A Very Different Kind of Life

[Lily&Me]

Thank you, Mimi.


Maggie

[switz]

Very lovely statements. One is most comforting and the other is reality.

[Lily&Me]

Have hung my pretty, rose-covered coffee/tea mugs on hooks in my kitchen, where I can see and enjoy them, transitioning them (4) to primarily decor.

At 6 ounces, they have been very comforting to hold these past months, but impractical for me in terms of quantity. Can't just stow them away in a cupboard, as I need to able to look at them. Even found one for the Interstate, which nestles perfectly in the open galley shelf.

Back to a 20 ounce mug for my morning coffee (it's half regular, half decaf, folks), that allows me to watch the news, check the Forums, answer emails, etc., without getting up every little bit to refill my cup.

My love of good coffee is an outcome of Life With Doug, as I was almost exclusively a tea girl back then. Still love my tea, but it is a mid-day pause these days. In the mornings, I need coffee.

Rose anything catches my eye, and reminds me of Doug, and so I am unabashedly surrounding myself with rose bits and pieces. Roses warm my heart and make me smile.

Doug is not here to purse his lips and say things are getting a bit too "girlie" in the house to suit him. He would ultimately approve, though, of my somewhat rose-saturated environs these days, as he knows.

Found a simple pattern for a flower scrubbie that you can make in different sizes. Crocheted a small pile of these out of those beautiful, variegated cottons and put them in a tall apothecary jar in my bathroom. Voila! Roses! Lovely.

Lily and I made a day-run to the cemetery last week, as a careless weedeater had lopped off several primary branches of the rosebush we planted at Doug's grave.

The bush is otherwise thriving, and full of new blooms. Now protected by landscape bricks, and with a few shells from Edisto Beach nestled at its' base.

Looking forward to camping with the grands/adults. Hope we get a weekend of this dry and moderate weather we are experiencing. Mmmmm, campfires.


Evenings on the IPad:

If you truly want to grow as a person and learn, you should realize that the universe has enrolled you in the graduate program of life, called loss. ~ Elisabeth Kübler~Ross


Maggie

[Lily&Me]

Originally Posted by switz

Very lovely statements. One is most comforting and the other is reality.

Thank you, switz.

They comfort me, too.


Maggie

[DIR1]

Hi Maggie...I found that t-shirt rug pattern on line about a year ago...collected bunches of t-shirts...so far all I have is bags of t-shirts!!!! ahahaha...glad you're doing so well and having fun too!!! hugs, gail

[Lily&Me]

Thanks, Gail.

Got off to a roaring start on that rug. It has then sat, untouched, this entire week.

Spent a day with a high school friend, who now lives in California, and made a run out of town to visit my sister-in-law, who is in the hospital again.

Am worried about her, as health issues are compounding and this the one raising the grands.

Keep her in your thoughts, if you would.

All is well, otherwise.


Maggie

[mcair]

Made my laundry detergent today. Cleaned 2 loads with it. Even a somewhat skeptical Roger had to admit that it smells good. Never expected to be grinding FelsNaptha in my food processor!

[cwf]

Dearest Maggie,
Thanks for showing us the tough and soft sides of grace... Even as you motor on...your caring shows with brilliance of God's love in simply profound ways.

You are a blessing to us!

Peace and blessings,
Channing and Phyllis

[Lily&Me]

Originally Posted by cwf

Dearest Maggie,
Thanks for showing us the tough and soft sides of grace... Even as you motor on...your caring shows with brilliance of God's love in simply profound ways.

You are a blessing to us!

Peace and blessings,
Channing and Phyllis

Such a compliment! It is humbling.

Thank you, Channing and Phyllis.


Maggie

[Lily&Me]

Originally Posted by mcair

Made my laundry detergent today. Cleaned 2 loads with it. Even a somewhat skeptical Roger had to admit that it smells good. Never expected to be grinding FelsNaptha in my food processor!

Good for you, Alice!

I do love the smell of that concoction..... while I'm making it, every time I open the bin I store it in, and in the washing machine.

I can't stand the thought of soap grinds in my food processor , so just use a hand grater I can then scrub with a brush.

It does a fine job of washing, altho I will still use Woolite Dark on what I call "good darks", that I don't want to fade. Use the homemade on everything else.

Purists would leave out the OxyClean, but I have been a big fan of this product since it came out, and leave it in. I'm not a purist, rather a do what works-ist.

Keeps my whites, white and bright, which is what I like.


Maggie

[Lily&Me]

Sister-in-law is improving, now day 5 in the hospital. How sick do you have to be these days to be hospitalized for so long.

Is determined she will go home to her own house, not for a few days her daughter's or mine....where she can be cared for a bit and tended to.

