NFW
Jul. 7th, 2025 03:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
susandennisWhen I asked the podiatrist what kind of shoes I should wear, he pulled out a piece of paper that listed all kinds of shoes and marked 3. All were barely under $200. The least offensive, looks wise, was Brooks and I ordered them. They are horrible huge clunky trainer type shoes. I sent the first pair back because they were too short. Well, guess, what the second pair are too short, too. Fuck. It. I'm not spending that kind of money on shoes that I hate. So these go back. He also told me about a store he recommends. I know where it is and it's not a horrible ride from here and relatively easy to get to. Maybe I'll go there.
I picked up the IRS letter. yep. They are taking another 90 days. This will probably go on for years.
Aqua yoga with the new guy was ok. Not fabulous but ok.
I picked up the IRS letter. yep. They are taking another 90 days. This will probably go on for years.
Aqua yoga with the new guy was ok. Not fabulous but ok.
Another love note from the IRS
Jul. 7th, 2025 07:26 amsusandennis90 days ago, the IRS sent me a letter telling me they needed another 90 days to process my 2022 amended return. Today, USPS (informed delivery email) says I have a letter from the IRS. I'm guessing they want another 90 days. The online account system is not accessible right now (happens a lot more these days - hmmmmm) but that probably wouldn't tell me anything anyway. I've filed the whole thing in the I No Longer Care file.
Also newly in there is the whole backup situation. After this weekend's heavy lifting, I spent some time going through scenarios of data disasters and decided that I am more backed up than I thought and I don't need any more tending. So...
Every morning I have a digital routine. I catch up on emails, check on my finances, I catch up on my Dreamwidth Reading feed, some subreddits (but not so much any more) and then I do my two daily puzzles. A while back I asked for suggestions for phone games like you play standing in line at the grocery store. My long time LJ friend, Howeird, got me sucked into Mahjong solitaire. So every morning, I play the game of the day there. I don't really play it any other time but it's my good morning to Howeird (who died several years ago). And I have a spider solitaire game that has a daily game so I give that a go (two suits, not 3, not 4). Then I feel like I can get on with my day.
This morning I am all digitally caught up and dressed and ready. I have aqua yoga this afternoon and no other big plans. I'll probably puzzle some and knit some and stay inside where it is cool.
Also newly in there is the whole backup situation. After this weekend's heavy lifting, I spent some time going through scenarios of data disasters and decided that I am more backed up than I thought and I don't need any more tending. So...
Every morning I have a digital routine. I catch up on emails, check on my finances, I catch up on my Dreamwidth Reading feed, some subreddits (but not so much any more) and then I do my two daily puzzles. A while back I asked for suggestions for phone games like you play standing in line at the grocery store. My long time LJ friend, Howeird, got me sucked into Mahjong solitaire. So every morning, I play the game of the day there. I don't really play it any other time but it's my good morning to Howeird (who died several years ago). And I have a spider solitaire game that has a daily game so I give that a go (two suits, not 3, not 4). Then I feel like I can get on with my day.
This morning I am all digitally caught up and dressed and ready. I have aqua yoga this afternoon and no other big plans. I'll probably puzzle some and knit some and stay inside where it is cool.
At Home Day
Jul. 6th, 2025 10:27 pmdays_unfoldingI was debating whether to weed this morning—I really want a nap—when it started raining. Well, that settles that. Bella and Gracie were chewing a branch that the tree people left.
I really like Bella and Gracie’s new personalized collars with my phone number on them. I think that I want to get some for Oliver and Lily too. (Zara will never get out. Well, maybe I’ll try one for her too, but she probably will resist it.)
There’s a cat (Oliver) in my face. Someone wants to eat.
Serendipity. I got a mail-order form for a “Comfort Tower Pro” that heats and cools. I’ll put it upstairs.
I think that I’ll stay home today and get the package ready to send tomorrow. My Walmart order hasn’t arrived yet. And I need to empty the storage shed. The dogs are barking at nothing in particular.
Got my groceries in. Crud, my donuts fell down and the dogs helped themselves to two of them.
They are saying thunderstorms later in the afternoon, but I have stuff to do inside.
Ate lunch. Gracie: "Why won’t you give me your food?" Me: "Because it’s my food. I get to eat too." Gracie: "Oh."
The Washington Post suggested taking your bank statements and some highlighters to see where your money is going. That’s easy. I’ll try that. Ordered highlighters.
I got my new loofahs, which I put in the shower. A program to wipe files off my old computer plus some transfer software. And I got the purse in which the tablet fits.
