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An Off Day

It's been an off day. Somehow, yesterday I screwed up my back. So, I've spent a lot of hours today, in bed, doped up on muscle relaxers, and wearing a back brace when I was vertical. Well, at least, maybe I caught up on my sleep.......... It's somewhat better now, but I still need to be VERY careful when I try to stand up or move around. 

With my "naps", I didn't get done nearly as much as I'd hoped, but some progress has been made. That's something to celebrate, particularly since every movement has been done in slow motion with great care.

I bought a movie this past week. It is a movie called "Argo". It arrived today. It's actually a movie I had not heard of until I ran across it on Amazon. I thought it might be interesting. Yes, it is! It is directed by Ben Affleck who also stars along with John Goodman and Alan Arkin. It revolves around the "revolution" in Iran and the taking of American hostages. History, but history made within my lifetime. I can still remember that we were in the car driving from Vegas to LA when the hostages were finally released. At that time, there was no radio coverage for most of the 5-hour trip. But, we were overjoyed to hear the hostages were coming home, just as we were approaching LA. 

The movie is a little ripe as to language. Who am I kidding? It's ripe, downright ripe. But there is no bloodshed and no sex. I think it's worth watching in spite of the language. It uses actual film footage shot by news crews at the time. Really brought back memories....... And reminds me, all too well, of how much the radical Islamic contingent hates us--you know, the guys our President has "negotiated" a treaty with.........

Not much else going on here. I'm now going to try make it from my desk to my bed with a minimum of screaming. I'm not tired, but I can tell that my back is, which spells trouble unless I lie down. Goodnight! 

Related articles

'Our Man in Tehran': 'Argo' terror, from those who lived it

Celebrating the small stuff..........

WEDNESDAY MORNING

Yesterday was the first day I took the new 150mcg thyroid prescription. Glory Hallelujah--I did not have a single full fledged hot flash all day! All by itself, that is enough to make me dance a jig, LOL. What a relief not to have to worry if my deoderant is up to the task! 

Other than that, I don't notice any difference and I didn't expect to. It takes a minimum of 3 weeks for a change in dose to show up in the bloodstream. Maybe it is enough to think that there will be some improvement over the next 3 weeks. At least that's what I'm trying to tell myself.

I went down to the store yesterday and caught Mrs. Owner on her way out the door, headed to the bank. I don't know if it was the fact that she was in a hurry to rush out or if there is a hidden message in here to which I should pay attention. However, she made NO indication that she has an expectation of losing an employee, yet, I picked that up from another employee who says one of the new hires is moving to Florida the end of the month. I know that place well enough to know if one employee knows that, they all do. And, if the employees know that so does she. So, was she just thinking about rushing out the door to get to the bank and get back, OR was she just not mentioning it because she's decided she doesn't want me back. I don't know. But, it seems evident to me that if I'm supposed to go back there, according to God's plan, I am going to have to pray another employee outta there.

In the meantime, I need to just keep on applying for jobs. 

There is all sorts of bad news on the budget side of my life. First, Joe negotiated a loan modification shortly before his death. I've received notice that that will expire in the next couple of months, raising my mortgage payment by $256 a month. Believe me, when I tell you that I've checked all my pockets and it ain't there. God is my source and this is going to take some supernatural provision! And, one of the biggest expenses in Nevada is air conditioning. I try to be as conservative as possible with that but there's only so high I can set that thermostat and still survive this heat.

I've had weather stripping installed. I had one door that was badly installed and had no threshhold. That's been fixed. I added solar film to two west-facing windows. All this has been done in the last year. Why? Because our local power bills are estimated to go up 10% per year for the next 5 years at least. Given how I gasp when I get my summer power bills right now, I have no clue how I'm going to pay more. It's another God problem. I have made up my mind that I need to be contacting swamp cooler companies for estimates right now. 

