jmg44
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Posts: 938
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Post by jmg44 on May 29, 2022 19:59:08 GMT
JoAnneâitâs wonderful to hear from you. Sue did send me your emailâthank goodness some problems were accidentally discovered in time for a positive response! Itâs so hard to deal with physical compromises! I know how active you always wereâhoping you start feeling some appetite soon!
We, too , are dealing with some cancer alarms. DS Park Ranger still is not divorcedâgetting closer tho and his X - to be has finally realized he is not changing his mind. She is finally willing to move on and plans to leave for another NV city/town even tho her parents moved there and are physically needy. Anyway in the midst of all his stress with this and his 16 year old son who is drug experimenting with his momâs enabling, he has discovered that he has small cell melanoma and it has metastasizedânot known to where yetâawaiting CT scan approvalâhoping it is only in the blood and not in any organs but that will be discovered after the scan. He has already been told he has to gain weight (something heâs not been able to do in the past year or two which is disturbing in and of itself) in prep for chemo which is a given at this point. We talk every dayâtoday was over an hourâI think for the first time since our marriage, DS feels I am his momâhe now calls me specifically and I am working hard to keep him focused on only what he can control at this point in his lifeâso much of which is still unknown. He is only 46 so this is really rough.
But, as is true with all things in life, there are things to be grateful forâhe is drinking way, way lessâis realizing how he was self-medicating with alcohol, living a pretend marital life for friends and family and living hell life at home. Heâs working at being honest with himself and others and truly I can hear a difference every day. I only hope he can conquer this cancer thing so he has some time to live the best chapter of his life!
Meanwhile, I potâand love every minute of itâthanks, Joanne == I really am so lucky to have found an outlet for creativity that I really love. Funny, for a person who never liked cleaning much I have selected the dirtiest hobby in the world and am cleaning constantly!!
Graduation here on Tuesday for DGS18 and then Sacramento grad. On Friday for DGD17, we are taking the trailer and on the way back spending three nights in Sequoia Nat parkâthen home and two days later DH will head up to DS park ranger to spend a few days just the two of them. I cannot leave as have a few appts that have been postponed already once and need to get done. Will get to be home a month before heading to MT in July for reunion.
I finally went shopping at J Jill and Madewellâboth of which I love. Bought two dresses for graduations and a summer cardigan, scarf, and three tops. Wanted to get some shorts but neither place had any that werenât either super short or jeansâhave to work on that still. Was the first shopping Iâve done for so longâfun!
JoAnne, Iâm not a prayerful person but I do believe in the power of collective positive thinkingâas I hope and will for my sonâs positive outcomes I will include you in my thoughts.
By the way, have you ever thought of going to a research clinic and having them analyze what is going on? Perhaps you already have. Take care.
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jmg44
Transcendent Member
Posts: 938
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Post by jmg44 on Jun 1, 2022 15:45:36 GMT
Attended DGS18âs grad ceremonyâ660 kids in his classâsuch a shame high schools have to be so bigâsome kids just get lost in the shuffle. Afterward, we met up with him outsideâa true super spreader eventâthey had it in the MGM casino arena which is plenty big but the space for getting in and out is so crowdedâprobably about 10% had masks onâwe were 2 of them! So worried about getting covid as it is really up here and we are due in CA Thursday evening for Mollyâs Friday morning ceremony! Only had one hand sanitizer outâand that was right inside the casino doorâwhat the heck are we thinkingâwhy not leave some âgood practicesâ in placeâwould probably cut down on colds and flus and everything.
ran into DD49âs SOBX and his girl friendâOMG, didnât even recognize him as he looks so old and moves like DH! His GF is so overbearing and so hyper and so very plastic! He deserves her! DD was with her BF as were weâDGS went out to have sushi afterwards with us.
DH just left with the camper/trailerâhe will be in CA on Thursday afternoonâI will fly tomorrow morning. Nice for me!
Has been so strange to be home and not doing pottery the past few days! Just cannot start anything given we will be gone a whole week. But I really miss it.
Hope all is going wellâhappy June!
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Post by holly2007 on Jun 7, 2022 0:00:40 GMT
Hi All,
Good to hear from you, Jo Anne. I donât know if I have the patience for socks. I canât believe your DGD is 15. I believe this is the one that was born around when I started posting on this thread in 2007? Yes, I still teach the online class. It is in addition to our regular jobs. My sister takes her nursing boards next week. She has a job lined up as an ER nurse pending passing the boards.