Went to order markers for delivery from Walgreens, but they are "age-restricted items," so I need to be available to receive them. Now they’re saying thunderstorms after 6 PM, so I need to get outside.
Well, I made it to 5 PM. I was dripping sweat, and I figured that the dogs (who were outside with me) were hot too, so we came in. Gracie liked being staked out on a long leash. I got some weeding done in front and almost emptied out the storage shed. (There are a few bags of leaves that I need to take out in the morning. Everything else, including my bicycles and the lawn mower, are out and in the basement.) And the markers arrived.
I’m looking at day lilies for the patch at the corner. I’m going to move some of my orange day lilies and add some additional ones for a day lily patch. But I should deal with the plants that I have first.
The Week keeps on trying to get my mom to resubscribe. I like The Week, so I subscribed on a discount magazines site.
I really want a nap, but I need to feed the beasts first. Here comes the storm. Fed us all. Nap time. Gracie loves having her belly rubbed. Had a nice nap. There was an alert about a severe thunderstorm, but I went back to sleep.
Me: “Bella, leave your brother (Oliver) alone." Bella: “But I like bothering him.” Sigh.
Hmm. Now I’m wondering if I should get up a half-hour early and get the package together to send tomorrow. I’m having stomach cramps and want to go back to sleep.
I'm still having issues with Semagic. It won't let me post to multiple journals.
Alexa is always listening
Jul. 6th, 2025 11:52 ambill_schubertWhile posting my complaint about Amazon's non delivery I must have said something out loud. The delivery that had been postponed to the 9th (same one supposed to be here yesterday) is now coming today. I think Alexa heard me say something about going IRL to get what I wanted.
Backing Up Is Hard To Do
Jul. 6th, 2025 07:57 amsusandennisGoogle has had the same backup situation for years and years. You request what files you want and then they zip them all up and send you a link to all the zip files that you then must download. They do not understand the concept of incremental backup so to keep current, this process must be repeated often. I have a shithoad of files in Google Drive alone and that's not even touching Keep, email, photos, and a variety of other miscellaneous bits.
I am now nearly halfway through downloading the backup to the drive files. Once I get it onto my external drive, I'm done. I may or may not go back and copy over recent files/changes. I could be done. Their scheme just sucks eggs. And while, two days ago, I was all over the whole idea, today I'm rapidly losing interest. Who the fuck cares, I'll be dead anyway and if I'm not, the one vital piece of data I need will be in the haystack that is this mess. So...
My foot, now, only hurts once in a while. It's 100% manageable. And I'm enjoying wearing shoes that feel good knowing they are not exacerbating the issue. (Contrary to what the original podiatrist I went to two years ago told me.)
Today is laundry and baseball. The house is kind of organized. The kitchen is tidy. Nothing else really needs doing. I have good food in the fridge and the freezer. I have no pending Amazon returns. Things seem under control. It's warm here, not hot but the sun is blazing and I love my poorly hung shades and my very chill air conditioning.
I think I'll click a few more downloads (it seems to work best if I download about 4 of these 2 GB files at a time) and go get dressed.
I am now nearly halfway through downloading the backup to the drive files. Once I get it onto my external drive, I'm done. I may or may not go back and copy over recent files/changes. I could be done. Their scheme just sucks eggs. And while, two days ago, I was all over the whole idea, today I'm rapidly losing interest. Who the fuck cares, I'll be dead anyway and if I'm not, the one vital piece of data I need will be in the haystack that is this mess. So...
My foot, now, only hurts once in a while. It's 100% manageable. And I'm enjoying wearing shoes that feel good knowing they are not exacerbating the issue. (Contrary to what the original podiatrist I went to two years ago told me.)
Today is laundry and baseball. The house is kind of organized. The kitchen is tidy. Nothing else really needs doing. I have good food in the fridge and the freezer. I have no pending Amazon returns. Things seem under control. It's warm here, not hot but the sun is blazing and I love my poorly hung shades and my very chill air conditioning.
I think I'll click a few more downloads (it seems to work best if I download about 4 of these 2 GB files at a time) and go get dressed.
All is well with us
Jul. 6th, 2025 09:37 ambill_schubertWell, Amazon is letting me down but other than that.
When I wrote yesterday the water was at its height in our back yard. The rain stopped and everything has been receding since then. The areas of Georgetown and Williamson County that are getting all the attention are east of us. There are trailer parks near the river and they were evacuated as were some apartments also overlooking the river. The bridges were closed near downtown mostly to keep people from going out there and taking pictures.
