila straight up no salt. Hope you enjoyed lunch with your friend and I think that sounds like good news that no one at work will be layed off but I do get the concerns. You are an invaluable employee so you are super safe no matter what. I hope your whiny staff shapes up quickly. Glad you slept better but sorry about Marty's early wake up. Have a good day at work and I hope it goes smoothly. (((Hugs))).

Austina yay cruise is happening soon. So much to look forward to. Retirement doesn't suck! LOL. So sorry about the soup coupes arriving broken. That is terrible. Glad you got your money back but I am sorry they are hard to find and replace. I hope you can locate some to make up for the broken ones. They are so pretty. You are right in that my diet is probably too limited. David said yesterday fish are dumb in order to convince me to go back to eating them and stop being vegan. I thought that was an unkind statement about animals even if it is a bit true. Just because a living creature isn't as smart as us (IMO) doesn't give us the right to murder and eat them. Nevertheless I am a Pescetarian again just to see if it improves my skin. David despite what he said doesn't think my diet has anything to do with my skin but more on that below. (((Hugs))) and thank you for your thoughts. I always appreciate them!

CJ my new favorite snack are walnuts. Yummmm. We can share ideas for healthy snacking...or via email too. I am doing more info sharing via email these days with the NIRDIs. So not everything has to be shared here. Just saying.

PierreBear sorry I see I have a few messages from you and as soon as I finish my coffee and breakfast I will read and answer them to the best of my ability. I got up super late this AM and have not processed anything lol. Glad you are feeling better and hugs.

So Greg got a clean bill of health re the melanoma woohoo!!! He saw the oncology derm and also got his molesafe results from December and he is A OK and next check is 3 months. What a huge relief! And then I saw David who still is stumped re my eyebrow. He did another 8 vials of blood this time testing for full thyroid panel, vitamin deficiencies (my request) and all the hair blood tests whatever that entails. So we will see. In the meantime he wants me to start applying Protopic again which I felt didn't help at all and in fact irritated my eyebrow skin but he thinks I didn't give it enough of a chance. So I am applying it again for now and going slowly and evaluating day by day. Thanks for all your good thoughts here and offline. I appreciate those of you who continue to be my friend and support and love me and right back at ya! XOXO.

Have a great day girls! See you later. (((HUGS))).

 

[missy]

Greg’s at beach house meeting with carpenter and electrician. He texted we live on the Arctic Circle. Lol yes it seems we do.











And this is 2 days after warmer ie above freezing temps so you can imagine the deep freeze we had. Still not melting at the beach despite the warmer temps.

 

[Austina]

Hello lovelies

Good grief @missy to the beach shots (predictive text came out as shitzu )

So glad to hear Greg got the all clear, I know it’s always a worry until you know everything is fine. I hope he didn’t find any problems at the beach house. I suppose all you can do is try the ointment again and see if it helps, then at least you can tell David you gave it a good try if it doesn’t. Hmmm, his comment about fish isn’t nice at all. I’m sure as a living creature, they feel pain, and I hate seeing fishermen yanking hooks out of their mouths
I try to buy ethically sourced meat, but I honestly couldn’t see a time when I wouldn’t eat it as I feel I need to eat as balanced a diet as I can, to stay healthy, which I am. I do admire your ethics in being vegan/vegetarian and also that you don’t moralise about it.

Sorry you’re still under the weather @PierreBear and that work is manic.

Things sound unsettling at work @marcy - sell the car and become a retiree like Missy and I, then you can spend time doing what you want to do, instead of babysitting people who are so stupid they’d turn up late and unprepared for a meeting.

I have found some more soup coupes but they are much more expensive than the ones that arrived smashed, so I’ll just keep looking, and hopefully sometime I’ll get lucky and find some at a price I’m willing to pay.

It was definitely warmer today, 8 deg C so we had a nice walk in the sunshine. I tidied Dottie up this afternoon as her beard and eyebrows had got rather unruly, hemmed my trousers, packed my clothes in vacuum bags (will do Colin’s tomorrow) and cooked a big batch of chilli. It’s days like this I wonder how I had time to work

Big wave out to all the lovely NIRDIs

 

[junebug17]

Hi all!

