THE LIGHTER SIDE CAFE THURSDAY OCTOBER 8

Hi all,

Pam, I hope you can rest a bit and that the hurricane does not come too near you.  I know you had evacuation plans in place, but did you have to leave yet?  I'm watching the weather and thinking of you and your family. The caregiver role is so exhausting and I'm glad you have your DDs around.  

Ann, I found my mom's "antique" Rival Crockpot in the basement on a shelf (from the 1970s I am sure) and I have it filled with your soup.  S&S had a bag of frozen Mexican style veggies with broccoli, carrots, beans, etc. so I used that along with all your other ingredients including more Mexican corn, lima beans and kidney beans, too. I'm excited because this serving will count as my veggies at many meals ahead and 0 pts. Thanks again.  And it was quick to throw together which is a BIG plus in my book.  Oh, I did not see HOT Rotel but I did find Fire Roasted Rotel so that's the one I bought. I usually just get regular and I used one of those, too.

DD had a very fruitful visit to the pediatrician with DGD. I will send a message to explain. 

I tossed and turned last night until about 1 AM.  One of those nights.  I slept until 8 off and on so that is a plus for not having to be a work at 8:30. 

Speaking of work, off to get some done!  

Ann, I see there was a lot of damage in the Worcester area. A couple co-workers had trees down from the high winds.  We had very high winds but not tree damage here.  Of course, nothing like what Pam is facing...though we have had bad hurricanes here at the Cape in the past.  

Ann, one reason I do like Stop & Shop is that they always have everything and often things that I can't find anywhere else.  Thankfully, that is the main store around here other than Shaw's and Market Basket which is further away.  Glad you scored on the beef broth and the Mexican corn! Meant to add that I have not added fennel seeds to soups so looking forward to that, too.

I need to get D&D out the door for a long walk soon.  It's so quiet here that we can walk without fear of being run over like at home. Much better. 

Listening to Alexa as I work and I just asked her "play music" - she said she'd play my most played songs and I chuckled when "the Wheels on the Bus Go round and round was first"!  Grandkids! lol

Sue happy your woke up feeling rested despite the school dreams. Happy you got to enjoy the fire last night. I love a simple salad like that. that Zesty Italian dressing is just so darn good and tasty

Good luck with your shopping and I hope you 'find it all' at the market.

Going to get a move on and accomplish those 'pesky chores' and then relax the day away.

Hi Sue,

I second Pam's note about simple salad.  Often I love a nice tomato salad with some cukes and Italian dressing.  So good.  I did add three diced up tomatoes to "Ann's Special Soup".  They were starting to get a little soft and I had new ones waiting in the wings, so I threw them into the soup.  Glad you had a nice fire last night.  

I remember the Rival with the  non-removable pot.  Thankfully, this old one came out in the next generation and has the removable pot.  I think RIval was the original Crockpot and they made the name generic like Kleenex.  More folks do call them slow cookers now, but I still say crockpot for all of them! 

I had a nice lunchtime Zoom with my work friends in our STARS/TOPS group.  Only 3 of the 5 of us were there but it was a lively conversation.  One friend has lost over 100 lbs several years back on WW and is still a WW devotee.  She's great but a little hyper-focused on exercise and food.  She works out about 2-3 hours a day with a combo of  Hot Yoga, Hot Pilates, walking miles and an intense cross fit class every day.  Yet, she still worries she will gain weight back.  She has a terrible fear of food, I think.  I admire her ability to stick with it, but it seems to cause her a lot of stress and take up a lot of mental energy.  You three are my heroes with how you handle maintenance and you are all more relaxed about it.  Sometimes you can truly be too driven with things. 

My lunch today was a side salad and another Bahn Mi All Beef Hot dog - my new favorite thing! lol

Dinner will be a steak, Ann's soup and a half a baked potato.  I didn't do it last night as time got away from me and I wound up with a pork chop and I whipped up some garlic mashed cauliflower.  DH doesn't really like it, but I do. I have plenty left for another night soon. 

Have a great afternoon.  Sue, I am a sleep talker, too.  It must be unsettling for my DH to hear me babbling away and sometimes yelling out alarming things like FIRE! I did that once  Poor guy. He was out the door before he realized it was me dreaming. 

Good afternoon friends,

Well, DH and I managed to get his IV antibiotics done with only minor mishaps and some bad language. I am sure we will be pros at it by tomorrow. The HH nurse came today and gave us some tips and DD1 also trained in how to do it. We discovered we only have enough supplies to get us through Saturday, so the nurse called the company and they have already delivered more supplies.

DD1 showed up early as the home visit she had here in the village "didn't work out," whatever that means. She insisted on taking over the floor mopping and I got to sit a spell. While she was here, we also did some further planning for tomorrow about food and supplies. She is also the emergency preparedness person in her office, so is under maximum stress right now. To top it all off, she woke up with a migraine. Poor kid!

Since Delta has slowed and isn't expected to hit the coast until nightfall tomorrow, HH should be able to come by and change the wound vac tomorrow before we go to DD1's house for the duration of the storm. Hopefully, it will all be over here by lunchtime Saturday. Right now, it looks like we will have sustained winds in the 70-90 mph range Friday night/wee hours Saturday morning, but they have said the cooler water along the coastline may calm things down somewhat. I pray this is so. So many people affected by Hurricane Laura have blue tarps covering large holes in the roof and will once again be exposed to the elements when the tarps blow away. So sad!

Breakfast this morning was turkey sausage, scrambled eggs and Dave's Killer bread toasted. Lunch was leftover pulled pork and potato salad and a yogurt. Dinner will be stuffed bell pepper, skillet potatoes and mustard greens. On the way home from the hospital last evening, we stopped to pick up BBQ ribs and chicken. Later, when we went to eat, I discovered they gave me the order for the person who ordered right before me. So we wound up with pulled pork and brisket instead of ribs and chicken. It was the straw that broke the camel's back for me and I burst into tears and sobbed and sobbed. Stupid, I know, but it was just the catalyst for allowing me to blow off all the emotions I have apparently been bottling up for days.

We did the IV infusion at 11:00 pm and 5:00 am and since I had to walk at 7:00, it didn't make sense to go back to bed, so I am short on sleep. After lunch, we both took naps until the phone rang. The hospital was checking to make sure DH made follow-up appointments with his doctors, which are set for next week. Now, I'm just waiting for DD2 to show up to help me finish getting storm-ready outdoors. I want to take down the swing and stash it in a storage room and collapse and move some of DH's big tables so they don't blow away. I also need to put the pecans we have picked so far where they won't get rained on. We have another IV infusion at 5:00 pm. I will likely nap after dinner again until time for the 11:00 pm dose. I will be happy when he gets the 24 hour pump version on Tuesday!

Ann - I wish I could see your fall colors! Leaves are still green here, though some are starting to fall. Our cool weather has left us and the AC is running full blast again. You are smart to be careful walking after a storm. You surely don't want to slip and fall.

Judy - I am glad DD felt the pediatrician was helpful. I looked for a message, but didn't see one. I agree that your friend who exercises 2-3 hours per day and seems fearful of food has a problem. I don't think that much exercise is sustainable long-term and then what? Poor dear could probably use some counseling from someone experienced in weight loss issues.

Ann - I'm glad you got to enjoy the fire pit some more. I still have my very first rival crock pot. Because of the difficulty in cleaning it, we stopped using it and got the newer version, but I keep it at the camp and use it occasionally when we are there.