We have one more month of scorching heat. September will still be hot but a little less brutal than August. Then summer fades into fall/winter. My thinking is that about now, swamp coolers should be less expensive or about to be. Well, it always pays to research, LOL. I just looked on line and talked to some folks. Seems round about October/November is the time of year to do this. So, I'll put it on hold for now...........But it's pretty much a cinch I HAVE to get it done. I can't afford to talk about it another year........

THURSDAY MORNING

Hot flash alert. Yes, I had one. Yesterday evening around 8:45. But, that was the only one in two days. I can handle that a lot better than 6 or more a day.....

I have been doing laundry and laundry and more laundry. It was reaching a critical situation where the choice was do laundry or wander through life in various stages of undress. I thought laundry sounded better. I ordered a drying rack from Amazon. I am going to have to do what I can to cut my power bill. I didn't want to spend the money, but, at least, I spent money on something the cost of which will ultimately be recouped. For right now, though, there are clothes hanging all around my bathroom, drying..........

I am looking around, trying to find additional ways to save on energy. At this point all west-facing windows have solar film on them. There is a door, right next to my desk that HAD a solar screen on it. However, it was a "Joe job". Joe looked at me like I was speaking Greek when I told him "Measure twice, cut once". So, it doesn't fit well. But, I think I can kinda make it fit into the hole if I tap on it a bit with a hammer.......... I'm gonna try. That leaves one half of one window in the dining room with no solar screen. I had a solar screen on that one, but, it, too, was a "Joe job". It fell out so often it finally broke up. I guess I can try to get that replaced. I do have two south-facing windows, but they are in rooms where the doors are kept constantly closed. So, I don't think that is having much impact on the power bill............

In the living room, vent covers are removed. I know where the vent covers are. I'm not at all sure about where the screws might be. If I had removed the vent covers, the screws would be taped to the vent covers. However, Joe removed those vent covers, so if those screws still exist in this house, I'm gonna have to search for them. Also, I had insulating pads behind all the light switches and outlet covers. However, the outlet covers are off and only God knows where the insulating pads might be. I don't really even know where the outlet covers might be.........I sincerely doubt I can find those........ But, I can't convince myself that those account for a lot of heat gain. 

Years ago, I started to make curtains for the office windows. I never finished. Of course, I still have the fabric. And the insulating lining. So, I could pick back up on that and see if I can block a bit more sun that way. That is the last of my "cheap" fix ideas.

I did have one more idea that would be more expensive and VERY physical. Have you read about "earth bags"? Folks are actually building buildings of all sorts with them. They are polypropylene bags, filled with plain old dirt, layered like huge bricks, to create walls. Around here, one thing that a few folks have done is "berm" the outside walls. I'm not thrilled with that idea, but the "earth bag" idea might be worth thinking about. I could actually build a wall of earth bags outside my current outer wall, which should act like insulation. I would either have to go dig up the desert behind my house and truck the dirt back here or have dirt delivered. I'm going to have to do a lot more research on that idea, though. Although it would cost more that I would want to spend, it is a "cheap" fix if you have a normal budget.....

Well, for today, I need to work on the kitchen, as always. Also, continue working on the desk, as always. Just caught a medical billing company in a $50 billing error.......... And, I think I'll run the vacuum cleaner again and try to bring a little more order to that linen closet area. I am soon going to have to make a run to a donation center as the van is getting pretty full.......

I am off to tackle some of this. YOU have a BLESSED day!  

This week in the store............

I put a fun new kit in the store this week. It's a great one for any outdoor photos you might be looking to scrap. 

I thought you might like a closer look at the elements, papers, and alphas. Here ya go!

From now to the end of the week, it's on sale at 20% off. You can find it at Scrapbird: http://scrapbird.com/products_new.html

 

Faint Kudos to the cook--Peach Dump Cake

In so far as I know, the "dump cake" became popular in the mid to late 1970's.  I remember folks where I worked talking about dump cakes, bringing them in for co-workers and passing recipes about. It took me a long time to try making one and I'm not sure it was worth my while.