Missy, that is great news about Greg, what a relief! David’s comment was insensitive and unnecessary; sometimes people just don’t think about what they’re saying :roll I hope the dietary changes help your skin issues and the testing reveals some new info that might help. Hopefully the ointment will work better this time around but if not at least you can tell David you tried. Sending good thoughts and healing vibes to you. Wow, those pics that Greg took are amazing! It’s warming up here too, we had some weird ice storm on Monday night that iced up every surface and luckily it melted by Tuesday afternoon.

Jimmianne, sorry you’re having so much trouble with the ipad. I use a keyboard with mine and it seems to work pretty well. I still think about getting another laptop but I’m cheap and lazy lol.

Austina, that is such a shame that the soup coupes were smashed, I’m sorry. I hope you can find similar ones for a reasonable price. Nice that the dentist could help with the issue with your tooth, must feel good to have that fixed. Yay to warmer weather, I’m sure it makes your walks with Dottie a little more pleasant. Lol to wondering how you managed to work, I know what you mean - seems like there’s always some household chore to do.

Marcy, sorry this week at work has been upsetting. Good news that nobody is being let go but I get that the potential for abrupt changes is unsettling and creates tension in the office. Hopefully your problem employees will get their acts together sooner rather than later but I know it’s probably hard for you to visualize that right now.

I can see where you might be a little nervous having an armed bear in the house lol, maybe it’s not such a good idea

PB, take care of yourself and feel better soon! Good luck with work and I hope things don’t get overwhelmingly busy for you.

My dentist appointment went fine, just a cleaning so nothing too painful lol. The salt we put on the driveway and walkway somehow managed to get all over the hardwood floors throughout the first floor so I spent the day cleaning it up - which turned out to be a major pain and took forever. Have I mentioned I hate winter?

I hope everyone has a great evening, and a good day tomorrow- take care! <3

 

[marcy]

Hi NIRDIs!

PierreBear, I hope your cold gets better. I really like crystal glasses too.

Missy, so you take your tequila straight? i really like margaritas but recently the better tequila seems to make me sick; the cheap stuff doesn’t bother me at all. Maybe it’s overexposure. Ha Ha. My day at work was okay. I had my meeting with my boss; sounds like my employees won’t have a good year if they don’t clean up their act. I will let them all talk to my boss first then I’ll tell them hey this is on you. I tried to help them for the last few years. Glad to hear Greg did get a good report at the oncologist. I hope some of your tests at the dermatologist find some answers. Good luck with the Protopic this time. Wow that is still a lot of snow and ice at the beach. It’s pretty.

Austina, there are days I’m tempted to retire. Maybe they will transfer smarter people to my department. One can always hope. Good idea to keep looking for the cups at a price you want to pay. That’s nice you got in a walk today. I am sure Dottie is always excited to go for a walk. Chili sounds great. It’s good you enjoy retirement.

Junebug, yes the armed bear is making me nervous. I might have to get a light saber for Snoopy. Good deal your dentist appointment went well and was painless. Darn that the ice melt salt got all over your floors. That is always a pain to clean up.

We had rain today and will get snow tonight. Our temps dropped down to the 20’s. Darn. I knew it was too good to be true.
Marty is at the gym and even loaded the dishwasher with his dishes from the day. I made mini pizzas for supper tonight; baked one and froze three.
Friday is in sight. Woo hoo!
Have a great Thursday.
Marcy

 

[CJ2008]

Good morning NIRDIs! It's almost Friday woo hoo!

missy - now that I'm eating better I am starting to grab all the healthy snack options too. I had a yogurt last night yippee I hadn't looked at a yogurt in like a month and a half. This is not a good tasting yogurt, BTW. It's one of those plain, super simple ingredient yogurts with no sugar added. So it take EFFORT to eat it. LOL I usually mix fruits in but I was too lazy last night. I saw somewhere else that you're trying to incorporate healthy fats in which is great too. I eat avocados, peanut butter (simple ingredients one - peanuts and salt), and I use Grapeseed Oil for cooking, and Extra Virgin or Virgin Olive Oil for condiments. I *like* fat in my diet. I feel like it helps keep muscle and things hydrated and supple.

Sorry about the comment David made. It was definitely insensitive. Fish are as smart as they need to be for what they do in this life. So it's smart enough.

You can reach out to me via email too you know. Just saying.