Although this has happened three times since we moved here in 2005 the population has boomed in this area and, yeah, climate change. The combination of the two will continue to result in this every year about this time. I've been watching the developments move closer and closer over the past couple of years to where I know the river will rise. No one should be surprised but, of course, they are.
As for Amazon they were supposed to deliver three things yesterday one of which was my display port to HTMI adapter. Now it will not be here until Tuesday. I may go to Walmart and buy one. Once you miss a promised Amazon delivery they kick it way down the road. And of course they are in the midst of one of their most active times of year so who knows what will happen and when I might get the adapter. So I might not wait.
Meanwhile, I ordered some protein drink for Dana that arrived same day. So strange.
Nothing on the schedule today.
When I wrote yesterday the water was at its height in our back yard. The rain stopped and everything has been receding since then. The areas of Georgetown and Williamson County that are getting all the attention are east of us. There are trailer parks near the river and they were evacuated as were some apartments also overlooking the river. The bridges were closed near downtown mostly to keep people from going out there and taking pictures.
Although this has happened three times since we moved here in 2005 the population has boomed in this area and, yeah, climate change. The combination of the two will continue to result in this every year about this time. I've been watching the developments move closer and closer over the past couple of years to where I know the river will rise. No one should be surprised but, of course, they are.
As for Amazon they were supposed to deliver three things yesterday one of which was my display port to HTMI adapter. Now it will not be here until Tuesday. I may go to Walmart and buy one. Once you miss a promised Amazon delivery they kick it way down the road. And of course they are in the midst of one of their most active times of year so who knows what will happen and when I might get the adapter. So I might not wait.
Meanwhile, I ordered some protein drink for Dana that arrived same day. So strange.
Nothing on the schedule today.
Errand Day
Jul. 5th, 2025 07:40 pmdays_unfoldingI got a face full of dog when they decided that I should get up. Gracie needed to pee but used the litter box in there. That works.
Well crap. The return label for the laptop isn’t printing. I just ordered new ink. Maybe I should stop at Staples today and also get more and return it tomorrow.
Gracie has figured out how to go upstairs! But she hasn’t figured out how to get downstairs, so I had to carry her downstairs. She and Bella swapped food again. Oh hell, she went upstairs again. I think that I’ll wait until after my shower to bring her down because Bella scratched my legs when I brought her down. But wait, I was going to wear shorts. Hmm. I threw some jeans in the wash. Oliver stuck his claw in my leg, so I removed him.
Whenever I go to South Carolina, I’d also like to go to Asheville in North Carolina. I found a senior living place that I’d like to check out.
Nap time. Woke up a little before my alarm. Gracie figured out how to get downstairs.
My massage was very nice (hot stone this time, which helps unlock my muscles). Whatever part she hadn’t rubbed yet felt tense. I was good and relaxed when she was done. She invited me to use the new sauna, but I said that I had errands to run. I forgot that it was 1.5 hours, so I didn’t make it to the UPS store. Plus, I was very hungry. I’ll go tomorrow. Stopped at Steak and Shake for a bite to eat. Got printer’s ink at Best Buy. Bought two more lamb toys at PetSmart so that Bella and Gracie each can have one (although I could see Bella trying to take them both). I also bought cat ball toys that probably will get stepped on. Went to Prairie Gardens and bought a Boston Fern for my porch, two enormous spider plants for the kitchen, and two more coneflowers. All were on sale.
Bella and Gracie were thrilled that I came home. Gracie is now taking the stairs upstairs and downstairs like a champ.
Fed us all. I have the shakes. Placed a grocery order for tomorrow.
Oh hell. I didn’t get the mail, which has Bella and Gracie’s new collars, but I don’t want to go back out in the heat.
I’m thinking of going to bed REALLY early to get up in the cool morning. I really want to weed and plant tomorrow. And drop my returns off in the afternoon. And maybe go to the other garden shop.
I don't know why Semagic keeps saying that my DW password is invalid.
Saturday
Jul. 5th, 2025 09:56 amsusandennisVolleyball was fine. Elbow coffee was fine. And now the rest of the day is mine which is VERY fine.
Dick and Jan (the new peops) were at elbow coffee this morning. They actually, officially, move in on Monday. The California king bed that they have slept on for years will not fit into their new bedroom so they are bed shopping. They said that the bad new is their bed won't fit but the good news is that Dick has now shrunken in his old age and he fits on a regular king which does fit! So win. They are a cute couple.