It's edible, but not, by any means, gourmet fare. A couple of weeks ago, I ran across a recipe for a dump cake somewhere in my blog reading. I don't know where. I ended up googling for a dump cake recipe and decided a peach dump cake should be tasty and summerish. The recipe I found called for only 3 ingredients which sounded simple enough to me, LOL. 1 large can of peaches, 1 yellow cake mix (I used Betty Crocker Super Moist), 3/4 c butter. That's it. 

I began by greasing a baking dish, a fairly large one. I preheated the oven to 375. I dumped my peaches into the baking dish and then dumped the cake mix on top. I used the back of a spoon to spread the cake mix evenly over the peaches. I very lightly sprinkled some cinnamon over the top of the cake mix. I cut the 3/4 cups of butter into 12 pats and spread them over the top of the cake mix in a somewhat even manner. Then I put the concoction into the oven to bake for 40 minutes. 

I think my first mistake was wanting to dig into it too soon after I took it out of the oven. I did not expect the juice to still be juicy, but it was. I'm wondering if more of the juice might have been absorbed by the cake layer if I'd left it alone a bit longer. Secondly, I wish I had added more cinnamon. The cake has a strong flavor I attribute to some attempt at vanilla flavoring. I think the whole thing would taste better with more of a cinnamon flavor. 

Edited, next morning: One of the secrets to this dish is definitely letting it sit. This stuff is now moist and peachy, but no runny juice.

Anyway, overall, it's edible. It is actually good. It's certainly easy enough. I just might try this again sometime. I think this, served with ice cream or a fancy blob of whipped cream would make a good "emergency" dessert when company's coming and you're not prepared. Around here? I ate some for breakfast. Pretty tasty with a cup of coffee!

 

Kudos to the cook--Banana Bread

When I went down to the store the other night, I ran into the guy I've always called "my usual partner". He came in to get the bananas that were about to be out of date. I, half jokingly, poked him and whispered "grab 3 for me". I didn't know until we were outside that he did! I guess I'm going to have to go back down there and pay for them or at least offer. An employee can take that which is outdated. Since I am getting no hours, am I an employee? I dunno........ 

Anyway, a while back, when I was still actively working there, I found a recipe for banana bread that stays fabulously moist for days and days. Since I live alone, that is pretty important to me. In case it is important to you, here's the recipe:

3 bananas, mashed

2 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup milk

1 3/4 cup flour

1 1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

Here's what I did:

I preheated the oven to 325 and greased a loaf pan. I dumped the bananas, eggs, oil, and milk into the mixing bowl and started her up. When that was well mixed, I added the flour, sugar, baking soda and vanilla and mixed again. I poured this into the greased loaf pan and 1 hour and 20 minutes later pulled the baked loaf from the oven. It is just as good as I remembered it.

I actually cut the sugar to 1 cup. That seems sweet enough to me, but if you want it sweeter, use what the recipe calls for. I used coconut oil in place of vegetable oil. I also used 3/4 cup whole wheat and 1 cup white flour instead of all white flour. 

If you like banana bread, I think you might REALLY like this recipe. In the past, before this recipe, it was always a problem to eat banana bread before it got more dried out than I fancied. I'm glad to have found something that works better for me.

Well, good morning..........

Actually, it's afternoon on the clock but I slept forever last night so I woke up late and it's still morning on my body. I have had such a struggle getting to sleep the last few nights. Lying in bed for HOURS waiting for sleep even though I am tired. I decided the situation was getting desperate last night and took a benedryl before I went to bed. Woke up 3 hours later to use the restroom, went back to bed and didn't wake up for a good 6 hours! I couldn't begin to tell you that last time I got 9 hours of sleep. Most likely, the last time I took benedryl, LOL. 

The doc even suggested I buy some sort of OTC sleep aid. THAT is not going to happen. First, when he finally gets my dosage of thyroid meds where it needs to be, the problem will go away. Second, in the meantime, I can buy a honkin' big bottle of Benedryl at Costco for just a few bucks. And, it certainly works! 