SO SO SO SO glad Greg is OK. YAY.

marcy - your employee shows up late AND the questions not answered? Damn. Glad to hear they're not laying anyone off, but having to change shifts can s*ck big time. Is there a chance that you might get put into a different shift? Or just your staff?

My hair still looks terrible because I never dyed it yet Seriously I am getting more and more lazy by the minute. I will do it today though. I'm pretty sure. LOL

austina - I really liked those saucer things sorry that they came broken they're really pretty. I had that happen with the plates I had bought when we first got married. I had gotten them from Bloomingdale's and then they discontinued them. So when I needed a replacement it was a pain. Enjoy your cruise and hugs to Dottie girl.

Hi PB! Hi June!

Hi Everyone!

Hugs!

Countdown to Friday! YAY!

 

[missy]

Good morning girls! Thank you all for the good wishes for Greg and his health. I really appreciate that and so does Greg. (((HUGS))).

Austina yes the ice went 5 feet deep at the shoreline in the beach house backyard. It is crazy. Is the weather warming up by you still? It is going to hit 50s today but then get cold again by Monday. Winter is really just getting started here if I am being truthful with myself.

Haha you were quite busy yesterday and good for you. I don't know when you had time to work at a formal job either lol. I bet Dottie looks beautiful all freshly groomed and good for you making a big batch of chili and packing too. Colin is a lucky guy that is all I can say. You are efficient and thorough and get a lot done dear Austina!

Great idea to keep looking for less expensive soup coupes and I hope you find them. Is there a search term you are looking for because I am happy to help you search if you would like the help. Just let me know what to search and I would be more than happy to be on the lookout for you.

Thanks so much for saying that I don't moralize about not eating animals. I really appreciate that because I am a firm believer in living and let living for the most part and we were meant to be omnivores so who the heck am I to judge or say my way is the better way. No way. It is up to the individual but I am not perfect. I don't care for when people eat veal or wear fur etc. But as for eating meat and being an omnivore well that is what nature intended. My choice is simply my choice. Not more right or wrong than another. Except perhaps for health reasons and we will see what the tests show if I am deficient in anything. I know it's not a complete test as David did say it won't pick up all deficiencies. One can eat vegan in a completely healthy way if one isn't sensitive to certain things. Turns out beans are inflammatory. Yup crazy right? Anyway as I wrote before David doesn't feel diet has much to do with what is going on with me but feels it cannot hurt to start eating fish and getting what he considers to be a more balanced diet.

I am with you re pulling the hooks out of the fish's mouth and I hate that. I also dislike people who fish just for fun. If you are eating the fish OK but to fish for sport is just cruel. Same for hunting but don't get me started on that or perhaps I will be moralizing and I don't want to be that person. But yeah I am so not a fan of hunting in general and especially just for sport and I am so glad you get your meat from ethical sources.

Junie I am glad the dentist appointment went well and cleanings are good and dental work not so much so glad you didn't have any issues! Ugh to getting salt on the hardwood. What a hassle but glad you got to and from the dentist safely! Sorry about the floor mess though and glad you got that cleaned up. I am with you. I hate winter a lot. But looking on the bright side it makes us appreciate the better weather right? LOL I could do without extreme cold and extreme heat and still appreciate all the good weather. I bet I would have no problem appreciating the good weather without the bad. Fingers crossed the winter weather calms down and isn't too bad the rest of the winter. Hoping hard.

Marcy I am sorry work is such a pain. I am glad you have such a good attitude about it though and you are so capable and ready for anything that comes your way. You are a resilient cookie that is for sure. Speaking of cookies (haha see what I did there lol) do you have any cookie pics for us? Yes I like my tequila straight no salt. Yummmmm. Sorry your temps have gone down so much and sending you warm hugs. And please hug all the bears and even the killer bunnies for me.

Jimmianne I am with you re the autocorrect. And the words they go to are so funny too. I have trouble posting from my phone but the iPad is better because of the larger print. But mainly I prefer posting from my laptop. It is the easiest way for me to post though I often post from my iPad as I am working out. I am a multitasker what can I say. Hope all is well and quiet on the farm today.