I got an email from Microsoft that they wanted $20 for another year of One Drive. Nope. After the password debacle, I'm over you, Microsoft. Plus, I pay for storage on my web site host so I'll just pop important stuff there. Mail is already copied so all I really need is the stuff on my Google Drive. Which is 23 4GB zip files. I was going to download them all and then upload them all but why? cheaper and easier just to plop them onto an external drive that I already have. So that's the plan.
I also figured out how to get Apple TV without fighting Apple. Somehow my Apple TV account got hosed and Apple won't let me back in. NFW am I going to call them which is my only option. BUT! Prime Video let's me subscribe through them AND they are having a sale. Win win.
Where there's a will...
My foot is far less purple and not nearly as hurty today. I did not even think about it while playing volleyball. And neither one of my feet or ankles are even remotely swollen. Nice.
There is stuff around here (Timber Ridge) that bugs me. Food stuff, services, stuff, options stuff. Having Scott and Julie around to point out all the marvelous thing here, has led me to rethink. I agree with them both that this place is lovely and impressive and comfortable and caring and a great place for me to live. But, I forget all of that when they replace french fries at lunch with fucking tater tots. Or they change the package receiving system so that I can't get my packages in a timely fashion. And then I tend to focus solely on the bits that are annoying.
I have two packages, neither of which is critical and one is a jacket I can't even wear til fall. I have a photo of the package being received so I'm fairly certain it won't get lost in the waiting. I have a lot of french fries in the freezer.
So what remains is training myself to NOT focus on the annoying bits. I think I can do that and that's today's project. I was going to do laundry but that will be tomorrow. In my fridge, for lunch I have fixin's for BLT's and two fried chicken thighs and one whole hot dog with chopped onions and potato salad. I'm not going to be hurting for meals anytime soon.
I having knitting to do and baseball to watch. And I might even watch some Wimbledon.
In 1985, I got to go to Wimbledon with my mother. My father gave her the trip for Christmas and then, at the last minute, could not go (union problems at work) and she asked me if I wanted to. ER.... yes!! We had a great time but it was, that year, the hottest Wimbledon on record. We fried our asses just sitting there moving our heads back and forth. I understand they are celebrating this 20th anniversary with even hotter weather. But, alas, without us.
I will be here in the cool, apartment remembering.
Dick and Jan (the new peops) were at elbow coffee this morning. They actually, officially, move in on Monday. The California king bed that they have slept on for years will not fit into their new bedroom so they are bed shopping. They said that the bad new is their bed won't fit but the good news is that Dick has now shrunken in his old age and he fits on a regular king which does fit! So win. They are a cute couple.
I got an email from Microsoft that they wanted $20 for another year of One Drive. Nope. After the password debacle, I'm over you, Microsoft. Plus, I pay for storage on my web site host so I'll just pop important stuff there. Mail is already copied so all I really need is the stuff on my Google Drive. Which is 23 4GB zip files. I was going to download them all and then upload them all but why? cheaper and easier just to plop them onto an external drive that I already have. So that's the plan.
I also figured out how to get Apple TV without fighting Apple. Somehow my Apple TV account got hosed and Apple won't let me back in. NFW am I going to call them which is my only option. BUT! Prime Video let's me subscribe through them AND they are having a sale. Win win.
Where there's a will...
My foot is far less purple and not nearly as hurty today. I did not even think about it while playing volleyball. And neither one of my feet or ankles are even remotely swollen. Nice.
There is stuff around here (Timber Ridge) that bugs me. Food stuff, services, stuff, options stuff. Having Scott and Julie around to point out all the marvelous thing here, has led me to rethink. I agree with them both that this place is lovely and impressive and comfortable and caring and a great place for me to live. But, I forget all of that when they replace french fries at lunch with fucking tater tots. Or they change the package receiving system so that I can't get my packages in a timely fashion. And then I tend to focus solely on the bits that are annoying.
I have two packages, neither of which is critical and one is a jacket I can't even wear til fall. I have a photo of the package being received so I'm fairly certain it won't get lost in the waiting. I have a lot of french fries in the freezer.
So what remains is training myself to NOT focus on the annoying bits. I think I can do that and that's today's project. I was going to do laundry but that will be tomorrow. In my fridge, for lunch I have fixin's for BLT's and two fried chicken thighs and one whole hot dog with chopped onions and potato salad. I'm not going to be hurting for meals anytime soon.
I having knitting to do and baseball to watch. And I might even watch some Wimbledon.