So, I've had plenty of sleep, but I'm still draggy. That dragginess is a thyroid thing. Someday it will improve.......... I am going to laugh til folks think I'm crazy when the level of my thyroid meds reaches the level prescribed for me by my Mexican doctor. I miss him and I wish I still had the ability to go to Mexico for doctor visits and meds. These days, with the cost of gasoline, I can't save any money doing that so it's not on my radar. 

And to think I have been going through all this for so long because of doctors........... First, I had two trainee docs cut my meds substantially, not based on anything other than the dosage was "a little unusual". Then, with the pneumonia, they gave me an antibiotic that contains an ingredient that blocks the body's ability to process and absorb thyroid meds. Not very smart...........But, who knows? Maybe the prescribing doc got a new 52inch color TV out of it............That happens, you know. It's very hush-hush within the medical sales industry, but, yes, docs get bonuses for prescribing a certain drug company's products, particularly when those products are new on the market. And, you, the patient, get to help pay for those TV's, trips, etc. You pay more at the pharmacy for a new product because the cost of development is being re-couped from your pocket. 

I'm not faulting the drug industry for recouping costs of R&D in developing drugs. Every manufacturer does that, no matter what he makes. It's that the docs are influenced by these "bonuses" in determining what to prescribe. THAT I mind! A lot of the time a doc knows less about a drug than the sales person who promoted it to him/her. So, you aren't getting that "new" drug necessarily because it is more effective. And, though it might be more effective generally, before you have to switch from what was working, wouldn't it help to know why the doc thinks this new drug is going to be more effective in YOUR case? Because you certainly are going to pay for it! 

I got one more answer from the doc I wanted to note here. The last couple of times, as he was leaving, he's told me to stay out of the heat. That's kind of an unusual comment to hear from your doctor. I've been left wondering if he thought my exposure to the heat would bring on another heart attack or something. Worrisome. I asked him some questions about that on Wednesday. Turns out he says he is just worried about patients becoming dehydrated. 

Well, I am pretty darned careful about that. First of all, I force myself to drink 60 oz of water daily. I don't like, don't want water--at least not til I take my first couple of swallows daily. Then, somehow, it becomes more appealing. I KNOW how much water I am drinking because I have a 20 oz bottle I fill to the brim 3 times each day. I also allow myself 24oz of coffee daily. That will most likely be reduced once the thyroid stuff straightens out, but, for now, it's called self-medicating, LOL. I know that coffee does not count like water. In other words, 24 oz of coffee does NOT equal 24 oz water. But, based on what I've found, 24 oz of coffee does equal 16-18 oz water (depending on what source you look at). So, I am well within requirements for water consumption. Additionally, my weight is lower than it's been in a long while--the result of being too darned sick to grocery shop/cook/eat for months. That would mean I am probably better hydrated than I've ever been.

I've got a tip for you that MAY work for you. At the corners of my mouth there are two "stringy things" under the skin. When I have enough water in my system, you can't see them and I can't feel them with my tongue. But, when I'm low on water, they stand up like soldiers. Ugly soldiers, LOL. My mother was/is notorious for not drinking enough water. I can't tell you how many times I saw the "stringy things" on her. So, I know there is at least one other person in the world built like me. If you get "stringy things" in the corners of your mouth, drink at least 4-5 ounces of water, give it a few minutes, and then check on the status of the "stringy things". I'll bet you can't feel them or see them any more. 

Well, enough of all that stuff. I have work to do. I am ripping apart an older kit with a color palette I love and redoing it. So, design work to do. 

And, of course, there's always housework......... YOU be BLESSED today!

I am not a happy camper!

I just had to send the following e-mail to my doctor's office:

Dallas from your office just called me and told me that he called me on 7/9 to tell me the prescription had been changed to 150 mcg. He states the pharmacy told him they had filled that prescription on 7/15 and given it to me.

 

1) My last received call, according to my cell phone, from your office was on 6/23/15.

 

2) I am looking at the last prescription refill for levothyroxine. It was filled on 7/5/2015 and is for 137 mcg, per the label on the bottle.