Hi CJ! Yes of course I love emailing you and chatting via email. I am holding off on dyeing my hair too. Maybe just wait and see how it grows in? So much easier than the constant maintenance yanno. Sorry the yogurt wasn't yummy. I cannot eat yogurt because of dairy though as we all know I cheat in summer with ice-cream haha. Yes Greg cooks with avocado oil (withstands high heat) and I add olive oil and apple cider vinegar to my salads now. Apple Cider Vinegar is supposed to be good for us. Is Grapeseed oil one of those good oils for high heat cooking? I agree with you. We need fats. For some reason I wasn't getting them but not on purpose. Big hugs to you sweetie.


Enjoy the day girls! Leaving you with a few pics from yesterday during the reno. It's a huge mess.







Stay warm and safe and hugs to all of you.

 

[PierreBear]

Good morning NIRDI beauties! I’m still *cough cough* under the weather and I definitely think it’s a cold and not allergies. I like to fool myself… am I sick or really not sick. I’m thankful that it’s not something that is stopping me from my usual routines though. Made a red lentil soup for the first time yesterday since it was on NY Times top 10 recipes. Was really impressed on how it tasted and would remake it again. I’ve also been on the plan to work away some holiday pounds @CJ2008. I’m doing my best with some lighter soups at the moment. However, I did eat a delicious bar of chocolate throughout the day. : )

Just wanted to say hello to everyone. Work has been busy but still manageable. As much as I enjoy the easier days, it’s also nice to be challenged. I’ll have to share more at another time but I was offered a part-time job. I’m thinking about taking it on as the current company I work for might not be in existence for too much longer so the part-time gig might be a good transition. Anyhow, something that I would consider after this busy season ends in February.

Taking my old car to the shop tomorrow. Poor baby has 160K miles on it and has a *pop* noise when you turn it. Some leakage by the tire so decided to take it in and get her all fixed up again.

Catching up a little bit below but apologies as I’m sure I missed other things and didn’t go too far back. I do miss ya’ll though!! PS – There is progress with the ring and I’m counting down that I’ll have a final product to share within two weeks or so. Don’t want to tease ya’ll too much but wanted to share high level since ya’ll have been part of this saga with me since goshhh… last August?! Have a great rest of the week and weekend!

@missy – Thanks for sharing the reno pictures. It does look like a lot of work is being done. What are those big Anderson boxes? Windows? Hope you are doing well health wise! Hugs to you and the cats!

@CJ2008 – Oohh girl, I’m a lover of yogurt. I’ve grown to like the plain Chobani yogurt (it’s the one I get with a lot of protein and not much sugar). I mix it in the yogurt with cooked oatmeal and add in fresh fruit. Drizzled with some honey on top and then BAM! A great breakfast!

Oh by the way, how did your husband enjoy the fancy watch you got him? I think I remembered correctly that it was you who picked a luxury watch for him for Christmas?

@marcy – Mini pizzas… how wonderful. Did you do different toppings on each? I still need to try making pizzas one day. What do you do for sauce? Can you just use spaghetti sauce or canned tomato sauce?

@junebug17 – Bummer… sorry that you got salt all over the hardwood floors. However, so glad that your dentist appointment went well. How is life post dealing with real-estate sales? Much more free time but I guess that is eaten up with winter chores?

@Austina – Wow so impressed that you can hem. DH got me a sewing machine at a garage sale for me. It was untouched for a year so then we sold it. The sewing machine is so intimidating to me! I’ve hemmed a few dresses by using those iron on tapes. How did you learn this trade?

Yum to a big batch of chili! Perfect for cold weather!

@Jimmianne – oh my gosh… your miniature ponies with those blankets. Adorable!!!! Sorry if you already shared this story but how did you decide to get mini ponies? How do they compare to the normal size ones? Ahhh I just want to hug them. Can adults ride it or that would be too much weight?! Cute!!! Thanks for sharing!

 

[missy]

PB how exciting about a new part time job. Fingers crossed for you. And I’m sorry you’re still under the weather. More healing vibes being sent your way and hugs.


So turns out unfortunately we need pendants over the new island. I wanted a clean minimalistic look but the electrician says that any other lighting will cast shadows on the island because of the ceiling beams or something like that. We are going to have in ceiling lighting of course in the rest of kitchen but over island we need pendants. So I’ve been shopping online and so far this is one of my favorites. But it’s hard for me to visualize so would appreciate your thoughts on this one and any additional thoughts you might have.

