Taste Like Chicken Easter Monday 4/13

How was the torte, Linda? Pulverized almonds definitely are kinder to teeth. Dale finds grocery shopping going a little equals less hords. It can be pretty crazy during the "seniors" time and there are more than just seniors showing up then.

Kathy, someone had an in-person service in Orlando yesterday? Was it at least a drive-in format so there was no potential for person-to-person contact? Sorry about your heat wave. People are wearing masks some here, but it's more from the CDC recommendation than any local one. The governor said on Friday that he hadn't decided whether to extend the stay at home order, which expires on Tuesday, so I hope we will hear something today. What did DM do today? How is she doing with the isolation? Those soups you have are from the same Dr. McDougall. I need to change up something in my diet because, even with being pretty strict vegan, I'm still not losing any wt. It's frustrating. Did you do Jazzercise today?

How was the earlier PT, Becky, and did you get your shopping done early? Cupcakes were very tasty. Dale said any time I want to make them again would be just fine.

Chele, how's the ear doing? Are you noticing an improvement? Are you on lockdown until the end of the month? Has your weather cleared?  We got a couple of inches of rain over night so we have some flood warnings (filling up the lake! YAY) and have had some pretty significant winds that are continuing. We had to take the bird feeder down for a while and had some unhappy customers but they are back and happy now.

I saw something on FB a little while ago that our sushi place is boarded up. I hope it's just temporary during the virus, but I haven't been to that part of town since I picked up Christmas dinner. They apparently had some health code violations last year so I hope the Health Dept. didn't close them down. One of my GFs from NC called a little while ago. Her daughter and family live in Montgomery, AL, and she is bigtime in nana withdrawal because she can only Face Time with them. She said that another of our friends has some symptoms that may be covid and has not been socially distancing; in fact they went to their younger son's house for dinner yesterday. So if she is positive, she has spread it to a lot of people. She goes to the doctor today, so I hope she will have test results back soon. They had been in NY for a funeral last month, so that could have exposed her many times over. It seems like churches and funerals are the two most common forms of community transmission. It's a usual Monday for me. Cleaning is done and laundry is in process.

Karen, I hope your sushi place survives. I know the heartache of a favorite going under. We have rain today and will have most of the week. It has been windy but not enough to take down the feeders. The goldfinches would have a fit. We have had a bird we have yet to identify. It appears to be some kind of wren to me but Iggy thinks it is a type of sparrow. The grackles have shown up and have tried scaring off the finches, but Iggy has been scaring them off. It will be cold this week as well-highs in the 40s. 

Linda, your cake sounded real good.

Becky, Kathy,Liz, I hope all is well.

I went back to doctor today as I woke up with a strange rash on my forehead and my ear still clogged and strange ear and scalp pain. Good news: the prescription drops had softened the wax so the nurse could power wash it out. She was better at it than the past nurse. More power behind the water wash. So, yay, unclogged ear. Bad news: rash is most probably shingles. It is an atypical rash for shingles because it is across the whole forehead and shingles usually affects one side of the body or the other. More meds! To top it all off I have been having neck spasms probably from the way I have been sleeping on one side. Good news. I lost another pound. Iggy is calling it my pain and suffering diet. More good news: the inactivity and little use of iPad has helped the tendonitis in my right arm. 

Have a good Monday.

Linda, I saw the Andrea Bocelli video. Kind of spooky, but he's so amazing. Yes, you don't have a prayer if you don't stay home. Our governor hasn't decided if he is going to extend our order, but he is getting a lot of pressure to do it. I did listen to part of the Knox County daily covid briefing and it sounds like if the governor doesn't the county plans to. So that will take care of going to Osteo, probably til May.

Oh, Chele, I hope it's not shingles. Was that a definite diagnosis? DM had that twice and it was so uncomfortable. I got the shot about 5 years or so ago, but I think they have come out with a newer one that is supposed to be better. That is a strange location for the rash, so maybe it is drug related. It has to feel so much better that the ear is clear. Maybe your neck will feel better as a result. I hope the tendonitis will continue to lessen and you can use the iPad a bit more. We miss you. Sorry about the grackles. When I was in grad school at UT, we used to have thousands of them nesting in the trees on campus around dusk and they were very annoying to classroom activities, and you had to watch walking to your car after class. Have you checked Merlin to ID your mystery bird?

Kathy, congrats on the 5 lb charm. Being vegan (when it's mostly grains and plants anyway) usually affects weight loss positively. I have to wonder if my former yo-yo dieting has damaged my metabolism and it doesn't matter what I do. I was surprised that I had all the ingredients in the house for the cupcakes and the frosting. Dale is, fortunately, eating most of them. I should probably be on the fear-of-eating rationing diet. When I talked to GF today, she said her daughter and family were having trouble finding groceries and were having to go to 4 different grocery stores and still coming up short. All 3 of their boys are home, including one who is a college QB plus a growing 13 year old, so they are buying a lot of groceries. The oldest son is skinny as a rail fence, so I know he's not eating all those groceries. We seem to be ok here, but I have to wonder if that will continue.  Have you tried the McDougall soups? They are pretty good, but a bit lower in fiber than I like. I have started eating the Lotus Foods ramen soups and they are a good on fiber and protein. Speaking of fiber, I did a little reading today and the recommendation is 28 grams of fiber on a 2,000 calorie diet. I don't eat more than about 1,400 calories a day. So, I'm getting way more than the minimum but that's ok with my diverticulosis.

I finished my first face mask today and have material cut for 4 more. I will make one for Dale and 2 for GF and her DH, as both of them have medical issues and certainly do not need to catch this. That will be my project for tomorrow and I will send 2 to GF when I go to pick up the CSA order because the PO is right around the corner.

Karen, the grocery stores seem to be pretty well stocked here, except for TP, of course. They keep getting TP in, but people are still buying it as fast as it comes in. Your GF has a lot of people to feed. Sometimes those skinny guys eat a lot, especially when they're young. I like the McDougall low sodium veggie soup that comes in a box. It has 6g of fiber for what they call 2 servings, but I add brown rice and/or beans to it and sometimes leftover veggies. I usually eat 2 servings if I have that for dinner. I haven't tried the ramen ones. How much fiber do the Lotus Foods soups have?

Becky, the food I've gotten through delivery has all been good too. It's the whole decontamination thing that puts me off, plus not wanting to do the delivery too often. That's interesting that HEB is enforcing the masks rule, but Walmart isn't. WW may want their charm back once the fear of eating diet wears off!