 

3) I did speak to your office on 7/9/15. I called 3 times and got no answer. The 3rd time I left a message in that I could not understand not getting an answer at a doctor's office at 11:45ish on a weekday. As it happens, that is the day the blood was drawn--the date of my last e-mail to you--which is the reason I called your office. Since the lab guy didn't leave my house til 11:45ish that morning, I have difficulty with them having done the test, gotten the results to your office, your employee consulting with you over the results, calling in a new prescription, and calling me to say that had been done all on 7/9/15. And, I am concerned that there is no record of a received call on 7/9/15 on my phone. It's possible--miracles DO happen. I have had this kind of service from a laboratory in Mexico repeatedly, but NEVER, to my knowledge, in the US.

 

4) I DO have a missed call from your office on 7/9/15 at 1:41PM. Are you willing to believe the miracle in #3 above all happened in 2 hours? Well, sometimes God DOES do BIG miracles............I don't know what to make of it. No matter whether you believe in that one, why is my latest prescription bottle marked as filled on 7/5/15?

 

5) I have no debit card charges for a CVS purchase on or after 7/15/15. I just checked my bank account online. In that I keep a detailed budget, I ALWAYS use my debit card at the pharmacy. Additionally, my income is low enough that I am expecting to be able to claim a medical deduction for 2015, with the hospital bill, cost for medicare, and related charges--another reason for wishing to have a record of medical expenses.

 

Make of these dates what you can. In any case, no I do not have a prescription for levothyroxine  150 mcg dated 7/15/15 in my hands. I just looked at every pharmacy bottle in my collection. There are 6 and despite having celebrated my 65th birthday, I am still capable of going through them methodically, one by one. So, when I get to the pharmacy to pick up this prescription, it will be the first time. If you wanted me to have a 60-day supply, I assume you'll have to do something additional to make that happen in that your man says I already picked up 30 days worth that I do not have. I don't want there to be any surprises or questions of communication between you and me, which is the reason for this e-mail. I promise, I won't be chiseling you for an extra refill of 150 mcg levothyroxine because I'm a drug dealer and sold my previous supply to someone illegally, LOL. We can deal with an additional refill, if necessary, on your next visit. (SEE BELOW).

 

Sincerely

 

Marcia L. Parmeley

 

I just received a phone call from CVS's automatic service saying my new prescription was ready. I called back to ask some questions. I spoke with "Liz". They received TODAY a faxed order for 100 mcg Levothyroxine. NOT 150 mcg. Additionally, she checked my records and they have NO RECORD of anything at all for me other than 125mcg and 137mcg on file together with the new fax received today. In order for the dosage to be increased to 150 mcg, you will have to have someone fax a CORRECT order to them.

 

***************************************************************************************************************************

 

I got ready to send this and I started to worry that the employee would get his hands on it and delete it. So, I called the office. I got the Office Manager on the phone and got her direct e-mail and sent this direct to her. Summary is: An employee got caught screwing up and then tried to lie his way out of it. And, so.............he got caught again. Additionally, he is the one who supposedly made the change in the computer to remove my home phone number from my file and substitute my cell phone number, but somehow the lab tech showed up at my house on 7/9 and was unable to reach me by phone because the contact number faxed to him (I saw the document) was the number that dufus had supposedly removed from my file!  And, instead of getting a prescription that was 13mcg higher than my old one, I almost ended up with a prescription that was 37mch lower. It makes me SO angry. I'm just glad I talked to the Office Manager and she called me back later this afternoon to let me know things are supposedly at least straightened out at the pharmacy. 

 

If I didn't like this doctor, this would have me searching for a new doc post haste. 

 

Now, what's really funny (NOT) here is how hard I have had to fight to set the record straight and get a correct prescription and I'm not getting paid for the hours of work I put in on it. AND, with a TSH reading of 13, I sincerely doubt that an additional 13mcg is going to make much difference anyway and what a lot of work it's been. 

Just keepin' the faith..........

I had occasion to make a run to the store tonight. Current news is that one of the 4 new hires is moving to Florida the end of the month. I guess I need to drag my rusty butt down there and see if they remember I work there. This person leaving should free up some hours, I hope. I'll know more in the next day or so. I've actually been praying someone would get offered a better job, but moving to Florida will do, LOL.