Reminder kitchen is dark wood floor, all stainless appliances, white quartz island and counters white shaker wood cabinets, and grey and white marble tile backsplash. We are doing 2 pendants. Island is 5 feet by 6 feet. Thanks.

http://www.bellacor.com/productdeta...-brushed-nickel-one-light-pendant-1567563.htm

 

[junebug17]

Will be back later, but wanted to pop in to say that I love that light fixture Missy! I think it will look great with the rest of the kitchen. A nice combination of both a vintage feel and a modern vibe, very cool!

 

[Austina]

Hello lovelies

Wow, looks like they’re cracking on with the kitchen @missy and I think the pendants will be a good match with the stainless appliances. I’ve just removed the pendant in favour of the ‘wavy’ light in the kitchen. We have the recesses ceiling lights too, and what I’ve noticed is that the kitchen looks much bigger without the lights hanging down (chopping up the sight line) and the light is much brighter. I know you need the extra lighting over the island, but I thought I’d mention it.

Thank you so much for your kind offer of help locating the china, I feel confident that I’ll be able to find more at a price I want to pay, just have to be patient as I’m not in desperate need. When we moved into our last house in 1999, I broke a liqueur glass. I searched high and low, and the only place I could locate one (Royal Doulton lead crystal that had been discontinued 6 months earlier:roll) was in the US. It cost me an absolute fortune, and I had it shipped to my friend in Texas who brought it over when they visited just got to hope when we pack up the house, the movers really wrap everything well.

Sorry to hear your work situation is precarious @PierreBear, but hopefully if things don’t work out, the part time job will fill the gap. Take care of yourself and keep warm, your weather is rather odd at the moment. We are soup ‘twins’, so far this week I’ve made carrot & coriander, leek & potato and today, French onion.

So glad your dental check up went well @junebug17 , but ugh to the salt messing up your floors. I’m not enjoying the cold either, and coupled with the wet, it’s just so mucky everywhere.

I think you can turn off the predictive text on the iPad @Jimmianne it’s the only thing I really don’t like about it. Hope you and the animals are all ok.

Oh no to more snow @marcy , hope it’s not too bad for you. I’m following your example and cooking one to eat now and at least one for the freezer. Friday soon, then the weekend

Hi @CJ2008 glad you’re finding ways to eat more healthily. Given time our tastebuds get used to anything, so I’m sure the things you’re not finding great now will taste good soon.

Bagged up all Colin’s clothes today, a lot less than mine but he will get things laundered on board and I won’t. Is it just me, but I don’t want strangers touching my underwear? and my linen clothes need ironing whilst wet, which they won’t do,

Can’t believe the cruise is only just over a week away, just got to hope we don’t get bad weather affecting the flight

TGIF tomorrow, hair appointments for us both, and all the usual fun things to do around the house NOT

 

[marcy]

Hi NIRDIs!

CJ, I’m with you on being excited that tomorrow is Friday. Good deal for reaching for healthy snacks. I agree having to work a different shift would be awful. I think my job is safe but I wouldn’t put money on it either. I imagine if my boss has a say he’d pick some of my employees first. Time will tell.

Missy, wow to 5 feet of ice at the beach. Thanks about the kind words about my job and attitude. I figure why worry about things until they happen. If they do; I’ll deal with it then. I have not made the cookies yet; maybe this weekend. That recipe has to chill for a while so it takes a few hours. I’ll definitely get pictures. The reno is coming along. Sweet. I think that light will look great with the rest of your new kitchen.

PierreBear, oh no you are still under the weather. Get better. I bet your delicious soup hit the spot too (and chocolate of course). Cool to have a part time job offer; good luck figuring out what you want to do about that. I hope they fix your car. How exciting your ring is entering the final stage. I have made pizza with different toppings but one of my favorite toppings (Canadian bacon and pineapple) didn’t freeze well; it seemed to make the crust soggy. I do better with just cheese or hamburger. I like the Contadina pizza sauce.

Hi Junebug.

Austina, glad you are freezing some prepped food for later. I like freezing food for later; it comes in very handy when Marty is out of town or at the gym. How exciting your cruise is so soon. I totally get you on taking enough undies. I do the same thing. Marty packs light and I take way too many clothes.

My day started with a gorgeous sunrise and the fun of going 110 mph before I had to slow down and turn in to work. The rest of my day was way less exciting.

Take care.
Marcy