In 1985, I got to go to Wimbledon with my mother. My father gave her the trip for Christmas and then, at the last minute, could not go (union problems at work) and she asked me if I wanted to. ER.... yes!! We had a great time but it was, that year, the hottest Wimbledon on record. We fried our asses just sitting there moving our heads back and forth. I understand they are celebrating this 20th anniversary with even hotter weather. But, alas, without us.
I will be here in the cool, apartment remembering.
Texas flood
Jul. 5th, 2025 09:15 ambill_schubertThere's a music group by that name. Texas Flood. True Texas rock and roll.
But today it is where we are rather than someone playing guitar. The floods down south have worked their way up here. We are perfectly safe. The summer after we moved into this house it rained like this and flooded all around so I know we are not in a dangerous place. But not so much for new houses down the valley from us. I tried to get a picture this morning of the South Fork of the San Gabriel river. It has, as they say, spilled its banks.
About 15 years ago it rained like it is now. It was June and It just kept coming. I used to ride my bike on the back roads around here and frequented one that cut across the river in a couple of places, low water crossings. After the rains the Georgetown lake backed up 15 miles or so and the water that I was riding across when it was dribbling slowly over the crossing was now at a high water mark of 20 or so feet up the trees on it's bank. The whole valley below us was flooded. It was pretty amazing to see and note after it had receeded by the remnants on the trees.
I don't think we're going to be near that now but it is trying hard. A couple of more days with rain like this morning would do it. Our back yard is typically dry but we are downhill from the rest of the houses on our street and next to a storm drain that has, apparently, backed up.
I'm listening to a pretty serious rumble of thunder that is rolling down the valley just like the river so we might not be done yet.
Earlier I drove down to get some bagels and crossed over the San Gabriel. I've been watching for the past year or so as they built a development on the banks of the river remembering, as I do, that the water had flooded up those very banks not so long ago. It has not reached the lower houses yet but I suspect the people in them are reviewing their flood insurance or, more likely, their lack of it.
I was going to write more but this computer is too slow and stops when I start to type at times so rather than do something with it I'll regret, I'll stop.
But today it is where we are rather than someone playing guitar. The floods down south have worked their way up here. We are perfectly safe. The summer after we moved into this house it rained like this and flooded all around so I know we are not in a dangerous place. But not so much for new houses down the valley from us. I tried to get a picture this morning of the South Fork of the San Gabriel river. It has, as they say, spilled its banks.
About 15 years ago it rained like it is now. It was June and It just kept coming. I used to ride my bike on the back roads around here and frequented one that cut across the river in a couple of places, low water crossings. After the rains the Georgetown lake backed up 15 miles or so and the water that I was riding across when it was dribbling slowly over the crossing was now at a high water mark of 20 or so feet up the trees on it's bank. The whole valley below us was flooded. It was pretty amazing to see and note after it had receeded by the remnants on the trees.
I don't think we're going to be near that now but it is trying hard. A couple of more days with rain like this morning would do it. Our back yard is typically dry but we are downhill from the rest of the houses on our street and next to a storm drain that has, apparently, backed up.
I'm listening to a pretty serious rumble of thunder that is rolling down the valley just like the river so we might not be done yet.
Earlier I drove down to get some bagels and crossed over the San Gabriel. I've been watching for the past year or so as they built a development on the banks of the river remembering, as I do, that the water had flooded up those very banks not so long ago. It has not reached the lower houses yet but I suspect the people in them are reviewing their flood insurance or, more likely, their lack of it.
I was going to write more but this computer is too slow and stops when I start to type at times so rather than do something with it I'll regret, I'll stop.
Sunshine revival Challenge: Love
Jul. 5th, 2025 10:15 amauthor_by_night The romance of summer! What do you love? Write about anything you feel sentimental about or that gets your heart pumping.
I posted about this on tumblr, but I've said in the past that I don't really care about romantic storylines. Except I've come to realize, that's not true at all. There have been a lot of pairings I've loved, both in canon and in fanfiction. (Sometimes more in one than the other.)
Since this is meant to be a positive entry, I'll focus on what I love in my romantic pairings. I love seeing two people working together - perhaps in the sense that they're coworkers or have intersecting jobs, perhaps in the sense that they have a common mission, be it something major or minor. I love when the story is less about whether or not they'll be together, and more about what happens once they are. I love seeing them connect with one another's friends and family. I love seeing them help each other be their best selves. I love when conflict isn't about whether or not they "truly" love each other, but how new information or a miscommunication has - temporarily - rocked the boat. I love physicality. The way they hug and kiss, the way they move together, in a natural tandem.