Joan, your pottery is beautiful. I know it must be gratifying to create something so tangible. Congratulations to your DGS and DGD!
My parents helped me get my patio fixed up this weekend. It is part of my masterâs graduation present. Iâm glad to finally have some organization. Work has been frustrating. I wonât say too much since this is a public forum, but I am pretty burned out.
I have some stuff growing in the garden. Iâm disappointed because the worms got the brussels sprouts and wouldnât let up. They would have been very healthy plants otherwise.
Sue, I hope the house stuff has settled down!
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jmg44
Transcendent Member
Posts: 938
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Post by jmg44 on Jun 11, 2022 17:36:20 GMT
Sue, Happy Birthday!! Hope you are finding some stress relief in your move in and settlement!
will post more later.
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Post by nov21987 on Jun 12, 2022 21:12:59 GMT
Hi! Thanks for birthday wish, Joan! Low key day, very hot. There was an event at the club in our gated community last night so we are going tonight for dinner. SOs birthday was a few weeks ago and we went out to dinner with our realtor and his wife. We really like them.
So many things going on, a lot of people in and out of our house fixing things. We've signed a contract for insect and pest control service, they come once a month. We have Automation Specialists in to do all our automated shades, security, tv install, lighting and internet. They will eventually do our home theater as well. OMG so many new things. I've had to install apps to control our shades/lighting and another that controls our pool (lighting, temperature, etc), oh yes and we have pool maintenance once a week as well. Our lives have become very complicated compared to back in Philly.
SO had unpacked most of his books and paintings they are in piles on the second floor. Still no word on when the bookshelves will get here, though we are told they are at a port. Who knows whether the architect is lying.
Jojo, good to see you back here! We missed you but understand that you have been going through so much with your health. Are you feeling any better at all?
Holly, is it typical office politics that you are dealing with? Congratulations on graduating! Remember when you first started.
Joan, wow you have a lot happening too. How is DS park ranger doing, did he get the cat scan? Congratulations on your DGS and DGD graduating, she sounds like she is on a great path.
Well my walking 20,000 steps per day went out the window. At first I lost about 3 lbs here even without the walking because we were so busy unpacking etc, but gained that back. I need to start the walking again. I'm thinking that I will wait before going to the club gym, cases are low here, but I'm not ready yet and it's just so damn hot right now, I can't imagine letting my car sit out in the parking lot for an hour and then getting into it after a hard workout.
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jojowo
Epic Member
SHORT AND SWEET GODDESSES
Posts: 438
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Post by jojowo on Jun 16, 2022 6:02:00 GMT
Hi all, I really feel I have taken a turn for the better and I am ! feeling great. So good to be alive and I am so appreciative to God for life!
In reading back in the thread to sign back in, I came across something I missed- CONGRATULATIONS Sue on your marriage!! Donât know how I missed that one!!
Joan-So sorry to hear about your son, the park ranger having the melanoma. I hope they find out soon if there is any metastasis so they can start treatment. Will add him to my daily prayers. There had been such advancement in cancer lately. Did you all hear that they have found a cure for colon-rectal cancer. It is only 6 months out for those treated but so far so good. It is only for those that do not have advanced cases though. But how WONDERFUL.
Holly- stress at work affects all parts of your life. I hope you soon have it resolved. Are you teaching any this summer?
Sue- I know you are running incircles trying to get the house in order!
DS and DDIL and family took us to a Braves-Pirates game Sunday. It was a beautiful day and the Braves win. We had a great time. I felt so good but DH was having trouble with his knee( not the replacement knee) that I think he was miserable. He has an orthodontist appt tomorrow.
Newest family news: CA DS and family will move to Australia in October. A double promotion for Jim. I am very sad to have them so far away- but happy for them it wasnât Thailand or Angola- or some worse place. The bad thing is that it is on the West coast- Perth( I guess that is how you spell it)- the only city on the west coast of any size- they will be surrounded by bush and desert. It is so far away, I will probably never get to visit at my age. I think it is a 24h trip. They asked if we would take their cat and I said yes. She is 20yrs old and VERY docile- named Holly, a female, declawed and cannot go outside. They will be in Australia 3-4 yrs. DGD is very sad too.