Just finished the last raw preview for the 2nd kit I've finished this week. Hooray! I still have plenty more to work on! 

The doctor was here today. I am beginning to like him more and more. I finally got some straight answers as to why he is insisting on increasing the thyroid meds so slowly. He kind of intimated in the past that there was some sort of "FDA protocol" he was following or some sort of regulation involved. Turns out that this is a matter of his concern for "liability". I have had 3 blood tests so far. The results don't make any sense. First reading was a TSH of 31. Second reading was 1.5. Third reading is 13.XX. That reading in the middle is pretty freakish. But, anyway, 13 is certainly NOT in the normal range so, the dose is going up again. I'm glad of that, but I hate that I just paid for a full bottle at 137 mcg on July 5. Now, 17 days later I'm supposed to go pay for another full bottle of 150 mcg pills. I kinda think that is not going to happen. He doesn't want to do another blood test til September, so I think I'm going to finish this bottle before I switch. I let him know that I am going to just keep pestering him til I feel human! 

I wanted to make sure he was aware and had annotated in his file that I deal with muscle spasms. My bottles of muscle relaxers are becoming depleted and I don't want him to feel compelled to come bounce a quarter off my left hip if I have to call him for scripts. I want him to be forewarned that it's a recurrent problem so he doesn't think I'm some sort of crazy druggie or something. So, that is all duly noted now. I could just go to Mexico and buy more for less money. However, the cost of gasoline makes that prohibitive. Also, I've been in the little town I go to on November 1st and it was 100 degrees and humid (there's a river very close by). I do NOT want to be there in August or even September! 

According to him, he's getting ready to do some hiring and firing in his office. Apparently, part of that is because of the e-mail I sent with regard to how much trouble I've been having around getting his staff to call the correct phone number. I guess another patient tracked him down to let him know that he had called the office repeatedly with no answer on the phone and then drove to the doc's office to find everything locked up one Friday afternoon. Seems that patient arrived between 4:30 and 4:45 and had called several times before leaving home. The problem is that the office is supposed to be open until 5. Apparently his staff all voted themselves an early quitting time without the doc's knowledge. However, they got caught............

In addition, someone had noted in my file an increased dose of thyroid meds had been called in to my pharmacy on 7/9/15. No, they didn't even HAVE my pharmacy's phone number til today. All in all, things are not going too well with his staff, poor guy. 

Well, I've been working in that linen closet again. Sure did take me a while to screw up my courage on that one, LOL. Actually, I shouldn't be laughing about that. Rather, I should be, and, honestly, I AM embarrassed about that. I decided I need to go through the pile of sheets I kept and get rid of a bunch of king size fitted sheets. They are not "deep pocket" and I've proven that won't work with the new featherbed. I received the new white fitted sheet today. Thrilled about that........ Just wish I could have seen my way clear to order two instead of one, but that will come down the road.....

Anyway, with regard to decluttering, I decided I have been too conservative. I have been holding onto things because they still have functionality. I really need to go after things with more of an attitude of what I'd get rid of if I were moving. Certainly, if I were moving, I would not be carting with me an assortment of fitted sheets that won't work on my bed......... I do have to say that I believe decluttering is a continuous process and I never believed one visit to each storage area/room would do it. However, I want to do the best job I can now, not leave more for later. So........... I'll be adding those sheets to the donation bag. 

Well, that's what suffices for "news" around here. I'm gonna start getting ready to head down the hall. Nighty-night!

 

My big accomplishment.........

yesterday was a trip to Target. I didn't buy any froufrou stuff, just stuff I needed. And some of it I needed badly!

I ran out of half-and-half days ago. I abhor milk in coffee, particularly since I only own 2% milk. I substituted some evaporated milk but I was down to only enough for about one more cup of coffee. I have been buying Target's house brand for $2.09 a quart and I'm pleased with it. Particularly pleased with it because it's rGbt free (no nasty hormones). So, I snagged 2 quarts of that.