Don't get me wrong - I'm here for some UST and other things you often see. I love a little drama. :P I just prefer all of that as the starting point, and I lose interest if it drags out for too long. I love even more when none of that happens, and the couple just... comes into being.
I posted about this on tumblr, but I've said in the past that I don't really care about romantic storylines. Except I've come to realize, that's not true at all. There have been a lot of pairings I've loved, both in canon and in fanfiction. (Sometimes more in one than the other.)
Since this is meant to be a positive entry, I'll focus on what I love in my romantic pairings. I love seeing two people working together - perhaps in the sense that they're coworkers or have intersecting jobs, perhaps in the sense that they have a common mission, be it something major or minor. I love when the story is less about whether or not they'll be together, and more about what happens once they are. I love seeing them connect with one another's friends and family. I love seeing them help each other be their best selves. I love when conflict isn't about whether or not they "truly" love each other, but how new information or a miscommunication has - temporarily - rocked the boat. I love physicality. The way they hug and kiss, the way they move together, in a natural tandem.
Don't get me wrong - I'm here for some UST and other things you often see. I love a little drama. :P I just prefer all of that as the starting point, and I lose interest if it drags out for too long. I love even more when none of that happens, and the couple just... comes into being.
July 4th Holiday
Jul. 4th, 2025 08:53 pmdays_unfoldingSome idiot was setting off loud fireworks at midnight. The dogs took it surprisingly calmly. They were barking at something though.
Woke up at 7 AM. I stayed up late reading a book about The Big Bang Theory.
Hmm. It’s supposed to be really hot today. Not sure what to do. Sunday, it’ll be cooler but it’s going to rain.
Nap time. Gracie is barking at nothing in particular. The dog waste people are here. Bella, Gracie, and Oliver are all snoozing.
Had a nice nap and then ate lunch. Shower time. I’m getting a headache though, so maybe I need to lie down? Bella and Gracie were wrestling, so I escorted Gracie out.
My headache is gone and I want to get up, but Oliver is sleeping in the crook of my legs. Now he’s awake.
I ordered some Blue Sage and purple Coneflowers. I need to remember to pick them up on campus on Wednesday.
I started cleaning off my old laptop by copying files to a hard drive. Salt and Light refurbishes old computers and gives them to people in need, so I’ll donate this one.
Showered. I have Lily on my lap. I explained to her that it’s too early to eat, and she left.
Ugh. 92F/33C, feels like 97F/36C. No. I need to get to bed early (no reading!) and get outside early tomorrow and Sunday. Though I was going to go to the Unitarian church on Sunday. Took the dogs out and yes, it’s hot.
Got my new cool sheets on the bed, with a lot of hassle from two dogs and a cat. I lost my temper a little bit. But the duvet cover has beige stripes rather than gray ones, so I want to exchange it for one that matches the sheets. Contacted them.
My new laptop is updating. However, I accidentally bought two of them, so I'm returning the other one. I need to package it up tonight to drop at the UPS store tomorrow.
What now. I need to feed the critters and myself (done). Watered the garden.
Bella chewed up my external hard drive. I love that dog, but damn. I ordered a new one. Meanwhile, I'm recovering my files and downloading them.
I have Semagic installed on the new computer, but I'm having problems getting it to work with DW. I'm going to give up for tonight. I'm tired.
July 4
Jul. 4th, 2025 07:08 amsusandennisYears and years and years ago, the Vietnamese War killed my patriotism. I was in college. My friends were being drafted to go over and get killed. Then, an hour from my college, the National Guard fired guns at the students at Kent State. And that was the final blow.
I could have - maybe should have - left but never even seriously considered it. I got a little hopeful when Obama was elected but, of course, that's been squashed.
So celebrating the birth of this ugly political pit is not something I gravitate to. Red White and Blue represents stupid old white guys who make ridiculous decisions.
Yes, I have enjoyed the fruits of those stupid white guy decisions and I get the irony but I still hate all patriotic holidays and the crap that goes with them. So... today will be a Friday for me.
New menu day and the last week of my meal month so I need to eat up whatever they are serving. Scott and Julie helped this month so it's not so much of a scramble.
My foot is a little better. It's no longer bruised looking from the shot so there's that. I still have another shot to go but that's not til August. I've been watching my ankles and they are weird. One day they are huge and the next they are back down to normal, lather rinse repeat. I'm now taking an embarrassing number of pills each day. 1 for cholesterol, 2 for high blood pressure, COQ 10, vitamin D, AREDS2, now an allergy pill and one for my feet. That's 8 every morning and another AREDS2 at night. AND I'm healthy! (Oh and the allergy pills are working again so whew!)