Stubborn old woman. I think she's going to let me bring the Interstate and stay with her a few days. Or, her son will take a couple of precious sick days and stay in the house with her. If not, it simply won't be an option for her.

I could park by the barn (yes, the barn), in the shade.....she can be in her own place but have backup on the premises, and someone to make tea, get meals, etc. And, the grands can return home, and her daughter can go back to work.

They have horses and chickens out there, who knows what else, and a new brood of chicks by a mama who hid her nest and hatched them out. Cute.

Her oldest daughter has been caring for the grands, tending with the boys to the animals, and closely monitoring her mothers' needs and hospitalization. Made of very strong and sturdy stuff, that one.

Lily would be overstimulated and have to be tethered. I have a 30' horse lead I bought out west a few years ago, for just such occasions.

We'll see.


Maggie


Evenings on the IPad:

If ever there is tomorrow when we're not together, there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. But the most important thing is, even if we're apart... I'll always be with you....If there ever comes a day when we can't be together, keep me in your heart, I'll stay there forever.
~ Winnie the Pooh

[Gene]

Maggie, tea and caffeine together are a great combination. Tea may not have as much caffeine, but you already dilute the coffee. I order Market Spice tea from Redmond (near Seattle), Wash. The cinnamon orange version tastes great and will get you pumped. I haven't had coffee in 35 years, but caffeine is necessary to human wellbeing.

Gene

Gene

[Lily&Me]

I agree, Gene, that caffeine is necessary for human well-being. In moderation.

A caffeine-free life is not for me. It's the first thing I want in the morning, and would fight for it if necessary.


Maggie

[Gene]

Originally Posted by doug&maggie

A caffeine-free life is not for me. It's the first thing I want in the morning, and would fight for it if necessary.


Maggie

Please send photos of the fight if it comes to that.

Gene

[Lily&Me]

I wasn't anticipating a physical fight, but perhaps a between-the-doctor-and-me fight. Don't know how entertaining pictures would then be.

I've already gone, years ago and for good reason, to limiting caffeine intake....best done, for me, with half-calf and none at all after mid-day.

I like the bit of a jolt that coffee gives, but also the taste of it.

Need to consume several cups to feel satisfied.


Maggie

[DIR1]

I've been drinking Decaf for years also... Now the real stuff makes me jittery and my heart race!!! so I avoid it... I drink lots of tea also.... Hugs, gail...

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Hi, I used to be a Coke-a-holic; I used to drink lots of RC, Pepsi, and/or Coke. One evening, I had what I call an MSG attack. But I was eating at home so I know there was no MSG. Must be a heart attack? Go spend the night in the Hospital. Nothing found. I call it a fake heart attack now. I stopped drinking Colas. My caffeine comes from one cup of sugar water [coffee] in the morning and lots of iced tea. [also sugar water according to my wife] Caffeine never seemed to effect my sleep, but seems to help while driving long distances.

[Lily&Me]

I like a cup of hot tea, or a glass of iced, mid-day, to keep me from falling asleep at 7:30-8:00pm.

Need it on the road, too, I'm finding, or I get very drowsy after a couple of hours of driving.

It is fall-like cool here.

Lovely, and perfect timing, as my 18 year old central AC unit has just bit the dust.

The tech here to service it a couple of months ago told me the compressor was starting to strain. I could hear it, too, and it's been getting worse, so I've been expecting it.

Thank you for waiting til cool weather.

They'll be here this morning.


Maggie

[DIR1]

I've read that an apple will do better at perking you up than caffeine...??? that's what we do now... seems to work... hugs, gail

[Lily&Me]

Hmmmm, I might try that.

I dodged a bullet on the AC. Was not looking forward to that kind of financial outlay just now.

There was a loose wire, fixed at no charge by the kindly service tech, so it is working and not in need of replacement.....just yet.

It is surely on its' last leg, tho, so plan to pre-emptively replace it late this fall, when I can get a good unit at a better price than mid-summer.

Sister-in-law was discharged from the hospital today, and conceded to staying with the kids at her daughter's for a few days, where her mom also is available. My services as care-tender and help-on-premises will not be needed.

Have finished an enormous task here today, that I have been working on, off and on, for the past couple of months. Will spare y'all the details, but when I say it was tantamount to the breech birth of a 12 pound baby, you mothers will have some level of understanding. Long and arduous.....but now done, and well.

Going to have a slightly larger glass of transition wine tonight, to celebrate.

Tomorrow, while the weather is still cool, going to finish cleaning up the Interstate, and get things put back away in there that I have been just tossing in the side door.


Maggie



Evenings on the IPad:

Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened. - Dr. Seuss