The dogfood supply was getting pretty low. Under normal circumstances, the dogs eat a bit less in summer, but that doesn't seem to be happening around here this year. They are chowing down! So, more dog food HAD to be procured.

I've made some pitchers of sweet tea (you can take the southern girl out of the south, but you can't take the south out of the southern girl). I can't drink tea sweetened with only artificial sweetener, so my sugar supply was dwindling.

I'd eaten all my pickled beets and eggs.

And so it goes..........

I found ground beef on sale, $.50 less a pound than normal. Grabbed two pounds of that. Like a very good girl, immediately on getting that home I dropped the packages from Target into suck-em-up bags to freeze. I really got p o'd at myself when I had to throw away some ground beef with freezer burn the other week. There's no excuse for that when I own a vacuum sealer. You wouldn't believe how long ground beef lasts in the freezer when double wrapped and sealed in a vacuum-packed bag. Give me a gold star.

I needed razor blades/disposable razors. I've been using the same disposable razor for months. I finally got disgusted with that! Oh, my Lord, how the prices have gone up on those. I couldn't believe those prices on the edges of the shelves were real, but careful reading of the verbiage proved they were.

I was almost out of dishwasher detergent. I've been cooking a lot more now that I'm getting healthier. That means more dirty dishes, fewer microwaveable containers........ So, the dishwasher is getting used a lot. Couldn't run out of this stuff. Again, prices! Oh, wow! And, this is one thing where I am brand conscious. In the very hard water we have here, some stuff just makes a mess of the dishes. Cascade for me PLUS a rinse aid.

They had eggs on for a "permanent markdown" in price. And not the itty bitty ones either! Real XL sized eggs. I bought 2 dozen.

I bought dog food. I'm shocked, but Target's price on the big 50 pound bags of Pedigree is still better than Costco's. Only bought one bag though.....

I am a fan of Trader Joe's beefsteak tomatoes. I know I told you that. But I decided to try Target's. We'll see if they are edible. At least they looked like they were picked in a timely manner, not 3 weeks ahead of time. Bought tomatoes, bread, and bacon. I see more bacon and tomato sandwiches in my future, yum! 

I replenished my stock of some items--evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, chocolate chips.

I actually managed to find canned fruit this time. I am a bit shocked at the limited stock for fruits and veggies they have that are canned. They seem to have a decent variety of frozen fruit in large bags, but canned fruit, no. Last time I went, I wanted some canned peaches for a recipe I wanted to make and I couldn't find them. That may be because their canned fruit consists of 2 shelves (bottom two) and only about 4 feet wide. I saw only peaches, pineapple, fruit cocktail on one shelf and only applesauce on the other. Another of the limitations is that they had only one size of cans. I wanted a big can of peaches but had to settle for two smaller ones. Oh, well, at least I found them. Pricey though......

I just finished putting together another batch of pickled beets and eggs. My craving for those is deteriorating a little, but they'll get eaten! So there went 3 cans of sliced beets and a dozen eggs. Look out, body. More magnesium headed your way! 

I met one woman who was dithering over what to buy. She told me she HATES grocery shopping and the only reason she shops at Target is because she can convince herself it's not a grocery store, LOL. I completely understand, though I go there because it's close! And because parking, particularly after about 6PM is a breeze. 

I just pulled a container out of the fridge, wondering what was in it (non-see-thru Tupperware). Heavenly days, it contains some of my cucumber salad I made a few days ago. Wow! I did a good job on that. I'll bet Joe Evans is begging God to let him come back down to earth for just long enough for a bite or two.............He sure loved that stuff! 

I certainly have been getting more veggies than normal. Cucumber salad. A few beet slices stolen straight from the open cans. And now, I'm munching on tuna salad with peas and chopped peppers. My body won't know what hit it, LOL.

