My Weblog

Getting old is never boring...............

When I came in from outside yesterday, my back was really aching and I felt as though a muscle spasm was just waiting to happen in my left gluteus maximus. To ease my back, I laid down "for a few minutes". As it turned up I woke up 3 hours later. And I couldn't move my left leg without an urge to squeal in pain. What in the heck could I have done to myself while I was sleeping? I don't have a clue, but something (I presume a muscle) was hurting way up high where the front of the thigh meets the groin area. Somehow I made it to my office where I latched onto my cane. I got the cane 3 years ago when I fell and broke my wrist and injured my right leg in the same exact area, different leg. I was momentarily filled with dread as that previous time I was pretty much chair bound for several weeks and only got really able to move around after 6 PT sessions and about 2 months time. I dosed myself with some Ibuprofen and some muscle relaxers and wiggled around til I could get a heating pad in the proper position. And I pretty much stayed put til I headed for bed. Before falling asleep I reminded the Lord that He is in control of this body and that I had made a commitment to working outside daily for 5-15 minutes. I'd have to break my commitment if I woke up this way, but it was up to Him. "Thy will be done........"

And when I woke up this morning the pain was completely gone and still is. He's a great God! 

It pays to do the math..........

I like cream in my coffee. Not heavy cream, half and half. An enjoyable alternative for me is canned evaporated milk. Not that long ago, the price on evaporated milk went up. I decided I'd keep some around in case I ran out of the other stuff, but otherwise, I'd transition to half and half. because I decided, like a numbskull it was cheaper. I just did an ounce for ounce comparison and i want to confess. I shoulda done the math. Right now, at my local Kroger, half and half is running 5.49 for 32 ounces. That works out to 17 cents an ounce. I buy the house brand of evaporated milk. Kroger frequently offers 50 cents off on 2. They normally cost $1.39 for a 12 ounce can. Full price would be about 12 cents an ounce. With a coupon, that would be about 8 cents an ounce. And, right now Kroger evaporated milk is on sale for $1.25 a 12 oz can and there is a 50 cent coupon. So, right now that's about 9.5 cents a can. Guess I'm gonna stock up on evaporated milk!

Master Gardener I'm Not......

In my last post I told you about my Birthday "greetings" from the City. "Clean up this landscape or pay $120." Well, frankly, I don't have $120 I can afford to spend on this. I immediately dashed off an e-mail to the "inspector", explaining that I am a widow, have no family in the area, have a weak left hand, a messed up right wrist, and don't have the money to hire someone to do the work. I promised to faithfully spend 5-15 minutes a day to do what I can. I've been faithful to that promise, skipping only the day it rained and Christmas Day. It's a real problem for me. I bought one of those mini saws but hadn't used it. Well, I've used it now and let me tell you, for a little old lady that thing kicks like a mule. I've been avoiding it as much as possible. I know I'll have to use it sooner or later, but I'm comfortable with later. They want the dead hedges cleaned up as well as the desert weeds. I've managed to thin out the hedges a lot by just breaking the weaker branches with my hands. I've taken on two pf the smaller desert weeds and they are a pain. They are not heavy enough wood to curb the saw's kick but the stems are thick enough  I can't do much damage with all my "might" applied to breaking them. 

I still haven't worked out a decent way to deal with the trash this creates. I do not want to buy a big ole trash can. The best I've been able to come up with is a kitchen sized can. If these sticks were straight, I think I could put quite a few of them in that. But, dead pieces of hedge are irregular in shape and don't work well in that small a trash can. But, have you priced those large trash cans lately? If not, be sure to take your blood pressure meds before you do! They are so expensive!

Today I drew blood. A branch broke off and managed to make two holes in my right arm in the process. Obviously, since I'm so good at this stuff, I should have work gloves that go to my elbows, not just a coupla inches above my wrists. I kept working anyway, determined to get my time in. I was glad I've been wearing a dark hot pink/bright magenta sweater. At least the blood won't show up much on it!

Every time I go out there, I come back in with an aching back and a muscle in my left butt cheek threatening to spasm. I am telling myself to be thankful for the workout--I'll be stronger for it down the road. 

I have decided I need to do an up to date freezer inventory. I sure don't like thinking about that. It's such a lot of work--lifting, bending, etc., not even considering it's pretty chilly in the garage and I'll have my hands in a freezer to boot. But, it's time I knew exactly what's in there and what I can process in the canner to make shelf stable. At least, having the canner going will warm up the kitchen! 

I am planning a low spend January. Somethings I'll still have to get at the grocery store--half and half for my coffee, a fresh vegetable here or there, and maybe some fruit. If I limit my spending in January by eating up things that are getting older, I can save some on the grocery budget. There's a case lot sale coming soon--no I don't know for sure when, I just know we're about due. By eating out of what I have stocked up in January, maybe I will have a bit extra to buy come cans of tomatoes, canned fruit, canned evaporated milk, etc when the sale rolls around. That's the plan anyway. 