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jojowo
Epic Member
SHORT AND SWEET GODDESSES
Posts: 438
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Post by jojowo on Jun 16, 2022 6:02:50 GMT
Bookmarking
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Post by holly2007 on Jun 16, 2022 21:52:02 GMT
Hi All,
Weâre flying through the summer. Our director is retiring in a couple of months and we have searches for that position as well as two other staff positions. This is the first time weâve hired someone from the outside as opposed to promoting someone. I think it will be a good thing. Weâre united in what we want and donât want.
My sister took her boards today. She finds out the results in about a week. She starts in the ER in mid July.
In other news, I got a dog! I pick her up in a week or so. Sheâs a shepherd mix and is very calm. I was trying to wait til my sister moved out, but when the right dog comes along, itâs hard to pass up. Iâm going to name her Kira after Kira Nerys in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
Jo Anne, good to hear from you. Iâm not teaching this summer. Iâm a back up for the Fall. I know Australia is really far away and that will be tough, but thank goodness for Facetime. Iâve always wanted to do a âAround the Worldâ trip like my grandmother did, and do Hawaii, the Japan, Australia, New Zealand, etc. she did Thailand and other places.
Sue, wow, lots of gadgets to play with, lol. Are you keeping the condo in Philly? I graduated last year, but theyâre just now finding time for this part of the gift.
Joan, a new campground with RV hook ups is opening up here on July 1. Just a heads up if you ever come this way. đ
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jmg44
Transcendent Member
Posts: 938
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Post by jmg44 on Jun 23, 2022 3:34:11 GMT
So much news! So nice to hear you are doing well now JoAnneâhealth is just everything ! I have not felt well the past weekâtook three covid home tests as I was sure I had it. Finally took an antigen test yesterdayâstill negativeâapparently there is some weird flu going aroundânow we found out that DHâs former boss and his wife have the exact symptoms I have as does a neighbor down the streetâoff and on fever, off and on nausea, extreme exhaustion, slightly sore throat, itchy/sore earsâ- yesterday I was literally on the couch all day. Today I started out the same but by 2 pm I was free of nausea and fevers and still amâhoping this is the sign I am going to get over this!
DS park ranger is finally divorcedâor will be as soon as judge signsâwhich will probably be tomorrowâthank goodnessâwhat a stress mess of six months! The only good thing about that is that I have become very close to DSâhe was always the âkidâ holding back from letting me be a momânow he calls a lotâhas cried and asked questions and shared openlyâseems to really appreciate knowing he can do so. So something good came of thisâhas been a lot of hours of help tho.
He will finally get CT scan on July 1 in SLC. So hoping that this cancer has not gotten into an organ.
We had the most lovely day weather wise todayâit was warm but heavy clouds all dayânever saw the sunâand we even got a bit of light rain this afternoonânot nearly enough to call it rain but it was a treat nevertheless.
Australiaâwhat a great experience for themâwhat a freaking nightmare to get to! I do know where Perth isâGary and I had hoped to get there some dayâthere is a town on the west coast where you can be on a tether and swim with the whale sharksâour Aussie friends did it and said it was the thrill of a lifetime! But like you, JoAnne I would feel sad cause getting there would be so hard.
Sue, your house will be somewhat like ours in the sense that everything here is run by automationâbecause Gary is an automation, Apple Home KitâSeriâfanatic. The thermostat, back door to garage, garage door, lights in all but kitchen (I said no), patio lights and indoor cameras, sprinkler system outdoor thermometer, indoor humidity thing, tvâall can be operated by voice! Yikes. Sometimes I ask Gary if he could do somehting to brush my teeth at night automatically!
DD 49 here turns 50 soonâher BF is throwing her a birthday party and all the siblings are flying in for itâfun for meâI will get a picture of just our kids and usâno Xâs! LOL. No grandkids except DDâs youngest son will be here tho.