Baseball starts at 10 today. And I might do some laundry or not. My little UPS shop is closed but I have nothing to return today anyway.
I could have - maybe should have - left but never even seriously considered it. I got a little hopeful when Obama was elected but, of course, that's been squashed.
So celebrating the birth of this ugly political pit is not something I gravitate to. Red White and Blue represents stupid old white guys who make ridiculous decisions.
Yes, I have enjoyed the fruits of those stupid white guy decisions and I get the irony but I still hate all patriotic holidays and the crap that goes with them. So... today will be a Friday for me.
New menu day and the last week of my meal month so I need to eat up whatever they are serving. Scott and Julie helped this month so it's not so much of a scramble.
My foot is a little better. It's no longer bruised looking from the shot so there's that. I still have another shot to go but that's not til August. I've been watching my ankles and they are weird. One day they are huge and the next they are back down to normal, lather rinse repeat. I'm now taking an embarrassing number of pills each day. 1 for cholesterol, 2 for high blood pressure, COQ 10, vitamin D, AREDS2, now an allergy pill and one for my feet. That's 8 every morning and another AREDS2 at night. AND I'm healthy! (Oh and the allergy pills are working again so whew!)
Baseball starts at 10 today. And I might do some laundry or not. My little UPS shop is closed but I have nothing to return today anyway.
Planner Tablet
Jul. 3rd, 2025 09:45 pmdays_unfoldingWell, this was a quick walk. Bella wanted to play but Gracie didn’t, so she decided to come inside.
Turned the dryer on but forgot it was on the dewrinkle setting, so I’m going to take my shower at lunch after the clothes are dry. Napped a little.
Bella and Gracie swapped food again. Clearly the other one is getting the better food.
Napped over lunch. I had to remove Gracie because she and Bella were squabbling over the lamb toy. (Bella is more restful to sleep with.)
We were let out of work early for the holiday weekend. Popped into the shower.
My therapist wants me to ask my psychiatrist about my feeling lethargic. And she wants me to talk to my primary physician about a CPAP. (I had gotten one, but that was right when my mom died, and I couldn't deal with it.) We also talked about my going to the Unitarian Church, and she said that I just needed to ask a few questions and let people talk. We commiserated about the time of the church service though--10:30 on Sunday. My therapist said that she isn't dressed before noon, and I agreed with that statement. She also said to look for evening events held by the church.
I fell down a rabbit hole trying to find out when I created my Gmail account. I finally found the answer through trial and error.
Fed us all. Bella was trying to "forget" that she’s not supposed to eat the cats’ food. I told her that nothing had changed even though we now have Gracie.
Hmm. I’m wondering if I should get a “dog backpack” so that Bella could carry her own food when we camp.
Dozed lightly. The dogs are crashed out.
I’m thinking that I should get ready for bed and go to sleep early. I want to get outside to weed in the morning. Do I want to go to the fireworks show in Champaign tomorrow? Parking will be a bitch. No, I should stay home with the dogs and cats because they won't like the noise.
Got my ReMarkable tablet set up and planner pages loaded. I think that it will be a help.
Bella knocked into my laptop and the track ball went who-knows-where. I went into Zara's room to grab the trackball there. She seems to be feeling much better, is staying visible, and was loving me up. Good to see.
I should feed the beasts and go to sleep.
Coffee back on sale
Jul. 3rd, 2025 03:40 pmbill_schubertI buy coffee from a company by the name of Fara. It is an Austin roaster that gets the coffee I like from Nicarauga. For the past few years I've been waiting until they have a sale of 20% and buying 10 pounds of beans at a time. Costs about $80. Free shipping. If Amazon carries it (and now always) it costs $100 for 10 pounds and free shipping.
This is the one area that I can say the tarrifs have screwed us. Coffee has gotten more expensive and they no longer offer 20% off. And today it is not even available on Amazon.
But maybe it is getting a bit better. They had a 15% off offer to celebrate the 4th. Good a reason as any. I bought my usual 10 pounds and was happy to have the choice.
Meanwhile, even as I write this, I'm wondering if I need something different. I don't mind the Chrome but the graphics of this mini are so slow there is a very discernable and annoying lag in loading pages. Enough that I'd rather use my phone for some things. I think the combination of having only 4GB of RAM and running a Celeron means things just run slowly. I opened the diag app and it shows most of my RAM being used and about half of my CPU and I'm not doing much.