Bad news/Good news

The Bad News

So, a couple of days ago, I went out to head to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription. When I arrived home, I saw a paper taped to my garage door. I carried it into the house and found out I had a citation with a penalty of $120 on it. I had 10 days to 1) tape up the front door of a freezer I haven't had the money to have hauled away and 2) chop down my dead hedges and 3) chop down some desert weeds that have grown up "in public view" around the property. Oh, my! I immediately went on Amazon and ordered a roll of duct tape for next day delivery. And the following day I went out and taped the door shut. I have no idea how having this done would benefit anyone. I have seen a total of 2 small children, siblings, in this subdivision in the last several years. And, I have only seen those two with their parents when they are out for a walk. Further, The freezer was placed in such a way that if anyone tried to open the door, the door would have hit an exterior wall of the house before anyone could have gotten in there to hide. But, I did what was asked.

The next problem was the dead stuff and weeds. I had purchased online one of those Saker mini-saws that are advertised endlessly on you tube. My thought was that maybe I could use that to get rid of some of the vegetation. Well, it had just been delivered but I read through the instruction manual and started charging the battery. Today I decided come hell or high water I was gonna see what I could do. The first puzzle was the battery. I would put it on and it would fall off. Took me about 4 tries to get it to stay on. Then I oiled it, though only God knows if I oiled it where it needed to be oiled. Then I screwed up my courage and went outside. The first thing I discovered was that it's really uncomfortable and HARD to run it. You have to depress a button and squeeze the handle simultaneously. Truly, my hands are not strong so this is hard for me. And, to make matters worse, that thing kicks back, far more that I expected. Further, the bending really makes my back hurt and I can't be on my feet for long. This is gonna be a long row to hoe. Pray for me, please. The Lord is gonna have to supply a lot of strength for me to get through this...........

The Good News

Yesterday I got a phone call from 2 or my three grandchildren. My oldest grandson and his little sister. I was so thrilled. I had to have a bit of tearfulness afterward. It was such a blessing to hear from them. I haven't heard from my granddaughter for a year. It's been at least 2 years for my grandson. And, imagine, they called to wish me a Happy Birthday. Well, it was a day late, but that is not important. I'm just thrilled they remembered me. 

Happy Birthday to me...........

It hasn't been a great day so far. I woke up with my back screaming--even before I got vertical. That's mighty unusual in that normally lying down relieves pain pretty well. It was a really intense pain to boot. I took a couple of tizanidine. I'm a little wobbly but I don't hurt. That too is unusual as those pills usually do next to nothing. 

In spite of that, I've managed to start a load of laundry as well as taking veggie stuff out to the compost pile and a bag of recyclables to the outside bin. I've pulled together a pile of papers that meet the criteria for my daily filing ritual.

I've decided I am going to do an inventory of my home-canned food. I have had to resort to a bunch of places for storage and I'm concerned something will fade from my memory. I don't want to have to have something to age while I eat more recent stuff. Aged canned food is usually less nutritious than it was when first canned. In that I've declared myself retired from preparing tax returns, I have some filing cabinet space available. That works well for storing Mason jars.  Also, the capacity of a canner is about 8 jars or 15 if the jars are double-stacked. So, things are put away over time. That means I might have 7 or 8 types of food in the same place. I put it where I can when I pull out another canner load. so, one drawer might contain chicken, baked beans, cole slaw, canned yams, and ground beef. This room is not well lit, so I have to search multiple drawers by flashlight. It's a pain in the butt! Gotta fix it.

So, it being a "special" day, I'm going to have some leftover fried rice for dinner. That sounds celebratory, doesn't it? Well, at this age every day is a celebration of continual life as opposed to its beginning. Thank God, I woke up this morning.

I couldn't help myself......

About two weeks ago, I canned 7 pints of coleslaw. The lady who broadcast the recipe and instructions advised letting it sit for 2 months to allow all the flavors to mesh. I couldn't stand myself. My curiosity overwhelmed me. Tonight I cracked a jar. I did have one jar which I'd topped off with "brine" because I didn't have enough of the cabbage mix. I decided I would sacrifice that jar, saving the full jars just in case it wasn't all that tasty after only two weeks. It was excellent, though When I make it again, I'll reduce the sugar a little. Anyway, I have 6 pints left to add as a side to whatever else I'm eating.

Tonight I made some "Asian Chicken Ramen", another recipe I found on the Internet. I've had a jar of home-canned pork sitting out, in the way, awaiting some kind of inspiration. I decided that I would try making this recipe with the pork instead of Chicken. It was really good and I didn't have to use the "unhealthy" flavoring packets that come with the noodles. I'll be making it again and, who knows, I might even use chicken next time, LOL. I have some leftovers--probably enough for two to three more servings. Something to add to my growing collection of frozen entrees.

Got an e-mail the other day telling me about a "sale". I was raised in the south. My mother never really figured out how to cook "southern", but I found out about it when I visited friends houses. There I learned about fried Spam and fried bologna. And I learned to like both of those items, much to my mother's dismay. Anyway, the e-mail alerted me to a deal on Spam on Amazon. I checked at my local grocery store and the asking price there per can is $3.99. On Amazon I could get a pack of 12 for $2.75 each. Yep, you guessed it. I now own 12 more cans of Spam than I used to.

I thought this was pretty cool, so I went looking for another offer. I LOVE pasta with white clam sauce. I will usually make a batch large enough to eat for 3 meals. That requires 2 cans at $2.99 each. That price point raises the price per serving beyond what I want to pay. I managed to grab a pack of 12 for $1.40 a can. That's less than half price, y'all. I see a number of servings of pasta with white clam sauce in my future.......

You can rest assured I'll be looking for deals like this from now on.