Jordan has been so depressedâI am very worried about himâtrying to helpâas are his friendsâhe attempted suicide while I was gone to CA. I was devastatedâhe has now moved out of the brothersâ aptâwhich I think is very healthy as they are both terribly depressed and have mental health issues. Heâs renting a room from a friend. But he withdrew from his school path againâit really goes to show that growing up within a family where you sit around the table for meals and talk and do things positive together is a total advantage in so many millions of waysâthe damage of being taken away from a parentâeven tho an incompetent oneâand given to another parent who doesnât love or know how to show any loveâand doesnât even talk with youâand being a first generation child of an immigrant who also had family issues and distrusted everyone then died suddenly leaving a virtual train wreck of emotional damage behindâtotal run on sentence hereâand run on disaster. I thought Jordan could overcome all this but the covid years took them all down in so many ways. Heâs so bright and capable and such a good personâkind hearted and caringâjust hard to know how all this is going to work out.
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Post by holly2007 on Jul 12, 2022 22:03:38 GMT
Hope all is well. Kira is adjusting slowly. Once I get my septic tank fixed, I can finally get a fence. It seems like it is one thing after another.
The garden is getting going. I have had soy beans and spaghetti squash that turned out well. I also decided to try some hulless corn, used for popcorn or polenta.
Walking Kira has doubled my step count. I am going about 15-20,000 steps a day. Used to be that I would feel a difference weight wise immediately, but not so much this time. I think the antidepressant is making it harder to get it off.
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jmg44
Transcendent Member
Posts: 938
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Post by jmg44 on Jul 12, 2022 23:46:55 GMT
I am in Bozeman, MT, loving the weatherâwalked this morning at 57Âș in beautiful mountain foothills neighborhood.
DH comes tomorrow in late pmâthen on Thursday we will all drive to Helena to see the Archie Bray Foundationâa Mecca for potters to get to intern in, etc.
My friend Karen is 82âhas slowed down quite a lot but still managed to go and do a bit of shopping with me todayâI bought a neat piece of jewelry and two sets of Firefly earrings (I have a few pieces of it and love itânot super expensive but always looks good.
I am still feeling covid like symptoms that come and goâextremely tired off and on. So frustrating.
Had hoped to see my cousin but heâs not home-had to go to SLC for a funeral so I missed him. Heâs the one I made latte mugs for him and his wife when they were in UT still in the spring.
Karen cooks way too fattening for meâlots of cream and butterâand sugary things sitting aroundâhard for me that way.
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jmg44
Transcendent Member
Posts: 938
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Post by jmg44 on Jul 24, 2022 15:56:16 GMT
Whatâs up everyone? I am home for a week before leaving for San Diego beach weekâstill have covid symptoms=-=so tired of itâhow did I manage to draw the long covid card??? Very tired of being tired.
But otherwise all is fine hereâwe are getting about a four day break in a terribly hot sessionâgot up to 112Âș for several days hereâMontana was so hot up in NE corner where the reunion was that we left a day earlyâwas predicted to hit 107Âș last Sunday and the events in my hometown meant no AC for dinners, etc. had excellent visits with my classmates and others older who knew me and my family on Friday and Sat so we came home 2 days earlyâsaw my son in SLC the last night on way home.
this week we are predicted to get some rainâso hoping it actually happensâbut the highs will be in 98Âș range and will feel cool now that weâve been cooked! LOL
I finally have tomatoes that are starting to ripenâhoping I can pick before leaving for beachâthey are nice and large. I planted a bit too late this year as we had such a weird spring.
Wondering how you are doing, Sue? Did the shelves come? Are you okay?
JoAnne, hoping you are continuing to do better?
DS Park Ranger had good newsâhis melanoma so far has not matastecized to any organs so instead of starting chemo, he will have monthly blood tests to monitor the WBC count I guess. Cannot spell that word and auto correct isnât giving me any infoâsorry.
DS in SLCity is having serious back surgery on 8;29âone disc in his back (L5/S1 ) is entirely goneâthey have to go in and add a cushion, straighten if possible, and fuseâheâs very concerned but the pain is nearly unbearable with no disc.
We are going to explore electric cars for me at a special electric car event in San Diego in Sept and go to DGD18âs family weekend in Missouri in Septâbusy times coming back. Hoping I feel better by then. I did read that long covid for fully boosted people lasts months as opposed to years like my neighborâs daughter.
Holly, I imagine your garden is amazing now!
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Post by nov21987 on Jul 24, 2022 21:29:38 GMT
Hi!
Sorry I've been missing. The days are flying by I can't believe we've been here for over 2 months already.