Five days until Amazon Prime Days so I'll likely just spend the time looking at choices. I think the Asus is what I want but I need more RAM and a faster processor. The price is a couple of hundred bucks more but will be worth it. We'll see what the prices look like when the sale starts.
Dana had her CT this morning. So nice that things moved fast. The results are already in and she does not seem to have any infection but has some pockets of fluid that might be three different things. They have to aspirate to find out. Pro: No major infection noted. Con: they need to aspirate. And we're still not certain. But it is progress. The doc put in a referral to 'interventional radiology' so they can do the aspiration. And we have a prescription for some high falutin antibiotics. All good and all moving forward.
And ALL BEFORE the long weekend. Typically Dana has some major thing on a Friday late or over the weekend on a long weekend. So this is a plus to have things moving before the weekend.
We have a wonderful doc who finally got, I think, fed up with the emails going back and forth and decided to jump in. So nice.
This is the one area that I can say the tarrifs have screwed us. Coffee has gotten more expensive and they no longer offer 20% off. And today it is not even available on Amazon.
But maybe it is getting a bit better. They had a 15% off offer to celebrate the 4th. Good a reason as any. I bought my usual 10 pounds and was happy to have the choice.
Meanwhile, even as I write this, I'm wondering if I need something different. I don't mind the Chrome but the graphics of this mini are so slow there is a very discernable and annoying lag in loading pages. Enough that I'd rather use my phone for some things. I think the combination of having only 4GB of RAM and running a Celeron means things just run slowly. I opened the diag app and it shows most of my RAM being used and about half of my CPU and I'm not doing much.
Five days until Amazon Prime Days so I'll likely just spend the time looking at choices. I think the Asus is what I want but I need more RAM and a faster processor. The price is a couple of hundred bucks more but will be worth it. We'll see what the prices look like when the sale starts.
Dana had her CT this morning. So nice that things moved fast. The results are already in and she does not seem to have any infection but has some pockets of fluid that might be three different things. They have to aspirate to find out. Pro: No major infection noted. Con: they need to aspirate. And we're still not certain. But it is progress. The doc put in a referral to 'interventional radiology' so they can do the aspiration. And we have a prescription for some high falutin antibiotics. All good and all moving forward.
And ALL BEFORE the long weekend. Typically Dana has some major thing on a Friday late or over the weekend on a long weekend. So this is a plus to have things moving before the weekend.
We have a wonderful doc who finally got, I think, fed up with the emails going back and forth and decided to jump in. So nice.
Manual labor
Jul. 3rd, 2025 01:41 pmsusandennisBefore I even moved in here, one of the things highest on my list was a built in ironing board. We found a couple that just weren't right and we never found a place to put it and I gave up. I tried living with a little one that you sit on the counter but it was a fail. Then I bought a small apartment sized one and last week, one of the cats knocked it over and mayhem ensued.
Turns out what I really wanted was an always available ironing situation. In the condo, I had an ironing station always at the ready. I hate to iron so just walking up and turning on the iron, doing the deed and walking away was perfect and what I wanted here.
After the flying ironing board incident, I spied an option. My closet is huge by Closets I Have Had In The Past standards but it's also pretty full but there was a spot...
So I ordered this.
It arrived today. The instructions were not too specific and the bits were not totally labeled and so the project was a bit bigger than I expected but I managed it. (Thank you, me, for that more powerful cordless drill you finally bought not long ago. You rock.)
And now it has a home.
It came with a door but I thought that was unnecessary. I already ironed a shirt that got wadded up in the last laundry. Turned on the iron, rolled out the board, did the deed, rolled it back. Done. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.
And I'm quite delighted.
Turns out what I really wanted was an always available ironing situation. In the condo, I had an ironing station always at the ready. I hate to iron so just walking up and turning on the iron, doing the deed and walking away was perfect and what I wanted here.
After the flying ironing board incident, I spied an option. My closet is huge by Closets I Have Had In The Past standards but it's also pretty full but there was a spot...
So I ordered this.
It arrived today. The instructions were not too specific and the bits were not totally labeled and so the project was a bit bigger than I expected but I managed it. (Thank you, me, for that more powerful cordless drill you finally bought not long ago. You rock.)
And now it has a home.
It came with a door but I thought that was unnecessary. I already ironed a shirt that got wadded up in the last laundry. Turned on the iron, rolled out the board, did the deed, rolled it back. Done. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.
And I'm quite delighted.