I am happy to announce that my design mojo has returned. When my mojo is MIA, I often wonder if I should stop designing. I think I put out some really really cute kits. But, I don't seem to have what it takes to market the stuff well. So, I don't make much money at it. Actually, I think income in general has shrunk even for the "big names" in the industry. But, it certainly does give me joy and I don't have a lot of joy in my life. So, I continue. I am patting myself on the back right now because I have completed two seasonal kits this week! Glory be! I just need to do the raw previews and send them off to my design assistant and this will be completely wrapped up. Both of these are kits I started last summer and just couldn't get finished before I ran out of summer. They'll be going in the store in the next couple of weeks. 

So, I need to get back to work. Got to get those previews all set up. YOU be BLESSED today!

 

Kudos to the cook--Tuna Macaroni Salad

I tried reformatting my goals for yesterday. How'd I do? Well, I got all the kitchen chores completed and I vacuumed every floor from the front of the house to the back. My goodness what a lot of dog hair I vacuumed up! I wish I knew why this big black dog is shedding so much! 

I also got 4 alphas created for the kit I've been laboring over (glory be!). I even have previews made except for the preview for the store at Scrapbird which is "special" (you could translate that as "weird", but I'm not gonna do it, LOL). 

Realizing it's getting close to the end of the month, I also did a lot of backups yesterday. More to go, but I'm making progress. This is really important to me, but sometimes I don't do what I oughtta do and I end up being sorry for it. Not this month! I still have a number of LARGE files to backup, but I want to be sure I get it all done.

I pulled out another kit that is very seasonal and went back to work on it. I started it last summer, but too late in the summer to get it into the store in a timely manner. I then went back to it a few months ago and was stymied. Musta been a low mojo month. Anyway, progress is being made on that kit today!

I did my treadmill thing last night. Proud to say that, even though it was past midnight when I got to it. It HAD to be done..........and it was!

I "cooked" yesterday. I have been wanting to make another batch of macaroni salad. I practically live on the stuff. But I need celery for the recipe I usually use and I don't have any. So, I conjured up something else. 

Here's what I used:

2 cans of tuna

About 4 cups of uncooked macaroni

About 1.5 cups of frozen peas

1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper

1/2 white onion, chopped

1.5 cups of mayonnaise

4 teaspoons of brown mustard

a tiny pinch of garlic powder

4 hard cooked eggs, chopped

There's nothing fancy about the prep. Just cook the macaroni al dente and start dumping the ingredients into a bowl and mix, mix, mix. It turned out pretty darned good! In fact, I'm planning on having some of it for lunch in just a few minutes. I buy red bell peppers when they are on sale. Then I chop them and freeze them in ziplock bags. They freeze well and come out of the freezer with great flavor and texture. I think you could, if you wanted, substitute some low fat yogurt for part of the mayonnaise. I added the brown mustard to add a bit of brightness to the flavor. It worked great. I will have this stuff to munch on for days to come and it's really quite tasty. I don't usually get too inventive in the kitchen because I don't want to use up a bunch of ingredients on a fail. However, this time, I'm pleased with my efforts.

So, what about today?

1) Kitchen--I am going to clean the sinks ala' Flylady. I was too darned tired when that moved to the top of the list last night. I do have a dishwasher to unload. I might actually get past that 7 minute mark this time because the whole bottom rack is full of very large items, so not many. 

2) Linen closet--I didn't go there at all yesterday. So, it's way up on the list today. I still have that bottom shelf in my sights. And, I want to deal with some of the stuff I hauled out of there and get it either bagged up to donate or put away.

3) I skipped the desk yesterday. I know from experience I cannot do that without risking piles and piles of stuff accumulating on the surface of the desk. So, I will be filing and paying bills and working on the budget and all that stuff today.

During my "break"/sitting times, I will be deleting e-mails, unzipping and organizing files, and doing backups.

I forgot to tell you I pulled the trigger on the purchase of a fitted white sheet from Amazon. I would have liked to get two, but I will have to try to manage a second one later. But, this will make any number of sheet sets usable again. The fitted sheets that came with the sets were not "deep pocket" and with this new, very lofty featherbed I have, just were not working.

Well, I'm anxious to see how this day goes. YOU be BLESSED today.