Joan, so glad to hear your DS scans were clear! That is a huge relief. Wow, I can't believe you got Covid. Do you know where/how you got it? My fear would be to get long Covid, I hate being sick. Whenever I come down with anything I immediately start taking care of myself (instead of soldiering on like I'm invincible) so that it doesn't get worse. SO is the type to soldier on and now that he is older he listens more when I tell him to take it easy.
Your DGD's learning dancing is a great thing, I think like gymnastics, it teaches discipline, a good thing to have for all aspects of life.
Very sad to hear about Jordan, after all that he and his brother went through, to have these mental health issues.
Jojo, how are your stomach and leg issues? I hope they have figured out what is causing the IBS. Australia sure is far away. Our last cruise ended in Perth in March 2020, we flew back to US a few days before they shut everything down. Australia is beautiful though, quality of life really great. If you break down the flight there and spend a few days in say Singapore, that might not be as hard on you.
Holly, how is Kira doing? Good job getting all those steps in, even though you're not losing, it's still good for you. We put our condo on the market, almost sold it, contract signed etc. Then she backed out. I'm fine with keeping the condo.
So people from several trades have been in our house at least 4 days each week. They're all very nice but just commotion, noise, etc. SO and I have the house all to ourselves on the weekends. A few weeks ago we got a water softening system, now have a contract with someone to come 3-4X per year. There was some damage already with hard water stains simply because the house was under construction for so long and the architect/developer didn't take care of it. They've been removing stone floor tiles and replacing them because they didn't set properly. Another guys spent 1 1/2 weeks fixing our wood ceiling for plugging holes, etc.
The book shelves are on a ship, instead of going to the west coast it went east and now we're not sure whether it's going by land or sail around. But...we are getting more and more settled.
We have a cruise in September...I don't know if you remember we were going Reykjavik to Barbados. I think it's 26 or 27 days. Going to Greenland, Canada down the east coast. Very different from the warm weather cruises we have been doing. This was postponed from last year. We are sailing on their newest ship which construction delays caused the postponement. The inaugural sailing of this ship is next week. This ship has 2 submarines in it and zodiacs, etc. They will give us winter coats and we can rent boots so that's good. I spent the afternoon on the Patagonia website ordering water resistent pants and warm base layer tops.
I'm a little nervous about the omicron though I hope they have a new booster targeting omicron before we leave
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jmg44
Transcendent Member
Posts: 938
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Post by jmg44 on Jul 26, 2022 3:58:37 GMT
Sue, good to hear from you! I probably got covid when we did the two graduations, then mollyâs party, four days later the retirement party and anniversary partyâall inside. Today has been a rough dayâdidnât even feel I could play with clay! Hoping tomorrow is a break day! Am not gaining weight so that is goodâaltho I have not been exercisingâjust not eating between meals other than a few grapes or a spoon of peanut butter âsometimes I have a date with a couple almonds stuffed insideâmy version of a candy bar with healthful vitamins and minerals and fiber! LOL
I have started doing my floor stretches at night again and my core exercises. If I wake up feeling better I might do gentle yoga tomorrow. Have not been at the gym in 3 weeks!
We finally had clouds todayâthreatened rain but only had about ten drops per inch and then it stopped out here. Ugh! We want rain so badly.
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jmg44
Transcendent Member
Posts: 938
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Post by jmg44 on Jul 28, 2022 22:13:08 GMT
Two halfway decent daysâstarted taking Singular again at my doctorâs nurseâs requestâhave a dr appt in about two weeks in case Iâm still having bad daysânurse thingks I have terrible allergies that are complicating everything even moreâand I must say the terrible draining has nearly stopped already. Still very tired but able to walk about half a mile today without doing me inâwill go longer tomorrow and get back to my two miles gradually. Feeling hopeful again.
Getting packed for the beachâhave my swim bag packedâswim suit pieces I bought for Hawaii and never got to wearâthey all fit even better now so thatâs good. I wouldnât look too bad if you could pin back all the wrinkly leg and arm skin! LOL. Maybe this time we will actually get a week at the beach!
we had a downpour last night about 8 pmâfor about 30-40 minutesâso this morning it was only 72 at 7:30 which is amazingly cool for here at that time of day in July! Was such a treat.
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